Maple Syrup | Pies and Plots

Caramel Pretzel Bars

January 16, 2013 45 Comments

The Super Bowl means two things for me: commercials and half time. I like football. I like the players and their stories. The underdog winning when you least expect it. Learning the stories behind the game. Hearing about the people that aren’t always at the forefront of publicity. Having something to cheer for, along with the rest of the country, even when it seems there isn’t anything to be happy about. I love watching the pregame shows. I’m a FOX viewer, welcoming Curt, Terry, Howie, Michael, and Jimmy into my home every week during the season, along with my local pregame team. They make me laugh and teach me something about a game I’m not all that familiar with. I haven’t missed an episode of Inside the NFL in years, even as it changed hosts and networks.

Other than touchdowns and field goals, first downs and punts, I don’t know much about the game itself at all. Off sides, holding, pass interference, it’s like another language. When I’m watching Inside the NFL, I fast forward through the highlight segments. The game itself kind of bores me. But at the end of the day it’s about moments of amazing plays and winners and losers. That fascinates me. I’ll be the first to cheer for an amazing play. A zero – zero tie heading into the fourth quarter? I’ll be in the kitchen.

The Super Bowl is the only game I actually sit on the couch and watch. And truthfully, I don’t really watch it. I can’t get enough of the day long pre game coverage. Musical performances before the game excite me. Then the game comes on and I pick up my latest read or my phone to catch up on blog work and email. But everything gets set aside when the commercials begin. In a world where I fast forward through every commercial, this is the one night when I am riveted by them, occasionally rewinding to catch it again. If I need to pause for any reason, it’s during the game I catch up.

Halftime is the best. A performer’s best in less than fifteen minutes. It couldn’t get better with not only Beyonce, but also a Destiny’s Child reunion this year. I’ve seen Destiny’s Child in concert twice and know almost all their songs. This should be a halftime show that I’ll remember forever.

Of course, you need a treat while you watch the game. Sure, there needs to be savory food, but what’s a football game without dessert? These Caramel Pretzel Bars instantly struck me as Super Bowl worthy. A thin, yet firm brown sugar shortbread has amazing texture, some of the best I’ve found in shortbread, along with a mild sweetness. But the topping of caramel, with its complex flavor, accented by honey, and pretzels make these the ultimate treat. Crunchy, creamy, smooth, sweet, salty – these bars have everything. I was really impressed by the components separately as well as together. I have to say the stand out is the caramel. It’s so rich and smooth, but somehow the honey flavor is really pronounced, a welcome treat.

Whether you’re watching the game, checking out the commercials, or avoiding the hoopla altogether, these bars are a treat for any day. They’ll leave you yelling touchdown!

4.6 from 12 reviews

Caramel Pretzel Bars

Ingredients

Crust

1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Filling

1 ½ sticks unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 ¼ cups packed light brown sugar
¼ cup honey
¼ cup pure maple syrup (I love Blis)
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup heavy cream
6 cups small pretzel twists, broken into large pieces (I used Rold Gold)

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 by 13 inch baking pan with parchment, leaving overhang to pull the bars out later.
Make the crust. In a medium bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. I did this by hand, but a hand or stand mixer would work as well. Mix in the vanilla. Add the flour and salt and mix until the ingredients are combined and the mixture is crumbly. Press into the pan firmly. Bake for 15-18 minutes until light golden brown around the edges.
While the crust is baking and cooling, make the filling. In a large saucepan over medium or medium-high heat, combine butter, brown sugar, honey, maple syrup, and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens slightly, about 10 minutes. Add the cream and insert a candy thermometer in the pan. Continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until the candy thermometer reaches 240 degrees F. Once this happens, remove the pan from the heat and stir in the pretzels immediately.
Pour the pretzel-caramel mixture over the prepared crust and spread evenly over the crust. Bake for 12-15 minutes, until the mixture is bubbling. Allow to cool completely in the pan. When cool, use the parchment to remove the bars from the pan. Using a sharp knife, cut into bars. Bars may stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week, or frozen, wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for about 1 hour.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Saveur

