Bourbon and Blueberry Bundt Cake with Blueberry-Basil-Bourbon Glaze

What could be better than a dense, delicious, fruity bundt cake? One drenched in bourbon, of course!

This recipe was inspired by a list of ingredients from our friend and house-sitter. When asked how we could repay him for taking care of our chickens, cats, gardens, and dog while we gallivanted around the northern part of the country, he replied with his usual, kind, "Make me dinner."  He suggested a list of ingredients and among them  were blueberries, bourbon, and basil. Upon our first attempt with googling the ingredients, we discovered this combination makes quite the popular doughnut choice.  Who knew?

We went to the trusty Paprika app on our iPad and found several recipes for blueberry-bourbon cakes and glazes, but settled on  modifying this one, and then we added our own extra alcohol-y twist with a Bourbon Sauce.  Despite an appetizer of fried plantains, a peanut stew for dinner, and drinks to fill in the rest, we all had room to indulge in this keeper!

The amount of bourbon that we added to this cake would make a sailor whistle. The first saucepan of bourbon sauce soaked right in, so we cooked up another. We added that, which proceeded to soak right in as well. And then we added the glaze on top, full of bourbon. Despite using almost a bottle, the bourbon melded delightfully well with the blueberry and basil flavors. The cake was rich and moist, and it made my summer night feel all the more summery. I predict that it will make snowed-in, wintry nights all the more wintry, too.

Without a doubt, this cake will show up on our table again soon.

Ingredients for the cake:
3 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1 cup unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
4 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 cup bourbon
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1-2 cups blueberries (depending on your preference)

Ingredients for Bourbon Sauce (we ended up making three batches of this...we like ours real dense!):
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar

Ingredients for Glaze 
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 Tablespoon fresh basil, chopped
2-3 tablespoons bourbon
3 cups sifted powdered sugar

Directions:
1. Grease a 10-cup metal tube or bundt pan. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. To make the cake, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a bowl.
3. Cream the butter and sugars together on medium-high speed until fluffy, about five minutes.
4. Blend in the eggs, one at a time and add the vanilla. Combine the bourboun and buttermilk in a bowl. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the bourbon mixture in two parts.
5. Pour the batter evenly in the bundt cake pan. Bake until the cake is golden and springs back when touched, about 40 to 45 minutes.
6. Before the cake is finished, you'll make the bourbon sauce. Heat a small saucepan and melt the butter. Mix in the sugar and vanilla.
7. Remove the pan from the heat, pour in the bourbon, and combine butter mixture with bourbon.
8. Put the pan back on the stove and heat until slightly bubbly. Sugar should be dissolved.
9. Poke holes in your finished cake, and pour the sauce over it. You can reserve some for the top, if you'd like.
10. Let the cake completely cool, and then flip it over onto a serving platter.

11. To make the glaze, start by pulsing the blueberries, basil, and 2 Tbs of bourbon in a food processor or blender until smooth.
12. In a large bowl, measure out the powdered sugar. Gradually stir the blueberry mixture into the sugar. Taste and add the last Tbs of bourbon if you desire. Drizzle over cooked cake.

13 And then, if you like strong libations in your bakery, you can always add more of the Bourbon Sauce! 

Date Balls

Yesterday, in my blog post about chocolate-covered peanut butter balls, I mentioned that I don't get too into baking for the holidays. Yet, here I am, about to write about another holiday sweet. Today's delight is a bit healthier. It's entirely vegan and raw. I'm writing about date balls!

Medjool dates arrive to our house every year in our CSA box, and often, I don't know what to do with them. They are deliciously sweet and are packed with nutrients (weight for weight more potassium than bananas,  full of fiber, good B-12 complex vitamins...and fat-free), but their caloric make-up is high (65 per one Medjool date). A recipe for Date Balls came with our CSA box this week, and since we're on a running kick in our house, the timing for this recipe seemed perfect. Plus, what a wonderfully healthy addition to the holiday sweet table. Leftovers from there will serve as energy boosts before some big runs or snowshoe adventures in the upcoming weeks.

The recipe couldn't be simpler, and the amount of ingredients is small. Most of the ingredients cannot be bought locally here in Wisconsin, but dates and oranges are in season right now in other places.

