The Pajama Chef

Breakfast, Cakes, Desserts, Recipes, Spreads

Lemon Cake with Lemon Curd Filling and Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

March 13, 2013March 15, 2013 Sarah

My mom’s birthday is three days after Christmas, so sometimes she will have a birthday cake at an odd time of the year to alleviate the typical post-holiday sugar rush. Last summer, in July, I made her an all-natural flop of a red velvet cake. This year, I decided to make an over the top yummy lemon cake and surprised her with it on my parents’ recent visit to see us. She was certainly surprised with the cake, and I was too with the ease this cake was to make. I mean, it has a long name and certainly looks complicated. Though there are many steps, it’s well worth it and really not that time consuming as long as you plan ahead.

First, let’s talk about the cake. Ohhh the cake! It’s a little hard to tell from the pictures, but this is a FOUR layer cake! [it was a very sunny day when I made this cake, and just couldn’t wait to take pictures, so they are a little too bright for my liking.] I made the cake in two cake pans, then split each down the middle after they were cooled so I had four thin layers. In between, I filled the cake with lemon curd and vanilla cream cheese frosting. So yum!

This lemon cake recipe is definitely a winner. It has the classic 1-2-3-4 ingredient ratio for cakes: 1 pound butter, 2 cups sugar, 3 cups flour, and 4 eggs. I amped it up with a bit more lemon zest than it called for, so the cake itself was perfectly tart and sweet at the same time. The texture of this cake was definitely moist, but was almost spongier than your average, everyday cake. This was the perfectly pairing to the smooth lemon curd filling that I used.

If you’ve never made lemon curd before, don’t worry. It’s super easy, and very inexpensive compared to those $4-5 jars at the grocery store. You actually make it in a fairly similar fashion to quick homemade pudding, except with eggs, so you do have to pay attention so that the eggs don’t start cooking separately. The lemon curd is easily my favorite part of this cake, and I think I actually want to make some again soon to spread on an english muffin at breakfast.

The most outrageous part of this cake was the frosting, by far. For this cake, I used Veronica’s Cream Cheese Celebration Frosting. Recently I won a bottle of Crème Bouquet from her blog, and you can click over to see how she describes it, but basically it is a flavor emulsion that is lemony and sweet and reminiscent of good bakery cakes. Since this was my first time using it, I thought it only appropriate to use one of Veronica’s recipes–so I paired this tangy lemon cake with a rich, creamy celebration frosting made with cream cheese and butter. The good stuff!

I can’t really say enough good things about this cake–you’ll just have to try it out, and not be intimidated by all the steps and recipes. It is well worth it, I promise! 🙂 Lemony and creamy makes for a very happy birthday [two months’ belated]!

Lemon Cake with Lemon Curd and Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting
click to print whole recipe

Lemon Cake [from Martha Stewart]

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature, plus more for pans
3 cups sifted all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
zest of 2 1/2 lemons
1 1/2 cups lemon curd [see recipe below]
1 recipe vanilla cream cheese frosting [see recipe below]

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8 by 2 inch round cake pans, then line bottoms with parchment paper. Flour pans on top of parchment, then set aside.

Cream butter in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes, until softened Then slowly add sugar, mixing on medium speed for 3-4 minutes or until fluffy. Scrape down sides of the bowl as needed. Gradually pour in eggs, continuing to mix on medium speed. Beat well and scrape sides between each addition, about 5 minutes in total. Batter should not look slick.

Meanwhile, combine flour, baking powder, and baking soda in a small bowl.

After eggs are mixed in, reduce speed to low, then alternate between adding flour and buttermilk. Begin and end with flour, then fold in vanilla and lemon zest.

Divide batter between prepared pans, then bake for 25 minutes. Rotate pans in oven for even browning [cover with foil if necessary], then bake for another 10-20 minutes until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Cool cake in pans on wire rack for 15 minutes, then invert cake onto wire racks to cool completely before cutting, filling, and frosting.

When cake has cooled completely, remove parchment from each cake and then use a serrated knife [I used a long bread knife] to gently split each layer into two, making a four layer cake. Reserve the prettiest domed layer for the top of the cake, and use the other domed layer for the bottom. I used 3/4 cup lemon curd in between layers 1 and 2, frosting in between layers 2 and 3, and the remaining 3/4 cup lemon curd in between layers 3 and 4. If you want lemon curd in between all layers, double the recipe below and use 1 cup in between each layer.

