"Best Ever" Chocolate Cake from Dimples and Delights

Chocolate Cake - made June 27, 2024, modified from Dimples and Delights

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups granulated sugar

3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon espresso powder

1 cup whole milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 cup boiling water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 9 x 13-inch baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In the mixing bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and espresso powder until evenly mixed.
3. Add milk, oil, eggs and vanilla, mixing to combine. Pour in hot water and mix to combine. Beat for 1 minute.
4. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

Speaking of chocolate cakes and feeling like I could make something similar to what the Crumbl tester was this week, ironically, I had made one before I tried Crumbl's. This recipe reminds me of the chocolate cake recipe that used to be (still is?) on the label of Hershey's cocoa powder. Not just because it uses cocoa powder but it has a lot of liquid and makes for a thin batter. Such a liquidy batter makes for a soft crumb when the cake is baked. Which is what happened here.

I didn't use the buttercream frosting recipe that the original blog did as I was too lazy and it was too hot to make it when I needed to bring it to an event. So I just covered the whole thing with Nutella. Since I was serving it for a crowd on a hot night, I also made it in a 9 x 13 pan instead of as round layers that would need to be stacked and frosted. A 9 x 13 cake is much easier to cut and share.

Flavor and texture-wise, this was good. Not sure I would consider it the best ever chocolate cake I've made but it was good. I think I prefer my chocolate cakes to be either a flourless chocolate cake or a dense pound cake rather than as a more traditional cakey cake. Or as a Texas sheet cake as those typically have the texture I prefer in my chocolate cakes. Be careful not to move or jiggle the pan during baking, not even to turn it. The batter is so liquidy that the cake will sink in the middle if you try to move it before it's baked.

Crumbl Cookies review #75: Chocolate Cake (tester)

Crumbl Cookies review #75 - Chocolate Cake (tester), visited July 8, 2024 

I passed on last week's tester which was some kind of berry/fruit (cherry? strawberry?) cheesecake since I don't like cheesecake and generally don't like fruit or berries in my baked goods (apples and bananas being strong exceptions). I did try the Cookies and Cream Cheesecake tester last month but to be honest, I didn't finish it as I simply don't like cheesecake.

The only flavors I liked on the regular menu was the Salted Caramel Cheesecake and the Cake Batter but I've already tried those and the other flavors didn't interest me.

So I was happy enough that this week's tester was chocolate cake. It's a two-layer cake sandwiched with chocolate ganache and topped with more ganache and with chocolate frosting piped around the outer edge. The tester picture above shows the frosting should completely cover the top in a rosette design but I prefer it the way I was given since I wouldn't want all that frosting on top, especially since it already had a thin layer of ganache on top.

I like chocolate cake and this was "okay" if you're a fan of chocolate cakes. Remember my picky taste buds. But this is also something I could make myself. There's no wow factor in this for me. 

It's suitable if you want an individual-sized cake and don't want to go to the trouble of making your own. It's not too big but it's not too small either so two people can easily share it. Or one person can eat it over a couple of days *cough*. 

As with most of their cake testers, this one has an upcharge of $1.49 so as a single "cookie" purchase, it was $4.49 + $1.49 = $5.98 but with taxes, this came to $6.97. So almost $7 for a little cake. Not worth it to me. Glad I got to try it and I was also glad it wasn't a cheesecake but I probably wouldn't get this one again if/when it hits the regular menu.

Old-Fashioned Hot Milk Cake from Insanely Good Recipes

Old-Fashioned Hot Milk Cake - made June 27, 2024, slightly modified from Insanely Good Recipes

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces

1 1/4 cups whole milk

4 large eggs

2 cups granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 9 x 13-inch baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a small bowl, stir together flour and baking powder; set aside.
3. In a heavy medium saucepan, combine the butter and milk over medium-low heat until melted and smooth. Do not boil.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk the eggs on medium high speed for 3-4 minutes until thick, pale and fluffy.
5. Gradually add granulated sugar and vanilla, mixing until combined.
6. Add the dry ingredients and mix until combined.
7. Add hot butter-milk mixture and mix on low speed until combined. Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.

This is a quick and easy cake to make for summer gatherings. I don't know about where you are but we're hitting triple digit temps. I'm not a fan of summer. Too hot, especially in recent years. I have to do my baking early in the morning. It's just simply too hot to turn my oven on at any other time of the day.

But a cake that can be made in a 9 x 13-inch pan and doesn't need frosting works well for summer. I also had milk to use up. It's a bit hard to describe the texture of this cake. It's not as dense as a pound cake nor is it as light as a typical cakey texture. It's somewhere in between. Has a firm but soft bite to it and is perfect for vanilla lovers.

Because the flavor is pretty straightforward, it's important to use fresh, quality ingredients, from the butter to real vanilla extract. No margarine and no imitation stuff.

Bakery Review: Croissante in Santa Clara, CA

Bakery Review: Croissante in Santa Clara, CA - visited June 23, 2024

The last new-to-me bakery that I tried on my Bay Area trip was Croissante Artisanal Bakery. And what a bakery it was. It reminded me of Manresa Bread in Los Altos or Arsicault Bakery in San Francisco.

