Red Velvet Cake

This is the cake Bobby Flay used in the Red Velvet Throwdown. I don't remember if he won or not, but it is fabulous. I love that it uses both butter and oil, making it rich and moist, and it's less red and more chocolaty than most Red Velvets. I was skeptical about not using the traditional cream cheese frosting, but this unique buttercream frosting is divine. It's a winner, and no matter that it has more than a pound of butter in it. Just take a bite and look the other way.

Red Velvet Cake

Ingredients:

3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons Dutch processed cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cups vegetable oil
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon red food coloring
1 1/2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature

The How-to:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour 2 (9-inch) cake pans and line each pan with a round of parchment paper.
Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt in a small bowl
Cream the butter, sugar and oil in a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl and beat until incorporated. Beat in the vanilla, vinegar and food coloring.
Add the flour mixture to the batter in 3 batches alternating with the buttermilk, mixing well after each addition. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 30 to 40 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool on a baking rack for 15 minutes before removing the cake from the pans. Let cool completely before frosting. Slice each cake into 2 layers and frost.

Vanilla Bean Buttercream
Ingredients:

1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup whole milk
1/2 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
7 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups superfine sugar

The How-to:

Combine the cream, milk, vanilla bean and seeds in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat. Remove the vanilla bean and discard. Add the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until thickened to a paste, about 2 minutes. Scrape into a bowl, cover and refrigerate until very cold, at least 2 hours.
Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment and beat until the mixture is very fluffy and the sugar is totally dissolved, about 6 minutes. Add the cold paste, a few tablespoons at a time to the butter mixture and whip until light and fluffy.

Sweet Ginger Zucchini Cake with Lemon-Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting

I love friends with gardens, especially when they share. My friend Christie gifted me with two beautiful zucchinis, so it was either something healthy or cake, and presented with the option, I always, always go for cake. Most zucchini cakes call for chocolate, but I didn't want to hide the zucchini, so I tried this trio of flavors and I think it worked. It's an easy, one-bowl cake and perfect for those summer picnics, or breakfast. I love cake for breakfast.

Sweet Ginger Zucchini Cake

Ingredients:
2 cups Sugar
1 cup Vegetable Oil
3 whole Eggs

3 tsp. Fresh Ginger Root, peeled and finely grated* (I just pull it out of the freezer and use my micro plane grater)

zest of one Lemon

juice of 1/2 Lemon
2 cups All-purpose Flour
½ teaspoons Salt
1 teaspoon Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
2 cups zucchini, grated (about one medium zucchini)

Preparation Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350*. Mix together the sugar, oil, eggs, lemon juice, lemon zest and ginger in a large bowl. Sift in the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Gently fold together, and then add zucchini and mix well. Pour into a greased sheet cake pan or 9 x 13 Pyrex and bake at 350* until done, 25 minutes for the sheet cake to 35 minutes for the 9x13, depending on the pan you use. Cool completely.

Lemon-Ginger Cream Cheese Frosting
Ingredients:

1 stick Butter, softened
1 8 oz. package Cream Cheese
1 pound Powdered Sugar

juice of 1/2 Lemon

2 tsp. Fresh Ginger Root, finely grated

2-4 Tbl. Milk or Cream
1 cup Pecans, finely chopped, optional (I opted out)

Preparation Instructions:
In large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese. Add sugar, lemon juice, ginger and blend until smooth. Add milk or cream until you reach desired creaminess. Spread on cooled cake.

*If you're a big fan of ginger, by all means, add more ginger. I just wanted a tease of it.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

This is a slightly tweaked version of Smitten Kitchen's Cream Cheese Pound Cake, otherwise known as the very best pound cake I've ever had and the only one I'm going to make for the rest of my life. It's easy to prepare, and boasts that crackly top and moist crumb. It's perfect. Serve with berries and cream, ice cream and chocolate sauce or layer in a trifle.

Cream Cheese Pound Cake

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 package (8 ounces) Philadelphia brand cream cheese, at room temperature

3 1/4 cups sugar

6 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly butter a 10-inch tube pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper. Alternately, you can use a 12-cup bundt pan, and simply butter and flour it.
2. Place the butter and cream cheese in a large bowl and beat with a mixer on medium speed until smooth. Add the sugar, increase the speed to high, and beat until light and airy, at least five minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. Add the vanilla, almond, then the flour and salt all at once. Beat just until incorporated.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and shake lightly to even out the top. Bake until the cake is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the cake comes out clean, 1 1/4 hours.
4. Place the pan on a cake rack and cool for 20 minutes, then remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely. Serve at room temperature.

Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream

Strawberries were .99 cents a pound. What's a person to do? I made Martha Stewart's Strawberry Cupcakes with Strawberry Buttercream (http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/strawberry-cupcakes-with-strawberry-buttercream?backto=true), and was not impressed. They were okay, but definitely not worth the sweat on my brow. I've never had much luck with any of Martha's cupcake recipes, so I should've known. Next time, and there definitely will be a next time with strawberries, I will make this:

http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/06/skyscraper-cakes/

or simply this:
http://ocharm.blogspot.com/2008/08/in-season.html