Who’s feeling saucy this week? Leave your links here!
In the Oven: Malted Milk Chocolate Sauce
Next up on the schedule: your ovens get a break again because we’re making malted milk chocolate sauce. Enjoy the sauce with the dessert of your choice, or make malted milkshakes! Posting date is December 15.
- 2/3 cup heavy cream
- 1/3 cup light corn syrup
- ¼ cup chocolate malt Ovaltine
- ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 6 ounces good-quality milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- In a large saucepan, bring the cream, corn syrup, Ovaltine, brown sugar, salt, and 4 ounces of the chocolate to a boil over medium heat. Stir until smooth and the chocolate has melted. Reduce the heat to maintain a simmer and, stirring very slowly, cook for 5 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, vanilla, and the remaining 2 ounces chocolate. Let the sauce cool for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
- To store, cool the sauce completely and ref rigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days. Reheat in a microwave oven or over low heat on the stovetop.
Roundup: Lemon Lime Bars
Coconut, graham crackers, and citrus make for a lovely winter treat!
In the Oven: Lemon Lime Bars
Next up on the schedule: bars with creamy citrus curd on a crisp coconut-graham crust! Posting date is December 1.
- For the graham-coconut crust
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 2 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 15-17 crackers)
- 2 tablespoons firmly packed light brown sugar
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
- For the lemon lime filling
- 11 large egg yolks
- 3 large eggs
- 1¾ cups sugar
- ¾ cup fresh lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
- 2 tablespoons grated lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons grated lime zest
- ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, softened and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1/3 cup heavy cream
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Butter the sides and bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan or spray it with nonstick cooking spray.
- On a parchment-lined baking sheet, spread out the coconut. Put the baking sheet in the oven and toast the coconut until it starts to turn golden brown, 7 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven, toss the coconut, and return it to the oven for 3 more minutes.
- Put the graham cracker crumbs in a large bowl, add the toasted coconut and the brown sugar, and toss with your hands until combined. Add the melted butter. Use your hands to combine the mixture, then turn it out into the prepared pan. Using your hands, press the crust into an even layer on the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to create a perfectly even crust.
- Put the crust in the refrigerator for 15 minutes, then bake for 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Let the crust cool before adding the filling.
- Increase the oven temperature to 325 degrees F. Put the egg yolks, eggs, sugar, lemon and lime juices, and lemon and lime zests in a large, clean metal pot. Whisk until combined. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture registers 180 degrees F. on a candy thermometer, about 10 minutes.
- Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter and cream. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve directly into the cooled crust. Use a rubber spatula to press the curd through the sieve.
- Make sure the curd is evenly distributed. Tap the pan gently against the counter to make a level layer.
- Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until the filling is just set. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Wrap the pan in plastic (do not let the plastic touch the filling) and put it in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours. Cut into squares and serve.
- The bars will keep in the refrigerator, tightly covered, for 2 days.
Roundup: Classic Diner-Style Chocolate Pie
Only raves for this chocolate pie!
Leave Your Links: Classic Diner-Style Chocolate Pie
Ah, sorry — I’ve been out of town and I spaced out on the fact that it was a Baked Sunday Mornings weekend! If you’ve got pie, leave your links here!
In the Oven: Peanut Butter Crispy Bars
Your ovens get another week off — we’re making peanut butter-chocolate rice cereal treats! Posting date is November 3.
- For the crispy crust
- 1¾ cups crisped rice cereal
- ¼ cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons light corn syrup
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- For the milk chocolate peanut butter layer
- 5 ounces good-quality milk chocolate, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup creamy peanut butter
- For the chocolate icing
- 3 ounces dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao), coarsely chopped
- ½ teaspoon light corn syrup
- 4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter
- Lightly spray a paper towel with nonstick cooking spray and use it to rub the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square baking pan.
- Put the cereal in a large bowl and set aside.
- Pour ¼ cup water into a small saucepan. Gently add the sugar and corn syrup (do not let any sugar or syrup get on the sides of the pan) and use a small wooden spoon to stir the mixture until just combined. Put a candy thermometer in the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat and bring to a boil; cook until the mixture reaches the soft ball stage, 235 degrees F.
