If you’ve been wondering whats going on with me, its pretty much explained in the intro post. Its not a food blog, but sometimes there may be food talk! If you read this blog for the stories anyways, the new blog will DEFINITELY have plenty of those.

Check it out! Tell your friends!

 Faeried Treasures- Blog!

I’ll be updating frequently, so.. yeah. You know you wanna.

http://faeriedtreasures.etsy.com

Click the banner!

Unfortunately, due to recent illness and lifestyle change, I’ll no longer be updating this site. It’ll remain online for a little while longer, but i wont be posting, and I wont be responding to your recipe inquiries.

With regret,

-A.

I own a bunch of the books, I have some of the stuffed animals, I even have the Green Eggs and Ham cookbook. Though I’m grateful there is no photographic evidence, about 10 years ago I was even a starbellied sneech for Halloween.

A few years later I followed up with a much more impressive Seuss inspired costume, dressing up as Daisy-head Mayzie. Still no photographic evidence (thank goodness)…

But ever since I can remember, my favourite Dr. Seuss story has always been Horton Hears a Who.

Though I could wax poetic as to my reasons, I think mostly I just really like elephants, and I think Horton is a really cute name for an elephant. Maybe a really cute name for any animal, except possibly the zebra finch I owned a few years ago that I named Horton. He was cute, but annoying. I don’t think that bird could have stopped chirping long enough to hear much of anything, let alone a who.

As the years have passed, I’ve been able to read and understand the words and stories written by Dr. Seuss for more than just face value. There are more complex stories behind the cutesy made up words and tongue twisters.

“A person’s a person, no matter how small.”

The moral of the story is that everyone matters. No one is insignificant, and no matter who you are or how small you are, you’re important and needed.

The only thing is, when I was a kid… the point was lost on me.

I was too wrapped up in what a beezlenut was, and wondering why the Wickersham brothers were so mean, and trying to figure out how horton was able to talk, being an elephant and all.. and why did the eagle drop the clover in the field full of clover, and why couldn’t anyone hear the whos besides Horton!?

I was a bit of a worrywart as a kid I think. All of that to think about, and I totally didn’t catch the hidden meaning.

Now that I’m older, I appreciate the story. I understand the story.

…and I’m totally excited about the movie coming out. SRSLY? Horton hears a who on the big screen? Awesome.

Now all that has to happen is a decent version of the Lorax, you know.. given that the environment is a really big deal, and everyone is “going green” The Lorax would totally fit in with that.

Anyways..

Taking inspiration from the story and motivation from the feature film being released on the 14th of this month, I decided today to make some special cookies.

Not just Horton Hears a Who- Cookies, but Horton Hearts a Who- Cookies.
After all, it takes quite a big heart and a lot of love to do that much for something you cant even see.

I made them to resemble the little clover that Horton placed Who-ville on, and then worked his hardest to save and protect throughout the entire story.

They’re super simple to make, and they would be a really fun way to let the kids get involved in a fun baking project by letting them do the dipping and dunking!

I baked a batch of coconut shortbread and when they cooled, I dipped them in white chocolate and then into coloured dessicated coconut.

They taste delicious, too.

And they’re even good without the added coconut and white chocolate-

They’re a nice, buttery, crisp but chewy coconut infused cookie.

Delicious!

-A.

Click for the recipe-

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A couple years back, I got my first job working at a bakery in a grocery store.

Well, it wasn’t my “first job”, but it was the first time I’d worked in a bakery environment outside the classes I’d taken during college. They hired me without giving me a tour of the facilities. Actually, originally I wasn’t even hired to work in the bakery. I was hired to work as a cashier. Luckily, I didn’t even work one day on the register. A strange turn of events made the management take a second look at my work experience and resume, and after learning that I’d taken classes in “pasty arts”, they decided to give me a chance working in the bakery.

Anywho, lets just say, all the old bitties that worked in the bakery up until then? Yeah. They didn’t like me too much. Working in the bakery was like some sort of elite social club, and I wasn’t welcome. Management may have invited me, but that didn’t mean that my new co-workers wanted to play nice.

I started out working the closing shift.
The closing shift in the bakery is sort of like working as a janitor, only the first half of the day you spend finishing someone elses job, then when you get that done, you clean it all up. Then the last half of your job is getting everything ready for the people who come in and do the actual baking, and then you have to clean up after yourself. When you have extra time, you take cake decorating orders, help the bread packagers, keep up with the demand for hot french bread (which I’m pretty sure is a standard program in most grocery stores, but in ours, we had to do this every hour on the hour from 1pm until 7pm) and be ready to slice bread for anyone who asks.

