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Sunken Plum Snack Cake
Friends, it’s officially stone fruit season. Bring on all the peaches, nectarines, apricots, cherries, and — for our purposes today — plums! I love baking with stone fruits. They lend themselves so well to pies, cakes, bars, and jam (which isn’t really baking I guess, but baking-adjacent). Stone fruits have a decent amount of firmness to them, but when you bake them, they sort of melt and go all soft and jammy. Yum. Before I baked with plums for the first time (years ago now…in a pie, I believe), I had enjoyed snacking on them but never thought of putting them into baked treats. But once I tasted them baked…
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Carrot Cake with Honey Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting
I’ve always wondered how carrot cake became an Easter tradition—in my mind, spice cake is really more of a fall treat. I suppose the Easter bunny has something to do with it, I’m not sure. But as it’s one of the tastiest cakes there is, I’m sure not going to complain. This is my version, with all of my favorite things: walnuts, no raisins(way overrated, IMO), and a sweet, fluffy, cinnamon-y cream cheese frosting. Let’s give a hearty springtime welcome to Carrot Cake with Honey Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting! Carrot Cake History So it turns out that carrot cake has been around for a while. Or, at least, some version…
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Fig Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
This March marks the 10th anniversary of the company I work for, Wild Fig Marketing! Since we can’t get together to celebrate with cake (boo, COVID!), I decided to create a recipe for a Fig Cake that we can all make on our own. Because there HAS to be cake, right? A celebration just isn’t a celebration without it. This single-layer almond-scented cake is dotted with chopped dried figs and topped with a thin layer of fig jam and a lush cream cheese frosting. Perfect for a (small) celebration. Fig Fun Facts As I was tooling around looking for inspiration for this cake, I stumbled on a few fig facts…
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Mud Pie Cake
Last month, I took a Creative Baking class online with monthly.com, taught by Christina Tosi of Milk Bar. It was such a fun class (and also a lot of work!), and I ended up with three new original recipes: Popcorn & Hot Chocolate Cookies, Brûléed Maple Latte Cheesecake Pie, and this Mud Pie Cake. This is a rich, chocolatey cake that’s doused with a Kahlúa-coffee soak, layered with chocolate pudding and bits of chocolate crunch (think Oreo-like cookie crumbles), then topped with a thick layer of whipped cream. This cake is, in a word, dreamy. A New (to Me) Way to Layer a Cake In the class, we learned Christina’s…
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Spiced Apple Cake
I just got back from a quick walk after work, and as I was walking it started snowing. Now, if you’re not from northern Minnesota (and maybe even if you are) you might be thinking, “Snow in October?? Ew, gross!” And honestly? I can’t say I’m quite ready for winter myself. But here’s what I love about living here: As I walked down the street a few blocks from my house, two little girls came running out of their homes, both looking utterly DELIGHTED about the snow—like, in complete wonder over it. One stood on her stoop, smiling ear to ear as she looked up at the sky; the other…
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Peaches and Cream Cake with Mary Oliver
It’s that time of year – stone fruit season! Peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, apricots…I love them all. They’re wonderful to eat fresh, of course, but they also make some of the best baked goods. One of my favorite ways to use them is in pie (like this Peach Ginger Pie and this Plum Slab Pie), but sometimes, perfectly ripe and juicy fruits call for something simpler. This Peaches and Cream cake is one of those recipes – two quick and easy cake layers, whipped cream, and fresh peaches. I mean, just look at these beauties I picked up recently – have you ever seen such gorgeous peaches? They deserve to…
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For the Love Of Cake — One Squirrel’s Quest
Yesterday was by far the most eventful day I’ve had over the past few months. Since I’ve mostly stayed home since mid-March (due to the COVID-19 pandemic – just including that for the future when I go back to read this and think, “why did stay home so much?”)…anyway, since I’ve been at home so much lately, life has been pretty uneventful. Yesterday was an exception. It started out so peaceful. I slept in, ate a bit of breakfast, and started baking this glorious Flourless Chocolate-Chili Cake from Benjamina Ebuehi’s cookbook The New Way To Cake. I popped it in the oven, cleaned up as it baked, then while it…
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Ginger Rhubarb Cupcakes
Summer arrived in full force this weekend here in Duluth. It was sunny and 70°F with a lovely lake breeze. Heaven. My Mom came up to visit (for the first time since Christmas!) and we spent as much time as possible outside – including hiking in one of my favorite spots and enjoying some glorious lake views. I tell you what, these kinds of days make up for those dark, 20-below winter days and then some. With summer finally here, my thoughts immediately go to BBQs and potlucks – friends and family gathering to enjoy each other’s company and all the delicious summer foods. Even though this summer will look…
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Grapefruit Pound Cake
It’s Easter weekend already – I can hardly believe how quickly time is passing this Spring! It will be a quiet weekend this year. Life in general looks a lot different for all of us right now, with businesses closed and a stay-at-home order in place here in Minnesota. I’m finding myself both anxious about it all and incredibly grateful for everything I have. I worry about my friends and family getting sick (especially those in higher-risk categories), and at the same time am more grateful than ever to have each of them in my life – even if right now it’s only over FaceTime. BTW, who else is super…
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Chocolate Cake with Earl Grey Buttercream and Salted Caramel
The beginning of the year brings lots of chances to celebrate in my world – New Year’s Eve/Day, my birthday (last week!), and now my blogiversary! A year ago today I started this blog. And what a fun year it’s been! My first post a year ago was for my Grandma’s Sour Cream Sugar Cookies, a recipe that is beloved in my family. This year, I’m sharing a cake I’ve been wanting to make for a while (and the one I made for my birthday this year) – Chocolate Cake with Earl Grey Buttercream and Salted Caramel Sauce. The Cake The cake itself is Ina Garten’s famous chocolate cake, and…
Recipes and Musings from the Zenith City
