Nutmeg and Easy-Peasy Make Each Week Cake

Nutmeg! I'd never been a fan of its powdered form, believing it overpowering and useful only in fall-based dishes, a la pumpkin pie. But then I splurged a hard earned six dollars on a nutmeg grinder, and trust me, it is a worthy splurge. Rather than overpowering the dish, it just adds a background of warmth.

Nutmeg is a spice native to Indonesia, and one of the spices along the famous Silk Road. It was one of the many that drove 15th century explorers to seek new routes, trying to find a way around Africa in order to reach the exotic goods of Asia. Today, of course, nutmeg is much easier to obtain, with the Caribbean or your local Whole Foods being an excellent source. According to On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, the chemical components of nutmeg create fresh, pine, citrus, floral, woody, and warm notes. As noted above, it is a necessary component of pumpkin pie, as well as eggnog, Béchamel sauce, and spiced cider. It's handy added to pie crust, mashed potatoes, baked butternut squash and chocolate chip cookies. And it's downright delicious in this cake, which is a danger to me because I believe the wheat flour makes it healthy and therefore ok as a breakfast option.

I took this one from Molly, who borrowed from Edna Lewis.

1 stick (4 oz.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cup white whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. salt
A few generous gratings of nutmeg, or to taste
½ cup whole milk at room temperature

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Grease a 9-inch springform pan with butter

In the bowl of a stand mixer, blend the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. One by one, add the eggs, beating well after each addition. Add the vanilla extract, and beat to blend.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg.

Add about ¼ of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, and beat on low speed to incorporate. Add 1/3 of the milk or yogurt, and beat again. Add the remaining flour mixture in three more doses, alternating each time with a bit of milk or yogurt, and beating to just combine. Using a rubber spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl and stir to incorporate any flour not yet absorbed.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, spreading it evenly across the top. Bake for about 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. (This cake seems to want to brown quickly on top, so after about 20 minutes, you might want to peek into the oven and tent the cake with aluminum foil, if necessary.) Cool in the pan on a rack for 20 minutes; then remove the sides of the pan and continue to cool.

Serve at room temperature. Or slightly warm, if you want. Me, I can't wait for room temperature.

Bread and (Potato) Water

Well, my dearies, turns out that my unemployment may be something of a bonus for y'all, as it allows me time for fun experiments. Experiments that include finding the best basic bread recipe.

And then passing it on to you!

First I tried Nigella's basic white loaf. It's possible I overkneaded, or did something strange, because this bread was way too dense--and I like a chewy bread. Then I made Royalcurve's basic bread recipe, but used half-wheat, half-white flours (mostly because those were what I had on hand). It was fine, of course, as everything from this lovely lady is dandy, but it was wonderful. Perhaps that's why she normally adds some cheesy deliciousness to this loaf.

But then I opened up Nigella's let's-set-the-feminists-back-a-few-years masterpiece, How To Be a Domestic Goddess. Turns out there's a secret to delicious, non-stale white bread: potato water. Yes. Use the water in which you've boiled potatoes, or likely even just the water peeled potatoes have been resting in.

Let's bake!

Essential White Loaf (Nigella Lawson)
3 1/2 cups white bread flour (I only had all-purpose, alas)
1 package or 1/4 ounce rapid-rise yeast
1 tbsp salt
~1 1/3 cups warm potato water
1 tbsp softened unsalted butter
loaf pan or baking sheet

Add flour, yeast and salt (perhaps a little less salt if you used the potato water, but I like salty) to a bowl, and add about 3/4 cup of the water. Mix with hands or, if you're not wanting to be messy, a non-metal spoon. You want the mix to be a loosly bound, shaggy mess, but you may have to add more water.

Either turn out the dough and start kneading, or fit the dough into your gorgeous KitchenAid and stick the dough hook in on 2 for 5-10 minutes. When your dough feels smoother and less sticky, you're ready. Add it to a oiled or buttered bowl, turning it over once so it's all greased. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place for an hour or two. Or, if you live in this particular house, get frustrated, warm up the oven, turn it off and stick the bowl in the oven.

When the dough has doubled in size, take it out and punch it down. This is a great way to get out some aggression, especially if you've been told recently that you're overqualified for jobs. Then knead it for barely a moment before either shaping into a round loaf or fitting it into the loaf pan. Cover again and leave until it has almost doubled in size.

While the dough is rising for the second time, preheat the oven to 425. I like having a hot oven as it makes for a nice crispy crunch. When your dough is ready, sprinkle it with flour for a rustic little touch and then pop it in. Bake about 35 minutes. The bread is ready when you lift it out of its pan, rap its bottom and hear a nice hollow sound.

Remove it to a rack and cool. If you can. Our house had smelled of bread for hours, so I let it cool all of 30 seconds before eating the end.