I’ve hit on the perfect play date treat with these banana, cherry and white chocolate cupcakes. Unusually for a cupcake these days, they’re not smothered with any frosting, so they’re not messy to eat and don’t make for sticky fingers. Plus they don’t have too much sugar in them, relying on the bananas for sweetness instead, and I always feel like any treat with fruit keeps it on the right side of indulgence. Friends, you’ve had fair warning now — next time you invite me and my kids over, I’ll be bringing a batch of these.

Banana, Cherry and White Chocolate Cupcakes
adapted from How to Be a Domestic Goddess by Nigella Lawson

Makes 12 cupcakes

1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (125 g) unsalted butter
1 cup (200 g) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 ripe bananas, mashed
1/4 cup (60 ml) sour cream or natural yogurt
2 large eggs, beaten
2 1/2 cups (300 g) plain flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 cup (40 g) dried cherries, chopped (you could substitute dried cranberries or even raisins)
1/4 cup (50 g) white chocolate, chopped, or use chips or buttons

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a muffin tin with paper or silicone cases.

Melt the butter in a saucepan big enough to eventually hold all the batter. Off the heat, add the sugar, vanilla and mashed bananas. Stir in the sour cream or yogurt and the eggs and beat to mix with a wooden spoon. Sift in the flour, baking soda and baking powder, then fold in the cherries and chocolate. Mix until everything is just blended (don’t overmix!), then divide the mixture between the 12 muffin cases. Cook for 20 minutes, until golden and springy on top and a tester comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes in their papers to a wire rack and leave till cool.

We’re eating citrus in our house like it’s going out of style–or at least out of season. Although February food can be rather bleak notwithstanding the plethora of root vegetables you can scrounge up, at least we can still find great oranges and grapefruit. I love the combination of chocolate and orange, especially in cake form. And of course I’m a sucker for a cake that is moist tender and without frosting (see for example maple yogurt pound cake, raspberry buttermilk cake, and lemon yogurt cake). This marble cake, which I usually bake as a loaf, maintains its moistness for days thanks to a post-bake drizzle of orange juice and sugar syrup. Make it now, before April rolls around and oranges become pithy and expensive.

Chocolate Orange Marble Cake
adapted from allrecipes.com

Serves 10

1 cup (225 g) butter, softened
1 1/4 cups (250 g) white sugar
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (240 ml) plain or vanilla yogurt
1 3/4 cups (210 g) all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons grated orange zest
2 ounces (60 g) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, melted [Note: I use a microwave for melting]
4 tablespoons orange juice

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease and flour a loaf pan or 10 inch tube pan.

In a large bowl, cream the butter with 1 cup (200 g) of the white sugar. Beat in the eggs, then the vanilla and the yogurt.

In another bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Beat the flour mixture into the creamed ingredients. Turn 2/3 of the batter into another bowl. Add the orange zest to that bowl and the melted chocolate to the remaining batter. Alternately spoon the orange and chocolate batters into the greased and floured pan. Gently swirl through the two batters with a knife to create a marbled effect.

Bake for 45–50 minutes, until toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. While the cake bakes, stir together the remaining 1/4 cup (50 g) sugar and the orange juice, making sure the sugar dissolves completely. As soon as the done cake is removed from the oven, pour the juice/sugar mixture over the still hot cake. Let the cake finish cooling on a rack before serving.

I wasn’t planning to post this week (birthdays, holidays, children, my excuses could go on forever), but this cake is so quick, easy, and different, I had to share. In case any of you need a holiday dessert you can make the ahead of time, this is the cake for you. It’s texture and flavor become more complex on day two, though eating it warm out of the oven might be delicious also. This cake alone might save my sanity this season. I made it last weekend for lunch with my cousin. It’s not too sweet so I’m taking another one to work for my birthday breakfast treat tomorrow. And then I’ll make it again on Friday night to serve with Christmas dinner on Saturday. Speaking of which, I’m cutting this post short  so I can get back to figuring out the logistics of seating thirteen people for dinner at a table that only holds twelve. Happy holidays everyone!

