My first DB post and I’m LATE – I suck!

So, I was so THRILLED in October to get the news that I was accepted into the Daring Bakers group. So thrilled in fact that I made the November challenge, took pictures even, but never got around to actually post my results because I got hives from my computer for around a month for some reason. Actually this is the WORST time of year for me to try and keep any kind of schedule. Between taking care of my Mom, the house, preparing for the holidays and trying to keep up with all the baking – AAAAHHHH! Excuse my meltdown. Anyways, I hope this somehow makes up for November because that’s when I actually made this cake.

Shuna Fish Lydon of Eggbeater brings us a sugar-high to last through the holidays with a Caramel Cake. Hosting helpers are Dolores from Chronicles in Culinary Curiosity, Alex from Blondie and Brownie, Jenny from Foray into Food, and for those alternative bakers Natalie from Gluten-a-Go-Go. (I think I have this right to get credit for this, but if I’m missing something please let me know!)  

I must have done something wrong with the cake part because it came out like a pound cake wrapped in a brick. The weirdest thing was that sometimes the thing had a Play-Doh like taste. Not sure why. We still finished the damn thing. It was the frosting, it was all because of the frosting. I don’t know if you remember my first discovery of brown butter, but this month’s challenge included a magical concoction of BROWN BUTTER FROSTING!

Holy yum! I realize she calls it “Caramelized Butter Frosting” but the strong flavor that came through for me was that magical brown butter. Still, I would love to come across a frosting recipe that doesn’t make me feel like I just shoved a spoonful of sugar in my mouth. While I am addicted to sweets and enjoyed every bit of the frosting, I still would have liked to turn that sweetness from a 15 to a more manageable 11. Frosting is the bane of my baking existence and I’ve yet to accomplish a recipe that I was really proud of. But don’t get me wrong, this is the best frosting I’ve ever made. I know there has to be something out there that matches the flavor that I have in mind and I’ll just keep trying.

Apparently some people had trouble with the caramel phase. This didn’t intimidate me too much since I had made a Caramel cake a couple of months ago. The steps were a bit different as well as the consistency of the Caramel but I have to admit there were no great catastrophes. Here it is just starting to brown:

I did have to do two batches because I overcooked the first. It smelled a bit too burned when it reached this amber phase. The second time was perfect though. What a beautiful color!

I decided to accent the cake with some Caramel dots from Martha Stewart’s recipe for Dobos Torte. I made some sticks too, but just couldn’t figure out how to place them in some cool artistic way so polka-dot cake it is. One thing I do have a question about, if anyone knows, the dots started to actually melt when left out – why is that? Is there a way to prevent this from happening? I love to watch those sugar sculpture Food Network Challenge shows and there must be a way to keep these dots from melting at room temperature – anyone know?

Caramel Sticks and Dots:
Non-stick cooking spray
2 cups sugar
1/4 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice (I used juice from a bottle. Could that possibly be the reason it melted? I don’t think so, but what the heck do I know.)

Lightly coat the underside of a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray; place it, coated side up, on a work surface covered with parchment. Place a non-stick baking mat on the work surface.

In a medium saucepan, combine sugar, 1/4 cup water, and the lemon juice. Cook over high heat until sugar just begins to turn light golden around the edges, about 8 minutes. (The caramel will continue cooking in the pan, so watch the color carefully.) Immediately remove from heat, and swirl gently to color evenly. Let stand until caramel has thickened and cooled slightly, about 8 minutes.

To make sticks, use a metal spoon to drizzle caramel across the inverted baking sheet, using quick zigzag movements. Let stand until firm, about 5 minutes. Trim the ends so they are straight.

To make dots, drop spoonfuls of caramel to form rounds, ranging in size, onto the baking mat; let stand until firm about 5 minutes. Once firm, remove with a small offset spatula.

You can get creative with this stuff and make any shapes you like. If the caramel becomes too tough to manipulate, heat on a medium flame for a few seconds at a time. Don’t try to stir it or you’ll get bunches of air bubbles. Push a bit at the sides to check the consistency. Once the caramel is more malleable you can use again to make shapes.

Tagged as: Brown Butter, Caramel, Daring Bakers