spice cake (gluten free)

I picked the cookbook food52 cookbook by Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs from the library.  It had been somebody Christmas suggestion list and now I cannot find whose.  I thought it was Tara of Tea and Cookies but I was wrong.  But whoever led me to this cookbook, thank you.  I like it because there may be only two authors on the cover but the recipes are from man different people.  I have been having a good time with it.  There is a spice cake in it that looks pretty divine.  That is until I saw the shortening and the three cups of sugar.  I knew that would be much too sweet for our family.  We like flavor but not overwhelming sweet.  And I am really picky about cake.  

I took my favorite vanilla cake recipe and tweaked it with spices.  This cake is lovely.  We eat it unfrosted but you could frost it if you wished.  Cream cheese frosting would be good.  Or the caramel frosting the original recipe called for.  It would also be lovely toasted.  

My Beloved always gets the chance to taste the batter.  His comment was that this was as good as cookie dough.  Gives you an idea of how yummy it is.

Spice cake     

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

135 grams almond flour

135 grams millet flour

135 grams sorghum flour

135 grams arrowroot flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon mace

1/2 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon cloves

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  Butter a 9 inch springform pan.

In a bowl, cream the butter and the sugar together.  Mix in the eggs and vanilla.  Mix in the almond flour.  Then 1/4 cup of cream.  Mix in the millet flour.  Mix in 1/4 cup of cream.  Mix in the arrowroot flour.  Mix in 1/4 cup of cream.  Mix in the sorghum flour, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, and spices.

 Pour the batter into the prepared pan.  Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.

The cake will be golden and pull away from the sides of the pan.

If this is anything like the vanilla version of this cake, it will actually be better tomorrow.  

Now, if there will be any when I get home from work.....

oatmeal scotchies

I was craving oatmeal scotties last night.  I did not have the butterscotch chips to make them or the time.  Wednesday nights are always rather full.  I walked to the grocery store from work and picked up some butterscotch chips so I could make them.  The chips are not gluten free but the rest of the cookie is.  I tweaked the sugar a tad as well.  I find the chips making the cookies very sweet.

Oatmeal Scotchies

1/2 cup butter

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla

40 grams almond flour

40 grams teff flour

40 grams sorghum flour

40 grams arrowroot flour

1/2 teaspoons salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cup quick oats

2/3 cup butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Cream butter and sugars together.  Mix in egg and vanilla.

Mix in flours, salt, and baking soda.  Mix in oats.  Mix in butterscotch chips.  

Drop by small teaspoons on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper or a silpat.  

Bake for 10 minutes or until golden.  Let cool for ten minutes on the sheet before trying to remove.  The cookies will be very delicate with out the pause. Still tasty but delicate.

We went through two dozen without even thinking.  They satisfied my craving well.

king cake (rosca de reyes)

The Tall Short Person and I lived in New Orleans for a bit.  The Tall Short Person actually lived there longer.  But we both have taken away some of the traditions.  Like King Cake on the first day of Epiphany and every Friday until Ash Wednesday.  I usually do not get that much made but I get at least one.  This year more then one may be made because of how fast this one disappeared.  It did not last the twenty four hours.  It is really that good.  I make it at Easter too.

King Cake (rosa de reyes)

sourdough starter

1 cup flour

3/4 cup water

2/3 cup milk, hempmilk, or heavy cream

6 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

4 to 4 1/2 cups flour.

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

milk

Mix the sourdough starter, 1 cup flour, and 3/4 cup water together in a large ceramic bowl.  Let sit eight hours or overnight, until bubbly.  Remove about 2 tablespoons of the dough and put in the refrigerator.  It will be the starter for next time.  

Into the starter, mix the milke, sugar, salt, and eggs. Add the butter.  The dough will be lumpy. Mix 1 cup flour in.  Then another.  Then one more.  The dough should be stiff but it may be very wet.  

Flour the counter.  Turn the dough out on to the floured counter.  Knead until smooth, up to ten minutes.  You will probably add more flour during this process.  Put back in the bowl, cover, and let rise until double.

Punch the bread down and let rise until double again.

Deflate the dough.  Divide into thirds.  Roll out each portion into a strand and braid together.  Put on a baking sheet that has been covered with a silpat or parchment paper.  Let rise until double.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 1 hour.

Let cool.

Mix the powdered sugar, vanilla, and enough milk to make a glaze that will drizzle.  

Move the bread to a serving platter.  Drizzle with the glaze.

Enjoy.  

I used to put a silver dime into the King Cakes I would make instead of a ceramic baby for luck.  I did not have the baby.  And my family teases me about not making the glaze three colors:  purple, gold, and green, but they eat it anyhow!  Like I said, did not make 24 hours.

danica soup

This was supposed to be a post about soup.  This was the only picture I got and my family suggested that I still post.  They cleaned out the pot.

Danica soup is a mainstay in our lives and it is very simple.  I usually serve it with the crescent rolls I posted about last week.  It takes some beef (the more tender the cut, the better), a bit of onion, a few cloves of garlic, potatoes, and broth or water.  The bit of warm bread makes it go all the quicker.

Danica Soup

1 pound thinly sliced, bite size pieces of round steak, chuck, or filet.

1/4 to 1/2 onion, minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

4 cloves garlic minced

1 to 2 teaspoons salt

1/2 to 1 teaspoon black pepper

4 to 8 potatoes, peeled and cut into bite size pieces

4 to 8 cups of water, vegetable broth, or beef broth

In a large pot, put the oil and heat over medium high heat.  Add onion and brown.  Add meat and garlic.  Let the meat brown.  Add the salt and pepper.  Add the potatoes.  Cover with water or broth.  Cook until the potatoes are done. 

Serve in bowls with warm bread.

Watch it disappear, especially on a cold evening.

macarons with marscapone filling

I have been wanting to try making macarons.  The seem to be all the rage but they are also gluten free.  I read Tartelette and Helene Dujardin has written a great tutorial on the ins and outs of making macarons.  My insight?  It is all about the planning.  My egg whites sat in the refrigerator for more then three days.  Longer then they were really were supposed to actually but that is a key.  Also, I let my macarons sit for almost two hours before baking.  I was also baking bread the night I was making these and I needed to let the oven cool down.

What do I think?  I think they are good but I liked them the next day better then the first day because they did not taste as sweet to me.  My Beloved just thought they were too sweet.  The Tall Short Person would have eaten every single one if possible.  I can just make them for her.  My Beloved and myself like sweets that are not as sweet as these.  

I will probably make them again at some point because they are not a big deal.  I am the person who bakes bread three or four times a week using sourdough as my yeast so I am truly not the best person to ask (You should smell the house right now.  King Cake just came out of the oven)

Macarons with marscapone filling

100 grams egg whites (about three eggs) having sat in the refrigerator for a minimum of three days

25 grams granulated sugar

200 grams powdered sugar

110 grams whole almonds (you can use almond meal but you want as fresh as possible)

8 ounces marscapone cheese

2 to 4 tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

In a food processor, combine the powdered sugar and almonds.  Processes them until the almonds are meal and the sugar is mixed through.  i did this for close to two minutes.

In a large bowl, pour in the egg whites.  With a whisk, whisk until frothy.  Add the sugar a bit at a time until the egg whites are glossy and can hold a sharp peak.  Helene made the comment that her grandmother would say they were done if you could hold the bowl upside down above your head and the egg whites do not come out.  I put the bowl upside down but not above my head.  The beaten egg whites did not come out of the bowl.

Add the almond/sugar mixture to the egg whites.  Fold the mixture into the egg whites.  You want to fold and not mix so you do not beat out the air.  The first couple strokes should be fast but all others should be slow and gentle.  Make sure to scrape the bottom.  When you put a bit of the mixture on a saucer, you want the "cookie" to be lightly domed, no sharp edges.  If there are sharp edges, fold a bit more.

On a cookie sheet that has been covered with silpat or parchment paper, pipe or drop small mounds of batter.  I thought mine were a bit big.  Let sit at least an hour.  Because of my bread baking, mine sat probably over two.

Bake for 15 to 18 minutes at 275 degrees Fahrenheit.  They will be golden brown.  Let cool completely.

Mix the cheese, 2 to 4 tablespoons of sugar, and vanilla together.

Take a cooled cookie and spread the cheese mixture on it.  Cover with another cookie.  Do this to all of the cookies.

Pretty yummy.  They just take planning.  And I really need skill on making each one the same size.  I dropped them on to the cookie sheet like chocolate chip cookies.  Next time, smaller cookies.  Which means I need to buy parchament paper.

Joy!