Cream Cheese Pound Cake

I'm not going to even beat around the bush with this one. You NEED to make this recipe. Period. Seriously, scroll down right now to the recipe, take out the ingredients that need to be at room temperature, then come back. I'll wait.

But in all honesty, this is probably the most delicious pound cake I've ever eaten. It has the most heavenly texture and taste, and my days of being jealous at the amazing tight crumbs that all the store-bought pound cakes have are over. And of course, it's a snap to put together and uses ingredients that are always on hand (well, in my case I had to buy cream cheese since I don't like the stuff unless it's used to make some kind of dessert, but I'm assuming the rest of you guys generally keep it on hand, right?) You don't taste the cream cheese, but what it does, along with a large portion of butter and whipping of the batter, is gives the pound cake an amazing light-as-air, velvety, melt-in-your-mouth texture. And the flavor? Perfect of course. The recipe called for both vanilla and almond extracts, but I just wanted to pure vanilla flavor, so that's all I added and I wouldn't have it any other way. To sum it up, the search for the perfect pound cake is complete. I shall stall no longer. Here's the recipe. Take it and make it. You know you want to.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake (adapted from smitten kitchen)
Makes one 10-inch tube cake or two standard loaves

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, at room temperature
• 3 cups sugar
• 6 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups cake flour (NOT self-rising; if you don't have cake flour on hand, substitute 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons cornstarch for every 1 cup of cake flour)
• 1 teaspoon salt
  

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly butter a 10-inch tube pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper. Alternately, you can use a two 9x5 or 8x4 inch loaf pans. (I used 9x5 and just buttered, didn't need the parchment paper.)
2. Place the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy, at least five minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the vanilla, then the flour and salt all at once. Beat just until incorporated. (I also sifted my flour three times, just to lighten it and produce an even better crumb.)
3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and shake lightly to even out the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean, 1 1/4 hours. (The loaves take less time, only about an hour.)
4. Place the pan on a cake rack and cool for 20 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

Daring Bakers August 2010: Ice Cream Petit Fours

So, I'm posting late this month for the Daring Bakers Challenge. Sorry about that! As I mentioned in the MBCC post, I've been quite busy with school and work here recently, so I haven't had as much time to bake as I usually do. From here on out, I would say to expect less posts, and also less pictures. Believe it or not, it actually takes quite a while to write up one of these posts and to post as many pictures as I do, and I just can't do it anymore. I won't be gone completely, of course, but as I said, just expect less posts and photos. Anyways, on to this month's DB challenge! When I first found out what we'd be making, I have to admit...I was a little disappointed. Ice cream again? I mentioned last DB challenge that I didn't have an ice cream maker, and so I just have to settle with putting the base in the freezer and mixing it until it freezes. And that still is the case.

The ice cream tastes good, but because I don't have a machine churning the ice cream and breaking up the ice crystals for me, the ice crystals remain rather large, so the ice cream's just not as smooth and creamy as it should be. So that was a little disappointing. However, this was the first time making petit fours for me, so I was still looking forward to it and the brown butter pound cake sounded absolutely heavenly. The challenge this month actually included a baked alaska as well, however, we could do both or just choose one, and so I chose the petit fours. As expected, the brown butter pound cake was indeed heavenly! And with 19 tablespoons of butter (brown, amazingly nutty and caramely butter!) in it, I should certainly think so! It was a snap to put together and the pieces of cake I sneakily ate when I was leveling it were absolutely delicious. I could have stopped right there and been thoroughly happy with the challenge this month. However, I proceeded onward to cut the cake in half, add the ice cream and then eventually the chocolate glaze.
As you can see, I took a much easier way out on the chocolate glaze. I covered one of the petit fours completely in chocolate and it took a surprisingly long time! With 24 more petit fours to cover, I thought that there had to be an easier way! And so I thought I'd just put some chocolate on the top and let it drip over the sides in an icicle like way and it'd still be efficient and pretty. So overall...the end product was...good. However, the freezer kind of dried out the cake a little bit, which was the best part of the petit four (though that was probably my fault for not covering the entire cake in chocolate). And they're a little hard to eat. The chocolate on top gets very hard in the freezer which is hard to bite through and overpowers the rest of the flavors a little bit. And if you hit the ice cream wrong when you're biting through it, it gives you the chills! All in all, I'm left a little disappointed this month... However, I most definitely WILL be making the brown butter pound cake again, and this time just enjoying it plain, because it was simply out of this world!

