Back in March I posted about my dear friend Judy, who had taught me about Hammantaschen, and opened other culinary and spiritual truths of Judaism to me. (see that post here--http://artfuloven.weebly.com/roses-alpha-bakers/hamantaschen-to-honor-an-old-friend)
To our delight, last night, Smitty and I were lucky enough to spend an evening with Judy and her youngest daughter Mariah! Unfortunately, we didn't get to see Tom, Judy's husband. His itinerary didn't bring him to Durham in time to join us. He was sorely missed!
Of course, I wanted to bake something to sweeten up the occasion, and Mariah's favorite dessert is red velvet cake...so may I present
"The Red Velvet Mariah."
To our delight, last night, Smitty and I were lucky enough to spend an evening with Judy and her youngest daughter Mariah! Unfortunately, we didn't get to see Tom, Judy's husband. His itinerary didn't bring him to Durham in time to join us. He was sorely missed!
Of course, I wanted to bake something to sweeten up the occasion, and Mariah's favorite dessert is red velvet cake...so may I present
"The Red Velvet Mariah."
This cake is a combination of components from three books by Rose Levy Beranbaum, my favorite cookbook author. Rose has forgotten more about baking than I will ever learn, but I am indebted to her for the best cakes, breads, pies and pastries that I have ever tasted. Her recipes are part of virtually all of my family's celebrations.
First, the red velvet cake recipe comes from Rose's Heavenly Cakes. The original recipe is for a single layer, baked in a heart shaped or 9-inch round pan. I doubled that recipe and baked it in two 8-inch round pans. The resulting cakes were very tall, so I torted them for a total of four layers. That's a cake leveler there on the countertop. For cutting cakes horizontally, it's the easiest method.
Rose includes a beautiful raspberry glaze for her Red Velvet Rose cake in The Baking Bible. I glazed the layers before I filled them with icing.
It would be unthinkable to serve a red velvet cake without cream cheese icing, at least here in the American south!. That recipe is Rose's Cream Cheese Buttercream from The Cake Bible. I made a double batch of that icing. I wish I had made another half batch because I prefer to work with more icing than this amount allowed.
It was very warm in the kitchen, and keeping the soft icing cool wasn't easy! Yes, those layers are sliding and listing! The cake went in and out of the fridge several times during the process.
It would be unthinkable to serve a red velvet cake without cream cheese icing, at least here in the American south!. That recipe is Rose's Cream Cheese Buttercream from The Cake Bible. I made a double batch of that icing. I wish I had made another half batch because I prefer to work with more icing than this amount allowed.
It was very warm in the kitchen, and keeping the soft icing cool wasn't easy! Yes, those layers are sliding and listing! The cake went in and out of the fridge several times during the process.
Piping FAST because the warmth of my hands softened the icing as I worked.
The tops of the fresh raspberries got flattened out in the cake carrier. Oh well.
Smitty is getting good at packing up cakes to travel! The chilled cake survived the trip across town in a cooler, and we shared it with my friend Judy, her sister Joy and of course, Mariah.
And here we are, the beautiful Mariah and her cake. It was such a joy to meet Judy's youngest child, and I know that she will grow in wisdom and grace.
I am so grateful for the friendships that have enriched my life! Smitty and I will treasure the memory of this evening, and pray it won't be so many years until we meet again! And next time, we dearly hope, Tom will be with us!
I am so grateful for the friendships that have enriched my life! Smitty and I will treasure the memory of this evening, and pray it won't be so many years until we meet again! And next time, we dearly hope, Tom will be with us!
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