Caramelized Banana Upside Down Cake

Maybe it's because I'm seven months pregnant but this cake blew my mind this week. I had a load of overripe bananas and couldn't handle another banana bread. I saw this on Food52 recently and gave it a try. WOW. Not only is it the best cake I've had in a long time, but it took like 15 to make. It's like one big banana sticky bun. Amazing.

Caramel & Bananas
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
3-4 bananas, sliced lengthwise either in half or in thirds

Cake
1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking pwder
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. In a 10 inch cast iron pan, melt the butter of medium high heat. Add the brown sugar and stir occasionally until it dissolves and is bubbly. Remove from heat and add the banana slices, flat side down, in one layer over the caramel so that all of the caramel is covered.

3. Mix the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a small bowl. In a large bowl, whisk the oil, sugar, and vanilla. Add the eggs and whisk. Slowly add the buttermilk until combined. Fold in the dry ingredients with a spatula until just combined - don't over mix.

4. Pour the cake batter over the bananas and put in the oven for 35-40 mins.

5. When done, remove from oven and run a knife around the edge of the cake. Let it sit for 5 mins and then carefully invert the cake onto a platter.

Sweet Potato Pie with Gingersnap Crust

The holidays are over....sigh. But luckily I still have a little leftover pie in the fridge. I wish it wouldn't go away. I keep taking only one bite periodically throughout the day, hoping it'll last a little longer. I'm usually on dessert duty for Thanksgiving and Christmas and the last couple of years I've changed up my pumpkin pie recipe a bit. It's not THAT original...I use the old trusted recipe off the One Pie can - but with a few substitutions that I think make all the difference: sweet potatoes instead of the canned stuff and gingersnap cookie crust instead of the standard.

Pie
1 3/4 cups roasted sweet potato (about 2 big ones)
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmet
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tbsp melted butter
1 12oz can evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
1/8 cup molasses
2 eggs, beaten

Gingersnap Crust
1 1/4 cup ground gingersnap cookies
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
4 tbsp butter, melted


1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Pulse the crust ingredients in a food processor until well combined. Pour into a pie dish and press down so that crust is firm, covers the bottom and the sides of the dish. Bake for 15 minutes and let cool.

3. In a mixer or large bowl, whisk sweet potato, eggs, butter, molasses, and milk. In a separate bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. Add to sweet potato mixture and whisk until combined.

4. Once crust has cooled, pour in the pie mixture and bake for about 50 minutes or until the pie is set.

Gingersnap Cookies

Gingernsaps are one of my favorite cookies. I tend to only bake them around the holidays when I need them for Sweet Potato Pie crust...and there are always a lot of leftovers. These freeze really well too!

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temp
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup molasses

1. Preheat to 350. 

2. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices in a bowl; stir well to mix. 

3. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together on medium speed the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes until very light, fluffy and whitened. Add the egg and continue beating until smooth. 

4. Lower speed and beat in half the dry ingredients, then the molasses Stop the mixer and scrape down bowl and beater. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients. 

5. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment. Scoop out 1-inch diameter pieces of dough. Roll into balls between the palms of your the hands. Place the balls of dough on the prepared pans leaving about 3 inches all around each, to allow for spreading. 

6. Bake the cookies for about 15 mins for chewy cookies and 20 mins for crispy ones.

Pumpkin Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting & Salted Caramel Pepitas

It's fall and I'm all things pumpkin. No, I don't do pumpkin lattes buuuuut, pretty much anything else. I saw this on Food52 the other day and had to make it. My mom thinks it's better than pumpkin pie. I don't know if I could forgo pumpkin pie this Thanksgiving but this is pretty damn yummy. I ate about half of it this weekend all by myself. Pregnancy strikes again...

Cake:
 

1 2/3 cup all-purpose flour 

1 1/2 tsp baking powder  

1/2 tsp baking soda 

1 tbsp plus 1 tsp ground cinnamon  

1 tsp freshly nutmeg 

1/4 tsp ground cloves  

1 cup plus 2 tbsp pumpkin purée 

1 cup vegetable or canola oil  

1 1/3 cup sugar 

3/4 tsp salt  

3 large eggs,yolks and whites separated

 

Frosting and caramelized pepitas (pumpkin seeds0: 

9 tbsp butter, divided, at room temperature 

8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature (1 block of Philly)

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar 

Pinch of cinnamon  

1 tbsp sugar 

1/2 cup salted pumpkin seeds (raw or toasted)  

 

1. Preheat the oven to 325°. Butter a 9-inch round cake pan, then line the bottom with a circle of parchment paper and butter that, too.

