Black Forest Cake

Because it’s National Black Forest Cake Day it reminds me of the time when my husband’s Aunt Alice invited us to dinner. We were flattered that she asked us (the aunts on my side didn’t) and she forewarned us that she wasn’t a great cook so we weren’t expecting anything out of the ordinary.

I don’t really remember anything about that dinner except for the dessert: a Black Forest Cake. So rich and chocolatey. So tender, fabulous, gorgeous. We ooohed and aaahed.

And then I made the mistake of asking her if she made it.

And then she made the mistake of saying yes.

Ohmyohmyohmy. 

I asked for the recipe.

I got one of course. But after I baked it I understood. It was an okay recipe. I don’t know where she got it, whose it was. I looked for it before I started this little entry today, but I must have discarded it in one of my recipe purges because it wasn’t THE recipe and wasn’t good enough to keep.

I never let Aunt Alice know I knew.

And I don’t know whether she ever knew I knew.

But in honor of Black Forest Day or really, I should say, in honor of Aunt Alice, here’s a recipe for Black Forest Cake. It builds on the chocolate cake recipe I posted a few days ago (but I’ve copied it here).

If you can’t get fresh cherries or don’t want to pit them, use canned Bing cherries, not cherry pie filling.

Black Forest Cake

The cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup unsalted butter

1-1/2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

1-1/3 cups milk

2 teaspoons vanilla

The Syrup and filling:

1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup water

2 tablespoons kirschwasser brandy

1 pound pitted sweet cherries (or use drained, canned Bing cherries)

The Frosting:

2 cups heavy cream

2 teaspoons sugar

2 tablespoons kirschwasser brandy

maraschino cherries for garnish

chocolate shavings for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two 9-inch cake pans. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a bowl and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer set at medium, beat the butter and sugar together for 3-4 minutes or until creamy and well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the flour mixture in thirds, alternating with the milk, and beat until the batter is smooth and well blended. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally. Stir in the vanilla extract. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pans for 10 minutes then invert onto a cake rack to cool completely.

Make the syrup: Bring the sugar and water to a boil in a small saucepan over high heat. Cook for 1-2 minutes, dissolving sugar completely. Let cool and stir in the brandy. Brush the syrup on one of the cake layers.

Whip the cream until it is thickened. Add the sugar and whip the cream until it is thick. Stir in the brandy. Place the syrup-glazed cake layer on a cake plate. Spread some of the whipped cream on top. Place the fresh cherries on top. Place the second cake layer on top. Use the remaining whipped cream to frost the cake. Garnish with maraschino cherries and chocolate shavings. Makes one cake serving 12

Triangle Shirtwaist Fire

My Dad often mentioned the Triangle Shirtwaist Fire, which killed 146 mostly young immigrant women and men a hundred years ago today. You’ve probably read about it or seen the documentaries commemorating the centennial.

The reason my Dad talked about it was because he was born later that year, in New York City, to immigrant parents, and he said he believed that if his mother were not pregnant with him, she would have been working at that factory.

If he never was then I never would have been.

Have you ever thought about that particular what if —- if you never were?

It's Friday! (Yesterday was Thursday, Tomorrow is Saturday...)

fridayreads:

If, like the rest of the interweb, you’re being haunted by the Rebecca Black song, well, we’re sorry.

How’s about balancing that with a little reading? Tell us what you’re reading by reblogging this post and adding a line about your current book.

This week’s giveaway is So Much Pretty by Cara Hoffman.

#fridayreads I’m at the beginning of “Arcadia” by Tom Stoppard, which casts past and present alongside each other and deals with the people who live in a house at both times. I’m going to see the play in a few weeks.

Classic Osso Buco

Osso Buco

I’m teaching Osso Buco this afternoon which means my house smells really really good right now! This dish needs lots of time, so I cooked a batch beforehand for my students to eat and the stuff they make will be dinner for …. me and my husband, next week (this dish freezes very well!)!

Osso Buco

• 4 large or 8 small veal shanks, about 2-inches thick

• 1/4 cup flour

• 2 tablespoons butter

• 2 tablespoons olive oil

• 1 medium carrot, finely chopped

• 1 medium onion, finely chopped

• 1 stalk celery, finely chopped

• 1 large clove garlic, finely chopped

• 1 strip lemon peel, about 1-1/2 inches long

• 1/2 cup dry white wine

• 1/2 cup veal or beef stock

• 2 large tomatoes, chopped OR 28-ounce can Italian tomatoes, drained and chopped

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• 1/2 teaspoon salt or to taste

• freshly ground black pepper to taste

• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh marjoram or oregano

• Gremolata, optional

Dredge the veal shanks in the flour. Heat the butter and olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. When the butter has melted and looks foamy, add the shanks and cook, turning them occasionally, for 8-10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove the meat to a plate and set aside. Add the carrot, onion, celery and garlic to the pan and cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the lemon peel, wine, stock, tomatoes and tomato paste to the pan. Bring the ingredients to a simmer. Return the meat to the pan and spoon the other ingredients on top. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and the marjoram or oregano. Cover the pan, turn the heat to low and cook for about 2-1/2 hours or until the meat is very tender. Serve topped with Gremolata if desired. Makes 4 servings

Gremolata:

• 1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

• grated peel of one medium lemon

• 3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped

Mix the parsley, lemon peel and garlic in a bowl.

Makes about 1/2 cup

Chocolate Cocoa Cake with Whipped Cream and Strawberries

I’m looking for the perfect homemade chocolate cake recipe.

I keep trying different ones, adding or reducing ingredients here and there, because my son-in-law Greg loves chocolate cake and for the last 15 years or so I have been buying and baking stuff to try to get the dessert right for him. I can tell by the way he moves his eyebrows and forehead what he thinks initially. Then, because he is a writer, he can go into detail about what is good or not good about a particular recipe, which I find not only appealing, but helpful.

So, when it comes to chocolate cake, he is my official tester (in fact, when he and my daughter Meredith were married, it was Greg, not Meredith, who went with me for tastes at Gail Watson Cakes (www.gailwatsoncake.com). (Btw, her cakes are not only gorgeous they actually taste like cake and not some carboard thing put together with plaster of Paris.)

The other day, it was my granddaughter Nina’s 4th birthday party and she asked me to make a chocolate cake with whipped cream and strawberries. Of course I did and here’s the recipe, which got a wonderful review from Greg.

Chocolate Cocoa Cake with Whipped Cream and Strawberries

• 2 cups all-purpose flour

• 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon baking soda

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1 cup unsalted butter

• 1-1/2 cups sugar

• 2 large eggs

• 1-1/3 cups milk

• 2 teaspoons vanilla

• 1-1/2 cups heavy cream

• 2 teaspoons sugar

• 1 cup sliced strawberries

• whole strawberries for garnish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease two 9-inch cake pans. Sift the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt into a bowl and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer set at medium, beat the butter and sugar together for 3-4 minutes or until creamy and well blended. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the flour mixture in thirds, alternating with the milk, and beat until the batter is smooth and well blended. Scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally. Stir in the vanilla extract. Spoon the batter into the prepared cake pans. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pans for 10 minutes then invert onto a cake rack to cool completely. Whip the cream until it is thickened. Add the sugar and whip the cream until it is thick. Place one of the cake layers on a cake plate. Spread some of the whipped cream on one of the layers. Add the sliced strawberries. Place the second cake layer on top. Use the remaining whipped cream to frost the cake. Decorate the top with the whole strawberries.

Makes one cake, serving about 10 people

Old Fashioned Lemon Buttermilk Cake

Lemon Cake and Taxes

246 years ago today George III (he was our king at the time) approved the infamous Stamp Act, the first direct tax levied against the colonists.

It caused quite a ruckus.

Instead of dutifully paying, everyone rebelled and shouted “taxation without representation” (as opposed to representation, which we have now in this country because WE VOTE for our representatives) and eventually this led to the Boston Tea Party (because of another tax and devious machinations about the importation of tea).

