Wedding Recipe: Yellow Cake Experiment

My wedding is in less than 8 months. Being me, I started planning months ago. It takes time to find a venue, a photographer, a florist, a cake artist, the music you will listen to during the reception, a dress, a veil, and many, many more things! Even if you are having a small wedding, it’s impressive how much planning needs to go into it. So, plan I did, before the Bar exam. Then I totally stopped, because it would be crazy to try to plan anything while your brain is preparing itself for that exam. Now that I’m licensed, I can go back to wedding planning!

A few months ago, when I selected my cake, the sales lady gave me some samples to take home to my fiance. He was delighted when he saw that she had included some crunchy samples of the cake. They appeared to be cake slices, but it was all packed very tightly. It sort of tasted like biscotti, but better. A few weeks later, my mom and I were shopping at Milam’s and we saw these little crunchy cake cookies. Apparently, they are made by baking a cake and then slicing it into thin layers and baking it again in the oven. I’ve been trying to get the exact recipe for this, but I can’t find it anywhere. So, I decided to experiment today.

This is what my experiment looked like when I took it out of the oven after re-baking it at 350F for 20 minutes:

 

Eh, not very impressive. The outer edges are crunchy, but the insides are still pretty soft. I guess I sliced them too thick. But it’s hard to slice a yellow cake into thin little pieces! But it still tastes good, so I guess it’s not a complete flop.

But where did I get the cake to make these little thingies, you are wondering. When I was driving over to my fiance’s apartment this afternoon, it struck me that I had not looked at my Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook in a while. I purchased this fabulous book one day at Borders when they were closing their doors. I LOVE COOKBOOKS. I just want to be able to have all of the recipes in the world, and one day learn how to make them all. A huge task, I know. But hopefully I can learn a group of classic recipes by heart.

Within two minutes of flipping through the recipes, I decided to make yellow cake. It seemed simple enough, and I had the ingredients.

This is the recipe. I cut it in half. You can find it on page 153 of the cookbook.

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup butter, softened
• 3 eggs
• 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2.5 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. salt
• 1 ¾ cups sugar
• 1.5 tsp. vanilla
• 1 ¼ cup milk

Here’s what I used:

• 3/8 cup butter (6 tablespoons)
• 1 egg
• 1 ¼ cup flour
• 1 ¼ tsp. baking powder
• ¼ tsp. salt
• 7/8 cup sugar
• ¾ tsp. vanilla
• 5/8 cup lactose-free milk

Directions:

Allow butter and eggs to stand at room temp for 30 minutes. Grease and flour two 9×1.5 inch or 8×1.5 inch round cake pans or grease one 13x9x2 inch baking pan. Set pans aside. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat butter with electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar, about ¼ cup at a time, beating on medium until well combined and scraping bowl’s sides. Beat on medium speed for 2 more minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition, for about 1 min. total. Beat in vanilla. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to butter mixture, beating on low after each addition until just combined. Spread batter into the prepared bans.

Bake in 375 oven for 20-25 minutes for 9 inch pans, 30-35 minutes for 8 inch pans, 25-30 minutes for 13x9x2 inch pan, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool. Frost!

(I baked it for 20 minutes)

This is the batter:

When it came out of the oven: (doesn’t it kind of look like the cornbread I made a while ago?)

So I had the cake. Now I needed the frosting. A word about me and frosting: I am OBSESSED with Misha’s Cupcakes. Oh my goodness. I have not been there in over a month simply because as soon as I go, I start craving cupcakes every day. Not good, because I am on a “wedding diet” (which basically consists of eating whatever, and trying to cut out sweets, but not really succeeding at it). But whenever I do go to this magnificent establishment, I order their vanilla buttercream cupcakes. I am hoping to get my bridal shower cake from there. Their stuff is amazing!

