lemon poppyseed cake

Oh my gosh, oh my gosh is the date really the 22nd of September already?!?! What happened to August?! I'll tell you what happened, my really, really cute nephew Evan was born (at the end of July) and I just had to rush up to Seattle to see him. Now, there was cooking, there was eating, there was even Sugar & Salt's outrageously good bacon caramels, but there were no blog posts. It just wasn't meant to be.

So now, after a hiatus that was altogether too long, I'm back. Thanks to all of you who sent concerned emails regarding my health and safety, I am still of this earth and still cooking, I was just too dang busy being in love with the most wee, most perfect little man on earth.

So, to the real meat (cake!) of this post - my very own lemon poppyseed cake. When I set out to make this cake originally, I had a very difficult time finding a recipe for it, here I thought this was a common flavor combo, but alas, I pretty much had to greatly redefine an orange poppyseed cake of a completely different style.

However, this cake turned out near perfection. It is so good, especially with the tangy cream cheese frosting that goes on it, that I think it only lasted the day in this household. The lemon gives this cake a sublime freshness and I just love the way poppyseeds go crunch.

 lemon cake going...

This cake is perfect for a garden party, a birthday cake or a Sunday baking project that you plan on keeping all to yourself.

 lemon cake gone...

lemon poppyseed cake

serves 12

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 c poppyseeds (a little more if you like lots o' seeds like me)
1 1/4 c butter, softened
1 3/4 c sugar
1 Tbsp lemon zest
6 lg eggs, separated
1 c plain yogurt (though vanilla would probably be good too)
3 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
 
- preheat the oven to 350 degrees
- sift together the first five ingredients
- cream butter with one cup of sugar and the lemon zest in a large bowl until fluffy
- in a smaller bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, sour cream and vanilla
- beat the flour mixture and the yolk mixture into the butter alternating between the two
-With a clean bowl and clean beaters, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until just starting to get foamy, then add the cream of tartar and beat until foamy
- while continuing to beat the mixture, add the remaining cup of sugar until it hold stiff peaks.
- stir about a third of the egg white mixture into the batter to lighted it, the fold in the remaining egg whites gently, but make sure they're all the way incorporated.
-pour the batter into three buttered nine-inch cake pans
- bake 40-45 minutes, until knife comes out of the center clean.

Frost with my whipped cream cheese frosting recipe

red (pink) velvet cake

My friend Heather turned 30+1 last Saturday and she threw herself a rockin' party. There were beers and bbq and beer cricket and a bonny time was had by all. It was not a potluck per se, but rather a skewer bar. Each guest brought an ingredient or two that would grill well when placed on a wooden stick, and it was a huge success.

My task, beyond marinating chicken and zucchini as my skewer contributions was to make the cake. When I asked Heather what her favorite cake flavor was, she proved, once again that she is a woman after my own heart. Red Velvet.

What is it exactly about this brightly-hued cake that makes people (myself included) go gaga?!?! Is it the not-so-natural redness? Is it the not-quite-vanilla, not-quite-chocolate nature of this marvel? Or is it the luscious and very requisite cream cheese frosting that is lathered atop it?

I would have to guess that it's actually these three facets combined into a perfect storm that makes this cake well, dang near perfect.

It turns out that for a time, this type of cake was not so popular. In the 70's people started getting leery of the red dye and stopped eating anything that contained it (including red M&Ms which were taken out of circulation until 1987). But luckily, the scare passed and we are able to enjoy our raunchy red foodstuffs without fear.

Now, my complaint with many a Red Velvet cake is that they don't quite have enough cocoa in them. Now I know, I know that they're only supposed to have a smidge and really only for color, but can one more tablespoon really hurt? I don't think so. I like the extra earthiness that added cocoa gives, so go for it I say. I also think that buttermilk is key in this cake, it just gives it that extra tang.

All in all my cake turned out beautifully, except for one thing...a Red Velvet cake requires a lot of red food coloring. And when I say a lot I mean about two bottles worth...something I did not plan ahead for and found myself with a decidedly pink cake. It turns out that people like pink cakes almost as much as they like red cakes, and some people even preferred knowing that there isn't quite as much red dye no. 5 in their dessert.

RECIPE
pink velvet cake with cream cheese frosting
serves 10-14

3 Tbsp cocoa powder (not dutch processed)
2 1/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 lg. eggs @ room temp
1 Tbsp white vinegar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 Tbsp red food coloring (2-3 Tbsp for RED cake)
12 Tbsp (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar

- set oven to 350 degrees and place oven rack in the middle
- grease two 9-inch pans and dust with cocoa powder
- whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl
- in another medium bowl, whisk together buttermilk, eggs, vinegar, food coloring, cocoa and vanilla
- In a large bowl (or in the bowl of a stand mixer) beat the butter and sugar on high until fluffy (3-6 min)
- reduce speed and mix in 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/2 of the buttermilk mixture.
- repeat until both are gone
- making sure the batter is thoroughly combined, scrape the batter into both of your pans, leveling them slightly
- Bake the cakes 20-25 minutes, until a knife or toothpick comes out clean
- let the cakes cool slightly and then turn them out onto drying racks.
- cool completely before frosting.

cream cheese frosting
2 8-oz packages of cream cheese
10 Tbsp butter - completely softened (or you'll get little chunks of butter in your frosting)
3 Tbsp sour cream
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt
2 cups confectioners sugar

-beat the cream cheese, butter, sour cream and vanilla together until light and fluffy
- increase beater speed and mix in sugar, beat about 5 or 6 minutes
- frost your cake

baking bananas - a good use for those black beauties

The road trip continues and our most northern destination was my adopted hometown of Seattle! It has been awesome to come down from nearly two weeks of camping to my mother's house and into the throngs of foodies that surround us when we get here. We have had a whirlwind tour of eating, as happens every time we come here and there is a special kind of anxiety I experience when I realize I'm just not going to get it all in (neither time nor stomach are willing).

While here we have tasted pulled pork pizza with cotilja cheese (Flying Squirrel pizza), smoked basa fish tacos (Roy's BBQ), the Don King donut (Mighty-O Donuts), and the coup de grace, carrot cake with homemade cream cheese (Sugar & Salt)!!! But I also took advantage of my mom's massive kitchen to put our rapidly blackening bananas to good use.

There are about a gazillion banana bread recipes out there and often it comes down simply to personal preference. I am a big fan of the banana-chocolate combo so I usually put chocolate chips in. Sometimes I even like to throw in a little peanut butter but this time I kept it simple. I think that the secret to this particular banana bread recipe was the amount of butter, a whole stick of butter, so if you had any pretense that this banana bread was a "healthy" treat, well, you might want to think better of it...it's mostly fruit right?

The key is also to use bananas that are well-ripened. If you are just dying to make banana bread and your bananas are pretty new, then give them a good couple of squeezes before you peel them to get them on their way. I usually have a couple of really black bananas in the freezer though, and those make fabulous banana bread.

RECIPE

banana muffins with milk chocolate chips

makes 12
adapted from Bon Appetit

1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 large bananas, mashed
1 large egg
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted (I use salted)
1/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
3/4 - 1 cup milk chocolate chips

- preheat oven to 350 degrees
- mix together all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl (the first four listed here)
- mix together all of the wet ingredients in a medium bowl (the next five ingredients)
- add the wet mixture to the dry mixture and stir to combine
- mix in the chocolate chips
- fill lined muffin cups (or silicon muffin liners on a baking sheet) about two-thirds full
- bake in the oven for about 30-35 minutes (until a tester comes out without crumbs)

postlet - a simple suggestion for lemon curd

a great number of you have asked me what my favorite way to eat and serve lemon curd is, that is other than spooning heaping mounds of it directly into my mouth, and I must say that it's in tart form.

 the naked tart

The curd is sinfully good on a simple shortcrust pastry, however, I prefer it on a ginger crust just to give it that extra kick. The best part about my ginger crust is that it's two ingredients, yep, two! And so this tart is done in minutes (that is, if you already have the curd on hand).

