Apple Cake with Maple-Walnut Cream Cheese Frosting

Hola lovelies! I'm back with a new recipe from The Cookbook! I decided to make the Apple Cake with Maple-Walnut Cream Cheese Frosting and to be honest it came out just okay. Don't get me wrong, the taste was great and I highly recommend that you try this recipe. However my cake sunk in the middle :( I'm a great froster so I was able to cleverly disguise it. The reason why it sank was because the currants and the walnuts went straight to the bottom of the pan while it was baking. I may not have used enough flour to coat the currants and I may have overfilled my pans a bit too. But like I said before this cake was amazing and my hubby who hates "stuff in cakes" couldn't even tell there were currant and walnuts in the cake and he loved it. No bias.... But on to the cake!

Isn't it beautiful lol? It has a slight lean to it because of my sinkage issues but a little extra frosting helped me to mask the majority of the lean. The recipe instructions say to use three 9-inch diameter pans but I only had 2 hence my cake only being two layers. *This also might be why my cake sank in the middle so take heed*

For the cake

1    lb. Golden Delicious apples (about 2 medium), peeled, cored, diced

¼   cup water

2½ cups plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour

2    tsp baking soda

1½ tsp ground cinnamon

½   tsp salt

¼   tsp ground nutmeg

¼   tsp ground cloves

1    cup dried currants

1    cup walnuts toasted, chopped

2    cups sugar

1    cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1    tbsp brandy

1½ tsp vanilla extract

4    large eggs

For the frosting

1    cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1    cup (packed) dark brown sugar

2    8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature

½   cup pure maple syrup

¼   tsp maple flavoring

2    cups walnuts, toasted, chopped

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour three 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Combine apples and water in small saucepan. Cover; simmer over medium-low heat until apples are tender, about 20 minutes. Place in processor; purée until smooth. Cool purée. Sift 2 1/2 cups flour and next 5 ingredients into medium bowl. Toss currants with remaining 1 tablespoon flour in small bowl to coat; mix in walnuts.
2. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, brandy and vanilla in large bowl until blended. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Beat in half of flour mixture and 1 1/4 cups apple purée, then remaining flour mixture (re-serve any remaining puree for another use). Stir in currants and walnuts. Divide batter among prepared pans.
3. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cut around pan sides to loosen cakes; turn out onto racks and cool.
4. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until blended. Beat in cream cheese, then maple syrup and flavoring. Chill until beginning to firm, about 20 minutes.
5. Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread with 3/4 cup frosting. Top with second layer; spread with 3/4 cup frosting. Top with third layer. Spread 1 cup frosting in thin layer over cake. Chill 15 minutes. Spread remaining frosting over cake. Press 2 cups walnuts halfway up sides of cake. Chill until frosting is set, at least 30 minutes. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover; keep chilled. Let stand at room temperature 1 hour before serving.)

Enjoy!

-DJ

Simmered Creamy Mussels and Linguine

So in addition to baking, I have a general love of cooking non pastry things and as I and the hubby have recently given up red meat, I've really been struggling trying to come up with new and interesting ways to prepare the meats that we do eat (chicken and seafood). I've also tried to expand our horizons as far as different fishies go as well. We're very familiar with catfish, tilapia and salmon but after a while, even those fish get boring. So this past weekend, I raided the Sustainable Foods section that my local Kroger has and walked away with tons of goodies! I'm super excited to prepare these new fishies. However, today I made something out of these mussels that hubby purchased from my local farmers' market. I must admit I was a tad upset when he picked up the package of mussel meat because I wanted mussels in the shell so I could steam them and make a sexy dish. His man logic told him that he was doing me a favor, saving me from having to wrestle with the shells and whatnot....so I calmed down. I mean I appreciated the sentiment and the thought process there. But that still left me confused as to what the heck I was gonna do with them. So I hopped online and did a little research and found a great recipe from All Fish Seafood Recipes.

12       oz. mussel meat

¼         cup white wine

1          tsp. saffron threads(you can get these from Publix)

1          tbsp. chopped garlic

1 ½     cups heavy cream

1          cup diced tomatoes

            salt and pepper to taste

1          tbsp. chopped parsley

            linguine
            Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add the linguine and cook the pasta to al dente according to the package instructions. 

