One more sweet treat, this one from the December 2005 issue of Fine Cooking magazine.
Sweet Potato Spice Cake with Fresh Ginger & Pecan Streusel Topping
dessert
Hot Pepper Apple Pie
Last week we had an apple-cheddar pie recipe. This week it’s apples and hot pepper jelly. The idea came from Moore Farms and Friends, written in their style.
Apple Jalapeno Cobbler
I did not make up this recipe! I think it came from a very broad-based consumer magazine like Better Homes & Gardens. One little jalapeno provides just a hint of heat. Try it!
Basil Caramel
I just made a caramel birthday cake the other day … now I recall this recipe for basil caramel as demonstrated by David Larkworthy of 5 Seasons Brewing Company. He demonstrated this last year at the Morningside Farmers Market. I could have infused that caramel frosting with basil. Yum. David’s recipe for basil caramel sauce would be great over ice cream.
Apple Upside Down Cake
I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for apple desserts. The first one I’m offering is from King Arthur Flour, a riff on pineapple upside down cake. The recipe calls for making this in a cake pan, but I’m going to use my cast iron skillet. Boiled apple cider is apparently a product relatively easily found in New England, or from the King Arthur catalog. I’m going to use the apple juice concentrate instead. I love having those frozen concentrates on hand … orange juice, pineapple, apple …. they make it easy to add lots of fruit flavor without lots of liquid. Great for glazes for grilling as well. The idea about putting the apple top in the center of the cake makes for an interesting presentation. You could skip it and just use apple slices instead.
Cherokee Campfire-Baked Apples
One more dessert idea – this one is from “Spirit of the Harvest: North American Native Cooking” by Beverly Cox and Martin Jacobs (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, $40).
Feel free to bake these in the oven rather than in the coals of a campfire.
Spiked Apple Galette
Thinking about Thanksgiving desserts? Here’s gorgeous recipe from chow.com. It’s a bit of work, but so worth it. Make the dough up to 2 days ahead of time, but bake the galette so it will be warm when you serve it. If you don’t have sanding sugar for the sparkly finish, just use granulated sugar instead.
Spiced Lettuce Cake Bars
Finally, I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to try this recipe for lettuce cake, and today’s bounty of lettuce provides the means. I saw this mentioned at SeriousEats.com last year, and although it calls for iceberg, I’m going to try it with our green leaf lettuce. Sounds like an interesting variation on carrot cake. The recipe comes Nicole Weston of BakingBites.com.
Enlightened Chocolate Basil Cake with Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting
I also love making a simple syrup (equal quantities sugar and water, heated until the sugar dissolves) flavored with basil. Tonight I made 4 cups of simple syrup and while it was still warm. dropped in all the basil from the box (stems, flowers and all – rinsed well, of course!). Tomorrow I’ll strain out the basil and refrigerate the syrup. I can use it to flavor iced tea, make a frozen ice or sweeten fruit salads. And since it’s not watermelon season yet, I can save my basil syrup and use it to make a modified version of Martha’s margaritas. (It’ll keep at least a month in the refrigerator.) Yum!
Ok – so then Suzanne mentioned basil cake. I found a recipe online for Lemon Basil Cake, calling for Trader Joe’s vanilla cake mix gussied up with the zest of 2 lemons and 1/2 cup chopped basil. And a lemon cake with basil syrup at Epicurious.com. And pound cake with lemon-basil-orange syrup. I can totally see the connection between lemon and basil, but chocolate? There was a chocolate basil cake on the Enlightened Cooking blog. Here’s the recipe. If I hadn’t already put all my basil into sugar syrup, I’d try this tomorrow.
Sweet Potato Fudge Brownies
Make your own sweet potato puree by baking a sweet potato and then pureeing in a processor until completely smooth. This is one of those recipes where the puree substitutes for much of the fat. With the whole-wheat flour, it’s almost healthy! Adapted from a recipe in Whole Living magazine.