Walnut-Whiskey Pound Cake with Whiskey Glaze

It’s Cake Slice time! This month was opened up to any recipe from any book the Cake Slice has baked from! Hundreds of recipes, how do you narrow down your choices?!

I chose a recipe based on ingredients already on hand. Sometimes it’s nice to clean up the pantry. I hate nothing more than wasting baking ingredients. 

I chose to bake a Walnut-Whiskey Pound Cake with Whiskey Glaze from one of our previous books Cake Keeper Cakes! Delicious! The brown sugar gave this cake a depth of flavor! Loved, loved loved this cake. I made the glaze a little more sinful by adding 2 tablespoons of melted butter. This recipe is definitely a keeper! 

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Chocolate Cinnamon Babka

We’re nearing the end of this baking season with The Cake Slice. November is when we start baking from a new book, but we’re doing things a little different. We should be baking from our new book in January, if all goes as planned. You’ll have to stay tuned for the reveal of our new book. 

                                                   

It’s not everyday we get to bake from recipes that call for yeast here at the Cake Slice. Which made this months selection exciting for me. I chose to bake the Chocolate Cinnamon Babka. I shaped my Babka into a twisted loaf instead of placing the loaf in a bundt pan, like the recipe called for. The baking books Babka picture wasn’t drawing my attention and looked more like a Kugelhopf cake. Curious to see what the difference was between both led me to gorgeous photos of twisted Babka. 

I’m glad I did my research before I shaped my loaf, loved the way it turned out.  This Babka turned out delicious, and wish I could say I ate most of it. This baby disappeared before I could grab a second slice! 

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Tarte aux Pommes

This Cake Slice bake didn't go exactly like planned. I had everything on hand for Octobers selection and I figured I get a head start on it. I decided to skip the tart pan since I don't own one. I made the apple compote while my dough chilled. The compote was done, and cooling when all of the sudden a tempered drinking glass in my sink exploded! Glass flew everywhere! I didn't want to risk glass fragments in my tart, I was left with no choice but dump the compote. 

After cleaning everything up I started rolling the Sweet Pie Dough out. I had quite a bit of trouble rolling it out since it quickly started getting soft. I think it was the amount of butter plus the egg yolks that made this pie dough pretty soft. 

I did add cinnamon, cornstarch, and a bit of sugar to my filling, and dotted it with butter. The apple tart turned out delicious! I served it with ice cream. It wasn't the presentation I was hoping for, but at least it turned delicious! Loved the Sweet Pie Dough recipe! 

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Dobos Cake

Dobos Cake is my selection for this months Cake Slice! I wanted to challenge myself with this recipe. Dobos Cake is layers of cake sandwiched in between delicious chocolate buttercream, and finished off with a layer of cake coated in caramel! 

My cake layers didn't exactly fluff up like the picture in the book. They turned out more like the texture of crepes. A little disappointed. Not exactly sure what went wrong. Maybe the eggs should have been whipped seperately then folded into the batter, to give the layers the sponge cake result. 

I followed the recipe just as listed except for the chocolate buttercream. I wasn't comfortable adding the egg mixture to the frosting. I did heat the eggs and confectioners sugar until hot to the touch. But since the recipe didn't state how long to cook or temperature that must be reached, I decided to opt them out. With my daughter expecting a baby I didn't want to risk her getting sick, in case I undercooked the egg mixture. I also noticed that the recipe didn't say to whip or stir the egg mixture while heating. Normally recipes that call for this step state to whisk while cooking them. 

Over all I felt the cake was very good. My husband and kids said the crepe texture was delicious. I wanted fluffy layers, so I wasn't 100% pleased. I liked the cake, just wished the layers turned out sponge like. 

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Olive Oil Cake with Fresh Peaches

I'm back briefly with the Cake Slice! The last two months have been pretty hectic around my house, a million things to do and hardly anything done. Projects started, but far from finished. In the meanwhile everyone at home still wants cake! So cake I made. 

I chose this delicious Olive Oil Cake with Fresh Peaches. Canned peaches came to the rescue for this last minute cake! The other slight change I made was using a Orange syrup I made using up the left over oranges I used for the zest. It complimented the cake just lovely.

