Rolling Fondant

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

The smooth finish of rolled fondant is a perfect base for many forms of decoration and can keep a cake fresh for several days (even in warm weather) by protecting it from exposure to air.

Ingredients:

• ¼ cup cold water1 tablespoon gelatin 9 tablespoons white corn syrup1 tablespoon glycerin 2 tablespoons solid white vegetable shortening 8 cups sifted confectioners sugar Non-stick vegetable spray or mild oil for greasing hands, spoon and work area2 – 3 drops liquid food color and/or flavoring as desired

Directions:

1. Sprinkle gelatin over the water in a 2-cup heatproof glass measuring cup and let stand for 5 minutes. Set into a small pan of simmering water and stir until the gelatin is dissolved.

2. Blend in the corn syrup and glycerin, then add the shortening and stir until melted. Remove from heat.

3. Place the sugar in a bowl and make a well in the center. Add the gelatin mixture and stir with a lightly greased wooden spoon until blended. Mix lightly with greased hand and knead vigorously in the bowl until most of the sugar is incorporated. Turn onto a smooth, lightly greased surface such as marble and knead until smooth and satiny. If the Fondant seems dry, add several drops of water and knead well. If it seems too sticky, knead in more powdered sugar. The Fondant will resemble a smooth, well-shaped stone.

4. When dropped, it should spread very slightly but retain its shape. It should be malleable like clay, soft but not sticky.

5. Rolled Fondant may be used at once but seems to work more easily when allowed to rest for several hours, preferably overnight. It is important to keep Fondant covered to prevent it from drying. Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container. It will firm slightly upon standing.

6. When ready to roll out, spray the work surface and rolling pin with nonstick vegetable spray.

7. Fondant can be easily tinted any color – add color, a dab at a time and knead into icing until color is evenly blended. Flavor can be enhanced using any clear extract – again, knead into icing until well blended.

After-Thoughts:

For more tips on using rolling fondant see here and here.

Recipe Origin:

Based on a few different recipes, tried many many times a few years ago when I made my own fondant for my wedding cake.

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No-Bake Cheesecake Petit Fours

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

These tiny two-bite delicacies are so simple to make you can make them for dessert at the last minute and still really impress your guests. Or make them in advance and keep them in an air-tight container in the freezer for up to two weeks for a last-minute sweet treat.

Ingredients:

• 1 package (7 oz.) chocolate wafer cookies2/3 cup plus 3 tablespoons sugar8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted2 8-oz. packages cream cheese2 tablespoons vanilla½ cup heavy (whipping) cream10 ounces good quality dark chocolate, chopped finelyicing or pre-made icing decorations

Directions:

1. Line a 9×9" baking pan with foil. Place cookies in a food processor; process until finely ground. Combine cookies and 3 tablespoons sugar in a bowl. Add the melted butter, and mix well until crumb mixture holds together.

2. Transfer cookie mixture to the prepared pan, and pat out evenly to make the crust, only filling the bottom of the pan – notlining the sides. Place in freezer while proceeding.

3. Combine cream cheese, vanilla, and remaining 2/3 cup sugar in a mixer, and beat until combined. Lightly whip cream to soft peaks, and fold into cream-cheese filling.

4. Remove crust from freezer, and pour filling evenly into pan. Cover with plastic wrap, place in freezer for 30 minutes, or over night.

5. Remove pan from freezer, allow cheesecake to soften slightly. Remove from pan (should be easy with the foil liner) and slice into 1-1.5" squares. Return to freezer for 30 minutes or overnight.

6. Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler until smooth. Turn off heat. Remove cheesecake squares from freezer and dip each one in the chocolate – covering them completely. Allow to cool on a cookie rack and decorate with icing, melted white chocolate, or pre-made/bought decorations. Store in freezer, allowing at least 10 minutes at room temperature prior to serving.

Recipe Origin:

Based on a Martha Stewart cheesecake recipe

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Instructions for Icing Roses

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

Roses are great for slightly more formal cakes and look really cute on top of cupcakes. These are simple to make and look quite elegant.

Directions:

With green frosting and the # 2 or # 3 round tip, pipe stems; I chose to put the roses on one side of a round cake, rounding the stems to match that particular curve.

