Olive Oil Almond Cake with Brown Butter Glaze

Please make this glaze. The cake is very good, but the glaze is AMAZING.

From here on, I will use this glaze at every opportunity. I imagine it would be good on banana cake, pound cake, sour cream cake, coffee cake, cinnamon rolls, cookies, brownies, or even a spoon. Enough said. Best. Glaze. Ever.

Cake:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup almond flour (or finely ground almonds)
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. salt
3 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. almond extract
zest of 1/2 an orange
1/2 cup orange juice

1. Whisk flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt to combine.
2. In another bowl, whisk eggs, sugar and olive oil until light yellow and slightly thick. This will take a couple of minutes. Add the zest and the juice and mix until thoroughly incorporated.
3. Add the dry ingredients and mix until the batter is smooth.
4. Pour batter into a 9-inch round cake pan that has been greased and floured.
5. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 35-45 minutes.

Glaze:
2 tbsp. butter
1 cup icing sugar
3 tbsp. cream (or milk)
1/2 cup sliced almonds, lightly toasted

1. In a light colored pan, heat the butter until its color changes from yellow to golden brown. Be careful not to burn the butter!
2. While the butter is cooling, sift the icing sugar into a bowl.
3. Whisk in the cream until the mixture is smooth then slowly add the butter.
4. You want your glaze to be pourable but not too runny. If the mixture is too thick, add a few drops of cream at a time until your get the consistency you want.
5. Add the sliced almonds and mix gently.
6. Pour over cooled cake.

Pecan Tarts

Happy Thanksgiving, Canada!

Yesterday, I made this...a yummy, gooey, nutty version of pecan tarts. I like my pecan tarts with LOTS of pecans and not too sweet. This tart fit that bill perfectly :-) And yes, I cheated. I used premade tart crusts. But one has got to prioritize when making a full on Thanksgiving dinner, right?

24 tart crusts
3/4 cup white sugar
3 tbsp. brown sugar
1 cup corn syrup
3/4 tsp. vanilla
1/3 cup melted butter
3 eggs, beaten
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans

1. Mix sugars, corn syrup, vanilla, butter, eggs and salt.
2. Fill tarts with chopped pecans (about halfway full)
3. Slowly fill the tarts with the gooey mixture.
4. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes.
5. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream or nothing!

So good!!!

Frozen Brazo v. 3

Third attempt at Frozen Brazo.
Tried an unbaked crust this time because my two previous crusts were too crisp.
Didn't work.
Crust fell apart when sliced.
But frozen brazo itself was goooood.
Got the recipe of the brazo down pat.

Still looking for the perfect combination of crust and brazo.

Grilled bananas

I had planned a great meal for the boys tonight: grilled caesar salad, wagyu burgers, and grilled asparagus. I bought all the stuff and came home with bags of groceries only to realize that I had not planned for dessert!!! And what's a Friday night meal without dessert, right?

So I looked around, scoped my cupboard and saw bananas, chocolate chips, peanut butter chips and a half-finished container of vanilla ice cream. Since we were grilling the rest of the meal, I thought...why not grill dessert too?

So what started out as this...

...ended up like this...


The hot sweet banana, with the creamy melted chocolate, accented by salty highs from the peanut butter chips, all intermingling with the cold creamy smoothness of vanilla ice cream made for a dish that was a sum greater than its parts.

My go-to cake recipe

This is my favorite cake recipe. It's so simple and so reliable. It can be frosted, eaten on its own, made into cupcakes, and made into birthday cakes. In the picture above, I baked it in a 9x13 pan, cut in in half, put one half on top of the other half to make a layer cake, I frosted it with some sweetened whipped cream and put a layer of macerated strawberries between the two layers.

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup butter, softened and cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
3 eggs

1. In the bowl of your mixer, mix the first four ingredients on low just until well mixed.
2. Add the butter and mix on low for about a minute.
3. Add 1/2 of milk and the vanilla extract and mix for another minute.
4. Add eggs and the rest of the milk and mix on low-medium for 2 minutes.
5. Pour batter into pan, tap on counter to minimize bubbles and bake in a 350 oven.

