Chocolate-Pecan Coffeecake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...If you've been searching for a new coffeecake to serve for breakfast on Thanksgiving or Christmas morning, this cake just might fill the bill. It's a bit more involved than some, but the cake, every crumb of it, is worth the effort. It has been a while since I featured a "makes my socks go up and down" recipe, but this definitely belongs in that category. This is special and the only problem I've encountered when I make it, is determining when it is fully baked. The cake has so much in it, that it is hard to determine when the batter in the center of the cake is actually done. I probably baked this longer than I should, but in order to assure a cake with a cooked center, I added extra time to the recommendation in the recipe below. The next time I make this I'm going to use a tube pan, which I think will eliminate any chance of over-baking the cake. Those of you who try this recipe will be pleased. I've moved the one I made for this post to the freezer for Thanksgiving weekend and  I do hope you'll follow suit. Here's the recipe for a cake that is a  perfect way to start a holiday breakfast.

Surgery Update:

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.”
Marcel Proust

Things have gone very well thus far. Thank you so much for your prayers, good wishes and support. I will forever be in the debt of the organ donor whose cornea has given me the chance of second sight. . 

Chocolate-Pecan Coffeecake...from thekitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Midwest Living magazine

Ingredients:
Coconut Pecan Topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup cold butter
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate pieces
1/2 cup flaked coconut
1/2 cup chopped pecans
Cake
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt or 1/4 teaspoon table salt
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 (8-oz.) carton dairy sour cream

Directions:
1) Grease and flour a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.
2) To make Coconut Pecan Topping: In a large bowl combine flour, brown sugar and cinnamon. Cut in cold butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; stir in semisweet chocolate pieces, coconut, and pecans. Set aside.
3) To make cake:  In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Beat until well combined, scraping sides of bowl occasionally. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla. Alternately add flour and sour cream to butter mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined.
4) Spread half of cake batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of  Coconut Pecan Topping. Spoon remaining cake batter in mounds over coconut mixture. Carefully spread to an even layer. Sprinkle with remaining Coconut Pecan Topping.
%) Bake in a 350 degree F oven about 65 minutes or until a long wooden skewer inserted near the center comes out clean. If necessary, cover cake with foil for the last 15 to 20 minutes of baking to prevent overbrowning. Cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Run a thin metal spatula around edge of cake. Remove sides of the pan. Cool about 30 minutes more. Serve warm. Yield: 12 servings.

If you have enjoyed your visit here, I hope you'll take a minute to...

      

One Year Ago Today: Pumpkin Sausage and Sage Rigatoni

Two Years Ago Today: Creamed Spinach

Three Years Ago Today: Fusilli with Ricotta and Spinach

Four Years Ago Today: Wasabi Glazed Salmon

Colomba Pasquale - Italian Easter Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...Our plans for the Easter holiday are falling into place. We'll be having friends for a traditional dinner on Saturday night and on Sunday, if the good Lord's willin' and the creek don't rise, we'll be enjoying a potluck brunch on the shores of Loon Lake. After sifting through a maze of possibilities, I decided to make an Italian Easter cake, called Colomba Pasquale, as my contribution to the communal feast. I did a test run of the recipe today and I'm really pleased with the results. The cake is made with a sweet dough, similar to the one that is used for panettone, and it is usually baked in a dove-shaped mold. I've reached an age where the chances of any new pots, pans or molds coming into my kitchen are mighty slim, so the idea of a dove-shaped cake, no matter how lovely the symbolism, was immediately sacrificed on the altar of  practicality. I was tempted to try a freeform version of the dove, but the dough used to make the cake is so soft I was afraid it would sprawl and look like an amoeba by the time it finished baking. I decided to use a large springform pan instead and it worked really well. I put a collar on the pan, so the dough was free to rise and my finished cake was a bit over 3 inches high. The dough used to make the Easter cake is easy enough to prepare, but because it begins with a sponge and rises several times, it is time consuming and shouldn't be attempted when you are short of time. The dough is sticky, but if you use too much flour to remedy that, your finished cake will be dry. While it is counterintuitive, wet hands will make working the dough easier. You could also use an electric mixer that has a dough hook and be done with it.  The best part of the colomba is the almond topping which adds texture, flavor and eye appeal to the bread. The finished cake is really pretty and I know you will enjoy it. Here is how it is made.

