Lost my marbles...

Holy snow day Batman!!

So if you haven't heard, the DC area is being HAMMERED by snow this week.  We're talking day number FOUR tomorrow of this week where my office has been closed.  What does this mean for me?  Well, it means that I've been living solely off of the contents of my pantry and fridge (slim pickings friends...seriously).  The good news?  I've lost 5lbs in the last week (YAY!).  The bad news?  I feel like if I don't have something sweet soon I might just trek the 10+ blocks through knee deep snow to the obliterated grocery store and scarf a donut or something.

Here's what I made instead...Marble cake!  Infinitely better than some crappy donut or an Oreo creeping around in my pantry!

Oh man, this stuff is so delish.  I've made it before as a birthday cake with vanilla bean frosting, which was good.  This is just as awesome on it's own, though.  It's from one of my favorite cooking blogs, Alexandra's Kitchen.  It's in the oven as I write this, and I literally don't know if I'll be able to make it until it's cool enough to eat!!  I'm so excited.  Like Ali, I didn't make this with chocolate chips (I also don't think you need them, the chocolate batter is so deliciously rich). 

Okay, on to the recipe!

Buttercake Bakery’s Marble Cake
Total time: 1½ hours
Servings 12 to 16
2½ cups sugar, divided
½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
¼ cup light corn syrup (I used brown rice syrup)
2½ teaspoons vanilla extract, divided
2 2/3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter (room temperature is ideal)
4 eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup chocolate chips (optional — I did not use them. This cake really doesn’t need them.)
powdered sugar for dusting
1. In a small saucepan, whisk together ½ cup of the sugar, the cocoa powder and syrup with ½ cup hot water. Bring just to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Add ½ teaspoon of vanilla off the heat and set aside.
2. Heat the oven to 350ºF. Butter and lightly flour a 12-cup bundt pan. (I never flour anymore — it always burns for me. I coated the bundt pan with cooking spray.)
3. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt and set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand mixer), cream the butter with the remaining sugar until light and fluffy. Whisk in the eggs one at a time until thoroughly incorporated, then whisk in the remaining vanilla.
4. Whisk about a third of the flour mixture into the batter, then a third of the milk. Continue whisking in the flour mixture and milk, alternately and a little at a time, until everything is added and the batter is light and smooth.
5. Gently fold in the chocolate chips. (I really think the chocolate chips are unncessary, but that’s your call.) Divide the batter into thirds. Pour a third of the batter into the prepared bundt pan.
6. Whisk the chocolate syrup with another third of batter, then pour this into the bundt pan. Pour the remaining third of batter over this, lightly swirl the batters with a wooden skewer or knife to give a “marble” effect and place the pan in the oven.
7. Bake the cake until a toothpick inserted comes out clean and the cake springs back lightly when touched, about an hour. Cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack. Invert the cooled cake onto a serving platter and dust lightly with powdered sugar.

And voila!  Next time you're craving something sweet, give this a go.  Enjoy!

Lemon Cake, Part Deux

So yes, once again I'm a repeat offender.  I made the lemon cake again.  What can I say?  It was my boss's birthday, and his wife told me he loves lemon cake!  In my own defense, though, I did it up a little different, using fresh whipped cream as frosting, and fresh raspberries on top.  SO good.  I'd actually venture to say that it was better than the lime frosting!  Especially in the middle of winter, such a refreshing dessert!  I've gotten rave reviews in the office so far (but hey, who's going to call me up and say, "Hmmm. Yeaaah.  Your cake kiiiiinda stunk. Sorry!" ;)

So I don't leave you hanging, though, I've got a non-baked good recipe to share.  The other night I made this OUTSTANDING soup that my best friend of 10 years, Anne,emailed to me.  She told me it's incredible, and that I had to try it.

Oh. my. god.

She was right, it's amaaaazing!  While I'd normally make a soup like this in the fall, when squash is more plentiful (or maybe it's just my grocery store, but I had to buy organic.  It's all they had!), this was so satisfying on the chilly and rainy Sunday we had this week in DC.  The only warning I'll throw out was that peeling and cubing an acorn squash was like nothing I've ever experienced before.  Flat out: it was hard.  Be sure you have a sharp knife!  Also, if you wait to peel, core, and cube your apples until after the squash, you'll feel like a ninja with your knife skills.  Substantially easier!!

