{TWD2} Chocolate, Chocolate, Chocolate, and …. Figs!!

I think I am almost done BAKING all of the recipes from Dorie’s Baking From My Home to Yours. I haven’t blogged them all yet, but I am real close to finishing my commitment to complete all the recipes. Even though it has taken me almost a year after the group finished the same 350+ recipes. And since I am trying to finish before the holiday season you will be seeing several more treats than usual in each post.

OCTOBER

10/7/2008

First up we have….

Caramel-Peanut Pecan-Topped Brownie Cake

October must be a good month for Chocolate. Of the four recipes this month, three had Chocolate. Keep in mind, however, that they were not all from the same year!!

Dorie described this cake as scrumptious. THAT is an understatement. You have to understand that I am one of several million chocolate lovers in the US. I am also one of the many lovers of caramel. You put those two together and you have, IMO, AMAZING!! Now add in some PECANS and you have PERFECTION!! This was supposed to be topped in peanuts but I knew deep down inside that it would be MUCH better with pecans. Sweeter!! I was right. At least for us, anyway!!

1/3 recipe was too much for the 5″ springform pan I used so some overflowed, which meant I got to sample the cake BEFORE it was finished!! YUM!!

This pick was from Tammy of Wee Treats by Tammy and you can find the recipe there. In BFMHTY it is on page 264.

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10/29/2009

And for our Second Chocolate Treat….

Cherry-Fudge Brownie Torte

The first thing I had to do to make this Torte was find some Cherry Preserves. They are not part of my usual jam/jelly collection. I don’t know why because they are delicious, which I found out making this chocolate treat. Mixed with some cherries flamed with Rum {recipe called for Kirsh but I didn’t have any.} and both cocoa powder and semi-sweet chocolate it started in Dorie’s imagination as a Black Forest Cake. But rather than layers of whipped cream, cake, and cherries she puts the cherries in the cake and tops the torte with a sweet silky Mascarpone Mousse. And then, because I could, I drizzled just a smidgen, okay, more than a smidgen, of chocolate syrup over the top. And yes, it was OVER THE TOP!! As if this delightful treat needed more chocolate!!! The fudgy cake was dark, dense, delicious. I loved the mousse on top. Mascarpone – where have you been all my life!!

1/4 of the recipe resulted in a 5″ mini torte.

This pick was from short = rose by April and you can find the recipe on her blog. And on page 284 of Dorie’s BFMHTY

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10/25/2011
Had enough chocolate yet. Okay, lets switch over to…..

A Fig Cake for Fall

Lucky for me I have a small fig tree. Unfortunately the birds beat me to the 6 or 7 figs we actually had this year. Lucky for me I have a friend with a HUGE fig tree. So I made this cake during fig season. One half of the recipe called for only 8 – 10 figs. That meant I had plenty left over to make the …well, that’s not until December!!

Dorie used figs poached in ruby port. Since that is not usually something I have on hand I poached mine in Honey and Cinnamon. And they were so very good! The cake was very good. The texture was not as cake-y since the batter contained cornmeal. That was a definite plus and a nice play against the soft figs. And the honey-cinnamon sauce. AMAZING!!

Thank you, Alvarosa, for this fig cake. You can find the recipe on her blog – Cookie Rookie BTW she started baking for the first time when she started with TWD!! The cake is also on page 198 of Dorie’s BFMHTY

{To poach the figs bring the water, honey and cinnamon to a boil in a saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add the figs and cook another 15 minutes. Remove the figs and put the sauce aside.}

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10/18/2011

NOW!! Let’s end on a high note….

Ginger-Jazzed Brownies

Brownies are a favorite in this house. When in doubt, make brownies. But I would never have thought of putting ginger in the brownies. Thank you, Dorie!!! Over the course of 4 years the TWD group made 12 different kinds of brownies!! Some were…okay… Some were fantastic. These are in the ‘between’ group. Good, but not a fav. With both ground ginger and minced fresh ginger these brownies had some KICK!! Ginger is spicy!! I topped them with a ginger infused whipped cream. Just enough! 1/3 of the recipe resulted in TWO brownies {2 1/2″ x 4″} I knew we aren’t BIG ginger fans so just two was just perfect!!

