Posted in April 2012

Honeyed Espresso Cake

When I was in Scotland in March, I noticed something that a normal person would just ignore. It involves cake, so of course I noticed.

In the U.S. we love our decadent multi-layered cakes, with light filling between each layer, and a rich layer of frosting on the outside. In Scotland, though, they are really into single layers of cake. Just one large layer… sometimes with some frosting on top, most times just with a glaze. It’s so simple. Now, don’t get me wrong… every now and then, I love a big piece of chocolate cake with chocolate frosting, but I love the idea of single layer cakes.

Just the other night, I was sitting on my patio Tumbling and I came across this recipe. Naturally, I got up and made it immediately. So now, I have a lovely single layered cake, sitting in a cake dome on my counter.

Honeyed Espresso Cake
adapted from Sweet Paul

1 1/2 stick butter
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup coconut flour
1/4 cup sweet rice flour
1/4 cup oat flour
2 Tablespoons tapioca starch
2 Tablespoons potato starch
2 teaspoons guar gum
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons instant espresso powder (I used one packet of Nescafe instant espresso… that I took from a hotel in Scotland)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup milk
Honey

Preheat oven to 320˚. Grease a 9-inch round baking dish (I used a pie pan). In a medium bowl, beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs and mix well. In a separate bowl, combine all dry ingredients (coconut flour through cinnamon). Add to butter and sugar mixture and stir until all combined. Mix in milk and stir until everything is well combined and distributed. Transfer to prepared baking dish and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, until cake is set.

Let cool. Once you remove the cake from the pan, drizzle honey on top and allow it to soak in.

Enjoy!

Abigail

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Current Cravings . 10

clockwise from top right: Chicken Parmesan Grilled Cheese / Lemon Ricotta Pancakes / Not Just an Egg Salad / Flourless Chocolate Cookies / Chocolate Banana Sponge Pudding

FYI: I did not take, nor do I own, any of the pictures above. They are the property of the lovely people who run the sites linked above. I just like looking at them and drooling over them…

Abigail

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Scalloped Sweet Potato & Ham Casserole

Scalloped Sweet Potato & Ham Casserole
Serves 4

Olive oil
1 small yellow onion, sliced into thin half moons
1/4 cup white wine
1 small ham steak (enough for about 1 cup of ham chunks)
1 medium sweet potato, cut into thin slices
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup shredded cheese, divided (I used a Quatro Formaggi blend from Central Market, but you could use just Asiago, or Cheddar… whatever you feel like)
Salt and pepper

In a medium-sized iron skillet*, heat olive oil. Add onions and stir to coat all the onions with oil. Let sit for a minute or so to give them a chance to brown. Sprinkle a dash of salt on top and stir and let cook until onions are tender. Add white wine to deglaze the pan. Add ham chunks and cook until the majority of the liquid has cooked off. Remove from pan to a plate or bowl.

In a small bowl combine cream, 1/4 cup of the cheese, and some pepper.

Arrange a layer of sweet potatoes in the bottom of the skillet and then begin to layer with the onions, 1/3 of the cream mixture, sweet potatoes, onions, 1/3 of the cream mixture, and finishing off with some sweet potatoes and the remaining 1/3 of cream mixture. Each layer of sweet potatoes doesn’t have to be a solid layer… there can be some spaces. Top it all off with the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese.

Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until potatoes are done. Remove foil and cook for another 10 minutes, or until cheese begins to bubble and get golden.

*If you don’t have an iron skillet, you can cook the onions and ham in a normal skillet or saucepan and then bake it all in a casserole or baking dish.

Serve with a salad or something green… Enjoy!

Abigail

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A New To-Do List

A beautiful day in Austin

Last year, I made a year’s to-do list for myself: 23 things to do before I turn 23. Some of the things were easy to do, like eat at 20 new restaurants. Others, like visit 18 new cities, turned out to be a little harder than expected. This time around (for my 24 before 24) I made things a little simpler… no more do ______ 20 times for #20 or ________ 13 times for #13. Nope. I’d rather check more things off the list. So, this year’s list is more straightforward. Here’s a peek:

1. Go to the opera.
4. Read 12 books. (I’ve already read 3!)
15. Make croissants.
16. Go skiing… again.
19. Sleep under the stars.

It’s basically a bucket list for my 24th year… or would it be my 23rd… I don’t know.

As I write this, I am attempting to conquer one of the to-dos. #22 Break 3 Habits. I’m tired of ending my days by sitting inside at my computer or on the couch when the days are as beautiful as this one. Instead, I’ve taken to ending my days sitting in an adirondack with a book or magazine and the fresh air out on our patio. I’m liking this new pace of life.

What’s on your to-do list for the year?

Abigail

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Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprint Cookies

Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprint Cookies
Yields 2 dozen cookies

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Jelly of choice (I used strawberry)

Preheat oven to 350˚.

In a medium bowl, combine butter, peanut butter, and sugars and stir until well combined… and then stir a bit longer until it gets a little fluffy. Stir in the egg. In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Add flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture and stir until it’s all combined.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick sheet. Using a tablespoon or a cookie scoop, scoop dough on the prepared baking sheet, leaving about 2-inches between each one. Using the back of a spoon (I used a teaspoon) press down to make a well in the center of the cookie… don’t press all the way down to the pan or the jelly will seep through the cookie. Fill the well with jelly, making sure it doesn’t overflow down the sides.

Bake for 14-16 minutes.

Let cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes and then remove to a cooling rack so they can finish cooling.

Enjoy!

Abigail

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