Oreo Cookie Cake

Oreo Cookie Cake
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 80 and Maida Heatter's Book of Great American Desserts, Knopf, 1985, pg. 123.

Oreo cookies make anything taste better, right? Thoughts of oreo cookie ice cream immediately come to mind. I've eyed this recipe for a long time and came across it again last weekend and decided it was time to make it. It has been a while since I've purchased Oreo cookies (I usually tend to avoid the cookie aisle as it is dangerous) and I was amazed by the variety of Oreo cookies available. Good grief - every flavor and color known to man took up 2 shelves. It took me a minute to find the Original Oreos!  

This cake is a white sour cream cake that Maida Heatter added Oreos to at the last minute after talking to a reporter about the popularity of cookies and Oreos.

We bought a container of chocolate ice cream and crushed up our remaining Oreos and mixed it into the ice cream. It was fantastic with this cake!

14 to 15 Oreo sandwich cookies
2 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
8 oz. (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
3 eggs
1 cup sour cream
Optional: confectioners sugar

Preheat oven to 350; adjust oven rack one-third up from the bottom. Butter or spray a tube pan (10-12 cup capacity) and dust with fine, dry bread crumbs.

Cut each cookie into quarters. Set aside.

 

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

Beat the butter until soft and add the vanilla and almond extracts.

Add the sugar.

Add the eggs, one at a time, until blended.

On low speed, add the sifted flour ingredients alternately...

with the sour cream (dry ingredients in 3 additions, sour cream in 2.)

Place 1 1/2 cups of the batter into the cake pan and use a spoon to form a shallow trench in the mixture.

To the remaining cake batter, add the cookies and fold in.

Add the mixture with the cookies to the trench with a teaspoon.

After the batter has been added, smooth it out with the bottom of the spoon. This is the bottom of the cake. To prevent it rising in a domed shape, spread the batter slightly up the sides of the pan, leaving a depression in the middle.

Bake the cake for 50 minutes - 1 hour or until a tester comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes before removing the cake to a rack to cool completely. The cake can be served as is or you can add the following glaze.

Glaze (optional)

6 oz. semi-sweet chocolate
2 oz. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
About 1 TBS. whipping cream

Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler over warm water.
Cut the butter into small pieces and add it to the chocolate, stirring until melted and smooth.
Stir in the cream gradually.
Pour the glaze around the cake and over the top, letting it run down unevenly.
Let the cake stand until the glaze has set.

Cowtown Chocolate Cake

Cowtown Chocolate Cake
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 78 and Maida Heatter's Book of Great American Desserts, Knopf, 1985, pg. 114.

It has been awhile since I've made a chocolate cake. That is an odd statement since I absolutely love chocolate cakes (or anything chocolate for that matter). A few weeks ago I made this cake which hails from Fort Worth, Texas (aka "Cowtown"). It is wonderfully dense and fudgy and the icing is a wonderful soft icing that stays soft. 

Watch your baking time carefully. When I took the cake out of the oven (about 20-25 minutes) it looked dry and I was sure I had overbaked. However, it just appears that way and it was fine and actually quite moist. 

1 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. powdered (not granular) instant coffee or expresso
5 oz. unsweetened chocolate
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter (softened)
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup white sugar
3 eggs, separated
1 1/4 cups buttermilk

You can get the full directions here. 

Be sure to sift several times!

 

Icing

1 cup whipping cream
1 cup sugar
4 1/2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
Pinch of salt
4 oz. (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into slices
1 tsp. vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, stir the cream and sugar over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Reduce the heat and let the mixture simmer for 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. 

Remove the pan from the heat and add the chocolate, stirring until melted. Add the salt, butter and vanilla and stir until the butter is melted and the mixture is smooth.

Place the pan in a large bowl of ice water and scrape the bottom constantly for a few minutes with a rubber spatula until the icing is cool and slightly thickened. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl and beat with an electric mixer at high speed for a few minutes until the icing is thick enough to hold its shape.

Spread the icing between the cake layers and around the sides.

 

Raspberry-Strawberry Bavarian

Raspberry-Strawberry Bavarian
Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1999 ed.), pg. 442.

