Mississippi Mud Cake (TCS)

After baking along with The Cake Slice group for the past 15 months, I've decided that this will be my last recipe with the group (at least for now). Along with appreciating the beauty of triple layer cakes and the traditions of favorite southern cakes, I've enjoyed baking along with a supportive and enthusiastic group of bakers.

The Cake Slice group voted, and Mississippi Mud Cake came out on top as February's recipe. For me, this resembled less a cake and more a brownie, with its thin, rich and pecan-studded chocolate cake layer. If the cake alone isn't rich enough, it is topped with marshallows and a thick chocolate frosting as the cake comes out of the oven. The warmth of the cake allows the marshallow and frosting to melt into this ooey, gooey goodness.

I haven't sampled this recipe, so couldn't tell you how it tastes. My hubs took the cake to work, and he said that it was devoured in minutes. In fact, people came back looking for more...I would say a crowd pleaser, wouldn't you agree?

Click here for the complete recipe.

Cinnamon Pecan Coffee Cake (TCS)

After a year of baking some really delicious and TALL cakes from Sky High: Irresistable Triple Layer Cakes, The Cake Slice group has switched gears and has moved on to a new cake baking book. After a vote (we're so democratic, aren't we?), the group has chosen to bake recipes from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott. In the introduction of the book, Nancie shares the following:

"I invite you to take a little journey through this collection of Southern cakes. Perhaps you will come across some old friends and meet some new neighbors, since the South, like all the world, grows and changes every day, while still remaining essentially its same old self. I hope that while sampling these pages you will remember something about a cake you once ate or a person who taught you something about cooking and eating and the sacred nature of food."

I couldn't have said it any better.

Cinnamon-Pecan Coffee Cake is the first recipe selected from the book, and it's a perfect recipe to bid summer adieu and welcome fall. Mind you, we have yet to cool down in Southern California, so I'll have to imagine the crisp, cool autumn weather as I enjoy this cake.

Cinnamony and buttery (3 1/2 sticks of buttery goodness --- this is not a typo), this decadent breakfast cake is total comfort food. I didn't have any raisins in the house, so I opted for mini bittersweet chocolate chips. I would recommend not shortchanging on the nuts, as it really provided and nice crunch and flavor to the cake.

Cinnamon Pecan Coffee Cake
from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott

For the Cake
3 cups all purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup milk
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs

For the Cinnamon Raisin Filling
1½ cups light brown sugar
3 tbsp all purpose flour
3 tbsp cinnamon
1½ cups raisins
1½ cups coarsely chopped pecans
¾ cup (1½ sticks) butter, melted

Method
Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 13 by 9 inch pan.

To make the filling, combine the light brown sugar, flour and cinnamon in a bowl and stir with a fork to mix everything well. Combine the raisins and pecans in another bowl and toss to mix them. Place the cinnamon mixture, nut mixture and melted butter by the baking pan to use later.

To make the cake batter, combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl. Stir the vanilla into the milk. In a large bowl combine the butter and sugar and beat with a mixer on high speed until pale yellow and evenly mixed, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl to ensure a good mix. Add the eggs and beat for another 2 minutes, scraping down the bowl now and then, until the mixture is smooth and light.

Use a large spoon or spatula to add about a third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture and stir only until the flour disappears. Add a third of the milk and mix in. Repeat twice more until all the flour and milk mixtures have been incorporated. Stir just enough to keep the batter smooth.

Spread half the batter evenly into the prepared pan. Sprinkle half the cinnamon mixture over the batter followed by half the melted butter. Scatter half the raisins and nuts over the top. Spread the remaining batter carefully over the filling, using a spatula to smooth the batter all the way to the edges of the pan. Top with the leftover cinnamon, butter and nut mixture, covering the cake evenly.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the cake is golden brown, fragrant and beginning to pull away from the edges of the pan. Place the pan on a wire rack and allow to cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before serving in squares right from the pan. The cake is delicious hot, warm or at room temperature.

Mile High Devil's Food Cake (TCS)

I'm a little late to The Cake Slice party! Better late then never, as I didn't want to miss out on opportunity to make another scrumptious cake recipe from Sky High: Irresistable Triple-Layer Cakes. This month's recipe is a Mile-High Devil's Food Cake, with a choice of Brown Sugar Buttercream or Brown Sugar Seven-Minute Frosting (for a lighter frosting alternative).