Clementine Cake
from Nigella Lawson

Serves 8

Like many of Nigella Lawson’s cakes, this one seems an incredibly bad idea as you stir it together. Seriously, who would think to boil whole clementines, mash them peel and all, and throw them into a cake that doesn’t even have flour? It works though, and your whole house will smell wonderfully of citrus as it bakes.

4 to 5 clementines (about 13 oz / 370 g total weight)
6 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225 g) sugar
2 1/3 cups (250 g) ground almonds
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
Powdered (confectioner’s) sugar, for dusting

Put the clementines in a pot with cold water to cover, bring to the boil, and cook for 2 hours. [Check the pan regularly to ensure it doesn’t dry out.] Drain the clementines and, when cool, cut each clementine in half and remove the seeds. Then finely chop the skins, pith, and fruit in the processor (or by hand, of course).

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

Butter and line an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper.

Beat the eggs. Add the sugar, almonds, and baking powder. Mix well, adding the chopped clementines. I don’t like using the processor for this, and frankly, you can’t balk at a little light stirring.

Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, when a skewer will come out clean; you’ll probably have to cover the cake with foil after about 40 minutes to stop the top from burning. Remove from the oven and leave to cool, in the pan on a rack. When the cake is cold, you can take it out of the pan.

Madeleines are my new favorite thing to bake. I don’t normally go for recipes that call for hard-to-find ingredients or specific equipment, but a madeleine pan is a little luxury and even the tiniest kitchen could surely squeeze one in. They take only minutes to pull together and 10 minutes to bake, yet people are invariably impressed by them. They’re perfect with tea or coffee and also make an excellent treat for a play date, seeing as how they don’t have that much sugar and are just the right size for little hands to hold.

They’re also open to endless variations — in my own cookbook collection, I have recipes for hazelnut lemon madeleines, rosewater madeleines and butterscotch madeleines — but I’ve fallen in love with these honey spiced ones and have made them three times in the past three weeks. There’s something about the spices, just right for autumn, and the soft, cake-like texture when they’re still warm from the oven that remind me of a doughnut, and in my book it doesn’t get better than that.

Honey Spiced Madeleines
adapted from Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan (recipe available online here)

Makes 12 madeleines

There are all sorts of tips and tricks for how to make the perfect madeleine — letting the batter rest, putting the tin in the freezer, piping the batter into the moulds, not using baking powder — but I don’t worry about any of that and they still turn out perfectly fine and perfectly delicious.

3/4 cup (90 g) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch of salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup (75 g) sugar
grated zest of 1/2 orange
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons (90 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
powdered sugar (icing sugar), to dust (optional)

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and pepper and set aside.

Working in a mixer bowl, stir the sugar and orange zest together. Fit the mixer with the whisk attachment, add the eggs to the bowl and beat for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is light, fluffy and thickened. Add in the honey, then the vanilla.  Switch to a rubber spatula and gently fold in the dry ingredients followed by the melted butter. You can use the batter now, but Dorie Greenspan says it’s better if you can give it a little rest. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the batter and chill for 3 hours or, if you have the time, overnight. Making the batter in advance also means you can have madeleines that are fresh from the oven and still warm if you’re serving them to guests, or make them in the morning and bake them after the kids get home from school for a little treat.

When you’re ready to bake them, centre a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Butter 12 full-size madeleine molds (or 36 mini-molds), dust the insides with flour and tap out the excess. If you have a non-stick madeleine mold, butter and flour it anyway or give it a light coating of vegetable cooking spray. (If your pan is silicone, you can leave it as is.) Place the pan on a baking sheet.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each one three-quarters full (if you overfill the molds, they’ll spill out over the sides a bit and won’t be quite as pretty when they’re done). Bake the large madeleines for 11 to 13 minutes and the minis for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the madeleines are golden and the tops spring back when prodded gently. Remove the pan from the oven and release the madeleines from the molds by rapping the edge of the pan against the counter. Gently pry any stuck madeleines from the pan using your fingers or a butter knife. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to just-warm or room temperature. Dust with powdered sugar (icing sugar) if you like.

