Quick and Easy Cake Decorating

I'm always looking for ways to spruce up a cake without messing with piping bags and tips. To be honest, washing piping bags and tips is tedious and time consuming, so I try to avoid it if I can. Using an offset spatula to make swirls and stripes can be just as pretty and can save a lot of time.

Lately, my favorite way to spruce up the sides of a cake is shown here. The trick is to have a nice thick layer of frosting at least 1/2 inch thick around the sides of the cake.

Decide which side of the cake will be the back before you begin and start each row at the back because you'll see that the last swirl is hard to finish without running into the first swirl just a little.

Then, holding a large offset spatula parallel to the working surface, begin the top row of swirls. Rock the rounded tip of the spatula into the frosting and then slide and rock the spatula backward, away from the indent you just made, while easing up on the pressure. The spatula does not lift from the icing completely until you have finished the entire row. Repeat the rocking and sliding until you have gone all the way around the cake. Starting at the back of the cake again, repeat the process for additional rows.

The cake you see here is a small 6" 4-layer cake and two rows were perfect. My typical 8-inch 3-layer cake will take three rows of swirls.

It's pretty, it's quick, and clean-up is a breeze!

Making Brownie Pops

Cake pops are everywhere these days - you know, balls of cake mixed with frosting which are covered in candy coating. These are a little different - they are balls of pure fudgy brownie - no icing mixed in - then coated with candy coating. I think they are a step up from cake pops in their texture and taste - which is to say that they are amazing.

In a rare, multiple-photo Marzipan tutorial, here's how to make them...

Supplies needed:

8x8 cake pan

small cookie scoop

lollipop sticks

2 bags of candy melts (you may not use them all)

cello bags - optional

curling ribbon - optional

styrofoam for drying the pops - any scrap piece which is big enough to hold 30 pops will do

First, you make a batch of fudgy brownies such as this recipe. I got about 30 brownie balls from one batch of brownies. I haven't tried it, but you could probably use a boxed brownie mix if you like, as long as the brownies are moist and will hold together when shaped into a ball. If the mix has chocolate chips mixed into the batter, you may have a harder time rolling them into nice round balls. A cakey brownie would probably not work here unless you mix in some kind of binder like icing. The goal is to have your brownies just slightly undercooked so they hold together when shaped.

After the brownies have cooled completely, pull them out of the pan using the overhang of parchment or foil which you used to line the pan, and transfer the block of brownie to a cutting board.

Cut the outside edges off the brownie as this part would be too crispy and get in the way of your ball-rolling.

Crumble the remaining brownie into pieces into a bowl and mush the pieces together a little.

Using a small cookie scoop, portion out the brownie balls and then roll the balls in your hands to make them round and smooth. Set the brownie balls on a cookie sheet and then place the cookie sheet into the refrigerator (or freezer if you will not be coating them within a few hours), covered with plastic wrap, until ready to coat and decorate. I made some square just to experiment with an idea I had.

Pull the brownies out of the freezer, if frozen, a let them warm up slightly while you prepare the candy melts. They should still be cold and firm when you begin to work with them, but if they are too cold, you may have a hard time inserting the lollipop stick. If using refrigerated pops, use them directly from the refrigerator.

In a microwave safe bowl, heat about 1/2 a bag of candy melts 30 seconds, then stir. Heat in additional 15 second intervals, stirring between, until completely melted. Over-heating the candy melts will cause the mixture to seize up and render it unusable. Throughout this process, you may need to reheat the candy melts if they start to cool and thicken. In this case, add a few more candy melts to the bowl and reheat at 15 second intervals as before.

Insert your lollipop stick into the flattened side (flattened due to sitting on the cookie sheet) about halfway (no more) into the brownie.

Dip the end of the lollipop stick into your melted candy melts.

And insert the stick into the pre-made hole. The candy will be the glue, making sure the stick won't move as you are coating and decorating the brownie.

Set the brownies aside to hardened the "glue". I placed them on their sides with the stick resting on the side of the sheet pan. You could place these in the fridge or freezer to speed up the hardening process, especially if your kitchen is warm. 

