Sample Recipes
from Perfect Cakes
by Nick Malgieri, 2002
Blueberry Crumb Cake
High-Ratio Fresh Ginger Pound
Cake with Lemon Glaze
Perfect Chocolate Cake
Blueberry Crumb Cake
Cake Batter
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 large egg yolks
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 cups blueberries, rinsed, picked over, and dried
Crumb Topping
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
One 9x13x2-inch baking pan, lined with buttered foil
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.
Stir together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl, mixing well.
In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, beat the butter and sugar with the paddle attachment on medium speed for about 5 minutes, or until soft and light. One at a time, beat in the egg yolks and then the eggs, beating until smooth after each addition. Beat in vanilla.
Decrease the mixer speed to low. Add half the flour mixture, then scrape down the bowl and beater with a rubber spatula. Add the yolks and mix well. Finally, add the remaining flour mixture.
Use a large rubber spatula to give a final stir to the batter, then scrape it into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Scatter the blueberries evenly over the batter (don't press them in).
To make the crumb topping, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and rub to coarse crumbs with your fingers. Scatter the crumbs as evenly as possible over the berries.
High-Ratio Fresh Ginger Pound Cake with Lemon Glaze
Batter2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 pound unsalted butter, softened
4 large eggs
3 egg yolks
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup grated fresh ginger*
1 tablespoon finely grated lemon zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Lemon Glaze
3 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons strained lemon juice
3 tablespoons white rum or water
One 12-cup Bundt or tube pan, buttered and floured
Set a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 325 degrees.
Place flour, sugar, flour, baking powder and salt in heavy-duty mixer fitted with
paddle attachment and add the butter. Beat on
lowest speed for about 2 minutes, or until the ingredients are well combined.
Meanwhile, combine all the remaining batter ingredients in a mixing bowl.
Increase the mixer speed to medium and add one-third of the liquid
ingredients. Mix for 2 minutes, then stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl and
beater. Add another third of the liquid, beat for 2 minutes, and scrape again.
Finally, add the remaining liquid and beat and scrape again. Finally, add the
remaining liquid and beat and scrape as before.
Use a large rubber spatula to give the batter a final vigorous stir, then scrape
it into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Bake for about 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted into the cake halfway between the side of the pan and the central tube emerges clean.
Cool the cake in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes, then invert onto the rack to finish cooling.
To make the glaze, stir the sugar, lemon juice and rum together in a medium saucepan until smooth, then heat over very low heat, just until lukewarm. Drizzle over cake with a spoon or a paper cone.
*To get 1/3 cup of grated ginger, you'll need to start with about 3 ounces fresh ginger. Peel the ginger and grate it on a grater with 1/4 inch oval holes-if you try to grate it on a finer grater, you'll only get juice. You can also chop the ginger very fine with an extremely sharp stainless steel knife, or coarsely chop it and then whirl it in the food processor to mince it.
1
1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup alkalized (Dutch-process) cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 pound unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 cups sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
One 8-ounce container sour cream
Confectioners' sugar for finishing
One 9x13x2-inch baking pan, buttered and the bottom lined with parchment or buttered parchment
Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.
In a bowl, stir together the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda. Sift the ingredients onto a piece of parchment or wax paper and set aside.
In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating until smooth after each addition. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in half the dry ingredients. Scrape down the bowl and beater well. Beat in the sour cream, scrape again, and then beat in the remainder of the dry ingredients.
Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until well risen and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake emerges clean.
Cool the cake in the pan on a rack and remove the paper. Invert the cake onto a rack again to finish cooling right side up.
Just before serving, sift a light dusting of confectioners' sugar over the cake.