So, naturally, I have tried to learn how to make buttercream as good as they make it. Hah. THAT was interesting. I tried to make whoopie pies with buttercream frosting. Horrible. Then I tried to make a basic buttercream frosting whose recipe I found online, but I cut the recipe in half and ended up messing up the proportions. I had all but given up….but then today I saw this recipe. It looked so simple, I figured I might as well try again. Plus, I had never attempted to make chocolate frosting before.

So I got to work. And….it came out amazing!

This is the frosting. Check out that consistency!

Note: You should wait to make the frosting until the cake has cooled. The frosting sets VERY quickly. I solved this problem by adding a bit more boiling water and mixing it again on medium speed to soften it up a bit.

Here is the recipe. You can find this on page 170 of the cookbook.

Ingredients:

• 9 cups shifted powdered sugar (about 2 pounds)
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 2/3 cup boiling water
• 2 tsp vanilla

I split everything in four. These are the measurements I used:

• 2 ¼ cup sugar
• 1/4 cup cocoa
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/6 cup boiling water
• ½ tsp. vanilla

Directions:

In a large bow, combine the powdered sugar and cocoa powder. Add butter, boiling water, and vanilla. Beat with electric mixer on low until combined. Beat for 1 minute on medium. If needed, cool for 20 minutes or until it reaches spreading consistency. The whole recipe makes enough frost for the tops and sides of two 80 or 9-inch cake layers. Halve the recipe to frost a 13x9x2 inch cake.

 

I poured the cake batter into four cupcake paper liners and the Pyrex and baked them both for 20 minutes.

I had to cut the cake in fourths to try my experiment, so I kept half of it and frosted the sides. It came out kind of messy…

Overall, the appearance can be improved, and I think I could have baked the cupcakes for 15 minutes instead of 20. I also need to invest in a knife to spread the frosting well. Both the cupcakes and cake and even the crunchy/chewy twice-baked cake thingies taste good! I will definitely make this again.

And now, a nice pile of treats awaits my fiance when he comes back from his internal medicine rotation. Nothing like sweets to finish up a hard day!

Peach-Muenster Sandwich

A few weeks ago, I needed to make a quick lunch, but I had no meat! I rummaged around the refrigerator for a while and then decided to try something new. I sliced a peach and sauteed it in the pan on medium heat for about 5 minutes until it was soft. Then, I melted a bit of Muenster cheese on bread and added the peach slices to the sandwich. I sprinkled a bit of powdered cinnamon on the peaches. It sort of reminded me of this apple/ham/cheese crepe I had at La Bonne Crepe, a great restaurant on Las Olas Boulevard in Fort Lauderdale. My friend Adriana and I went there after we took the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam in March (a prerequisite to getting licensed as an attorney in Florida). That exam was really difficult, so we needed a break after it was finished! Since we took it in Fort Lauderdale, the best place to think of to celebrate was Las Olas! I had previously been to the restaurant with my mom. That place was so good that I finished both my plate and my mom’s! So, if you go to Le Bonne Crepe, get the crepe with Gruyere cheese, ham and apple compote. Amazing!

Anyway, the result came out good:

Homemade Chicken Soup

There’s nothing more soothing to an upset stomach or common cold than homemade chicken soup. My family is from Nicaragua, and many homemade chicken soups from Nicaragua use this thing called “naranja agria” as a flavoring, which I absolutely can’t stand. I prefer a lighter chicken soup without a sour taste, so I picked up some bouillon cubes. Unfortunately, they contain a lot of sodium, but the taste is exceptional.

Ingredients:

• 4 cubes chicken bouillon
• 6 thinly-sliced chicken breasts, uncooked and cut into small strips
• 5 large carrots, peeled and sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds
• 5 stalks celery, sliced into 1/2 inch thick rounds
• 3 garlic cloves, peeled
• 1 white onion, sliced in half
• 1/8 tsp. black peppercorns
• 10 red potatoes, scrubbed and sliced in half
• Parsley and basil flakes
• 10 cups water

Directions:

Bring 10 cups of water to a boil. Add the cubes and stir until they have dissolved. Add the chicken, carrots, celery, potatoes, onion, garlic cloves, peppercorns, and parsley and basil flakes. Boil on medium for 45 minutes. Continue to simmer until ready to eat.

