It's the time of year for pumpkin. We were having friends over and I wanted to make a pumpkin cake, but with a twist. Chiffon cakes are always delicious, light and airy, and I decided a pumpkin-flavoured cake would be a good thing. I found a recipe on-line, very similar to my usual chiffon cake recipe, with the addition of pumpkin and spice. I tweaked it and then added a simple chocolate glaze and cinnamon toasted pecans for a cake that everyone enjoyed.
A few days after I made the cake, a small section was left, sitting on the counter under the glass cake dome. Our son came over for something, saw the cake, went to the cupboard for a plate and helped himself, asked if I minded. Not at all. I was very tickled that he felt so at home, and that he still enjoys his mother's cooking.
Pumpkin Chiffon Cake
2 scant cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
dash of ground cloves
7 eggs, separated, at room temperature
3/4 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1/2 cup vegetable oil (I used grapeseed oil)
1/2 cup room temperature water
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and cloves.
3. In a smaller bowl, mix together the egg yolks, pumpkin puree, water, and oil. Stir until smooth.
4. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture. Pour in the wet ingredients and whisk until smooth.
5. In a large, grease-free bowl (glass or metal), beat the egg whites and cream of tartar until stiff.
6. Stir a large spoonful of the whites into the yolk/flour mixture to lighten, then fold in the remaining egg whites, lifting and folding until no streaks remain.
7. Pour the batter into an ungreased 10-inch tube pan. Bake for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the cake comes clean.
8. Turn the pan over and suspend to cool.
Chocolate Glaze
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Tablespoon light corn syrup
2 Tablespoons cream
Heat gently together and stir until creamy. Pour over the cake.
Toasted Pecans
1/3 cup pecan pieces
1 teaspoon cinnamon sugar
Use a small cast iron skillet and toast over medium heat, stirring frequently. The sugar will caramelize and coat the nuts with a very light coating for a hint of sweetness.
Our apple trees produced a wealth of fruit this year. We give them away and still have plenty. I've been making all kinds of apple dishes and finding inspiration on the web. One recipe intrigued me - Invisible Apple Cake. It's name apparently comes from the way the apples are said to disappear into the cake, however, I think the cake disappears into the layers of apples. The "cake" is primarily apples, with a bit of batter holding them together.
It's a great way to use up about 6 good-sized apples and tastes wonderful cold or warm. I've been keeping it in the fridge and cutting a slice for breakfast, topped with plain yogurt and a sprinkle of cinnamon.
This recipe is my take on a number of recipes I read. It's not too sweet, and can barely be called a "cake", but I quite like it.
Invisible Apple Cake
First, make the batter.
2 eggs
2 Tablespoons maple syrup, or honey, or brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit a 9-inch springform pan. Lightly grease the edges of the pan and place the parchment paper in the bottom.
In a large bowl, beat the eggs well, until frothy and light, and add the maple syrup (or other sweetener). Beat again. Mix in the cream and butter, along with the vanilla, and finally, gently mix in the almond flour and baking powder.
Now, add the apples
6 apples, peeled, cut into quarters, and cored
Slice the apples very thinly and place in the batter as they are cut so they don't brown too much. There will be little batter and a lot of apples. Stir carefully to ensure a bit of batter sticks to each apple slice.
Place them in the prepared pan, and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, or top with sliced almonds.
Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, then cover loosely with a sheet of foil and bake another 15 minutes, or until the apples are tender.
Let cool in the pan, then carefully remove. Serve warm or cold, with custard sauce, yogurt, ice cream, or whipped cream.
Crispy Baked Tomatoes
7 ripe plum tomatoes
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup Panko bread crumbs
2/3 cup coarsely grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons snipped fresh chives
1 teaspoon minced fresh oregano
1 teaspoon minced fresh parsley
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon dried red pepper flakes, if desired
more olive oil for drizzling
Cut the tomatoes in half lengthwise and remove the core and seeds.
Place the tomatoes in a bowl and pour the olive oil over. Toss with your hands to thoroughly coat the tomatoes.
In another bowl combine the bread crumbs, cheese and seasonings. Pour over the tomatoes in the bowl and again with your hands, toss together.
Place each coated tomato half onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Fill with the crumbs remaining in the bowl. Drizzle a bit of olive oil over the top.
Bake at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. The tomatoes should be meltingly soft and the topping crunchy. Enjoy!
Platz is a dish from my childhood and my Mennonite heritage. It's a versatile cake with a simple dough base, fresh or frozen fruit, and a crumbly topping. For this version I used the last of the frozen plums on one end of the cake, and strawberries and rhubarb on the other end.
Platz
Sift together: 2 cups flour, 3 teaspoons baking powder, and 1/4 cup of sugar.
Add: 1/4 cup butter and mix with fingers until fine crumbs form.
Add: 1 cup light cream and 1 egg, lightly mixed together.
Mix well. Dump onto parchment paper lined baking sheet (my foremothers just greased the pan.) The recipe says to use a "fairly large" pan - I use a 9 x 14 inch pan. The dough is sticky and hard to spread so I usually flour my hands well and spread it with my fingers. It will be thin.
Put on a layer of fruit: pitted plum halves, sliced apples, pitted cherries, pitted apricot halves, blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, rhubarb.
Make the crumb topping, called Ruebel
Mix together: 3/4 cup white sugar, 3/4 cup flour, 1/2 teaspoon baking powder.
Add: 1/4 cup butter and use your fingers to make crumbs. Add a little cream to make the crumbs thicker. (As I write this, I think I forgot to add any cream to the crumb mixture - it tastes just fine!)
Sprinkle the crumbs over the fruits and bake at 375 degrees for 30 minutes or so until the dough is cooked and the crumb topping is golden brown.
Serve warm, cut into generous squares. A scoop of ice cream is optional.
