Pumpkin Chocolate Cake

This is the time of year when everyone starts cooking and baking with pumpkin in order to celebrate Halloween, Thanksgiving and the general fun of autumn.  I was so excited to find this recipe when I was looking for a dessert to make and bring to a dinner party.  Because the rest of the menu was Middle Eastern, I had reservations about making it and thought about baking sesame cookies instead.  When I consulted Major Obvious, he firmly stated, "Your choices are sesame cookies vs. Pumpkin Chocolate Cake by Jacques Torres?  That is a no-brainer.  Who cares if it doesn't match the rest of the meal?"  So, I made the cake and we brought it over.  When our friends heard the story, they excitedly asked, "Did you really make it?  And that's what we're having for dessert?"  When we sat down to eat it, they exclaimed, "That was a good call!  Pumpkin and chocolate is such a fantastic combination."  Amen. 

Pumpkin Chocolate Cake

from Jacques Torres' "A Year of Chocolate"

1/2 cup (1 stick)
plus 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

3/4 cup light brown sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup canned pumpkin purée

1-1/4 cups cake flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 ounces (1/2 cup) chopped 60% bittersweet chocolate

1/2 cup dried cranberries, optional

1/2 cup chopped walnuts, optional

2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar, optional

1 tablespoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder, optional

Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter and flour a 6-inch bundt pan. Set aside.

Place the butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Beat on medium speed to just soften. Add the brown sugar and beat for about 4 minutes, or until very light and creamy. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the pumpkin and beat to blend.

Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and salt and, with the motor off, sift the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture. Turn the speed to low and beat to incorporate the dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture. When well-blended, remove the bowl from the mixer and, using a rubber spatula, fold in the chocolate, cranberries, and nuts.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted near the center comes out clean.

Remove from the oven and invert onto a wire rack. Remove the pan and allow the cake to cool at room temperature.

The cake will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to 4 days or frozen for up to 3 months.

Chocolate Celebration Cake

Last week, my brother (Pan Pan) and his wife (Miss Amy) visited from San Francisco.  Pan and I are very similar...we both enjoy cooking, talk in movie quotes, and laugh really loudly.  Interestingly enough, Miss Amy is very much like my husband, Major Obvious.  They both look forward to dessert, get along wonderfully with children, and love dogs.

When we are lucky enough to have someone come and visit us on their birthday, I love to bake them a cake for his or her special day.  For this reason (and the aforementioned penchant for sweets), I made Chocolate Celebration Cake for Miss Amy.  This recipe makes a very large molded concoction that can easily stand up to any frosting you slather on it, cream cheese, buttercream, or just a huge dollop of freshly whipped cream.  We ate this bad boy with Madagascar vanilla ice cream and enjoyed many subsequent evenings of leftovers with fresh raspberries while watching X Factor or How I Met Your Mother.

Chocolate Celebration Cake

Largely from “Cooking with Mr. Latte” by Amanda Hesser

1 1/2 cups sugar


5 ounces  bittersweet or semi-sweet chocolate


¼  pound unsalted butter (1 stick), plus more for greasing the pan


2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda


1 teaspoon baking powder


1 teaspoon salt


1 cup milk


1 teaspoon cider vinegar


2 eggs


1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ - 1 Tablespoon instant espresso

cocoa powder for dusting the pan

Directions


1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Put the sugar, unsweetened chocolate, butter, and 1 cup of water in a saucepan. Place over medium heat and stir occasionally until all of the ingredients are melted and blended.  Remove from the heat and stir in espresso.  Let cool slightly, 15 to 20 minutes. 



2. Meanwhile, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a small bowl, stir together the milk and vinegar. Grease and cocoa powder a decorative cake pan, a bundt pan or a tube pan.

3. When the chocolate in the pan has cooled a bit, whisk in the milk mixture and eggs. In several additions and without overmixing, whisk in the dry ingredients. When the mixture is smooth, add the vanilla and whisk once or twice, to blend.  Put the batter into the pan and bake on the middle rack until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan and cool on a rack.