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Bars, Candy, Caramel Tagged With: Bars, Dessert, Honey, Maple Syrup, Preztels, Salt, Shortbread, Vanilla

Pecan Pie Cookies

December 10, 2012 18 Comments

Do you ever want something but don’t want to go through the effort of getting it? You know, the times when the idea of something sounds amazing, but there are too many steps to get to the amazingness? Like when you want to go out to eat, take the night off from cooking, but getting ready, going somewhere, waiting for a table, then food, and getting home super late just sound like a huge hassle. Instead of eating in a restaurant you get take out or better yet, delivery. Problem solved.

Then there’s that need for a new dress for a wedding, party, or event. You’ll look great in it once you find the perfect one. But first you have to go through all the other not so perfect ones. For me this has often meant hours searching online, hesitant to order anything because of the pain it will be to return the dress when it inevitably doesn’t fit. The other option, going to the mall, isn’t much better, as you stack dresses into your arms and hunker down in the dressing room for the better part of an afternoon wishing you could wear pajamas to the event because none of the dresses look good. Maybe you get lucky enough to find a dress that’s close enough to perfect, but more than likely you return home, hands empty, and revert back to the old standby dress in your closet. Even though everyone’s seen it, at least it looks fabulous.

This time of year, putting up Christmas lights also falls into this category of tasks. No matter how many years you’ve put up lights, it always sounds easy to do, as we forget the trouble of years prior. You remind yourself it will look great when finished, your house will be the star of the neighborhood. But then half the lights don’t work, the rest are a tangled mess, the trees are too tall, the lights won’t stay in the bushes, and it’s freaking cold outside. The answer? Put up just enough to be festive. Let someone else be the star of the neighborhood.

When I’m baking, sometimes I find there’s a treat that sounds amazing, but I just don’t have the time or energy to make it. Like Pecan Pie. It’s one of my all-time favorite desserts, and based on your comments, one of yours too. The flavor is wonderful and sweet; it’s gooey and crunchy, and it’s pie. I love pie. But it’s a lot of work to make the dough, chill the dough, roll the dough, make the filling, bake the pie, wait for the pie to cool. Enter Pecan Pie Cookies. Pecan Pie’s easier to make cousin, these have all the same amazing flavors as the traditional treat mixed with a cakey sugar cookie. It’s like eating cake and pie at the same time. I bet I really have your interest now.

A simple vanilla flavored cakey cookie gets kicked up with pecans. Formed into a giant cookie cup, they are then filled with a pretty traditional pecan pie filling. During baking they flatten out, as the gooey pecan goodness spreads over the top and into the cookie, giving you the flavor you’re looking for in every bite. The cookies are super soft with that rich, maple-y pecan pie goo flavor and lots of crunchy pecans. Your other Christmas cookies better watch out because these are bound to be your new, easy to make favorite.

5.0 from 2 reviews

Pecan Pie Cookie

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 40 mins

Serves: 12

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup granulated sugar
2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
½ cup pecans, finely ground

Filling

1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
¼ cup maple syrup (I use and love Blis)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment.
In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and ground pecans.
In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. I did this by hand, but a hand or stand mixer would work too. Add eggs and vanilla and mix until once again light and fluffy. Add the flour mixture and mix until a dough just comes together.
Take about a golf ball size amount of dough and form it into basically a very large thumbprint cookie. This will give you a sturdy base with a big indentation in the middle.
Make the filling. In a medium bowl, stir together pecans, sugar, corn syrup, vanilla, maple syrup, and butter. Fill the indentation in the cookie dough balls with the filling. Be generous.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until the cookies are set and light golden brown around the edges. They will have flattened and spread and the filling will cover much of the cookie. Allow to cool completely on sheets. May be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days or frozen wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for about an hour or in a 350 degree F oven for about 10 minutes.