Being the newbie, I was always left the crappy jobs and the cleanup. I always had to wait until everyone else had gone to break before I could go, and same with taking my lunch. Often times, I would get stuck washing the floor while my co-workers went off for an extra break. It just wasn’t much fun.

If you’re lucky, the cake decorators will ask you to “ice cupcakes”, which basically means take the cupcakes, set them all up in the little plastic clamshell containers, fill a giant pastry bag with white buttercream icing, and do the signature grocery store swirl of icing before sprinkling on some sprinkles and closing up the packaging. Not exactly the most creative work, but trust me, it was a nice break from washing floors, dishes and countertops.

After a while working the closing shift, I discovered that there was an open position working 1am until 10am, making the donuts. I jumped at the chance, and once in this position, I LOVED my job, and I loved the shift.

You see, when I get to work by myself, I can get into my groove and get things done, and fast. Eventually it got to the point where I was able to start spending some quality time decorating the donuts, beyond just adding sprinkles. I had fun at it, and it was a nice creative outlet.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to continue in that shift. I’m one of those people that isn’t meant to be awake all night because I can’t sleep during the day. A trip to the hospital and a doctors note later, I was back on closing shifts, but with a twist in my favour. During the year that I’d been working the early shift, they had hired new people to work the closing shift. I was now “the old bitty”, and they were now the newbies.

Once my personal life had leveled out (and I’d started sleeping again), it didn’t take long to get to where I was icing cupcakes more and more often. Then, one of the cake decorators decided to give me a chance to decorate a cake. This was AWESOME. To be completely honest, I’d never had complete creative freedom over cake decorations before. In the pastry arts class, I learned “classic” techniques, but not the fun stuff, like airbrushing patterns, creative lettering, creative detailing… All that I knew of that stuff was what my mom had taught me when I was younger. What happened that day was wonderful. I had been handed a cake, shown the tools I needed to decorate it, and given the chance to do something creative and fun.

…I don’t think I have to tell you this, but… It was horrible.

My swirls looked like lumps, my twirls like bumps. My pink airbrushing ended up brown, and I learned that there is such a thing as TOO MUCH filling.

I was very fortunate that they were patient with me… and probably didn’t expect as much out of me as I did.

A week later, I was promoted to cake decorator. It was an earlier shift, I had more contact with customers, and at first, I was more of a sales person than a decorator, which was fine because it gave me time to learn.

One of the first things that I learned, was from a customer.

That morning I had come to work around 10am. The girl who worked the shift before me was really busy, and asked if I would restock the showcase out front. I went to the refrigerator and got out the cart full of stuff to restock it with.

There is just something about a girl wearing an apron out front of the bakery in a grocery store, pushing a cart full of fresh pastries that just works like a magnet for all people, and thats exactly what happened. I was swarmed. A few older women tried to haggle with me about the price of a pie, an old man made a joke and asked if any of the “sweet things” behind the counter wanted to go home with him. We all giggled while he picked out a donut and shuffled off to his wife who was standing in the freezer section.

I handed out a few free cookies to some small children, and thats when it happened.

There was a crazy old lady wearing much too much perfume and gold coloured jewelry holding a red velvet cake awkwardly over her head with one hand, her other holding her reading glasses at an angle so she could read the ingredients on the bottom of the package.

“Miss…. Oh MISS!!!! I have a question!” she chirped in a birdlike tone.

“Yes Ma’am? How can I help you?” I responded, probably sounding as unenthusiastic as I felt.

Her perfume nearly sucked the air out of my lungs. I knew this woman. Why did I know this woman?

“Did you make this cake?” She barked, lowering the cake and glaring at me.

“Well, no Ma’am. Did you have a question about it? Is there something the matter with it?” I asked, a little worried that she would point out something the matter with the cake and demand a discount.

My mouth filled up with the taste of floral and spice, but not in a good way. Her stale perfume tasted like my childhood best friend’s great grandmother, who despite being on oxygen insisted on wearing a layer of perfume thick enough that it was almost visible. Her name was Laura, and to her, I was Amie’s “fat friend” who ate all the twinkies, even though I’d never eaten a twinkie at her house in my life. In fact, the twinkie eater was Amie’s little sister Nichelle, but being a sneaky little twit, she blamed it on me, and it stuck. I swear that old woman blamed me for those missing twinkies until the day she died.

This was not the same old woman.

“Can you tell me, Miss, what is a ‘red velvet’ cake?” her eyes seemed innocent and slightly mischevious as she questioned me.

OH CRAP.

I wanted to blame it on the fog of perfume and aspercreme which encased her, but my brain went completely blank. What is a red velvet cake? HOLY CRAP! Can anyone tell me what a red velvet cake is? ANYONE?!!

