Posts filed under 'Sweet Recipes'
We have found a new favorite "anytime" cake chez Shafroth. I still love the Aspen Apple Cake but this recipe takes apple cake to another level. I found the recipe on Cook’s Country. They called it "Blue Ribbon Apple Cake" but I think upside down is a better descriptor.
Not all the recipes on Cook’s Country are stellar but this one caught my eye and has now won my heart. The sliced apples on top are reminiscent of homemade applesauce and the light batter below is the perfect compliment.
Apple Preparation
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch slices
(an apple peeler is perfect for this)
4 Tbsp. butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/8 tsp. salt
Heat a heavy pan (not cast iron) and add the butter. Once the butter stops foaming, add the brown sugar and cook until it turns a dark color, about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the apples and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes or until the apples are soft.
Meanwhile, prepare a 9-inch cake pan by buttering the sides and the bottom. I think a springform pan works best. Once the apple are cooked, spread into the bottom of the cake pan and allow to cool.
Cake Batter
1/2 cup sour cream (or creme fraiche), divided
1 large egg plus 1 yolk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups flour, sifted
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 stick of butter, at room temerature and cut into small chunks
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together 1/4 cup of sour cream, egg and egg yolk and vanilla. Set aside. Place dry ingredients into a large bowl and blend well on low speed with an electric mixer, adding the remaining 1/4 cup of sour cream and softened butter.
Once that is well incorporated and the dry ingredients are moistened, increase the speed to medium and add the egg/sour cream mixture. Mix for about 1 minute. Pour over the apples and spread evenly.
Bake for 40 minutes. Test for doness with a toothpick. It should come out clean when inserted in the center of the cake. Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan and gently release the springform. Invert the cake onto a plate.
Allow the cake to rest inverted on the plate for about a minute. Give it a gentle tap and carefully remove the pan bottom. If some of the apple comes off, it is easily replaced. This cake is best served slightly warm, but I also loved it the next day for breakfast.
February 23rd, 2010
Some food in China is mostly about texture. This cake, referred to as Nian Gao, is made during the Lunar New Year celebrations and it is a textural marvel. I searched the web to find something to make for our New Year’s celebration and ended up combining a few techniques and ingredients from recipes I found on Chow.
I really enjoyed the texture: chewy, gummy, silky and soft, all at once. There are many variations and traditionally it is steamed. This baked version is very easy to make. Here is a picture of Nian Gao steamed in banana leaves
Nian Gao is made with glutinous or "sticky"rice flour. What separates this type of rice is that it was specifically developed by Asian farmers over the centuries for its higher content of amylose and amylopectin, two components of starch. 
There is no dietary gluten in glutinous rice and it is used throughout Asia in numerous ways. It is more widely available here for gluten free diets. It is the primary ingredient in this dessert so do not substitute white rice flour. It will not work.
4 eggs at room temperature
2 cans light coconut milk
3 cups sweet rice flour
2 1/2 cups sugar (you can use a combination of brown and unrefined sugar)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. toasted, shredded coconut (to use as garnish at the end)
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a 9×13-inch pan with butter or non-stick spray coating and line with parchment paper.
Beat the eggs. Add the sugar and beat well for a few minutes. Now alternate adding wet and dry ingredients into the egg/sugar mixture (do not add the shredded coconut). This batter is very runny. Pour into the prepared pan and bake in the center of the oven for 25 minutes. Sprinkle the coconut over the top and rotate the pan. Continue baking for another 25 minutes. Allow to cool for at least 30 minutes. Using the parchment paper as handles, lift the nian gao out of the pan and place on a cutting board. Cut into your desired shapes. You can chill it to serve or serve at room temperature.
For more info on Chinese New Year Celebrations, check out the video below:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEwUwMB2mrQ
February 19th, 2010
I whipped up this pie for a pot luck party and I did not bring home any leftovers. Creamy, sweet with white chocolate and kissed with vanilla, this pie is a winner. Dorie Greenspan featured this recipe on her blog back in November and I filed it away to try. Canned sour cherries took the place of the bananas with much success, their tart bite offset by the dreamy filling.
