A Tale of Two Cakes

It all started so innocently.  It always does.  
My Mother-in-laws  birthday was last week and the only thing she wanted from us was a caramel cake.
Done!  Like anyone needs to twist my arm to make a dessert.
I had been eyeing the recipe for Commitment Caramel Cake in Screen Doors and Sweet Tea for quite some time.  The picture in the book is so lovely and I love how cheeky Miss. Martha is in the sidebar: Caramel icing can sense fear.  Do not psych yourself out and it will be perfect.
Maybe that should've been my first clue that perhaps I was getting in over my head.
But, as I so oft tend to do, I just plowed right ahead.
I gathered my ingredients.  Butter (lots of butter), many many eggs,  vanilla extract, almond extract--ah, the batter smelled so divine!!  I carefully poured it into my cake pans and gently set them into the oven.  20 minutes passed.

Wow, this batter seems awfully, well, batter-y.  Lemme give it another 5 minutes...10 minutes...30 minutes.  By this time I was getting a little irked.  WHY IS MY CAKE NOT BAKING???
I turned to the Internet, and looked up other peoples blogs who had made this cake.  HUZZAH!  I was not the only who had cakes that wouldn't bake!  Maybe Miss. Martha used a convection oven and forgot to add that into the directions?  Who knows.  I was a little irritated.  And Jake was done watching Tinkerbell and wanted to play.  I threw the cakes on the counter and said to heck with it.  After the cakes and I cooled down, I took stock of my ingredients and realized I was not going to be able to make another Commitment Caramel Cake.  So I bid adieu to Miss Martha and turned to my other obsession, The Southern Foodways Alliance Cookbook. In it, is a recipe for Revelatory Caramel Cake, and lo and behold I had just enough eggs left to make the recipe.  I did not, however, have any cake flour left.  So I did a little all-purpose flour + cornstarch magic.  I also recruited my sous chef who makes anything an adventure. I took some liberty and added a little almond extract to the batter since it smelled so good.  Popped the cakes in the oven.  30 minutes later, perfectly done cake.  A perfectly white moist cake (no yolks in this recipe).


Hallelujah!


Now, since I abandoned Miss. Martha once she did me wrong with the cake, I decided to go ahead and make the caramel icing that went along with the SFA recipe.   Easy enough, it's caramel right?  I'd made Cracker Crack a million times--how much more difficult could it be?  Well...
pouring caramel on a cracker is a lot, A LOT different than trying to frost a cake with it.  It hardened almost instantly as I poured it on.  Then I dropped the bowl I was using ONTO THE CAKE.


Many expletives.

By this time I had been making cake (or cursing making cake) for about 4 hours.  We were to meet the family for a birthday dinner in approximately 15 minutes.  PLENTY of time to make another batch of caramel, right?  Despite the fact that you are supposed to let the caramel rest for 15 minutes before you whip it into icing.  I hurried through the steps and just poured the whole thing over the cake.  Resulting in the cake plate running over with caramel.

I said a little prayer that it would harden into a beautiful shell, and we ran out the door.

After dinner we headed back to the house for cake and presents.  The cake was...

Not photogenic.

I cut into the cake, or rather sawed through a relatively thick layer of caramel into a fluffy white cake.  Despite the homely appearance of the cake, it tasted pretty good.  

My ever-gracious father-in-law (who honestly declares everything I cook as the best thing he's ever put in his mouth) declared it the best caramel cake he ever put in his mouth.  

For me, the icing was a little thick and maybe diabetes-inducing sweet.  But the cake was moist and perfumed with vanilla and almond.

I'm of the opinion that it's going to take me a few more tries to perfect my caramel cake technique.  And I'm sure I'll adjust and tinker, that's just what I like to do.  I'm definitely going to try Miss. Martha's icing recipe, as she incorporates marshmallows and I imagine that helps keep the icing fluffy and smooth.

Ultimately, the cake ended up in the trash the next day.  

But PattyCake (my son's nickname for my Mother-in-law) arrives home from Charleston today, and there just might be a Caramel Cake waiting on the kitchen counter for her.

Here's a link to the recipe for Revelatory Caramel Cake.

