Deniz's Birthday Desert: Brownies and Caramel Ice Cream

Once again, I won't be here for my good friend Deniz's birthday later this month. But I'm also seeing her today and knowing that she loves caramel and she always orders brownies when we go out I thought I would make her a brownie with lots of walnuts, and a caramel ice cream.

The brownies are rich and dark, rather sweet and nutty. They need a tall glass of milk to balance them out... or some ice cream! And it's hot... so ice cream is always better then milk when it's summer!

The ice cream recipe (amazingly good - great texture - dense and rich) is from Tartelettes blog http://tartelette.blogspot.com/2009/07/recipe-chocolate-torte-caramel-ice.html and the brownie recipe is from Dorie Greenspan's "Baking: From My Home To Yours" and it's the 'classic brownie'.

Basque Cake

A cake with some interesting textures and flavors. I first made this cake at school. It's a cake with a crunchy textured top and bottom, and then a soft middle. The filling is simply pastry cream. The cake we made at school consisted of a cake that was basically dripping with rum, a vanilla pastry cream, and dried cherries and slivered almonds on top of the pastry cream. 

When I made this cake at home I used pear liquor instead of rum, I made the pastry cream a star anise pastry cream, and then I caramelized apples in sugar, star anise and butter. Instead of almonds, I used roasted walnuts. It was strangely savory, bar the sweetness of the cake proper the anise certainly added some savory element that I wasn't expecting. 

The braeburn apples, the cake flour and  eggs (which had gorgeous deep orange yolks, which contributed to the crazy yellow color of the pastry cream) were from a local farmers market. It's so exciting going to farmers markets, I seriously love them. Everything is so amazingly fresh, and you get to know the people working there, really recommend you try some if you haven't already!

Basque Cake; not the prettiest cake, but an interesting one to make, and an easy one to play around with. 

Walnut Orange Cake

A simple butter cake that has been infused with walnuts and and orange liquor topped off with a chocolate orange icing. This cake is a rather dry cake, and in order for the flavors to seep in I'd recommend waiting until it's cool, wrapping it tightly in plastic wrap and letting it sit at room temperature overnight before making the icing and serving it.

Ingredients: Cake

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup (packed) light brown sugar
2 eggs

1.5 cups self-raising flour

3/4 cup chopped walnuts

1/4 cup milk

2 Tbs. orange liquor (I used gran gala)

Ingredients: Icing

4 oz. semi sweet chocolate (chopped)

1/2 Tbs vegetable oil

1 Tbs. orange liquor

orange zest from 1/2 an orange

handful of chopped walnuts

Method: Cake

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease a 8 inch springform tin and line the bottom with parchment paper.

2.Using a paddle attachment and a stand mixer beat the butter and sugar together for 5 min until thick and creamy.

3. Add one egg and then beat on medium for 1 min and then add the next. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula.

4. Fold in 1/2 the flour, and then add half the milk, and then the remaining flour and then milk.

5. Add the walnuts and fold in until just combined.

6. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and smooth down the top.

7. Bake for 35 min (check at 25 when a thin knife inserted into the center should come out clean).

8. Leave in the pan for 5 min, then run a knife around the edge and remove from the pan.

Method: Icing

1. In a bain marie add the oil, chocolate, orange liquor and orange zest.

2. Stir until melted.

3. Cool for 10 min.

4. Spread on top of the cool cake and add additional walnuts if desired.

Adapted from "Sweet Food" ed. Kay Scarlett pp 110-111.

Blondies (full of good bits)

These blondies (the other brownie..) were really easy to make. They have a rich buttery flavor, with loads additions (two types of chocolate, butterscotch chips, walnuts and coconut). A very easy and rewarding thing to bake!

Ingredients
2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 sticks unsalted butter at room temp.
1.5 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate
3 oz. semisweet chocolate
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup sweetened shredded coconut

Method
1. Preheat the oven to 325F. Butter a 13 x 9 inch baking pan and place it on a baking sheet.

2. In a medium bowl whisk together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.

3. Using a stand mixer with a paddle mix the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy.

4. Add the two sugars and beat for 3 min (or until well combined).

5. Add one egg at a time and beat for 1 min after the addition.

6. Beat in the vanilla extract.

7. Adjust the speed of the mixer to low and add the dry ingredients. Mix until just combined.

8. With a rubber spatula mix in the chocolate, butterscotch, walnuts and coconut.

9. Scrape into the baking pan, Spread out with the rubber spatula.

10. Bake for around 40 min (check after 30 min - you want a knife to come out clean when inserted in the center).

11. Put the baking pan on a wire rack, and let it cool for 15 min. Then turn the blondies out onto the wire rack. Invert the rack and cool the blondies the right side up.

12. Cut into pieces. These will keep for 3 days at room temp. when they are wrapped tightly. You can also freeze them for 2 months.

Taken from the amazing "Baking from my home to Yours" by Dorie Greenspan pp 108-9.

Carrot Cake

This has a rich cream cheese icing and filling, with a lightly spiced cake base.

Ingredients: Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tsp. baking powder

2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. freshly grated cinnamon

3/4 tsp. salt

9 grated carrots

1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts
1 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup raisins

2 cups sugar

1 cup canola oil

4 eggs

Ingredients: Frosting

8 ounces of cream cheese, at room temp.

1 stick unsalted butter at room temp.

1 pound of confectioners sugar, sifted

1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1.5 cups toasted coconut

1/2 cup toasted and chopped walnuts

Method: Cakes

1. Preheat oven to 325.

2. Butter 3 9 x 2 inch round cake pans, or 2 9 inch springform pans (which is what I used). Flour the insides and tap our the excess. If using 3 pans, make sure you have 3 racks in the oven that are evenly spaced apart.

3. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt.

4. In another bowl stir together the carrots, chopped nuts, coconut, and raisins.

5. Using a stand mixer, mix together the oil and sugar together, until they are smooth.

6. Add the eggs one by one, and beat until the batter is smooth.

7. Reduce the speed and add the flour mixture, mixing only until the dry ingredients disappear.

8. Gently mix in the carrots by hand.

9. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.

10. Bake for 40-50 min, or until a small knife comes out clean, and the cake has just started to move away from the sides of the pans.

11. Allow to cool for 5 min on a cooling rack, and then unmold the cakes.

Method: Frosting

1. Combine the cream cheese and butter in the stand mixer bowl, and using a paddle attachment mix until smooth and creamy.

2. Gradually add the sugar and beat until smooth.

3. Add the lemon juice and mix until combined.

Method: Assembly

1. Place half the cake on a plate, and spread the cream cheese frosting on it.

2. Place the other half on top.

3. Using a rubber spatula, spread the remaining frosting over the cake. Beginning with the top, and then the sides.

4. Smooth with a butter knife if desired.

5. Sprinkle on the toasted coconut on the top, and using the palm of your hand lightly press the coconut into the sides of the cake.

6. Sprinkle the top of the cake with the roasted walnut bits.

7. Place in the fridge for 30 min so that the icing can set.

Once again from the truly amazing book Baking: From My Home To Yours, by Dorie Greenspan, pp. 253-255.