Delicious Spongy Cake

En Español
This is my Thanksgiving Day cake. This is a very versatile cake and easy to do. After having it for eight years, on my way to the supermarket I lost the original recipe! Luckily I remembered how to do the cake batter  for this spongy cake, but the white chocolate frosting it called for, I could not remember at all. I chose to do it with MERINGUE since I wanted an easy and white frosting that will hold well until tomorrow. As it's to celebrate Thanksgiving I used cranberry sauce mix with strawberry jam to decorate this cake, however you can use strawberry jam or any other flavor you wish. I gave it a  tropical touch by using coconut flakes mixed with meringue for the filling.

Recipe for a Spongy Cake with Nuts

 
Ingredients:
For Cake 
4 egg yolks
2 whole eggs
1 ½ cups of sugar
½ cup butter or margarine cut up in cubes
1 cup hot milk
2½ ups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup chopped almond, walnuts or pecans

For Frosting:
1 cup of sugar
¼ cup water
3- 4 egg whites (4 oz or ½ cup)
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla (5 ml)

To decorate 
⅔ cups shredded fresh coconut
cranberry jam (sauce)
dry fruits
walnuts or pecans


Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350°F Grease and flour three 9-inch round cake pans.

2. To make the cake: In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg yolks, whole eggs and sugar with an electric mixer for at least 5 minutes or until light and fluffy. Stir the butter or margarine pieces into the hot milk until the butter has melted. Combine the flour with the baking powder. Add lf 2 cup of the flour mixture into the egg mixture, beating slowly. Add half the hot milk mixture, 1 cup of the flour mixture, then the remaining hot milk, beating. After each addition. Add the remaining flour mixture and the vanilla. Beat well. Fold in the nuts. Pour the batter into the prepared pans.

3. Bake the layers in the 350°F oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the centers comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pans. Remove the cakes from the pans and cool completely on wire racks.

4. To make the frosting: In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar with the water. Bring the mixture to boiling and boil for 7 minutes or until it is syrup thickens. (Undissolved sugar will make the frosting grainy.) Make sure to scrape down the sides of the saucepan.

5. In a large mixing bowl, beat the egg whites with the cream of tartar with an electric mixer until foamy. Slowly pour the hot sugar syrup into the egg whites, beating constantly at the highest speed for 4 to 6 minutes or until the frosting is stiff enough to spread and cooled. Use a rubber spatula to guide the egg whites toward the beaters and scrape down the sides of the bowl to be sure that the frosting is evenly mixed. Beat in the vanilla. The finished frosting should be smooth and fluffy, yet hold stiff peaks.

6. Place a cake layer on a cake plate; spread with about 1 cup of frosting and sprinkle with ⅓ cup of coconut. Repeat with the remaining layers.

Serves 12


Note:
a) The cake can be frosted and filled with a wide variety of flavors. My favorite fillings are vanilla custard and praline.

b) The recipe for the meringue frosting half of the Dominican frosting recipe shown in this blog.

Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. - Ephesians 5:20

Potato Pie

 

This potato pie or tart with its delicious filling is an excellent alternative to serving potatoes as a side dish for any meal. Additionally, you can serve it with salad for a light lunch. I hope you like it as much as everyone in my house does. From my kitchen to yours, enjoy!

Receta de Potato Pie (Rico Pastel de Papas) en español click aquí.

Potato Pie Recipe 

Ingredients:

1 lb + 9oz potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly

2 scallions, chopped finely

1 red onion, chopped finely

2/3 cup heavy cream

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Salt and pepper

 

For the Pie dough: See steps and instructions on how to do it here: Easy Pie Crust.

2 ½ cups flour

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon granulated sugar

3-6 tablespoons ice water

Instructions:

1. Lightly grease a baking sheet. Bring a saucepan of water to boil, then add the sliced potatoes and bring back to a boil, simmer for a few minutes. Drain the potato slices and leave to cool. Dry off any excess moisture with paper towels.

2. In a bowl, mix together the spring scallions, red onion, and the cooled potato slices. Stir in 2 tbsp and cream and plenty of seasoning.

3. Divide the pastry in half and roll out one piece to a 11.5-inch round. Roll the remaining pastry to a 10-inch round and cut a steam vent in the middle of the pastry.

4. Place the larger circle on to the baking sheet and fill with the potato mixture, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Brush this border with a little of the beaten egg.

5. Top with the other pastry disk, seal well, and crimp the edges of the pastry. Brush with the beaten egg and bake in a preheated oven, 400˚F for 30 minutes.

6. After 30 minutes of baking, mix the remaining beaten egg with the rest of the cream and pour into the pie through the steam vent. Return to the oven for 15 minutes, then leave to cool for 30 minutes. Serve warm or cold.

Note: You can use 1 pound ready -made puff pastry for this recipe if you want to skip preparing your own crust. The filling can be prepared up to four hours in advance.

I used the top of an olive oil bottle to make the steam vent.

After 30 minutes of baking, pour the mixture of egg and cream into the pie through the steam vent, and bake for 15 more minutes.

For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and the evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. - Matthew 12:34-35.

1st Blog Anniversary

Today is my first BLOG ANNIVERSARY!! I can not believe how fast time has passed. It has been a year unparalleled, full of pleasant emotions and the opportunity to meet new friends from all over the world, people who are creative and inspiring. Since I posted my first recipe Dominican Chicken Soup Mari's Style, until today,  Mari's Cakes Blog has been a place of growth, inspiration and new ideas.

THANK YOU for reading my posts, for cooking my recipes and sending photos, for sending emails thanking or congratulating me, for taking time to leave a comments and also those who have trusted me and I have given me awards. FYI, I have reserved a space dedicated to the blog awards I receive from fellow blogger friends.  You are more than welcome to visit here: Prizes, Awards to Mari's Cakes.

I never thought that in such a short time this blog would have so many readers and a little more than 500 friends who follow it. I am amazed on how many recipes I have published and this is just beginning. WOW! To me this is a place for recreation, a place where I can share my ideas and dedicate the recipes to my family and friends. As I said before, being able to see my recipes published is like bringing to life my recipes scrapbook. With God's will I hope to continue to share with you my 20 years experience in kitchen adventure with all the love and passion that cooking for our loved ones deserves. I clarified that I am not a professional chef, nor a cooking professor, I  just love cooking, I learned to cook for love and with love. 

Don't stay out, grab a piece of the cake and celebrate Mari's Cakes 1st blog birthday! See the photos on the spanish version of this entry: Here!

Thanks for visiting :)