That's How I Roll

I did cinnamon rolls this year for the neighbors, which is great because they're cheap and I know from personal experience that it's very hard to throw away a cinnamon roll. Some people (including myself) have murmured about the pressures of Christmas neighbor gifts, and I have observed of late that either a) I have less friends, or b) many people are forgoing neighbor gifting. In my brother's neighborhood, neighbor gifts are entirely banned by some well-meaning, overwhelmed, but misguided women.
Bad form, I say. Think of all of those children who are missing out on the time-honored tradition of burning peanut brittle with their mothers or trudging around the neighborhood with a dozen plates of loosely wrapped plates of candy balanced precariously in your cold eight-year-old hands. I remember the sight of the jar of marshmallow creme signaled the start of the Christmas candy-making season, and how I would spoon out ever last sticky strand of that creme after my mom scraped it into the bubbling pot of sugar. I remember her quiet cursing as the the divinity hardened too quickly, forming little chalky boulders instead of smooth, peaked domes. I remember her perfect, delicate peanut brittle stretched out by her oiled, red hands. Success or failure, the candy was always eaten, proving that even badly done candy is good.
This recipe is adapted from Bonnie Lake's recipe from the Heritage Cookbook.
Cinnamon Rolls
2 pgks dry yeast (4 1/2 t. instant yeast)
1/2 c. warm water
2 c. milk, scalded
1/2 c. shortening
7 c. flour (approx.)
1 c. sugar
1 c. potatoes, mashed (I use instant)
2 eggs, beaten
2 t. salt
Roll filling:
softened butter (1-2 cubes)
brown sugar (1-2 cups)
2-3 t. cinnamon
chopped nuts & fruit (optional)
Scald milk. Put shortening in large bowl and pour hot milk over shortening. When shortening is melted, add sugar, salt, potatoes, and beaten eggs. In large mixing bowl, mix yeast with warm water. When milk mixture has cooled to lukewarm, add to yeast mixture. Stir in 5-6 cups of flour. Add last cup of flour as needed. This is a very soft dough. If your using a KitchenAid, the dough will still be very sticky and not quite form a ball. If your mixing the dough by hand, it may be too soft to knead - just stir it for a few minutes. After about 5 minutes of kneading, dump into an oiled bowl, cover w/plastic wrap and let rise until doubled. After it has risen, divide the dough in half. Working with one half at a time, roll dough into a rectangle, spread with softened butter and sprinkle generously with sugar and cinnamon. Roll up dough the long way and cut into 1-inch slices. You should get 12-15 rolls from each piece of dough. Place rolls in 2 9x13 pans that have been greased or lined with parchment. Cover and let rise 30-60 minutes. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or so. When rolls have cooled, frost with cream cheese frosting.

