Wednesday, November 14, 2012

Barefoot & Pregnant *** edited to include recipe

I knew that would get your attention.  I don't think I'm pregnant but perhaps it looks that way because I eat too much.  Last week I spent a whole day in the kitchen baking and getting a bit frustrated.  It started out happy as I went to the store to buy some zucchini and a container of vegetable oil to make a proven recipe for Chocolate Zucchini Bread/loaf , from an accomplished baker .  I checked my cupboard and could not find a bundt pan.  I thought I had one.


So off to the store again to buy one and wouldn't you know, there was a recipe for a chocolate bundt cake on the packaging.  I have found that when a manufacturer puts a recipe on their packaging it is usually a proven, time tested and good tasting recipe so I changed my plan and decided to use this newly found recipe instead.  It was also Vegan as it used no eggs or dairy products


I more or less followed the directions and mixed up my batter and filled my new bundt pan.  I also bought a can of PAM to make it easier to release the cake from the pan.  I cut down the sugar content by about 30%


The hardest part about baking is having to clean up after yourself.


The easiest part is watching the batter rise while it bakes.


Soon it is done and cooled enough to put on OUR cooling rack.  I did add a cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips


When it was cool enough I decided to give the topping a quick dusting of icing sugar.  Remember, this was on Saturday afternoon.   We were invited out for dinner on Sunday and I needed to bring something.

Of course if you make cookies, you have a chance to sample one before you give the rest away.  That way you can ensure that it meets your standards and tastes good.   It is hard to taste any cake as you have to slice the first piece and remove it before you are able to sample your creation.   I can't imagine bringing a cake with a slice removed, so the plan was to have a piece for dessert, after we had our dinner, and then make another bundt cake on Sunday morning.

Well, the magic moment of reckoning arrived and it was a bit heavy.  Definitely not something that I would be proud of, so into the garbage it went.  I looked at the recipe again and decided that the mixing order was wrong because the flour was over mixed "in my opinion" .  It needed more air bubbles.  So on Sunday morning I used the same recipe and got all of OUR appliances out again to make another one and this time I used my wire whisks


I attached the whisk hoping to create more air bubbles


Then when the batter (liquid ingredients) was done I folded in the flour at the end, manually using another wire whisk.  This way the flour does not get beaten at all


I cleaned up as my 2nd bundt was in the oven


The 2nd one was not much better than the first one.  I like light and fluffy cakes, not heavy ones so I have come to the conclusion that this particular recipe is NO GOOD, it gets TWO THUMBS DOWN .  Don't believe everything you read on labels.

I still had enough time to make a 3rd cake to bring to dinner which was only 2 hours away.  I used my tried and proven recipe for Chocolate Angel Food cake which is very light but I usually use a rectangular loaf pan.  This time I used my new Bundt Pan but forgot to spray it with PAM so when it was ready I could not  remove it from the pan to put on a topping.   While things didn't work out as planned at least I didn't arrive empty handed


Edited *****************************

As per Richard's request, I am including the recipe for the Chocolate Bundt Cake.  I am now convinced that this cake was supposed to be a bit heavier/dense than what I am used to.

In an effort to minimize beating the flour I have changed the mixing order.  Add ingredients in the order listed


Bowl ONE:  dry ingredients

3    cups   Sugar   ( I reduced to 2-1/4 cups to make it less sweet )
1/2 cup    Cocoa Powder  (I used Frys)
1  tsp       baking soda
3/4 tsp     salt

Bowl TWO:  wet ingredients

1 cup      Vegetable Oil
1 tsp        vinegar
1 tsp        vanilla
3 cups      water

Bowl  THREE: dry ingredient

4-1/2 cups  sifted flour ( I used general purpose )

I think this qualifies as Vegan.   I don't see any animals in these lists
add ingredients in order listed

Mix Bowl One
Mix Bowl Two

Combine Bowl One and Bowl Two (together)
then FOLD IN the flour from Bowl Three (best by hand with wire whisk)

2nd EDIT *******************************************************

OPTIONAL:  If you have a sweet tooth like Richard , you can add 1 cup of semi-sweet Chocolate Chips

***************************************************************

Bake @ 350°F for  45-55 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean

leave in pan for 15 minutes, then remove from pan and put on cooling rack
when cool, dust with icing sugar


19 comments:

  1. Well you're always bare foot so I didn't gasp at that part of the title.

    I knew you were fibbing ... Looks ilke fun in the kitchen, even with the frustrating bits you got to play with cakes ... that's fun!!

    Did the Angel Food cake end up tasting good tho ?

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    1. Brenda:

      I do like to alter recipes, esp cut down the sugar. I find that most recipes are too sweet. Barefoot baking is my specialty. Actually anything barefoot is good.

      Yes, the Angel Food cake was much lighter, but not Vegan friendly as you require whipped egg whites to add air into the batter, I would imagine that you could use baking powder instead

      Delete
  2. Bob,

    I was under the impression that a "Bundt Cakes" were always dense and heavy, like a pound cake. I've had Bundt cakes that have had thick, heavy, pudding like center. I think I even remember, when I was a kid, my mom making some kind of cinnamon swirl cakes in her Bundt pan. Thanks, now I'm getting hungry!

    This looks good too...

    http://dairyfreecooking.about.com/od/cakes/r/Vegan-Maple-Butter-Bundt-Cake.htm

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    1. Erik:

      I am not used to heavier type cakes. I have been eating this Bundt Cake and it is moist and tastes good. Doesn't feel as heavy as I thought. It is also Vegan friendly, no eggs, no dairy . . . so maybe I was too quick to throw out the first one. As you say, perhaps Bundt cakes are meant to be more substantial.

      I haven't made a pound cake for years but I add some chocolate and swirl it in just before baking so it has a dark & light curved pattern. I also have a bread machine so I can make cinnamon bun dough . . . In the winter I spend most of my Saturdays with my oven

      Thanks for the link, I am going to try a dietetic cake soon and try to make something Vegan/Dietetic and see what it tastes like. I need to do a bit more reading.

      ps: I'd rather be in the kitchen with Nancy, than sweating outside cutting wood

      Delete
  3. I don't know about accomplished baker Bob but I do like to putter in the kitchen.

    The recipe I have on my blog for the chocolate zucchini cake isn't too dense. Most bundt cakes (aside from angel food) are a bit heavier than a regular cake I found. Like zucchini loaf and even banana bread they are made to be denser like a muffin.

    And a key to making one cake and getting to try it before heading to a party is to slice the cake and bring arranged slices on a tray, no one will know there isn't a whole cake sliced on the tray. (Ask me how i know :-)

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    Replies
    1. Trobairitz:

      You are much too modest about your cooking abilities. I look up to your skills and can only aspire to your level.

      I like to putter around and try out recipes too. I didn't realize that the Bundt cake was supposed to be a bit heavier. I am actually liking my 2nd one which I was munching on yesterday. I couldn't bear to throw that one out YET. Very moist and chocolatey, plus I added the extra chocolate chips which the recipe didn't mention. Maybe next time I will turn them into cupcakes instead. They are Vegan so you may like to try it out too.

      The thought never entered my mind to actually slice the cake and arrange the pieces. See, I learned something new from you, this is a great tip. Stupid me for thinking I should make a 2nd cake to bring . . . another tip from an accomplished baker

      Delete
  4. Bob, I also find that my bundt cakes end up a bit on the heavy side but I have to admit that baking is not my forte. I rather like to cook and leave the sweet stuff to my hubby. He even bought a vegan baking book to make me dairy free cake.

    Maybe one day you'll end up with your own book: the barefoot cook.

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Sonja:

      I guess I was too hasty, I didn't realize Bundt cakes were supposed to be a bit more dense and heavier. In baking, I thought the quest was to make light, fluffy cakes. My 2nd Bundt is actually very good and moist too, not that I should be saying this to myself

      I find baking to be relaxing on a rainy, cold winter day

      Delete
  5. I tend more towards cooking rather than baking or decorating. I think I got my lifetime quota of baking in a while back when a friend volunteered us to make a tiered wedding cake complete with at least a thousand flowers. That was quite the undertaking.

    Now that you are more accepting of your bundt cake, you should post the recipe with your changes and additions.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Richard:

      Yes, I have a different opinion of the heavier bundt cake now. When I first sliced it, it felt a bit heavy and I have always wanted to produce lighter texture cakes. It actually tastes good. I am going to have some more later.

      Can someone place an order for a Wedding Cake ? After all, it's snowing and cold up there and you have nothing Cozy to do, right ?

      Delete
    2. You can order all the cakes you want, just not from me. We used almost 25# of sugar between all the layers, frosting and decorations. At the wedding itself, only about 1/3 of the bottom cake was consumed. Most of the rest was sent home with guests. And yes, I have absolutely nothing to do...

      Delete
  6. i think bundt cakes are heavy too. but now angel food cake, that is light, and i believe made normally in a bundt pan?...

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    1. Ms M:

      An Angel Food cake is much lighter as you use egg whites to fold in just before baking. This adds more air bubbles into your batter. Next time I may try to substitute cocoa powder instead of baker's chocolate. This will speed things up as I won't have to wait for the chocolate mixture to cool down

      Delete
  7. Bob, Bob, Bob... how could you deviate from the accomplished baker's recipe to one on the pan? Take it from an accomplished taster, she wooed me with cookies after all, the sole purpose of that recipe is to just sell the pan.
    Also, the great thing about vegan baking... you can lick the bowl. I nearly cried seeing that mixing bowl and beater in the sink.
    I'm all for heavy loafs, breads and cakes. Substance my friend, it's all about substance.

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    1. Troubadour:

      Okay, okay, okay, I hear you. I started to use the recipe from your accomplished baker and got sidelined.

      My mistake and look what happened, frustration which was un-necessary and created stress. Guess who else likes to lick the bowl? How did I know Bundt cakes were supposed to be heavier ?

      Delete
  8. Okay, where are the chocolate chips that you say you added, hmmmm?

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Richard:

      I had to admire your memory cells. They don't forget anything.

      I had edited the chocolate chips into the recipe
      thank you for noticing my omission. for Vegan just substitute Carobs

      Delete
  9. So...you give us the recipe for the cake you don't care for, and not give us the one that you do like? ;)

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  10. I'm with Beemer Girl...I'ld like to see the chocolate angel food cake recipe.
    Ilove to bake.

    ReplyDelete