4. You can also use this batter to make chocolate cupcakes or a layer cake, just adjust the baking times.

Shepherd's Pie

largely influenced by Michael Chiarello's recipe


I love Michael Chiarello's idea of adding cinnamon to this traditional UK favorite.  While it might seem strange to follow the advice of a Napa Valley chef of Italian descent when preparing a British meal, bear in mind that great ideas often spring from odd places.  The warm spice gives such a special flavor to the dish.  I made this today because it's officially fall now.  The leaves are bright red outside, the air is chilly, and everyone is using their wood-burning fireplaces.






Filling:
1 T olive oil
1 lb minced beef, lamb or turkey (450 g)
1 large onion, chopped
3-4 carrots, chopped
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
1 T fresh thyme leaves
1/2 t ground cinnamon
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste


Crust:
2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes (1 kg East Anglian Charlotte potatoes)
2 T butter
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1-2 scallions, chopped
1 cup grated sharp Cheddar (medium or mature)
splash of chicken broth, water or milk


Preheat oven to 400F (200C).


If you have a 5-quart ovenproof Dutch oven, this is the time to use it!  You can make the dish on the stovetop and finish it off in the oven.  If you don't have one, don't worry.  Use a regular Dutch oven and keep a 9x13 pan ready.


Saute for a few minutes, then add carrots, celery and meat.  Add thyme and cinnamon, saute for about 8-10 minutes, until the meat is cooked through.  Add salt and pepper.  Take Dutch oven off the heat.


Peel the potatoes, cut them into large pieces and place them into a pot of cold, salted water.  Bring the water to a boil and cook the potatoes until they are tender (about 10 minutes).  The potatoes are ready when a knife easily goes through them. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.  Cover the pot with a clean tea towel to absorb the steam.  Leave the potatoes alone for 5 minutes during this time.  Then, add the butter and mash the potatoes.  Use a splash of chicken broth, milk or water if you need a little help bringing the mashed potatoes together.


If you have an oven-proof Dutch oven, just spoon the potatoes on top of the meat mixture.  If not, transfer the meat mixture into the 9x13 pan.  Spread the mashed potatoes evenly all over the meat mixture.  Sprinkle the scallions on top of the potatoes.  Bake for 30 minutes, then turn off the oven.  
Sprinkle cheese on top and leave in the warm oven for 5 minutes, until the cheese is melted and gooey.  If you like a golden brown crust, put the dish under the broiler for a couple of minutes.


Serves 6.  

Whole Wheat Baked Ziti with Fresh Tomato and Cheese Sauce

This morning, Little Man discovered a large spider quickly crawling around in the living room. There's something particularly scary about fast spiders, isn't there? After we took care of the situation, my 3-year old son was so relieved that he named our dinner, "Spider Pasta" in honor of his bravery in surviving such an ordeal.

This recipe is largely inspired by Jamie Oliver's Quick Tomato Macaroni and Cheese.

Whole Wheat Ziti with Fresh Tomato and Cheese Sauce

1 lb whole wheat ziti
4-5 ripe tomatoes
350 ml tomato puree
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
2 handfuls of fresh basil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 handfuls of freshly grated parmesan cheese
300 ml single cream
1 medium ball of fresh mozzarella, cut up
handful of fresh thyme, leaves picked

Preheat oven to 200C/400F. Cook the pasta according to package instructions.

Cut tomatoes into quarters and put into food processor with the garlic, basil, and a couple of generous pinches of salt and pepper. Zap for 30 seconds, then add 2 handfuls of Parmesan cheese and the cream. Zap again until smooth.

Mix last handful of parmesan with fresh thyme leaves in a little bowl.

Mix cooked pasta with sauce in a large bowl and place pasta with sauce in ovenproof dish. Put mozzarella pieces on top. Sprinkle top with parmesan/thyme mixture.

Bake for 20 minutes or until golden on top. Serve with a green salad.

What is Perficious?

Hello! Thank you for visiting. I decided to start a blog dedicated to food, as it seemed that my own personal blog was largely about food, anyway. I hope to bring you helpful recipes, fun food ideas, culinary anecdotes, restaurant recommendations and thoughts about the wonderful world of yummies.

So, just what is "perficious"? My 3-year old son, Little Man, had one day told me that the muffins I had made were "the most perficious in the world." I laughed when I heard that and then confirmed that, indeed, the word "perficious" does not really exist. It sounds like it should, though. Nowadays, in our house, when something is tasty, it is often referred to as "perficious."

Here's to a terrific journey filled with perficious eats!