Gastroanthropology

Sour Cream Blueberry Cake

A few weeks ago Kyle and I jumped on a plane from London headed for San Francisco. I was terrified that all the times I side-eyed a screaming baby would come back to haunt me. Luckily Kyle was a star traveler, charming my seatmates with a huge grin and sleeping nearly the entire trip. I know I've been a bit MIA...since we are now home I've been spoiled with family taking care of me, allowing me to spend all of my time getting to know my sweetest creation and out of the kitchen.

Being back in California means that I have more berries than I know what to do with so after they are eaten fresh, prepped for frozen for winter months ahead, made into jams and compotes, there are still some left to sprinkle on cakes. This sour cream cake is pretty fabulous...I think I sometimes hear angels chorusing in the background when I bite into it. Take care to follow the method, especially mixing the sour cream with baking soda and leaving it out for an hour at room temperature and taking the time to slowly add the sugar.

SOUR CREAM BLUEBERRY CAKE inspired by Carole Walters

CAKE TOPPING

• 1 cup walnuts (or pecans)
• 6 Tbs brown sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup blueberries (or raspberries or a mixture of both)

Combine walnuts, brown sugar, and cinnamon and pulse in a food processor till the nuts are pebble sized or smaller. Set aside. Clean blueberries and set aside in a separate bowl.

CAKE BATTER

• 1 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp baking soda

Combine sour cream and baking soda and set aside at room temperature for 1 hour.

• 3 cups sifted flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup (2 sticks) butter, slightly firm
• 1 3/4 cup superfine sugar**
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla

**If you do not have superfine sugar pulse regular granulated sugar to make superfine sugar. Do this before pulsing the nut mixture so you don't have to clean your food processor twice.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Sift together dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside. Using a paddle attachment beat butter for 1 minute. Add sugar, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, taking about 6 minutes to complete this step. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating the mixture for 1 minute after adding each egg. Add vanilla. Alternate adding drys and sour cream mixtures, beginning and ending with drys. Do this by adding 1/4 of the dry mixture and alternating with 1/3 of the sour cream mixture.

Butter a 9x13 inch glass pan. Add the batter. Sprinkle the nut mixture on top of the batter. Sprinkle the blueberries evenly across the top and gently press them into the batter. Bake for about 1 hour or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 30 minutes and then out of the pan for 30 minutes.

A few notes...

Originally I made this cake as a coffee cake loaf. I added about 2/3 of the batter into the loaf pan and then sprinkled half the nut mixture. Then I added the remaining batter on top and finished by adding the rest of the nut mixture. The baking time did increase, taking about 1 1/2 hour. The batter fit into an 9x5x3 inch large loaf pan. I must also tell you that the batter just barely fit and only did so because I was so diligent in sampling the batter, which by the way, is absolutely delicious and reminiscent of one of my favorite splurges...cake batter ice cream. The point is the next time I make this cake in loaf form I will probably split it between two medium sized loaf pans, rather than baking it in one large loaf pan.

I've been pretty broody with Kyle, but here is a little peak -

Making bald men jealous everywhere! 
 

Cinnamon Walnut Loaf

It's really amazing how much time flys - Kyle is already over a month old! He is preparing for a life of international intrigue so to get him ready we've spent the morning at the US embassy getting his birth reported and his passport application submitted. While the jury is still out on whether he will be a painter, pianist, poet, or pastry chef he is already helping me bake and this is what we came up with last week...

Because this loaf cake is not cloyingly sweet like many other baked breakfast treats it's perfect for morning coffees on the beach during the warm summer months. Bake this the night before or the morning of if you are an early riser. Because of the cinnamon swirl its best to let the loaf cool before slicing and enjoying.  

CINNAMON WALNUT LOAF

• 7 oz unsalted butter, room temp
• 5 oz sugar
• 3 eggs, room temp
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 Tbs sour cream
• 7 1/2 oz all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 Tbsp + 1 tsp cinnamon
• 2 oz brown sugar
• 2 oz walnuts

METHOD

Preheat oven to 325ºF /165ºC.

Cream together butter and sugar for 1 minute. Add eggs, one at a time. Add vanilla extract. Add sour cream. Make sure everything is well combined. Add flour, baking powder, and salt - mixing till just combined. Set aside.