No-Bake White Chocolate Pie from Parade Magazine, 1-2-3 Bake
4 oz. white chocolate (preferably imported), finely chopped
1/2 lb. cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
1/3 cup sour cream
1/2 cup heavy cream, chilled
1 banana, thinly sliced (or 1 cup of drained canned cheeries)
1 (9-inch) ready-made chocolate cookie crust (or homemade)
1. Warm the chocolate in a bowl set over a pot of lightly simmering water. Remove from heat when only partially melted; stir to melt completely.
2. Beat the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. Beat in the chocolate, then the sour cream. Whip the heavy cream until firm; gently fold into chocolate filling.
3. Put the banana slices on the crust, top with the filling, and chill at least 2 hours. If you’d like, sprinkle with grated dark chocolate before serving.
February 8th, 2010
So about three weeks before Christmas, Marco slides up to me in the kitchen, starts kissing my neck and whispers in my ear "Is it time get out the slow cooker?" This is how romance works in our home, I know the drill. I get kisses, he gets dulce.
And everyday when he comes home from work during the Christmas season, he opens the fridge and helps himself to a spoonful of dulce. Come to think of it, he may need to seek counseling for dulce addiction.
Dulce de leche is Spanish milk caramel. Traditionally, it is made by slow cooking sweetened condensed milk until it becomes a thick caramel with divine hints of vanilla. It is oh so good. I have been making it for about 8 years and like to think I have quite perfected it.
We like dulce licked off a spoon, drizzled on ice cream and stirred into coffee. This slow cooker version requires very little effort on your part and other than the heavy cream, all of the ingredients are pantry items.
Get slow cooking flavoristas! What are you waiting for? Christmas? Nah, dulce de leche is the perfect sweet treat for Valentine’s Day.
Slow Cooker Dulce de Leche adapted from Lora Brody’s Slow Cooker Cooking
Yields 2 cups plus a few tablespoons for sampling
1 2/3 cups sugar
3 1/4 cups whole milk
1/4 cup water
large pinch baking soda
pinch of salt
(vanilla salt works well here if you happen to have some)
Whisk everything together in a slow cooker and let it cook on high, uncovered, for 12 – 14 hours until there is visible caramelization. There many be some large bits of caramelized sugar & milk. Use a spatula to scrape up the caramelized sugars. Then add:
3/4 cup room temperature heavy cream or light cream
1 tsp. vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp. vanilla extract)
Using an immersion blender process until smooth and there are no visible clumps of caramel left. Be careful here as the caramel and the slow cooker are hot. It may require an extra set of hands to tilt the slow cooker. Continue to heat on high for 1 more hour.
Skim foam (aka nougat) and transfer remaining dulce to clean jars. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate.
Proceed to swoon 
Before skimming.
The finished product. Oh la la.
Nougat ready for sampling.
Today is the last day for voting! Flavorista made it into the finals for a Homie Award over at Apartment Therapy. When you have a free moment, please cast one more vote for us. Click here to vote.
While you are in the voting spirit, please cast a vote for our friends over at Remodelista, a finalist in the Home Design category. Thanks!
More on dulce de leche from the blogosphere:
Not Without Salt
Purple Foodie
David Lebovitz
Chez Pim
Recipe Girl
January 6th, 2010
I adapted this recipe from Shamane Simons of Shamane’s Bake Shop in Boulder. The crust was featured in the Boulder Daily Camera just before Thanksgiving. The crust has the best texture.
Golden Delicious apples are great for this type of tart as they are soft and cook quickly. This is the perfect ending to a heavy meal.
Golden Delicious Apple Galette with Sweet Cookie Pie Crust
Sweet Cookie Crust
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 lb. butter, at room temperature
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla
1 cup flour
1/4 cake or pastry flour
pinch of salt
1/8 tsp baking powder
Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Sift the dry ingredients together and add. Mix until just combined. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours.
Before rolling out, remove from the refrigerator and allow to soften for 10 minutes at room temperature. Roll out the dough to your desired size. Place on a flat cookie sheet and place in the refrigerator while preparing the apples.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Apple Filling
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 cup sugar
2 lbs. Golden Delicious Apples, peeled cored and thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. honey
Combine the sugar and cinnamon and mix well. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and sprinkle 1 Tbsp. of the sugar mixture over it evenly. Arrange the apple slices on top of the dough in concentric circles leaving about 1-inch all around the edge.
