The Comeback Cake

I bet you guys thought you’d never hear from me again. Well, I’m happy to say that this time you were sorely mistaken.  Just like every bloodthirsty supernatural villain in every horror movie ever made, I’m back for another go-round and this time I mean business (don’t worry, I’m not going to go all Freddy vs Jason on you; Julie & Julia is more my style).

I seriously considered abandoning this project all together.  I mean, I did technically fail after all.  But when I went home this past week to bid my Grandma one final farewell, I swear that I met at least half of my 239 loyal readers (oddly enough, you’re almost all related to me in one way or another–coming from a good Catholic family really has its benefits sometimes).  Now that I’ve put faces with the numbers, I can’t just give up.  I’ve been guilted into continuing my bakelogging (again, coming from a good Catholic family has its benefits).

I decided to make my grand re-entrance into the blogosphere in style–no humble drop cookie could possibly do for such a fancy occasion–I needed to bake something with style, flair, and the ability to make a dent in the 5 pound sack of carrots in the bottom of my fridge.  

Behold, loyal readers (the eight of you that are still left, anyway), my comeback cake:

The Comeback Cake

This thing is loaded up with a kajillion pecans, even more shredded carrots, two ultra-thick layers of super-moist crumbly, cinnamony cake, white-chocolate cream cheese frosting, and eight handmade (by me!!) marzipan carrot decorations (that’s right, naysayers and trash-talkers, I do have a few decorating tricks up my sleeve after all. Granted marzipan is easier to work with than play-dough, but I’m still thoroughly impressed with myself–I’ve never worked with marzipan before).

Carrots? No, but there are quite a few underneath the frosting.

Carrot Cake with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

Cake: 

• unsalted butter for greasing
• 2 cups sugar
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 4 large eggs, room temperature
• ¾ cup vegetable oil
• 3 cups grated carrots, room temperature (honestly, everything needs to be at room temperature for this to work properly.  Set your mis en place, walk away for half an hour (coffee anyone?), and come back to ingredients that are ready and wiling to be used).
• a few handfuls of toasted chopped pecans (I think I used a cup and half total, one cup for inside the cake, and the extra half a cup for decorating)

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Lightly grease 2 8 inch round cake pans.  Line pans with parchment paper.  Regrease and flour.  Set aside.
2. Sift the sugar and salt into a bowl; set aside.
3. In another bowl, sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and baking powder together.  Set aside.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the wire whisk attachment, whip the eggs on medium speed, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed, until thick, about 3 minutes.  Increase the speed to high and continue whipping until the eggs fall in thick ribbons off the whisk, 4 minutes.  Gradually add the oil while continuing to whip until well-blended.
5. Decrease the speed to medium.  Add the sifted sugar mixture slowly to the whipped egg mixture while continuing to whip until blended.
6. Decrease  the speed to low.  Add the sifted flour mixture  slowly to the egg mixture and mix until just incorporated.  Fold in the carrots and about a cup of the pecans by hand with a rubber spatula.
7. Pour the batter evenly into the prepared pans. Bake for 35-45 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.  Begin testing at 35 minutes.  Do not over-bake.
8. Cool cakes in pans on wire racks for a few minutes before turning out cakes onto wire racks, tops down. Cool completely before icing and slicing. 

Frosting:

• 8 oz white chocolate
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch salt

1. Chop the chocolate into small pieces (if you use chips you can skip this step!). Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over barely simmering water.  Cool to room temperature.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and cream cheese together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed to blend evenly.
3. Add in the cooled melted chocolate, vanilla extract, and salt; continue to mix until very smooth, 1-2 minutes.
4. Use immediately.  Alternately, transfer icing to an airtight storage container and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.  Bring icing to room temperature, then re-whip using the paddle attachment before using.  Makes enough to fill and frost one layer cake.

Sand Dollars

Something terrible happened today.

I had a baking accident.

I had just finished prepping my second pan of cookies, and had just placed it aside to move on to the next, when the karmic spirit of unfulfilled bakelogging promises swept down upon me and hurled my beautifully assembled pan of cookies onto my woefully unmopped kitchen floor.  Not a single cookie survived the mystical onslaught from above.

The scene of the crime.

Thankfully, I was able to pick the cookie carnage (and myself) up off the floor and carry on with my baking.