The Last 50

1. While at a Michael Jackson concert in Moscow (I know, I know) I was picked up and tossed by a Russian policeman who was apparently trying to incite a riot.
2. While in Russia, I spoke well enough that everyone thought I was Lithuanian.
3. My favorite machine at the gym is that huge stairclimber that looks like a mini escalator.
4. People who don’t return shopping carts, don’t wipe off their exercise machines, and turn at arrow lights long after it’s red should face the wrath of a vengeful God.
5. My favorite hike is Mt. Aire. Two steep miles up, but a huge payoff.
6. I got my first varicose vein when I was 14.
7. I had a letter published in the Deseret Morning News this week – I’m almost famous!
8. I’m on the PTA Board. That’s just all kinds of wrong.
9. I think we women should go easy on each other.
10. I like fruitcake.
11. When I’m not eating food, I’m usually thinking about it. I’m uneasy if I’m traveling and I don’t have food stashed someplace.
12. In separate instances, angry men have approached my idling car to “discuss” the way I drive. The second time I kept my window up. Both times made me cry.
13. Okay, so sometimes I’m a bad driver.
14. Ed and I were both dating other people when we met each other
15. I’ve had two root canals.
16. I coached a state-winning water polo team.
17. I can’t wander around in department stores or libraries for very long, or I get what is commonly referred to in my family as an “SSA”.
18. I used to be obsessed with the Beatles. John Lennon was my hero, much to my parent’s dismay.
19. When I was 7 or 8 years old a car approached me while walking in my grandma’s neighborhood. The driver needed directions, and I said I didn’t know, that I didn’t live in that neighborhood. I remember the passenger door swinging open as he offered to “drive me around” to find the place. I ran back to my grandmas. I didn’t tell anyone for a couple of years. I didn’t think it was that important.
20. My favorite feel-good song: “It's You I Like” by Mr. Rogers.
21. Note Mr. Rogers is wearing the red sweater. I always wanted him to pick the red sweater, but he never did.
22. And while I’m at it, was not Lady Elaine Fairchild the most frightening creature on television? She scared the crap out of me with her enormous red nose and eerie museum-go-round. And don’t get me started on the purple panda. I mean, I love me some Mr. Rogers but I much preferred picture-picture than that crazy neighborhood.
23. I tore the ligaments in my ankle sneaking into Lavell Edwards Stadium before a Boston Concert at the Marriott Center. Yes, I saw Boston at the Marriott Center.
24. My other movie boyfriend: Alan Rickman
25. I was on Lighthouse 20 when I was 8 years old. Raise your hand if you remember that show.
26. Ed says I volunteer too much.
27. Brush with B-list actor: While in Moscow, we stumbled upon the filming of Police Academy 5 (?) and met the actor who plays the guy that is obsessed with guns
28. Another brush: While having an anniversary dinner at Cucina Toscana, we sat next to and chatted with Rob Lowe’s dad. He showed us the family pictures.
29. I got a mandoline for Christmas (she slices, she dices, she makes julienne fries…)
30. I wish Jim Henson were still alive.
31. I used to love watching the Frugal Gourmet as a teenager.
32. I seemed to be on a PBS kick here. Anyone remember The Joy of Painting with Bob Ross and his “happy trees”. Watching him was really soothing, eh? (Man, all these people I've mentioned are dead now.)
33. My sister was on Romper Room. Romper, stomper, bomber, boo!
34. Favorite muppet: Janice
35. Moving on…
36. I love old-fashioned phrases like “cut a rug” and “nice gams”
37. Wedding colors: periwinkle blue and yellow
38. Favorite boys names: Oliver, Charlie
39. I was the first female in our family to graduate from a university.
40. I wore knickers with argyle socks and penny loafers and years later (not a proud moment) wore parachute pants with paint splatters
41. Loved the movie Amadeus and occasionally listen to Mozart’s Requiem just for kicks.
42. My mom is awesome – she can speak double dutch and it blows me away every time.
43. My grandma was courted by Mormon sculptor Torlief Knapus
44. Caramel (not fudge)
45. Mayo (not Miracle Whip)
46. Coke (not Pepsi)
47. Flannel (not satin)
48. I can’t chew ice
49. The smell of balloons (especially popped ones) and rubber bands make me sick.
50. I'm done!
    

Mom's Banana Bread

I cannot throw away old bananas. Sometimes I’ll toss them, unpeeled, in my freezer. But throwing away old bananas is like stomping on this little voice inside of me saying, "someone needs banana bread". So today, despite a number of pressing tasks, I start pulling stuff out of the pantry to make banana bread.

Sometimes I fancy myself a baker, and over the years I’ve experimented with many recipes. Too eager to cast off my mother’s recipe as dated or simplistic, I’ve tried banana breads with made with butter, sour cream, nuts, or spices, but they have all fallen short. Perhaps it isn’t just the recipe, but what banana bread has come to represent.

I don’t know when my mom started taking banana bread to people. We accepted that banana bread was made in quadruple batches. She would sour some milk in quart bottles, grease and flour what seemed like all the loaf pans we owned, and stir up the creamy batter in a big yellow bowl. I loved to dip my finger in that tangy and sweet batter. I remember seeing the foil-wrapped loaves lined up like little train cars along the countertop.

Then she’d drive around the neighborhood, without celebration, and place these loaves in peoples hands. Over the years, my mom had built a reputation. Neighbors brought bags of mottled bananas to encourage her generosity. Whom she chose to receive was a mystery, at least to us. But my mom has a gift for knowing when people need bread. My mother knows if I cried three days ago by looking at my face today. She shows a keen sensitivity to others, paired with a disregard for her own self. My mother, even on her most difficult days, took banana bread. Answering the quizzical looks, my mother just said, “I just thought I’d bring you some bread.”

Of all the cakes I could perfect, of all the pies I could master, of all cookies I could dream up, the highest honor I could achieve would be to perfect the baking—and spirit— of my mother’s banana bread. So thanks to her for teaching me that hat someone, somewhere, needs some banana bread. Someone needs to heft the warm loaf, lay it on their countertop, peel back the creased foil wrapping and plunge their knife into the moist, warm bread and eat half the loaf, still standing. Someone, somewhere needs this bread: soft and sweet, with a nice dark edge, unadorned, unpretentious, perfect—just like my mother.

Banana Bread

Dorothy Chamberlain

½ c. shortening
1 c. sugar
1 ½ ripe bananas, mashed
1 egg
1 c. sour milk (the milk w/lemon juice or vinegar variety)
2 c. flour
1 t. baking powder
½ t. salt
1 t. baking soda

Cream shortening and sugar. Mix in egg. Stir in mashed bananas. Stir in sour milk and dry ingredients. Pour into greased and floured pans. Bake at 350 for one hour. If bread seems to be browning too quickly, cover loosely with foil.

The first 50

Okay, okay. I have sixty-eleven things to do, but I've caved to the pressure, at least in part. Here's my first 50:

1. If I was on death row, I’d request a warm slice of cherry pie.
2. I've lost my engagement ring, wedding band, and a replacement wedding ring. Losing the latter was one of the worst days of my life.
3. I think Gene Wilder is strangely sexy.
4. I was the state winner in the GI Joe American Hero Essay contest in 1980. I won a $25 savings bond which I cashed in to pay for a swimming trip I had a few years later.
5. Mormon pop culture icons make me uncomfortable.
6. I used to rock climb in college.
7. I've hiked all the major peaks on the Wasatch Front except Twin Peaks.
8. I can't eat visible fat on meat.
9. I don't like Afterglow or like-sounding LDS performers.
10. I'm allergic to shellfish.
11. Gobs of melted cheese makes my stomach turn.
12. I used to be able 40 pushups in a row, and I've made a new goal to do that again.
13. I'm very competitive. I race people on treadmills at the gym.
14. If I could get another degree, I’d try culinary school, creative writing, anthropology, or art history.
15. I want to learn to play the violin.
16. My biggest fear: being forgotten. When I was little my family was on a trip and we stopped at a park in Blackfoot, ID for lunch. Everyone piled into the camper except me, and my family had been on the freeway for an hour until they realized I wasn't there!
17. Another fear: running into ex-boyfriends while I'm in sweats and no makeup at the store.
18. I crack my knuckles.
19. I find politics intriguing and would like to be more involved once my children are older.
20. My secret dream job: developing healthy and fun school lunch menus.
21. Sometimes I hold Jane long after she falls asleep, even when it's really late.
22. I rode the Ulcer 100-mile bike race when I was 17.
23. I'm a terrible housekeeper.
24. Since it's rivalry week, I'll say that I'm a "U" grad and fan, although as I get older I like this less as less as I find it often brings out the worst in people... especially you smug, self-righteous BYU fans HAHAHAHA!
25. Sometimes I want to say, "bag it" and move my family to say, some remote island in the Mediterranean and live a simple, sunny life.
26. I've breastfed my baby in front of a statue of Mr. Darcy. I really don't know what that means.
27. My heroes are women to choose family first and resist societal pressures.
28. I love irises. They remind me of my late grandma Dorothy.
29. I've been to see Crosby, Stills & Nash three times.
30. My first car: green 1980 Honda Accord.
31. I taught swim lessons for 7 years but don't teach my own children to swim.
32. Anthony Hopkins is my movie boyfriend.
33. I've been told I'm passive aggressive, whatever that means.
34. I love thank-you notes, or any sort of real mail for that matter.
35. I've eaten half a pan of rice krispie treats all at once. I was just trying to straighten the edge.
36. I’m afraid that there will be an earthquake and I won’t be prepared.
37. Ending up with Ed I feel like I won the lottery.
38. Somehow I manage to eat some sort of chocolate every day.
39. I’ve always, and I means always, had big thighs.
40. Were I not LDS I suspect I would be a total lush.
41. I hate waiting lines - it’s so demeaning.
42. I love listening to rain fall while I’m lying in bed on a Saturday morning.
43. I think I have ADHD – for realzies.
44. I’ve read Hemingway’s “The Sun Also Rises” over 10 times
45. Thick slices of watery ham product makes me gag. I’m leaving my family a specific menu to serve at my funeral dinner.
46. I’m not a very good listener; my mind wanders.
47. I have sixty-four cousins, just on my mom’s side.
48. Europe’s greatest gift to mankind: marzipan
49. My great, great grandfather was Jesse N. Smith – Joseph Smith’s first cousin.
50. I yearn to be different, to break free of certain cultural stereotypes. In other words, don’t judge 30-something women in a white minivan careening around the corner trying to get her kids to school on time. Look closely (but not to close – there’s no makeup) and you might see something different.

