Valentine's Cake, Strawberry Filling, and Vanilla Bean Ice Creammmmmmmm

White cake recipe number three. I've been testing white cake recipes in hopes to find the most moist white cake ever baked in the history of cake baking.  I'm afraid this is an impossible task.  Recipe number two was very, very moist but I just feel the need to try more recipes. I'm starting to feel like one of those people who never finishes what they started because it's just not good enough.  I have plenty of sewing projects that fill that description.  I won't even mention the yards of fabric purchased that I've glanced at now and again. 

White cake tends to be on the dry side because the majority of egg added to the recipe is in the form of egg whites where as the yolk would add more tenderness/moisture. Also, not to mention color (yellow - if you couldn't figure it out.). Most white cake recipes seem to use cake flour, and other oils/fats are used in place of the majority of butter ( I'd rather have yellow cake, thank you.)

Anyways.....I don't usually share my cake recipes because I'd like to be the one that makes them for you :-). But in this case it's just not ready yet......

This cake is frosted in Swiss Meringue Buttercream. I will tell you that I have never knowingly eaten Swiss Meringue Buttercream.  I'm sure I have had it before since I am a professional cake eater, but it definitely did not have a name.  Same goes for Italian Meringue or French Meringue or a meringue of any other ethnicity.  I certainly am not prejudice, especially in the name of sugar. All I know is that all these meringues must be delicious because I have never met a frosting I didn't like.

So in case you don't know her and you'd like to meet her, here she is.  Friends meet SMB, SMB meet my friends. She is not as sweet as American Buttercream whom we all know and love, but don't let that fool you.  She is created on your stove top; egg whites and granulated sugar heated to a safe 160 degrees.  The mixture is then whisked by your electric mixer until room temperature.  This takes a whole 10 minutes or so. At this point the mixture is a meringue. Or so it should be but I didn't take a picture so...good luck.

Then cool (not cold) butter is added in chunks. I took this picture below and realized that if you were even contemplating a diet of some sort I'd lose you right here.  Not that cake would be in your diet anyways but this definitely looks like an army of butter. I assure you that your best friend, American Butter cream is every bit of buttery as my best friend, SMB so get off your high horse right now.

After an extremely unattractive curdly stage, your SMB becomes a smooth, creamy, dreamy frosting.

It spreads just as nicely as American buttercream. I'd say even better.  If I heat my spatula it will sort of melt the butter into a very smooth finish.  SMB can be a little tricky, but if it doesn't look quite right - don't throw it out, most likely you'll find a fix if you search online or ask me and I'll try to help.

Weird SMB icing consistencies tend to be related to temperature.

I made a couple accompanying flavors to compliment the cake.

Homemade strawberry filling and a vanilla bean ice cream. Strawberry filling is SO easy and quick to make - there is no excuse for buying a can, especially because in my opinion, fresh tastes better.

Strawberry Filling

1. Dissolve 2 1/2 tablespoons of cornstarch in 1/4 cup of water.
2. In a small saucepan add 2 1/2 cups of coarsely chopped hulled strawberries (frozen works too), 1/2 cup sugar, and cornstarch/water mixture.
3. Bring all ingredients to a boil, stirring constantly while crushing berries with potato masher. 
4. Boil a few minutes to thicken and then pour into a bowl to cool completely.

Now this is where I realize that I have many wasted many months between last Mother's Day and today.  Johnny spoiled me last year with the ice cream maker attachment for my Kitchen aid mixer.  I made chocolate peanut butter ice cream and then somehow forgot about this appliance stored in my basement freezer.  I don't even know how that's possible, that chocolate peanut butter ice cream was every bit as good as this vanilla bean ice cream.  

You really just don't know how good vanilla is, unless you've scraped it from a bean.  I mean this from the bottom of my heart. There can be a lot of explanatory words used in food blogs that make you roll your eyes and think - get on with the recipe already!  But the vanilla bean deserves a moment of silence and reverence.

I used the Pioneer Women's recipe. I don't feel the need to test any more vanilla bean ice cream recipes.

