Flavors of the Fall In a Cake

And this one easy cake to make, says Yankee Magazine Senior Food Editor Amy Traverso. She stopped by Tonia's Kitchen with a recipe for Pumpkin Sheetcake, which is very fitting given this is the fall. Amy told Tonia she promised this was not complicated, and it can be made with ingredients as easy as canned pumpkin and oil. Moreover, Amy promises this recipe make people happy, which is really what cake is all about!

Yield:

8-10 servings

For the cake

Ingredients

4 large eggs
1²⁄3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil (e.g., canola)
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin puree
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon table salt

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 350°F and set a rack to the middle position. In a large bowl, using a stand or handheld mixer, beat the eggs, sugar, oil, and pumpkin puree together until smooth. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the egg mixture and mix just until combined. Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-by-15-inch rimmed baking pan. Bake until the center is set and springs back when pressed, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool. Meanwhile, make the frosting. When the cake is cool, spread the frosting over the cake and serve.

For the frosting

Ingredients

½ package (4 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 stick (8 tablespoons) salted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Instructions

In a large, clean bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla extract until combined. Add the sugar and beat until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.

This Cake is the Sheet!

 

 

And that's sheet...as in sheetcake. Abby Dodge, who wrote the new cookbook Sheetcakes, came by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her recipe for Banana Buttermilk Stacked Cake. It's like a regular cake, except, as she told Tonia, she takes the sheet cake and cuts it into three rounds or rectangles, tops each round with the frosting (in this case, chocolate cream) and stacks each portion on top of the other. She's not done though. There's plenty of cake left over, of which Abby takes and creates what she calls cake croutons, and stacks those as well. Lots of delicious building going on here!

For the cake
2 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
½ teaspoon table salt
¼ teaspoon baking soda
16 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
3 medium very, very ripe bananas (about 14 ounces including peels), peeled
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 large eggs
½ cup buttermilk
¾ cup (3 ounces) chopped, toasted walnuts, optional

For the fudgy frosting
6 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1 cup evaporated milk
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 2 pieces
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
½ teaspoon table salt

To make the cake
1. Position an oven rack on the middle rung. Heat the oven to 350˚F. Grease and flour the bottom and sides of two 9 by 2-inch round cake pans, tapping out the excess flour.

2. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Whisk until well blended. In a large bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer (stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment or handheld mixer) on medium-high until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until well combined. Add the bananas and vanilla and beat until well blended and only small bits of banana remain. Add the eggs two at a time, beating well after each addition. The mixture will look curdled and a bit lumpy. Don’t worry, it will all come together. Add half of the flour mixture and mix on low speed just until blended. Add the buttermilk and mix just until blended. Add the remaining flour mixture and mix just until blended. Stir in the walnuts, if using. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans, dividing it evenly. 

It's The Season For Cake

 

Yes, it is October and to celebrate this wonderfully festive fall season, let's do it with cake, more specifically: Sheet Cake. Abby Dodge, who wrote a new cookbook with the appropriately titled name, Sheet Cake, stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about her book and recipe for classic Red Velvet Sheet Cake. She says her book has three chapters, including one label for classic cakes, but it also includes recipes for crumb cake, pound cake, and of course, upside-down cake. With this Red Velvet recipe, Abby told Tonia she used gel food-coloring instead of the liquid. The reason for this is, less-product used, with a better result. Following that, she also twists up the traditional frosting on the cake. While it's still cream-cheese based, she mixes in chocolate cookie crumbles for a delightful take on this delicious cake! 

For the cake

• ½ cup (4 oz/113 g) whole milk
• 5 tablespoons (2½ oz/71 g) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon red food coloring gel
• 1½ cups (6¾ oz/191 g) unbleached all-purpose flour
• ⅓ cup (1 oz/27 g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder, sifted
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon table salt
• 7 large eggs, at room temperature
• 1⅔ cups (11⅝ oz/329 g) granulated sugar

 

For assembly and serving

• Classic Soak (Cream variation; see below)
• Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting (full recipe, with Cookie Crumbs add-in using chocolate cookies; see below)
• ½ cup ground (2½ oz/71 g) chocolate cookies (optional)

 

Bake the cake

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C/gas mark 4). Lightly grease and flour the bottom and sides of the half-sheet pan.

2. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, or in a heatproof container in the microwave for 15-second increments, heat the milk and butter together until the butter is melted and the mixture is very hot but not boiling. Stir in the vanilla and the food coloring.

3. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk until blended. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs on medium-high speed until pale and foamy, about 3 minutes. Gradually add the sugar and continue beating until a ribbon of batter falls from the beater when lifted, about 3 more minutes.

4. With the mixer on medium-low speed, gradually add the flour mixture and mix until just blended, about 15 seconds. With the mixer running, gradually add the hot milk mixture and mix until just blended, about 15 seconds.

5. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and, using an offset spatula, spread evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 15 to 17 minutes.

6. Let the cake cool in the pan.

Assemble and serve the cake

7. Spread the soak and then the frosting evenly over the cake layer. The cake can be served right away or refrigerated. Chill uncovered at first for one hour; then cover and keep chilled until about an hour before serving. Just before serving, scatter cookie crumbs over the top of the cake, if desired.

 

 

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting 

Makes about 5 cups (36oz/1kg)

• 2 (8 oz/227 g) packages cream cheese, softened
• 3 cups (12 oz/340 g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
• 2 sticks (1 cup/8 oz/ 227 g) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 4 teaspoons pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
• ¼ teaspoon table salt, plus more as needed

 

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese, confectioners’ sugar, butter, cream, vanilla, and measured salt on medium-high speed until no lumps remain and the texture is light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Store well covered or in heavy-duty zip-top bags with the air pushed out for up to 1 week in the refrigerator. Before using, bring to room temperature and beat until smooth and light.

 

The Classic Soak

Makes about ½ cup (4 ½ oz/128 g)

• ¼ cup (1 ¾ oz/50 g) granulated sugar
• ⅓ cup (2⅞ oz/82 g) heavy cream
• ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract

 

1. In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, or in a heatproof container in the microwave for 15-second increments, combine the sugar and cream and cook until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool to room temperature. (For faster cooling, set the bowl over a larger bowl filled with ice and a little water, stirring frequently.) Store the soak, covered, for up to 2 days in the refrigerator or for up to 3 months in the freezer.