Ice Cream Petit Fours
Makes 25 petit fours

For the brown sugar ice cream: (From Dishing Up Delights)

• 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 1/2 cups whole milk (I used 2%)
  
• 3/4 cup (packed) dark brown sugar, divided (I used light since that was all I had, but definitely use dark if you have it...it'll add better flavor)
  
• 1/2 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
• 6 large egg yolks

Directions

1. Combine heavy whipping cream, whole milk, and 1/2 cup sugar in heavy large saucepan. Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; add bean. Bring cream mixture to simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
2. Meanwhile, whisk yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in large bowl until very thick, about 2 minutes.

3. Gradually whisk hot cream mixture into yolk mixture. Return mixture to saucepan. Stir over medium heat until custard thickens and thermometer inserted into custard registers 180°F, about 3 minutes (do not boil). Strain custard into large bowl set over another bowl of ice and water. Cool custard completely, stirring often, about 15 minutes. Cover and chill overnight.

4. Process custard in ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer ice cream to container. Cover and freeze until firm, at least 6 hours and up to 1 day. (If you don't have an ice cream maker like myself, follow David Lebovitz's instructions here.)

For the brown butter pound cake: (adapted from Gourmet October 2009)

• 19 tablespoons unsalted (sweet) butter
• 2 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before measuring)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F and put a rack in the center. Butter and flour a 9”x9” square pan.
2. Place the butter in a 10” skillet over medium heat. Brown the butter until the milk solids are a dark chocolate brown and the butter smells nutty. (Don’t take your eyes off the butter in case it burns.) Pour into a shallow bowl and chill in the freezer until just congealed, 15-30 minutes.

3. Whisk together cake flour, baking powder, and salt.
4. Beat the brown butter, light brown sugar, and granulated sugar in an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well, and then the vanilla extract.

5. Stir in the flour mixture at low speed until just combined.

6. Scrape the batter into the greased and floured 9”x9 square pan. Smooth the top with a rubber spatula and rap the pan on the counter. Bake until golden brown on top and when a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes.
7. Cool in the pan 10 minutes. Run a knife along the edge and invert right-side-up onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

For the hard chocolate glaze: (from allrecipes)

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter
• 10 (1 ounce) squares semisweet chocolate

Directions

1. Chop the chocolate into small pieces. Combine chocolate with butter in the top of a double boiler, over simmering water. Stir frequently until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Cool to tepid before glazing the petit fours.

Assembly:

1. Line a 9”x9” pan with plastic wrap, so that no sides of the pan are exposed and so there is some extra plastic wrap hanging off the sides. Spread 1 ¾ to 2 cups ice cream into the pan. Cover with more plastic wrap and freeze several hours.
2. Once the brown butter pound cake has completely cooled, level the top with a cake leveler or a serrated knife. Then split the cake in half horizontally to form two thin layers.
3. Unwrap the frozen ice cream. Flip out onto one of the layers of cake and top with the second layer of cake. Wrap well in plastic wrap and return to the freezer overnight.

4. Trim ¾” off each side of the ice cream cake to leave a perfectly square 7.5” ice cream cake. Cut the cake into twenty five petit fours, each 1.5”x1.5”.

5. Glaze the petit fours one at a time: place a petit four on a fork and spoon chocolate glaze over it. (Or be lazy like me and just let the chocolate drip over the sides.)
6. Place the petit fours on a parchment-lined baking sheet and return to the freezer for one hour.

The August 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Elissa of 17 and Baking. For the first time, The Daring Bakers partnered with Sugar High Fridays for a co-event and Elissa was the gracious hostess of both. Using the theme of beurre noisette, or browned butter, Elissa chose to challenge Daring Bakers to make a pound cake to be used in either a Baked Alaska or in Ice Cream Petit Fours. The sources for Elissa’s challenge were Gourmet magazine and David Lebovitz’s “The Perfect Scoop”.

