"world's best cake"

I made this quick cake for my parents' wedding anniversary after seeing it a million times on my instagram feed.

Called the World's Best Cake it's a yellow cake based topped with a vanilla meringue sprinkled with sliced almonds. The whole thing is baked, then sliced into two sections so it sandwiches a filling of whipped cream.

I had made something similar in the past, with a zabaglione filling, so I was familiar with the technique and resulting cake.

I baked my cake in two 6 inch cake pans, but because I was using short pans, the meringue rose over the top and baked in an unattractive mushroom shape. The cake layers were also too thick to be stacked, so I ended up with two small 6 inch cakes that I covered with whipping cream. Next time I would bake the cake in 8 inch pans, a change that I have reflected in the recipe below.

World's Best Cakerecipe source: Sweet Paul via Bakers Royale

10½ tablespoons (1 stick plus 2 1⁄2 tablespoons) butter, softened
1 2⁄ 3 cups granulated sugar
1 1⁄ 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
5 large eggs, separated
1⁄ 3 cup whole milk
1⁄4 cup sliced almonds
1 cup heavy cream
1⁄2 vanilla bean

Heat the oven to 350°F, with a rack in the middle position. Line two 8 inch removable-bottom cake pans with parchment paper. 

Beat the butter and 2⁄ 3 cup of the sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the flour and baking powder and mix well on low speed. Mix in the egg yolks and milk. Evenly divide the batter between the pans.

In a large clean bowl, beat the egg whites and the remaining 1 cup sugar to soft peaks. Evenly divide meringue and spread on each cake layer. Sprinkle with the almond slices. Bake for 30 minutes, or until the meringue is golden brown and puffed. 

Cool on a wire rack in the pan. 

When the cake is cool, put the cream in a medium bowl and scrape in the vanilla seeds. Discard the vanilla pod. Beat to soft peaks with an electric mixer, about 3 minutes. Spread the cream on top one cake layer and then place the second cake layer on top. Let the cake sit for 1 hour in the fridge before serving.

glazed cherry loaves

My daughter is on a cherry kick, and I was totally going to make her a sweet cherry cake for her bday earlier in the month, but I didn't. I made her a charlotte, which collapsed when I removed the ring. So I sent my husband to the grocery store before guests arrived. She got cherry cupcakes to bring to school, but they were made from a mix, and obviously don't count. Poor kid never gets a cool birthday cake.

So when I spotted this loaf recipe from Averie Cooks I knew I had to make it immediately. Plus I had recently remembered I had this cool twist donut pan and also needed to use that ASAP.

I have made a cherry cupcake recipe in the past, but I think this recipe wins for ease and simplicity. The texture is moist and a bit coarse, and so good! It would have been fine without the glaze, but it's prettier with it. I simply whisked enough milk in powdered sugar to get a drizzling consistency, then added a bit of almond extract for flavor.

Cherry Bread
recipe adapted from : Averie Cooks

one 10-ounce jar maraschino cherries, juice reserved
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray your choice of baking vessel with non stick spray.

Roughly chop cherries and set juice aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to combine; set aside.

In a small mixing bowl or glass measuring cup, combine eggs, oil, cherry juice, almond extract, vanilla extract.
Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients and stir to combine; don't overmix. Batter will be very thick.
Fold in the chopped cherries.
Divide batter into the prepared pans, smoothing the tops lightly with a spatula. 

Bake until bread is domed, set, and lightly golden. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. 

My twists baked for about 23 minutes, whereas the three cupcakes I made took about 25 minutes. If baking in larger loaf pans, baking time could be up to 40 minutes.

carrot cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting

For the past couple of years, I always plan to make Easter treats for the kids at school, but then life gets crazy, and I don't. Last year, I felt especially bad, so the Easter bunny share some of his stash of carrots with the kids so that we could make carrot muffins to bring to school after Easter break.

I would have totally forgotten about that had my oldest not mention this "new tradition" the day before Easter. A quick trip to the store and I knew exactly what we were gonna use the Easter bunny's carrots for!

Except I didn't share this with the kids at school. I even had omitted the nuts thinking I would send this to school. We kept it to ourselves. This was very good cake. We especially liked the addition of cinnamon in the cream cheese frosting.

For the recipe, and to see how other Baked Sunday Mornings members enjoyed this cake, click on through to the Baked Sunday Mornings website.

classic crème brûlée

The Baked Sunday Mornings Bakers made Crème Brulée this morning.

I wasn't sure I was was going to get around to making it this weekend but dreaming about work woke me up early, so I had plenty of time to steep a vanilla bean and seeds into some cream while setting up the rest of the recipe.

Egg yolks are whisked into sugar and a bit of salt and then the mixture is tempered with the still hot cream before being strained into a clean container.

According to the book, the recipe yields 4 servings but a half a cup of cream per serving seemed a bit much to me, so I poured the cream and egg mixture into 8 smaller containers. The custard is baked in a bain-marie in the oven until the edges are set and the center still soft.