You will need yellow (or red, or whatever colour you want your roses to be) frosting and the # 103 petal tip and # 12 round tip, as well as a flower nail (# 7). Dab frosting on the top of the nail to secure a small square of parchment paper on top. Using the # 12 round tip, squeeze the piping bag gently and pull up slowly to make an acorn shape on top of the parchment.

Switch to the # 103 petal tip. Holding tip against the point of the acorn, wide end down and the narrow end angled in towards the acorn’s centre, pipe a wide strop as you turn the nail, enrobing the top completely.

Turning the nail as you go, make two slightly arched petals that each reach around half of the circumference of the acorn.

Continue turning the nail. making longer petals that overlap, until you reach the bottom of the rose. Gently slide the parchment with the rose off the nail and onto a baking sheet, and refrigerate (buttercream) or allow to rest and harden at room temperature (royal icing). WHen rose is hardened, remove from parchment paper with flower scissors or regular scissors and place on cake at ends of stems.

Pipe leaves with the # 352 leaf tip, allowing frosting to ruffle slightly, making each leaf a different size.

Royal Icing/Frosting

2 tablespoons Meringue Powder
6 tablespoons warm water
4 ½ cups confectioner’s sugar (+ ½ cup if needed)

1. Place meringue powder and water in mixer bowl, using a hand whisk, beat until foamy and then attach mixer bowl to mixer and mix on low speed.

2. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar approximately 1 cup at a time and then continue to mix on low speed for 10 minutes; when ready, icing should form a stiff peak. If icing seems too soft, add more confectioner’s sugar a little at a time, too stiff, add a bit of water.

3. Keep icing covered with a damp cloth as this type of icing crusts over very quickly.

4. To colour use drops of food colouring while beating with mixer — gel colouring is much easier and more potent than liquid food colouring.

Can be stored for three weeks at room temperature. Re-beat before use; may need addition of confectioner’s sugar.

Meringue Buttercream Icing

3 cups granulated sugar
12 large egg whites
2 pounds unsalted butter, softened and cut into tablespoon-sized pieces
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Whisk sugar and egg whites in a large heatproof bowl set ofver a pan of simmering water until sugar is dissolved and mixture registers 140 F on an instant read thermometer, about 2 – 3 minutes.

2. Fit an electric mixer with the whisk attachment, and beat the egg-white mixture on high speed unitl it holds stiff (but not dry) peaks and mixture is fluffy and cooled, about 10 minutes.

3. Reduce speed to medium-low, and add butter several teaspoons at a time, beating well after each addition (meringue will deflate slightly as butter is added). Add vanilla; beat until frosting comes together, 3 – 5 minutes. Beat on lowest speed until air bubbles diminish, about 2 minutes. Stir with a rubber spatula until frosting is smooth.

You can refrigerate in an airtight container for up to one week, or freeze for up to one month. Before using, bring to room temperature and stir with a rubber spatula to smooth.

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Instructions for Icing Pansies

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

These are the most simple and delicate cake decorations.

Directions:

Using violet Royal Icing and the # 264 miniature petal tip, pipe one basic petal: hold bag at a 45 degree angle, with the tip’s wide end down and narrow end pointed away and slightly to the left. Move the tip forward 1/8 inch and back again while you pivot the narrow end to the right. I make my flowers on a flower nail, allow them to dry and then place them on the cake…I find it easier that way, and then mistakes don’t stress me out at all.

Then make four more petals, right next to each other, while turning the nail between your fingers and using the same technique.

Change to pink icing and then to yellow icing to make different coloured flowers. I needed approximately 60 flowers to do this particular design (of course I went overboard to made about 150, but now I have left-overs for next time).

I used melted chocolate in a small parchment paper piping bag to dot the centres of each flower after they had set.

After flowers are completely dried and set, put fully iced cake on turntable and place each flower in desired pattern — adhering with a small dab of royal icing. When design is complete, pipe a small green dot with tip # 3 in between each pansy.

For the top of the cake, pipe leaves in green icing with the # 67 leaf tip, allowing icing to ruffle slightly, making each leaf a different size. Place a few extra flowers on top of leaves.

