Dobos Torte

Dobos Torte, Dobos Torta or even Dobos Cake is a Hungarian delight introduced to me by my dear friends while in Budapest earlier this month.

As with all things, I have to try to recreate things in my own kitchen. For a first attempt, I don't think I did all that badly. Naturally the commercial version in the top photo is much prettier than mine but I like to think that my version is much more generous.

Please read the whole recipe through before starting. It isn't a particularly difficult recipe, but it does take a long time. The other thing about this recipe is that it calls for LOTS of sugar and butter. Don't try to "cut back" on any sugar or substitute low fat spread for butter. This is not a cake for dieters. If you're watching your weight or if your making it for somebody who is a calorie counter, make something else. Trying to convert Dobos torte to something healthier is going to waste your time and deny you the true pleasure of this wonderful desert.I found a very good recipe for Dobos torte at Allrecipes.com This seems to be a delightful recipe site geared for cooks at all levels of competence. As this particular recipe deals with melted sugar, you have to have your wits about you. In fact, I don't recommend leaving the kitchen once you've begun until you've finished making this cake. The last layer can be made much later after the rest of the cake has been built. It gives you a chance to get some of the mess cleaned up. I stuck an audio book in the DVD player in the front room and cranked up the volume so it could be heard in the kitchen and had a really nice afternoon's baking.

INGREDIENTS

• 9 egg whites
• 8 egg yolks
• 200 g white sugar
• 60 ml milk
• 6 g lemon zest
• 1 g salt
• 8 ml vanilla extract
• 190 g sifted all-purpose flour
• 6 g shortening
• 200 g white sugar
• 1 recipe chocolate buttercream
  

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Have ready two 10 inch cardboard circles. Generously grease a 9 inch springform pan with soft butter, and dust with flour.

1. Beat the egg whites until frothy, and gradually add 1 cup sugar. Beat just to soft peaks. In another bowl, beat the yolks with the milk, lemon peel, vanilla, and salt. Fold this into the egg whites. Sift the flour over the egg mixture, and fold in.
2. Spread 1 1/3 cups batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 5 to 9 minutes, or until small, brown spots begin to appear on cake. Remove the cake from the oven, and remove layer from pan with a spatula. Dust the cake lightly with flour, and place on a rack to cool. Grease pan again, and repeat this process until all of the batter is used, about 5 times more. Place the layers between wax paper, and cover with a towel. Chill layers for a few hours. Make the Chocolate Buttercream.
3. Layer the chilled layers on one of the cardboard rounds with the buttercream. Start with one layer; cover with the buttercream, and then press down with another layer to make a good seal. Repeat this with the remaining layers, but reserve one layer. Wrap the cake in plastic, and chill for at least 6 hours along with the remaining buttercream. Grease the other cardboard round with the shortening, and place the last layer on it.
4. Place 1 cup sugar into a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Allow sugar to cook until the edges look melted and brown. Begin stirring with a wooden spoon. Cook until the sugar become an amber color, and is smooth. Carefully pour the caramel over the top of the last layer, and spread to the edges with an oiled knife. Quickly, using an oiled knife, indent the top of the caramel into 16 wedges. Allow to cool slightly, and then retouch the indents with the knife again. Place layer onto a counter top dusted with sugar, and allow the caramel to cool completely.
5. Place some more buttercream on top of the chilled torte, and top with the caramel round. Frost the sides with the remaining buttercream. Chill the torte before serving.
   

Chocolate Buttercream

INGREDIENTS

• 336 g bittersweet chocolate
• 455 g unsalted butter
• 1 g salt
• 2 eggs
• 480 g confectioners' sugar
• 5 ml vanilla extract

1. Melt the bittersweet chocolate, and allow to cool slightly.
2. Place the butter or margarine, salt, and vanilla in a mixing bowl. Beat with a mixer until very light and airy, about 4 minutes.
   
3. Add the powdered sugar a little at a time while beating on low speed. Mix well, and beat on medium speed for about 4 minutes.
   
4. Add the eggs one at a time, and beat for 5 minutes more.
   
5. Add the melted chocolate, and beat 4 minutes.

My Note: If you add in the ingredients in a different order, it doesn't matter much.
You just have to ensure that it is all blended and fluffy at the end.

The recipe is hard on your electric hand mixer and the kitchen will look as though a bomb hit it (a powdered sugar bomb) but the effort is worth it!

My Notes: I am sure it would be easier if I had lots of baking tins and could bake more than one layer at a time. As the layers you are baking are thin, please keep a sharp eye on them. They bake quickly.

The chocolate buttercream does not handle well when refrigerated. I got all the layers built and the sides iced before I even thought about refrigerating.

If the molten sugar goes over the edge of the top layer, don't panic. You will be able to snap off the overspill and nobody will be any wiser.

Root Beer

As I have used an extract rather than cooking up my own proper recipe, so this is more like instructions for making root beer at home rather than a proper recipe.

One can try boiling down sassafras root and making your own flavoring for root beer but sassafras isn't the only thing that goes into root beer. Wintergreen and possibly dandelion root go in there too. You really have to be a pharmacist to the right mix. In any case, I left the mixing to the experts and used some root beer extract.

Sadly, Hires Root Beer extract form is no longer available. I remember Hires root beer extract being in the cupboard when I was a child. Every once and a while, I'd unscrew the cap a little tiny bit so I could get a sniff. Thanks to my dad's generosity, I used Gnome brand root beer extract. He brought some over during one of his visits. It is as close to good old fashioned root beer taste as I can ever hope to achieve.

Making root beer requires some essential equipment most of which can be picked up at a shop that specializes in home brewing or on-line.

Big 5 gallon bucket
a funnel
enough plastic bottles with screw caps OR
glass bottles and a bottle capper to bottle it all when you're finished

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8 cups of white sugar (more or less to taste)
brewers or champagne yeast
root beer extract
4.5 gallons of water

When making root beer everything must be scrupulously clean. I didn't sterilize anything but I did wash everything that came into contact with the root beer in very hot soapy water, rinsing with hot hot water. Some instructions for making root beer say to sterilize the bottles. That's probably a good idea. I re-used some plastic bottles that wouldn't take the heat of sterilization so I just got them as clean as I could and I added a cap full of bleach to the wash water.

Pour one sachet of the yeast into a measuring jug and add in warm (not hot) water. Stir the yeast and water to dissolve the yeast completely and let it stand for 15 - 20 minutes or so.

In your big bucket, dump all the sugar in and add some warm water. I ensured that all the sugar is dissolved before I had the root beer extract. Add in the root beer extract and stir. Add in the yeast and top up the water level until it reaches 4.5 gallons (just don't go over the 5 gallon mark).

Now start bottling the stuff. When filling bottles (glass or plastic) make sure you leave a bit of head space at the top. Don't fill the bottles to the brim.

Wipe off the bottles and set them somewhere out of the way to cure.

In about 3 days, check the carbonation levels by opening up a bottle. Do this in the sink in case you get a gusher. When the carbonation levels are about right, refrigerate the bottles to stop the yeast.

You now have a lot of root beer to drink. I'm planning to make a batch in the summer for a root beer float picnic party.


There are lots of other root beer recipes on line. I've just given you mine.
Root beer float!

German Chocolate Cake - with Coconut Pecan Icing

This is one of my all time favourite cakes. It has gone out of fashion in the past few decades which is a crying shame.

Should you choose to fire up the oven in your own home, I highly recommend trying this recipe sometime. It's wonderful.

Preheat your oven to 350 F or 180 C

1 1/2 cups plain flour
3/4 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 ounces of sweet baking chocolate (use good chocolate if you have it)
3/4 cups shortening (vegetable fat)
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 buttermilk or sour milk


Grease and flour your baking tins and set aside. I use two 8 x 1 1/2 inch round cake tins.

In a small saucepan melt the chocolate with 1/2 cup water over LOW heat until the chocolate is completely melted and you've got a lovely smooth chocolate sauce. Then set it aside to cool.

In a mixing bowl beat the shortening with an electric mixer until fluffy and then add the sugar and beat some more. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat this until completely smooth and combined. Stir in the chocolate mixture and finally add the buttermilk or sour milk.

Now sift the dry ingredients into the bowl and mix completely until it is smooth and free of lumps.

Divide the batter into your cake tins and place in the centre of your oven to bake for about 35 minutes.

When the cakes are done baking, remove them from the oven and turn the cakes out onto a wire cooling rack. You can frost them with any icing but nothing beats the coconut pecan icing below.

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Coconut Pecan Icing

In a heavy medium sized sauce pan lightly beat one egg with 5 oz of evaporated milk. Stir in 2/3 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup butter. Stirring over a moderate heat, cook the mixture about 12 minutes until it is thick and bubbly. Remove from the heat and stir in 1 1/3 cups dessicated or flaked coconut and 1/2 cup chopped pecans until they are all mixed completely. Cover the pan and cool thoroughly. When it is cool, use this to ice the cake.

Glazed Doughnuts

1 cup scalded milk

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk, beaten

2 envelopes active dry yeast

4 cups sifted flour

Cooking Oil - In the US, blue label Crisco is best. In the UK use Pura or Trex. If you use liquid vegetable oil, the doughnuts will absorb too much oil and be greasy (ick!).

In a large mixing bowl, pour scalded milk over the butter, sugar and salt. Stir until the butter is melted. Cool slightly and add the beaten eggs. Then add the yeast. Let mixture stand for 5 minutes. Blend in the flour a little at a time. Mix into a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead gently for about 2 minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Let rise for 1 hour. Punch the dough down and divide in half. On a lightly floured board roll each section to 1/2-inch thickness. Cut with a floured doughnut cutter. Place on waxed paper. Set in a warm place. Let rise for 30 minutes.