Colomba Pasquale - Italian Easter Cake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of the Italian Connection and Emanuele's Kitchen

Ingredients:
Sponge
3/4 cup milk
2-1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sugar
Dough
3 large eggs
1 egg yolk (set aside the white)
1 stick (4-oz.) butter, melted
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Grated rind of 1 lemon
Grated rind of 1 small orange
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup golden raisins
Almond Glaze
1/3 cup almonds
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 egg white
1/3 cup whole almonds
Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

Directions:
1) To make the sponge: Heat milk to 105 degrees F. and pour into a medium size bowl. Mix in 1 teaspoon sugar and yeast and let sit for 5 minutes. Stir to combine. Add 1 cup flour and mix thoroughly with a fork. Cover with plastic wrap and place in warm spot until doubled in bulk, about 30-45 minutes.
2) To make dough: Melt butter in a saucepan and let cool. In a large bowl, beat 3 whole eggs and 1 yolk with a fork. Mix in sugar, salt, vanilla, and lemon and orange rinds. Stir in butter. Stir in risen sponge. Mix energetically until well combined. Gradually mix in the 3 cups of flour.
    Turn dough out onto a well-floured board and knead until smooth, adding additional flour only if needed to keep dough from sticking. Knead in raisins. Place dough in a large buttered bowl, cover with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
   When dough has risen, fold it over itself in the bowl several times, then shape as desired, either as one large round cake, 2 smaller round cakes, or 2 colombe-dove shapes. I made one large cake in an 10” springform pan. Butter bottom of the pan, then line inside ring with parchment paper so that it is above rim of the pan by several inches, and secure with a metal paper clip. Place dough in pan, and flatten so that it is even and touches side of the pan. Cover with a cloth and leave to rise until doubled, 60-90 minutes.
    Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
3) To make almond glaze: In a food processor, grind almonds and sugar by pulsing, until they are finely chopped. Add cornstarch and egg white and blend well. Carefully spoon glaze over cake dough,- do not push down on dough, which will deflate it and ruin your efforts! Scatter whole almonds over surface of glaze and sprinkle with confectioners sugar.
4) To bake: Place cake pan on bottom rack of oven, and bake for 20 minutes, then lower temperature to 325 degrees F. and bake for another 20-40 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. If top starts to darken too much, cover it with aluminum foil to prevent it from burning. Cool on a rack. If made a day ahead, cover well in plastic wrap to keep fresh. Yield: 12 to 16 servings.

Cook's Note: While the traditional shape of this cake is a colomba – the dove that is the symbol of peace - the dove shape is a bit awkward without a special pan, so I make one large round cake which gives spectacular results.





One Year Ago Today: Chocolate-Cherry Cookies

















Two Years Ago Today: Peanut Butter Fudge














Three Years Ago Today: Zeppole for the Feast of St. Joseph













Four Years Ago Today: Cinnamon Rolls and the Junction City Daffodil Festival

Grape Harvest Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I have fallen head-over-heels in love with grape desserts. They are relatively new to me, but I am making a determined effort to make up for years of lost time. A few months ago,  I featured a Vintner's Grape Cake that was made with olive oil. It was so good, that it had my socks going up and down. Shortly after sharing it with you, I came across another cake on the Whole Foods website. I was drawn to their cake because it  omitted the citrus flavors found in the cake that I had already published and I was curious to see if I would like it as well.  It, obviously, was time for some comparison testing and a definitive  selection of best of class was in order. As it turns out, I was unable to do that. The first cake was a clear winner in the dessert category, but this tender harvest cake took honors in the tea and breakfast category where the intensity of the citrus was deemed to be off putting  so early in the day. We'll have to leave the final judgment up to you.  I hope you will give both these recipes a try. In the great scheme of things, they are easy to make and I suspect you'll love them both. Here is how the Grape Harvest Cake is made.

Grape Harvest Cake ...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Whole Foods Recipes

Ingredients:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for buttering the pan
2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon cane sugar
2 large eggs and 1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1-3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring the pan
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 cup lowfat buttermilk
2-1/4 cups (3/4 pound) red seedless grapes

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9-inch metal cake pan and line bottom with a round of parchment paper. Butter paper and then coat pan with flour.
2) In bowl of an electric mixer, cream together butter and 2/3 cup sugar until light and fluffy, stopping to scrape down sides of bowl frequently. Beat in eggs one at a time. Beat in yolk, followed by olive oil.
3) Sift together flour, baking powder and salt in separate bowl.
4) On low speed, beat in flour mixture in three additions, alternating with additions of buttermilk and scraping down sides of the bowl frequently. Stir in half the grapes and pour batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle top with remaining grapes and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar.
5) Bake until cake is browned on top and springs back when pressed lightly with your finger, 50 to 60 minutes. Cool the cake in the pan 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edges of pan, then invert, peel off paper and cool cake upright on a rack. Serve warm or room temperature. Yield: 12 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Blueberry Yogurt Cake