In a medium saucepan, simmer the wine, saffron threads and garlic for 5 minutes.

Add the heavy cream and allow the mixture to continue simmering until the sauce has reduced and become slightly thick.

Add the tomatoes, mussel meat and the salt and pepper to taste and heat the sauce through.

At this point, the pasta should be ready. Drain the pasta but DO NOT rinse it. Pour the pasta into a serving bowl.

Ladle the sauce over the pasta, give it a quick toss and top with the parsley and Parmesan cheese.

Now you are ready to eat!

*this recipe serves 4 people*

Enjoy!

-DJ

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Today I decided to deviate from The Cookbook and bake a recipe from my mom's collection with the help of my friend Sidney, you can find her over at Bronzera. She has a cool blog devoted to clean living and eating and it's def worth checking out! With that being being said...these cupcakes are NOT clean but they are deliciously tasty and everyone deserves a cheat day or two right?! Anywho...back to business....my mom's recipe is for a two layer 9 inch round cake but I always make cupcakes. They're waaaaaay smaller than the slice of cake that I would cut(gotta watch the waistline ya know) and I feel like they last longer. I could be biased but I definitely think that this is the best recipe ever. I know that traditional Red Velvet recipes include chocolate but when I was kid I HATED chocolate so I always requested that my mom exclude it. As cupcakes, this recipe will yield between 20 and 24 cupcakes.

Red Velvet Cupcakes:

3          large eggs (room temperature)

1 ⅔     cups sugar

1 ½     cups vegetable oil

2 ½     cups self rising flour (sifted)

1 ½     tsp vanilla extract

1          tsp white vinegar

1          cup buttermilk

½        1 oz. bottle red food coloring

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting:

2          8 oz. pkgs. cream cheese

1          stick unsalted butter

2          cups  powdered sugar

½        cup slivered almonds

1          tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350°F. 

Using a mixing spoon, stir the eggs and sugar together. Add in the oil and flour and stir until to well blended(according to my mom you should stir 200 times.....yes she counts her strokes). *The batter will be a little bit hard to stir but just use that elbow and push through!* 

Add in the vanilla, vinegar and buttermilk and stir until just blended.

Next, squeeze in the red food coloring. *If you like super red red velvet then you will use somewhere between half and three fourths of the bottle. If you like lighter red velvet then you can add color until you get the color you desire*

Spoon batter into 20-24 paper lined muffin cups, filling each cup a little over half full.

Bake for about 15-20 minutes or until an inserted knife or toothpicks comes out clean. Allow the cupcakes to cool and then frost Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting.

While the cupcakes are baking go ahead and make the frosting.

Using a hand mixer, cream the butter and cream cheese together. 

Slowly add in the powdered sugar. *At this point I usually put the mixer down and continue on mixing with a spoon because the powdered sugar always ends up leaving a fine layer on everything within 2 feet of me*  

Lastly, smash up the slivered almonds a bit and add those along with the vanilla extract and stir until the almonds are distributed in the frosting. *If the frosting isn't as stiff as you'd like you can either add more powdered sugar or pop the frosting in the fridge for about 10 minutes* 

Enjoy!

-DJ 

Pound Cake!

So the one of my goals is to bake my way through The Cookbook, and the first section is Cake. Today's post is Pound Cake. Specifically, I baked a classic pound cake, a deep chocolate pound cake and a banana-fudge pound cake. The pictures don't really do these cakes justice but I can assure you these cakes were delicious. I took them to work and they were gone by lunchtime.

Deep Chocolate Pound Cake

 

2 ¼          cups unbleached all purpose flour

1              teaspoon baking powder

¾             teaspoon coarse kosher salt

¼             teaspoon baking soda

½             cup sour cream

½             cup whole milk

¼             cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder

¼             cup honey

2              tablespoon boiling water

¾             cup sugar

½             cup(1 stick) unsalted butter @ room temp

2              large eggs

1              teaspoon vanilla extract

½             cup semisweet chocolate chips

1. Position rack in the center of oven and preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and flour a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.
2. Using a whisk, whisk flour, baking powder, coarse salt and baking powder in a bowl and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, whisk sour cream and milk and set aside.
4. Sift the cocoa powder into another small bowl and whisk in honey and boiling water until smooth. Put the mixture in the freezer and let it cool completely
5. In a fourth bowl(I know) and with an electric mixer, beat butter until fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time while pausing to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat in the vanilla and then stir in the cooled cocoa mixture until the batter is smooth.
6. Beat in half of the flour mixture and then half of the sour cream. Repeat.
7. Stir in the chocolate chips
8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until the center is done. 

