When I started as a Daring Baker there were 5 of us. Ivonne and Lis of course because they are the founders. Then there was my less evil twin Helen. And crazy Brilynn. And me. We made Chocolate Biscotti from who else, Dorie Greenspan.
From there we grew to 7 of us where we learned not only could we make croissants but we could invent new swear words as well. Helen and I lucked out as we were the two who had already made them before. We had many a humorous exchange of emails.
There was the evil crepe cake that I hated more than life itself. The cake itself was a beauty and I knew why Brilynn picked it, but that is where the adoration stopped. For we made that cake in April 2007, and I have yet to make a crepe since!
When it was my pick I had us make a Strawberry Mirror Cake which was hit and miss depending on who’s blog you read. I personally loved it, but then again, I picked it.
Out of all the challenges I would have to say my favorite was the Yule Log. As it was something that I had done before but not all that often. And as far as flavor wise, my favorite was the perfect party cake…but I always have been a softy for buttercream frosting.
What is my point of reminiscing you ask? Well, ladies and gentleman, this may come as a shock to you, but this challenge will be my last as a Daring Baker. It’s simply gotten to large for my liking. When I started I went around to every blog to see what people did. As we grew I still did this. I even had a check list to make sure I got everyone. I printed it out each month with the list getting longer and longer, when finally at 500 I stopped. Just a little too many for me. I used to know every Daring Baker there was on the block. Now, not so much. I still love the idea of the group. I am sure I will be jealous seeing everyone’s creations each month but it puts a little pressure off my time clock and pocketbook to bow out. This wasn’t an easy decision, in fact I even cried while writing the post. It’s just time for me to move on.
I want to give special thanks to Lis and Ivonne for making such a great group, I wish the group much continued success!!!

This is a good one for me to go out on. It was of course low-fat . It uses enough butter and eggs to make your heart send you an evil note. But oh how it is tasty. Then again, it has buttercream and I do love the buttercream. The only problem was that this cake is not a good summer cake. The layer plus heat equals lots of slipping and sliding. Luckily mine was nice and held together.
So thanks to Chris of Mele Cotte for picking a great challenge for me to go out on.

Filbert Gateau with Praline Buttercream
From Great Cakes by Carol Walter

1 Filbert Genoise
1 recipe sugar syrup, flavored with dark rum
1 recipe Praline Buttercream
½ cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks
1 recipe Apricot Glaze
1 recipe Ganache Glaze, prepared just before using
3 tablespoons filberts, toasted and coarsely chopped

Filbert Genoise

Because of the amount of nuts in the recipe, this preparation is different from a classic genoise.

1 ½ cups hazelnuts, toasted/skinned
2/3 cup cake flour, unsifted
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
7 large egg yolks
1 cup sugar, divided ¼ & ¾ cups
1 tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. grated lemon rind
5 lg. egg whites
¼ cup warm, clarified butter (100 ¢â¬â€œ 110 degrees)

Position rack in the lower 3rd of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 10” X 2” inch round cake pan.

Using a food processor, process nuts, cake flour, and cornstarch for about 30 seconds.  Then, pulse the mixture about 10 times to get a fine, powdery mixture.  You¢â¬â„¢ll know the nuts are ready when they begin to gather together around the sides of the bowl. While you want to make sure there aren¢â¬â„¢t any large pieces, don¢â¬â„¢t over-process.  Set aside.

Put the yolks in the bowl of an electric mixer, with the whisk attachment, and beat until thick and light in color, about 3-4 minutes on med-high speed. Slowly, add ¾ cup of sugar.  It is best to do so by adding a tablespoon at a time, taking about 3 minutes for this step.  When finished, the mixture should be ribbony.  Blend in the vanilla and grated lemon rind.  Remove and set aside.

Place egg whites in a large, clean bowl of the electric mixer with the whisk attachment and beat on medium speed, until soft peaks. Increase to med-high speed and slowly add the remaining ¼ cup of sugar, over 15-20 seconds or so.  Continue to beat for another ½ minute. 
Add the yolk mixture to the whites and whisk for 1 minute.

Pour the warm butter in a liquid measure cup (or a spouted container). * It must be a deep bottom bowl and work must be fast.*  Put the nut meal in a mesh strainer (or use your hand ¢â¬â€œ working quickly) and sprinkle it in about 2 tablespoons at a time ¢â¬â€œ folding it carefully for about 40 folds.   Be sure to exclude any large chunks/pieces of nuts. Again, work quickly and carefully as to not deflate the mixture. When all but about 2 Tbsp. of nut meal remain, quickly and steadily pour the warm butter over the batter.  Then, with the remaining nut meal, fold the batter to incorporate, about 13 or so folds.

With a rubber spatula, transfer the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the surface with the spatula or back of a spoon.  **If collected butter remains at the bottom of the bowl, do not add it to the batter!  It will impede the cake rising while baking.

Tap the pan on the counter to remove air bubbles and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. You¢â¬â„¢ll know the cake is done when it is springy to the touch and it separates itself from the side of the pan.  Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5 minutes.  Invert onto a cake rack sprayed with nonstick coating, removing the pan.  Cool the cake completely.

*If not using the cake right away, wrap thoroughly in plastic wrap, then in a plastic bag, then in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If freezing, wrap in foil, then the bag and use within 2-3 months.

Sugar Syrup
Makes 1 cup, good for one 10-inch cake ¢â¬â€œ split into 3 layers

1 cup water
¼ cup sugar
2 Tbsp. dark rum or orange flavored liqueur

In a small, yet heavy saucepan, bring the water and sugar to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add the liqueur. Cool slightly before using on the cake.  *Can be made in advance.

Praline Buttercream
1 recipe Swiss Buttercream
1/3 cup praline paste
1 ½ – 2 Tbsp. Jamaican rum (optional)

Blend ½ cup buttercream into the paste, then add to the remaining buttercream.  Whip briefly on med-low speed to combine.  Blend in rum.

Swiss Buttercream
4 lg. egg whites
¾ cup sugar
1 ½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly firm
1 ½ -2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier or liqueur of your choice
1 tsp. vanilla

Place the egg whites in a lg/ bowl of a elevtric mixer and beat with the whisk attachment until the whites are foamy and they begin to thicken (just before the soft peak stage). Set the bowl over a saucepan filled with about 2 inches of simmering water, making sure the bowl is not touching the water. Then, whisk in the sugar by adding 1-2 tablespoon of sugar at a time over a minutes time. Continue beating 2-3 minutes or until the whites are warm (about 120 degrees) and the sugar is dissolved.  The mixture should look thick and like whipped marshmallows.
Remove from pan and with either the paddle or whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and sugar on med-high until its a thick, cool meringue ¢â¬â€œ about 5-7 minutes. *Do not overbeat*. Set aside.

Place the butter in a separate clean mixing bowl and, using the paddle attachment, cream the butter at medium speed for 40-60 seconds, or until smooth and creamy. *Do not overbeat or the butter will become toooooo soft.*

On med-low speed, blend the meringue into the butter, about 1-2 Tbsp. at a time, over 1 minute.  Add the liqueur and vanilla and mix for 30-45 seconds longer, until thick and creamy.

Refrigerate 10-15 minutes before using.

Wait! My  buttercream won¢â¬â„¢t come together! Reheat the buttercream briefly over simmering water for about 5 seconds, stirring with a wooden spoon. Be careful and do not overbeat. The mixture will look broken with some liquid at the bottom of the bowl. Return the bowl to the mixer and whip on medium speed just until the cream comes back together.

Wait! My buttercream is too soft! Chill the buttercream in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes and rewhip. If that doesn¢â¬â„¢t work, cream an additional 2-4 Tbsp. of butter in a small bowl¢â¬â€œ making sure the butter is not as soft as the original amount, so make sure is cool and smooth. On low speed, quickly add the creamed  butter to the buttercream, 1 Tbsp. at a time.

Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 5 days, or can be frozen for up to 6 months. If freezing, store in 2 16-oz. plastic containers and thaw in the refrigerator overnight or at room temperature for several hours.

Praline Paste
1 cup (4 ½ oz.) Hazelnuts, toasted/skinless
2/3 cup Sugar
Line a jelly roll pan with parchment and lightly butter.

Put the sugar in a heavy 10-inch skillet.  Heat on low flame for about 10-20 min until the sugar melts around the edges. Do not stir the sugar. Swirl the pan if necessary to prevent the melted sugar from burning. Brush the sides of the pan with water to remove sugar crystals.  If the sugar in the center does not melt, stir briefly. When the sugar is completely melted and caramel in color, remove from heat. Stir in the nuts with a wooden spoon and separate the clusters. Return to low heat and stir to coat the nuts on all sides.  Cook until the mixture starts to bubble.  **Remember ¢â¬â€œ extremely hot mixture.** Then onto the parchment lined sheet and spread as evenly as possible. As it cools, it will harden into brittle. Break the candied nuts into pieces and place them in the food processor.  Pulse into a medium-fine crunch or process until the brittle turns into a powder. To make paste, process for several minutes. Store in an airtight container and store in a cook dry place.  Do not refrigerate.

Apricot Glaze
Good for one 10-inch cake

2/3 cup thick apricot preserves
1 Tbsp. water

In a small, yet heavy saucepan, bring the water and preserves to a slow boil and simmer for 2-3 minutes. If the mixture begins to stick to the bottom of the saucepan, add water as needed.

Remove from heat and, using a strainer, press the mixture through the mesh and discard any remnants. With a pastry brush, apply the glaze onto the cake while the cake is still warm.  If the glaze is too thick, thin to a preferred consistency with drops of water.

Ganache Glaze
Makes about 1 cup, enough to cover the top and sides of a 9 or 10 inch layer or tube cake

**Ganache can take on many forms.  While warm ¢â¬â€œ great fudge sauce.  While cool or lukewarm ¢â¬â€œ semisweet glaze. Slightly chilled ¢â¬â€œ can be whipped into a filling/frosting. Cold & solid ¢â¬â€œ the base of candied chocolate truffles.

6 oz. (good) semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, like Lindt
6 oz. (¾ cup heavy cream
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1 Tbsp. Grand Marnier, Cointreay, or dark Jamaican rum (optional)
¾ tsp. vanilla
½ – 1 tsp. hot water, if needed

Blend vanilla and liqueur/rum together and set aside.

Break the chocolate into 1-inch pieces and place in the basket of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped.  Transfer into a medium sized bowl and set aside.

Heat the cream and corn syrup in a saucepan, on low, until it reached a gentle boil.  Once to the gently boil, immediately and carefully pour over the chocolate.  Leave it alone for one minute, then slowly stir and mix the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate is melted and incorporated into the cream. Carefully blend in vanilla mixture. If the surface seems oily, add ½ – 1 tsp hot water. The glaze will thicken, but should still be pourable. If it doesn¢â¬â„¢t thicken, refrigerate for about 5 minutes, but make sure it doesn¢â¬â„¢t get too cold!

Assembling Cake

Cut a cardboard disk slightly smaller than the cake.  Divide the cake into 3 layers and place the first layer top-side down on the disk. Using a pastry brush, moisten the layer with 3-4 Tbsp. of warm sugar syrup. Measure out 1 cup of praline buttercream and set aside.

Spread the bottom layer with a ¼-inch thickness of the remaining buttercream.  Cover with ½ of the whipped cream, leaving ¼-inch border around the edge of the cake.  Place the middle layer over the first, brush with sugar syrup, spreading with buttercream. Cover with the remaining whipped cream.

Moisten the cut side of the third layer with additional sugar syrup and place cut side down on the cake.  Gently, press the sides of the cake to align the layers. Refrigerate to chill for at least 30 minutes.

Lift the cake by sliding your palm under the cardboard. Holding a serrated or very sharp night with an 8-ich blade held parallel to the sides of the cake, trim the sides so that they are perfectly straight. Cut a slight bevel at the top to help the glaze drip over the edge. Brush the top and sides of the cake with warm apricot glaze, sealing the cut areas completely.  Chill while you prepare the ganache.

Place a rack over a large shallow pan to catch the ganache drippings.  Remove the gateau from the refrigerator and put it the rack. With a metal spatula in hand, and holding the saucepan about 10 inches above the cake, pour the ganache onto the cake¢â¬â„¢s center.  Move the spatula over the top of the ganache about 4 times to get a smooth and mirror-like appearance.  The ganache should cover the top and run down the sides of the cake. When the ganache has been poured and is coating the cake, lift one side of the rack and bang it once on the counter to help spread the ganache evenly and break any air bubbles. (Work fast before setting starts.) Patch any bare spots on the sides with a smaller spatula, but do not touch the top after the “bang”.  Let the cake stand at least 15 minutes to set after glazing.

To garnish the cake, fit a 12 ¢â¬â€œ 14-inch pastry bag with a #114 large leaf tip. Fill the bag with the reserved praline cream.  Stating ½ inch from the outer edge of the cake, position the pastry tube at a 90 degree angle with the top almost touching the top of the cake. Apply pressure to the pastry bag, moving it slightly toward the center of the cake.  As the buttercream flows on the cake, reverse the movement backward toward the edge of the cake and finish by pulling the bag again to the center. Stop applying pressure and press the bag downward, then quickly pull the tip up to break the flow of frosting.  Repeat, making 12 leaves evenly spaced around the surface of the cake.

Make a second row of leaves on the top of the first row, moving the pastry bag about ¾ inch closer to the center.  The leaves should overlap.  Make a 3rd row, moving closer and closer to the center. Add a 4th row if you have the room. But, leave a 2-inch space in the center for a chopped filbert garnish. Refrigerate uncovered for 3-4 hours to allow the cake to set. Remove the cake from the refrigerator at least 3 hours before serving.

Leftover cake can be covered with foil and kept in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

The quickest of posts. I even doubted it would get done.
The in-laws are in town and we have been running around. Just back from Idaho visiting my parents with them. Sadly while I was in Idaho getting sunburned the weather in Seattle was perfect for baking. Sigh.
I made a plum version of this weeks Summer Fruit Galette. I used my mother’s homemade plum jam that I stole while I was there and some simple fresh plums. For half of the batch(I made mini ones…surprise!) I used the custard and for the other half I left it out. I prefer it without.

This week’s recipe was chosen by Michelle from Michelle in Colorado Springs. To get the recipe go to her site.
Sorry that is it folks. I am super busy. Luckily, I already got my Daring Baker Challenge for tomorrow done a while back.

I thought I would take a little time to update you on some previous posts.
The Bachelor: Another one bites the dust. Shocking as you may find this, this week, Matt Grant(the London Bachelor) was dumped by his actress finance, Shayne Lamas. Apparently she hooked up with some guy in Vegas. Hmmm, I thought what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas? Guess not. Or is it, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas…unless you are on the ABC show the Bachelor, then all bets are off. Not quite as catchy as the original slogan, but I am sure it will catch on.
Bikini Baristas: I will admit that I have yet to hear anymore about the boner inducing baristas of Bonney Lake(you know the ones who wore bikini’s but on Tuesday’s wore pasties!). I do have a reader from Bonney Lake so hopefully they can fill me in after reading this. My local coffee shack is putting their two cents in though. They have a sign outside their shack that reads “You don’t need pasties to be tasty!” So true. So true.
Tastespotting: I am showing up on Tastespotting, and I hope you are too. Some of you let me know I didn’t need validation for my photos. Which I don’t. I was just making a post to try and get it brought to  Tastespotting’s attention since so many people were emailing and wanting answers and not getting them. In case you didn’t know, Sarah(Tastespotting) did leave a comment in the post, so you can go see that if you are curious.
4th of July and Mr. Melodramatic: It appears that our troll Mr. Melodramatic has left the building, or the blog in this case. No worries, I am sure some other person, not willing to leave a real website or email address, will be on soon enough to let me know what a moron I am. Don’t bother, I already know.
And now on to current happenings:
Posting in the next two weeks could be a little sparse. The in-laws arrive tonight and we will be busy with them. I will try and post but there are no guarantees.
And now to the food, which in a way is kind of a happening. You see, every time I come on my blog(and well, you too) I see a slice of watermelon staring at me. Many people seem to think I love watermelon. And though I do like it, the only reason I picked it was because at the time it was really the only food related background Wordpress was offering(food blogging was not quite the juggernaut it is now). I realized that in all the years, I have a watermelon on my banner and I have yet to make anything involving watermelon. Today that changes. I present to you the no bake watermelon cheesecake with watermelon fresca. It’s a tribute in a way. You see my little watermelon slice is going bye-bye. Yes, ladies and gentleman Culinary Concoctions by Peabody is going in for a face lift. Not for a couple of months but it will be happening. So enjoy the watermelon slice while you can.
Speaking of watermelon, back to the cheesecake. It’s no bake, which in the Summer works out nicely. I originally was going to skip the crust but I am so happy I did not. You really need it to help hold this together. I was a little curious as to what the flavor was going to taste like. Think if Jolly Rancher made a creamy version of their watermelon candy(though a little more subtle in the flavor). I think it is a great dessert to use at a BBQ. It’s so refreshing.

Watermelon Cheesecake with Watermelon Fresca

2 cups cream cheese, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons watermelon juice
2 tablespoons Torani watermelon syrup
1 drop red food color
1 cup heavy cream
1 ½  cups graham cracker crumbs
¼  cup brown sugar
½  cup butter, melted

Using a stand mixer, cream together the sugar and cream cheese until smooth, about 3 minutes.
Mix in watermelon juice, watermelon flavoring and food color; set aside.
Whip heavy cream to stiff peaks; gently fold into the cream cheese mixture.
Combine together the graham cracker crumbs, butter and brown sugar until mixture is fully incorporated and mixture is moist from melted butter. Press into a springform pan.(9-inch or two 4 ½ -inch)
Fill pan cheesecake mixture. Tap pan to release some air bubbles.
Place in freezer for 2 hours, then transfer to the refrigerator. Let sit in fridge for another 3 hours. Top with watermelon Fresca and serve cold.

Watermelon Fresca
2 cups watermelon, diced
1 tablespoon mint, chopped(the mint at the store looked  horrible so I skipped it, but I do think it would of added something nice to the fresca)
3 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon watermelon flavoring
1 tablespoon sugar

Combine ingredients; refrigerate until ready to use.

Source: Chef Eddie Matney

This week’s TWD pick is Cherry Rhubarb Cobbler(chosen by Amanda of Like Sprinkles on a Cupcake). Rhubarb has come and gone(at least the good looking stuff) around these parts so I went with all cherries. Especially since cherries are cheap around these parts. And cheap right about now sounds good. I really seems this week when I was at Costco that I really noticed a price hike. My cream that was $4.79 a half gallon(yes, that is right I go through, not one, but two ½ gallons a month…easily) is now $6.49. That is quite a jump in a month.
Oh my.
In fact the only things that still seem to be relatively cheap of course is snack food. So when you start seeing me get creative with Pop Tarts on here you know my grocery budget is shot.
In my last post about being child free(btw…who knew there were so many of you non-breeders out there, I don’t feel so alone) some one left a comment about a movie called Idiocracy. They wondered if I had seen it. I have. It’s one of my husband and I’s favorite movies for the sheer fact that we can totally see it happening. The plot is described as this(or you can read a much longer recap here):

Joe Bauers, an Army librarian, is judged to be absolutely average in every regard, has no relatives, has no future, so he’s chosen to be one of the two test subjects in a top-secret hibernation program. He and hooker Rita were to awaken in one year, but things go wrong and they wake up instead in 2505. By this time, stupid people have out bred intelligent people; the world is (barely) run by morons–and Joe and Rita are the smartest people in America.

They wake up in a world that is beyond lazy. No one drinks water they drink the equivalent to Gatorade(which won a government contract through lots of lobbying). It is in everything from drinking fountains to what the water crops with(crops that wont grow). Garbage is everywhere. Toilets are built into their chairs so they don’t have to get up. The language has been dumbed down so much that they all talk like Brittany Spears when she is loaded. Speaking of Spears, the whole way this came about was that the less intelligent were the ones breeding and the more intelligent individuals either waited until it was too late or didn’t have children at all. Thus, causing the population to slowly but surely dumb itself down.
Now before you leave me hate mail, I am not saying that if you have kids you are dumb. Sooo not where I was going with this. I think you know the difference between the type of person I am talking about, they are the people who end up on Jerry Springer and say “I just went to the bathroom one day and out popped a baby, I didn’t even know I was pregnant.” These are the people popping out 5 or 6 kids that make me nervous. Top that with snack food being the only thing that is cheap these days and we wont be that far off from the movie’s portrait of the world come 2505.
Back to the food and speaking of cheap, I got me some free chocolate awhile back at a Seattle Food Bloggers meet up. Quite the variety, with one really interesting one being a Coconut Curry Milk Chocolate. Hmmm. I thought long and hard about how to use it. I thought either custard or ice cream. Ice cream won out. I decided to pair it with the cherry cobbler so that I could give you a recipe this week. Since it was a chocolate ice cream, I went ahead and made the cobbler topping chocolate as well. I simply added 2 heaping TBSP of unsweetened cocoa powder to the mix as well as another ¼ cup of sugar. The curry is pretty subtle for those of you who are wondering. And thoughit is a little out there, the flavors did work well with the cherry cobbler, probably not with a cherry rhubarb cobbler though.

 The chocolate I used comes from Theo Chocolates here in Seattle.

Coconut Curry Chocolate Ice Cream

6 ounces Coconut Curry Chocolate(or just plain milk or semi sweet chocolate…not unsweetened)
1 cup sugar
½  cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 ½  cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
3 large egg yolks

Chop chocolate. In a heavy saucepan whisk together sugar and cocoa powder until combined and whisk in cream and milk. Bring mixture just to a boil, stirring occasionally. In a bowl beat yolks until smooth. Add hot cream mixture to yolks in a slow stream, whisking, and pour into pan. Cook custard over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until a thermometer registers 170° F. Remove pan from heat and add chopped chocolate, whisking until melted. Pour custard through a sieve into a clean bowl and cool. Chill custard, its surface covered with plastic wrap, at least 3 hours, or until cold, and up to 1 day.
Transfer custard to bowl of a standing electric mixer and beat just until thick and fluffy. Freeze custard in an ice-cream maker. Transfer ice cream to an airtight container and put in freezer to harden. Ice cream may be made 1 week ahead.

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine August 1997