Tourte Reform

My dad loves his cherry pie, and I usually make him one for his birthday. This year, I decided to shake things up by doing an apple tourte. This version is based on a recipe from Dorie Greenspan's Baking, and features a sweet, crumbly crust and a chunky, cooked apple filling that includes ground almonds, raisins, vanilla, and apple cider. While the initial effort was good, I found the filling a little dry.
Since part of learning from baking successes and failures, I was determined to try it again. I cooked the apples a little less and left more liquid in the filling. I also didn't pre-bake the bottom crust as instructed in the recipe. The end result was much better than my first effort.
(Recipe to follow.)

Raspberry Tart Haiku

Soft warm raspberries
Crushed under sandy sugar
Hide from the children

Turning Over a New Loaf

Since my bread-baking extravaganza last year, I'm embarrassed to say haven't baked much bread. A guilty glimpse at my hoochy sourdough starter in the back of the fridge hasn't been enough to get me going again. However, with the cooling weather and rising bread prices, I've decided to start up again. The whole wheat loaf was a good start, as I single-handedly mowed through that moist, chewy loaf in a matter of days.
I must thank my good friend Alison who gave me my very first whole wheat bread recipe and encouraged me to just jump in and try my hand at bread baking. I'll never forget my first efforts. I remember giving a somewhat dense whole wheat loaf to the Lundgreen's. Their oldest son hefted it suspiciously, and I said something like "well, it's probably not like your mom's...". "No", he said. "It's not." I think I've gotten a little better since then, so there's hope for everyone!
(recipe to follow)

A Date to Remember

Earlier this year, my friend Amy made me a delicious date cake for my birthday. For those of you thinking, "gross", just knock that off right now. It was quite possibly the best cake I've ever had, and nearly single-handedly brought down my then-diet. The dates are pureed and create a moist, richly-flavored cake, and the toffee sauce can just be eaten straight from the pan, as far as I'm concerned. I made it again last month, although I don't think it was as good as Amy's original.
(recipe to follow)

Bits and Bobs

Ever polite, never crude, the British have a lovely way of putting things. Farts are "wind", boogers are "crusty dragons", and pulp is "bits".