As odd as this is to admit, I’ve developed an addiction to canning. It all started quite innocently with a batch of strawberry lemonade concentrate a couple years ago. Then last year Kristin helped me put up a batch of garlic dill pickles. Now I’ve worked my way up to pickled peppers, spicy dilly beans, green tomato relish, and, finally this year, jam. Strawberry jam, though not the easiest thing I’ve ever cooked, may be one of the best things to come off my stove top. Even the extra emergency trip to the store to buy more Sure Jell (Anabelle had hidden mine in the microwave) didn’t bother me after tasting the final product.

But what can you do with such a treasure? Surely it could not live up to its potential merely spread on wheat toast. Leave it to Sam to come up with a solution — a jelly roll. How a four-year-old even knows about this old-fashioned dessert is beyond me, but I’m glad he does. The light sponge cake highlights the sweet, ruby red jam beautifully, a tasty and lovely looking treat, perfect for a picnic.

Old South Jelly Roll Cake
From Paula Deen, Food Network

4 eggs, separated
3/4 cup (150 g) sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla
3/4 cup (75 g) cake flour, sifted
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (250 ml) jam, stirred well
confectioners’ sugar (a.k.a. icing sugar), for dusting, sifted
whipped cream, to serve (optional)

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C).

In a small bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff but not dry and set aside. In another bowl, beat the egg yolks until light. Gradually add the sugar and vanilla, and mix well. Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add the sifted flour mixture to the egg yolk mixture. Fold the egg whites into the egg mixture and pour the batter into a 15 x 10 x 1-inch jelly roll (Swiss roll) pan lined with waxed paper. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cake is golden.

Loosen the edges of cake and invert the cake onto a dish towel dusted with confectioners’ sugar. Gently and slowly peel the wax paper off the cake. Trim 1/4 inch of hard crust off each long side of the jelly roll cake. Begin with the narrow side and roll the cake and towel up together. Cool the cake on a rack, seam side down, for 10 to 15 minutes.

Once the cake has cooled, gently unroll and spread the cake with jam and re-roll. Sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar. Serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Was anyone else disappointed by the lackluster weather on the summer solstice? I can usually depend on June 21st (my half-birthday) for some decent weather. But sadly, this year I can count the number of warm, sunny days on one hand. Our CSA box did brighten my week though, full of tender greens, succulent strawberries and even a jug of maple syrup. The maple syrup was especially welcome. It’s hard to believe the amount of maple syrup our family goes through. We love it in yogurt, on oatmeal, and, of course, on waffles and other breakfast treats. I also bake with it whenever possible, preferring it to more processed sweeteners.

Though not every dessert recipe is suitable for maple syrup, this pound cake recipe is an ideal platform. I loved the subtle maple flavor in the batter. I can’t even begin to describe how good it smelled while baking, like pancakes and vanilla and freshly baked bread all at once. Using yogurt and oil instead of pound cake’s traditional butter base results in a lighter cake that stays lusciously moist for days — and won’t destroy your summer “I have to wear a bathing suit in public” diet. The pound cake is perfect for pairing with the season’s berries, sliced or slightly macerated. I also like this pound cake for breakfast, lightly toasted and spread with my friend Alex’s amazing homemade raspberry jam. Jam recipe forthcoming if I can ever talk her into sharing it.

Maple Yogurt Pound Cake with Berries
adapted from food52

Makes 1 loaf

For a healthier and more substantial loaf (pictured above), substitute 1/2 cup of whole wheat flour for 1/2 cup of the all-purpose flour. I prefer white whole-wheat flour or whole-wheat pastry flour for a lighter texture.

1/2 cup (120 ml) Grade B maple syrup
3/4 cup (180 ml) yogurt, preferably not non-fat
1/4 cup (50 g) sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1 1/2 cups (180 g) all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (125 ml) oil [Note: I use canola]

Position the rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350°F (180°C). Generously butter a 8 1/2 × 4 1/2 × 2 1/2-inch metal loaf pan.

Combine the yogurt, syrup, sugar, eggs, vanilla and lemon zest. Stir or whisk to combine.