The answer today, is no.

Despite working with 3 other capable cake decorators, some of which have been on the job for 10+ years, no one would come to my rescue. I was on my own.

As I searched my brain for the answer, I realized it had been too long since she asked the question. I still hadn’t responded. I’d been standing there like an idiot for probably 30 seconds without a word. I decided to keep thinking, and STALL.

“Um.” I sounded like a genius.
“Um… Well… Its a unique cake.” I stumbled.

“Would you like to try it?” I asked, trying not to make it sound too obvious that I had no idea what I was doing.

“No, I’m looking for a cake for my husband, and we want something old fashioned. This looks old fashioned. Is it old fashioned? What flavour is it?” She added to her list of demands.

“Well, uh…” Then it hit me. My memory was starting to come back. I may have had no idea what it tasted like, but I vaguely remembered something I’d seen on food network a few years prior, about red velvet cake being made with bittersweet cocoa and sour cream.

“Its made with bittersweet cocoa and sour cream!” I shouted, not intentionally, but it just sort of slipped out in my “outside voice”.

Taken slightly aback, the woman looked at me. She squinted.
“Yes, but is it old fashioned? Is it a chocolate cake? Why is it red?” Her list of questions grew.

“Um, I do believe it is an old fashioned cake. Yes, its a chocolate cake, but it doesn’t taste ‘chocolaty’ so much as the added cocoa powder makes the flavour richer. The sour cream adds a tangy flavour. The red is just food colouring, and I have no idea why it is there other than to make it look pretty.”- I had no idea where that came from, but I said it.

“hmm.” she hummed. There was an audible pause.
“Hmmm… I don’t like chocolate cake.” she said.

Then without a look, she sat the cake on the counter, turned around, grabbed her cart and left. Only the smell of her perfume and the sound of her flip flops remained.

I looked over at my co-workers, who had by this time gathered around the area where I stood, and they laughed.

“She comes in here probably once a week and does the same thing each time.” one of them piped up.

They laughed more. I giggled a little, but I had wished I hadn’t been in that situation. I really had forgotten about the red velvet cake. That old, fragrant, inquisitive little woman taught me that I need to always know my product, AND, that I can’t please everyone.

A long time has passed since I worked at that bakery, and I learned many more things before my time was up there. Nothing quite has stuck with me quite as well as that woman though, and her red velvet cake.

So what IS a red velvet cake?

For the record-

Red Velvet cake is a southern recipe for a mildly chocolate flavoured cake, known for its distinctive dark red or reddish brown colour. Some of the ingredients in this cake include sour cream, buttermilk, cocoa powder, and a large quantity of red food colouring, though some recipes use beets or beet juice in place of this as a more natural ingredient.

In James Beard’s 1972 book American Cookery, three kinds of red velvet cake are described, all with varying amounts of butter and shortening. All of them use red food colouring for the colour, but it is mentioned that the reaction of acidic vinegar and buttermilk turns the cocoa a reddish brown color. Also before more alkaline “Dutch Processed” cocoa was widely available, the red color would have been more pronounced. This natural tinting may have been the source for the name “Red Velvet”.

Red velvet cakes seemed to find a home in the U.S. South and reached peak popularity in the 1950’s– just before a controversy arose about health effects of common food colorings.

Here’s the thing, Most people know of red velvet cake topped with its signature cream cheese icing. Actually, through all my internet searches, it seems as though very few people are willing to switch up this paring, other than omitting the icing all together. Since I’m not willing to do that (I love icing), I decided to try something slightly different, and maybe use the red velvet cake’s tang and mild chocolate flavour to enhance another delicious flavour-

Cherry.

Yep. I made red velvet sweet cherry cupcakes.

Then I filled them with a mixture of cocoa, cream cheese, powdered sugar and maraschino cherries and cherry juice.

Sort of a Lord Baltimore cake filling in a red velvet cake.

What I ended up with, was nothing short of delicious.

Stop me before I eat another!
-A.

Click for the recipe-

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I had it pointed out to me this morning that my vegan pudding recipe is the same as one posted on a PETA website. I was not aware of this, and insist it is purely an awkward coincidence. I’m sorry if this has offended anyone (as it has apparently offended this commenter, who accuses me of copying it) but I didn’t mean to cause any problems. I’ve never even heard of or seen the website they accuse me of stealing it from, before.

Here is a link to the PETA website where the same recipe exists- *CLICKY*  

I would, however, just like to make note that also on this “recipe” site, there is a “recipe” for vegan grilled cheese sandwiches.  I hardly think that anyone who’s ever said they created a recipe for vegan grilled cheese should be accused of stealing it from this website. The truth is, the internet is a big place. With so few ingredients, someone is bound to have an identical recipe, somewhere. 

Unfortunately, if you’ve ever had the *ahem* pleasure, of hearing the Banana phone song, you’re probably wanting to kill me right now, because it’s already gotten stuck in your head.

Sorry.

Anywho,
Rather than sit and discuss at length the social ramifications of this song… I’ll talk about something else.

Bananas are seriously one of the best fruits on the planet, aren’t they?

You can use them as a base for smoothies, fruit soups, ice cream, puddings, or you could just eat them by themselves.

You can use them as part of a dessert, or a savoury dish. They’re just that delicious.

I have always loved bananas. I even nicknamed my little sister “Nanner Chunk”… Though there was a period of time there where she REALLY didn’t like that nickname, at 14 years old (oh god I’m old), she’s come around to where she appreciates her unique nickname.

For me, a really classic pairing for bananas, is chocolate.

Back when I was a kid, I had this totally awesome kids cookbook with all sorts of neato kid friendly recipes in it. This cookbook really was one of those things that really sparked my interest in cooking. It was called “Kids Cooking: A very slightly messy manual”

Inside the book, it had a recipe for “Frozen bananoids” which were frozen, peeled bananas on a stick, dipped in melted chocolate and then rolled in all sorts of things from M&M’s to toasted coconut.

I LOVED THIS RECIPE.

Not only could I make it with very little effort or work (gimme a break, I had a hard time concentrating as a child) but who doesn’t love a little fruit with their candy? Chocolate, Candy sprinkles and a little banana? Delicious.

…though really, I know one of the biggest reasons I loved this recipe was that there were little cartoon Penguins on the page around the recipe, and I love penguins. This recipe had the penguin seal of approval, and so it gained mine as well.

Truth be told, I don’t think I made very many of the other recipes in the cookbook. My mom sort of didn’t like me being in the kitchen because I had a tendency to make messes and either clean them up at the last second, or not clean them up at all.

So making brownies wasn’t exactly something I did very often.

But she was totally cool with me freezing bananas. I don’t think she really was very fond of me dipping them in chocolate, but I tried to keep that part as under wraps as possible. Sneaky frozen bananoids was the name of the game.

Anywho, since then, I’ve done a lot of banana/chocolate combos. Mostly banana and Nutella sandwiches (OH DEAR GOD YES), but also banana and melted chocolate, or banana and chocolate ice cream.

And of course, today’s treat, Banana Chocolate pudding.

… I couldn’t pass up the chance to make a vegan version of it. Ever since last year when I really found that chocolate and tofu were really a tasty combo, I’ve played around with it, adding different things… and after much trial and error, I’ve created a really delicious Vegan pudding.

Vegan Chocolate Banana Pudding recipe-

1 banana
2 cups silken (soft) tofu
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/3 cup sugar

Process in a blender or food processor until smooth. Chill for at least one hour before serving. Top with Dried Banana Chips.

Its also super easy to make, which is awesome.

So I made myself a tasty little nostalgic snack, that, while not quite as rich as a chocolate dipped frozen banana, still tastes really good.

-A.

Especially for a holiday, and especially for my husband.
This year, however, the alien flu got me, and I was so sick on Valentines day, I passed out on the couch and when I did come to, I was barely able to enjoy the special dinner that my wonderful husband had prepared for the two of us.

So since I wasn’t up to it on the 14th, Tonight I made my husband and I a special dessert.

Mini chocolate tortes filled with cocoa cream cheese, with a little drizzle of chocolate syrup, a dollop of whipped cream and a strawberry.

They were super simple to make, and really pretty tasty.

Also, they’re mini, so if you’re like me, and when faced with a whole chocolate cake, you feel the urge to shove the entire thing in your mouth, swallow, and smile as though no one noticed your little diet indiscretion, its handy for portion control. *smile*

I am super stoked about how huge and pretty this latest batch of strawberries at the supermarket. They’re still not as tasty as Oregon strawberries, but they’ll do until summertime.

I used THIS recipe for Chocolate cake (note, I did not use the glaze or peppermint filling recipes)

Instead of using round cake pans, I used 2 half sheet jelly roll pans that I buttered and floured. Only pour in about half an inch of cake batter, then bake at 350 for about 5 minutes. Check with a toothpick to make sure its done, allow to fully cool before cutting. (This recipe yielded about 10 mini tortes. I haven’t assembled all of them, but I plan on making them half sized, 2 layers instead of 3+ heart topper, and having my husband bring them to work on Monday.)

