Category Archives: Cake

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

February 28, 2014

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This was my Valentine’s treat to myself. And Dustin and Clara. But I never know for sure if Dustin will like a dessert I make, unless it’s chocolate chip cookies or  a brownie without nuts or frosting. He’s picky about his cake, can’t handle anything too rich or chocolatey (there is no such thing), and claims to dislike any dessert tainted with fruit, raisins, or coconut. Except that he usually eats them anyway. I don’t know what to believe so I continue baking what I please and just deal with the occasional complaints. Clara will eat anything sweet. Despite years of suggesting he learn to cook, bake, make anything, Dustin is still lost in the kitchen. So if I want a homemade holiday treat (or any meal, for that matter), I have to make it myself. I’ll be baking my own birthday cake next week. I’ve done so almost every year since we’ve been married- except for last year when we picked up german chocolate cupcakes from a local bakery (which are my favorite, Dustin can’t stand the frosting).

red velvet cupcake

These red velvet cupcakes were approved by every member of the family. It was my first red velvet cake (I’ve made a whoopie pie version before) and needn’t look further. The cupcakes were soft and fluffy and not at all dry. And I could have eaten a whole bowl of the cream cheese frosting. It would be a great compliment to so many cakes- carrot, spice, hummingbird, chocolate. But let’s stop talking about cake. I’m suddenly very hungry.

Collages3

I realized I haven’t posted any photos of Clara (or myself) on here in a very long time. She’s no longer a baby and perhaps some of you would like to see us once and a while. Here a few shots from my private Instagram feed. Clara is 2 months shy of 2 and talks like she’s grown up already.

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

INGREDIENTS

Red Velvet Cupcakes:
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
1 egg
2 1/2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 Tbsp. red food coloring
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 cup + 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. distilled white vinegar

Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 oz. butter, at room temperature
4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
scant 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon (optional)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 12-cup muffin/cupcake pan with liners.

2. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Turn the mixer to high and add the egg. Beat until well incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary.

3. In a separate small bowl, mix together the cocoa powder, vanilla extract, and red food coloring to make a thick paste. Add to the batter and mix on medium speed until well combined, stopping the mixer to scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary.

4. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add half of the buttermilk. Add half of the flour and mix until combined. Scrape the bowl if necessary and add the remaining buttermilk and flour. Beat on high until smooth. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the salt, baking soda, and vinegar. Turn to high and beat for another couple minutes until completely smooth.

5. Divide the batter evenly between the cupcake liners and bake for 15-20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool for several minutes in the pan before removing the cupcakes to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

6. To make the frosting, beat or whisk butter and cream cheese in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium-high speed for 5 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the powdered sugar until well incorporated. Add the vanilla and cinnamon (if using) and mix to combine. Increase the speed to medium-high and whip for a few more minutes until the frosting is light and fluffy, scraping down the sides of the bowl if necessary.

Makes 12 cupcakes and more than enough frosting (recipe and frosting can be doubled to make an 8 or 9-inch layer cake).

(Adapted from Brown Eyed Baker and Joy the Baker)

Coconut Tres Leches Cake

October 29, 2013

tres leches cake

This one I never considered making before I made it. And then immediately regretted the 20+ years I’ve lived without it. I know that sounds dramatic. After all, it is just a dessert. But it’s a shame to be missing out on something this wonderful. I suspect there are less-than-spectacular tres leches cakes out there. But this was the first I’ve tasted and I (we) loved it. I think you’ll be wowed as well.

I came across this coconut tres leches cake searching for a dessert to pair with tacos. I went all out a couple Sundays ago and slow-cooked a pork shoulder and fixed an array of toppings, and felt the need to serve a Mexican-themed final course. This recipe was highly touted on CHOW and I barely messed with it except for the addition of some cinnamon (don’t skip it!) and using vanilla extract instead of Bourbon. The coconut was the highlight for me. Coconut milk is one of the “tres leches” (three milks) and the whipped cream smothered cake is topped with toasted coconut flakes. Despite the detailed instructions, it is quite simple to make. And perfect for a party since it must be prepared ahead of time and allowed to refrigerate.

Coconut Tres Leches Cake

INGREDIENTS

butter, for coating the baking dish
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. cinnamon + extra for dusting
6 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 14-oz. can sweetened condensed milk
2/3 cup evaporated milk (not nonfat)
1/2 cup unsweetened canned coconut milk (not light)
1 1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract, divided
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 F and arrange a rack in the middle. Coat a 9×13-inch glass baking dish with butter; set aside.

