Chocolate Milk Poke Cake

I don't like the term "poke cake" because quite frankly, it sounds kind of dirty. Like, I feel like I should be blushing when I talk about them. But I love, love, love eating them. Because poke cakes aren't anything dirty at all: they're simply cakes which have been poked with a skewer of some sort so that they can be more receptive to delicious soaking liquids (tres leches cake would be a famous poke cake, btw. So would Better than Sex Cake).

And I have to say: this poke cake is spectacular. It starts with a cake mix, but it's fancied up right quick by using melted butter and milk instead of the water and oil called for on the package, and then once baked, it's poked and soaked (see? dirty-sounding!) with an absolutely dazzling chocolate and sweetened condensed milk mixture. Even served just like that, this cake could make you cry with joy.

But save the tears, because there's still frosting! I used seven minute frosting, but you can use whatever type of buttercream or topping you'd prefer.

It's a joy to dig into this cake, because it has all the joy of a yellow cake but the moisture and decadence of a gooey chocolate dessert. 

I'll leave it at this: it's a great cake. And anyone you make it for should consider themselves very lucky! 

Chocolate milk poke cake

Printable version here

Makes one, two-layer, 8-inch cake

For the cake

• 1 box cake mix (I used Pillsbury yellow cake)
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 3 eggs 
• 3/4 cup milk
• pinch salt

For the topping

• 4 ounces dark chocolate
• 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk 
• Pinch salt 

To top it all off

• 1 batch seven minute frosting (recipe here) or buttercream of your choice

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease two 8-inch cake pans. I greased mine with some Bertolli spray because it had recently been sent to me and I thought it would be nice to say thanks. They didn't pay me to say that. 

2. Combine all of the cake ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer. Blend on medium speed until smooth and lump-free.

3. Divide into the two cake pans, and bake for 30 minutes or until golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.

4. Remove from the oven, and after a few minutes, invert on to a wire rack set above a baking pan (to catch drips in the next step). 

5. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the sweetened condensed milk and chocolate, stirring frequently, until the chocolate has melted. Remove from heat and stir in the salt. You can also do this while the cake bakes (that's what I did). 

6. Poke the cake all over at 1 inch intervals using a chopstick--but don't go all the way to the bottom.
7. Pour the chocolate mixture gently on top. If you're careful you shouldn't have too much loss of chocolate goo. Because it is tasty, and you want it in your mouth, not on the bottom of a pan. 
 

See how interesting they look?

Let the cakes set for a while. Meantime, make some frosting. I used seven minute frosting but you can use whatever kind you like.

Frost the top of one of the layers, stack the second, and frost the sides and top. Enjoy! 

Have you ever tried a poke cake?

Grandma's Killer Chocolate Cake from Author James Patterson

Here's a riddle: what kind of cakes do mystery writers like?

Happily, the new book The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook: Wickedly Good Meals and Desserts to Die For is ready and willing to answer this question in the most delicious way. It is a collection of recipes culled from famous mystery writers, and it makes for mighty sweet eating. 

When choosing an excerpt recipe to feature here, my eye was drawn right away to "Grandma’s Killer Chocolate Cake: via mystery writer James Patterson. I hope you'll enjoy!

Grandma's Killer Chocolate Cake

Recipe headnote:

Here’s one “killer” Alex Cross always loves to catch—Grandma’s Killer Cake! A special family recipe dating from the 1940s, this decadent cake seems to get better with age; it is tastier on day two. And you need to be a good detective around the house after it has been made, sitting there in its glass­domed cake stand, staring back at you with deadly temptation, because a piece seems to mysteriously disappear every time I go into the kitchen. Not to be caught red­handed, so looms the “Killer Cake Killer”!

YIELD: 1 SINGLE­ LAYER 9x12 INCH CAKE OR 1 DOUBLE LAYER 9­ INCH CAKE

CAKE

• 2∕3 cup butter
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 cups flour
• 11∕3 cups buttermilk
• 11∕3 teaspoons baking soda dissolved in 2 ∕ 5 cup hot water 31∕2 squares bitter chocolate, melted gently
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

FROSTING

• 1∕2 cup butter
• 3 squares bitter chocolate
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2∕3 cup milk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Cream butter and sugar together. Add eggs.