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Cookies Tagged With: Cookies, Maple Syrup, Pecan Pie, Pecans, Vanilla

Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cupcakes

November 15, 2012 14 Comments

We all enter contests sometimes, and as a baking blogger, finding and entering contests is pretty much a part of my job. I found one such contest a few weeks ago. Giada de Laurentiis of Food Network fame ran a recipe contest asking people to put their spin on one of the recipes from her show of Halloween sweets. Four winners would be chosen, and they would be featured on the homepage of her website for a day. This was perfect for me.

So I went to the drawing board. The episode featured a yogurt and fruit parfait, chocolate cake pops, and pumpkin oatmeal raisin cookies. Hmmmmm . . . pumpkin oatmeal raisin cookies. What if I turned them into cupcakes?

That’s exactly what I did with the addition of a simple maple glaze. They were easy to make and fantastic on the first try, exceeding my expectations. I was super excited. I submitted my entry, following the rules to a tee and was even retweeted by a Giada fan Twitter.

The day for winners to be announced came. I was not one of them. Can’t win ‘em all; I understand that. But only two winners were chosen. Not four. Based on a Twitter search there didn’t seem to be many entries, but mine is clearly there. Since I know there were more than two entries, three (if there were only three) or four winners should have been chosen as stated.

I’m still a fan of Giada and her food, but this unfair contest has disappointed and upset me a great deal. It is so important that all contests, perhaps especially those from our food idols, be run properly. I can assure you all giveaways and contests here will be run exactly according to the rules specified.

The good news is these cupcakes are still amazing, healthy, and just in time for Thanksgiving. Moist pumpkin cupcakes get a bit of chewy texture from oatmeal, along with sweetness from raisins and a bit of spice. They’re topped with demerara sugar, giving great crunch and flavor. Though totally unnecessary, a maple glaze makes the whole thing irresistible. Make these a day or two before Thanksgiving as a power breakfast while making turkey, a snack for waiting and hungry guests, dessert, or as a treat just for you after all the company is gone. These will be a winner in your book, even if they weren’t in Giada’s.

5.0 from 2 reviews

Pumpkin Oatmeal Raisin Cupcakes

Prep time: 20 mins

Cook time: 20 mins

Total time: 40 mins

Serves: 11

Ingredients

Cupcakes

1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup old fashioned oatmeal
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon ground cloves
½ cup demerara sugar, plus more for sprinkling
½ cup pure maple syrup
2 large eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree (preferably homemade)
½ cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
½ cup raisins

Glaze

1 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2-4 tablespoons pure maple syrup.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 11 cups in a muffin tin with paper liners.
In a medium bowl, stir together flour, oatmeal, salt, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and cloves. In a large bowl, stir together sugar, syrup, eggs, pumpkin, oil, and vanilla. Pour flour mixture into sugar mixture and stir just to combine. Fold in raisins until evenly distributed.
Using a regular sized ice cream scoop, scoop batter into paper liners, filling all the way to the top. Sprinkle with demerara sugar. Bake for about 20 minutes, rotating halfway through if necessary, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cupcakes comes out with only a few moist crumbs. Cool completely in pan.
When the cupcakes have cooled completely, make the glaze. In a medium bowl, stir together sugar, vanilla, and syrup, until a thick yet spreadable glaze has formed, adding more sugar or syrup as necessary. Drizzle over cupcakes immediately. Cupcakes with glaze may be stored at room temperature for up to 3 days, or frozen without glaze wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for a couple hours, or in a 350 degree F oven for about 20 minutes.