Half and half is heated with the vanilla and sugar.  I must mention that during this step I scooped a spoonful or two for my coffee.  I looked at my coffee and then at the pan, back and forth a couple times, and thought.....well, this is convenient.

Egg yolks are whipped, then tempered into the vanilla mixture. Heat until custard-like. Yum.

This mixture is then combined with heavy cream. Place in refrigerator to cool, then cycle through ice cream maker, freeze, and wait and wait and wait.

Aren't they just the cutest little vanilla bean flecks you've ever seen?

Valentine's Cookie Necklace

In preparation for valentine cookies this year I broke out my new airbrush (thank you Johnny) which I have been dreaming desperately about using since Christmas.  It definitely takes a bit of practice and airbrush food coloring costs quite a few pennies so projects will have to be chosen carefully.  I made a plain "love" cookie and then realized that one of the few stencils I have looks just like a doily.

Plenty of grandmas out there will love this cookie.  A doily has never been something that I thought was pretty.  I guess they have their practical uses and have saved many end tables from perilous scratches threatened by crystal candy dishes.  However, many times while visiting one of my elders I have turned my nose up at the thought of one of these doilies invading my house.  Seeing how pretty this is in a picture I now start to ponder my future living room decor.

I took some inspiration from online digital scrapbook paper and created the heart "flower" cookies and used my candy hearts for cupid arrows.

The cookie necklace would probably be my daily jewelry of choice if it were socially acceptable for an adult to wear a cookie around their neck. They do make a really cute valentine's gift if you have a few moments to make some cookies for the little sweeties in your life.  To modify the cookies for a necklace all you have to do is use a straw and cut out a tiny circle in which to thread your ribbon.

Amelie LOVED her necklace.   She's been stealing my jewelry from my closet lately so I could just see the disbelief on her face when she realized that she could eat her necklace and on top of that, it was chocolate.

I will even be so kind as to share my latest favorite chocolate cookie recipe with you.  These cookies are SO good.  And I'm not complimenting myself, I'm betting Amelie could make them.  The recipe is from the Lilaloa website and I like them better than the chocolate fish cookies I shared with you this last year.  Click on the "recipe" link and it will take you there. Take a minute and look at her cookies - extremely cute!  Here are my other Valentine's cookies from last year if you'd like more inspiration.

A Little Birdie Told Me So

I feel really bad for those of you who have a birthday so close to a holiday.  Not only do you probably receive less gifts, but you probably eat less cake.  If you've eaten 3 or 4 cookies every day around Christmas time then cake doesn't sound so appealing, does it?  The luckiest people have their birthdays in the summer.  Even for my birthday I think I hear an imaginary groan if I respond with a turkey dinner as my meal of choice to be eaten not even a month before Thanksgiving.  Just for the record, I'm not saying that I ate 3 or 4 cookies every day in December, it's just that my mother-in-law baked 16 types of cookies this Christmas.  And not just one batch of each of them either.  Each family member gets their favorite cookie and then some.  I just happened to favor more than one of these types of cookies.  But I can probably say that I've had a least one cookie every day for the last couple of weeks.  Waaaay past January 1st.  However, I am 2 weeks into a 30 day morning green smoothie challenge so it's going to have to reverse some of that damage.  Because I had so many other sweet indulgences to pick from this holiday season,  I didn't even have to bake cookies myself.  Besides the plate of cookies for Santa, of course.  But I did bake a few cakes.  I'll share a picture of the cake I made for both of Johnny's grandmas....

Have you ever had a really great idea that came to fruition, to only have to explain it to everyone?  I might have been alone on this one. One grandma loves to crochet and the other loves cooking, birds, and angels.  Since you can't cook yarn, I thought of another way to combine these items.  The bird and yarn seemed to go together a little better.  I was so excited because I previously purchased some impression pads for fondant and it included a crochet print.  (Only after the cake was almost complete did I use this impression pad on the cake border and realized that it sucked. If I could give this product a bad review that every cake decorator would read, I would do so.)  Anyways.....this little birdie has unwoven a crocheted garment so he could use the yarn and create a cozy little nest on the branch of a pine tree.