- Remove from the heat, stir in the butter, and pour the mixture over the cereal. Working quickly, stir until the cereal is thoroughly coated, then pour it into the prepared pan. Using your hands, press the mixture into the bottom of the pan (do not press up the sides). Let the crust cool to room temperature while you make the next layer.
- In a large nonreactive metal bowl, stir together the chocolate and the peanut butter.
- Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and cook, stirring with a rubber spatula, until the mixture is smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir for about 30 seconds to cool slightly. Pour the mixture over the cooled crust. Put the pan in the refrigerator for 1 hour, or until the top layer hardens.
- In a large nonreactive metal bowl, combine the chocolate, corn syrup, and butter.
- Set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and cook, stirring with a rubber spatula, until the mixture is completely smooth. Remove the bowl from the pan and stir for 30 seconds to cool slightly. Pour the mixture over the chilled milk chocolate peanut butter layer and spread into an even layer. Put the pan in the refrigerator for 1 hour or until the topping hardens.
- Cut into 9 squares and serve. The bars can be stored in the refrigerator, covered tightly, for up to 4 days.
Roundup: Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream
Our bakers are fans of red velvet cake, but like to pair it with cream cheese frosting. And we have some rogue lemon-almond meringue tarts this week!
Leave Your Links: Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream
What do you think of this cake, bakers — hot or not? Leave your links here!
In the Oven: Red Hot Velvet Cake with Cinnamon Buttercream
Next up on the schedule: the gentlemen bakers’ twist on a red velvet cake… with cinnamon frosting! Posting date is October 20.
- For the red hot velvet cake layers
- ¼ cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoons red gel food coloring
- ¼ cup boiling water
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, cut into small pieces
- 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, at room temperature
- 1 2/3 cups sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 ½ cups cake flour
- 1 teaspoon fine salt
- 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- For the cinnamon frosting
- 1½ cups sugar
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1½ cups milk
- ¼ cup heavy cream
- 1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, soft but cool, cut into small pieces
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- To assemble the cake
- Red Hots (cinnamon imperials) candies for decoration
- Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Butter three 8-inch round cake pans, line the bottoms with parchment paper, and butter the parchment. Dust with flour, and knock out the excess flour.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder, food coloring, and boiling water. Set aside to cool.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and shortening until smooth. Scrape down the bowl and add the sugar. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Stir the buttermilk and vanilla into the cooled cocoa mixture.
- Sift the flour and salt together into another medium bowl. With the mixer on low, add the flour mixture, alternating with the cocoa mixture, to the egg mixture in three separate additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat until incorporated.
- In a small bowl, combine the vinegar and baking soda and stir until the baking soda dissolves; the mixture will fizz. Add to the batter and stir until just combined.
- Divide the batter among the prepared pans and smooth the tops. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean, about 30 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through the baking time. Transfer the cakes to a wire rack and let cool for 20 minutes. Invert the cakes onto the rack, remove the pans, and let cool completely. Remove the parchment.
- In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk the sugar and flour together. Add the milk and cream and cook over medium heat, whisking occasionally, until the mixture comes to a boil and has thickened, about 20 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on high speed until cool. Reduce the speed to low and add the butter; beat until thoroughly incorporated. Increase the speed to medium-high and beat until the frosting is light and fluffy.
- Add the vanilla and cinnamon and continue mixing until combined. If the frosting is too soft, transfer the bowl to the refrigerator to chill slightly, then beat again until it is the proper consistency. If the frosting is too firm, place the bowl over a pot of simmering water and beat with a wooden spoon until it is the proper consistency.
- Place one cooled cake layer on a serving platter. Trim the top to create a flat surface and evenly spread about 1¼ cups of the frosting on top. Top with the next layer, trim and frost the top, then add the third layer. Crumb coat the cake (see page 22) and put the cake in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to firm up the frosting. Frost the sides and top with the remaining frosting. Garnish the cake with the Red Hots and refrigerate again for 15 minutes.