Cranberry Orange Bundt Cake

 

I had a Costco size bag of cranberries sitting in my fridge that were leftover from a cancelled Thanksgiving and I needed to make something with them fast.  Fortuitously I happened upon Meringue Design's post for a Cranberry Orange Cake...bingo!  Rather than make the cake in a square pan I decided to bake it in a small bundt pan which I thought would be perfect to grace my holiday table.

The addition of sour cream in the cake makes the crumb really tender and I love the tart bursts of fresh cranberry.  To decorate my cake I gave it an ample dusting of powdered sugar and sugared cranberries.   Sugared cranberries couldn't be easier to make.  Simply take some freshly rinsed cranberries and dip them in egg white and then roll them in sugar.  Let the fruit dry completely and then place on top of the cake.

Crème Fraîche Poundcake

I bought a carton of crème fraîche as an impulse buy on a recent Costco outing but I had no clue what I was going to use it for.  As fate would have it the NY Times recently published a recipe for Crème Fraîche Poundcake.  It's like the baking gods were in my brain!

Crème fraîche is similar to sour cream but I find it's more stable and less water than it's American cousin.  It adds a really delicious tang to the poundcake, most especially in the glaze topping.  I found the cake to be even more delicious the day after it was made so it's a great make-ahead recipe.  

Cranberry-Sour Cream Pound Cake

One fruit that I rarely ever use in baking is the cranberry.  I thought I'd remedy that by giving Cook's Country recipe for Cranberry-Sour Cream Pound Cake a try.  I love how dots of ruby fruit contrast so nicely against a creamy backdrop of cake.   Don't you think it would make a great homemade gift for the holidays?

After the cake was cooled I helped myself to a slice and was very happy with the end result.  The bursts of tart cranberries were so delicious combined with the moist, tender and rich butter cake.  All that was needed was a light dusting of powdered sugar and the cake was want for nothing.  Well, maybe a cup of tea!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Brown-Sugar Pecan Streusel

I'm probably in the minority when I confess that I've never ever had a Starbucks Frappucino. What can I say?  Those blended drinks heaped with whipped cream have never appealed to me. Maybe it's also because I'm not much of a coffee drinker so my visits to the ubiquitous coffee chain are few and far between.   However, one thing that definitely will get me through a Starbucks door is their classic coffee cake. 

 

Imagine my absolute delight when I discovered that Cook's Illustrated Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Brown-Sugar Pecan Streusel is the baking doppelgänger to that beloved Starbucks cake.  The cake itself is the real star of the show.  Super moist with such a fantastic crumb.  Add to that a caramelized cinnamon sugar swirl and you've got yourself a slice of heaven.   Even better, since it's homemade you know exactly what it's made of, none of those additives or preservatives nonsense.  

 

Hosting a brunch?  You'll gain fans if you serve this coffee cake, trust me.  It can keep for several days so it's perfectly fine to make it in advance.  In fact, I'd venture to say it tastes even better a few days later.   

Deep Chocolate Sour Cream Pound Cake

A recent conversation between my friend and I:

B: "Next time you bake can you make something chocolate?  You know how much I love it."  

Me: "Hmmmm...I'll think about it."

Anyone who knows me well would not be surprised by my response.  Now don't get me wrong, I do like chocolate - especially the dark variety - but it's not my preferred flavor profile.  I tend to lean more towards vanilla, lemon and other fruits.  Despite my less than fanatical reverence towards all things cacao I ended up making this chocolate pound cake for a couple of reasons.  1) I was looking for an excuse to use this recently acquired Nordic Ware Party Bundt pan and 2) I had a ton of sour cream in my fridge.   

In retrospect I was doing myself a disservice by not making this cake sooner.  The recipe comes from Tish Boyle's The Cake Book, a must-have for any cake lover out there.  I've made several recipes from this book and none have disappointed. As promised by its title, this cake has deep chocolate flavor with a moist and tender crumb.   Utterly delicious!  While the cake is fantastic on its own it tastes even better when topped with the ganache glaze.  

I have a strong feeling B will approve.

Vanilla Cupcakes

After 9+ hours of binge watching House of Cards Season 4 this weekend I must say I was more than happy to get off my bum and do some baking.  If you haven't seen the show yet do yourself a favor and start.  It's seriously some of the best television ever and the latest series does not disappoint in the least.

While the show is dark, cunning and ruthless these Vanilla Cupcakes are anything but; you could even call them "anti-Underwood".  I was craving something happy and light and these beauties fit the bill perfectly.  Even better, sour cream was used in the recipe, an ingredient of which I had plenty in the fridge.   The cupcake recipe can be found here on the Cupcake Project and I frosted them with Cook's Illustrated Easy Vanilla Buttercream.

I'm definitely feeling House of Card withdrawals, already!, but hopefully these cupcakes will ease the pain until next year.   Please, please, please Netflix...there MUST be a Season 5!

Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cupcakes

Chocolate and Peanut Butter.  What flavor combination could be more All-American than those two?  Little did I know that it's popularity extended beyond the borders of the red, white and blue.   

Case in point: Before heading to a work conference in Basel this past summer I had asked my co-workers if they wanted anything from the US.  How surprised was I when they requested Reese's Peanut Butter Cups?   Really....Reese's?   Ironic since they live in a country that produces some of the best chocolate in the world.    

So I dedicate these Chocolate & Peanut Butter Cupcakes to my friends and colleagues in the CH.  The cupcakes are super easy to make (no mixer required) and the addition of sour cream in the batter makes the crumb really tender.  For an extra treat I put a miniature Reese's peanut butter cup in the center before baking.   As for the frosting, I could have gone the cynical route and made Swiss meringue, but instead I opted for fuss free American style buttercream.   

 

Lemon Poppy Seed Sour Cream Bundt Cake

Could I think of a more superfluous name for this cake - Lemon Poppy Seed Sour Cream Bundt.  I admit it doesn't roll off the tongue so easily but I couldn't help myself, the name says it all.  The naissance of this beauty came from my desire to clear out my fridge of sour cream and lemons.  A rather inauspicious beginning I admit but at least it was a noble cause! 

Luckily for me the recipe is very straight forward and comes together in no time at all.   This is the second bundt cake I've made in a week.  While I love how simple and nostalgic they are, I do confess it's the cake pan that I'm a bit more obsessed with.   My favorite is this one by Nordic Ware...a true gem in any baker's kitchen.

I will pay this cake the ultimate compliment by saying it's as if it came from the box.  What?@!  Yes, you read correctly and it's no joke!  What I mean is that the texture is amazingly moist and tender, not dense and heavy like you find most bundt cakes to be.   My only critique is that I want MORE lemon flavor so next time I think I'll brush on a lemon infused simple syrup while the cake is still warm but before it cools and is glazed.  

Coeur à la Crème

Looking for an alternative to the typical chocolate Valentine dessert?  Something light and refreshing with lots of flavor, not to mention French...oh la la?  Then you must try coeur à la crème, literally "heart of cream."  

What is it?  A traditional French dessert that is akin to a crustless no-bake cheesecake, but a whole lot easier to make.  All you do is whip cream cheese, sour cream, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla  until light and fluffy.  The mixture is then spooned in to lined heart-shaped molds and refrigerated.  After a few hours the cheese is unwrapped on to a plate and served with berries.  C'est tout!  Couldn't be simpler or more delicious!

Sour Cream Pecan Coffee Cake

Lucky for my wallet I'm not what you would call a Starbucks coffee fanatic - tea is more my poison.  But one thing that would always get me in their shop was the reduced-fat cinnamon swirl coffee cake.  Forget about it being low-fat, I was seriously addicted to the super moist butter cake with delicious bursts of cinnamon and brown sugar.  

At about $2/slice it was turning in to an expensive habit so I wanted to find a version I could make at home. When I first saw Never Enough Thyme's Sour Cream Pecan Coffee Cake on Tastespotting I had a feeling it was exactly what I was looking for.   One bite of the baked cake and I knew I struck gold.  Starbucks doesn't use pecans in their version, but I love the addition of the crunchy nuts in this recipe.  If you can believe it the coffee cake tastes even better after a few days.  Eat your heart out Starbucks!

Sydney Foods

This post has nothing to do with baking but I wanted to share some memorable eats from a recent trip to Sydney. It's a beautiful harbor city with lots of great food, similar to San Francisco. My favorites from the trip were breakfast offerings at bills Darlinghurst and the baked potato wedges with sweet chili and sour cream at Opera Bar in Circular Quay.

A work colleague from Sydney recommended bills as a breakfast must-see and she was spot on. bills Darlinghurst is one of three restaurants owned by Aussie chef Bill Granger. It's located on a quiet street corner in the very chic and trendy Darlinghurst area of Sydney. As soon as you walk in you see a large communal table loaded with tons of magazines that patrons can browse through. What could be better? The breakfast offerings are some of the best I've ever tasted. The delicious organic scrambled eggs are smooth, creamy and so fluffy. The sweet corn fritters with roasted tomato, spinach and bacon are to die for. And don't miss the unforgettable ricotta hotcakes with honeycomb butter. To quote one of my favorite bands, Depeche Mode, "I just can't get enough"!!

Sydneysiders really love their sweet chili with sour cream. You'll find it as a potato chip or cracker flavor throughout town. I'd never heard of this flavor combination before but as soon as I tried it I was a complete convert. My first taste was at the Opera Bar in Circular Quay, nestled between the famed Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. There, they serve huge paprika-flecked baked potato wedges with the sweet chili sauce and sour cream as the dipping sauce. The sweet and spicy of the chili sauce goes beautifully with the cool and tangy sour cream. Absolute BLISS!