Devil's Food Cupcakes

Oxford's Companion to Food states that the term "devil" in food names (such as devil food cake):

Devil--a culinary term which . . . first appeared as a noun in the 18th century, and then in the early 19th century as a verb meaning to cook something with fiery hot spices or condiments. . . . The term was presumably adopted because of the connection between the devil and the excessive heat in Hell. . . . Boswell, Dr Johnson's biographer, frequently refers to partaking of a dish of "deviled bones" for supper, which suggests an earlier use. . . Deviled dishes were very popular throughout the nineteenth and into the twentieth centuries, especially for seafood preparations and some appetizers.

The first recipe of Devil's food cake came about in 1902 in a cookbook called Mrs. Rorer's New Cook Book.

These cupcakes turned out pretty well--but I'm not convinced they're the best. It could be because of my frosting. I didn't have any of the ingredients to make frosting from scratch, so I resorted to using ready-made frosting. I also only had vanilla, so I added cocoa powder to the vanilla.

Ingredients:

• 3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 large eggs
• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Line the bottom of two 12-cup muffin tins with paper liners.
2. Melt chocolate in a double boiler over simmering water. In a bowl, stir baking soda into the boiling water; stir this mixture into chocolate. Set aside to cool slightly.
3. Using an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until the mixture is light and pale yellow in color. Add eggs, one at a time, and continue to mix until thoroughly incorporated. Add flour and buttermilk, alternating between small amounts of each, and blend well.
4. Add the melted chocolate and vanilla to the batter, and stir well. Pour the batter into the paper cups, and bake until a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the center of a cupcake, about 30 minutes. Remove cupcakes from the oven, and allow them to cool briefly in the muffin tin before removing them to a wire rack to cool completely. Ice, and serve.

Source: Martha Stewart

Chocolate Chip Pancakes

Pancakes have to be the one dish that have been adapted into a wide range of cultures--French have crepes, Italians have crespelle, the Indians have pitha, Mexicans have hotcakes, etc. Almost every nation has their variation of what we call pancakes. The term "pancake" originated in 1430 in an English manuscript which means it probably originated decades, if not centuries, before that!

The recipe below is for Chocolate Chip Pancakes--they're so good that you don't need syrup (although, it doesn't hurt)!

Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 egg
1 cup buttermilk (1 cup whole milk + 1 tablespoon white vinegar = 1 cup buttermilk)
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup cooking oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup chocolate chip morsels

Directions:
1. Preheat a skillet over medium-low heat.
2. If your skillet is not non-stick, then apply cooking spray.
3. Combine all the ingredients in a medium bowl and mix using a mixture until the batter is smooth. (You can also blend all the ingredients in a blender and pour into a bowl).
4. Pour batter by spoonfuls into the hot pan, forming 5-inch circles.
5. While cooking, place 10-15 morsels--one by one--on the circle of batter. The number of morsels can vary according to your own personal preference. Make sure to press the morsels deep into the batter.
6. As the edges appear to harden, flip the pancakes. Ideally they should look light brown. If they are too dark--lower your heat.
7. Cook the other side for the same amount of time, until light brown.

This recipe yields 8-10 pancakes.

Source: Adapted from Top Secret Recipes by Todd Wilbur

5 Cheese Lasagna

Everyone knows Lasagna is an Italian pasta dish. There are so many wonderful variations to this classic dish--meat, no meat, with marinara sauce, with bechamel sauce, etc.

The first published recipe was found in the first cookbook written and published in England which gave rise to the urban legend that the recipe was conceived in the British Isles.

Some speculate that the word lasagna originates from the Greek word lasana which means "chamber pot". The Romans borrowed the word from the Greek as "lasanum" which means "cooking pot" and the Italians named the dish lasagna after lasanum in honor of the dish it is served in.

An alternating theory speculates that the word lasagna is derived from the Greek word laganon which is a flat sheet of pasta dough cut into stripes.

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter OR margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups milk

1/4 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes - minced
1 Tbls. minced garlic
3 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
1 package frozen spinach
3 eggs
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup grated Romano cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
12 lasagna noodles - prepared as directed, cooled
4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup fontina cheese
Your favorite bottled marinara sauce
Parmesan for topping