Hindy of Bubie’s Little Baker chose these. The recipe is on her blog and on pae 101 of BFMHTY.

I hope you enjoyed all the OCTOBER TWD treats. We did!! Now, just November and December left.

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{TWD2} Crisps, Pies, and Torts! How sweet it is!

I’m sorry!

What month did you say it was? MAY!! How did that happen. Didn’t we just have Christmas? New Years?

Time just flies by!! Too quickly sometimes! But we make the best of it….

And we do that by BAKING! Lots and lots of baking! At least I do because I am doing TWD catch-ups. At least there are 5 Tuesdays this month. Two reserved for Baking with Julia, the NEW TWD! And three for catch-ups. WHEW!

In 1958 I was living just outside Liverpool (you know, BEATLE City!) We had a huge house in a little village (Rainhill) and there was a garden in the backyard. In that garden we had RHUBARB. Lots of RHUBARB! I remember liking it as an 8 year old but that was lots of years ago. Did I still like it? Only one way to find out!

Strawberry-Rhubarb Double Crisp

I have to admit I didn’t expect to like this. I tasted the Rhubarb before slicing it up and putting it on the crust and it was NOT what I remembered. But in the crisp it added a touch of tart to the sweetness of the strawberries. Admittedly, I did not use as much as Dorie called for (1 lb) but it was enough to taste the tartness. The sliced rhubarb is scattered over the bottom crisp layer, covered by a sweet strawberry filling over which another layer of crisp is scattered. YUM!! is all I have to say. The ginger (but not the crystallized) added a certain amount of zing to the crisp and cuts back on the sweetness of the filling. It. Was. Good! And just because – I added a slightly sweet gingered whipped cream on top. I liked that!! Just enough ginger to compliment the ginger in the crisp.

This crisp was selected in April 12, 20ll by Sarah of Teapots and Cakestands where you can find the recipe. Or find it on page 420 of BFMHTY.
BTW this is a double catch-up because it WAS an April recipe but there was not rhubarb to be found in April.

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Now! May!
May 6th, 2008, the TWD group all came together over a Peanut Butter Torte.

Imagine a fluffy Peanut Butter Mousse filled with chopped peanuts, flavored with espresso, poured into an Oreo Cookie crumb crust flavored with nutmeg and cinnamon, topped with chocolate ganache and you have this torte!! OH! MY! HEAVEN! IF you like PB and IF you like Chocolate, that is!
As is the case, the espresso served only to heighten the taste of the chocolate. And since the cinnamon and nutmeg are in the crust it doesn’t overpower the mousse itself. The SIL said it tasted like a PB Cup. I think it is MUCH more than that! MUCH MORE!! Definitely a repeat here.

I made 1/2 of the recipe and it fit nicely into a 5″ springform with just a tad left over for, eh…. tasting!! Yeah, that’s it. TASTING!!

Thank you, Elizabeth of Ugg Smell Food, great choice. Elizabeth’s page is no longer available, but I did find the recipe on Susan’s blog. And it is on page 282 of Dorie’s BFMHTY.

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May 13, 2008, TWD visited Florida – kinda – with a wonderful lime and coconut pie chosen by Dianne of Dianne’s Dishes

Florida Pie

What we have here is a creamy lime meringue pie combined with a creamy coconut layer on the bottom. Can you imagine the combo – lime and coconut (Yeah, I know. You are singing the song, too! So were all the other TWD bakers on this one!!!) The coconut layer added a little ‘chew’ to the pie. The lime was faintly there and just the perfect level of tartness for the sweet coconut. Coconut is also mixed into the meringue. Everyone liked this one!