Sprinkle with the remaining sugar mixture. Fold the border up over the apples. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Heat the honey and vanilla in the microwave and with a pastry brush, distribute the mixture over the apples. Allow to cool slightly before serving.
December 27th, 2009
‘Tis the season for citrus and we were very lucky to receive a largebox of what I thought were tangelos, but as I got to researching this post, I realized that the fruit we juiced and subsequently turned into sobert was probably not tangelos but some sort of oranges.
Regardless of the citrus variety, the gift was truly appreciated (thank you Jen & Greg) plus Vincenzo had so much fun using the automatic juicer. We loved the fresh juice. Lollie deemed it "super delicious."
Being a big fan of all things sorbet, I couldn’t think of a better plan than some homemade sorbet – What a lovely way to brighten a dreary, December day, what a perfect thing to plop into a glass of prosecco for holiday entertaining.
The freshly squeezed juice produces a supreme sorbet, but if you were really strapped for time, high quality, minimally processed juice could be substituted.
Orange Sorbet
Yields about 4 cups of finished sorbet
3 cups freshly squeezed orange juice (or tangerine)
2 tsp. lemon juice
2/3 cup of sugar, or up to 3/4 cup sugar if you like a sweeter sorbet
1/2 tsp. orange zest
pinch of salt
Mix all of the ingredients and refrigerate overnight. Whisk before processing to ensure the sugar is dissolved. Pour into ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer instructions. Serve immediately or transfer sorbet to a freezer-safe container and freeze until it’s time for dessert.
Alternatively, if you are planning to use this in a cocktail or punch, you could simply freeze the sorbet mixure in ice cube trays and add a cube to each champagne glass before adding the sparking wine – Move over mimosa! There’s a new gal in town.
December 22nd, 2009
We are having Thanksgiving with friends this year. Our hosts are life long vegetarians so Christine will make the Cheese Nut Loaf from the Greens Cookbook.
I am bringing the turkey which I will brine in the following solution:
Turkey Brine:
1/4 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup honey
1 head garlic, cut in half (do not peel)
2 dried bay leaves
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 large whole sprigs fresh sage
2 teaspoons whole black peppercorns
2 teaspoons allspice berries
1/4 cup fresh celery leaves (from 1 bunch)
1 large knob of ginger, sliced
3 quarts water
You may have to double this. It all depends on the size of your bird. I’m getting a 12-lb. bird.
Heat 1/2 the water with the spices, salt and honey. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and bring back to room temperature. Add the remaining water. Place the turkey in a brine bag or large container which will fit in your refrigerator. Add the cooled brine solution and marinate over night. Discard brine once your are ready to cook your turkey.
The rest of the menu will include a variation of the this mushroom stuffing from Food 52. I like that they used challah bread. I’m going to include the whole mushroom and not just the stems. Green Beans Marcona Almondine (recipe on Tuesday) and Sauerkraut with Apples from last issue of Gourmet Magazine. The recipe is below because it is no longer on their site.
Pear Cranberry Tart from Shamane’s Bake Shoppe here in Boulder, since it was featured in the Boulder Daily Camera. I am hoping my hostess will make her mother’s amazing salad (hiny, hint, nudge, nudge). Stay tuned for that recipe.
Sauerkraut with Apples from the last issue of Gourmet (This can be made 3 days in advance. Reheat before serving.
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2 Tbsp butter
4 lbs sauerkraut, rinsed and drained (I might skip the draining part)
2 Fuji apples – peeled, cored and thinly sliced
1 cup dry white wine (me thinks an Alsatian)
1 to 2 Tbsp. dark brown sugar
Melt the butter in a heavy large pot over medium high heat. Add onions and cook stirring occasionally until golden, about 6 minutes.
Stir in the sauerkraut, apples and wine and bring to a simmer. Cook for about 2 hours over low heat. Stir in the brown sugar and seaon with salt and pepper.
November 22nd, 2009
One of my most cherished cake recipes, brown butter cake, is decadent and really delicious. In France, brown butter is known as beurre noisette, whose literal translation is nutty butter. If you’ve never had or made brown butter, fret not. The little bit of work is well worth the nutty, caramel-like flavor it imparts to this delectable cake.
