Red Velvet Cake...just in time for Valentines Day!

I gave this recipe to my friend Meghan who is the dessert cook extraordinaire, she made this as cupcakes and said they were amazing! I am planning to try and bake one tomorrow in honor of the day of love!

RED VELVET CAKE
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 20 to 30 minutes
Makes: a 2-layer cake

Ingredients:

For cake:
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon fine salt
1 tablespoon cocoa powder
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 ounce red food coloring
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For Frosting:
1 pound cream cheese (room temperature) [Meghan said they used ff cream cheese and it did not work]
1 pound butter (4 sticks), softened
4 cups confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For Garnish (optional):
chopped pecans

Heat oven to 325
Sift together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder.
Combine remaining cake ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer, and beat on medium speed until well incorporated.
Add dry ingredients - slowly! - to bowl, until fully combined.
Pour into 2 cake pans (9-inch round) greased with vegetable oil. Bake in oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until cake pulls away from pan. Cool for exactly 20 minutes.
Make frosting, meanwhile: Combine cream cheese and butter with an electric mixer set on medium. Slowly add confectioners' sugar until frosting is at desired sweetness and smoothness. Add vanilla.
Frost top of one layer. Cover with second layer; frost its top, then work your way down sides.
Garnish with chopped pecans. Serve.

*I belive this is off the charts for Weight Watchers points...but it could be an exchange for the chocolate you would probably eat. :)

Thyme in the Kitchen goes low brow - Dirt Cake

We have a restaurant here in Boise called Donnie Macs that features "Trailer Park Cuisine". We had an enjoyable "Friday Night Fun Night" a couple weeks ago. They have an old car hull in the middle of the restaurant with a table inside and we were lucky enough to get seated in the car. The kids loved it bouncing on the single wide seat w/o car seats or seat belts and hanging out the windows. By now you are wondering what my restaurant review has to do with Thyme in the Kitchen. Well, I thought I could add some low brow recipes to mix it up. Hopefully, I won't be banished from the blog but I suppose I might be chastised by Queen Dana. Sally Ryan gets credit for being my introduction to this Epicurean delight.

Flowerpot Cake (aka Dirt Cake)

Serves 10 to 12

1 medium-size flower pot (about 8 inches in diameter works well, or use two small pots about 6 inches in diameter)
1 garden trowel
3 large gummy or plastic worms
plastic flowers
1 16-ounce bag Oreo cookies
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine, softened
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 4-serving-size boxes instant chocolate-fudge flavor pudding
3 cups milk1 12-ounce tub whipped topping, thawed

Crush cookies until they resemble potting soil, set aside. Cream butter, cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth and fluffy. Set aside. Combine pudding mix and milk until well blended, then fold in the whipped topping. Gently fold cream cheese and pudding mixtures together.
To put the cake together, layer 1/3 of the cookie crumbs followed by 1/2 the pudding mixture, 1/3/ of the crumbs, the rest of the pudding mixture and topping with the remaining cookie crumbs. Refrigerate 10 to 12 hours. About 1/2 hour before serving, remove from refrigerator and decorate with flowers. Serve by digging out portions with the trowel.

I have a couple more up my sleeve so stay tuned.

CHOCOLATE ORBIT (IDIOT) CAKE

This is another favorite of ours. It is easy to make, tastes great, and quests think you have outdone yourself. I have stolen the recipe from the Scharffenberger website and it appears they have stolen it from David Lebovitz. I was reading online about this cake. David Lebovitz wanted to name the cake in his book, Room for Dessert, the Chocolate Idiot Cake but he couldn't convince the editor. He argued that, "Any idiot could make it and it takes an idiot to mess it up."

It looks like there are a number of good recipes from the Scharffenberger website but this has been our tried and true. Obviously, the recipe calls for Scharffenberger chocolate which is a bit on the expensive side. I think they carry it at Trader Joes (we have yet to get one in Boise despite hundreds to thousands of Boisians lobbying for one). As I recall it was like 14$ worth of chocolate to make a cake. I have tried it with other chocolate and you can tell the difference. So, if you are feeling rich and decadent this is the recipe for you. A little bit goes a long way as it is very, well....... rich and decadent.

Recipe by David Lebovitz (from Room For Dessert)

9.75 ounces Scharffen Berger 62% Cacao Semisweet Chocolate
7 ounces (two sticks minus 1 tablespoon) butter
5 eggs
1 cup sugar

Position the oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9 by 2-inch round cake pan, and line the inside with a round of parchment paper.
Set a large bowl over a pan of simmering water to create a double boiler. Cut the butter and chocolate into small pieces and put them in the bowl to melt, whisking occasionally.
Whisk together the eggs and sugar in another bowl. Thoroughly whisk in the melted chocolate.
Pour the chocolate batter into the cake pan. Place it in a larger baking pan, and pour in warm water to reach halfway up the sides of the cake pan. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until the cake appears to have set and when you touch the center, your finger comes away clean.
Remove the cake from the water bath and cool completely before serving, plain or with gently whipped cream. This cake can be refrigerated for several days.
Serves 12 -14.

P.S. You can also make this for a topping or a bottoming. I find it is extra work and I just do a dusting of powdered sugar on the top which makes a nice contrast. I have done the Creme Anglaise and it is good.

