I love Cath of A Blithe Palate for many, many reasons, not the least of which being that every now and then, unto my life, she will bring joy in the form of a cookbook.

That’s what I call a fabulous virtual friend. Were I ever to meet her in person, I just might smother her with hugs. (Be forewarned, Cath. Be forewarned.)

Late in July, she contacted me to let me know that she, Stephanie of Dispensing Happiness (I’ll say!) and the fabulous folks at Cook the Books would be hosting another edition of The Edible Word, an event that celebrates delicious cookbooks.

The selection for this edition is a book called Confections of a Closet Master Baker: One Woman’s Sweet Journey from Unhappy Hollywood Executive to Contented Country Bakerby Gesine Bullock-Prado.

Now if there something about that name that seems slightly familiar, it should. The Bullock part is Bullock as in Sandra Bullock. As it turns out, her younger sister Gesine, a lawyer and Hollywood executive, nursed a secret passion for baking until one day, tired of her L.A. life, she decides it’s time to downsize in the truest sense of the word. She downsizes all the way to Vermont where she opens her own bakery.

I know. You think you’ve heard it all before. Sounds like the script for a Hollywood movie starring some starlet who hasn’t eaten in 11 years much less baked.

People, trust the Cream Puff.

This is a good book. It’s a good book because Ms. Bullock-Prado is honest, often brutally so. She doesn’t sugarcoat (pardon the pun) her old life, or her new one for that matter. She offers full disclosure when it comes to the rigours of operating your own bakery, and believe me there are rigours.

Yes, there is the pleasure of being your own boss. Yes, there is the pleasure of spending ridiculous hours doing something you love.

But it’s still damn hard.

Ms. Bullock-Prado is honest, funny and real, as in sometimes, her cakes come out lopsided too.

And the recipes, tucked in between each chapter like chocolate tucked into a croissant, are delicous to read so imagine how they taste.

I don’t have to imagine because I made two of them: Espresso Cheesecake and Apple Pie (made with a puff pastry crust).

Verdict: Even more delicious than Alexander Skarsgard.

When Cath explained the goal of this event, she indicated that we should talk about how the book inspired us.

I will be very blunt: this book just makes you wonder. Can I do it, too? Can I give up the fear and the worry and “buts” and “what ifs” and just go out there and do what I really really want to do?

Yes, I can. Yes, we all can!

Ciao!

I’m a bit late posting my piece for this event. You can read the round-ups on Cath’s blog here, here and here.

You can also read a review of the book at The Daring Kitchen.

After a three-week hiatus, Magazine Mondays returns! I’m happy to put another magazine that has been languishing in what I now affectionately call, “the basket where magazines go to die,” to rest.

When it comes to recipes, I am nothing if not melodramatic.

This time around it’s the December 2006 issue of Food & Wine magazine and the recipe for Devil’s Food Cupcakes with Espresso Meringue.

Oh, baby!

Excuse the ineloquence but hot damn … these were good!

Densely rich and chocolatey (that’s how I like my cupcakes thank you very much), the meringue was light and not too sweet thanks to the touch of espresso powder.

I wanted to eat them all but bearing in mind that in a few short days I will be making an appearance on the beaches of Miami in a bathing suit, I limited myself to one.

I don’t want to frighten the good people of Miami anymore than necessary. They’ll be scared enough as it is.

On another less frightening note, I’ve noticed that some of you have put up Magazine Mondays posts of your own. If you let me know about them, I’ll happily link to them in my own posts.

Have a great week everyone!

Ciao!

For the cupcake recipe, click here.

Magazine Mondays on Other Blogs:

More Than Burnt Toast featured some Ranch Mashed Potatoes.

Guess what La Famiglia Cream Puff is doing this weekend?

You got it!

We’re up to our elbows in tomatoes and loving every minute of it. If you’re in the area, we’ve got an apron, a chair and a knife for you. Come by and help us cut up some tomatoes.

As an added bonus, you can have a slice of this delicious espresso cake courtesy of Father Giuseppe Orsini’s cookbook, Italian Baking Secrets.

Ciao!

Walnut and Espresso Cake
From Italian Baking Secrets by Father Giuseppe Orsini.

2 cups walnuts
1 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 cup strong espresso (you can use strong coffee if you don’t have espresso)
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a smaller baking pan. The original recope calls for an 8-inch cake pan but you can also use a small tubular pan as I did.

Take one-third of the walnuts and grind them in a food processor. If you don’t have a food processor, chop the walnuts as finely as possible. Set aside.

Take the remainder of the walnuts and chop them a few times so that they are coarsely chopped. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, on medium speed, cream together the butter and the sugar and fluffy (about 2 minutes). Add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

Combine the espresso and the vanilla extract.

With the mixer on low speed, begin adding the flour mixture and the coffee mixture in separate additions. Add the flour in three additions beginning and ending with the flour. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Once all the ingredients are incorporated, increase the speed to medium and beat for a minute or two.

With a spoon or spatula, stir in the chopped nuts. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and sprinkle the finely ground walnuts over the top.

Bake for 40 minutes and then test for doneness by inserting a skewer into the cake. If it comes out clean, the cake is done. If not, bake for an additional 5 minutes and test again.

Once the cake is done, remove from the oven and let cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Run a thin knife around the edges of the cake before unmolding to let the cake cool completely.

You can serve the cake as is or dust with some icing sugar.

Enjoy!

Technorat tags: cake, walnuts, espresso