Two Years Ago Today: Georgia-Style Brunswick Stew

Three Years Ago Today: Pumpkin Roll

Easiest Ever Streusel-Topped Blueberry Coffeecake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...When we vacation and our temporary home has a kitchen, be it large or small, one of the ingredients you'll always find in my hastily assembled pantry is a bag pancake mix. I find the mix to be remarkably versatile, and while I do use it to make pancakes and waffles,  it is also the secret ingredient in my fried chicken, pork chops and several of the cakes and pastries I make for my family. I found this recipe on a site called Confessions of an Over-Worked Mom, and it immediately caught my eye. I'm always looking for easy recipes that can be tackled by beginning cooks, and, as I read through the ingredient list, I knew this  would be perfect for my grandsons to try. I gave the cake a test run and I'm  happy to report that this effortless coffeecake, which, by the way, requires no special equipment to make, is much tastier than you might expect. It is no match for your finest scratch effort, but it is sufficient to the day and I think you'll enjoy it with your morning coffee or tea. It is a perfect cake for young cooks to try, so pass them a mixing bowl and wooden spoon, and wait for a warm piece of their cake to jump start your day. Here's how it is made.

Streusel-Topped Blueberry Coffeecake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite courtesy of Ellen Christan at Confessions of an Over-Worked Mom

Ingredients:

Cake

2-1/2 cups buttermilk pancake mix
1 cup water
3/4 cup frozen blueberries (firm fresh berries can also be used)
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Topping

1/4 cup buttermilk pancake mix
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease an 8 x 8-inch pan.
2) To make the cake: Combine 2-1/2 cups of buttermilk pancake mix, water, sugar, maple syrup, egg, vanilla and frozen blueberries in a large bowl and mix until dry ingredients are moistened. Spoon batter into prepared pan.
3) To make the topping: Combine 1/4 cup buttermilk pancake mix, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in butter with until crumbly. Sprinkle topping evenly over cake.
4) Bake 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean and top is golden brown. Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Really Easy Raspberry Pie

Two Years Ago Today: Lavender Butter, Sugar and Salad Dressing

Three Years Ago Today: Mellow Yellow

Everyday Cinnamon Coffee Cake

From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...This is a nice cake to serve with morning coffee or afternoon tea. It comes together easily and the pockets of cinnamon tucked into the batter give it a unique rocky appearance and distinctly sweet-spicy flavor that's unusual in cakes of this type. For years now, I've been trying to duplicate the flavor of the original Sara Lee coffeecake. Since my own attempts have been middling, I've spent more than a little time paging through the work of other cooks and bloggers. When I find a recipe that sounds like it might come close, I'll give it a try. That's how I found the cake I'm featuring today. I stumbled on it while browsing through a blog called Divas Can Cook. The recipe on that site is accompanied by a video that shows how the cake should be made and I thought some of you might find it helpful. There are some potential trouble spots you might encounter when preparing the cake. Working on the theory that forewarned is forearmed, you should know that the cinnamon mixture is really to stiff to swirl through the batter. You can thin it with a little milk or simply push the cinnamon pockets into the batter to achieve a bumpy swirl effect. Those pockets also make it difficult to tell when the cake is done. Starting at the 25 minute mark, test in the yellow cake rather than pocket areas for doneness. My cake took nearly 45 minutes to cook. The cream cheese glaze is what makes this cake special, but the original recipe makes far more of it than is needed for one cake. The quantities in the recipe below have been halved and will be more than enough to top the cake. The cake should be served while it is still warm, but it should sit long enough for the cinnamon pockets to firm up a bit. The cake, by the way, stales quickly so try to serve on those occasions where you have enough people to serve it in one sitting.  This is a nice everyday coffeecake, but I'm still looking for my Sara Lee clone. Here's the recipe for today's cake.

Everyday Cinnamon Coffee Cake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite adapted from Divas Can Cook

Ingredients

Cinnamon Topping

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 tablespoons flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon

Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup white sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1-1/2 cups milk
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup butter, melted

Cream Cheese Glaze

1-oz. cream cheese, softened
1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons milk milk (may need more)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x13-inch pan. Set aside.
2) To make cinnamon topping: Mix together butter, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon until mixture is smooth and creamy. Set aside.
3) To make cake: Sift flour, salt, sugar and baking powder together in a large bowl. Beat in milk, eggs and vanilla. Stir in melted butter. Pour batter into prepared pan. Drop spoonfuls of cinnamon mixture on top of batter. Use a knife to swirl cinnamon mixture into batter. Bake for 20-35 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into cake comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes before glazing.
4) To make glaze: Combine confectioners' sugar, cream cheese, milk and vanilla in a small bowl. Beat until smooth and silky. Add more milk, by teaspoons, to achieve a consistency that can be drizzled over cake.
5) To serve: Drizzle glaze over cake and serve warm from the pan. Yield: 12 servings.