1/2 of the recipe resulted in two 6″ mini pies. Just right for two people.

Look on page 340 of BFMHTY for Dorie’s recipe. And you can find the recipe on Dianne’s blog.

 

{TWD2} Mallows, Crunchy Chocolate, and Polenta Cake

And so comes the end of April and just enough time to post three of the four recipes left from the the four years of Tuesdays with Dorie. After reviewing the April recipes I discovered I only had seven left to finish. The first post in April contained 3. Here are three more!

April 15, 2008, found the bakers making an item that most of us usually buy in plastic bags –

MARSHMALLOWS!

If you have never made your own marshmallows you should do it at least once. It is an interesting experience. I made plain marshmallows but Dorie gives instructions for Chocolate, Raspberry, Cappuccino, and Pumpkin Spice variations. (I think the Pumpkin ones will be around in the fall!) Guess what?? They TASTE like marshmallows. Well, DUH! you say – but I really wasn’t expecting them too. Really!!! And I wasn’t sure what I was going to do with a batch of marshmallows. Lucky for me it was pretty chilly the night I made them and so into some Hot Chocolate they went!

They melted much quicker than the plastic bag version and that was a good thing. Now, I need a brownie recipe that uses marshmallows….

While reading through the recipe I saw that there was a tablespoon of sugar listed in the ingredients but never listed in the instructions. I cannot count how many times I reread the recipe. Highlighted the ingredients as they were used in the recipe. It was a mystery!! But Judy solved the mystery in a later post. Thanks Judy for coming through for us.

This recipe was Judy’s choice of Judy’s Gross Eats . You can find he recipe on her blog.

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If you like figs and/or polenta then the dessert of April 29th of 2008 should be perfect for you. Check out Dorie’s Fluted Polenta and Ricotta Cake

This was a big hit here. I was really hesitant about making this one because I don’t like figs. We have fig trees. I let the birds eat them. And even though B will eat them, he really isn’t a fan. But I went ahead and made the whole cake because I was curious about the polenta and what it would do to a cake. It did wonderful things to the cake. I loved the texture – a little crunchy but soft -and mixed with the honey, lemon zest and ricotta the cake was delightfully sweet. I did TRY a fig in the cake and even though I still don’t care for them it really wasn’t bad. Dorie suggested dried Mission or Kadota figs but all I could find was Malmyrna. Those worked just fine. WHEN I make this again (because I loved the cake part) it will the cut the figs into small pieces. REALLY small pieces!!

The only problem I had with the cake was the size of the pan and the amount of batter. The cake us supposed to be made in a 10.5″ tart pan and the biggest I had was an 8″. I put entirely too much batter in. Thank goodness it was on a cookie sheet with a silicone mat.

Thanks to Caitlin of Engineer Baker for this one. Made me try something new and find a new flavor I really like. And her cake is so beautifully perfect!! BTW did I mention the Lemony Whipped Cream I topped the cake with? O Yeah!!

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For TWD on April 14, 2009, we were making Holly’s choice –

15 Minute Magic: Chocolate Amaretti Torte

As many of you know I live in a small town and as such don’t have access to many ‘different’ ingredients. In this case – Amaretti – which are small crunchy almond macaroons from Italy. Italy is far removed from Podunk USA so I had to find a substitute. That sub came in the form of mini almond biscotti. They still had the almond flavor and still provided the interesting crunch found in the torte. Topped with some almond whipped cream and shaved chocolate it WAS the elegant European dessert Dorie graced us with.

This cake was rich in chocolate flavor and perfect for a quick dessert since the whole cake is made in the food processor. Yes! Perfect!! topped with a rich chocolate glaze it is a chocolate lover’s dream. Thanks for this choice, Holly!!

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There IS one more April recipe but until I can find RHUBARB it will have to wait!!

And lucky for me May has five Tuesdays. Two for Baking with Julia and three for TWD2. And only 6 catch-ups. WHEW!! Slowing down a tad!!