In a separate bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir to incorporate. Add the oil and fold in gradually until the oil absorbs completely into the batter.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Place the pan on a baking sheet in the oven and bake for about 50 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool the cake in its pan on a rack for 5 minutes. Cut around the pan sides to loosen the cake, then turn out onto the rack. Turn the cake upright on the rack and cool completely.

Every time my husband and I play the lotto (which is hardly ever), we convince ourselves we’re going to win it. We usually only buy a ticket when the jackpot is huge after rolling over a few times, but we don’t let the decreased odds stand in the way of our daydreaming. We’ll pay off our student loans! We’ll build an extension on our house! Hell, we’ll knock down the house and just build a bigger and better one! You get the idea.

Well, I might not have won the lotto, but I did get a visit from the Fairy Hobmother after entering the contest over at Eat Like a Girl’s blog. And while I didn’t get a big ticket prize like a new food processor, I did get an Amazon gift certificate, which is always a well-received present for this professional bookworm. I promptly put it to good use on a few cookbooks from my wish list, one of which was Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented. I can’t wait to make Mississippi Mud Pie, New York Style Crumb Cake, Quick Skillet Snack Cake, Burnt Sugar Bundt Cake with Caramel Rum Frosting, Heartland Turtle Bars, Buckeyes … the list goes on and on (and on). But first up was this Double Chocolate Loaf with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Spread.

And now the Fairy Hobmother wants to visit one of you! For a chance to win something from the Fairy Hobmother from Appliances Online, who sell cookers and other appliances, just leave a comment telling me what you would buy with an Amazon gift certificate. The competition is open until midnight on Monday, June 13, and a winner will be randomly selected by the Fairy Hobmother. Good luck!

Double Chocolate Loaf with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Spread
adapted from Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

Makes one 9 x 5-inch loaf

The authors suggest slicing this and eating it plain, or toasting it and spreading with a bit of butter, cream cheese or, of course, this peanut butter cream cheese spread. They also say this loaf is wonderful with coffee and the morning newspaper. Chocolate cake for breakfast? I like their style.

For the loaf:
3/4 cup (120 g) firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 1/2 cups (180 g) flour
1 cup (120 g) dark unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted (I used Green & Blacks)
3/4 cup (150 g) granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 egg yolk
3/4 cup (180 ml) buttermilk
1/2 cup (125 ml) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
8 oz (225 g) good-quality dark chocolate, coarsely chopped

For the peanut butter cream cheese spread:
5 oz (140 g) cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup (75 g) sugar

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and position the rack in the center of the oven. Butter a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan, dust it with flour and knock out the excess flour.

Place the brown sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Press out any lumps with the back of a large spoon. Add the flour, cocoa, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolk until blended, then add the buttermilk, oil and vanilla and whisk until combined.

Turn the mixer to low and slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, mixing until just combined (don’t overmix!). Stir in the dark chocolate chunks by hand.

Pour the batter into the prepared loaf tin and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Meanwhile, to make the peanut butter spread, beat the cream cheese and peanut butter together in a bowl with an electric mixer until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until incorporated. If you aren’t using the spread immediately, place it in a ramekin, tightly cover it with cling film and it will keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Serve the loaf plain or toasted, topped with the peanut butter spread. The loaf will keep in an airtight container or wrapped tightly at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Things are still crazy, hectic, almost out of control in my household. We’re still managing to eat well though, thanks in part to my husband. We’ve settled into a pattern where I do the meal planning and grocery shopping and he takes care of the cooking while I pick up the kids from daycare. His most recent dinner was absolutely amazing, the type of meal where the only full sentence spoken (even from your kids) involves some variation of “this is delicious.” While the meal is quick and healthy, it does require multiple pans and you really have to be on your toes to make sure nothing is overcooked. Still, if you’re short for time but energized enough to maneuver three pots at once, this one is hard to beat.