I also like to dress the tart up a bit at the end, and you can really have a lot of fun with this (especially if you're obsessively aesthetically minded like I am). When I make these tarts in individual tart shells I like to take my brulee torch and give the tart a crisp sugar coating that goes crunch when you tap it with your fork (this is also my favorite part of eating creme brulee). On a bigger tart this doesn't work quite as well. It's still beautifully appealing, but a little messy when you cut slices into it. Blueberries or raspberries, a dusting of powdered sugar or even cocoa powder are all great substitutions here.

a crunchy brulee crust

 you think we liked it?

RECIPE

lemon tart on ginger snap crust
serves 8

2 x recipe for lemon curd
2 cups ginger snaps (I really like to use Trader Joe's triple ginger cookies so try and find these if you can, but if you can't any ginger snap will do)
4 Tbsp butter, melted

- preheat the oven to 375 degrees
- butter a ten inch false bottom tart pan (or three false bottom 3-inch tart pans)
- in a food processor or blender whiz the ginger snaps for about 20 seconds
- pour in the melted butter, whiz until totally combined (about 20 more seconds)
- press the crust into the tart pan using your fingers or the back of a spoon. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until fragrant
- remove from oven and press down once more to make sure you still have you tart edges (they might have melted into the bottom crust during cooking.
- pour in the lemon curd and place in the fridge for an hour.

options:
- for the brulee top, generously sprinkle granulated sugar on top of the tart so that it is completely covered and white. Using a kitchen torch, melt the sugar until a light golden brown and so there is no more "white" sugar visible.
- otherwise, finely dust powdered sugar and/or cocoa powder, or top with fresh berries.

little bites of sunshine...

my friend has the most glorious ranch in the Santa Ynez valley that has on it the most glorious free-range, milk fed cattle. But this post is not about her fabulous beef, that story is to come later, but it's about her meyer lemon tree that is so fruitful it is more yellow than green.

t

this is how many lemons I started with

On a recent visit to said ranch for a little Sunday afternoon horseback riding she brought out a standard grocery bag and we proceeded to fill it, I mean fill it with lemons. The lady of the house, my friend's grandmother, had planted this tree when she first bought the ranch decades ago. As it grew and produced more offspring, she perfected a secret lemonade recipe that is simply outstanding. The thought of recreating this recipe and using all of the lemons this way was truly tempting, but just not quite enough of a challenge.

So, I decided to make some long-lasting, versatile ingredients that I could make in large quantities, I mean look at all of those lemons! This way, when the apocalyse hits, I will at least be prepared with my sweet and savory lemons. However, both of these recipes could have been made in single batches with just a few lemons.

Lemon curd is a childhood favorite of mine. My mother used to make it every once in a while and we would eat it by the spoonful, maybe with blueberries, but most likely just on its own. My favorite thing to do with the curd now is to pour it into a tart shell and enjoy it by the slice. But I also like to serve it in ramikens with ginger cookies and it's even spellbinding on toast.

My desire to jaunt into the savory brought me to preserve many of my lemons in salt, a fate they will hold for the next three to six months, at which point I once heard that tasting them will be like seeing God. I don't know what seeing God is like, but it sounds pretty good to me.

t

this is how many lemons I had after the curd...yeah, I've got a lot of work to do...

Preserved lemons are commonly used in Moroccan cooking, but also go well when minced and sprinkled on salads. They have a beguiling flavor that is well worth the long wait it takes before they are ready.