The chocolate cream cheese filling is simple, but will make enough to fill quite a few mini tortes, or fill a large cake. It freezes well, and if kept in an airtight container, will keep for a few months in the freezer.

You’ll need-

1 8oz package of cream cheese
1 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 lb powdered sugar
About 1/2 cup whipping cream

In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter and cream cheese until fluffy.
Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
Add the powdered sugar while the mixer is on low speed. Add cocoa powder.
At this point, the mixture will be crumbly. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.
Add the whipping cream, slowly, while the mixer is on low speed. As the mixture begins to gather together and form a mass, turn up the speed to medium. You may need a little more or a little less whipping cream to achieve this. If you do not have whipping cream, you can use milk, but you’ll need a lot less of it, and the filling will not be as fluffy. Still tasty though. *smile*

Once it starts looking like a creamy batch of lightly chocolate flavoured filling, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl to be sure there are no chunks of cream cheese that are not mixed in. Beat on medium high or high for about a minute or so, until fluffy. Spoon into ziploc bags and chill until ready to use.

To assemble the tortes, just use a 3inch round cookie cutter to cut layers of cake, and pipe a little of the filling between each layer. Plate with chocolate syrup, whipped cream and a strawberry, and there you go!

If you don’t have a cookie cutter, just cut squares with a sharp knife. Or you can use a different shape cookie cutter if you like! have fun with it!

In the meantime- More photos!

If you missed the link above, I really do recommend reading my true story of how I ate an entire German cake as a small child. Heh. Its good reading!

-A.

It was one of my very first work days at this particular bakery in town, and a customer asked if we sold king cakes. Considering myself a big fan of the baked good, I was totally surprised that there was a form of cake that I hadn’t heard of before, so when she said “king cake” I had no idea what she was talking about. I asked the customer for a description, but it didn’t sound like she had much of an idea either, saying instead that it was a request made by someone else, and she was just shopping.

At first, no one on my shift even KNEW what a King cake was. A few of my co-workers thought maybe it was “king sized” meaning it was just a really large cake, and another one thought maybe it was like a grooms cake. After a few hours, we just forgot about it and moved on.

I don’t think I ever thought about a king cake for another year or so… That was when Hurricane Katrina hit.

I remember hearing about hurricane Katrina, and just feeling powerless. I didn’t know anyone from any of the areas affected by hurricane Katrina, but still. I donated to the charities, I led a fundraiser at my work. Luckily no one I knew was affected, but we all just felt so bad for those who were.

About three months after Katrina came and went, I gained two new coworkers. Sisters that relocated from Louisiana.

Meeting them, you’d never have known what they had just gone through. These were some of the most beautiful, kind, energetic and exciting women to be around. They perked up our little bakery and made everyone excited to go to work every day.

In the two years since I started working there, we’d gained another co-worker, who I didnd’t know was from Louisiana as well. The three of them became fast friends, and when they planned a Mardi Gras party, and I was lucky enough to be invited.

When I asked what I could bring, in addition to the “bring some booze” suggestion (in your early 20’s its to be expected) They asked if I could bring some cupcakes, or a dessert or something. I remember one of the sisters said “I’m making the king cake, so don’t worry about that.” and I just laughed it off, kind of embarrassed since she said it like it was something so commonplace.

I wasn’t sure if they wanted me to just bring something from the bakery or if they meant for me to make it at home, and being a cake decorator I was kind of used to taking cake decorating orders, so I asked them “how would you like me to decorate the cake” and they said “with lots of green and gold and purple, and maybe put like a cutout of a baby on it or something.”

Now, I was confused.

“Let me get this straight, you want a baby on your Mardi Gras cake?”

The oldest of the sisters, the one who mentioned that she’d be making the king cake, she got a good laugh at that one. I was so confused though. “Why a BABY?”

“You know, like the baby tucked into the king cake?” she said, as though I had only suffered a momentary lapse of reason, and at any moment I’d pop back and say “Oh, thats right. I don’t know where my head was.”

But that didn’t happen.

They both began a very animated explanation, complete with hand gestures and diagrams scrawled on the back of a very long receipt one of them had tucked in their purse, of what a king cake is, and why having a baby on a Mardi Gras cake makes perfect sense.

A king cake is a round brioche filled with a cinnamon, sugar, and pecan mixture, drizzled with a thin icing and sprinkled with sugar sprinkles in gold, green and purple. After baking, it is tradition to tuck a little plastic baby into part of the cake, and whoever finds the baby in their piece is King!

Apparently, the baby is symbolic of the baby Jesus, and the king cake is shaped like a Kings crown. The colours of the sugar even have meaning- Purple for Justice, Gold for Power, and Green for Faith.

