Guinness Chocolate Cake

Laetare! With three weeks left until Easter, we get a little taste of rejoicing, like a runner eating one of those sugary gel packs during a race, to give them a boost toward the finish. We also, handily, got a little taste of spring weather to get us through whatever the late-winter lion is going to throw at us. All the snow has melted in Chicago (miracle!), and GREEN THINGS ARE GROWING OUT OF THE GROUND. Toddlers are getting reacquainted with things like fresh air and dirt. The world is a nice place to be in again.

This weekend we were privileged to be part of the baptism of our friends' brand-new baby son, and I thought how right the timing felt - another little taste of joy this weekend, along with a renewal of the promises we made at our own baptism. Do you reject Satan? YES! Do you believe in God? YES!



We also brought some dinner over to other friends who just had a baby. I gave them really overcooked corned beef and cabbage! Aren't I nice? I felt bad until I realized I also brought cake. See? That's why you bring cake! Even better if it's dark, dense, beer-infused chocolate cake with cream cheese frosting. I like how the frosting looks (like the frothy head of a pint), but I think I prefer the cake without. It's just so moist and perfect on its own!



Guinness Chocolate Cake

(12 servings)

For the cake:

1 cup Guinness
1 cup (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into small slices
3/4 unsweetened cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

For the frosting:

8 ounces cream cheese
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch springform pan, line with parchment paper, and butter the paper.

In a wide, shallow saucepan over medium heat, heat up the beer and butter until the butter melts. Remove from heat and stir in the cocoa powder and sugar. In a separate bowl, whisk together sour cream, eggs, and vanilla until smooth; add to beer mixture and whisk to combine. Add the flour and baking soda and whisk until incorporated. Pour into the prepared pan and bake 45-60 minutes, until the cake springs back when lightly touched, and the sides are beginning to come away from the pan.

Allow to cool completely before removing from the pan. While the cake cools, make the frosting. Whip the cream cheese until smooth, then add the sugar. Whip to combine, and then add the cream and whip again until fluffy and spreadable. When the cake is completely cool, remove it to a cake plate, and top with the frosting. The white topping resembles the frothy head on a pint of Guinness. Sláinte!

Coconut-Lime Macaroon Nests

The calendar said it was spring a week ago, and I'm starting to believe it. Yesterday Anne and I went for a walk, and when the sun came out from behind the clouds and the wind stopped blowing for a second, it was too hot for my big coat. Daffodils and tulips are poking their leaves through the ground, and I saw a whole row of fully-bloomed purple crocus. The birds are chirping! My seedlings are really growing; most of them have sprouted their second set of leaves (the first set of true leaves!), and I'm going to have to start thinning and repotting them already; more about that later! I can't believe how fast they're growing!



These little macaroon nests are perfect for Passover and Easter; cute enough to please the littles (if their baskets full of peeps and chocolate bunnies aren't enough), not too sweet, and subtly flavored.

Happy Spring!

Coconut-Lime Macaroon Nests

Adapted from Bon Appétit

2 egg whites
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon lime zest
7 ounces (about 3.5 cups) coconut flakes/chips, available at Whole Foods or similar stores

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whip the egg whites and sugar until frothy. Whisk in the salt and lime zest and add the coconut flakes. Toss to coat. Scoop the coconut mixture in heaping tablespoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheets, making your best attempt to shape them into nests; they're not very cooperative. Bake for 18-20 minutes, until golden brown. Allow to cool on the baking sheets, and when they're cool, arrange whatever "eggs" you like on top. I used peanut butter M&Ms, but those little Whoppers robin eggs would be great, or jelly beans, or any of the other myriad egg-shaped tiny candies available at your nearest sweets emporium (aka Target).

Laissez les bon temps rouler!

It's Mardi Gras!



Mix up a pitcher of these pink beauties, and let the tropical, boozy goodness transport you to sunny New Orleans. Drink up! Lent starts tomorrow!