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Cupcakes, Muffins Tagged With: Cinnamon, Cupcakes, Glaze, Maple Syrup, Muffins, Oatmeal, Pumpkin, Raisins, Vanilla

Iced Hermits

October 26, 2012 18 Comments

I don’t like fall. In my mind it has no redeeming qualities. It’s the bridge season to winter. Yikes! Winter! If there’s anything worse than fall, it’s winter. But my problems with winter are a post for another day. Fall has its own unique issues. The chilly temperatures that have already resulted in my winter coat making its return. Speaking of which, said coat covers all my pretty clothes. My sandals have to be stored away until warmth returns. The seemingly constant rain is depressing. And when it’s not raining, it’s cloudy. Bye, sun, see you in May 2013. The leaves fall off the trees, turning what has felt like an isolated oasis back into the neighborhood house I actually live in. The pretty flowers fade away to nothingness, as I try to coax the last few to stay around. The fresh, local produce, it’s gone too. Fall, well, it’s just depressing.

But, there’s one thing I kind of love about fall. You won’t tell anyone I’m admitting it’s not totally without merit, right? The leaves changing color makes everything else a little better. They’re stunning, making the trees often prettier than when they’re green. Yellows, oranges, and, reds, my favorite, fill the trees and skylines, showcasing the unbelievable beauty of nature.

One tree in particular sits right in front of our house. It was never Mom’s favorite tree, but now it has grown and is beautiful year around, never more so than in October, as it begins turning bright orange from the top down. On the off chance the sun has decided to grace us with its presence, when it hits that tree in the late morning, the orange reflects right in our big front window, the tree itself gleaming in the sunlight. No matter how cold it may be outside (and sometimes inside as I resist the urge to turn on the heat for the first time), I feel warm. And just for that moment, fall isn’t so bad. But then the leaves vanish even more quickly than they changed color, and it’s back to reality.

Iced Hermits remind me of fall with their spicy flavor, except they’re a lot better than fall. I’ve made these a few times now, and my enjoyment of them has only increased the more I make them. They begin with a spicy bar cookie loaded with plump, sweet raisins, and spicy crystallized ginger, one of my all-time favorite foods. I’m picky about my crystallized ginger and only like the kind from Williams Sonoma by The Ginger People. It’s so good! The bars by themselves are amazing. Which is good because when I made them to take to my friends at the dermatologist office I may not have had time to make the glaze. Sorry, guys! I have to say the glaze is pretty awesome though. It takes only a few minutes to make and is addictively good. Together, the bars and glaze, along with more crystallized ginger, are the perfect treat for the chilly fall.

5.0 from 2 reviews

Iced Hermits

Prep time: 25 mins

Cook time: 25 mins

Total time: 50 mins

Serves: 24

Ingredients

Bars

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan
1 ¾ cup all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking powder
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground cloves
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¾ cup raisins
½ cup crystallized ginger, coarsely chopped
¼ cup pure maple syrup
1 large egg, plus 1 large egg yolk
1 ¼ cups packed dark brown sugar

Glaze

¼ cup packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons milk (I used skim)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 cups confectioners’ sugar (more if needed)
½ cup crystallized ginger, coarsely chopped

Instructions

Make the bars. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a rimmed baking sheet about 10 by 15 inches, line it with parchment, and butter the parchment.
In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, pepper, and salt. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. I did this by hand, but a hand or stand mixer would work as well. Add the eggs and maple syrup and beat until once again light and fluffy. Add the flour and mix until just combined. Add the raisins and crystallized ginger, mixing only until distributed throughout.
Spread the dough in the prepared pan and bake, rotating halfway through, until firm to the touch, slightly cracked, and a toothpick comes out with only a few moist crumbs, 18-22 minutes. Cool completely in pan.
When completely cooled, make the glaze. In a medium saucepan, combine brown sugar, milk, and butter. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently until the butter is melted and sugar dissolved. This should only take a few moments. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in vanilla and confectioners’ sugar ½ cup at a time. Continue adding confectioners’ sugar until the glaze is thick, yet spreadable. Drizzle glaze over bars immediately so it does not harden. Sprinkle with crystallized ginger and allow glaze to set. Once the glaze is firm, cut and serve.
May be stored at room temperature for up to 5 days, or frozen, wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for a couple hours.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Bars Tagged With: Bars, Cinnamon, Cloves, Dessert, Ginger, Glaze, Maple Syrup, Raisins

Mini Pumpkin Pies with Marshmallow

October 22, 2012 15 Comments

You can probably tell by the title of my blog that pies are one of my favorite things to eat and make. Though the writer in me also really liked the alliteration I make pies quite frequently, but they can be kind of a hassle to make with rolling out the crust, and when I roll out crust it never looks as pretty as it does on TV. Then slicing the pie, it never comes out all perfect and completely intact. So I made Mini Pumpkin Pies with Marshmallow. These . . . yeah, they came out pretty perfect. And oh yeah, you don’t have to roll out the crust!

Instead it’s pressed into a muffin tin, filled up with spicy pumpkin goodness, and baked. When it’s cooled, I topped it with a heaping helping of marshmallow. It’s basically marshmallow fluff like from the store, but a million times better. I could eat the whole bowl it’s so yummy. You may or may not choose to brulee the marshmallow, but it looks and tastes awesome after a minute or so under the broiler. One of those super cool kitchen torches would do the trick too.

So if by now I don’t have you craving one of these pies, I clearly haven’t done my job. But I bet you can’t wait to get your hands on the recipe. This is my second post for Davidson’s Safest Choice Eggs. It’s a partnership I’m still ecstatic about, so please head over to their site to read my blog post and recipe. Then prepare your muffin tin to make some pies.

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Frosting, Marshmallow, Pies Tagged With: Bourbon, Dessert, Maple Syrup, Marshmallow, Mini, Pecans, Pies, Pumpkin, Pumpkin Pie

Peach Pecan Pie

October 5, 2012 12 Comments

Ideas come to me all the time. Ideas for writing and baking. How to solve problems or make dreams come true. Good ideas and bad ones. Some that pan out and others that go by the way side, filed away somewhere in the archives of my brain, likely never to see the light of day again. The ideas strike without notice. When I’m running or showering, even brushing my teeth. In the middle of baking, writing or watching TV. To avoid allowing them to slip away, I’ve been known to chant ideas over and over until they can be scribbled somewhere. Said scribbles are on all kinds of pieces of paper, in books, on recipes or bills that have to be paid. Eventually most of them get written where they belong, but some don’t make it that far.

A few weeks ago, trying to think of something new and inventive to bake, hoping to bring more readers to my blog and use more peaches before the shelves are void of them, I had what I thought was a flash of genius: Peach Pecan Pie. In my mind it was the best and most original idea I’d had in awhile and I couldn’t wait to make it. But like pretty much all my other ideas, I bounced it off of Mom, as she is my partner in crime in all parts of life. Mom was not impressed. Didn’t think it sounded good. I pestered her about it for a few more days, but still unable to convince her, I let it go, figuring it could wait until next peach season.

We recently returned to Joe Muer Seafood for dinner with our friends Art and Jessica. It was a wonderful time, as Art and Jessica were so much fun to spend an evening with. It was also a beautiful late September evening, still warm, the sun, and later nearly full moon, shining on the Detroit River. I had a great time. We all did. The meal was also great, and when the gleaming dessert cart rolled up to our table, there were many choices I could eat (a rare and wonderful thing), including Peach Pecan Pie.

This pie could no longer wait until next year. I had to make it now, had to make my idea into reality, had to make a pie that I thought could be even better than the one I was served (though it was amazing). So just a few days later, pie crust was rolled, peaches sliced, filling made. And this pie? It’s as good as I thought it would be.

The pie from the restaurant was more of a tart and their peaches somehow stayed at the bottom. My pie is an actual pie. The crust has pecans and peach brandy in it. It is the best crust I’ve ever made, though it wouldn’t be appropriate for every pie given its unique flavor profile. It also held up very nicely, leaving this by far the prettiest pie I’ve ever made, eaten, or seen, even if my pictures don’t showcase that. The filling, made with four kinds of sugar, including maple syrup from Blis, by far the best maple syrup I’ve ever had, and Lyle’s Golden Syrup instead of corn syrup, though it would work just fine, is ooey, gooey, and sweet, but never cloyingly so, with another dose of peach brandy that really makes the flavor sing. The peaches float above the syrup with the crunchy pecans on top. A symphony of flavors.

Okay, so the peach flavor is subtle, though definitely detectable. And the pie would probably be super awesome without the peach (I’ll try it that way soon), but I love this creation and I think you will too. It might help you come up with the ideas for which you’ve been searching.

5.0 from 3 reviews

Peach Pecan Pie

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 1 hour 10 mins

Total time: 1 hour 40 mins

Serves: 8

Ingredients

Crust

¼ cup pecans
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¾ stick unsalted butter, cold, cubed
¼ cup pure vegetable shortening
2 tablespoons peach brandy
2-3 tablespoons ice water

Filling

½ cup maple syrup (I use and love Blis)
2 tablespoons peach brandy
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
3 tablespoons butter, melted
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed light brown sugar
⅔ cup Lyle’s Golden Syrup (light corn syrup would make a fine substitution)
1 ½ cups pecans
1 large peach, sliced into ¼- ½ inch slices

Instructions

Make the crust. Place pecans in the bowl of a food processor and process until finely ground. Add flour, salt, and sugar, and pulse to combine. Add butter and shortening and pulse until a coarse meal forms. Add brandy and pulse to combine. Add water 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough comes together when pressed and is quite moist. Dump dough onto plastic wrap. Wrap tightly, forming into a disc as you do so. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 2 days.
Make the filling. In a large bowl, stir or whisk together maple syrup, peach brandy, eggs, vanilla, salt, butter, sugars, and Golden Syrup until a homogeneous mixture is formed. Stir in pecans.
Remove crust from refrigerator and roll on a lightly floured surface until it is large enough to fit your pie pan and about ⅛ inch thick. Place in pie pan, being sure to patch any holes. There must not be any holes. Use fingers to flute crust edge as you wish. You should use all of the dough. Place peach slices on top of crust. They should cover the entire bottom. Pour filling over peaches. Refrigerate pie for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place refrigerated pie on foil lined baking sheet. Dab edges of crust with milk or cream using your fingers. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees F without opening the oven, and bake an additional 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, rotating halfway through if necessary. Cool pie completely before slicing. I actually like to refrigerate it overnight and eat it the next day. It may be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or frozen in quarters wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for a couple hours or in a 350 degree F oven for about 15 minutes.

Dad, Mom, Me, Jessica, and Art

Me, Mom, and Jessica in front of the Detroit River

Filed Under: Baked Goods, Pies Tagged With: Brandy, Dessert, Lyle's Golden Syrup, Maple Syrup, Peaches, Pecans, Pie, Vanilla

Brown Sugar Walnut Pound Cake

August 4, 2012 20 Comments

I’ve been a fan of Martha Stewart since I can remember. Any time I was on vacation or home sick from school (more often than one might think), it was a treat to tune into Martha Stewart Living at 10 am. I’d relish in watching Martha and her guests craft, organize, and mostly cook. I’ve never been very into crafts. And while I am focusing much more of my energy on being super organized, I’ve always been pretty much mesmerized by cooking and baking on television, especially if it was Martha behind the stove.

Even when Martha was dealing with her controversy, I remained a fan. I followed Martha’s trial carefully and even wrote a research paper somewhere along the way about it. I still think she was a scapegoat or victim of circumstance but that’s neither here nor there. When Martha was back on TV with The Martha Stewart Show, I was thrilled. I’ve never missed an episode. It’s brought countless smiles to my face on good days and bad, inspired me in the kitchen and in life, and has led me to make some pretty outstanding recipes.

I’m sad that her show is over now without even a special celebration episode (come on, Hallmark Channel!), but I’m looking forward to the next great thing, and there will be many more great things, from Martha. While I love the Food Network and all the personalities there, it is perhaps mostly Martha who has inspired me. She loved cooking and crafting, worked hard at it, and somehow turned it into this empire. I look up to her, and though I have different goals and dreams in life, I hope I can turn them into a reality. I’ll save the empire building for until I have more than 80 followers on Twitter and a few hundred visits a day to my blog.

Martha has showed me that dreams come true. She has even rebuilt her empire and is still incredibly successful. If she can do all that she has, surely I can keep working and have my novels published and more visitors to my blog. I’ll be a fan of Martha forever, because knowing all that she has done gives me hope each day that my time is just around the corner.

One of the best things about Martha is that she is truly insanely talented. This Brown Sugar Walnut Pound Cake is just another example. I’ve wanted to make it for years. It’s the first time I’ve made pound cake and perhaps the first time I’ve had it since my last slice of Entenmann’s years and years ago.

The cake takes way longer to bake than the directions state, but that’s okay because the end result is stellar. The exterior becomes a deep golden brown and is kind of hard and crusty; this makes the perfect foil to the rich, dense, incredibly moist interior with the flavor of a traditional pound cake amped up with tons of dark brown sugar and the crunch of toasted walnuts, which I left in relatively large pieces. I’m glad I did that because they really add texture and character to the cake.

But as much as I love the cake, it’s the sauce that is the star and makes it completely craveable over and over again. I will include the full sauce recipe below, but I only made a quarter of it since I knew most of the cake was headed for the freezer; I also left out the heavy cream with great success, so I would highly recommend leaving it out. I will be making the sauce again and again every time I pull a piece of this out of the freezer or for anything else I can think to put it on.

This recipe is just another reason I love Martha Stewart. I hope she’d like my blog and think I’m headed somewhere wonderful if she ever gets the chance to look.

5.0 from 4 reviews

Brown Sugar Walnut Pound Cake

Prep time: 30 mins

Cook time: 70 mins

Total time: 1 hour 40 mins

Serves: 16

Ingredients

Cake
3 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
4 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pans
2 cups packed dark brown sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
9 large eggs, room temperature (about 30 minutes out of refrigerator) and lightly beaten
2 cups walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped
Sauce
1 cup pure maple syrup (I used Blis and it was AMAZING!)
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 stick unsalted butter
½ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ cup heavy cream (optional, I would leave it out)
2-3 sliced peaches

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter 2 5 by 9 inch loaf pans.
Make the cake. In a medium bowl stir together flour and salt.
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar using a hand or stand mixer on high until pale and fluffy, about 8 minutes. Scrape down bowl as necessary. Reduce speed to medium before adding vanilla. With mixer continuing to run on medium, add eggs in 4 installments, mixing after each addition. Reduce speed to low before adding flour in 4 installments. Mix until just incorporated. Finishing mixing by hand will likely be necessary. Fold in walnuts by hand.
Divide batter between prepared pans. Smooth with a spatula to make sure they are even on top. Bake about 70-80 minutes, until a toothpick comes out with only a few moist crumbs, rotating halfway through if necessary. It took a full 80 minutes for my cakes to cook. Cool in pans about 30 minutes. Remove from pans to cool on wire racks completely.
Make the sauce. In a medium saucepan combine maple syrup, sugar, butter, and salt. Cook over medium-high, stirring frequently until the sugar dissolves and the mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes. If using cream stir it in and bring back to a boil. Remove the mixture from the heat and add the peaches. Allow to cool and thicken for 5 minutes.
Cake may be stored at room temperature for 1 day or frozen, wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 4 months. Thaw at room temperature for several hours for a whole cake, or 1 hour for a slice. Thaw whole cakes in 325 degree F oven for about 30 minutes, or slices, wrapped in parchment for 10 minutes. The sauce should not be stored or frozen, but that’s just an excuse to make it again.

Notes

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart Living, July 2009