Please take a moment and visit our Cake Slice bakers to see what they baked up!

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Gender Reveal Cake!

Today is a very special day! My family and friends finally get to learn the sex of my first grandchild! A very emotional day for me! 

The cake is a white vanilla-almond cake, iced and filled with Italian buttercream. Delicious! 

Daisy, I love you to the moon and back! You have made me one happy grandma! 

May the Lord always watch over you and your baby. 

Love, Mom! 

Lime and Poppyseed Syrup Cake

This months Cake Slice selection is a Lime and Poppyseed Syrup Cake. Lemon and Poppyseeds are a  very common pair. Lime and Poppyseeds is a new one for me!

The batter was delicious, perhaps could have had a bit more lime zest, the syrup made up for it! 

The mini bundt cakes turned out delicious! They have a burst of lime flavor due to the syrup! The cake texture is lovely! We snacked on these all week! 

I will be taking a little break from the Cake Slice. I should be back baking with the group at the end of the summer. Have a great summer Cake Slice Bakers! 

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Japanese Strawberry Shortcake

Japanese Strawberry Shortcake is what I baked this month with the Cake Slice. I chose this recipe because it calls for a sponge cake, my chance to test one. The recipe also uses gelatin to stabilize the whip cream, also something I've been wanting to test. 

The sponge cake took a little longer to bake than the time it called for, but I was happy with the outcome. The texture and flavor of the sponge was good. I skipped making the syrup only because I decided to macerate the strawberries and use up all the juice from them to soak the cake with. I had about 1/2 cup of juices from the strawberries, I suggest using a full cup of juice, the cake texture is strong enough to hold the liquid, and the cake does need the moisture. 

Making the whip cream was a challenge. I was unsuccessful incorporating the gelatin. The gelatin clumped up immediately after mixing it with the cream. I had an awful mess trying to strain the gelatin out. I refused to let the whipped cream to go to waste. I think the problem was that the gelatin slightly set after leaving it to cool the ten minutes it called for. I'm not going to give up though, I really want to be able to learn this process. I love icing cakes in whipped cream and stabilizing it would make icing the cakes a lot easier. 

I was so frustrated when I was done with the cake that I didn't realize I didn't take a picture of the finished cake, but I did take one of my slice. 

Not my favorite Strawberry Shortcake recipe, but not a total fail either. It was actually better the next day, the juices softened the cake a bit more, and the flavors got to merry a little longer. 

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Fudgy Meringue Cookies: #creativecookieexchange

I'm back baking with the Creative Cookie Exchange! After the Holidays I just felt like I needed to slow down on my baking. After the much needed rest, I'm glad to participate again. 

This months theme is Meringue Cookies! I've never had a meringue cookie, but I did make a meringue shell for a tart once. I didn't like the texture of it, although I feel I might have over baked it. 

With this in mind, I chose to bake these Fudgy Meringue Cookies! This recipe calls for a meringue, that is similar to a marshmallow fluff, simply delicious!  The cookie has a lovely chewy, brownie like texture. It delivers a punch of chocolate! I'm pleased with the result. Definitely a delicious cookie! 

For this recipe please visit Epicurious! 

Meringue Cookies are light, airy and sweet treats. They can be soft and chewy with a crisp exterior, or crisp throughout. They are sometimes known as “Forgotten Cookies” because they are cooked for a long time in the oven, but we can guarantee you that none of these cookies will be forgotten! You can also use us as a great resource for cookie recipes. Be sure to check out our Pinterest Board and our monthly posts (you can find all of them here at The Spiced Life). You will be able to find them the first Tuesday after the 15th of each month! Also, if you are looking for inspiration to get in the kitchen and start baking, check out what all of the hosting bloggers have made:

• Creamsicle Meringue Melting Moments by All That's Left Are The Crumbs
• Fudgy Meringue Cookies by Oven Delights
• Sunny Side Up Meringues by Cream and Butter Blog
• Espresso Meringue Cookies by Karen's Kitchen Stories
• Chewy Almond Macaroons by Food Lust People Love
• Cocoa Meringues by Flours and Frosting

Thierry Busset's Ten Layer Coffee Chocolate Cake

This months Cake Slice cake was made with much excitement! We're celebrating my husband birthday! He's a coffee lover, and lately has become a fan of chocolate cake! With this in mind, choosing this months cake made it simple. 

