A little early this week; but, Enjoy!
If you would like to be on or off of this weekly cooking thread, please send me a private message.
-JT
Did they have canola oil in 1975?
One thing that we have noticed about carrot cake is that fresh-dug garden carrots are WAY better in the cake.
Carrot cake sounds good, but I could really use some help deciding which blu-ray player to buy. lol.
Nothing easier to make than cream cheese frosting. The kind in the can is not very good imo. Half a blockor a little more of cr cheese room temp (Philly orig), half a stick of soft butter or a little less, about 3 cups powdered sugar, mix then add some milk or cream to spreading consistency. I don't think I bothered with vanilla. I hope the amounts are right; haven't done that one for too long. I usually made the 13X9 cake so if you make a layer cake, use 4 cups powdered sugar and adjust the rest accordingly.
Problem is I haven't seen spice cake for awhile and won't use anything but Duncan Hines or Pillsbury maybe Betty Crocker but no pudding in the mix.
I’ve been putting it off for more than a week but I found a recipe on the web for burnt sugar cake and frosting I want to make. Something isn’t quite right with my oven I need to compensate for even though I got an oven thermometer and it seemed ok the one place I tried it.
Thank you, looks good!
I have a special recipe: Easter Egg Cake
Use your favorite dark chocolate cake
Prepare as directed
Prepare tiny loaf pans/large loaf pans - whatever you want - and it may depend on how many you want to make.
Bake according to directions
Now the fun begins. Hopefully you have a collection of decorating gels; frosting; sprinkles, etc
Get your creative juices in gear and remove a cake from the pan. Carve off the rounded top so the cake can sit level (yes, you are going to present the cake upside down).
Now, the cake is on a plate with the bottom on top - and you’re going to shave the square corners down so the cake piece looks like a half a chocolate egg (oval shape) laying on a plate. Next, frost the “egg” with dark chocolate frosting; and smooth out the frosting the best you can. You can use a shell type frosting if you choose.
Now it’s time for all the decorating stuff. Just go crazy, or do your best to draw flowers, stars, etc. Any color will do; just make it look like a decorated chocolate egg.
This is a fun project - and it’s a total surprise to everyone you give it to.
HAVE FUN !! I know I will.
I bumped into this carrot cupcake recipe a while ago looking for the ‘best carrot cupcake recipe’....and it IS great!
(I skip the nuts/pecans and use a flour frosting which takes forever to make but is great too)
http://half-bakedbaker.blogspot.com/2011/11/best-ever-carrot-cake-cupcakes.html
I used to make a cheesecake that was made with a carrot cake crust. We used the crusts off the carrot cake, crumbled them, and used them as a base for the cream cheese crust. It was to die for.
I didn't do anything this fancy at all this week. Most of it came from one of restaurant that I can actually eat, and know the calories of. I write down every single calorie during the day. Yesterday was 2780 calories. I need that to gain the weight back, and it's working. I'm up to 103 lbs!
It's good to have a chef in the house.
I will probably be shopping for myself on my own two feet this weekend, with someone else driving, and will be able to be my normal crazy kitchen self.
I've found that the tall, roll-around art chair works really well at the stovetop for cooking, my instructors disregarded.
/johnny
I love carrot cake! Will I ever make it? Probably not, because then I would eat it and I need to loose weight to help get my Blood Pressure under control. Also, I don’t like grating anything, although I sometimes do it to make hash browns.
This weeks treats are 1 butter finger bites and 1 Tablespoon peanut butter on a cracker per day-that about 100 calories.
I am a big fan of using olive oil in cakes. This is a nice recipe. i serve it with a fruit compote and maybe some vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Maialino’s Olive Oil Cake from Food52.
Olive oil cake at its best has a crackling crust and an aromatic oil-rich middle, which, if it held any more moisture, would be pudding. Pulling this off should be easy — there aren’t even egg whites to whip and fold, or butter to cream — but it isn’t always. This one, however, is perfect, and will ruin you for all others.
Recipe from Maialino Restaurant in New York City. Maialino also serves it at breakfast in muffin form, and they’ve been known to turn it into a birthday cake, layered with mascarpone buttercream.
Makes a 9-inch round cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/4 cup whole milk
3 large eggs
1 1/2 tablespoon grated orange zest
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup Grand Marnier
Heat the oven to 350° F. Oil, butter, or spray a 9-inch cake pan that is at least 2 inches deep with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. (If your cake pan is less than 2 inches deep, divide between 2 pans and start checking for doneness at 30 minutes.)
In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and powder. In another bowl, whisk the olive oil, milk, eggs, orange zest and juice and Grand Marnier. Add the dry ingredients; whisk until just combined.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, until the top is golden and a cake tester comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and let cool for 30 minutes.
Run a knife around the edge of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack and let cool completely, 2 hours.
This recipe gets requested every time I make it.
Pecan Pie Cheesecake
1 store bought 1 lb pecan pie ( I used Trader Joe’s pie)
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
3 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, softened
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup half and half (I used whipping cream)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup powdered sugar
2 T. flour
20 pecan halves
Preheat oven to 325F.
Cut pecan pie into 10 pieces. I just used the insides of the pie-left off crust and top hang of the crust.
Stir together graham cracker crumbs and next 3 ingredients; press mixture onto
bottom and 11/2 inches up sides of a 10 inch spring form pan.
Arrange 10 pecan pie wedges in a spoke design in prepared pan, placing 1 cut side of each wedge
on graham crust with narrow end towards center of pan.
Beat cream cheese until smooth; add eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition.
Add sour cream, half-and-half, and vanilla; beat until blended. Fold in powdered sugar
and flour. Carefully pour cream cheese mixture evenly around and over pecan pie wedges in pan, making sure wedges remain in place. Arrange pecan halves evenly around edge and center.
Bake at 325F for 50 minutes. Turn off oven, and let cheesecake stand in oven 1 hour.
Remove to a wire rack, and let cool completely. Chill at least 8 hours or
overnight before serving.
I bought candied pecans from Trader Joes and added them on the top of the cheesecake after it was baked.
I also got some store bought caramel sauce, heated it and put in a plastic squeeze top container. I did a design on the top of the cake with this warm sauce and anchored the pecans with this sauce.
Carrot Bundt Cake
Ingredients:
For the Cake:
2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup canola oil
4 large eggs
2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
2 cup shredded carrots
1 cup Fisher Chopped Pecans
For the Filling:
1 package (8oz) cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg
For the frosting:
4oz cream cheese, softened
3 Tbsp milk
2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup Fisher Chopped Pecans
Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. Spray a 12 cup bundt pan generously with baking spray. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combined all the ingredients for the cake, mixing until well combined. Batter will be very thick! Set aside.
For the filling, beat cream cheese with sugar, vanilla and egg until smooth and creamy. Set aside.
To assemble, fill bottom of sprayed bundt pan with about 3/4 of the batter. Spoon the cream cheese into the pan, being careful not to let it touch the sides of the pan. Spoon the remaining batter over the cream cheese layer. It’s okay if it doesn’t cover completely.
Bake cake in a preheated oven for 60-65 minutes. Cake will be browned and will pull away from the pan when done. Remove from oven and cool for 5-10 minutes before inverting onto a wire rack.
Cool completely before frosting.
For the frosting, beat cream cheese, milk and powdered sugar together until smooth and creamy. Pour frosting into a large ziploc bag and snip off the corner. Pipe onto cake, generously. Sprinkle immediately with chopped pecans.
I VOTE FOR EASY RECIPES!
Here’s one: there’s only a measuring cup, a fork, and the pan you bake the cake in to be cleaned!
It’s also DAIRY-FREE (though I like to smother it in melted butter while it’s hot) and CHEAP.
Can be tricky getting a good texture. It’s more of a snack than a cake IMO.
Look up “wacky cake” and you’ll find various recipes, mostly chocolate. I like my pineapple version.
1 1/2 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 small can pineapple slices (I only get 4 slices now, used to be 5!)
1/3 cup melted shortening or oil (Iuse oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup total cold water and pineapple juice (apple or other juice is a good sub for the water)
Preheat oven to 350°F.
I use an 8x8 inch glass pan. Don’t have to oil the pan, but I do smother butter on it while it’s hot in the pan as I said. If you don’t maybe a little Pam would be a good idea.
Add the dry ingredients one at a time to the measuring cup stirring them with the fork. Pour into the pan and then do the liquids reserving the slices.
Stir all together in the pan and then force the slices to the bottom.
Bake at 350°F for 30- 40 minutes.