The custards need to cool, then chill for 4 hours before sugar is added to the top of them, and melted with a blow torch. Usually, white granulated sugar is used to make the glass-like top of the crème brûlée but in this case, dark brown sugar is used to give it a more pronounced caramel flavour. Brown sugar does not spread as nicely as white sugar, so I had a hard time melting the sugar evenly since it was bumpy.

I thought the crème brulée had the perfect texture with a nice crunchy top. And it looked so cute in the little teacups! Loved it!

For the recipe, and to see how my fellow bakers enjoyed this recipe, click on through to the Baked Sunday Mornings blog!

Cinnamon Roll Cake

I needed a dessert to bring to my parent's house for dinner after the kids had invited themselves over this weekend. I was all set to make Classic Creme Brulée as part of Baked Sunday Mornings, but when I poured the cream in a saucepan, it came out.... not quite liquid.

So.... Spent a couple of hours trying to decide what to make and waited until the very last minute to make this cake.

It's not real pretty, not fancy and not complicated, but it was so good! It hung out on the stove top while dinner was cooking so was still warm and gooey when we had it for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The cake itself was moist and light and the topping created gooey swirls of cinnamon and brown sugar yumminess.

This is a very simple 3-bowls and no mixer cake. The batter itself is simply flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, eggs, milk and vanilla whisked together like pancake batter. Melted butter gets poured in the batter and gently combined. The resulting mixture gets spread in a greased 9x13 pan.

The butter for the topping was supposed to be room temperature, but mine was fridge cold, so I simply cut it into some brown sugar, cinnamon and flour. Once it seemed combined enough, I poured it on batter and used a knife to swirl the topping into the batter as best as I could.

My cake baked for way longer than the recommended 30 minute average. Maybe, 45 to 50 minutes total.

Once I got around to it, and while the cake was still warm, I made the quick glaze out of powdered sugar, milk and vanilla, and poured it on top of the cake where it quickly seeped into the nooks and crannies to settle.

Not much to look at, but it made for a homey satisfying dessert, that could totally be considered breakfast.... cause you know: cinnamon!

Cinnamon Roll Cake
recipe source: Rumbly Tumbly

Cake:
3 c. flour
1/4 tsp.salt
1 c. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, melted

Topping:
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Directions:
Mix everything together except for the butter. Slowly stir in the melted butter and pour into a greased 9×13 pan. For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.

Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

While warm drizzle the glaze over the cake.

flourless walnut chocolate cake and dacquoise

I don't do free. No fat free, no sugar free, no gluten free, no dairy or egg free. I live life full, and fully aware of the impact it has on my health! Actually the only free I do is the free food I share with people.

So when I made this cake, I certainly didn't make it because it was gluten free. I picked it for my mom's birthday out of the book Bake it like you Mean it by Gesine Bullock-Prado because it look amazing, and was in the meringue section of the book. My mom loves meringues, so I thought it would be a sure bet.

I knew she would enjoy it, but I was surprised how much the rest of us liked it. My husband and I fought over the last piece.

The cake consists of a flourless walnut chocolate layer, topped with a chocolate filling, then a layer of dacquoise. I made it over three days, making the dacquoise first and storing it in an airtight container for a couple of days. The night before my mom's birthday, I got my husband to play sous-chef and we got the flourless walnut chocolate cake layers in the oven in an half hour. A couple of hours before the birthday dinner, I quickly whipped up the chocolate filling and assembled the cake.

Making the filling was strange for me. 8 egg yolks, 12 oz of chocolate chips and a pinch of salt get combined in the food processor. Yes, the food processor. A half cup of boiling coffee gets poured while the food processor is doing its thing. Then, once everything is combined, a cup of butter gets added to the mix. So I'm pretty sure it's not a buttercream, a mousse maybe? Not technically... So i'm going with an insanely good chocolate filling.

Combined, these three components made for a super rich and delicious cake. The cake was fudgy, the dacquoise got chewy from being sandwiched with the chocolate filling which was super silky. On top of the cake, the little meringue disks stayed crispy.

Probably not the best cake to have after a huge meal, but over the next couple of days, we thoroughly enjoyed it. I just wish I had gotten more and better pictures, but was pressed by time and fading daylight. I wouldn't even post this if it wasn't for the fact that I wanted to remember this cake so I could make it again.

shaped breads

February's Daring Bakers challenge was so dangerous! Easy, simple ingredients, so yummy, and pretty on top of it!

Daring Baker Sawsan, of Chef in Disguise, challenged us to make beautiful, filled breads.

Sawsan provided us with two recipes, and two shaped breads to attempt. The first one I made was filled with cinnamon sugar. The other recipe made two "loaves" one of which i filled with nutella, the other, with berry preserves.

