French Strawberry Cake

T U E S D A Y S   W I T H   D O R I E

Special thanks to this week's hostesses:  

Sophia of Sophia's Sweets & 

Allison of Think Love Sleep Dine

Génoise. Genoese. Genovese.  Funny how our French cake is actually an Italian sponge cake, named after the city of Genoa. Feeling somewhat confused and desiring the need for more more clarification (along with a baker's quick how-to), I consulted my Julia DVD for some génoise cake-education. 

This Baking with Julia recipe is courtesy of Flo Braker, contributing baker. What Flo refers to as a "French Strawberry Cake" reminds me of an American "strawberry shortcake" recipe, minus the shortcake. In true French fashion, this génoise cake is the star. Less rich than a butter cake, this version uses whole eggs and a smidgen of melted butter for its flavor and leavening. In between the génoise layers are sliced, macerated strawberries and fresh whipped cream -  flavored with a touch of sour cream and vanilla. I brushed each layer with a simple syrup made with kirsch and some of the strawberry juice (a trick I picked up during my Julia consult). Light, summery and deliciously Italian (er . . . French).

Special thanks to Sophia and Allison for hosting this week's recipe - visit their blogs to get the recipe.

– mike

Aunt Sabra King's Pudding Cups

Aunt Sabra King

More Jell-O. Two Jell-O recipes in a row? Thankfully not - thankfully not Instant Pudding . . thanks to Aunt Sabra. 

Today's BAKED creation is Aunt Sabra's recipe, a gin-drinking, card-playing, silver Cadillac-driving southern inspiration herself.

The base crust is made up of crushed graham crackers with butter and a touch of brown sugar. The pudding, though not instant, was quite a breeze to prepare - and hands down, better than any boxed pudding mix out there. Made from melted chocolate, egg yolks, cream, milk, sugar and cornstarch, it sets up nicely into a rich, thick pudding. The final touch is a couple tablespoons of whiskey (don't leave it out) - it deepens the chocolate flavor. Poured over the graham base, it is supposedly cut into bars - I put them into individual pudding cups.

Not sure if Aunt Sabra would approve, but they were a hit at the office at Friday's Social. A "new" busy-day dessert indeed.

To get the recipe for this retro dessert, venture over to BAKED SUNDAY MORNINGS.

 – mike

Strawberry Jell-O Salad

Hell-O Jell-O. Say it ain't so. How could those super cool BAKED boys feature something so nightmarish as a Jell-O salad? If it were any other cookbook I would have gladly passed this one by.

Today's BAKED creation sits upon a base of crushed pretzels (pretzels?), which are mixed into a brown sugar and butter syrup and then baked. Atop this sits a creamy confection of whipping cream folded into a cream cheese and sugar mixture. If this isn't enough kitschy, prepared Jell-O with sliced strawberries is poured on top and then chilled.

Contrary to popular belief, not all "Jell-o salads" should be sneered at. This was remarkably refreshing - slightly strange, but refreshing none the less. Of all the celery-laced and grated carrot-filled salads I've had over the years, this one rises to the top of the list. But pimento-stuffed olives swimming in lime gelatin comes in a close second.

To get the recipe for this retro salad, venture over to BAKED SUNDAY MORNINGS.

 – mike