Options:
one 9x13 pan - 35-40 minutes
24 cupcakes - 20-25 minutes
two 8 inch round pans - 35-40 minutes

Creme Brulee

I am such a custard girl. Make me choose between any custard-based dessert or chocolate and it will be the custard one every time. Pie or custard? Custard. Cake or custard? Custard. Fruit or custard? Custard. Anyway, you get my point. From leche flan, to creme caramel, to creme anglais, to brazo de mercedes, to canonigo, to portuguese egg tarts, to creme brulee, I love them all. Especially creme brulee. There is something about the purity of eggs, cream and vanilla...smooth and velvety against the tongue, accented by the occasional crunch of the caramelized sugar. Heaven.

I don't know why I never attempted to make this dessert. I always thought that it would be hard. I don't know why. I was really surprised at how simple it was! Mix the cream, eggs, sugar and vanilla. Bake in ramekins in a water bath. Top with sugar. Caramelize the sugar. That's it!

I used Mark Bittman's recipe from his book How to Cook Everything. His recipe calls for:

6 egg yolks
1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups cream
1 cup sugar

1. Heat the cream just to the brink of steaming. If using the bean, let the split bean steep in the hot cream for about 10 minutes. I used extract so I skipped the steeping step.
2. In a separate bowl, mix the yolks and sugar until the sugar is dissolved.
3. Gradually pour in the hot cream and mix well. Add the vanilla extract at this point if you're using extract.
4. Pout the custard mixture into ramekins. I think that wide, shallow ramekins work best since there's a larger surface area:volume ratio, which means more crunchy sugar topping. Yum!
5. Bake the creme brulee in a water bath in a 300 decree oven for about 30 minutes until set.
6. Cool in fridge.
7. Just before serving, sprinkle top with sugar and caramelize under the broiler or with a kitchen torch (which I hadn't bought then and just procured today).

I made 2 batches to bring to our Christmas dinner with S&A (which is why I used disposable ramekins). To one batch, I added 1/2 cup of Bailey's. It was good but I prefer the plain one. This will definitely make many more appearances on our table!

Macarons

I overcame one of my culinary fears...the macaron. This French confection has been taunting me for quite a while now. And I've always been scared to try it. I've read other people's blogs and have heard the horror stories and the tales of utmost failure. I was petrified.

But, the holidays gave me the perfect opportunity. I used the egg yolks to make creme brulees (more on this in another post) and I had the egg whites sitting on the counter. I had almonds. I had icing sugar. And most of all, I had time. Precious time. Time to finally take on this challenge.

Recipe:
1 1/4 cups icing sugar
1 cup finely ground almonds
1/4 cup plus 2 tbsps egg whites, let sit at room temperature overnight
pinch of salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar

* Before you start, prepare your pans. Take a sheet of parchment and draw circles about 2 inches in diameter, spaced about an inch or so apart. Turn the parchment paper over and set it on your baking sheet. You will need about 3 baking trays.

1. With a food processor, pulse the ground almonds and icing sugar together. Sift to make sure there are no lumps. Set aside.
2. Using a mixer, whip the egg whites with the salt until frothy. Gradually add the granulated sugar until the egg whites form stiff peaks.
3. Gently fold in the icing sugar/almond mixture in 4 batches.
4. Mix gently until the batter "flows like magma." Apparently, this step could make or break your macarons. It has to be magma-like. Because we've all mixed magma before and we all know how magma flows when you mix it with a wooden spoon. Whatever.
5. Put mixture into a piping bag with a plain, large round tip.
6. Pipe the mixture onto your prepared pans, using the circles as your guide.
7. Let sit for 1-2 hours at room temperature until a skin forms or until the batter loses a bit of its shine. This will form a tougher shell which will prevent the macarons from breaking when you handle them later.



As you can see, I made ones that were about two inches in diameter and the excess batter I piped into small bite sized dots. Cute, eh?

Here's a close up. See how they're not very shiny anymore?



Anyway, on to the baking...

Bake the macarons in 325 oven. About two minutes into the baking, open the oven door and keep it ajar using a wooden spoon. Bake the macarons for about 10-11 minutes. Let cool.

Now I didn't have time to make the filling so I used Nutella instead. That's why there's a bottle of Nutella behind the macarons in the first picture. I also had some dulce de leche, so I filled some of the macarons with that too.

All in all, I thought the macarons were pretty good! Not perfect, but they exceeded all my expectations!

Cheesecake on a stick

This was my Christmas "project" this year :-) I thought it would be a fun thing to bring to our office holiday potluck.



Some of my coworkers said that these 2-3 bite versions were perfect because cheesecake is such a rich dessert. I agree, but really now, who can ever stop at just one piece!?