Cinnamon bread

Servings: 8

1/4 cup (60 ml) warm water

3/4 cup (180 ml) warm milk

1 large egg

1/4 cup (60 ml) (60 gm) (2 oz) butter, softened

1/4 cup (60 ml) (50 gm) (1-3/4 oz) white sugar

1/2 teaspoon (3 gm) salt

3-1/4 cups (780 ml) (450 gm) (16 oz) plain (all-purpose) flour, approximately

2 teaspoons (10 ml) (8 gm) dry yeast

1/4 teaspoon (1 gm) cardamom, optional

1/4 cup (60 ml) of milk

1 tablespoon (15 gm) (1/2 oz) sugar

1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) (1/4 cup) (60 ml) (60 gm) (2 oz) butter

4 tablespoons (60 ml) (25 gm) (1 oz) cinnamon

1/2 cup (120 ml) (100 gm) (3-1/2 oz) sugar

1 can (400 gm) (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

In a bowl whisk the egg with milk, water, sugar, butter and yeast. Set aside

In another bowl sift the flour with the salt and the optional cardamom. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and knead until you get a smooth dough.

Note: This recipe requires between 3-1/4 and 3-1/2 cups of flour depending on the weather, humidity and the flour brand. Start with 3-1/4 cups and if you feel that the dough is too soft, add the extra 1/4 cup.

Place the dough in a bowl you have brushed with some oil and cover it with a wet cloth and leave it in a warm place to double.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into 4 parts. Roll each part into a circle at least 20 cm (8 inch) in diameter.

Brush the first layer with butter then sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Place the second layer on the first layer repeat the brushing and sprinkling and then do the same with the third layer. Top with the fourth layer, this time only brush it with butter.

Using a knife make cuts that divide the dough circles into 8 triangles. Make cuts that go 2/3 of the way in the middle of each triangle. The cuts should not reach the base of the triangle nor the tip. Take the tip of each triangle and insert it into the cut you made and pull it from the underside.

Arrange the triangles on your baking sheet. Pinch the two angles at the base of the triangle together.

Brush the dough with milk.

Allow to rest for 15 minutes during which you would heat your oven to very hot 500°F/240°C/gas mark 9 (rack in the middle). (Go for the hottest your oven will do).

Bake for 5 minutes on very hot 460°F/240°C/gas mark 9, then lower the temperature to moderately hot 390°F/200°C/gas mark 6 and bake for 15-20 more minutes

Note: ovens do differ greatly, so the time may differ,what you want is to bake it until the under side is golden brown and the bread is baked all the way to the center. If the top of the bread is not golden brown by that time and you have a broiler (grill) in your oven. Turn on the broiler (grill) for a couple of minutes until the bread is golden brown on top. If on the other hand the top is getting too dark, consider lowering the oven temperature and covering the top of the bread with foil to stop it from over browning

Take it out of the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes then transfer to a wire rick and drizzle with sweetened condensed milk while it is still warm.

Nutella twists

Servings: This dough recipe makes two loaves, 16 small pieces each

1 can (400 gm) (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk

3 large eggs

1 cup (240 ml) vegetable oil

1 cup (240 ml) warm water

3 teaspoons (15 ml) (12 gm) yeast

7 cups (1 kg) (2.2 lbs) all-purpose (plain) flour, approximately

Pinch of salt

Instead of the eggwash use

2 tablespoons (30 ml) (25 gm) (1 oz) milk powder

3 tablespoons (45 ml) lukewarm water

1teaspoon (5 ml) (5 gm) sugar

1/4 teaspoon (1 gm) instant coffee

For the filling

½ jar (200 gm) (7 oz) of nutella (or similar)

Mix the condensed milk, yeast, oil, water, and eggs in the bowl of your mixer. Add the flour one cup at a time and knead using the kneading attachment or by hand till you get a soft dough. The dough will be slightly sticky due to the sweetened condensed milk, don’t worry once the dough rests it will have a wonderful consistency.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and allow to rest till it doubles in size

Punch down the dough and divide it into 2 parts. Wrap one part in a plastic bag and work with the other. Divide the dough ball into 4 parts. Roll each part into a circle at least 20 cm (8 inch) in diameter. You can use a plate or any other round item as a template if you want your layers to be identical and uniform. 

Spread the Nutella (or similar filling) on the first layer. Place the second layer on top of the first and repeat. Top with the fourth layer, this time only brush it with butter.

Note: To help with the slippery Nutella, you can place the filled layers before cutting into the fridge for 20-30 minutes, this will help the Nutella to firm up. That will make the cuts and twists easier.

Using a knife make cuts that divide the dough circles into 8 triangles starting at the center but don’t go all the way to the outer edge. Then divide each triangle into two. That gives you a total of 16 triangles. Gently lift the triangles one at a time and twist them.

Repeat for the other dough ball.

Brush the dough with egg wash replacement. Allow to rest for 15 minutes during which you would heat your oven to very hot 500°F/240°C/gas mark 9.

Bake for 5 minutes on very hot 460°F/240°C/gas mark 9, then lower the temperature to moderately hot 390°F/200°C/gas mark 6 and bake for 15-20 more minutes.

Note: Ovens do differ greatly, so the time may differ,what you want is to bake it until the under side is golden brown and the bread is baked all the way to the center. If the top of the bread is not golden brown by that time and you have a broiler (grill) in your oven. Turn on the broiler (grill) for a couple of minutes until the bread is golden brown on top. If on the other hand the top is getting too dark, consider lowering the oven temperature and covering the top of the bread with foil to stop it from over browning.

This challenge was very dangerous for me. I could have made bread all month long! So delicious! Thanks Sawsan for the great challenge!