2. Blend in flour and buttermilk in alternating additions, starting and ending with the flour. Add baking soda mixture, followed by chocolate and vanilla extract.

3. Pour batter into one 9­by­12­inch pan or two round 9­inch springform pans. Bake for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool.

4. Combine all frosting ingredients in a saucepan, bring to a full boil, and boil for 2 minutes. Let cool. You can put saucepan on ice if necessary to cool quickly.

5. Remove the cake from the pan, frost, and serve.

About the author: James Patterson has sold 300 million books worldwide, including the Alex Cross, Michael Bennett, Women’s Murder Club, Maximum Ride, and Middle School series. He supports getting kids reading through scholarship, Book Bucks programs, book donations, and his website, readkiddoread.com. He lives in Palm Beach with his wife, Sue, and his son, Jack.

Excerpted from The Mystery Writers of America Cookbook: Wickedly Good Meals and Desserts to Die For edited by Kate White. Reprinted with permission from Quirk Books. 

A Sweet Visit to Florence, Colorado

Last week, I went to Florence, Colorado. In case you are unfamiliar, this is a weird but wonderful little pioneer town in Southern Colorado. It's home to a bevy of antique shops, plenty of unique architecture, and...the penitentiary. Not kidding.

It makes for an interesting town. And happily, I had some time to explore it. Let me tell you what I found there:

Before I go into food, let me tell you that there is an enterprising artist in Florence who carves tree stumps into elaborate works of art. Here I am next to one of them.

The first culinary stop was Two Sisters, which is an establishment which seems like it's of a bygone era, or at least a David Lynch movie. We got some very hearty beef strogranoff, which was the special of the day. To our amazement, when dessert came (included with dinner)...it was cinnamon rolls. Cinnamon rolls at night? Don't mind if I do.

I was surprised to see that Two Sisters had mixed reviews on Yelp. It's certainly not the place to go if you're into organic food, or even vegetarian food. But as a special occasion trip to the Colorado frontier, I thought it was full of charm and homestyle goodness.

The next morning, we went to a place called the Rose Bud Cafe. Everything you ordered arrived covered in gravy. It was that type of place. They did have cinnamon rolls, but we didn't partake. But it did get me thinking: perhaps gravy and cinnamon rolls were the official foods of the town. 

Photo: Rose Bud Cafe Yelp page

After breakfast we went to the local bakery, Aspen Leaf, and picked up a variety of treats, including pecan brownies, bread pudding, and bear claws. Oh, and yes: they had cinnamon rolls.

We went to the local coffee shop, The Pour House, and got coffee. And a doughnut, made in nearby Cañon City. Why not? 

We walked by this place and were intrigued, but it was not open.

That day, we went to the Pikes Peak cog railway.

Here we are from very high altitude!

For dinner, we went to my cousin Jason's house. Seriously, dudes, he built a house. They have chicks. Baby chicks. So cute! 

I made the three ingredient chocolate cake from this very blog for dessert and we ate it before it even cooled. Classy!

The next morning, we went back to Two Sisters for breakfast, since it was Easter and it was the only thing open. Cinnamon roll? Oh, too full. 

Luckily, a couple of the antique stores were open on Easter, so we toured them and I got THIS treasure:

I probably should have bought this, but I didn't. If you are going to Florence anytime soon, it's all yours.

We got home feeling tired and full. Overalll, it was a great and sweet trip!

Places Mentioned: 

Two Sisters

Rose Bud Cafe

Aspen Leaf

The Pour House

Pikes Peak

Yoberri, Santa Fe: Where I Ate Frozen Yogurt and Didn't Hate It

News flash: I ate frozen yogurt and I didn't hate it.

If you read this site, you know that I have strong feelings about frozen yogurt. It's not ice cream. It never will be. Keep it off my dessert plate, please. 

But as part of an ice cream and frozen treat expedition for an article I was writing for New Mexico magazine, I found myself duty-bound to sample the frozen yogurt at local Santa Fe mini-chain Yoberri. And I didn't hate it.

What is so special about this particular variety of fro-yo?

Perhaps it's the fact that it's made in-house, with quality ingredients. Perhaps it's because they make it with care and precision, and it has a smooth, non-grainy texture.

Or maybe it's the toppings, which include homemade maple fudge sauce, chocolate chili sauce, and more. And fruit, if you're into that (I AM NOT). 

