Sweet ReciPEAs

Evil Treats from a Nice Person

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First off…Happy Halloween….

Okay , enough with that…. Well, we are in…and 91.6%(give or take a tenth of a percent) of the way set up. All in all,the move went very smoothly…until it came to cable/Internet. Craptastic Comcast has gone out of their way to prove that customer service is not something they pride themselves on. Even as I write this I do not have Internet but I am being cautiously optimistic that they are going to actually come and hook us up tomorrow(10/31)Update, they did and they cable guy was very nice. A week and a half without her food blog and without hockey on makes for a mighty cranky Peabody. Just as I thought hard and long about what would be the last thing I would make in my apartment kitchen, I had to think about what would be the first thing I would make to christen the new home kitchen. Sadly that was my husband making Bagel Bites on our second day of living here…ugh. Since this is my first house ever, I felt the need to go a bit 1950’s housewife and make a bundt cake. Though I sincerely doubt that the 1950’s housewife would have been screaming obscenities at some guy on Sunday for elbowing her in the head while playing hockey. 😛 (Oh and in case you are wondering, I am back to playing hockey…so at least I can get my non-cable/Internet frustrations out by hitting people on skates). None the less, a bundt cake was decided upon, and a Dorie one at that, just to make sure it would turn out perfectly. I chose a Brown Sugar Bundt Cake that originally had pears in it, but I changed it to use up some of my apples(Honeycrips to be exact). It is very moist and gets a nice crunchy crust on the outside due to all the brown sugar in this cake. Once I get more neighbors(I’m in new construction) I plan on making mini ones of these to take over to them. For now, it was the guy working on the plumbing next door that got a piece to sample. 🙂 I was a dork and divided my kitchen into zones. So of course there is a baking zone. I can’t tell you how wonderful it is to have everything I need in just one area. I even have a whole cabinet dedicated to props now! The tricky thing now is the lighting in this house. I didn’t really bother today, just taking pictures in the kitchen but I am still working on finding the room I think brings the best light. I have a feeling I will be tinkering with that for quite sometime. So there you have it, my first effort from my new kitchen…with many more things to come….. Brown Sugar Bundt Cake 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour ½ cup hazelnut flour(ground hazelnuts) 1 tsp baking powder ½ tsp baking soda ¼ tsp salt 8 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature 2 cups(packed) brown sugar 3 large eggs, room temperature 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract ¼ tsp pure almond extract 1 cup buttermilk 2 medium apples, peeled, cored and diced( ¼ inch) ½ cup moist, plump raisins(if too dry throw into hot water for 10 minutes…then drain from water and pat dry) Preheat oven to 350F. Butter and flour a 9-10 inch Bundt pan(12 cup). Whisk together flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside. Using a paddle attachment(stand mixer), beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for one minute after each addition. Beat in the vanilla and almond extract. Reduce the speed on the mixer and add the flour to mixture and buttermilk alternatively-add flour in 3 additions and buttermilk in 2(begin and end with dry ingredients). Mix only until the ingredients are incorporated and scrape down the bowl as needed. With a rubber spatula, stir in the apples and raisins. Scrape the batter into the pan and smooth the top with the spatula. Bake for 60-65 minutes. Transfer cake to rack and cool for 10 minutes before unmolding, then cool at room temperature on the rack. When you are ready to serve, dust the top of the cake with confectioners’ sugar. Source: Adapted From Baking From My Home To Your by Dorie Greenspan

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Comments

  3. Looks as if you are off to a good start in the new kitchen! Your pup is so cute. Whenever we try to put any sort of clothing on our dog, she thinks it’s a game where she’s supposed to rip it off and then rip it to shreds. Glad you’re connected again.

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  4. I think the lighting there is just wonderful…much better than my aweful windowless kitchen and balcony covered porch! Enjoy your new kitchen.

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  7. Our cable install didn’t exactly go smoothly either, but I did get it installed the day after we moved in so it wasn’t too bad. I have no idea what my first item to make will be but I do have to say that yours looks simply amazing!

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  9. CONGRATS!!! Glad to see you back online. 🙂

    Lovely cake, and so exciting about having a baking “zone”, such a fun luxury after apartment living or smaller-kitchen living.

    And HOW cute is your dog????!!!??

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  10. First and foremost- I think your dodo might be the cutest little thing I’ve ever laid eyes on.
    Second- CONGRATS!!! What a great recipe to christen your new kitchen with- I have never tried it with apples, but I must do so.
    We are glad to have you back and blogging again! You were missed : )

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  13. Oh good grief Peabody there can never be enough of that!
    I remember the feeling of the first house! So happy for you. The cable thing is so incredible, JUST DO IT ALREADY. I think we’re more dependent on cable than the phone sometimes.
    Happy House!

