Busy Bakers

These last few months our house has been under construction, which, as far as I can tell, consists primarily of periods of violent demolition, followed by extended periods of silence, followed by even longer periods of desperate phone calls to absent contractors.

In all the chaos of tarps on the furniture, clothes in the office, pets in the bathroom, and dust absolutely everywhere, we've somehow still managed to bake.

My birthday was last month (some days I feel 30, other days closer to 90, but the real number is somewhere in between), and my first confectionery request of the Piemaker was this Mocha Espresso Cream Pie.

It looks like a lot of cream, but it's really just the camera angle...

Another great recipe from Southern Living - this one was in the Thanksgiving issue!

We have made a lot of chocolate pies. A LOT! But we think this is the best so far. The chocolate filling is a pudding, so it is not as rich as a ganache torte nor as dense as a chocolate silk or satin pie, but it actually has more chocolate flavor, somehow. I broke my rule of not putting cream on pie, because in this case the whipped cream is flavored with Kahlua, and definitely adds more than just calories to the plate.

Since we ate it so fast I forgot to get a shot of a pie slice, here's Southern Living's elegant version:

source

Next, I was intrigued by the concept of the Hummingbird Cake. It's a Southern tradition with mysterious roots. If you ask 20 people who invented it or where it came from, you'll get 20 different answers. I still don't know why it is called Hummingbird Cake - it is a heavy spice cake containing bananas and pineapple. It is layered with the standard cream cheese and butter frosting.


neatly layered and decorated by the Piemaker

This cake is incredible: rich, sweet, fruity, nutty, and just overall delicious. Definitely worth a try: recipe here. Ours had a very strong banana flavor that overpowered the pineapple, so next time we will adjust the proportions of the fruit slightly.  

Happy Birthday to me!

After recovering from all that overindulgence, I developed a craving for almond cakes, which seems to be an annual thing (see 2012 and 2013). My DSIL (who is highly sympathetic to my love of cakes and pies) sent me a lovely new cookbook called Bake It Like You Mean It, by Gesine Bullock-Prado. After reviewing the various almond-based recipes and the price of almond paste (!!!), I decided on "The Very Best Almond-Pear Bee Sting" cake.

Let's first recall that I rarely follow directions, whether for sewing, gardening, cooking, or baking. Thus, when I saw that I should poach two pears in white wine, I decided to poach them instead in a combination of water and port, rather than go to the store for wine. (In case you're wondering, port-poached-pears are DELICIOUS!) When the recipe stated that I would be making 8 mini-Bundt cakes, I ignored it and instead made one full-sized cake.

All patched up - you'd never guess the top fell apart

And finally, when the weight of the pears made the top of the cake fall off, and I had to patch it up, I decided to top the cake with almonds and honey rather than the smooth sugar icing called for in the recipe.

Delicious pears hidden inside

So why is it called a bee sting? I think it is supposed to be because there is honey in it, but it's also interesting to note that both almonds and pears are pollinated by bees.

Here's my version:

Almond-Pear Bundt Cake

Adapted from Bake It Like You Mean It

Pears 1 ½ cup water ½ cup port ¼ cup brown sugar 2 Bosc pears, cored and sliced   Cake 1 7-oz tube almond paste ½ cup sugar 1 cup unsalted butter ¼ cup honey ½ tsp almond extract 1 tsp vanilla extract 6 eggs 1 cup cake flour ½ tsp baking powder ½ tsp salt   Topping ½ cup toasted sliced almonds ¼ cup honey

Poach pears: Combine liquids and sugar in a saucepan, bring to a simmer. Add pear slices and simmer until tender. Remove pears to a plate and allow to cool.   Bake cake: In a mixing bowl, combine almond paste and sugar and chop with knife or pastry cutter until pebble-sized.  Use hand mixer or stand mixer to beat mixture at medium speed until almond paste is smooth.   Add butter, honey, and extracts and beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating thoroughly and scraping down sides of bowl.   Sift together flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl. Slowly add flour mixture to cake batter and beat just until well combined.   Lightly butter or oil a Bundt cake pan. Pour ½ of the batter into the pan. Place the pear slices into the batter. Add the remaining cake batter.   Bake at 325 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes, until golden brown. Allow cake to cool for 30-40 minutes, enough to loosen slightly from the sides, before inverting onto a plate.   Top it: Warm the honey slightly so it pours easily. Drizzle a small amount on the top of the cake to help the almonds adhere.   Sprinkle the almonds over the top, pat gently if necessary. Pour the remaining honey over the almonds and cake.

 

At least we have no shortage of calories to get us through the construction chaos.

 

Have you discovered any good recipes recently?

 

Katrina