2. Combine the flour and cinnamon in a small bowl and whisk to aerate and break up any lumps; set aside.

3. Separate the eggs, placing the yolks in the bowl of a stand mixer. Reserve the whites in a separate, very clean, medium bowl. Add the sugar to the yolks and, using the paddle attachment, beat on high speed until pale yellow, about 5 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl; set aside. Thoroughly clean and dry the stand mixer bowl. Place the egg whites in the clean bowl and, using the whisk attachment, whip on high speed until medium peaks form, about 1 1/2 minutes.

4. Using a rubber spatula, stir about a third of the egg whites into the yolk mixture to lighten it. Then gently fold in the remaining whites. Sprinkle the flour over the egg mixture and gently fold it in, just until there are no more white flour streaks. (Do not overmix.)

5. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish and bake until the cake is puffed and golden and the edges pull away from the sides of the pan, about 20 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, place the three milks and 1 tsp. of the vanilla extract in a large bowl and whisk until combined; set aside.

7. Remove the cake from the oven and place on a wire cooling rack. Using a toothpick or wooden skewer, poke holes all over the cake and allow to cool for 15 minutes. Pour the milk mixture evenly over the cake and continue cooling, about 45 minutes more. Tightly cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.

8. When the cake is ready to serve, spread the coconut in an even layer in a large frying pan. Toast over medium heat, stirring often, until lightly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes. (If the coconut begins to burn, reduce the heat.) Immediately remove from the pan to a small bowl.

9. Place the heavy cream and powdered sugar in large bowl and whisk until medium peaks form, adding the remaining 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract halfway through whipping. Slice the cake and serve topped with a mound of whipped cream, a sprinkle of toasted coconut, and a dusting of cinnamon. (Cake will keep for several days tightly covered in the refrigerator.)

Makes a 9×13 inch cake.

(Adapted from CHOW)

Peaches and Cream Pound Cake

August 27, 2013

peach pound cake

Oh, this cake. I waited a whole year to make it. My friend Jenna shared the recipe last fall, just after peaches disappeared, and I sat around all winter and spring dreaming of summer and juicy fresh peaches and putting them in pound cake. Yes, that is the type of thing I think about. (When I’m not defining my strategy for getting a baby toddler to sleep past 5 am. If you have solved this one- please enlighten me.) And as anticipated, summer finally arrived and with it just what I needed to bake this perfect summer treat.

I melded two recipes- or actually, three- into my ideal version and call it “peaches and cream pound cake”. The cream portion comes from sour cream in the batter and sweetened whipped cream that you should definitely serve on top. There’s a bit of cinnamon and vanilla and almond in there as well. Everything wonderful. While it was worth the wait, I recommend you make this now. Before summer eludes you too.

Peaches and Cream Pound Cake

INGREDIENTS

1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour + 1/4 cup flour for dusting peaches
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1 cup sour cream
2 1/2 cups fresh peaches, pitted and diced (with or without skins- I left them on)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Butter a 10-inch bundt pan and coat with white sugar.

2. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition. Stir in the sour cream, and vanilla and almond extracts. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour (reserving 1/4 cup for the peaches), baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually stir into the creamed mixture (I added it slowly with the mixer on low). Toss the diced peaches in the reserved flour to coat, then fold into the batter. Spread evenly into the prepared pan.

3. Bake in preheated oven for about 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes, before removing the cake from the pan to cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar and serve with fresh sliced peaches and sweetened whipped cream.

(Adapted from A Spicy Perspective and All Recipes via Lahatchita Eats)

Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

July 20, 2013

chocolate cake recipe

The changes are (so far) subtle, but you might have noticed you’re visiting a different site. Welcome to my new space! Over the last week I switched over from Blogger to WordPress (with a lot of help- thank you, Jeni). And I love the change! I’m still figuring my way around so it’ll be a slow transformation, but I’ve already added some new features: a navigation bar that includes the original recipe index and favorite blog links, as well as a new contact form. You can easily subscribe by RSS, e-mail, or Bloglovin’, search the archives by date or category, follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram (coming soon!), and share your favorite posts with your method of choice! But I’m most excited about that little print button you see at the bottom each post. I’m sick of copying and pasting my own recipes in order to print them. No more! Just click that button and they’re ready to go!

