Romantic Raspberry Danish: an Entenmann's Copycat Recipe

It was my parents' anniversary this past week. 20 YEARS!!! That's a really long time!

I wanted to do something nice for them for their anniversary. I decided to make them breakfast, so that they could get up and have a nice meal without having to worry about putting it together themselves (for once!). However, this posed a problem because I actually have to leave for school at 7:00 in the morning, meaning that even if I did find time to make a meal, my parents probably wouldn't be up to eat it!

So I looked for something that I could make ahead and that would still be nice and fresh and tasty in the morning, and that would be special for my parents--that is, though I have several delicious breakfasts in my arsenal, I wanted to surprise them with something new.

Does anyone remember these Entenmann's pastries?

Entenmann's Raspberry Danish

Probably not--but they used to be a breakfast staple in my household when I was little. My dad would pick them up from the grocery store to have as a special treat. Then Entenmann's discontinued them. My family was discussing them wistfully the other day. Lightbulb!

I ended up finding this recipe from Rate. Bake. Create. that looked pretty much exactly like what I was looking for: a pastry dough topped with icing and raspberry jam. I need to give tons of thanks for this recipe because it was the only one I found that had everything I was looking for--it was easy, basic, no cheese impinging upon my raspberry jam, and it was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS.

Plus, it was pretty fun to photograph because of how curious this piece of pastry looked.

Look, it's Santa's sleigh!

An edible sundial!

And here it just looks really really yummy.

Here's the recipe and pictures!

Celebration time! Chocolate Hazelnut Torte, here I come!

I took my last final two days ago...I finished my last college app yesterday...it's winter break and I have no more essays to write...

I am now OFFICIALLY a second-semester senior!!!

YAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY (and PHEW!!!)

Time to cook and sew to my heart's content!!!

Yesterday I was so intoxicated by my newfound freedom to do whatever I wanted (as opposed to studying and writing essays bleagh) that when Serious Eats emailed me a recipe for a chocolate-chestnut torte, I was like LET'S GO FOR IT!

I actually ended up adapting a hazelnut-chocolate torte recipe instead, because I like hazelnuts better and I didn't have any chestnuts. Unfortunately, I didn't have any eggs either, which I was so excited to get started that I didn't realize until halfway through making the confection, which led to me running down the street in my slippers to borrow eggs from my angelic neighbor. Thank you Edye!!! I also accidentally added double the sugar I was supposed to at the beginning, so I had to make a batch of cookies instead and start the cake over (you can't let butter and sugar go to waste!). Not my smoothest dessert, clearly. Cut me a break. I'm still getting back in the groove ;)

But eventually all the right ingredients ended up in the mixer together. I think the cake came together quite nicely, don't you?

I decorated the top with powdered sugar using a homemade cake stencil. Within a few days I'll post a tutorial about how to make your own reusable cake stencil from stuff you probably have lying around your house! If you're reading this thinking, "Less art, more eating!", a liberal dusting of powdered sugar would, I'm sure, look just as inviting plus have the added advantage of covering in all the bald spots. Or you could just cut to the chase and slather the thing with Nutella ;)

The cake turned out to be pretty good! It was moist and fudgy and tasted like Nutella. Here's the recipe!

If you Drop your Cake, You're Going to Have to Burn It

It was my brother's birthday last week. In order to understand my brother's birthday dessert, you have to understand my brother.

This is Max.

This is Max's phone case.

This is Max's favorite article of clothing.

This is the opening of Max's favorite movie.

Picture courtesy of australianwargamer.wordpress.com

And this is Max's cake.

:D

I stole this design idea from 17 and baking about three months ago and bookmarked it and waited with bated breath until April drew upon us. And then I scheduled ditching school so I could come home early and make it and have it ready in time for birthday dinner. And I cast my brother from the kitchen for about 4 hours so he couldn't see it going to together so when he cut it open SURPRISE IN ALL ITS PATRIOTIC GLORY!!!

The design of the cake itself is not all that complicated. The only tricky part is the blue square in the corner, which is achieved by replacing the top layer of cake with a blue ring and a red-on-white interior circle (don't worry about trying to picture it right now: full instructions with pictures below!).

Regardless, this cake is kind of a lot of work. It involves a lot of dividing batter, some strategizing, and a lot of mixing food coloring (so much that I have blisters from whisking in the dye. Who gets blisters from making cake?)

And I didn't even THINK about how high-maintenance this cake would be AFTER it was finished.

If the refrigerator light switch is flipped off when the door shuts, but no one is inside the refrigerator to see it, does it really go out?

Uhhh...

That sounds like an injunction to eat with your hands!

 ...Whoops.

