#Bundtamonth Malted Chocolate Bundt Cake with Malted Glaze

For the month of February the #bundtamonth ingredient to use is chocolate. My son was in heaven when I told him this.  He absolutely loves chocolate. I decided to use up some of the ingredients that I have in my pantry. I seen the malted chocolate powder and I had to try it.  I have used it previously in drinks but never a cake.  This cake turned out so moist and delicious.  I usually don't eat chocolate cake but I definitely will be getting a second serving. Baking is like an experiment to me.  One will never know if it works unless you try it. Fortunately, for me it turned out good. For this little challenge I decided to use my mini-bundt pans.

Please note: when utilizing mini-bundt pans fill the batter half way up instead of 2/3.  The cake rose slightly higher.

Ingredients:
-3oz chocolate (melted)
-1 stick unsalted butter (room temp)
-2 1/4 cup light brown sugar
-3 eggs (room temp)
-1 tbsp. vanilla extract
-2 tsp. baking soda
-1/2 tsp. salt
-2 1/4 cups cake flour
-1 cup sour cream
-1 cup boiling water
-1/4 cup chocolate malted milk powder

Directions:
Preheat oven 350 degrees and spray bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray.
Cream butter until smooth in large bowl.
Add brown sugar and eggs and beat until fluffy.
Add vanilla and melted chocolate, baking soda and salt.
Add flour and sour cream alternatively. Starting with flour and ending with flour.
Add malted milk powder to the cup of boiling water and stir until dissolved.
Add the milk powder mixture to the cake batter. (batter will thin down)
Add cake batter to bundt pan and bake until tooth pick comes out the center of the cake clean. Usually between 40-45 minutes.

Malted Glaze

Ingredients:
-1/4 cup chocolate chips (melted)
-1 cup sifted confectioners sugar
-1/4 cup malted milk powder
-4 tbsp. milk
-2 tbsp butter (softened)
-1 tsp. vanilla

Place chocolate chips in microwave until melted. (In 30 second increments)
In a medium bowl mix on low speed confectioner sugar, malted powder, milk, butter and vanilla.
Add in melted chocolate and mix until well combined.
Drizzle over cooled cake.

Optional:
Sift confectioners sugar over top of glaze.

Whenever I decide to bake a cake I mostly utilize Swans Down Cake Flour.  It just works for me.  This is the cake flour that my grandmother used to use and the one I was taught to use.

Whenever I spray my cake pans I use the Pam for baking spray.  I was taught to use butter and a little flour but this spray has both.

Raspberry Lemonade

My daughter has a very particular palate.  A lot of the stuff that I like she doesn't. When I cook or experiment in the kitchen I have to think of her. Surprisingly, she asked for raspberry lemonade. She won't eat the fruit but want the lemonade. Who am I to question her; so off to the store I go. She thought I was going to go to the store and buy some raspberry lemonade. She walked all the way to the juice aisle and picked it up. Nope, I got one for her; I am going to make it.  When you make it yourself you can control how much sugar you want to add. When I am in the kitchen she is in the kitchen.  This is the only way that you will learn.  Therefore; the next time she want some raspberry lemonade she can make it herself.

Ingredients:
-12 fl. oz. Lemonade frozen concentrated (prepared as directed on the container)
-1 cup Raspberries (fresh or frozen) and a few to add in the glass
-3/4 cup Sugar
-3/4 cup Water

Directions:
-In a small sauce pan combine 3/4 cup of sugar and 3/4 cup of water and bring to a boil until sugar has completely dissolved. This is what is called simple sugar.
-Add the raspberries and the simple sugar to a blender and blend until the raspberries have broken down.
-Add the raspberry mix to the prepared lemonade and stir.
-Place in the refrigerator to cool.
-Once cooled garnish with a couple raspberries and enjoy.

Must I say she enjoyed this version than the already ready version.  Yes, I know and now does she.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Rice Crispy Treat

While strolling down the cereal aisle in the grocery store I just happen to notice the Rice Crispy cereal on sale.  I already know that if I was to buy this cereal it'll be the last one to get eaten or I would have to force the kids to eat it.  Its not sweet enough one child would say and the other will say it just has no taste.  In order to keep everyone happy I decided to buy it anyway and make rice crispy treats.  I love peanut butter so I decided to add it into the treats.  At this point i'm really happy.

Recipe as follows:

-4 tablespoons of no salt butter
-6 cups mini-marshmallows
-1 cup of creamy peanut butter
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-6 cups rice crispy treats
-1/2 cup chocolate chip morsals

-In a large sauce pan melt butter on low. 
-Fold in marshmallows until completely melted.
-Remove pan from heat and fold in peanut butter until well combined.
-Add in vanilla extract.
-Fold in rice crispy treats following up with chocolate chip morsels until coated.

-Coat 13x9 pan with butter.
-Add rice crispy treats to pan and let cool.

