Two terrific cakes that immediately went in my permanent files:

T

traca

Well-known member
I've been playing with several new cookbooks and two I'm particularly smitten with are the Bi-Rite Market Cookbook and The Grand Central Baking Book (yeah, I need another baking book like I need a hole in the head...but this one is particularly noteworthy).

I'm also entertaining on a regular basis these days, which has made it easier for me to try more recipes. These two cakes have been spectacular standouts.

 
Bi-Rite's Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake w/ Chocolate Glaze

Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake w/ Chocolate Glaze
from Bi-Rite Market Cookbook: Eat Good Food

This rich cake is one of the all-time best sellers from the Creamery. We use this recipe to make cakes of all different shapes and sizes, from cupcakes to tea cakes to ice cream cake bases. The cocoa powder gives the cake s more intense chocolaty flavor. Be sure to use high-quality cocoa powder: it makes a huge difference in the final product. For the glaze, we prefer to use 60 to 65% bittersweet chocolate.

This bullet-proof recipe translates easily to the home kitchen. Unlike many cakes, this one is mixed entirely by hand. And the cake stays moist for days.

CAKE
1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter
1/3 cup (1 ounce) cocoa powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup water
2 cups (9 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
2 large eggs
1/2 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

GLAZE
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 tablespoons agave nectar or corn syrup
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar

To make the cake:
Position the rack in the center of the oven and heat to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 10- or 12-cup Bundt pan and set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine the butter, cocoa powder, salt, and water and put over medium heat. Cook, stirring just until melted and combined. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Put the flour, sugar, and baking soda in a large bowl and whisk to blend. Add half of the melted butter mixture and whisk until completely blended (it will be very thick). Add the remaining butter mixture and whisk. Add the eggs one at a time, whisking each to blend completely before adding the next. Whisk in the sour cream and vanilla until smooth.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes and then invert onto a rack. Let cool completely before making the glaze.

To make the glaze:
Put the chopped chocolate and agave nectar in a medium bowl and set aside.

Combine the heavy cream and sugar in a small saucepan and put over medium heat. Stir constantly until the cream is hot and the sugar is dissolved. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and whisk until melted and smooth. If it's very runny, let sit for a minute or so to thicken. Drizzle over the cake.

 
Grand Central's Cream Cheese Apple Cake

Grand Central has baked this cake in every shape and size imaginable: as cupcakes with maple cream cheese frosting, in rounds baked in springform pans, as classic Bundt cakes, and currently in long Pullman loaf pans. At home, I like to make it in a classic 12-cup Bundt pan and sprinkle confectioner's sugar all over the top (as in this version.) Because it stays moist for several days, this large cake is tailor -made for long weekend with friends, providing dessert the first night and leftovers to nibble on for several days to come.

Traca's note: The only thing I would do differently is to toss the apples in a bit of flour so they stay suspended in the batter. I didn't do that the first time, and had a concentration of apples at the base.

Serves 14 to 16

3 cups (15 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup (8 ounces, or 2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
2 1/2 cups (1 pound, 1.5 ounces) granulated sugar
4 eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds tart apples (3 to 4 apples) peeled and diced into 1/2-inch chunks
Confectioner's sugar, for dusting

Prepare to bake.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, Grease and lightly flour 12-cup Bundt pan

Combine the dry ingredients.
Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon into a bowl.

Cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar.
Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, cream cheese, and granulated sugar on medium-high speed until the mixture is very light in color--almost white--and the texture is fluffy, about 8 minutes. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl once during the process to ensure that the butter is evenly incorporated>

Add the eggs and vanilla
Crack the eggs into a liquid measuring cup and add the vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in the eggs, letting them fall in one at a time and incorporating each egg completely before adding the next. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl once or twice during the process.

Add the dry ingredients and apples
With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients; stop the mixing as son as the flour is incorporated. Fold the apples in by hand using a stiff spatula, then scrape the batter into the prepared pan.

Bake
Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time. The cake is ready when a wooden skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the cake cool for 15 minutes before removing ti from the pan. Cool completely, then cover with a thick dusting of confectioner's sugar.

 
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