If I'm Lyin', I'm Cryin'

Yesterday was my son's third birthday.  I know it's totally hokey, but it's amazingly unbelievable how fast time flies.
I have a three year old.  And he is the cutest, smartest, coolest dude I know.
I'm not biased or anything.
The kiddo requested a Tow Mater cake.  And of course I obliged.
Now I had the loftiest of intentions.  Homemade pound cake recipe from Screen Doors and Sweet Tea was dogeared, as was a homemade chocolate frosting recipe.
I had planned on making it the night before, but the kid took a super late nap, which turn resulted in a late bedtime.  So after putting together the bike, decorating the living room and admiring our handiwork, it was time for bed.
The birthday dawned.  Presents opened.  Bike ridden.  Breakfast.  (Yes all before breakfast).  Trip to the toy store to pick out one more present.
Home.  Bike riding.  Zingo Playing.
NO NAP.
As the day wore on however, it became apparent that I wasn't going to be making anything from scratch.  So I turned to Duncan Hines.
And it worked out great.
A Mater cake for my baby boy's third birthday!

How to make a kinda-homemade Mater Cake.

1 box chocolate cake mix
1 can chocolate frosting
1 tube white frosting
Oreos
M&M's
Chocolate bar
Pretzel Rods

Bake the cake according to the instructions on the box.  Make sure you bake it in a 13x9 pan.
Let cool.
Get out a large platter or cake plate.

After cooling, cut the cake just a little short of in half, width wise.  Turn out that half rounded-side down onto platter.
Put a dab of frosting where you want to position the cab portion of the truck.
Using the rest of the cake cut out a piece of cake to use as the cab.  Place it on the "bed" of the truck, using the frosting as a glue.

Using a serrated knife flatten out the top of the cab.
Use some extra cake pieces  to even out the front of the truck--since it's rounded-side down, to make it flat in the front.
Now, if you're smart (I wasn't), put the cake in the fridge to harden up for about an hour.  I didn't do this--was pressed for time, as we were distracting the kid by watching Tangled upstairs.  So as I frosted the cake it was a little crumby and soft.  In the end it turned out okay, but I'm trying to point you all in the right direction.
Frost the entire cake in the chocolate frosting.

Now using the white frosting draw on the buck teeth and his eyes.  A glass of warm water and a spoon can be used if you need to smooth out the eyes.
Make his wheels by putting the oreos where the wheels would be.
Grab two green M&M's  and dab a bit of chocolate frosting on for the pupils.
Place them on the eyes.
Grab two orange M&M's, glue them on top of each other with a dab of white frosting.  Place them on the top of the cab as his caution light.  Use two orange M&M's on either side of the caution light as the other lights.  I'm not that familiar with car-light terminology.  Sorry.
Now get a yellow M&M and place it on the front of the grille as the headlight.
Grab two squares of chocolate and place them as side-view mirrors.
Using some more extra cake, cut out a circle and place it on the hood as his motor.

Now grab two pretzel rods.  Break them both in half.  Take two and shove them down into the bed of the truck (like towing poles),  using the white frosting glue the other two pretzel rods onto the top of the "towing poles" and rest them on the bed of the truck in a "V" shape.
Remember that you forgot to get the stuff to make the tow hitch.  Hope the kid doesn't notice.
Of course he notices.
Happy Birthday!!!

Cupcakes for the kid

It was a dark and stormy night...
Not really.  It was just a kind of a gray and rainy day.  Boredom was setting in.  Rain plus boredom equals a dangerous combination for a kiddo on the cusp of turning three.
So I asked him what he wanted to do:
Why, make cupcakes of course!
What flavor?
Chocolate!
What kind of frosting?
Banilla. Which translated into grown-up means vanilla.
And so we made simple chocolate cupcakes with vanilla buttercream frosting.  The cupcakes were super chocolately (if a bit dry--sorry Martha!), and the vanilla buttercream was so simple and scrumptious.  I do believe I could've just eaten the bowl of frosting and been perfectly happy.
I have the cutest little sous chef in town.

Chocolate Cupcakes from Martha Stewart Living

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter) softened at room temperature
3 large eggs (room temperature is good for the eggs, too)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract--I always just splash it in until I think it's enough
1/2 cup of sour cream

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.

In a medium bowl whisk together the cocoa, flour, baking powder, and salt.  In a mixing bowl cream the butter and sugar until beautifully light and fluffy. Let the kid have a taste.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each to make sure they are incorporated.  Beat in vanilla.  Explain to the kid at least 10 times that he cannot taste it anymore because of the raw eggs.  With the mixer on low speed, let the kid pour in flour in batches, alternating with the sour cream.

Pour the batter into cups filling about 3/4 full.  I let the kiddo help by using spoons to fill the muffin cups.  Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Enjoy the chocolately aroma filling the house.

After the cupcakes have cooled, make the frosting.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting by Brown Eyed Baker

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Using the wire whisk attachment of a standing mixer whip the butter on medium-high speed for five minutes.  Stop to scrape the bowl once or twice.  The butter will be fluffy and pale yellow.