These cookies look like my favorite sea shell, the sand dollar. I used to spend hours combing the beach for those beautiful, if difficult to find shells with my family. These cookies are much easier to procure (and tastier) than an actual sand dollar.

Sand Dollars

Yield: 48 cookies, less if you drop a dozen unbaked cookies on the floor

• 1¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup lightly packed brown sugar
• ¾ cup confectioner’s sugar
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup finely crushed almonds

• 1 large egg
• 1 tablespoon water
• 1 cup sliced almonds

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Line several baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone liners.
2. Stir flour, cornmeal, and salt together in a small bowl.  Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, sugars, and vanilla extract together on medium speed for 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula 2 or 3 times during mixing.  
4. Adjust the mixer to low; pour in the flour mixture and stir until just incorporated, about 30 seconds.  Fold in the crushed almonds.  Divide the dough in half.  Wrap one half in plastic wrap, set aside.
5. Roll out the other half of the dough in between two sheets of plastic wrap to a 1/8 inch thickness.  Cut out cookies with 2 inch round cutter.  Place dough rounds onto prepared baking sheets about an inch apart.  Reroll scraps, cut out more cookies.  Repeat with remaining dough round.
6. Whisk egg and water together in a small bowl. Lightly brush egg wash on to tops of cookies with a pastry brush.  Arrange five almond slices in a flower patter in the center of each cookie.  Brush cookies again with the egg wash.
7. Bake cookies until they are golden brown, about 15 minutes.  Cool completely on baking sheets on wire racks.  Store cookies in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

Cranberry Almond Oatmeal Squares

I have a dinner reservation at a fancy restaurant in the city with Leigh in an hour!!  I have absolutely no time for a witty commentary on my day.  Enjoy the cookies!

Cranberry Almond Oatmeal Squares

Yield: 20 bars

• 1½ cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, browned and slightly cooled
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ¾ cup honey
• 2 eggs 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups oatmeal
• 1 cup sweetened dried cranberries 
• 1 cup almonds, coarsely chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 13 x 9 baking pan with aluminum foil.  Set aside.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl.  Set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together browned butter, sugar, and honey on LOW speed until combined (I seriously burned my hand today because I started my mixer off on too high of a speed.  Hot melted butter flew everywhere! It solidified before I was ready to wipe everything down, and clean up was really a pain).  Add in the eggs and vanilla extract.  Beat on medium speed (remember, gradual speed increases are your friend) until fluffy and smooth, about 2 minutes.  Reduce the mixer to low, slowly add in the flour mixture until just combined.  Add in the oats, and then the cranberries and almonds.
4. Pour dough into prepared baking pan.  With greased hands (non-stick cooking spray is awesome!)  pat dough evenly into the pan.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until golden.  Let cool completely in pan on wire rack before cutting.

Breakfast Bars

This recipe is adapted from one by Nigella Lawson.  I absolutely love her! She is bosomy, bottomy, British, and an amazing cook. Can you ask for anything else?   

These bars are absolutely amazing! They are infinitely better than the storebought trail mix bars, and you can control exactly what goes into them.  There’s no HFCS, MSG, or potassium benzoate in these puppies; only wholesome ingredients from your pantry.

Breakfast Bars

Yield: 16 bars

Breakfast Bars

• 1 14-fl-oz can sweetened condensed milk
• 2½ cups rolled oats (not instant)
• 1 cup dried apricot, cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 cup dried cranberries
• 1 cup crushed almonds
• 1 cup peanuts

Strawberry Crispy Treats

I was looking through my cabinet for cookie inspiration today, and I found the bag of strawberry  marshmallows that I had bought for valentines day and completely forgotten about.  Oddly enough, I’ve never made rice crispy treats as an adult.  I’ve always considered them a little below my culinary prowess.  But now that I’ve given them a fair chance, they frickin’ rock!! I’m probably going to make these all the time now.  Maybe this summer I’ll throw some sliced strawberries (or other fresh fruits) into the mix.  Would that be overly complicating this famously simple recipe? Feedback on this idea would be really appreciated.

Strawberry Crispy Treats

Yield: 24 squares

Sticky Pink Swamp Monster!

