Mad About Maida

September 7th Cake (Source:  Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts   (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.), pg. 25.   This cake has been on the radar for quite some time and I finally made it.  It is the cake that Maida created for her own birthday. I'm happy to hear that she is not the only person who makes their own birthday cake. My birthday was this past weekend, so I decided to finally tackle it and I'm glad I did. It is heavenly! I was apprehensive about making it, especially after reading about experiences from other bakers. To alleviate some of the stress, I made the cake layers a week in advance and froze them. Another reason I did this was because a reader (Amy) wrote to me about the cake and recommended freezing it first because the layers are so thin that spreading the filling is difficult. Thank you for that tip Amy! A few more observations: The trickiest part is the icing. It cannot be overbeat or it will be too heavy and have a curdled...

Penuche Pecan Bars Source:  Maida Heatter's Brand-New Book of Great Cookies  (Random House, 1995 ed.) , pg. 64. "Penuche" is the name of a brown sugar fudge. These bars are wonderfully chewy, although they contain no butter or oil. Makes 32 bars. 4 large eggs 1 lb. (2 1/2 packed cups) light brown sugar 1 3/4 cups sifted unbleached flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1 lb. (4 1/2 cups) pecan halves 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract Preheat the oven to 350. Use the center rack. Line a 9 x 13 x 2 inch pan with foil. Butter the pan by placing a small dot of butter on the foil, place in a warm oven for a few minutes, remove and brush the butter over the foil (you can also use a piece of crumpled plastic wrap). Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside. In the top part of a double boiler, slightly beat the eggs. Stir in the sugar with a rubber spatula (press with the spatula if there are lumps). Place over hot water (in the bottom part of the double...

Chocolate Chip & Almond Biscotti  Source:  Maida Heatter's Brand-New Book of Great Cookies  (Random House, 1995 ed.) , pg. 23. It has been a few years since I've made biscotti, and I had forgotten how relatively easy it is and how delicious it is. It is one of those things that doesn't sound that great (at least to me), yet once you start eating it, there is no going back. I've made several of Maida's biscotti recipes (and there are more to come), and all of them have turned out stellar. This one, with chocolate chips, and a surprisingly soft texture (once you pass that initial bite and begin to chew). The trickiest part to this was slicing the pieces before the second bake. First, they must be cooled first, at least for 20 minutes. Then, using a serrated knife, slice slow and carefully in a sawing motion. A few of my slices kept wanting to fall apart but I gently pressed them back together again. 6 oz. (1 1/4 cups) whole blanced almonds 2 cups sifted unbleached...