A Crumby Situation

Harry Pottah!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-07-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

Butterbeer Cupcakes
adapted from Amy Bites

Oh yes, this is happening. With just two weeks till Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part Deux hits theaters, it's time to let our nerd flags fly, friends. I'm not ashamed of my love for Harry Potter or my curiousity about butterbeer! I've never read the books, but what from my UBER HP nerd friends tell me, J.K. Rowling says it's a less cloying butterscotch. Butterbeer is supposed to give you an all over warm feeling and make you a little more honest, so be prepared to feel warm and to start being really honest with your friends about how amazing these cupcakes are and how you ate six of them on the way over. I'm going to try and avoid any wizarding cliche's in this blog, but bear with me if I slip and say something about whipping out our wands or achio-ing something...

Butterbeer Cupcakes

Butter, room temperature: 1 C
Granulated Sugar: 1/2 C
Brown Sugar, Dark: 1/2 C
Eggs, whole: 3 Large
Vanilla Extract: 1 1/2 t
Cake or AP Flour: 2 C
Baking Soda: 1/2 t
Baking Powder: 1 1/2 t
Salt, table: 1/4 t
Almond, Whole or Buttermilk: 1/2 C
Cream Soda: 1/2 C

Butterscotch Ganache

Heavy Cream: 2/3 C
Butterscotch Chips: 1-11oz. Package

Butterscotch Frosting

Powdered Sugar: 3 3/4 C
Butter, room temperature: 1/2 C
Butterscotch Ganache: 1/3 C
Vanilla Extract: 1 t
Salt: 1/8 t
Cream: As needed

Preheat your oven to 350 Farenheit and make sure you have a rack right in the middle of the oven.

Make sure that your butter is a room temperature. If you're starting with your butter a little cooler than room temperature, place it in your mixer by itself and beat it just until there are no hard lumps of butter left. If you start at room temperature (always advised!) place your butter and both sugars into the mixing bowl and cream them together on medium speed (speed four on my Kitchenaid) for five minutes, scraping down the sides about once a minute. This will ensure that everything is getting mixed in consistently. Do not forget to make sure you get right down to the bottom center of that mixing bowl, as butter is sneaky and likes to hide down there.

Add your eggs, that are preferably at room temperature, one at a time after the one before it has been incorporated fully. You can add your vanilla at any time during this process.

Sift together all of your dry ingredients. Cakes should be light and airy, and the more you sift, the more air you're going to have the opportunity to incorporate. I sift my dry ingredients three times. You can do it once or twice, but you should DEFINITELY sift, especially if you're using cake flour. Add a third of your dry ingredients to the mixing bowl and mix on low speed until the dry is ALMOST completely incorporated. Scrape your bowl! Now add half of your wet ingredients. You can add all of your milk, or all of your cream soda, or just half of the total, and mix on low speed until the liquid has been completely incorporated. Scrape that bowl, again. Add another third of your dry ingredients and mix on low speed until almost completely incorporated. Scrape! Add the rest of your liquid and mix until completely combined. You guessed it, scrape, again. Add the rest of your dry ingredients and mix on low speed until dry ingredients are almost incorporated. Turn off your mixer and fold in any remaining dry ingredients that are left hanging around the edge of your mixing bowl.

Line your cupcake pan with your liners. I use an medium sized ice cream scoop to portion out my cupcakes so I get a consistent size. Your liners should be very close to 3/4 full. If you overfill, you're going to have a big ol' mess, so less is better if you're worried about your portions.

Bake on your center rack for seven minutes, spin your pan, and bake for another six to nine minutes. Use a toothpick or cake tester to make sure your cupcakes are done.

Let them cool thoroughly on a cooling rack.

While your cupcakes are baking, get started on your ganache. In a medium sauce pan, heat your heavy cream over medium heat until your cream is scalded, and small bubbles start forming around the edge of the cream. Turn off your burner, or remove your pan from your heat source and pour in your butterscotch chips. Make sure they're all submerged in the cream and let them sit for one to two minutes. Stir in small circles from the center out. Be gentle or it'll splosh all over your work space. Stir until all your butterscotch is melted. If your chips won't fully melt, place it back on your cook top and heat slightly over your lowest heat, stirring constantly. Since there's not chocolate in this, you don't have to worry about burning your chocolate, which is why you can't put normal ganache over direct heat. Put your ganache in your refridgerator to cool.