A kings cake is traditionally eaten anywhere between Epiphany (three kings day) on January 6th, and Mardi Gras. Its a tradition kept by people all over the world, but in the US, really is only common in Louisiana and the surrounding states.

King Cake

For the Brioche:

1 Envelope Active Dry Yeast
2 Tbsp Warm Water (115 degree F)
1 tsp Iodized Salt
2 Tbsp Granulated Sugar
1/4 Cup Milk
2 tsp Orange Zest, minced
2 Cups Flour, sifted
1 tsp Cinnamon
2 Eggs, beaten
1 1/4 sticks cold butter, cut into cubes

1 Egg beaten and 2 Tbsp water, for the egg wash
purple, green and yellow sugar sprinkles
1 plastic baby trinket

Dissolve the yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment, let stand until frothy.
Dissolve the salt, sugar, orange zest and milk in a small bowl. When dissolved combine the milk mixture with the yeast mixture. Mix the cinnamon with the flour.
With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, then gradually add the flour, until all is incorporated. Knead on low speed for 10 minutes, or until a smooth elastic dough is formed. A little more flour may be necessary. With the motor running, incorporate the butter into the dough, a little at a time but rather quickly so that it doesn’t heat up and melt.
Turn the dough into an oiled bowl, loosely cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 hour in a warm spot.
When the dough has doubled in bulk punch it down, cover and place in the refrigerator overnight.

Roll the dough out to a 6 x 18 inch rectangle. Spread the Pecan filling (recipe below) out in the middle of the rectangle along the whole length, leaving about 1 1/2 inch on each side. Fold the length of the dough over the filling and roll up tightly, leaving the seam side down. Turn the roll into a circle, seam side down and put one end inside of the other to hide the seam, and seal the circle. Place the cake on a baking sheet and let rise, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Before baking, brush the entire king cake with the egg wash.
Place the king cake into the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown.

When the cake cools, tuck the baby trinket into the cake through the bottom. Drizzle the top of the cake with the icing and sprinkle with the coloured sugar in stripes.

Place on a large round serving plate and decorate with Mardi Gras beads, doubloons and whatever else that you like.

For the Pecan filling:

1 Cup Pecan pieces
1/4 cup butter
2/3 Cup Brown Sugar
1 tsp Vanilla extract
1 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Ground Allspice

Melt the butter and combine all of the ingredients together.

For the glaze

1/2 Cup Powdered Sugar
just enough lemon juice to form a thin icing suitable for drizzling (a tablespoon or so)

Combine the sugar and lemon juice. Whisk until no lumps remain.

Anyways, in the end I sort of understood why putting a baby on the cake would make sense. I ended up making cupcakes for the party and I put little plastic babies on them. It worked out quite nicely. I also had my first taste of king cake that night, and I thought then what I thought now… Boy, does this taste like a bear claw!

Wait, what’s that?

YOU FOUND THE BABY!

So, you’ve got all weekend to make yourself a delicious King cake, tuck a little plastic baby inside it, and celebrate Mardi Gras in traditional New Orleans style! I know its cliche, but I gotta say it-

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler!

-A.

First, I’d like to say thank you to everyone who wished me well over the past week while I was sick. I spent a week away from my kitchen, but it was a much needed respite.

But the kitchen called! And in more ways than just a shout. A week away from the fridge means strange things start piling up, and strange things start.. well, you know what happens when you leave things in the fridge too long.

Needless to say, I had a stockpile of ricotta that was screaming to get used. Rather than go and buy all new stuff, I decided to go ahead and use the pantry staples for this recipe. Its cold outside, can you blame me for not wanting to go to the store?

And what does one make when they have too much ricotta and a very big sweet tooth?

Sicilian cheesecake.

Its just like regular cheesecake, only completely different. *smile*
Just like the language. So close to Italian, yet so completely different.

Not that I know for personal experience. I’m not Italian or Sicilian. I’m not Greek.. I’m in no way Mediterranean at all, actually, not even by heritage. My family is Irish and German for the most part, although there may be a little sprinkling of Italian in there, since my mom does have beautiful olive toned skin.

..but you wouldn’t know that looking at me. I’m pasty white, cant catch a tan to save my life. I freckle. I have reddish brown hair. I have green eyes.

Still, I have dreams of living on the Mediterranean sea. I see myself dressed in a loose white cap sleeve dress, ballet flats with my hair loose, flowing in the sea breeze. Maybe I’d tuck it behind my ears, or maybe I’d tie it back with a bright red ribbon. I’d ride my Vespa through the towns, delighting in the sounds of the tires against the cobblestone streets.

