Buttercrunch Cake

In honor of January 20th being National Buttercrunch Day, I decided to make a Buttercrunch Cake. Did I say cake? Yes, c-a-k-e! I've been nursing a cold since the weekend. I wasn't in the mood for cupcakes, nor was I in the mood to bake from scratch. Truthfully, I've been craving the flavor of cake mix lately. I'm not gonna be all hoity-toity about it and act like "eww cake mix is so gross." No way, I grew up eating it, and I freakin LOVE the stuff! I did make my own buttercrunch candy, though. I found the recipe for Pecan Buttercrunch on one of my favorite blogs, Dessert First. I followed her recipe exactly, including sprinkling sea salt on top, and it's delicious! I used it to top my Buttercrunch Cake. I'll get right to it because my lunch is calling me from the microwave... Mmmm, my mom's leftover herb-crusted pork loin! But let me just say, this cake is delicious! The caramel filling is SO good. I'll definitely be using the recipe for it again!

Making the candy... Mmm doesn't it look good?
Buttercrunch Cake!
Want some?
This is what I had for breakfast! ;)

Pecan Buttercrunch with Fleur de Sel (from DessertFirst)
about 16 pieces (I got 45-50 small pieces)

3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
12 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate (I used 60% cacao)
1 cup pecan halves, toasted and chopped into small pieces
Fleur de Sel

Line a baking sheet or pan with a silicone baking mat.
Combine the sugars, butter, vanilla, and salt in a medium saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring to combine, until it comes to a boil.
Continue cooking without stirring until the mixture reaches 298°F on a candy thermometer.
Remove from heat and stir in the baking soda and vanilla.
Pour the mixture onto the baking sheet and spread it out evenly, working quickly before it sets. (I spread mine in a 12" circle) Let the toffee layer cool completely.
Either temper the chocolate or simply melt it in a double boiler. Pour the chocolate over the toffee layer and spread out evenly.
Immediately sprinkle the pecans over the chocolate. Sprinkle a few grains of fleur de sel over the chocolate. Let the chocolate fully set.
Break the toffee into pieces before serving.

Quick Caramel Frosting (from The Cake Mix Doctor)
(Makes enough to fill a 3 or 4 layer cake)
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup whole milk
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
(I added 1/2 teaspoon sea salt)

1. Place the butter and brown sugars in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir and cook until the mixture comes to a boil, about 2 minutes. (The book forgets to mention to be very careful on the next step. Add the milk slowly, because it will spatter a lot in the pan!) Add the milk, stir, and bring back to a boil, then remove the pan from the heat. Add the confectioners' sugar and vanilla. Beat with a wooden spoon until the frosting is smooth. (The book says to use the frosting while it's still warm, but it was way too thin to spread. I let it cool all the way to room temp. Then I beat it on high with and electric mixer to fluff it up a little. It will thicken a lot when you start spreading it on the cake. If it gets too stiff, pop it in the microwave for 10-20 seconds.)

Chocolate Ganache
8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 - 3/4 cup heavy cream (depending how thick you want your ganache to set up)

Put chocolate chips and cream in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on high for 45 seconds to 1 minute, depending on your microwave. Stir gently with a rubber spatula. Heat for 15-20 more seconds. Stir until well blended. Let sit about 30 minutes (or cool in an ice bath for 5 minutes) until ganache is spreadable.

To assemble the Buttercrunch Cake:
Bake and cool two 8-inch round cake layers. Split each layer in half. Fill with cooled caramel filling. Top with cooled chocolate ganache. Decorate with buttercrunch candy!

I don't even know if anyone even reads this far down but, PS: The new season of Big Love started on HBO last weekend. It looks pretty good so far. AND my new favorite show, United States of Tara, comes on Showtime. You should totally watch it. It's so hilarious and fun!!

Banoffee Cupcakes

These were the poll winner by a TON of votes. I'm sorry it took me so long to post about them, but I've been really busy this week. Actually, I haven't been THAT busy, but it just seems like it. Ya know?? Anyway, on to the cupcakes! They were FABULOUS! I might be biased because I loooove banana cupcakes. But these were freakin GOOD! And the little pockets of melted caramel all throughout the cake were such a nice compliment in texture. To quote my boyfriend "It's soft like cake, but it tastes like a muffin. And the toffee bits are where it's at!" Haha. I sprinkled the top of them with Heath toffee bits before baking. To my knowledge, "Banoffee" is a marriage of the words "banana" and "toffee." Caramel and toffee are not the same thing. So the Heath pieces helped me mend that little problem. I topped them with whipped cream, but plain 'ole whipped cream wouldn't do. I added some storebought caramel. Not the soupy stuff that comes in a jar labeled as ice cream topping. No way! I'm talking about the thick stuff that comes in a plastic tub made for dipping Granny Smith apples in! Yeahhhhh. That stuff is so creamy and delicious. I used it to sweeten the whipped cream. It was perfect on the cupcakes! Here are some photos and the recipe...

PS:
I own a piece of the web now!

Ingredients Topped with Heath toffee bits before baking!

Cooling......

World, meet the Banoffee Cupcake!

After Josh and I shared a bite... See the caramel inside? Yum!

Recipe from Cupcake Heaven by Susannah Blake.

MY NOTES: I used the little Kraft chewey caramels you get for dipping apples. I chopped 5 of them really small and tossed them in with the flour to prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the cupcake. I only got 8 cupcakes. Mine were done at 14 minutes.

BANOFFEE CUPCAKES
Makes 10 (I got 8)

Ingredients
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 ripe banana, mashed
1 cup self-rising flour
4 chewy caramels, chopped

To decorate
2/3 cup heavy cream, whipped
3-4 tablespoons dulce de leche or caramel sauce
1 banana, sliced

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Beat the butter and sugar together in a bowl until creamy, then beat in the egg, a little at a time. Fold in the mashed banana, then sift the flour into the mixture and fold in, followed by the caramels (I tossed the caramels in the flour first).
Spoon the mixture into the paper liners and bake in the preheated oven for about 16 minutes (Mine were done after 14 minutes) until risen and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
To decorate, swirl the cream over each of the cupcakes, then drizzle with a spoonful of dulce de leche or caramel sauce (I beat the caramel right in with the whipped cream) and top with slices of banana. (The bananas will turn brown quickly. Either toss them in lemon juice first or wait until you're ready to serve them.)

Note: Dulce de leche is a sweet caramel sauce from Argentina and it is available from larger supermarkets. If you can't find it, you can make it yourself. Put a sealed can of condensed milk in a saucepan, pour over boiling water to cover, and boil for 3 hours, adding more water as necessary so that the can is always covered. (CAUTION: This method is very dangerous because the can could explode. Watch it carefully!) Remove from the pan and let cool completely before opening using a can opener. Stir well to make a smooth sauce before spooning over the cakes.

Overall rating on a scale of 1-5
Moistness: 5
Tenderness: 5
Frosting: 5