Cheesecake:
5 blocks cream cheese
2 cups sugar
1/4 cup flour
pinch of salt
5 eggs + 2 yolks
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup cream or half-and-half

melting chocolate
sprinkles
sugar
graham cracker crumbs
etc., etc.

1. Cream the cream cheese with the sugar, flour and salt until well mixed. The trick here is to make sure that you start with room temp cream cheese so that you can get it smooth and creamy.
2. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
3. Finally, add the vanilla and cream. Mix well (again).

Pour the cheesecake batter into a 9x13 cake pan and place this pan in a larger pan. Fill the larger pan with boiling water until the water comes halfway up the sides of the 9x13 pan. Bake at 325 for about 40 minutes. Cool the cheesecake slight then place in the freezer until very firm.

Once the cheesecake is firm, scoop out balls and place them in a single layer on a parchment-lined cookie sheet. I have a small cookie scoop that worked very well for this step. Insert a stick into each ball and place the cookie sheet in the freezer until the cheesecake balls are frozen.

When everything is good and frozen, melt your chocolate over a double boiler (or you could microwave it). Dip the frozen balls in the chocolate and decorate before the chocolate hardens up. Place the finished balls on another lined cookie sheet and keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

This recipe isn't difficult but does take some planning since you have to cool the cheesecake, freeze the balls, cool the finished products, etc. I must say though that this is probably the most fun I've had in the kitchen in quite a while!

Panna Cotta and Pomegranates

Who can resist the smooth, velvety texture of panna cotta? This dessert is ridiculously simple to make but looks so elegant, especially when served with fruit. Don't you just love how the translucent orbs of pomegranate arils lay against the creamy whiteness of the panna cotta?

Panna Cotta
1 envelope gelatin
3 tbsp. water
1 1/2 cups cream
1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract

1. Sprinkle gelatin over the 3 tbsp of water and let it bloom for a few minutes.
2. Meanwhile, heat cream, milk and sugar over medium flame.
3. Once the cream/milk mixture comes to a boil, turn off flame and add gelatin, stirring gently until it dissolves.
4. Add the extracts.
5. Pour mixture into 6 lightly oiled ramekins and chill until set (about 4-6 hours).
6. Loosen panna cotta gently from mold and serve with fresh fruit or a fruit puree.

Variations: Today, I made a coffee version. I added 2-3 tbsp. of instant coffee granules to the boiling cream. Lovely. Be forewarned though, this dessert is deceptive. One cup of cream weighs in at 800 calories! (Sorry to be a party-pooper...)

Peach-Blueberry Pie

My trip to the farmer's market this morning inspired me to make this pie. Actually, a trip to The Pie Plate in Niagara-on-the-Lake, where I had the most excellent version of this pie, inspired me to go to the farmer's market. The fresh Niagara peaches at the farmer's market inspired me to try my hand at baking this pie. And baking this pie has inspired me to try baking other fruit pies! :-)

Admittedly, baking a pie is not a quick proposition. You have make the crust, chill it, roll it out, make the filling, assemble the pie and bake it for over an hour. Not something to do on a busy weekday night. But on a weekend, when the mood strikes to make something heart-warming and soul-fulfilling, a fresh fruit pie definitely fits the bill.

Crust

2 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. sugar
1 cup cold butter, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 c. ice cold water

1. In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar and salt.
2. Add half the butter and pulse for 6-8 seconds.
3. Add rest of butter and pulse another 5-6 seconds. The textire at this point should resemble very coarse corn meal with larger peas sized lumps of butter and flour.
4. Add water a tablepoon at a time, pulsing for a few seconds in between. The final texture of the crust should be sticky enought to hold when pressed with you fingers. The crust should not resemble a dough.
5. Empty the food processor bowl onto a work surface and divide the dough into two balls.
6. Flatten each ball into a disk and wrap with plastic wrap. Keep in fridge for at least an hour.

Filling

5 cups sliced fresh peaches
1 cup fresh blueberries
1/2 cup water
pinch of salt
4 tsp. cornstarch
Few dollops of butter

1. Mix sliced peaches and blueberries with salt and sugar.
2. Let sit for about an hour.
3. After an hour, drain the juice from the fruit mixture into a saucepan.
4. Simmer "syrup" until reduced to about 1/3 cup.
5. Return drained fruit mixture into bowl and add cornstarch.
6. Mix until cornstarch is uniformly dispered.
7. Add back cooled syrup.

