Opera Cake, in two acts

It never ceases to amaze me just how many things there are that makes me say, "I've always wanted to make that!" As much as I've slowly chipped away at that unwritten list over the years, I've resigned myself to the fact that I will never completely check off everything and be done. And that's not a bad thing. I still love a good project, gaining a new experience, learning new techniques, and savoring the satisfaction of creating something tasty that I can share with my family. 

Opera cake is one of those iconic French desserts that I've always wanted to make. Seven layers of alternating jocande, or almond sponge cake, with coffee buttercream and chocolate ganache, topped with a chocolate glaze - plus, a serious soaking in coffee syrup for the cake layers. Everything melds together for a delectable coffee-chocolate experience.

Maybe with a spurt of New Year energy for learning something new and making more time to do things I enjoy, I recently made not one but two Opera cakes! One of those is the classic version we can hardly resist from pastry shop display cases. Its delicate layers of flavor requires some planning and patience but it's nice sometimes to clear the decks and make time to focus on a (sweet) project or two. 

After so many years of wanting to make Opera cake, little did I know it would actually begin with a beautiful, albeit unconventional, layer-cake version I spotted in a gorgeous book I received at Christmas. 

It was the inspiration I needed to check Opera cake off my unwritten list and after making the layer cake rendition, with all its many steps, I had the confidence (and heightened curiosity) to tackle the classic. Both were delicious and well worth the effort.

Two-tier pistachio-orange-chocolate cake

Birthdays and anniversaries require cake so we're having cake today for this little Blog's 4th Anniversary!  

When I realized this anniversary was coming up, I started thinking about cake. Surprisingly, I didn't have a queue of cakes I wanted to make sitting on the sidelines so I kept it simple and just asked myself: what kind of cake do I want to eat?  And pistachio cake popped into my mind.  I've been on a pistachio kick lately and, to me, they're kind of like pears in that I'll go for a while without eating them and forget how good they are until I eat them again. 

So pistachios it was!  In the back of my mind, I was seeing this chocolate pistachio cake of Martha's that I always found alluring.  I stuck with the torte idea (which I tend to think of as nut-based, European-style, cakes) but instead of making a chocolate-pistachio cake, I made it a pistachio cake with chocolate.  I wanted the bright, nutty flavor of the pistachios to shine.  I based the cake on a recipe from epicurious and added the chocolate elements.  Pistachios and orange with chocolate is one of my favorite combinations so that's what we have. 

I didn't give this cake a lot of pre-thought before making it and wow, I was very pleasantly surprised by the cake I ended up with!  It was totally scrumptious, really moist and full of nutty citrus flavor, capped off by that coating of chocolate ganache. I will be making this one again and again.

The cake is made with ground pistachios but since it's not propped up solely on ground nuts (there's flour in it, too), the texture is moist and dense but also stands firmly in traditional cake territory as well.  I find cakes made entirely with ground nuts can be too rich and moist for my taste so this was a great balance.  There's a lovely chewiness to it also that I adore.  Orange zest works so well with pistachios and while I already have chocolate well represented in the coating, I couldn't resist adding another hint of chocolate in the cake itself.  So I grated an ounce of dark chocolate and folded it into the batter at the last moment.  You might not be able to detect the shaved chocolate within the cake but I'm comforted to know it's there.  

I attempted to make this a little more special by creating a two-tier cake, a 4-inch on top of an 8-inch base.  As you can see, I swaddled the cake in chocolate ganache, which is like an irrepressible reflex for me.  I am exploring my new interest in water ganache so it was made with just dark chocolate and water.  I'd use a little less water next time for a thicker consistency but I'm so far very happy with the water ganache option.  I topped the cake with a little decoration of chopped pistachios and cocoa nibs.  I would say this cake is a good representation of the kind of cake I love to eat - a moist, flavorful cake featuring nuts and chocolate!

I'm so glad I made cake to celebrating four years tapping away on this blog!  When I first started here, I didn't know how long I'd keep at it, and I still don't.  I'm almost surprised I'm still plugging away here but the truth is this continues to be a fun outlet for me and a motivation for learning.  I love thinking, talking, reading, writing, cooking, and eating food and that hasn't changed.    

I've learned to be comfortable in this space and I enjoy the freedom to make and show what I want without being pinned down to anything.  For a non-creative person like me, I really love the act of creating these pages - seeing these posts come to be with a recipe, some time in the kitchen, and then some words and a few pictures. There is a great sense of satisfaction in it that I'm very grateful for.  

If there's one thing that I feel a little sad about in the last four years of joining the food-blogging world (in my own very amateur, minor way) is the exiting of blogs that I got to know and enjoy.  While many blogs I started visiting four years ago are still going strong, some have stopped blogging altogether or reduced their posting significantly.  I didn't realize how much I enjoyed their words, recipes, inspiration until they were gone and I miss many of them.  I trust that those who have stopped blogging are happy and busy, and I'm sure they continue to eat well.  So I'm having a piece of cake and celebrating food blogs of old, the ones that continue to go strong, and ones yet to come that do so much to inspire and entertain me.  Thank you!  : ) 

One year here...

I started this little blog one year ago today!  Until then, I had only half-jokingly thrown the idea around - mainly because I'm obsessed with food and was looking for an excuse to do more baking - but then I actually went ahead and did it!  I'm glad I did and and here we are a year later. 

Happy One-Year Anniversary, Playing with Flour!

What it's meant... For me, having this blog has literally meant lots of trips to the grocery store to refill my stash of chocolates, butter, flour, sugar, and extracts.  But more importantly, it's been a creative outlet and a chance to indulge in a fun hobby.  I find working with chocolate and stirring a batter together very peaceful and relaxing.  The sweet (often, chocolaty) smells wafting out of the oven is my kind of aromatherapy.  And the best part is making something from scratch, possibly discovering something delicious, and getting to share it my family and friends.  They become memories.

The way I look at it... This is my open journal.  I love to cook/bake, and I love to write about food!  And of course, I love to eat.  Aside from family and maybe a handful of others, I generally figure it's an audience of one here!  I love looking back at the things I've made and reliving the occasion some of them conjure up.  I'm often in the kitchen using the recipes again and looking back at the steps.  But I have to say it's neat when I see that someone from another continent stumbled onto this space.  I also get a kick out of seeing what kind of searches people (just like me) do when they're looking for a recipe and then maybe end up here.  Maybe my experience will encourage someone else to give a recipe that appeals to them a try. 

I've really learned a lot - from, say, how to make a soufflé to recreating a cake at home that I had at a wonderful restaurant so we can relive a wonderful memory.  It's also been about seeing if that recipe really is as good as they say, and trying to discover something tasty to share with my family - then writing down my impressions.  And speaking of family, I thank my husband for his boundless enthusiasm and encouragement.  When I tell him that I want to make something (which is very often), instead of saying "again?" like maybe I would if I were him, he says "I can't wait!"  I know we're talking mainly about eating cookies and cake - which isn't exactly a great distress - but everything gets old!  And of course, I've always been able to depend on the little guy as the ultimate chocolate dessert taste-tester and fan. 

As satisfying as dessert is, I try to limit my baking to small batches and to sharing when possible.  I've really enjoyed the baking, taste-testing, and sharing that's gone on in the last year but I can't help but think that I'll have to slow down at some point!  (My family and friends are probably afraid of how many calories I'm bringing their way when they see me.)  There is so much deliciousness to explore but I want to make sure I have time to enjoy old favorites on top of discovering new ones.  I once read a blogger say that she never repeats a recipe.  I was momentarily stunned because I could never give up making our family favorites but when I think about it, I get it.  With so many recipes to test and spin off of, you have to make time and space for the discovery.  It's probably not the route I'll take but right now, I still can't help looking through a baking cookbook and seeing at least 2-3 recipes I want to jump up and make right away.

Discoveries...I tried many recipes in the last year.  There were very few duds (thankfully) and some not-so-goods, but many delicious discoveries that have become favorites.  I couldn't possibly pick one favorite - there are too many that I loved and sometimes you're in the mood for different things.  But I'd have to say that discovering how to make tri-color cookies has been a highlight of the year; they are too delicious and I'm still amazed I can make them myself!  I also think about successfully (relatively speaking) tackling macarons - and how much money I save making them at home!  I love to make that mango sago soup and seeing the look of rapture on my husband's face.  And I also can't stop craving that simple but oh-so-good chiffon cake.  Plus, when it comes to chocolate, I'm rarely disappointed whether it comes in the form of a cake, cookie, or loaf.  The list goes on and on; it's really amazing how a handful of ingredients can be spun into so many delicious forms.