Crème Anglaise

1/2 vanilla bean, split
6 tablespoons sugar
2 cups milk
6 egg yolks
Pinch of salt

makes 2 1/2 cups

1. Scrape the vanilla bean seeds into the milk in a heavy saucepan. Add the vanilla bean pod and the sugar and heat until the milk is warm but not simmering.
2. Meanwhile, prepare an ice bath--a bowl partially filled with ice, with another bowl nested inside it. Lightly whisk together the egg yolks in a separate bowl, then gradually add some of the warmed milk, whisking constantly. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
3. Cook over low to moderate heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, always scraping the bottom, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.
4. Immediately strain the cooked custard through a fine sieve into the bowl set in the ice. Stir the creme anglaise with a clean spatula to cool it down. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Crème anglaise will keep in the refrigerator for up to three days.

Peanut Butter Surprise Cookies

These are pretty good peanut butter cookies and the kiss inside adds a little surprise!

1 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 block (1/2 cup) butter
2 eggs
1 cup peanut butter (crunchy or smooth)
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ½ cups flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 or 3 dozen Hershey’s Kisses (or your chocolate of choice, e.g. Droste pastilles)

Preheat oven to 350°F. Cream sugars, butter, eggs, peanut butter, and vanilla. Mix flour, baking soda, and salt together in a separate bowl. Add dry mix in little by little to sugar-peanut butter mix. Shape batter into little balls, burying a kiss in each (the batter will be soft and greasy). Roll in white sugar. Bake for 10 minutes, or until done. Cool on sheet one minute before transferring to wire racks

Lemon Bars

These are our favorite Lemon Bars ever! They are Susan Branch's from her Sweets to the Sweet cookbook...

1/2 c. butter, softened
1 c. unbleached flour
1/4 c. powdered sugar
1/4 tsp. lemon extract
pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thoroughly butter an 8" square pan. With an electric mixer, cream all ingredients till soft and smooth. (Or, in a food processor, till it forms a ball.) Press dough evenly into pan and bake 20 minutes. Meanwhile, make the topping.

2 eggs
1 c. sugar
1/4 tsp. lemon extract
juice and zest of 1 lemon
1/4 c. unbleached flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
powdered sugar

With electric mixer, beat eggs well and gradually add sugar, until mixture is thick. Gradually add remaining ingredients, except powdered sugar. Continue beating till crust comes out of the oven. Pour lemon mixture over hot crust, return it to oven and reduce heat to 325 degrees. Bake 30-35 minutes till top is golden. Remove from oven and run a sharp knife around the edge. Cool 20 minutes; cut into squares, remove from pan and sift over powdered sugar. This recipe is easily doubled--use juice of 2 lemons, but zest from only 1. Second baking time should be increased 3-5 minutes.

Cranberry Bliss Bars

Here are the Cranberry Bliss Bars we made this morning... I am a fan of Starbuck's Cranberry Bliss Bars and these are close, but not exactly the same.

Cake
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 1/4 cups light brown sugar, packed
3 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon ginger (crystallized ginger if you can find it)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup diced dried cranberries
6 ounces white chocolate, cut into chunks

Frosting
4-ounces cream cheese, softened
3 cups powdered sugar
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup diced dried cranberries

Drizzled Icing
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vegetable shortening

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Make cake by beating butter and brown sugar together with an electric mixer until smooth. Add eggs, vanilla, ginger, and salt and beat well. Gradually mix in flour until smooth. Mix 3/4 cup diced dried cranberries and white chocolate into the batter by hand. Pour batter into a well-greased 9x13" baking pan. Use a spatula to spread the batter evenly across the pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until cake is light brown on the edges. Allow cake to cool.
3. Make frosting by combining softened cream cheese, 3 cups powdered sugar, lemon juice and vanilla extract in a medium bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. When the cake has cooled, use a spatula to spread frosting over the top of the cake.
4. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of diced cranberries over the frosting on the cake.
5. Whisk together 1/2 cup powdered sugar, 1 tablespoon milk, and shortening. Drizzle icing over the cranberries in a sweeping motion or use a pastry bag with a fine tip to drizzle frosting across the top of the cake.
6. Allow cake to sit for several hours, then slice the cake lengthwise (the long way) through the middle. Slice the cake across the width three times making a total of eight rectangular slices. Slice each of those rectangles diagonally creating 16 triangular slices.
From: http://www.cookingcache.com

Makes 16 bars.

Russian Tea Cakes

By request... My grandma's Russian Tea Cakes/Snowballs/Mexican Wedding Cakes

Mix thoroughly:
1 cup soft butter
1/2 cup sifted powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla

Sift together and stir in:
2 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional, and obviously don't sift the nuts!)

Chill dough. Roll into 1 inch balls. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake until set, but not brown. Roll in powdered sugar.
400 degrees for 10-12 minutes.

In memory of Margaret Faulkner (my grandma).
Credit to allrecipes.com for the picture.

Brown Sugar Shortbread

1 cup butter (no substitutes), softened
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

In a mixing bowl cream butter and sugar. Gradually stir in the flour. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth--about 3 minutes. Pat into a 1/3 inch thick rectangle measuring 11 x 8 inches. Cut into 2 x 1 inch strips. Place 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Prick with a fork multiple times (to make them look like shortbread). Bake at 300 degrees for 25 minutes or until the bottoms begin to brown. Cool for 5 minutes; remove to a wire rack to cool completely. Yield 3 1/2 dozen.

Thanks to my Aunt Leona