A Thank You

Almost a month ago I was preparing to take my dreaded EMT state exam. I took my EMT class a year ago and was finally getting around to be certified. Lets just say I forgot A LOT of stuff and needed some help. Enter Toby Maak- EMT extraordinaire. Really though, Toby is one of my friends from freshman year when we both decided to take accelerated introduction to chem. He has been an EMT now for three years at Clark and has helped many, many students pass their tests. Toby spent about 8 hours with me overall the week of helping me practice, and I couldn't thank him enough. 
Another thank you goes out to Alicia Winn, a wonderful girl in SASC with me. For the actual test (which was from 7-12 and an hour away AND on a Saturday) I desperately needed a patient. Alicia volunteered herself and I couldn't have been more grateful! She made the day go by quickly and calmed my nerves before every station.

 So I needed to say THANK YOU! to these wonderful people, and I knew exactly how I should do it. Baked goods. Everyone loves them and needs them. I wanted to bake something simple (it was midterms) but delicious, and easy to transport. That is when I decided to give cake balls a try. I know the name is weird and might make you giggle - but seriously - these are amazing. Make a box cake, let it cool, crumble it up, put frosting in it, shape it into balls, let those cool, and dip them in chocolate!!!!!! I made red velvet ones. An although I very much so dislike making boxed cakes, they turned out incredible. The hard chocolate contrasts textually with the gooey sweet cake in the middle making for a wonderful experience in you mouth. mmmmmmm. And guess what? they are really trendy right now too. You can even go buy one at starbucks. (but trust me, homemade is better).

I'm envisioning white chocolate funfetti ones in the future, but for now, check out this link to see a pretty picture  and the official recipe by Bakerella! http://www.bakerella.com/red-velvet-cake-balls/
Sorry I didn't take any pictures. my hands were too covered in chocolate. :)

mmm...Deutsch Schokoladenkuchen (also known as German Chocolate Cake)

The was #3 on the RA birthday cake challenge, and quite the surprise of a cake. When you hear "German chocolate cake" you see the chocolate cake and that coconut frosting, right? and it doesn't really look or even sound that hard to bake - but just wait - it is. The recipe I happened to choose was from Rachel Ray (whom I usually never use) who got it from someone named Trisha Yearwood (a fabulous baker i'm guessing). I chose it because it looked the easiest and had the fewest ingredients. But I've learned that no cake with three layers can be THAT easy.

this cake has many steps and components: melted chocolate, the cocoa-sugar-butter mixture, the flower mixture, beaten egg whites, and buttermilk- you know it has to be a good cake if it has buttermilk in it.

Good thing I had bought some new aluminum pans. :)

After mixing all of the ingredients, the egg whites are folded into the batter, making it extremely fluffy. I think this caused the cake to have the perfect balance between density and spongy-ness, making for an amazing texture.While the cakes cooled I made the coconut frosting, which took FOR-EV-ER. I suggest to not be too timid with turning up the heat, or else you will never finish it. Also the frosting turned out very thick, so I think I might have messed up somewhere. It still tasted delicious though, so I don't really know.

Below are the pictures of me assembling and frosting the cake, courtesy of Matt Warndorf.

candid shot!

This picture shows the three layers quite well

Below is the picture of the actual cake - and everyone who enjoyed eating it!

Lots o' texture

even Sarah helped!

very very very good

the taste

the reaction

Recipe is below (obtained from Rachel Ray's Website)

Ingredients

• 4 ounces sweet dark chocolate (see Shopping Hint below)
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup warm milk
• 2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 5 medium egg whites
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 medium egg yolks, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup buttermilk, well shaken
• For the coconut frosting:
• 1 cup sugar
• 4 medium egg yolks
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 10 ounces fresh or frozen and thawed grated coconut
• 1 1/2 cups finely ground pecans, walnuts, or almonds
• 1/4 cup warm milk

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Yields: 12 servings

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Preparation

Prepare the chocolate by melting it in the top of a double boiler, stirring until it is smooth. Add 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) of the butter and stir until it is melted and blended. Add 1/4 cup of warm milk and stir until smooth. Set the chocolate aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Line the bottoms only of three 9-inch cake pans with circles of parchment paper, or grease each pan bottom only with solid shortening and dust lightly with flour. Sift together the sifted and measured flour, baking soda, and salt.

