Category Archives: Cake/Cupcakes

Chocolate Banana Bundt Cake

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DSC_0008What can we describe as perfection? What is truly perfect? I can think of a few things. That beautiful summer weather where the breeze isn’t too cold, and the humidity is at a minimum, the perfect haircut, a good nights sleep, or a day spent with your lover, perhaps. I could even argue that everything is perfect in it’s own imperfect way. It is undeniable that this chocolate banana bundt cake falls into the category of perfection. As somewhat of an experiment, it couldn’t have resulted in a better cake. I’ll get to the experiment in a few moments.

DSC_0010Having family come over always calls for an excuse to try a new dessert recipe. I (for some reason) don’t like to make the same thing twice. I know I’m not alone on that one. The conversation I’ve had with so many of my friends about how once we make something and it works and is delicious, we move on to bigger, better things. I have this idea that there is always a better recipe than the one I have (even though I should simmer down and continue to use the reliable ones), I simply cannot. Always trying to improve on every aspect of life also includes dessert!

Anyways, the experimentation began when I found a banana bundt cake recipe, but did not have the correct ingredients. Hence, making various substitutions and hoping for the best. I also wasn’t sure of what temperature to bake the cake at because the recipe said to bake it at an unusually low temperature (I was skeptical). Alas, another adjustment came forth.

DSC_0020To my surprise (extreme surprise), the cake came out as perfect as can be. Moist and dense, full of banana flavor and a decadent chocolate glaze, there couldn’t have been a better way to finish off a Superbowl dinner of home made pulled pork and baked potato wedges.

For the cake:
1 1/2 cups mashed bananas (overripe)
2 tsp lemon juice
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, room temp
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups almond milk
3/4 cup dark chocolate chips

For the glaze:
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tbsp butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 12 cup bundt pan very well! (I used PAM).
2. In a small bowl, mix mashed bananas and lemon juice. Set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
4. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs 1 at a time. Add vanilla.
5. Add flour mixture alternately with almond milk until just combined.
6. Stir in banana mixture and chocolate chips.
7. Pour into prepared pan and bake for about 1 hour 15 minutes. If the cake begins to brown too quickly, lay a piece of tinfoil over the top and it will prevent it from browning.
8. When a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs on it, your cake is done! Allow to cool completely before glazing.
9. To make the glaze: melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave and drizzle over the cake!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake With Cardamom Streusel

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I had some leftover sour cream from a very decadent devil’s food cake and fudge frosting (thank you Anna Olson for making my clothes tighter), so what better way to utilize your leftover sour cream than to make a sour cream coffee cake! For anyone who is into baking and wanting to learn a little more about it, I highly suggest watching Anna Olson’s show called “Bake” on the Food Network. She goes through one style of something and expands the skill by 3 levels. Although I am in school for baking arts, I have absolutely learned some new and interesting things from that TV show.

This cake is a classic, home-style, European coffee cake that you can jazz up how ever you like. In this case, I decided to top it with a cinnamon, cardamom streusel and pecans. Although, were I to do it again, I would add some tart berries into the equation, blueberries maybe?

Cake:
1/2 cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 cups sifted cake flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup sour cream
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla
pecan halves (however many you want for the top)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, grease an 8″ spring form pan.
2. Add baking soda to sour cream and let stand.
3. In a medium bowl, sift together cake flour, salt and baking powder.
4. Cream butter, gradually adding in the sugar until light and fluffy.
5. Add eggs one at a time until like and fluffy. Add vanilla.
6. Slowly add dry ingredients into butter mixture alternately with sour cream-soda mixture.
7. Pour half batter into prepared pan, and sprinkle 1/3 of the streusel topping. Pour the rest of the batter on top and sprinkle with the rest of the streusel and pecans.
8. Bake for 40-45 minutes.

Streusel:
6 tbsp sugar (white or brown)
6 tbsp all purpose flour
1/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1. Mix sugar, flour, melted butter, cardamom, and cinnamon in a small bowl until clumps form.

On a side note, here is a photo of the birthday cake I made for my boyfriend a week ago. OH BOY was it chocolatey. (Excuse the crappy iPhone photo!) That many Kit-Kat’s deserve extra attention.