Slightly Sophisticated PB & J Cake, #DessertChallenge

NinjaBaker — Thu, 13 Jun 2013 08:54:15 +0000

Sheryl, The Lady Behind the Curtain, peeked out to whisper the theme of June’s dessert challenge that was to be kept secret until today. I leaned in and heard strawberries and raspberries.

Hmm, fruits are rife on French influenced Japanese tarts. The berries are always artistically displayed and almost always on white flour and sugar laden pastries.

Raspberries, Strawberries & Stacks of Fruit & Flour, Oh My!

Photo Credit

The strawberries and raspberries I employed for the task of the challenge were placed on a slightly healthier foundation. I love white refined sugar but to benefit the well-being of family and friends, I opted for a honey, peanut butter based cake: Averie Cooks Peanut Butter Honey Buttermilk Cake, I followed the cake recipe exactly as written here and omitted the streusel.

The result was a peanut buttery cake filled with remembrances of adolescence. After a 1.5 hours commute from school to home on the Tokyo trains, I’d slide into my Dad’s easy chair and escape into a book while I munched on smooth peanut butter piled high on crumbly Ritz or graham crackers.

But I digress. Back to the Strawberry and Raspberry challenge cake. Inspired by the iconic childhood sandwich of PB & J, I infused buttercream frosting with a purée of raspberries. (Frappé a small box or raspberries in the blender and add to 3 cups of your favorite buttercream frosting.)

Peanut Butter Cake Teamed with Royal Raspberries Frosting,

Crowned with Strawberry Chocolate Drizzle

To add a touch of grownup elegance, I drizzled chocolate over the cake. The how-to is simple: Melt 3 tablespoons of butter with 1 ounces of semisweet chocolate and 2 ounces of unsweetened chocolate. Stir in 2 tablespoons of Wholesome Sweeteners Strawberry Agave. Being careful not to burn your fingers, drizzle the mixture with a piping bag fitted with a writing tip. (A fork works, too.) The taste is sublime. Especially when combined with the hearty peanut butter cake and flirty, light raspberry frosting.

Note: The Strawberry Agave and Raw Honey for the cake were gifts from the lovely ladies at Wholesome Sweeteners. However, their products already line my shelves so my opinion was not influenced by the presents.

A bevy of other recipes for strawberry-raspberry beauties are featured below.

Wishing you fruitful hours, which last beyond the bright days of summer.

The Ninja Baker

© ™ Watkinson 2012

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

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Tokyo Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake, #Dessert Challenge

NinjaBaker — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 11:45:08 +0000

A cosmopolitan crisscross of tradition and modern twists on foreign imports; Tokyo is the ultimate destination for the creative and curious. Next to a traditional ramen noodle shop, a Starbucks coffee is served. Don’t ask for decaf. The driven and diligent population drinks only the caffeinated java. (Herbal teas, however, have become en vogue.)

Centuries old traditional Japanese noodles are served right alongside Starbucks coffee.

In Starbucks Tokyo, you will find the very unique and delicious Sakura White Chocolate. The Japanese do know how to take a good thing and improve it. They've also taken the salty German pretzel and created a honey butter version. And adopted the popular storybook character Rilakkuma bear as their mascot. If you are a traditional pretzel lover, no need to fret. At markets like Kinokuniya, you'll find your salty snack. Also, at Starbucks you can also order the same Caramel Macchiato as the one at home.

As cherry blossoms appear for the winter weary,
springtime also brings Sakura White Chocolate at Starbucks.

To celebrate the caramel coffee drink, which is popular on both sides of the Pacific, I created the Tokyo Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake. It also so happens that Sheryl, the lovely Lady Behind the Curtain, issued a dessert challenge to food bloggers to invent a sweet with caramel and pretzels.

The Ninja Baker's Tokyo Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake

Do check out Sheryl’s always creative and delicious offerings at Lady Behind the Curtain. You’ll also find plenty of other fun fare following the Ninja Baker’s Tokyo Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake contribution.

Happy to report that my buttery pretzel crust played well with the soft cake. And my espresso whipped cream drizzled with caramel sauce was reminiscent of a fluffy coffee ice cream spiked with gooey caramel.

Tokyo Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake

Tokyo Pretzel Cookie Crust
Author: Kim Watkinson

In a food processor crumble 96 grams of (Rilakkuma) honey butter pretzels, add ¼ cup melted butter and 2 tablespoons of light brown sugar.

Press a tablespoon into each cupcake case. Bake at 350 degrees for 5 minutes.
Cool then add caramel cake batter.

Pretzel crusts are pressed into cupcake cases before cake batter is poured in.

Caramel Cake
Adapted from Robyn Stone’s AddAPinch.com Recipe

Ingredients
½ cup butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ cups cake flour
½ cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Method:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees
1. Cream butter. Add sugar and beat until thoroughly combined.
2. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
3. Gradually pour in a bit of flour, then a little buttermilk. Continue the dance.
4. Add vanilla and beat well.
5. Divide among cupcake cases. (The recipe yields about 21 cupcakes.)
6. Cool then top with espresso whipped cream.

Espresso Cream
Author: Kim Watkinson

To ½ a tablespoon of espresso powder add hot water until you have ¼ cup. Cool.
In a bowl that has been in the freezer overnight, whip up a pint of heavy cream. Add ½ cup of powdered sugar, the ¼ cup of cool espresso and 1 teaspoon of vanilla.

Pipe with a star tip onto the caramel cupcakes with pretzel crusts. Drizzle with caramel sauce.

Wishing you curiosity, which lead you to discover people, and places that inspire creativity and heart smiles.

The Ninja Baker

The Ninja Baker has guest blogged and contributed recipes to numerous food sites. These additional recipes can be found here.

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Tokyo

Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake

#DessertChallenge

The Ninja Baker - #DessertChallenge

Slightly Sophisticated PB & J Cake, #DessertChallenge

Tokyo Pretzel Caramel Macchiato Cupcake, #Dessert Challenge