To assemble

1. Tip: Work quickly. You want your crust to stay as cold as possible.
2. Roll out bottom crust into a 9-inch pie pan. Roll out top crust into a 10- to 11-inch circle.
3. Pour fruit mixture into bottom crust. Top with a few dollops of butter
4. Put top crust to over fruit mixture.
5. Crimp sides.
6. Put slits on top crust to let steam escape.
7. Wrap aluminum foil around sides of pan to protect the crust edges from browning too quickly.
8. Place pie on a baking dish.
9. Bake in a 425 oven for 30 minutes then decrease temp to 350.
10. Bake 30-40 minutes more until top crust is done.
11. Cool for a few hours.
12. Resist the temptation to cut into the pie. This is probably the hardest step in the entire process!

Frozen Brazo

This has been my most recent obsession. Ever since Tita N brought one to the "welcome back" potluck, this dessert has not ceased to torment me. I lamented the fact that this marvelous creation could not be had in Toronto! I just HAD to make it. I had no choice.

This was my first attempt...



I brought to Tita M and Tito O's home when we had lunch there, and my oh my, was it good! BUT...not as good as I'd like. The crust was bit too crunchy rendering the dessert almost impossible to slice gracefully. Plus, the meringue layer was too small for the rest of the "cake."

Second attempt...



Sorry for the pic. I couldn't wait to dig in.

I made a thicker custard layer for this version, which I really liked. The crust though was still not what I wanted. But the meringue layer was perfect for the size of the rest of the brazo, so at least aesthetically, it looked better than the first one.

I haven't had a chance to make a third one. I'm afraid I might go into a diabetic coma if I have Frozen Brazo more than once a month.

So next time we have guests, I will try another version. Maybe the third time will be a charm.

Birthday Dirt Sundae

I made this birthday cake version of the springtime sundae for Son #2's 10th birthday and because it was a boy's party, I decided not to use flowers but used gummy worms instead. I also used a bigger planter instead of individual pots. The boys found it quite amusing :-)

Just a tip though, do not serve this straight out of the freezer. Frozen solid ice cream is very hard to scoop and will lead to oreo crumbs everywhere. Trust me, I learned the hard way...

Springtime Sundae

This was a dessert too cute to pass up :-)

I found a similar "project" on one of my regular blog reads and thought it would be perfect for a "welcome to spring" gathering we had at S&A's house.

Start by buying a few small plastic pots and baking a batch of brownies. Get your biscuit cutter or other round thing-a-ma-jig and cut out a circle of brownie to fit the bottom of the pot. Like this...



Then spread a layer of dulce de leche over the brownie. Just like so...



Stick a trimmed drinking straw in the middle then fill the pot with vanilla ice cream, chunks of your favorite candy bar (Mr. Big, in this case) and more brownie chunks. Really, at this point, go wild :-)



Keep the entire thing in the freezer and just before serving, cover the entire thing with crushed oreo cookies, get a nice flower, stick it in the straw, and voila!



Aren't they just adorable?!

Another attempt at chocolate cake...

"O, chocolate cake! Why art thou such an elusive prize? Where, oh, where shall I find thy perfect recipe?"

Yes, I am still on this journey to find the perfect chocolate cake recipe. My previous chocolate cake fiasco will not deter me. I am resolute in this quest.

This time I tried a version of the Texas Sheet Cake, combined it with a butterscotch filling recipe from Joy of Baking, and used a loose version of the Texas cake icing to frost it. It was good, at least better than the aforementioned attempt, but it was still not what I was looking for. At least it looks good, right? Plus, I didn't set anything on fire :-)


Chocolate Cake with Butterscotch Filling


CAKE
PART A: In a mixing bowl, sift together
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp. salt

PART B: In a saucepan
1. Melt 2 sticks of butter.
2. Add 5 heaping tbsp. cocoa and 1 tsp. instant coffee granules. Mix well.
3. Add 1 cup boiling water. Turn off heat and mix together until smooth.
4. Pour Part B mixture into Part A mixture.

PART C: Mix together
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla

Add Part C Mixture into Part A/B mixture. Pour into 2 9-inch cake pans and bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Cool the cakes before frosting them.


