Ooey Chewy Gooey

When my new issue of Bon Appetit came in, these glorious brownies were gracing the cover. So, of course, I had to make them.



And they were GLORIOUS indeed. Nutty, chewy, moist, delicate, dense, with a crispy crust on top. Oh man. These were the best.



There's nothing more to say. Why aren't you baking them yet? Do it.

Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter and Walnuts
Makes 9 brownies

Nonstick vegetable oil spray
3/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder (spooned into cup to measure, then leveled)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, chilled
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup walnuts or pecans, chopped

Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 325 degrees. Line 8 x 8 x 2-inch metal baking pan with foil, pressing foil firmly against pan sides and leaving 2-inch overhang. Coat foil with nonstick spray.

Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking until butter stops foaming and browned bits form at bottom of pan, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; immediately add sugar, cocoa, 2 teaspoons water, vanilla, and 1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt. Stir to blend.

Let cool 5 minutes (mixture will still be hot). Add eggs to hot mixture 1 at a time, beating vigorously to blend after each addition. When mixture looks thick and shiny, add flour and stir until blended. Beat vigorously 60 strokes. Stir in nuts. Transfer batter to prepared pan.

Bake brownies until toothpick inserted into center comes out almost clean (with a few moist crumbs attached), about 25 minutes. Cool in pan on rack. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Cut into 4 strips. Cut each strip crosswise into 4 brownies.

The Cake that I Lit on Fire

Dorie Greenspan tells a really great story about this cake in her book, Baking from My Home to Yours. I can't top it. She calls it "The Cake that Got Me Fired."



I didn't have any armagnac, so I ended up using brandy. I also didn't have prunes, so I just took those out. This means that I just lit the brandy on fire in a pan - which was easily the most exciting part of making this cake. The cake in itself was really spectacular - moist, dense, and chewy with the heavenly ganache topping it off just right. I preferred it refrigerated, so that the chocolate was even denser and seemed to melt in my mouth.



Chocolate Armagnac Cake (Modified for Wussies)
Makes about 12 servings

2/3 cup finely ground pecans (or walnuts)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons water
1/4 cup Armagnac (or cognac, brandy or Scotch whisky)
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
3 large eggs, separated
2/3 cup sugar

3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8-inch springform pan, fit the bottom of the pan with a round of parchment or wax paper and butter the paper. Dust the inside of the pan with flour and tap out the excess. Put the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

Whisk together the nuts, flour and salt. Preheat a pan on the stovetop for three minutes; remove the pan and pour in the Armagnac. Stand back and set it aflame.

Combine the chocolate, butter and water in a heatproof bowl, set it over a pan of simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate and butter are melted; or do this in a microwave oven. Remove the chocolate from the heat just as soon as it is melted and not very hot—you don’t want the chocolate and butter to separate.

In a large bowl, whisk the egg yolks and sugar together until thick and pale, about 2 minutes. Switch to a rubber spatula and, one by one, stir in the chocolate and butter mixture as well as the nut mixture.

Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold firm, glossy peaks. Stir about one quarter of the beaten whites into the chocolate mixture, and then gently fold in the remaining whites. Turn the batter into the pan.

Bake the cake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until it is puffed, firm on top and starting to come ever so slightly away from the sides of the pan; a thin knife inserted into the center will come out streaky—the cake should not be wet, but you don’t want it to be completely dry. Transfer the cake to a rack and let it cool for about 10 minutes, then carefully remove the sides of the pan. Invert the cake, pull off the paper and turn right side up to cool to room temperature. The cake should be absolutely cool before you glaze it.

If the cake has crowned, use a long serrated knife and a gentle sawing motion to even the top. Turn the cake over onto a cooling rack—you want the very flat bottom of the cake to be the top. Put a piece of wax paper or foil under the cooling rack to serve as a drip catcher.

To make the glaze, melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl over a pan of gently simmering water, or in a microwave oven. Remove it from the heat and, using a small spatula, stir in the sugar, then the butter, a bit at a time, stirring until you have a smooth glaze.

Have a long metal icing spatula at hand. Pour the glaze over the top of the cake, allowing the excess to rundown the sides, and use the spatula to smooth the top of the cake if necessary—usually the glaze is a self-spreader—and to even it around the sides of the cake. Let the glaze set at room temperature or, if you want to speed it up, slide the cake into the refrigerator for about 20 minutes. If you’d like the glaze to be more like a frosting, let it cool until it is thick enough to spread, then swirl it over the cake.

The cake can be served at room temperature or chilled; it is more flavorful at room temperature but intensely fudgy when chilled.

Livin' in the South

I took a Food and Wine Pairing class online where we had to take a traditional Southern recipe and update it. I guess I'm boring (or lazy) (or both) because I just went ahead and picked a pound cake. I also think of pound cake as being one of the most basic cakes.



I went through countless traditional recipes of pound cake, each asking for "a pound" of each ingredient. I updated the recipe, measurement-wise, and added a pecan element as a callback to the Southern requirement of the assignment. I also added a maple drizzle. Don't ask me. I don't know why.