 

2. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves into a bowl and set aside.

 

3. Use the whisk attachment of a stand mixer to combine the pumpkin, oil, sugar, and salt.

 

4. With mixer on medium speed, add the egg yolks one at a time, waiting for one yolk to be fully incorporated before adding the next. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture, turning off the machine as soon as the dry ingredients are just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

 

5. Whisk the three egg whites until they are frothy and white. Fold them into the batter using a rubber spatula until they were no longer visible (but be careful not to over mix). Pour the cake batter into the pan and bake on the center rack in the oven. Begin checking the cake after 40 minutes. Let the cake cool in its pan on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes, or until the cake is pulling away from the pan, before inverting it onto a wire rack.

 

6. To make the frosting, beat together 8 tbsp of the butter and the cream cheese until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the powdered and beat until the frosting is smooth with no dry traces of sugar. Add a pinch of cinnamon, and beat the frosting until incorporated.

 

7. To make the pepitas, caramelize 1 tbsp of sugar in a small saucepan on medium heat until it is a rich reddish-brown color. Avoid over-stirring, which can turn the mixture dry and crumbly. Once the sugar is dark and fragrant, add the last tbsp of butter and stir quickly until it has melted and the sauce is smooth. Add the pumpkin seeds and stir until they're evenly coated in sauce. Transfer the seeds to a plate lined with parchment paper so that they cool and harden.

 

8. When the cake is completely cool, frost just the top and sprinkle with the seeds. You'll have extra frosting and I'm suuuuure you'll find something to do with it (like eat the rest with a spoon until you're sick).  

Billionaire Bars

These things are a dream come true, especially for a pregnant lady craving anything and everything that includes sugar. Chocolate + caramel + cookie = heaven. I saw a photo of these in Food & Wine and was sold immediately. Made them that day. The only saving grace about these suckers is that they're so rich, you really can only have one, a small one. I cut these up and froze them, they  can be eaten straight from the freezer in less than 5 minutes (thank you very much) and will keep much longer.

Shortbread:
1 stick cold, cubed unsalted butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Caramel:
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp kosher salt.
1 cup sugar
2 tbsp water

Chocolate Ganache:
9 oz 70% dark chocolate, chopped or as chips
3/4 heavy cream
1 cup roughly chopped pecans

1. For the shortbread: Preheat oven to 350. Line an 8" square pan with aluminum foil, allowing 2" to hang over the edges. In a food processor, combine all of the shortbread ingredients and pulse until a dough forms. Press the dough into the baking pan and bake for 25 mins, until firm and edges are golden. Let cool completely.

2. For the caramel: In a small saucepan, melt the butter, cream and salt over moderate heat. In a medium saucepan, combine sugar and water and cook over moderate heat until a golden caramel forms, only swirling pan to mix - DO NOT STIR, you will get crystals. Carefully drizzle the cream into the caramel and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly until temp reaches 230 on a candy thermometer. Immediately pour over the cooled shortbread and let cool for about 45 minutes.

3. For the ganache: Put the chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, bring the cream to a simmer and immediately pour over the chocolate. Let stand until chocolate starts to melt and then stir until smooth. Pour the ganache over the caramel and spread in an even layer. Sprinkle with pecans. Refrigerate until chilled.

Apple & Honey Cake

It's apple season! Buh-bye strawberries, hello Macs...
My good friends Sara and Kiran are leaving town and heading back to DC (excuse me while I sob a little) and we're off to their house in JP for one last dinner together. Their house is all packed up so we're bringing the goods. I got this recipe from Smitten Kitchen and thought it was beautiful. Topped with some homemade cinnamon ice cream, it's the perfect fall dessert.