Egg-Topped Soba Noodles with Asparagus and Prosciutto
adapted from Bon Appétit, February 2010

Serves 6

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
5 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped
4 oz (110 g) thinly sliced prosciutto, cut crosswise into strips
6 large eggs
10 to 12 oz (280 to 340 g) thin soba noodles
1 lb (450 g) asparagus, ends trimmed, cut on sharp diagonal into 1/8-inch-thick slices
1 cup (100 g) freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Fill a large pot with water and bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a large skillet over a medium-high heat. Add the garlic and stir 30 seconds. Add the prosciutto strips and cook until slightly crisp. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Heat 2 teaspoons of oil in a large nonstick skillet (or 2 small nonstick skillets) over a medium heat. Crack the eggs carefully into the skillet. Cook on 1 side until the eggs begin to set, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Cover and set aside.

Cook the soba noodles in the large pot of boiling water for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the sliced asparagus to the pot. Cook until the noodles are cooked through and the asparagus is just tender, 2 to 3 minutes. Do not overcook! Drain the noodles and asparagus, reserving 1 cup (250 ml) of the cooking liquid.

Add the drained noodles and asparagus to the prosciutto mixture in the skillet. Cook over a medium heat until just heated through, tossing and adding the reserved cooking liquid by 1/4 cupfuls (50 ml) to moisten.

Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the grated Parmesan cheese and remaining 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil and toss to coat. Divide among 6 plates or shallow bowls. Top each serving with 1 egg and serve immediately, breaking and stirring the egg yolk (which should still be a bit runny) into the noodles.

***

Double Chocolate Muffins

My daughter is “graduating” to a toddler room at her daycare this week. In a fit of panic after forgetting to buy her teachers a good-bye gift, I threw together these muffins with the odds and ends I had in my house. What a discovery! They are moist and chocolaty, and just healthy enough to eat for breakfast. I hope they enjoyed them. I know we did.

Makes 24 muffins

1 1/2 (180 g) cups all-purpose flour
1 cup (120 g) whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups (300 g) sugar
1/2 cup (60 g) cocoa
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 cup (250 ml) plain yogurt
1/2 cup (125 ml) water
1/2 cup (125 ml) milk
1/2 cup (125 ml) vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup (80 g) grated dark chocolate
1 cup (200 g) white chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 325°F (160°C). In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, yogurt, water, milk, oil and vanilla. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just moistened. Do not overmix! Fold in the grated chocolate and white chocolate chips.

Fill greased or paper-lined muffin cups about 3/4 full. Bake for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool the muffins for 5 minutes before removing from the pans to wire racks.

I have a confession to make — I don’t like Guinness. When I first moved to Ireland, I tried to like it, I really did. At my first publishing job in Temple Bar in Dublin, the five of us who worked there would often go to the pub for lunch together, and the man from Manchester who I worked with would sometimes skip food altogether and only have a pint of plain for his lunch. My husband tells the story of how the doctor even told his Irish grandmother to drink it when she was pregnant, saying it would help keep her iron levels up — Guinness is good for you and all that. My first six months here I kept ordering pints of it in the pub in the hopes that it might be an acquired taste, but I could only ever get halfway through them. I officially gave up when I was out with the same publishing crowd at the Stag’s Head in Dublin and one of my co-workers suggested I order it with a shot of blackcurrant syrup, saying a lot of girls drank it that way. I thought it tasted even worse and could only take one sip before pushing away the glass, and it’s been ales and lagers for me ever since.

While I don’t like to drink it straight up, I do like to cook with it. Beef and Guinness go together like bread and butter, and this steak, Guinness and cheese pie from Jamie Oliver gives my favorite beef and Guinness stew a run for its money. You would probably never think of baking with beer, much less in a chocolate cake, but Nigella Lawson pulls it off. I made it for my father-in-law’s birthday back in January and it’s become one of Kelly’s favorites. So all these years later, I’ve started buying Guinness again — though in a roundabout way for the likes of stews and cakes. Sláinte!

Looking for more Irish recipes for St. Patrick’s Day? Try beef and Guinness stew with champ, Irish soda bread or Guinness gingerbread.