Frost generously with vanilla buttercream, using a crumb coat if necessary [I didn’t find it to be], then sprinkle with sparkling sanding sugar for decoration, if desired. Store in the refrigerator, covered, and serve chilled.

Time: 70 minutes [30 minutes active] + time for cake and curd to cool.

Yield: 12 servings.

Lemon Curd [from Martha Stewart]

Ingredients:

3 large egg yolks, strained through a mesh sieve
zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
6 tablespoons sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut into small pieces

Directions:

In a small saucepan, whisk together egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar. Turn heat on to medium, then cook for 5 to 7 minutes, or until thick. While mixture is cooking, be sure to stir constantly with a wooden spoon, not forgetting the sides and bottom of pan.

Remove from heat, then add butter piece by piece, stirring until smooth and melted before adding the next piece.

Pour mixture into medium bowl, then wrap tightly with plastic wrap–placing it directly on the curd so a skin doesn’t form. Refrigerate until firm and chilled, at least one hour or overnight.

Time: 20 minutes.

Yield: 1 1/2 cups.

Notes: To fill each layer with curd, double this recipe.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting [from Veronica’s Cornucopia]

Ingredients:

1 8 ounce package cream cheese, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
2 pounds powdered sugar
2 teaspoons crème bouquet
2 teaspoons vanilla extract [clear for a more pure white frosting, regular vanilla if you’re okay with a cream/yellowy frosting]
milk to thin, if necessary

Directions:

In a stand mixer, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. With mixer on low, add sugar [gradually so as to not explode powdered sugar everywhere] and crème bouquet and vanilla. When sugar is incorporated, turn to medium-high and beat for 2 minutes, then add milk if necessary to thin [I used about 1 tablespoon]. Refrigerate or freeze if you won’t be using it within a few days.

Yield: enough frosting for a two layer cake + 1 cup extra.

Time: 10 minutes.

Linked up with: Weekend Potluck.

Beef, Main Dishes, Recipes

Crock Pot Pot Roast

March 11, 2013March 9, 2013 Sarah

I’m not typically a beef lover. Ben loves nothing more than a good steak [or lemony kale pasta, go figure], so we’re not always good food matches. This is why we never share meals at restaurants much to my chagrin… unless he’s being really nice to me, I suppose! 🙂 But sometimes I really do crave beef. A few weeks ago this was the case, so I decided to make a nice pot roast for Saturday night dinner while my parents were visiting. But as is typical when my parents are in town, my mom and I had been planning on doing a little shopping during the afternoon, so I decided to let the crock pot do the work for me.

Though I had never made pot roast in the crock pot, I decided to give a popular yet simple Martha Stewart recipe a try. Though pretty basic, this pot roast is incredible! I let a three pound roast simmer on low all day long with carrots, onions, pepper, salt, Worcestershire sauce, and red wine, and the result was a rich, tender, flavorful roast. I’m no expert in pot roasts, but I think the key to this one was the vinegary, salty, and sweet Worcestershire sauce. As a side note, did you know that Worcestershire sauce is used in cocktails? How bizarre! Anyway, if you’re looking for a no frills, classic, and simple pot roast, look no further! I served mine with some oven roast potatoes, and their crisp skin was the perfect pairing with the tender, soft, fall apart in your mouth beef and carrots. So, so good! Enjoy! 🙂

Crock Pot Pot Roast [adapted from Martha Stewart]
click to print

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon cornstarch
8 medium carrots, cut into thirds
2 medium onions, each cut into 8 wedges
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 beef chuck roast [3 pounds], trimmed of excess fat [or can use a variety of beef roasts–I used a bottom round roast]
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 cup water

Directions:

In a large crock pot, whisk together cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water until smooth. Add carrots and onions, and season with salt and pepper. Place roast on top of vegetables, then season with additional pepper and salt if desired. Drizzle Worcestershire sauce on top, then pour wine and water around the roast [on top of vegetables if possible].

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours or until fully cooked [or on high for 6 hours].

Remove roast to cutting board, then shred roast or thinly slice against the grain. Serve roast with vegetables and pan juices.

