Foodie Friday -- Cappuccino Torte

Many, many years ago, I made this recipe from Bon Appetit magazine. It turned out beautifully. I used chocolate covered coffee beans to decorate, but then ate the rest of the chocolate covered coffee beans and wasn't able to drink coffee for over six months. Yep, it burned my stomach up.

 The next time it was made was the year my daughter was born--2000. I managed to finish the nut crust and the fudge layer, but my daughter decided to make an early appearance. My wonderful sis-in-laws tried to finish the torte, but this is one of those recipes that it is important to have a standing mixer (due to the amount of time it must  beat) . . . my SIL only had a hand held one. It wasn't beaten long enough and the cappuccino buttercream went *flop*. It was still wonderfully tasty, but it didn't hold up.


This year I made this dessert. I thought, "Why not? I have all the ingredients. Let's give it a shot." I, too, had some issues with this recipe. My fudge layer wouldn't set. Six hours in the fridge and it still didn't set. It wasn't until I was making the cappuccino buttercream did I figure out what went wrong.

--I had forgotten to add the stick of butter to the fudge. Ack!

So what do you think I did?

I poured the fudge out of the pan, and scraped the crust free of fudge as much as possible. Microwaved the fudge just enough to warm it, AND THEN I beat the missing butter into the mixture. I could tell it would work this time, because it was starting to thicken as I was beating.

Now, I was fighting the clock on this one since I was in the process of making the cappuccino layer. So I put the fudge in the freezer to firm up. The buttercream went into the refrigerator until the fudge was firm enough to hold the weight. I whipped it one last time before spreading it on the fudge layer.

The key item to remember is -- who cares if you mess it up? It still tastes good and no one will know unless you post it on Facebook. ;-0.

Cappuccino Torte

Crust:

4 whole graham crackers

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (2 ounces)

1/2 cup slivered almonds (2 ounces)

1/4 cup sugar

Pinch of salt

5 Tbls. butter, melted and cooled

 

Fudge Layer:

2 cups whipping cream

1 pound semisweet chocolate, finely chopped

2 Tbls. light corn syrup

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, cut into 8 pieces, room temperature

 

Cappuccino Buttercream Layer:

2 1/2 cups golden brown sugar, firmly packed (about 1 1/4 pounds)

1/2 cup water

6 egg yolks

1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter, room temperature

1 Tbls. instant espresso powder, dissolved in 1 tsp. hot water

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate (Bakers), chopped, melted, cooled

 

Coffee Whipped Cream:

1 1/4 cups chilled whipping cream

2 tsp. instant espresso powder

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 Tbls. powdered sugar

 

Optional:

2 ounces semisweet chocolate, grated

chocolate shavings

chocolate coffee bean candies

 

For crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 10-inch-springform pan with 2 3/4-inch high sides. Grind graham crackers to crumbs in processor. Add nuts, sugar and salt and chop coarsely using on/off turns. Add butter and process until crumbs are evenly moistened. Press crumbs into bottom of prepared pan. Bake until edges begin to brown, about 15 minutes. Cool.

 

For fudge layer: Bring cream to boil in heavy saucepan. Reduce heat to low. Add chocolate and stir until melted. Remove from heat. Mix in corn syrup. add butter 1 piece at a time, stirring until smooth. Cool to lukewarm, stirring occasionally.

 

Pour fudge into cooled crust. Refrigerate until firm, about 2 hours.

 

For cappuccino buttercream layer: Cook sugar and water in heavy medium saucepan over very low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium and boil 2 minutes.

 

Meanwhile, beat yolks in heavy-duty mixer at high speed until thick and pale. With mixer running, gradually pour boiling syrup into yolks (do not scrape saucepan). Continue to beat until yolk mixture is cool, about 15 minutes. Reduce mixer speed to medium. Mix in butter 1 tablespoon at a time. Add espresso mixture, then melted chocolate.

 

Spread buttercream over chilled fudge layer. Cover pan loosely with waxed paper. Refrigerate overnight.

 

For coffee whipped cream: Combine 1 Tbls of whipping cream, espresso powder and vanilla in small bowl; stir until powder dissolves. Beat remaining cream in large bowl until beginning to thicken. Mix in coffee mixture and powdered sugar. Beat whipping cream mixture to firm peaks.