 I'll have to console myself that the American flag will be immortalized indefinitely on this blog...because the cake is going to go pretty darn fast!

How To: Have your Cake, Cookies, and Ice Cream and Eat Them Too

I don't really have a recipe for you guys today. Just some casual instructions for how to put together the dessert of any child's dreams.

THE ICE CREAM COOKIE CAKE.

I ended up making this dessert because it is birthday season in my  house (yes, around here, birthdays last a season), which means I am creating every dessert under the sun. Between my mom's birthday and my brother's birthday and my mom's birthday party and my brother's friend birthday party and my brothers' family birthday party and my other brother's birthday I am dedicating desserts as fast as my poor smoking mixer can produce them.

My brother's birthday was last week, and I asked him what he wanted for his friend-birthday-party cake. Not to be confused with his actual birthday-date-cake, nor his family-birthday-party dessert, which I will be posting shortly (so stay tuned!). I'd already made him a chocolate cake, so he asked for something a little more unconventional.

My amazing family :)

Essentially, this dessert is composed of a slab of ice cream sandwiched between two giant, thick, par-baked cookies. Its size alone--diameter and breadth--commands reverence. It doesn't exude subtlety or elegance, which is good because I was serving a horde of 5th-grade boys. But hey, it's a super-fun dessert. And you can change it up by using different cookie recipes and different flavors of ice cream.

Here's how to do it.

Chocolate Bundt Cake (and how to get it out of that stunning pan)

I made the mistake of looking up bundt cake pans on Amazon one day...

And you didn't think you needed a new bundt cake pan ;)  

(Here's the link, in case you need more eye candy :D). 

Here is my bundt cake pan: 

Admittedly not as dramatic as a pumpkin, but altogether superior because it does not place seasonal limitations on my bundt cake. I mean really, a couple of components, beautiful presentation, mouth-watering taste, chocolate: this is going to be a year-round staple.  (And you can probably tell my pan gets some wear.)

I suppose I should comment upon the difference between chocolate bundt cake and regular chocolate cake. Now you might not think you care, but it's actually really important because if you can prove the distinction it means you can have chocolate cake twice as often :D  My standard normal-round-pan cake is incredibly soft and delicate. When you cut it open you can see the system of air pockets. I can report with conviction that it would not survive extraction from a bundt cake pan. It is covered in traditional icing, essentially whipped butter and powdered sugar with some cocoa powder thrown in.

Bundt cake is generally denser and has a sturdier crumb so that it will hold its shape. I notice that it tends to develop something of a thin crust on the outside, which also helps maintain the structure, especially if your pan features crisp lines. And because there is no way you are going to spackle those beautiful designs, it is covered with ganache, which is essentially a melted mixture of cream, chocolate, and butter. And of course, there's the distinctive circular shape with a hole in the middle. 

Remember that scene from My Big Fat Greek Wedding?
Image courtesy of Oh Heather

Unfortunately, that beautiful pan can quickly become prohibitive if you don't know how to get your cake out of it in one piece. Often, just buttering doesn't work well enough. Instead, what I now do is make a type of paste: a mixture of powdered sugar, melted butter, and in this case cocoa powder that I use to coat the inside of the pan.

It's thicker and it doesn't run down into the bottom of the pan, so it gives the cake better coverage. And it WORKS. Not only do you not have problems getting the cake out in the first place, but when it emerges the lines are exceptionally crisp and the design is clear. I don't really have a recipe for this paste--I just sort of melt butter and throw equal parts sugar and cocoa in until I get the right consistency--but I'll do my best below!

Here's the recipe!

Finally...chocolate.

It has come to my attention that except for its foray into my pumpkin bread, there has been no chocolate on this blog yet!!!

And I call myself a baker.

It's ok, because believe it or not I can redeem myself. In a single individual confection, within the confines of a 4-inch-wide ramekin. Without floof or decoration. Just chocolaty goodness.

I present...the molten chocolate cake.

It is a rich, decadent dessert, served piping hot and still syrupy in the center, with a dollop of melting whipped cream to cut the depth of the chocolate. In my quest to define this cake-encircled elixir of sugared cocoa, I asked my younger brother to define my molten chocolate cakes. He replied "It's something that I want...and don't have."

That pretty much covers this dessert's role in my family. Either I am making them for my brothers or I am receiving injunctions to produce them. Bottom line: they are delicious.

They are also deceptively impressive, because they have to be served right out of the oven. That's really just a matter of putting them in 15 minutes before dessert is served, but it's a flair that cannot be purchased in a store. They're a great dessert for a dinner party, since they're elegant, remarkable, and yet quick and easy to put out once it's time to eat.

So without further ado--I give you--a unique staple of my dessert repertoire: