Andy's Buckeye Birthday Cake

Yes, this day has finally come!  I know some of you may not have thought I'd post this, but I promised you I would!  Better late than never, right?

I even thought, at one point, that I had ruined this cake.  I blame it on the short cat nap I took while the cake portion was in the oven.  Thank goodness for internal time clocks, though!

I've convinced myself that I need to do more baking, and I thought you guys could help me out!  Pretty please?  So anyway, once or twice a month, (maybe more if I'm (or Andy) is feeling an extra sweet tooth) I'll have a poll up with ingredients.  You choose the ingredient you'd most like to see in a dessert and I'll surprise you guys with a dessert the following week.  Good deal, eh?  You'll find this upcoming week's poll at the end of this post.

But first, we must talk about buckeye cake!

So who knows what a buckeye is?  (:::Looking around:::)  Okay, some of you.  Well... let's get a little history lesson for those of you who don't know, maybe you do know, but just didn't know it was called a Buckeye?

Source

Okay, well a Buckeye tree is native to Ohio and has these nuts on them, that well... look like a male deer's (also known as a buck) eye.   So that's the nut up above.

Well, some creative dessert geniuses decided to make something even better, that resembled the look of a Buckeye nut.  If you look at the picture above, it looks like peanut butter in the center and chocolate surrounding it, right?  And that's exactly what a Buckeye is!  Chocolate dipped peanut butter balls.  And they're pretty much awesome.

So wouldn't it be even more awesome to turn this into a cake?  Uhh... hell yeah it would!  So thanks to a Nestle Tollhouse recipe, this creation actually exists!

Ingredients:
Adapted from Nestle Tollhouse's Recipe

Cake Layer

2 eggs
1 & 1/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup flour
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 to 1 cup (depending on how chocolatey you want it!) unsweetened/dark chocolate, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon salt

Peanut Butter Layer

3/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup powdered sugar


Chocolate Ganache Layer


1 cup heavy whipping cream
2 cups dark chocolate chips
 
1/3 cup peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Grease 9-inch-round spring form pan (you could use a cake pan, but unfortunately I don't have one of those).  Line the bottom of pan with parchment paper and grease that, as well.

For the Cake: Combine eggs and sugar in large bowl. Stir in flour, melted butter, melted chocolate, vanilla extract and salt until smooth. Pour into prepared pan.

Bake for 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the middle comes out clean.  I'm pretty sure I just dozed off for a couple minutes after the timer went off, so my cake came out a little more like a cookie, than a cake... but it worked out for the best!  Cool on wire rack for 5 minutes.  Run a knife around edge of cake and cool for an additional 10 minutes.  Invert cake onto serving platter.  Remove pan and carefully peel off parchment.  Cool cake/cookie completely.

For the Peanut Butter Layer: Beat peanut butter, butter and vanilla in a medium bowl until combined.  Gradually beat in powdered sugar.  Spread mixture on cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

For the Ganache: Heat cream in small saucepan to boiling and then remove from heat.  Add dark chocolate morsels and let stand for 5 minutes.  Stir until smooth.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until mixture is spreadable.  Spread chocolate on top and sides of cake.

Melt the peanut butter chips in a small heatproof bowl in microwave, about 30 seconds.  Spoon mixture into a piping bag.  Decorate cake as you wish (in my case, some Happy Birthday and star bits)  Not bad for my first cursive cake decorating, eh?  I could definitely use some work (notice the "a" and "y") Store in refrigerator until set.  Let stand for 30 minutes before serving.

And there you have it... the most enjoyable cake Andy has ever put in it mouth.  And I'm not just saying that... he told me so!!

Notice our creeper dog eying that peanut butter!

Oh, and here's the poll guys!  I'll probably post the dessert recipe either on Wednesday or Friday of next week!!

Birthday Thanks!

I really feel special.  Much love goes out to everyone who wished me happy birthday and thought of me on that day.  It's really just another day, but I had so many people do so many kind things for me yesterday that I'm utterly shocked.

