I prefer moist, fudgy brownies and this recipe is my new favorite! Three types of chocolates are used in these decadent brownies — cocoa powder and semisweet chocolate chips in the brownie batter . . . dark chocolate in the ganache. Dried cherries are added to give the brownies a tart and fruity taste. Port (a Portuguese fortified wine) is used to macerate the dried cherries and to boost the flavor of the ganache topping. Serve the brownie with a scoop of ice cream for the ultimate indulgence.
I can’t believe that it’s been over three months since I’ve baked anything with chocolate. How could I have let that happen? To remedy this dire situation, I adapted my Fig, Almond Frangipane, and Orange Tart to make this nutty tart. I recently received a complimentary bag of hazelnut flour from Bob’s Red Mill to try out, so I took this opportunity to use it in both the crust and the frangipane. Continue reading
I have learned so much about cooking, and baking, in particular, since I started this blog. One of the things that I particularly enjoy about food blogging is that it forces me to be more creative and to seek out recipes that use ingredients in a way that is new to me. This is one of those recipes that intrigued me enough to give it a try. Continue reading
According to legend, the chiffon cake was invented in Los Angeles in the 1920s by Harry Baker (how appropriate!), an insurance salesman. The cake has a wonderfully light and airy texture, much like angel food cake, due to the stiffly-beaten egg whites which acts as a leavening agent. However, unlike the angel food, the chiffon cake also contains egg yolks and vegetable oil which keeps the cake moist and tender. Baking powder is added to the recipe because the vegetable oil is heavy and needs the extra boost to ensure that the cake will rise properly. The chiffon cake is typically baked in a tube pan to enable the hot air to circulate and bake the center of the cake. Once baked, the chiffon cake is inverted until cool to keep the cake from shrinking and deflating. Continue reading
I have been obsessed with peanut butter cupcakes since I tasted the one at Sweet Revenge® in the West Village a couple of weeks ago. One of the things I loved about that cupcake was that the cake flavor was actually peanut butter. Also, I liked that there was still a little bit of chocolate, in the form of a chunk of chocolate fudge, baked in the center of the cupcake. To top it off, the peanut butter buttercream was just right, not too sweet at all. Continue reading
I was dragging all day last Sunday, waiting for Chris to get home from his camping trip. My iMac’s hard drive crashed so I couldn’t blog or surf the ‘net. My big activity of the morning was making breakfast. I had the leftover filling of goat cheese, pepperoni, and chives from the stuffed zucchini blossoms so I made an omelette with it for breakfast. While waiting for the football games to start, I needed something to do so I decided to practice my crust-making skills. I really liked the pâte sablée crust I made a couple of weeks back, so I got to work on making it again.
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