30 Days of Holiday: Bourbon-Chocolate Cake with Praline Frosting

I recieved a request today for a Cake featuring bourbon.  This one comes from, you guessed it, Southern Living magazine and it is among my favorites.  Everything about this cake is special, from the way the bourbon complements the chocolate and nuts, to it's mouth-watering presentation.  The end result is an elegant cake you will be proud to serve holiday guests.

As you will read, there are quite  few steps to making this cake.  Some of them can be done ahead, so make it easy on yourself.  Don't save it all to do on the day you plan to serve it.  And, if this is your first experience with kitchen pyrotechnics, please be careful and follow all directions carefully.

Enjoy!

What's In It:

CAKE:  
1 c. butter (Read a margarine label and you'll understand why I never buy it.  We are cooking, not conducting a chemical experiment.)
1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa (I've tried lots of brands, from the ones with the French names down to a store brand and found little difference.)
1 c. water
1/2 c. buttermilk
2 lg. eggs (Thank you Sylvia, Pat, Chloe, and Lucy)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. vanilla extract (No imitation)
2 c. granulated sugar
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt

GANACHE:
2 c. (12 oz.) semisweet morsels (Use a good brand)
1/3 c. whipping cream
1/4 c. butter, cut into pieces

FROSTING:
1/2 c. chopped pecans
2 tbl. butter
1/2 firmly packed light brown sugar
3 tbl. whipping cream
1/2 c. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

GLAZE:
4 tbl. butter
1/4 c. granulated sugar
1/4 c. light brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 c. bourbon (If you wouldn't sip it, don't cook with it.)

How To Make It:

Let's Make the Cake:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Grease bottoms of 3 8" round cake pans.  Line with waxed paper.  Greas and flour wax paper and sides of pans.  Set aside.
Cook first 3 ingredients in a saucepan over low heat, stirring constantly, 3 to 5 minutes or until better melts and mixture is smooth.  Remove from heat.  Cool
Beat buttermilk and next 3 ingredients with electric mixer at medium speed until smooth.  Add butter mixture to buttermilk mixtrue, beating until blended.  Combine sugar, flour, and salt, and gradually add to buttermilk mixture, beating until blended.  (Batter will be thin.)  Pour batter evenly into prepared pans.
Bake for 25 to 28 minutes or until wooden pick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes.  Remove from pans, cooling completely on racks.  (Layers should be thin.)

Let's make the ganache:
Microwave chocolate morsels and cream in glass bowl at 50% power 2 to 3 minutes or until morsels are melted, stirring after 1 1/2 minutes.  Whisk until smooth.  Gradually add butter, continuing to whisk until smooth.  Cool about 35 minutes, whisking every 10 minutes, until ganache reaches spreading consistency.

Let's make the frosting:
Bake pecans at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes, stirring once.  Nuts should be golden brown.
Bring butter, brown sugar, and cream to a boil in 2-qt. saucepan over medium heat, stirring often.  Continue boiling and stirring, 1 minute.
Remove from heat.  Whisk in powder sugar and vanilla until smooth.
Add toasted pecans and stir gently.  Frosting should begin to cool and thicken slightly.

Let's make the glaze:
Melt 4 tbl. butter in skillet over medium high heat.
Stir in sugars and vanilla.
Cook stirring constantly, 1 minute.
Remove skillet from heat and stir in bourbon.
Carefully ignite fumes just above liquid in skillet with a long multi-purpose lighter (such as a candle lighter or grill lighter)
Let stand until flames go out.

Let's assemble the cake:
Spread about 1/2 c. ganache between each cake layer.  Spread remaining ganache on sides of cake.  Do not frost top of cake.  Chill for 30 minutes.
Pour warm Praline Frosting slowly over top of chilled cake, spreading to edges.  Cover.  (You may do this ahead if you like.  Covered this cake can sit like this for up to 24 hours before you complete it.)
Pierce about 25 holes in top of cake using a metal skewer. (They're not just for kabobs anymore....)
Pour warm Bourbon Glaze over cake.

30 Days of Holiday: Hoppin' John

Black-eyed peas have long been a favorite in our house and a staple on our New Year's Day table.  During the week, for a routine meal, canned are fine.  We prefer Luck's.  But I've always made my holiday peas from scratch.  And, they were good until I found this recipe.  Now they are better-than-good, and my favorite part of the meal.  In fact, several days into January, I'll serve them, again, alongside a pan of cornbread. 
This recipe is unique in a couple of ways.  For one, it does not call for overnight soaking.  This works for me since I always seem to forget that step, anyway.  And, two, it calls for a bouquet of herbs that give the peas a wonderful flavor.  I like it so much that I add a few of the herbs to our everyday, canned peas as well!
The name "Hoppin' John" usually refers to peas that are served with rice, so I always have rice available.  Personally, though, I like these just they way they are!

What's In It:

1 lb. pkg. dried black-eyed peas
2 large ham hocks (about 3/4 lb.) (I use bits from a country ham my fathers gives us every year.  And, I don't measure.  We like our peas meaty!)
2 tbs. bacon drippings
4 c. water
1 large onion, cut into wedges (Yellow is good)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. dried, crushed red pepper
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 bay leaves
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 chicken bouillon cube
Hot cooked brown rice

How To Make It:

Sift through dried peas, using fingers.  Discard any misshapen or broken peas and any other debris.
Pour peas into a Dutch oven and add water to cover.  Bring to a boil and immediately remove from heat.  Let stand 1 hour.  Drain and return to Dutch oven.
Remove skin from ham hocks.  Cut meat away from the hocks, reserving bones.
Saute meat in hot bacon drippings in large skillet over medium-high heat for 3 minutes or until slightly browned.
Add meat, bones, 4 c. water, and next 8 ingredients to peas in Dutch oven.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer gently, stirring occasionally, 1 hour or until peas are tender.  Remove and discard bones and bay leaves.
May be served over rice.

Recipe adapted from one printed in Southern Living Magazine.










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