What's Baking....Baked with Love

So for this month’s What’s Baking challenge, I was the hostess with the mostess and because it was February, the month of love, I chose a theme based around just that….LOVE! 

We all did something “Baked with Love” and I was hoping that it would be interpreted in a few  different ways – not only did I feel it would be great to center it around Valentine’s Day, but to also choose recipes that, perhaps, meant something to someone or was a reminder of someone special in their life!

I chose to go the first route and made something very appropriate for V-Day…something I love seeing on a Valentine’s menu and something, actually, that I’ve never made before: Lava Cakes!

Chris and I both love the chocolatey goodness  that these cakes hold…the ooey-gooey center is what makes them so darn special!  To my pleasant surprise, they were really easy (probably one of the easiest desserts I’ve ever tackled).  But being a newbie, something went wrong (maybe I didn’t cool them long enough), but they deflated once I removed them from the ramekins….hence, deflated looking cake in the picture!

But don’t let that stop you….the deflation these babies went under had absolutely no effect on the taste!  They were deee-licious!

Molten Lava Cakes

Ingredients

1/2 cup Unsalted Butter

Cocoa Powder

4 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate

2 Eggs

1/4 cup Sugar

Pinch of Salt

2 Tsp. Flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Butter the inside of two ramekins and dust the insides with cocoa powder (to prevent the cakes from sticking).

In a double-boiler or bowl sitting atop a pan of simmering water, melt the butter and chocolate over medium heat, stirring frequently; let cool.

In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar and salt until the sugar dissolves (about 1 minute).  With the mixer on low, slowly add in the chocolate mixture until incorporated into the egg mixture.  Add in the flour and mix to combine.

Carefully divide the batter between the two ramekins and place on a baking sheet.  Bake for 8 minutes and remove.  Let cool slightly and gently slide a butter knife around the inside of the ramekin to remove the cake.  Serve with whipped cream, a dusting of powdered sugar or fresh fruit!

Yield: 2 Servings

Source: Adapted from Made in Melissa's Kitchen, originally from Allrecipes

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Red Velvet Cupcakes

Happy Valentine's Day!  Today is one of the most love-filled days with weddings, romance, flowers, candy and let's not forget yummy desserts!

Red Velvet is a classic go-to idea for this special occasion as it's festive color lends itself well to the vibrant shades of red and pink!  I know it probably seems like a cop-out to go with red velvet on this day, but I have to say I do love the flavor combination of the cocoa-esque cake combined with the rich, cream cheese frosting!  It was clearly a no-brainer for me as I've been craving them for a while now!

So one blog, in particular, I really enjoy following...she's a friend on an online cooking/baking community that I belong to and one of the reasons I love her blog so much is that she does these incredible comparisons!  Every once in a while, Bridget, from The Way the Cookie Crumbles, goes on a whim and compares some of the top-rated recipes for a particular item.  I think her sugar cookie comparison is, by far, my favorite!  But when it came to making red velvet cupcakes this time around, I wanted to do something different than my normal go-to family recipe (passed down by my Great Aunt Linda).  But there are so many out there and it was hard to choose, which drew me to Bridget's blog as I was 99% positive that she would have a red velvet comparison!

Sure enough, she did!  She actually took the time to compare 5 different recipes.  Seriously, if y'all have never seen her comparisons, you need to venture over there and check them out.  They really are fantastic and she is so thorough that even if you don't want to go with her top pick, you have enough information on the other recipes to decide which one would be best for you.

Anywho, she compared 5 recipes (all very popular among our foodie community) and chose Kelsey's version of Saveur's Red Velvet Cake (Kelsey is another friend of ours, from Apple a Day) as her favorite recipe.  So I decided to give it a shot....

This recipe was good, but if I may be honest, I will say that I much prefer my Aunt's recipe!  The texture of Kelsey's was really nice; they were moist and really baked up well.  But there was something missing with the flavor and I'm not sure what it was.  I followed the recipe to a "tee" but I think that the flavors of my Aunt's recipe are a little more predominant, which is why I love them!  For me, I like that cocoa flavor to come through a little more (and for some people, they'd rather not).  I know it's a personal preference just like some people hate red velvet!

I think I would make this recipe again; however I would tweak it a bit more to let that flavor shine!  All in all, it's definitely a keeper just not my favorite (sometimes you just can't beat a good ol' family recipe)!

