Spiced Applesauce Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

This is not the recipe you are supposed to be seeing right now. You are supposed to be seeing a delicious sesame-ginger salmon recipe, however while I was cooking it under the broiler, it burst into flames, and 5 firemen had to remove it from the oven while I hyperventilated. Yup, that happened. I shouldn't be allowed to have a cooking blog. I should also invest in a fire extinguisher.

It smelled really good until it caught on fire, so I will definitely be tackling the recipe again sometime soon. I will not be cooking it under the broiler though...when you guys see the recipe, it will have instructions for baking it.

I planned to save this recipe until the official first day of fall, however due to The Great Salmon Fire of 2012, you're getting it now!

I'm so excited about this recipe. It is incredibly simple to throw together, full of fall spices, and super moist. I've had it on my to-make list for almost 3 years, and someone should give me a good slap for taking this long to try it.

Please don't make the same mistake that I did, and wait years to make this. Put it on your fall baking list! Fall is almost here you guys! 26 more days! Woohooooo! So many exclamation points!!!

For the cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups unsweetened applesauce

For the frosting:

5 ounces cream cheese, softened
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
Finely chopped walnuts, for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and set oven rack in the middle.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. In a large bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar, and vanilla extract with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the applesauce. Lastly, beat in the dry ingredients on low speed until just combined. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.

Grease an 8 or 9 inch square metal cake pan with butter. Evenly pour batter into the prepared pan. Bake in preheated oven for 40-45 minutes, until golden brown, and a wooden pick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan for 15 minutes. Run a knife around the edge to loosen, and invert onto a cooling rack to cool completely.

To make the frosting, beat together cream cheese, butter, and vanilla extract until light and fluffy. Sift the confectioners sugar and cinnamon over the cream cheese mixture, and beat to thoroughly combine. Frost cooled cake, sprinkle with walnuts, and enjoy!

This cake is best the same day you make it. If you don't want to eat a whole cake yourself in one day, cover it tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate. Let it sit on the counter for an hour before serving to take the chill off. 

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Adapted from Gourmet

Baked Goat Cheese and Cherry Salad with Lemon-Tarragon Dressing

This salad was supposed to be healthy. On Monday night, I went out to dinner at Guapo's, where I consumed nearly an entire basket of chips, 3 steak tacos, and one beer that did not have "light" in its name. Then, when I got home, I drank an inexcusable amount of wine while simultaneously stuffing my face with ice cream. My sister is no longer allowed to visit. Whenever she's in town, I eat (and drink) like I'm on vacation.

Anyway, I wanted to have a big salad as a penance for my taco binge. I guess I forgot while buying ingredients that goat cheese is not exactly a healthy food. Especially goat cheese that has been coated in bread crumbs and baked until it is hot and melty. I fear that I'll never be able to have a salad without these goat cheese rounds again. I'm already envisioning a fall version of this salad with baked goat cheese, candied pecans, and pears. Drool. Fall needs to get here, pronto.

One last thing! The lovely people at OXO sent me their awesome Good Grips Cherry Pitterthat I used for this recipe! It has a splatter shield so that you can pit cherries without making your kitchen look like a murder scene. It's quite handy, and if you're in the market for a cherry pitter I highly recommend it! I've been wanting to make a cherry pie all summer and haven't gotten around to it, but this tool will be immensely useful when I finally make one...pitting 90 million cherries for a pie using a knife sounds like straight-up torture. Thanks a bunch OXO!

For the dressing:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons finely minced red onion
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh tarragon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon finely grated lemon peel

For the baked goat cheese:

1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water
Breadcrumbs, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 11-ounce log goat cheese, frozen for 20-25 minutes

For the salad:

1 cup cherries, pitted and halved
Mixed baby greens (the dressing makes enough to dress 2-3 starter-sized salads, so eyeball the appropriate amount of lettuce)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small bowl, whisk together the dressing ingredients, season with salt and pepper, and set aside.

Pour breadcrumbs onto a shallow plate. Slice the log of goat cheese crosswise into 6 equal pieces. Dip each piece of goat cheese into the egg mixture, and then into the breadcrumb mixture, pressing the crumbs into the goat cheese to form a crust. Place goat cheese rounds on a parchment lined baking sheet, and spray tops of goat cheese lightly with non-stick cooking spray. Bake for 10 minutes.

While the goat cheese is baking, dress the salad, and top with halved cherries. Serve immediately with the warm goat cheese.

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Adapted from Bon Appetit 

Disclosure: I received a cherry pitter from OXO free of charge, but was not monetarily compensated for mentioning it. All opinions, as always, are my own! This post contains affiliate links.

Roasted Cherry Tomato and Garlic Pasta

I have been wanting to join a CSA forever-ever, but have been extremely hesitant to commit to one. They're a lot of money, a lot of food, and there's only one of me. However, every time I go to the grocery store I get peeved when I attempt to purchase an in-season piece of fruit and see that it's been flown in from halfway across the country, or even worse, from another country all together. I live in Virginia, and there are plenty of fruits and vegetables that can be grown a reasonable distance from here.

Needless to say, I was super excited when I discovered Washington's Green Grocer. They're a local produce delivery service that allows you to sign-up for on-demand boxes of local fruits and veggies - meaning, I don't need to pay for a whole season ahead of time. Helloooo, perfect solution for this CSA commitment-phobe!

I got my first box on Friday. This photo that I snapped doesn't even begin to show the quantity of goodies they sent me. There are zucchinis, more potatoes, and a bunch of nectarines and plums hiding under that bunch of lettuce! The only thing in the box from far away were the bananas. Now, I'm no botanist, but I'm pretty sure that bananas don't grown in Virginia. South American bananas are totally fine with me!

I decided to make a pasta dish with the cherry tomatoes they sent me, and whipped up this easy and healthy dish.

I think that Washington Green Grocer delivers to DC, Maryland, Virginia, and Delaware. I know that the majority of you guys don't live in those states, but hopefully you can find something similar. This was my first box from them so it might be premature to give them a glowing review, but so far I'm quite impressed! Now to come up with a recipe for the giant bag of green beans...

Here's what you'll need for a meal for one:

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
4-5 large garlic cloves, halved
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/4 cup cooked pasta
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. In a small baking dish, combine tomatoes, garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes, and salt. Roast uncovered in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes, stirring once halfway through. When the tomatoes are done, remove the halved garlic cloves and roughly chop them. Add back into the tomato mixture, and serve over pasta with Parmesan cheese.

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