 

Run small sharp knife around sides of springform pan to loosen torte. Carefully release pan sides. Spread most of Coffee Whipped Cream neatly over tops and sides of torte. Press grated chocolate around sides. Transfer torte to serving platter. Transfer remaining cram to pastry pag fitted with medium star tip. Pipe cream in rosettes around top edge of torte. Garnish with chocolate shavings and coffee bean candies, if desired. Can prepare 6-8 hours ahead; refrigerate). Let stand 1 hour at room temperature and serve.

 

Tips &Tricks:

• Though this recipe says it serves 12-14 people. This is a very rich, very dense torte. Each piece will be pretty small, so plan on serving a crowd.
• If your nuts for the crust seem overly oily, use less butter. BUT if you happen to have a rimmed cheesecake pan all the better to catch the excess oils exuded from the baking process. If you don't have a rimmed pan, then place a piece of foil under the pan when you bake the crust.
• Watch the cream when you make the fudge layer. If you put it on the stove and walk away, it will boil over.
• I don't finely chop my chocolate, but the larger chunks take longer to completely melt, which equals more stirring.
• When you add the soft butter to the fudge layer, it will start to thicken up. . . your clue that you DID remember to add the butter . . . Yeah, even the best cooks get sidetracked!
• Use a standing mixer . . . unless you want to build up your arms by holding a hand mixer for over 25 minutes total while the cappuccino buttercream is beaten.
• Start mixing the egg yolks when you heat the sugar. By the time the sugar is ready the egg yolks have thickened and turned a lighter yellow.  
• Many times recipes will tell you NOT to scrap the sides of the pan while boiling sugar. BUT if you constantly scrape the sides, the sugar is immediately dissolves into solution, which decreases the chance for sugar grains to reform when the solution cools.
• I DO NOT scrap the pan when I'm adding the sugar solution to the egg yolks simply because it's too awkward with my mixer.  
• DO let the cappuccino buttercream mix for 15 minutes to cool prior to adding the softened butter.
• The cappuccino buttercream layer will become the texture of icing when it is close to being finished.
• I walked away from the whipping cream (oops!), and it had whipped just a couple of seconds too long, going from stiff peaks to chunks, BUT it seemed to spread quite nicely AND hold its shape. So it isn't the end of the world
• Do not whip cream for too much longer than this or you will make a coffee butter. Just saying.
• When you cut into this dessert--it has a knockout impact. But you can really make it a feast for the eyes when you decorate it. If you do use grated chocolate on the sides, make sure your hands are ice cold, or you use pastry gloves, or the chocolate will melt all over them and make a mess.  
• Chocolate covered coffee beans are usually found in candy stores. These are very addictive (caffeine AND chocolate), so only buy as many as you think you'll need.

That's it for now! Enjoy!

If you plan to make this, or any other of my recipes, and I haven't covered your question in my tips or tricks, then feel free to ask your question in the comments section or email me at: Margaret (dot) golla @ gmail.com {remove spaces and make (dot) a .}

Later, Peeps!





Foodie Friday -- Heart Attacks

When my hubby and I were in Canada this last September, we ran across these monster candies they called Murtles. I'm guessing that they are basically a Mongo Turtle . . . with salted peanuts. Those things were at least six inches in diameter . . . yes, we shared.

Final version

The bottom layer was milk chocolate, with a layer of salted peanuts, a layer of caramel and then topped off with a dollop of chocolate.

So I decided to make them myself.

Here's a picture of my first batch. These measured about 3 inches in diameter.

 

And I didn't name them, my daughter did.

She loves them! How can you not love chocolate, caramel and peanuts?  Well, unless you have a peanut allergy, then these should be called Anaphylactic Shock.

 

A couple of things I would do differently for my next batch:

1. I used a cookie scoop to measure and spread my first layer of chocolate. I would spread them out a little bit more to give them a thinner base. Once these things set, they became very hard. I used Merken's chocolate wafers, but you could use any kind of pre-tempered chocolate.
2. I bought a huge container of salted peanuts from Sam's club for $8 and used a coffee scoop to try to get the same amount of peanuts on each chocolate layer. I still have a lot of peanuts and I hope they don't go bad. I may weigh and freeze them in one pound batches for use later.  
3. More caramel. I skimped a little on the caramel because I wanted the peanuts to show. I used a cookie scoop for this layer too. I would just add a little more. Yes, I made my own caramel--recipe to follow. I froze the left overcaramel, but will just heat it up on the stove to melt it enough to make it liquid.
4. I'd make the top layer of chocolate a little larger.  

