Chocolate Wine Cake

Two things that go together better than anything else I can think of: wine and chocolate. I got this recipe off of Martha Stewart's site. Most of Martha's recipes are really involved, but I was pleasantly surprised at how truly easy this cake recipe was. And I got to use my bundt pan so yay!!! It's a pretty rich cake, but most of the richness comes from the lovely merlot glaze......

Chocolate Wine Cake




FOR THE CAKE

Nonstick vegetable cooking spray
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate
1 cup red wine, such as cabernet sauvignon or merlot
1/3 cup whole milk
1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
2/3 cup (10 2/3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 large eggs, slightly beaten
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 box (.3 ounce) sugar-free black cherry gelatin
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt

FOR THE WINE GLAZE

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup red wine, such as cabernet sauvignon
1 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more for serving
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1.Prepare the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 10-cup Fleur De Lis Bundt Pan with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

2.Melt chocolate in a small bowl placed over a small saucepan of simmering water. Let cool 5 minutes. In a small bowl, combine wine and milk; set aside.

3.In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and the granulated sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs; beat for 2 minutes. Add the cooled chocolate mixture and beat until incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

4.In a large bowl, whisk flour, gelatin, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to combine. Add to mixer bowl, along with the wine mixture, and beat on low speed until combined, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium and beat for 2 minutes more, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Spoon batter into prepared pan.

5.Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Using a plastic knife, carefully loosen cake from the pan; invert onto a wire cooling rack. Let cool completely.

6.Prepare the glaze: Combine the butter, wine, and confectioners' sugar in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally, over medium-high heat. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla. Set aside until ready to serve.

7.Dust cake lightly with confectioners' sugar. Slice cake and drizzle with glaze.


I highly suggest washing this cake down with a glass of your favorite wine!! Yummm!!!!

New Music 2/22/2010 Persephone's Bees

Oh, I should be sleeping. But I am not. I haven't had a good night's sleep since I don't know when, but I still can't bring myself to head to bed. Sometimes the more tired (is that proper grammar?? wait, I don't care) you are, the harder it is to get to sleep. I'm feeling like that right now. Kevin and I took the kiddos to a waterpark hotel this weekend. Now, let me start by saying that I love my children. You know that I would only go swimsuit shopping in the dead of winter, and stuff my pasty-white-out-of-shape-ass into a tankini and wear it in a public place because I love my kids more than anything. They had so much fun and we did too. But I am glad to be home.



So, I can't sleep. I realized it's also Monday - which means New Music Monday!!! 'Persephone's Bees' is a San Fran based band that has been getting a lot of my attention as of late. They're mod and hip without being too out there. The lead singer, Angelina Moysov, grew up in Russia and was heavily influenced by the gypsy, folk music of her country and also the British and American rock music her brother was into. 'Notes From the Underworld' is a fun and spunky album with as much originality as Angelina herself! I had heard the song 'Nice Day' and liked it so much that I decided to check out the rest of the album. So glad that I did! Listen for yourself......

'Nice Day' - seriously, who needs drugs when you can watch this video?!?!


'City Of Love'


'Muzika Dyla Fil'ma' - yep, that's Russian....


'Home'


'Paper Plane'


Nice, huh?? I dare you to try and stand still when you listen to 'Paper Plane,' You can't do it. I think everyone could use a little of this kind of music in their collection. Especially this time of year when you're feeling all blah and wondering when the flip spring will ever get here. So anyways, that's New Music Monday for this week. And I'm going to sleep now!!!

New Music Monday 2/15/2010 Nada Surf

Remember that song 'Popular' by Nada Surf? Makes me think of high school for sure. Cool tune. Unless you kept up with the band, you probably thought that song was about it for them because they haven't really had any mega hits since then. The truth is, they've only gotten better!!!



A New York band that came about all the way back in 1992, these nerds became instantly popular with their hit song 'Popular.' They've put out a few albums since then, but my favorite of theirs (actually one of my favorite albums ever) is their 2003 release titled 'Let Go.'



Since it came out in 2003, I guess I can't technically call it new. But I think it's probably one of those albums a lot of people don't know about and they should. Part Semisonic, part Radiohead.... you can listen to it all the way through again and again since there isn't a bad song on it. It's the perfect blend of rock and chill, high and low. Check it out.....

