German Chocolate Cake Bites

So it's been a while since I've posted.  As some of you know, I have been making cake bites lately.  I'm working on my "coating" skills.  I made some last week, and they were delicious--chocolate cake bites with white chocolate icing.  I made them for my dad for his birthday (which was 3 days before Father's day).

Now I want to make cake bites that have unusual flavors, you know like lavender vanilla, etc.  I know a German chocolate cake IS a normal flavor, but it doesn't have a "normal" icing (aka butter cream).  I wasn't sure if the cake bite would work since the icing consistency is different than butter cream; I was worried that the cake mixture would be gooey.  But to my surprise it wasn't; the icing worked perfectly!  And by the way, German chocolate cake is one of my favorite cakes (only because I absolutely love the icing).

Before chocolate coating

After chocolate coating

This recipe calls for semi sweet chocolate, but I used German chocolate instead; after all, it wouldn't be a "German" chocolate cake without it.  That's the whole reason why it's called German chocolate cake, not because it originated from Germany (not sure if you knew that or not).  This cake turned out wonderful; it was super moist!  Crumbling the cake in my hands was pure heaven!

Finished product!

The finished product cut in half

German Chocolate Cake Recipe:
4 oz semi sweet chocolate, chopped (I used German Chocolate)
2-1/4 cups cake flour
3/4 cup unsweetened  cocoa powder (Dutch processed)
1-1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup hot coffee or boiling water
1 cup buttermilk
1-1/4 unsalted butter, room temperature
2-1/4 cups granulated white sugar
5 large eggs
1-1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Coconut Pecan Frosting:
1-1/4 cups pecans
1 cup evaporated milk (can also use light or heavy cream)
3 large egg yolks, lightly beaten
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/8 tsp salt
1-1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

German Chocolate Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place rack in center of oven.  Butter, or spray with a nonstick vegetable spray, and line with parchment paper, three- 8x 2 inch deep round baking pans.  Dust with flour.

In a heatproof bowl, placed over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate.  Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.

In a separate bowl, sift the flour, cocoa powder ,baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, combine the coffee and buttermilk.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, or with a hand mixer, beat the butter until smooth and creamy.  Add the sugar and continue beating until the mixture is fluffy (this will take about 3-5 minutes).  Scrape down the sides of bowl.  Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing mixing well after each addition.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed Add the vanilla extract and beat to combine.

Add the coffee/buttermilk mixture and flour mixtures in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.  Beat only until the ingredients are incorporated.  Fold in the melted chocolate.

Divide the batter evenly among the three prepared pans and smooth the tops.  Bake for about 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the tops spring back when lightly pressed.  Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool for about 20 minutes.  Butter or lightly spray a wire rack with a non stick vegetable spray before inverting the cakes onto the rack to prevent the cakes from sticking.  Cool the cakes completely before frosting.

Coconut Pecan Frosting: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Place the pecans on a baking sheet and bake for about 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned and fragrant.  Remove from oven, let cool, and then coarsely chop.

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, milk, egg yolks, butter and salt.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, and when the mixture begins to boil and thicken, remove from heat.  Stir in the chopped pecans, coconut, and vanilla extract.  Let cool until spreadable.

Recipe: The Joy of Baking

Cake Bites:

Crumble the baked and completely cooled cake; once cake is completely crumbled add about 1/2 batch of icing (I add about 1/2 cup at a time) or more to the cake and mix with spoon until cake and icing are well blended.  The cake/icing mixture will be "mushy".  This is why the cake is so moist and how it keeps it shape.  Shape cake mixture into balls--I use a small ice cream scoop for equal sizing--and place on parchment paper on baking sheet.  Once shaped into balls, put them in to the refrigerator to cool for a couple of hours.

Heat candy melts (these come in a large variety of colors & you can buy them at Michaels) or chocolate bark 30 seconds at a time.  I used some vegetable shortening to thin it out because the chocolate melt was a little thick to use.  Dip cooled cake bites in melted chocolate (deep bowl) and place on baking sheet with wax paper on it.  You can put chocolate covered cake bites in refrigerator to help cool faster.

Store in an air tight container.  I've found if you store them in the fridge they will last longer!

Happy Eating!!

In the Yard

It's almost the official beginning of summer, and it's hot!  It feels like summer has been here for over a month, and it's only going to get hotter.  Yes, I'm glistening just writing about this (Southern girls don't sweat; we glisten).  Even though it's still hot, I'm finding myself wanting to be outside as much as possible.  What I really want to do is work in the yard, and since we live in a rental, yard work isn't really what there for us to do.  I want to plant flowers and work in the garden.

So since I'm craving to work in the garden, I thought I would post some photos of beautiful gardens I've found that inspire me.  Enjoy and happy planting!

How cute is this?  It's a playhouse; photo: Traditional Home

I'm in love!  Photo: Architectural Digest

Love the colors; Photo from Traditional Home

Quaint little cottage

Cabbage Roses-I think I want these in my future garden; Picture from: Velvet & Linen Blog

Chicken Stir Fry

What's for dinner at your house?  Tonight we had chicken stir fry, and it was delicious!  I love making this; it's so easy.

The prep work takes a little time slicing and chopping the veggies and chicken.

