White Chocolate and Banana Cake

White Chocolate and Banana Cake 
Source: Maida Heatter's Best Dessert Book Ever (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg.  62.

This is scrumptious and I think it is better than plain old banana bread. My initial intent was to make banana bread and then I stumbled upon this recipe and saw that I had all the ingredients on hand (a rare occurrence!). 

I usually adhere to the exact instructions but in this case, I took a chance on changing the pan and thankfully it worked. The recipe calls for 2 small loaf pans (6 cup size) but I don't have any that small. I thought about it making it in my long 12" loaf pan but at the last minute, I settled on the Bundt pan.

She indicates that the baking time is 1 hour and 15 minutes but my cake was done in 1 hour and I started checking it at 50 minutes. If using the smaller loaf pans, I would begin checking around the 45 minute range as I cannot imagine baking that long in small pans.

The cake is super moist and the coconut and nuts provide a great flavor boost. I also love the crisp edges around the crust. 

6 oz. white chocolate, chopped into 1/4 - 1/2 inch pieces
4 oz. walnuts (or pecans), chopped
3 1/2 oz. (1 firmly packed cup) shredded coconut
8 oz. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
2 3/4 cups unsifted unbleached flour
1 1/4 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 - 6 fully ripened bananas (2 cups)
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
3 tablespoons dark rum (or brandy)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Optional: Sesame seeds (to sprinkle on top)

Adjust the oven rack to the bottom third and preheat to 350. Buutter two 6-cup loaf pans and dust with dry bread crumbs (this also works in a Bundt pan).

Melt the butter and transfer it to the mixing bowl and allow to stand briefly.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Peel and mask the bananas with a fork for a course mixture.

Add the sugar to the butter and beat to mix well.

Add the eggs, rum (or brandy) and vanilla and beat at high speed for about 5 minutes. The mixture will be pale and thick.

Add the bananas and beat just to mix.

On low speed, gradually add the sifted dry ingredients and beat until only incorporated.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the coconut, chocolate and walnuts.

Spread batter into the prepared pans. Sprinkle with the sesame seeds if using.

Bake for 50 to 70 minutes, depending on the pan(s) you use. Begin testing at 50 minutes. In a Bundt pan, the cake was done at 55 minutes.

Cool in the pans for 15 minutes before turning them out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

F.B.I. Chocolate Layer Cake

 F.B.I. Chocolate Layer Cake (Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.), pg. 64. 

The story goes that J. Edgar Hoover was having dinner with Maida's family and her mother served this cake. He liked it so much that he threatened an F.B.I. investigation if she did not give him the recipe.

It is a good cake with a dense texture and delicious chocolate flavor. It reminds me of Devils Food Cake. 

I made this cake in the midst of a snow/ice event that lasted five days. Our driveway is on a downhill slant so when this happens, we cannot get out even when ice and snow is partially melted. After I made the cake layers, I discovered that I did not have enough whipping cream to make the frosting. So I wrapped the cake layers and put them in the freezer. 

A few days later, our neighbor John said he was braving the elements and heading to the  grocery store. Would we like anything? A few minutes later, he texted me and said that the store was all out of regular whipping cream and they only had a dairy-free type. I told him that was fine and had no idea if this would work or not. It does! The only difference I noticed was that it took longer to whip than the regular does. Taste-wise, I could not tell a difference.

So the cake is finished and frosted, we can now see the ground again, and everybody is happy!

Cake Layers

1 1/4 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (prefably Dutch process)
1/4 lb. (1 stick) sweet butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
1 3/4 cup granulated sugar
4 large eggs, separated
1 1/4 cup milk

This can be made in either 9" or 10" inch pans. Butter 2 pans, line with baking paper, butter the paper and dust with flour. (You can also use a baking spray)

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cocoa. Set aside.

Cream the butter in the mixer bowl. Add the vanilla and sugar to mix well.

Add egg yolks, beating well.

On low speed, add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the milk in two additions. Set aside.

In a clean bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold a shape.

Fold the egg whites into the batter, a little at a time.

Pour the batter into the prepared pans in equal amounts.

Bake for 45-50 minutes until the cake layers begin to come away from the sides.

Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then carefully remove from the pans onto a wire rack to cool completely. After cooling, they can be frosted immediately, or they may be frozen for later.

Whipped Cream Frosting

2 cups heavy cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup strained confectioners sugar
Optional: Sliced almonds (for sprinkling on top)

In a chilled bowl with chilled whisk beater, whip all the ingredients together until it holds a firm shape.

Spread a layer of frosting between the layers and over the top and sides.

The cake can be garnished with sliced almonds, shaved chocolate, cocoa or whatever you like!

Walnut Rum Raisin Cake

Walnut Rum Raisin Cake

(Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed., pg. 42)

A Christmas present was this beautiful Nordic Ware cake pan -

I could not wait to try it and finally decided on the Walnut Rum-Raisin Cake to share with company on New Year's Eve. It was a great success and I was thrilled with the pan. I prepared it well (see my notes) and there was no sticking.

This is a delicious cake and the orange and lemon hints make it especially wonderful.

The recipe calls for dark rum and I only had golden rum on hand. I'm not sure how much difference that would make in the recipe.