Topping
4 tiny-to-small apples, halved, peeled and cored
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp granulated sugar

Batter
1 stick plus 1 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs, separated
2 good pinches of salt
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

Glaze
1/4 cup honey
A good pinch of sea salt

1. Preheat oven to 350. Coat a 9-inch springform with butter.

2. Prepare apples: Place peeled, halved and cored apples cut-side-down on a cutting board. Use a knife to create parallel thin slices, but only cut halfway through each apple so that the apples stay intact. If you cut through, no biggie - you can reassemble the halves on the cake in a few minutes. In a bowl, toss apples with lemon juice and 2 tbsp granulated sugar.

3. Prepare cake base: Beat butter and 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp granulated sugar together in a bowl until fluffy. Add honey and beat until combined. Add vanilla and egg yolks, beating until just combined. Sprinkle salt and baking powder over cake batter, and mix for just 5 seconds, until they disappear. Add flour, half at a time, mixing only until just combined.

4. In a separate bowl with cleaned beaters, beat egg whites until stiff. Stir 1/4 of them into the cake batter, to lighten it a little. Fold in the rest in three additions. Only fold the last addition of egg whites until it has mostly disappeared (a couple faint streaks of egg white are fine).

5. Spread cake batter in prepared cake pan, smoothing the top. Arrange apple halves facedown over the cake batter.No need to press the apples into the batter.

6. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a toothpick or skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let rest on a cooling rack for 5 minutes, then cut around the cake to make sure it’s not sticking to the pan at all, and unhinge the sides. Let cake cool completely. Before serving, warm 1/4 cup honey and a good pinch of sea salt until it liquefies to the point where it makes a thin glaze — this will take less than 30 seconds. Brush honey-salt mixture over cooled cake.

Strawberry Rhubarb Bars

It's strawberry season!! And I'm all things strawberry at the moment. I made these bars (thank you Smitten Kitchen, yet again!) yesterday and LOVE them. The best part - there is zero clean-up. As in - none, not even a bowl to wash. That's the best kind of baking...

*This is for an 8x8 baking dish. If you double the recipe, use a 9x13 dish (which I highly recommend because the 8x8 simply won't make enough of these).

1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
Heaping 1/4 tsp salt
6 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1 cup small-diced strawberries
1 cup small-diced rhubarb

1. Preheat the oven to 375.

2. Line the baking dish with parchment paper (make sure edges come up over the sides of the dish - this is necessary if you want a no clean up job.

3. Place the oats, flour, brown sugar and salt in the baking dish and mix together. Pour the butter over and stir until clumps form and all ingredients are absorbed. Set 1/2 of this mixture aside. Press the remaining mixture evenly into the dish to form the crust.

4. Sprinkle half of the strawberries over the crust. Do the same with the rhubarb so crust is evenly covered. Sprinkle the cornstarch over the fruit, then the lemon juice, and 1/2 of the granulated sugar.

5. Sprinkle the remaining fruit and the remaining 1/2 tsp of granulated sugar.

6. Scatter the remaining crust/crumbs over the fruit and press lightly to form a top crust.

7. Bake 30-40 minutes or until it's bubbly and top is golden.

Four Layer Coffee Toffee Chocolate Cake

Ok people, look. You know I don't joke about desserts. I experiment with all kinds of cake recipes and usually bring them into work - to see what everyone thinks. I gotta say, my colleagues are very appreciative and always complimentary. But it's a captive audience. I mean, no matter how bad the cake (think 3 square feet of Stop & Shop sheet cake), cake tastes good when you're at work. We circle like vultures - no matter what it is! But I made this cake for a special occasion. My dear colleague Hilary was accepted into nursing school which called for a special chocolate cake. I found what seemed to be a good looking chocolate cake base recipe (via Smitten Kitchen) and added the frills. This is it. I don't just mean the recipe. This is THE chocolate cake. The one that I will always make from now on....make this.

*It must be noted - VERY CLEARLY - that this recipe is for TWO 10" cake pans. I accidentally made this with 9" pans and boy oh boy, 30 mins into baking I was baking a third cake on the bottom of my oven. Having tasted the batter before baking, and because I didn't want to ruin the surprise party the next day with a store bought cake, I was determined to save them. Took them out, cleaned the oven (while it was ON) and put them back in. Saved. Once you try this cake, you will understand why I almost singed off my new bangs...