In a separate bowl mix together cinnamon and brown sugar. Take about 1/3 of the vanilla batter and add to the cinnamon and brown sugar mixture till completely mixed in. Add walnuts to the remaining vanilla batter.

Fill loaf pan with the vanilla batter. Dollop the cinnamon batter and swirl through with a knife.

I divided the batter between two small loaf pans (6.5 x 3.5 in) and the bake time was 35 min. For a larger loaf pan increase baking time to 40-45min. Check loaf with cake tester to make sure it is done. 

 

ps Getting a four-week old to look directly into the camera, with his eyes open, for his passport picture is significantly harder than baking this loaf cake =).  

Victoria Sponge

I've been absent for a while...my nine month baking project is finally out of the oven! Kyle Wilder Mitchell arrived in London, on his due date, at 8lbs 10oz.

With the birth of our baby in London, the gorgeous spring weather and the upcoming Royal nuptials I thought I might make something very English for my first baking project post-baby...Victoria Sponge. Named after Queen Victoria, it is basically jam and whipped cream sandwiched between two layers of vanilla cake. It's not frosted or decorated in any way so it's super simple to make. Since we now have a little one, everything is baby sized, as are my Victoria Sponges. Of course you can make this in the traditional cake version or into regular sized cupcakes if you like.

VICTORIA SPONGE (Vanilla cake recipe adapted from Hummingbird Bakery)

• 120 g all-purpose flour
• 140 g sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 40 g unsalted butter, room temp
• 120 ml whole milk, divided in two
• 1 egg
• 1/4 tsp vanilla extract

METHOD

Using a paddle attachment or hand mixer, beat flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and butter until the mixture looks like sand. Add half the milk and continue to beat until just combined. Add the remaining milk, egg and vanilla extract and beat till mixture is smooth, taking care not to overbeat.

Divide batter into lined cupcake tin. I used a mini-muffin tin and this recipe makes 24 of them (would make a dozen cupcakes). Bake at 325ºF/ 160ºC for 20 - 22 min (15 - 18 min for mini) or until cake tester comes out clean.

Cool completely, then slice the tops off and spread with strawberry jam (or raspberry) and freshly whipped cream. I used about 1 cup cream and 1/3 cup of jam for this recipe. 

Kyle was in a sling slumbering away without a peep during this entire baking project!

Maple Syrup Madeleines

With just two weeks to go for my 9-month baking project, I'm making everything baby. With not much else to do but rest my feet which have started to swell a bit, I've taught myself how to crochet baby booties. I'm on my fourth pair and have even started crocheting baby boots (think Uggs - which btw I have never owned or care to, but when so tiny and homemade they are pretty darn cute and irresistible, just like these tiny madeleines).

I'm not sure why everyone feels it necessary to tell me their pregnancy, birth and breastfeeding horror stories. While I'm not so naive to think everything will go perfectly for me I do believe anxious parents make anxious kids. And, I've learned that offering treats to people to keep their mouths full prohibits them from spewing a lot of unwanted pregnancy and parenting advice. These baby maple syrup madeleines are perfect for keeping unasked for advice at bay - they are small, tasty and have just a touch of maple sweetness. Nobody can resist from popping them in their mouths one by one.  

MAPLE SYRUP MADELEINES

• 100 grams butter, melted
• extra butter (soft) to brush madeleine pans
• 2 eggs
• 100 grams maple syrup
• 15 grams dark brown sugar
• 3 grams baking powder
• 100 grams cake flour (NOT self-rising)
• pinch salt
• powdered or a mixture of powdered and ground maple sugar for garnish

METHOD

This recipe makes 48 baby madeleines. 

Preheat oven to 325ºF/160ºC. Use a pastry brush and brush soft butter onto your madeleine pan.

Melt measured butter. Set aside.

Put maple syrup and brown sugar in a small pot over medium-low heat and reduce by half, so the maple syrup becomes thicker, to a more honey-like consistency. Meanwhile in a blender whizz eggs for a minute till frothy. Pour the reduced, warm maple syrup into the eggs while the blender is going (you need to do this to temper the eggs and not curdle them). Blend for 30 seconds.

Add baking powder, cake flour, and salt to the blender and blend till combined, another 30 seconds.