Directions:
1. Melt butter in a 1 quart saucepan.
2. Add flour and stir until it is thoroughly blended (no lumps). Stir until frothy.
3. Add milk. Stir constantly with a wire whisk until the mixture simmers.
4. Stir for 3-4 minutes until the mixture has thickened. Refrigerate.
5. Drain the sun-dried tomatoes. Chop or mince in a chopper or by hand. Place in a large bowl. Thaw and drain frozen spinach and add to bowl with tomato's.
6. Add garlic, ricotta cheese, eggs, Parmesan cheese, Romano cheese, salt and pepper to the minced tomato's. Mix with a spoon or spatula.
7. Add 1 1/2 cups of the cooled cream sauce and mix until well blended.
8. Place 3 lasagna noodles in a 9" x 13" x 2" baking dish. Make sure you have lightly oiled the dish.
9. Spread 1.5 cups of the cheese filling on the noodles. Sprinkle 1 cup mozzarella and .25 cup of fontina cheese.
10. Repeat the pasta-cheese layering 3 more times (4 rows of pasta with 3 rows of filling). Make sure to top the lasagna with 3 lasagna noodles.
11. Pour 1/2 cup cream sauce over the top.
12. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
13. Remove from oven and pour marinara sauce. Top with mozzarella.
14. Bake at 350 for another 30 minutes.
15. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Nutella Icing

Hazelnut Cupcake Icing

I love love love Nutella! Nutella is amazing because it tastes chocolate-y, is healthier than peanut butter and it's made of skim milk!

According to the Nutella website, it was conceived by Pietro Ferrero in the 1940's. He was an Italian pastry maker and founder of the Ferrero company.

Due to rationing during World War II, there was a short supply of cocoa which led to a shortage of chocolate. Ferrero ingeniously used the abundant hazelnut to create more chocolate.

In 1964, this spread became known as Nutella.



While looking at the Billy Bakery recipe for Chocolate Cupcakes, I couldn't think of a more heavenly form of icing than Nutella Icing. I was really hoping for a "legit" recipe (i.e. from the Nutella website), but had no such luck.

I found the following recipe from the World Nutella Day site, and it works really well!

Yields Icing for 24 (and then some):

Ingredients:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup Nutella
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup heavy cream

Directions*:
1. Cream the butter.
2. Add confectioners sugar and cream the butter and confectioner's sugar together.
3. Add vanilla and salt. Mix for 20 seconds.
4. Add 1/2 cup Nutella and the heavy cream. Mix.
5. Add the remaining 1/2 cup Nutella and mix.
6. Beat until the consistency is even. Make sure the butter has no lumps and it's a smooth texture.

(*The directions on the Nutella Day site said to throw all the ingredients in together, but for whatever reason that caused my first batch to have little lumps of butter. I used the directions above the second time, and there were no lumps)

Tres Leche Cake

Tres Leche Cake (Three Milk Cake) is a sponge/butter cake that is drenched in three types of milk (evaporated, condensed and heavy cream).

Jenna Bush and her husband, Henry Hager, served a 4 tier tres leche cake at their wedding--how they managed to make the tiers stand is beyond me!

It's a popular desert in Latin America (more specifically in Nicaragua, Mexico, Cuba, Puerto Rico and Guatemala) and in the Caribbean where the condensed milk is replaced with cream of coconut.

While trying to trace the roots of this recipe, it's become evident that there is no clear answer to how the recipe came about. Nestle claims to have developed this recipe during World War II. However, the process of dripping cake in liquids is European (similar process in Rum Cake and Tiramisu). Most historians seem to agree that this recipe hails from Nicaragua; however, there is no proof supporting either theories.

In essence, this recipe consists of 3 Parts:
(1) Baking the Sponge Cake
(2) Drenching the Sponge Cake
(3) Covering & Garnishing the Sponge Cake



Sponge Cake Ingredients:
1 cup sifted cake flour
3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick butter (8 tablespoon)
6 large eggs
1 cup granulated white sugar
2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract


Leche Ingredients:
12 oz Evaporated Milk
14 oz Sweetened, Condensed Milk
1/4 cup Heavy Cream

Icing:
2 cups Heavy Cream
1/2 cup - 1 cup sugar
2 tablespoon vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
2. Oil and flour a 13 x 9 metal pan
3. Whisk together cake flour, cream of tartar, and salt
4. Place the butter into a bowl and beat until fluffy on medium speed (took me 2 minutes).
5. Continue whisking at low speed and gradually add the sugar.
6. Add eggs one at a time, while maintaining the whisking speed at low.
7. Add vanilla extract and combine.
8. Add flour mixture to the butter batter in 3 installments and mix until fully combined and smooth.
9. Pour the batter into the baking dish (it looks like a little, but the cake rises!)
10. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the cake is light gold in color.
11. Remove cake pan. Poke the cake with a fork to form holes and allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes.
12. Whisk evaporated milk, condensed milk and heavy cream and pour on the cake.
13. Refrigerate cake overnight.
14. Place heavy cream, sugar and vanilla into a bowl and whisk on low until stiff peaks are formed. Change speed to medium until the mixture becomes thick.
15. Ice the cake with the whipping cream and refrigerate until you are ready to serve.