Try making some of your own. It's easy.

 

Okay, I promised a caramel recipe. This recipe was originally a Land O Lakes butter caramel recipe that I made last year. Since I tend to use heavy cream, the mixture was too oily when I used the full amount of butter. It was also too bland. The original recipe didn't have salt in it, so I added Kosher salt.

 

Everyone will tell you that salt is salt, well, it isn't. I find regular iodized table salt to be too harsh for some caramel recipes, so I use the Kosher flake salt. It's milder and blends nicely.  

 

This is also a 'soft' caramel, which means it doesn't cook as long or to a higher temperature, which would firmly set the caramel to make it easy for dipping. Many people will cut this caramel up and wrap it in waxed paper to give away to friends and family.

 

Soft Caramels

2 cups sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar, packed
3/4 cup (3 sticks) butter
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup half and half
1 cup dark corn syrup
2 tsp. Kosher salt
1 tsp. vanilla

Prepare a 9 X 9 pan (line with parchment and spray with Pam), set aside.

Combine all ingredients in heavy 4-quart saucepan. Cook over medium heat until butter is melted, stirring constantly. Increase heat slightly until mixture comes to a boil. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until mixture reaches 244 degrees on candy thermometer, about 30 minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla. Pour into prepared pan.

---I cooled this mixture slightly before I ladled it over my peanuts. I wanted it warm enough to flow when it hit the colder peanuts, but not so hot it melted the chocolate on the bottom.

Let the caramel set. Either wrap it, dip it or freeze it until needed. . . . yes, you can just scoop and eat, too!

Enjoy!

Later, Peeps!

 

Foodie Friday -- Dark Chocolate Whiskey Caramels

First, I want to let y'all know that I'm working on my Universal Florida/Disney World wrap-up. I thought I could get the Universal one written and posted yesterday, but there is simply too much information. I'll be working on it this weekend and will start posting the blogs on Monday.


That said, I've also been making caramel . . . and receiving various "I hate you!" comments on Facebook when I post my innocuous comments like:

Mmmmm . . . making Dark Chocolate Whiskey caramels . . . with sea salt . . .

How is it my fault that everyone starts drooling?

Originally, I found this recipe on Epicurious.com, but as y'all know me, I made a few changes. Most of the time I like to look at recipes for the 'backbone' ingredients and then I mess with it.

Dark Chocolate Whiskey Caramels with Sea Salt

2 cups heavy cream
11 oz. bitter- or semi-sweet chocolate (I used a mixture of Ghiradelli and Nestles morsels)
1 3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey (corn syrup)
1/4 cup Devil's Cut whiskey (water)
1/4 tsp. salt
3 Tbls. butter, cut into cubes
Flaky sea salt

Press parchment into 8-inch square pan, folding excess in the corners. Spray with cooking spray, set aside.

In small saucepan (2 quart size), heat cream until simmering, turn off and add chopped chocolate. Let stand a minute for the chocolate to melt, then stir to incorporate.

In a very large saucepan (4 quart), bring sugar, honey, whiskey, and salt to a boil over medium-high heat until the mixture reaches 255 degrees on a candy thermometer, or until it becomes a nice golden brown, stirring occasionally to incorporate the sugar on the sides of the pan, about 15 minutes.

 Slowly add the chocolate/cream mixture to the caramelized sugar, mixture will bubble vigorously. Cook, and stir often until mixture reaches 255 degrees on a candy thermometer (15-30 minutes). Add butter, stir until melted. Pour into prepared pan.

After cooling 10 minutes, sprinkle sea salt on surface. Allow to cool until solid, 4-6 hours.