• non-stick cooking spray (for greasing)
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 bag strawberry flavored marshmallows
• 6 cups puffed-rice cereal

1. Grease 13×9 cake pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Set aside.
2. In a large microwave safe bowl, microwave butter on high for 45 seconds, or until melted.
3. Add in the marshmallows; toss to coat.  Microwave for 1 1/2 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking time. (Be sure to check out how awesome marshmallows look in the  microwave–the puffy goop filled the entire bowl to the brim!!)
4. Stir in the puffed-rice cereal.  Pour mixture into prepared pan. With greased hands (please make sure to spray your hands with the off-brand PAM, or you’ll look like a sticky pink swamp monster) press mixture evenly into pan. 
5. Cool completely before cutting into 24 squares.

Clementine Cookies

It’s been unseasonably warm these past few days.  I can’t help but think that winter is over and that spring is just around the corner. I know it’s naive of me to think that spring can happen in February, but I prefer to channel that old McDonald’s commercial and say, “Hey, it could happen!”  Oh, and these taste like a picnic in April.

Clementine Cookies

Yield: 4 dozen cookies

For Cookies:

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• ½ cup white sugar
• ½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
• 1 egg 
• 1-2 (¾ cup) unpeeled clementines (you can substitute any seedless orange, but I prefer the sweet taste of clementines), finely chopped
• ½ cup walnuts, finely chopped 

For Glaze:

• 1 tablespoon butter, softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated clementine peel
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed clementine juice

1. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt together.  Set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add in the eggs and the orange mush; mix until smooth.  Switch the mixer to low; slowly stir in the flour mixture until just incorporate.  Fold in the walnuts.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.
3. Preheat oven to 375º F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or a silicone liner.
4. Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets.  Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown, being sure to rotate pans from top to bottom and front to back halfway through cooking time.  Let rest on baking sheets for 2 minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.
5. Meanwhile, make glaze:  stir all ingredients together until smooth (if too thick, thin out by adding a little more OJ or milk).  Spread glaze on warm cookies.

Dog Biscuits (or Chicken Cookies)

My dog, Sammy, died yesterday. I don’t think I’ve ever been more sad.  Some people may think it’s silly to bake biscuits for a dead dog 2,000 miles away, but I was hoping it would bring me some closure.  It hasn’t worked yet.

Dog Biscuits (or Chicken Cookies)

Yield: Quite a few

Dog Biscuits

• 2 cups whole wheat flour, plus extra for dusting
• ½ cup yellow cornmeal
• 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 cup chicken broth

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl; stir until thoroughly combined.
3. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead into a stiff dough, adding in more flour as needed.
4. Roll out dough to a ¼ inch thickness.  Cut out rectangles with a fluted pastry cutter.  
5. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the chicken aroma permeating your apartment becomes too much to handle. Cool completely before feeding to your dog (or your friend’s dog, because you don’t have one anymore).

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin-Bites

I have had a rough couple of days.  It all started innocently enough with just one mojito in Leigh’s kitchen.  I know what you’re thinking, “How bad can one mojito really be? I mean, it has leaves in it! It has to be less toxic than a Jagerbomb, right?”  Wrong. Super-wrong.  Especially when said mojito is quite possibly bigger than your head, and is preceded by a nearly bottomless glass (or five!) of sangria.  Fast forward about an hourish or so, and I’m puking into a corner and I swear Leigh’s pet turtles are silently judging me. I don’t remember much after that.  Somehow,  I woke up on her futon with Blades of Glory playing on the television, a nasty bump on my head, a few cuts on my hands, and a really sore chest area that absolutely refuses to validate my pain with visible bruising.  Did I fall down? Did I challenge Lindsey to a swing dance contest? Did I start a physical altercation with Inga’s mom over David Hasselhoff’s chest hair? I don’t know how I got into this state. I just know that my head hurts. And these count as cookies damn-it!

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin-Bites

Yield: 36 Muffin-Bites

Lemon Poppy Seed Muffin Bites

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup granulated sugar
• 3 tablespoons poppy seeds
• Zest of two lemons
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon  salt
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• 1 egg
• 1 yolk (reserve the white for a very small omelet)
• ½ cup (1 stick) butter, melted
• ¾ cup  milk
• Juice of two lemons
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.  Generously spray 2 mini-muffin pans with non-stick cooking spray (place pans on a rimmed baking sheet to allow for easier transfer to and from oven).  Set aside.
2. Whisk together flour, sugar, poppy seeds, lemon zest, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. In a medium sized bowl, whisk egg, egg yolk, and melted butter together until smooth.  Add in the milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. 
4. Pour liquid into flour mixture and stir until just combined (do not over-mix!).  
5. Fill muffin cavities ¾ full.  Bake for 18-22 minutes, or until cake tester inserted into center comes out clean.  Let muffin-bites cool in pans for 5 minutes before either serving or transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Cinnamon Meringue Puffs

Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod!