To make your frosting, place your butter, butterscotch ganache and vanilla in a bowl and whisk together on medium speed until completely combined. Scrape that bowl. Add your powdered sugar and whisk together on low speed until your sugar is completely moistened then kick it up to high speed until frosting is light and fluffy. Because of the way I was decorating my cupcakes, I knew I wanted my frosting a little more stiff so I only add about a tablespoon or so of cream to loosen it up. If you're doing a more simple design, you may want to add a little more liquid to loosen things up.

I decorated each cupcake by piping a spiral with a small round tip (about 3/4 centimeter opening), starting in the center and working my way out to the outside and then building up a wall around the outer rim. Each wall ended up being about three to four layers thick. I then whipped my ganache on high speed for about two minutes to get it nice and stiff, and then pipped in a layer of ganache to the center of each "cup."

Enjoy!

Now Try This:

Leftover cream soda? Pour your leftover cream soda into a sauce pan and cook over medium heat until it is reduced by half. Use a pastry brush to brush your undecorated cupcakes with your cream soda 'syrup,' this will keep your cupcakes moist until you eat them, which is ideal if you're refridgerating them over night or aren't eating your cupcakes that day.
Reduce your cream soda to 1/8th the original volume and pour over the top of your ganache in your "cup." It's a zing of cream soda flavor!

Don't Forget Fathers Day!

2011-06-11T00:01:00.000-07:00

Just a friendly reminder from the worlds worst daughter: Sunday is Father's Day! I know that all dad wants for Father's Day is a giant hunk of meat, a baked potato, some beer and a baseball game...but a cake never hurt anyone!

Use your favorite cake flavor and filling to make this fun, fondant covered Father's Day themed cake. Use his favorite colors for the shirt color and replicate his favorite tie. My advice for this one is just to watch those tricky corners (and extra padding of buttercream on the edges will make it easier), and don't get icing on your dad's work shirts. Some of those things are expensive!

Pops may not rock a pocket square, but it's always fun and if your tie isn't very loud, it'll add some interest to an otherwise simple cake.

Black isn't always an easy color to get, so try using slightly cooled ganache for any dark accents.

A bottom border is an easy way to hide any flaws in your fondant and to give your cake a finished look.

Have fun with the details! Buttons, borders, and tags are a great way to make your cake special.

Now Try This:

Have a problem with your fondant getting dry and cracking? Instead of rolling your fondant out with powdered sugar or corn starch, try using a very, very thin layer of shortening instead.
Spray your finger tips with cooking spray and rub your corners and edges lightly to stop those fine cracks in their tracks!

Holy Cannoli!

2011-06-01T18:20:00.000-07:00

Cannoli Cookies
adapted from Judi Terri Linden's recipe for FineCooking.com

Sometimes you just need something new and you're going to love these little gems. They have infinite potential, with a bunch of fun combinations (try the Now Try This section down at the bottom). They're moist and cakey and they're sure to be a huge hit with your guests. If you're pressed for time, roll all your cookies, place them in a plastic container and freeze them for up to three days, then bake as usual!

Ricotta Cheese: 1/4 C
Butter, Room Temperature: 1/2 C
Granulated Sugar: 1/2 C
Vanilla Extract: 1 t
Egg, Whole: 1 (Large)
Pastry or AP Flour: 2 C
Baking Soda: 1/2 t
Salt, Table: 1/2 t

Preheat your oven to 350 Farenheit, unless you're lucky enough to be rocking a convection oven, in which case, turn that baby to 325 AND ADOPT ME!!!

Combine your cheese and butter in your mixing bowl. Try and make sure that both have come to room temperature. It's going to make the creaming much easier, and it will make your cookies more consistent throughout the entire batch. With a paddle attachment (if you're using a hand mixer, use your beaters), cream your cheese and butter together on medium speed (speed 4 on my mixer, if that helps!) until they're totally combined, light and fluffy, about a minute. Scrape the sides of your bowl, paying special attention to the bottom. Add your sugar and cream for another minute. Scrape your sides, again. Add your egg and vanilla and beat until they're completely incorporated. Now, you guessed it, scrape those sides!

Combine all of your dry ingredients, stirring them all together (a fork will do), until everything is completely combined. Beat your dry ingredients into your creamy mixture until it's just starting to come together, scraping down your sides at least once.

If your dough is a little sticky at this point, go ahead and pop your mixing bowl into the refridgerator (no more than five minutes should be necessary). Start taking bits of your cookie batter and rolling them into balls between your palms. Try making them about the size of those gumballs that you get out of the machines at grocery stores, or about the size of a rounded 1 1/2 teaspoon.

Place them on a parchment lined baking sheet, about 1 1/2" to 2" apart, depending on the size of your cookies.

Place your cookies on the middle rack of your oven. Bake for approximately six minutes, then flip your pan around, and bake for at least another six to nine minutes. You're looking for bottom edges that are just turning golden brown.

Let your cookies rest on a cooling rack until they're completely cool.

Now try this:

Add one large milk or dark chocolate chip and press it into the top of each cookie before you bake it
Add 3/4 cup of mini dark chocolate chips (when your dry ingredients are half combined) and 1 teaspoon of fresh orange zest (with your butter and ricotta)
Add 3/4 cup of chopped pistachios (when your dry ingredients are half combined) and 1 teaspoon of fresh lemon zest (with your butter and ricotta)
Add 1 teaspoon of cocoa powder, 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon (with your dry ingredients) and fresh lemon or orange zest (with your butter and ricotta)

Beware the Chupacabra....cake.

2010-01-24T22:00:00.000-08:00

It seems only fitting that we start off this blog with a little blood...I mean fun...no, I mean blood.

My favorite cake of all time is Devil's Food cake. It really is the cake of the devil, as it possesses me and I eat every piece in my apartment and then start prowling around my apartment building, knocking on doors and stealing other people's cake like some cake-crazed demon! It's quite the scene, I assure you.

I've experimented a few times with the idea of a Latin inspired chocolate cake. A few weeks ago I made chocolate chiffon cupcakes with chili powder in them that turned out mediocre at best. The texture didn't fit the flavors. They were too light and airy to match the slightly spicy flavor of the chili.    Wednesday I was in my cake formula class, trying to get my creative juices flowing and it popped into my head: a spicy spin on my favorite cake! I'm a cupcake girl by nature, but lord knows, I need the practice with cake assembly so I decided I'd put on my big girl panties and tackle a cake. But it needed a name, something Latin and dangerous....and maybe something that spills a little blood?

Chupacabra Cake!
(Note: The base of this recipe is from Wayne Gisslen's Professional Baking, Fifth Edition)

Cake Flour 2 3/4 cp
Cocoa Powder 2 3/4 Tbsp
Baking Powder 2 7/8 tsp
Baking Soda 1 5/8 tsp
Butter (room temp.)   2 Sticks (8 oz)
Ancho Chili Powder* 1 1/2 Tbsp
Chai Seasoning* 1 1/2 tbsp
Sugar 2 cp
Milk (2%) 1 1/3 cp
Vanilla Extract 1Tsp
Eggs   5

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and prep two 9" round cake pans by lining the bottoms with parchment paper and generously spraying each pan with cooking spray on the sides and bottom.

1) Sift together your dry ingredients (flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and soda, the chili powder and chai seasoning). I would suggest sifting it more than once.
2) Place the butter and all of your dry ingredients into your mixing bowl with the paddle attachment and paddle together on low speed for two minutes, then scrape down the sides and repeat (total mixing time: 4 minutes).  My KitchenAid always manages to collect some rogue flour or egg or sugar at the bottom, so make sure you thoroughly scrape the bottoms as well as the sides.
3) Pour in your sugar and 3/4 cp of your milk, paddling on low the entire time. Scrape down the sides as it's necessary (which will be often, and don't forget the stuff hiding at the bottom!). The mixture will gain some uniformity after about 3 minutes, but you can go for up to 5 minutes.
4) Combine the rest of your milk and your eggs and lightly beat them together. Add this combination to your running mixture in three to four additions, mixing each addition until it's completely combined before you add the next addition.
5) Pour half of the batter into each prepped cake pan and then put them in the oven to bake for 20-25 minutes. When they cakes are done they will be firm, but springy to the touch and when you pierce them with a tooth pick or skewer, they will come out clean.

