Dessarts

An Almond Joy Birthday Cake

February 17, 2012 · 0 comments

This is a continuation post of the Almond Joy inspired treats. The brownies were just a side treat but here’s what I did for S’s birthday cake. It’s the richest, softest vanilla cake I’ve ever made. It’s four layers of cake with coconut almond filling, coconut fudge filling, and topped with ganache.

I happened to have a can of Coco Lopez which is basically cream of coconut. I thought if I incorporated it into the cake I would get a really strong coconut flavor. So I ended up finding this recipe from here and using it for my cake. It turned out the cream of coconut did not flavor it much but i think  it made the cake really really soft. The recipe also calls for mixing in egg whites separately which always makes cakes fluffier too. It was not exactly what I was going for but it was one good tasting cake.

For the fillings, I made two. Unfortunately, somewhere between making the cake and writing this post, I misplaced the paper on which I had written ingredient amounts. Oopsies! I know this might not be what you were looking for but it is only missing the amount of coconut and almonds so you can always just adjust to your liking.

Recipe
1 cake recipe found here
Sliced almonds

Coconut Almond Filling
1 cup heavy cream
3 Tbs confectioner’s sugar
shredded sweetened coconut (add the amount to your liking)

Whip the cream and sugar  to medium to stiff peaks. Fold in the shredded coconut.  Set aside.

Fudge  Filling
1 1/2 Tbs unsalted butter
3 ounces of semi sweet baking chocolate
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar

Melt the butter and the chocolate together. Let it cool slightly and stir in the milk and vanilla. Stir in the confectioner’s sugar. Set aside.

Slice the two cake rounds into half for a total of four layers. Layer half the coconut filling over the first layer and sprinkle with sliced almonds. Top it with next cake layer and spread the chocolate filling over it, sprinkling more almonds over it. Repeat the first layer for the third layer and top it with last layer of cake.

Ganache Topping
100 ml heavy cream
100 g chocolate, chopped or use chips

Heat the cream to a boil and pour it over the chopped chocolate. Slowly stir with a whisk until it comes together and pour it over the center of the cake. Make sure the cake is on something that will catch the drips!. Let the cake set and add sprinkles if you like.

This is not the best photo in the world but I do not always like to spoil special moments by trying to get the best shot or save occasion cakes for blog photos. This will give you some idea of what the inside looks like…

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Almond Joy Brownies

February 15, 2012 · 2 comments

As promised in my last post, I’ve brought to you a candy bar inspired recipe. Last week, was S’s birthday, so I started off with his favorite candy bar, Almond Joy, as inspiration. So the first recipe is for these lovely brownies. I was worried at first that the chocolate over powered the coconut flavor but it turned out to be a nice balance. S certainly enjoyed them but he preferred to add additional almonds as he ate them. I guess “sometimes you feel a little like a nut” but sometime you feel even more like a nut. Me? Well, you know I’m all about presentation. I like the look of the brownies when each square is topped with just one almond.  I thought about chopping the almonds and spreading them evenly over the coconut or using sliced almonds instead but that just seemed less like the candy bar. Maybe next time though! (These are not exactly perfect. See my presentation note at the end.) Anyways, here you go Almond Joy fans…

Recipe (makes about 40 two inch squares)

For the brownies
2 cups of semi sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
1 cup unsalted butter
5 eggs
2 ¼ cup sugar
1 cup all purpose flour, sifted
¼ cup cocoa powder, sifted

Butter and line a 12 x 17 inch pan with parchment paper and preheat oven to 350ºF. Heat the chocolate and butter in a double boiler until the butter is just melted. Mix the eggs and sugar until light and fluffy. Pour the chocolate and butter mixture into the egg mixture. Add the sifted flour and cocoa. Mix to just combine. Spread the batter in the pan. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Let it cool in the pan.

For the coconut topping
1 1/2 Tbs butter
3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
1 cup sugar
1 cup milk plus possibly more

In a bowl, mix the milk and coconut. Melt the butter in a skillet and mix in the coconut. Add the sugar.  Stir over medium heat until the sugar has melted and mixture has thickened. Depending on how dry your coconut is to begin with, you may need to add more milk a little at a time. Spread the mixture over the brownies and let it cool.

*For the garnish
1/4 cup chocolate chips, melted
30-50 whole almonds

Top with almonds. (I did one per square). Drizzle the melted chocolate. After the chocolate sets, cut into squares.

*Presentation: You may want to completely cool your tray and let it chill in the refrigerator. Then cut it into squares before garnishing. Chilling makes the cuts cleaner for better presentation and the chocolate drizzle won’t break up while cutting the way mine did.

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