Mad About Maida

Black Forest Cherry Torte Source:  Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.) , pg. 54. Making this cake was quite a production but I did it in stages, over several days. I've made Black Forest Cake before but used a different recipe. This one was very good although at first I thought the nutty texture of the cake was odd. I believe the cake gets better after a few days. This is a BIG cake, takes up a lot of room in the refrigerator and will feed a lot of happy people. I took this to my mother's house on Christmas day. I made the filling and the Kirsch syrup first and stored it in the refrigerator. I made the cake the second day and froze it. The whipped cream frosting was made last, on the morning of the day it was served, and the cake was assembled. I thought that the whipped cream recipe made way too much frosting. In fact, I think it could have been halved and there would have been plenty of frosting and filli...

The World's Best Hot Fudge Sauce Source:  Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.) , pg. 258. My Notes : A reader requested this recipe. I tried it today and it is fantastic. Very easy to make and it took less than 10 minutes. The sauce is dark, rich and sublime. Here is the recipe, exactly as written: 1/2 cup heavy cream 3 Tbsp sweet butter, cut into small pieces 1/3 cup granulated sugar 1/3 cup dark brown sugar, firmly packed pinch salt 1/2 cup strained Dutch-process cocoa powder (don't substitute - it must be Dutch process for the right color and flavor) Place the cream and butter in a heavy 1-quart saucepan over moderate heat. Stir until the butter is melted and the cream just comes to a low boil. Add both sugars and stir for a few minutes until they are dissolved. (The surest test is to taste; cook and taste until you do not feel any undissolved granules in your mouth.) Reduce the heat. Add the sal...

Mexican Wedding Cakes Source:  Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1999 ed.) , pg. 242. I recall eating these purchased in a bag and never dreamed that they were so easy to make. Only five ingredients and very simple to put together. In fact, you can have these completed from start to finish in less than 30 minutes. These shortbread-like cookies are also known as Russian Tea Cakes, Snowdrops or Snowballs as well as a host of other names. The recipe says that it makes 24 small cookies and that is exactly how many it made for me. 1/4 lb. (1 stick) butter 2 TBS confectioner's sugar (plus additional for sprinkling over the tops after baking) 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 1 cup sifted all-purpose flour 2 1/2 oz. (3/4 c.) walnuts, chopped very fine (but not ground) Adjust oven rack one-third ways down from top of the oven. Preheat to 375. Beat the butter until softened. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat 1-2 minutes. L...

Barbara's Milk Chocolate Biscotti Source:  Maida Heatter's Brand-New Book of Great Cookies (Random House, 1995 ed.) , pg. 17. Two firsts for me - making biscotti and blanching almonds. I've noticed that a lot of Maida's recipes call for blanched almonds. It is a simple, albeit time-consuming chore. If you are new to blanching almonds as well, all you do is bring a pan of water to a boil, remove it and place your almonds in the water. Let them sit for one minute, pour out the water and place the almonds on a towel. The skins will pop out when you squeeze them. A method that worked well for me was standing the almonds upright and slightly pushing down on the tips. I found that skins came off much easier this way. The whole biscotti recipe is a long process. It bakes twice, the first go-around for one hour and the last time for 40 minutes. However, putting it together is not that difficult and you have a lot of down time during the baking sessions. Biscotti is addi...

Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Bars Source:  Maida Heatter's Brand-New Book of Great Cookies (Random House, 1995 ed.) , pg. 87. This is the type of thing that I can't keep my hands off of - simple to make and sooooo good. I actually used raw peanuts in this recipe because that was what I had on hand. I did increase the salt to 1/4 tsp to compensate. They still turned out great. I used apricot preserves and smooth peanut butter. I'm not really sure what the jam is meant for.  4 ounces (1 cup) salted peanuts 1/2 cup granulated sugar 1 cup sifted unbleached flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/8 teaspoon salt 3 ounces (3/4 stick) unsalted butter 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 tablespoon any jam, jelly or marmalade 1/2 cup smooth or chunky peanut butter 3/4 cup packed light or dark brown sugar 2 large eggs 12 ounces (2 cups) milk chocolate morsels Adjust a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F. ...