Microwave Yellow Mug Cake

It's been quite a while since I last posted, hasn't it? I apologize for that. I actually haven't been doing a lot of baking here recently, and when I have, they've been things I've already blogged about (like applesauce quick bread and Levain copycats...yum!). But now here I am with a new recipe. This one is as quick and easy as it gets when it comes to making sweets. I'm sure most of you have heard of the microwave mug cake by now. The chocolate one seems to be the most common one made. I've made it before a couple of times myself. But in all honesty, I was never too impressed with it. Sure, it was quick and easy to make, however, the texture was awfully rubbery and dense and the flavor just couldn't make up for it. I often ended up drowning it in a chocolate glaze just to make it edible. It wasn't horrible, but it was far from great. Just recently I got to thinking about it again and then thought, 'What about a yellow cake instead?' But could it end up being any better? I certainly think so!
The truth of the matter is, a cake made in the microwave will never be better than one made in the oven. EVER. However, this one is actually pretty good for being made in a microwave. After thinking about a yellow microwave mug cake, a quick search led me to this recipe, and it was the one I went with. The texture still wasn't perfect, however, I thought it was better. It produces a very dense slightly spongy cake that can only be expected since it's made in the microwave. However, the flavor was great, and paired with my go-to chocolate buttercream, it definitely satisfied my sweet tooth! Don't skimp on the flavoring is my advice. I used both vanilla extract and vanilla butter & nut flavoring (which is why my cake is extra yellow, since the flavoring contains yellow food coloring in it). It says just a dash in the recipe, but definitely go with at least a 1/2 teaspoon if you're using vanilla. Or if you're using a stronger flavored extract, adjust accordingly, but as I said, don't skimp! I'm looking forward to trying coconut and almond extracts in the future! Oh, and of course, be sure to use a really large mug. Here's the one I used compared to a normal sized mug.

Microwave Yellow Mug Cake (adapted from momoften's recipe on grouprecipes.com)
Makes one miniature cake that's actually big enough to share with 1 or 2 other people...however, if you want it all for yourself, I won't tell. ;)

Ingredients

• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 4 tablespoons (1/4 cup) sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
• dash salt
• 1 egg
• 3 tablespoons milk or water
  
• 3 tablespoons oil
• dash vanilla extract (or whatever flavoring you like)

Directions

1. In a small bowl, place the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt and mix until combined.
2. In another small bowl, whisk together the egg, milk or water, oil, and extract. Pour into the dry ingredients and whisk until combined.

3. Spray a small amount of nonstick cooking spray into your mug and pour the cake batter in. (You can actually do this whole process in the mug if you don't want to dirty extra dishes. Just don't spray any cooking spray in it, then proceed to mix your dry and wet ingredients right in the mug.) Microwave for 2 1/2 to 3 minutes. (I only cooked mine for 2 1/2...I think the less you cook it, the less spongy it will be...just don't undercook.) Don't be alarmed if the cake at some point rises above the top of the mug. It will sink back down when you turn the microwave off.

4. Remove from the mug and enjoy warm or allow it to cool and frost with your favorite frosting. (I used my go-to chocolate buttercream that I also used to frost almond cupcakes.)
   

Daring Bakers July 2010: Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake

In my infinite knowledge (har har), I accidentally almost posted this yesterday! That wouldn't have been good, ha ha. I think I was just a bit frazzled. A huge storm came through my area on Sunday and knocked out my power, and my power didn't come back on until yesterday, 23 hours later! It was a rough bit, and I'm very glad that I made this ice cream cake a couple weeks ago, otherwise it most likely would have melted. Anyways, now that my confusion has been cleared up and I am indeed posting on the correct day, it's time to tell you about this month's Daring Bakers challenge. This is only my third DB challenge, but it was probably one that I was most excited for. I was a little worried at first, because I don't have an ice cream maker (though really want one), but I read that the poster of the recipe had made this recipe without one, so I was quite relieved. Like last time, all of the parts were very easy to put together, but this time, luckily nothing went astray!
This was the first time I've ever made a rolled cake. I was definitely a bit nervous. I still couldn't see how I could roll the cake without it breaking in two. But when the cakes came out of the oven, I certainly saw how! They were very spongy and pliable, and rolled up just fine. However, when they were cooled and I unrolled them to spread them with cream, surely enough, they were quite raggedy and slightly coming apart. Aha, but I said nothing really went astray, right? That's right. When I rolled the cakes back up with the cream, they certainly didn't look very pretty, but when I sliced into them and lined the bowl with them, they looked perfectly fine and nice (well, they could have been nicer, but not too bad for a first-timer). Woohoo! After that, everything went pretty quick and easy. Well, I say quick, but I mean putting them together. There was a lot of down time while making this, though. I assume if you had an ice cream maker, it would probably go a heck of a lot faster for you. Because I didn't have one, I used a method where I just put the ice cream bases in the freezer and as it froze, I took it out every once and a while and beat it with a wooden spoon. Though I have to admit I got a little slack...the ice cream took several hours to freeze totally! But I was happy to do it. Oh, and the hot fudge sauce? Probably the easiest, and very yummy!
So how did it taste? Very, very good! This is probably the most satisfied I've been with a DB challenge so far. In terms of taste, I think maybe the croquembouche was my favorite by just a slight hair, but the Swiss roll ice cream cake was delicious and much better looking than my croquembouche, so it wins for now. My only complaint would be that my favorite part of the cake was the one thing that there seemed to be the least amount of: the chocolate ice cream. Of course, Sunita, the daring baker who provided the challenge, did give us free reign on ice cream flavors, so I guess I'm to blame for that one. So I encourage you to give this recipe a try and don't be afraid to change up some of the flavors. There is lots of downtime, but it's certainly worth it in the end!