Ingredients
1.5 cups of pitted dates
1/4 cup of shredded coconut
3 Tbs. of cocoa powder
optional: 1 tsp. of espresso powder
optional: 1 tsp. of orange zest  

To cover date balls, you could just use one of these or you could make a variety:
coconut flakes
toasted sesame seeds
toasted and finely chopped hazelnuts
toasted and finely chopped pistachios
...and I tried Eden Organic Seaweed Gomasio (Sesame Seeds, Seaweed, & Sea Salt) for some of the balls

Directions:
1. Pit the dates.

2. Mix the pitted dates, the 1/4 cup of coconut, the cocoa powder, and the optional ingredients (if you're using them) in a food processor. Mix until the mixture forms into a ball. If it is too dry, add a teaspoon of water at a time. If it is too wet, add more coconut.

3. Put the date ball coverings into their own bowls.
 
Form 1-inch or smaller balls of the date mixture in your hand, and then roll them in the desired coverings. I got creative here and did some simple, one-covering balls and some mixed.
4. Refrigerate.

Peanut Butter Balls: A Yummy Tradition

We don't get too into making Christmas cookies here at our house. There is an annual tradition in our extended family for all the ladies to get together a few weeks before Christmas and turn the kitchen into a bakery, so  the family as a whole is plenty stocked come Christmas Eve. However, here at our place, we do create one sweet delectable every December: peanut butter balls. Usually, we give them as gifts at work and save a few for our own holiday festivities; this year, because of two snow days in a row, we have Peanut Butter balls galore.


Other than the rolling-in-chocolate part, these sweet treats are super easy to make.

Ingredients:
2 cups creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup butter
4 cups powdered sugar
3 cups Rice Krispies
...for chocolate sauce...
one 24 oz. bag of chocolate chips
2.5 Tbs of butter

Directions:
1. Melt peanut butter and 1/2 cup butter over stove top.
2. Mix together powdered sugar and Rice Krispies.
3. Pour peanut butter mixture over powdered sugar mixture. Mix well.
4. Form mixture into 1-inch balls. Freeze.
5. Once the balls are frozen, use a double boiler (or a bowl over a pan of hot water like I did) to melt the chocolate. Dip the frozen balls into the chocolate, using a teaspoon. Place on cookie sheet. Freeze again to set.

Without a double-broiler, I just put hot water in a  pan and  put my other ingredients in a metal bowl.

These are always a crowd-favorite, and they make wonderful gifts. Enjoy!

A Dessert Worth Your Time at the Gym

There are many desserts which, for me, don't equate the time at the gym or on the pavement that will be needed to get rid of the fat and calories consumed. However, the dessert we served up on the Fourth of July was not one of those.

We made (drum roll, please....) Homemade Strawberry Ice Cream and Homemade Lemon Thyme Ice Cream served over Batch Bakehouse's Lemon Pound Cake (grilled), topped with our freshly made mulberry sauce. It was as good as it sounds.

So...the ice cream. Pretty straightforward. If you've been following our ice cream adventures, you know we consistently use the same custard recipe and then add the fruit/flavor once the custard is cool. The lemon thyme recipe is linked here, and the strawberry ice cream recipe is as follows:

Ingredients:
 6 cups of hulled strawberries
1.5 cups of sugar
1.5 cups of half and half
1.5 cups of heavy cream
4 egg yolks

Instructions:
1. Hull and chop the strawberries. Mix with 1 cup of sugar. Let this sit for at least 4 hours (preferably overnight).
2. Whisk egg yolks with the remaining half cup of sugar.
3. Warm the half and half in a saucepan, stirring constantly so not to burn. When the half and half starts to foam, remove from the heat. Slowly pour this into the yolk mixture, whisking constantly as you pour so that  you don't cook the eggs.
4. Once combined, put egg mixture back into saucepan. Warm over low-medium heat, stirring, until the mixture coats the back of the spoon.
5. Remove from heat. Stir in the cream.
6. Cover and cool overnight.
7. Remove half of the strawberries with a slotted spoon. Put into a separate bowl and save for later use.
8. Mash the other half of the strawberries to form a syrupy sauce.
9. Mix syrupy sauce with custard. Use ice cream maker as instructed.
10. Once ice cream is formed, spoon into a freezer-safe receptacle.
11. Mix in the reserved strawberries and freeze until ready to eat!

