my first cake

As mentioned in the last post, my wonderful friend who flew down to LA to visit me did not do so empty handed.  She bought me a cookbook called Seriously Simple.  In the first flip through, there was one page that stood out more than the rest… so much so that I had to keep flipping back to it to admire the beauty.  Chocolate Fudge Cake.

We were feeling ambitious during the first half of the day and thought about making dessert in addition to dinner so we went ahead and bought all the ingredients and tools we would need.  None of us were surprised that by the end of the night we simply weren’t up for it afterall.  So the weekend passed and she flew home but I had all these groceries and a new springform pan just waiting to be used.  All I needed was an excuse.  And it came.  Labor Day weekend I went over to my boyfriend’s sister’s place and I cooked dinner for four.  I made filets and potatoes and asparagus (my faithful trio) and all was a success.  But I’ve written about all those recipes before.  This post is about this beautiful thing.

I could be wrong, but until that day I don’t think I had ever made a cake before.  Granted, this cake was borderline brownie (coworkers actually referred to it as brownie after eating leftovers at work the next day) and I have made brownies before, but that isn’t the point.  The recipe says it is a cake, so therefore I have made a cake.  And it was yummy!  If you’re going to try it, definitely do not skip the ice cream, as you really need something to calm down the sweetness.  Plus, right out of the oven hot and right out of the freezer cold, both in one bite… you can’t really beat that.

Chocolate Fudge Cake

cake:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut up

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 teaspoons instant espresso (optional)

1/4 cup buttermilk

1 large egg, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

frosting:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup buttermilk

1 cup confectioners’ sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup chopped walnuts

 

1.  Preheat the oven to 400F.  Butter a 9-inch round springform pan.  In a medium bowl, combine the flour, sugar, and baking soda.  Stir well to blend.

2.  In a medium (3-quart) nonstick saucepan, combine the water, butter, cocoa powder, and espresso, if desired, and stir to blend.  Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until well blended and it just comes to a boil, about 2 minutes.  Gradually stir in the dry ingredients until blended.  Reduce heat to medium.  In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk, egg, and vanilla together.  Add to the batter and mix vigorously for about 1 minute, or until well blended.  Remove from heat and pour into the prepared pan.

3.  Bake for about 15 minutes, or until the top just begins to crack and the center is still slightly moist when pierced with a skewer.  Remove from the oven.

4.  While the cake is baking, make the frosting:  Rinse out the pan used to make the batter.  Add the butter, cocoa powder, and buttermilk to the pan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly until blended.  Add the confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and walnuts and mix to combine.  Remove from heat.

5.  While the cake is still hot, pierce holes all over the top with a skewer and pour the frosting over.  Keep piercing the cake after you have poured over the frosting to create a fudgy interior.

6.  Transfer the cake to a platter and release and remove the sides of the springform pan, allowing the frosting to drip down the sides of the cake.  Let sit for at least 15 minutes, or until the frosting is set.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yeah… good luck letting it just sit there for 15 minutes.  Nom nom nom.

the visit

As you read in an earlier post, I recently (yes, two months ago still counts as recent) had a high school friend come visit me.  Honestly, I don’t think there is a bigger ego boost than to know there are people out there who will pay money for a plane ticket simply to hang out with you for a weekend.  And what do I do to show my love and appreciation?  I put the girl to work.

first night in LA… prep work in my kitchen

last day in LA… prep work in Project Angel Food’s kitchen

Good thing is, the girl likes to chop!  And she is the best prep cook ever in my opinion.  After you read the ingredients/recipe for the dinner we made that first night, you’ll understand why.  It was something I had been eyeing, but there was no way I was going to do all that myself.  This was the final product.