I’d smile at the people walking along the street. Perhaps an elderly woman with a cane and specticles, wearing a dark coloured sweater over her brightly coloured and festively patterned dress would walk into view and smile back at me. Perhaps an elderly man would tip his hat.

I’d see lovers speaking their special language by fountains, followed by tourists who eagerly snap their photos as souvenirs of such a magical place.

Of course it goes without saying, I would stop at one of the many open air markets and marvel at such glorious goods. Fresh artesian breads, buffalo mozzarella, all the fruits and veggies and meats and just so many delicious offerings. Stopping into a small bakery, tucked between the cannoli and tiramisu, perhaps I’d find one of these-

And I’d buy it, and subsequently eat the whole thing.

…I have a feeling that if I did in fact live anywhere near Italy, after a few trips to “the local bakery” I’d have to trade in my Vespa for a Hoveround, and my cute little cap sleeve dress for something more like a muumuu.

Sicilian Cheesecake

Shortbread pastry *recipe following this one*
3 cups ricotta cheese (1-1/2 lbs.)
1/3 cup sugar
4 eggs, separated
1 tablespoon almond extract
1/4 cup chopped dried fruit (optional) I just threw in a handful of finely chopped dried apricots.
confectioner’s sugarSteps
Preheat oven to 375° F.

Line a deep, 9-inch pie pan with rolled pie pastry.

Force the ricotta through a fine sieve. Mix in the sugar and the almond extract.

Mix the egg yolks one at a time into the ricotta, add the dried fruit, and blend well. In a separate container beat the egg whites until fluffy and stiff, then mix them into the ricotta. Fold together well.

Pour this filling into the prepared (unbaked) pie shell.

Bake in a preheated 375° F. oven for 45 minutes, or until set (for me, this ended up being about an hour). Turn off the oven, open the door, and let the pie cool in the oven for about 20 minutes. Allow to fully cool on a cooling rack before refrigerating over night.

Spread the top with your choice of fruit preserves. I used a low sugar apricot preserve. It only took about a quarter cup to cover the top. dust with powdered sugar and slice to serve.
Shortbread pastry

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup butter
Milk (if needed)

Toss together the flour and sugar. Cut the butter into cubes, and working with one half first, pinch the butter into the flour/sugar mixture as you would for any pie crust. After breaking down the first half of the butter into what looks like corn meal, add the second half of the butter. This should bring the mixture together. If you find that the mixture is still crumbly, add cold milk by the tablespoon until the dough gathers into a ball, but isn’t sticky.

You’ll use about half of the dough for your Sicilian cheesecake, and you can keep the second half in the fridge for up to 3 days. You can roll out the second half and make it into shortbread cookies. Just bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, or until golden brown.

A few things of note about this cheesecake.

It has quite a different texture than typical cheesecake. Ricotta is more granular than cream cheese, so.. the cheesecake retains much of that textural difference. I must say though, it is still quite creamy, and the flavour is so smooth and light. Also, unlike typical cheesecake, this cake is lighter and fluffier, and no where near as dense. I didn’t feel laid out after taking a few bites.

Another thing, this cheesecake isn’t NEARLY as sweet as typical cheesecake. I added the preserves on top because it was almost disturbingly UN-sweet. This is definitely something you could make for someone who isn’t a fan of sweets, but still would like a dessert. A little dark chocolate sauce, and you’re set.

Also, the top of the cake will crack. This is fine. When the cake cools, the top of the cake will shrink more than the base, so the sides of the cake will sort of angle inward. Thats normal too. The preserves and the powdered sugar cover all of those sins, so don’t worry about appearances.
I’m actually pretty impressed with this cheesecake. Its not something you’d want to make if you wanted a regular cheesecake, but rather something you’d make if you wanted something a little different.

If you want a regular cheesecake, may I recommend this recipe- The best cheesecake on the planet- because I made it last year, and I’ve made it a few times since, and it really is the best cheesecake recipe on the planet.

This one is pretty darn good too though!

-A.

For appearance sake, they did look like lemons when I first got them, but after sitting in the fridge for a few days, they started turning green in spots, which seemed sort of strange, since, at least in my experience, when things ripen, they tend to turn MORE yellow, not more green (unless they’re molding, but these definitely weren’t molding). Some of the limes were still a spring green kind of colour, but most of them darkened slightly, and were just a few shades more yellow than a regular lime, only they’re bigger.

Anyways, These cupcakes were originally intended to be Pink Lemonade cupcakes, but they ended up being Cherry Limeade cupcakes, which is just fine by me, since I happen to be a bigger fan of limes myself, and being a big lime fan, I always have a couple extra cans of limeade in the freezer.

