The Icing On The Cake...Apple Coffee Cake

I've told you all about the successful turkey and side dishes (as detailed here and here), so the only item left to cover is the always coveted dessert. On Thursday, I'll be bombarded with apple tarts, cupcakes, and pumpkin bars galore. For this particular faux-Thanksgiving feast, I wanted something sweet and warm with a hint of Fall flavors. That's why I chose an apple coffee cake for the dessert du jour. Though I may have mentioned that I really wanted a dessert for two, this one just couldn't be chopped. And like a Marc Jacobs handbag, once I noticed it, I couldn't get it out of my head.

Enter Emeril Lagasse's Apple Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping and Brown Sugar Glaze. Though I've never cared for him as a TV personality, he strongly upped my affections by guest starring on Top Chef: New York (in the New Orleans ep). Unlike his incessant bam'ming on Emeril Live!, Top Chef Emeril was a sweet man with nothing but encouragement and a soft spot for the young competing chefs. It was then that he won a place in my heart and I've now been known to even catch an ep of Emeril Green now and again on Planet Green, where E serves up green dishes in a show that I like to call The Most Genius Product Placement of All Time - E cooking in a Whole Foods retailer, using Whole Foods products, and telling his proteges about Whole Foods. Genius, don't you think? (This has been added to the list of things I wish I came up with...)

Anyhow, I had never made an Emeril recipe before the apple coffee cake and I cannot tell you how unbelievably moist and delicious this cake turned out. Though I was supposed to find a dessert for 2, I'm thanking my lucky stars that this recipe called for the full 13x9 baking pan as a baking vessel. Now, I can enjoy the cake all week, share it with coworkers, and make this recipe one for the record books. If you're still on the hunt for a Thanksgiving treat, I highly recommend this fabulous dish. Here's the breakdown:

Emeril's Apple Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping & Brown Sugar Glaze
Cake:
1 stick plus 2 teaspoons unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sour cream
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apples (make sure you use apples that are baking-appropriate. I went with Rome apples, but do a simple Google search to find a full list of recommended versions)

Crumble Topping:
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

Brown Sugar Glaze:
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons water

- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 13 by 9-inch glass baking dish with 2 teaspoons of the butter.
- In a large bowl, cream together the remaining stick of butter and sugar until light and fluffy (I had a little help from my favorite tool and wonder appliance, my Kitchen Aid stand mixer).

- Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating after the addition of each.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.

- Add to the wet ingredients, alternating with the sour cream and vanilla.
- Fold in the apples.

- Pour into the prepared baking dish, spreading out to the edges.

- To make the topping, combine the sugar, flour, cinnamon, and butter, and mix until it resembles coarse crumbs.
- Sprinkle the topping over the cake and bake until golden brown and set, 35 to 40 minutes.

Get your hands dirty for this one...

- Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for at least 10 minutes.

- To make the glaze (yup, it's necessary in this situation to have a topping and a glaze...trust me), combine the sugar, vanilla, and water and mix until smooth. Drizzle the cake with the glaze and let harden slightly.
- Serve warm and get ready for lots of compliments on your amazing cake.

So there you have it. A fabulous Thanksgiving dessert with plenty of Fall flavor. The best part? It'll make enough for your whole party. What are you making for Thanksgiving dessert this year? I'm always on the prowl for new Fall desserts, so leave some ideas for me!

Key Lime in the Coconut Cupcakes Make for a Gluttonous Father's Day

In between eating delicious food all over the city and beyond as well as pop culturing to my heart's desire, I aspire to be a domestic goddess. I'll admit that sometimes I do curse myself after offering to bring a savory dip to a party or (in my weakest, wedding-dazed filled moment) volunteer to make 150 Magnolia cupcakes for my own engagement party (no, I'm so not exaggerating and I have the carpal tunnel syndrome to prove it...almost). But I do enjoy cooking and especially baking...and that's about as far as my domestic lasso will grasp.

With total disregard for terrible, rainy weather (in hopes that if I don't acknowledge it, it won't exist), I decided to whip up some Key Lime in the Coconut Cupcakes in honor of the usually summery Father's Day. Inspired by a recipe from Ultimate Recipe Showdown (where did that show go? I really do watch them ALL), I altered this one a bit to fit my schedule and my desire to bake. It was all made possible with a little help from my friends.

My favorite appliance...if you have the means, I highly recommend picking one up.

Chopped white chocolate adds some extra flavor to the icing

A doctored-up cake mix and no one will know the difference

Recipe for Coconut Cake
*Inspired by Food Network
1 box Classic White cake mix
1 tsp almond extract
1 C sweetened coconut
Zest of 1 lime
2+ tbsp Key Lime juice (from bottle if you can't find real Key limes)
Directions: Prepare cake mix as directed on box, adding in the almond extract. Fold in coconut, lime juice, and zest before baking. Bake as directed on box.

White Chocolate Frosting
*Ok, this I lifted directly from foodnetwork.com and you can see the full recipe here. Noted below are the elements I changed
5 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped into small chunks
1 cup (2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature (leave it out over night. seriously.)
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted (I did not sift, and it was just fine)
Pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon key lime juice (bottled or freshly squeezed)...(I used more like 2 tbsp because I wanted it to be limey)
1/4 cup sour cream
Finely grated key lime zest & sprinkles, for garnish
2 drops food coloring (I like green for lime)

Directions: In a small heat proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, carefully and slowly melt the white chocolate. Remove from heat and let cool until just slightly warm. (*Note: I did this in the microwave. Heat at 30 second intervals, mixing in between. Do NOT overheat). Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, gradually add the powdered sugar until well combined. Add the salt, vanilla extract, key lime juice, and sour cream and mix until very smooth. Add the melted white chocolate and mix just until incorporated.

Deliciously fluffy icing of the key lime variety

My biggest tip: Even if you are making a boxed cake mix cake, making your own frosting makes all the difference in the world. If you make your own frosting, instead of serving that canned garbage icing to your friends and family, they won't even notice the boxed cake mix. And my favorite aspect...The frosting is the easiest part to make.

Ta Da!

To cart these little babies around, I got a handy cupcake caddy from Bed, Bath, and Beyond. $25 with a never-fail coupon and worth every penny!

My super adorable cupcake caddy...makes the carting of fab cupcakes possible!

Any other cupcake recipes out there? I'm a sucker for beautiful, delicious cupcakes and always looking for new recipes. If so, write to us, include photos, and we'll share with our readers!

Freebies on Friday: National Donut Day!

On a gloomy, wet, rainy New York City day (and we all know how I feel about those), what could be better than knowing it's Friday and fun weekend escapades await? This: It's National Donut Day! Head over to your nearest Dunkin' Donuts, purchase any beverage and get a free donut! I'll be there getting hot coffee (I had really wanted iced, but since it's cold in June (?!) I'll be going hot today) and a chocolate glazed. My Friday just got a little better...