Valentines Day

We celebrated Valentines Day with a few sweets and sweet thoughts. I made iced brownies with sprinkles and ladybug cupcakes for my Mom. Tim decided to name a cockroach after me - so sweet - cause cockroaches are forever.

German Chocolate Cake Cookies

 

Baking for the Holidays and these are a winner!

INGREDIENTS

Filling

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk 3 large egg yolks
1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 c. chopped toasted pecans
1 c. shredded sweetened coconut

Cookies

2 1/2 c. all-purpose Bour, spooned and leveled 1/3 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted

1 1/2 c. packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 3/4 c. shredded sweetened coconut (3/4 cup untoasted and 1 cup toasted), divided 3/4 c. chopped toasted pecans

4 oz. German chocolate, chopped

DIRECTIONS Make Filling

Whisk together condensed milk, egg yolks, and butter in a medium

saucepan. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until bubbly and

thick, 4 to 6 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla, pecans, and

coconut. Transfer to a bowl and let stand until cool, about 1 hour.

Make Cookies

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk together pour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.

Beat butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed until combined, about 1 minute. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Reduce mixer speed to low and beat in pour mixture just until combined. Stir in 3/4 cup untoasted coconut, pecans, and chopped chocolate.

Scoop cookies (about 2 tablespoons each) and place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. Press to Batten slightly. Bake until edges are set, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheets, 5 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Spoon filling onto bottoms of half of cookies; sandwich with remaining cookies. Roll edges in 1 cup toasted coconut.

PEACH PIE CRUMBLE BARS

You know how you don't realize how much you miss something until you taste it again. That is how I felt about this dessert.  When I lived in North Carolina. We used to drive to Gaffney SC all the time to pick up bushels of peaches.  I love peach pie.  I had a friend who's mother used to make me fried peach turnovers which were so amazing.  Tim made this this past weekend and I couldn't stop taking bites of it all day long. So good. 

PEACH PIE CRUMBLE BARS


CRUST:

1 stick plus 5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan 1 cup sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon coarse salt

FILLING:
1 1/4 pounds peaches, pitted and cut into a 1/2-inch dice (3 1/2 cups) 1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Butter an 8-by-8-by-2-inch cake pan. Line with parchment, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides; butter parchment

Crust: Beat butter with sugar in a bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Scrape down bowl. Add flour and salt; beat until dough forms clumps but does not completely hold together. Press 2 1/2 cups flour mixture into bottom and 1 inch up sides of prepared pan.

Filling: Stir together peaches, sugar, flour, lemon juice, and salt in a bowl. Pour into crust. Crumble remaining flour mixture evenly over top, squeezing to create clumps. Bake until bubbling in center and crust is golden, about 1 hour, 10 minutes (if browning too quickly, tent top with foil). Let cool 20 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely on a wire rack, about 1 hour. Cut into 2-inch squares.

Love Notes

It was cold, snowy and messy outside. We just stayed in and worked on projects and cooked and baked.

Love Notes

INGREDIENTS:

2 refrigerated pie crusts

Flour for rolling out dough

1/2 c. strawberry jam

Egg wash

1/4 c. Granulated sugar, for sprinkling

DIRECTION:

• Preheat oven to 375°. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1 pie crust. Using a paring knife, cut out long diamond shapes, about 4" on each side. Transfer diamonds to baking sheet. Reroll extra dough to make more diamonds. (You should have enough dough to make about 6.)
• Fill the center of each diamond with a very small dollop of strawberry filling. Fold three of the corners into the center so that the dough looks like an open envelope. Press down lightly on dough to seal. Use a small heart cookie cutter to stamp out remaining dough into hearts, and place a heart in the center of each.
• Brush envelopes with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until envelopes are golden, about 15 minutes.
• Let cool for 10 minutes on baking sheet before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Apple Cider Donut Cake

We decided to throw a dinner party between Xmas and New Years and Tim made this great cake for desert.  The trick to the recipe is to use a light extra virgin olive oil.

Ingredients:

        2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for 

        pan 

       

        2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for pan 

1 cup whole-wheat flour

• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  
• 1 3/4 cups natural cane sugar
  
• 1 cup apple cider
  
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
  

3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  
• 3 large eggs, room temperature
  

Directions:

• 
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 12-cup Bundt pan. In a large bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, whisk together 1 1/2 cups sugar, cider, oil, applesauce, vanilla, and eggs. Add egg mixture to flour mixture; whisk until combined. Transfer batter to prepared pan.
  
• 
  2. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a tester inserted in center comes out clean, 45 to 50 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack set over a rimmed baking sheet; let cool 15 minutes. Meanwhile, mix together remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon.
  
• 
  3. Invert warm cake onto rack. Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar. Let cool completely before serving. Cake can be stored, covered, at room temperature up to 2 days.
  

Bundt pans need to be generously buttered and floured so cakes don't stick; use a pastry brush to be sure to get into all the crevices.

Christmas Cookie Weekend

I love when Tim gets in the mood to make Christmas cookies.  They always get me in the Holiday spirit.  Double stuff Oreo cookies dipped in white chocolate with peppermint sprinkles and Pinwheel sugar cookies.  Yum!

BANANA PUDDING ICE BOX CAKE

With all this healthy eating lately - we weren't having any of that for Mom's birthday.  Tim spent the entire day in the kitchen poor guy whipping up one of his award winning dinners - Rio Grande Enchiladas because Mom wanted mexican food for her birthday dinner.  They are so delicious and we miss Tex Mex food badly.  For dessert, he went all out and made this awesome Banana Pudding Ice Box Cake.  Fragile, quick to melt especially on a day like yesterday - it was so delicious!  Thanks Tim. Happy Birthday Mom.  Enjoy!

BANANA PUDDING ICE BOX CAKE

Vanilla Filling

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 cup milk

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Banana Filling

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup + 2 tbsp milk

3.4 oz package of dry banana cream instant pudding mix

1 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

3/4 cup powdered sugar

Additional Ingredients

Vanilla Wafer Cookies

1/2 cup milk

3-4 Bananas

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1. To prepare the vanilla filling, beat cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a mixer until smooth.

2. Add milk and vanilla extract and beat until smooth. Set aside.

3. To make the whipped cream, whip heavy whipping cream until it begins to thicken.

4. Add powdered sugar and whip until stiff peaks form.

5. Fold whipped cream into cream cheese mixture. Set aside.

6. To prepare the banana filling, beat cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a mixer until smooth.

7. Add milk and beat until smooth.

8. Add dry banana cream pudding mix and mix until smooth. Mixture will be sticky. Set aside.

9. To make the whipped cream, whip heavy whipping cream until it begins to thicken.

10. Add powdered sugar and whip until stiff peaks form.

11. Fold whipped cream into banana mixture. It might seem like it won't come together at first, since the cream cheese mixture is sticky, but carefully fold the two together and they will smooth out.

12. To layer the dessert, first line the sides of a 9 inch springform pan with parchment paper, to make removal from the pan easier. The parchment paper will keep the sides of the dessert from sticking to the pan. Then spread half of the banana filling evenly in the bottom of the pan.

13. Top the banana filling with half of the vanilla filling.

14. Dip vanilla wafer cookies into the milk, one at a time, and add them in a single even layer on top of the vanilla filling.

15. Spread a very thin layer of banana filling on top of the cookies. You should still be able to see the cookies. This layer is primarily to fill ing the gaps left around the cookies.

16. Add a layer of sliced bananas.

17. Top banana slices with remaining banana filling and spread into an even layer.

18. Add remaining vanilla filling and spread into an even layer.

19. Place pan in the freezer until firm, 4-5 hours.

20. Once firm, remove icebox cake from springform pan and place on serving plate.

21. Add additional heavy whipping cream to a mixer bowl and whip until it begins to thicken.

22. Add powdered sugar and whip until stiff peaks form.

23. Pipe whipped cream around the edges of the icebox cake and top with additional wafer cookies and banana slices.

Honey Bee Cake

I love cake molds and I ordered this latest one from William Sonoma.  It's a bee hive mold and you can order these separate candy bees that you attach with buttercream to the outside of the cake.  We wanted to use it for July 4th this year and make a bunch of bee hives but this weekend gave us an opportunity to test the new recipe which we downloaded from WS and the mold itself.  It works beautifully and the recipe is quite good.

Honey Bee Cake

Shaped like a hive and adorned with bees made of royal icing, this whimsical cake will be all the buzz at your next gathering. A drizzle of honey, added right before serving, is the perfect finish for the cake.

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 2 3/4 cups (15 oz./460 g) all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 16 Tbs. (2 sticks) (8 oz./250 g) unsalted butter
• 1 2/3 cups (13 oz./410 g) granulated sugar
• 3 tsp. grated lemon zest
• 4 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup (5 fl. oz./160 ml) milk
• 1/4 cup (2 fl. oz./60 ml) fresh lemon juice

For the glaze:

• 1/2 cup (4 fl. oz./125 ml) honey
• 1 1/2 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp. salt

For the quick buttercream:

• 4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) (2 oz./60 g) unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 cups (6 oz./180 g) confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1 Tbs. milk
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 
  Honey for drizzling (optional)
• Royal Icing Bee Shapes for decorating (optional)

Directions:

Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 325°F (160°C). Grease and flour a beehive cake pan; tap out excess flour.

To make the cake, over a sheet of waxed paper, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat the butter on medium speed until creamy and smooth, about 1 minute. Add the granulated sugar and lemon zest and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla just until incorporated, about 30 seconds.

Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour. Beat each addition just until incorporated, stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the lemon juice and beat for 30 seconds.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, spreading the batter so the sides are higher than the center. Bake until the cake begins to pull away from the sides of the pan and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, 55 to 60 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir together the honey, lemon juice and salt and bring just to a simmer, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat.

Tap the cake pan gently on a work surface to loosen the cake. Set the rack over a sheet of waxed paper, invert the pan onto the rack and lift off the pan. Using a pastry brush, brush the warm cake with the glaze. Let the cake cool completely, at least 2 hours, before assembling and decorating.

To make the buttercream, in a small bowl, using a handheld mixer, beat the butter on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add the confectioners' sugar, milk, vanilla and salt and continue beating until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes more.

Stand one half of the cooled cake vertically on its base. Using a serrated knife, level the flat side of the cake by trimming off 1/8 to 1/4 inch (3 to 6 mm) from the edge. Repeat with the other cake half.

Using an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of buttercream, about 1/2 cup (4 oz./125 g), on the cut side of one of the cake halves. Place the cut side of the other cake half against the frosted side and gently press to secure the two halves; using the spatula, smooth the buttercream at the seam.

Using a large spatula, carefully transfer the cake to a serving platter. Immediately before serving, drizzle with honey, making sure to cover the frosted seams of the beehive. Decorate with the royal icing honeybees and serve. Serves 16.

Rhubarb Honey Lemon Cake

We are celebrating this year because our rhubarb is finally mature and we can harvest it and bake with it this year.  Tim made a desert last weekend from one of his mother's classic recipes but this weekend he ventured out with something different.

8 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, plus extra for greasing 

2 eggs 

3/4 cup white flour 

1½ tsp baking powder 

Pinch salt 

2/3 cup honey 

Grated zest 1 lemon

Juice ½ lemon 

1 tbsp milk

1 cup of rhubarb, cut into chunks

3 tbsp rum

Greek yoghurt, to serve

• Preheat the oven to  350F. Grease and line the base of a 8"  loose-based cake tin. In a large bowl, beat the butter with electric beaters until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in the eggs.

Add the flour, baking powder, salt, honey and lemon zest and juice. Fold in the milk. Tip the cake batter into the prepared tin and smooth the top.

Toss the rhubarb in 1 tbsp of sugar and use to top the batter. Dust with the remaining 2 tbsp of sugar. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Allow to cool on a wire rack before removing from the tin. Serve with Greek yoghurt.

Apple Pie Bars

Cold fall days are perfect for staying inside and baking.  We had a couple chores outdoors, putting away a couple more plant pots, a birdhouse and Aquaspikes and then we spent the rest of the day baking.  Tim tried a new recipe - and it was so good.  Just a variation on Apple Pie.

Apple Pie Bars

Crust:
3 sticks unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Filling:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup light brown sugar
12 Granny Smith apples ( about 6 pounds) - peeled cored and thinly sliced
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup water, as necessary

Topping:
3/4 cup walnuts
3 cups quick cooking oats
2 cups all - purpose flour
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes and chilled

1. Make the crust.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line a 15 by 17 inch rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper in a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter with the sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, 2 minutes.  At low speed, beat in the flour and salt until a soft dough forms,  Press the dough over the bottom of the sheet and 1/2 inch up the side.  Bake in the center of the oven for 20 minutes until the crust is golden.  Let cool on a rack.

2. Make the filling.  In each of 2 large skillets, melt 3 tablespoons of the butter with 1/4 cup of the light brown sugar.  Add the apples to the skillets and cook over high heat, stirring occasionally until softened, about 10 minutes.  Stir half of the cinnamon and nutmeg into each skillet.  Cook until the apples are caramelized and very tender and the liquid is evaporated about 10 minutes longer, scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the skillets and add up to 1/2 cup of water to each pan to prevent scorching .  Let cool.

3. Make the topping.  Spread the walnuts in a pie plate and toast until golden and fragrant., about 8 minutes.  Let cook, then coarsely chop the walnuts.  In a large bowl, mix the oats with the flour, light brown sugar, cinnamon, baking soda and salt.  Using a pastry blender or two knives. cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal.  Stir in the walnuts and press the mixture into clumps.

4. Spread the apple filling over the crust.  Scatter the crumbs on top, pressing them lightly into an even layer.  Bake in the center of the oven for about 1 hour until the topping is golden; rotate the pan halfway through baking.  Let cool completely on a rack before cutting into 2 inch bars.

Lemon Curd Cupcakes

We had our best friends and neighbors, Mel and Marni, over for dinner Saturday night.  It had to have been the most discombobulated meal. I don't know what was wrong with Tim and me?  It was like the Keystone Cops - we are usually so in sync when we have dinner parties and I don't know what happened but what a mess.  Potatoes not done, spilling braised carrots on the floor, a mess.   The only perfect aspect was these amazing Lemon Curd cupcakes.  They were so delicious and beautiful to look at - really good!

Lemon Curd Cupcakes

3 1/2 cups all -purpose flour, sifted
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest, plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice ( from 1 to 2 lemons)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
1 3/4 cups (3 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
8 ounces cream cheese room temperature
7 large eggs, room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Confectioner's sugar for dusting
Lemon curd ( see below)

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.  Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Whisk together flour, zest, baking powder, and salt.

2. With an electric mixer on medium -high speed, cream butter and granulated sugar until pale and fluffy.  Beat in cream cheese. Reduce speed to low. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.  Beat in lemon juice and vanilla.  Add flour mixture in three batches, beating until just combined after each.

3. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three quarters full.  Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 28 minutes.  Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.  Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature, or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

4. To finish, dust cupcakes with confectioner's sugar.  Fill a pastry bag fitted with a coupler and a medium round tip (#8) with curd.  Insert tip into top of each cupcake, and squeeze some curd below top to fill the inside, the lift the tip and squeeze more curd in a pool on top.  Filled cupcakes can be kept at room temperature up to 1 hour ( or refrigerated a few hours more) before serving.

Lemon Curd
2 whole eggs plus 8 egg yolks
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice ( about 6 lemons)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces, room temperature.

Combine whole eggs and yolks, sugar, and lemon juice in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water.  Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.  Remove from heat.  Add butter, a few pieces at a time, whisking until smooth after each addition.  Strain through a fine sieve into another bowl, and cover with parchment paper or plastic wrap pressing it directly on surface to prevent a skin from forming.  Refrigerate until chilled and firm , at least 2 hours ( or up to 2 days).

Devil's Food Cupcakes

We made dinner for our neighbors, Marni and Mel, for her birthday.  Because they aren't big sweet eaters, we made cupcakes instead of a birthday cake.  Tim made devil's food cupcakes and we served them on individual little cupcake stands - very cute.  They were very good.

3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch - process cocoa powder
3/4 cup hot water
3 cups all - purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs room temperature
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees . Line standard muffin tins with paper liners.   Whisk together cocoa and hot water until smooth.  In another bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

2. Melt butter with sugar in a saucepan over medium - low heat, stirring to combine.  Remove from heat, and pour into a mixing bowl.  With an electric mixer on medium - low  speed, beat until mixture is cooled, 4 to 5 minutes.  Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.  Add vanilla, then cocoa mixture, and beat until combined.  Reduce speed to low.  Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream, and beating until just combined after each.

3. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each three - quarters full.  Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes.  Transfer tins to wire racks to cool 15 minutes; turn out cupcakes onto racks and let cool completely.  Cupcakes can be stored overnight at room temperature , or frozen up to 2 months, in airtight containers.

4. To finish, use a small offset spatula to spread cupcakes with frosting.  Refrigerate up to 3 days in airtight containers; bring to room temperature and garnish with chocolate curls just before serving.

FROSTING:

1 pound good - quality bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
2 1/3 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup corn syrup

1. Place chocolate in a large heatproof bowl.  Bring cream and corn syrup just to a simmer over medium - high heat; pour mixture over chocolate.  Let stand, without stirring, until chocolate begins to melt.

2. Beginning near the center and working outward, stir melted chocolate into cream until mixture is combined and smooth ) do not overstir.

3. Refrigerate, stirring every 5 minutes, until frosting just barely begins to hold it's shape and is slightly lighter in color.  Use immediately ( ganache will continue to thicken after you stop stirring.)

Gulab Jamun

There's a vegetarian Indian restaurant near my office where I go for lunch all the time.  The food is amazing, incredibly inexpensive for NYC and they serve one of my favorite deserts - Gulab Jamun.  Tim just went to India for work and brought back box mixes of them for us to freeze and make whenever we want.  They are basically fried dough balls soaked in sugar syrup - what is not to like?  Right?  We had these for desert with the Lamb Tagine - a couple go a long way.  The company that makes the boxed mix is Nilon's.  I am sure we can find them in an Indian grocery in the city.  They are moist and delicious.
 

This has to be our favorite desert recipe .  It is moist, flavorful, simple, delicious.

Citrus-Almond Poundcake

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cubed, plus more for pan

Flour for pan

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

3 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

7-ounce tube almond paste

7 large eggs

2 teaspoons lemon zest

2 teaspoons orange zest

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups cake flour

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt.

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour an 8-cup Bundt pan. Put lemon juice, orange juice and 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar in a small saucepan over low heat; cook until the sugar dissolves and remove from heat.

2. Put almond paste and remaining 2 cups sugar in food processor and process until well combined; add butter and continue processing until light and fluffy. With the machine running, add eggs one at a time along with zest and vanilla, and continue to process until smooth.

3. Stop the machine, add the flour, baking powder and salt, and pulse a few times — just until the dry ingredients are integrated (be careful not to over process, or the cake will become tough). Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake until golden, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. When a skewer or thin-bladed knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, remove the cake from the oven and let cool slightly.

4. Pour the citrus soak over the cake and let it sit for about 30 minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed and the cake releases from the pan easily. Cut into slices.