I also just so happened to have a jar of Maraschino cherries in my fridge left over from the NYE drink-fest.

Anyways, so I thought these cupcakes were pretty cute, so I took a ton of unnecessary photos of them.

…Ok, also, I got a new camera late last week (long story involving crows en masse a set of slippery stairs and my cute, sweet and slightly equilibrium challenged husband) so I’ve been trying to get used to it by taking tons and tons of photos of stuff.

…But come on, they’re cupcakes. Its not like you really mind looking at photos of them. *smile*

Cherry Limeade Cupcakes***:
This recipe should make about 24 cupcakes

3 cups cake flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 cup (2 sticks) butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup + 2 tbsp limeade concentrate
3 eggs
3/4 cup plain yogurt (you can use milk, but I think the yogurt adds a nice TANG! to the flavour.)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Mix together the flour, salt, baking soda and powder and set aside. In a medium sized bowl, cream the butter until smooth then add the sugar and cream together. Once the butter and sugar are creamed add in the limeade concentrate. Mix in one egg at a time. Add in flour mixture 1/3 at a time. When flour is thoroughly mixed, mix in the yogurt. Batter will be slightly lumpy, but should be smooth kind of like pancake batter. Divide the batter evenly into lined muffin tins and bake for about 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool.

Once the cupcakes have cooled, poke a few (5ish) holes in the top of the cupcake, not quite to the bottom of the cake. Mix together the remainder of the limeade concentrate (about 3/4 cup) with about 1/2 cup powdered sugar (You can add more or less, depending on how tart you would like your cupcakes to be I like tart, so I went with about 1/4 cup.) Whisk the mixture well, so there aren’t any lumps. Pour about a tablespoon of the syrup over the holes in the cupcake, slowly, so that the syrup absorbs into the cake. You can add more if you like, just go back over the cupcakes a second time if there is any syrup left.

For the icing I made a standard buttercream, but I used the maraschino cherry juice in place of the milk and vanilla extract. I added a little extra food colouring to the icing to make it even more pink, but you can make it with just the juice and it is still a delightfully pale pink colour.

Keep the cupcakes refrigerated, if only to enhance the flavour. They can be left at room temperature for a day or two once iced, if kept in an airtight container, but I wouldn’t suggest leaving them out any longer. They taste best cold!

I decorated my cupcakes with some white sprinkles, a slice of lime, a maraschino cherry half and a plastic drinking straw, since they are drink inspired.

*** If you want to make what I originally set out to make (Pink lemonade cupcakes rather than Cherry Limeade cupcakes) just substitute lemonade concentrate (or even pink lemonade concentrate if you wish) where I used limeade concentrate, and for the icing, follow the original recipe and use either lemon extract or strawberry extract in place of the vanilla extract.

Oh, and a tip about icing-

If you want really smooth icing, first, make sure your icing is just slightly below room temperature. Warm icing usually turns oozey, and cold icing is usually too hard. After you’ve finished icing your cupcakes, put them in the fridge for about half an hour.

Get a mug of very hot water. Take your cupcakes out of the fridge and working quickly, dip your icing knife into the hot water, remove it, shake it off and very lightly go over the icing again with the knife, pressing with gentle, long, flat strokes from the center of the knife.

Be careful doing this with darker coloured icing, as they tend to streak, and if you have too much water on the knife when you use it, the water will absorb the colour of the icing and drip, leaving a lighter shade underneath it. It may take a little practice, and you might have to perfect your “shake” a bit, but you’ll get to the point where there is just enough water to keep the blade from sticking to the icing, and not so much as to drip all around the cupcake.

If you do notice that there is too much water on your cupcake after you’ve smoothed it out, get yourself a paper towel and lightly touch the edge of the paper towel to the wet spot, and it will absorb the extra water.

I’ve noticed over the years that a lot of people ice cakes with the edge of a knife rather than the center of the knife. Its always best to hold the knife flat and press from the center. Using the edge will just create a scraped, straggly edge and form bubbles in the icing (especially if you’re icing a cake rather than a cupcake.)

But really, the water trick works. Back when I worked in a bakery and iced wedding cakes, that was our little trick for making the icing perfectly smooth.

Enjoy!
-A.

Oh, and don’t worry, I’ll be making some non-cupcake recipes shortly, I just haven’t been feeling so well lately, and cupcakes are.. well.. They’re easy and fun and pretty.

Next week I think I’m going to try making my own version of eclairs and possibly some more “fun with phyllo”…

Ok, so there will definitely be more fun with Phyllo. I love that stuff. Also, fun with puff pastry, though it just doesn’t have quite the same ring to it that “fun with Phyllo” does. hehe..