Add melted butter to the blender and blend till combined, a final 30 seconds. Strain the mixture. Chill the mixture for at least 30 minutes or up to a day. This will ensure a puffed rounded madeleine belly.

Scoop into the buttered madeleine pans. I prefer to use the baby madeleine pans (always metal, never the silicone pans!). Using a small ice cream scoop makes it easy. Bake the baby madeleines for about 7-9 minutes. Larger madeleines will take a few minutes more, 10-13 minutes. Their bellies should be puffed and the edges slightly golden in color. Enjoy warm or let cool completely before sprinkling with powdered sugar and enjoy later.

After all the sampling I've done I just hope I can bounce back into shape like my Mom did...

From the family vault...

Coffee Cardamom Cake + Coffee Buttercream

Before moving to London I rarely ate cake. For a birthday or special occassion, yes, but other than that, no. Then, I started working at an urban farmhouse kitchen where people flocked to around 3pm for this thing called "Afternoon Tea". I knew fancy hotels did it up with speciality teas, dainty crustless sandwiches, scones + clotted cream, and desserts, but I thought the term was just for that - something kind of special. I noticed that for most "having a tea" in the afternoon is like the American after school snack, a daily ritual. Having a snack in the afternoon was referred to "having a tea," even if no tea was drunk. Even when meeting my friends in the afternoon for coffee, they would say that we were meeting for tea.

Though waning a bit with the rise of the popularity of coffee, tea is still a huge part of British culture. I worked in an office were every 30 minutes someone would notify everyone that the kettle was on and to place their orders. Most have English Breakfast with a splash of milk, and seemed to consume at least a half dozen cups by noon.

Though I haven't yet caught onto major tea consumption, being surrounded by cakes at the farmhouse kitchen everyday certainly upped my cake consumption. My favorites...a Victoria Sponge - vanilla cake layered with berries (or jam) and whipped cream, and a coffee-cardamom cake - a flavor combination new to me, but quite popular here, so tasty and addictive. While most who came to the kitchen in the afternoons washed this down with tea (even though the cake is coffee flavored) I would sneak little slivers of it all day long.

COFFEE CARDAMOM CAKE

• 12 green cardamom pods, seeds removed and ground
• 1 1/2 cup all-purpose flour, and extra for cake pans
• 1 1/2 cup cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 Tbs Baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup (8 oz) unsalted butter, room temp, and extra for cake pans
• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 4 large eggs, room temp
• 3 Tbs instant espresso powder or instant coffee granules
• 1 1/4 cup whole milk

METHOD

Preheat oven to 350°F/175°C

Crush cardamom pods to remove seeds with mortar and pestle. Remove pods from mortar and continue to crush just the seeds. Sift together drys (including ground cardamom seeds) in a bowl and set aside. In a separate bowl beat together butter and sugar for three minutes, until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. Dissolve espresso or coffee into the milk. Alternate adding drys and milk into the butter, sugar, egg mixture. Start and end with drys. 

Evenly divide the batter between two buttered and floured 8-inch round cake pans. Bake for about 30 minutes until cake tester comes out clean. Let cool and remove from pans. Once cooled completely, decorate with coffee buttercream (recipe follows). 

*When choosing cardamom pods they should be a vibrant green color. If they are turning a slightly tannish/brown color they are no longer fresh.

COFFEE BUTTERCREAM

• 1 cup sugar
• 4 large egg whites
• 12 oz unsalted butter, room temp
• 2 Tbs instant espresso powder or instant coffee granules

METHOD

Make this buttercream as cake is baking or cooling. In a double boiler whisk together egg whites, sugar, and coffee granules until all the sugar granules are dissolved (this is the method for a swiss meringue buttercream). You can test this by touching the egg whites between your thumb and pointer finger and feeling for the sugar granules. The coffee granules should be dissolved at this point as well. A bit unseemly, but it should feel like snot. At this point remove the top bowl and whisk with a hand mixer (or transfer to KitchenAid) to stiff peaks. Add butter a few tablespoons at a time while the mixer is going. It may start to look like it is breaking - don't despair! - if you continue to beat the mixture it will come together into a smooth buttercream. Decorate the cake with the buttercream as you wish!