Whip the egg whites until stiff using the wire beater of the mixer. Transfer the beaten whites to a separate bowl and set aside.

In the mixer bowl, cream the remaining 1 1/2 sticks of butter and sugar together until fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the melted, cooled chocolate and the vanilla. Mix well.

With the mixer on very low, stir in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk. Do this by adding about a third of the flour and slowly stirring it in completely. Then add about half the buttermilk and stir it in. Continue adding flour and buttermilk in this manner, ending with flour. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and stir again. With a long-handled spoon or spatula, fold and stir the beaten egg whites into the batter until the batter is smooth with no visible clumps of whites.

Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and bake for 30-40 minutes. Bake on the middle rack of the oven, allowing at least 1/4-inch clearance between the pans and the oven walls. The cake will rise above the pan edges as it bakes but will not spill over and will settle back down as it continues to bake. The cake is done when it begins to pull away from the sides of the pans and springs back to a light touch. Cool layers in the pans for about 8 minutes.

Run a knife around the edges of each pan and turn the layers out onto wire racks that have been sprayed with cooking spray. Cool layers completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, combine the sugar, egg yolks, and evaporated milk in the top of a double boiler. Stir with a wire whisk until the yolks are fully incorporated. Add the butter. Place over simmering water and bring to a boil (see Note below). Simmer for 12-15 minutes longer, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens. Add the vanilla, coconut, and nuts. Cool.

To assemble the cake, place one layer on a cake stand and spread with frosting. Frost each layer completely, top and sides, as it is added to the cake.

Note: You can also make the frosting in a regular saucepan, but be sure to stir it constantly, as it scorches quite easily. Also, you must use the finely grated fresh or frozen coconut, not canned or shredded, to be able to spread the frosting on the sides of the cake easily.

Cookies with a CRUNCH!

The other day I was feeling daring and bought some Muesli from the grocery store. I didn't really know what it was other than an oat-like cereal that is supposed to be good for you. After further research, I found out that the cereal was a combination of raw oats, nuts and dried fruit. It originates from switzerland, where it was created by a physician (no wonder I was drawn to it...) who gave it to his patients. It can be bought in the packaged form or made fresh, and can be eaten hot or cold. It is normally mixed with milk, fruit juice, water or yogurt and is traditionally left to soak overnight.

Basically - its super versatile. so versatile that the bag had a chocolate chip cookie recipie on the back. YES!!!! so one thursday night when I was craving some sweets, I whipped some up.

Mixin' up all the ingredients

The recipe calls for applesauce, but I didn't have any so I used vegetable oil. The dough was very oily so I added more flour and some white granulated sugar.  

coooooKIE dough! 

And if you think that looks good - just wait until they come out.

deliciously formed and shaped!

I'm pretty sure I ate 5 of them right then and there. the ones with extra flour and sugar were ore cakey and sugary and I liked them muuuch better. :)

Chocolate Chip Muesli Cookies (taken from the back of Bob Mill's Old Country Style Museli)

• 1 c. museli 
• 3/4 c. flour (the package calls for whole wheat, but regular is fine too)
• 2/3 c Applesauce (oil works too!)
• 3/4 c. brown sugar 
• 6 oz chocolate chips
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 t. vanilla
• 1 Egg

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Sift flour, baking soda and salt together and set aside. Blend applesauce, sugar and vanilla together. Beat in egg. Add flour mixture and mix. Stir in Museli and chocolate chips. Drop tablespoons on a cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.

and ENJOY!