In a deep skillet or fryer heat cooking oil to 375F . Gently slip each doughnut into the oil. Fry for 2 minutes or until golden brown, turning once. Drain on paper towels.

In another mixing bowl, blend 3 cups sifted confectioners or icing sugar, 1/8 cup warm water and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Stir the glaze until all lumps are gone. If the glaze is too thick, carefully add more water - drop by drop. If it is too thin, add more icing sugar.

I find that if you place a cooling rack over an empty bowl then dip the doughnuts in the glaze and let them drain on the cooling rack, letting the empty bowl catch the drips, you get much better glaze coverage.

My youngest boy suggests rolling the doughnuts in granulated sugar instead of glazing them is much easier. It is. You can also try adding a bit of cinnamon to the granulated sugar before rolling the doughnuts in it. Yum!

Orange Delights

This recipe comes from a cookbook that belonged to my grandmother. These cookies were great favourites of mine way from way back. When I make them here at home, I am instantly transported back to North Dakota and the comfort that cookies can give.



Orange Delights

¾ cup butter or margarine
1 ½ cups brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
grated rind of 1 large orange
½ teaspoon baking soda / bicarbonate of soda
½ cup sour milk or buttermilk
3 cups of plain flour
1 ½ teaspoon baking powder

Icing

2 cups of sifted icing sugar
2 tablespoons of orange juice and a bit of grated orange rind

Cream butter and sugar together, add eggs and beat. Add sour milk, orange rind, vanilla and flour. Drop by spoonfuls onto a baking tray. Bake at 375 F or 180 C until the cookies are golden brown.

In a separate bowl, mix the icing sugar and orange juice and rind. Adjust by adding more sugar or more orange juice so that the glaze gets to a nice spreading consistency.

If you ice the cookies when they are still warm, the icing will melt into a nice glaze.

Store the cookies in an airtight container, ensuring that the layers are separated by baking parchment or waxed paper because the icing will stick to everything.

Waffles!

To make waffles, you can just slap some ordinary pancake batter into your waffle maker and things will turn out just fine. However, if you want waffly perfection, go a bit further with your preparations and make proper waffle batter.

Firstly you will have to have a waffle iron or electric waffle maker. The only way you're going to get to know it is to start using it. Don't forget, the first ever waffles you make in your waffle iron won't work. Don't be upset, you must sacrifice the first couple of spoons of batter up to the gods of waffles. Just clean out the mangled bits of waffle, give them to the chickens or the dog and keep going. The rest of the waffles will be fine.

Too much batter!

I had the first batch get mangled. My second batch of waffles were better, but I used too much batter and the excess oozed and sputtered out the sides of the waffle iron. Don't panic if that happens to you. Just clean it up and keep going.

Plug in your electric waffle maker and then start making your batter.

In a mixing bowl put in:

1 3/4 cups plain or all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon or pinch of salt

3 teaspoons of baking powder

3 teaspoons of sugar.

Mix the dry ingredients together and set to one side

Separate two eggs.

Place the yolks in a small bowl with:

1 3/4 cups milk

1/4 cup cooking oil.

Mix these together

Now in yet another bowl, whip the whites into stiff peaks and set it aside.

I always whip the egg whites first with my electric beater and then go on to use the same beater to mix the batter. You can't do it in reverse because if you get even a small dot of egg yolk contaminating the egg whites, they just won't whip up.

Blend the milk, oil, egg yolk mixture in with the dry ingredients. When that is mixed completely, fold in the stiff egg whites. When the egg whites have been incorporated you have the perfect waffle batter.

Spoon the batter into your hot waffle iron and close the lid. You'll get to know pretty quickly when you've added too much or not enough batter. Each waffle iron is different.

My new waffle iron beeps when it has reached the right temperature and is ready to receive the batter. It also beeps when the waffles have finished. If you don't have a beeper on yours, you'll know when they're done as the steam coming from the waffle iron will have stopped.

George, my youngest likes apple butter on his waffles instead of the traditional pancake syrup. Strawberries (in season please!) and whipped cream are also glorious on freshly made waffles.

Enjoy the waffles! Have a waffle party!! Invite people over on a Saturday or Sunday morning for a little Festival of Waffles!!!

Note To Searchers/Readers!

If you have come to my little blog searching for a recipe, would you be so kind as to let me know if you tried one of my recipes? How did it work for you?

Are you one of the people who has come here looking for an answer to a question about recipes? e.g. Why my apple crumble is always runny

Were any of my recipes what you were searching for?

If you have a question, just ask it in the comments section or e-mail me. I'll always answer questions.

The recipes that I have put up here are ones that are firm family favourites and I make them all the time. I hope they they become your favourites too.