Steak, Guinness and Cheddar Pie
adapted from Jamie at Home by Jamie Oliver

Serves 4

Jamie Oliver’s original recipe calls for lining the bottom of the pie dish with the puff pastry as well, but I simplified it to just cover the top with a puff pastry lid. He also says to add enough water just to cover the beef — I found that I didn’t need to add any at all because the beef was covered enough using only the Guinness, which also meant the pie filling was the perfect consistency and wasn’t too runny. If you don’t have a Dutch oven or an ovenproof casserole with a lid, you can just simmer the beef on the stovetop instead over a low-medium heat.

olive oil
3 medium red onions, chopped
3 cloves of garlic, chopped
2 tablespoons (30 g) butter
2 carrots, peeled and chopped
2 sticks of celery, trimmed and chopped
4 large mushrooms, sliced (optional)
2 lb (1 kg) brisket of beef or stewing beef, cut into 1 inch cubes
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and chopped (or you could substitute thyme)
salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cups (500 ml) Guinness
2 heaped tablespoons flour
2 cups (200 g) grated Cheddar cheese
2 sheets of ready-rolled puff pastry
1 large egg, beaten
freshly cooked peas, to serve

Preheat the oven to 375ºF (190°C). In a large ovenproof pot, heat a generous splash  of olive oil on a low heat. Add the onions and fry gently for about 10 minutes with a pinch of salt so that they don’t brown too much. Turn the heat up, add the garlic, butter, carrots and celery and scatter in the mushrooms. Mix everything together before stirring in the beef, rosemary, a pinch of salt and a level teaspoon of pepper.

Fry fast for 3 or 4 minutes, then pour in the Guinness, stir in the flour and add just enough water to cover (I didn’t need to add any water at all, see note above). Bring to a simmer, cover the pot  with a lid and place in the preheated oven for about 1 1/2 hours. Remove the pot from the oven and give the stew a stir. Put it back into the oven and continue to cook it for another hour, or until the meat is very tender and the stew is rich, dark and thick. A perfect pie filling needs to be robust, so if it’s still quite liquid, place the pot on the stovetop and reduce, uncovered, until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in half the cheese, then season carefully and leave to cool slightly. Tip the stew into a pie dish or individual dishes and even it out before sprinkling over the remaining cheese.

Cut the ready-rolled sheet of pastry to fit the top of the pie dish (or individual dishes), rolling it out a little on a lightly floured countertop with a rolling pin if you need to in order for it to cover your dish. Criss-cross the pastry lightly with a sharp knife. Place it over the top of the pie and tuck it down around the stew. Brush the top with beaten egg, then bake the pie in the oven for 45 minutes, or until the pastry is cooked, puffed and golden. Delicious served simply with peas on the side.

***

Chocolate Guinness Cake
adapted from Feast by Nigella Lawson

Serves 12

Nigella Lawson likes to ice the top of the cake so that it resembles the famously frothy head that sits on top of a pint of stout, but she says it also tastes perfectly good if you leave it uniced and plain.

for the cake:
1 cup (250 ml) Guinness
9 oz (250 g) unsalted butter, cubed or sliced
3/4 cup (75 g) unsweetened cocoa
2 cups (400 g) sugar
3/4 cup (or 1 x 142 ml pot) sour cream
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups (275 g) flour
2 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

for the topping:
11 oz (300 g) Philadelphia cream cheese
1 1/4 cups (150 g) confectioners’ sugar (icing sugar)
1/2 cup (125 ml) heavy cream (double or whipping cream)

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C) and butter and line a 9 inch (23 cm) springform tin.

Pour the Guinness into a large pot. Add the butter cubes or slices and heat until the butter melts, then whisk in the cocoa and sugar. In a separate bowl, beat the sour cream with the eggs and vanilla, then pour into the beer and butter mixture. Lastly, whisk in the flour and baking soda. Pour the cake batter into the greased and lined tin and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Leave to cool completely in the tin on a cooling rack, as it’s quite a damp cake.

When the cake is completely cold, sit it on a flat platter or cake stand to ice it. Lightly whip the cream cheese until smooth, sieve over the confectioners’ (icing) sugar and then beat them both together. (Alternatively, you can do this in a food processor, putting the unsieved icing sugar in first, and blitz to remove lumps before adding the cheese.) Add the cream and beat again until it’s a spreadable consistency. Ice the top of the black cake so that it resembles the frothy top of the famous pint.

