Tag: Dessert

Glazed Mini Cakes

Posted October 19, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 2 Comments

Today I’m bringing my EMILY WILDE’S ENCYCLOPEDIA OF FAERIES menu to a close with the iconic mini cakes the Ljoslanders serve throughout the story. This dainty dessert is sometimes described as being spiced and sometimes as being glazed, but it’s ALWAYS delicious. What’s most intriguing to me is that both the humans and the faeries eat variations of this dish, making it a regional delicacy that spans species and dimensions.

I couldn’t find any recipes for mini cakes specific to Ljosland (or Norway, where Ljosland is located), but I did find recipes for Swedish mini almond cakes. I combined recipes from Food and Journeys and Adrian Roselli to make the cakes below, topping them with a simple powdered sugar glaze to make them true to the story.

These cakes were a fun new experience for me. I had never used almond paste in a cake batter before, but I love the effect it had on the final product. The cakes were fluffy and soft in the middle with a firmer exterior, very nutty, and delicately sweet.

Needless to say, my kids gobbled these up. They’re great for feeding a crowd if you want something a little different from standard cupcakes or cookies. They’re also an amazing gift if you want to thank a professor for reviving the ancient tree in which you’ve made your faerie home. 😉

Swedish Krem and Berries

Posted August 17, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments

Today’s dessert from RONIA THE ROBBER’S DAUGHTER is the perfect ode to summer. After all, what could be more summery than fresh berries and cream? Ronia often mentions wild blueberries and strawberries during her rambles through Matt’s forest, so when it came time for me to plan this menu, I went hunting for a berry-themed dessert.

I chose a recipe for Swedish krem (cream) and berries I found on The Kitchen Magpie, which ties in beautifully with the book’s Scandinavian setting. Swedish krem is a breeze to make and SO delicious! The cream is rich and just sweet enough, while the berries offer a touch of tartness. I’m definitely making this next time I cook for a crowd. It’s the perfect make-ahead treat for a party!

Poppy Eyebright’s Wedding Cake: Hazelnut Honey Cake, Elderflower Whipped Cream, and Fresh Strawberries

Posted June 22, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments

Guys, this may be the most delicious thing I’ve ever made. I’m not even kidding. Poppy Eyebright’s wedding cake was my biggest motivation for making a Brambly Hedge menu to begin with, seeing as it’s the most iconic food in all the Bramby books. I’m SO glad I made it. It turned out amazing!

I feel like whenever anyone talks about Brambly Hedge food, we can’t help but gush about Poppy’s cake: three tiers of sponge cake interspersed with layers of cream and strawberries. I think we all imprinted on this cake because it’s simple yet decadent and highlights fresh, comforting flavors. It’s the physical embodiment of all things Brambly!

Interestingly, the description of Poppy’s wedding in the Brambly Hedge book SUMMER STORY doesn’t contain a description of her cake. Instead, we see several illustrations that include a cake fitting the description above. There is a larger, fancier cake in the illustrations as well. However, it hasn’t achieved the first cake’s level of fan recognition. This might be because it’s more formal, making it less emblematic of Brambly Hedge’s cozy cottage aesthetic. I like to imagine the larger cake was for the guests, while the smaller one was a bride and groom cake for Poppy and Dusty.

With that in mind, I decided to make mine a 6-inch cake. Since the book gives no description of the flavor, I decided to take my inspiration from another Brambly Hedge book. SPRING STORY describes Wilfred Toadflax’s birthday cake as “hazelnut cake with layers of thick cream,” which fits well with the illustrations of Poppy Eyebright’s wedding cake.

To start, I took the sponge recipe from the Honey Clementine Cupcakes in my new cookbook, A LITERARY PICNIC, and subbed in ground hazelnut for some of the flour. I was afraid it wouldn’t rise properly, but it turned out incredible. It’s quite possibly my best sponge recipe ever. It’s a lovely golden brown on the outside, and inside it has a texture that is somehow delicate and substantial—like if cake and banana bread had a baby.

For the cream layers, I whisked some elderflower liqueur into whipped cream, which added a lovely floral sweetness. To balance the richness of both the cake and the cream, I dotted fresh strawberries between the layers and added whole strawberries on top for decoration.

Could this be my magnum opus? It’s definitely one of my proudest culinary moments, and the pictures turned out amazing too (I had some perfect weather for outdoor photos!). So grab a plate and take a slice of this masterpiece out for a relaxing snack in the sunshine. It begs to be enjoyed with fresh air and greenery!

