Bee Sting Cake | Bienenstich

Bee Sting Cake.  The name of this dessert intrigued me when I saw it in the Oct/Nov 2014 issue of Cook's Country.  And where there is intrigue there is inevitably a strong inclination to action so I had to make it.  It's German in origin, Bienenstich, and is basically a honey and almond coated brioche cake filled with vanilla pastry cream.   

My family prefers desserts that aren't too sweet so this cake fit the bill perfectly.  They're favorite part, and mine, was the delicious and crunchy honey almond topping.  I could just eat that alone.   Oktoberfest is just around the corner and if you need a cake to accompany your beer and pretzel why not give this bee sting a try?

Galette des Rois (King's Cake)

Since it's Mardi Gras tomorrow I thought I'd post about the Galette des Rois (King's Cake) that I made a while ago.  Full disclosure: I had intended to make the cake at the beginning of January, just in time for Epiphany, but laziness got the better of me.  Luckily the cake is equally appropriate for Fat Tuesday, the day before Lent.  

My first introduction to galette des rois was in Dijon during my junior year study abroad.  I had moved over to France right at the beginning of January and all the bakeries were selling these frangipane filled puff pastry cakes.  I learned at school there was a fève, a figurine or trinket, buried inside each cake and whomever found it was crowned king or queen for the day.  

For my cake I used some homemade puff pastry and the filling came from David Lebovitz.  Most people don't have the time or inclination to make the laminated pastry from scratch, neither do I normally, so feel free to use the store-bought kind.   Be a little stingy when filling the cake with frangipane because you may end up with a bit of an explosion like I had!  In honor of the Lunar New Year I used a tiny ceramic horse to put inside. 

Chocolate Espresso Dacquoise and a Cook's Illustrated Giveaway

I collect baking cookbooks like they're going out of style; I absolutely love them and get so many ideas and inspirations for this blog.  The most used and beloved book in my library, Baking Illustrated, is also the ugliest; a torn cover and well worn pages smudged and stained from flour, butter and chocolate are evidence of that.

You can't imagine how excited I was when I found out that America's Test Kitchen was publishing a follow-up, appropriately called The Cook's Illustrated Baking Book.  Would it be as good - dare I say better - than it's predecessor?   When America's Test Kitchen reached out to me to ask if I would like to review the book for the blog the answer was obvious and definite...YES!!!  Regular readers know I pretty much love all things from America's Test Kitchen, let's face it I'm a bit of a groupie!, so the probability of me not liking the new book were slim to none.

After staying up late one night to read through the entire book I can honestly say I wasn't disappointed in the least.  The Baking Book continues the successful formula synonymous with all ATK cookbooks; they do the testing (and hard work) and you get the fantastic results. With 450 delicious recipes, along with explanations and descriptions of why they work, home bakers of ALL levels, novice to expert, will find recipes to match their experience and comfort level.  Baking can be daunting but I can assure you that this cookbook makes it less so.

 

As a monthly online subscriber to Cook's Illustrated magazine I have previously made several of the recipes featured in the new baking book and I can tell you from personal experience they definitely work.  Among my favorites are these ones that I make repeatedly: Croissants (AMAZING!), Ultimate Chocolate Cupcakes, Fluffy Yellow Layer Cake, Chewy Brownies and Blueberry Pie.   I was delighted to discover so many new recipes, especially the breads and pizzas!

To celebrate the publication of The Baking Book I decided to make a real showstopper of a dessert that I haven't previously made, Chocolate Espresso Dacquoise.  At first glance it looks like an intimidating recipe but in reality was actually quite straight forward.  I followed the instructions to the letter and the results looked just like in the book.   The crunchy, nutty meringue layered with bittersweet chocolate ganache and coffee buttercream was irresistible and surprisingly not too sweet.  On top of that the recipe is 100% gluten-free.  Think I'll be making it again for the holidays!   Like I've said before, "ATK = SUCCESS!"

Now you can be witness for yourself...the nice folks at ATK have kindly offered to send a copy of The Baking Book to one of you!  

Here's how to enter:

Leave a comment to this blog post answering the following question:

What's your favorite thing to bake?  If you don't bake, what would you like to learn to bake?

IMPORTANT: You MUST include your email address with your comment; sorry, but that's the only way I can contact the winner.  Contest ends on Friday, November 8th at 11:59 PM PST.  One entry per person.  Open to US residents only.  Good luck!

Contest is closed!  The winner of the cookbook is Jan who loves to make cupcakes.  Thanks to all who entered!

No-Bake Rocky Road Bars

My favorite ice-cream flavor of all time is Thrifty's Coconut Pineapple.   A close second is rocky road, but the kind with almonds, no walnuts please.

I was on the lookout for new recipes to try for this year's holiday treats and I saw this one for no-bake rocky road bars from America's Test Kitchen.  After endless hours spent baking cookies it was a nice change not to use the oven. 

These bars are really, really good - sort of like a pumped up version of fudge, only better.  While the inclusion of graham crackers isn't necessarily authentic to rocky road I find it added a nice texture to the candy.