I made the full recipe, with the majority being made into 2 1/2 dozen cupcakes for a work colleague's baby shower. I did reserve enough cake batter and frosting to make a 4 inch mini-cake (what a surprise), which is shown here.

The cake is really easy to make and calls for cocoa powder to deliver its wonderful chocolate flavor. The cake has a beautiful, tight crumb and is wonderfully moist.I opted for the buttercream recipe --- sure, it calls for a pound of butter, but it is totally worth the caloric investment. In this recipe, white sugar is swapped for brown sugar, which provides a subtle caramel flavor and gives the buttercream a beautiful ivory color. It was an delicious complement to the chocolate cake, and I thought the color contrast was really beautiful.

I was being a bit lazy, and didn't do a crumb coat, thus ending up with specks of cake thoughout the frosting (argh). Oh well---this little treat was for my hubs and me, and we enjoyed every bit of this cake, specks and all!

Mile-High Devil’s Food Cake
From: Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne
Makes an 8-inch triple layer cake

Devil's Food Cake

1 cup of unsweetened cocoa NOT DUTCHED PROCESSED
1 and ¼ cups of hot water
3 cups of light brown sugar; packed
2 and 2/3 cups cake flour*
1 and ½ teaspoons baking soda
¾ teaspoon of salt
9 ounces of unsalted butter at room temperature [2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons]
3 large eggs
1 ½ teaspoons of vanilla extract
¾ cup of cold water
{*1 cup of cake flour is equal to ¾ cup of flour plus 2 tablespoons of cornstarch}

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Butter the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch round cake pans. Line the bottoms of the pans with parchment paper and grease the paper as well.

Place the cocoa in a medium bowl and add the hot water. Whisk until smooth and let it cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the sugar, flour, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low blend to combine. Add the butter and the dissolved cocoa. Then raise the mixer to medium speed and beat for 2 minutes until light and fluffy.

In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, vanilla, and cold water until combined. Add this liquid to the batter in three additions scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions. Divide the batter among the three pans.

Bake for 35-45 minutes or until a cakes tester inserted into the almost comes out clean. There should be a few crumbs attached still. Cool the cakes in the pans for 15 minutes. Then invert and remove parchment paper and cool completely on a wire rack.

{Bakers’ choice of: Brown Sugar 7-Minute Frosting or Brown Sugar Buttercream}

Brown Sugar 7-Minute Frosting

6 egg whites
1 and ½ cups of brown sugar
¼ cup light corn syrup*
2 tablespoons of water
½ teaspoon of cream of tartar
{*corn syrup can be substituted with equal parts of treacle OR liquid glucose OR light colored honey}

Do not try to make this frosting on a rainy day or if you live in an extremely humid area. The humidity will make it impossible to work with the egg whites.

Place all the egg whites in a bowl and set them aside while you make the syrup.

In a small heavy saucepan, combine the brown sugar, corn syrup, and water. Bring to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Continue to boil washing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush. Boil until the syrup reaches 238 degrees F (softball stage) on a candy thermometer. Immediately remove from heat.

Add the cream of tartar to the egg whites in the bowl and beat just to combine. With the mixer on medium speed gradually add the syrup in a thin stream taking care not to hit the beaters. Beat until fairly stiff peaks form but the frosting is still spreadable. If the frosting is too stiff it will be hard to work with. Use immediately.

Brown Sugar Buttercream

5 egg whites
1 and ¼ cups of packed brown sugar
¼ cup of water
1 pound of unsalted butter (16 ounces) at room temperature

Place all the egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer; set aside.

In a heavy medium saucepan combine the sugar and water. Cook over medium heat stirring to dissolve the sugar. Then bring to a boil without stirring and cook until the syrup reaches 238 degrees F on a candy thermometer.

Begin beating the egg whites on medium low speed. Slowly pour in the syrup making sure not to hit the beater. Increase the mixer speed to medium high and beat until the meringue has cooled to body temperature.

With the mixer on med-low add 1-2 tablespoons of butter at a time. When all the butter has been added increase the mixer’s speed to medium and beat until the mixture looks curdled or separated. Continue to beat until the icing comes together again looking like soft smooth whipped butter.