People say that all these disturbances made us into a coffee drinking country, rather than a tea drinking one. Still, there’s something soothing about tea and something warm and comforting, not to mention delicious, about a real “Afternoon Tea” with freshly brewed tea and scones, cakes, tea sandwiches and cookies.

Every two weeks our local Hadassah holds an Afternoon Tea for cancer patients and caregivers at Stamford Hospital. China tea sets and cups. Lots of goodies to eat.

This is a gift for everyone. Those who are ill and need a bright spot in their day. Caregivers who take pleasure in the pleasure of their loved ones. The bakers who willingly mix up a cake or batch of cookies to make someone else feel good, at least temporarily.

We were told that while the patients are grateful for anything we bake, that because of their illness or as the result of chemo and other medications, they prefer creamy and also lemony desserts, because these have the most flavor.

Here’s my latest offering. I’ve been experimenting with Lemon Buttermilk Cake for a while now and finally got it right. 

Lemon Buttermilk Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 pound butter

2 cups sugar

3 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

1/4 cup grated fresh lemon peel

3 tablespoons lemon juice

Glaze:

1/2 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup sugar

Grease a 10-cup bundt pan, then sprinkle the insides with flour or plain dry bread crumbs. Set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sift the flour, salt and baking soda together and set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer set at medium, cream the butter and sugar together for 3-4 minutes or until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Add the flour mixture in thirds, alternating with the buttermilk. Beat after each addition and scrape the sides of the bowl occasionally. Add the lemon peel and lemon juice and stir into the batter. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about one hour or until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven. Mix the glaze ingredients and brush some onto the surface of the cake (it will become the bottom) while it is cooling in the pan. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes then invert onto a cake rack. Brush the remaining glaze over all the remaining surface area of the cake. Let cool and serve.

Makes 12-16 servings

Maple Corn Muffins

For me March Madness means rushing to the store or going online to buy containers of the new crop of maple syrup. I get all kinds. Grade A for pancakes. Grade B for baking. New York. Vermont. Quebec. Whatever.

There’s a delicate sweetness to maple syrup. It doesn’t pound you in the head like granulated sugar does. It doesn’t yell at you “I’M SWEET! I’M SWEET. PICK ME!”

I like subtle.

So I use maple a lot to sweeten baked goods like these corn muffins (which you can freeze and then reheat for breakfast every morning).

Maple Corn Muffins

1/3 cup butter

1 cup cornmeal

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons pure maple syrup

1 large egg

2/3 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Lightly grease 8 muffin tins. Melt the butter and set it aside to cool. In a bowl, mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl mix the maple syrup, egg and milk, beating until well blended. Pour the liquid into the cornmeal mixture, pour in the cooled melted butter and stir to blend the ingredients. Spoon equal amounts into the muffin tins. Bake for about 18 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 8

Purim and The Happy Prince

Ronnie –

I really loved your “Balagan” blog entry, and took the liberty of copying and printing it out (with a tiny bit of editing and adding your next day’s entry about Jayne Cohen’s contest) for the folks who attend informal Shabbat services at the independent/assisted living center where Carl’s mom now lives.  On March 18^th, the services (which are held at 2 p.m. for those folks who can’t last through an “after sundown” service) are going to be abbreviated to accommodate a little Purim shpiel written by one of the volunteer service leaders who are sent courtesy of our Pasadena Temple.  Many of the people who attend these services are really “cultural” Jews, and attend because they’re looking for a comfortable Jewish community in this facility of more than 200 people, of whom about 60 are Jewish (anywhere from 4 to 15 regularly attend services, but many more come to the Highlands’ Chanukah celebration and Pesach seders – and even interested non-Jews attend those dinners).