Oven-Baked Red Potato Chips

I had some leftover red potatoes, and I was looking for something crunchy to eat with my sandwich, so I figured I would try to make potato chips in the oven. Make sure you slice them as thin as possible, otherwise they will not crisp up!
Directions:

Wash and scrub some red potatoes. Slice them VERY thin. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with Pam. Place the slices in one layer (I tried, but there were too many!) and brush with olive oil. Add salt and pepper and any other spices you want. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes, or until potatoes are lightly browned and crunchy. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to soak up excess oil. Enjoy!

 

Blondies with Chocolate Chips

To celebrate the end of the Bar exam, I went to a friend’s house for a BBQ and brought these Blondies. That exam was TOUGH. Fortunately, I passed! Never again will I have to take the Florida Bar exam! To anyone in law school that is preparing for the Bar: You need to STUDY. Very hard. Each and every day. But don’t forget to take little breaks, too. That’s what I did, and it helped. Now that I’m done with all of that, I’m going to get back to posting more often.

I got this recipe from Martha Stewart. They came out a bit crunchy, though. Check it out for yourself:

Ingredients:

• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus a bit more to grease the pan and parchment paper
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup chopped walnuts

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350F. I used a 10-inch Pyrex and greased it with butter. Line the pan with parchment paper. Make sure you leave 2 inches hanging out on each side. Grease the paper with more butter.

In a bowl, whisk together the butter and sugars until they are smooth. Add the egg and vanilla extract, flour and salt. Mix until it has all combined. Add 1/2 cup each chocolate chips and walnuts. I omitted walnuts because my friend is allergic to them. Pour the batter into the pan on top of the parchment paper. Sprinkle with the rest of the chocolate chips and walnuts. Bake for 40-45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. When it has cooled, lift the cake out using the parchment paper hanging out over the sides. Slice into however many squares you want!

Here’s the batter:

When it came out of the oven:

Sliced into squares:

I need to get better at this photography business…

It takes like a very crunchy chocolate chip cookie. I will definitely make these again!

Apple Crisp (semi-sweet version)

This dessert is not too sweet, so it’s perfect for when you want a bit of fruit and sugar. You can also make it with blueberries (see below).
Ingredients:

• 2 apples, thinly sliced and peeled
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 cup oatmeal
• pinch cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. butter

Directions:
Slice the apples and place them in a Pyrex. Combine the rest of the ingredients in a bowl and sprinkle it on the apples. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until apples are soft and the topping is crunchy.

This is a “before” picture. Sorry, the “after” picture came out terrible. (Not that this one is much better!)

 

 

Here’s what it looks like with the blueberries:

 

Wake-Up Omelet!

Omelets (I still don’t know whether to spell it omelet or omelette, so I’ll stick to the shorter one) are one of my favorite dishes. Someone told me that one cannot be a great cook unless one knows how to make omelets. I don’t remember who said it or when I heard it, but I do know that ever since then I’ve been trying to improve my omelet technique!

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs (3 yolks removed)
• 1 slice Canadian bacon
• Shredded mozzarella cheese
• Grape tomatoes, sliced into rounds
• Sliced white mushrooms
• Fresh spinach, chopped

Directions:

Beat the eggs with a fork in a bowl. Heat a skillet to medium. Spray with Pam or melt a bit of butter on it, whichever you prefer. This next part is up for debate, and it’s a personal preference. Some people like to mix all the ingredients together with the eggs and then pour the mixture into the pan. Others prefer to pour the egg mixture into the pan and then top with the ingredients. Still others prefer to saute the ingredients first before pouring the egg mixture into the pan, pouring the egg on top of the other ingredients. Finally, other people like to remove the ingredients and saute them, pour the egg first, and then add the ingredients second. This is what I do. Whichever method you prefer, it will probably taste well.

Here’s what I did: I sauteed the mushrooms and Canadian bacon for a few minutes first, removed them, and then added them to the rest of the ingredients. Then I poured the eggs in and immediately poured the rest of the ingredients over them.

The eggs will start to cook and as soon as you see little bubbles popping you should flip over your omelet so that it is split in half:

Continue cooking two to three more minutes until the egg no longer oozes out and you’re done!

Hard-boiled Eggs

Hard-boiled eggs make a great breakfast! I like to sprinkle mine with salt and pepper.

I found the recipe on one of my favorite websites.

 
Directions:

Place the eggs in a single layer in a saucepan and fill the saucepan with water so that one to two inches cover the eggs. Add half a teaspoon of salt. Bring the water to a boil on high. As soon as the water starts to boil, remove the pan from the heat. Leave the pan off for a few seconds. Reduce the heat to low and place the ban on the burner again, allowing the water to simmer for another minute. Turn the heat off and remove the pan from the burner. Cover the pan and let it sit for 12 minutes.

Remove the eggs from the pan and place them into a bowl of ice cold water. Remove and enjoy! They are good for 5 days.

Baklava with Pistachios (A Break from the Bar)

Now that the Bar exam is over, I can start cooking more! I made this recipe a few months ago, as I was beginning my Bar prep. One afternoon, I had been reading for hours about offers and consideration and I needed a mental break. So I decided to try this. It was so good that I wrapped a few pieces up to bring to my fiance that night. He liked it too.
The original recipe makes a lot more. You can find it here. I cut it down and it was perfect for two people:
Ingredients:

• 2 ounces chopped mixed nuts (I used walnuts and pistachios and crushed them finely)
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
• 1 tablespoon and 2-1/4 teaspoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon and 2-1/4 teaspoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon and 2-1/4 teaspoons water
• 2-3/4 teaspoons honey
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/8 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350F. Butter a baking dish. I used a loaf pan because I was not making much. Toss together the mixed nuts.
• Phyllo: To prevent it from drying out, cover it with a damp paper towel or cloth during this entire process. Be careful, it will tear easily! Place two sheets at the bottom of the dish. Brush butter on the phyllo and sprinkle some of the nut mixture on top. Repeat this process, layering the phyllo, brushing with butter, and sprinkling with nuts, until all of the phyllo is used. You should top it off with six sheets of phyllo.
• The recipe suggests that you should cut the baklava into 4 long rows and then diagonally 9 times to make diamond shapes and THEN bake (at least when you are using the standard recipe size), but I waited until after baking to cut it. That was probably not very smart, since when I cut into it, crumbs sprayed everywhere. I suggest you do what the recipe says.
• Bake 50 minutes until it is golden!

For the sauce: In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the sugar and water and bring to a boil. Stir in the honey, vanilla, and lemon zest (I did not use zest). Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. This is what it will look like as it is simmering:

Pour the syrup over the baklava as soon as it is done baking. Sprinkle with additional nuts if desired!

For the complete recipe that makes 36, use these ingredients:

• 1 pound chopped mixed nuts
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
• 1 cup butter, melted
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest

Summer Lemonade

Now that I’m studying for the Florida Bar exam, I am not cooking much. As you can see, I’ve changed the look of the website so as to reflect a peaceful atmosphere, which provides a much-needed break from the books.

Here’s a recipe for lemonade, courtesy of Simply Recipes. I made it back in May, and it tasted great. I adjusted the recipe to make enough for two people for one meal.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 lemons, about 1/4 cup squeezed
• 1 cup cold water

 

Directions:

Heat sugar and 1/4 cup water in small saucepan on high and stir until sugar dissolves. This is the simple syrup. Set aside.

Squeeze juice of lemons. Pour the simple syrup, lemons, and cold water into a pitcher, stirring well. Add more lemons if you want more lemony taste, and more sugar if you want less. Refrigerate.