Mulberry Sauce (recipe makes about 1.5 pints)


Ingredients:
4 cups mulberries
3/4 cup of sugar
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1/2 cup of water
1 Tbs. cornstarch

Instructions:
1. In a saucepan, pulverize mulberries, creating a saucy consistency.
2. Stir cornstarch into water in separate bowl.
3. Combine cornstarch-water mixture, lemon juice, and sugar into the pulverized mulberries.
4. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and cool.
5. Strain sauce to remove seeds. Store in container. Serve cooled over ice cream (or pancakes or french toast, etc., etc.)

Then, to assemble this massively delectable delight:
1. Cut pound cake into 1" thick slices. Brush with butter and grill over hot fire for 2 minutes each side.
2. Put pound cake slices into serving bowls. Top with ice cream(s). Finish with mulberry sauce.

YUM! YUM! YUM! YUM! YUM! YUM! ...and I'll be with you in spirit at the gym tomorrow.

Ginger Sweet Potato Pie

We're on the dessert task force for tomorrow's Thanksgiving celebration, and we need something sweet for Friday's Vegetarian Thanksgiving, AND I needed something for today's ESL potluck. What to make? Sweet Potato Pie! We realized that we'd been hoarding CSA sweet potatoes for weeks and had just enough to make three pies.

This being our first attempt at a sweet potato pie, we needed to reference an expert. We found an Alton Brown recipe and used it as a skeleton, adding our own flavors and unique techniques to make it our own.

Darcy served the first of the three today at school, and her awesomely fantastic (and sweet) students ate it up! Each of them reacted well, which was a true compliment, given their diverse backgrounds and palettes. They even took extras home for their moms, so that they too could experience this Southern iconic dessert for the first time.

Here's what we did to make three pies:
Ingredients:
Filling:
roughly 3.5-4 lbs. of sweet potatoes
One 12 oz can of evaporated milk
3 cups of homemade yogurt (or store bought))
15 egg yolks
2.25 cups dark brown sugar, packed
1.5 tsp. cinnamon
3/4 tsp. nutmeg
2 tsp. freshly grated ginger (or more or less to your liking...you can eliminate this if you don't like ginger)
Topping:
3-5 Tbs. maple syrup (depending on your preferences)
3 cups of crushed pecans
3-5 Tbs. brown sugar

Crust:

3 pre-made 9-inch pie crusts (Willy  Street Co-op sells excellent local crusts)...or try our recipe 

Instructions:
1. Drizzle olive oil on cookie sheet or roasting pan. Cut sweet potatoes in half, lengthwise. Sprinkle each sweet potato with a pinch of sugar. Place sugar side down onto the cookie sheet.

• The key to a perfectly roasted sweet potato is NOT to pre-heat the oven. 
• Start roasting sweet potatoes in a cold oven. This will caramelize and accentuate the sugars, making for sweeter sweet potatoes.  
• We added the sugar on the bottom of the sweet potatoes. The tubers gladly accepted this addition and tasted ... How do you say?... Delicious! 

2. Roast at 375ish until potatoes are fork tender (depending on the size, anywhere from 30-50 minutes).
3. Remove from oven. Once potatoes are cool, remove skins. We found this was easily done by pinching the potatoes with our fingers. The flesh oozed out, leaving the skins behind.
4. Mash the sweet potatoes well.
5. Blend in the yogurt and evaporated milk, the dark sugar, the spices, the ginger, and the egg yolks.
6. Pour into crusts.
7. Sprinkle pecans on pies. Then, sprinkle brown sugar on the pecans. And finally drizzle with the maple syrup...yum! You can use as much or as little as you want for each of these. Personally, we go ALL OUT here. It is already fattening, why not?
8. Bake in a pre-heated oven - 350 degrees - for 50-55 minutes. Ours baked significantly longer (nearly 90 minutes) due to baking three at a time. Good indicators that your pies are ready are that the pies are solid, don't jiggle, and when a knife is inserted into the center, it comes out 90%-100% clean.
9. Cool and then refrigerate.
10. Whip up some organic, locally-produced, humanely-received (be kind to the four-legged creatures, especially on the holidays!) heavy cream to top off each slice of goodness.

ENJOY! Feed back is encouraged and appreciated!