On to the recipe!

Apple Squash Soup
Acorn squash makes the richest soup, even though it can be difficult to peel; butternut or even yellow zucchini may be substituted. This simple soup adds color and elegance to any meal!

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
2 cups chopped onion
About 3 pounds acorn squash, peeled, seeded, and cubed (about 6 cups)
2 Granny Smith or other tart apples, peeled, cored, and cubed
3 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup apple cider or apple juice
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1-2 Granny Smith or other tart apples, for garnish
In a large soup pot, melt butter. Add onion and sauté until tender. Add squash, apples, chicken stock, and salt.

Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for 25 minutes or until squash and apples are tender. Puree the soup in a blender (I used my immersion blender, worked beautifully!) and return to soup pot. Stir cider into pureed soup. If necessary, reheat soup until hot. Pepper liberally.

Grate or chop apples into tiny pieces just before serving and garnish each bowl of soup.

**I also added a few shakes of cinnamon and nutmeg to mine, which turned out excellent.  Anne likes to add some curry powder to hers.  There's a ton you could do with this!  I also think that some warm, chewy french bread is a must when eating this soup.  SO good!

There's a hole in this cake...

"It's a bundt"
"Boont?"
"BUNDT! BUNDT!"

Ah, one of my absolute favorite scenes from a movie ever. I can't make a bundt cake without saying it to anyone who may be around to listen...

So back to the story! This week's cake is a beauty. Even my picky-pants husband liked it (seriously, that's saying something)! This week I made a Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pound Cake courtesy of Ms. Paula Deen. I need to tell you it's by Paula so when you look at the recipe below and say "Natalie, what the heck is WRONG with you?! A stick of butter?!" you'll know it's not me...it's Paula. And DANG is it good! I'm quite convinced that the pudding is what makes this recipe so delicious. It stays so gooey and moist, I bet you could leave it on the counter for a day and it would still be delicious!

I made the Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pound cake on the premise that I would slice it up and bring it to the office bake sale. Yay me, good deeds. Welp. Not the case.

Turns out that the office bake sale was more of a department bake sale...and I have too much pride to bring it downstairs with a big smile and say, "I made you a cake to sell!" to a bunch of people I don't know. So now I have a big honkin' cake on my counter at home. Great.

I think I'm going to bring a big chunk to my landlord upstairs, wrapped up all pretty like I planned this all along :) Anyway, on to the recipe!

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Pound Cake
by, Paula Deen from The Lady & Sons, Too

• 4 eggs
  
• 1 1/2 C Water
  
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
  
• 1 pkg butter recipe cake mix
  
• 1 3.4 oz pkg instant vanilla pudding mix*
  
• 1 3.4 oz pkg instant chocolate pudding mix*
  
• 1/2 C (1 stick) melted butter
  
• 1/4 C vegetable oil
• 6 oz chocolate chips
  

Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease and flour tube pan.

In mixing bowl, beat the eggs, water, and vanilla by hand**. Stir in the cake mix and pudding mixes. Slowly add the butter and oil, and mix well. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 50 to 60 minutes***.

Cool for 10 minutes, then invert onto a cake plate. Sift confectioner's sugar over the cake, or drizzle chocolate sauce over it, if desired****.

Alrighty, here's where I put in my two cents.

*I have no idea what kind of mutant pudding packages they sell in Georgia, but here in our lovely Nation's Capitol, they sell 3.9oz packages. Normally I'd just throw in the whole package, but the cake is already so dense and moist, I just eyeball it and leave some pudding in the package. Use your best judgement.

**If you're looking to beef up your arms (maybe you're going for the Schwarzenegger look?)...go ahead and beat everything by hand. But I'll tell you that when the recipe tells you to mix in the oil and melted butter slowly, that batter is going to be so thick you'll be swearing like a sailor by the time you need to "mix well". I had Jeff come in and pour slowly, so I could hold the bowl with one hand and mix with the other. The next time I make it, I'll beat the eggs, water, vanilla in my KitchenAid mixer bowl by hand, then just attach it to the mixer for the rest, and keep it on low speed.

***For once my super-charged oven went the full time on a recipe! I cooked mine for the full 60 min.

****Call me a purist, but I say this cake needs nothing but a cold glass of milk.

Hope you enjoy!