A HOLIDAY CAKE STORY

I hope you are all getting ready for 2011 and more cooking challenges! I am hoping that the cold weather with a few cold snaps will bring us wonderful stone fruit this summer! And, all that lovely rain will ward off a drought and my plants will have lots of water this year.
I mentioned in my last email that I was going to try to make the Peppermint Ice Cream Candyland Cake from a Bon Appetit recipe in 2007. I saved the recipe because I thought the cake was a showstopper, visually. I can honestly say that this is not a recipe for a beginner. I did not have a pan that was exactly 15”x10”x1” so I used my jelly roll pan and doubled the cake recipe. While it “worked” it wasn’t the best solution. It made the cake too high. I tried Baskin Robbin's Peppermint Ice Cream that turned out to be an unappetizing bubblegum pink color. Good flavor but yucky visually and very expensive to buy 3.5 qts. I then tried Dreyer’s Peppermint Ice Cream and its color was a little better but not great. If I ever do this again, I think I’ll make my own ice cream to control the color.

Also, icing a cake with melting ice cream is not easy or fun. The online recipe had a reviewer who suggested putting the ice cream into the same cake pan and cutting it into thirds after it hardened, the same size as the cake layers. I tried this method and while still a bit cumbersome, was way easier than trying to ice the cake. So I then froze the layers again and then did the final icing with the softened ice cream. Refroze the cake again before adding the candy brittle.

The above two photos show the BR 31 Flavors ice cream and the two photos below are of the Dreyers ice cream version. There's not a big difference in the photos but believe me, the BR color is not pretty! I even tried to lighten it with some vanilla ice cream.

The Candyland brittle was difficult but not impossible. I threw out the first batch because at 300º the sugar carmellized. I took the candy off the stove at 375º and had Bill pour it onto the tin foil (pre-marked to 10x16’…don’t’ use a marking pen because it comes off on the brittle!) and then I immediately smeared it into the marked space and quickly sprinkled pre-chopped and mixed candies onto the hot sugar. In 2 minutes it was hard already so I had to work very fast. I waited 10 minutes and then started breaking off pieces to add to the ice cream frosting layer.

Eating a frozen cake was not good so it worked better to serve the cake slices a few minutes after plating them so the cake part could thaw a bit to make it more tender.

The combination of the dense, moist chocolate cake and peppermint ice cream was delicious & a perfect combo. A definite WOW factor is the candy brittle. Not so wow is making this cake…a 2-day process AND make sure you have enough space in your freezer AND the right size pan. If you don’t care about the color, buy Dreyers Peppermint Ice Cream, only sold at Christmas time (cheaper and better color). Otherwise, add another day to make your own peppermint ice cream. You will have a lot of leftover candy so make sure you buy candy that you like to eat….or are willing to toss so the leftovers “don’t go to waist!”

I’m too pooped now to write anymore! I’m not even sure the cake was worth the effort although other reviewers would make it again without the candy brittle.

BTW, Tina sent an article about Jacques Pepin that she wanted to share with you since we are using one of his cookbooks this year. The Long View: French Gourmand Jacques Pepin (NPR Dec. 29, 2010) It’s an interesting article that I think you’ll enjoy reading. Thanks, Tina!

Cook on with Julia! Date to be announced as soon as I hear from everyone.

Until February,

Sandi