Cinnamon Pecan Fudge Cake

I found this recipe in a Rebecca Rather cookbook in 2010 and I have made it so many times that the page is literally coated in cocoa powder. I dream about this cake, y’all. It’s everything chocolate cake SHOULD be - fudgey, moist, tender, and laden with toasted pecans. The chocolate-cinnamon combo is heaven. She will be the star of all your summer parties and you will want to take her everywhere.

Mexican Chocolate Fudge-Pecan Cake
*Recipe from “The Pastry Queen” by Rebecca Rather

Cake

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder

3/4 cup water

2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk

2 tablespoons vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon salt

Chocolate-Pecan Glaze

1 cup pecans

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1/4 cup whole milk

1/2 cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder

2 cups sifted powdered sugar (sifted then measured)

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray 9” bundt pan well with Baker’s Joy OR grease with butter, sprinkle with flour, rotate pan to coat, and tap over sink to remove excess.

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-low heat, then add cocoa and whisk until smooth. Add water and whisk again until smooth.  Do not boil. Remove from heat, add sugar, eggs, buttermilk and vanilla to the warm cocoa mixture all at once, whisking until smooth. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt all at once, and whisk until dry ingredients are completely incorporated. Pour batter into pan, and bake for 40-45 minutes or until the cake has pulled away slightly from the sides of the pan and feels firm to the touch. Let cool in pan about 20 minutes.

While cake cools, make the glaze. Arrange pecans on a baking sheet and in a single layer and toast in a 350 degree oven for 7-9 minutes until golden brown and aromatic. Remove from oven and chop.

Melt butter over low heat in a medium sauce pan. Add milk, cocoa, and powdered sugar and whisk until glossy.  Remove pan from heat and whisk in vanilla, salt, and pecans. Let cool for about 10 minutes.

Loosen the cake with a knife and invert onto a serving plate. Spoon the glaze over the cooled cake, covering it thoroughly, letting some pool in the center and around the bottom.

This cake will keep up to three days, covered, at room temp.

Peanut Butter Blossoms

In honor of Kenny’s birthday we’re sharing his favorite cookie recipe with y’all! These are chocolate peanut butter perfection. We adapted them from this NY Times recipe and they walk that not-overly-sweet line so well when you hit them with a little extra salt and use dark chocolate kisses instead of milk.

Bonus points if you make them while wearing clothing with squirrels on it. Baking in true Kenny style! Socks, shirt, pajama pants - anything counts!

Peanut Butter Blossoms
*Adapted from NY Times Cooking
Servings: ~5 doz

Ingredients

1¾ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

4 ounces (1 stick) butter, at room temperature

½ cup smooth peanut butter (or other creamy nut butter)

½ cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling

½ cup light brown sugar

1 large egg

1 tablespoon milk, half-and-half, oat milk or nut milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

5 dozen (one 11-ounce package) dark chocolate Hershey’s Kisses, foil removed

Parchment Paper (my personal preference) or nonstick spray for cookie sheet

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment or coat with nonstick spray and set aside.

2. Sift together flour, baking soda and salt; set aside. Using an electric mixer, cream together butter, peanut butter, ½ cup granulated sugar and light brown sugar. Add egg, milk and vanilla; beat until well blended. Gradually add flour mixture, mixing thoroughly. If the dough is very soft, refrigerate for about 1 hour.

3. Scoop dough into 1-inch balls. (I use a mini cookie scoop here for consistency.) Roll cookies in sugar and place 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake until very light brown and puffed, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and lightly press a candy kiss into center of each cookie, allowing it to crack slightly. Return to oven until light golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from oven, cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Apple Pie Bars

NEW YEAR NEW BLOG, BABY! Look, y’all - I can’t promise I’ll keep up with this regularly (been there, didn’t do that) but I can promise you that these apple bars will change your life and honestly, what more can you ask for? I won’t lie - they are fairly time intensive. The word “bar” typically makes me think of something quick I can throw together, easier than your standard issue pie what with the crust making and rolling and chilling, etc. These aren’t those bars. They’re better. They’re better because you get all the comfort of a slow cooked, brown butter laden apple pie filling paired with the snappy, slightly salty, nutty crunch of a shortbread cookie that tbh I would (and did) eat all on it’s own (more on that later.) They’re worth every bit of time you’ll spend in the kitchen and they (and you) will be better for it, guaranteed. Now who’s ready for some January baking?!

APPLE PIE BARS

Servings: ~24 squares
*Shortbread Crust adapted from Ina Garten (my queen) , filling is my own.

INGREDIENTS

For the crust:
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup chopped pecans
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

For the filling:

4 TBSP unsalted butter
7-8 medium-sized sweet/tart apples (I love a Fuji or a Pink Lady!), peeled, quartered, and sliced to 1/8 inch thickness
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 TBSP fresh lemon juice
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
pinch of salt
1 TBSP cornstarch

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

For the crust, place the butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed for 3-5 minutes until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then add in flour and salt. Mix on low until just combined.

Scatter two-thirds of the dough in clumps in a sprayed (I’m a Baker’s Joy girl but whatever you have on hand will work) 9 × 13-inch baking pan and press it into the bottom and about a ½ inch up the sides. Refrigerate for 15-20 minutes or freeze for about 10.. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until the crust is golden brown and then set aside to cool.

Meanwhile, put the mixing bowl with the remaining dough back on the mixer, add the pecans and cinnamon, and mix on low speed to combine. Set aside.

For the filling, combine sliced apples, brown sugar, granulated sugar, lemon juice, spices, and salt in a large mixing bowl and toss to coat.

In a large wide-bottomed stock pot or sautee pan, melt butter over medium heat. Swirl the pan occasionally to ensure that the butter cooks evenly and allow it to foam and then deepen in color until it’s a toasty brown and the nutty aroma is making you drool.

Add your coated apples to your brown butter being sure to scrape the bowl for all that sugary goodness. This is where patience comes into play. Cook those apples down, stirring often, until they’re completely soft and soupy and boiling, about 25-30 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine cornstarch with a couple tablespoons of water and mix to create a slurry. Add to apples and continue to cook for another 5-10 minutes to allow cornstarch to activate and thicken the juices. Set filling aside to cool for about 30 minutes.

Once cooled, spread apple filling on top of baked crust. Take remaining pecan shortbread crust and pinch off small pieces at a time, applying them to the top until they’re evenly distributed but you still see some apple filling peeking through. (***I had about 2 cups of shortbread leftover, see below for bonus bakes.)

Bake at 375 for 25-30 minutes until topping is browned. Allow to cool completely before slicing. In fact, once mine cooled, I popped them in the freezer for about 45 minutes to 1 hour to get them nice and solidified before slicing. These have lots of gooey filling and can be messy and difficult to work with otherwise. If you can’t wait (totally understandable), scooping straight into a bowl and topping with vanilla ice cream is also a great alternative.

***Not one to waste precious shortbread, I took my leftovers and pressed it into a small, pan-sprayed 8” square baking pan. baked it off, and sliced it into little squares, Then I made a glaze with powdered sugar and eggnog (just enough eggnog to make the glaze pipeable), spooned it into a ziplock, snipped off the tip, and striped the top of the squares. This was perhaps the best decision I have ever made and I highly recommend.