Assembling the cake:
Place one layer flat side down and cover it with 2/3 cup of the frosting. Top with second layer and repeat process. Top with third layer and frost the sides of the cake.

Bakers Notes:
A cake topped with the meringue frosting is the best the day it’s made. It does not do well in the fridge.

If you choose the buttercream frosting you can keep it in the fridge for 3 days. Make sure to allow the cake to come to room temperature for 1 to 1 ½ hours. Otherwise the frosting will be hard and heavy.

Chai Cake w. Honey-Ginger Cream (TCS)

SCRUMPTIOUS!!! I think that succinctly describes The Cake Slice recipe for this month, Chai Cake w. Honey-Ginger Cream.

I went the baby cake route again, making a triple layer 4 inch cake. I cut the cake recipe in half, which provided enough batter for two 4 inch springform pans and 6 cupcakes.

The cake layers get its spicy note from chai tea (I used the Tazo brand), and augmented with cinnamon and cardamom. As part of the cake-making process, several chai tea bags are steeped in warm milk. With a little honey, I could have taken a straw and drank this tea-infused milk straight from the pot!
I also reduced the frosting recipe by half. My only slight issue with the frosting was its intense sweetness (and I didn't even use the full amount of powdered sugar in the recipe). This could have resulted from my substitution of crystalized ginger for fresh. To balance the sweetness, I added more cream cheese. Instead of an icing to drizzle on the cake layers, I ended up with a more traditional cream cheese frosting. The little golden bits you see in the frosting is the chopped crystalized ginger:
If you enjoy spice cakes (which I definitely do), this will make your tastebuds and tummy very happy.

Based on the six cakes that I've baked from the Sky High book, every recipe has been been an absolute winner! Not only are the cake/frosting combinations inspired, the final cakes are beautiful in presentation. My thanks goes out to Gigi for organizing this fantastic monthly baking group!!!

Although The Cake Slice group is closed to new members, I encourage you to get a copy of this fantastic cookbook and try your hand at these recipes --- I promise you won't regret it!

In the meantime, please visit the TCS blogroll to see the beautiful handiwork of my fellow talented bakers.

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Chai Cake w. Honey Ginger Cream

From Sky High:Irresistible Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne
Makes an 8-inch triple layer cake; serves 12-16

1 and 1/3 cups of milk
6 chai tea bags, without added sweetner, such as Tazo
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 and 3/4 cups of cake flour
2 cups of sugar
4 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
3/4 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon of salt
8 ounces of unsalted butter at room temp.

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F. Grease the bottom and sides of the pans and line with parchment paper. Grease the paper as well.

In a small saucepan bring the milk to a simmer over low med-low heat. Add the tea bags, careful not to let the paper tag fall into the milk. Remove from heat and allow the tea to steep for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags and squeeze out the milk. Let the chai milk cool completely.

In a medium bowl mix the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and 1/3 cup of the chai milk. Whisk together.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt in the bowl of a mixer. Beat on low for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining chai milk, on med-low speed.

Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg mixture in three additions scraping the between additions. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.

Bake the cakes for 26-28 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes.Remove cakes from pans and peel off parchment paper. Cool completely.

To assemble the cake place one layer flat side down a serving plate and top with 2/3 cup of icing. Spread to the edge and repeat with second layer. Place third layer on top and spread the remaining ginger cream on top allowing it to drizzle down the sides of the cake like icicles.

Honey-Ginger Cream

2 and 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar {decreased to 1 1/2 cups}
6 ounces of cream cheese at room temp. {increased to 9 oz}

6 tablespoons of unsalted butter at room temp.
1/2 cup of honey (any kind as long as liquid)
1/2 teaspoon of fresh grated ginger {substituted w. 1 1/2 tbsp finely minced crystalized ginger}

Place all the ingredients in a food processor. Pulse to blend together, then scrape the sides of the bowl and pulse until smooth.

Triple Lemon Chiffon Cake (TCS)

The Cake Slice bakers voted, and our selection for March is Triple Lemon Chiffon Cake. When I bake recipes out of the Sky High book, I can serve the finished cakes to an army of people, as most of the cakes in this book are beautiful, delicious and GINORMOUS! Well, that's not the case this time around. Surprise --- this is a triple layer baby cake:
The full recipe (see below), is enough to make a 9 inch triple layer cake. I had intended to cut the recipe in half and make my usual 6 inch cake. I didn't pay close attention to the instructions (too busy watching old episodes of Dexter and prepping this recipe --- I'm not an accomplished multi-tasker), and sprayed my 6 inch pans with non-stick cooking spray.

