Bready or Not: Almond Cake
This Almond Cake tastes fancy, but thanks to a handy-dandy food processor, it’s actually quite straightforward to make. I’m all about fancy without major effort!
The food processor isn’t just there to streamline the process, though. Those blades really shred into the eggs and sugar, creating a cake that lusciously dense, not light from being gently blended.
This cake bakes up into a soft, almond-fragrant pillow with a tender crumb and a golden, crunchy top. It’s one of those cakes that is as delicious as it is beautiful.
To make this even better, unlike many other cakes, it keeps well! Wrap up individual slices, and they are fine at room temperature for up to 3 days. They can also keep in the freezer for weeks!
This cake would be wonderful for breakfast, brunch, or dessert. It’s great by itself, but would also be lovely with some fresh fruit.
Modified from America’s Test Kitchen.
Bready or Not: Almond Cake
Equipment
- 9-inch springform pan
- parchment paper
- large food processor
Ingredients
Cake:
- 1 1/2 cups sliced almonds
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 1 1/4 cups white sugar
- 2 lemons zested
- 3/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 5 Tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil
Topping:
- 2 Tablespoons white sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1/3 cup sliced almonds
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 300-degrees.. Cut a piece of parchment to fit in the bottom of the springform pan. Grease pan, place parchment inside, then grease that as well. Set aside.
- In food processor, pulse sliced almonds, flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda until the almonds are finely ground. This will be 5 to 10 pulses. Move mixture to another bowl.
- Into the now-empty processor, place the eggs, white sugar, 1 Tablespoon of lemon zest (reserve rest for topping), and almond extract. Process for about 2 minutes, until everything turns pale yellow. Pour in the melted butter and oil until they are blended in. Add the almond mixture with a series of pulses.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan.
- Start preparing the topping by using fingertips to mix the lemon zest into the white sugar, dispersing the zest throughout. Sprinkle the almonds all over the top of the cake. Follow that up with the lemon-sugar.
- Bake cake until the middle is set and bounces back when gently pressed, about 55 minutes to an hour. The middle should also pass the toothpick test. Let the cake cool for about 15 minutes. Run a plastic knife or toothpick around the sides of the cake to make sure it is loose. Set a plate on top of the cake and tip it out to invert it. Then set cake back onto a cooling rack, almonds up.
- Let cake cool at least 2 hours at room temperature, or speed the process by chilling it in the fridge. Cake tastes best at room temperature. Cut into wedges and serve.
- Individual wedges of cake can be wrapped in plastic to keep at room temperature for up to 3 days, or can be frozen for later enjoyment.
*OM NOM NOM!*
Bready or Not: Irish Cheddar Soda Bread
If you know me at all, you know I love cheese. One of my forever favorites is Kerrygold Dubliner, which I can buy in bulk at Costco almost all the time. That makes the use of a hefty amount of Dubliner all the more affordable in this amazing Irish Cheddar Soda Bread.
Of course, you can use another kind of Irish cheddar, or cheddar from anywhere in the world. Whatever you use will be delicious and amazing in this bread.
This recipe is the first in a series of re-worked recipes from a fantastic issue of Bake from Scratch Magazine last year. The July/August issue was all about Ireland, with loads of Irish recipes, and I had a blast baking my way through and making my own versions of deliciousness.
(Truly, if you love to bake, I highly recommend Bake from Scratch. I get a lot of food magazines, and it is my favorite. I find several things I want to make in each issue, which I can’t say about any of my other subscriptions.)
This bread is perfect along with a roast or soup or stew, or all by itself with a generous pat of butter (Kerrygold being best, of course).
You might think I’m getting paid to endorse this Kerrygold stuff and Bake from Scratch. I wish! No, I’m just a total fan.
Bready or Not: Irish Cheddar Soda Bread
Equipment
- parchment paper
- instant thermometer
Ingredients
- 3 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup Irish aged white cheddar cheese (113 grams) coarsely grated, divided
- 2 teaspoons dried parsley or other herbs
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups buttermilk or substitute soured milk, see note
Instructions
- Preheat oven at 450-degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together flour, salt, and baking powder. Add about 2/3 cup of cheese, herbs, and pepper. Form a well in the middle and add the buttermilk. Use a hand to mix everything, kneading and clawing everything together; note that the dough will be very sticky and clumpy.
- Once it can be patted into a round, transfer it to the parchment paper. Reshape a bit if needed. Dip a knife in some flour, and slash an inch-deep X broadly across the top of the round; this is to release steam and, according to folklore, evil fairies. Sprinkle the remaining 1/3 cup of cheese on top.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 400-degrees. If the round is already looking quite brown, carefully cup some foil over the top.
- Bake for another 20 minutes. The bread is done when it is browned and registers 200-degrees or more on a digital thermometer. If the bottom is tapped, it should sound hollow.
- Let cool for about 30 minutes before cutting in. Bread is best served warm; easily reheat slices in the oven later. Pieces can also be frozen.
OM NOM NOM!
Notes
Bready or Not Original: Cinnamon-Coffee Cookies
These Cinnamon-Coffee Cookies do it all. They are warmly-spiced with a coffee-forward flavor.
Plus, they are soft and chewy, which really is how I prefer cookies to be. Crunchy cookies are good, too, but cookies like this? Oh yeah.
My husband’s work lives on coffee. Needless to say, they adored these cookies–with coffee. Bring on the caffeine in all forms, right?
The ingredient list for this looks long, but that’s because it has lots of spices. It really comes together pretty fast. If you want to speed things along at baking time, mix together the dry ingredients the day before.
These cookies will brighten your day. Have them for breakfast. Or a dessert. Or a mid-afternoon pick-me-up. The baked-in espresso (plus that sugar) will do a lot to brighten your day!
Bready or Not Original: Cinnamon-Coffee Cookies
Equipment
- tablespoon scoop
Ingredients
Dough
- 2 teaspoons espresso powder
- 1 Tablespoon hot water
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter 1 cube, room temperature
- 1/2 cup shortening
- 3/4 cup white sugar
- 3/4 cup brown sugar packed
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
Topping
- 1/2 cup turbinado sugar or other raw, coarse sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir the espresso powder into the hot water until it is dissolved. Set aside.
- In a big bowl, beat together the butter and shortening. Add both sugars, cinnamon, baking powder, nutmeg, baking soda, salt, and cloves. Follow up with the eggs, vanilla, and liquid espresso. Beat in the flour until just incorporated. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and chill at least 2 hours; otherwise, the dough will be very sticky and hard to work with.
- Preheat oven at 325-degrees. In a small bowl, stir together the topping ingredients.
- Use a tablespoon scoop to form dough into an round ball. Roll in cinnamon-sugar. Place rounds spaced-out on cookie sheet, flattening each to a fat disc.
- Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes. Let set on cookie sheet another 10 minutes before moving them to a cooling rack. Completely cool, then place in a sealed container at room temperature.
OM NOM NOM!
Forthcoming: a poem in THE BOOK OF DRAGONS next July
This has been in the works for ages, but I’m still gobsmacked: I’ll have a poem in the hardcover, fully illustrated anthology The Book of Dragons edited by Jonathan Strahan, due out on July 7, 2020. The table of contents is like a full list of the best living authors in genre fiction… and then there’s me, like this.
Every story and poem is illustrated by Rovina Cai, who just won the World Fantasy Award for best artist. The book will be a whopping 640 pages. I’m guessing this will be very much a treasury book to keep on a coffee table–beautiful to look and to read. Read the full announcement on the Barnes & Noble SFF Blog! Behold the authors involved!
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Read MoreSunday Quote wants this week over with
Read More“My own experience is that once a story has been written, one has to cross out the beginning and the end. It is there that we authors do most of our lying.”
~ Anton Chekhov
Phoenix Comicon Schedule 2017
It’s Phoenix Comicon time! This is my home con, and it’s grown huge in recent years–some 200,000 people attended over four days last year! This time around, I will have panels and some signings on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.
I will also be part of Poisoned Pen Bookstore’s Elevengeddon Mass Signing on Wednesday the 24th at the Hilton Resort in Scottsdale, 7pm. More info here.
My books will be for sale at the convention, but feel free to bring copies from home, too. I’ll also sign Kindle cases, autograph books, hellspawn, etc. ALSO… I WILL HAVE COOKIES. If you see me (and it’s not in the middle of a panel, because duh) please ask if I have any cookies left. I will be happy to feed you. Note that these cookies will be filled with gluten and other magic.
You’ll find my full current schedule here.
Thursday
12:00 pm
Fantasy and Magic in Literature :: North 126AB
3:00 pm
Women Writers of Speculative Fiction :: North 126AB
Friday
10:30 am
Writing Badass Women :: North 126C
1:30 pm
Beth Cato, Alan Smale, Weston Ochse, and Yvonne Navarro Signing :: North 124AB
Saturday
10:30 am
Arizona Author Spotlight :: North 126C
1:30 pm
All Things Steampunk :: North 126AB
3:00 pm
Kevin J. Anderson, Elizabeth Bear, Beth Cato, Rob Reid and Scott Lynch Signing :: Exhibitor Hall Author Signing
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