A celebration cake!  And finally...it wouldn't be a proper "birthday" or anniversary celebration without a cake.  This is one of those celebration cakes - a decadent cake that's meant for sharing with a crowd.  It's a chocolate-hazelnut meringue cake that I've had my eye on for some time.  The recipe comes from the ever reliable Martha Stewart and there's a beautiful version of it on Tartlette that I also consulted.  I was a little nervous about making the cake because I'm not quite sure I fully understand or have mastered the art of meringues (and to top it all off, I made it on a misty, wet day).  I had to try since it's been on my list for so long and this cake embodies so much of what I love.  And here was the perfect special occasion for it.

We have first a base layer of flourless chocolate cake.  It's quite intense and deep in bittersweet chocolate flavor.  Secondly, a meringue layer provides a crisp yet soft and slightly chewy texture that I love (think macarons) as a contrast to the cake beneath.  Lastly, it also incorporates my love of nuts in desserts, with chopped toasted hazelnuts, plus bits of  bittersweet chocolate, folded within the meringue.  The meringue layer turned out to be my favorite part of the cake!

There's a lot of "love" in this cake - it's a hefty piece of work with a total pound of bittersweet chocolate, a cup of toasted hazelnuts, and a good dose of butter involved.  I believe in treats in moderation and I say this is a cake meant for sharing and I happily shared this at a gathering with my family.  I cut small slices and got a good twelve servings out of it.  This cake holds quite well for several days so leftovers are a good thing.  I divvied up what remained so we could all stow a bit away to enjoy another day.  The cake seemed to get darker and fudgier - almost more chocolaty - after refrigerating while the meringue stayed crisp yet a bit soft in the center...in other words, very good.  Just remove it from the fridge a bit in advance to allow it to come to room temperature before eating.

Ready for a sweet gathering!  (I did not make the macarons pictured though...)

Hooray for First Grade!

Last week marked the start of first grade for the little guy!  That means a new school - we are officially part of the elementary school system - and a full-day schedule.  Trying to push aside the laundry list of worries (like: how will he adjust to a new teacher, new school, all the new faces; will he make friends; how will he possibly eat his lunch in 20 minutes; boy, he is going to be so tired by the end of the school day; and on and on), I wanted to celebrate this milestone.

Being a worrywart by nature, I need to constantly remind myself that worrying doesn't forestall problems from happening.  So setting aside some of my concerns, I'm looking forward to the adventure and hoping our little guy (he's our only child, can you tell?) has a great school year, makes some good friends, and feels comfortable in his environment so he can learn and get as much out of it as possible.  Kindergarten was a wonderful experience.  Not only was it amazing to see the academic growth (he learned to read for crying out loud!), it was great to see him make new friends and gain more independence.  I hope first grade will be a continuation of that.  Here's to a great year ahead! 

This cake should traditionally have 3 layers.  I simplified matters here with 2 but more on that later...

To celebrate the start of this school year, I made a Brooklyn Blackout Cake.  This is another cake I'm making for the first time and a recipe I'm trying from the book, Chocolate Cakes, which I received for my birthday.  This cake is right up our little guy's alley; like me, he is all about chocolate.  Namely, we are talking chocolate cake, with chocolate pudding filling and fudge frosting.  Let me repeat:  chocolate pudding filling and fudge frosting.  I love just the sound of those two things and have been wanting to make this cake for some time.  Making this cake turned out to be quite a bit of work but it was all worth it since the little one really loved it.

I'm also representin' Brooklyn here today - the city that I really think of as my hometown.  When we lived in Bay Ridge after I got married, I was so excited when a cute, retro-looking bakery opened near our apartment.  Along with a slew of cupcakes, they used to have this huge Brooklyn Blackout cake under one of their glass cake stands on the counter.  It was the first time I'd ever heard of or tried this cake.  One slice was a towering thing, big enough for two.  My husband and I loved it and would grab a slice every so often.  This cake is definitely a throwback (created by the now defunct Ebinger Baking Co. during WWII); I can't think of any other bakery that carries it so I thought it would be worthwhile to try making one of my own.  But let me be upfront; this cake is serious business.  It is no diet food.  It's best to enjoy in moderation and share with others.