Cake Batter

6) Let your cake cool very thoroughly. In fact, I've found that cutting a cold cake is infinitely easier than cutting a room temperature cake or, lord forbid, a warm cake. After your cake is at room temperature, remove it from your pant by running the dull side of a paring knife around the edge and flip it over to release the cake (this is where the parchment paper comes in handy). Wrap each half in plastic wrap and put them in your refrigerator for an hour or so.
7) When your cakes are thoroughly cooled, trim the dome off of each with a serrated knife and then trim each of them in half, horizontally. This is a lot easier with a cake stand, which is a great investment. Some tips, keep your body completely still, move just your hand to rotate the cake and the other to move the knife. Pay special attention to keep your knife completely parallel with the table, and try making one shallow mark all the way around. Go slow! Also, don't forget to take the parchment off the bottom of each cake. My chef in class warned me about this, and I giggled that someone would forget a thing like that....and then I forgot the parchment paper on mine.

Yay! Let's move onto the filling...

Dark Chocolate Ganache

Heavy Cream 1cp
Semi-Sweet/Dark Chocolate (I used 58%) 8oz
Red Food Coloring 15 drops

1) Put your cream in a sauce pan and bring to a scald over med-high heat
2) At the same time, make sure your chocolate is either already in small pieces or chop it into small pieces and place in a small to medium mixing bowl and place on a dry towel on your counter
3) When your cream is scalded, pour it over your chocolate and let it sit for one to two minutes
4) With a spatula, start stirring the mixture in slow, circular motions starting with small circles in the middle and progressively moving outwards as the mixture starts melting and gaining some consistent color (if it won't completely melt the chocolate, place the mixture over a hot water bath to get the process going again)
5) Stir in food coloring and then let sit, covered to cool to room temperature

Cinnamon Vanilla Butter Cream
(Also based on Gisslen, pg 426)

Butter, room temperature 3 sticks
Powdered Sugar 4 3/4 cp
Egg whites 1 white from a jumbo egg
Vanilla extract 1 1/2t
Cinnamon, ground 1 1/2t
Milk 1/8 cp

1) Place your butter in your mixing bowl and then sift in your powdered sugar. Using the paddle attachment, blend together on low speed until completely combined and consistently textured
2) Add the remaining ingredients on your medium speed to combine and then turn up to high until the frosting is very light in texture). You don't have to add the water, but I find that the buttercream is easier to spread with a little moisture.

Let's put this demon beast together now, shall we?!

1) Spread 1/3 of your ganache on your bottom cake layer. It's okay if a little of it spills over the side, but try your best to keep it to a minimum. I didn't. It got messy later on. Place the next cake layer on top of your ganache layer and then repeat two more times (four cake layers, three ganache layers).

My cake is bleeding!

2) I think it's easier if you pipe your buttercream on top of your cake to make sure that the top layer of frosting is even, but you can use your judgement. I pipe a tight spiral of buttercream on top of the cake, starting at the center and working my way out. Use an offset spatula to spread the frosting on top as evenly as possible. I think this technique also avoids the problem of not having enough frosting on top and being able to see cake through your frosting!
3) To frost the sides, again, I prefer to pipe lines of frosting vertically up the sides at 1" intervals and then using your offset spatula, evenly spread your buttercream around the sides. Be generous. You don't want to be able to see your layers through your white frosting.

4) At this point, it's just a matter of evening things out, so use the tools available to you. I love my medium sized offset spatula. It really is a godsend and is so easy to handle, but you can also use a bowl scraper. Or, if you're not worried about complete evenness, you can use a butter knife! *shudder*
5) For a finishing touch, take a tooth pick, mack a fang sized circle in your cake, with another to match for fan marks (don't go so deep that you hit the cake). Then lightly lay your toothpick on the cake leading up to the fang mark. Put on drop of red food coloring at the start of each trough so that it trickles into the fang mark.

Kind of creepy, right?

When you sink your fangs into this cake, you won't notice any heat from the chili. Ancho chili's have little to no heat, but you will notice the pleasant chili flavor. You'll also notice the cardamom and clove from the chai seasoning.

I hope you enjoy it as much as I have. This is going to be a go-to recipe for me for many a birthday cake, or even gift of cupcakes!

Enjoy and try not to draw any blood when you're protecting your cake from would-be cake thieves.

*I purchased my ancho chili powder and my chai seasoning here in Chicago at The Spice House.

Gisslen, Wayne. "Cake Mixing and Baking." Professional Baking. 5 ed. New York, NY: Wiley, 2008. Print.