Caramel Sauce
1 cup sugar
1 stick of butter, cut into 6-8 pieces
6 tbsp cream
2 tbsp honey
3 tbsp water
1/4 tsp sea salt or kosher salt

Chocolate Cake
3 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups hot brewed coffee
3 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups unsweetened cocoa powder (not Dutch process)
2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 1/4 tsp salt
3 large eggs
3/4 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 well shaken buttermilk
2/4 tsp vanilla

Ganache Frosting and Filling
1 lb 60% sweet chocolate chips
1 cup light cream
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp light corn syrup
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces1 package of Heath Bar crunchies (available in baking section)

1. To make the caramel, melt sugar over medium heat in a saucepan, stirring if necessary to break up chunks. Once melted, it should be a copper color. Remove from heat, stir in butter then stir in cream, salt, honey, and water. Return to medium high heat until bubbling and a shade darker. Set aside.

2. Preheat oven to 300 and grease your (10 INCH!!) pans, line bottoms with parchment if you have it. Put the chocolate in a medium sized bowl and pour the hot coffee over it. Stir until melted. In a large bowl, sift together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

3. In another bowl with an electric mixer, beat eggs until thickened and lemon colored. Slowly add oil, buttermilk, vanilla, and melted chocolate mixture and beat until combined (watch out for the splash). Add sugar mixture (seriously watch out for the cocoa bomb that will fill your kitchen with a brown cloud if you're not careful - this ALSO happened to me while making this cake) and beat on medium until just combined. Divide batter between the two pans and bake for ~ 1 hr and 10 mins.

4. To make the ganache, bring the cream, sugar, and corn syrup to a boil in a saucepan and whisk in sugar until dissolved. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate, whisking until melted. Add butter and whisk until smooth. Pour into a bowl or container and put in the fridge to firm up a bit.

When cake is done, set on a rack to cool for about 10 minutes and then remove cake from pans. When cool, you can assemble the cake. At this point, you can wrap the cake in plastic and put in the fridge overnight or in the freezer for longer. To save the caramel and ganache, just cover and put in fridge. Microwave on defrost for about 3 mins to soften them up when ready to use.

To assemble the cake, here's what you do. First, cut both cakes in half so that you have 4 layers. Place the layers on the counter, cut sides up. Put the first layer on your plate/cake stand, cut side up. Pour enough caramel sauce over the top so that you can spread it with a spoon and cover most of the surface. The caramel can (and should, a little) seep into the cake. Sprinkle with heath crunchies. On another cake layer, spread a thinnish layer of ganache on the cut side. Then put it on top of the first layer, chocolate side down - like a cake sandwich (!). Spread a thin layer of ganache on top of the cake and lay another layer of cake on top, cut side up. Repeat the caramel, heath crunchies, and then the fourth cake layer with ganache. Put the fourth layer on top, ganache side down. Frost the top and sides of the cake with the rest of the ganache.

You will thank me for this...

Mom's Blueberry Pie

I know...wrong season. But I just made a blueberry pie last week and had to put this up. Paddy's brother, two sisters, and brother-in-law were here last weekend for a gig and I needed to pull together some good eats for the family. My German brother-in-law loves blueberry pie so I whipped this up for the gang. Whip up a pie you say? Yes! Always make double or triple batches of pie crust and keep it in the freezer for emergencies. We all love a blueberry pie emergency...

3 cups of blueberries (about a quart and a half?)
2 tbsp flour
1/2 cup sugar
Squeeze of a lemon
Zest of a lemon or 1/2 an orange
Dash of cinnamon
Pie crust

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. Combine the flour and sugar in a bowl.

3. Roll out the dough and place in pie dish. Sprinkle 2 tbsp of the flour/sugar mixture on the pie crust.

4. Add the rest of the flour/sugar mixture, zest, juice and cinnamon to the blueberries. Gently stir.

5. Dump the blueberry mixture into the pie and cover with the other crust. Be sure to put at least four slits in the top of the crust  (1/2 inch slits) to let out the steam while it bakes.

6. Bake for 30-45 minutes or until the crust is golden.

Lemon Earl Grey Bars

I have to admit, I'm not usually a big fruity/citrusy dessert person. If I'm gonna indulge, I usually want chocolate. I tried these squares over the summer and was pleasantly surprised. I loved them and so did the gang at the office. This recipe is from Cooking Light and it's a twist on an old classic.