This wasn't my favorite thing. But it's a pretty basic pound cake, when it comes down to it. If you're a big pound cake fan, then you should try this. Otherwise, maybe just look at the pretty pictures and feel satisfied in that.

Butter Pecan Pound Cake with Maple Drizzle
Makes about 12 servings

1 cup butter
1/2 cup shortening
3 cups granulated sugar
5 eggs
1 teaspoon rum (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup milk
1 cup chopped pecans, plus 1/3 cup whole pecans
1/2 cup powdered sugar
3 tablespoons maple syrup

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease and flour a Bundt pan.

Using paddle attachment on a standing mixer with a stationary bowl, cream together butter, shortening, and sugar until very fluffy, about seven or eight minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until well-combined.

In a small bowl, combine rum and vanilla extract with milk. In another bowl, whisk together baking powder and flour. Alternately add liquid and dry ingredients to the butter mixture, starting and ending with liquid.

Stir in walnuts. Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan. Bake for about 70 minutes until cake tests done. In a small bowl, whisk together powdered sugar and maple syrup. Drizzle over the cake after it cools for twenty minutes. Sprinkle whole pecans over cake.

Pre-Christmas Dessert

The recipe for a Pecan Pie Cheesecake has been tucked in the back of my mind since before Thanksgiving; originally, I had planned to make it for that big turkey holiday meal. But I ended up making a birthday dessert for my mom because we celebrated so early, and the cheesecake was stuck there, lurking, unmade.



Luckily, my grandma held a casual dinner while my cousin's family was in town and I was asked to provide a dessert. Although it was fairly short notice, this recipe is fairly simple and quite difficult to mess up. If I had to make it again, the only thing I would likely change would be the actual cheesecake; removing the brown sugar would make the topping less sweet and improve the overall taste of the dessert.



Pecan Pie Cheesecake
Makes about 10 servings

1 3/4 cups vanilla wafer crumbs
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar
2/3 cup dark corn syrup
1/3 cup butter, melted
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/4 cups firmly packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 eggs
2/3 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine wafer crumbs and brown sugar. Stir in melted butter. Press into bottom and up sides of a 9” springform pan. Bake for six minutes. Set aside to cool.

Combine all pecan filling ingredients in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 8-10 minutes, stirring constantly. Pour into crust and set aside.

Next, make the cheesecake filling. Reduce oven to 325°. With a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat cream cheese at medium speed until creamy. Add brown sugar and flour and beat until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each one. Stir in cream and vanilla.

Pour over pecan filling. Bake for 1 hour. Turn off oven and leave cheesecake in oven with the door closed for 1 hour. Remove from oven and run a knife along the outside edges to loosen cheesecake from sides of pan. Let cool. Chill for at least 4 hours before serving.

First Day of Spring

I honestly have no idea where I got this recipe, but I'm pretty sure it was vegan when I found it. Slowly I've added all sorts of animal by-products and other assorted ingredients and now I guess it's technically mine.



This is a very hearty fall/winter quickbread that I'm posting about at exactly the wrong time. People will eat it year round, however because it's mild and sweet and a good accompaniment to coffee. I like to coarsely chop the pecans, while the original asked for finely-chopped, but that's just because I like big crunchy things in my breads to add some interest and texture. I think my favorite part of this bread is that it has a crusty outside, which doesn't often happen when it comes to quickbread.



Don't be afraid to give this to a picky eater or someone who especially dislikes oatmeal; after the bread is baked, the quick oats are barely discernible.



Maple Oat Pecan Bread
Makes 2 loaves

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons cinnamon
4 large eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup maple syrup
6 tablespoons (3/8 cup) packed brown sugar
3 cups buttermilk*
2 cups quick-cooking oats
1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease the bottoms only of two nine-inch bread pans.

In a large bowl, sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Whisk together until blended. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs with the oil until smooth. Whisk in the maple syrup, brown sugar, and buttermilk. Stir in the oats and pecans.

Add wet ingredients to dry and stir with a wooden spoon until just combined. Pour into pans, smooth top, and bake until golden-brown and a tester inserted into the center of a loaf comes out clean, about 60 minutes.

*To make buttermilk, take 3 cups of milk and add 2 tablespoons of vinegar or lemon juice to it. Let sour for at least 10 minutes and use in place of buttermilk.

Nothing Too Exciting

I made oatmeal-pecan cookies for my grandpa and they weren't that great. I guess that's what I get for straying from my tried-and-true oatmeal cookie recipe.



I won't be making this exact recipe again; it will have to gain something...like charisma. They just didn't have much character to them, honestly. They weren't bad, just boring.



Oatmeal-Pecan Cookies
Makes 2 dozen cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup old-fashioned oats
1 cup chocolate or butterscotch chips
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Beat butter and both sugars with an electric mixer in a large bowl on medium until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.

On low speed, gradually add flour, cinnamon, baking powder and soda, and salt until completely blended. Stir in oats, pecans, and chocolate chips.

Drop dough by tablespoonfuls about 2 inches apart on a cookie sheet. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes or until golden.