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Therapy in the Kitchen: Squash and Pear Soup, plus Plout-Apple Crisp

Life has been a roller coaster lately, and so dining out has been plentiful as have homemade goodies baked for us by our friends. Today we realized our refrigerator was busting with food, ready to vomit out bags of veggies and fruit at its first opening. Our little feather-footed Bantam, Ani, died this morning, and so, we decided to go to therapy ~ cooking together, side-by-side, in perfect matrimonial harmony in the kitchen, whipping up soup for the freezer, applesauce for later this winter, and freezing veggies we realized we wouldn't get to eating fresh this week. Oh - and we added to our dessert collection ~ a fresh pluot and apple crisp.

Below, I have included the recipes for a Squash Pear Soup and our Pluot and Apple Crisp. 

Squash Pear Soup
 (we have adapted this from Deborah Madison's recipe in Vegetable Soups from Deborah Madison's Kitchen.)

Ingredients:
5 cups of squash
5 pears
3 Tbs. of butter
10 cups of vegetable stock
1 medium onion
1/2 cup of good, white wine
2 inches of ginger, grated
a generous pinch of cinnamon

1. Cut the squash in half. Remove and save the seeds and guts.  Roast the halved squash and peeled pears at 425 degrees on a baking dish or roasting pan. If squash are dry, add a bit of water to the pan. Brush with oil and season with salt. Bake for about 1 hour. You may have to turn the pieces over once or twice.
2. Once the squash is roasted, scrape off the skin and add it to saved seeds and guts.Also, reserve the liquid in the roasting pan.

Making stock

3. To make a stock, bring the 10 cups of water to a boil. Add the seeds, guts, and skin. Add the ginger and a 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a boil, lower to a simmer, and cover for 20 to 25 minutes. Strain and save liquid.
4. Then, melt the butter in your soup pot. Add the onion and saute over medium-low for about 10 minutes. Add the pears, squash, stock, and the reserved liquid from the roasting pan. Bring to a boil and then lower the heat and simmer for 25 minutes. Puree all when finished.

We froze ours, but it's delicious right off the stove as well!

Nutrition Facts cup servings Squash and pear soup
Serving Size: 1 serving
Amount Per Serving
Calories	111
Total Fat	2.9g
Saturated Fat	1.4g
Trans Fat	0g
Cholesterol	7mg
Sodium	136mg
Carbohydrate	20.4g
Dietary Fiber	4.2g
Sugars	9.8g
Protein	0.9g
Alcohol	0.9g
Vitamin A 121% Vitamin C 27% Calcium    6% Iron 5%

__________________________________
Plout and Apple Crisp
Ingredients:
4 apples, sliced
8 pluots, diced
6 Tbs. brown sugar
3/4 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
4 Tbs. oats
4 Tbs. coconut (optional)
6 Tbs. butter
1/3 cup brown sugar

Directions:
1.  Put the apples and 1/2 of the sugar in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 10 minutes or until apples are soft.
2. Put the pluots in the baking dish. Then, add the apples.

3. Combine the flour, cinnamon, oats, butter, and the rest of the sugar. Blend until the mixture is crumbly.

4. Put the mixture over the apples. Then, sprinkle the brown sugar and coconut on top.
5. Bake at 400 degrees for approximately 30 minutes. To be safe, put the baking dish on top of foil or a cookie sheet in case the fruit spills over.

 

Oh~ and no fall-cooking day would be complete without applesauce! We froze a few bags of that too!

Ready to cook down.

The Asparagus to Zucchini Cookbook Rocks: Two Awesome Recipes in One Week

With our first CSA box being delivered last Saturday, we decided to try a few new recipes. Of course, the first resource that we grabbed was the From Asparagus to Zucchini Cookbook. Our first delicious surprise was a beverage - Rhubarbade. After an awesome five-mile run last week, this drink quenched every bit of my gigantic thirst. I also imagine that it would be great on a hot, sunny day with a little vodka and ice! :)

To make it:
1. Puree rhubarb in a food processor or use a juicer.
2. For every two cups of rhubarb liquid, add 3/4 cup (or more or less to taste) of a sweetener and 6 cups of water. We used sucanat (non-refined cane sugar).
3. Stir until sugar or other sweetener is dissolved.
4. Serve iced. Yum!

The other sweet surprise that we had was from the same cookbook. Meet Parsnip Cake with Lemon Cream Cheese Icing! Check out the From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce for the full recipe. Let me just say: the addition of the dried cherries and chopped walnuts on top of the frosting was perfect!