Whatever it was, I found this frozen yogurt downright enjoyable. I got the "classic tart" vanilla, and topped it with aforementioned maple fudge sauce and (natch) rainbow sprinkles. And I ate every bite. 

Don't get me wrong, my personal preference is still for ice cream; I'm of the "gimme the cream!" sort of mentality that I'm sure other ice cream aficionados will appreciate. But as frozen yogurt goes, this is some of the best I have tasted, and I would eat it again. 

There, I said it. I enjoyed eating frozen yogurt. 

Yoberri, two locations in Santa Fe; online here. 

Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links

Battenberg cake! Make it now. (CakeSpy for Serious Eats)

Marble halvah recipe. I'm gonna try it! (Joy of Kosher)

I've been nominated to go back to Bali to teach. Vote for me? (Vote here)

My best friends, Ben and Jerry, have a sweet new product. Worth your time (Brr-rito)

Speaking of my bffs Ben and Jerry, did you see the cute cartoon I made to document my visit? (CakeSpy)

Easy pancake rolls, three ways. Don't you love the post already? (Crazy for Crust)

How to maintain a healthy relationship with sugar. By my friend Pam! (Peaceful Dumpling)

What was Abraham Lincoln's last meal? (History.com)

That led me to wonder: what about other famous people's last meals? (Mental Floss)

My kind of museum show: an exhibit on New Jersey diners. (GMnews.com)

Good eggs: the many purposes of eggs in baking (Craftsy)

Muscovado chocolate chip cookies. Get a little fancy, why don't you. (Love and Olive Oil)

In praise of doodling. (CakeSpy for Craftsy)

Carrot cake pop-tarts. (The Emotional Baker)

Matcha chantilly cakes. SO elegant. (Sprinkle Bakes)

Shortbread cookie truffles. Awesome. (CakeSpy)

Book of the week: 

Will It Waffle?: 53 Irresistible and Unexpected Recipes to Make in a Waffle Iron. Seriously. A dude puts every type of food in a waffle maker with one question above all others as motivation: will it waffle? You'd be surprised how often the answer is yes. 

Big note:

be sure to listen to me live on Sunday! Here are the deets:

Yogacorns: Yoga Types

Not cake. Still sweet. 

Intoxicating: Tipsy Cakes Class on Craftsy

I want to tell you about my friend Krystina Castella's new class, Tipsy Cakes, on Craftsy. Actually, I'll let her tell you about it. Seriously--it's such a fun class! Booze and cake, what could be wrong? Read on to learn more, directly from Krystina:

Are you a fan of creating cake flavors that have a boozy touch?

I just launched a new class Tipsy Cakes for Craftsy.com (note: you can check out the class trailer here!). The class paired with my and Terry Lee Stone’s Booze Cakes book (Quirk Books) is now the most comprehensive assemblage of technique and tested recipes on baking with alcohol out there.

I had been noticing ads for craftsy.com popping up in my browser over the past several months due to my 3­year­old sons obsession with watching sewing videos. So when a food anthropologist friend of mine who currently works for the company called me and said they have launched into cakes and asked me to develop a course based on the Booze Cake book for them I jumped at the chance. I was excited to have the opportunity to give Booze Cakes book fans more and something different. So what I decided to focus on is adding the collection of already creative and tasty recipes in the book with a behind the scenes focus on technique.

Why is baking with alcohol so much fun?

There are so many uncommon and interesting flavors that you can’t get with the typical vanilla and chocolate flavorings. When I started baking with alcohol it opened up a whole new world of ingredients and flavor profiles to experiment with and a whole set of recipes.

I worked out the curriculum and tested new recipes for months to get the techniques down. In the dead of winter I left the 87­degree temperature of Los Angeles for a week of the beautiful snowy streets of downtown Denver. The space where we baked and shot the class was great old cooking school. The support team from Craftsy that I was provided for the class was top notch.

Although I have written 8 cookbooks (7 on baking) and have worked as a professor teaching in front of people for over 20 years, shooting an on­line cooking class was something new for me. When on a photo shoot for a cookbook I am the producer­ the behind the scenes person and the food is in front of the camera­ not me­ and I was a bit nervous. Although after a day of practicing my jitters faded away and I got the hang of it and loved every minute of it.