Royal Icing/Frosting

2 tablespoons Meringue Powder
6 tablespoons warm water
4 ½ cups confectioner’s sugar (+ ½ cup if needed)

1. Place meringe powder and water in mixer bowl, using a hand whisk, beat until foamy and then attach mixer bowl to mixer and mix on low speed.

2. Gradually add confectioner’s sugar approximately 1 cup at a time and then continue to mix on low speed for 10 minutes; when ready, icing should form a stiff peak. If icing seems too soft, add more confectioner’s sugar a little at a time, too stiff, add a bit of water.

3. Keep icing covered with a damp cloth as this type of icing crusts over very quickly.

4. To colour use drops of food colouring while beating with mixer — gell colouring is much easier and more potent than liquid food colouring.

Can be stored for three weeks at room temperature in an airtight container. Rebeat before use; may need addition of confectioner’s sugar.

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Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry Cupcakes

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

This recipe is for the vanilla cupcakes only. For the chocolate and strawberry cupcakes, I used cake recipes I had come up tried and tinkered with previously.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour1 teaspoon baking powder½ teaspoon salt8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature1 cup sugar3 large eggs1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract¾ cup milkeasy butter icingroyal icing flowers (daisies, roses, pansies, etc.), silver dragees, or candied violets or other edible flowersEasy Butter Icing1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, softened1 pound (3 2/3 cups) confectioners’ sugar1 to 2 tablespoons milk (optional)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a cupcake pan with liners; set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time; scrape down bowl, and beat in vanilla.

3. Add flour mixture and milk alternatively, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

4. Divide batter evenly among liners, about three-quarters full each. Bake until golden and tops spring back to touch, about 20 minutes, rotating pan once if needed. Transfer pans to wire rack; cool completely.

5. Ice with easy butter icing (delicious and simple, especially when your buttercream has, for some ungodly reason decided to turn to water) and top with flowers or other decorations.

Makes 12 cupcakes.

Easy Butter Icing
1. In a mixing bowl, cream butter until smooth.

2. Gradually add confectioners’ sugar; beat until smooth. If too thick to spread, beat in 1 to 2 tablespoons milk.

Makes 3 ½ cups, enough for 12 standard cupcakes.

After-Thoughts:

How nice is the combination of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry cupcakes? It was nice that I already had a tried-and-true recipe for chocolate cupcakes, and I was making that gorgeous strawberry cake the weekend before, allowing me to make 12 strawberry cupcakes with the remaining batter. How perfect!

Recipe Origin:

Adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe

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Buttermilk Banana Chocolate Chip Cake

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

I made this as a part of a long audition of various recipes for a suitable cake for my wedding. It wasn’t quite what I had in mind–but it’s still a great party cake, full of taste and chocolate. I’ve made it again and again since, it’s one of S.’s favorites.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup soft butter1 7/8 cups packed brown sugar3 eggs2 teaspoons vanilla3 cups cake and pastry flour3 teaspoons baking powder2 teaspoons baking soda1 teaspoon salt3 /4 cups buttermilk1 7/8 cups mashed over-ripe bananas1 cup chocolate chunks (I used Ghirardelli double chocolate chunks.yum)

Directions:

1. Grease bottoms of pans and line with parchment (I used a 9" pan for the
base, a 6" one for the middle tier and a and a 4" pan for the top tier); grease and flour parchment and set aside.

2. Beat butter, brown sugar, eggs and vanilla until light and fluffy (I beat
the butter first, separately until light and fluffy, added the sugar, then
the eggs – one at a time – and then the vanilla. It seems to work best that
way).

3. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt and add alternately
to butter mixture with bananas and buttermilk and then stir in the chocolate
chunks.

4. Pour and spread in prepared pans and bake at 375 F for 40 – 50 minutes,
or until a tester inserted in the middle comes out clean.

5. Cool for 5 – 10 minutes in pans and then invert onto cooling racks to
cool completely before icing.

6. Ice with white buttercream icing refrigerating between coats and smoothing out crinkles and grooves with warmed spatula. Add green swirls and red, white and pink dots for fun and frivolity (or if you, like me, get tired of decorating after the buttercream and give up on being creative).