At work, they had cake and brownies!  It was actually a non-stressful day.  I don't know if it just seemed that way because I was in a good mood because it was my birthday, or if it was actually a slow day.  Either way, I didn't get yelled at by any irate customers, so that's a score!

Then my mom fixed me dinner.  The whole family even showed up (my grandma, my uncle and his wife, my sisters, etc.)  My mom really surprised me and made me steak AND lobster!  And she only bought lobster for me (because I'm the favorite daughter, DUH).  And of course, there was cake there, as well!

Andy was kinda bummed because he had class that night, he had to go because they were taking a mid-term.  I can't blame him for that anyway.  But a few weeks ago he bought me a little laptop (so that I could blog anywhere!)  And to top it all off... he went to our favorite bakery, Sweet Surrender, and had a cake made, of my favorite flavor... Tiramisu.  Isn't he sweet?  And of course, we'll go out to eat this weekend.  Where, I don't know, but I'm sure you all will hear about it soon!

So, it's really good to know that I haven't been such a terrible person, that people don't think of me on my birthday.  I think if that were the case, I'd be really depressed.  But instead, I'm quite happy to know that much love comes my way! 

Sauteed Bok Choy

Today is a special day.  Why, you ask?  It's only Wednesday, what could be so special about this day?  Well... 25 years ago, on some island of the Philippines... I was born.  Yep, I've reached my "quarter of a century" mark.  I don't exactly know how to feel about that.  What exactly have I done in that 25 years?  Have I wasted it?  Have I lived it up?

I just don't know, really.  There's nothing in those 25 years I would take back, or do over.  I've always been a kind of person that's thought of life as a never ending journey.  Certain things get us to where we are in the present, and certain things get us to our future.  I'd like to think that I'm pretty satisfied with my 25 years of life.  I mean, let's take a look at some things:

- I fully support myself, and my expensive eating habits.
- I'm engaged to an amazing, although sometimes immature, man.
- I have a job that I, for the most part, enjoy.
- I'm in college (for a tad bit longer than I had hoped, but I'm getting there)
- I've never broken any bones or had any major health problems.
- I have 2 dogs (which growing up practically petrified of animals, I find this a major accomplishment)
- I have family that, although downright crazy in every way possible, I know that I can rely on.
- I've never been robbed or had my identity stolen (which is a constant fear of mine).
- I'm 25 years old and I can cook like no other 25 year old that I, personally, know (of course, out in the blog-o-sphere, that's quite different)
- I've experienced practically every emotion, been through ups and downs, and still remain a strong person.

I know those are just simple things, that most of us take for granted, but I can't forget how thankful I am to be in the position I'm in.  Doing what I love, and having a positive support circle around me!  I hope that my next quarter of a century, I can add plenty more to that list.

So because I'm taking it easy today, after all... it is my birthday... I have a simple, yet delicious recipe!  I'm going to let my mother cook me dinner and Andy apparently has a phenomenal cake up his sleeve for dessert... I'm sure I'll fill you guys in tomorrow!

Ingredients

1 bunch bok choy

1 garlic clove, minced

1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 to 4 tablespoons chicken stock

salt and pepper, to taste

Clean and chop the bok choy to medium sized pieces.

Heat olive oil under medium high heat and add garlic.  Cook for about 1-2 minutes, or until fragrant.

Turn the heat on high and add the bok choy and give it a quick stir. Then add the oyster sauce, chicken stock or water and season with sea salt.  Mix well and cook for a couple more minutes.  Serve immediately.

I decided to one up myself, and instead of serving this a side, I used it as a topping!  For an awesome turkey sandwich...

But you can definitely have this as a side to practically any dish!  It's so delicious and simple!  Comes together really fast too!  Enjoy guys!

And here's the CSA goodies:

1 baguette

1 bunch of radishes

2 lbs. apples

1 bunch mustard green

1 pumpkin

2 lbs. red potatoes

1 acorn squash