I purchased a really cool tool called a clay extruder. It was so fun, I felt like I was 5 again using my play dough with that barber shop toy.  I know I spent hours pushing the play dough "hair" out of the customer and pressing the "perm" mold down on his head.  You really missed out if you didn't have that toy.  I used the extruder to create the strands of fondant for the nest and the yarn.  I also justified the purchase of this tool by deciding that Amelie could use it for her play dough one day.

On the subject of birds.....We made some bird "cookies" the other day.  Or I should say, "cookies for the birds."  It would have been better to explain it that way to Amelie too. Maybe that way she wouldn't have wanted to taste the bird seed so bad.  They were very easy, just a mixture of plain gelatin, water, and bird seed patted down into cookie cutters.  Leave a hole by using a straw and thread it with some string to hang from a tree branch.  I forgot to take a picture of them hanging in the tree, but they were really cute.  

What I've Learned About Baking Cakes in 2013

I guess that title isn't exactly correct, but it sounded nice and is appropriate for the day.  I've been baking for awhile, but more frequently by far in this last year and I am having a wonderful time baking my heart out.  I have learned a few things along the way and I thought I might share some of them with you. And who doesn't like a list?  I am a HUGE list maker.  I make lists of things I'd like to buy, activities for Amelie, items I'd like to research on the internet, movies I'd like to see, books I'd like to read.  So.... what's one more list.
I'm sure a lot of these tips might be no-brainers, but a few have really made a difference for me.

Measuring and Ingredients 

1. Weighing ingredients is the most accurate way of baking. It produces the most reliable results and  you'll have a cleaner kitchen with less dirty dishes. Sweetopia offers a printable chart that shows the weights of common baking ingredients. 
2. If your recipe calls for 1 cup sifted flour this means you sift the flour before measuring.  However, if the recipe calls for 1 cup flour, sifted this means you sift the flour after measuring.
3. The temperature of ingredients will affect your baking. Let all refrigerated items come to room temperature before using them (unless a recipe says otherwise) to produce more reliable results.  To quickly warm eggs, place them in a bowl of room temperature or slightly warmer water and check them every few minutes.  Occasionally I soften a stick of butter in the microwave if I'm in a time crunch.  I find that the "soften" setting of my microwave slightly melts the butter so instead I microwave at 5 second intervals and flip the sticks over each time.  My microwave softens perfectly in 15 seconds.
4.  Melted butter that has been refrigerated back to a solid state is not the same! You can create clarified butter by melting, but it is not used in most cakes and cookies. It does not cream as well. Creaming is necessary to create the air bubbles needed to assist in rising.
5. Eggs separate better when cold but egg whites whip better when warm/room temperature. Whisk whole eggs in a separate bowl before adding to the batter. 
6. When a cake recipe calls for butter, it means unsalted butter.  However I can not get in the habit of using unsalted butter. If using salted butter, it is recommended to omit the salt that your recipe calls for.
7. The quality of your butter matters.  This is one ingredient that I will not buy at the cheapest price.  There are varying moisture and salt contents for different brands of butter.
8. The quality of your baking powder matters.  
9. There is debate whether unbleached or bleached wheat flour is better for cake baking.  I  don't have a solid opinion on this.
10. In short, the answer to the question of when to use baking powder vs baking soda is this:  Baking powder had an acid, but baking soda needs an acid.  An acid as in lemon, yogurt, buttermilk, sour cream, or unsweetened natural cocoa powder.  The acid helps to neutralize the metallic flavor of sodium carbonate which is produced by baking soda.  Or just follow your recipe....I had to figure this one out in the middle of baking.
11. A buttermilk substitution works just as well as buttermilk.  Add one tablespoon of vinegar to your measuring cup and then fill to your 1 cup mark with milk.