Swiss Roll Ice Cream Cake (inspired by the Swiss roll ice cream cake from Taste of Home; recipes developed by Sunita of Sunita’s world – life and food)
Makes 1 large cake

For the swiss rolls:

• 6 medium sized eggs
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 5 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons boiling water
• extra caster sugar or powdered sugar for rolling
• oil for brushing the pans

For the cream filling:

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 vanilla bean, cut into small pieces (or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract)
• 5 tablespoons caster sugar

Directions

1. For the cake: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Brush two 9x11 inch baking pans with a little oil and line with greaseproof baking paper (okay, I looked and looked for 9x11 inch pans, but I'm just not sure if they sell them in the US, so I baked mine in an 8x11, which was the closest I could find). If you have just one pan, bake one cake and then let the pan cool completely before using it for the next cake.
2. In a large mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar and beat till very thick; when the beaters are lifted, it should leave a trail on the surface for at least 10 seconds.

3. Add the flour mixture, in three batches and fold in gently with a spatula. Fold in the water.

4. Divide the mixture among the two baking pans and spread it out evenly, into the corners of the pans. Place a pan in the center of the preheated oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes or till the center is springy to the touch.

5. Spread a kitchen towel on the counter and sprinkle a little caster sugar (or powdered sugar) over it. Turn the cake on to the towel and peel away the baking paper. Trim any crisp edges. Starting from one of the shorter sides, start to make a roll with the towel going inside. Cool the wrapped roll on a rack, seam side down. Repeat for the next cake as well.

6. For the cream filling: Grind together the vanilla pieces and sugar in a food processer till nicely mixed together. If you are using vanilla extract, just grind the sugar on its own and then add the sugar and extract to the cream.

7. In a large bowl, add the cream and vanilla-sugar mixture and beat till very thick. Divide the cream mixture between the completely cooled cakes.

8. Open the rolls and spread the cream mixture, making sure it does not go right to the edges (a border of ½ an inch should be fine). Roll the cakes up again, this time without the towel. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill in the fridge till needed, seam side down.

For the vanilla ice cream:

• 2 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 vanilla bean, cut into piece or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

Directions

1. Grind together the sugar and vanilla in a food processor. In a mixing bowl, add the cream and vanilla sugar mixture and whisk lightly till everything is mixed together. If you are using the vanilla extract, grind the sugar on its own and then and the sugar along with the vanilla extract to the cream.
2. Pour into a freezer friendly container and freeze till firm around the edges. Remove from the freezer, beat till smooth and return to the freezer. Do this 3-4 times and then set completely.

For the hot fudge sauce:

• 1 cup caster sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1 1/2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. In a small saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch and water.
2. Place the pan over heat, and stir constantly, till it begins to thicken and is smooth (for about 2 minutes).
3. Remove from heat and mix in the butter and vanilla. Keep aside to cool.

For the chocolate ice cream:

• 2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 1 cup caster sugar
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder

Directions

1. Grind together the sugar and the cocoa powder in a food processor.
2. In a saucepan, add all the ingredients and whisk lightly. Place the pan over heat and keep stirring till it begins to bubble around the edges.

