Birthday Cake
Posted: January 26, 2013 Filed under: Bakeries, Dessert, Food, Food Markets, Mexico, New York City, Pastry, Playa Del Carmen, Restaurants | Tags: Amy's Bread, birthdays, cajeta, carrot cake, coconut cake, Mega, Tere Cazola, tres leches 1 CommentLast week was my birthday, which, of course, meant cake (I don’t know if anyone else has this rule, but it’s one I feel pretty strongly about). This year, my cake was from the Bleecker Street location of Amy’s Bakery, which, you may have noticed, is not pictured above. That’s the view at sunset on my birthday last year, from my hotel room in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. None of my pictures from this year are that great, so I figured I’d start with that instead.
Okay, there’s the cake. In the background is a slice of coconut, which is based on a Hawaiian recipe so I figured it would be awesome. That’s why, despite my better judgement, I ordered it despite the fact that there were only a couple slices left and it was early enough that it was a good bet it had been sitting around for a while. And I have to say that I was sorry that I did. The cake, frosting and filling, which didn’t taste very strongly of coconut, were disappointingly dry and redolent of refrigerator. However, the carrot cake, pictured in the foreground, was extremely moist and sported a generous amount of some of the best cream cheese frosting I’ve ever had. So, my trip wasn’t a complete loss, and I haven’t given up on the coconut; hopefully I’ll catch it sometime when it’s fresh.
So, back to Mexico. Last year I celebrated my birthday with three different pasteles de tres leches (for anyone keeping count, that’s NINE different leches). Two were from a fancy little bakery called Tere Cazola: the one pictured above is their cajeta version, and I also got a slice of fudge.
The third slice, the misshapen chunk shown above, is from Mega, a giant supermarket that I am strangely drawn to, especially for its bakery. I mean, how can you argue with giant slabs of cake from which you can hack off your own piece (thus explaining the weird shape of the one I got)? I can’t remember much about those cakes from long ago except that than the Mega one was the milkiest, and there’s wasn’t anything left at the end of the day.
P.S. There was one amazing piece of cake on my birthday this year. I had dinner at Casellula in Hell’s Kitchen, and among their desserts was a warm individual-sized sweet potato cake, servered with sour cream, butter pecan ice cream and caramel sauce poured tableside. Heavenly.
Amy’s Bread Multiple Locations http://www.amysbread.com/ Tere Cazola http://terecazola.com/home.php Casellula 401 W. 52nd Street New York, NY 10019 212-247-8137 http://www.casellula.comHomemade: Pumpkin Soufflé with Maple Crème Anglaise
Posted: November 7, 2012 Filed under: Baking, Dessert, Food, Pastry | Tags: créme anglaise, Emily Luchetti, maple, Pumpkin, soufflé 1 CommentNote: Most of this post was written before Hurricane Sandy and Election Day 2012. Does that change anything? Not really. Just thought I’d mention it.
If you follow food blogs, this is probably the ninetieth recipe you’ve seen recently featuring pumpkin or some other sort of winter squash. The ingredient is everywhere these days, which is probably what inspired me to whip up this soufflé. And by the way, “whip up” is an intended double entendre; of course, I’m referring to the egg whites that are the base of this French dessert, but I’m also hinting at how easy it is to put this together.
There aren’t many ingredients: pumpkin purée, two kinds of sugar, a bunch of spices and egg whites. And if you prepare everything beforehand, it’s super-easy to finish it off right before you plan on serving it. In fact, it’s helpful to do your prep ahead of time, because then you can play with your leftover egg yolks. This recipe calls for a full dozen whites, so good luck using them all, but I usually get rid of a few by making a crème anglaise that goes with my egg white–laden dessert.
For the soufflé, I used a recipe from pastry chef Emily Luchetti’s Classic Stars Desserts. I love her books; she writes in an easy-going, friendly voice that makes them fun to flip through and read. The anglaise recipe was found in a three-ring binder from when I worked in restaurants. I have no idea whose it was or where I got it, but I tweaked it, so now it’s mine.
In terms of outcome, the results were tasty, but the soufflé didn’t rise as high as I’d expected. It also took longer to bake than the time given in the recipe; when I first cut into it, it was still pretty liquidy inside. Both of these things were most likely my fault. First, I folded room-temp whites into cold pumpkin purée, causing it to seize up instead of incorporating nicely; next time I’ll take it out of the fridge earlier. Also, my baking dish is more of a round casserole than a traditional soufflé, and it slopes out at the top a little. I’m not sure that made a difference but it was all I had, and can you blame me for wanting to use Le Creuset bakeware for such a trés Français dessert?
Recipes after the jump.
Strawberry Gelatin Cake, Random Bakery, Somewhere in Queens.
Posted: May 6, 2012 Filed under: Bakeries, Dessert, Food, Mets, Pastry, Queens | Tags: bakery, cake, Corona, dessert, food, gelatin, Mets, mets game, Mexican food, Mexican pastry, pastries, Queens, strawberry, Woodside Leave a commentI found this strange pastry in a bakery on Roosevelt Avenue, somewhere between Corona and Woodside, following a Mets game (they won, in case you were wondering). It was basically two thin layers of cake sandwiching a thick layer of very enticing pink stuff that turned out to be some sort of hard, yet creamy, strawberry-flavored gelatin. No one who was with me really liked it, which was fine–more for me. Here’s what it looks like from the other side (and I’m sorry there aren’t any pictures of the full slice; I’d eaten most of it before I thought to snap a few shots):
Has anyone out there had any experience with this sort of cake? It’s not anything I’d seen before, and I’d love to know what it is. Please hurry with your answer–we’re on the edge of our seats.
Cleveland Eats–Geraci’s Restaurant, University Heights, OH
Posted: March 25, 2012 Filed under: Cleveland, Food, Pizza, Restaurants, Travel, Uncategorized | Tags: Cleveland, Diners Drive-ins and Dives, Food Network, Geraci's, Guy Fieri, Italian food, pepperoni, pizza, University Heights 1 Comment
During my trip to Cleveland a few months back, I was asked to choose a restaurant for a family dinner. I could have picked someplace new, hip and trendy, but when local favorite Geraci’s, a basic red-sauce Italian joint, was suggested, I jumped at the chance to try their famous pizza. Having just seen a feature on them on the Food Network’s Diners, Drive-ins and Dives (a show I love for its content just as much as I hate its host), I was curious to see if they’d live up to the hype.
Geraci’s is the type of place so frequented by locals that when you sit down, the server asks if you want a menu instead of just handing one to you. Our hosts for the evening, my cousins Mel and Lois, didn’t–there was no question that they would be sharing the antipasto and a large pepperoni pie.
Geraci’s is famous for its pepperoni, which, as you can see in the picture below, is smaller and cut thicker than most. I can’t attest to its taste, but if the crowds lining up to get in are any indication, not to mention the folks raving about it on TV, I can guess it’s pretty spectacular. And on a side note, this will probably be the most pornographic picture of meat you will ever see on this blog.
Not as well-versed with Geraci’s as my cousins, my grandmother and I needed menus, and I have to admit that I grappled with the desire to order eggplant parmigiana, my usual go-to in Italian fare. But I’d gone there to try the pizza, so my grandmother and I ended up splitting a large pie with mushrooms (file with Guy Fieri under the category of “Things I Hate”) and onions on her half while mine featured green olives, which I can never resist if they’re available.
At Geraci’s, your pizza arrives at your table whole and is then sliced in front of you by your server, four “cuts” for the small pie, eight for the large. Even the large pie is not very big–at least by NYC standards–and I managed to eat 3/4 of my half, which works out to be . . . well, you do the math.
With its thick, bready crust, this is definitely not a NY-style slice, and not being a pizza aficionado, I can’t really compare it to other styles. Also, it’s been too long since I was there to properly describe its taste, but the fact that I don’t have any notes suggests that I was too busy enjoying my dinner to take any. I also devoured my remaining slice straight from the fridge the following morning and remember enjoying that as well. The one thing I can say for certain is that I now understand why locals are willing to wait in line for Geraci’s homestyle Italian favorites.