It was filled with flaky pastries, both savory and sweet, the pastries were baked onsite and there were many assorted flavors to choose from. Not to mention the offerings were a feast for the eyes as well as the palate. It was also a bit expensive but the upscale pastries were definitely worth the upscale price.

I met a couple of friends there for dessert and one of them had a gift card so she treated us and we enjoyed our pastries and catching up. A perfect afternoon.

Ham and Leek Quiche

For my pastry of choice, I went with the coconut pain au chocolat. That's not something you see every day and I love both coconut and chocolate so it was an easy choice from the plethora of mouthwatering choices. It was also the right choice as it was delicious. I love a good pain au chocolat anyway and that's what this was. It was made better from the slightly toasted-crisp but still chewy texture from the coconut topping. The pastry itself was also nice and flaky, always a good sign of a well-made laminated dough.

My friends also enjoyed their pastries of choice. So this bakery was definitely a great find.

Coconut Pain au Chocolat

Two of us went back after our chat was over to get more, my friend to bring some back for her family and me to grab a slice of quiche for dinner later.

And I have to say, hours later, when I was finally hungry again, this quiche was amazing. The filling was soft and creamy and the pastry crust was flaky. Perfect. I will definitely need to go back to Croissante next time I'm in the neighborhood.

Restaurant Review: Bloom Eatery, Santa Clara, CA

Restaurant Review: Bloom Eatery, Santa Clara, CA - visited June 23, 2024

I like to do restaurant reviews of small business restaurants to give them a bit of visibility on my blog and hopefully encourage others to either try the restaurant itself if it's in their area or to support any other local small business restaurant in their area. In Bloom Eatery's case, I don't think they need the help, given the number of people who already eat there and the hour-long wait my friends and I had when we went there for Sunday brunch. 

The place is a bit small and the turnover didn't seem that fast but I think the hour long wait for a table for four was legitimately due to the high number of people who also came to eat there.

When we finally got seated, we all ordered chicken and waffles. It was delicious. The waffles were fluffy and the breaded chicken (thighs, not breast) was nicely crisp. The only thing I could probably have done without was the slightly spicy glaze over the top of the whole dish but it didn't detract much from the dish. The service was also quite prompt and nicely delivered. If I could avoid an hour-long wait next time, I'd definitely go again.

Bakery Review: Pastelaria Adega, San Jose, CA

Bakery Review: Pastelaria Adega, San Jose, CA - visited June 23, 2023

My friend Paulo, who's of Portuguese descent, recommended I try Pastelaria Adega after I told him I had tried the pastel de nata from Holy Nata. Pastelaria Adega is a Portuguese bakery in the South Bay and since I happened to be in the area (not really but it was less than 10 miles from my hotel), of course I was going to try it.

I arrived shortly after they opened at 9:30 am on a Sunday morning. There was already a line outside the door. The bakery was larger than Holy Nata so a line outside the door meant there were almost 20 people ahead of me in line when I got there. But the line moved reasonably quickly and it only took about 15-20 minutes before it was my turn.

Unlike Holy Nata, Pastelaria Adega offers more than pasteis de nata. Besides the flaky pastries of American and French bakeries like croissants, they also had a large selection of malasadas, a yeast-leavened doughnut that's a Portuguese specialty from the Azores. You could get an unfilled malasada or choose from a variety of different fillings. 

You can get any number of pasteis de nata but they do come in nice boxed packaging when you order 6. Which is what I did. I was going to meet friends for brunch after my bakery visit so I bought a 6-pack for sharing. I also bought a cinnamon and apple-filled malasada to try.

As you can see from the sign above, the pastel de nata was $4 each, a bit more expensive than the $2.50 from Holy Nata. They also offered different fillings but I elected to stick with the original.

First, let's rightly pay homage to the pastel de nata from Pastelaria Adega. Because these are pretty damn close to the ones I ate (and ate) in Portugal. The pastry shell is flaky and crisp, even when at room temperature and even the next day, and is super buttery. If you eat them warm, have a wipe on hand or the ability to wash your hands. The custard was creamy and looked more like the Portugal pastel de nata (Holy Nata's was darker). It also held its shape after you bite into it. But it was still creamy and definitely delicious. Yes, it's more expensive but some things are worth it. This is one of them.

I shared them with my friends at brunch and they enjoyed them as well. One had just returned from a trip to Portugal with her family and was excited to discover there was a local option for her to get pasteis de nata as she and her family had enjoyed them as well. What's not to love?? 

Second, I had the cinnamon & apple filled malasada. This one was a bit disappointing. The dough of the doughnut itself was fine. It has a more chewy texture but wasn't tough. It's not as light as like a Krispy Kreme doughnut, which I was fine with as I prefer more texture in my yeasted doughnuts. So that part was good. Where I was disappointed was in the filling. I had hoped for more apple pieces but the filling was literally mush. Like applesauce mush with very few apple pieces. The apple had either cooked down to mush or there were very few apple pieces to start with. In hindsight, I should've gone with either an unfilled malasada or a filling like dulce de leche or lemon where I expect it to be custard-y and mushy.

But on a high note, the pastel de nata held up well, even the next day. The pastry shell was still flaky and not tough or chewy. The filling also held its shape and didn't run out of the shell when I bit into it. So good. Pastelaria Adega is now a must-stop on my next trip to the Bay Area.