My goals in Tipsy Cakes is to:

• Take the mystery out of baking with alcohol, even for a beginning baker.
• Teach how to incorporate almost any alcohol into cakes.
• Show students how much flavor can be added with alcohol and discover what flavor profiles are the best with different alcohol types.
• Offer base recipes with endless variation possibilities so students can adapt their own recipes to include their favorite booze.

In order to help student create their own recipes I created a flavor profile chart for the class. On it I mention suggestions of flavors to try out for your own recipes.

Pairing alcohol with cake: some basics

• The first place to start is to look at popular cocktails. The White Russian Cake I developed for the class is made with similar ingredients as a White Russian drink: vodka, cream and coffee liqueur.
• Alcohols paired in cocktails also make great inspiration for cakes. For instance, the B­52 drink is made with Coffee liqueur, Irish cream and Triple sec; you might try to make a B­52 cake with coffee liqueur cake with Irish Cream Buttercream and a Triple Sec Soak.
• One good rule of thumb when thinking about how to pair alcohols with both sweet and savory flavors is to think about what you like to eat with a favorite alcohol.
• Do you like to snack on cheddar cheese or eat other salty flavors such as salted nuts when you drink beer? Adding them to a beer cake will also taste good.
• Another place to look for inspiration are the flavor overtones in the alcohol. For example white wine have citrus, apple, plum and mango, hazelnut overtones. Therefor orange, lemon, apple, plum and mango cakes will taste great with white wine added. 

Other things you'll learn in the class

The course consists of 7 classes, each focusing on what to consider when baking, soaking or adding to frostings and making garnishes. In each class students learn how to get the most flavor in their cake from specific classifications of alcohol.

In the Rum Lesson students learn how to make a soak.

In the Fruit and Nut Liqueurs Lesson students learn to add sweetened fruit­ and nut­flavored liqueurs into fillings and frostings. In the Coffee and Cream Liqueurs lesson students learn how to retain alcohol in baking while still giving the cake enough time to bake through.

In the Hard Alcohol lesson students learn to exercise moderation, and incorporate small amounts of hard liquor to create surprisingly subtle flavors.

In the Beer Lesson I discuss different types of craft beer and explore some exciting flavor combinations that work with each.

 In the Wine Lesson students learn the benefits of reduction and how to create powerful and complex flavors.

Finally in Cocktail Cakes, the most fun lesson, I pull together the techniques demonstrated throughout the class and show a collection of cakes based on favorite mixed drinks.

Along the way students learn about flambé sauces, how to make a poke cake, an ice cream cake, and edible cocktail garnishes including chocolate and strawberry shot glasses. Also on craftsy.com you can ask me any questions you have about baking with booze and post your creations. I hope to hear from and see what you make there – Happy baking and good eating.

Special for CakeSpy readers: get 50% off the class here! 

Note: if you think Krystina is cool (she is!), you can follow her (and the class) on Facebook.

My Delicious Adventure with Ben & Jerry's

So, I recently went to Vermont. As a guest of Ben and Jerry. You might know them from the ice cream in your supermarket. Let me guide you through the experience in PICTURES. 

My Ben & Jerry's Adventure in Vermont

Vermont! I didn't know who else would be there for the event, and I was a little nervous. But I felt a bit better after I found an awesome goodie back including all sorts of made-in-Vermont treats and a fleece jacket emblazoned with the Ben & Jerry's logo in just my size, and after I had turned on Law and Order, of course.

The next morning, I took a yoga class at a nearby studio before the Ben & Jerry's events started. Om nom namaste!

Afterward, I returned to the hotel, got ready and headed down to the lobby, where I found who else but BAKERELLA! I did kind of tackle her. That part is factual.

We all went to the Penny Cluse Cafe, which used to be one of the first Ben & Jerry's scoop shop locations. Perhaps most importantly: we ate in the room where chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream was invented.

We headed to the corporate offices of Ben & Jerry's, where we split into teams. Mine included Bakerella (my darling!) and Nick from On Second Scoop. We got to invent an ice cream flavor with a flavor specialist who looked just like Alan Arkin. You can't really see it in ice cream form, but trust me on this one.

We got to see the faux scoop shop in their HQ where they train franchisees. We also got to eat ice cream.

After our flavor adventure, we had a nice dinner out. Most importantly of ALL: it was on this fateful evening that I was exposed to some cultural phenomena I had not been previously: first, the term "lumbersexual"; second, the term "throwing shade". I now strive to use these terms in at least every other sentence.