RECIPE COURTESY OF FINECOOKING.COM

Broiled Spiced Flank Steak with Walnut-Roquefort Butter

serves four

2 tsp. cumin seeds
2 tsp. coriander seeds
2 tsp. black peppercorns
1/2 tsp. crushed red chile flakes
1/4 cup olive oil
1 flank steak (about 1-1/2 lb.), trimmed
3 oz. Roquefort, crumbled
4 Tbs. unsalted butter, at room temperature, cut into 2 pieces
1/2 shallot, roughly chopped
1/2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh thyme
1/2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh tarragon
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/4 tsp. coarse salt
2 oz. (about 1/2 cup) lightly toasted walnuts
2 Tbs. thinly sliced chives (optional)

In a small, dry skillet over medium heat, toast the cumin and coriander, shaking often, until fragrant, about 1 min. Let cool. Combine with the peppercorns and chile flakes; grind briefly in a spice grinder (or pound in a mortar until still a little coarse). Combine the spices with the oil and spread evenly all over the steak. Wrap well and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.

In a food processor, combine the Roquefort, butter, shallot, thyme, tarragon, salt, and pepper. Process until smooth and creamy. Add the walnuts and process again briefly, so that the walnuts remain chunky. With a spatula, scrape the mixture onto a sheet of waxed paper or parchment and roll into a log about 1-1/2 inches in diameter. Chill until ready to use.

Heat the broiler. Broil the steak until rare to medium rare, about 8 min. on each side, or until a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat registers 115º to 125°F. Remove from the broiler and allow the meat to rest for 5 to 10 min.

Cut the butter roll into thin slices. Using a very sharp knife, slice the meat across the grain into the thinnest possible slices. Arrange the steak on four heated plates and top with the butter slices. Run each plate under the broiler just long enough to melt the butter. Sprinkle with chives, if using, and serve immediately.

Yeah, that’s right, we made our own butter (well, sorta).  I think all three of us agreed that the blue cheese taste was just too strong, but if you like that kind of thing than this recipe is for you.  Potatoes and asparagus pictured are my go-to recipes and you can find them on this site somewhere as I have made them dozens of times already.

So despite her probably acquiring tendonitis or carpal tunnel syndrome during her vacation, she claims to have had a fantastic time.  Gotta love her.  And, she even brought me presents!  The results of which you will read about in the next post.

Thanks for a truly great weekend, A.  Wish we could have them more often!

two months ago

I made this meal exactly two months ago today.  So long ago that I don’t even remember what the meat dish was called nor where I found it, and therefore I can’t find the recipe anymore.  Just as well though, because the one thing I do remember about it is that I wouldn’t be making it again.  And while I do have the spinach recipe, I am not going to post it because I don’t recommend anyone making that either.  You are probably looking at the picture saying, “holy crap that is a lot of cheese” and you would be right.  I thought the same thing about half way through dumping it on, but the recipe still called for more so I continued.  As I watched the mound of grated parmesan grow I simply couldn’t take it anymore and had to stop.  About 1/3 of what the recipe stated still remained in the measuring cup, but I wanted my greens to taste somewhat healthy.  I should have stopped myself way earlier.  Needless to say the “veggie” side tasted more like cheese than it did spinach.

While we did clean our plates of everything, the only part I would actually consider good were the crescent rolls.  You can find that recipe on the cannister.

dear catherine

On September 1st a person whom I don’t know made a comment on my post awesome recipe recommendation.  Her name is Catherine, and this is what she had to say:

The pics seem ok but to be honest, the food doesn’t look that appetizing at all.Dunno, maybe it’s  the dull lighting.Your blog used to be one of mah faves.Oh well.Glad it tasted good to you, though.

For reference, here are the pictures that were included in that post:

I doubt any of you actually saw this comment because I deleted it as soon as I read it.  Apparently I don’t take criticism all too well.  However, the more I thought about it the more I realized how silly my reaction was.  It was too late to recover the comment at the point of this realization, hence why it now gets an entire post of its own.

So here is the thing, Catherine.  I am not a professional photographer.  I am not even an amateur photographer.  I take pictures of what I make for two reasons.  One, I find blogs with pictures more interesting and entertaining to read.  Two, I dislike recipes that don’t include pictures.  So you see, it would be hypocritical for me not to take and post pictures.  What I should have paid more attention to in your comment is the fact that my blog used to be one of your favorites.  That in itself is a huge compliment.  I thank you and am sorry I lost you as a reader.

Now that being said, why do people say negative things on blogs of people they don’t even know?  Getting comments from “randoms” is exciting and can make me happy for days, but not when they are rude.  What purpose does that serve?