English Gingerbread Cake

When I was in elementary school I once had a friend who, every now and again, asked me what my deepest, darkest secret was. I don't quite recall if I answered the question honestly (after all, what kind of dark secrets do ten year-olds have?), but anyone who knows me, or most people for that matter, will have realized by now that it's probably one of the worst ways to get me to open up.

Many years later, I then had a co-worker who, in the midst of a conversation wherein I was sharing a bit about my family life, told me to not share any of my insights about it because she was still in the process of psychoanalyzing me. It shocked me because I thought we were having a genuine conversation and actually bonding, but in the end it turned out she was just trying to figure me out.

Why do people do that? Somehow we're not satisfied with slow, leisurely discovery; the give-and-take of friendship; how someone you've known for ages can still surprise you; letting someone confide in you in his own time, when he's comfortable, when trust is there. You see, at the specific moments I described above (and I'm not sure if this was their desired outcome), trust was set back (if not really present to break, yet). I didn't feel like a friend, I felt like a case study, a curiosity, that they didn't really care about me, but what JOOSY GOZZIP I would be able to supply. No thanks.

Sure, in the end it usually makes me the last to know certain things about someone. I don't mind. I respect my friends and let them trust me with what they feel they want to share. And I think my friendships are better for it.

This English Gingerbread Cake is from Rose's Heavenly Cakes, and I recently reviewed it at The Gastronomer's Bookshelf (click to read it). I didn't have any lemons on hand, so of course I used the calamansi from our weekly half-ton supply from my grandmother, ha ha ha. It tasted wonderful and got finished alarmingly quickly for a cake with whole wheat flour (I'm not a fan of whole wheat!), but I've revised the instructions to make it easier to mix by hand. Also, the original suggested to replace Lyle's Golden Syrup with corn syrup if the former wasn't available. Argh! Molasses is a MUCH better substitute. Of course, I am a molasses fanatic! ;)

English Gingerbread Cake adapted from Rose's Heavenly Cakes

• 113g (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter


• 425g (1-1/4 cups) Lyle's Golden Syrup or molasses


• 60g (1/4 cup, firmly packed) dark brown sugar


• 40g (1 heaping tablespoon) orange marmalade or apricot preserves


• 2 large eggs, at room temperature


• 160g (2/3 cup) whole milk


• 115g (1 cup) sifted all-purpose flour


• 115g (1 cup minus 1 tablespoon lightly spooned into cup) whole wheat flour


• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder


• 1 teaspoon cinnamon


• 1 teaspoon ground ginger


• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda


• pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 160°C (325°F). Line 20cm (8") square pan with parchment to fit the bottom and sides. In a saucepan over low-medium heat, stir the butter, golden syrup or molasses, sugar, and marmalade together until melted and combined. Set aside until barely warm, then transfer to a large mixing bowl and whisk in the milk and eggs.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining ingredients. Sift this flour mixture over the liquid mixture, whisking or stirring until just combined in the process. Scrape this into the prepared pan and bake 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes (make the syrup during this time).

Lemon Butter Syrup:

• 38g (3 tablespoons) sugar


• 31g (2 tablespoons) lemon juice


• 28g (2 tablespoons) unsalted butter

Combine all the ingredients in a small saucepan over low-medium heat until melted and the sugar is dissolved. I did this in a microwaveable container in the microwave, stirring in between bursts of power.

Brush half of this evenly over the cake, then unmold the cake, inverted, onto a sheet of parchment sprayed with baking spray and brush the remaining syrup over the cake's bottom (well, now it's the top). Invert right side up back into the pan or serving platter and wrap with cling film. Rest for 24 hours before serving.

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Claire Clark's Gingerbread

Sometimes, just for fun (and not as an obsession, mind you), I like to think about what different things in the world at which I can still be the best. You see, it seems like there's a finite number of things a man can do and at least one person out there has already devoted his life to at least one of those things, so in order to become an authority, I have to think of more and more specific things. Things that are so specific the talent becomes absolutely pointless. For example, no-one has claimed the title of World's Best Cake Baker Using His Feet, so maybe I can work at it until I am that person. That is, if no-one has actually done it already. And even when I do, it's not a distinction I'd particularly enjoy holding, nor will my cakes be particularly edible (oh, they will, if they're not squeamish).

Maybe in some ways I'm glad not to be a world authority, at least not in terms of baking, because there's no way I can claim to be an expert until I feel like I've satisfactorily explored every theory. And then there are the questions! Everyone interested in that food item will ask me these questions and I will feel pressured to come up with the correct answer even if I usually don't have the answers (there's that happy escape hatch that everyone's oven is different). But I'm still young at (a few days from) 28, there's still enough time to become the world's authority on something that will make a huge impact in the world, like a medical treatment.

But still, in the meantime, I will always groan when I watch a show like So You Think You Can Dance and they have all these agile bodies moving fantastically. I wonder how it feels to wake up and know you are one of the most beautiful people on the planet and you can totally rock a Samba? I've a feeling they don't know either!

So. Gingerbread. The best one I have ever had in my life can be found at Miette in San Francisco. This is, of course, completely subjective. Chris Kimball would probably think it is too flavorful and scary. I love its moistness and assertive spice. Unfortunately, no cookbook is in sight (yet), so I had to look for a substitute and this version from Claire Clark (formerly of The French Laundry) is the closest I've tasted. But don't let comparisons discourage you; it really is phenomenal and you may in fact prefer it over Miette's, not that the difference is that great. This is going to be my first in a series of Gingerbread-related posts. Of course I had to start with the best one! (And no, it wasn't from Tartine!)

