Lemon Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting

So lemony and so tangy. You could serve this loaf without any frosting and it would still be delicious, but take my word for it - it is to die for when topped with cream cheese frosting.

The frosting recipe below is the best cream cheese frosting recipe I have ever tried. It has the perfect ratio of cream cheese to sugar and complements the tartness of the loaf. There is definitely no skimping on cream cheese here! If you're like my mom, you will eat this with extra frosting so it's pretty much equal parts cake and frosting :)



Lemon Loaf with Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes 1 loaf

Cake:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
Zest of 2 lemon
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup milk
2 large eggs
1/2 cup butter, melted
Juice of 1 large lemon
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:
1/2 pkg (4 oz) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 - 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1. Cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9x5" loaf pan.

2. Whisk the flour, salt, sugar, lemon peel and baking powder together in a large bowl; set aside.

3. In a medium bowl beat eggs with milk, butter, lemon juice and vanilla. Add egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan.

4. Bake until the loaf is golden brown and a tester or toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 to 50 minutes.

5. Frosting: Combine the butter and cream cheese with an electric beater until smooth. Add vanilla then add the powdered sugar to reach desired consistency. Frost the cake with the cream cheese frosting once cooled fully.

Old Fashioned Flour Frosting

Don't let the name "Flour Frosting" deter you from making this. It is a misleadingly unappetizing name, however, this recipe is a must for every baker's repertoire. It is one you have likely tasted before - maybe even without knowing it. This is a classic recipe that has either been lost, forgotten or overshadowed by new frosting fads. If you haven't tried it frosting is not too sweet. It's is light and fluffy and so so easy. It doesn't involve eggs or tempering or candy thermometers. Just a good, sturdy electric mixer because you have to beat the heck out of it for the magic to work. You will end up with a luxuriously smooth frosting that goes well with banana bread, chocolate cake, zucchini bread, red velvet cake... the list goes on!

I had someone tell me that one taste of this frosting brought her back in time to her mother's kitchen where it was used to frost all the family birthday cakes.



The Best Frosting Ever aka. Flour Frosting
adapted from Tasty Kitchen

5 tablespoons Flour
1 cup Milk
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 cup Butter
1 cup Granulated Sugar (not Powdered Sugar)

1. In a small saucepan, whisk flour into milk and heat, stirring constantly, until it thickens. You want it to be very thick, thicker than cake mix, more like a brownie mix. Remove from heat and let it cool to room temperature. [I sometimes do this the night before and leave it in the fridge overnight, then continue with step 2 the next morning. On the other hand, if you are in a hurry place the saucepan over ice in the sink for about 10 minutes or so until the mixture cools.] It must be completely cool before you use it in the next step. Stir in vanilla.

2. While the mixture is cooling, cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. You don’t want any sugar graininess left. Then add the completely cooled milk/flour mixture and beat the living daylights out of it. If it looks separated, you haven’t beaten it enough. Beat it until it all combines and resembles whipped cream. It is now ready to use.

Milky Way Cake

This is a sinfully decadent cake with actual Milky Way Chocolate bars melted into the batter! One tiny tiny slice is enough to satisfy any chocolate craving. I increased the recipe by 1.5x and made a 4-layer-cake which stood 5" high. It was enough to feed an army! This would be wonderful served with ice cream to cut the sweetness a little bit. I made chocolate dipped strawberries, alternating white and dark chocolates, and put little pink frosting dots along the sides of the cake for a feminine touch or color.

The recipe is adapted from Sunday Baker's Blog and Grouprecipes.com. The nice thing is that you can switch it up by using different melted chocolate bars. How about Snickers and chopped peanuts?! Mars bars and pecans?!



Milky Way Cake 8" - 3 layer cake 8 regular-sized Milky Way bars
1/2 cup butter
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla

Icing:
3 regular-sized Milky Way Bars
1 stick butter
2 teaspoon milk
1 1/3 cups powdered sugar

1. For cake: Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease three 9" round cake pans.
2. Melt butter and candy bars then set aside to cool slightly. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Sift together the dry ingredients then beat into the wet mixture. Fold in Milky Way mixture. Do not over mix.
3. Spread evenly in the prepared pans. Bake for 1h 10m or until cake tests done.
4. Icing: Melt candy bars and butter. Stir in milk and powdered sugar. Add additional milk if needed. Beat until smooth and spread on cooled cake. [I just coated mine with a chocolate ganache made with 1 part heavy cream to 1 part bittersweet chocolate]

Semisweet Chocolate Layer Cake with Bakery Frosting

I volunteered to make a bunch of cakes for a cake walk at our church, so I was in mass production mode. I came up with the idea to bake two jelly-roll sheets 11" x 17" and cut each into 6 smaller rectangles, make 2-layer high cakes from these rectangles. It worked out *so* well. The layers were perfectly even, I didn't have to worry about splitting my cake into layers after it was baked, so from now on I will be making my layer cakes in sheet pans so they bake thinner and more evenly, then just cutting circles of cake from the large sheet pans.

This is a must-try frosting recipe, especially if you are in a bind for refrigerator space, as I often am. The frosting is just like the bakeries use on their cakes and does not require refrigeration if you are serving the cake within a day of making it. The Coffeemate instead of milk/cream makes it more stable. For longer storage it may be kept up to 3 months covered in the refrigerator. Just bring to room temperature before using.

Semisweet Chocolate Layer Cake
Makes 3 - 8" rounds | Gourmet, Feb. 2006

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 3/4 cups (packed) dark brown sugar
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3/4 cup buttermilk

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter three 8" cake pans with 1 1/2-inch-high sides. Line bottoms with parchment paper round; butter parchment. Place chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of simmering water. Stir until melted and smooth.

2. Whisk all purpose flour and next 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat brown sugar, butter, and vanilla in large bowl to blend (mixture will be crumbly). Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in warm melted chocolate. Mix in dry ingredients in 2 additions alternately with buttermilk in 1 addition. Divide batter among prepared pans.

3. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 23 minutes. Cool cakes in pans 10 minutes. Turn cakes out onto rack; peel off parchment. Cool cakes completely. Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap cakes in plastic and store at room temperature.

Bakery-Style No Refrigeration Needed Frosting
Makes 8 cups | adapted from Kittencal on Food.com

1 1/2 cups shortening
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup non-dairy powdered coffee creamer (Coffee Mate)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 (32 ounce) package confectioners sugar, sifted
1/2-3/4 cup water
1/4 cup, approx. cocoa powder (optional)

1. In a large mixing bowl beat the shortening, butter, creamer and vanilla.
2. Gradually beat in the confectioners sugar.
3. Add in enough water (starting with 1/2 cup) until frosting reaches desired consistency.
4. To make chocolate frosting, beat in cocoa powder to taste or to achieve the desired chocolatey-ness.

DB: Sugar Cookie Pops

The September 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mandy of “What the Fruitcake?!” . Mandy challenged everyone to make Decorated Sugar Cookies based on recipes from Peggy Porschen and The Joy of Baking.

I made these sugar cookie pops as part of the baking catering I did for a co-worker for her grandson's dedication earlier this year. I didn't have time to do intricate sugar cookies this month so I apologize, but wanted to share these with you for Daring Baker's this month as I'm pretty happy with how they turned out and back when I originally made them, it certainly was a challenge!

I have never made cookie pops before but these turned out so well that I would definitely do it again. I made the sugar cookies a little thicker than normal and reinforced the backs of the sticks with extra dough. Not one fell off the stick even when the kids bit into them. The feedback I received was that they were the highlight of the party. They were such a huge hit that the kids just held onto them and admired them, not wanting to eat them for the longest time. Aww... I love that I can make people happy with my baking. It brings a smile to my face.
One more thing: I can't speak highly enough about this sugar cookie icing recipe (below). It is the kind of icing you'd find at a bakery. It dries shiny, smooth and hard enough to stack the cookies. It is a pleasure to work with and very yummy!




Sugar Cookie Cutouts
Makes 15 cookie pops | Adapted from Land-O-Lakes

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder

1. Combine butter, sugar and egg in large bowl. Beat at medium speed until creamy. Reduce speed to low; add all remaining cookie ingredients. Beat until well mixed. Divide dough into thirds; wrap in plastic food wrap. Refrigerate until firm (at least 2 hours).

2. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Roll out dough to 1/4-inch thickness. Press the lollipop sticks into the cookies then cover the sticks with a small, flattened piece of dough so the stick is not visible. Flip the cookie over and place onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 6 to 10 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool 1 minute before removing from cookie sheets. Cool completely before frosting.



Better than Bakery Icing
adapted from allrecipes.com

1 cup icing sugar
2 teaspoons milk
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
food coloring
In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Add corn syrup and vanilla extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.

Mocha Cupcakes with Caramel Frosting

Here is a little jolt of java, just right for a Monday! I had an exhausting weekend, working 13 hours on Saturday as an Elections Officer checking people's names/addresses and giving them their ballots to vote at our by-election. I have never been so exhausted from sitting down doing nothing. I think that trying to keep myself occupied (ie. not bored) was more mentally tiring than if I had actually had a lot of work to do. In between checking people in, I went through 1/2 a crossword book and read the first few chapters of Julie & Julia.

The coffee flavor of these is suitable all audiences - subtle enough not to bother those who dislike coffee but present enough to please those who do. It comes from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes. The easy caramel frosting (also from Martha) transforms them into Caramel Macchiato cupcakes! I opted for a free-hand style, using the back of a spoon to glop on the creamy caramel frosting and finishing them off with a chocolate covered almond or espresso bean.

Mocha Cupcakes
Makes 15 | Martha Stewart

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup strong brewed coffee, room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 large egg

1. Preheat to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pan with liners.

2. Sift together the flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a measuring cup, combine the milk and brewed coffee.

3. In a stand mixer, using a flat beater on medium-high speed, beat the butter and sugars together until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the egg and beat until combined. Slowly add the flour mixture, alternating with the coffee mixture, ending with the flour mixture.

4. Fill cupcake liners about 2/3 full. Bake for about 17-20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a cupcake comes out clean. Let cool fully before frosting.

Caramel Frosting
Martha Stewart, November 2007

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 package (16 ounces) confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream, plus more if needed
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

1. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium-high heat until nut-brown in color, about 8 minutes. Remove pan from heat and pour butter into a bowl, leaving any burned sediment behind; let cool.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add confectioners' sugar, vanilla, salt, and butter. With the mixer on low, slowly add cream; beat until smooth. If frosting seems too thick, stir another tablespoon cream into the mixture.

St. Patty's Day Cupcakes and Fluffy Old-Fashioned Frosting

Yesterday I was totally in the St. Patrick's day mood. I wore green, drank green Powerade, brought my coffee in a Green travel mug and baked these yummy mini cupcakes. I was lucky and found a bag of just green colored M&M's so I didn't have to pick through the multi-colored pack like I usually do. The mini-cupcakes are just plain yellow cake from the classic Betty Crocker Cookbook: Everything You Need to Know to Cook Today cookbook. It's my go-to cookbook. Easy recipes, fast to throw together and It's never failed me yet.

If you are looking for a fluffy, not too sweet, very smooth frosting, try this one that I adapted from ourbestbites.com. It uses flour to thicken it (so you don't have to use as much sugar). I had to make an adaptation because it was too thin the way the original recipe was written, but I LOVED it after I added a bit of icing sugar to give it some body.

Fluffy Old-Fashioned Frosting
Generously frosts 12 cupcakes | adapted from ourbestbites.com

3 tbsp flour
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup real butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups icing sugar *(my addition, not in original recipe)

Whisk together the flour and the milk. Heat in a small sauce pan on medium heat. Whisk continuously until it starts to thicken. I think this is the critical point for any of you who have had problems with this recipe. I have a feeling people are under-cooking this part. Let it cook, while stirring, until it looks like pudding (you should be able to see the bottom of the pan when you stir it). Even though it's thick, you can still it through a mesh strainer (just whisk the mixture in the strainer to push the thick stuff through) and then let it cool completely to room temp. or chill it in the fridge. It needs to be cooled completely. If you don't let it cool completely, it will melt the butter and you'll have runny frosting.

It an electric stand mixer, beat the butter and the sugar for a minute or two until well combined and fluffy. You'll want to use the whisk attachment on a stand mixer, not the flat paddle. Then while beating, add in the thickened milk mixture and the vanilla. Beat on the highest speed you can get to without it spraying all over the place for 7 minutes. Yes, 7 whole minutes, maybe even 8 or 9. I know that seems like a long time, but that's when the magic happens!

You will be scared because it will look like a weird goopy mess at first and you'll wonder what on earth you did wrong. Keep beating and something amazing happens. It goes from that goopy mess to something thick, velvety smooth, and perfectly fluffy.

*The orignal recipe didn't call for icing sugar but I needed to add about 1 1/2 cups of icing sugar at the end to get the consistency I wanted.

Notes:
1. Use real butter, and a good name-brand. Cheap butter does weird things.
2. If you beat for the 6-8 minutes and the mixture still looks strange, beat longer and at a higher speed if you can. It should come together, but it takes a little patience!
3. Store at room temperature in a sealed container. Frosting may separate in the fridge, but you can store it overnight if left at room temp and in a well sealed container.

Cocoa Espresso Bundt Cake

When my son saw this sitting on the couter he exclaimed, "It looks like a giant donut!" He's totally right! While that wasn't the look I was going for, I do think the giant donut look is pretty cute and it's an idea I might use for future birthday cakes.

The flavor of this Bundt cake is perfect for coffee lovers. There's just a hint of chocolate, almost unnoticeable, but with both instant coffee powder and fresh brewed coffee, it's the coffee that really stands out here. With its simple flavors and ease to make, this cake is perfect for anytime.

Now, let's talk about the frosting. I love sour cream chocolate frostings because they are not overly sweet due to the offsetting effect of the tangy sour cream. This frosting is so smooth to work with and best of all, it behaves like a crusting buttercream. The slight crust on the buttercream gives way to a creamy chocolate which melts on your tongue. Amazing.





Cocoa Espresso Bundt Cake
1 - 10" Bundt

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
4 eggs, divided
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 tablespoons cold water
1 cup strong brewed coffee or espresso
1 tbsp instant coffee powder
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch Bundt pan. In a large measuring cup dissolve baking soda in water, then add coffee, instant coffee powder and vanilla.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the cocoa, then the egg yolks one at a time. Alternately beat in the flour and the coffee mixture just until incorporated.
4. In a large glass or metal mixing bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the whites into the batter, then quickly but carefully fold in remaining whites until no streaks remain.
5. Pour batter into a 10 inch Bundt pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then turn out onto a wire rack. Frost completely cooled cake with sour cream chocolate frosting and sprinkles.

Sour Cream Chocolate Frosting
Makes 2 cups

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 to 3 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted

1. In a small sauce pan, over low heat, melt chocolate and butter together, stirring until smooth.
2. Remove pan from heat, blend in sour cream, vanilla and salt.
3. Gradually beat in enough confectioner's sugar to get a spreading consistancy.

Train Cake & Construction Site Cake

Happy Birthday Zachary! I love you more and more as each day goes by and your personality develops and shines through. I am constantly amazed and amused by the things you do and the talents you have. Thanks for sticking out the past 3 years with me :)
*****
So... Today is my son's 3rd birthday. I still remember being pregnant, worrying about delivery, being HUGE and waddling around - lol. I can hardly believe 3 years has gone by and my baby boy will be starting preschool next week. I feel like the time is moving too quickly and I'm not doing enough of the things I should be doing for him. As (most) moms probably do, I worry that I'm not a good enough mother.

But for now... let's eat some cake!!! This year he was very much into trains. The Thomas set we have takes up way too much floorspace in our living room and has me constantly tripping over trains, but I guess it's worth it for the smile on his face.

How I made the cake:

Baked the cake 1 day in advance and refrigerated it to make handling easier.

Piped melted chocolate for the rail-road track.

I baked a regular yellow cake in 2 loaf pans and a soup can. To remove the cake from the can, just open the other side of the can and push the cake through.

For the engine I used 1 loaf. I cut off 2" from one end and stacked that on top of the loaf and held together with a skewer pushed all the way through. Level one side of the cylinder so it sits better on top of the loaf cake.

Used a marshmallow for the smoke-stack.

I cut the second loaf in half for the 2 smaller cars.

The circus car cage bars are finger-type cookies and the top of the cage is made from a graham cracker.

The wheels are Oreo cookie halves.

I frosted this cake with a no refrigeration needed frosting, recipe below. I fell in love with the consistency and ease to work with. It's not too sweet either.

The assembly took 3 hours (baking time excluded).





I also made a second cake, construction site themed, for the party at his preschool. It was such a huge hit especially amongst the little boys who started digging at the Oreo "dirt" with the toy vehicles on the cake. Compared to the train cake, this one was a breeze. I used a sour cream chocolate frosting, recipe here.

No Refrigeration Bakeshop Frosting
Makes 3 cups | adapted from KittenCalsKitchen

1 cup shortening
1/4 cup powdered coffee creamer (Coffee Mate)
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
16 oz. confectioners' sugar, sifted
1/3 cup water (approx.)
food coloring as needed

In a large mixing bowl beat the shortening creamer and extracts. Gradually beat in the confectioners sugar. Little by little add in enough water until frosting reaches desired consistency. Add food coloring until the desired shade is achieved.