Since we only have an hour in the space allotted for services, this first-ever Purim party will definitely NOT be a balagan, though all the “Esthers” will wear silver crowns and the Purim play Esther has a gold one (all are paper, and recyclable, of course!).  We will have graggers, but I think those with hearing aids (like myself, now) will use them gingerly.  Carl’s mother is already worried that people will drown her out every time her last name is mentioned (she is “Heiman” – pronounced “Haman”!)  We won’t be reading the “whole Megillah” (or any of it, come to think of it), but the Purim play should suffice.  I think your little resume of the Purim story will act as a brief for some attendees on the 18^th (Jews and non-).  Of course, we end the event with hamantaschen for all, and special little shalach mones goodie bags with more hamantaschen..

This segues nicely into my thoughts on your last Friday’s blog on The Happy Prince, which made a deep impression on me as a child.  I had both the book and the record, which I, like you, played over and  over and over.  The other day, the phrase, “swallow, little swallow…”  came to me out of the blue, prompted by our preparations for Purim and discussion about shalach mones.   I couldn’t for the life of me remember where the phrase came from, but it resonated deep in my psyche.  You can imagine how happy I was to see your blog about it a day later(!), reminding me of the story’s name and author.  It brought back such flood of memories (I think this may have been the first story that made me cry).  I remember I SO wanted the swallow to fly south and save himself just as I wanted him NOT to leave the prince.  If I remember correctly, radio programs for kids, which I listened to, featured the Orson Welles reading around Christmas.  (Did you remember that Bing Crosby was the voice of the Happy Prince? See the whole thing at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIPaS10r-T0 and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JApl4-mgZ0).  In any case, I began thinking about how Chanukah, a relatively minor Jewish holiday, has replaced Purim, which – says my mother-in-law who grew up on New York’s Lower East Side speaking only Yiddish till she was 5 – used to be the major gift-giving holiday of the year for Jews.  Families baked goodies, including hamantaschen, and kids and their parents delivered these gifts – shalach mones – to friends and relatives throughout Purim.  Visiting was important.  What a wonderful tradition!  Why have we lost this?  Our Temple has recently instituted shalach mones  goodie bags, which people can order and send, with a “Purim wishes” card, to friends and family (or people can pick up their bags at the Temple).  Still sending and picking up aren’t exactly in the same spirit as human contact. What next – shalach mones over the social network?  Happy Pre-Purim 

Submitted by Carol Selkin (carol_selkin@sbcglobal.net):

Carol:

So happy to be a tiny “part” of your Purim celebration! Hope it went well and that all the Esthers and Mordechais had fun and enjoyed the hamantashen and the quiet “balagan.”

I do remember that when I was a child Purim was a much more important holiday and resembled Chanuka/Christmas festivities. But in the United States we follow the corporate culture so often and that culture says it makes more sense to have everyone going to the store in the last quarter. So maybe that’s part of it.

As for The Happy Prince, I don’t remember it on radio because we listened to the record, at least once a week. I think my brothers and I had memorized the entire script and the accents of the bird, the mayor, the prince and the town councillors. It is a wonderful story; I recently have read versions of it to my grandchildren, who were all mesmerized and have asked me to read it over and over. It’s timeless and priceless. 

Koshercare Packages

Oh the glories of the Internet!

I recently blogged about the Purim hamantashen I bought from Kosher Care Packages (you can order stuff here: http://www.koshercarepackages.com/) and I mentioned that I didn’t order enough with chocolate (I bought mostly traditional apricot, prune and raspberry filled cookies). 

Well, yesterday I got a rather generous gift package of guess what!!!!! Traditional jam-filled hamantashen dipped in chocolate! Take a look at these. Doesn’t that chocolate look good?

They are!

Happy Purim everyone and THANKS, KAREN at Kosher Care Packages.

F to the R to the I-D-A-Y Reads, Aw Yeah...

fridayreads:

It’s come to this. We’re bastardizing “Fergalicious.” These are the lengths we’re willing to go to keep people talking about books.

So reblog this with a line about about you’re reading this week, and you’ll be joining more than six thousand readers across the internet (and around the world.)

You’ll also be entered to win wonderful books, including this week’s featured title The Coffins of Little Hope by Timothy Schaffert.

Reading “Dreams From My Father” by Barack Obama. It’s his memoir, written way before the Presidential campaign or even his Senate campaign. #fridayreads