Crust:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup powdered sugar
2 tea bags of Earl Grey, divided
1/8 tsp salt
8 TB chilled butter cut into pieces

Filling:
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1 cup granulated sugar
2 TB all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp lemon zest
3 eggs
1 TB powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. To make crust, line an 8" baking dish with foil that extends 2" beyond the sides. Coat foil with cooking spray. Combine the flour, powdered sugar, 1 tsp tea, and salt in a bowl. Cut in butter until mixture resembles a course meal. Press into bottom of dish and bake at 350 for 19 minutes or until lightly browned.

3. To prepare filling, microwave lemon juice on high for 30 seconds. Add remaining tea bag to juice and steep for 10 minutes. Squeeze tea bag dry and discard.

4. Mix the sugar, flour, baking powder, zest and eggs and add to the sugar mixture. Whisk until well combined.

5. Remove crust from the oven, pour filling onto hot crust and bake for 23 minutes or until set.

6. Cool pan on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Remove from dish by lifting the tin foil. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

French Apple Cake

The great thing about Cooks Illustrated is pretty much everything in it is a guarantee...as long as you make it right. I have a confession to make...we had Sara and Kiran over for dinner last weekend and I was in an Autumn mood. Although I had made homemade ice cream sandwiches (new summer favorite dessert!!), I thought I'd do something apple-y. Thing is, I forgot to make the top layer of this cake. Either way, it got two thumbs up from both the visitors and Paddy.

The bottom layer is like a cakey custard. The top layer (don't forget to separate the batter!) provides a tender, airy top to balance it off. Even better about this? No butter, cream, etc. which means my dad can eat it. Making it the right way the next time we go to CT for a visit...I'd provide a pretty photo but we ate it all :)

1.5 lbs granny smith apples, peeled, cored, cut into wedges and sliced 1/8 in. thick
1 tsp lemon juice
1 cup plus
2 tbsp flour
1 cup plus
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg plus 2 egg yolks
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla (make your own!)

1. Preheat oven to 325. Spray a 9 inch springform pan with  vegetable oil spray. Place pan on a foil-lined cookie sheet (don't skip this step).

2. Place the cut apple in a microwavable pie or cassarole dish. Microwave apples, covered, for about 3 minutes until a bit soft. Toss apples with lemon juice and set aside to cool.

3. Whisk 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, baking pwder and salt in a bowl.

4. In another bowl, whisk ONE EGG, oil, milk, and vanilla together until smooth.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until just combined. TRANSFER 1 CUP OF BATTER TO A SEPARATE BOWL AND SET ASIDE.

6. Add egg yolks to remaining batter and whisk to combine. Gently fold in cooled apples. Transfer batter to pan and spread evenly.

7. Whisk remaining 2 tbsp flour into reserved batter. Pour over batter in pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle remaining 1 tbsp of granulated sugar on top.

8. Bake until cake is set, about 1 1/4 hours. Dust lightly with confectioners sugar to make it pretty when it's done and cooled.

Chocolate Espresso Macarons

We just threw my sister a baby shower...yay! I'm going to be an auntie in a month and I can't wait to meet little bebe. I wanted to make something edible for the party favors but wanted it to be special. Since French macarons are making a US invasion these days, overtaking the cupcake phenomenon with fury, I thought I'd try my hand. This was the most appealing recipe I found - because I love chocolate and coffee. And because this comes from a food blog called "effing dericious." With an "r." Enough said.

Anyway, be forewarned - these are NOT easy. A lot can go wrong here but don't be discouraged if you end up with dense cookies on your first go. Mine are still a work in progress. But the flavor of these is so wonderful that it almost doesn't matter if they don't have their perfect 'feet.'  But you do hope for a light, fluffy, chewy, pillow of sweetness....here it goes...

*You do need a digital scale for these. Don't cut corners. You won't win.
You also need silpat baking sheet liners, or parchment.

Macaron Shells:
110g blanched almonds (or almond powder - can be found in specialty aisle of some grocery stores)
200g powdered sugar
28g granulated sugar
90g aged egg whites - separate them and let them sit overnight on the counter. Yes, you heard me.
2 tsp espresso powder (you could use instant coffee to cheat a little here)

Chocolate Espresso Ganache Filling:
250g heavy cream
4 tsp light corn syrup
240g bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped or in chips
30g butter, cut into small pieces
3 tsp espresso powder

Make the ganache first:
1. Heat the cream in a small saucepan with the corn syrup. When the cream just begins to bubble at the edges, remove from heat and add the chocolate. Let sit for a minute or two and then stir in espresso powder. Mix well.

2. Add the butter until the pieces have melted away and the chocolate is silky.

3. Cool the ganache in the fridge while making the macarons. (If making ahead of time, take out several hours in advance. You want it to be smooth and able to squeeze out of a pastry bag. You don't want it so thick and hard that it breaks your macaron shells!!)

Now for the macarons, are you ready?
1. Preheat the oven to 270F. Measure out your ingredients. If using blanched almonds, grind in a food processor until so fine that you can sift it like flour (hard to achieve but it is possible).

2. Sift the almond powder, espresso powder and powdered sugar into a medium bowl.

3. Using a stand or hand mixer, beat the egg whites until they foam up a bit. Keep beating while you gradually add the granulated sugar. Beat until stiff peaks form. Aim for shaving cream consistency but don't over beat. You want it to be glossy.

4. Carefully fold in half of the dry ingredients with a spatula and mix with as few strokes as possible. Add the remaining dry ingredients and mix and incorporate. It's tough to know when to stop mixing, but you want the batter to be like lava. The batter should fall back in a thick ribbon off the spatula.

5. Using a pastry bag or a ziplock with the corner cut off, pipe 1-inch blobs on silpat lined baking sheets. Make sure to evenly space them 1 inch apart, they will spread a bit. Don't draw circles, pipe directly onto the baking sheet to form the blob.

6. Once the batter is finished, let them sit on the counter for about 30-40 minutes until the batter has spread a bit and a little skin forms on the top of each. Don't touch them!!!

7. Put them int he oven for 18 minutes. Set the timer. Seriously. And hope for the best.

8. Once they're out of the oven, let them cool before removing them.

9. Fill your pastry bag/ziplock with the ganache filling and pipe enough to fill about 3/4 of the shell. Top with another shell to form a sandwich.

10. These save for several days in the fridge and get better with age.

Homemade Vanilla Extract

I hope you'll be as surprised as I was to find out that you can make your own vanilla extract...with two ingredients!! All you need is a few vanilla beans and some vodka.

I use small 4oz glass bottles with corks that you can find at the container store. You can find vanilla beans at whole foods, Penzy's etc. For a 4 oz bottle, I usually use 3 beans.

Slice the beans open on one side, scrape out the insides with your knife and put in the bottle. You don't have to get it all but it's good to open up the beans and get some of the goodness out. Put the beans in the bottle too. Fill the rest with vodka and let sit for a week or two. Give the bottle a good shake every couple of days to help the process. It'll eventually turn dark brown and will be yummy and a lot cheaper than the store bought stuff.

**Or, you can put the whole (uncut) beans in a larger bottle, fill with vodka and let sit for a week or so. Vanilla vodka is great for cocktails!

Coconut Layer Cake

Have I mentioned lately that I love all things coconut? I'm all over anything that smells like a bottle of suntan lotion. And coconut + cake? Even better! Here's a simple cake recipe that actually takes a fraction of the usual layer cake time. The secret is in the very thin cake layers which allow for quick cooling. And more layers = more opportunities for frosting. Everybody wins!

*This recipe makes about three 1-inch cake layers. Add to make more!

Vanilla Cake

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour (don't have self-rising flour? Use 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus 2 1/4 tsp baking powder, plus 1/4 tsp salt)
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour (still needed even if you use substitution above!)
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs at room temperature
1 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Lightly butter three round cake pans. Nonstick pans come in very handy since the cake layers will be thin and fragile. (If you only have two, you can reuse one once the first two are out of the oven, it won't take long!)

3. In a medium bowl, combine the flours (and other dry ingredients if you substituted). Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, cream the butter until smooth with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually add the sugar and beat until fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the butter/egg mixture, alternating with the milk and vanilla. With each addition, beat until ingredients are incorporated, but don't overbeat!