One final note: I don’t usually post personal photos on 5CentsPlain, but I couldn’t resist this one of my cousin Mel and my grandmother, the real reasons for my trip to Cleveland (and you thought I’d only gone there to eat). Aren’t they the cutest?!
Geraci’s Restaurant 2266 Warrensville Center Road University Heights, OH 44118 (216) 371-5643http://www.geracisrestaurant.net
Gelatina Guy, 116th Street and 3rd Avenue, East Harlem, NYC
Posted: February 20, 2012 Filed under: Candy, Cupcakes, Dessert, Food, Harlem, New York City, Pastry, Uncategorized | Tags: coconut, dessert, gelatin, gelatina, Harlem, Jello Leave a commentAs they say in those commercials for the NY lottery, all you need is a dollar in a dream. Or, if you’re this mobile gelatina vendor in East Harlem, it doesn’t hurt to also have a baby stroller, a metal box and a whole lot of pulverized animal bones.
As his garroulous friend explained, he’d come up with the contraption himself–how it actually worked, I can’t tell you (not because I was sworn to secrecy but because I literally don’t know). In addition, the gelatinas are all homemade, from his own recipes, and the companion believed that his friend had not only invented a patentable device, but he’d discovered the dessert craze that would soon make us all forget about cupcakes, whoopie pies, cake pops and the like.
Ok, maybe I’m putting words into his mouth, but he did seem to think that this could become the next big thing. At only $1.00 a pop, it was a sweeter deal than most of the aforementioned pastries. Flavors included vanilla, chocolate (that sort of taupe-colored one in the top picture, which explains why I didn’t try it) and various fruits, so there’s something for everyone–provided you like Jello. I do, so I ordered coconut (so predictable), and besides the fact that it was firmer than I expected, it was really nice, with a strong, not overly sweet flavor.
One day, gelatina carts could be as ubiquitous as Starbucks, or at least Crumbs. Until then, there’s this guy on 116th Street, or wherever he may roll to next.
Homemade: Tomato Soup Cupcakes
Posted: February 5, 2012 Filed under: Baking, Cupcakes, Dessert, Food, Pastry, Uncategorized | Tags: Baked Bakery, Baked Explorations, cream cheese frosting, cupcakes, Diner Desserts, Tish Boyle, tomato soup 3 CommentsTomato soup in a cupcake might sound odd to you, but it’s actually an old recipe that dates back to the early days of canned foods. Seriously, I’m not trying to get all Wylie Dufresne on you here. It probably started as an idea by a Campbell’s executive as a way to sell more of its products. Though the practice didn’t really stick, it should have, because what you end up with is a rich, moist cake with just a hint of tomato, if you’re really looking for it.
This recipe is one that I adapted from the Baked Explorations cookbook, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito of Baked bakery in Red Hook, Brooklyn. And by “adapted,” I mean I made the cupcakes bite-sized instead of regular sized; otherwise, it’s pretty much verbatim. I also added some fresh ground pepper, in accordance to the Baked guys’ suggestion for a more savory variation. They also omit the cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice in that case, but I left them in for an extra-spicy cake.
I also swapped the frosting. The cookbook pairs these cupcakes with mascarpone frosting, but there’s also a maple-cream cheese recipe that looked interesting, so I tried that one instead.
In the end, the frosting I used was a totally random concoction. With cream cheese, I always add half the sugar and then taste before adding the rest, because they’re often way too sweet. With the Baked recipe, I was already past my sweetness tolerance at just 50% plus the maple syrup. So I added more cream cheese, a few squirts of lemon juice, a pinch of salt and some vanilla extract, until it reached a point at which I didn’t feel totally cracked out on sugar just tasting it.
In the end, you couldn’t taste the maple syrup, but I was happy with the finished product. These cupcakes are easy to make and delicious, though the best part might be the look on people’s faces when you tell them they’re made with tomato soup.
TOMATO SOUP CUPCAKES (adapted from Baked Explorations, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito)
2 (10 3/4-ounce) cans condensed tomato soup, preferably low-sodium
1 tsp. baking powder
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground allspice
a few cracks of freshly ground pepper (give the mill a few good turns)
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
6 oz. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
4 large eggs, room temperature
First, take out your butter and eggs; don’t even think of starting until they’re both room temperature. You can expedite this by cutting the butter into small pieces and putting the eggs (still in the shells, obviously) in a cup of very hot water. Now preheat your oven to 325 degrees F and line some cupcake pans with paper liners (12 if you’re going big; more, probably like 24-30, for the little guys). Or you can spray the pans if you prefer.
Before starting the cake batter, put the tomato soup in a bowl, sprinkle the baking soda over it, and stir. I tried doing this right in the can, which I don’t recommend because it foams up and besides, it’s hard stirring soup in a can.
Next, sift together the remaining dry ingredients, making sure they’re totally integrated. You know those holes you sometimes see in baked goods? That’s from clumps of stuff that didn’t get broken up or ingredients that weren’t well distributed.
Now, using an electric mixer, cream the butter with both sugars until light and fluffy, about 3 to 4 minutes on medium speed. Then add the eggs one at a time, beating each until just combined and scraping down the bowl between them. Finally, alternate adding the flour mixture with the soup, with the mixer on low speed, in this order: flour-soup-flour-soup-flour. Scrape down the bowl between each addition, and only beat the batter as much as you have to so you don’t build up any gluten. I usually end with folding by hand with a spatula until everything is evenly mixed.
Fill the prepared cupcake pans about three-quarters of the way up, and bake for 25–28 minutes (a little less for miniature ones). Halfway through the baking time, open the oven and give the pans a spin; if you’re using both racks, you should also swap them. My preference is to use only one rack at at a time, because I get nervous about over-baked bottoms when stuff is too near the heating element. The cupcakes are done when you stick in a toothpick and it comes out clean. Or you can gently press down on the top of one with your fingertip; if it leaves a slight mark and doesn’t spring back, give them a few more minutes.
Cool in the pan for 30 minutes, and then turn out onto a rack to cool completely. Though to be honest, I’m usually in a rush or don’t have enough pans for the amount of batter, so I just give them a few minutes on the rack and then stick them in the fridge on a kitchen towel to chill. I’m not sure how the Baked guys would feel about that, but it’s worked for me.
CREAM CHEESE FROSTING (adapted from Diner Desserts, by Tish Boyle)
1 pound cream cheese (not low-fat!), room temperature
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
salt, vanilla, and lemon juice to taste
Other than the cream cheese and butter, I pretty much do this whole recipe by taste, and if you already have a cream cheese frosting that you like, you might be better off using it. That said, I love how this turns out because if you only add as much sugar as you feel is necessary, you can adapt it to your taste or to the cake with which you’re topping/filling it.
That said, go ahead and cream the butter and cream cheese until they’re smooth. Then add about half of the sugar and beat until fluffy. The original recipe calls for 2 cups sifted sugar, but I just beat it in there straight from the measuring cup. Taste your mixture and add some more sugar if you want, and then keep adding until the frosting is as tangy or sweet as you like. Same goes for the salt, vanilla, and lemon juice. A good guideline for the lemon juice is that you want it to brighten the flavor without making it lemony or sour. I know, exact amounts would be helpful, but this gives you an excuse to eat straight-up frosting, which you know you want to do anyway.
Finally, put the frosting on the cupcakes; how you do it is up to you. I like to use a pastry bag and tip, but you can also just shmear it right on there for a homier look.
Helados, Nieves y Paletas–Frozen Treats in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico
Posted: January 25, 2012 Filed under: Dessert, Food, helado, Ice Cream, Mexico, nieves, paletas, Playa Del Carmen | Tags: cajeta, Cozumel, helado, Ice Cream, Mexico, Michoacan, paletas, Playa Del Carmen, Valladolid 4 CommentsMy heart sank as I walked down Quinta Avenida in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico. It was my first visit to the oceanside town, and although I’d known that parts were pretty touristy, I wasn’t prepared for the onslaught of Americanization that I found on its “Fifth Avenue.” It wasn’t the Converse store, Burger King or Señor Frog’s that really bothered me. Rather, it was the Ben & Jerry’s, Häagen Dazs and two gelato shops I passed on my stroll without seeing anywhere to buy actual Mexican ice cream. Then I wandered over to 30th Avenue, which is just five blocks away and doesn’t look like a midwestern mall, and found La Flor de Michoacán.
Michoacan (the accent over the second “a” seems to be exclusive to the shop shown above; I’ve never seen it used elsewhere) ice cream shops, named after the state in which they originated, are all over Mexico and can also be found in the U.S. It’s not a chain; the “Michoacan” name isn’t trademarked, so anyone can use it. However, it does tend to signify a certain texture to the products sold by stores using the moniker, as well as an interesting–and often large–variety of flavors.
On my first visit to La Flor de Michoacán, I picked out a paleta de nuez, which consisted of an impressive amount of pecans frozen in a luscious nut-infused cream. It was so good that I was tempted to get another one on my next stop there.
Instead, I went with a paleta de piña con chile, made from chunks of fresh pineapple suspended in sweet, icy juice spiced with chile powder. I am a huge fan of the Mexican tendency to flavor everything with chile, lime, or chile and lime (especially that one), so I was pleased with my choice. The only bummer was that it melted quickly, and a good portion dripped down my arm.
I also got to taste their cajeta ice cream, which was so freaking delicious that in comparison, I enjoyed my perfectly enjoyable paleta de piña con chile just a little less.
That’s the cajeta ice cream in the freezer, in the middle of the top row. And yes, not only is it streaked with thick, rich cajeta (like dulce de leche, but made from sweetened goat’s milk) and studded with chunks of cookie, it’s then covered in more cookies and drizzled with more cajeta. Finally, it’s scooped with bits of the cookies from the top, giving the ice cream a nice, fresh crunch.
La Flor de Michoacán wasn’t the only helado and paleta shop in town. Across the street, in the lobby of a Mega (a huge supermarket chain) was La Michoacana. Their selection of ice creams and paletas was huge, and I’m sorry I didn’t get a picture of–or try–the full array. I’m also sorry that I have no idea what flavors they carried, because every time I’d ask, “Que tipo?” I’d get an answer I didn’t understand. In the end, I just pointed to one that looked interesting. I also ordered a scoop of coconut, which is my usual yardstick for ice cream judgment.
The coconut was pretty good, though I would have liked a stronger flavor. Topping that was the mystery flavor, which turned out to be a fudge-swirled banana that was flecked with some sort of nut. I don’t generally go for banana desserts, so I probably wouldn’t have chosen this particular helado if I’d known what it was. But sometimes ignorance is bliss, because the usual overly cloying taste of banana was tempered here by rich, spicy canela (Mexican cinnamon).
Once I found the Michoacans, I began seeing frozen desserts everywhere. This bicycle-riding vendor by the pier at Avenida Benito Juárez sold nieve de coco, aka coconut sorbet, in a choice of wafer or sugar cone. I chose the sugar, because it looked homemade.
The nieve de coco was so refreshing in its light, crispy cone that I was tempted to run after the vendor for another one as he rode away down the boardwalk. Fortunately, a ticket on the 2 o’clock ferry to the island of Cozumel, just 45 minutes from Playa Del Carmen, kept me from eating a second round of dessert.
Less than an hour later, I wandered by yet another Michoacan on Cozumel. I had planned to return after lunch but got distracted by a cart selling churros.
This isn’t that cart; it’s yet another mobile vendor of frozen treats. I found Juanito Jr. in Valladolid, a colonial Spanish town near the Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza. I didn’t even ask what flavors he was selling because I had just eaten lunch and wasn’t hungry. However, I wanted to share this picture because Juanito looks so serene. And who wouldn’t, spending one’s days selling ice cream in a beautiful park in Mexico? The only thing I can think of that sounds better would be spending one’s days eating that ice cream!