Non-stick is a huge no-no with chiffon cakes (and angel food), as the cake needs to "climb up" and stick to the sides of the pan while it bakes and cools to retain its shape. If you go the non-stick spray route, you will end up with a fallen, shrunken and mis-shapen cake (I'll spare you from my disaster).

I didn't notice my mistake until I had filled both pans with cake batter. I ended up retreiving some batter from the 6 inch pans and used two 4 inch springform pans (and yes, they were properly prepped).

Once the cake rounds cooled, I cut the cakes crosswise and slathered the curd and lemon cream between the layers:

Maybe I'm yearning for spring, but this cake really hit the spot for me. The chiffon cake and lemon cream frosting were both light and not overly sweet. This was fine by me, as the cake is punctuated by the terrific lemony tang and sweetness from the lemon curd.

{On a side note, I never realized what a FAT BOMB lemon curd is until I started making it from scratch. Until now, I thought it was just like jam --- the eggs and butter did me no favors}

Perfect portion control --- one slice = 3 bites:

If you love lemony desserts, this is cake is a must!!! Better yet, go get yourself a copy of Sky High: Irresistable Triple-Layer Cakes and bake this cake--- you won't regret it.

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TRIPLE LEMON CHIFFON CAKE

adapted from: SKY HIGH - IRRESISTIBLE TRIPLE LAYER CAKES by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne

makes a 9 inch triple layer cake

For the Cake

8 eggs, separated
1/4 cup walnut oil**
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tablespoon of lemon zest
1/3 cup water
1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar
1 and 1/2 cups of sugar
1 ans 3/4 cups of cake flour*
1/2 teaspoon of baking soda
1/2 teaspoon of salt

[*1 cup of cake flour is equal to 3/4 cup of AP flour plus 2 tablespoons of corn starch]

[**equal amount of either almond oil, hazelnut oil, or canola oil]

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line the bottoms of three 9-inch pans with parchment paper but do not butter or grease the pans.

In a med-large bowl whisk together the egg yolks, oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, and water.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar on medium speed until light and frothy. Slowly add 1/2 cup of sugar and continue to beat until soft peaks form.

Sift the flour, remaining sugar, baking soda , and salt into a large bowl. Whisk gently to combine.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Pour in the egg yolk mixture and mix to create

a smooth paste. Add one-fourth of the egg whites and fold in to lighten the batter. Fold in the remaining egg whites and divide the batter among the three pans.

Bake for about 16 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Transfer to wire racks to cool in the pans. Once cool run a knife around the cake to in order to un-mold the cakes. Carefully pull off the parchment paper from the bottoms of the cakes.

To assemble the cake, place one layer on a cake stand. Top with a heaping 1/4 cup of lemon curd and spread it evenly. Repeat with the remaining layers. Frost the top of the cake and the sides with the lemon cream frosting.

Rich Lemon Curd

makes 1 cup

3 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
1/2 cup of sugar
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 4 lemons)
grated zest of three lemons
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter, at room temp.

Whisk together the whole eggs, yolks, sugar, lemon juice , and lemon zest together in a medium bowl. Transfer to a small non-reactive saucepan. Gently heat the mixture, whisking until it thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. make sure not to boil the mixture. Pour the mixture through a sieve into a heatproof bowl. Stir in the butter and cover the curd with plastic making sure the plastic touches the curd. This should prevent a skin from forming on the curd. Refrigerate until cold. Then remove 3 tablespoons of curd and set it aside for the icing.

Lemon Cream Frosting

makes 3 1/4 cups

1 and 1/2 cups of heavy cream
2 tablespoons of sugar
3 tablespoon of lemon curd

Whip the cream and sugar in a large chilled bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold in the lemon curd, forming a stiff frosting.

Southern Coconut Cake (The Cake Slice)

This month's installment of The Cake Slice features Southern Coconut Cake. So far, every recipe that I've made out of Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes has exceeded my expectations, and I highly recommend that you go out and treat yourself to this cookbook.

