Bake: Moist and Delicious Orange Cake

J and I were lucky enough to be treated for dinner, and gifted a bag of fresh off the trees (yes, there really are lots of oranges in the OC!) oranges and tangerines from our friends this past weekend, so I searched the web to find some good orange recipes to thank them. I found some interesting orange cookies and orange cakes - but this recipe one got the most rave and consistent reviews.

This is an incredibly moist and delicious orange cake. It is Ina Garten's (aka Barefoot Contessa) "Orange Pound Cake",  but I did not find it dense or heavy the way I usually think of pound cakes. Her recipe was perfect. The only modification I made was to use a mix of tangerines (more tangy!) and oranges that I had on hand. I also recommend the final icing/glaze as optional.  Be sure to read the recipe carefully as some of the measures (orange juice, sugar) are divided into different steps. 

Bake: Orangey Lemony Olive Oil Cake

Happy 2013!!! Things have been busy lately - we're expecting our baby in February (could be any day now - we're in the final stretch!),  and now live in the OC. Things will surely change once the little one arrives, but stay tuned as we continue to live deliciously - cooking and baking good foods at home, and exploring the wonders that LA/OC has to offer as our family grows. :)

I've taken advantage of my maternity leave to nest, and have recently returned to baking - something that I haven't had time for in a while.  Last night, while surfing the web, a tasty treat on Gilt Food caught my eye and suddenly I had a craving for olive oil cake! I was just one click away from buying it, when I thought, why not bake it myself?  I found this recipe online, and we had all the ingredients in our pantry.

So this morning, I satisfied by craving by baking my first Orangey Lemony Olive Oil Cake! After reading reviews, I made a few modifications and came up with the following recipe:

Bake: Caramel Apple Tart

The other night, J and I invited our new friends Jorge and Angelica over for dinner. We decided to challenge ourselves by cooking up a new menu - from start to finish - everything we made was something we had never tried before. J masterfully created a delightful short rib main course, and together we created an incredibly complex yet comforting arugula, radicchio, fennel, blue cheese and walnut salad (those recipes will be posted soon, so keep coming back and checking the blog!) For dessert, I made this caramel apple tart which is a recipe from Susan Spungen.

Fall is my favorite season.  Being a native New Englander, I find the changing colors of the leaves and the cool and crisp air incredibly romantic and beautiful. People who aren't form the Northeast may find the idea of leaf peeping silly, but I don't find it silly at all. When I look out at a landscape awash in red, gold, and flame orange - a magical feeling comes over me and I think to myself, lucky lucky me. Life is so full of beauty.

Cook: Gingersnap Salted Caramel Ice Cream Sandwiches

It's a sunny Friday in LA, and I just came home from work, ready for not just the weekend, but for our trip to Hawaii!  I decided to make myself a little treat.  Always up for an adventure,  I took two bit sized gingersnap cookies from Trader Joes, and put a dollop of the salted caramel ice cream from Sweet Rose Creamery. It is pretty cute, isn't it? Then, I took a bite.

Yum. One of the best flavor combinations ever.  If you don't have a Trader Joe's or access to salted caramel ice cream, use your favorite cookie and ice cream flavor and make your combo! I'd love to hear some of your creations (post comments below!)

Cook: Fresh Oranges with Spiced Red Wine Syrup

This is the last recipe of the Spanish themed dinner. For those of you who are new to this blog, this week I posted a recipe each day so that you could make your own Spanish feast by the weekend. Today's recipe is an absolutely lovely dessert.  It is super light and refreshing, and if you want, you can add a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Fresh Oranges with Spiced Red Wine Syrup
Ingredients:

• 1 750 ml bottle dry red wine (I used a bottle of Trader Joe's $2 Shiraz!)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick, broken in half
• 8 oranges

Directions

Bring wine, 1 cup sugar, and cinnamon to a boil in a large heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar dissolves. 

Boil until reduced to about 1 cup or is a thick syrup (I used medium heat, and this top about 40 minutes, stirring every now and then) When it is done it should form little drops that hold their shape. Remove from heat and cool syrup completely. (can be made 1 day ahead - if you do, cover and chill)

Using sharp night, put off peel and white pith (the stringy part between the slices) from all the oranges. cut into slice.  Layer orange slices in a shallow dish and pour wine syrup over oranges.

Allow to marinate for 30 min or more. Then serve. 

