The holiday season is the ideal time to pull out all the stops on desserts! While these recipes may seem a little labor-intensive, the bonus here is that all freeze beautifully. You can make any or all of them ahead of time at your leisure. Besides, aren’t your family and friends worth it?
Put your cooking skills to the test with homemade caramel icing as the crowning touch to this delicious holiday treat.
Photo by Gina Moore
CARMEL CAKE
Serves 12
Cake
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
3 cups self-rising flour
1 cup buttermilk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Icing
2 cups sugar
1 cup buttermilk
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
1 teaspoon baking soda
Cake
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray three 9-inch cake pans with nonstick spray; line bottoms with parchment paper. In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter until fluffy and pale yellow. Add sugar and cream another 3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time and beat well after each. Lower speed and add flour and buttermilk, alternately, beginning and ending with flour. Add vanilla and beat well. Divide evenly between the three pans. Bake 25–30 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack and let cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Invert the layers onto cooling racks and let cool completely.
Icing
In a large heavy-bottom saucepan or cast-iron Dutch oven, over medium heat, mix all ingredients. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture comes to a boil. (Watch very carefully—do not walk away from this process!). Cook to 235 degrees on a candy thermometer. If you do not have a candy thermometer, cook 10–12 minutes until mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from heat and, using a wooden spoon, beat until creamy and ready to spread.
Assembly
Working very quickly before icing starts to harden, place a rack inside a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Invert one cake layer onto a cardboard cake round covered in foil. Remove parchment paper and place on rack in sheet pan. Spread some of the caramel icing on top. Repeat with second cake layer. Finally, remove parchment from third layer and place on top. Pour more icing on top and spread the remainder on the sides. If icing starts to harden, warm over low heat until spreadable again. To smooth out icing, dip spreading spatula in very hot water, as necessary, and continue icing.
Triple Peanut Butter and Chocolate Cheesecake
If you love peanut butter cups (and really, who doesn’t?) you’ll go nuts over this cheesecake recipe.
Photo by Gina Moore
SERVES 12
Crust
1¾ cups chocolate cookies, crushed
4 tablespoons butter, unsalted, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
Filling
3 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup peanut butter, natural with salt and peanuts only
¾ cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
1½ teaspoons vanilla extract
4 large eggs
1/3 cup sour cream
Topping
8 Reese’s Peanut Butter Mini Cups (more if desired)
1/3 cup Reese’s Peanut Butter Chips
Chocolate ganache (recipe follows)
Crust
Preheat oven to 350 F. Blend three crust ingredients and press firmly into a 9-inch springform pan, wrapped on the bottom and sides with foil.
Filling
In the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed, beat cream cheese and peanut butter for 3 minutes. Add both sugars; beat 3 minutes. Beat in vanilla, then eggs, one at a time, then beat in sour cream. Pour into prepared pan.
Place cheesecake pan inside a larger pan and place in oven. Fill the larger pan halfway with hot water—this prevents the cheesecake from cracking or falling on top. Bake 60–70 minutes or until barely firm. The center should still be shaky. Turn off oven, leaving door ajar about 6 inches, and cool for 1 hour. Remove from oven and cool completely in pan. Chill in fridge overnight or at least 8 hours.
Topping
Remove the side of the springform pan. Halve the peanut butter cups and arrange over cheesecake, followed by peanut butter chips. Drizzle with chocolate ganache.
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Chocolate Ganache
MAKES APPROXIMATELY 1½ CUPS
8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
¾ cup heavy whipping cream
1 tablespoon cognac or brandy (optional)
Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl and set aside. Heat the cream in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, but do not allow cream to boil. Immediately pour the hot cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 1 minute. Stir with a whisk until smooth. If desired, add the liqueur. Allow to cool until slightly thickened, then drizzle over prepared cheesecake.
Raspberry Chocolate Cake
The bright taste of raspberries pairs perfectly with rich and creamy chocolate ganache topping in a recipe sure to be a new holiday favorite.
