Blog Update with a side of Coffee "Tea" Cake

My camera has been out-of-service over the last week so even though I have been cooking and baking, I haven't been motivated to post without having any pictures. I baked french bread, a jelly roll cake, ham and onion fritatta, timbale, and most recently Coffee "Tea" Cakes. These turned out absolutely wonderful and delicious and if any of you are scone fans, you'll definitely have to try these out.

Coffee "Tea" Cakes
(from Fine Cooking)

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp table salt
1/4 tsp baking soda
2/3 cup plus 1 tsp firmly packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 tbsp finely ground coffee beans (from about 1 heaping tbsp whole beans)
1/2 cup (1/4 lb) cold butter, cubed
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup cold brewed espresso or double-strength coffee
1 tsp granulated sugar


Preheat your oven to 350F.

For mixing all the ingredients, I used my 12-cup food processor. You can use a standing mixer or just a regular bowl but you'll need a pastry cutter to cut in the butter. Anyhow, combine together your dry ingredients namely the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, brown sugar and ground coffee into your food processor and give it a whir until it is well combined. Add the butter in and pulse until the piece of your butter are the size of marbles (or so the recipe states but I just pulsed until it was like small pebbles like how I do with my pie pastry).

Next add your cream, vanilla and cold espresso and blend until just combined and your mixture has become like a dough. Put it out onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and pat into a round about 6-8 inches wide. Sprinkle some brown sugar on top (you could also add some white granulated sugar as well) and cut the circle into 8 equal pieces. You won't need to separate them from each other as you do normally with scones.

Bake until firm but still springy, 40 to 50 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack and then recut your wedges to serve.

French Toast with Chocolate Babka

So with all the leftover chocolate babka I had I needed to do something with it. It won't do as breadcrumbs or croutons but perhaps it would make a very nice french toast, I had thought. Well it turned out quite good and the bit of chocolate made it dessert-like.

French Toast (using Chocolate Babka)
Serves 2

4 slices chocolate babka, sliced thickly (you can also use brioche or challah; you can also stale the bread the night before if your bread was freshly made)
3/4-1 cup whole milk (you can use cream or half-and-half but not non-fat or low-fat milk :P)
2 eggs
1/4 cup vanilla sugar (or regular granulated sugar)
1 tsp vanilla extract (depending upon your taste)
2 tbsp butter, for frying

In a big glass measuring cup, pour in your milk and add in the eggs. Whisk until well-combined (your liquid should be quite yellow and not too white) and then add in your sugar and vanilla extract. Pour the custard into a shallow pie plate.

Soak your bread slices in the custard for about 30 seconds on each side.

Heat a large skillet on medium and melt your butter in it. Fry each side of the bread slices until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side.

Enjoy with a side of whipped cream and a sprinkling of powdered sugar.