The next morning, we got to visit one of Ben & Jerry's dairies. As long as you have absolutely no follow up questions, this is exactly what it was like.

After that, we got to go to their factory and see the ice cream made. For no particular reason, men wearing nets in over their hair hack ice cream for a job there!

Oh, I'm kidding. They slice the pints at random to make sure the fillings are evenly distributed. It does look like a Damien hirst ice cream art installation when they do it, though. 

Since we were in Vermont, it was the law that we go snowshoeing. Since we were at Ben & Jerry's, our journey ended at the Flavor Graveyard, where they pay homage to flavors no longer in circulation.

WE GOT TO MEET BEN. As in, Ben & Jerry's. He was a really nice guy and he gave us each a stamp so that we could stamp dollar bills with political statements. I'm not kidding.

When it was time to go, I didn't want to leave.

But I did. I missed Porkchop and my sweetie too much to stay in Vermont, so I took a plane back home.

The End. 

CakeSpy Undercover: Cloud 9 Creamery, Sante Fe

I get excited about ice cream. And I know, especially in the safe place of this website, I am not alone.

So when I was hired to write an article about ice cream for New Mexico magazine, I was super excited about the part of the article where I would be writing about the ice cream establishments of the state. Being a very hands-on person, I took it upon myself to try as many in person as I could.

One establishment that impressed me in particular? Cloud 9 Creamery.

Talking to someone in yoga class about how I was going there after class (I really like to brag), another student chimed in and implied that I was in for a real treat. 

Dramatization:

So what makes Cloud 9 so special? Let me give you the 411. 

Cloud 9 Creamery shares retail space with another purveyor of tasty sweets, Cocopelli, in a large strip mall near the movie theatre.

When they first started, Cloud 9 Creamery was making ice cream in single servings using liquid nitrogen to make the ice cream. I don't know how it works exactly, but I know that when I tried the ice cream at Smitten in San Francisco, it amounted to pricey ice cream that took a long time to make. It was very, very smooth and creamy, yes. I was very glad I'd gone. But it took a long time to make, and I was hungry. I still remember that part.

Apparently, this was the reaction at Cloud 9, so they switched to more traditional methods of making ice cream--and gelato and sorbet, too. 

Well, I don't have the benefit of being able to compare the different methods side by side, but what I tasted at Cloud 9 Creamery seriously knocked my socks off.

Made in fairly small batches, owner Nicole uses local ingredients whenever possible, and will follow whimsy or special produce finds to make limited edition flavors (a great score on strawberries in the produce market? There's gonna be strawberry ice cream or sorbet today). This is to say that on the day you visit, there might be something special to try--do yourself a favor and try it, because it might not be there next time.

On the day of our visit, since I was focusing on the New Mexico aspect, we stuck to local flavors: for me, the honey-lavender, for my companion, the toasted almond and Sante Fe Pinon. We also tried the salted caramel (awesome), pistachio, and strawberry in little sample spoon sizes. 

How can I explain this ice cream to you?

Well, at the risk of sounding like I've lived in Santa Fe too long: this ice cream tasted happy. 

I'm a big believer that the maker can impart a flavor on their finished result--no, not by spitting in it or anything, but just by transferring their good vibes. And there were plenty of good vibes in this ice cream. It felt like a place that you could bring your kids, but as adults, you'd love it, too. This is totally in line with the owner's goal to create a family-friendly establishment--and to bring awesome ice cream to Santa Fe.

The flavors were well-balanced, interesting, and very creamy. Crave-worthy. 

We strolled along a sidewalk near the store that had spring blossoms in bloom, and we could almost ignore the commercial hardware store and general mall generic-ness in the sweet bliss of our ice cream moment. 

We both agreed: this ice cream was a keeper. I know I'll be back, and if it's accessible to you, I suggest you check out Cloud 9 Creamery. 

Cloud 9 Creamery, 3482 Zafarano Drive, Santa Fe. On Facebook. 

Homemade Sugar Cubes

Do you want to be the fanciest person in the room by far? It's easy: make homemade sugar cubes. It's amazingly, incredibly easy, and everyone will instantly raise their pinkie and keep it raised as long as you're in the vicinity. I promise.

Learn how to make homemade sugar cubes here.