Red Velvet Cake


Ingredients - Cake
2½ cups Flour
1½ cups Sugar
1 Tsp. Baking Soda
1 Tbsp. Cocoa Powder
1 Tsp. Salt
2 Eggs
1½ cups Vegetable Oil
1 cup Buttermilk
2 Tbsp. Red food coloring
1 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 Tsp. White Distilled Vinegar

Ingredients - Frosting
1 - 12oz. pkg. Cream Cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
1½ Tsp. Vanilla Extract
3 cups Powdered Sugar

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, cocoa, and salt into a medium bowl.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, oil, buttermilk, food coloring, vanilla, and vinegar until well combined. Add in half of the dry ingredients and beat until smooth; add in the remaining dry ingredients and continue beating until the mixture is smooth (about 2 minutes).

Divide the batter evenly between 3 8-inch round cake pans, greased and floured.  Bake, rotating halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the center of each cake comes out clean (about 25-30 minutes).

Let the cakes cool 5 minutes, then invert each onto a plate, then invert again onto a cooling rack. Let cakes cool completely.

**For cupcakes, divide the batter into cupcake liners inserted into a cupcake tin.  Bake until a toothpick inserted int he center comes out clean (about 18-22 minutes).

To make the frosting, beat together the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together in a large bowl until combined well.  Gradually add in the powdered sugar and continue beating until the mixture becomes light and fluffy (about 5 minutes).

Put 1 cake layer on a cake plate, level off with a serrated knife, and spread one-quarter of the frosting on top. Set another layer on top, level, and repeat frosting. Set remaining layer on top, level, and frost top and sides with a thin crumb coat layer; repeat with a second layer of frosting and decorate as desired.

Chill for 2 hours to set frosting.

**For cupcakes, divide the frosting recipe by 1/4 as you won't need that much!

Yield: 1 8-inch, 3-layer cake or 20 cupcakes
Source: Adapted from The Way the Cookie Crumbles, from Apple a Day (originally from Cake Man    
             Raven)

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Sweet Caramel Cake

When it comes to dessert, cake is usually not my first preference. I don't know why, but I'm just not a big "cake" person. I like it and I'll eat it, but I'd rather have ice cream or cheesecake! But when I came across this recipe in one of my Taste of the South magazines, I knew that someday I would have a craving for cake, particularly this cake!

For someone who doesn't eat a lot of cake, this is definitely one of those recipes to help them fall in love! OH MY! This was one of the most luscious, sweet-tasting, creamy and moist cakes I have ever sunk my teeth into! Talk about mmm...mmmm....mmmm. It's just an ordinary cake with holes filled with creamy caramel-ly goodness! And on top: a vanilla-flavored cream cheese frosting with what else? Caramel drizzled all over. Need I say more?

Sweet Caramel Cake

Ingredients - Caramel Cake
2 cups Flour
2 Tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp. Salt
1/2 cup Unsalted Butter, softened
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar, packed
3 eggs
2 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
3/4 cup Half-and-Half
2- 12.5oz jars Caramel Topping

Ingredients - Cream Cheese Frosting
8oz. pkg. Cream Cheese, softened
1/2 Tsp. Vanilla Extract
1 1/2 cups Powdered Sugar

Directions - Caramel Cake
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 13x9" cake pan with baking spray and dust with flour; set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugar at a high speed until light and fluffy (approximately 5 minutes). Add in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add in vanilla, stirring to combine.

With mixer set at low speed, add in flour mixture in 3 batches, alternating with half-and-half, beating until smooth. Spread batter in prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes (or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean).

Remove from oven and with a wooden spoon handle, poke holes throughout the warm cake. Pour 1 jar of the prepared caramel topping over the cake, allowing it to "fall" into the holes. Let the cake sit at room temperature, uncovered, for approximately 2 hours or until cake is cool and caramel is absorbed.

Directions - Cream Cheese Frosting
In a large bowl, combine cream cheese and frosting. Beat at med-high speed until creamy (approximately 2 minutes). Add in powdered sugar, beating until smooth.

Spread over cooled cake and drizzle remaining jar of caramel on top. Drag a butter knife through caramel topping to create desired design. Store tightly covered in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Yields: 12 servings
Source: Adapted from Taste of the South

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