Time: 8 hours, 15 minutes [15 minutes active].

Yield: 8-10 servings.

Notes: The original recipe called for cooking on low for 10 hours or on high for 6. I cooked the roast on low for 8 hours and it was done, so just pay attention to your roast and if you do have cook it over [i.e. work schedule], it’s probably best to do so on low and to add a bit of extra water/wine. You can also strain the pan juices before serving, but I didn’t do this.

Menu Plans

Menu Plan

March 10, 2013March 9, 2013 Sarah

Week of March 11

Monday: leftovers
Tuesday: out to eat
Wednesday: Minestrone Soup from the freezer
Thursday: Chicken Quinoa Stew
Friday: breakfast for dinner 🙂
Saturday: lasagna
Sunday: out to eat for Ben’s birthday!

Main Dishes, Recipes, Soups

Chipotle Black Bean Soup with Avocado Cream

March 6, 2013March 9, 2013 Sarah

I am SO ready for spring. It’s been cold all week, and then last night we got several inches of snow. Not as much as some parts of the country, but still… I am over winter. Entirely. My sister thinks winter is the greatest, and even planned her wedding for December hoping for snow [and there was… see!]. In that case, snow was cute and pretty and fun. In this case, in March, snow is not fun. In my opinion, the only good part about this sort of weather is that it is perfectly aceptable to wear cozy warm sweaters, ridiculously old and soft sweatpants, and boots everyday. Not necessarily altogether now, but you get my drift. And for dinner, it is perfectly acceptable to have soup almost every night. At least, until your husband tires of it. Thankfully, he didn’t tire of soup before we enjoyed this fabulous Chipotle Black Bean Soup with Avocado Cream created by Joanne. I already have one black bean soup recipe that I adore… now I have two! One vegetarian, one meatatarian.

My go-to black bean soup is thick and chunky with black beans, onion, and spinach, and gets most of its flavors from a variety of spices and chicken broth. This recipe is much simpler, and, as the name implies, heavy on the chipotle flavor. Heavy on the awesomeness, more likely. The actual soup recipe only has six ingredients: chorizo, carrots, onions, chipotle peppers, vegetable broth, and black beans, so the chipotle flavor really does dominate. Chorizo and chipotle peppers are a fabulous combo, but I wasn’t initially sure how the carrots would work in the mix, but it turns out that carrots with a bit of spice are pretty phenomenal.

What really makes this soup pop though is the avocado cream. It’s like a creamy guacamole… but is all in all pretty healthy since the cream comes from avocado and Greek yogurt. It’s jazzed up with lime juice and cilantro, and I added a dash of crushed red pepper. Umm, yum. The whole soup, avocado cream and all, is pretty spicy but nothing I couldn’t handle. I thought it got even better, and almost a little sweeter as it sat in the fridge for a couple days. Like many dishes, the flavors improved over time. I wish I could have had a big bowl for dinner last night in the snow, but alas… I had to settle for Panera instead [tomato soup + fuji apple chicken salad!]. Panera’s good, but homemade’s better. Enjoy!

Chipotle Black Bean Soup with Avocado Cream [adapted from Eats Well With Others]
click to print

Ingredients:

10 ounces chorizo
4 large carrots, diced
2 large onions, diced [I used 1 red and 1 white]
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, minced
4 cups vegetable broth
3 cups cooked black beans

for the avocado cream

1 small ripe avocado, cut in half and pit removed
1/4 cup Greek yogurt
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon lime juice
crushed red pepper

Directions:

Heat a large [4+ quart] saucepan over medium heat, then add chorizo to the pot. Break it up with a wooden spoon, then cook through. If the pan looks really greasy, wipe out some of the grease with a paper towel, then add carrots and onions, and cook until soft. Stir occasionally. Stir in the peppers, then cook for a minute until fragrant.

Add the vegetable broth and black beans to the pot, then cover and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, then simmer for 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare avocado cream by combining the avocado, Greek yogurt, cilantro, and lime juice in a food processor or blender. Puree until smooth, scraping the sides as needed. Season with crushed red pepper as desired.

Puree about 1/3 of the soup with an immersion blender if desired [I forgot to do this], then serve soup topped with avocado cream.

