Month: November 2021

The Cranberry Binge! Orange-Cranberry Bundt Cake

The Cranberry Binge! Orange-Cranberry Bundt Cake

  I know. It’s ANOTHER cranberry recipe. What can I say? I’m on a cranberry binge. It happens.  Maybe this binge is a latent expression of my angst over those many years when that wiggly cranberry-sauce-in-a-can graced our Thanksgiving table–you know, the one with the…

Holiday Oldies But Goodies: Cranberries!

Holiday Oldies But Goodies: Cranberries!

Wishing you and yours a happy Thanksgiving! Every month Blue Cayenne features recipes from our archive of more than four hundred recipes. Here are a couple of Blue Cayenne’s most-requested holiday favorites: https://bluecayenne.com/two-holiday-favorites-from-blue-cayennes-archives-cranberry-relish-and-squash-apples-and-cranberries. You don’t want to miss these great recipes…again. Want to dive deeper…

Browned Butter Cranberry and Apple Cake

Browned Butter Cranberry and Apple Cake

This great little cake would look wonderful on your holiday buffet table.

It is a Browned Butter Cranberry and Apple Cake.

The browned butter is a genius addition to the cake. The whole cranberries in the cake give a surprise burst of tart flavor to each bite.

This recipe is from Yossy Arefi’s cookbook Snacking Cakes. Run (don’t walk) to your local bookstore to buy a copy of this cookbook. The collection of cakes in the book is spot on. So is the book’s concept: Developing a repertoire of easy-to-make little cakes with seemingly-endless variations.

Browned Butter Cranberry and Apple Cake

November 20, 2021
Ingredients
  • 1/2 C. unsalted butter
  • 1/2 C. light brown sugar
  • 1/4 C. maple syrup
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 C. sour cream
  • 1 t. vanilla extract
  • 1/2 t. kosher salt
  • A few grates of nutmeg
  • 1 1/4 C. all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 t. baking powder
  • 1/4 t. baking soda
  • 1 C. peeled and finely-chopped apple
  • 1 C. fresh or frozen cranberries
  • 1/2 C. chopped walnuts
  • 1 T. turbinado sugar
Directions
  • Step 1 Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare an 8-inch springform pan by spraying it generously with cooking spray and lining the bottom of the pan with parchment.
  • Step 2 Brown the butter in a light-colored saucepan, stirring occasionally for about 3 or 4 minutes until the butter turns a golden brown and smells nutty. Remove from the heat, pour the butter into a medium-sized glass bowl and let it cool for a few minutes.
  • Step 3 Once the browned butter has cooled a bit, whisk in the brown sugar, maple syrup and eggs. Whisk this mixture until it is well combined and smooth.
  • Step 4 Whisk the sour cream, vanilla, salt and nutmeg into the butter mixture. Whisk until this mixture is well-mixed and the mixture is emulsified.
  • Step 5 Sift the flour, baking powder and baking soda together. Whisk the sifted flour into the butter mixture until the mixture is well-mixed and smooth. Fold in the chopped apple and cranberries.
  • Step 6 Spoon the batter into your prepared pan. Smooth the top of the batter. Sprinkle the batter with the chopped walnuts. Sprinkle the turbinado sugar over the chopped walnuts. Bake for 35 to 45 minutes in a 350 degree F. oven. When it is done, your cake will be puffed and the top will be a golden brown. Your cake is done when you can pierce the center of the cake with a wooden skewer and the skewer comes out clean. Cool the cake before cutting.

Yossy Arefi’s cookbook Snacking Cakes is available through your local bookstore on on Amazon here.

Chillin’ With Chili And Beans

Chillin’ With Chili And Beans

I’m of the school of thought that hot spicy food makes you feel cooler. (Who doesn’t want to be cool?) It is a hot November (!) day here in Southern California. Chili was calling my name. This recipe is adapted from a cookbook titled Ama,…

‘Tis The Season: Banana-Pumpkin Bread

‘Tis The Season: Banana-Pumpkin Bread

OK. We missed it. February 23 was National Banana Bread Day. Bummer. Here’s a way to make up for our banana gaffe–combine bananas with your seasonal pumpkin bread. (National Pumpkin Bread Day was October 30. We missed that one, too.) First commercially imported to the…