More importantly though, let’s talk about cake. I gathered quite a few recipes I’m anxious to share with you over the last couple weeks. (Of course, it’s when I can’t post that I’m suddenly making all sorts of delicious things). But I decided to start with this one because we’re celebrating my new domain and because it’s amazing (the cake, that is)! I made it for Dustin’s birthday last weekend. (And amidst the celebration didn’t get a decent photo of it before we dug in. Don’t mind the candle holes and general mess.) And then ate it for dinner the next day and way too many times during this past week. This is the chocolate cake. It’s pretty much perfect and likely the only one I’ll ever again make. It’s rich and moist and astonishingly simple to prepare. I paired it with an easy chocolate buttercream, which will also be my go-to recipe from here on out. Don’t wait to make this one. You need a decadent chocolate cake up your sleeve.

Chocolate Cake

INGREDIENTS

1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 ½ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
½ cup butter, melted
1 Tbsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water (or 1 cup hot coffee or 2 tsp. instant coffee in 1 cup boiling water)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter and flour (or line with parchment paper circles and lightly coat with cooking spray) 2 9-inch round baking pans.

2. In a large bowl of a stand mixer or with an electric beater, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the eggs, buttermilk, melted butter, and vanilla extract and beat until smooth, several minutes. Stir in boiling water (or coffee) with a rubber spatula (batter will be runny).

3. Pour batter into the two prepared pans (diving it as evenly as possible) and bake in the preheated oven for 22-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean with just a few moist crumbs attached. (NOTE: The original recipe said to bake for 35 minutes. My cake was done after 22 minutes.)

4. Allow cake to cool in pans for 15 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely before frosting.

Makes a 2-layer 9-inch round cake.

(Cake adapted from Foodess)

Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

INGREDIENTS

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 ½ cups powdered sugar
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract or 1 tsp. almond extract
4 Tbsp. milk or heavy cream

DIRECTIONS

1. In a stand mixer or with electric beaters cream butter for a few minutes on medium speed. Turn off the mixer and sift powdered sugar and cocoa powder into the bowl. Turn the mixer on and slowly increase speed (so the sugar and cocoa don’t blow everywhere) until they are absorbed by the butter. Add the salt and vanilla and milk and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes until smooth. (To thin frosting, slowly add more milk/cream. To stiffen frosting, add more powdered sugar.)

Makes about 3 cups of frosting (enough to frost a double layer 9-inch round cake).

(Frosting adapted from Savory Sweet Life)

Apple Cream Cheese Bundt Cake

October 12, 2012

After a month and a half of meals devoid of milk, cheese, and anything creamy, I had to celebrate my return to dairy with something sensational. So I baked this cake. With chunks of apples and pecans, spicy cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg, and a rich swirl of cream cheese hiding in the center. And a generous drizzle of praline frosting on top. It was wonderful. (And it feeds a crowd.)

Oh butter, how I missed you.

Clara still has reflux. Eliminating dairy from my diet didn’t yield significant improvement in her symptoms. I wanted it to work, but at the same time I’m glad it didn’t. (It wasn’t particularly easy or convenient and once it was clear that she was still suffering, it became incredibly hard for me to adhere.) Medication has helped though. And so has, it seems, giving up chocolate. Supposedly caffeine, even in the smallest dose, can aggravate reflux. So bring on the cream and forget the cocoa- for now.

Apple Cream Cheese Bundt Cake

INGREDIENTS

Cream Cheese Filling:
8 oz. cream cheese
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Apple Cake Batter:
1 cup pecans, finely chopped
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup canola oil
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
3 cups apples, peeled and finely chopped (I used Fuji)

Praline Frosting:
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
3 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. To prepare the filling: Beat first 3 ingredients at medium speed with an electric mixer until blended and smooth. Add egg, flour, and vanilla; beat just until blended.

2. To prepare the batter: Preheat oven to 350º. Bake pecans in a shallow pan 8 to 10 minutes or until toasted and fragrant, stirring halfway through. Stir together 3 cups flour and next 7 ingredients in a large bowl; stir in eggs and next 3 ingredients, stirring just until dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in apples and pecans.

3. Spoon two-thirds of apple mixture into a greased and floured 14-cup Bundt pan. Spoon Cream Cheese Filling over apple mixture, leaving a 1-inch border around edges of pan. Swirl filling through apple mixture using a paring knife. Spoon remaining apple mixture over Cream Cheese Filling.

4. Bake at 350º for 1 hour to 1 hour and 15 minutes or until a long wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on a wire rack 15 minutes; remove from pan to wire rack, and cool completely (about 2 hours).

5. Prepare Frosting: Bring brown sugar, butter, and milk to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat, whisking constantly; boil 1 minute, whisking constantly. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Gradually whisk in powdered sugar until smooth; stir gently 3 to 5 minutes or until mixture begins to cool and thickens slightly. Pour immediately over cooled cake.

Serves 12.

(Adapted from Southern Living)