Hurricanes

1 1/2 cups pineapple juice
2 cups orange juice
3/4 cup grenadine
1/2 cup simple syrup
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
1 1/2 cups light rum
2 tablespoons dark rum
orange slices and maraschino cherries, for garnish

In a pitcher, combine juices, grenadine, and simple syrup. Mix together. Add light and dark rum and stir to combine. Serve in glasses with plenty of ice and an orange slice and cherry in each glass. Laissez les bon temps rouler!

serves 4-6

Red Velvet Hot Chocolate

Happy Valentine's Day! I do not come to you today with tips for a romantic evening with your honey. But if you'd like to share some love with your girlfriends in the form of fluffy pink marshmallow hearts, cookies, and cream puffs, you're in luck! That's just what we're serving in the Coppertop Kitchen today.





The genius of this idea is in the whipped cream. Truth time: red velvet is not really a flavor. It's all in your head. If you close your eyes and bite into a red velvet cupcake, it will taste like... chocolate! It's the cream cheese frosting that sets it apart. So that's what we did! Hot chocolate with a splash of red food coloring, topped with tangy-sweet cream cheese whipped cream and a pink marshmallow heart, for maximum cutesy-ness.

By the way, pink marshmallow hearts have the following message on the package:

"A fat free food! Great for snacking!"

...I ask you.



These cream puffs are from Chicago company Puffs of Doom. Yum!




Red Velvet Hot Chocolate with Cream Cheese Whipped Cream

For the hot chocolate:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
a dash of salt
1/3 cup hot water
4 cups milk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon red food coloring

Combine sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium saucepan. Add hot water, and whisk until the mixture is smooth. Place pan over medium-high heat and bring to a boil, then whisk in milk. Reduce heat to medium-low, and stir occasionally until hot and steaming. Do not boil. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and food coloring. Serve with cream cheese whipped cream.

For the whipped cream:
1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons whipped cream cheese
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, and beat until fluffy.

Yield: six servings

Seven Quick Takes: Valentine's Day Edition

There is so much adorable pink stuff floating around the internet this week! I thought I'd use today's post to round up a few of my V-day favorites in a linky list for you, in seven categories! (Visit Hallie for many, many more quick takes.)

1. Treats:
- Hot pink glazed doughnuts? Yes please.
- Lavender buttermilk pancakes (use heart-shaped molds for an adorable V-day breakfast)
- Chocolate covered rice krispie hearts
- Want to make someone fall in love with you? Make them this chocolate cake.
- Heart-glazed cornmeal cookies.

2. Romantic Dinners:
- Roast chicken with (magic) dijon sauce.
- Crab cakes!
- Baked pasta: do-ahead = more time for romance.
- Braised short ribs and parsnip latkes.

3. Libations:
- Nothing says "I love you" like oranges and bourbon.
- ...except maybe blood oranges and gin.
- Special juice, perfect for brunch.

4. Gifts:
- Loving the new album by Audrey Assad. Also loving her dress in this video!
- Adorable custom journals from Minted. I won one from Tracy (thanks!), and am still thinking about which one I want - there are so many great ones!
- Joy the Baker cookbook! Available for pre-order (it comes out on Feb. 28).
- A new book by your favorite Catholic women writers, which comes out on March 2.
- How about a donation to a great cause?
- This deal has actually ended, but would be easy to recreate for an intimate at-home wine tasting.
- Some people might be excited that he went to Jared, but I'd rather he went to Etsy.

5. Fun stuff happening this weekend:
- Logan Square Pastry Market, if you're not into baking your own (or even if you are).
- Dose Market, this Sunday: food, fashion, and an incredibly beautiful venue. Win.
- Traverse City Microbrew and Music Festival. Sad that I can't go!

6. I would love to make some of these.

7. Romance on another level.

I'm not entirely faithful in my daily prayer and devotions, but recently a friend shared something that she had heard, and it really stuck: ingesting Scripture daily is as important as ingesting food. I've felt the ripples of that thought radiating through my life this week, and morning prayer today (for the feast of St. Scholastica) is full of the imagery of God as a lover. Reading this scripture, I felt comforted and loved and filled with hope, and I'd like to share it with you, too.

My lover speaks; he says to me,

"Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one,

and come!

For see, the winter is past,

the rains are over and gone.

The flowers appear on the earth,

the time of pruning the vines has come,

and the song of the dove is heard in our land.