Reduce speed to medium-low and slowly add the powdered sugar.  Once all of the powdered sugar is incorporated, increase the speed to medium-high and add the vanilla, mix until blended.  Whip at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about two more minutes.

Now you are ready to frost.  Or eat directly from bowl.

Brown Eyed Baker says you can store the frosting in the fridge, just before using let it come to room temperature and give it a quick whip.

Rumble and Ramble in Blackberry Bramble

My Mother-in-Law came home from a trip to Dyersburg the other day with a wonderful surprise.  A huge plastic bag FULL of blackberries.  They were still warm from sitting in the back of the truck where the farmer had been selling them.  And they were gorgeous!  Ranging from deep purple to almost black and all the way to a rosy pink. Summer was in that bag.

 We immediately thought of blackberry cobbler or blackberry jam.  Being more of an instant gratification person (and not wanting to drive in the car to get canning jars) I made the executive decision of blackberry cobbler.
We had friends coming over for a BBQ the next day, so I thought it would be the perfect dessert.
And it was.

The only complaint I had about this recipe, was that mine browned a bit too much...but that's an easy fix!  No one else seemed to mind.

Blackberry Cobbler #2 (adapted from The Pioneer Woman)

6 cups fresh blackberries

1/2 cup granulated sugar + 1-2 tablespoons sugar

juice from half of a lemon

zest from aforementioned lemon half

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 cup Crisco

4 tablespoons butter

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

4 tablespoons turbinado sugar

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Mix blackberries, 1/2 cup sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest in bowl.  Stir until combined, and spread out in buttered baking dish.

Rinse out the bowl (this is my keeping-the-kitchen-clean trick so my MIL will continue to let me experiment in her kitchen).  Now pour in flour, salt, baking powder and 1-2 tablespoons sugar, depending on your taste. Stir with a whisk to combine. Plop in shortening and butter and combine with fingers until the whole lot resembles coarse cornmeal.  Measure 1/2 cup of milk and add egg to milk.  Whisk to combine.  Pour milk and egg into flour mixture and stir until just combined.  If it's a little dry just a bit more milk.  Batter should be smooth, and not too too sticky.

Take small clumps of dough and place them on top of the blackberries.  Sprinkle with the turbinado sugar.  Bake for 30 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool for as long as you can wait.  Serve in bowls with big scoops of vanilla ice-cream.

Enjoy!

Is there anything more Southern?

Than Sweet Tea?
So why not sweet tea shortbread?
The idea came to me as I was lying awake in our motel on our second day into the trip from Brooklyn to Nashville.  The kid was lying in the "H" position between us, and while my husband was privy to little feet in his face, I had the kid's sweaty head nestled into my neck.
For some reason I couldn't sleep.
I had had the idea for a food blog for awhile.  The idea was cemented on a recent trip to visit family in Arizona, and my excitement akin to a 2-year-old on Christmas morning when I found some chorizo verde.
AHA!
Maybe I should be doing something with food...
So, back to sweet tea.  Sweet tea is about as Southern as you can get--as an oft-quoted movie says, "It's the house wine of the South!"
And so I decided to try my hand at a cookie that would embody that classic southern libation.

Sweet Tea Shortbread
(inspired by SheSimmers recipe for Thai Tea Shortbread)

This was my first attempt at this cookie.  While satisfying, the tea flavor was very subtle, and on my next try I might up the amount of tea.  I also think the cookies could benefit from a pinch of salt.  The crunch on the outside of the cookie from the turbinado sugar was excellent, and also added that extra punch of sweetness that I usually associate with Sweet Tea.

3/4 cup GOOD unsalted butter, left to soften at room temperature
Loose tea from 2 tea bags (preferably Luzianne, according to my Mother-In-Law)
3 tablespoons warm water
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup cornstarch
1 cup turbinado sugar for rolling dough in before baking

Allow the butter to soften at room temperature.
Cut open tea bags and pour into small bowl with 2 tablespoons of water.  Allow to steep for 5-10 minutes. In mixing bowl fitted with paddle attachment cream butter, sugar and tea.  In a separate bowl combine flour and cornstarch. Slowly add flour and cornstarch to the butter until just combined.  Turn out dough onto plastic wrap and form dough into log about 2 inches wide.  Place dough into fridge to chill for about an hour.

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  Take dough out of fridge and unwrap from plastic.  Pour about a cup of turbinado sugar onto cutting board or large plate.  Roll dough in sugar until completely covered in sugar.  Slice log into cookies about 1/4 inch round.  Place on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.  Bake for 20 minutes, rotating sheets about half-way through cooking time.

Let cool on sheets and try not to eat the entire batch in one sitting!