* This recipe is often garnished with cherry's.

Jell-O Trifle

Another deviation from baking, and another form of trifle. I don't want to call it my creation because I'm sure someone out there has made something like this.

What's a post without a little history lesson? Jell-O was created by Pearle Wait, a carpenter in LeRoy, in 1897, when he was making a cough remedy and laxative tea in his home. He experimented with gelatine and came up with the fruit flavored dessert we all know and love, which his Wife, May, named Jell-O. He then sold the rights to this presently flourishing business for $450!

The first four Jell-O flavors were orange, lemon, strawberry, and raspberry; lime was introduced in 1930 and there was no turning back since with creations of new flavors and products!

And, just for your reference--fruits that float in Jell-O include fresh fruits such as apples, bananas, orange and grapefruit sections; sliced peaches, pears and strawberries; and fruit packed in light syrup. Fruits that sink--seedless grapes; fruits in heavy syrup such as apricots, cherries, fruit cocktail peaches, pears and pineapple.

Returning back to the recipe at hand, I named this Jell-O Trifle because of it's layers. I gotta say, it's a lot of fun to make and looks delicious and you can make it in any flavor you want! I made orange--rest assured no beef pea's in this one ;-). What? You don't know what I'm talking about? Then you must watch this:


In a nutshell, it's one layer of jell-o, a layer of jell-o with whip cream, a layer of fresh fruit (preferably the same as the jell-o or one that compliments the jello) and a layer of whip cream. It's hard for me to quantify the amount of each ingredient because this is really a recipe that varies by the person who prepares it.

Ingredients:
Orange Jell-O
Whip Cream
Canned Oranges

Equipment: Trifle Dish 1 Medium Bowl

Directions:
1. Prepare Orange Jell-O as per instructions on the box.
2. Pour Jell-O into trifle dish and refrigerate.
3. Drain and wash canned orange slices. The whip cream and Jell-O provide enough sweet taste so make sure the syrup cocktail is not on the oranges!
4. Set aside the perfect shaped orange slices for garnishing at the end.
5. Split orange slices in half and fold into the whip cream. Refrigerate until Jell-O is set.
6. Once the Jello-O is set, lightly place the whip cream mixture on top of the Jell-O evenly.
7. Add a thin layer of plain whip cream for aesthetic purposes and garnish with orange slices.

* I made the Jell-O and the cool whip mixture the night before and refrigerated both. The next day, I layered and garnished the dish. The cool whip mixture does not need to be made in advance.

Just to leave this post on an interesting note, in 1993, it was confirmed with a bowl of Lime Jello-) and an EEG machine that a bowl of wiggly Jello-O has brain waves identical to those of adult men and women. Bon Appetit...or not.

Banana Pudding

Another recipe that doesn't call for the oven; but tastes yummilicious! Banana Pudding.

Banana Pudding resembles an English Trifle and is most commonly recognized as a desert from the South. It was published in "The Kentucky Receipt Book" by Mary Harris Frazer in 1903; however, this recipe did not include wafers. Moreover, Banana Pudding was a favorite of the legend, Elvis Presley!

This particular recipe is from Magnolia's Bakery (from the book More From Magnolia). Alyssa Torey (author of the book) claims that this is the second most popular recipe in their bakery after cupcakes. This recipe is also egg-less so it's perfect for any pure vegetarians or anyone with egg allergies!

Ingredients:
14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1.5 cups ice cold water
3.4 ounce package instant vanilla pudding mix (pref Jell-O brand)
3 cups heavy cream
1 12 oz box Nabisco Nilla Wafers (no substitutions!)
4 cups sliced ripe bananas

Equipment:
1 Electric Mixer
Measuring Cups
1 Small Bowl
1 Covered Dish for storing pudding overnight
1 Large Bowl
1 Large Wide Bowl/Trifle Dish/small individual desert dishes

Directions:
1. In a small bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat together the sweetened condensed milk and water until well combined, about 1 minute.
2. Add pudding mix and beat well, about 2 minutes more.
3. Cover and refrigerate for about 3-4 hours, or overnight, before continuing. It's important to allow the proper amount of time for the pudding mixture to set in.
4. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, whip the heavy cream until peaks form.
5. Gently fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream until well blended and no streaks of pudding remain.
6. To assemble the dessert, select a large, wide bowl (preferably glass) with a 4-5 quart capacity. Arrange 1/3 of the wafers to cover the bottom of the bowl, overlapping if necessary, then 1/3 of the bananas and 1/3 of the pudding. Repeat the layers twice more, garnishing with additional wafers on the top layer of the pudding.
7. Cover tightly with a plastic wrap and allow to chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours--or up to 8, but no longer!--before serving.

* While the layering in this recipe calls for a trifle like appearance, I chose to arrange this in little miniature bowls for individual deserts.

Best Brownies Ever!

Caramel Walnut Brownies

Brownies are an all American dessert staple, loved by all genders, ages and races. My personal favorite are not really "traditional" brownies since they include pecans and caramel. Either way, I think they're delicious and a little too addicting for their own good.

According to the Encyclopedia of American Food & Drink, the first brownies were invented by a housewife in Maine who forgot to add baking powder whilst baking chocolate cake. As a result, her cake didn't rise to it's potential but nonetheless, she sliced it up and served it.

The first brownie recipe has been traced back to The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book (1906 Edition)which was edited by Fannier Merritt Farmer. This version is less chocolaty and rich than the traditional brownies today.

The second recipe was published in 1907 by Maria Willet Howard in the Lowney's Cook Book and this version was richer and had a stronger chocolate flavor.

The two variations of brownies are still present till this day--some like their brownies cake-like and light on the chocolate-ness and other likes it super rich and almost fudge-like.

Personally, I adore the light chocolate flavor of a "cakesque" brownie that is accessorized with toasted pecans and caramel. YUM!


But, to each their own. With all that being said, here's my favorite recipe of Brownies.


Caramel Pecan Brownie Recipe:
Yields: 24 3 inch brownies

Ingredients:
2 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups (2 2/3 sticks) unsalted butter
8 large eggs, at room temperature
4 cups sugar
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts
3/4 caramel (or to taste)

Equipment Needed:
1 Large Bowl
1 Brownie Baking Dish

Directions:
1. Place the dry ingredients (flour, salt and baking powder) in a bowl. Sift together.
2. Melt chocolate and butter in a saucepan over low heat until it's smooth. Cool for 5 minutes.
3. Beat eggs until creamy and add sugar gradually.
4. Add chocolate mixture to the eggs/sugar mixture.
5. Add the sifted dry ingredients (flour, salt and baking powder).
6. Add vanilla extract.
7. Once the consistency is set, pour in pecans to the mixture and fold.
8. Pour half the brownie mixture in the pan. Drizzle caramel on the brownie mixture that is in the pan. Pour the remainder of the brownie mixture in the pan.
9. Drizzle the caramel on top of the brownie Mixture.
10. Bake 30 minutes.

Guacamole

The Best Guacamole in the World

I wanted to switch things up a bit and include a recipe that doesn't necessarily involve baking. Guacamole has to be one of my favorite foods. I love that essentially, it's just mixed raw vegetables. I think it's one of those foods that the beast in me could eat daily for the rest of my life without getting bored.

For those unaware, Guacamole is a Mexican dish that varies in it's ingredients from region to region. The most commonly accepted ingredients for "traditional Mexican guacamole" are avacado's, white onions, tomato, serrano peppers and lime juice (this ingredient is KEY in preserving the light green color of the mashed avacado). Historically speaking, Guacamole can be traced back to the Aztecs who referred to it as "ahuaca-mulli" which literally translates to avocado sauce. Due to the simplicity of the dish, the Aztec version is almost identical to the version we eat today!

The Aztecs believed avocado to be an aphrodisiac (I don't know about avocado's, but guacamole's sure work for me =P ). The Aztecs referred to the avocado tree as "Ahuactuatl" which literally translates to "testical tree". They believed that the fruit hanging in pairs on the tree resembled the male testicles and that the interior fruit part of the avocado had a sensuous texture.

Avocado's have numerous health benefits. Listing them would make this already long post unbearable. So just to name a few--lower cholesterol, prevent cancer, improve quality of skin and hair, etc.

Here is, in my opinion, the best Guacamole recipe in the world! The best part is, you can't go wrong with this recipe! If you like onions, just add more; if you hate them, just add less! This is one dish that can bu customized to any taste palette!

P.S. To prevent the guacamole from turning brown, use fresh lemon/lime and save the avocado pits and place in the guacamole.

INGREDIENTS:
Avacado
Tomato
Onion
Jalapeno
Lime/Lemon Juice
Cilantro
Kosher Salt

EQUIPMENT:
Knife
Cutting Board
Bowl
Utensil to Mash Avocado (Masher, fork, etc)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Dice tomatoes, onions and jalapeno.
2. Chop cilantro.
3. Cut avocado in half and remove pit.
Note: If the avocado is not soft on the outside, place it in a brown paper bag to soften overnight.
4. Take a spoon and remove the avocado from its shell.
5. Using a potato masher or fork, mash the avocado until it's chunky.
6. Add the diced and chopped vegetables into the chunky avocado.
7. Add salt/lemon to taste.
8. Serve with Tortilla Chips