Arise, my beloved, my beautiful one,

and come!

O my dove in the clefts of the rock,

in the secret recesses of the cliff,

Let me see you,

let me hear your voice,

For your voice is sweet,

and you are lovely."

-Song of Songs 2:10-14

Spiced Apple Cider

This Christmas Eve, let's gather 'round the tree and sing carols with family and friends.  Let's pass a plate of cookies and exchange a gift or two.  Let's listen for the sound of reindeer hooves on the roof, and watch the snow fall quietly outside.  Let's sit in front of the fire together, hands wrapped around steaming mugs of hot and cheery cider.



I hope this Christmas brings comfort and joy to your home, and a renewed sense of the presence of God and light in your life.  Merry Christmas!

Hot Spiced Cider

2 quarts apple cider
2 oranges
2 cinnamon sticks
2 whole star anise
1 teaspoon whole cloves
1 teaspoon whole black peppercorns

Using a vegetable peeler, remove the zest from the oranges in long strips.  Place orange peels and whole spices in a heavy pot on the stove.  Slice oranges in half and squeeze the juice into the pot.  Pour apple cider over, cover, and place over a medium flame until cider just begins to bubble.  Remove from heat and allow to steep.  Strain and discard solids, and return to the pot over a low flame, or to a slow cooker on low.  Add a bit of bourbon or dark rum to each mug as you serve - you wouldn't want that extra kick of holiday cheer to cook off!

Russian Tea Cakes

This Saturday morning, I woke to one of the most lovely things you can see the week before Christmas: a light dusting of snow falling merrily from the sky.  I promptly donned my boots, coat, and obnoxious drug store Santa hat, grabbed a ladder, and went out to the front of the building to put up a few twinkly lights.



Our Christmas decorations went up a little at time this year.  After Thanksgiving, I brought up the box from the basement, and we've just been taking a few things out and putting them up around the house when we have spare moments.  The advent wreath was first.  Then a funny little snowman who counts down the days until Christmas.  We got a tree, and then a few days later, decorated it with lights.  A few days after that, we finally got around to the ornaments.  It's been really nice.





Russian tea cakes are my all-time favorite Christmas cookie.  The instant hit of sweetness when you bite through the outer layer of powdered sugar, the tender, crumbly cookie, the crunchy walnuts.  They are practically perfect in every way.




Russian Tea Cakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons powdered sugar (plus 1 cup extra for rolling)
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup softened butter (2 sticks)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer and mix on low until well incorporated.  Scoop a tablespoon of dough at a time, roll it into a ball between your palms.  Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake for 15-18 minutes, until cookies are just set and barely beginning to brown on the bottom edges.  Remove from oven, allow to cool 2 minutes on the pan and roll in powdered sugar while still hot.  Cool completely.

Yield: about 3 dozen cookies

Note: In an airtight container, these keep well for at least a week.  They have never lasted that long in our house.

Caramelized Pear Gingerbread

My Google calendar looks sort of like a game of Tetris, played by someone who really knows how to play, like my mother-in-law.  (Really, you should see her play - it's unbelievable.)  It feels like it, too.  As soon as I fit something in, something else comes floating down from the top of the screen.  

Another party?!

Are you starting to feel like this, too?  Are you feeling the inevitable stress of the season?  Let's take a tiny step back.  In the midst of frantic shopping, wrapping, mailing, partying, caroling, and decorating, let's just take a moment to pause and enjoy.  Let's bake gingerbread, just for fun.

Here's some good news: this gingerbread has to bake for more than an hour.  And then it has to cool.  So put it together, pop it in the oven, and check some other things off your list while your house fills with the smell of spicy sweet gingerbread.  When it's cooled, put on your favorite Christmas music, make yourself a cup of tea, sit in front of your tree, and enjoy a slice.  It is dense, moist and spicy.  It's got molasses, honey, caramelized pears and pecans, and three kinds of ginger.  And hopefully it's just the thing to scare your inner Grinch away, so that you can really enjoy this wonderful time of year!