Impossibly moist white cake layers are subtly flavored with unsweetened coconut milk, enveloped by a cream cheese buttercream frosting (I gained 5 pounds just typing those words) and covered with sweetened flaked coconut (oops, another 5 pounds).

With all of the cake making happening in my kitchen this month, I cut the recipe in half and baked the cake layers in two 6" round pans. The instructions for the cake were pretty straightforward, and the layers were baked without a hitch.

The cream cheese buttercream frosting is a bit more involved to coordinate the whipping of the egg whites and heating of the sugar, but the efforts will be rewarded with a frosting that has all the flavor of your traditional cream cheese frosting but with a lighter, fluffier consistency. Good grief, I could have eaten an entire batch this frosting right out of the bowl!

The assembled cake is really beautiful, and I thought the coconut flavor in the cake was nice and subtle. Again, the frosting was out of this world delicious and it wasn't coyingly sweet or rich...perfect!!
This recipe is on my short list for my friends J&T. You see, they are getting married this September, and I've been honored with the responsibility for their wedding cupcakes and dessert display. Am I just a bit panicked? --- absolutely!!! Aside from the nervousness, I'm really excited about the opportunity to create something delicious for people that I adore. I'm going to try this recipe out in cupcake form and see how it turns out... wish me luck!

Southern Coconut Cake
Makes an 8-inch triple layer cake

For the cake:
5 large egg whites
½ cup of milk
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
3 cups of cake flour
2 and 1/3 cup sugar
4 ½ teaspoons of baking powder
½ teaspoon of salt
2 sticks of unsalted butter (8oz.) at warm room temperature
1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
2 ½ cups of sweetened flaked coconut for garnishing cake

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Butter the bottoms of three 8-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with a parchment circle and butter the circle.

Put the egg whites in a bowl and whisk slightly. Add the ½ cup of milk and the vanilla and whisk to mix thoroughly; set aside.

In a large mixer bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low, beat dry ingredients well in order to break up any lumps. Add the butter and coconut milk on low speed and beat just to combine. Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy about 2 minutes.

Add the egg white mixture in 2 or 3 additions, scraping the sides of the bowl after each addition. Divide the batter among the pans.

Bake for 30 minutes or until a cake taster inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for 10 minutes. Then turn the cakes out and place on a wire rack to cool completely.

To assemble the cake, place one layer, flat side up, on an 8-inch cake round. Cover this layer with 1 cup of the buttercream frosting. Spread it evenly all the way to edge of the cake. Then sprinkle ½ cup of shredded coconut on top. Add the second layer and repeat the process. Top with the final layer of cake and frost the top and sides of the cake.

Place the remaining 1 ½ cups shredded coconut on a large baking tray. Pick up the cake and hold it on the palm of one hand over the tray. Using the other hand scoop up the coconut and press it to the sides of the cake. Continue with this process until the sides of the cake are covered. Set the cake on a serving plate and sprinkle any remaining coconut on top of cake. Chill cake for at least one hour to allow frosting to firm up a bit.

Cream cheese buttercream frosting

12 ounces of cream cheese, slightly chilled
1 stick of butter plus 6 tablespoons of butter (7 ounces) unsalted butter at room temperature
1 cup of confectioners sugar, sifted after measuring
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup granulated sugar
¼ cup of water
3 egg whites

Place the cream cheese in the bowl of a mixer and beat on medium speed until slightly fluffy and smooth. Add the butter 1-2 tablespoons at a time, mixing until smooth. Add the confectioner’s sugar and vanilla and mix until fluffy. Set aside at room temperature while buttercream is made.

Combine the granulated sugar and water in a small heavy saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Continue to cook without stirring until the syrup reaches the softball stage 228 degrees F on a candy thermometer.

Meanwhile, place the egg whites in mixer bowl and have the mixer ready to go. When the syrup is ready, turn the mixer on med-low and begin mixing the egg whites. Slowly add the hot syrup to the whites taking care not to pour onto the beaters, it may splash. When all the syrup is incorporated, raise the speed on the mixer to med-high and beat the egg whites until mixture has cooled and stiff meringue forms.

With the mixer on low, begin adding the cream cheese mixture by the spoonful. When all is incorporated, raise the speed to medium and whip until frosting is smooth and fluffy.

