Ruffled Lemon Cake

I think I need a partner. A kitchen partner. You know, one of those creative types. Because, man oh man, I am not skilled in the “make it look pretty” department.

Let me introduce you to my newest victim: the ruffled lemon cake.

I have been itching to make this cake for weeks, wanting to save it for a special occasion. Mainly because I hear eating a whole cake by yourself makes people look at you funny. Anywho. If dear Angela’s baby shower wasn’t the perfect occasion to make a frilly, pastel-colored treat, I don’t know what would be.

Each individual component (cake, filling, icing) came out great, and they tasted oh-so yummy in my tummy. To the point where, after a day of biking many miles to and from the wineries in Woodinville, I opted to eat frosting for dinner instead of a real meal. It’s calcium, right?

At this point, I was feeling good. Like this cake might actually be impressive. And then, I started to decorate.
The ruffle tip was not working well for me, the frosting was too warm and didn’t hold shape, and the filling kept oozing out the sides. I finally gave up on ruffling the sides, learned to cool the frosting, and tried to salvage our little friend.

The result was a lopsided, heap of a dessert that surprised you with a delicious tang and its smart little wit. Recipe is a keeper, but I’ll be accepting applications for a decorator! 

Just for laughs, here is what the cake was supposed to look like verses what it actually looked like. Can you tell which is which?

Ruffled Lemon Cake
Recipe from Kitchen Magpie

Cake
Ingredients:
1/2 cup of butter
1 1/2 cups of white sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
2 cups of cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup of milk
4 tbsp lemon zest
1/4 cup of lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Grease and flour two 9 inch round cake pans. 
3. Beat together your butter and sugar…then add in your eggs and vanilla. 
4. Whisk together your dry ingredients… 
5. Grate your lemon zest. 
6. Then beat the lemon zest into the butter/sugar mixture. 
7. Squeeze the lemon out until you get 1/4 of a cup. 
8. Fill the remainder of the measuring cup to an entire cup. 
9. Combine the butter/sugar mix with the milk/lemon thoroughly, mixing it on medium speed to get it as airy as possible. 
10. Slowly mix in your flour, by hand, very gently. You don’t want to over-mix the batter. Lift it and fold it over gently, trying not to lose the air you whipped into it the last step. 
11. When it’s just combined, pour into the two prepared cake pans, evenly dividing the batter. 
12. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes, until the middle springs back when touched or a knife inserted comes out clean. 
13. While the cakes are cooling ,whip up some Lemon Cake Filling. 
14. When the filling and cakes are cooled, layer together. 
15. Whip up some Lemon Buttercream Icing. Grab a Wilton icing tip #103 and fill an icing bag full of the icing. Now, you want to start icing the cake holding the small part of the tip towards the top angled up. Keep on creating ruffles around the cake, throwing the buttercream into the freezer for quick cooling bursts if you sense it’s not holding it’s shape due to the warmth of your hands.

Lemon Cake Filling
Ingredients:
2 tbsp grated lemon zest
2/3 cup of freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 cup of butter
3/4 cup of white sugar
5 egg yolks

Directions:

1. Whisk the cornstarch into the lemon juice completely while it’s cold (thus no lumps) and add in the grated lemon zest as well. 
2. Put the butter and sugar in now as well and heat on a medium burner.Bring to a boil, stirring constantly and let boil for a minute. Remove from the heat. 
3. Take the egg yolks and whisk them until they are light yellow. 
4. You now need to temper the eggs, which means you take some of the hot liquid from the pot and whisk it into the egg yolks completely. 
5. Then you can whisk the yolks into the pot of hot liquid safely, without lumps forming. 
6. Cool for an hour or so until it’s set and thick, ready to be used between cake layers.

Lemon Buttercream Icing
Ingredients
1 cup of salted butter
4 cups of icing sugar
2 tablespoons lemon zest
3 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons milk

Directions:

1. Whip your butter with the paddle attachment if you have one, or just a general beater with your mixer. 
2. Add in your icing sugar, one cup at a time, beating continously. Now 2 tablespoons lemon zest worked wonderfully for me. Zested peel should not be done on a regular grater, by the way, you need a smaller size, a zester grater, in fact. The size is perfect without being overwhelming chunks in your cooking. 
3. The 3 tablespoons of lemon juice was just perfect for my tastes, zingy and zippy with a sweet background of pure sugar and butter. I then added the 2 teaspoons of cream to thin it out.

Passover Feast

Growing up, Passover was one of those holidays that seemed like an ancient form of torture to a child. The smells of delicious food would hover in the room as you were forced to sit through a lengthy seder in which food played a very minimal role.  

Needless to say, as an adult, my friends and I took the full liberty of foregoing the traditional ceremony in favor of eating first and celebrating by way of enjoying some fantastic company.  I can’t even tell you how much food we had. Or ate. Oy.  I’m still full this morning! Since all of the recipes were so delicious, I couldn’t pick which to share...so you get them all!

Also, a quick note-
Charoset is a traditional apple and nut dish that is used in the Passover ceremony as a symbol of the mortar that the Israelites used to hold bricks together while they were enslaved in Egypt. It plays a fairly prominent role in the Seder. But really, it’s just delicious and worth eating any time of year. Liberally.