Caramelized Pear Gingerbread
Adapted from 101cookbooks.com

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup unsulphured molasses
3/4 honey
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
3 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 cup milk (2%)
1 tablespoon freshly ground ginger root
1/3 cup minced crystallized ginger

3 firm ripe pears, such as Bosc, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped pecan halves
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a medium saucepan, combine butter, water, molasses, honey, and brown sugar.  Place the pan over low heat, and stir frequently until butter is melted and ingredients are well combined.  Remove from heat, and pour mixture in a bowl to cool.  In a separate bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, ground ginger, cinnamon, allspice and cloves, and set aside.

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large heavy skillet over high heat.  Add pears, and cook about 3 minutes, until beginning to caramelize.  Stir in pecans, brown sugar, and cinnamon, and cook a couple more minutes, until pears are soft but still retain their shape.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Lightly coat the inside of a nonstick Bundt pan with cooking spray, and pour pear mixture into the bottom, spreading evenly.  Add eggs to cooled molasses-butter mixture, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add milk and stir to combine.  Fold in dry ingredients, and don't let the lumps get you down - they'll take care of themselves.  Stir in fresh and crystallized gingers, and pour batter gently over the pears in the pan.  Place cake pan on a cookie sheet and bake 75-90 minutes, until top of cake springs back when lightly touched, and cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Allow cake to cool 15 minutes in the pan, and then gently invert it onto a wire rack to cool completely.  This is pretty tricky, since the cake pan is still hot.  I put the rack upside-down over the cake pan, and then used a kitchen towel to flip it over.  It would be nice to have a friend help you with this, but you can totally do it on your own.

The cake keeps well in the fridge.  Allow it to come back to room temperature before serving, to get the full moisture and texture back.  15 seconds per slice in the microwave works well, too, if you don't have hours and hours to wait (aka if you want to eat it for breakfast).

Anise-Almond Biscotti

I learned a lot of things about myself when I spent a month in Italy in college.

• I don't like to make grammatical mistakes, even in other languages.
• I like Italian coffee bars. Espresso or cappuccino, a biscotto or cornetto. A real cup, and a few seconds to enjoy.  No 20-ounce sugar-free, non-fat, super duper caramel latte, no giant mediocre muffin, none of this to-go nonsense.
• I can live without peanut butter.
• I love-love-love the flavor of anise. It started with my first sip of Sambuca, and I haven't been able to stay away since.

The word "biscotti" is the plural of "biscotto," which literally means "twice-cooked." You bake them once in a flat, oblong loaf, and then you slice them and bake them again!





These flavor of these cookies is subtle and sophisticated.  They make a fantastic gift, because they are fancy and impressive, and they keep well without becoming stale.

Give some away in cute little tins, but save a few for breakfast!

Anise-Almond Biscotti
adapted from Brown Eyed Baker
 
1.5 cups roasted unsalted almonds
2.5 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon anise extract
3 large eggs, plus 1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon anise seedes
Turbinado (raw) sugar for decorating the top

Preheat oven to 375.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment and set aside.  On a different rimmed baking sheet, arrange the almonds in a single layer.  Place in the oven and toast until golden and fragrant, about 6-8 minutes.  Cool completely.  Sift together flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt, and set aside.  Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add anise extract and beat to combine.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add flour mixture and stir to combine.  Stir in almonds and anise seeds.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface, and knead to form a cohesive ball.  Make sure the nuts and seeds are evenly distributed.  My dough was very sticky, so make sure to have extra flour handy for your hands.  Divide dough in half, and shape each half into an oblong loaf, about 18 inches long, 6 inches wide, and 1 inch thick.  Don't worry too much if these loaves look smooth and pretty - it doesn't matter after you cut them up.  Transfer carefully to parchment-lined baking sheet and bake about 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the cooking time, until the loaves are golden and firm.  Transfer parchment and loaves to a wire rack and cool 20 minutes.  Decrease oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Using a serrated knife, slice loaves on the diagonal into 1/2-inch slices.  Place a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet, and arrange slices cut-side up.  Bake about 30 minutes, and let cool completely on the rack.