Time: 45 minutes.

Yield: 5-6 servings.

Linked up with: Weekend Potluck.

Desserts, Other, Recipes

SRC: Quick Chocolate Pudding

March 4, 2013May 6, 2015 Sarah

Have you ever made homemade pudding before? I never knew until this weekend just how simple it is–and how utterly delicious the results are! This month for the Secret Recipe Club I was assigned to Shannon’s blog, Searching for Dessert and I am so glad that I was–otherwise I may never have discovered the wonder of homemade pudding!! And this version is luscious, rich chocolate pudding so it is very wondrous. 🙂

If you’ve missed my past SRC posts, the premise is this: you’re assigned a different member’s blog every month. You visit their blog, choose any recipe you want, then make it and share it on your blog… all while keeping your assignment a secret! Everyone else posts about their secret blog the same day. It’s fabulously fun to try out new blogs. If you have a blog, definitely check it out and consider joining! I highly recommend it.

If you’ve never visited Shannon’s blog, you’re missing out! As the name implies, the focus is on dessert… as well as meatless recipes! Yum to both! There are SO many new recipes I’d love to try, like these Cranberry and Pecan Granola Bites and this Parmesan Pizza Dough. Everything I saw looked amazing, but since Shannon is an excellent photographer and a former pastry chef, that is no surprise. Now, she is a student [graduating this year, like me… yay! By the way, I don’t think I’ve announced this here yet but I turned in a FULL DRAFT of my thesis a couple weeks ago! I’ll have to do revisions later this month, but this is a big step forward. :)]. Shannon is also a wife and a mother–most recently the new mom of a little girl. So fun! I’m sure her family loves it when she makes this quick chocolate pudding for dessert at night. It’s no pastry but it sure is tasty.

This rich, fudgy chocolate pudding is amazing! It comes together in a flash [hence the quick part]. Probably the hardest part is straining the lumps out at the end. Seriously. You just gotta be prepared and have all the ingredients ready as you go along. Even if it was a bit more complicated, I think I would still love it just as much because it is SO much better than any pudding mix you can buy at the store.

Since the pudding cooks and thickens on the stove, there is really no need for refrigeration prior to serving. I had never had warm pudding before, and man, was it good! It was like eating a bowl of milky hot fudge. It was also great cold, but it was such a treat hot out of the pan. Shannon’s original recipe called for flavoring the chocolate pudding with fruit, specifically black cherries. I intended to buy some, but just never did, so we enjoyed the pudding plain and also with coconut and mini chocolate chips. Be sure to check out her original post for more fruit ideas… she had a ton.

I feel like this post is super scattered, but just to emphasize again… this Quick Chocolate Pudding is superb! It is rich and chocolatey, with richness drawn from the coffee, vanilla, and butter. If you aren’t a coffee fan, don’t be scared–you don’t actually taste it, it just serves as a flavor enhancer. I won’t go so far as to say I’ll never make boxed pudding again… but I really shouldn’t. I’ve been enlightened… and I can’t wait to find more pudding recipes now. Anyone have some they wanna send my way? 🙂 Enjoy… and go show Shannon and her new baby girl some love at Searching for Dessert!

Quick Chocolate Pudding [from Searching for Dessert]

Ingredients:

1/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 cup coffee, hot
1 cup milk, hot
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate [I used a block of chocolate but Shannon used chips]
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 cup fruit, if desired [Shannon used frozen black cherries]

Directions:

Add sugar, cornstarch, and cocoa powder to a medium saucepan and whisk well to blend. Then pour in the hot coffee and whisk again until fully incorporated.

Then, place the saucepan over medium high heat. Gradually pour in the hot milk, whisking after each addition. Using a wooden spoon, consistently stir the mixture for 2-3 minutes as it thickens.

Add chocolate, and stir until melted. Remove from heat. Add vanilla and butter, stir until melted.

Set a fine strainer or sieve over a bowl and push the pudding through to remove any lumps. This will take a few minutes, but the results are well worth it.

Serve immediately, with 1/4 cup fruit per 3/4 cup serving [if desired]. Alternatively, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap [touching the pudding] and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Time: 20 minutes.

Yield: 4 servings [3/4 cup each].

Be sure to check out the other SRC posts today here: