Pumpkin Roll

Last year I tried this recipe for the first time. My mother always made it and I have always loved it. The funny thing about this recipe is that it is printed on the inside of the Libby's pure pumpkin. I have always thought that it was a recpie that was passed down through the family. I guess some of the best kept secrets are the ones that are not really too secret. As for for pumpkin I have tired many canned varieties and even tried to make it myself by scratch but the Libby's 100% pure pumpkin is one of the best. It has the most pumpkin flavor that I have ever had, and what is even nicer is that when you look at the list of ingredients there is only one ingredient. That makes me very happy. I have a big issue about things that are in storage that have additives to it. I know that they are there to preserve the ingredients but not a big fan of putting too many un-natural chemicals into my body that i really don't know what they are. The recipe is is pretty simple and can be made in a little more than an hour with cooling time.



Cake:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp of ground cloves
1/2 tsp of ground ginger (not in recipe but a nice additive)
1/4 tsp of salt
3 large eggs
1 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cups of Libby's Pure Pumpkin
1 cup chopped walnuts (not something I use)



Filling
1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese softened
1 cup sifted powdered sugar
6 Tbsp butter (unsalted is what i use)
1 tsp vanilla extract (I use a vanilla paste from Williams and Sanoma- really good)



For cake:
Preheat the oven to 375*F. Grease 15x10-inch jelly roll pan, line with wax paper. Grease and flour paper.


Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt in a Small bowl. Beat the eggs and sugar in large mixer bowl until thick. It will get creamy. Beat in the pumpkin, stir in flour mixture. spread evenly in jelly roll pan and sprinkle with nuts if you like.


Bake for 13-15 min. the edges will start to brown and the cake will spring back when touched. The cake should be about 1/4" to 1/2" thick. You want to feel like it is a very think cake. When you take it out of the oven sift powdered sugar on the top and drape a thin cotton kitchen towel over the top. You want to flip it out of the jelly roll pan right away. By putting the towel on the pan I can then use a cookie pan on top and flip it over onto the cookie pan. Roll up cake and towel together. You can roll it either way, I roll it so that i have a longer roll so it is a nice personal slice in the end. Let cool rolled up on rack.


For the filling:
Beat cream cheese butter and vanilla extract until creamy, add sifted powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Carefully unroll cake, remove towel. spread cream cheese filling over cake. Re-roll cake, gently squeeze cake to make sure there is a smooth and no major air pockets. Refrigerate to firm up filling. Before serving cut off edges and sprinkle with powdered sugar.


Its really a pretty easy recipe.

Simple but elegant cheesecake

Cheesecake has always been an intimidating dessert for me. Every year we would always make small cheesecake tarts but the larger cakes are a whole different ball game. so when my father was on the east coast and we were taking care of some family I took advantage of his knowledge of cheesecakes. Everyone is always talking about all the different cheesecakes that he makes, peanut butter, chocolate etc. Though I do love a unique cheesecake that has a mix of flavors in it, the one that I always prefer is the simple one, just a plain cheesecake with fresh fruit topping. So my father and I set out to make a simple elegant cheesecake.

Crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
4 TBL unsalted butter
1-1/2 TBL granulated sugar

Variants:Lorna dune shortbread cookies, Ginger snaps (use 2-1/2 TBL granulated sugar), Oreo Cookies (1 TBL granulated sugar)

Filling:
2-1/2 lbs cream cheese (room temp)
1-1/2 cups of sugar
1 tsp Vanilla
3 TBL flour (not fully necessary but does help if you want to make it gluten free)
5 eggs (room temp)
2 egg yolks (room temp)
½ cup of sour cream (room temp)
1 TBL lemon Zest

please note that if you are making gluten free you will have to use something else other than graham crackers, something i will defiantly look into for my gluten free friends.

Get cream cheese, sour cream, and eggs to room temperature. Preheat oven to 350*
Put 1 pkg. Graham crackers (about 12) into food processor and process to a fine consistency. Pour into small mixing bowl. Add 4 tbl. Melted butter and 1 ½ tbl. of sugar. Mix well and then pour mixture into 9” spring form pan. Press crumb mixture evenly over bottom and about 1” up side of pan. Place in oven and bake for about 9 minutes. Remove from oven and cool. Turn oven up to 425*.

Place cream cheese in large mixing bowl with the sugar. Beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Add the sour cream and flour and continue to mix. Make sure you scrape the sides of bowl often so that all the cream cheese gets incorporated into mixture or you will have a lumpy cheesecake. You now add the eggs into the mixture one at a time and mix at low setting. Next fold in the vanilla and the lemon zest.

