Category Archives: cake

Apple Sharlotka

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This recipe is so good that I’m posting it even though my pictures aren’t perfect.  It’s like no other apple cake I’ve experienced.  The emphasis is on the apples with just enough airy cake batter to envelope them and bring out their best features.  The cake is light and soft with a crisp top, and the apples are soft and succulent.  I LOVE the almond flavoring with the apples, it’s perfect.

Apple Sharlotka (Russian Apple Cake)

recipe from Food and Wine magazine by Matt Danko Click through for the original recipe and a video!

4 Granny Smith apples ( I used Yellow Delicious this time) – peeled, cored, and thinly sliced

1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp all purpose flour

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

pinch of salt

3 large eggs

1/2 tsp pure almond extract

confectioner’s sugar, for dusting

  • Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease the bottom and side of an 8-inch springform pan.
  • In a large bowl, toss the apples with the lemon juice and 2 tablespoons of the sugar and let stand for 15 minutes.

  • Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk the flour with the cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In a medium bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the eggs with the almond extract and the remaining 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar at medium-high speed until thick and pale yellow and a ribbon forms when the beaters are lifted, 8 to 10 minutes. Gently fold in the dry ingredients just until incorporated.

  • Spread the apples in the prepared pan in an even layer, then pour the batter evenly over them. Let stand for 5 minutes to allow the batter to sink in a little.
  • Bake the sharlotka for about 1 hour, until it is golden and crisp on top and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a rack and let rest for 15 minutes. Unmold and transfer to a serving platter. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve warm.

 

 

Ukrainian Poppy Seed Cake

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This is a lemon poppy seed cake with emphasis on the poppy seeds.  It’s practically health food because poppy seeds are high in dietary fiber and minerals.  With three eggs, plus the additional nutrition from all those seeds, this cake is solidly in the ‘okay for breakfast’ category!

I  found this recipe in one of my favorite vegetarian cookbooks, The New Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen.  I love her handwritten recipes, doodles and drawings.  The recipes are delicious and healthy without sacrificing richness and flavor.

Ukrainian Poppy Seed Cake

3/4 cup poppy seeds

1 cup milk

1/2 lb (2 sticks) butter, softened

1 cup sugar (white or light brown is ok)

3 eggs

2 cups all purpose flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

zest and juice from 1 lemon

  • Place poppy seeds and milk in a small saucepan and scald (heat to almost boiling, then remove from the heat).  Set aside and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees and butter a 10 inch tube pan.
  • Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
  • Sift together the dry ingredients on wax paper or in a separate bowl.  Add this to the butter mixture alternately with the poppy seed – milk, beginning and ending with the dry mixture.
  • Stir just enough to blend well, adding the vanilla, lemon juice and zest at the end.
  • Bake for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then invert onto a plate. 

This cake has so many poppy seeds that it’s almost nutty tasting.  It’s a little different from your average lemon poppy seed muffin or cake, but still very familiar in flavor.  I love that it’s not super sweet, I also love the crunch of the seeds and the little hint of lemon flavor.  If you want more sweetness, you can add a simple glaze of lemon or orange juice mixed with powdered sugar.

Blueberry Banana Bread

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Quick breads are so easy and satisfying to make.  This recipe is a direct offshoot of my Grandmother’s Banana Bread which I blogged about in 2012.  It’s not too high in sugar and includes some healthy rolled oats and blueberries.  Please try it and let me know how it goes.  Don’t worry about exact measurements for this one, it’s practically foolproof!

Blueberry Banana Bread

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup buttermilk

1 very ripe banana

1/2 cup melted butter or coconut oil

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

3/4 cup sugar

2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup blueberries – fresh or frozen

3 tablespoons turbinado sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare the baking pan(s) with a good smear of butter; this recipe works well in three mini loaves or as muffins.

Begin by measuring the rolled oats into a bowl or jug like the one pictured.  Add the buttermilk to the oats, stir and let this combination sit while you gather and prepare the rest of the ingredients.  The buttermilk will tenderize the oats.

Melt the butter in a large mixing bowl and add the 3/4 cup sugar and the banana.  Mash the banana with a fork and mix well.  Add the eggs and vanilla and continue mixing until well combined and relatively smooth.  Now add the oats/buttermilk mixture and stir it all up.

Add the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda to the bowl.  Begin to mix the dry ingredients in gently and then add the blueberries and continue to mix gently until just combined.

Pour the batter into prepared pan(s) and smooth out the top.  Combine the 3 Tablespoons turbinado sugar and the cinnamon in your 1/4 cup measuring cup and sprinkle this all over the top.  Turbinado sugar has larger crystals than white sugar and will give a wonderfully crunchy top.  Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let the bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then turn out to continue to cool.

 I couldn’t believe it when my husband said he thought it might even be better than banana bread!  The crumb is tender and moist and the crunchy top really sets it off.

Almond Olive Oil Cake

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20161204_132451Two of my favorite ingredients in one delicious recipe make a lovely bake.  I found this cake in an advertisement for olive oil in Food Network magazine (thanks Anna!) and felt sure it would be a winner.  It turned out to be a moist cake with an even crumb and delightful crunchy crust.  It is very similar to a pound cake, but without the dairy products.

Almond Olive Oil Cake

recipe from Pompeian Olive Oil

4 large eggs

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 cup extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3/4 cup almond flour (also known as almond meal read more about it here, find it with the ‘healthy’ grains and flours)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk.

20161204_132620Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and prepare a bundt pan for baking

Combine the eggs and sugar and mix on medium- high speed until they become pale yellow, thick and creamy.  This will take about 3 minutes.  Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add the olive oil in a stream.  Add the almond and vanilla extracts.  Reduce mixer speed to low.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, almond flour, baking powder and salt.  This is important because almond flour tends to be lumpy.  Alternately add this dry ingredient mixture and the almond milk half at a time. Do not over beat at this point – I finished incorporating the last addition by hand with a rubber spatula.

20161204_145104Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  This will take 50 to 70 minutes.  Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then invert onto a cooling rack.

You can add a glaze if you choose using 2 to 3 Tablespoons milk or citrus juice (I used lime juice) mixed with 2 cups confectioners sugar.  Yum.

20161204_152351

 

Chocolate Birthday Cupcakes

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I love baking special treats for birthdays and my son always asks for chocolate cake.  He loves a big layer cake with chocolate frosting and has had the same cake for the past three years.  This year he agreed to cupcakes for a small change.  I used the easiest chocolate cake recipe EVER – which also happens to be vegan.  These cupcakes were topped with rich fudge frosting and kit-kats for that extra chocolate touch.20160902_192930

I blogged about this recipe when my son was three years old, and he just turned nine.  Thank you to anyone out there who has followed my adventures in the kitchen!  Your kind words and enthusiasm keep me trying new things.  (My husband thanks you too.)20160902_191121

Here’s the link to Deadly Good Vegan Chocolate Cake.

The recipe for the frosting is completely brilliant and found on the awesome blog Smitten Kitchen.  It’s really a basic buttercream, but unsweetened baking chocolate is substituted for some of the butter which makes it super chocolately.  Here’s the link for that recipe – scroll down to the bottom of her post to find the frosting.