In what I suspect will become a birthday tradition, Sam once again asked for “chocolate cake with whipped cream” for his birthday party this year. Although my holiday schedule wasn’t quite as hectic as Kristin’s, between December 1st, 2010 and January 1st, 2011, I had already celebrated eight days of Chanukah, my husband’s birthday, my birthday, Christmas, and New Year’s.  Exhausted from the festivities, I was tempted to remake last year’s icebox cake and spare myself the time it would take to find a new recipe to fit Sam’s party criteria. But I just couldn’t brush off the request that easily. It’s not Sam’s fault he was born the first week in January and that his birthday, like mine, tends to be sucked up and forgotten amidst the winter holiday hustle and bustle. I luckily found another great make-ahead cake covered in whipped cream, chocolate, and–as an added  bonus–sprinkles.  Despite its less than perfect appearance (to be blamed on a final layer of too warm hot fudge sauce), this cake was a real crowd-pleaser.

The birthday dinner itself was a lighter affair. Sam is a huge fan of Japanese food, especially edamame, so this edamame-based pesto caught my eye while I browsed cookbooks for a cake recipe. The pesto tasted amazing dolloped on a piece of sauteed cod, and nearly as good spread on a cracker later that night as a bedtime snack. I rounded out dinner with simple steamed veggies and cooked quinoa.

Fish with Edamame Pesto
adapted from Mark Bittman’s Kitchen Express: 404 inspired seasonal dishes you can make in 20 minutes or less

serves 3

1 bag frozen edamame (in pods)
olive oil
1 clove garlic, grated
juice of half a lemon
handful of grated Parmesan cheese
salt and pepper, to taste
1 lb (450 g) cod or other fish fillet(s)
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
chopped walnuts, for garnish

Blanch the frozen edamame in boiling salted water for 3–5 minutes until tender. Drain and rinse the edamame under cold water. Shell the soybeans and place them in a blender or food processor with a few tablespoons of olive oil (or more, as needed) to get a nice puree. Add the garlic, lemon juice, and Parmesan and blend until smooth. Season the puree to taste with salt and pepper.

Season the fish fillet with salt and pepper. Cook the fillet(s) in the butter or olive oil over medium heat about 4 minutes per side or until golden and cooked through. Serve the fish with a spoonful of the pesto and garnish with chopped walnuts.

***

Cookies-and-Cream Ice Cream Cake
adapted from Bon Appetit, June 2000

serves 12

1 x 16-oz (45o-g) pound cake, thawed if frozen
1/2 gallon (about 1 kg) cookies-and-cream ice cream, slightly softened

12 oz (340 g) hot fudge sauce (purchased or homemade)
6 oz (170 g) semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 (60 ml) cup water
10 Oreo cookies, coarsely chopped

1 cup (240 ml) chilled whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar
candy sprinkles

Cut the cake into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Halve each slice diagonally, forming triangles. Cover the bottom of a 9-inch-diameter springform pan with the cake by arranging some triangles, points facing in, around the edge of pan. Fill in the center with more triangles; then cut additional pieces to fill in any spaces. Spread half of the ice cream over the cake. Freeze until firm, about 1 hour.

Stir the fudge sauce, chocolate chips and 1/4 cup water in a heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat until melted and smooth. Cool to just barely lukewarm. Spread half of the fudge sauce over the ice cream. Sprinkle with the cookies. Top with enough remaining cake slices to cover. Spread the remaining ice cream over. Freeze 1 hour.

Stir the remaining fudge sauce over medium-low heat until barely lukewarm. Pour the sauce over the ice cream, spreading to the edge. Freeze at least 6 hours or overnight.

To serve, let cake sit in fridge about 15 minutes to slightly thaw. While the cake thaws, beat the cream and sugar in a medium bowl to stiff peaks. Run a knife around the pan sides to loosen the cake. Release the pan sides. Spread the whipped cream around the side of the cake and, if desired, pipe a border of whipped cream around the top edge of the cake. Scatter sprinkles or other small candies atop the cake.