Yes, it takes 1 pound of butter to make the brown butter but you won’t be disappointed. This cake is absolutely good alone but is also excellent with fresh, ripe pears or a bit of creme fraiche. I had some egg whites left over from making ice cream a while back and thought it was the perfect excuse to make this cake, as if one needs one.
To make brown butter: place 1 pound of butter into a heavy bottom pan. Allow to melt over low heat. As the foam starts to rise, skim it off and discard. Slowly, after about 15 minutes the butter will begin to brown. You will smell its wonderful aroma. Skim off all the foam and then pour into a glass container through a fine sieve. There will be brown bits which you do not want. Your yield will be right for the cake.
Almond Brown Butter Cake
12 oz. brown butter, cooled
10 oz. powdered sugar
9 oz. ground almonds
4.5 oz. flour
10. 5 ounces egg whites (about 8 eggs, depending on the size of the egg)
Combine the sugar, almonds and flour in a bowl of an electric mixer and mix well. With the beaters running add the egg whites and whip them until smooth. Slowly add the cooled brown butter. The batter will puff up. Pour into a greased, 9-inch spring form pan. Bake at 350 degrees for about 55 minutes, a cake tester will come out clean.
The cake has an incredible crust and a hearty, nutty and caramel-like flavor.
November 17th, 2009
Starting to think about Thanksgiving and ready to cross something off of the list? Make some homemade cranberry sauce!
There is simply no reason to use canned cranberry sauce. Fresh cranberries abound this time of year and homemade cranberry sauce is so silly easy and my goodness, it tastes so much better than the canned variety.
Classic Cranberry Sauce
Yields about 2 cups
1 (12-oz) bag fresh cranberries, rinsed and picked over for stems
1 cup sugar
1 cup water
pinch of salt
Add all of the ingredients to a large saucepan over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for about 10 minutes until the berries start to pop.
Transfer sauce to jars and allow to cool to room temperature. The sauce thickens up as it cools. Refrigerate for up to two weeks. Cranberries sauce can also be frozen for up to 6 months.
Add In’s: I am a purist about my cranberry sauce but you can certainly jazz it up if you like. Orange, lemon or lime peel give the sauce a lovely citrus note. Some grated nutmeg, cinnamon or a pinch of ground white pepper turn it into a spiced cranberry sauce. Heck, you can even throw in some toasted pecans or walnuts and then you’ve got yourself a conserve.
Here is a recipe for Barr’s Fresh Cranberry Relish, not a make-ahead condiment, but certainly a fab idea for the Thaksgiving table.
November 13th, 2009
For years, I have made this jam. It is really, really, really good. Just read the reviews on the link and you will see what I mean.
With apples starting to wane here in Maine, I wanted to make apple pie jam again, but this year I wanted to make it with more apples and less sugar. After a few trials in the kitchen, I am thrilled with the results.
I went a little Cooks Illustrated crazy on this project, but as always with recipe development one more try made the difference between quite good and outstanding. In the end, I doubled the amount of apples, added some cider and boy oh boy, we have a winner. A buttered English muffin with this jam is just the way to start the day.
Canning Note: Whether making jam or pickles, I sterilize jars in the dishwasher.
Apple Pie Jam
Makes 9 half-pints plus a few spoonfuls for the cook
4 cups sugar, divided
1 cup brown sugar
1 (1.75-oz) pkg. pectin for reduced sugar recipes, such as Sure Jell (pink box)
7-8 tart apples (enough to equal 8 cups prepped)
1 cup water
1 cup apple cider
2 Tbsp. lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. butter
Measure out the white sugar in a large bowl. Combine 1/4 cup of the premeasured sugar with the pectin. Add the brown sugar to the remaining sugar and set the bowl aside. Peel, core and slice the apples. Measure out 8 cups.
Add the pectin/sugar mixture, apples, water, cider, lemon juice, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt and butter to a large heavy bottomed pot over medium-high heat. Stir well. Bring the mixture to a hard rolling boil, stirring often.
Add sugars and stir well to dissolve. Bring jam to a full rolling boil, stirring often. "A rolling boil" means that jam boils, even when stirred. Boil for 5 full minutes.
Transfer jam to prepared jars and seal accordingly for shelf storage or simply cool to room temperature, seal and store in the fridge.
Got a lotta apples? You need this!
November 1st, 2009
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