Banana Cake w. Praline Filling & White Chocolate Ganache (TCS)

Here is another terrific installment of The Cake Slice. Our group has been baking through Sky High: Irresistable Triple Layer Cakes, and our selection for this month is this beauty. Less dense than banana bread, this cake only requires a 1/2 cup of mashed banana but produces big banana flavor.
Paired with sugary pecans (yes, they're fried, but with all of the butter, cream and chocolate in this cake, it really doesn't matter, does it?) and a whipped cream frosting lightly flavored with white chocoalate, this cake received thumbs up from all who tasted it. I'm not a big praline fan, so I'm not the best judge for taste.

To see how my fellow super-talented bakers fared, check out The Cake Slice blogroll.

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Banana Cake with Praline Filling and White Chocolate Ganache
from Sky High: Irresistable Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne
makes a 9-inch triple layer cake

Ingredients

Cake:

3 cups of cake flour*
3 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
1 and 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of salt
3/4 cup of milk
1/2 cup of ripe mashed bananas
8 ounces of softened unsalted butter
2 cups of sugar
7 egg whites

Praline Filling:
1 cup sugared pecans, cooled
1 and 1/2 cups white chocolate ganache

Sugared Pecans:
1 and 1/2 cups pecan halves
3 cups vegetable oil
1 cup confectioners sugar

White Chocolate Ganache:
8 ounces of white chocolate chopped
2 and 1/2 cups of heavy cream
1 and 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Instructions

Cake:
Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.

Butter three 9-inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with parchment paper or wax paper.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside dry ingredients. In a food processor or blender, process the milk and banana into a smooth light puree. Set aside.

In a large bowl cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. On medium high speed, beat in egg whites 2-3 at a time until smooth. Scraping down the sides of the bowl between egg additions.

With the mixer on low speed add the dry ingredients and banana puree alternately in 2-3 additions, beating until just blended. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on medium-high speed for 1-minute. Divide the batter among the cake pans.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean when inserted into the center of each cake. Let the cake layers cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then turn out onto a wired rack and remove the paper liners. Then cool completely one hour.
To assemble the cake, put one layer, flat side up, on a cake stand or serving plate. Cover the top evenly with half of the praline filling, leaving a 1/4"-inch margin around the edges. place the second layer on top, again flat side up, cover it with remaining filling. Finally add the third layer and frost the sides and top with the white chocolate ganache. Garnish with sugared pecans.

Praline Filling
With a large chef's knife chop the pecans. Or pulse in a food processor being careful not to turn into paste.

Add the sugared pecans to the white chocolate ganache and stir to mix well.

Sugared Pecans
Place the pecans in a medium sauce pan, add water to cover, and heat to a boiling.

Boil the pecans slowly until they are swollen and soft 5-8 minutes. Drain the nuts well in a sieve for about 5 minutes. (Do not pat dry; the nuts must remain damp.)
While the nuts are draining, heat the oil in a large heavy saucepan or deep fat fryer t0 350F degrees.

Set half of the nuts aside. Dust the remaining nuts in the sieve with 1/2 cup of powdered sugar. Shake the sieve to coat the nuts evenly, letting any excess sugar fall away. Immediately add the coated nuts to the hot oil. Fry until golden brown about 2-3 minutes. Using a slotted spoon scoop the nuts out and drain them on several thickness of paper towels. Repeat the process with the remaining nuts.

White Chocolate Ganache
Put the white chocolate in a medium heat proof bowl. In a small sauce bring 1/2 cup of the cream to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Let stand for 1-minute, then whisk until smooth. Let the white chocolate cream stand until cooled to room temperature.

In a chilled bowl with chilled beaters beat the remaining 2 cups of heavy cream and vanilla until softly whipped. Stir in the white chocolate cream and beat until fairly stiff. taking care not over beat, which would cause the ganache to separate.

Sweet Potato Cake w. Orange Filling and Chocolate Frosting (TCS)

This is my second post for The Cake Slice, which is a lovely group that is baking its way through Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne. Baking through this book has been treat, as it gives me an excuse every month to make delicious, interesting and ginormous triple layer cakes (DH and my work colleagues get to benefit from the sweet windfall of my baking endeavors).

This month’s recipe for The Cake Slice bakers is Sweet Potato Cake. Now, I’ve had sweet potato pie, but sweet potato in a cake? This would be a first for me. I was intrigued by the combination of sweet potato, spices, orange and chocolate flavors, and was very curious to see how this would all come together.

