… Oh, who am I fooling?  I dumped cocoa in there like it was going out of style!  And if cocoa is really going out of fashion in your part of the world, please tell me so I don’t ever have to visit such a godless place!  Also, please tell me why we use phrases like that?  Why would someone want to do more of something that’s about to go out of style?

Ahem.

As I was saying, I was aiming for a deep red, fine-crumbed vanilla cake with just a “hint” of chocolate, and cream cheese frosting that was creamy, tangy, and rich.

Main ingredients for red velvet cupcakes.  The bottle of red food coloring got cut off on the left, but rest assured, it’s there!

For this recipe, I broke out the fancy cocoa I buy specifically for red velvet cakes (I pay about $8 for this 8-oz container).  I love its deep chocolate flavor AND it’s by E. Guittard, whose products I just love.  It is a can full of WIN!

And just so you can see the difference between the Guittard Cocoa Rouge and Hershey’s Natural Unsweetened Cocoa:

E. Guittard’s Cocoa Rouge on the left; Hershey’s Cocoa on the right.

See how the Guittard is darker in color?  That’s the result of the Dutch processing where alkaline is added to the cocoa, creating that super-deep chocolate flavor I so adore.  I have to be honest: I don’t reach for the Hershey’s often.  It’s not a bad product at all, but I don’t use it unless I happen to be out of Valrhona or Guittard.   I’m not too much of a snob to not buy Hershey’s Dutch-processed cocoa, which I’ll get the next time I see it, but yeah, I’m a cocoa snob. 

One of my peeves about cake baking is when the recipe calls for softened butter.  In the winter, which is when I do a lot of my baking, butter never softens as quickly as I want (because I’m a self-entitled instant gratification brat) and usually takes a couple of hours.  I baked these cupcakes on a steamy day and the butter softened before I could gather all my ingredients together.   I actually had to put it back into the fridge so it wouldn’t melt into a pool!

Is there a sight more beautiful to behold than that of butter and sugar being beaten into a fluffy cloud of … er, sugar and butter?

Just as I did with my Devil’s Food Cupcakes and other cocoa-y goods, I bloomed the cocoa in a tablespoon of boiling water before mixing in the red food coloring to make a paste, then added the paste to the butter and sugar mixture:

Red velvet cake batter all ready to go!

The original recipe called for adding shredded coconut and chopped pecans into the frosting, but it means you can’t pipe the frosting out of a decorating bag, so I opted to leave it out and garnished the cupcakes with them instead.  You don’t have to pipe if you don’t want to, but just be aware that the lumpiness of frosting with coconut and pecans in it will be more likely to tear the cake up.

Yes, I know, one of the cupcakes is missing a pecan.

Inside the cupcake

This was a pretty darn good cupcake, if I do say so myself.  I brought half the batch in to the office where I intern, and one of the professors said it was sinful.  He really seemed to like the frosting and joked, “You could put this frosting on galoshes and I’d eat it!”  (I hope I got that quote right!)  Totally made my day!

Red Velvet Cupcakes
2 cups sugar
1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 ounces red food coloring (I used a brand called Spectrum because it doesn’t have that strange bitter aftertaste other food colorings impart)
2 1/2 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon vinegar

Icing:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup marshmallow fluff
1 (1-pound) box confectioners’ sugar
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup whole pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin tin with baking liners.

In a mixing bowl, cream the sugar and butter, beat until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time and mix well after each addition. Mix cocoa and food coloring together and then add to sugar mixture; mix well. Sift together flour and salt. Add flour mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk. Blend in vanilla. In a small bowl, combine baking soda and vinegar and add to mixture. Portion batter evenly into muffin tin. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from heat and cool completely before frosting.

Icing:

Blend cream cheese and butter together in a mixing bowl. Add marshmallows and sugar and blend.  Put into piping bag fitted with plain or star tip, and pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes.  Top with coconut and nuts if desired.

EDIT:  This recipe can be converted to make a three-layer cake.  Grease and flour three 8″ round cake pans, pour in equal amounts of batter in each, and bake, staggered so that the pans are not directly over each other or touching.  Bake for 20-25 minutes (switching the pans around halfway through baking time) or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Let it cool for about 10 minutes in the pan before inverting it onto a cooling rack.  Let it cool completely before frosting.

© The Blind Baker NYC for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: cupcakes, red velvet

One of the greatest accomplishment in my life has been opening up my darling BF to new food, expanding his palate, and opening his eyes to that no, maybe he won’t like everything I do (which is quite a lot), but perhaps he should try it before he decides. 

This was not one of those nights where I prodded him to keep an open mind, however.  It was the Friday after I’d returned from my West Coast stadium tour, and we missed each other.  So I decided I should come over, cook dinner for both of us, and then we’d go see a movie (Grown Ups, for those keeping track at home).  Anything he wanted!  One guess what he requested…

Yup, a variation on his favorite meal (chicken cutlets, mashed potatoes, and creamed corn): chicken nibblers, my name for it – basically, cutting up the chicken first before frying, kind of like chicken nuggets, except… better. 

What is so special about this time?  Well, you see, my baby has been slowly learning how to cook on his own, without any prodding on my part.  I would love to jump right in and teach him how to make all the dishes I’ve made for him that he’s enjoyed, but he is more interested in taking things slow, and I’ve learned that it’s best to let him go at his own pace… lest I freak him out.  But this time, after I bought everything, I asked, “Do you want to help me?” and he said… OK.  So the above?  He actually made himself.  I was so proud… especially because he didn’t burn a single piece, nor did he undercook any (which tends to be one of my problems).  Each piece was perfectly cooked, perfectly juicy and tender, and delicious!!!  Good job, baby!  I am so proud of you, not just for this, but for all your accomplishments this year with regard to cooking (and other, but we’ll stick to cooking here).  <3

The mashed potatoes were just from a box, and I made creamed spinach from scratch (a little soupier than I’d intended).  Pretty good.

And his preference for creamed corn is just from a can.  Easy enough. 

My plate – yes, I love creamed spinach.  Hahaha.  So good, so easy, all of it, super delicious.  Much better and healthier than McDonald’s, any day! 

Chicken nibblers

Two boneless/skinless chicken breasts (to save money, if you can debone chicken breasts yourself, go for it!)
Italian seasoned bread crumbs
Milk
Parmesan cheese
Vegetable oil for frying

1. Cut chicken breasts into roughly evenly bite-sized pieces. 
   
2. Heat oil in a pan, about a half inch of oil in the pan.  It’s ready for frying when you put a wooden spoon or wooden chopstick in and bubbles come out very quickly. 
   
3. While the oil is heating, start the process of breading:
   
1. Mix the bread crumbs with the grated parmesan in a flat plate.
2. Milk in a bowl
3. Dip a piece of chicken in the milk, then into the bread crumbs, rolling it around
4. Dip the piece of chicken that you just dipped, back into the milk, then into the bread crumbs again
5. Set aside to be fried, and continue with the rest of the chicken
   
4. Fry the chicken in the oil… about 3-5 minutes on each side, depending on how thick the chicken is.  When done, remove to a paper towel covered plate to drain a bit of the oil, and season with a bit of salt. 

Enjoy!!!  No ketchup or sauces needed here… just plain, simple nomming.  So good. 

Happy eating!!! 

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 3 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: Recipe Fridays

Due to some health concerns, super spicy food is now forbidden from my diet, so jalapeños had to bow out of this recipe and I substituted mild banana peppers instead.  I knew I wanted to include sharp Cheddar (really, is there even a point to mild Cheddar cheese’s existence?), whole corn kernels, and  I knew from that long-ago recipe I lost that I wanted to include cumin to add a little warmth.

Ingredients for my Southwestern Corn Muffins; the fluted red cups contained garlic powder, cumin, red chili powder, and flour.  The cups are actually silicone muffin cups that double as pinch bowls!

Julienne of red bell pepper that I finely diced

Diced banana peppers

Dry ingredients whisked together

Quick word about those silicone muffin cups: they’re made by Le Creuset and I got them gratis through my day job (and no, I did not get a five-finger discount!).  This was my first time baking with them, and while I liked them well enough, they made weirdly shaped top-heavy muffins, which you’ll see later.  They’re more useful as pinch bowls, which are great for condiments or mise en place of small amounts of ingredients, like the spices in the above picture.  I can also see myself using these cups for tiny deep-dish quiches, pies or maybe even flan.

Drained corn niblets tossed with flour

Years ago, I read a recipe for blueberry muffins that solved the issue of the berries falling to the bottom of the pan while baking; toss them in flour.  I thought that was brilliant and applied the same concept to the corn niblets.  And yes, I read cookbooks the way some people read trashy novels…with avid gusto!

Muffin pans filled 3/4 of the way

Put a DSLR camera in my hands and I begin having delusions of artistic grandeur!

I chose to top the muffins with both sharp Cheddar and shredded, well-aged Parmigiano-Reggiano because  I really liked the contrast between the sweet Yankee-style cornbread and tang of the cheeses.  I wanted this muffin to explode with different flavors.

Look at that golden cheesy crust!

Looks like the silicone cups held up perfectly

See what I meant about the funny shape of the silicone cups?  They might be great for cupcakes (more surface area for frosting) and I had no problem unmolding them, but overall, I was just not won over by the aesthetics of the finished product.

Bottom of the silicone-baked muffin

An army of muffins

Look at that cheesy, corny interior!

These muffins tasted pretty good considering I was making it up as I went along.  What I most regret is the lack of height; this Southwestern Corn Muffin was a little squat.  I’m going to omit the fresh red bell pepper next time; its flavor was too subtle and I suspect the extra moisture it exuded was a major contributor to the muffin’s squatness.   I will also increase the green onion/scallion as well as the spices.  The recipe that follows is still a work in progress.  Feel free to make your own tweaks and let me know how it goes- I’d love to hear about your oventastic adventures!

Southwestern Corn Muffins

2 boxes Jiffy cornbread mix
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp cumin
1 small can corn niblets, very well drained
2 TBS flour
1 jalapeño, ribs and seeds removed (you can also use jarred and very well drained peppers of your choice), finely chopped
2 green onions, chopped
2 cups shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2/3 cup milk
2 eggs

Preheat the oven to 400 F.  Grease muffin pan.  Whisk the cornbread mix and dried spices together. In a small bowl, toss drained corn niblets in flour.  Stir corn, jalapeño, green onion, eggs and milk into dry ingredients. Don’t try to smooth out the lumps; lumpy corn bread batter is okay.  Fold in half of each cheese, let the batter rest for five minutes and evenly distribute among the muffin cups.  Top each with remaining cheeses.  Bake for ten to fifteen minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  This would be interesting as part of a southwestern style eggs Benedict or alongside a hearty chili, or slathered with butter.  Makes about 18 muffins.

© The Blind Baker NYC for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 13 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: corn muffins, Southwestern

Banana split for a cause!  To help spread awareness for Ovarian Cancer and raise money for research, Foodbuzz is donating $50 for each banana split post that goes up today.  So hey, why not?  Kelly Ripa and Electrolux are also involved in this great cause – click here to find out more!  You can make virtual banana splits; for every one you make, $1 will be donated to the cause.  What are you waiting for? 

As for my fancy-pants banana split, very simple: vanilla bean ice cream (Edy’s, whatever was available at the local store), with sliced bananas around it in a bowl.  Topped with burnt caramel sauce from Recchiuti that I picked up on my last trip to San Francisco, along with their burnt caramel almonds that I chopped really quickly.  In between each banana slice, a dried cherry.  I didn’t have a banana split dish so I had to slice the banana up, but it made the whole thing a lot easier to eat!  The tartness from the cherries balanced against the burnt smokiness of the caramel and almonds… the cool, creamy ice cream and of course the delicious bananas…

Here’s a bonus: picture of a banana split from Eddie’s Sweets Shop for an upcoming post:

Hey nommy nommy! 

Hope you found this cause worthy of your attention!  A big banana split sounds awesome on a day like today, no?

Happy eating! 

© Feisty Foodie for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: banana split, Ice cream

I decided to make devil’s food cupcakes because it’s an easy way to keep track of portions (ha), share with friends if I feel like being generous, and freeze leftovers (HA!) for future snacking.

I greatly dislike really delicate cupcakes that fall apart at a stern glance, so my ideal Satan-worthy cupcake is deep, dark, and sturdy with a medium crumb and buttery moistness.  I also dislike cupcakes with sickly-sweet frosting; I want a creamy vanilla buttercream to cap my creation.  This cupcake should be rich enough that you’ll only want one, thereby leaving the rest for me!

I started off by sifting the dry ingredients together according to my recipe, but I discovered this method creates that delicate airiness that I don’t like in cupcakes, so I scratched it and on my second try, I just dumped in the dry ingredients and briefly whisked it before adding my wet ingredients.

Speaking of wet ingredients, did you know that if you bloom cocoa powder in boiling water, it deepens and intensifies the chocolate flavor?  Oh yes it does.  Do it and tell me you don’t like the resulting cake.  Go on, I dare you!  It’s never failed me in the years I’ve been doing it (that sounds kind of illegal).  Unless you don’t like deep dark chocolate cake.  Which is okay because that means more cake for me!

EDIT: The Feisty Foodie’s comment reminded me that I never explained what it means to bloom cocoa, so here’s my quick and dirty explanation.

When cocoa powder is made, enzymes that normally contribute flavor get deactivated during processing (where most of the fats are removed). Blooming cocoa powder in hot liquid, typically boiling water, reactivates and releases the deeper flavors of the cocoa.  I compare it to making instant hot chocolate (shudder).  It’s not meant to be used in recipes that don’t have a lot of wet ingredients, like cookies, where you would use melted chocolate, not bloomed cocoa.  Also, please note that bloomed cocoa is NOT the same as bloomed chocolate; chocolate is the solid stuff you get in bricks, bars, and chips, which still contain their cocoa butter.  Bloomed chocolate has a white cast on the surface, which indicates the fat has risen to the surface of the chocolate.  It’s still fine to eat out of hand, but I wouldn’t bake with it.

Above: normal chocolate (left); bloomed chocolate (right)  Photo courtesy of Slashfood.com

Look how chocolatey they are!

Now on to the frosting!  I mentioned that I like buttercream.   And you already know from reading about my black & white cookies that I hate fondant, so you also know I wouldn’t use that on these fabulous cupcakes.  The problem is that a lot of buttercreams are either too sweet or grainy or both.  Or they contain vegetable shortening.  Blech.

The finished product- look at that dark chocolate!

Please don’t judge the weird frosting; I used this opportunity to practice my piping skills.  Or lack thereof.  Do focus on the glossiness of the frosting, however.

Verdict?  Deep chocolate flavor with a frosting that’s sweet but not stupid-sweet, full of vanilla flavor and smooth texture.  WIN!

Devils’ Food Cupcakes

4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1/3 cup  Dutch-processed cocoa
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plain cake flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened but still cool
1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract

Adjust oven racks to upper and lower middle positions; heat oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, line standard muffin pan (the cups each hold 1/2 cup of batter) with cupcake liners. Combine chocolate and cocoa in medium bowl; pour boiling water over and whisk until smooth. In a medium bowl, briefly whisk together flours, baking soda and salt; set aside.

Beat the butter in the bowl of a standing mixer at medium-high speed until creamy, about 1 minute. Add the brown sugar and beat at high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. With the mixer at medium-high speed, add the eggs, one at a time, beating 30 seconds after each addition. Reduce the speed to medium; add the sour cream and vanilla and beat until combined, about 10 seconds. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl. With the mixer at low speed, add about a third of the flour mixture, followed by about half the chocolate mixture. Repeat, ending with the flour mixture; beat until just combined, about 15 seconds. Do not over beat. Remove the bowl from the mixer; scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and stir gently to thoroughly combine.

Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups and smooth the batter with a spatula. Place pans in the oven one, on each rack.  Stagger them so they’re not directly above/below each other.  Bake until a toothpick or skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, 10-15 minutes. Cool the cakes on wire racks 15-20 minutes before turning out onto the racks. Cool completely.  Frost as desired.

Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
Pinch table salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons heavy cream

In standing mixer fitted with whisk attachment, beat butter at medium-high speed until smooth, about 20 seconds.  Add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moistened, about 45 seconds. Scrape down bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully combined, about 15 seconds; scrape bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed until incorporated, about 10 seconds, then increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.

© The Blind Baker NYC for The Feisty Foodie, 2010. | Permalink | 14 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: