Chocolate Cinnamon Bundt Cake with Mocha Icing

"Delicious autumn! My very soul is wedded to it, and if I were a bird I would fly about the earth
seeking the successive autumns."
George Eliot



I can’t even express how much I love fall. I could wax poetic about it all day long. It refreshes me, renews my love for nature, makes me thankful to be alive. It makes getting in the kitchen so much more enjoyable with that cool breeze coming in through the window.





It feels like it’s been ages since I was in my own kitchen, doing what I love the most. Measuring, mixing, photographing. It felt so, so good to at it again. I’d forgotten how much I love the process, scooping flour into the measuring cup, leveling off the top, packing the brown sugar, cracking the eggs. It’s peaceful and therapeutic for me.



I even love the waiting, the anticipation of having something in the oven. I’m a compulsive checker though, pulling the oven door open every 10 minutes, even though I know I shouldn’t.



Today has been a good day. As I sit here with an empty cake plate beside me, I’m incredibly thankful, for the weather, for my family, for good food.

Chocolate Cinnamon Bundt Cake with Mocha Icing
From Bon Appetit, September 2009

Ingredients

• 1 cup boiling water
• 1/2 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
• 4 teaspoons instant espresso powder, divided
• 2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 cups (packed) golden brown sugar, divided
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/4 cups mini semisweet chocolate chips, divided
• 1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously brush 12- to 15-cup nonstick Bundt pan with oil. Whisk 1 cup boiling water, cocoa powder, and 2 teaspoons espresso powder in 2-cup glass measure. Whisk 2 cups flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat 2 cups brown sugar, 1 cup vegetable oil, and 1 tablespoon vanilla in large bowl to blend. Add eggs; beat to blend. Beat mixture until smooth, about 30 seconds longer. Beat in half of flour mixture, then cocoa mixture. Add remaining flour mixture; beat to blend. Fold in 1 cup chocolate chips. Transfer batter to prepared Bundt pan.
• Bake cake until tester inserted near center comes out clean, about 50 minutes. Cool the cake 10 minutes. Invert cake onto rack; cool 15 minutes longer.
• Meanwhile, stir remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar, 2 teaspoons espresso powder, and 2 tablespoons water in small saucepan over medium heat until sugar melts. Remove from heat. Add butter and remaining 1/4 cup chocolate chips; stir until butter and chocolate melt. Cool slightly. Using spoon, drizzle icing over cake. Cool cake completely, slice, and serve.

New Photos in the Etsy Store!

South Georgia Cotton

I've put new photos up in my etsy store, which you can find here: http://www.honeyandjamphotos.etsy.com

Baking goodness coming soon, I promise!

Beach Photos and a Winner!

The winner of my giveaway is Shanna of Food Loves Writing! She has a lovely, lovely blog you should all check out!

Thanks so much to everyone who entered, it was so much fun to read through where you'd like to vacation!









I left the beach yesterday, it was a good trip, but I'm glad to be back in Georgia.

Key Lime Pie

I’m going to be completely honest: I didn’t want to come to Florida. It was the last on my list, I’d much rather be in Maine or Colorado. But it’s growing on me. It’s more than hot weather and retirees, it’s absolutely beautiful. Last night I watched lightening over the ocean, it took my breath away.





But there’s one thing associated with Florida I loved before I got here. Key Lime Pie. I hadn’t made one in ages, so as soon as I hit the Florida line, I started craving it. Key Lime Pie is one of the simplest thing you can make, just a few ingredients create something delicious.



This one was made much harder by lack of kitchen tools in my condo though. I had no whisk, no strainer, no pie plate, I had to use a cheese grater instead of a citrus zester and there’s not a hot pad in sight. But that just made it more fun.



This recipe is very, very good. I like mine super mouth puckeringly tart, and this comes close.



Key Lime Pie
From Gourmet

For crust
(though i used store bought, this is a very good crust recipe i've used many times.)
1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs from 9 (2 1/4-inch by 4 3/4-inch) crackers
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

For filling
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
4 large egg yolks
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh Key lime juice

Make crust:
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Stir together graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and butter in a bowl with a fork until combined well, then press mixture evenly onto bottom and up side of a 9-inch (4-cup) glass pie plate.
Bake crust in middle of oven 10 minutes and cool in pie plate on a rack. Leave oven on.
Make filling and bake pie:
Whisk together condensed milk and yolks in a bowl until combined well. Add juice and whisk until combined well (mixture will thicken slightly).
Pour filling into crust and bake in middle of oven 15 minutes. Cool pie completely on rack (filling will set as it cools), then chill, covered, at least 8 hours.


Don't forget about my giveaway!

A Giveaway!

Greetings from the Florida! Yep, that’s right, I’m currently sitting on my balcony and listening to the waves crash into the beach. Sure, it’s pouring down rain, but how can I complain with a view like this?



Right before I left for vacation I received The Bakers Catalog from King Arthur Flour. Oh my word, I could spend a fortune on that stuff! So, to celebrate my enjoying sandy beaches and warmer climes, I’m giving away one $40 gift card to King Arthur Flour to a lucky commenter that I’ll choose through random.org.





What to do to enter:
Enter once by leaving a comment on this post telling me where you’d like to be right now and a way to contact you if you don't have a blog.

Enter a second time by twittering about the giveaway to @honeyandjam AND leaving a ANOTHER comment on this post.

Enter another time by posting about this giveaway on your blog AND leaving ANOTHER comment on this post.

No entires after 10 pm EST this Friday, September 18th.

I’ll select one winner through random.org Saturday.

the view from my current location.

more to come!

Pears.

I know, I know. This recipe is just a variation of the last one I posted. I’m fully aware. So let me start at the beginning.

It began Wednesday, at the farmers market. A man had these gorgeous pears, grown in his backyard. I bought some from him, ideas swirling my head. Pear tart? Pear, Caramelized Onion and Gorgonzola Galette? Poached Pears?



So many ideas, how was I going to choose?

This morning, I walked outside and it was 60 degrees with a light breeze, suddenly, all I wanted was cinnamon. And maybe some honey, definitely something homey.

“No, I can’t do another crisp, I just did that!” I told myself. But I couldn’t help myself. I’d seen this the day before on Tastespotting.



So I’m not going to call it crisp, nope. I’m just going to call it Delightful Baked Pears and not feel an ounce of guilt for posting the same recipe twice. (okay, not exactly the same, but close!)

These are good. Very, very good. And everyone loves individual desserts, right? Plus, you can throw them together in no time flat, but they are classy enough to be served at a dinner party.




Delightful Baked Pears
adapted from here.

2 pears (cut lengthwise and core removed)

¼ cup plain flour
¼ cup rolled oats
⅛ cup unrefined brown sugar
⅛ cup unsalted butter, cubed at room temperature
¼ cup slivered almonds
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
Honey


Preheat your oven to 350F. Place the flour and brown sugar in a large bowl and mix it together. Taking a few cubes of butter at a time rub into the flour mixture, keep rubbing until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the oats, almonds and cinnamon.
Cut the pears in half lengthwise and remove the core with a spoon. You’ll make a small well in the fruit enough to add the crumble. Spoon the crumble mixture into the well. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until the crumble is browned.

Serve warm, drizzled with honey.