Fish & Chips - the Standard

Think your neighborhood mall parking lot chain restaurant makes great fish & chips? Think again. This is a photo of our lovely meal at Oceans Fish Bar in Cleethorpes, England. The fish (this was a small portion) was tender; the breading, crisp and light. The chips were fresh and doused in salt and malt vinegar. The green stuff is mushy peas. Take that Mcgrath's.

Fruit Bars

Some of you may call these Hermit Bars, but in my family they're fruit bars. When I was young, treats from the bakery were a rare treat. I remember helping my mom unpack the groceries, not just because I wanted to help but also to get my hands on whatever treats my mom may have slipped in the cart. In a family of nine, the competition was fierce, and only rarely did I fish out a bag of dry iced oatmeal cookies or tiny sack of bridge mix destined for my mom's sock drawer. One of the best treats I remember was a package of soft, iced fruit bars from the store bakery. It took some convincing to eat one, since one pack contained only six or eight bars.

I've found a recipe that comes pretty close to those bars. They're moist with molasses and chopped fruit.

Fruit Bars
1 1/3 c. sugar
1/2 plus 2 T. (4 oz.) shortening
4 T. unsalted butter
1/4 c. (3 oz.) molasses
3/4 t. salt
3/4 t. allspice
3/4 t. cinnamon
1 3/4 t. baking soda
2 lg. eggs
5 c. cake flour
1/3 c. water
2 c. chopped raisins, dates, currants, or other dried fruit in any combination.

Glaze: 3 T. milk mixed with 1 c. powdered sugar.

Cream together sugar, shortening and butter. Add molasses, salt, spices, and baking soda. Mix for 1 minute, then scrape down bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add half the flour and mix in. Add the water, mix, and then the other half of the flour. Add chopped fruit. Spread in greased 10 x 15 jelly roll pan and bake at 350 for 18 to 20 minutes. (I run my hands under cold water and press the dough in the pan.) Be careful not to overbake. When cool, drizzle with glaze.

Note: You could substitute all-purpose flour if that's all you have. 1 cup cake flour equals 1 cup all-purpose flour (preferably bleached) minus 2 tablespoons, and then add in 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Also, I like to plump up the dried fruit by covering it with 1 c. hot water then covering the dish for a few minutes. Then I use the soaking liquid for the water called for in the recipe. Depending on the dryness of your flour, you could increase the water to 1/2 c.

Clam Flan

Sorry, folks - no recipe here. And if you're easily nauseated, stop reading. Carrie, I mean it. I recently had a chat with a friend about an article in Gourmet that was authored by an ice cream fanatic who's quest became to try all sorts of wild and crazy ice cream flavors. I think her children drew the line at clam ice cream sundaes. My friend then recalled a childhood competition to come up with the most disgusting food combinations and Oreos with clam dip was declared the hands-down winner. Suddenly it dawned on us that every bad food combination must include clams. Anything and everything we could dream up–add clams–and presto, you've got something really disgusting. Clam churros? Yep. Clam forest cake? You bet. Clam flan? Now we're talking!

Blurry Tomato Dill Salad

It takes a very steady hand (raise hand if you thought of the "Operation" commercial from the 70's) to take this picture, apparently. Thanks to Amy for this recipe.

Tomato Salad with Dill Dressing and Blue Cheese
5-6 c. of your favorite salad greens
2 T. each olive oil and red wine vinegar
2-3 lbs. tomatoes, sliced, quartered or halved. (I use a combo of heirloom and cherry tomatoes)
1/2-1 c. your favorite blue cheese
1/2-1 c. dill dressing
Dill Dressing:
3 T red wine vinegar (I reduced it to 2 T)
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 heaping T mayo (I put in 2 T)
1/2 c. snipped chives
1/2 c. canola oil
salt and pepper to taste (I used about 1/2 t. salt)
Blend together in food processor, blender (I used an immersion blender.) and season to taste. I found it very acidic with the 3 T. of vinegar, so adjust to your taste.