RECIPES

lemon curd

makes about a cup

1/2 c freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tsp lemon zest
1/2 c sugar
6 Tbsp butter
3 eggs plus an extra egg yolk

- in a heavy saucepan, over medium heat whisk together the lemon juice, zest and sugar.
- add in the butter and cook until melted
- add the eggs slowly while whisking rapidly, this will avoid too much scalded egg
- keep stirring frequently until the first bubbles start to appear and the whisk lines don't immediately disappear.
- immediately pour the mixture through a fine meshed sieve into a small bowl
- place plastic wrap on the surface of the curve (so a skin doesn't form) and refrigerate for at least an hour
curd will keep refrigerated for a week, or you can can it and it will last indefinitely.

moroccan style preserved lemons

3-4 lemons
3 cups of kosher salt 
optional: a cinnamon stick or cloves
a large, wide-mouthed jar

- place 3/4 inch salt in the bottom of your jar
- slice the lemons into four wedges lengthwise
- fit the lemon wedges into the jar as snuggly as possible, but without the slices sticking back together
- pour the rest of the salt over the lemons so that they are completely covered

- leave covered for at least a month, but they only get better with time so try to at least wait three months, or better yet 6-9 months and then maybe you too will see God...

blueberry pie and the camera's fixed!

Yay! The camera's fixed! Hopefully we'll get some better pictures out of it!

The rainstorms have passed here in Santa Barbara and there is a definite hint of summer in the air. All of a sudden I yearn for bar-b-ques, the lingering smell of sun screen and sunshine late into the evening. When summer starts to peak out through the clouds I start thinking about frolicking in the fields in shorts and bare feet just like the little girl in the childhood classic "Blueberries for Sal". And, of course, that gets me to thinking about blueberry pie because, truly, there are few things that epitomize summer like fresh blueberry pie.

The best way to transfer pie dough from the surface where you've rolled it out is to fold it into fourths and unfold it in your pie dish, that way there's less risk of it ripping

 Luckily for me, there are good-quality frozen blueberries that allow you to satisfy these summer urges, even in mid-March. The best thing about this particular blueberry pie is the ease with which it is prepared. It takes little time, especially if you have any prepared pie dough on hand. I also like to add a few little unusual twists to my blueberry pie.

You often see blueberries paired with lemon, but I actually prefer it with orange...I find it has a sweeter, spicier flavor. I also prefer to use brown sugar over white sugar, it's got a much rounder caramelized flavor.

Another little trick I wanted to call out here is something I learned from my mother. Whenever there was surplus dough after your pie is all assembled, you can make yourself a lovely teatime treat, that I call pinwheels. It's as simple as rolling out the excess dough and sprinkling it with brown sugar and cinnamon. Roll up the whole thing and slice it. Bake it in the oven with your pie for about 10-15 minutes.

I enjoyed this pie so much that I actually made it twice in one week. With each slice it seemed that summer just got a little bit closer.

RECIPE

simple blueberry pie

serves 10

sweet shortcrust
1 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup cold butter, diced
5-6 Tbsp ice water

- put the dry ingredients into the food processor and mix until blended
- add the butter pieces and pulse five or six times
- add in 4 Tbsp of ice water and pulse about 10 times, or until the dough forms a ball. If the ball doesn't form, add more ice water.
- separate the dough into two equal portions and form them into discs a chill for at least one hour, but ideally longer.
(this dough will freeze for several months)

filling
 6 cups blueberries (fresh or frozen)
the zest and juice of one orange
3/4 - 1 cup of brown sugar (depending on how sweet you like your pie)
4-5 Tbsp of tapioca or flour starch

- mix all of the filling ingredients together
- place one pastry disc on a floured surface and sprinkle flour on top of it.
- roll the disk out until it's about 1/4 inch thick
- place the dough into the pie pan and pour in the filling
- roll out the other piece of dough and place it on top of the filling. Pinch the two piece of dough together all the way around the pan. Cut four slits in the center.
- bake at 425 degrees for 25 minutes and then lower the temperature to 375 degrees for an additional 30 minutes.
- let cool 20 minutes before cutting into the pie.

the season of citrus - blood orange polenta upside down cake!

