Very Va-Va-Vanilla Cake . . . for our first official "fan"

Here is a easy cake recipe. A friend from high school said she loved the blog!! YAY! Our first official fan!

~ok~ besides you Mother.

So here Lezlee, it's super easy and very light. I save my yolks for ice cream (usually), but creme brulee, custards, flan are also good. . . :) thanks for reading!!

Ingredients

3/4 cup (6 oz.) unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

6 large egg whites

3/4 cup buttermilk

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 vanilla beans, halved lengthwise, seeds scraped and reserved, beans set aside

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Put butter and granulated sugar into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Add egg whites, milk, vanilla extract, and vanilla seeds; mix until combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

Add flour, baking powder, and salt; mix until just combined. Divide batter among prepared pans (non-stick spray the pan, then put a layer of parchment paper, then spray again) until about 3/4 full.

Bake in preheated oven until very light golden brown, approximately 24-27 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack.

Frosting to follow. . . . The cake you see here is going to have a strawberry mousse filling and vanilla bean buttercream.

It's for my girlfriend Maria. It's my contribution for birthday party at the Griffin in Atwater Village on Wednesday night. I haven't seen her for a while, and pretty sure some of my other fellow Chef friends will be there too! Good Times!

I'm thankful for NO TURKEY this year . . .

~Here is the menu~

Rack of lamb with homemade Mint Jelly
Mashed potatoes and lamb gravy
Herb roasted artichokes
Honey Balsamic roasted carrots and parsnips
Dear Abby’s Sweet Potato Pie with Honey Gelato. (I got the Sweet Potato Pie recipe from my grandma's "Burnt Toast" cookbook!)

So on to the jelly . . . .



MINT JELLY
The tarter the apples, the more pectin they have. Use smaller apples, you use a few more, but lots more pectin and your jelly sets quicker!

-4 lbs of tart apples (e.g. Granny Smith), unpeeled, chopped into big pieces, including the cores (including the cores is important as this is where most of the natural pectin is)
-2 cups of fresh mint, chopped, lightly packed
-2 cups water
-2 cups white vinegar
-3 ½ cups sugar (7/8 cups for each cup of juice

Combine apple pieces with water and mint in a large pot.


Bring water to a boil then reduce heat and cook 20 minutes, until apples are soft.

Add vinegar, return to boil. Simmer covered, 5 more minutes.

Use a potato masher to mash up the apple pieces to the consistency of thin apple sauce.
Spoon the apple pulp into a muslin cloth (or a couple layers of cheesecloth) or a large, fine mesh sieve, suspended over a large bowl. Leave to strain for several hours. Do not squeeze. Note that if your mash is too thick, you can add ½ a cup to a cup more of water to it. You should have 4 to 5 cups of resulting juice.


I let mine strain overnight . . . .

Then, measure the juice, then pour into a large pot. Add the sugar (7/8 a cup for each cup of juice). Heat gently, stirring to make sure the sugar gets dissolved and doesn't stick to the bottom of the pan and burn.

Bring to a boil. Cook for 10-15 minutes, using a metal spoon to skim off the surface scum. Continue to boil until a candy thermometer shows that the temperature has reached about 225 degrees, or soft-ball stage. Additional time may be needed for cooking and can be anywhere from 10 minutes to an hour or longer, depending on the altitude, amount of water, sugar, and apple pectin in the mix.

Another way to test is to dip the end of a spoon in the jelly, after a few seconds, take a little with your index finger (WARNING . . . IF YOU HAVE SENSITIVE FINGERTIPS, GET A THERMOMETER!!!!) and rub it in a circle with your thumb, then pull your finger and thumb apart, you should see a "string".

Pour into sterilized* canning jars to within 1/4" from the top and seal.
Makes approximately 6 to 8 4-ounce jars.

*There are several ways to sterilize jars for canning. You can run the jars through a short cycle in a dishwasher. You can place the jars in a large pot (12 quart) of water on top of a steaming rack (so they don't touch the bottom of the pan), and bring the water to a boil for 10 minutes. Or you can rinse the jars, dry them, and place them, without lids, in a 200 F oven for 10 minutes . . . and the coolest thing, is that you don't need the wax anymore!




. . . . now, if Thursday would just get here!

Stay tuned for the Honey Gelato and the rest of dinner!

Cranberry time!

So my girlfriend Allie, (Hi Allie!) gave me these gorgeous cranberries Friday. With it she handed me a recipe she had copied from a cookbook "Duck Creek Cranberry Bread" She claimed it was the best bread on earth. Really?

This morning I decided to give them a try. Only with a twist of course, one batch the original recipe, and then I wanted to make them a little heartier.

Here are the variations:
Duck Creek Cranberry Bread - adapted from Allie's recipe



ORIGINAL VERSION:
1 cup unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
½ cup evaporated milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups raw cranberries, chopped
3/4 cup pecans, chopped



UPDATED VERSION:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
½ cup evaporated milk
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup graham flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon each of cinnamon and nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon each of ginger and allspice
1 ½ cups raw cranberries, chopped
3/4 cup pecans, chopped

Prepare pans by using non-stick spray and parchment paper. Spray, paper, spray . . .
Combine flour and salt (or flours, salt, baking soda and powder, and spices). Set aside.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar (or sugars) at medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at time. Add milk, vanilla, and combine. Add flour mixture and combine on low until blended. Fold in nuts and cranberries.
Portion and bake at 325 degrees until center springs back when touched (from 20 minutes for mini muffins up to an hour for a tube pan).

OLD VERSION:


NEW VERSION:


. . . so both versions are really yummy! The OG version is cakey, eggy, and has strong hints of the vanilla and tartness of the cranberry. The updated version is muffin-like, oaty, and hearty. Also very good. The added spices definitely bring out the graham flavor and I just love how the brown sugar and graham together taste like honey! So, I'd say it is a toss up! Although I am impartial, this was probably my favorite picture of the day!