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  14. I would have thought you would have brought a light meter to every house you viewed, so you could pick the house that all your requirements, plus great light! 🙂
    Glad you are settled into your new home and enjoying it!

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  16. Congrats on the new house! Don’t even get me started on cable companies — I’ll just get riled up… But I think a bundt cake is the perfect inaugural treat for your new kitchen :). Is that a Dorie recipe??

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  17. I’m one of those losers still stuck in an apartment. Oh, how I wish I had zones! I have the upper and lower shelves in my cabinets separated into baking supplies & misc. appliances, but when you only have 2-3 feet of counter space that’s about as zoned as things get. I can’t wait to make a bundt cake for the holidays, this one looks great.

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  18. Sorry Peabody, I had to laugh when I read about your experience with Comcast… I used to do customer service for them and I just felt badly for anyone who called in cause usually there was nothing I could do and I knew that the tech I sent would probably not show up… don’t you love when companies have a monopoly going?

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  20. Your cake looks delicious and your dog is so cute! My dog would probably just pee on any costume we’d put her in.

    I’m so terribly impressed that you split your kitchen into zones. That’s a brilliant idea. Maybe I’ll attempt to switch mine around one of these days…

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  21. My dog wouldn’t wear his costume. I tried, but he would just run off and hide under the bed…

    This cake reminds me of the brown sugar muffins my mom would make growing up. So I guess this cake would be retro to me in a different way!! Sounds fantastic!

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  22. Congratulations! I know you’re so pleased you could pop. (And that piggy? Adorable!) The 1950s thing made me giggle, but that is one pretty bundt!

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  23. I love the sound of your baking area in the kitchen. Wish my kitchen was big enough for one of those, its tiny. I have all my baking tins in my wardrobe! The cake looks wonderful, I really like how you have finished it off with a dusting of sugar, just perfect

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  25. yikes, sorry about all the frustrations!! by hey, at least this beautiful bundt cake of yours is proof that you will adjust quite well (and already have!) to your new kitchen/home.

    Your dog looks too adorable in the pig costume – my dog was dressed up as a belly-dancer this year (don’t ask, haha – the costume looked too funny/cute).

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  29. *shuddering with excitement*…bbbbuunnndddt cake….yummmmmm. Great looking bundt ya got there…lol! There’s nothing better to christen a new kitchen with btw 🙂 Thanks for sharing!

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  32. I have been meaning to try making a Bundt cake for a while now. This one sounds really good with brown sugar, apples, raisins, almonds, hazelnuts, etc. The cake looks light and moist. Nice photos. Bookmarked .

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  33. First: Your darling in her fuzzy pink costume had me laughing long and loud…so silly and cute.
    Second: We now know for sure that Comcastic is not a synonym for Fantastic…perhaps it’s the opposite 🙂 glad you have internet and cable TV back.
    Third: Great choice for first real baking effort in new house…can’t miss with Dorie…looks delish! Congrats on being moved in and baking again. Watch out for those ankles while you are skating and bashing. 😉

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  38. hahahah i couldn’t stop laughing with that first pic , then i read enough with that 😛 …that is one fantastic macro !!! can almost dive into that slice.
    Congrats on the new kitchen…Good Luck !

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  39. wow, this cake looks amazing! i hate falling upon 20 wonderful recipes in one day. i can never decide what to make first and where to start. this one is def going on my list! oh.and your dog is adorable- looove that costume.

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  41. Congrats on your new home and your “baking area.” I totally get it. I also get the whole idea of looking for the room with the best light. Hilarious. The bundt looks and sounds excellent. Um, your dog’s not looking too happy about that suit.

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  42. The cake looks scrumptious! And the light…I feel ya. I love my house, but not the light in my kitchen. I turn on every light around when baking…GA Power loves me!
    But, I must say….the pooch…Seriously? That picture just made my week! Thanks! 🙂

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  44. I’ve merely lurking for months and just enjoying the photos but I made this cake and it is wonderful! I got plenty of compliments from my co-workers who are all good bakers. Thanks!

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  45. Your cocker is so beautiful. Seeing her in your blog brings back sweet memories when my Chelsea was here, they look identicle!
    The pumpkin cake looks awesome. You can never go wrong with pumpkin,raisin, and apples.

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  46. Awww the baby looks so damn cute! I trust she had a nice Halloween and didn’t want to uhhh.. get her parents back for the outfit? hahahaa!

    This is my 2nd most favorite bundt cake of all time (next to Dorie’s classic banana) and I’ve made it with apples & raisins and it was the bomb!

    PS – Where did you get the piggy costume? I think Nigel would totally rock the snout & ears next year! heeeee!

    xoxoxox

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