Mandarin Orange Coconut Bundt Cake #Bundtamonth

During the month of January for #Bundtamonth the ingredient to be included in the cake is Citrus. After narrowing down my choices of citrus I chose Mandarin Orange.  Mandarin oranges are found in the canned fruit aisle in the grocery store cut up in whole segments.  These segments may be small but they are very juicy.  Normally when I use mandarin oranges I put it in a Hawaiian Salad.  This in which gave me an idea of adding coconut to the topping of the cake.

Cake Recipe:

-2 sticks of unsalted butter at room temperature
-2 cups of sugar
-3 cusps of cake flour
-4 eggs
-1 cup of milk
-3 tablespoons of baking powder
-1/2 teaspoon of salt
-1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
-2 tablespoons of mandarin orange juice
-zest of 1/2 orange

Preheat oven 350 degrees. Spray pan with non sticking spray.

-Cream butter in a large bowl and slowly add the sugar until fluffy.
-In a large bowl sift cake flour, salt, and baking powder.
-Add eggs one at a time to the butter and sugar mix.
-Alternating add flour and milk to the wet mix starting with flour and ending with flour.
-Add in the vanilla extract, mandarin orange juice and zest.
-Pour cake mix in the bundt pan and bake for 40 minutes until tooth pick comes out clean.

Mandarin Orange Glaze Recipe:

-1 cup sifted confectioners sugar
-1/4 stick of melted butter
-1 tablespoon heavy cream
-2 tablespoons mandarin orange juice

-Sweetened shredded coconut

-Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and beat until smooth and creamy.
-Drizzle over cooled cake and added sweetened shredded coconuts on top of glaze.
-Garnish cake with oranges.

Triple Berry Compote

As I was churning my vanilla bean ice cream today...I decided to pull my frozen berries out of the freezer and make some compote.

Recipe:
-1 teaspoon of cornstarch
-Juice from one orange
-1 cup of frozen berries (your favorite)
-1/4 cup of sugar
-1 teaspoon of almond extract
-Zest of 1/2 of orange

Serving size: 2

In a medium sauce pan dissolve the cornstarch in the juice from the orange.  Add in the frozen berries, sugar, almond extract, and orange zest over medium heat. Cook mixture until the sauce thickens usually about three to four minutes.

Brandy Apple Pork Chops Stuffed with Italian Sausage

I went to my local butcher and asked for two thick cut pork chops. I brought these chops home and decided that I wanted to do something different so I decided to stuff it.  I have seen this done on several Food Network and Cooking Channel recipes done with different types of meat.  The thing with cooking is that I as in anyone else that loves to cook can take the concept or title of a recipe and turn it to your own.  With these thick cut chops I decided to stuff it with Italian sausages. 

Recipe
-2 thick cut pork chops
-2 Italian sausages or Italian ground sausage (chopped)
-1/2 shallot
-1 green apple (skin off) cubed
-1/4 cup brown sugar
-1/4 cup brandy
-1/4 cup heavy cream
-2 tablespoons butter
-salt and pepper to taste
-olive oil

Preheat oven 350 degrees
-Take chops and cut down the side about 3/4 way down and across.
-Salt and pepper to taste both sides and set aside.
-In a saute pan chopped and cook sausage until done.
-Place sausage inside chops and close with about three tooth pics (picture below)
-Using the same pan that the sausage was cooked in add 2 tablespoons of olive oil and pan sear the chops on both side for about six minutes on both sides.
-Finish chops in the oven till done.
-Remove chops from the pan and set aside.
-In the saute pan on simmer add two tablespoons of butter and 1/2 of a shallot and saute until softened.  Toss in apples, brown sugar, heavy cream and whisk until sugar has dissolved and apples are tender.
-Add chops back into pan and baste both sides and inside. At this point the sauce should have reduced.

 (toothpick placement)

Bread Pudding

Bread Pudding is a nice sweet and savory dessert.  Of course since I have two people in my family that likes everything plain and my son and I feel as if anything goes that I had to make half plain and the other half with apples and walnuts. I topped it off with a molasses rum sauce.

Bread Pudding starts off with stale bread or what they may call day old bread.  Any type of white bread can be used for example french, italian or brioche.  Then one can go another route and use honey wheat bread or cinnamon raisin bread.  It all depends on the type of bread pudding one would like to make and the ingredients you would plan to put in it.

For this recipe I went to Panera Bread and bought a loaf of white bread and had them cut it into Texas toast size slices.  Therefore; it would be easier for me to cube the bread into pieces.

-4 cups of milk
-1 cup of heavy cream
-5 large eggs
-1 1/2 cups packed dark brown sugar
-3 teaspoons vanilla extract
-1 teaspoon cinnamon
-1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
-1/4 teaspoon salt
-enough butter to coat a 13x9 pan

In a large bowl add the cubed bread.
In a medium bowl beat the eggs and whip in the rest of the ingredients.
After the egg mixture is combined pour it over the cubed bread and fold it over until covered.  Leave the bread in a bowl until the egg mixture is soaked into the bread. (No Longer than an hour). 
Preheat the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes until set.

Let stand for 10 minutes and then serve.