The Yuca Diaries

As I mentioned in my previous post,  I love pumpkin.  Pumpkin lattes, pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin pie… you get the idea.  I also love this roasted pumpkin cake and I think you will too! I knew it was going to be  a winner too because I tasted the batter and even that was great.  I think the dark brown sugar and cinnamon combined with the pumpkin really blend well. It was super easy to make too.  It took me about 15 minutes only to prep.  This cake is best served with a cold glass of any milk you like.  I personally like rice milk but any will work well.  Enjoy!

For the cake:
2 cups roasted pumpkin puree
4 cups flour, unbleached
2  cups dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. grated nutmeg
2 tsp. salt
4 eggs
1 1/2 stick butter (melted)
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

The first thing to do is roast the pumpkin in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes.  I used about 1/2 of a medium sized pumpkin that already came cut.  Once it’s roasted, remove the seeds. Scoop out the flesh of the pumpkin and transfer to a food processor.  Blend on high speed until you have a smooth puree.  Make sure the puree is cooled before proceeding to the next step.

Make sure the oven is set to 375 degrees. Next add the butter, eggs, pumpkin puree, sugar and vanilla and blend on medium speed with a mixer. In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg.  Add to the wet batter in thirds, mixing well each time.  Add the mixture to a 13×9 baking pan that has been greased.  Bake for 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack.  Allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 stick butter, softened

1 1/2 bars of cream cheese softened

4 cups confectioner’s sugar

1 tbsp. freshly squeezed lemon juice

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 pinch of salt -to balance out the sweetness

While the cake is baking,  let’s make the frosting.  In a mixing bowl, combine the butter and cream cheese and blend well.  Add in the vanilla extract, salt and lemon juice and blend well.  Begin adding the powdered sugar one cup at a time  and begin mixing, scraping the sides and the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is evenly blended.  Now go frost that cake!

Tres Leches is a traditional Latin dessert that consists of a light spongy cake that is soaked in a mixture of three milks and topped with whipped cream.  I know it is super fattening, but I am hormonal today… don’t judge me! This will yield about 10 servings…. so make it when you know you’ll have company; otherwise you’ll be visiting the fridge at all ungodly hours of the night!

For the cake:

1 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 cup sugar

1/2 stick butter

5 eggs (yolks separated from whites)

1 tbsp. vanilla extract

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Mix all of the dry ingredients (except the sugar) in a bowl.  In a two separate bowls, separate the egg yolks from the whites.  Once the eggs are separated, begin beating the egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Set the egg whites aside for now.  The next thing you’ll do is blend the egg yolks, sugar, vanilla and butter.  The color of the mixture should lighten considerably.  I’d say from the color of the egg yolks to a very pale yellow. This should take about 3 to 4 minutes of mixing on high speed.  Make sure to stop and scrape the sides of the bowl if you’re using  a hand mixer.  Next begin adding the flour to the mixture in thirds. After the flour is well incorporated, begin folding in the egg whites.  Add the batter to a greased baking pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until you prick the center and the toothpick comes out clean.  This will yield a very spongy cake- perfect for the absorption of the milks.  Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool completely before going to the next step.  I put it on a dish with a lip so that the milk mixture didn’t spill over.

For the milk combo:

2 cans evaporated milk

1 can condensed milk

1 cup half and half (the real recipe calls for heavy cream, but i just couldn’t do it!)

In a bowl or large measuring cup, combine the three milks above.  I used a whisk to dissolve the condensed milk well.   Now you’ll take your cake and using a fork begin to prick it all over.  This will create little holes for the milk to seep into.  Begin to slowly pour the milk over the cake.  Making sure to get the edges. After you’ve used up all of the milk mixture, transfer the cake to fridge to continue to cool.

For the Topping:

1 cup whipping cream

1/4 cup superfine or powdered sugar

On high speed, blend the cream and sugar until you have a nice and thick whipped cream topping to spread over the cake.  Top with maraschino cherries, strawberries or eat it alone.  Enjoy!

Brandon and I have gotten into the habit of having a sweet bite after dinner… it doesn’t have to been anything fancy, but just something to end the meal on a sweet note.  Unfortunately, the last time I did groceries, I failed to buy ANYTHING sweet.  For the past week and a half  we’re always wanting a sweet fix, so much that Brandon has had a spoonful of peanut butter and jelly-lol.  I felt kind of bad after seeing him sink to that so I stopped by the grocery store and picked up a few ingredients for this dessert.

For the cherry filling:

3 cans sour cherries packed in water (you can use fresh or frozen too just remove the pits)

3/4 cups Z Sweet or Sugar (Z Sweet is a sugar substitute that measures the same as sugar but has zero calories and is not artificial like splenda, it’s basically a sugar alcohol)

1/3 cup water

2 tbsp. cornstarch

Dump the cherries and liquid into a pot.  Bring to a boil and then drop the temperature down to medium heat.  Add the Z Sweet or Sugar and stir. In a small cup combine the cornstarch and water making sure to not have any clumps.   Add the mixture to the cherries and stir in.  This will thicken the mixture.

For the topping:

1 cup graham cracker crumbs

1 cup flour

1/2 cup Z sweet or sugar

1 stick butter

In a mixing bowl, combine the graham crackers, flour and Z Sweet or sugar.  Melt the butter and combine with the graham cracker/flour mixture.  Keep combining until the mixture to make sure all of it gets sort of “dampened” by the butter.

To assemble:

Add the cherry filling to a baking dish or individual ramekins.  Leave room for the topping.  Pile the topping on top of the cherries and with a spatula make sure you even out the layer.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until the top is nice and golden brown and the cherries have started to bubble through.

If you’re feeling particularly naughty, serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

I am planning a shower in the next couple of weeks and needed to practice my cupcake skills.  More than anything, I needed to work on my decorating skills.  And although, I am far from a professional, I think they look pretty good in a amateurish kind of way.  Almost like a home-made mother’s day card, sure, it’s not as nice as the hallmark ones you find at the store, but the creativity and thought that goes into the home-made one makes it unique and all the more special.

Directions:

Turn on the oven to 350°F. Prepare your molds. Set aside.

Beat the butter and sugar together until the mix is light and yellow, about 5 minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time. Make sure each egg is well mixed before adding the next one.

Add the pinch of lemon zest and vanilla. Beat until all these ingredients are well blended, about 1 more minute.

Add the orange juice in a fine stream alternating with the flour, mixing in thirds, until all ingredients are incorporated. Mix for another minute or so.

Empty the batter into the molds and bake until light golden brown for about 19 minutes. Test by inserting a toothpick or knife right in the middle to see if it comes out clean.

Butter cream Frosting:
2 sticks butter
4 cups powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup orange juice


Cream the butter until it nice and creamy and turns to a pale shade of yellow.  add the vanilla extract and orange juice at this point and beat.  Add the sugar one cup at a time and blend, scraping down the sides of the bowl to make sure you blend all of it evenly.


To frost these, I basically took four separate bowls and added an even amount to each one.  Then I began mixing the colors till I had the shades I wanted.

Boy has it been cold here in DFW.  This week we got a record breaking 12.5 inches of snow in our hood.  We had a pretty awesome snow day, but by the time dinner rolled around I found myself scratching my head as I looked at the fridge.  The “what to make” question kept swirling.  We had to do groceries, which meant my usual staples were limited.  Long story short… I found I had an eye of round roast (for my fellow Cubans, this is the cut you’d use to make the traditional “boliche”).  I felt like having something warm and soupy so I made chili, but instead of using ground beef, I cut the roast into bite-size chunks.  I made the chili the same way I did the one I previously posted, except, I cooked the meat in a pressure cooker with a bottle of beer for about one hour or until tender.   I didn’t want to post another recipe of the same thing. Really by way of a long introduction, the real reason for this post is to list my grain free “faux cornbread” recipe.  They were warm and buttery and low GI too.   Here’s the recipe:

Ingredients:

3 eggs

1/2 cup coconut flour

4 tbsp arrowroot powder

1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese

3 tbsp butter

1/3 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup sliced scallions

1 tsp molasses

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees.  Add the dry ingredients to a bowl.  In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk, cheese, molasses and butter (melt it first).  Finely chop the scallions and add to the wet mixture.  Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  Grease a muffin tin well (the mixture is kind of sticky)- I just used cooking spray.  Using an ice cream scoop, place the mixture into each muffin space and bake for about 15 minutes.

Ingredients:

Two packages of graham crackers (there are three packages in each box)

1 1/2 sticks butter

3 tbsp. dark brown sugar

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup milk chocolate chips

1 cup chopped nuts ( I like almonds but only had pumpkin seeds)

1 can condensed milk

1 cup flaked shredded coconut

Run the graham crackers in a food processor to form crumbs. Melt the butter. Transfer to a bowl and add the butter and sugar and incorporate well. Take a 13×9 pan and pat the graham cracker crumbs down to form a crust. Pack tightly to make sure the bars are solid when they’re done. I like to use a large cookie sheet so that the crust isn’t super thick. Next sprinkle the chocolate chips and nuts on top of the crust. Open the can of condensed milk and drizzle all over evenly. Make sure you save about a third of the can. Next add the shredded coconut and finish drizzling the rest of the condensed milk over the bars. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes or until the coconut is nice and toasty. Allow cool before cutting into squares.

Let me warn you about these brownies. They’re like the most fattening thing you could possibly eat. I mean really, they’re probably half of your caloric intake for the day- and I say this only semi-kidding. But the good thing about them is that they’re so rich you really wouldn’t really want to eat more than a few bites. You’ll also get some anti-oxidant action from the super dark chocolate in them. I have to confess, I felt so guilty after making them that I ended up throwing them away in an impulsive moment after only eating 2 bites. Brandon was OK with that too (he had one piece). They were quite decadent but should only be eaten in extreme moderation.

Ingredients:
1/3 cup butter
4 oz. high quality dark chocolate (I used Ghirardelli 60% cocoa)
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup good quality cocoa powder (the darker the better)
1 8 oz. container mascarpone cheese
3 eggs
3 tbsp. strong coffee
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup unbleached flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Ganache top:
6 oz. high quality dark chocolate (I used Ghirardelli 60% cocoa)
6 tbsp. heavy cream
1 tbsp. butter

Preheat oven to 325°F. In a small pot, melt the butter and bring it to just below a boil; have the chopped chocolate in a mixing bowl–pour the hot butter over the chocolate and let stand for 30 seconds allowing the chocolate to melt. Add the sugar and chocolate. Whisk the in the mascarpone, eggs, coffee, and vanilla, mixing until smooth. Gently fold the flour and salt into the batter. Pour batter into a 9×12 pan. I line the pan with parchment paper for easy cleanup. Place into preheated oven and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow the brownies to cool on a cooling rack. While this is going on, make your ganache by heating the cream and butter in a microwave-safe dish for about 2 minutes. Add the chocolate chips to this and allow to sit without moving for about 30 sec. With a fork or baby whisk, blend well. Once the ganache is nice and shiny, pour it evenly over the brownies and allow to cool. Place the brownies in the fridge for about 20 minutes before cutting.