46*52 Chocolate Almond Cake

Coming back from holidays and getting back into the rhythm can be tough sometimes.

Especially when you are coming home to cold november weather.

But - to make the best of this situation - why don't we bake a Julia Child cake?

Because that's what I did. And it helped.

P.S. I really can't believe that this is the first Julia Child recipe I am making.

Shame on me.

Chocolate Almond Cake

From Julia Child's Mastering the Art of French Cooking via completely delicious

Cake:

113 g (4 oz) dark chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons coffee (or rum)

113 g (1 stick) butter, room temperature

130 g (2/3 cup) sugar

3 eggs, separated

1 tablespoon sugar

pinch of salt

35 g (1/3 cup) almond meal

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

70 g (1/2 cup) flour, sifted

Icing:

60 g (2 oz) dark chocolate, chopped

2 tablespoons coffee (or rum)

85 g (3/4 stick) butter, room temperature

slivered almonds, for garnish

• Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease and flour a 20 cm (8 in) round cake pan.
• Melt chocolate with the coffee (or rum) over a bain-marie. Let cool.
• Beat butter and sugar until creamy. Add the egg yolks and beat until thick. Add the melted chocolate. Stir in almond extract and almond meal until just combined.
• Beat the egg whites and salt in a separate bowl, adding the tablespoon of sugar slowly, until stiff.
• Fold 1/4 of the egg whites into the batter. Add the remaining egg whites, alternating with the flour. Don't overmix but fold in gently.
• Pour batter into pan and bake about 25 minutes. The center should still be jiggly.
• Let cool for 10 minutes, take out of the pan and let cool completely.
• For the icing, combine chocolate and coffee (or rum) and melt over a bain-marie. 
• Add the butter a tablespoon at a time and beat it into the chocolate with a whisk.
• Let the icing cool a bit, spoon on top of the cake and spread evenly. Garnish with slivered almonds.

My modifications:

None.

Only the icing: I didn't read the recipe properly (oops) and melted the butter with the chocolate and coffee so my icing turned out much more liquid, of course. It's still okay but next time I would definitely make it as described in the recipe...

The taste:

Very good! A soft, almost liquid center and a nice almond and chocolate taste.

Only the taste of the almond extract was a bit too strong so I will definitely use less next time. But other than that - very good!

Have you ever tried a Julia Child recipe? Which one(s) and how did it turn out?

16*52 Almond Thumbprint Cookies with Dark Chocolate & Sea Salt

Almonds. Covered in dark chocolate. And a layer of sea salt.

Doesn't that sound like a great combination? It really is. Best from a Confiserie here in Basel.

We were invited to dinner at a friend's house and she and her boyfriend love those almonds. As a small thank you gift for them, I thought I would bake something that goes into that direction. Makes it a bit more personal than just buying a pack of those almonds which they could always do themselves. Luckily, I found the recipe below which sounded like it would hit it on the spot. Let's see if the cookies can hold up to the almonds...

Almond Thumbprint Cookies with Dark Chocolate & Sea Salt

Adapted slightly from Food52

Makes about 2 dozen small or 1 dozen big cookies

120 g (1 cup) all-purpose flour

115 g (¾ cup) almond meal

114 g (1 stick) butter, at room temperature + 2 tablespoons (for chocolate filling)

55 g (¼ cup) granulated sugar  

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

113 g (4 oz) dark chocolate, in small pieces

2 teaspoons light corn syrup

sea salt, to taste

• Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
• Whisk together flour and almond meal in a small bowl.
• Beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla, then the almond-flour mixture and mix until combined (do not overmix).
• Roll dough into small balls, place them on your prepared cookie sheet with enough space between them, and make an indention in the middle of each ball. This works best with the back of a wooden cooking spoon. Bake 10-15 minutes until the cookies are only slightly colored. Let cool on a cooling rack.
• For the chocolate filling, combine chocolate, 2 tablespoons of butter, and syrup. Melt over hot water and stir until smooth. Let cool a bit, then fill thumbprints with chocolate and sprinkle with sea salt. The chocolate should be completely set within about one hour.

My modifications:

The recipe called for the zest of 1 lemon which I omitted. I didn't think it fits into the overall flavor I was hoping for.

The taste:
Heavenly. I really, really like them. And so quick and easy to make - this recipe is definitely a keeper!

Do you like the combination of chocolate and salt? Any favorite products or recipes?

34/52 Almond-Orange Shortbread

I wanted to bake something this week that

a) I could easily bring to my mom and grandma (who live 330 kilometers away),

b) would be quick to make, and

c) wouldn't melt or go bad in the heat.

That's why I chose this recipe from my recipe collection on Pinterest:

Almond-Orange Shortbread

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes about 45

225 g (2 sticks) butter, room temperature

150 g (1 cup) powdered sugar

3/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/2 teaspoon salt

300 g (2 cups) flour

grated zest of 1 orange (about 2 teaspoons)

55 g (3/4 cup) sliced almonds

• Beat together butter, sugar, almond extract, and salt until smooth. On low speed, add flour and orange zest. Mix in almonds using your hands or a wooden spoon.
• On a piece of wax paper, roll dough into log about 12 inches long, 2 1/2 in wide and 1 in thick. Roll into paper and freeze for at least one hour. Wrap in plastic wrap if you want to freeze it for a longer period of time (up to 3 months).

• With a sharp knife, cut slices about 1/4 in thick and place on baking sheet. (If dough has been frozen longer, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before cutting to avoid crumbling.)

• Bake at 160°C (325°F) for 15 minutes or until edges start to turn a light brown. Cool on baking sheet 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack for complete cooling.

My modifications:

None. I only froze the dough for an hour and it worked very well. 

The taste:

I love them! I realized that sometimes you just need a little shortbread in your (culinary) life...

They could be a little more orangy for my taste but that's easy to adjust.

Do you like shortbread? Any special recipes to share?