To assemble salad, line platter or shallow bowl with salad greens and dress with the olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt, and pepper. Cover with tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Spoon dressing over top and sprinkle on blue cheese.

How to be a Zucchini Goddess

I was in the mood for a little stress baking today. Getting my hands dirty so to speak allows me to take my mind off other things. And, I was able to use up some of the zucchini taking over my countertop, so this task was especially fulfilling. This is the second time (well, technically third - we'll get into that later) I've made the zucchini cake from Nigella Lawson's How to be a Domestic Goddess. A domestic goddess I am not, but the cake is quite nice. Most zucchini cakes/breads I've tasted are heavily spiced and moist to the point of oiliness. This cake is just barely sweet and is filled with lime curd and topped with a tangy cream cheese frosting. The frosting is just cream cheese, lime juice, and a little powdered sugar. It also calls for a sprinkling of pistachios on the top but I was in no mood to be that extravagant.

Nigella is a British lady, so some of her recipes have ingredients that I'm not familiar with. This cake called for self-rising cake flour. Well, I had cake flour, and I knew I could add some baking soda and salt and make it "self-rising". Trouble was, I got my proportions wrong and also added way to much baking soda. I didn't suspect anything wrong until I sampled a bit of the cake scrap that I had "leveled off". (Let's face it, the cake really didn't need leveling off but I wanted to taste it anyway.) Good thing I tasted it before I frosted it, because it had an overwhelming "baking soda" taste. But, I didn't mind doing the cake again since I got to use more zucchini (whoot!) and the cake only uses 1/2 c. oil and not my precious unsalted butter.

Next time I do the cake I'd like to try a different filling and frosting. The tart/tangy works well with the plain, moist cake, but I'd also like to try something with bananas, orange, or chocolate.

What a Tart

The temperature dipped today to a mild 90 degrees. Perfect tart-making weather, I say. With our swamp cooler whirring away, I quickly made the pastry and chucked it in the fridge. The tart also calls for roasted garlic so I got to crank on the oven and roast my very first head of garlic.

Because my new Ikea tart pan was a bit larger that the called-for 10 inches, I doubled the pastry recipe and made a little apple tart with the leftover pastry scraps. Now that's what I call dinner: pie for a main course; pie for dessert. Oh, and a salad. What with all the tarts in the kitchen today, there were a few "tarty" comments from Ed. And let's just leave it at that.

A note about the pastry: the recipe called for 1 c. unsalted butter, but I swapped out 2-3 T. of the butter for shortening. On of the squares of butter was frozen and chopped, the other was just cold from the fridge, and of course the shortening was room temp. Perhaps I was overthinking a bit, but I wanted to see if using part frozen butter would preserve the pieces in the dough, especially in my hot kitchen. I think it worked.

If You Can't Take the Heat

...then don't bake cookies in August. However, if you're a compulsive baker like me, you're willing to sweat it out a little. These cookies are a variation of my oatmeal raisin cookies, with added chocolate chips, golden raisins, and walnuts. My neighbor Wendy requested the recipe, so here it is.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies
1 c. unsalted butter
1 c. shortening
3 lg. eggs
2 t. vanilla
3 c. flour
1 1/2 t. baking soda
1 t. cinnamon
1 t. salt
5 c. rolled oats
1 1/4 c. raisins

Cream together butter, sugars, and vanilla until smooth and light (about 2 minutes). Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. On low speed, mix in dry ingredients, oats, and raisins until just combined. Finish mixing by hand as needed to blend evenly. Chill in fridge at least 1 hour.

Notes: When using raisins, I give them a rough chop before adding to the mix. You can also use quick (not instant) oats for part of the oatmeal, but I'd always use a higher ratio of the old-fashioned. This recipe is a nice template for tinkering around with add-ins like chocolate chips, dried fruit, and nuts. This recipe is configured for high altitude. If cooking at lower altitude, you may require 1/4 c. less flour.

