The Sookie Stackhouse Companion (43 page)
Read The Sookie Stackhouse Companion Online
Authors: Charlaine Harris
To prepare the icing, whisk the whipping cream, butter, cocoa powder, and corn syrup in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts and the mixture comes to a simmer. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the chocolate and vanilla, and whisk until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Refrigerate the frosting until slightly thickened but still spreadable, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two round 9” cake pans, 2” deep.
To prepare the cake, mix the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Beat in the milk, coffee, shortening, and vanilla with an electric mixer at a low speed until combined. Then beat at high speed for 2 minutes. Add the eggs and beat for 2 more minutes. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and smooth with a spatula.
Place in the middle of the oven and bake for 30–35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let the cake layers cool in the pans for 5 minutes. Remove from the pans and place on racks to cool completely.
Place one layer top side down on a plate. Spread with half of the prepared icing; sprinkle with chopped pecans. Top with the other layer, top side up. Frost the top and sides with the remaining icing. Garnish the cake with pecan halves with a star design.
Tip: When frosting the cake, run the knife or spatula under hot water every few minutes to ensure a glossy finish. Also, a tablespoon of mayonnaise can be added to the cake batter for moistness in cold, dry weather.
Submitted by Michele SchubertTIME: 2 HOURS 15 MINUTES, PLUS COOLING TIME • SERVES 12
INGREDIENTS:Cake:1 cup sour cream
¼ tsp. baking soda
4 cups sugar
2 cups butter, softened
7 egg yolks
7 egg whites, stiffly beaten
3 cups all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. almond extractPraline Frosting (makes 1½ cups):1 cup chopped pecans
6 Tbsp. butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
5 Tbsp. heavy cream
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour a 10” tube pan.
Stir together the sour cream and baking soda in a bowl; set the mixture aside. Beat the sugar and butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Fold in the egg whites. Stir the flour and salt together in a separate bowl, and then set the mixture aside.
Alternately add the flour mixture and the sour cream mixture to the egg mixture, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Beat at low speed just until blended after each addition. Stir in the vanilla and almond extract. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 90 minutes, or until a long wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 20 minutes. Remove from the pan and cool completely on the wire rack. Increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.
To prepare the frosting, place the pecans on a baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes at 350 degrees F. Flip the pecans over and bake for another 8 minutes, or until golden brown.
Place the butter, brown sugar, and cream in a 2-quart saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring often. Continue to boil and stir for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and whisk in the powdered sugar and vanilla until smooth and creamy. Add the toasted pecans; stir gently for 5 minutes, or until the frosting begins to cool and thicken slightly. Spread immediately over the cooled cake.
Submitted by Lara NocerinoTIME: 2 HOURS • SERVES 12
INGREDIENTS:1 package Swansdown Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix (or Duncan Hines, if you
can’t find Swansdown anymore)
1 package (8 oz.) seedless dates
1 cup water
¾ cup sugar
2 cups confectioners’ sugar
⅛ tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. shortening
½ tsp. vanilla extract
3 Tbsp. brewed coffee
1 cup chopped pecans
I know you’ll be surprised, people of Bon Temps, that my recipe contains a mix! This has been my dark secret for many years. I’ve always driven to Clarice to make the purchase, so no one would see me. So now you know! If you’re a purist, please use your favorite chocolate cake recipe, providing it’s very moist.
Mix the cake mix and bake in a greased 9 × 13” glass pan, following the box directions.
Cook the dates, water, and sugar in a double boiler for 30–40 minutes. Spread on top of the cooled cake.
While the date mixture is cooling on the cake, mix together the confectioners’ sugar, salt, shortening, vanilla, coffee, and pecans. Spread on top of the cake. Sometimes I use pecan halves to create a pattern to make it look prettier.
From Caroline Bellefleur, as told to Charlaine HarrisTIME: PREP TIME 30–40 MINUTES, REFRIGERATION TIME 4 HOURS • SERVES 8
INGREDIENTS:3 Tbsp. butter
25–30 chocolate wafers
1 package lime Jell-O
½ cup hot water
¼ cup lemon juice
¼ cup sugar
1 can (12 oz.) evaporated milk, refrigerated until very cold
Green food coloring
1 tsp. lemon zest
Melt the butter. Crush the wafers and mix with the melted butter. Press the crumb mixture into a 9” pie pan to form a crust. Save crumbs not used for crust to sprinkle on top. Dissolve the Jell-O in hot water, then add the lemon juice and sugar. Whip the evaporated milk until it thickens.
Add the Jell-O mixture to the milk and whip until stiff. Add four drops of green food coloring and lemon zest. Spoon the mixture into the crust. Sprinkle remaining chocolate crumbs on top and refrigerate for at least 4 hours but preferably overnight.
Submitted by Treva JacksonTIME: 30–45 MINUTES • SERVES 5–10
INGREDIENTS:Butter for greasing the saucepan
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
¾ cup half-and-half
½ tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup chopped pecans
24 whole pecans (optional)
Note: Like any candy, this recipe needs a dry day (below 50 percent humidity) to set up perfectly. Higher humidity results in sticky candy. If it’s pouring rain, you may end up eating it spooned over ice cream—which is fabulous, too.
You’ll need a large, heavy saucepan (at least 2 quarts) with a lid and a very sturdy handle. The boiling syrup must be vigorously beaten, so deep sides and a firmly attached handle are a must. When making candy, the goal is to have it crystallize when you want it to, and not a minute before. That means that if even a grain of sugar or salt falls into the heated syrup before you’re ready to spoon it out, the contents of the saucepan will set up like concrete, and you’ll get no candy, plus you’ll have a nasty mess to clean up. So the following instructions are set up to make certain no untoward grains of sugar destroy your candy before its time.
Butter the sides of your saucepan. As the pan warms, the butter will melt, and any sugar grains sticking to the side will slide into the pan before they cause trouble. Place the sugars, half-and-half, and salt into your prepared pan. Stir constantly over low heat until the mixture blends and the sugars melt into the half-and-half. Raise the heat to medium. Place the lid on the pan and allow it to heat for a few minutes. This will let the steam from the mixture wash any remaining sugar crystals down the side of the pan.
While the candy is cooking, prepare an area to spoon the candy by greasing a cookie sheet or placing a sheet of greased waxed paper on a butcher block or marble slab.
Remove the lid. Once the sugar syrup boils, turn the heat down to a simmer. If any crystals remain on the sides of the pan, carefully remove them with a wet paper towel wrapped around a fork. Never put your fingers into the pot. Bring the syrup to 234 degrees F. If you don’t have a candy thermometer, bring it to the soft-ball stage. Remove from the heat.
Add the butter and vanilla, but don’t stir—you’re just letting the butter melt and the alcohol boil out of the vanilla right now. Wait 5 minutes. Add the chopped pecans. Stir vigorously with a clean wooden (nonconductive) spoon until the candy loses its gloss and thickens. Warning: The syrup is hot enough to inflict serious burns. You’re incorporating air into the sugar syrup, which makes the candy soft and easy to eat, like fudge or taffy, instead of hard like a lollipop. Once it thickens, you need to move fast. Quickly spoon the candy into small mounds onto the prepared surface. If it starts to set up or gets too hard to work, beat in a teaspoon of hot water to loosen it up.
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