The cake is a chocolate Genoise, soaked with a coffee liqueur syrup. Layered with a delicious chocolate mousse. Finished with a chocolate glacage. Sinfully delicious! 

Not only did I choose this cake because I knew my husband would love it, but because the recipe would introduce me to new ingredients and techniques I had never tried. The mousse was made with  eight egg yolk, scared me a little, but went with it. Loved the mousse, the best I've had so far! The glacage called for liquid glucose, which I had never worked with. 

Unfortunately due to my budget I was not able to acquire the three different semi-sweet chocolates the recipe called for. I used dark chocolate chips, but still curious how the cake would have resulted if I had purchased the correct chocolate. 

The cake turned out to be delicious regardless. I do want to warn you this cake is rich, deliciously  rich! If your a coffee-chocolate lover then this cake is for you! 

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Red Velvet Cupcakes

It's time to bake again with the "Cake Slice"! Red Velvet Cake was my choice this month. I felt it was the perfect choice to bake in the month of Love! 

I already have a favorite Red Velvet recipe. I felt the curiosity to test this recipe which called for butter. I also tested the recipe using dark cocoa. 

The cupcakes turned out slightly dry, and really dark due to the dark cocoa! They almost didn't look like Red Velvet! It wasn't my favorite recipe, but I can't really say the cupcakes were awful! Just a slight dry and had a deeper chocolate flavor than you would normally detect in Red Velvet. 

I stuck with my own Cream Cheese frosting and skipped the recipe in the book. I love my Cream Cheese frosting so much, I just didn't want to take the chance with a new recipe! 

I took theses to the Super Bowl party I went to, they disappeared quickly! 

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Lemon Drizzle

Lemon Cakes are my absolute favorite! I don't make them much, not a lot of lemon fans in my house, or should I say one? But that may not be entirely true. I had lots of help eating this cake from this non-lemon dessert eater. I find it kind of strange. He either has learned to appreciate lemon desserts, or this cake was just too good to resist. I think its both!

This month I chose to bake the Lemon Drizzle with "The Cake Slice". I'm sure glad I did! The cake turned out delicious! Loved the texture of the cake, it was a combination of a light airy layered cake, and a pound cake.

The cake is brushed with a lemon sugar syrup right after its pulled from the oven! It lightly soaks in giving the cake a bright lemon burst of lemon, and a pretty shine making the irresistible! It really is delicious!

We had a couple of slices that night, and packed the rest to take on our family day trip the next day. It stayed moist and traveled well.

The recipe calls to preheat your oven to 310 degrees. It wasn't working for me, the cake was taking too long to bake, with only 8 minutes remaining on the cooking time I decided to turn up the temperature to 325 degrees and add on another ten minutes. It finally started to rise and brown, I was a little worried that recipe was going to be a flop. Maybe the recipe had a typo, not sure, but if you try the recipe and the 310 degrees works for you I would love to know!

LEMON DRIZZLE

• 3eggs
• 1 c. sugar
• pinch of salt
• 1 1/4 c. all -purpose flour, sifted
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/3 c. butter, melted
• 1/2 c. heavy cream
• finely grated zest of three lemons

For the lemon drizzle:

• 1/2 c. water
• 1/4 c. and 2 tbs. sugar
• juice of two lemons



Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a large loaf pan, set aside.
2. In a large mixing bowl beat the eggs and sugar for about 3 minutes. Slowly add the sugar, salt, flour, and baking powder, mix only to combine. Add the butter, mix only to combine, add the cream and lemon zest, mix only until combined.
3. Pour cake batter into prepared loaf pan and bake between 35 to 45 minutes, watch your oven, ovens vary. Cake is done when toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
4. While cake bakes make your syrup by boiling all the lemon drizzle ingredients for ten minutes. Take off heat and set aside.
5. Remove cake from oven and immediately brush the cake with the syrup, it will absorb into the cake. Let cake sit for 15 minutes before removing from pan and cooling on wire rack.

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