Captain Nemo’s Squid Cake Pops

Posted April 13, 2023 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments

You knew it was coming: the iconic giant squid! After all, this wouldn’t be a TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES menu without a recipe inspired by one of literature’s most famous sea monsters. 😉

From day one of planning this menu, I knew I was going to include an homage to the giant squid. The big question was HOW. I thought about making sauteed octopus tentacles as the entree, but I was really excited to make tuna steaks instead. Then I considered fried calamari, but I couldn’t get calamari rings (which turned out for the best, because it meant I got to make mock turtle soup, which was delish).

That left dessert as my only option. While hunting for inspiration on Pinterest, I saw these adorable jellyfish lollipops by TheSweetStoryLine. I loved how the height from the stick allowed for long, dangling tendrils. This reminded me I have a killer recipe for cake pops, so I set to work designing a cake pop version of the iconic giant squid from TWENTY THOUSAND LEAGUES.

And here it is! Say hello to the cutest, sweetest, angriest squids you’ve ever met. These grumpy little guys are stylized versions of giant squids because I like the juxtaposition of a cute yet dangerous sea monster. These squids are blue since it makes the “suckers” on the tentacles more visible, and I had loads of blue candy melts left over from a previous recipe. I also had giant candy eyeballs left over from my other ocean-themed dessert, Colonel Brandon’s Curse Cupcakes. Which also happens to feature a too-adorable-to-be-scary sea monster.

My kids adored these, and I hope you do too. Eat them up fast . . . before they eat you! 😉

Pink Cake

Posted December 15, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 1 Comment

Pink Cake may sound basic, but this dainty dessert hides a secret ingredient: melon! In STARDEW VALLEY, Pink Cake is a favorite of several villagers. The in-game thumbnail shows a cute pink tube cake topped with red heart sprinkles. The ingredients are listed as flour, sugar, egg, and pink melon (a fruit unique to the game, which looks like a pink cantaloupe). I was intrigued by the idea of a melon-based baked good, so I chose this cake for my STARDEW VALLEY dessert!

For my sponge, I used a variation on a recipe for melon chiffon cake I found on Singapore Shiok. My favorite part about this recipe is that, in addition to melon flavoring, it also uses real cantaloupe. I topped it with my go-to vanilla buttercream, since I felt like adding melon flavor to the frosting would make the recipe too “one note.” And how lucky was I to find these jumbo pixelated heart sprinkles from Nerdy Nummies for my decorations? They’re just the right size, and the 8-bit look is just right for a recipe based on a computer game.

This was my first time making chiffon, and it took me two tries to get it right. Chiffon can be finicky—the key to success is to fully incorporate the flour without over mixing. Doing too much or too little can lead to a deflated cake. Keep folding until you really don’t see any more bits of flour. The final result is worth it: fluffy, delicately sweet, and packed with melon flavor.

Cherry Almond Tart

Posted October 13, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 3 Comments

Today marks the final recipe in my JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL menu. This is one of my favorite books so of course I’m sad to be done, but I’m also SO grateful that I have a job that lets me bring fictional food to life. Living the dream!

Today’s recipe is inspired by the cherry almond tart Jonathan Strange eats while in Spain helping the British army during the Peninsular War. In the book, Strange eats almond tart with dried cherries, which I interpreted to be cherry almond tart using army rations. For my recipe, I decided to make what I felt the army cook was trying to recreate: cherry frangipane tart.

Since I’m new to making frangipane, this recipe is a bit of a conglomeration. I started with my standard pie shell recipe and made changes based on cherry frangipane tart recipes by Fresh Hunger, The Sunday Baker, and Kitchen Trials. I also used a combo of those recipes to come up with my filling. This was a really fun experience! I especially appreciated Sunday Baker’s tip to turn the cherry halves cut-side-up to prevent extra liquid from leaking into the tart.

Since cherry and almond are two of my husband’s favorite foods, I don’t think he minded at all that I had to tweak this recipe 3-4 times before I was happy with it. I hope you enjoy the results at much as he did!

Almond Pancakes with Blueberry Jam

Posted August 18, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments

As summer shifts to autumn around us, my current menu is coming to a close. Cooking food from MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN by Jean Craighead George has drawn me out of my comfort zone in the best way possible. I seared fish wrapped in leaves on an open fire, made salad with dandelion greens, and simmered stew made from venison my dad hunted himself. I really got to capture the outdoors with this menu, and I truly enjoyed it. I’m sad to see it end, but I’m also excited to dive into my autumn menu. Let’s finish off the summer with one last delicious recipe, shall we? 😀

In MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN, one of the most common foods Sam makes is acorn pancakes topped with his friend Bando’s blueberry jam. “But wait,” I hear you say, “this post is a recipe for ALMOND pancakes!” And you’re right. Since I work on these menus a couple months ahead, acorns weren’t ripe yet when it came time to make this (and since I don’t have an oak tree, I’m not sure I could have scrounged enough acorns to make enough flour anyway). Almonds were an easily sourceable substitute, and I knew they’d pair beautifully with blueberry jam. And I was right! 😀

They turned out delicious, though I’ll admit the almond flavor isn’t super strong. The almond flour itself doesn’t carry a lot of flavor in this preparation, instead contributing more to the texture of the pancake, making it more moist and just a touch chewier. I added some optional almond extract to the ingredients if you want more almond flavor. You can also increase the amount of almond flour to 1/2 cup (and reduce the all-purpose flour to 1 1/2 cups). However, that will make the batter more finicky. It’s thinner and spreads a lot, so you’ll want to pour less batter per pancake (approx. 3 Tbsp). I also had to increase the burner temperature to just below medium. I found all that to be bit too tedious, but it’s an option if you want to try it.

The blueberry jam was a really fun pairing and a perfect way to take advantage of summer fruit. I’m not big into syrup on my pancakes, so I appreciated the change of pace. Add some fresh whipped cream and sliced almonds on top, and you’ve got yourself the perfect recipe to finish off a menu for MY SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN. See you all again in September!

Coconut Macaroons with Guava Jam

Posted June 23, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments

This recipe goes out to my brand new “brother-in-law-in-law” (anybody know the term for a sister-in-law’s spouse?). My sister-in-law got married last month, and her husband LOVES guava! For her bridal shower, she made cupcakes filled with super luscious guava jam, and I’ve been dreaming about them ever since. So when I saw guava mentioned in SWISS FAMILY ROBINSON, I knew I had to try my hand at making my own guava jam.

But what to pair with it? That was easy: coconut. In the book, coconuts are mentioned no less than 36 times! Such a prominent ingredient simply HAD to be in my dessert, so I decided to make coconut macaroons and turn them into little guava thumbprint cookies. I used this macaroon recipe from The Slow Roasted Italian as my jumping off point, then started riffing from there.

These cookies turned out SO good. They’re sweet, a bit tart, and caramelized at the edges where the coconut get nice and toasty. Plus, the cookies are egg free, so they’re perfect if you have an egg allergy!

DEFINITELY making these again soon. Maybe for the next family gathering!

Mini No-Bake Blackberry Cheesecakes

Posted April 14, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 2 Comments

For the last dish in my PETER RABBIT menu, let me introduce you to these sweet little bites of heaven: mini no-bake blackberry cheesecakes! As soon as I started planning my menu, I knew I wanted the dessert to draw from the blackberries and milk Peter’s siblings enjoy at the end of the story. I tossed around lots of ideas, eventually deciding on no-bake cheesecake because my daughter loves cream cheese (her egg allergy prevents her from enjoying regular cheesecake). Plus, cheesecake is one of my husband’s favorite desserts. I made several batches during recipe testing, and he LOVED being my guinea pig! 😀

This was my first time developing a cheesecake recipe, so to make sure my proportions were right, I consulted two no-bake cheesecake recipes from Live Well Bake Often and Chenee Today. I found my filling to be a bit too loose after it set (possibly due to the additional liquid from the blackberry puree I mixed in), so I used a method I found at Simply Recipes, which calls for mixing a bit of gelatin in at the end. It set perfectly, which was a huge relief, since I would have been so sad to nix the puree. Not only does it provide a fun sweet-tart kick, but it turns the cheesecake an adorable lavender color. Bon appetit! 🙂

NOTE: THIS RECIPE NEEDS TO SET FOR AT LEAST 4 HOURS.

Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cake

Posted February 17, 2022 by Alison's Wonderland Recipes in Book of the Month Recipes / 0 Comments

If you can believe it, today’s recipe is actually inspired by Wilbur’s slop in CHARLOTTE’S WEB! Stay with me here. 😉 When the author lists the scraps included in Wilbur’s meals at the farm, he mentions upside-down cake and baked apples. I loved the idea of merging the two together into an amazing dessert, so here we are!

When it comes to upside-down cakes, I’m a total novice. I made one once but didn’t like how it turned out. So rather than try to develop my own recipe for this post, I turned to the Caramel Apple Upside-Down Cake from Sally’s Baking Addiction. Sally’s recipes are always winners for me, and I knew a sure-fire recipe would give me a good sense of how an upside-down cake should look at each step in the process. That way I’ll feel more confident developing my own upside-down cakes in the future!

As expected, the recipe was easy and turned out great. It was a HUGE hit with my 5-year-old son, who gobbled it up while chirping that it was “A-MA-zing!” I whole-heartedly agree. The caramel apple topping moistens the tender spiced cake just the right amount, and I appreciated that it wasn’t super sweet, allowing the apples and cinnamon to shine. It reminded me a bit of a breakfast bread, which has me scheming about making upside-down banana bread in the future! 😀