'The Way You Wear Your Head'


'Treading Water'


'Inside Of Love'


'Paper Boats'


'Fruit Fly'


'Happy Kid'


'Hi Speed Soul'


So there you have it! If you thought Nada Surf were one hit wonders, you were wrong!! I highly recommend all of their other albums, but please make this one your first priority. It's that good!!! And yes, my playlist is all food related. I need to get a life, stop eating junk and start working out again!!!

Red Hot Velvet Cupcakes with Cinnamon Buttercream

Happy Valentine's Day!!! My family and I went out for breakfast to celebrate and then Kevin and I will be celebrating with a date night this evening. So fun!! I thought I'd post this amazing recipe for red velvet cupcakes in honor of Valentine's Day. Honestly, I find this holiday to be a little lame but do enjoy the baking and candy that goes with it. These cupcakes were by far the best red velvet I've ever had. Most red velvet cupcakes are topped with cream cheese frosting, but these have a cinnamon frosting that you actually heat up. It was beyond good. Here's the recipe which I got courtesy of Oprah.com. Again, this requires you making a giant effing mess and using tons of different mixing bowls. It's worth it.



Red Velvet Cupcakes:

1/4 cup dark, unsweetened cocoa powder
2 Tbsp red gel food coloring
1/4 cup boiling water
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces and softened
2 Tbsp room temp Crisco (don't fear the hydrogenated oil)
1 2/3 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups cake flour (don't try to use all purpose, it's not the same)
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp cider vinegar
1 tsp baking soda

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line muffin pan with cupcake papers. In medium bowl, wisk together cocoa powder, boiling water and food coloring. Set aside to cool. In another mixing bowl, cream butter and shortening until smooth. Add sugar and mix until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time and beat well. Stir buttermilk and vanilla into cooled cocoa mixture. Sift cake flour and salt together in another bowl. With mixer on low, alternate adding flour mixture and cocoa mixture to egg mixture. Beat well. In another small bowl (I hope you have a lot of bowls), combine vinegar and baking soda and stir until dissolved - it'll fizz so don't freak out. Add to batter and stir until combined. Fill each cupcake liner about 2/3 full and bake 20-25 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. Now for the frosting.....

Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting:

1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup heavy cream
3 sticks unsalted butter, soft but cool, cut into pieces
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 tsp cinnamon
Red Hot Candies (you can find these in the baking aisle by the sprinkles)
Red White Chocolate hearts

In a heavy saucepan, whisk the sugar and flour together. Add the milk and cream and cook over medium heat, stirring, until mixture boils and has thickened - about 12 minutes. Transfer to mixing bowl and beat on medium speed until cool - about 5 minutes. Reduce speed to low, add butter and beat until mixed in. Beat an additional 2-3 minutes on high speed. Add the vanilla and the cinnamon and mix until combined. If the frosting is too soft, put it in the fridge for a little bit and stir it up again. Frost each cupcake and top with a heart or a red hot!!! Happy Valentine's Day!!!

Sometimes You Just Can't Win

I'm not known for being unreasonable, but I do know that I'm not the easiest person in the world to get along with. Women will understand what I'm talking about here: sometimes it has to do with PMS, sometimes it's just that we're looking for a fight and there isn't anything you can do or say that's going to be right. It's not fair but that's the way it is. Sorry.

I know when I'm acting like this. It's like I am standing on the other side of the room watching myself being completely ridiculous but I can't help it. Kevin could say something as simple as, "hey, did you know we're out of toilet paper??" and it sets of this whole chain reaction. He may as well have walked into a field full of land mines. Suddenly I'm in full attack mode. "Oh really? No I didn't know that. I guess I am a failure for not knowing that. I guess I am the only person in this whole family that wipes their a$$. No one could have told me this before now? I was just at the store!?!?!?!" Then before you know it we're insulting your mother's cooking and the size of your package. Jugular stab with a fork!!!!!

I don't know why this happens or how to avoid it. Or if it could even be avoided at all. Sometimes there is nothing you can do or say that isn't going to get you in a ton of trouble. Sometimes you just can't win. Just putting that out there.