German Chocolate Cake

***I was so excited last week when I was asked to bake a cake for a fellow co-worker...and her favorite kind of cake? - German Chocolate! I had never baked one, so I was a little nervous that it wouldn't come out as good as other cakes that I've made. I found what sounded like a fabulous recipe on David Lebovitz's blog....the recipe is by a pastry chef, nonetheless.

So, I put my apron on and armed myself with my KitchenAid stand mixer...ready to take on this recipe. It came out wonderfully! One co-worker even said it was the best German Chocolate Cake she's ever had...you can't beat that!

The filling on the top is flat-out decadent...it has toasted coconut and pecans....yum! It may seem like a long recipe, but every step is worth it!

This was also my very first attempt at piping...I think it turned out pretty good. My piping skills will only get better!

Here's the recipe:

German Chocolate Cake
Makes one big, tall 9-inch cake; about 16 servings

For the cake:

2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chopped

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

6 tablespoons water

8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 ¼ cup + ¼ cup sugar

4 large eggs, separated

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the filling:

1 cup heavy cream

1 cup sugar

3 large egg yolks

3 ounces butter, cut into small pieces

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped

1 1/3 cups unsweetened coconut, toasted

For the syrup:

1 cup water

¾ cup sugar

2 tablespoons dark rum

For the chocolate icing:

8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons light corn syrup

1 ½ ounces unsalted butter

1 cup heavy cream

-------------------------------------------------------------------

Lighting the candles...

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you...

Make a wish!

To Make the Cake:
1. Butter two 9-inch cake pans, then line the bottoms with rounds of parchment or wax paper. Preheat the oven to 350°.

2. Melt both chocolates together with the 6 tablespoons of water. Use either a double-boiler or a microwave. Stir until smooth, then set aside until room temperature.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, or by hand, beat the butter and 1 ¼ cup of the sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in the melted chocolate, then the egg yolks, one at a time.

4. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

5. Mix in half of the dry ingredients into the creamed butter mixture, then the buttermilk and the vanilla extract, then the rest of the dry ingredients.

6. In a separate metal or glass bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold soft, droopy peaks. Beat in the ¼ cup of sugar until stiff.

7. Fold about one-third of the egg whites into the cake batter to lighten it, then fold in the remaining egg whites just until there's no trace of egg white visible.

8. Divide the batter into the 2 prepared cake pans, smooth the tops, and bake for about 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool cake layers completely.

While the cakes are baking and cooling, make the filling, syrup, and icing.

To make the filling:

1. Mix the cream, sugar, and egg yolks in a medium saucepan. Put the 3 ounces butter, salt, toasted coconut, and pecan pieces in a large bowl.

2. Heat the cream mixture and cook, stirring constantly (scraping the bottom as you stir) until the mixture begins to thicken and coats the spoon (an instant-read thermometer will read 170°.)

3. Pour the hot custard immediately into the pecan-coconut mixture and stir until the butter is melted. Cool completely to room temperature. (It will thicken.)

To make the syrup:

1. In a small saucepan, heat the sugar and water until the sugar has melted. Remove from heat and stir in the dark rum.

To make the icing:

1. Place the 8 ounces of chopped chocolate in a bowl with the corn syrup and 1 ½ ounces of butter.

2. Heat the cream until it just begins to boil. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Let stand one minute, then stir until smooth. Let sit until room temperature.

To assemble the cake:
Remove the cake layers from the pans and cut both cake layers in half horizontally, using a serrated bread knife.Set the first cake layer on a cake plate. Brush well with syrup.

Spread ¾ cup of the coconut filling over the cake layer, making sure to reach to the edges. Set another cake layer on top.

Repeat, using the syrup to brush each cake layer, then spreading ¾ cup of the coconut filling over each layer, including the top.

Ice the sides with the chocolate icing, then pipe a decorative border of chocolate icing around the top, encircling the coconut topping.

(It may seem like a lot of chocolate icing, but use it all. Trust me. You won't be sorry.)

Zucchini and Chicken Salad

***Brad and I love salads...especially this time of year. The following recipe is for a salad that easily makes my "top 5 salads...ever!" list. This one is seriously tasty. The light, lemony dressing makes all the flavors pop. On first seeing this recipe, you might be thinking that it's a strange mix of ingredients. I never in a million years would have thought to combine zucchini, chicken, pecans, and mint...but it definitely works. It's the perfect summer salad, combining fresh veggies of the season with a light, yummy taste.


This is yet another recipe from my new favorite cookbook by Martha Stewart: Everyday Food: Great Food Fast. If you haven't gotten this cookbook yet, I highly recommend it!***


Ingredients:
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 1/4 pounds zucchini, thinly sliced
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 bunch (about 8 ounces) spinach, chopped
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
3/4 cup chopped pecans
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint

Directions:
In a large bowl, whisk together 1/4 cup oil and lemon juice; season with salt and pepper. Add zucchini; toss to coat, and let marinate while cooking chicken.
In a large nonstick skillet, heat remaining tablespoon oil over medium. Season chicken with salt and pepper. Cook chicken until golden brown and opaque throughout, about 7 minutes per side.

Toss chicken with zucchini mixture, spinach, onion, pecans, Parmesan, and mint. Serve.


Helpful Hint:
This recipe can also be made using leftover or store-bought roasted chicken.

Summer Vegetable Gratin

***I was so excited when I opened the July/August 2008 issue of Cooks Illustrated magazine. I saw this recipe and knew that I had to try it...especially with all of the fresh summer produce that's available.

I got to visit the Trussville Farmers Market recently, where I bought some beautiful veggies...yellow squash, red tomatoes, green tomatoes, and heirloom tomatoes. So, this was the perfect time to make this gratin. If you're ever in the area, you should definitely stop by Andy Kemp's booth. He's with A & P Farms out of Gallant, AL and Starkville, MS. He had a wonderful assortment of fresh produce...at great prices! He even let me sample an heirloom tomato...I had never had one!

The Trussville Farmers Market is open from 2 - 6 on Tuesdays (across the street from the Trussville Antique Mall).

The mixture of squash, zucchini, and tomatoes in this dish is delicious...and very healthy. You'll REALLY enjoy this one! I'll certainly be making it again.***

Ingredients:

6 Tbsp. olive oil

1 lb zucchini, ends trimmed and cut crosswise into 1/4 thick slices

1 lb summer squash, ends trimmed and cut crosswise into 1/4 thick slices

***2 lbs of only zucchini or only summer squash can be substituted***

2 tsp salt
3 large ripe tomatoes sliced 1/4 inch thick

2 yellow onions, cut in half and then thinly sliced from pole to pole

black pepper to taste

2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed through a garlic press

1 Tbsp fresh thyme leaves minced

3/4 cup bread crumbs

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1/4 minced shallots (about 2 medium)

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400. Place the oven rack in the upper middle position. Brush a 9x13 pan with 1Tbsp of olive oil and set aside.

Combine sliced zucchini and squash with 1tsp salt in a large bowl and then transfer the salted veggies to a colander set over the bowl. Let stand for about 45 minutes, the veggies will release about 3 Tbsps of liquid.

Arrange tomato slices in a single layer over double layer paper towels and sprinkle evenly with 1/2 tsp salt and let stand for about 30 minutes. After that time, place a second double layer of paper towels over the tomatoes and press firmly to dry them.

Meanwhile, heat 1 Tbsp olive oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onions, 1/2 tsp salt and black pepper to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft and dark golden brown, about 20 minutes. Set onions aside.

Combine garlic, 3 Tbsp olive oil, black pepper to taste and thyme in a small bowl. In a large bowl, mix the zucchini and squash in half of the garlic oil mixture.

Pour zucchini and squash in the greased 9x13 pan. Arrange the caramelized onions in a single layer over the squash. Place the tomato slices slightly overlapping in a single layer over the onions. Spoon the remaining garlic oil mixture evenly over the tomatoes.

Bake 40 to 45 minutes, tomatoes will have started to brown around the edges and the vegetables are tender.

Mix breadcrumbs, 1 Tbsp oil, Parmesan and shallots in a bowl. Remove baking dish from the oven and increase heat to 450 degrees. Sprinkle breadcrumb mixture on top of tomatoes. Bake about 5 to 10 minutes more, the gratin will be bubbling and the cheese will be lightly browned.

Sprinkle with basil and let rest for about 10 minutes are room temperature before serving.

Red Pepper Variation: Replace 3 roasted red peppers, skinned and cut into 1 inch pieces for 1 lb of the squash (do not SALT the roasted peppers). The Parmesan cheese can be substituted with one cup shredded mozzarella.

Source: Cooks Illustrated magazine; July/August 2008

Bahama Mama!

***I can't believe I haven't made a single post since July 20th...I apologize! Things have been extremely busy at work. So busy, that I only had time to actually cook dinner one night last week...I know, that's pretty bad, huh? Our dinners consisted of fast food and restaurants. I spent every evening working on a ginormous project for work. I finished it today...but now I get to start on another one! But, I've got some great recipes coming up, so please don't stop reading! After next Tuesday (the due date), I should be finished with these big projects (at least for a little while).

After such a busy week, I think it's only suitable that I post one of my favorite drinks...quite the stress-reducer...lol. The "Bahama Mama" has always been a favorite of mine. It reminds me of sitting on the beach in the Bahamas, watching the sunset....Ahhh, to be there right now!

Here it is...there are tons of different ways to make these. This recipe is one of the simplest and tastes the most authentic...enjoy!***

Ingredients:

1 part orange juice

1 part pineapple juice

1 part coconut rum

1/2 part grenadine

Sliced oranges and cherries for garnish

Directions:

Fill your glass with crushed ice. In a separate pitcher, mix orange juice, pineapple juice, coconut rum, and grenadine. Stir well. Pour over ice. Add orange slices and cherries as garnish.

Peach & Blueberry Cobbler

***This cobbler is one of the best I've ever had...thanks to a secret ingredient that I discovered while making the Danish Pastry Braid. Okay, okay...I'll tell you what it is...cardamom. Now, it isn't the cheapest thing on the spice aisle (although it still isn't THAT expensive, don't worry!), but it's worth every penny in my opinion. You've got to give it a try if you've never used it before. It does have somewhat of a strong flavor, so use it sparingly the first time around. It goes perfectly in baked, fruit desserts...among many other things.

Last week, I happened to have some fresh Clanton peaches and a pint of beautiful blueberries. I got to thinking that a peach and blueberry cobbler would be perfect. I found THIS recipe over at Not Quite June Cleaver...absolutely delish!***

Ingredients:
1 stick butter, halved
1 cup self-rising flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cardamom
1 cup milk
4 ripe peaches, sliced
1 pint blueberries

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Melt a half stick of butter in a 9-inch square baking dish. Melt the other half and mix with self-rising flour, sugar, vanilla, cardamom, and milk.

Mix all ingredients but the fruit and the butter you melted in the dish with a whisk until smooth. Pour into dish. Add fruit.

Sprinkle the top with a sugar/cinnamon mix before baking to make it a little crispy on top.

Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until golden on top.

Source: Not Quite June Cleaver