3. Remove from heat and cool completely before transferring to a freezer friendly container till firm around the edges. If you are using an ice cream maker, churn the ice cream according to the manufacturer’s instruction, after the mixture has cooled completely.

4. Remove from the freezer, beat till smooth and return to the freezer. Do this 3-4 times and then set completely.

Assembly:

1. Cut the Swiss rolls into about 20 equal slices (approximately 1 inch each).
2. Cover the bottom and sides of the bowl in which you are going to set the dessert with cling film/plastic wrap. (I used my 4.5 quart Kitchen Aid bowl...it's about 8 1/2 inches in diameter and 6 1/2 inches deep.)
   
3. Arrange two slices at the bottom of the pan, with their seam sides facing each other. Arrange the Swiss roll slices up the bowl, with the seam sides facing away from the bottom, to cover the sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze till the slices are firm (at least 30 minutes).

4. Soften the vanilla ice cream. Take the bowl out of the freezer, remove the cling film cover and add the ice cream on top of the cake slices. Spread it out to cover the bottom and sides of the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and freeze till firm (at least 1 hour).
5. Add the fudge sauce over the vanilla ice cream, cover and freeze till firm (at least an hour).
6. Soften the chocolate ice cream and spread it over the fudge sauce. Cover with plastic wrap and freeze for at least 4-5 hours till completely set .
7. Remove the plastic cover, and place the serving plate on top of the bowl. Turn it upside down and remove the bowl and the plastic lining. If the bowl does not come away easily, wipe the outsides of the bowl with a kitchen towel dampened with hot water. The bowl will come away easily.
8. Keep the cake out of the freezer for at least 10 minutes before slicing, depending on how hot your region is. Slice with a sharp knife, dipped in hot water.

The July 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Sunita of Sunita’s world – life and food. Sunita challenged everyone to make an ice-cream filled Swiss roll that’s then used to make a bombe with hot fudge. Her recipe is based on an ice cream cake recipe from Taste of Home.-

Chocolate Birthday Cake with Strawberry Filling

In my last post I mentioned that I've been baking like crazy here recently since I had two birthdays to prepare for plus the Daring Bakers challenge, so here's the cake from one of the birthdays. One of my close friend's birthday was just recently and I was delighted when I asked her if I could make her a cake and she said yes! I was a little nervous about making the cake and picking out the perfect recipe. I certainly didn't want to disappoint my friend, especially on her birthday! She at first told me that she just wanted a cake with strawberries in it, but after prodding her for more information, she finally decided on a chocolate cake with chocolate frosting and strawberry filling. "Great," I said! I'm not sure if I've mentioned it before, but I have a strawberry patch in my backyard. It's not very big, there aren't multiple rows or anything, but it's substantial enough to put my family into strawberry mania during the summer. So of course, I turned to my backyard for the strawberries, which was great.

I think I went through multiple cake recipes before I finally settled on one. I decided that I wanted to make a three layer cake, and finally thought of this cake that I've seen members of the baking group "The Cake Slice Bakers" bake before. Again, I was nervous. Mayonnaise? Blegh, I hate the stuff. But I've seen it in multiple cake recipes before and everyone always says that it's not detectable at all and makes the cake extremely moist. So I had to put my faith in it. The filling stayed simple and easy, by just cutting up strawberries from my backyard and mixing them with some sugar and layering them in. For the frosting, I wanted to go with possibly my favorite type of American buttercream: a chocolate frosting that uses melted unsweetened chocolate in it. American buttercreams can be extremely sweet what with all the powdered sugar in them, but by adding the unsweetened chocolate, it seems to negate the sweetness and just leaves you with a delectable, chocolatey frosting. I saw this recipe on Smitten Kitchen, and snagged it immediately.

So...was the cake okay? Yup! It was great and was very well receieved! Here is myself heaving a sigh of relief. The cake was, as promised, very moist, soft, and chocolatey, the frosting was perfect, and the strawberries went well with the cake. My friend was happy, so I was happy. (Also, apologies for not having a picture of the inside. I didn't want to impose on my friend's birthday cake, ha ha.)