BUTTERSCOTCH FILLING
1. Melt 1/2 stick unsalted butter, 1/8 cup water and 1 tbsp. corn syrup in a saucepan.
2. Add 1/2 cup sugar and mix gently until sugar is dissolved.
3. Cook over low-medium heat until caramel in color.
4. Turn off heat and add 1/4 cup heavy cream.
5. Whisk together until smooth.
6. Add 1/2 tsp. vanilla and a pinch of salt.
7. Cool in fridge until thick and spreadable.


FROSTING
1. Melt 1 1/2 sticks butter in a saucepan.
2. Add 4 heaping tbsp. cocoa and mix until smooth.
3. Turn off heat.
4. Add 6 tbsp. milk and 1 tsp. vanilla. Mix.
5. Add about 400g powdered sugar until you get the right consistency.

TO ASSEMBLE
1. Slice off the top of one of the cakes to make it flat.
2. Spread about 3/4 of the butterscotch filling and place second cake on top.
3. Frost with chocolate frosting (you will have left-overs here).
4. Put the rest of the butterscotch sauce in a pastry bag with a round tip, or in my case, a small ziplock bag with a corner snipped off. Drizzle the cake with the butterscotch.

Oreo Cheesecake

Here's another variation of the cheesecake recipe I posted before...

The picture above was actually leftover batter that I baked in individual cupcake holders. I topped them with a mixture of oreo and graham cracker crumbs and baked them at 350 for 20 minutes.

For the crust of the real oreo cheesecake, I used 2 cups of crushed oreos mixed with 1/4 cup butter. Note that I used half the butter I would normally use for a graham crust. The white filling also acts as a binder, thus decreasing the butter requirement. If you are using boxed oreo cookie crumbs, which does not have the filling, use 1/2 cup of butter, like the original recipe. Bake this crust for 10 minutes at 350.

For the cheesecake itself, just omit the lemon extract and add a cup of chopped oreos to the batter. Same baking time, same temp.

Guinness Stout Ice Cream

We had a few friends over for the Hubby's birthday/Easter and S&A brought a pint of this very unusual ice cream. Apparently, Ed's (the ice cream shop) only makes this flavor once a year...for St. Patty's day. And once it's gone, it's gone. At least until the next year.

I really, really, really liked it! At first I thought it would taste all weird, but it actually reminded me of coffee ice cream with its slight bitter edge. The malt definitely came through, giving this ice cream a very sophisticated flair. The stout flavor didn't assault your taste buds but instead crept up stealthily, lingering at the very back of your mouth. Subtle but sublime.

The texture of the ice cream was excellent too. Smooth and creamy with a full mouthfeel. The people at Ed's might not know how to spell. But they sure make a d@mn good pint...of ice cream.

Jam Bars

It's not I haven't been cooking. It's just that the past few months have been so hectic that I haven't been inspired...inspired to cook, inspired to write, inspired to create. BUT...I'm baaack! :-)

Why? Because procrastination(unemployment + major life-altering exam) = creativity. Do you still remember your algebra? Hehe!

So anyway, I made these jam bars for our Valentine's get-together and they were very well received. I personally favor fruit desserts over chocolate ones (gasp!) so these were right up my alley. Plus it allowed me to use up some 5-fruit jam that remained untouched in the fridge because it wasn't the "right brand."

Jam Bars

2 sticks cold salted butter, cut into pieces
1 3/4 cups ground almonds
2 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 1/4 cups jam of choice (the one I used was a combo of strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, blueberry and grape)

1. In a bowl, mix together almonds, flour, and sugar.
2. Using a pastry cutter (or your hands), cut butter into dry ingredients until the mixture is crumbly.
3. Transfer half the mixture into a 9x13 baking pan. Press firmly into pan.
4. Bake in a 350 oven for about 15-18 minutes until lightly golden.
5. Remove crust from oven and cool for about 30 minutes.
6. Spread jam evenly over crust.
7. Scatter the rest of the crumb mixture over the jam.
8. Bake again for about 22 minutes.
9. Cool then cut into 2 inch bars.

Toffee bars

This has got to be the easiest toffee bar recipe ever. Prep time is maybe ten minutes max. And the results...excellent. Chewy and sticky, with just the right crunch from the nuts. Yum!

Toffee Bars
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 can condensed milk
1/2 cup toffee chips (I used Nestle Skor chips)
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped almonds (or whatever nut you like)

1. Preheat oven to 325.
2. In a bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs and butter until well blended.
3. Press firmly into a lined 9x9 pan (I used parchment to line it).
4. Bake for 10 minutes.
5. Pour condensed milk on top of crumb mixture.
6. Sprinkle toffee chips, chocolate chips and nuts evenly .
7. Press down with spatula (or the back of a large spoon) until the "solids" have "embedded" into the condensed milk.
8. Bake for 40 minutes.
9. Cool completely.
10. Put in fridge for 30 minutes, remove from pan and cut into desired slices.

