Pumkin Bundt Cake

From my in laws this year I received a wonderful bundt pan. I adore the angles on it. We went out and visited them last week but I didn't manage to make a bundt cake for them using the pan, So here is one I made later! It is a pumpkin bundt cake, made using a whole smallish pumpkin (a common sugar pumpkin was cut in half, seeds removed, skin removed, cut into small peices and placed on a baking tray. A little water was added, and then it was all covered in aluminium foil and baked at 375F until soft. Finally it was all mashed in a blender until smooth). I used the recipe from the blog "From Scratch" (http://foodpluspolitics.com/2007/10/31/pumpkin-bundt-cake/) with a few little changes:

Ingredients
3 large eggs
2 1/4 cup freshly made pumpkin puree (see comment above)
3/4 cup vegetable oil
300g all-purpose flour
380g sugar
1 1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. fresh grated nutmeg
1 tsp cinnamon
1 cup raisins or currants (160g)
1/2 cup chopped nuts, very optional
powdered sugar, for dusting

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a Bundt pan.

In a large bowl, whisk the 3 eggs until blended. Add pumpkin and oil. Whisk until smooth.

Add flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and spices. Mix well. Stir in raisins (and nuts, if using).

Pour into pan, bake 65 - 75 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

Let cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pan, let cool completely. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Cranberry and Spice Bundt

This past week I have been working on cakes. And, I have to say I don't love them half as much as I love making tarts. There seems to be far less fresh produce used, and this week we made many cakes that seemed, well, very similar. We basically stuck to using a kugelhopf pan (basically a smaller version of a bundt). So, I wasn't utterly thrilled with cakes, but I thought I'd attempt to apply my knowledge at home. I found this lovely recipe in this months (well I guess technically next months - November) Bon Appetite. From one of my favorite bakers Dorrie Greenspan. 

It consists of a spicy cake with Chinese five spice, which unfortunately I didn't have. So I simply used a mortar and pestle to grind up cloves, fennel seeds, cinnamon, and ginger and called it good. The U-districts farmers market  http://www.seattlefarmersmarkets.org/markets/u_district had fresh, beautiful cranberries. So I bought a punnet, and used some in Dorries recipe. I also used dried cherries instead of dried cranberries because that's what I had hanging around in the cupboard. I changed the icing as well, because I don't like orange, so I used a cherry liquor, a bit of milk and then a bunch of sifted icing sugar for the recipe. 

This was a seriously nice cake, packed full of goodies. Highly recommended!

Raspberry Yogurt Cake - Part 1 of the Yogurt Cakes

Raspberries are here! They are in season and they are tasting mighty fine. As such - I had to do some more baking with them. Although not the prettiest cake this cake was seriously moist and tasty. It had pockets of fresh raspberries which disintegrated into little jam like nuggets just bursting with raspberry flavor. A very nice cake indeed!

Ingredients
3 cups all purpose flour
1.5 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter at room temp.
1 and 3/4 cup sugar
2 Tbs. orange juice
1 tsp almond extract
1 cup of low fat plain yogurt
1 tsp. grated orange zest
3 large eggs at room temp
1.5 cups fresh raspberries

Method
1. Preheat oven to 350F.

2. Grease a bundt pan.

3. In a large bowl whisk 2.5 cups of flour, salt and baking powder together.

4. In a stand mixer using the paddle attachment cream the butter and sugar together until smooth and creamy.

5. Add the orange juice, almond extract and orange peel to the butter mixture - beat together for 30 seconds.

6. Add one egg at a time, beating for 30seconds between each egg.

7. Mix in the yogurt.

8. Add the dry ingredients until they are barely blended.

9. In a separate bowl put in the raspberries and add 1/2 a cup of flour. Mix together.

10. Fold in the berries with the rest of the batter.

11. Put the batter in the bundt pan and bake for 1hour and 10 min. The cake is ready when you place a thin knife through it and it comes out clean.

12. Serve!

Taken from the July 2008 "Bon Appetie" p. 63.

White Chocolate Cake

This cake was a really nice cake and was very easy to make. A moist cake with a rich chocolate icing.

Ingredients: Cake
6oz butter, chopped
1 cup milk
1.5 cups sugar
5 oz white chocolate, chopped
2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1.5tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs

Ingredients: Icing
150g chocolate (I used semi sweet, but I would try something more milky, maybe even a white chocolate or a milk chocolate)
1/2 cup whipping cream

Method: Cake
1. Preheat the oven to 325F.
2. Place the butter, milk, sugar, and chocolate in a saucepan over low heat and stir until melted and smooth.
3. Place the flour, baking powder, vanilla extract and eggs in a bowl.
4. Add the chocolate mixture and whisk until smooth.
5. Pour into a well greased bundt pan, and bake on the middle rack until cooked when tested with a skewer (check after 30min, but it may need up to 50min).

Method: Icing
1. Place chopped chocolate and the cream together in a small saucepan over low heat.
2. Stir until choc is melted.
3. Take off heat and allow o cool for 10 min.
4. Pour over cake, tap to remove air bubble and then put in fridge to set.

Taken from Donna Hay's "Modern Classics Book 2: Cookies, Biscuits + Slices, Small Cakes, Cakes, Desserts, Hot Puddings, Pies + Tarts" pp72-3 & 92

Double Apple Bundt Cake

This cake tastes like it is home baked - it has a wholesome flavor that is simple and full. A wonderfully moist cake that will last days when wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and kept at room temperature.

Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. grated nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. salt
1.25 sticks of unsalted butter at room temp.
1.5 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup store bought apple butter (for me the more spices the better, and as with most things I always try and buy organic)
2 medium apples (I used fuji), peeled, cored and grated
1 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup moist raisins
Confectioners sugar for dusting

Method
1. Center a rack in the oven, and preheat to 350F.
2. Lightly butter a bundt pan (if non-stick, otherwise, lightly butter and flour it).
3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices and salt.
4. With a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar on medium speed, scraping the bowl as needed until the mixture is smooth, thick and pale.
5. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 min after each egg.
6. Reduce the mixture speed to low, and beat in the apple butter.
7. Add the grated apples and mix until they are well blended.
8. Add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they are combined.
9. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the raisins, and walnuts.
10. Pour into the bundt pan, and smooth the top with the rubber spatula.
11. Bake for 50-55 min. or until a knife inserted into the cake comes out clean.
12. Transfer the cake to a rack and let it cool for 5 min before removing the bundt pan.
13. Before serving, sift confectioners sugar onto the to of the cake.

Taken from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home To Yours, pp 184-5.