Pour mixture into cooled crust and place in oven. Bake at 425* for 15 minutes and then turn heat down to 225* and bake for an additional 65 minutes. Cake will be set on the outer edges and will shake slightly in the center when done. Turn heat off in oven, open oven door, and let cake remain in the oven for about 30 minutes. Remove cake from oven and cool for 15 minutes on cooling rack. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the cake to free it from the sides and then cool completely. Remove side of spring form pan. Cover and refrigerate for at least four hours before serving.

Boston Cream Pie

After 7 years in Boston and not having a Boston Cream Pie I thought it time to make one. I used a recipe from the Joy of Baking and all in all it came out pretty darn good. There is even a really great back story of the Boston Cream Pie on the site. This recipe is defiantly a success in my book. The only drawback to this recipe was the pastry cream, it was a little too stiff for my taste. Don't get me wrong it was very tasty and pretty easy to make. I would use it again, well at least until I figure out one that I like more. Below is the recipe from Joy of Baking with a couple of my own notes.

Pastry Cream:

1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated white sugar

3 large egg yolks

1/8 cup (20 grams) all-purpose flour

Scant 3 tablespoons (20 grams) cornstarch

1 1/4 cups (300 ml) milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sponge Cake:

5 large eggs

3/4 cup (150 grams) granulated white sugar, divided

1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup (60 grams) plain cake flour (not self-rising)

1/4 cup (35 grams) all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons (28 grams) unsalted butter

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

Chocolate Glaze:

4 ounces (120 grams) semisweet chocolate, chopped

1/2 cup (120 ml) heavy whipping cream

1 teaspoon unsalted butter

(If you are planning on doing this recipe in one day and make your time as efficient as possible do the first step of separating the eggs for the cake first then do the pastry cream and then move back to the cake. This will save you a lot of time just waiting around)

Pastry Cream: In a medium-sized stainless steel bowl, mix the sugar and egg yolks. (Do not let this mixture sit too long or you will get pieces of egg forming.) Sift the flour and cornstarch together and then add to the egg mixture, mixing until you get a smooth paste. Set aside.

Meanwhile in a small saucepan, bring the milk just to a boil over medium heat. (Watch carefully and remove from heat just as the milk starts to foam up.) Pour the milk slowly into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to prevent curdling. (If you get a few pieces of egg (curdling) in the mixture, pour through a strainer.)

Place the egg mixture into a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat until boiling, whisking constantly. When it boils, continue to whisk constantly for another 30 - 60 seconds until it becomes thick.

(The first try on this part I kept it on the heat and it did not come out too well, the second time i removed it from the heat the second i noticed it thickening and whisked for 30-60 seconds. The thickening seemed to be the only indication of boiling.)

Remove from heat and whisk in the vanilla extract. Pour into a clean bowl and immediately cover the surface with plastic wrap to prevent a crust from forming. Let the cream cool in the refrigerator for a few hours.

Sponge Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (177 degrees C) and place rack in center of oven. Butter and line the bottoms of two - 8 inch (23 cm) round cake pans with parchment paper.

While the eggs are still cold separate three of the eggs, placing the yolks in one large mixing bowl and the whites in another bowl. To the yolks, add the two remaining eggs. Cover the two bowls with plastic wrap and allow the eggs to come to room temperature before using (about 30 minutes).

Meanwhile, in a small bowl whisk together the flours, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.

Place the milk and butter in a small saucepan, over low heat, and warm until the butter melts. Remove from heat, cover, and keep warm.

In your electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, (or with a hand mixer) beat the whole eggs and yolks and 6 tablespoons (75 grams) of the sugar on high speed for about five minutes, or until they are thick, fluffy and light colored (when you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in a slow ribbon). Beat in the vanilla extract.

In another clean mixing bowl, with the whisk attachment, (or with a hand mixer) beat the egg whites and cream of tartar, at low speed, until foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high and gradually add the remaining sugar, beating until soft, moist peaks form. Gently fold a little of the whites into the batter to lighten it, and then add the rest of the whites folding just until incorporated. Sift half of the flour mixture over the top of the batter and gently fold through with a rubber spatula or whisk. Sift the remaining flour over the batter and fold in. Do not over mix.

Make a well on one side of the batter and pour the melted butter/milk mixture into the bowl. Gently but thoroughly fold the butter mixture into the batter. Do not over mix.

Divide the batter between the two prepared pans, smoothing the tops, and bake for about 18-20 minutes or until light brown and springy to the touch. (A toothpick inserted in the middle will come out clean.) Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Immediately run a spatula or sharp knife around the inside of the pans and then invert the cakes onto a wire rack. Remove parchment paper and re-invert. Cool completely.

When the cakes have cooled and you are ready to assemble the Boston Cream Pie, make the Chocolate Glaze

Glaze: Place the chopped chocolate in a small heatproof bowl. Bring the cream and butter just to a boil in a saucepan over medium heat. Immediately pour the boiling cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for a 3-5 minutes. Gently stir until smooth. Set aside for a few minutes until it has thickened to pouring consistency.

