Strawberry Baby Cakes

Of course it's the dead of winter, but I wanted strawberry shortcake.  My dad always made the shortcake growing up, but I wanted to do a twist on his version and make individual cakes.  However, to give a depth of flavor to the cake, I decided to add lemon zest into the batter.  Strawberries and lemon are good friends, so they work beautifully together.  Also, shortcake can be a little one note:  sweet.  Lemon zest adds an extra punch and deepens the flavor by cutting the sweetness. 
Furthermore, I didn't want to use just boring Cool Whip or whipped cream from a can.  I wanted to make a whipped cream frosting that lasted for more than a few hours before collapsing.  I figured gelatin would stiffen the cream enough so that it would last for a few days, but powdered gelatin doesn't taste very good.  As I looked through my pantry, I noticed marshmallows.  They have gelatin, so how bad could they be in a frosting?
I also happened to have homemade strawberry sauce in the fridge that was begging to be used, so I decided my final dish would be a tower of cake, strawberry sauce, fresh strawberries, and whipped cream frosting thickened with marshmallows.  Really, how bad could that be????

The result was an amazing and beautiful cake, not to mention totally delish!

The layers:  cake, strawberry sauce, fresh cut strawberries, whipped cream frosting...repeat

Strawberry Baby Cakes

For the shortcake:

1 ¼ cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup butter, room temperature

¾ cup sugar

1 egg, room temperature

½ cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Zest of 1 lemon

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9x13 glass pan

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.  Set aside

In another bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy

Add the egg

Add the milk and vanilla and mix well

Add the flour mixture and mix only until combined

Add lemon zest and mix well with rubber spatula

Put batter into the greased 9x13 pan and smooth evenly (batter will be thin)

Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean

Cool completely

Using a 4 inch (or similar size) round cookie cutter, cut cake into rounds (you’ll get about 6 rounds)

Place 1 round of cake on a plate, drizzle with strawberry sauce, top with fresh cut strawberries, spread (or pipe) whipped cream frosting over the berries.  Repeat process one more time

Whipped Cream Frosting:

2 cups cold heavy cream

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla

7 large marshmallows

In a large bowl whip cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until soft peaks form (start on low then increase the speed to high)

Place marshmallows in a bowl and place in microwave.  Microwave for about 30 seconds until puffed

Put marshmallows into the whipped cream and beat until combined

(This lasts in the refrigerator for a few days)

Strawberry Sauce:

2 pounds fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced

¼ cup sugar

2-3 tablespoons water

1 jar (12 oz) strawberry jam

Cook berries, sugar, and water (start with 2 T. and add more if needed) in a medium saucepan over medium high heat

Bring to a boil and stir often so it doesn’t burn

Cook until berries are softened and sugar is dissolved

Off the heat, add jam and puree (with blender, food processor, or immersion blender)

Taste and add more sugar if needed

Cool completely

(This lasts really well in the refrigerator and is also excellent over ice cream)

Double Delight

Recently my friend asked me to donate 2 dozen cupcakes for a church gathering she was attending.  Furthermore, she asked me to "create a bakery name" for myself so I could advertise.  I never really thought of what I would call a bakery if I owned one, but the name "Double Delight" came to my mind.  This name is after my twins that passed prematurely at 19 weeks and what a better way than to honor them with what I love to do.  So, these cupcake creations that I made are dedicated to my babies, Caroline and Ryan, and the bakery I will probably never own.

I made Ina Garten's chocolate cupcakes with peanut butter icing (recipe follows and is found in her cookbook "At Home" page 187).  However, I added a chocolate ganache center that stays ooey gooey after it was baked.
I also included my own creation, strawberry champagne cupcakes (under my archives, June 2011 "Strawberry Champagne Cupcakes")
Enjoy!

Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Icing

For the chocolate ganache:
1/4 cup heavy cream
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Place chocolate and cream in a small bowl and melt (in a double boiler or in the microwave in 20 second intervals, stirring often)
Once melted, add powdered sugar and stir to combine
Place in refrigerator and chill for at least 30 minutes (overnight or longer is fine too)

For the cupcakes:

12 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

2/3 cup brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup buttermilk, room temperature

½ cup sour cream, room temperature

1 ¾ cup flour

1 cup cocoa powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 and line cupcake pans with paper liners (recipe makes about 14-15 cupcakes)

In a medium size bowl, sift flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.  Set aside

In a measuring cup or a bowl, combine buttermilk and sour cream.  Set aside

In a large bowl or the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and 2 sugars on high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes alternately in thirds to the bowl, starting with the buttermilk and ending with the flour

Mix only until blended then fold with a rubber spatula until blended

Divide batter into cupcake liners, about 2/3 full
Add 1 teaspoon of chocolate ganache into the center of each cupcake (if you have some left, you can add more, but not more than 2 teaspoons) 

Bake for about 18-25 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean

Cool in pans for 10 minutes then take cupcakes out and place on cooling racks until completely cooled

Frost with peanut butter icing and garnish with chopped roasted peanuts

Peanut Butter Icing:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter (do not use natural)

4 tablespoons butter, room temperature

¾ teaspoon vanilla

¼ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup cream

Put powdered sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl and mix on medium high speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula

Add the cream and beat on high speed until light and smooth

Cake in a cup!

Ever have a craving so badly for chocolate cake, but too tired to make it?  That's how I was last night after a day of working (a class assisting with cake pops nonetheless).  Anyway, after dinner my husband and I both had a craving for chocolate cake topped with ice cream.  However, first of all, I was too tired.  Second, I didn't feel like waiting another hour for my dessert.  Third, I didn't want leftovers.  I then remembered a recipe in my Food Network cookbook "Great Easy Meals" that made instant chocolate cake in the microwave.  I made some minor changes and made it in a cup, and what do you know:  chocolate cake!

This is ideal for kids (I'm sure they would love to eat cake out of a cup) or when you just want a simple one serving cake.  It also has a molten center which makes it ooey gooey and moist- almost like a molten chocolate cake.  It's wonderful with a scoop of ice cream because the cake is warm and it slowly melts the ice cream so it becomes like a sauce on your cake (reminded me of soufflé cake).

The best part is that it's incredibly easy, you probably have the ingredients in your pantry, and it's delicious when you need a quick dessert (or a late night snack or when a chocolate cake craving hits you).  Enjoy!

                            (I wanted to make sure you can see the yummy molten center mmmmm)

Cake in a Cup
1/4 cup flour
4 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 egg (or you can just use the egg white)
3 tablespoons milk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (or you can use unsweetened applesauce which is what I did.  Still turned out great)
Dash vanilla
Pinch of salt

Whisk all of the above ingredients together in a large mug
Place in microwave and cook until puffed, about 1 1/2 - 2 minutes

No Bake Cookies

I found this incredible nonbake cookie recipe on another foodie blog (bakergirl) and she found it from the Picky Palate.  Anyway, these treats are a cross between cookies, rice krispy treats, s'mores, marshmallows with chocolate chips, and everything else simple and sweet.  They would be great to make on a hot summer day when you don’t want your oven on or for a quick treat for the kids and their friends.  They are sticky, sweet, crunchy, gooey, and yummy.  Better yet, they are simple and have only 3 ingredients.

                                            yummy yummy goodness... 

1 16 oz. package of crispy chocolate chip cookies (use any variety you want.  I used a double chocolate chip cookie since I love chocolate, but any crispy cookie would be fine)

5 cups (1 bag) marshmallows (I used chocolate marshmallows for mine)

4 tablespoons butter

Place cookies in a food processor and process until crumbly, but not ground (or put cookies in a Ziplock baggie and crush with a rolling pin). Place aside

In a large bowl, put marshmallows and butter in it and soften in the microwave for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes until puffy

Combine the cookies with the marshmallows and stir quickly

Pour into an 8x8 pan, lined with foil and greased with cooking spray

Allow to set for 10-15 minutes, remove from pan, cut into squares, enjoy!

I'm also going to test a version of this using Oreos and maybe other types of cookies.

Cooking Myths

I received the book "Lobsters Scream When You Boil Them" by Bruce Weinstein and Mark Scarbrough a few months ago.  It's a funny, witty book about popular myths that many of us buy in to while cooking.  The book has 101 popular cooking myths that they debunk.  Here are my top 10 most surprising cooking myths:

1.  Food prepared at home is safer than food prepared in a restaurant.
Restaurants have to keep up with a strict cleanliness code and if they don't, they will be fined or even shut down. I know that my kitchen is nowhere near as clean as a restaurant (this is referring mainly to fine dining- not fast food joints)

2.  All the alcohol cooks out of a dish.
Nope, not true.  85% of alcohol is still left after 1 min. of a full simmer, 25% is left after an hour, and 3.75% is still left after 7 hours.

3.  Store coffee beans in the freezer or the refrigerator.
I buy into this one and still keep my beans in the freezer.  However, to get the best coffee, buy whole beans, store in an air tight container away from sunlight, and ground right before you brew.

4.  To eat better, shop the perimeter of your supermarket.
I've heard this one a lot from various diets because the perimeter is where you find the fresh fruits, veggies, dairy, and fresh meats.  However, the inside of the aisles contain healthy beans, oatmeal, olive oils and vinegars, so don't be afraid to venture inside the aisles.

5.  Eating turkey makes you sleepy.
Turkey contains L-tryptophan and that's often blamed for people feeling sleepy after a large turkey dinner.  However, eggs, soybeans, chicken, cheese, and edamame all have it too and we never blame these foods for making us fall asleep.  We often feel sleepy after Thanksgiving due to the amount of food consumed, not just the turkey.

6.  Range free chickens are range free.
I wish that this were true.  However, chicken farmers can get away with saying that they're range free if the chicken even has 1 inch of outside space and is allowed access to that space.  It doesn't mean that the chickens are frolicking in the sunlight like we all wish.  However, if you can get quality truly free range chickens from a local farmer, then do it and feel less guilty.

7.  You crave sugar, fat, and salt because you're addicted to them.
Addiction has turned into the cop-out for everything.  Most food "addictions" are food dependencies that we have come to rely on.  Our palates are used to sweeter/saltier things and therefore, we depend on our food to taste a certain way.  Addiction is too harsh of a term to use for food.

8.  French women don't get fat.
Remember the book "French Women Don't Get Fat"?  I read it too and thought is was pretty much BS.  A statistic says that as of 2007, "42% of French women were obese" (however, 65% of American women are obese).  Their diets are probably better than ours with heart healthy fats and including red wine with meals, but they're getting to be a society of overweight people, just like here in America.

9.  Sugar leads to hyperactivity.
I liked how the book debunked this myth.  They said that people think this because when children are at a party and consume a lot of sugar, they are more hyper.  The authors point out that while there's sugar involved, there's also a lot of playing, games, singing, and toys.  Furthermore, I know plenty of adults that eat large amounts of sugar and they just sit on the couch- they're not running around like crazy.  So, don't blame the sugar.

10.  An open box of baking soda in the fridge absorbs odors.
I also still buy into this one even though I know better now.  Before I read this I did an experiment.  I cut 2 onions and placed them in my fridge, uncovered, by the brand new baking soda I just bought.  A few hours later, my fridge smelled like onions and pretty bad.  The authors state that the baking soda isn't acidic enough to absorb the many odors flying around in your fridge.  Bummer.  The best solution to make your fridge smell good?  Keep it clean and don't keep nasty smelling foods in there in the first place.

Eating well when all you do is eat

I eat a lot.  I recipe test when I'm home and that involves tasting (the horror!!) and eating the final product.  I'm also employed where food is abundant and always available.  My weight has had ups and downs, but I've managed to keep it in check.  I've learned how to do this with a few simple tricks and advice from experts.  (However, I will admit that having Crohn's disease is a diet within itself.  My body gets rid of a lot of food that doesn't agree with me without digesting it, so I have a built in diet plan so to speak- however, I would never wish this disease on anyone.)

Crohn's disease aside, here is what I do to maintain a healthy weight:

1.  Wear jeans, with a belt, when you eat.  You want to feel yourself growing out of your pants when you eat too much.  No spandex or elastic waists.
2.  No snacking after dinner/dessert.  I try not to eat past 7-7:30.  I hate going to bed full- I want to feel satisfied when sleeping and wake up hungry.
3.  Make water (not flavored water) your beverage of choice.  I steer clear of soda, tea, and sports drinks.  I drink coffee (decaf) on weekends.
4.  Include lots of vegetables with lunch and dinner.  Include fruit with breakfast.
5.  Try to limit baked goods like cookies, pie, and cake from grocery stores or bakeries.  I try to only eat homemade goodies (not only can you control the quality, you can control the fat).
6.  No fast food- anything with a drive through is off limits (for the most part) for me.
7.  Bring your lunch to work.
8.  Eat what you crave, but use portion control.  For example, I had a huge craving for fudge a few weeks ago.  I didn't ignore the craving.  I gave in and ate a portion of fudge everyday until the craving was satisfied.
9.  Enjoy chocolate or dessert everyday.  You won't feel deprived and go crazy when you never have it.
10.  Limit carb heavy meals and pasta to once a week- it feels more like a special treat this way.
11.  Work out, be active, lift weights, walk everyday as much as you can.
12.  I only eat out only once or twice a month.  This includes weekends and pizza restaurants and take out.  I cook all of the other days.
13.  Try to eat mostly whole foods in their natural form or roasted.  (Think raw fruits and vegetables, oatmeal, and roasted veggies.) Cut out or cut back on prepackaged foods.
14.  Read food labels.  I really look at calories, fat, sodium, and sugar.
15.  Sometimes reduced fat or nonfat = bad.  They won't satisfy you as well and you'll end up eating half the carton of reduced fat or non sugar ice cream.   A couple spoonfuls of the real stuff will satisfy you more and you won't eat as much.
16.  Carry a water bottle with you wherever you go and sip often.
17.  Lastly, life is short and remember that food is supposed to be enjoyed and consumed- just do it in moderation.  Listen to your body, and fuel it with the healthiest options you have.  Try to live by the 80-20 rule- eat right 80% of time and treat yourself 20% of the time.

Pictures of Christmas Goodies

No recipes in this post, but I wanted to share pictures of treats that we had this Christmas.  The first is a birthday cake that my mom has been making my brother probably since his 1st birthday.  It's a chocolate buttermilk cake (made with the best cocoa powder in the world this year- Valrhona- totally worth the price in taste) with her famous white yummy icing.  She would always decorate his cake with M&Ms and animal crackers.  However, the decorations disappeared as he got older, but his request this year was to make the cake exactly the way he remembered it as a kid.  I think it's still appropriate as an adult and  it's still a classic that never disappoints.

The second treat was a ridiculous cheesecake that I made for Christmas Eve.  It was a Paula Deen recipe and I expected it to be none other than incredibly rich, easy to make, and so good that you'll keep eating it. It was a 6 layer cheesecake with a graham cracker crust, a layer of chocolate ganache, caramel, chocolate chip cookie dough (homemade please), cheesecake, and another layer of chocolate ganache.  Almost stupid  to make an already sinful dessert more sinful, but Paula does it every time.

The third treat (well, some may not consider this a treat) was a vegetable tian from Ina Garten's "Barefoot in Paris" cookbook.  It was fanned layers of potato (I used blue potatoes for their color and texture), tomato, and zucchini.  The vegetables sit in a bed of sautéed onions and garlic and topped with plenty of thyme and Gruyere cheese. Enough said.  It was an incredible side dish.

(this picture was taken before the addition of the cheese)

The final treat was Ina's black and white angel food cake in her "At Home" cookbook.  I have made this a lot and it's my favorite cake.  It's a classic angel food cake with the addition of semi sweet chocolate shavings in the batter.  Then, once it's cooled, chocolate ganache acts as icing.  So good and you won't feel guilty about eating it.