We have all been on diets, and are using a friend's annual July 4th party as an excuse to fall off the wagon (well, some of us are; others are being really strong and virtuous and disciplined and will be able to snort in superiority at the others of us once he's reached his target weight and we are still pasty-white and flabby, huddling in our summer anoraks for coverage).
In the photo, behind, is Rhubarb Custard Cake. This is trés simple: make a white cake (from a box, ahem), stirring in an extra teaspoon of fresh-grated nutmeg. Pour into 11 x 15 pan (bigger than normal size -- we had to buy a new pan for this recipe). Before baking, stir 1-1/2 cups sugar into 6 cups of diced rhubarb. Sprinkle/layer over the top of the cake batter in the pan. Then, "drizzle" 1 pint of whipping cream over top of the rhubarb/cake layers. Don't stir it. Bake for 35 minutes, or until it passes the toothpick test.
The pan in the foreground is Sea-Salt Caramel Brownies, a recipe pulled from memory of something we made a few months ago. I haven't tasted them yet, but I'm not concerned that they will be rejected. Make a batch (or, ahem, a box) of brownies and pour into 9 x 13 pan. Drop dollops of a thick, usually expensive, caramel sauce over top (thicker is better -- it should stay dollop-y, rather than syrupy. Caramel syrups just blend and make a different-tasting brownie). Run a knife through the dollops and the brownie batter underneath, forming swirls of caramel in the chocolate. Sprinkle a lot of coarsely flaked sea salt (such as Malden salt) over the top -- about 2 teaspoons. Bake. (I do recommend an expensive sea salt for this, because it is a critical flavor in the brownies.)
We made both of these cakes this spring (necessitating the diets this summer), and they are both tasty. Even the Chocolate Lovers among us have trouble choosing between the Rhubarb Custard Cake and the brownies, demonstrating how truly superior it is.
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