Cook: Delicious LA Red Velvet Cake

I finally did it!!! After eating dozens of red velvet cupcakes / slices of cake over the past 10 years, and making it from mixes (Sprinkles was the best), I finally decided to make it from scratch. The stakes were high, since I have judged and rated so many other versions - most which fell short of my expectations.

I started by doing research. I found all of the top rated recipes on the web, and read through the reviews until I picked what I felt was the most promising version. The winner was the family recipe from Pinch My Salt blog. I followed her recipe more or less, but made a few modifications. Here is the original recipe, below is my adaptation.

So - what did I think? Well, it's a bit awkward to judge my own baking, but suffice to say, I'm pretty happy with how things turned out, and my friends seem to enjoy it as well. (J gave it an "A'!) The cake was moist and light, not too dense nor dry (my most common complaints with RVC). The flavor was delicate with a subtle suggestion of chocolate and buttermilk. The cream cheese frosting was a nice compliment. If I make it again, I may try to increase the cocoa to 3 tablespoons and decrease the red food coloring to 1.5 oz (1 1/2 bottles), but this recipe is very solid, and definitely a keeper!

Delicious LA Red Velvet Cake:

Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour (you can also use 2 1/4 cup all purpose flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 oz red food coloring (2 entire bottles!!!)
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour three 8-inch round cake pans.
2. Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl; set aside.
3. In a small bowl, mix food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste without lumps; set aside. (I used a small whisk)
4. In a large bowl, using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as you go. Add the buttermilk.
5. Gradually beat in the flour mixture until well combined, making sure to scrape down the bowl with a spatula.
6. Make sure you have cake pans buttered, floured, and nearby. In a small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda. It will fizz! Add to the cake batter and stir well to combine.
7. Working quickly, divide batter evenly between the cake pans and place them in a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes for 3 pans. Check early, cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
8. Cool the cakes in their pans on a wire rack for 10 minutes. To remove the cakes from the pan, place a wire rack on top of the cake pan and invert, then gently lift the pan.
9. Allow cakes to cool completely before frosting.
10. Frost with buttercream or cream cheese icing (recipe below).

Recipe Notes: *Sift cake flour once before measuring, then sift again with the other dry ingredients per recipe instructions. Wear an apron and be careful with the red food coloring–it will stain! As you’re mixing the cake batter, use a spatula to scrape down the bowl frequently throughout the entire process. Another good trick I learned from reading reviews was to put the cake briefly in the freezer (30min) so that the layers become firmer and the red cake won't crumble and mess up the frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 16 oz. cream cheese (2 packages), softened
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter (one stick), softened
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 to 2 1/4 cups powdered sugar, sifted (depending on your preference for sugar/cream cheese ratio)
• pinch of salt

Tip: *Use a large bowl as powdered sugar can get a little messy.

With an electric mixer, blend together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Turn mixer to low speed and blend in vanilla extract, salt and powdered sugar. Turn mixer on high and beat until light and fluffy. Use immediately or refrigerate, covered, until ready to use. If refrigerated, the frosting will need to be brought to room temperature before using (after frosting softens up, beat with mixer until smooth).

Update 3-3-11: If you do freeze the cake layers before frosting, loosen them in pan (so they don't stick to bottom when you take them out) and cover pan with saran wrap. If you do use this strategy, let cake come to room temperature before serving. We served this cake at room temperature, but it is also delicious slightly chilled out of the fridge!

Cook: Molten Chocolate Cakes

Made this last night when our friends S and A came over. Would make a fabulous valentine's day dessert too :)

Molten Chocolate Cakes (recipe adapted from Epicurious.com)

Ingredients:

2 ounces bittersweet, 3 ounces unces bittersweet (or any combination of the two = 5 oz), chopped

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter

1 tablespoon brandy

2 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

5 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon instant espresso powder

Large pinch of salt

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Directions:

Generously butter four 3/4 cup souffle dishes or custard cups.

Arrange on baking sheet

Stir chocolate and butter in heavy saucepan over low heat until smooth.

Remove from heat; stir in brandy. cool 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Using electric mixer, beat eggs, yolks, 4 tablespoons sugar, vanilla, 1 teaspoon espresso powder and salt in medium bowl until very thick ribbons fall when beats are lifted (about 6 min). Sift flour over batter; fold in flour. Fold in chocolate mixture.

Divide batter among dishes, filling completely. Preheat oven to 400 F. Bake cakes until tops are puffed and dry, about 11-12 minutes. Cool cakes 5 minutes. When cool flip and transfer to plate and serve with ice cream of your choice (we used green tea to go with our asian fusion dinner theme).