Ashkenazic-Style Charoset

3 medium Gala or Fuji apples, peeled, cored, and finely diced (food processor works great)
1 1/2 cups walnut halves, lightly toasted, cooled, and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup sweet red wine
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar

Directions

In large bowl, stir together all ingredients. Store, covered, at room temperature until ready to serve.

Moroccan Roasted Carrot Salad with Chard and Parsley
From A Passover Dinner Gets a Mediterranean Makeover

3 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 3-inch chunks
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon paprika
Salt
1/2 cup olive oil (divided)
2 bunches Swiss chard, stems removed, leaves roughly chopped
1 bunch Italian (flat-leaf) parsley, washed and roughly chopped
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
1 clove garlic, pressed or finely minced
1 teaspoon honey
Freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Arrange the carrots on a rimmed baking sheet and sprinkle with cumin, paprika, a generous pinch of salt and 1/4 cup of the olive oil (add more if necessary to coat the carrots well). Toss to coat. Roast, stirring occasionally, until the carrots are soft and caramelizing on the edges (about 30 minutes). Remove from the oven and place the carrots on a serving dish.

While the carrots are roasting, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt generously. Place a large bowl of ice water in the sink. Add the chard to the boiling water and cook until tender but still bright green, about 3 to 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the chard to the ice water to stop the cooking (this step is optional, but locks in the bright green color).

Drain the chard and pile it on top of the carrots. Top with the parsley. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil, lemon zest and juice, garlic and honey. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper. Pour over the salad, toss to coat, and let sit at room temperature for a few hours to allow flavors to integrate before serving.

Flourless Orange-Almond Cake with Ginger
From A Passover Dinner Gets a Mediterranean Makeover

2 large oranges (or 3 smallish oranges)
2 cups almond meal
1/4 cup candied ginger, minced
1 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons (divided)
6 large eggs
1 cup heavy cream
Dash vanilla extract (optional)
1 cup orange marmalade

Directions
Place the oranges in a pot, and cover with water by a few inches (the oranges will bob around, but that's OK). Simmer until the oranges are totally soft, about 1 hour, turning them occasionally so that all sides are simmered (this will not smell as lovely as you'd think it would). Drain, and let cool.

While the oranges are cooling, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9-inch springform pan.

Chop the boiled oranges into large pieces, discarding any seeds. Place the oranges, skin and all, into a food processor, and process until the oranges are finely minced. Add the almond meal, candied ginger and 1/2 cup of the sugar; process until combined.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs and 1/2 cup of the sugar on high speed until light and thick enough to form a ribbon when the mixture falls from the beater (this can take up to 10 minutes). Gently fold in the orange mixture until just combined. Pour into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and bake until a tester comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched, about 1 hour. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before removing the ring.

Before serving, whip the cream, vanilla and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar to medium-soft peaks. Spread the cream over the top of the cake. Stir the marmalade to loosen it up, then spread it over the cream.

Happy Hannukah!

Happy Hannukah!

In a wishful dream of taking December by the horns and making my pants a little roomier, I decided that this was going to be a month of not baking.  However, the post-marathon desire to reward myself (I’m beginning to think I might have been a little bit too generous with this one) and an invitation to a Hannukah potluck was about all it took for my very twistable arm to betray me and agree to baking a cake.

Apple cakes are traditional fare for Hannukah, paralleling the delicious applesauce that sits atop those crispy, sizzling latkes.  And we all know that frosting makes anything better.  And I do mean anything.

This cakes is simple to make, though I would reduce the cooking time by a few minutes next time as these cakes came out a touch harder than I would like for a layer cake.  That said, you didn’t notice a thing once the cake was iced.  Also beware, the icing sets up very quickly.  I believe you can reheat it gently to help loosen it back up.

Overall verdict: we’re making this guy again. And again. Maybe not until January, though :)

Apple Walnut Cake with Caramel Butter Frosting
From At the Baker’s Bench

• 3 cups all-purpose flour (can replace 1 cup white flour with wheat flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup brown sugar, tightly packed
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 medium baking apples, peeled, cored, and chopped (about 2 cups)
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Caramel Butter Frosting

• 1 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 stick (4 oz) butter
• ¼ cup milk, cream, or half-and-half
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 to 11/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

1. Spray two 9" cake pans with nonstick pan spray and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a medium-size mixing bowl, combine flour, baking soda and baking powder, spices, and salt; set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, combine oil, sugars, eggs, vanilla, apples, and walnuts; stir to combine. Add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, stirring with a wooden spoon or large spatula to incorporate all dry ingredients.
4. Transfer batter to prepared pans and bake for approximately 30 minutes or until tops are golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center tests clean. Remove pans to rack for 10 minutes; de-pan cakes and let cool completely before frosting or freezing.
5. For Caramel Butter Frosting: Combine brown sugar, butter, and milk or cream in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and let cook for 2 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Remove pan from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool until the caramel is just slightly warm. Using a hand mixer on medium speed, beat in confectioners’ sugar ½ cup at a time until desired consistency is reached. Frost cake layer(s) with a small offset spatula, swirling frosting in a smooth motion. If frosting hardens too quickly, place over low heat on stove (or in microwave for a few seconds) until it softens. If desired, add sprinkles or decorations immediately after spreading as this frosting will set up quickly.