RECIPE: REC: Ice Water Chocolate Cake and Debbie in GA's blender frosting

[sandi-in-hawaii]

If you haven't made Debbie in GA's blender frosting yet, maybe this picture will entice you to try it smileys/smile.gif

I did make a different cake - I like this one because it's a bigger recipe, and bakes up higher than Debbie's cake (however, her cake is more chocolate-y smileys/smile.gif

Ice Water Chocolate Cake

This cake is tender, delicate, and tall, as delicious to look at as to eat. The old, handwritten cookbooks specified sweet well water or mountain spring water, but plain ice water will do just fine (but make certain it is icy). Except for the ice water, all ingredients should be at room temperature.

3 cups (10 ½ oz) sifted pastry or cake flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup butter or margarine

2 1/4 cups (15 ¾ oz) superfine granulated sugar

3 large eggs

3 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted

1 or 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups (12 fl oz) ice water

Sift the flour with the baking soda and salt and set aside. Cream the butter until very light. Gradually add the sugar and cream until mixture is thick and fluffy.

Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and beat in thoroughly.

Now blend in the melted chocolate and the vanilla.

Add the sifted dry ingredients alternately with the ice water, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Mix only until batter is smooth.

Turn into 3 8-inch round layer pans (I used 2 9" pans) that have been buttered and floured. Tap the pans lightly on the counter top to remove excess air, and then bake in a 350ºF oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until done. (I baked at 340º convection mode for 30 minutes.)

Cool in the pans for 5 minutes before turning out onto racks. Cool thoroughly before filling and frosting.

Debbie in GA's Chocolate Frosting

6 ounces unsweetened chocolate

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons evaporated milk

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

Melt the chocolate in the top of a double boiler placed over the simmering water. (I use the mocrowave at 70% power for about 1 1/2 minutes.) Cool slightly.

Blend the evaporated milk and sugar in a blender on medium speed for 2 seconds.

Add the chocolate to the sugar mixture in the blender and blend on high speed until the frosting is thick and shiny, 1 to 1 ½ minutes. The mixer’s sound will change when the frosting has thickened.

Spoon the frosting into a bowl and allow it to set at room temperature for 30 minutes. Then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the frosting to set for 1 hour more before frosting. *Do not refrigerate the frosting*, even if you don’t plan to use it for several days.

Makes 1 3/4 cups, enough to fill and frost a two-layer cake.

Note: This recipe can only be made in a blender.

https://recipeswap.org/fun/wp-content/uploads/Finer_Kitchens/Chocolate%20Cake/100_0636.jpg

 

[barb_b]

Sandi, Looks wonderful!!! I am so much enjoying your photos!

 

[marilynfl]

Lovely job, Sandi. However, the engineer in me wants to know...why ice water? What does that do?

 

[richard-in-cincy]

I’ve wondered too. It’s a weapon used by the baker in the war against the Glutenoids...

See link.

Obviously, dough is better to work with when chilled and using chilled butter. The tartlets I've made required ice water and so I bought the real thing that's Pasteurized. This stuff is also good drinking water. Maybe the recipes mean just very chilled water?

I guess the bottom line is we don't want too many glutenoids running around in our dough or cakes!

http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/ck_culinary_qa/article/0,1971,FOOD_9796_1703288,00.html

http://www.le-natures.com/index.cfm/bay/content.view/catid/135/cpid/148.htm

 

[sandi-in-hawaii]

I've been wondering that too, since most recipes call for ingredients at room temperature...

But I love what it does to this cake. The crumb is very fine (like a pound cake), but it's really light, (not like a pound cake). Kinda like the texture of a 1-2-3-4 cake.

In pie crusts, I thought you use cold water to keep the butter in large pieces, to make the crust flaky, as the butter separates and makes layers.

But I don't think that's what it's doing in this cake. I was thinking along the lines that it's re-solidifying the melted chocolate, but there's also a Ice Water White Cake in the same book, that comes out with the same texture.

Maybe it's re-solidifying the butter, and tightening up the crumb...?

Where's Shirley Corriher when you need her???

p.s. the recipe is from a very old book called A World of Baking, by Dolores Casella, copyright 1968!

It's a pretty amazing book, it even includes a few recipes with soy flour, for added protein.

Found it on ebay, as it's long out of print...

 

[sandi-in-hawaii]

And for comparison - REC: Ice Water White Cake

ICE WATER WHITE CAKE
A World of Baking
By Dolores Casella

"The lady who gave me this excellent recipe called it "Sweet Water Mountain Cake." We find that it makes a very good tiered cake. If multiplied five times, the recipe will make a 3-tier cake, with a 4-inch, an 8-inch, and a 12-inch layer. It also makes very good cupcakes, and a good loaf cake. With the exception of the water, which should be ice cold, all ingredients should be at room temperature."

3 1/4 cups sifted pastry or cake flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup butter or margarine
2 cups superfine granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups ice water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
1/2 cup (about 4) egg whites

Sift the flour with the salt and baking powder.

Cream the butter or margarine and gradually add 1 1/2 cups of the sugar. Beat until mixture is light and fluffy.

Combine ice water and flavorings. Add sifted dry ingredients to the creamed mixture alternately with the ice water, beginning and ending with dry ingredients. Beat until smooth, but do not overbeat.

In another bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy, gradually beat in the remaining 1/2 cup sugar, and beat until stiff and glossy. Very carefully fold this meringue into the batter, folding just until no traces of white can be seen.

Turn batter into 3 8-inch round layer pans that have been buttered and floured. Bake in 350º oven for 25 to 30 minutes, or until cake tests done. Cool in pans for 5 minutes before turning out onto racks. Fill and frost as desired.