Simple to make and delicious but I found that I didn't have proper glasses to serve this in. I used our very large glasses which totally skewed the serving portions but didn't really matter as the friends I served this to loved it. Maida Heatter says that this was one of the most popular desserts served at her restaurant.

6 oz. strawberry gelatin (Jell-O)
2 cups boiling water
1 cup sour cream
1 pint strawberry ice cream
1 TBS. lemon juice
2 10 oz. packages frozen raspberries (whole berries packed in syrup)
1 10 oz. package frozen strawberries (halves, packed in syrup)

Place the gelatin in a large bowl and add the boiling water - stir to dissolve.

Add the sour cream and whisk until smooth.

Cut the frozen ice cream into the gelatin mixture, about ten pieces.

Add the lemon juice.

Add the frozen fruit and use a fork to break up the pieces. Maida Heatter recommends using your hands to do this.

Quickly pour the mixture into a pitcher or use a large spoon to pour into nine large glasses. Leave a generous amount of headroom for the whipped cream. Refrigerate - do not freeze. This will be ready to serve in an hour or two, or it may stand overnight.

Top with:

Whipped Cream

2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup confectioners sugar

In a chilled bowl with chilled beaters, whip all the ingredients until the cream holds a shape. Place a large spoonful on each dessert. You can add sprinkles of chopped pistachios, glaceed cherries or chocolate leaves, if desired. 

Raisin Banana Cupcakes

Raisin Banana Cupcakes
Source: Maida Heatter's Cakes (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2011 ed.), pg. 279.

Moist and delicious, these cupcakes taste very much like banana bread. I didn't have light raisins on hand so I used dark ones. Be sure that your bananas are over ripe.

3 1/2 oz. (3/4 cup) light raisins
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
3 large (1/2 cups) mashed fully ripened bananas
1 egg
1/3 dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4 cup safflower oil (or other vegetable oil)

Preheat the oven to 375. Line a standard 12-count muffin pan with paper liners or butter the forms and set aside. (Silicone cups also work great!)

Steam the raisins in a vegetable steamer or in a strainer over shallow water in a saucepan. Cover the pan, bring the water to a boil, let it boil for a minute until the raisins are barely moist. Set aside.

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

Mash the bananas with a fork or potato masher and place in a mixing bowl. Beat slightly. Remove the bananas from the bowl and set aside in a separate bowl.

 

Without washing the bowl or beaters, beat the egg, sugar and oil to mix.

Add the bananas back to the bowl.

On lowest speed, gradually add the dry ingredients.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the raisins.

Divide the batter among the prepared forms about 2/3 full (an ice cream scoop is great for this). Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops spring back when lightly pressed). Remove from the pan and cool on a rack.

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies

Coconut Oatmeal Cookies
Source: Maida Heatter's Cookies (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1997 ed.), pg. 56.

It has been awhile since I've made cookies. I came across a bag of coconut in the refrigerator and decided to do something with it. These are described by Maida as "old-fashioned, plain, homey". They are very easy to make. They are buttery and stay soft after they have cooled. I don't think I've ever had an oatmeal cookies that I haven't liked. This is a good one to add to the collection!

2 1/2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
8 oz. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup light or dark brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 cup quick-cooking (not instant) rolled oats
1 cup shredded coconut, firmly packed (sweet or unsweet)

Adjust racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat to 350. Line cookie sheets with aluminum foil or parchment.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon and set aside.

Cream the butter and add the vanilla.

Beat in both the brown sugar and the white sugar.

    

Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well.

On lowest speed, add the sifted flour mixture.

Remove the bowl from the mixer stand and stir in the oats with a wooden spoon.

Stir in the coconut.

Use a rounded teaspoon for each cookie. Place them 2-3 inches apart on the lined cookies sheets. Do not flatten the tops (they will do that during baking). Bake for 12-15 minutes until they are golden brown all over. The cookies will still be soft but will firm up as they cool.

Let the baked cookies stand on the sheet for a few seconds to firm up slightly before you remove them. Use a wide metal spatula to transfer to racks to cool.