Triple-Layer Chocolate Cake (from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne)
Makes 3 9-inch cake layers

Ingredients

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (my friend isn't a fan of cinnamon, so I omitted)
• 2 1/2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1 cup milk
• 1 1/4 cups hot, strongly brewed coffee
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup mayonnaise (not low fat or fat free)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups sugar

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottoms and sides of three 9-inch round cake pans. (I actually only have two 9-inch cake pans, but used a 9-inch springform pan as my third, and it worked out just fine.) Line the base of each pan with parchment paper. (I HIGHLY suggest you do this. I didn't have any and so I sprayed and floured my cake pans but the cakes were quite difficult to get out [though still came out in one piece]...so use parchment.)
2. Sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.
   
3. Place the chopped chocolate in a large, heatproof bowl. (I would suggest one that has a spout.) In a small saucepan, bring the milk to a simmer. Pour the hot milk and coffee over the chocolate. Let stand for a minute, then whisk until smooth. Let the mocha liquid cool slightly.
4. In a mixer bowl, beat together the eggs, mayonnaise, and vanilla until well blended. Gradually beat in the sugar.
   
5. Add the dry ingredients and mocha liquid alternately in two or three additions, beating just until smooth and well blended. Divide the batter among the three prepared pans.
6. Bake for 25 to 28 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out almost clean. Let the cakes cool in their pans for 10-15 minutes before unmolding onto a wire rack and carefully peeling off the paper. Leave to cool completely.

Instant Fudge Frosting (from Smitten Kitchen)
Makes about 5 cups, enough to frost and fill a 3-layer cake. I only made half of this recipe, and it was just enough to frost the outside of the 3-layer cake, so keep that in mind.

Ingredients

• 6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
• 4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 sticks (1 1/2 cups) unsalted butter, softened (I used salted)
• 6 tablespoons half-and-half or whole milk (I only ended up using 1 tablespoon in my halved version, which would be 2 tablespoons for this full recipe)
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Directions

1. Place all of the ingredients in a food processor (I just used my stand mixer) and pulse until incorporated, then process until the frosting is smooth.
   
   

Strawberry Filling
This is only an estimate, as I didn't really measure anything.

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 cups chopped, fresh strawberries
• 2-3 tablespoons sugar

Directions

1. Place the chopped strawberries in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the sugar, to taste, over the strawberries and stir to coat. Allow the strawberries to sit for a few hours in the refrigerator to allow the natural juices of the strawberries to come out.

To assemble the cake:

1. Situate pieces of parchment paper in a circle around your cake stand or serving plate. Place one layer of the cake on top of the parchment. Put half of the strawberries on the layer, being careful not to place them too close to the edge. Lay the second cake layer on top of the first.
   
   
2. Place the second half of the strawberries on the second layer just as the first, and then top with the final layer. Press down slightly to make sure the cake is secure.
3. Frost the sides and top of the cake, and then if desired, run your knife or spatula under hot water and use it to smooth the frosting. (I like a rustic look, so I didn't do this.)
   
   
4. Pull the parchment straight out to leave a nice, clean edge. Decorate your cake as desired and serve. The cake is best eaten the day it is made (due to the strawberries).
   

Quick Coffee Cake

I'm getting better, slowly but surely. Thankfully, the sore throat is gone, but now comes the stuffiness and congestion. But as I said, I'm slowly pulling through, and the sickness wasn't enough to keep me out of the kitchen. I baked this up the other day when I got a craving for it for breakfast. (And made sure to wash my hands multiple times, of course.) This coffee cake is super great, and really lives up to its title "Quick." I looked for a coffee cake recipe a long time ago, but all the recipes I found included yeast or sour cream, which are two things I never have on hand. But finally I came across this recipe, found that it was composed of ingredients that are always on hand, made a couple of changes based on reviews, and voila! I found my go-to coffee cake recipe.

I find that a lot of store bought coffee cakes are quite tough, but this cake is nice and moist and soft. The cake itself is not too sweet, so it's a great base for the sweet and buttery brown sugar cinnamon topping. Usually when I make this cake, the topping melts into the cake a little bit and doesn't look too attractive, but this time it stayed in a nice and even layer without sinking in. I guess it's just the luck of the draw. Either that or it somehow knew that I would be taking its picture this time, ha ha. If you're in need of a quick breakfast, this cake is prepared and baked up in basically the same amount of time muffins are made and baked. Or, if you want, you could probably even make coffee cake muffins out of this!