Mixing, Preparing Pans, and Baking

1. Try baking your cake (larger than 9") at 325 degrees.  But don't even think about doing this with cupcakes.
2. The best pan coating to be wiped along the sides and bottom of the pan consists of an equal shortening, vegetable oil, and flour mix.  You also might want to make sure to use a silicone brush to wipe this on the pan.  The natural bristles don't have a great mouth feel in your cake.
3. Bake-even strips (or even soaked strips of towel),  should be used around cakes larger than 10" to help them bake even.  A flower nail or heating core in the center of the cake will help the center rise even as well.
4. Cutting parchment paper rounds to use at the bottom of your pan makes for a much easier cake removal. Cutting them with tabs on the sides that hang over the edge is even smarter.  A leftover butter wrapper will also work in a pinch.
5. Butter should be creamed longer that you think.  Five minutes or so....
6. The best stage for flavoring to be added is into your creamed butter. This helps to distribute your flavorings evenly throughout the batter.
7. I have no idea what speed 10 is used for on the Kitchen aid mixer.  I think I've used up to 8 for whipping egg whites, but for some reason I'm scared to use 10.
8. Start and end with dry ingredients when alternatively adding them to your mixer.
9. Its really easy to achieve even layers when multiples of the exact same pan from the same manufacture are used to bake your cake. You can weigh the pan with your batter inside and compare.
10. Let a cake cool 20 minutes and then remove to cool on a wire rack.
11. A good warning that your cake is almost done is the scent.  I can always smell the cake baking near the end of it's baking time.
12. Testing your oven will give you a good insight on how to handle your cakes and cookies. It is best to rotate them so they will bake evenly.  Cakes should only be rotated after 20 minutes so that the structure of the cake will not be disturbed.  I wait much longer for larger cakes.  If you'd like to see the cool spots in your oven, do a toast test with white bread.  You can see the obvious cool spots in my oven below.  An oven thermometer is also a great tool for anyone to have.  You can check your oven to see how accurate it is, and if it is off, you can consult the manual for your oven and calibrate it.  

Frosting Cakes

1. Freezing the cake even for a day will make the cake much easier to handle, especially for layering cakes. Wrap them in plastic wrap and tin foil to freeze.
2. While the layers are still frozen, use a long serrated knife to even out the sides of your cake starting from the top with cuts straight down the side of the cake.  (But only if you plan to do a crumb coat and a final coat of frosting.)  See picture above.
3. The long serrated knife will also level the top of your cake if you can slice across evenly.  If you can't, insert toothpicks halfway into the side of the cake near the top, all the way around, to use as a guide.  Level cake layers will help to ensure that they won't slide off and that the cake won't  crack.
4. Start frosting the previously frozen and trimmed cake right away to help decrease crumbs in your icing. The first light coat is called your crumb coat. It will help seal the crumbs.  Pop the cake in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.  When you remove it, the icing will be set enough to start the second layer. 
5. Use a small bowl to wipe your spatula into when crumbs occur so that they don't make their way back into your main bowl of frosting.
6. The one trick to learn is how to apply frosting so that your spatula never touches the cake but only spreads the icing, by using a figure 8 motion. Always lift off the spatula towards your already frosted cake, not near the edge of your just applied frosting.
7. Or..... use Wilton's pastry bag tip 789 especially made for frosting.  Icing your cake in wide strips with this tip creates an application that only needs to be evened out with your spatula.
8. An inexpensive turntable, offset spatula, and straight side spatula or bench scraper are the tools you need to create a perfectly frosted cake.  Offset spatula is used to apply frosting to the top of the cake and straight spatula/bench scraper to smooth the sides.
9. Run the spatula under very hot water, wipe it dry on a towel, and then smooth your frosting. This is only necessary at the very end of your frosting battle, if you are a perfectionist.

I feel like I could keep adding to this list but I'll stop for now and maybe make a second list in another year.  Or I could make just one more list about baking and decoration cookies......

Sweaters and Scarves

Do penguins and polar bears wear scarves and sweaters? 

If they're cookies they do.

 Merry Christmas!

A Horsey Kind of Christmas

I love it when someone requests a cookie that I'd like to make for myself.  And in my opinion, what better Christmas cookies can be made than horse themed Christmas cookies?  Because I still miss my horse (12 years later) and because my sister Bev wanted cookies for her barn friends, I had a reason to make horse cookies!

Bev is leasing a horse that she takes on trail rides and she spends a lot of time just horsing around.  One day I will again own a horse, even if it's just for Amelie.  There is no way that she'll be getting a pony.  And if she does, it will be the biggest pony you have ever seen so that I can ride it too.  I've already started my brainwashing scheme.  "Tell Daddy you want a pony!"  This is what I'll be whispering in her ear as she plays with her new princess horse stable on Christmas day.

I've been exploring new sugar cookie recipes and I used a new one for this batch.  Cinnamon Roll Sugar Cookies from Sweet Hope Cookies.  She uses chopped cinnamon chips and ground cinnamon for flavor.  I did try the cream cheese flavoring in my royal icing and it was just okay.  Maybe I'll add more flavor next time.
I've been wanting to make my own sugar cookie recipe (and cake recipe, which is on my list to do) but there are so many cut out cookies that I still want to try.  Egg nog, mint, snickerdoodle, cinnamon oatmeal to name just a few...

Yes! (Engagement cookies)

I'm so happy for my friend Sarah!  She got engaged not too long ago and is planning her wedding for next October!  I was absolutely giddy at the chance to make wedding / engagement cookies.  I'm going to start baking some mini test cakes for her to choose from for her wedding cake.  Let's count the ways that cakes and cookies can be used for wedding purposes: Engagement party cookies or cake,  "save the date" cookies sent by mail, bridal shower cake, bridal shower cookie favors, bachelorette party gifts, bridesmaids gifts, wedding cake and cookie favors.  I really need to know more people getting married just so I can create more mini wedding dresses, or even shoes, steeples, tuxedos, they all sound fun.

These are probably some of the easiest and most simple cookies I've made.  The engagement ring cookie has been done many times, but I had to make one just because they are so pretty. To achieve the silver metallic color, I used a Wilton food coloring spray in a can.  You don't even have to color your icing, it will spray right over with full coverage. There is some over spray so it's best to ice the cookies to the very edge.  I definitely would not recommend using the Wilton pink spray. It's really bad.  As in the ugliest pink you will ever see. I used it to stencil on the side of a cake and it was hideous.  I didn't even take a picture because I didn't want to remember it.

On the subject of spray food coloring, I took another Craftsy class to learn airbrushing on cakes and cookies.  I borrowed my dad's airbrush, but only to practice with as it's already been used with regular paint.  I really don't want to poison anyone.  I love how the heart turned out in the picture above and I'd like to experiment more with stencils and other airbrush effects.

I also went to America's Baking and Sweets show in Schaumberg to see some new products. There were dozens of vendors selling cupcakes, cakes, cookies, brownies, other sweets, and a variety of baking and decorating tools.  A problem arose when I wanted to eat lunch because the only item in the entire room for me to eat that wasn't sweet was a little bit of lunch meat on a tiny piece of focaccia. I kept looking around me wondering if I was the only one that couldn't survive on sugar the entire day!

While I was there, I attended a class taught by the professional chef and certified master sugar artist Eurico “Jing” Palasigue, CMSA from Le Cordon Bleu.

This is a gum paste rose he made prior to the class.  He worked on three flowers that were partially completed for the entire hour class.  I have a lot of patience, but I'm not sure I have that much.  I have also taken a Wilton gum paste flower class but watching a professional was definitely a great experience.

So, back to Sarah.  We'll see what she picks for the design of her cake, I'll have to start practicing my gum paste flowers again. I think I'll even make some fake wedding cakes in the meantime just for fun.  I purchased a fake styrofoam cake dummy - yes, those exist.  It will be perfect for covering with fondant and trying out my new airbrushing skills!  Some people even have an entire fake cake created for their wedding and then have sheet cakes baked to be cut behind the scenes and served to all their guests.  I don't know that I'd ever want to try and balance an entire real 5 tiered cake either. 

I suppose I should have Sarah try my cake first before I get too excited  :-)