After-Thoughts:

· I changed the cooking temperature from 350 to 375 and the time from 25
minutes to 40 – 50 minutes because I made this cake a few months ago and found that it took forever to bake.and still wasn’t done in the centre when I took it out of the oven. It cooled and sunk in the middle, and this was quite disappointing. This time it was perfect. Maybe when this recipe was written ovens were hotter…I have no idea.

· I added the chocolate chunks to the recipe – S. wanted chocolate and
banana and that is what he got! The chips really made the cake seem less
healthy and more cake-like…always a good thing!

Recipe Origin:

From the Chatelaine Cookbook by Elaine Collett, © 1973

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Inside-Out German Chocolate Cake

May 16, 2012 by jennifer

I LOVE this cake – the coconut with the butterscotch taste of the condensed milk melted with the butter and then the chocolate of the cake and the icing just meld perfectly.

Ingredients:

• Cake1 ¾ cups all purpose flour1 teaspoon baking soda¼ teaspoon salt½ cup dutch processed cocoa powder½ cup hot water½ cup buttermilk, at room temperature2 teaspoons vanilla¾ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature1 cup granulated sugar½ cup brown sugar (packed)3 large eggs, at room temperatureCoconut-pecan filling1 ½ cups sweetened condensed milk¾ cup unsalted butter1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract4 large egg yolks2 cups shredded sweetened coconut1 ½ cups finely chopped pecansChocolate ganache icing1 pound bittersweet chocolate2 ½ cups whipping cream

Directions:

Cake
1. Preheat oven to 350F. Line the bottoms of two 9" round cake pans with parchment and butter pans. Set aside.

2. Sift flour, salt and baking soda into large bowl – set aside. In another bowl, whisk cocoa powder with hot water. Allow to cool to warm, then whisk in the buttermilk and vanilla. Set aside.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat the butter (with the paddle attachment) on medium until creamy. Add both sugars and beat until pale and fluffy. Lightly whisk the eggs and slowly drizzle them in, making sure to incorporate well. With mixer on medium-low, add dry ingredients in three additions, alternately with the buttermilk mixture, beating until just combined.

4. Pour batter into prepared pans and smooth the top with an off-set spatula. Bake until cakes are puffed up and slightly springy and a tester inserted comes out clean, about 30 – 35 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack. Remove from pans and carefully slice both layers into two disks. Put bottom layer of cake on a cooling rack set on top of a cookie sheet. Set three other layers aside. Cover with plastic wrap if not assembling for a few hours.

Coconut-pecan filling
1. Place milk, butter, and vanilla in a medium saucepan, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until melted and combined.

2. Whisk egg yolks in a medium bowl, and, whisking constantly, add some of the hot milk mixture to the egg yolks until combined. Whisk the mixture back into the saucepan, and cook, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes.

3. Remove from heat, and stir in coconut and pecans. Cool completely, and refrigerate in an airtight container until ready to use, up to 2 days.

Chocolate ganache icing
1. Chop chocolate roughly using a serrated knife; place in a large heat-proof bowl.

2. Bring cream to a boil over medium-high heat; pour directly over chopped chocolate. Allow to sit 10 minutes. Use a rubber spatula to gently stir chocolate and cream until well combined and smooth. Let sit at room temperature until cooled and just thickened, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes, but up to an hour depending on the temperature of the room.

Assembly
1. Spread 1/3 of filling over the bottom layer, and invert the second layer onto the top, covering layer with another 1/3 of filling. Repeat with layer three and top with nicest cake layer, leaving the smoothest side up. Press down gently on top layer to evenly distribute filling layers to edges. Using a metal spatula, smooth filling flush with sides of cake. Refrigerate until ready to glaze.

2. Pour enough ganache glaze over cake to fully coat, shaking pan gently to help spread ganache if necessary. Let sit for 15 to 20 minutes. The ganache in the pan may be melted and strained through a fine sieve and added back to glaze. Pour remaining glaze over torte, allowing excess to drip off sides. If top is not smooth, gently shake pan or run an offset spatula quickly over surface. Allow to set at least 30 minutes before serving. Carefully slide the cake off of the wire rack and onto serving platter.

After-Thoughts:

* based on a Martha Stewart recipe

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