Quick Coffee Cake (adapted from Allrecipes)
Makes 1 8x8 or 9x9 inch cake

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• slightly rounded 2/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup butter, cold and cut into pieces
  
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Grease and flour an 8 or 9 inch square pan. (I used 8 inch...it'll produce a thicker cake.)
2. In a large bowl, mix together the 1 1/2 cups of flour, baking powder, white sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a pastry blender until the butter is the size of peas. (You can also do this with a stand mixer or a food processor for ease. I always use my stand mixer and the butter is incorporated in no time.)
3. In a separate, small bowl, mix together the egg, milk, and vanilla. Add the egg mixture to the flour and butter mixture all at once. Blend just until combined. Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan.
4. In a small bowl, mix together the melted butter, brown sugar, 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, and cinnamon until crumbly. Sprinkle evenly on top of the cake.
5. Bake the cake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (If you're using an 8 inch pan, start checking at 20 minutes. If you're using a 9 inch, start checking at 15.)

Chocolate Cake with Caramel Frosting

It's my dad's birthday finally, so here's the cake I've been talking about! :) I actually did end up baking something between the Strawberry Muffins and now, but they disappeared before I had a chance to blog about them! But I'll definitely be making them again and blog about them then...because they're chocolate chip cookies, they're delicious, and they're LIGHT! Yup, a delicious, better for you cookie. But for now, back to the cake.

This is possibly my favorite cake, and it's my dad's favorite too! The cake recipe is my go-to chocolate cake. It's incredibly moist, one of the moistest I've ever had, delicious, and best of all, it's a one bowl cake! All you have to do is put all the ingredient in a bowl and mix for about 30 seconds and bam, it's ready to go! It's actually so moist that I accidentally overbaked it slightly and it was still good and moist! And the frosting is just to die for! The only drawback to the frosting is that it's kind of gooey, and so it ends up running a little bit down the sides of the cake. Both of these recipes are from allrecipes, and some of the reviewers for the frosting said that they added some powdered sugar to make it more spreadable, but the flavor is so perfect by itself that I would hate to add sugar and make it too sweet! So instead just pop it into the refrigerator until the frosting sets and it's completely fine (just make sure to take it back out of the fridge after it sets, because if you leave it in too long, the frosting will get grainy). Anyways, on to the recipes!

Go-To Chocolate Cake (Adapted from allrecipes)
Makes one 9x13 inch cake (or a 2-layered 9 inch cake)

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup cold brewed coffee
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. (I put a parchment paper round into 2 9-inch cake pans and then buttered the paper rounds as well as the side. Unless you have cake pans that have at least 2 inch sides, I wouldn't suggest using 8-inch cake pans because the cakes really rose to the top of my 9-inch ones).
2. In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in the eggs, coffee, buttermilk, and oil. Mix just until smooth. (Cake batter will be really thin, so don't freak out!) Pour into prepared pan/pans.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes (only about 25-30 for 9-inch pans), or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans and then remove and cool the rest of the way on cooling racks.

Caramel Frosting (Adapted from allrecipes)
I upped the frosting just a little bit and it made a nice thick layer of frosting. I'll put the original measurements in red.

Ingredients

• 3 cups plus two tablespoons packed light brown sugar (2 1/2 cups)
• 1 1/4 cups heavy whipping cream (1 cup)
• 1/2 plus 1/8 teaspoon baking soda (1/2 teaspoon)
• 10 tablespoons butter (1/2 cup [8 tablespoons]) (I used salted butter and I think that's really important for this recipe. If you don't have it, I'd put about a teaspoon of salt in)
• 1/4 cup chopped pecans, optional (I don't like nuts in my frosting, so I omitted)

Directions

1. In a large, heavy saucepan, combine the brown sugar and heavy cream and bring to a rolling boil. Boil one minute. Add the baking soda and boil one more minute. Remove from heat and add butter but DO NOT STIR!! Let the mixture cool (I store in the refrigerator).
2. Beat the mixture well with an electric mixer. Stir in pecans, if desired. (If your frosting is still really runny, store in the refrigerator until it thickens up some. It will still ooze slightly. If it starts running on your cake, as I said, store the cake in the fridge just until set and then take it out so that the frosting doesn't get grainy).

Then frost the cake and enjoy! =)