Yield: about 4 dozen

7 Quick Takes: Dear Santa...

What's on your Christmas wish list this year?  A fancy electronic doo-dad?  A designer handbag?  Before the whole month of December sweeps by in a giant wave of parties and wrapping paper and baked goods, I wanted to give you some great gift ideas for your foodie friends, no matter what your budget!  Click on the pictures to be redirected to Amazon.com to view details and order these items!

1.

An enameled cast-iron Dutch oven is a perfect gift, especially as we are entering into stew and braise season.  These pots are equally at home on the stove, in the oven, and on a holiday table.  Le Creuset is the most popular and well-known brand, and they come in beautiful colors, but it comes with a designer price tag.  I use a 5.5-quart Martha Stewart Collection pot that I got as a wedding present more than three years ago, and I absolutely love it.  I looked around online, and apparently they've stopped making that particular one, but as long as the pot is enameled cast iron, I'd say go for a deal.  The 5.5-quart size is a great all-purpose soup-stew-braising-baking pot, and I use mine all the time.  It heats really evenly, so you can get a perfect sear on meats without scorching.  I've even used it to make pudding.  Check at your local TJ Maxx, Marshall's, or HomeGoods to find discounts on the Le Creuset brand.

2.

Oh Kitchen Aid, oh Kitchen Aid, how lovely are your features...  This thing is amazing.  It kneads dough, whips cream and egg whites (meringue, how I love thee), and creams butter in the flashiest of flashes.  If you already have a Kitchen Aid, I've heard great things about the ice cream maker attachment.  (I have heard equally lackluster things about the pasta machine attachment, but to be fair, I have never tried either one.)

                                       3.                                                  4.

A couple of different thermometers for you to consider.  On the left is a simple one that hangs from one of the shelves in your oven, and tells you the actual temperature inside!  The temperature gauge on an oven can have a 10- to 15-degree swing, and do you really want to risk that when you're baking?  I didn't think so.  The little one on the right is great for roasting meats - stick the probe in, set the digital part on the counter, and close the door.  No more opening the door and letting all the heat escape while you poke the meat (and release the juices!).  You can even set an alarm that goes off when the inside of the meat reaches the desired temperature.  Done and done.

5.

A Microplane grater/zester.  I finally bought myself one, and used it for the first time last night.  Oh. My. Gosh. I can't tell you how many times I have accidentally grated my knuckles while trying to zest a lemon or grate some fresh ginger.  If only I had known sooner that for ten measly dollars, my fingers could be saved... This thing is a miracle.  Get it.

6.

Tongs!  Another amazingly useful tool.  Before I had these, I didn't know I needed them.  Now, I find myself reaching for them all the time.  My favorite use for them: tossing hot pasta in a homemade sauce.

7.

This past weekend, I was rolling out the dough to make the butter horns (our homemade crescent rolls), and I was getting flour all over my black shirt (BLACK?!  What was I thinking?).  And then I remembered that old-timey stroke of genius, that item of clothing that has been worn by generations of women, but somehow forgotten by ours, THE APRON.  I have one, but I don't wear it, because it's indecent.  It's me as Venus.  It's...  funny and scandalous.  So it's basically like I don't have one.  But!  I want one and I love the ones they have at Anthropologie.  They're are whimsical and sweet.

Visit Jen for more quick takes!  Have a great weekend, friends!

Thanksgiving: What To Drink

Choosing an appropriate wine for a traditional Thanksgiving dinner, with all its rich and varied components, can be a tricky thing.  There are a few different ways you can successfully go, but in the end, it's going to come down to personal preference.  If you're feeding a crowd, it's best to have some options.  The black pepper and mineral notes of a bold California Zinfandel provide a more interesting contrast than you might get from other, smoother reds.  My favorite is Storybook Mountain Vineyards Eastern Exposures Zinfandel.  For white, choose a Chardonnay that's not overly oaky, like Robert Mondavi Private Selection.

If you're a guest, consider bringing something a little more unexpected, like a sparkling wine.  Last year, I brought a sparkling dry rosé from Hesketh Wines which was unanimously loved.  A visually celebratory wine with a faint pink color, its dry effervescence provided some much-needed levity to the otherwise heavy and complex flavor profile of the meal.  And there's just something about bubbles that signals a special occasion.