Cinnamon Swirl Buttermilk Pound Cake

This is now my favorite "coffeecake". It is perfect for a morning coffee or tea break or for afternoon tea.

Streusal topping:

1/2 cup (2.1 oz/60 g) all-purpose flour

1/3 cup (2.5 oz/72 g) firmly packed light brown sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Pinch of Salt

3 Tbsp (1.5 oz/42 g) unsalted butter, melted

Cake Batter:

2 cups (8.5 oz/242 g) all-purpose flour

1/2 cup (2 oz/57 g) cake flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp ground cardamom or allspice

1 cup (2 sticks/8 oz/227 g) unsalted butter, softened

2 cups (14 oz/400 g) granulated sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp finely grated orange zest

1 cup (240 ml) buttermilk

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease the inside of a 10-inch bundt pan. Dust with flour and set aside.

2. To make cinnamon swirl: In a small bowl whisk together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt, breaking up any lumps of sugar. Add the melted butter and stir until blended and crumbly.

3. To make the pound cake: Sift together all the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cardamom into a medium bowl. Whisk to combine and set aside.

4. In a large bowl beat the butter at medium speed until very creamy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add the sugar and beat at medium-high speed until well blended and light about 4 minutes.

5. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and orange zest.

6. At low speed add the dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk in two additions. The pattern is -- flour, buttermilk, flour, buttermilk, flour. Mix until just combined ... do not overmix.

7. Pour half of the batter into the prepared bundt pan and smooth top of batter. Sprinkle the cinnamon swirl mixture evenly over the batter. Add the remaining batter and smooth the top.

8. Bake the cake for 65 to 75 minutes. Always start checking at 60 minutes. If a cake tester inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean, it is done. Remove from oven and cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes.

7. Invert the cake onto the rack and cool completely. Dust the cake with confectioners' sugar just before serving.

Makes 12 servings.

Note: I have also served this with an orange glaze which is very yummy ... 1 cup of confectioners'/powdered sugar + 3 -4 tbsp of fresh orange juice. Add the orange juice to the sugar, one tablespoon at a time and mixing until you get a thick glaze. Let the glaze sit for about 10 minutes before you start drizzling the cake. I like a thicker glaze and that is why I let it sit for a while.

Evelyn's Chicken Potpie

I really do throw in whatever I have on hand for my chicken potpie filling. Below is the basic recipe but you can add peas or corn or cubed sweet potato if the fancy strikes you. I always make my piecrust either overnight or early that morning and then let it chill until I need it for the evening meal. Piecrust has to be really cold and handled as little as possible if you want a light flaky dough. I always use a double crust for my potpie.

3 cups cooked chicken, cubed

2 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 large carrot, peeled and cubed

1 stalk celery, diced

1/4 large white onion, diced

2 1/2 - 3 cups, chicken stock

A pinch of Rosemary

A pinch of Tarragon

Salt & pepper to taste

2 Tbsp. butter

2 heaping Tbsp. all-purpose flour

Melissa D'Arabian's Piecrust:

2 sticks (1 cup) ice-cold unsalted butter, cubed and put in freezer
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
8 - 10 Tbsp. ice cold water

1. You can use your food processer to make the piecrust like Melissa did but I am like her mother-in-law and I make mine by hand. The next time I will use the processer.

2. In a large mixing bowl, place flour and cubed butter and using a pastry blender, cut butter into flour until mixture resembles fine sand.

3. Add a tablespoon of water at a time and mix thoroughly. I needed 10 tablespoons before my dough held together. Just pinch the dough and if it holds together with no powdery bits, then your dough is ready.

4. Gather dough into a ball, cut in half, pat each half into a disc shape, cover individually in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour or two or overnight.

Filling:
1. In a medium saucepan place carrots, potatoes, celery, onion and 2 cups of chicken stock. Add rosemary, tarragon, salt and pepper and boil over medium heat until carrots are just about fork tender. Remove from heat.

2. In a large saucepan melt butter over medium heat and then add the flour to make a thick paste. Cook, stirring constantly until mixture is a light golden brown. Add the last cup of chicken stock to the roux and mix until smooth. I use a whisk to get all the lumps out.

3. Add the vegetable mixture to the large saucepan and mix well. Add the chicken and cook for 3 -4 minutes until mixture is thickened. The sauce should be thick and creamy. If it is too runny, thicken with cornstarch/flour.

4. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool for 15 - 20 minutes.

5. In the meantime flour a large board and rolling pin and roll out one of the pastry discs to fit a 9-inch glass pie plate. There should be enough pastry hanging over the edge of the pie plate to crimp easily. Set the pie plate aside. If your kitchen is too warm, place the pastry lined pie plate back in the fridge while you work on rolling out the second pastry disc.

6. Once the second pastry disc has been rolled out, pour chicken filling into the pastry lined pie plate, place the second pastry disc on top of the filling and crimp the edges of the pie crust, trying to seal completely. Poke holes on the top of the pie with a fork or carve initials so that steam can escape while the pie is baking. I carved an S for you know who. You can brush the top of the pie with an egg wash to give that beautiful golden color.

7. Place pie plate on a cookie sheet (this is important to catch all the bits that always drip off) and bake at 375 for 40 - 50 minutes.

8. Let sit for about 5 - 10 minutes before serving.

This probably makes 6 dinner size servings.

White Cake with Raspberry Sauce

Need a cake that is easy to make, looks pretty and tastes good? This is one of my favorites. The topping is light and fluffy and the glaze brightens it. Maximum effect for minimum effort.

1 package (18 1/4 oz) white cake mix

4 oz. cream cheese or mascarpone cheese, softened

1 cup confectioners' sugar

1 cup whipping cream, whipped

1 carton (16 oz) strawberry glaze

1/2 cup water

2 1/2 cups fresh or frozen unsweetened raspberries

1. Make cake according to package directions and bake in a rectangular 13 x 9-inch pan. Make sure to level and hollow out the middle section because you want the top surface to be as flat as possible.

2. Cool cake completely in pan before preparing topping.

Topping:

1. Mix cream cheese/mascarpone cheese with confectioners' sugar until completely mixed.

2. Fold in whipped cream until completely incorporated. Spread evenly over top of cake.

3. Cover and store in refrigerator until ready to serve. I have a cake pan with a lid and I use that for easy storage.

4. Just before serving, mix strawberry glaze, water and raspberries together. Slice cake in squares, top with a tablespoon of the raspberry glaze and serve.

6. Store all leftovers in the refrigerator.

Note: When I am out of whipping cream I have used a small tub of the lite Cool Whip topping and that works fine. I keep tubs of Cool Whip in my freezer so I always have those on hand for desserts.