One Year Ago Today: Pink Grapefruit Smoothie

Two Years Ago Today: Carrot Timbales

Three Years Ago Today: Rhubarb and Raspberry Gelato

Crumb Cake

 
From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite....This is one of my favorite brunch cakes,  though I've never shared it with our guests. There is just no way it can be eaten without showering clothes with crumbs and powdered sugar and I hate to do that to  friends who usually dress for the occasion. So, this lovely classic crumb cake has become private stock and is reserved only for my family who dress for the occasion only when threatened with bodily harm. I found this recipe on the King Arthur Flour site years ago and it has been my crumb cake of choice ever since. The cake base is moist and appropriately dense and it's buried under a generous layer of very tasty crumbs. The cake comes together quickly and it really is delicious. It does have one flaw. It stales quickly, so it is best eaten slightly warm on the day it is made. There are no secrets to share or tricks needed to make this successfully. This is a cake that can be made by anyone who can read. The recipe appears below. I can't let April Fools Day pass without sharing my favorite prank with you. It happens to involve food, so I thought it would be appropriate to include it here. Ready? On April Fools Day in 1957, a BBC news show announced that Swiss farmers had been able to grow spaghetti, and,  to bolster the claim, they aired footage of peasants pulling spaghetti down from trees. Viewers began calling in to the BBC to find out how they could grow their own spaghetti. The BBC replied, "place a sprig of spaghetti in a tin of tomato sauce and hope for the best." Truth is stranger than fiction.

Crumb Cake...from the kitchen of One Perfect Bite adapted from King Arthur Flour.com

Ingredients:

Cake

1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
1-1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon lemon extract
3 large eggs
1-1/2 cups all-purpose Flour
heaping 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt

Topping

4 tablespoons chilled butter, cubed
4 tablespoons solid shortening
1 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon lemon extract
1 to 2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar or non-melting white sugar, for sprinkling on top

Directions:
1) Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9" square cake pan. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper. Grease paper.
2) In a medium-sized mixing bowl, beat together butter, sugar, salt, and flavorings for 2 minutes, till smooth. Add eggs, beating well after each addition; continue beating after adding last egg for at least 3 minutes at medium-high speed. Batter should look fluffy, with no grains of sugar visible.
3) Add flour and baking soda to butter mixture, beating gently to combine.
4) Add yogurt and beat gently until well blended.
5) Spread batter in prepared pan. Bake cake for 30 minutes.
6) While cake is baking, mix all topping ingredients just until medium crumbs form.
7) After 30 minutes, remove cake from oven. Quickly and gently sprinkle crumbs on top, and return to oven. Bake for 15 minutes longer, or until a cake tester inserted into center comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes. Cover surface of cake with aluminum foil (to catch wayward crumbs) and invert onto a cooling rack. Remove parchment paper from bottom of cake and invert again, so crumb side is facing up. When cake is completely cool, sprinkle it with confectioners' sugar. Yield: One 9-inch square pan.

One Year Ago Today: Mango Mousse

Two Years Ago Today: Pork Tenderloin Baked in A Salt Crust

Petite Apple Cakes

Today is Fat Tuesday. If you're looking for a pancake recipe why not end Carnival with my Crepes with Hot Buttered Rum Sauce. Otherwise give these apple cakes a try. I love desserts and snacks that are not too sweet. These small snack cakes are not bad for you and they're easy to do. They also work with coffee in the morning. 'Nuff said!

Petite Apple Cakes

Ingredients:
3 cups + 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, divided use
1/4 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon, divided use
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided use
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1-1/2 cups plain yogurt
2 cups coarsely grated apple
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
Confectioners' sugar for dusting (optional)

Directions:
1) To make the streusel topping, combine 3 tablespoons flour, white sugar, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon and 2 tablespoons cubed butter in a small bowl. Mix with finger tips until mixture resembles small peas. Set aside.
2) Adjust an oven rack to lower middle position. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spray 2 six-cup muffin tins with nonstick spray. Set aside.
3) Combine reserved flour, baking powder, baking soda, reserved 1 teaspoon cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
4) Combine butter and brown sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in half of dry ingredients, then beat in one-third of the yogurt. Add remaining dry ingredients in two batches, alternating with remaining yogurt until incorporated. Fold in apples and walnuts.
5) Use a large ice cream scoop to evenly fill prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle tops with reserved streusel topping. Bake until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into center of muffins comes out clean, about 25 to 30 minutes. Set pan on rack for 5 minutes. Remove cakes from pans. Dust with confectioners' sugar if using. Serve warm. Yield: 12 servings.