Photo by Gwenael Le Vot
SERVES 12–16
Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
1¾ cups sugar
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup water
¾ cup buttermilk
¾ cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
Raspberry and Chocolate Ganache Topping
18 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (if whole)
2¼ cups heavy whipping cream
6 tablespoons seedless raspberry jam, stirred to loosen
6 ounces fresh raspberries
Powdered sugar, optional
Cake
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray two 9-inch cake pans with nonstick spray; line bottoms with parchment paper. Into a large bowl, sift flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. In a medium bowl, add water, buttermilk, oil and eggs, and whisk well. Make a well in the dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix to blend. Divide the batter between the two prepared pans. Bake 25–30 minutes until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool completely in pans on cooling racks. If cake layers “dome” (have a hump in the center), trim off domed tops with a serrated knife. (Do not throw away. Domes taste great crumbled over ice cream.)
Ganache
Place chopped chocolate in a medium bowl and set aside. Heat the cream in a medium saucepan over medium heat, but do not allow cream to boil. Immediately pour the hot cream over the chocolate and allow to stand for 1 minute. Stir with a whisk until smooth. Transfer 1¼ cup to a small bowl, cover and refrigerate until thick enough to spread, about 1 hour. Let remaining ganache rest at room temperature to cool until lukewarm.
Assembly
Place a rack inside a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Invert one cake layer onto a cardboard cake round covered in foil. Remove parchment paper and place on rack in sheet pan. Spread half the jam (3 tablespoons) over top of cake layer, followed by chilled ganache. Invert second cake layer on top of first. Remove parchment and spread remaining jam. Pour half the lukewarm ganache over top of cake, spreading over sides to cover. Place cake, in the sheet pan, in the freezer; freeze until ganache sets, about 30 minutes. (This is called a crumb coat.) Pour remaining ganache over cake, allowing to drip down the sides; spread over sides to smooth edges. Return to freezer to set ganache, about 30 minutes. Place cake on serving plate, cover with a dome and refrigerate. Let rest at room temperature 2 hours before serving.
Carrot Cake
Your family and friends will dig into this classic carrot cake—complete with homemade cream cheese frosting, of course.
Photo by Iuliia Nedrygailova
SERVES 12–16
Cake
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground allspice or nutmeg
½ teaspoon kosher salt
4 large eggs
¾ cup vegetable oil
¾ cup sugar
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
½ cup buttermilk
3 cups peeled, shredded carrots
Cream Cheese Frosting
1 pound (16 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1½ cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1½ cups chopped walnuts, optional
Cake
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray two 9-inch cake pans with nonstick spray; line bottoms with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, allspice and salt. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, oil, sugar, brown sugar and buttermilk. Stir flour mixture into egg mixture until just combined—do not overmix. Fold in carrots and divide batter evenly between the prepared pans. Bake 35–40 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. Transfer to cooling rack and let cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Invert the layers onto the cooling racks and let cool completely.
Frosting
In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine cream cheese and butter on medium-high until smooth. Reduce speed to low and add powdered sugar and vanilla extract until well blended.
Assembly
Place a rack inside a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Invert one cake layer onto a cardboard cake round covered in foil. Remove parchment paper and place on rack in sheet pan. Spread 1½ cups of frosting over the top. Invert second cake layer on top of first. Remove parchment and spread remaining frosting over tops and sides of cake. Finish on top with walnuts. Place cake on serving plate, cover with a dome and refrigerate. Let rest at room temperature 2 hours before serving.
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Chef’s tips and techniques
No dome. To prevent cake layers from doming, cut strips of cotton cloth or old clean towels 2 inches wide and slightly longer than the circumference of the cake pans. Wet them and wring out before securing damp strips with safety pins to the outsides of pans. You can also purchase baking strips that go around cake pans and are reusable.
Freezing cakes. These cakes will last 3 months in freezer—be sure to label with date and type of cake(s). Freeze whole, iced cakes on cake rounds for 4 to 12 hours until hardened. Wrap in plastic, then foil. Freeze layers in plastic wrap. Thaw frozen cakes in refrigerator for one day before serving or decorating.
What is a crumb coat? A thin layer of ganache spread over cake and chilled to set. Then a second coat of ganache is poured over cake, giving it a smooth finish.
Cardboard cake rounds. If you do not have cake rounds, assemble directly onto serving dish. However, do not freeze cake on serving dish.
Is it done? Unless you have your oven calibrated on a regular basis, you have no way of knowing if the 350 F reading is accurate. A small oven thermometer will help correct for inaccuracies. Cake testers clean up easily and have a longer reach than toothpicks when checking that the centers of your baked goods are fully cooked.
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What’s cooking at SCLiving.coop
Great ganache!—Chef Belinda demonstrates how easy it is to make ganache in this how-to video.