this is my 100th recipe! i am not sure what made me count the recipes on picky cook the other day, but when i did and discovered that this would be my 100th recipe i was shocked. it really is true that time flies when you are doing something that you love.
i wanted to take this milestone to say thank you - thank you for coming back, subscribing, leaving comments, sending emails. i really love hearing from you - i have really great readers!
enjoy "your" cake!
there are a few things i have been afraid of making.
i used to be terrified of baking with yeast - i got over that one. another thing i have avoided making is angel food cake. i realize now how silly that fear was. this is not difficult and so much better than anything you could buy at the store.
the key to a successful angel food cake is whipping the egg white until stiff but not letting them cross over into over beaten. i think that is what i was scared of but it really isn't difficult as long as you keep your eyes on the batter. i stopped the mixer sever times to check the peak. don't be afraid to do this. the other thing that freaked me out was having to cool the cake upside down. i had visions of the cake falling out of the pan into a pile. it did not happen - another unfounded fear.
it is hard to find the correct words to describe the texture of homemade angel food cake vs store bought. it has a lightly spongy texture. it is more delicate than any i have purchased. it is also more white - it really does look like a cloud. the light vanilla flavor is present but not overwhelming. i am glad i chose this icing. it was light and had good chocolate flavor. the berries gave a bit of sweetness that made this a perfect dessert in my opinion.
you will have 10 - 11 egg yolks leftover from this recipe. i highly suggest you make some
vanilla pudding while the cake is baking. not only will you have this lovely cake you will also have the
most wonderful vanilla pudding ever created.
angel food cake with chocolate whipped cream icingangel food cakeGourmet | February 2000ingredients1 1/2 cups large egg whites (10 to 11)
1 tablespoon warm water
1 cup sifted cake flour (not self-rising; sift before measuring)
1 1/4 cups superfine granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
Special equipment:a 10- by 4-inch tube pan with removable bottom and a standing electric mixer
preparationPreheat oven to 375 degree F.
Put whites and water in a very clean large metal bowl and swirl over simmering water or a gas flame until barely warm. Sift together flour and 1/4 cup sugar 4 times onto a sheet of wax paper.
Beat whites in standing electric mixer on medium speed until frothy. Add vanilla, cream of tartar, and salt. Increase speed to medium-high and beat just until soft peaks begin to form. Gradually beat in remaining cup sugar, 2 tablespoons at a time, occasionally scraping down side of bowl. Increase speed to high and beat until stiff, glossy peaks form. (Do not overbeat.) Sift one third of flour mixture over whites. Beat on low speed just until blended. Sift and beat in remaining flour in 2 more batches.
Gently pour batter into ungreased tube pan and smooth top. Run a rubber spatula or long knife through batter to eliminate any large air bubbles.
Bake cake in lower third of oven until golden and a tester comes out clean, about 40 minutes. Remove cake from oven and immediately invert pan. (If pan has "legs," stand it on those. Otherwise, place pan over neck of a bottle.) Cool cake completely, upside down. Turn pan right side up. Run a long, thin knife around outer edge of pan with a smooth (not sawing) motion. Do the same around center tube. Remove outer rim of pan and run knife under bottom of cake to release. Invert to release cake from tube, and invert again onto a serving plate.
chocolate whipped cream icingBon Appétit | October 1991ingredients1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon espresso powder
Pinch of cream of tartar
2 cups chilled whipping cream
preparationWhisk powdered sugar, cocoa powder, milk, espresso powder and cream of tartar in large bowl until smooth. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, about 1 hour. (Can be prepared 4 hours ahead.)
Using electric mixer, gradually beat cream into chocolate mixture. Continue beating until stiff peaks form.
Place cake on platter. Spread top and sides of cake with icing. Slice into wedges and serve.
I also served with berries macerated in a bit of sugar.
Cooks' notes:•Angel food cake was traditionally torn apart using 2 forks or a many-pronged cake breaker to preserve its prized texture; however, gently sawing with a modern serrated knife also works well.•Cake may be made 1 day ahead and kept, covered, at room temperature.
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these carrot cake cookies almost converted me from a pumpkin lover to a
carrot cake lover. yes, they are that good. the cookie itself is soft
and moist - yet strong enough to hold up as a sandwich cookie. i added
more spice to the mix because that is how i roll. i think it is a major
improvement over the original recipe. i usually could leave the frosting
out of the equation but in this case - the frosting makes these
cookies. the cookie itself is not very sweet and the creamy sweetness of
the cream cheese frosting balances out the cookie with the perfect
amount of sweetness to compliment the spices in the cookie. these carrot
cake cookies would be the perfect picnic or backyard barbecue dessert. 
i love the idea of using rice krispies in a cookie. i have adapted the
recipe a bit by adding toffee and cinnamon but i think the rice krispies
are what make them special. the cookie itself is crisp but the middle
is still chewy. the toffee melts the perfect amount to be chewy but
still hold that toffee texture i love. ever since i made 
these cookies are INCREDIBLE! i am not exaggerating - they are
perfection. the crispy cookie and the white chocolate would be amazing
on their own but the addition of the sea salt - oh my! the salty crunch
on top makes these cookies one of the best i have ever made.Session dataSession data 
these peanut butter and jelly bars fit the bill perfectly. not only are
they simple to make - you can easily double the recipe for a large
crowd. i need my peanut butter to be chunky - the smooth stuff just
doesn't feel like peanut butter to me - so i substituted chunky for
smooth. any kind of berry jam will work great and for those of you
grape jelly fans - that would work as well. i added a bit on honey to
the batter and honey roasted peanuts to the top because i think peanut
butter and honey are naturals together. 
the mixed apple pie was probably one of my favorite pies i have
made because each apple was so different - different flavor and
texture. they combined perfectly. the all butter pastry crust was flaky
and i had a lot of fun making up the top crust. i have done lattice - i
have done full crust - i have done crumble topping. i wanted something
special this time. i took the top crust and cut out circles with a
biscuit cutter and overlapped the circles. it looked like a flower. i
will be using that one again - it makes a traditional pie new again. 
this cake met every expectation i had and then some. i used a different
recipe for the cake because i have one i love and the baked recipe makes
a three layer cake which i thought was overkill. i made everything else
from the baked recipe. this was not an easy cake for me to make as i
seem to be cursed when it comes to caramel but it was worth all the
effort. the balance of the sweet & salty flavors is perfection. the
cake itself is pure decadence but with fleur de sel and caramel it puts
it into a whole other world.
i get why people love these brownies and i am sure they are equally
fabulous on their own but i am telling you they are a little slice of
heaven when marbled with a cream cheese swirl. i upped the amount of
espresso powder and decreased the sugar by a bit because i do that in
most recipes. both adaptations worked really well and i think they
enhanced the deep chocolate flavor in these brownies. 
