Hazelnut Heaven

I stole this from Margie, who borrowed it from Ilva who posted about it 'way back in 2007- and I owe them both a big THANK YOU!

It doesn't look like much, but it's one of the nicest cakes I've ever made - I'm thinking of suggesting it to daughter Katie as her wedding cake. Katie likes to do things a little differently and I'm almost sure she would love this at her wedding celebration. It is moist with sour cream, flavored with strong coffee and studded with coarsely chopped hazelnuts. It's not that sweet, just a hint from the light dusting of confectioner's sugar, but it's loaded with espresso-and-hazelnut flavor. Can you imagine a better combination?

OMG, you can sell my clothes, I died and went to heaven! I shared a slice with two of my neighbors (very skinny slices - I'm not that generous!) and both raved about it, echoing my thoughts exactly.

I have to admit, it's a bit of a production compared to most things I bake, but the extra effort is amply rewarded. I hesitated when I read the recipe; toasting nuts is not my forte - I often burn them. But I persevered and set not one but two timers while the nuts were in the oven, and I'm ever so glad I did. The rest of the recipe is very easy. Don't wait! Make it tomorrow and send yourself to Hazelnut Heaven!

Sweets From The Sweet

My friend Maria is one of the sweetest people I know. She not only goes to church, she actually practices her religion between church services, frequently engaging in animated conversations with her God. I have to laugh when she tells me all the stuff they talk about. I miss having faith like that.

She also takes pity on the hapless priests in her parish and brings them dinner. Right after I saw her, she was headed down to Santa Cruz to help her son's young family - almost everyone in the family is sick, so she's volunteering to care for her very lively 3 year old grandson, who isn't. And she makes traditional Chilean birthday cakes for her coworkers. Oh, baby, check this out!

Six layer cake, made from scratch after dinner the night before she was to drive to Santa Cruz after work (see what I mean?), complete with dulce de leche caramel (with a spritz of cognac) between the layers and handmade meringue icing with colorful sprinks on the outside. I asked how she made the cake part, which was tasty all by itself - apparently, you basically beat the batter until your arm falls off, then proceed. The yellow cake was dense but moist and tasted richly of butter; the brown layer was, of course, chocolate. Each layer had its own flavor, like Neapolitan ice cream, and there is something just special about a cake with that many layers and flavors.

You may have noted that Maria has a sweet tooth; her cake satisfied all the rest of the sweet teeth in the room, as well. She even cut an extra piece for me to take home for My Beloved's dessert. Sweets from the sweet.

Stir Crazy

Been baking again. I visited a new-to-me blog, When Harry Met Salad, (clever title, huh?) and Megan was making Jamie Oliver's Rhubarb Stir Cake - boy, that looked good!

I didn't have any rhubarb, however, so decided to try substituting the plums that were still in my fruit bowl awaiting inspiration. I figured that the sweet-tart plum skins would give some of the same jazz to the cake that the sour rhubarb does, so I chopped up three cups of the little purpley-black beauties and added them in place of the rhubarb.

It worked like a champ, although I have to admit it probably wasn't as zingy as I'd have liked. My plums were very ripe; next time, I'd figure out a way to add some lemon juice if I was using pretty sweet fruit. I think you could change this up with peaches, apples, cherries - it's clafoutish although less eggy and more cakey than true clafoutis. With a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, it was still crazy good!

Mugging For The Camera

It is billed as "The Most Dangerous Cake" because it can be made in just five minutes. When my Hawaii brother sent me this recipe, I was skeptical. How could one possibly make chocolate cake in five minutes? However, usually game for a challenge, I waded in.

Turns out, you really can, if you define "cake" fairly loosely*, as I imagine one would be more than willing to do if one was desperate for a chocolate fix. This really works.

You make this cake in a mug in the microwave. I don't know where the recipe originated but here goes; it came via email so if you're the inventor, feel free to let us know:

Five Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

4 Tablespoons flour
4 Tablespoons sugar
2 Tablespoons cocoa powder (I used unsweetened; the recipe didn't specify)
1 egg
3 Tablespoons milk
3 Tablespoons oil (I'd be tempted to try melted butter next time)
3 Tablespoons chocolate chips (optional; I used less and spread them as icing on top after baking)
a small splash of vanilla extract
1 large coffee mug

Add dry ingredients to mug, mixing well. Add the egg and mix thoroughly. Pour in the milk and oil and mix well, being careful to get all the dry ingredients that lurk in the corners incorporated. Add the chocolate chips (if using) and the vanilla extract, and mix again.

Put your mug in the microwave and zap for 3 minutes at 1000 watts (high). The cake will rise over the top of the mug, but don't be alarmed. Allow it to cool a little, and tip out onto a plate, if desired. (At this point, I added a layer of chocolate chips and nuked it a few seconds longer to melt the chips, then spread them like icing).

This could easily serve two, if you're in a mood to share.

*In my ancient microwave, it came out as a very dense, heavy 'cake,' somewhere on the fudgy end of brownies. Definite chocolate taste, not too sweet, surprisingly. I'm not a huge chocoholic, however, so I'd love some opinions from those of you who are.

Celebration Cake

My friend Bonnie rocks! Years ago, she earned a Ph.D. in math, which she used very successfully in the computer field until she retired about 3 years ago. While she was still working, she decided to broaden her outlook by studying part-time toward a Masters in Liberal Studies.

Renaissance woman.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that she raised a really cool daughter while doing all that other stuff.

Bonnie graduated from the MLS program at Stanford on Father's Day weekend and her daughter and son-in-law threw a party to celebrate her. We enjoyed the silly decorations, the gorgeous two year old grandson, the scrumptious dinner and this beautiful cake from Whole Foods.

The picture really doesn't do it justice because we greedy celebrants made serious inroads into the cake before I even thought to get out my camera. Between the layers was a sweetened whipped cream studded with fresh berries, a new idea to me, and a really brilliant one. I loved the surprise of the fresh sliced strawberries, whole raspberries and fat blackberries inside the cake as well as decorating the outside.

I have always admired Whole Foods for the beauty of their food but we call it "Whole Paycheck" because it's expensive and we don't like the pushy, spoiled customers we often encounter there, but this cake was truly spectacular and delicious, a fitting celebration of Bonnie's many accomplishments!