To Top It Off

I have tracked the decline of baking over the years in the baking aisle at the grocery store. I used to decry the enormous section of boxed cake mixes because it was a sign that people were too lazy or intimidated to do "real" baking. Then, even more worrisome, the boxed mix section shrank. That meant that people were to pressed for time or too frightened even to throw a few ingredients on top of a mix and toss it into the oven. Now you can buy your brownies in the refrigerated section - just peel off the wrapper, press it into the pan, and bake. Homemade brownies....I guess. But where's the fun in that?

Don't get me wrong - I'm not slamming people who use box mixes. My guilty secret is the row of cake mixes in my pantry. My son loves them and thinks that's where all cakes come from. He loves breaking the eggs, stirring, and helping mommy bake. And because I could give a rip how a mix cake turns out, it's low stress for me to let him learn the basics of baking in this way. I'm hoping from this that he'll learn that baking is fun and be willing to confidently expand his baking horizons beyond the box. Knowledge takes away the fear and empowers.

I think a great deal of the decline of baking is due to fear of failure. If you're unsure how a recipe will turn out, it's easier to get a mix or just go to the bakery and buy what you want. That way you won't have the mortification of showing up at the PTA meeting with a plate of oozing cookies or a cake that looks like a soccer ball landed in the middle of it.

Over the years I've had my share of baking disasters and I've learned that it's not the end of the world. It's just food. And there's a lot that can be done to salvage disasters. Warming the goo and putting vanilla ice cream on top of it. Adding frosting. Or peanut butter. Or whipped cream. Or hot fudge sauce. It's just all in the attitude.

When I made my special dinner for my husband (see previous post), I wanted a knock his socks off dessert. The recipe for Chocolate Mousse Cake looked tremendous. I substituted half of the semisweet chocolate with bittersweet as my husband is a big fan of bittersweet. The cake looked lovely and I was crushed when he took only a bite or two then put down his piece. He said it was too dry. After pouting on this for a night, I realized, the cake could be saved. I served it again the next night. Refrigerating, like the directions said to, helped the texture. And I spread it with orange marmalade (he loves the combination of orange and dark chocolate) and then dollopped sweetened whipped cream on top. Success!

Chocolate Mousse Cake

Crust:
1 cup finely chopped walnuts (4 oz.)
1 cup finely chopped hazelnuts or almonds (4 oz.)
2 oz (1/2 stick ) butter, softened

Filling:
1 lb. semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup heavy cream
6 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup granulated sugar

Garnish:
1 cup whipped cream
powdered sugar to sweeten whipped cream, optional

Preheat oven to 325 deg.

To prepare crust, mix together nuts and butter. Press evenly over bottom and up sides of a 9-inch springform pan. I don't own a 9-inch pan and used a 10-inch. It made a slightly flatter cake. Also, when I baked the cake, the butter in the crust melted and seeped out of the pan, so I'd recommend setting your pan on a baking sheet, or first lining the bottom and sides of your springform pan with foil.

To prepare filling, in a medium saucepan, heat chocolate and cream over low heat, stirring constantly, until chocolate is melted and smooth. Cool to room temperature, 10 minutes.

Beat together eggs and vanilla at low speed until foamy. At high speed, gradually beat in flour and sugar until thick, for 8-10 minutes. (I was beating, and beating, and beating, muttering to myself, "Not thick, not thick." I'm not sure what thick is supposed to look like, but in my case it ended up being slightly thickened.)

Fold one-third of egg mixture into melted chocolate mixture. Fold chocolate mixture, one-qurter at a time, into remaining egg mixture. Spread batter in prepared pan; smooth top.

Bake cake until puffed around outer edges, 45 minutes. Transfer pan to wire rack to cool for 30 minutes. Remove sides of pan.

Chill cake for 4 hours or overnight. Garnish with whipped cream. And, optionally, your choice of peanut butter, jam, berry puree, or fresh berries.