Read my review of Claire Clark's Indulge over at The Gastronomer's Bookshelf!

Gingerbread adapted from Indulge: 100 Perfect Desserts

• 120g (8-1/2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature


• 120g (1/2 cup + 1-1/2 tablespoon) soft dark brown sugar


• 220g (3/4 cup minus 1 tablespoon) molasses


• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten


• 220g (1-1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon) all-purpose flour


• 2 teaspoons baking powder


• 1 teaspoon salt


• 2 tablespoons ground ginger


• 1 tablespoon ground allspice


• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Preheat the oven to 170°C (325°F). Line a 12-well regular muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl, cream the butter, dark brown sugar and molasses together until fluffy and paler in color. Add the eggs a little at a time, beating well after each addition. In a medium bowl, whisk the remaining ingredients together. Sift them over the butter mixture and fold until well-combined. Divide equally between the 12 liners and bake for 23-28 minutes, or until the top springs back when pressed gently. While the cake is baking, make the syrup.

Syrup

• 200g (1 cup) sugar


• 10g (1/3 ounce) fresh root ginger


• 200g (1 cup minus 2 tablespoons) water

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil, making sure the sugar is dissolved. Boil for 4-5 minutes. As soon as the cake is done, pour the syrup evenly over the tops. I used a pastry brush. Don't worry if it appears that the cakes are getting water-logged; the syrup will soon be absorbed and you will be able to add more. Leave the cakes to cool in the tin completely.

Frosting

• 115g (1 cup) powdered sugar


• 115g (4 ounces) cream cheese, softened


• 35g (2-1/2 tablespoons) unsalted butter, softened


• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large bowl, sift the sugar over the cream cheese, butter and vanilla and beat until smooth.


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Tartine's Chocolate Pots de Crème

So, like I said in my previous posts, this is my first Thanksgiving. However, I'm not feeling the mad rush to produce dinner, since my uncle's dad has already volunteered to do so, which is a relief (though I am thinking about dessert, I hope he doesn't mind). It will also be my first Black Friday, or the day after Thanksgiving that, as I understand it, there's usually no work and stores slash their prices to encourage buying for the next big holiday. There've been horror stories about this, sadly, but I'm avoiding that rush too and thankfully there's the task of babysitting my cousins while my aunt and uncle go to work (no surprise there, as she works in Nordstrom).

I'm staying behind for a different kind of "rush", though, and that's online shopping deals. I have no idea why I ignored it completely before but ever since I saw a Corelle Livingware dining set for $18 I've been hooked on watching the Gold Box deals over at Amazon. I didn't get the dining set (I'm still hitting myself for that one) because I waited too long to get it, but I'm just waiting for that next big-ticket item. While it's not likely that I'm going to get a DSLR without a paycheck, it's still exciting to see the price drop.

I think I'm quite uncommon as a guy who likes to shop, but I don't usually fall for big sales, especially since what's on the racks are the XXL sizes. (I did, however, see a suit and a very spiffy pinstripe coat at Nordstrom that did fit me- at the teen's section. Ouch!) I hate buyer's remorse and I have a ton of criteria I consult before buying something, even if it's on sale, and they include whether I'd buy it even if it wasn't on sale. Most of my remorse these days comes from buying something NOT on sale out of fear it'll run out or I think it's a good deal at 30% off, until 3 months later when they've slashed prices dramatically (I'm looking at you, Rose's Heavenly Cakes). But what I really want to see is a stick blender or some pastry crap hitting rock-bottom, heh heh :) (And at least I have plenty of time to buy gifts!)

Okay camera, stop staring at me... I'll get you someday.

I had a box of cream that needed finishing, which was perfect for making these pots de crème. I didn't think they were going to be that great since the batter used so little chocolate and was light-colored and speckled (sue me, I've never made PDC before), but they magically transformed in the oven to these cups of chocolate heaven. The cups are Martha Stewart collection cups I got in the Philippines that are microwave-safe (I gambled on them being oven-safe since they were in a water bath anyway), and I got for a steal at about 60 US cents each. Bwahahaha. I am good at sales... :)

Pots de Crème from Tartine
These are really tough to mess up (unless you pour boiling water into the custards, then I can't help you). Enjoy with a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream. This makes 8, but can be easily halved- the baking time is the same, of course.

• 170g (6oz) bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped


• 675g (2-3/4 cups) heavy cream


• 38g (3 tablespoons) sugar


• pinch of salt


• 8 large egg yolks

Have on hand 8 oven-proof cups that can hold 175mL (3/4 cup) each. Take a roasting pan big enough to hold all of them without touching and deep enough to hold water that comes up to 3/4 of the way up the sides of the cups and fill it halfway with water (the cups won't be in the pan at this stage).

Preheat the oven to 175°C (350°F). Place than pan with water in the oven in the meantime.

In a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water or in a microwaveable container in the microwave, melt the chocolate and remove from the heat.

In a small saucepan or in a microwaveable container in the microwave, combine the cream, sugar, and salt and bring to a boil. Pour it into the chocolate and whisk until blended.

Place the egg yolks in a mixing bowl and whisk until blended. While whisking madly, pour the cream-chocolate mixture in a small stream and whisk until blended. Pour this through a fine sieve into a container with a spout. Divide this among the oven-proof cups. Take out the pan with water from the oven and place the cups in the pan carefully. If necessary, pour in more water into the roasting pan so it comes up 3/4 of the way up the sides of the cups. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the sides are set but the center is slightly jiggly. Remove from the oven and take the cups out of the water bath. Let cool and serve warm or chilled with whipped cream.

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