It took my oven about 1hour to bake this cake fully so keep an eye and a nose out because oven times do vary. When the cake was done I removed it from the oven, took it out of the pan and allowed it to cool on my cooling rack right side up.

*I like to eat my cakes still warm from the oven so if you're like me, feel free to slice into it whenever you want and enjoy!!*

Classic Pound Cake

1 ¾          cups unbleached all-purpose flour

½             teaspoon salt

1              cup(2 sticks) unsalted butter @ room temp

1 ½          cups sugar

3              large eggs

1 ¼               teaspoon vanilla extract 

¼                  cup whole milk  

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and flour a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.
2. Using a whisk, blend the flour and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. In another bowl, beat the 2 sticks of butter until fluffy using an electric mixer.
4. Slowly add in the sugar and beat until the sugar and butter are well combined.
5. Beat in the eggs, one by one. (Be sure to pause and scrape the sides of the bowl as you add in the eggs)
6. Add the vanilla.
7. Beat in one half of the flour mixture, then add the milk and then beat in the other half of the flour mixture.
8. Pour batter into the prepared loaf pan and shake it a little to insure evenness.
9. Bake until golden brown and the center is done. 

This cake baked in about an hour and a half in my oven. When the cake was done I removed it from the oven and allowed it to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then turned it out onto my cooling rack and let it cool completely right side up.

*I like to eat my cakes still warm from the oven so if you're like me, feel free to slice into it whenever you want and enjoy!!*

 

Hot-Fudge Banana Pound Cake

Sauce

1½          cups heavy whipping cream

1½          cups sugar

6              ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

3              tablespoons unsalted butter

3              tablespoons light corn syrup

                Large pinch of salt

¾             teaspoon vanilla extract

Cake

2              cups sifted unbleached all purpose flour

1              teaspoon baking powder

¾             teaspoon salt

½             teaspoon baking soda

1              cup mashed ripe banana(about 2 large bananas)

1              teaspoon fresh lemon juice

¾             cup(1 ½ stick) of unsalted butter @ room temp.

1¼          cup sugar

4              large eggs

1              teaspoon vanilla extract

½             cup semisweet chocolate chips

For the sauce:

1. Stir cream, sugar, chocolate, butter, corn syrup and salt in a saucepan over low heat until the chocolate melts.
2. Increase the heat to medium and bring to a boil
3. Boil until reduced to a little over 2 cups, stirring constantly. This should take about 6 minutes
4. Allow the sauce to cool and mix in the vanilla

For the cake:

1.   Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and flour a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan.
2. Sift flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda into a medium bow and set aside.
3. In a small bowl, mix the mashed bananas and lemon and set aside.
4. In a large bowl and using a mixer, beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
5. Using a rubber spatula, mix in the flour mixture alternatively with the mashed banana mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
6. Heat up the sauce until just warm, stirring often.
7. Spoon one third of the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Drizzle one third cup of the sauce over it allowing it to spread across the pan.
8. Repeat with another layer of batter and sauce.
9. Top with the remaining batter.
10. Run a small knife in a zig zag motion through the pan to swirl the batter and sauce.
11. Bake cake until the center is done

This cake baked in my oven for about an hour and a half. When the cake was done I removed it from the oven and allowed it to cool in the pan for 30 minutes and then turned it out onto my cooling rack and let it cool completely right side up. Once the cake has cooled, you can slice it and top with the leftover warmed up sauce.....YUM!!!!!!!!

In my pictures, I showed the cake completely sliced and spread out on a platter because I anticipated the cake getting eaten within a few hours, but if you don't plan on eating every morsel the same day do not slice the whole cake. If you do it will more than likely dry out. You should slice these cakes as you go and keep them wrapped in foil and stored at room temperature. The sauce for the fudge-banana pound cake can be stored in Tupperware and refrigerated and rewarmed when you need it.

Enjoy!

-DJ