 When one moves to Southern California, one must get used to many things - near perfect weather, the unrealistic prevalence of blond hair and an outrageous amount of citrus for the better part of the year. At first there is a giddy sense of excitement when this abundance presents itself, but as trees bare their weight in fruit and more and more of it carpets the ground, you can really start to scratch your head and wonder what the heck else can I do with this stuff?!?!

Now, as if they heard the call, Bon Appetit included a gorgeous dessert in its latest issue that showcases citrus in a tempting and scrumptuously rustic way.  You take a little polenta, a little orange and some caramel and you've got yourself a date with citrus. Not only is this cake aesthetically gorgeous, it's also a delight to eat.

I actually made this cake twice to test whether one of its steps was actually necessary - the whipping and subsequent folding in of the egg whites into the cake batter (really, if this step was not a must, I was definitely going to omit it)...well, it turns out it is definitely a good idea to include this step. The first cake, which included the whipped egg whites was light and airy - somewhat surprising given that it has a bunch of cornmeal in it. The second cake was much denser and chewier. Lesson learned.

Though I think this cake is really at its finest with the blood oranges, I did try it with lemons and blueberries in one iteration and it was still very good. I found that the key was to very thinly slice the orange or lemon slices (using a mandolin seemed to work well) so that you don't get big mouthfuls of pith.

Lastly, the Bon Appetit recipe recommends whipped creme fresh as the accompaniment for this cake, and it is very good - but a brandy whipped cream or even just vanilla yogurt was also rather nice.

RECIPE


blood orange polenta upside down cake
adapted from Bon Appetit - March, 2009
  
 - 6 tablespoons sugar, divided, plus 3/4 cup sugar 
 - 3 tablespoons water
 - 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature, divided 
 - 3 unpeeled small to medium blood oranges 
 - 3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons unbleached all purpose flour 
 - 4 tablespoons polenta or coarse yellow cornmeal (preferably stone-ground) 
 - 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 
 - 1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt 
 - 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
 - 2 large eggs, separated 
 - 6 tablespoons whole milk

  - Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F.
  - Combine 6 tablespoons sugar and 3 tablespoons water in 10-inch diameter ovenproof skillet with 2 1/2-inch-high sides.
  - Stir over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat and boil without stirring until syrup is golden amber (not dark amber), occasionally brushing down sides of skillet with wet pastry brush and swirling skillet, about 4 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and whisk 2 tablespoons butter into caramel. Set aside.
  - Cut the ends off the oranges. Using sharp knife or mandolin, cut oranges into 1/16- to 1/8-inch thick rounds. Remove and discard any seeds.
  - Arrange orange slices, overlapping slightly, in concentric circles atop caramel in bottom of skillet, leaving no gaps between slices (or else cake batter will come through - see picture of finished cake).
  - Beat together 3/4 cup sugar, remaining 6 tablespoons room-temperature butter, and vanilla in another medium bowl until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.
  - Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with milk in 2 additions, beating batter just until incorporated.
  - Using clean dry beaters, beat egg whites in large bowl until stiff but not dry. Fold 1/3 of egg whites into batter to lighten, then fold in remaining egg whites in 2 additions.
  - Drop batter by large spoonfuls atop orange slices in skillet, then spread evenly. Don't pour the batter into the pan because you will risk displacing the orange slices
  - Bake cake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 45 minutes.
  - Cool cake in skillet 10 minutes. Run small knife around cake to loosen. Place platter atop skillet. Using oven mitts, hold platter and skillet firmly together and invert, allowing cake to settle onto platter.
  - Rearrange any orange slices that may have become dislodged. Cool cake completely at room temperature.

Serve with:
whipped creme fraiche ( beat together 1 container of creme fraiche - about 8oz and 2 1/2 Tbsp sugar until thick)
brandied whipped cream (beat together 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream and 2 Tbsp brandy until stiff peaks form)
vanilla yogurt (don't need to do anything!)