Christmas Cake

Raspberry Brownies

Chocolate Raspberry Brownies:

1 c - unsalted butter
5 oz - Unsweetened chocolate, chopped
2 c - Sugar
4 - lg Eggs
2 t - Vanilla extract
1 1/4 c - Unbleached all purpose flour
1 t - Baking powder
1/2 t - Salt
1 c - Chopped toasted walnuts, (about 4 oz)
1/2 c - Raspberry preserves

Butter 13x9x2-inch baking pan. Melt butter and chocolate in heavy large saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat. Whisk in sugar, then eggs and vanilla. Mix flour, baking powder and salt in small bowl. Add to chocolate mixture and whisk to blend. Stir in nuts. Pour 2 C batter into pan. Freeze until firm, about 10 minutes. Preheat oven to 350'F. Spread preserves over brownie batter in pan. Spoon remaining batter over. Let stand 20 minutes at room temperature to thaw bottom layer. Bake brownies about 35 minutes.


Brenda, I have a recipe for those raspberry brownies you had asked if I was able to make. I hope this one turns out better than your previous attempts. Happy baking!!

Fondant

What is Fondant??

Fondant is different things to different people. It is the center of piece of a chocolate butter cream candy. It is the smooth, white-as-snow covering of some particularly fancy cakes. It is the gooey juice that gushes out of a chocolate-covered cherry. It is the traditional topping for elegant French petites fours. Fondant, as you can see, is central to the production of some confections.

Uses:

If the fondant is to be poured over petites fours, it must be warmed and thinned with sugar syrup to make it pourable. Otherwise, it can be flavored essentially any flavor you’ve ever seen in a candy store, shaped into centers, and dipped in chocolate. Small pieces can be wrapped around cherries and dipped in chocolate. Fondant can be kneaded by hand a bit to make it workable, colored if you like, then rolled into a very thin sheet, and draped and smoothed over the surface of a cake for a stunning presentation. Bits of fondant can be shaped into flowers and other decorations to finish the cake.

Consider this: fondant — or sugar paste — to be one of the great taste disappointments of our age. It looks so beautiful and can be manipulated into so many stunning decorations, but take a little bite, and it's little more than a glob of raw confectioner's sugar. People who have a taste for it (children, basically) will eat it whether or not it has a little almond or lemon extract.

The animal- based gelatin is an ingredient you can add that makes the fondant elastic and helps keep it supple so that it doesn't dry out and crack (some recipes also use a touch of glycerin for the same purpose).

Food Processer Poured Fondant:

Ingredients:

2-1/2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup corn syrup

Instructions:

Heat sugar, water and corn syrup to the soft-ball stage (238°F; 114°C). Pour into the food processor fitted with the steel blade. Wash the candy thermometer well and reinsert into the syrup. Let the syrup cool undisturbed in the work bowl to 140°F (60°C), about 30 minutes. Remove the thermometer.

Add any coloring or flavoring (vanilla, almond extract, etc.) and process 2 to 3 minutes, until the syrup completely converts from glassy syrup to an opaque paste. When thoroughly cooled, store sealed at room temperature for 24 hours. Use or refrigerate for later use.

Traditional Poured Fondant:

It takes a lot of kneading and elbow-grease to make a traditional pourable fondant. Cooled a bit and then laboriously stirred by hand for 30 to 40 minutes, until it sets up to the consistency of a very thick frosting.

Almond Paste:

Ingredients:

10 oz dried blanched almonds
10 oz powdered sugar
5 oz granulated sugar
1/4 cup corn syrup
1 cup water

Instructions:

Make sugar syrup by placing the water, sugar, and corn syrup in a saucepan. Stir it to combine. Bring it to a boil and let it boil for a few moments. Let it cool.

Place the almonds in a food processor and process them to a fine powder. Add the powdered sugar. With the food processor running, slowly add the sugar syrup until the mixture forms a paste.

Store the almond paste tightly covered. If you will be storing it for more than a week, store in the refrigerator.

Marzipan:

Mix Almond Paste with confectioner’s sugar, whipped egg white, and some lemon juice.

Thank You

This is the young lady that has inspired my work time and time again. Without your support and constant belief in me Tamika I may have just gave up long ago. Through you I am giving the ideas and drive to continue with a passion not many believe in. The day I open my bakery I will have a huge picture of you in my office to remind me of whom to thank for always pushing me forward in good and bad times. For now it's just a hobby with a great dream behind it. Thank you and never stop pushing me. Your going to love my cake for Christmas :) Also thank your family for their support as well even though I'm not good enough to be hosted on foodnetwork that is an very nice thing for them to suggest.

Happy Birthday Baby!!!

This cake was inspired by girlfriend Tamika. She had been bugging me to make her a collaboration of photos of our cat Sebastian for some time. So on her birthday I decided to create a cake that resembled our little kitty. The entire body consisted of cherry chip cake. The head and feet were made of rice crispy treats. By far not an artist but all the features were hand painted, while the whiskers were toothpicks covered in frosting. The icing used was a creamy vanilla while the ball of yarn in his feet were twislers pull and peel to give the effect of shredded yarn. I wish I could of had the chance to see her expression when she had first seen it.