1 cup light or dark raisins (or a mixture of both)
1/3 cup dark rum
2 1/4 cups (8.5 oz.) chopped walnuts (3/4 of which are finely ground)
2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
8 oz. (2 sticks) butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
Finely grated rind of 2 lemons
Finely grated rind of 2 oranges
Optional: confectioners' sugar

Soak the raisins with the rum in a covered jar, overnight, turning occasionally. (Note: I did not do this. I did soak them, but only for an hour or so.)

Preheat the oven to 350 and use the bottom third rack.

Prepare the pan. With an intricate-patterned pan such as this, I wanted to be extra careful since Bundt cakes are notorious for sticking. Maida recommends butter but after some further research, I decided to use shortening. Melt about 3 tablespoons of shortening and brush it thoroughly around the pan and the center column. Sprinkle the 3/4 cup of ground walnuts over it and also the column. I also added a few tablespoons of sugar to the walnuts for extra protection.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. Set aside.

Beat the butter until soft. Add the vanilla and sugar. Mix well.

Beat in the eggs.

Add the sifted flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk on low speed.

Stir in the lemon and orange zest and the raisins. 

Stir in the nuts.

Transfer to the prepared pan and smooth the top.

Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, until a tester comes out clean. Let the cake stand in the pan for 10 minutes. Prepare the rum sauce.

Rum Sauce

1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons lemon or lime juice
1/4 cup dark rum

In a small saucepan over medium heat, stir the sugar and water until it comes to a boil.

Remove from the heat and sit for a minute or two to allow to cool slightly.

Stir in the orange and lemon juice.

Finally, stir in the rum.

Carefully invert the cake pan onto another rack to slide it out.

Brush the sauce over the cake with a brush (you can also pour it slowly over the cake).

After the cake has completely cooled, confectioners' sugar can be sprinkled over it if you desire.

Palm Beach Chocolate Tube Cake

Palm Beach Chocolate Tube Cake
Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1999 ed.), pg. 52.

This recipe contained no introduction and when I looked it up on the Internet, I kept seeing another recipe for a chocolate cake from The Silver Palate Cookbook, published in 1982. I have that book and pulled it off the shelf and took a look. Sure enough, the recipes appears identical. The Silver Palate calls it "Decadent Chocolate Cake"with the only notable exception being the frosting, which the Silver Palate had done differently (more on that later). Maida Heatter's book was published in 1974. Hmmm....

Regardless of who came up with it first, it is a scrumptious cake - dense, moist, richly chocolate - heaven!

Now, about that frosting. Maida's recipe calls for only three ingredients - semisweet chocolate, sour cream and 1 egg. After reading the recipe, I decided to skip it since it calls for a raw egg. That doesn't bother me that much but Michael will not touch anything with raw egg. I did want to use sour cream because sour cream chocolate frosting is both our favorite frosting. I remembered seeing another recipe in Maida Heatter's Cakes and went with it. It is fantastic! That icing goes with a different chocolate cake that I have not made yet called "American Chocolate Layer Cake". Note to self...

++++++++++++++++++

2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1/4 lb. (1 stick) butter
1 cup boiling water
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs, separated
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup sour cream
Pinch of salt

Adjust the oven rack 1/3 from the bottom and preheat to 350. Butter a 9-inch tube pan and line the bottom with paper (cutting around the center tube). Dust with fine bread crumbs.

Sift together the flour and baking powder and set aside.

Combine the chocolate, butter and boiling water. Melt over medium heat.

Transfer to a mixing bowl.

Reserve 2 tablespoons of the sugar.

Add the larger portion of sugar to the chocolate mixture.

Add the vanilla

Add the eggs, mixing until smooth.

In a small bowl, add the baking soda to the sour cream and whisk together until smooth.

Add the sour cream to the chocolate mixture.

Add the flour gradually, beating only until smooth. Remove the bowl from the mixer and replace with a clean bowl with clean whisk attachment.

Beat the egg whites until they have a soft shape. Add the 2 tablespoons of sugar and beat until stiff but not dry.

Add a few dollops of the chocolate to the egg whites and gently fold together.

Now add the egg whites to the bowl of chocolate and fold together.

Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.

Bake for 50 - 60 minutes until the top springs back when lightly pressed.

Cool the cake on a rack for about 5 minutes, then carefully invert the pan to remove from the pan. Allow it to cool completely. After it has cooled, place pieces of wax paper around the edges to prepare for frosting.

After frosting is completed, slide the paper out.

ICING

Here is the original icing recipe that accompanied the cake recipe. Like I said earlier, I did not use this one but I've included the one I did use at the bottom.

8 oz. semisweet chocolate
3/4 cup sour cream, at room temperature
1 egg

Melt the chocolate, transfer to a mixing bowl. Beat in the sour cream and egg until smooth.

Let stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes, until slightly thickened.

Alternate (the one I used):

Chocolate Sour Cream Icing 

8 oz. milk chocolate
6 oz. semisweet chocolate
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler over barely simmering water.

Transfer to mixer bowl. Add the salt, vanilla and sour cream. Beat on low speed until smooth.

If icing is too thin, let it sit at room temperature about an hour or until slightly thickened.