The Chocolate Cake of My Childhood

Looking at my finished product, one could never tell that this baking adventure was pretty much a disaster. The batter overflowed, spilled on the oven floor, caught fire and almost tripped my fire alarm!

I started out fine. The batter tasted really good and I was in high spirits as I put the cake pan in the oven. But 15 minutes into the baking, I saw that the batter was rising higher than I expected and so I hurriedly slipped cookie sheets underneath the cake pan to catch the batter drippings. I thought I had averted the disaster but it wasn't enough. The batter dripped out of the the cookie sheets too! The batter spilled onto on the oven floor and caught fire. So I had to find a way to wipe it off. I decided to use wet paper towels and used my BBQ tongs to reach in. Of course, as soon as the paper towels touched the heating elements, they ignited and I had to run to the sink to douse them with water! So there I was, trying my best not to keep the oven door open too long so my cake could bake properly but at the same time trying to get all of the spilled batter cleaned up and prevent things from catching fire. Whew! The lengths we go to for chocolate cake, eh?

In the end, despite everything, the cake turned out fine. More than fine, actually. The edges were a tad bit over cooked but the center was chocolatey and tender. I really liked the frosting, even though I wasn't expecting much from the recipe. This recipe will see a repeat performance, but I'm going to use a bigger cake pan. And I will have a fire extinguisher nearby.


Chocolate Cake

1 1/2 cups butter, room temperature
3 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 1/4 cups cake flour
3/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup cocoa powder (not dutch processed)
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. baking soda
1 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp. white vinegar
3/4 cup boiling water

1. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
2. Add eggs one at a time until incorporated.
3. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, sift together flour, salt, cocoa, baking powder and baking soda. In another bowl, whisk mayo, milk, water and vinegar together.
4. Add the dry ingredients alternating with wet ingredients to the butter, starting and ending with the dry. I did 3 batches of dry and 2 batches of wet.
5. Add boiling water last and mix batter until smooth.
6. Bake in a 13x9 pan (that's what the original recipe called for, but keep my (mis)adventure in mind) in a 350 oven for 50-60 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.
7. Cool in pan and invert onto a serving tray.
8. Frost with chocolate frosting.

Chocolate Frosting

3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
2 tbsp. cornstarch
1 cup milk
1 tbsp. butter

1. In a saucepan, whisk ingredients together until there are not lumps.
2. Heat over low-medium fire until mixture begins to thicken.
3. Remove from heat and add butter.
4. Whisk occasionally until mixture cools.

I'm going to try this next time with a caramel layer in the middle of the cake. Just like the "Cookie Monster" chocolate cake of my childhood.

Toasted Coconut Cupcakes

I used to not like coconut in my baked goods. But ever since I left the Philippines, I've been craving all things coconut...coconut scented soaps (like the one by my kitchen sink), coconut flavored ice cream (Ben and Jerry's is THE BEST!), and now coconut baked goods. I saw Anna Olson's show which showcased this recipe and I just had to try it.

Toasted Coconut Cupcakes

2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 + 1/4 cup coconut milk
2 eggs, separated
2 1/4 cups pastry flour
1 + 1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt

1. Toast coconut flakes in a 350 oven for 3-4 minutes, just until the edges turn light brown. Set aside and increase oven temp to 375.
2. Mix egg yolks, oil and 1 cup of the coconut milk. Set aside.
3. Sift together flour, baking powder, salt and 1 cup of the sugar.
4. Mix dry ingredients into the wet and stir in 1 1/3 cups of the toasted coconut.
5. In a separate bowl, beat egg whites and 1/2 cup sugar until soft peaks form.
6. Fold the egg whites into the batter.
7. Pour batter into 16 muffin cups (or 1 8x8 pan).
8. Bake for 20-22 minutes (or 25-30 minutes for square cake).
9. Cool cupcakes.
10. Brush tops with remaining coconut milk and dip into the coconut flakes.

The cupcakes were very good! Light and coconutty. I think next time I'm going to try filling them with pineapple curd, maybe with a hint of rum. Kind of like a pinacolada cupcake :-)