6. Pour a third of the batter into each cake pan. You should have a very thin layer (1/2 inch or so).

7. Place the cakes in the oven and watch them! They will only take 5-10 minutes depending on thickness and your oven. Have a toothpick ready to test - they're done when a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. When baking thin layers like this, they'll likely bubble a bit like a pancake. Remove when just cooked through or else they'll come out like crunch cookies :)

Cream Cheese Coconut Frosting

2 8oz packages of cream cheese, softened and cut into smallish pieces
6 TB unsalted butter, cut into pieces and softened
2 tsp vanilla
5 cups confectioners' sugar
2 cups shredded coconut

1. In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth on medium speed. Add the vanilla and beat well. Gradually add the sugar, 1 cup at a time until smooth and creamy. Taste as you go, the sugar can be cut or added depending on preference. Add 1 1/2 cups of the coconut and mix to blend.

2. Ice your cake and sprinkle the remaining coconut on top.

Berry Tart

I tried this for the first time the other day for some friends and it was delicious! I prefer to use mostly strawberries on top with either blackberries or blueberries but you can really make this with any fruit.

Crust:
9 graham cracker sheets
2 TB sugar
2 TB melted butter
4 tsp water

Filling:
5 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Topping:
6 cups small strawberries
2 cups blackberries or blueberries
2/3 cups sugar
1 TB cornstarch
1 TB lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. To prepare crust, put the graham crackers in a food processor and pulse until crumbly. Add the melted butter, sugar, and water and pulse until just moist.

3. Spray a tart pan or a shallow baking dish with cooking spray and spread the crust so that the bottom is covered. Bake for 10 minutes or until the crust is lightly browned. When done, cool completely in the dish on a wire rack.

4. To prepare the filling, combine cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in a medium bowl and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Spread the filling over the crust.

5. To prepare topping, place 2 cups of strawberries in a food processor and process until smooth. Combine the puree, sugar, and cornstarch in a small saucepan over medium high heat and stir with a whisk. Bring to a boil stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low, cook for 1 minute and then remove from heat. Cool to room temperature and stir occasionally.

6. Cut the tops off the rest of the strawberries and toss with the lemon juice. Arrange the berries, sliced side facing down in the filling, on top of the filling leaving a little room in between them for the black or blueberries. Scatter the black and blueberries into the spaces.

7. Spoon the glaze over the berries making sure it seeps into all the spaces between them. Cover and chill for about 3 hours.

Pumpkin Spice Tea Cake

I love the holidays, mostly because everything sweet is made with pumpkin. Pumpkin pie, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin spices...just opening the jar of nutmeg conjures elaborate images of pumpkin custard pies, turkeys, potatoes. My mom passed along this recipe for pumpkin cake and I make it at least 5-6 times a year - for myself, my colleagues, as Christmas gifts, thank you's, you name it. Everyone loves it and it's one of my favorites.

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 eggs
1/2 can pumpkin
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 cup water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, combine sugar, oil, and eggs. Add pumpkin and mix well.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients (sift to avoid lumps).

4. Alternately add the dry ingredients and the water until the batter is well mixed.

5. Pour into a lightly buttered loaf pan and bake about an hour or until a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.

Guinness Cupcakes

What could possibly make a cupcake any better? A cupcake with beer. And not any beer, GUINNESS. Given that Reba and I spent the better part of the last few years at the Druid, it was only appropriate to have her and Andy's engagement party there. And as if we weren't getting enough Guinness from the bar, these cupcakes really topped it off. The cream cheese frosting even makes them look like mini pints of Guinness.

Chocolate & Guinness Cupcakes

1 (12 oz) bottle of Guinness
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tbsp vanilla extract
3 eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup cocoa (Ghirardelli!)
2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, mix the Guinness, milk, oil, and vanilla.

3. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, and then the sour cream.

4. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa, sugar, and baking soda.

5. Gradually beat the dry ingredients into the Guinness mixture. The batter will seem a bit soupy and you may have to use a ladle to pour the batter into the cupcake tins.

Cream Cheese Frosting

1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup cream (heavy or light)
~2-3 cups confectioners sugar

1. Beat the cream cheese until fluffy

2. Add the cream

3. Add the sugar. I like my cream cheese frosting tangy and cheesy, add more sugar if you like it sweet and/or to thicken the frosting a bit.