You Say Tomato...

I say what the heck am I going to do with all of these. What was once a highly-anticipated event, I'm now experiencing a bit of tomato fatigue. The first week they ripened, we gleefully scarffed BLTs, tomato salads, and, my favorite, tomatoes with cottage cheese and lots of pepper. Now that they're ripening in earnest, I'm struggling to keep up. Let's call the whole thing off, I say.

This year I branched out a little and planted some heirloom varieties, including Zebra Stripe, Brandywine, Mortgage Lifter, Abe Lincoln, and Pinapple. It's been fun to taste new flavors, although I haven't decided what's my favorite. The Zebra Stripe are pretty acidic. The Abe Lincolns are rather sweet. The Brandywines have a rich taste, and get overripe quickly on my countertop.

I've been wanting to make the tomato tart from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook, but these last two weeks of August have been so hot I can't bear to turn on the oven. Stay tuned.

A Manly Potato Salad

I had bacon. I had blue cheese. I had a red onion and a brand new bag of red potatoes. And I had to bring something to a potluck barbecue. I wanted to avoid a mayo-based salad, so I turned to Bobby Flay's Grilled Potato Salad with Bacon-Blue Cheese Vinaigrette. It earned me a "holy frackin crap" from Ed. (That's a good thing.)
It required parboiling then grilling the red potatoes. These weren't the small, new potatoes, so I cut each potato in six or eight pieces. If I made it again, I'd cut them even smaller (although grilling would be more involved). The onion, bacon, and blue cheese components were so strong-tasting that I needed to balance the bites with smaller bits of potato.

Amy's Birthday Cake

My friend Amy and I share a disturbing obsession with food. This year I asked her what I could make for her birthday and she chose a Coconut Ginger Layer Cake from her Food Network Cookbook. The recipe presented some challenges: it used all cake flour (sometimes a problem at high altitudes), called for coconut-flavored white rum (I'd have to substitute that), and used a swiss meringue buttercream (something I'd never done before).

First, the rum. Lucky for me, it didn't go directly directly in the cake. Rather, it was part of the ginger sugar syrup that both coated the coconut chips and was added to the buttercream. So I substituted water, 1 T. rum extract, and 1 t. coconut extract for the 3/4 c. rum. I have no idea if it even comes close, but there you go.

Using all cake flour can pose problems when there is not enough structure in the batter and, at high altitude, the cake rises too quickly and then falls. I decided to use all cake flour anyway (sometimes I'll swap out a few tablespoons for all-purpose flour) because I wanted a nice, tender crumb. In the oven the batter rose really high but then settled down to a nice even top. At least there was no "dip" in the cake and I wouldn't have to even out the tops (Dang - no scraps for me!).

The swiss meringue buttercream provided the most excitement of all. I made the swiss meringue and was waiting impatiently for the butter chunks to soften so I could beat them into the meringue. I was in a hurry as we were heading out the door to a family event, so against my better judgement I started incorporating the butter while it was still cool to the touch (but not "refrigerator cold"). The result was a soupy, curdled-looking mess, but I threw it it the fridge to deal with it later. Upon returning later that night, it was still soupy and curdled. I searched for information on how to correct it and many sites instructed to just keep beating the mixture. I had that stuff whirring away in my KitchenAid for a good 20 minutes to no avail. Then I found a site that said to melt 1/4 of the frosting and reincorporate it back into the mix. So I scooped out some into a bowl, microwaved it for a few seconds, and added it back into the frosting. That did the trick. While it was beating, it thankfully (I did not want to chuck out over a pound of good butter) transformed before my eyes into a lovely buttercream.

The final verdict? The rich cake had a nice, tender, tight crumb. The coconut chips were great for both flavor and texture. We were disappointed that there was only a faint whisper of ginger flavor, though.