The cake, filling and frosting were a breeze to prepare (adjustments I made are highlighted in parentheses). The resulting cake was extremely delicious and it was impossibly moist --- YUM! I didn’t get much of a sweet potato flavor from the cake, as the predominant flavors came from the spices.

I did enjoy the orange filling, as it provided a nice complement to the spices and chocolate flavors. The frosting was your typical cream cheese frosting, with the addition of some melted chocolate. I cut back on the powdered sugar, and it was still a bit too sweet for my taste --- I think I’m going to cut the powdered sugar down by half the next time around…and there will definitely be a next time for this recipe!

To see beautiful and delicious versions of this recipe, check out The Cake Slice Bakers blogroll.

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Sweet Potato Cake
From Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne (pp 178-181)
Makes a 9-inch triple layer cake, serves 16-20 people

Cake:
2 medium or 1 large sweet potato (12 ounces)
3 cups of cake flour
3 teaspoons of baking powder
1 and 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon of ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon of cloves
5 eggs, separated
2 and 1/4 cups of sugar
1 stick plus 2 tablespoons of butter, at room temperature
1 and 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla
1 and 1/4 cups of milk

1. Preheat the oven to 400F degrees. Prick the sweet potatoes in 2-3 places, place on a small baking dish and bake for 1 hour or until the potatoes are very soft. Remove from the oven and cool slightly. (I baked the sweet potatoes the day before and kept them in the fridge)

2. Reduce the oven temperature to 350F degrees. Butter the bottoms and the sides of the pans and line with parchment paper. Butter the parchment paper also.

3. When the sweet potatoes are cool peel off the skin and remove any dark spots. Cut the potatoes into chunks and puree in a food processors. Puree until smooth. Measure out one cup of potato puree and set aside. (I skipped pureeing in the FP; instead I whipped the potatoes in the stand mixer using a paddle attachment, and then added the rest of the ingredients as written)

4. Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground cloves. Set aside.

5. In the bowl of electric mixer add the egg whites and attach whip attachment. Beat on medium speed until egg whites are frothy. Raise the speed to high and gradually beat in 1/4 cup of sugar. Continue to beat until the egg whites are moderately stiff.

6. In another large bowl with the paddle attachment, combine the sweet potato, butter, vanilla, and remaining sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time. Make sure to scrape the sides of the bowl after each egg yolk is added. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients and milk in alternately in 2-3 additions making sure to begin and end with the dry ingredients.

7. With a large spatula, fold in one fourth of the egg whites into the batter to lighten. Then fold in the remaining egg whites until no streaks remain. Making sure to not over mix or this will deflate the batter. Divide the batter among of the three pans.

8. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Then turn out the cake layers onto a wire rack and cool completely at least 1 hour.

9. To assemble the cake, place one layer flat side up on to a cake stand. With a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2 inch round tip and filled with chocolate cream cheese icing, pipe border around the edge of the cake. Fill the center with the orange cream filling smoothing it to the edge of the border. Place the second layer on top and repeat the process. Place the third layer on top and use all the chocolate cream cheese frosting to cover the top and sides of the cake.

Chocolate Cream Frosting
makes 3 cups

10 ounces cream cheese at room temperature
1 stick of butter at room temperature
16 ounces of powdered sugar; sifted (decreased to 12 ounces)
1 and 1/2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate melted and slightly cooled (increased to 3 ounces)

1. In a large mixing bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Slowly add the powdered sugar to cream cheese butter mixture making sure to scrape down the sides the sides of the bowl. Then beat until light fluffy 2-3 minutes.

2. Measure out 1 cup of frosting and set aside.

3. Add the melted chocolate to the remaining icing in the bowl and beat until well combined.

Orange Cream Filling

1 cup of reserved cream cheese icing from above
2 tablespoons of frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1/4 teaspoon of orange extract (omitted)

1. Stir together all the ingredients until well mixed.

Cappucino Chiffon Cake (TCS)

I recently stumbled up a new baking group called The Cake Slice. The Cake Slice is about discovering a great baking cookbook and using it all year long. The goal is to bake one recipe every month from a single book.