*The frosting will not be very thick, add sugar until it thickens a bit more if you need to. Otherwise, if you can, put the frosting in the fridge for a couple of hours and it'll thicken a bit. When frosting the cupcakes, put a large dallop on top and try to avoid getting too close to the edges, the frosting may run a bit and if you keep it right on top, it probably won't run off the cake.

Vanilla Cupcakes with Rich Chocolate Frosting

I baked 8 dozen of them this week trying out some new recipes to find the best for Reba and Andy's party. Needless to say, the vultures on the 7th floor of the JSI/World Ed office were very happy to add them to their breakfasts (none of us could wait until lunch).

Vanilla Cupcakes

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
*(if you don't have self-rising flour, subsitute 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour + 2 1/4 tsp baking powder + 1/4 + 1/8 tsp salt)
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs, room temperature
1 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Sift the flour(s) together in a small bowl. Do sift! It makes a difference.

3. In a large bowl, cream the butter until smooth with an electric mixer. Gradually add the sugar until mixture is fluffy.

4. Add eggs one at a time and beat well after each.

5. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk and vanilla, beating after each until incorporated but don't overbeat!

6. Fill 2 dozen cupcake liners and pop into the oven for 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

7. Cook cupcakes in tin for about 15 minutes and remove to finish cooling.


Rich Chocolate Frosting

3 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 cup cocoa powder (Ghirardelli is the best)
1/4 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1/3 cup of milk
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Add the flour and cocoa to a medium bowl and whisk together.

2. Add the butter, milk, and vanilla and beat until incorporated.

3. Depending on how thick you like your frosting, you may have to add a little more milk to make it creamier.

Nutella Layered Pound Cake

My sister and I used to make pound cake from a box mix when we were growing up. It was our favorite dessert. I never thought that pound cake needed frosting because it's already so rich and sweet. But let's face it, Nutella makes everything better! I discovered Nutella in Europe almost 15 years ago and since then it's been a love-hate relationship...loving it when I have a jar of it, hating it when my pants are tight in the waistline a week later. The great thing about it for this dessert is that unlike regular frosting, it's thickness holds up to the dense pound cake.

*It's best to bake the pound cake the day/night before you plan to serve it - so it's completely cool before you layer it with Nutella.

Pound Cake:

3 cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla (add another 1/2 tsp for extra vanilla-ness!)
3 eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1 small jar of Nutella

1. Preheat oven to 350.

2. In a large bowl, beat the sugar, butter, and vanilla together on medium until light and fluffy.

3. Add eggs one at a time, beating mixture after each.

4. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and baking powder together.

5. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to the butter mixture, beating after each addition. Begin and end with the flour mixture.

6. Pour batter into a loaf pan (large) and bake at 350 for 45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

7. When finished baking, let the pound cake cool completely (overnight if possible).

Assembly:

Once cooled and removed from the loaf pan. Cut the pound cake horizontally into thirds (lengthwise). Spread about 1/4 inch of Nutella on the bottom layer and place the next section of pound cake on top. Spread more Nutella on the 2nd layer and place the top of the pound cake on top.

To serve, cut vertical pieces so that each slice has two layers of Nutella. For extra goodness, serve with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Fool Proof Pie Crust

My mom and I felt a little bad about tossing Grandma's crust recipe and switching to this one but it's a keeper. An old World Education colleague, Kim, brought in an apple pie to work one day. It was the best crust I've ever had. I was surprised by the vinegar but it's the key to this perfect crust. Even better, no butter! This usually yields about 1 1/2 apple pie's worth so I keep the extras in a ball in the freezer - perfect for pumpkin pie, chicken pot pie or for a crusty top to beef stew.

4 cups flour
1 tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt
1 3/4 cups vegetable shortening/Crisco
1 tbsp vinegar
1/2 cup water
1 egg

1. Blend flour, sugar and salt.
2. Cut in shortening.
3. Measure 1/2 cup ice water, beat in egg, and add vinegar.
4. Add the water mixture a little bit at a time, use a potatoe masher to cut in.
5. Mix until all flour incorporated. Put in fridge until ready to use.