Tuesdays with Dorie: Cocoa-Nana Bread
January 26, 2010 at 1:00 am | Posted in breakfast things, cakes & tortes, groups, muffins/quick breads, simple cakes, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 36 Comments
Wow–super-busy week at work. If I hadn’t made this Cocoa-Nana Bread, chosen for TWD by fellow Steph of Obsessed with Baking, early last week, it just wouldn’t have happened for me. The bakery I work for was featured in a segment on national TV a few days ago, and it sent mail orders for our brownies pouring in all weekend. Terrific for business, but the owners neglected to give the kitchen the heads-up that it was airing! Saying we we’ve been in the weeds would be an understatement, and my arms are about to fall off from so much brownie mixing. Anyway, back to matters at hand…
A healthy dose of cocoa powder makes this loaf pumpernickel-dark. And bananas make it moist. It’s really much more cocoa than nana….and also more loaf cake than bread. Dorie intends it to be for breakfast, but we thought it made a fine dessert. Leftovers are a yummy trifle base, BTW.
To all my Aussie friends–happy Australia Day! I’ll be celebrating here with homemade sausage rolls, a Cooper’s Sparkling and some good tennis!
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, or read Obsessed with Baking. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
The Cake Slice: Red Velvet Cake
January 20, 2010 at 1:01 am | Posted in cakes & tortes, groups, layer cakes, sweet things, the cake slice | 20 Comments
The Cake Slice Bakers are baking up a true slice of Americana this month– Red Velvet Cake. Even though this cake has been super trendy in recent years, and I even though make a giant batch of it at work every day, I’ve never been so enthusiastic about red velvet. All that food coloring makes me a bit uneasy. A good thing about making it at home, though, is that you can control how much Red 40 does or does not go into it. Just like the other time I made red velvet here, I used only a couple drops of gel coloring…more of a “rust velvet,” I guess.
I generally think cream cheese frosting and red velvet go hand-in-hand (although where I work, we use a cinnamon buttercream), but this recipe has a boiled milk frosting with coconut and pecans. That’s new to me, but I really do think the frosting made it the best red velvet I’ve ever had (probably because it reminded me of my most favorite cake, German chocolate)! And the texture of the cake’s crumb was great, too…soft and, of course, velvety.
Here’s a printable link to the recipe. Or get your hands on a copy of Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott. Cruise through the list of The Cake Slice Bakers to check out all of our red velvet cakes this month!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Chocolate Oatmeal Almost-Candy Bars
January 19, 2010 at 1:04 am | Posted in cookies & bars, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 30 Comments 
I am the type who is already daydreaming about Halloween in January, so Lillian’s choice of Chocolate Oatmeal Almost-Candy Bars for TWD was alright by me! Chocolatey, peanutty goo sandwiched between two layers of oatmeal chew make for a fine candy bar approximation, especially when cut into fun-size bars.
The original recipe yields a bit too much (actually a lot too much!) for just two people, so I made a third of it in a loaf pan. For me it was a little too heavy on the oat mixture. If I make it again, I’ll go with 1/4 of the oat mixture and 1/3 of the chocolate goo. A little extra chocolate is always a good thing! Also, I left out the raisins in the chocolate layer. Something about that was a little too reminiscent of a Chunky Bar…despite what Nestlé’s website says, that combo does not bring back fond memories. The peanuts alone were plenty tasty.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, or read Confectiona’s Realm. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Mrs. Vogel’s Scherben
January 12, 2010 at 1:01 am | Posted in cookies & bars, sweet things | 30 Comments
Whoosie-whatsit?? I was wondering when someone would have us make these little bits of deep-fried goodness with the crazy name. Then along comes Teanna of Spork or Foon? to banish our fears of frying.
Little strips of fried dough, scherben are easy to make. They don’t taste like much naked, but if you toss them in cinnamon sugar when they are just out of the oil and then sprinkle them with 10x, yeah, they’re pretty addictive…which is good, because if you live in an apartment where the windows don’t open and the stovetop doesn’t vent to the outside, you will be reminded of your frying escapades for days to come.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, or read Spork or Foon? Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie: Tarte Tatin
January 5, 2010 at 1:01 am | Posted in groups, pies & tarts, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 39 Comments
Happy anniversary! You may be wondering, “What anniversary?” Why, it’s TWD‘s second anniversary! The group’s throwing a big celebration…you’ll see that some of us are bringing cake and others, like me, are bringing Tarte Tatin. (I’ll have to get to that cake soon myself…sounds like good stuff!)
Tarte Tatin is a dessert that’s very familiar to me. If my mum says she’s making an apple pie, she’s not talking about the traditional American kind…she’s talking about a tarte Tatin. In fact, when my brother was staying with us in Sydney, I made a double-crusted apple pie, and he griped that it wasn’t like our mum’s! But, hey– big chunks of apple that have been cooked down in buttery caramel– who can blame him?? You can use a regular pie crust as your base (or top) if you want, but I just love caramel-soaked puff pastry.
There are a couple of things about tatins that can make people a little nervous. First, you have to let the caramel and apples go for awhile…don’t be afraid to let the caramel turn a pretty deep amber. And pack those apples in, because they shrink while they cook. Flipping the Tatin out of the pan might sound a little scary (you, know it bakes upside-down, right?), but if you wear good oven mitts and flip with confidence, all should fall into place.
Whew, two years and over one hundred recipes from Baking: From My Home to Yours…just thinking about that makes me want slip into something elastic-waisted! But seriously, big hugs and lots of thanks go to both Laurie and Dorie. I’m so looking forward to the next year of baking!!
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan. It’s also here on NPR, along with an audio link to the radio story. As always, don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
Tuesdays with Dorie (on Friday!): Low and Lush Chocolate Cheesecake
January 1, 2010 at 3:24 pm | Posted in cakes & tortes, cheesecakes, groups, sweet things, tuesdays with dorie | 22 Comments
Happy New Year, my friends! Here’s to a 2010 full of sweetness and happiness!
So, how did you ring in the new year? There was a time when I’d stay out all night, but I can’t toss ’em back quite like I used to, so these days I like to keep it low-key…make a nice dinner and drink champagne cocktails at home. Part of last night’s celebration involved Dorie’s Low and Lush Chocolate Chessecake. I added my own chocolate and sour cream topping, mainly so I’d have a nice shiny surface on which to place the edible gold stars I found not long ago. Pretty cute, but I did have to go through the tiresome task of applying each one individually with tweezers.
This cheesecake was made my favorite way (which is also the easiest way to lump-free batter, if you ask me)– in the food processor. It baked up creamy and smooth and pretty, but I have to say that I prefer the bright freshness of fruit, rather than chocolate, with my cheesecake. For that reason, I probably wouldn’t make this one again just for us, but if I had a guest coming over that simply adored chocolate cheesecake, I certainly wouldn’t hesitate.
For the recipe, see Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan or read Tea and Scones, as it was the Tea Lady’s choice for TWD this week. Don’t forget to check out the TWD Blogroll!
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