Toni's Pound Cake

Toni's Pound Cake
Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 1999 ed.), pg. 157.

If you are wondering if I have abandoned this blog, fear not! I've just been busy with gardening and other matters. I knew I would slow down during the spring and summer months because I'm so busy with gardening but once it gets hot and sticky, I'll probably be back in the kitchen. 

I made this pound cake last weekend and ran it by Michael who says pound cake is one of his favorite desserts. This one passed with flying colors. We served it with strawberries and blueberries that has been flavored with Splenda and Grand Mariner.

The recipe is named after Maida Heatter's late daughter, who said this was her favorite.

Rind of 2 lemons, grated fine
3 TBS lemon juice
1 lb (4 sticks) butter
1 TBS vanilla extract
3 1/3 cups sugar
1/2 tsp mace
10 eggs
4 cups sifted all-purpose flour 


Adjust rack one-third from the bottom of the oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 10x4 inch tube pan, line the bottom with paper cut to fit, butter the paper, and dust it all lightly with fine dry bread crumbs.

Grate the rind of 2 lemons. Mix the rind with the lemon juice and set aside.

In large bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter to soften it a bit.

Add vanilla.

Gradually add the sugar and mace. Beat at moderately high speed for two to three minutes, scraping the bowl as needed to keep ingredients well mixed.

Add eggs, two at a time, beating until thoroughly incorporated after each addition.

On lowest speed, gradually add the flour, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula and beating only until smooth. Remove from the mixer and stir in the lemon rind and juice.

Turn the batter into prepared pan. Turn pan briskly back and forth to level the top.

Cover the top of the pan with a piece of aluminum foil large enough to fold down loosely over the sides of the pan.

Bake for 30 minutes. Open oven door just enough to reach in and remove the foil. Continue baking for additional 1 1/4 hours. (Total baking time is 1 3/4 hours)* Cake is done when tester comes out dry.


Cool in pan on a rack for 10 to 15 minutes. Cover with a rack and invert. Remove pan and paper. Cover with a rack and carefully invert again to finish cooling right side up.


(My notes: As usual, the cake didn't take as much time to bake in my oven. It was done about 12 minutes sooner than the recipe required. So, know your oven! It came out of the pan beautifully. If you like your cake very tart (Michael does), just add a few more tablespoons of lemon juice. I actually added about 5 tablespoons and the lemon flavor was still rather subtle.)

Chocolate Coconut Macaroons

Chocolate Coconut Macaroons
Source: Maida Heatter's Book of Great Chocolate Desserts (Andrews & McMeel Publishing, 2006 ed.), pg. 136.

Soft, chewy and delicious! I liked these macaroons better than the Bittersweet Chocolate Macaroons that I made previously. For me, macaroons are supposed to have coconut in them! These are addictive and won't stay around long. 

4 oz. semisweet chocolate
1 oz. unsweetened chocolate
2 egg whites, room temperature
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
7 oz. (2 2/3 cups) shredded coconut 

Adjust two racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line two 12 x 15 inch cookie sheets with aluminum foil.

Break up the chocolates and place them in the top of a double boiler over hot water on moderate heat. When the chocolate has melted, set aside and cool to room temperature.

Beat the egg whites with the salt until they hold a firm peak when the beaters are raised.

On low speed add the sugar 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, pausing 10 seconds between additions. Add the vanilla.

Increase the speed to high and beat for about 5 minutes more until the meringue is very stiff.

Reduce the speed to low and add the cooled chocolate, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula and beating only until mixed.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and, with a rubber or wooden spatula, fold in the coconut.

Use a rounded teaspoon of the mixture for each cookie. Place the mounds 1 inch apart on the foil, forming 15 cookies on each sheet.

Bake for about 16 minutes, reversing the sheets top to bottom and front to back once to insure even baking. When the macaroons are done they should feel dry on the outside but must remain soft in the centers. Transfer to a rack to cool with a metal spatula. Raise the racks as high as you can (I used two stacked on top of the other) because they need plenty of room for air to circulate underneath, or steam forms on the bottom and keeps the bottoms of the cookies from being as dry as they should be.

They may be stored airtight or only loosely covered. If they feel too soft/moist when they have cooled, let them dry out by storing them so the air can get to them.

Variations:

Chocolate-Nut Coconut Macaroons: Use abot 1/2 to 3/4 cup pecans, cut into medium-size pieces, and fold them in along with the coconut.

Chocolate Coconut Macaroons with Chocolate Chips: Use about 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate morsels and fold them in along with the coconut.