(using a good chocolate is key to this, it really does make a difference)

To Assemble: Place one cake layer on your serving plate bottom side facing up. Spoon the pastry cream onto the cake, spreading to make an even layer. Place the second cake layer (bottom side up) onto the filling. Pour the glaze onto the center of the cake and carefully spread the glaze, with an offset spatula to the edges of the cake, allowing the glaze to drip down the sides. Let the cake sit until the glaze sets, about one hour. Serve. This cake is best eaten the same day it is made. Cover and refrigerate any leftovers.

Serves 8-10

Two Bite Orange and Rasberry Tart.

Orange and Rasberry tartlette? I am not really sure the classification for this dessert, but it sure is tasty. I guess you really cant go wrong with Fresh fruit, shortbread and whipped topping. For Easter I made a Lemon Curd Tart with fresh blueberries and strawberries. The tart was a success. It made the mad scientist in me come back out. I thought that if the lemon curd came out so well then what other flavors can I make. For this first adventure I did not stray to far from the mainland and tried Orange. OK, so orange is not so daring but the mad scientist did make a brief appearance when I tried one batch of chocolate. All it did was made a tasty frosting but that will have to be addressed at a later date, a lot of the kinks need to be worked out of that one. Back to the tastiness that was Orange. First thing that you do is make the orange curd, this can easily be made a day or so ahead this way it can fully set or you can just make them as you crave one. But if you decide to make it the day that you want to serve it make sure you give it enough time to chill.
Orange Curd:

• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup fresh Orange juice
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 tablespoon finely grated fresh Orange zest**
• 3 large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 tsp of corn starch
  

***I put in one well packed tablespoon of orange zest. you really can not go wrong with more zest because most of it will not make it past the strainer.

Put all the ingredients in a double boiler and cook on med. You will want to be stirring it very frequently. Once it thickens whisk very frequently (almost constantly, you dont want it to burn) until a curd forms appox 10 min. (It is one of those things that you need to see to believe, and don't worry, if you are stirring it then you will not miss it). Take off heat and strain through a fine strainer. This will remove most of the zest and any larger chunks. Then cool completely. I pulled it out of the fridge a couple of times while it was cooling and stirred it with a whisk. This seemed to help it say together and keep creamy, or maybe it was curiosity that would not let me leave it alone. I defiantly need to work on that.

After it was fully cooled then I spooned it on top of a shortbread cookie, added some fresh raspberries and topped with a whip topping. This two bite tart is great weather you are serving it for a party or if you just need that little bit of sweetness in the middle of the night.

Brownies!!! Brownies!!!!

So Brownies, I never really thought of myself as an accomplished cook. Don't get me wrong, I have some skills, but I don't categorize myself as a great cook. I like to experiment, I would put myself in more of the "mad scientist in the kitchen" category. But lately I have had the best luck with cooking even more specifically baking. All the brownies that I made, weather they were a mix or from scratch they would come out too runny or too cakey. I got fed up with them all and decided that I would make up my own recipe. I have to say that I hit the jackpot with this one. Try it out, it is not only easy but it is a good mix of cakey and fudgie.

• 8 tablespoons of unsalted butter
• 12 ounces of semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x9x2 baking pan. Line bottom and two sides with a strip of parchment paper. Leave approx 2" of overhang on each side so that you can easily remove the brownies after they are done. I tried changing the size of the pan and they did not come out. The proportions work great for a 9x9 pan, just an FYI.

In a large heat proof bowl cut up butter into tablespoon chunks and add semi sweet chocolate chips. Set over (not in) a saucepan of gently simmering water. Heat, stirring gently until smooth.

I typically start this process first and while the water is heating up I then mix the dry ingredients.

In a medium bowl mix four, cocoa powder, baking powder, salt, sugar. Yep all goes in at once. Make sure that there are no chunks and the salt and baking powder is fully incorporated. It is important that everything is mixed well.

Once chocolate and butter is fully melted take off simmering water. Fold in half of the dry ingredients. Then add the eggs, make sure that the eggs are fully Incorporated into the mixture, then fold in the remaining dry ingredients. By adding half of the dry ingredients first it cools down the mixture enough not to cook the eggs.

Pour into pan and bake for 30-40 min. My oven is really bad so check after 30min to be safe. You can tell when the brownies are done when you put in a toothpick and larger baked pieces com out. A fully clean toothpick will not come out with these brownies. They will also look evenly puffy throughout. Let cool in pan for about 20 min ten take out and set parchment and all on a drying rack. Try your hardest not to eat them right away so you don't burn your mouth. I speak from experience.

If you cant wait they are pretty good warm but they are even better the day after.