Tips & Tricks:

• You can use corn syrup instead of honey, actually corn syrup was called for in the recipe.  I prefer honey because it adds an additional level of flavor to the end product
• I used the whiskey instead of the water. I don't think there was much of an enhancement, so I might double the whiskey next time. The excess liquid will evaporate leaving more of a flavor punch
• I followed the two pan method the first time I cooked this recipe, but I want to make it using only one pan. I'll have to let you know how it goes.
• I probably won't use the Nestles morsels again. They didn't really melt into the cream and it wasn't until the temperature became really hot did they actually melt. Something about the way Nestles' processes them to keep their integrity while baking in cookies.
• Of course, they suggest 'fine-quality', but we all know that's hokum. You don't have to spend a ton of money just to make caramel! I happen to have the Ghirardelli for my fillings, but try Baker's chocolate or another comparable product.
• I did use parchment paper in my 8-inch square pan, but you can use foil. Try to get a heavier gauge of foil as it makes peeling it off the caramel easier.
• No matter what you use to line your pan--butter it or spray it with PAM or something of this kind to make it easier to remove.
• I 'know' how other recipes tell you to use a wet pastry brush to brush down the sides of the pan, or do not scrape--THIS IS CRAP! You do NOT have to do this if you stir to incorporate the sugar that forms on the sides as you heat the mixture. I always scrape down the sides as I cook and I haven't had a crystallization problem yet. You just have to keep doing it throughout the cooking process.
• When bringing the caramel up to temperature, the texture will change from loose open bubbles to lava burping. Keep stirring to keep it from burning.
• Be careful: Caramel at this stage is like napalm when it hits your skin--it will attach and keep burning. If you get spattered by caramel, place under cold water to melt the sugar off. Do not try to 'peel' the caramel from your skin . . . been there, done that!
• I just used my salt grinder, which has sea salt in it, to evenly add a little salt to the top of the candy
• I tend to make my caramels and then freeze them until I'm ready to dip them. So, 1) remove from pan, 2) sample a small corner as you 'square' it up, 3) if the texture is right--firm, but still chewy, then tightly wrap in plastic and place in freezer bag, 4) place in freezer. When you are ready to make the candy, thaw overnight on counter.

Enjoy!

Later, Peeps!

Foodie Friday -- Deep Dark Chocolate Cheesecake

I would first like to tell you that I have NEVER MADE THIS RECIPE.

Earlier this week my nephew asked if I had a chocolate cheesecake recipe. Yes, I do . . . many of them. Just because I've been clipping recipes for almost 40 years doesn't mean that I have had a chance to make all of them. But I could guess that this recipe is a Bon Appetit recipe simply by the style and paper. Sorry, but I never bothered to cut the important stuff like who published it or when it was published. I have never been disappointed by Bon Appetit recipes, sometimes I might call their ads into question, but never their quality control over their recipes.

Let me know if it works for you.

Deep Dark Chocolate Cheesecake

Crust:
24 chocolate wafer cookies (from one 9-ounce package)
1 Tbls. sugar
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), melted

Filling:
1 9.7-ounce bar Sharffen Berger 70% cocoa bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/4 cups plus 2 Tbls. sugar
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder, preferably Sharffen Berger
4 large eggs

Topping:
3/4 cup whipping cream
6 ounces Sharffen Berger 70% cocoa bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 Tbls sugar

For Crust:
Preheat oven to 350 F. Butter 9-inch-diameter springform pan with 3-inch-high sides. Blend cookies in processor until finely ground, blend in sugar. Add melted butter and process until well blended. Press crumbs evenly onto bottom (not sides) of prepared pan. Bake until just set about 5 minutes. Cool while preparing filling. Maintain oven temperature.

For Filling:
Stir chopped chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water until melted and smooth. Remove bowl from over water; cool chocolate until lukewarm, but still pourable. Blend cream cheese, sugar and cocoa powder in processor until smooth. Blend in eggs 1 at a time. Mix in lukewarm chocolate. Pour filling over crust; smooth top. Bake until center is just set and appears dry, about 1 hour. Cool 5 minutes. Run knife around sides of cake to loosen. Chill overnight.

For Topping:
Stir cream, 6 ounces of chocolate and sugar in heavy medium saucepan over low heat until smooth. Cool slightly. Pour over center of cheesecake, spreading to within 1/2-inch of edge and filling in any cracks. Chill until topping is set, about an hour.
Can be made 3 days ahead. Cover with foil and keep refrigerated.
Release pan sides. Transfer cheesecake to platter. Top with chocolate curls. Let stand 2 hours at room temperature before serving.

Hints and suggestions:

• When pressing the crumb crust into the bottom of the springform pan, I use a flat-bottomed drinking glass
• If you can't find the chocolate wafer cookies, you can use Oreos . . . but you have to remove the filling (darn!). Leaving the filling would make for a sweeter crust, but it would be more oily.
• bring eggs for filling to room temperature along with the cream cheese--I've set them out the night before if I plan to make the cheesecake in the morning or before you go to work in the morning if you plan to make it after work.
• I've used unsweetened, or 70% cocoa bittersweet, Hershey's chocolate in these instances before and it works fine, plus it's cheaper. If using unsweetened, you might need to adjust the sugar a little, so taste before you bake.
• Instead of melting chocolate over water, you can microwave it. Do this in SMALL time increments or the chocolate will seize and you'll have a glumpy mess that will have to be thrown away! I would start with 30 seconds and then stir it every 10 seconds afterward. DO NOT WALK AWAY.
• Use high quality cream cheese--Philadelphia brand regular, not low fat or no fat. The other stuff and less fat will make it grainy.

There is nothing healthy about cheesecake and trying to make it 'healthy' just ruins the joy of eating cheesecake. Do Not Make This Mistake.

Later, Peeps!

Foodie Friday -- Crazy Cake in a Mug

Don't get your panties in a wad! Yes, I'm actually posting a Foodie Friday recipe! Actually, I found this one on Sweet Little Bluebird yesterday, and my daughter (12) tried it out last night. The kidlet needs to learn to cook sometime, right? And I'm not cooking very much since I'm focused on losing this little bit of weight I gained over the last few months--I'm eating as natural as possible, which means no yummy recipes until I can manage to get my snacking under control.

My daughter made this recipe, but I did taste it. Yes, it was only about 1/2 teaspoon. It's pretty good, though I think cocoa powder doesn't have the punch real chocolate does. This single serving will give you the sugar fix you need without all the tempting leftovers.

Enjoy!

Crazy Cake in a Mug

(single serving, microwave recipe)

5 Tbls flour

4 ½ Tbls sugar
2 tsp cocoa powder
¼ tsp baking soda
Dash of salt

½ tsp vinegar

¼ tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp vegetable oil
4 ½ Tbls water

Using a large microwave safe mug, spray the inside with non-stick cooking spray. Mix the first 5 dry ingredients in the mug. After mixing well, make 3 depressions in the dry ingredients. Pour vinegar in one depression, vanilla in another, and vegetable oil in the third. Pour water over the top. Mix well with a fork until smooth. Place in microwave and cook on high for 1 ½ minutes, uncovered.

BE SURE TO NOT OVERCOOK!

Top with anything you like--powdered sugar, frosting, chocolate chips, caramel, or whipped cream--or nothing at all.

Hints & Suggestions:

• the original time said 2 minutes, but our microwave tends to cook quickly, thus the 1 1/2 minute cook time
• You could undercook this and not have a problem since there are no eggs in this recipe
• Yes, it does rise due to the chemical reaction between the baking soda and vinegar

Foodie Friday -- Puppy Chow

Last week, I was chatting with a swim mom and she was telling me about a snack that her neighbor made every Christmas. This year the neighbor was going out of town and wasn't making this snack. This mom was lamenting the fact because her son loved it.

Just by her basic description, "powdered sugar" told me all I needed to know. I said it sounds like Puppy Chow. She looked confused--it could be because English isn't her native language, and she thought I was talking about dog food--and I went into greater detail of the crunchy cereal, peanut butter and chocolate mixed together and tossed in powdered sugar. She said that it sounded like this particular snack.

I thought I had the recipe on my blog. I didn't. So I just directed her to check Google.

I will mention that I've never made Puppy Chow. I've eaten it, but never made it. And when I Googled it, I found numerous variations of the same ingredients.

Here's one version:

Puppy Chow

1 (12 ounce) bag chocolate chips

1/2 cup butter

1 cup peanut butter
1 (12 ounce) box Crispix cereal or 1 (12 ounce) box similar cereal
1 lb powdered sugar

Melt chocolate chips, butter & peanut butter over medium heat, or microwave in 30 second increments. Stir to blend. Pour over Crispix in large bowl. Stir to coat. Pour confectioners sugar in paper grocery bag. Add Crispix and shake vigorously until it breaks apart. Serve in new doggie dish.

Another version:

1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 tsp. vanilla
9 cups Crispix cereal (any flavor)
3 cups powdered sugar

Melt the first three ingredients in the microwave in 30 second increments, stirring in-between, until smooth. Add vanilla and stir. Pour over cereal and stir to coat. Place powdered sugar in large plastic bag, add cereal in batches, shake to coat.

Hints & suggestions:

• You can use Rice Chex cereal in place of Crispix. The key here is to have 'airy' cereal with two sides and air in between the layers.
• Rice or corn Chex cereal is preferable to wheat Chex. Wheat Chex has too strong of a flavor and it makes the snack too heavy. Just my opinion.
• I'd use a seriously large Ziploc bag to toss the mixture in powdered sugar
• IF you think there is nutritional value in this, you would be wrong. Jus' Sayin'. Any protein from the peanut butter is nullified by the high sugar overload.
• It's addictive. You will be eating it by the handfuls until your teeth start to hurt from the sugar content.
• Give it away to your neighbor's children. Let them deal with the hyperactivity from the little runts. . .

Enjoy!

Foodie Friday -- MAG's Decadent Fudge

 

I’ve been on the hunt for an Old Fashioned Fudge recipe for quite some time now. I’ve tasted loads of fudge over the years and most beaten fudge recipes are grainy and not flavorful. So why do people attempt to make it? Sorry, but attempt is the key word here. So many fails have been passed off as fudge.

Well, all I seem to find is some version of what I call Cheater’s Fudge. Now, don’t get me wrong, this is a perfectly wonderful recipe--quick and easy to prepare. But I wanted to go “candy thermometer” old school to see what all the fuss was about. The problem I ran across was the recipes that did involve cooked sugar couldn’t agree on the basic temperature, and WHY on earth did you have to let it cool before you beat it?

Of course, I figured it out.

The one ingredient you have to have as a maker of traditional fudge is PATIENCE. Yes, my friends, just like when make caramel you have to wait for the right moment to act. There is a valid reason for letting it cool down.

When you make fudge, the reason you have to wait to beat the mixture is all about chemistry. You know, the class you slept through in high school and college.

If you beat the fudge when it is too hot, the sugar particles will reform and attract more sugar particles to form larger particles until it cools enough to stop the process. This is one reason for the grainy, crunchiness of less than-stellar-fudge. If you wait until the mixture has cooled enough then the sugar particles will stay small, resulting in a smooth texture.

I found a recipe and then proceeded to change it up for real world usage.

Here we go:

MAG’s Decadent Fudge

3 cups sugar

1 Tbls. Hershey’s cocoa powder
Large pinch of sea salt
3 Tbls. orange blossom honey
1 cup heavy cream
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate (Baker’s), finely chopped
2 tsp. vanilla extract (Madagascar Bourbon)
4 Tbls. chilled butter, cubed

Line 8 X 8 pan with foil, spray with butter-flavored cooking spray.  Set aside. In heavy sauce pan, whisk sugar, cocoa powder and salt together, and place over medium heat. Add honey and cream, stirring until smooth. Add chocolate. Stir until chocolate is melted and sugar dissolved. Time for the candy thermometer! Increase heat to high, and boil mixture until it reaches the soft ball stage at 236 degrees. You can stir the mixture, but DO NOT SCRAP THE SIDES (sugar crystals and all that jazz).

Pour into glass bowl. Dot top with cubed butter and vanilla, and let cool about 45 minutes. Using a clean candy thermometer make sure the temperature is between 110-120 degrees.  Using a hand mixer, beat until everything is incorporated and increase speed. Beat fudge until it loses its shiny cake batter look and turns chunky-ish, about 3-5 minutes. DO NOT OVERBEAT.

Scrap fudge into prepared pan. Press flat with hands. Score the top into 1-inch squares with pastry scrape or knife. Let cool.

Sample the fudge remaining on the beaters. Groan with delight.

 

Hints and suggestions:

·         Sorry, Martha Stewart, but most people can’t afford Valrhona or Callebaut chocolate. They simply have Hershey’s, Nestles or Baker’s chocolate in their cabinet. I used Valrhona once in a recipe, not worth the $$.

·         Martha was all hard-core about buttering parchment paper, too. Love you, Martha, but really? Aluminum foil sprayed with butter Pam works just as well!

·         And not a fan of light corn syrup either when I have honey on hand. I’m a serious fan of orange blossom honey!

·         And don’t hand chop the chocolate if you have a food processor, just whir it around until the largest chocolate pieces are about the size of a pea.

·         Score the outside edges off first before you make the squares, then all the pieces look good!

 

Enjoy, Peeps!

 

 

Visiting DD's blog

I'm over at Delilah Devlin's blog today. And I'm being slightly naughty, so only 18 years and older can visit!

Just kidding! Stop by and say "Hi!"

Foodie Friday--Chocolate Cream Cake

I have no idea where my mom got this recipe. I just know that over the last 15+ years it has been the ‘fall-back’ birthday cake recipe.

Chocolate Cream Cake

3 oz. (squares) unsweetened chocolate, Bakers
2 ¼ cups sifted cake flour
2 tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ cup butter, softened
2 ¼ cups firmly packed light brown sugar
3 eggs
1 ½ tsp. vanilla
1 cup sour cream
1 cup boiling water

Melt chocolate over hot water.  Set aside. Cool. Sift flour, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, beat butter, sugar and eggs at high speed until light and fluffy. Beat in vanilla and cooled chocolate. Stir in dry ingredients, alternating with sour cream, beating until smooth.  Stir in water. Batter will be thin. Grease and flour two 9-inch round pans.  Tap out excess flour. Pour batter evenly into each pan.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.  Cool in pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto wire racks.  Cool.  Split each layer in half crosswise to make 4 layers.  Fill and frost with frosting.
 

Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, room temp
6 Tbls. cream or milk
1 ½ lbs powdered sugar, sifted
6 Tbls butter
4 oz. (squares) unsweetened chocolate

Melt butter and chocolate together, beat in cream cheese. Alternating sugar and cream beat into chocolate mixture. Frost middle and sides of cake.  Refrigerate.

Enjoy! 
Later, Peeps! 

Buttery Toffee recipe

I posted on Facebook that I was finishing up my candy making process and one of my FarmVille friends requested my toffee recipe.  As I mentioned, I don't mind sharing my recipes, so here is my revamped version of a Bon Appetit recipe.  Before attempting to make you MUST HAVE A CANDY THERMOMETER. 

BUTTERY PECAN TOFFEE

makes about 1.5 lbs.

Unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) butter
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed golden brown sugar
1/4 cup water
1 Tablespoon honey
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans, toasted

Unsalted butter (used to butter small baking sheet 9 X 13)
melted milk chocolate for dipping (pre-tempered is best--Merkens)
coarsely ground pecans

Butter small baking sheet, set aside. Melt butter in heavy 2 1/2-quart saucepan over low heat.  Add both sugars, water and honey and stir until sugar dissolves.  Increase heat to medium and cook until candy thermometer registers 290 F, stirring slowly, but constantly, and scraping bottom of pan with rubber spatula, about 15 minutes (but can take longer.  If taking too long, then slightly increase the heat). DO NOT WALK AWAY. Toffee and caramels seem to take forever to get to the appropriate tempurature or color, but will burn quickly.

Remove pan from heat.  Mix in 1 cup of chopped nuts.  Immediately pour mixture into prepared sheet: do not scrape pan.  Let stand about 2 minutes and then score the candy with knife or metal scraper into 1-inch pieces.  Let cool.  Slip spatula under candy and break along the scored lines.  Melt chocolate and dip toffee pieces in chocolate, flipping the candy until coated.  Using fork, lift candy out and tap off excess chocolate, scraping fork along edge of bowl.  Gently lay wet candy on a bed of ground pecans until dry.  Or you can sprinkle ground pecans on top.  When dry store in air-tight container until ready to package and give away.


I hope you all enjoy this recipe.  I usually make 3 batches (thus my candy making exhaustion) to give out to about 35 friends and family members, along with all the other stuff that I make. If you have any problems or questions, feel free to email me at:  margaret.golla (at) gmail.com