My blog just crashed and it was the most terrifying thing that has happened in the past week (if you don’t count the creepy old guy from this morning who really thought I was from Hogwarts and kept asking me about vampires and blood sucking–btw, there aren’t vampires in Harry Potter).  I hadn’t realized just how devoted I have become to this project; the very thought of missing a post and letting down my legions of imaginary devoted readers shook me up more than I thought possible.

I have a history of not finishing the projects that I start.  At this moment, I have two scarves that are within fifteen rows of being cast-off, three rooms that still need to be painted, at least seven pictures that need to be framed and hung, several birthday cards that just need to be stamped and mailed, and my winter comforter has yet to be taken out of the crawl space (it’s currently 23° F outside–I really need that comforter). Yet, I honestly believe that I have it within me to finish out the single biggest project I have ever undertaken. It doesn’t matter that baking takes up a minimum of 2 hours every day, or that blogging about it often adds another hour to the total.  I enjoy every minute that I commit to this endeavor.  The overwhelming passion that I feel for my chosen craft ensures that I will finish out the year, without missing a day (technical difficulties notwithstanding).

I made these cookies for my old friend Roy.  He’s watching his figure (presumably because his wedding is coming up soon!) and these meringues are fat-free and delicious.  Hopefully they survive the treacherous journey to Texas intact.

Cinnamon Meringue Puffs

Cinnamon Meringue Puffs

Yield: 2 dozen puffy morsels

• ¾ cup nuts
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup sugar, divided
• 3 large egg whites (save the yolks for an artery clogging omelette)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 250°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or a silicone liner.
2. Grind nuts, cinnamon, and ¼ cup sugar in a food processor until fine.  Set aside.
3. In the clean, grease-free bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the wire whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium speed until frothy, about 30 seconds. Increase speed to high, and add the sugar in a slow steady stream.  Continue to whip until egg whites are shiny and hold a stiff peak (make sure to really whip these suckers, or else your cookies will be flat and chewy instead of puffy and airy. Believe me, I speak from experience.)
4. Fold in the nut mixture and the vanilla with a spatula, being very careful not to deflate the meringue.
5. Spoon meringue into a plastic ziploc bag.  Cut tip off of corner, and pipe cookies into desired shape (I prefer the classic swirl, but everyone loves daisies!).
6. Bake for 40 minutes, or until dry and hollow sounding. Cool completely on wire racks. 

Carrot Cake Cookie Sandwiches

I had to make up for yesterday’s crispy cookie debacle with a chewy cakealicious cookie. Coincidentally, I decided that a cream cheese and carrot creation could only lead to more creative alliterative fun, hence the birth of  Carrot Cake Cookie Sandwiches (confession: I could be considered a grammar nerd).

 Carrot Cake Cookie Sandwiches

Carrot Cake Sandwiches

Yield: 13 Sandwich Cookies

• 1 1/8 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 stick (½ cup) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• ½ teaspoon vanilla 
• 1 cup coarsely grated carrots (2 medium)
• 1 cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup raisins
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• ¼ cup honey

1. Place oven racks in top and bottom thirds of the oven. Preheat oven to 375° F.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment or silicone liners.
2. Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt together.  Set aside.
3. Using an electric mixer set to medium, cream together butter and sugars for about 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy.  Beat in the eggs and the vanilla extract.  Switch mixer to low speed, and add in the carrots, raisins, and walnuts.  Stir in the flour mixture until just incorporated. The dough will be very sticky at this point.  Place in the fridge for 15 minutes to firm up. (As always, use this time to clean up the kitchen. Isn’t multi-tasking fun?)
4. Mix cream cheese and honey together until smooth (I used my immersion blender for this). Cover with plastic wrap and place in the fridge until ready to use.
5. Drop the dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto baking sheets, leaving at least two inches in between each cookie.  Bake for 12 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through baking time.  Let cookies rest on sheets for 1 minute, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
6. When completely cool, pair up cookies according to size and shape.  Spread a heaping tablespoon of cream cheese filing on the flat side of one cookie, and sandwich it together with its mate.