I had to pause and ask myself "do I really need to participate in another baking group?". That question was quickly answered with an emphatic YES when I discovered that the group is baking its way thru Sky High: Irresitable Triple Layer Cakes by Alisa Huntsman and Peter Wynne. Along with some really wonderful cake recipes, the pictures in this book are totally gorgeous!

I've seen many beautiful cake creations made from the recipes in this book. I need to take a second and give props to Mary of The Food Librarian, as she's made some spectacular cakes from this book here and here and here...after admiring her creations I couldn't resist trying my hand at these recipes!

Our first recipe is Cappucino Chiffon Cake. As a I read through the recipe, one word came to mind --- tiramisu. The cake consists of 3 espresso-flavored chiffon cake layers that are soaked with a booze an espresso syrup. All of this goodness is frosted with a simple vanilla whipped cream.
As our liquor cabinet was depleted of dark rum (damn those mai tais), I used coffee liqueur to flavor the espresso syrup:

I didn't have the 8" cake pans the recipe called for, so I used the 9" pans I had on hand. As a result, the cake layers turned out a bit thinner than I would have liked. As the cookbook calls for 8" pans for many of the recipes, it looks like I'll be making another investment in baking equipment (I know, twist my arm :) ) I need to work on my cake layer technique, as I would have liked the layers to be more even.

Aside from my nitpicking at the appearance, I would have to say that the flavor of this cake is heavenly! The espresso syrup-soaked cake along with the whipped cream was delicious, and the texture was very light and not overly sweet (two pluses in my book).

To see other fantastic versions of this cake, check out The Cake Slice blogroll.

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CAPPUCCINO CHIFFON CAKE
Makes an 8-inch triple layer cake

Cake Layers

1/4 cup of neutral oil, ie. vegetable, canola, or soybean
6 eggs separated
6 tablespoons of freshly brewed espresso, room temperature (I used strong brewed coffee)
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 and 1/3 cups of cake flour*
1 and 1/2 cups of sugar
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar
Cocoa powder or cinnamon for dusting

(*The recipe calls for cake flour and if you only have all-purpose flour on hand, you can substitute 3/4 cup (105 grams) all purpose flour plus 2 tablespoons (30 grams) cornstarch.)

1. Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line the bottom s of three 8-inch round cake pans with parchment paper but do not grease.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the oil, egg yolks, espresso, and vanilla; whisk lightly to blend. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, 1 cup of sugar, the baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

3. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, whip the egg whites with the cream of tartar on medium-low speed until frothy. Raise the mixer to medium high and gradually add the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar. Continue to beat until soft peaks form. Do not whip to stiff peaks or the cake will shrink upon cooling.

4. Add the espresso-egg mixture to the dry ingredients and fold together just until combined. Add one fourth of the egg whites and fold them gently into the batter. Fold in the remaining egg whites just until no streaks remain. Divide the batter among the pans.

5. Bake the cakes for 18 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool completely in the pans. Once cooled run a knife around the edge of the pans to release the cakes. Invert onto a wire rack and remove the parchment papers.

Espresso Syrup
makes 1 cup

1/3 cup hot freshly brewed espresso (I used strong brewed coffee)
1/3 cup of sugar
1/3 cup dark rum, such as Meyers* (I used coffee liqueur)

(*if you want to leave out the rum you can use molasses thinned with pineapple juice and flavored with almond extract to equal 1/3 cup. Or use 1 to 2 teaspoons of rum extract flavoring but you'll have less syrup.)

In a bowl, stir together the espresso and sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the rum and let cool to room temperature.

Vanilla Whipped Cream
makes 6 cups

3 cups of heavy cream
1/3 cup of sugar
2 teaspoons of vanilla

Place the cream, sugar, and vanilla in large chilled mixing bowl with chilled beaters. With the whip attachment, beat the cream until stiff peaks form.

To Assemble The Cake

1. Place one cake layer flat side up on a cake stand or platter. Soak the cake with 1/3 cup of the espresso syrup. Spread 1 and 1/3 cups of whipped cream evenly over the top of the cake. Repeat with the next layer the same steps. Finally top with the third layer. Soak with syrup and frost the top and sides of the cake with the whipped cream.

2. To decorate the cake smooth out the whipped cream as much as possible on top. Lay a paper doily on top and sift cocoa powder or cinnamon over the doily to reveal a lacy detail.