Cakes

James Beard’s Persimmon Nut Bread

James Beard’s Persimmon Nut Bread

This Persimmon Nut Bread recipe comes from James Beard. Beard shaped American cooking for 40 years. He wrote two dozen cookbooks, wrote a weekly syndicated cooking column, operated an eponymous cooking school in Greenwich Village and lived an altogether colorful life. In 1990, Carl Jerome,…

One More Thing: Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

One More Thing: Cranberry Upside-Down Cake

Here is one more delicious dish you might want to add to your table during his holiday season: Alice Waters’ Cranberry Upside-Down Cake.” The cake, with whipped egg whites folded in, is light. The cranberries, baked with a sweet caramel glaze, are sweet and tart…

It’s A Beauty: Ricotta Cake With Raspberries

It’s A Beauty: Ricotta Cake With Raspberries

It’s all about the texture. A generous dollop of ricotta cheese gives this delightful (and simple-to-make) vanilla cake an elegant fine crumb. Throw in some beautiful raspberries and this delicate cake becomes fragrant and even more delicious. Serve it with whipped cream or a scoop…

Woo-hoo! Blue Cayenne is Four.

Woo-hoo! Blue Cayenne is Four.

Cue the music. Wild celebration here. Juliet is salsa dancing down the hall and I’m wearing a silly party hat. This month marks Blue Cayenne’s fourth birthday. Here we are writing our 315th blog post. Who knew?     Thank you for reading this blog…

Vanilla Cake With Peaches and Fennel Seeds

Vanilla Cake With Peaches and Fennel Seeds

This elegant little vanilla cake is a keeper. It is good enough to serve guests and a delicious self-indulgence when you raid the kitchen at midnight. I’m always drawn to a recipe that makes interesting use of an ingredient that is unusual in its genre.…

Blue Cayenne’s First “Juliet”: Almond-Apricot Cake With Creme Fraiche

Blue Cayenne’s First “Juliet”: Almond-Apricot Cake With Creme Fraiche

  There are all kinds of food awards around…Michelin Stars, the Bocuse d’Or, and on and on. Here at Blue Cayenne we think we need an award for particularly wonderful recipes, too. So, we’re introducing The Juliet, named, of course, after our beloved Chief Taster…

Five Spice Cake–You’ll Be Entranced!

Five Spice Cake–You’ll Be Entranced!

Stare into this swirling spiral vortex. That and a good hot cup of chamomile tea will make you very sleepy. I love this bundt cake pan. It is a Nordic Ware pan from their Heritage Collection. I bought mine on Amazon here.  (Full disclosure: Jeff Bezos…

Banana Snacking Cake With Salted Caramel Glaze

Banana Snacking Cake With Salted Caramel Glaze

Happy Fourth of July to those of you reading this in the United States. What could be more quintessentially American than a banana cake with salted caramel glaze? OK. I know that a hot dog with everything is pretty standard Fourth of July fare. But…

A Chocolate Guinness Cake and a Little Russian History

A Chocolate Guinness Cake and a Little Russian History

  Nineteen hundred and twenty two NY Times readers can’t be wrong. That is how many NYT cooks have rated this Guinness cake an average of five stars (out of five stars), some giving the cake rave written reviews sprinkled with praises like “Divine!” and  “Insanely…

Caramelized Pear Upside Down Spice Cake

Caramelized Pear Upside Down Spice Cake

It’s a beauty! I shared this cake with my friend Gene. He was “baching it” while his wife, Sarah, was having surgery. Cooking is not his thing. Gardening is. The other day he confided in me that he portioned the cake out so that he…