Chicken Stir Fry:

• 4 Chicken breasts or cutlets (I used cutlets b/c I already had some)
• 1 cup broccoli florets
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 5 medium carrots, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced
• 1 green bell pepper, sliced
• 1 yellow pepper, sliced
• 1 tbsp ginger paste
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
• 1/4 cup oyster sauce
• 2 tbsp. rice wine vinegar
• 4 tbsp sesame oil, divided
• 1 tsp cornstarch
• hot chili oil to taste
• 2 tbsp vegetable oil

1. Cut chicken and place in bowl; add the cornstarch, 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce, and 2 tablespoons sesame oil.  Mix well.  Place wok on eye and put on medium-high heat; add chicken.  Remove chicken once cooked and place on plate; cover with aluminum.  
2. Add all vegetables and ginger paste to wok.  Mix vegetables and add soy sauce, oyster sauce, and rice wine vinegar and mix again.  
3. Add chili oil to vegetables and let cook for about 5-7 minutes; add chicken and it's juices to vegetable mixture as well as sesame oil.  Mix well.

Serve with steamed rice.

Happy Eating!

Sprinkles Stawberry Mini Cupcakes

The other dessert I made for the Cline's party was strawberry mini cupcakes.  It was nice being able to use fresh strawberries.  Strawberry cake/cupcakes is (are) one of my favorite cake flavors (just ask my sister).

I personally like strawberry cake with cheesecake icing, but I decided to go with a traditional strawberry butter cream icing with these minis.  And they tasted great...they are from the bakery Sprinkles recipe.

So here's the recipe.  Happy Baking & Happy Eating!

Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Butter Cream Icing:
Cake:

• 2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. coarse salt
• 1/4 cup whole milk (I used 2%), room temperature
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 large egg whites, room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 12 cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.
2. Place strawberries in a small food processor; process until pureed.  You should have about 1/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary or save any extra puree for frosting; set aside. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.  In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and straberry puree; set aside.
4. In a bowl of an electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy.  Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy.  Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.
5. With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended.  Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended.  Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl wiht a spatula, as necessary, until just blended. 
6. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups.  Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake until tops just dry to touch, 20-25 minutes.

Icing:

• 1/2 cup whole frozen strawberries, thawed
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold
• Pinch of coarse salt
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 
  

1. Place strawberries in the bowl of a small food processor; process until pureed. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons strawberry puree (save any remaining strawberry puree for another use); mix until just blended. Do not over-mix or frosting will incorporate too much air. Frosting consistency should be dense and creamy, like ice cream.

Recipe: Sprinkles' Cupcake Bakery

Red Velvet Cake Bites

Red velvet cake bites & strawberry mini cupcakes

My friend had an event at her Hair Salon (Cline's Salon in the Vista) the other night, and I wanted to help her out.  So I offered to make red velvet cake bites and mini strawberry cupcakes with strawberry butter cream icing.  The red velvet cake bites were a huge success!  They were gone pretty quick; the cupcakes did pretty well too, but the bites were the winner.  Unfortunately the only photo I have is the one from the event.  Next time I'll take one close up.

I decided to make the cake bites the day before the event because I wasn't sure I'd have enough time to make both the cake bites and mini cupcakes in one day (which is what ended up happening).  This was the first time I'd ever made red velvet cake before, and for those of you who don't know, red velvet cake is not any easy cake to make.  The challenge is to make it as moist as possible while still tasting great.  So when I made it the first time, it was horrible--so salty and blah.  I'd never made a cake that tasted that bad before.  The recipe was a little strange for red velvet because it called for a large amount of cocoa and salt and it didn't have vinegar in it.  I thought I'd try the salty cake with the icing and chocolate coating to see if the sweetness of those would maybe balance it out---NOPE!

So the day of the event, I made a different recipe for red velvet, Paula Deen's Grandmother Paul's red Velvet Cake.  You know Paula has good dessert recipes, and you also know that they are more than likely high in fat. :)
This cake turned out so wonderful; I've never made a cake so MOIST, LIGHT, and SPONGY in my entire life!!  It was absolutely beautiful...I could've cried I was so excited!  I can't wait to make this cake again.

Grandmother Paul's Red Velvet Cake:

• 2 eggs
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 tsp. cocoa
• 2 ounces red food coloring
• 1/2 lb (2 sticks) butter
• 2-1/2 cups cake flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tbsp. vinegar

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  
• Beat eggs; add sugar.
• Mix cocoa and food coloring.
• Add butter and egg mixture; mix well.
• Sift together flour and salt.
• Add flour and salt to creamed mixture alternately with buttemilk.
• Blend vanilla
• In a small bowl, combine soda and vinegar and add to mixture.
• Pour batter into three 9-inch rounded greased and floured pans.  
• Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until tests done.

Recipe: Paula Deen, The Lady & Sons Savannah Country Cookbook

Cake Bites:
Crumble the baked and completely cooled cake; once cake is completely crumbled add about 1/2 batch of icing (I add about 1/2 cup at a time) or more to the cake and mix with spoon until cake and icing are well blended.  The cake/icing mixture will be "mushy".  This is why the cake is so moist and how it keeps it shape.  Shape cake mixture into balls--I use a small ice cream scoop for equal sizing--and place on parchment paper on baking sheet.  Once shaped into balls, put them in to the refrigerator to cool for a couple of hours.

Heat candy melts (these come in a large variety of colors & you can buy them at Michaels) or chocolate bark 30 seconds at a time.  I used some vegetable shortening to thin it out because the chocolate melt was a little thick to use.  Dip cooled cake bites in melted chocolate (deep bowl) and place on baking sheet with wax paper on it.  Once chocolate has cooled place cake bites in refrigerator.

I'll post the recipe for the strawberry cupcakes next.

Happy Eating!