There are different ways to coat a cake ball. If your melted candy is deep enough, you can dip the entire pop into the candy, give it a gently swirl and pull it out, or you can hold the brownie over the bowl of melted candy at an angle as shown in the blurry picture below. Spoon the candy melts over the brownie, turning the brownie as you go, until all sides and top are covered. Holding it at an angle causes the excess coating to cover the top of the brownie.

Gently shake off the excess, while constantly turning the brownie pop, until there is no more candy dripping from the brownie. If you want the pop to be completely covered with decoration at this point (see first photo), spoon your sanding sugar, sprinkles, jimmies, finely shredded unsweetened coconut (my favorite) , or whatever, over the pop now. Otherwise, set them aside to dry plain.

To make striped brownie balls, once the first coating is dry, and making sure the candy melts are liquid enough, splatter candy melts over the coated brownie, turning the brownie pop as you splatter. Let the excess drip off, then spoon over the sprinkles. The sprinkles will stick anywhere that the candy is still wet. My candy melts for the second batch were a little "gloppy" and didn't stream off the spoon as easily as the first time I made these.  If this happens to you, you can try to add a half teaspoon or so of vegetable oil to make the mixture more fluid.

Once completely dry, slip the brownie into a plastic candy bag and tie a ribbon around the bottom. A 3" x 5" flat cello bag is the perfect size for these.

Yum!

Classic Unsweetened-Chocolate Brownies

adapted from Bittersweet by Alice Medrich

Makes about 30 brownie pops

Note: You may double this recipe and use a 9x13 pan.

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

8 tablespoons (1 stick or 1/4 pound) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cold large eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray an 8x8 pan with spray oil.

Place the chocolate and butter in a medium to large heat-proof bowl (big enough that you are able to add all of the ingredients to this bowl) over a pan of simmering water (a double boiler). Stir frequently until the chocolate and butter are melted and the mixture is hot to the touch.

Remove the bowl from the double boiler and stir in the sugar, vanilla, and salt with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs, one at a time, stirring until the first one is incorporated before adding the next. Fold in the flour only until you can longer see traces of flour.   Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth to even it.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the brownies just begin to pull away from the side of the pan. A toothpick inserted should come out with a few moist crumbs.  Allow the brownies to cool completely, then follow the instructions above for shaping and dipping.

Istanbul Part One - Turkish Sweets

Not surprisingly, I have more pictures of the beautiful desserts we saw in Istanbul than anything else. A city of 17 million people and a thriving tourism business can support a lot of bakeries, and so they were everywhere, and they displayed their sweets beautifully! There are a lot of pictures here to give you an idea of what the sweet shops were like.

The deep-fried dough, soaked in a sugar syrup were called halka. They were shiny and sweet and irresistible.

The Turkish Delight was nothing like the boxed varieties you might find in the states. The combinations were never-ending and made a beautiful display. I remember tasting a marshmallow-like confection filled with nuts that I will never forget - it was delicious! Speaking of nuts, they put them in everything, savory and sweet. I loved them, but I think it would be very difficult to visit this city if you were allergic to nuts, like my daughter is. The top picture and the next few photos below, show some of the varieties of Turkish confections.

Another Turkish favorite is baklava. We ate baklava every day, sometimes more than once! It was often made with pistachios here, but my favorite remains the baklava with walnuts. Just look at all the baklava varieties below. Mmm.

An interesting confection we tasted was made of tahini sesame paste, an ingredient found in hummus. I think they use tahini like we would use peanut butter in America. This confection is called halva with pistachios and was quite unique and delicious, soft and sweet.

After a long day of sightseeing, we just had to stop for a cup of Turkish tea...

...and a sampling of sweets - mini chocolate eclairs, truffles, baklava, and cookies.

Some of the bakeries were simpler, and others were more gourmet, providing shelf upon shelf of beautiful cakes, truffles, and desserts to rival any top pastry chef's creations. The sheer volume of these desserts was amazing! Since they were displayed under glass, the photos just don't do them justice. You might just have to visit Istanbul yourself to get the true picture ... I'd gladly go back and be your tour guide!

Tell me you're not craving something sweet now! I still have a lot of pictures of Istanbul to show you, including more desserts and savory dishes and a look at the famous markets and historical sites. I think I'll go take a nap now though... jet lag be gone!

Coconut Macaroon Brownies

I'm back from Istanbul, and fighting some mean jet lag, but before I show you a peek at the sights we saw, I wanted to share with you one of the most delicious things I made before we left.

I have always been a huge fan of coconut and chocolate together and this recipe for Coconut-Macaroon Brownies caught my eye immediately as I was reading Alice Medrich's Bittersweet.

You can use any favorite brownie recipe as the base, even a boxed mixed if you are so inclined, but I would recommend the easy brownie recipe from Alice's book which I have provided below. If you can find a high quality unsweetened chocolate, such as Callebaut, I would recommend that too. {Note: I buy all types of Callebaut chocolate at either Whole Foods or our local Market District in one-pound blocks.}

A small piece will satisfy you, as the brownie base is rich and the coconut top is sweet, but the combination is heavenly!

Fortunately, these keep quite well for several days in an airtight container at room temperature and will freeze wonderfully as well.

Classic Unsweetened-Chocolate Brownies

from Bittersweet by Alice Medrich

Makes 16 brownies

Note: This is Alice's basic recipe for brownies, which calls for an 8-inch pan. If you are using this recipe for the coconut-topped brownies (recipe below), use a 9-inch pan and reduce the sugar by 2 tablespoons, and reduce the oven temperature to 350, as noted in the coconut brownie instructions.

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped

8 tablespoons (1 stick or 1/4 pound) unsalted butter

1 1/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cold large eggs

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

2/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional - I omitted)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on at least 2 opposite sides.

Place the chocolate and butter in a medium to large heat-proof bowl (big enough that you are able to add all of the ingredients to this bowl) over a pan of simmering water (a double boiler). Stir frequently until the chocolate and butter are melted and the mixture is hot to the touch.

Remove the bowl from the double boiler and stir in the sugar, vanilla, and salt with a wooden spoon. Add the eggs, one at a time, stirring until the first one is incorporated before adding the next. Stir in the flour and beat until the batter is smooth and glossy, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in the nuts if using. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth to even it.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until the brownies just begin to pull away from the side of the pan. The surface will look dry, but a toothpick inserted in the center will come out quite gooey. While the brownies are baking, prepare an ice bath with about 3/4 inch of water in a roasting pan large enough to fit the brownie pan inside.

When the brownies are ready, remove the pan from the oven and immediately set it in the ice bath. Let the brownies cool. Remove the pan from the ice bath and lift the brownies out of the pan using the overhang of parchment to help lift them out and place the brownies on a cutting board. Cut into squares.

Coconut Macaroon Brownies

(called Lacy Coconut-Topped Brownies in the book)

from Bittersweet by Alice Medrich

Note: This is the recipe as written in the book, however, I had only finely shredded unsweetened coconut on hand so I used that and increased the sugar by a tablespoon or two. If you use sweetened coconut, your brownies will probably look even better than the brownies in the photos above.

1 recipe brownie batter, {recipe above}, made with 2 tablespoons less sugar

1 large egg white

1 cup (3 ounces) sweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup sugar

a pinch of salt

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.

Spread the brownie batter in the lined pan and set aside.

Combine the egg white, coconut, sugar, salt and vanilla in a medium stainless steel bowl, and set the bowl in a wide skillet of barely simmering water. (Or you may place the mixture in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over very low heat and keep an eye on it so it does not burn.) Stir the mixture, scraping the bottom to prevent burning, until it is very hot to the touch and the egg whites have thickened slightly and turned opaque, about 3-4 minutes.

Use your fingers to drop lacy clumps of coconut topping over the brownie batter. Bake until the brownies puff at the edges and the shreds of coconut look deep golden brown and crusty, about 25 minutes. Let cool completely in the pan on a rack.

Lift up the ends of the parchment or foil liner, and transfer the brownies to a cutting board. Cut into 25 squares.

On Hiatus in Istanbul

I have so much to tell you about Istanbul. We are halfway through our week here and there are still so many things to see and so many baklava to eat! The city is incredible. It is full of rich history and beautiful sights. The streets are bustling and everyone is very welcoming to tourists. I have a lot more pictures, many of the wonderful food, which I will share with you when we return. Of course I will need to try to make some of these Turkish treats at home, but I may have to take a little break from over-indulgence before I do. See you all when we get back!

Gianduja-Stracciatella Gelato

Gianduja-Stracciatella Gelato...say that three times fast! I would myself, except I have to look up how to pronouce gianduja first...and google says you pronounce it john-DOO-yah or zhahn-DOO-yah to be more Italian-esque.

Now on to vocabulary...

Gianduja - is simply chocolate (usually milk chocolate) combined with hazelnut paste most commonly, but any nut paste can be used. Nutella, the original gianduja, is spreadable, but you can also find it in a solid block form as well, like this one from Callebaut 

Stracciatella - the super-thin chocolate "chips" in ice cream produced by pouring melted chocolate in a thin stream into the ice cream machine at the very end of the churning period. The stream of chocolate instantly freezes into very thin chocolate pieces which readily melt in your mouth, giving a burst of chocolate flavor in each spoonful.

Gelato - refers to Italian-style ice cream which has less milkfat, less air incorporated into it, and is stored and served at a slightly higher temperature than ice cream so that it is softer and more dense. The lower milkfat is achieved by using a higher ratio of milk to cream than full fat ice creams. Cream can mute the flavors in ice cream, so gelato is thought to allow the flavors to be experienced more fully. High milkfat ice creams can also leave an undesirable film in the mouth after the bite has been swallowed. I'm not sure if this recipe is officially a gelato, as it has more cream than other recipes I've seen for gelato. Looks like I'll have to make a few more gelatos for the sake of research. (drats!)

This gelato/ice cream is full of chocolatey goodness with a hint of hazelnuts, and a subtle crunch from the stracciatella and hazelnut paste, but I still found myself wanting a stronger hazelnut flavor. The next time I make this, I might try to use Nutella instead of the chocolate and hazelnuts to make the recipe a little easier, or make a Nutella Stracciatella - now say that 3 times fast!

Gianduja-Stracciatella Gelato
from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

1-1/2 cups (185 grams) toasted hazelnuts


1 cup (250 ml) whole milk


2 cups (500 ml) heavy cream


3/4 cup (170g) sugar


1/4 tsp coarse salt


4 oz milk chocolate (at least 30% cacao solids), chopped


5 large egg yolks


1/8 tsp vanilla extract

For the Stracciatella:

5 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped (not chocolate chips)

1. Toast the hazelnuts in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes, until fragrant and lightly toasted. Place them in a kitchen towel after roasting to remove as much of the papery skin as possible. Discard the skins. Chop the hazelnuts in a food processor or blender until finely chopped.

2. Warm the milk with 1 cup of the cream, sugar, and salt in a saucepan. Once warm, remove from heat and add the chopped toasted hazelnuts. Cover and let steep for 1-1/2 hours.

3. Put the milk chocolate pieces in a large bowl. Heat the remaining 1 cup of cream in a medium saucepan until it begins to boil. Pour the cream over the milk chocolate pieces and stir until the chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Set a mesh strainer over the top of the bowl.

4. Pour the hazelnut-infused milk through a strainer into a medium saucepan. Squeeze the nuts with your hands to extract as much of the flavorful liquid as possible. Discard the hazelnuts.

5. Rewarm the halzenut-infused mixture. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm hazelnut mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constanly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

6. Stir the mixture constanly over medium heat with a wooden or heatproof plastic spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the melted milk chocolate. Add the vanilla and stir until cool over an ice bath.

7. Chill mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

8. While the ice cream is freezing, melt the chocolate in a heat-proof bowl over a pan of simmering water or in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. At the end of the ice cream churning, pour the melted chocolate directly into the ice cream machine in a thin stream.

8. Serve immediately for a soft, smooth gelato or place gelato in a container and freeze for several hours for a firmer gelato.

Makes about 1 quart of gelato

Nanaimo Bars and a Visit to Toronto

For the past three years, my girlfriend and I have made it a tradition to take a road trip with our kids for a few days during their two-week Spring Break. This year we traveled north to Toronto, Canada and stopped at Niagara Falls along the way. Toronto is only a 5-6 hour drive from Pittsburgh. Thanks to the Spilled Milk podcasts (co-hosted by Molly Wizenberg from Orangette) I had teed up on my iPhone, I giggled most of the way there and the driving time went by in a flash.

We visited the usual Toronto tourist attractions...

The CN Tower, where you ride up to the top and on a clear day you can see for miles. A portion of the floor at the top is made of glass and you can see straight down to the ground below.

The Toronto Zoo. The polar bears were so much fun to watch.

Casa Loma, the beautiful castle built on a hill overlooking the city, was quite interesting.

The Royal Ontario Museum and The Science Center kept us busy for hours.

We saw the Stanley Cup at the Hockey Hall of Fame and Justin Bieber's shoes at the Bata Shoe Museum. Only seeing Justin Bieber himself could've topped that (according to one fanatic 14-year-old)!

Of course, along the way, we had to stop at interesting bakeries and chocolate shops.

The Soma Chocolate Shop in the Distillery District was a chocolate lover's dream. The kids chose to buy milk chocolate bars and I had two chocolates from the glass case - a gianduja (pronounced john-DOO-ya, more on that in a post to come) and a chocolate-covered morsel of marzipan, my favorite treat.

The L'Espresso Bar and Pastry shop on Bloor street just down from the Royal Ontario Museum was fantastic. They played lively jazz music and the dining room was packed on a Sunday morning. Ellen and Ben were wanting to try a Canadian sweet and chose the Butter Tart. A butter tart is kind of like a pecan pie without the pecans. They are quite sweet. This one had traditional raisins in the filling. I purchased a cranberry shortbread and an almond shortbread cookie - one to eat now and one to have with my tea later. We took our treats to go and finished them on a bench outside the shop.

Another Canadian dessert we saw along the way was the Nanaimo Bar. We didn't get the chance to try it in Canada, so I made this version of the Nanaimo Bar after we got home. The original Nanaimo bar has a vanilla custard middle layer and the recipe calls for custard powder. I didn't have any custard powder, so I made this take on a Nanaimo bar from Alice Medrich's book, Chewy, Gooey, Crispy, Crunchy Melt-In-Your-Mouth Cookies. The middle layer is cheescake in this version. The cookie crust is wonderful, made with chocolate wafers (I used Oreos), dried coconut, and chopped pecans.

Although I loved Toronto, next year I vow to go south where it might be a little warmer. Any suggestions?

No-No Nanaimo Bars
adapted from Chewy Gooey Crispy Crunchy Melt-in-Your-Mouth Cookies by Alice Medrich
Base Layer
1 1/2 cups (5 ounces) chocolate cookie crumbs (I used Oreos)
1/2 cup (1.5 ounces) unsweetened dried shredded coconut (sweetened would work as well)
1/2 cup (2 ounces) finely chopped pecans
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar

Middle Layer
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons (0.875 ounce) packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 large egg

Top Layer
2 T granulated sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
7 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate with 55% to 60% cacao

Equipment
A 9-inch square metal baking pan, the bottom and all 4 sides lined with foil

Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Mix the crumbs, coconut, pecans, butter, and 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar and pat it very firmly into the lined pan. Bake the crust for 10 to 12 minutes, or until it looks slightly darker at the edges and smells toasted.

While the crust is baking, mix the filling. In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup of the remaining granulated sugar until smooth. Beat in the vanilla and then the egg. When the crust is baked, dollop the filling onto the hot crust and spread gently with the back of a spoon. Bake the bars until the edges are slightly puffed, about 10 minutes. Cool on a rack for 30 minutes. Chill for at least 2 hours.

Dissolve the remaining 2 tablespoons granulated sugar in the cream. Bring 1/2 inch water to a simmer in a medium skillet. Coarsely chop the chocolate and combine with the cream in a medium metal bowl. Place the bowl directly in the skillet of hot water and turn off the heat. Let rest for 5 minutes and whisk until smooth. Set aside until needed.

Pour the warm ganache onto the bars, spread, and chill for at least 30 minutes before serving. Lift the bars out of the pan by using the edges of the foil liner. Cut into 16 or 25 squares, wiping the knife between cuts. May be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days.

Makes 16 large (2 1/4—inch) bars or 25 smaller bars.