Bon Appetit Desserts (30 page)

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes before serving.

Slice remaining strawberries. Cut cake into wedges; spoon sliced strawberries alongside each wedge and serve.

Banana Layer Cake with Caramel Cream and Sea Salt-Roasted Pecans

The caramel sauce for the filling is made with brown sugar instead of white sugar, so it has a golden caramel color right off the bat, but it won’t have rich, deep caramel flavor until it is cooked to the right temperature. Use a candy thermometer or deep-fry thermometer to ensure that it reaches 218°F.
10 to 12 servings

2½ cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon (generous) fine sea salt

2½ cups sugar, divided

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

6 large eggs

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk

2 small ripe bananas, peeled, cut into ¼-inch cubes (about 1½ cups)

1½ cups (packed) golden brown sugar

1 small ripe banana, peeled, cut into 1-inch pieces

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature

3¾ cups chilled heavy whipping cream, divided

4 ½ teaspoons fresh lime juice, divided

4 ½ teaspoons dark rum, divided

Sea Salt-Roasted Pecans (see recipe)

CAKE:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter and flour two 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1½-inch-high sides. Sift flour, baking powder, and sea salt into medium bowl. Beat 1 cup sugar and butter in large bowl until well blended. Add 2 eggs; beat until blended. Beat dry ingredients into butter mixture in 4 additions alternately with buttermilk in 3 additions. Beat remaining 4 eggs and remaining 1½ cups sugar in medium bowl until mixture is thick and pale in color, about 4 minutes. Fold egg mixture into batter. Fold in bananas. Divide batter between prepared pans (about 3½ cups for each).

Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 35 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks 15 minutes. Cut around pan sides to loosen cakes. Turn cakes out onto racks; cool completely.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Wrap in foil; store at room temperature.

BANANA-CARAMEL CREAM:
Combine sugar, banana, and butter in processor; blend until smooth. Add 1½ cups cream; process to blend. Transfer to heavy medium saucepan. Whisk over medium heat until sugar dissolves and mixture comes to boil. Attach candy thermometer to side of pan; cook without stirring or swirling pan until thermometer registers 218°F, about 10 minutes. Pour caramel into medium bowl. Cool to room temperature, whisking occasionally.

Whisk remaining 2¼ cups cream in large bowl until cream mounds softly. Gradually fold in cooled caramel mixture. Chill until caramel cream is firm enough to spread, about 3 hours.

Cut each cake horizontally into 2 layers. Place 1 layer, cut side up, on platter. Drizzle 1½ teaspoons lime juice and 1½ teaspoons rum over. Spread 1¼ cups caramel cream over. Top with second cake layer. Drizzle 1½ teaspoons lime juice and 1½ teaspoons rum over. Spread 1½ cups caramel cream over. Repeat with third cake layer, lime juice, rum, and caramel cream. Top with fourth cake layer, cut side down; spread remaining caramel cream over top. Scatter Sea Salt-Roasted Pecans over top of cake.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate.

Sea Salt-Roasted Pecans

A simple recipe with endless uses—these pecans would be delicious tossed into salads, crumbled atop grilled fish, or sprinkled over hot fudge sundaes. The melted butter adds wonderful flavor and helps the sea salt cling to the nuts; be sure to use unsalted butter to keep the salty flavor in perfect balance.
Makes 2 cups

2 cups pecan halves

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1¼ teaspoons fine sea salt

Preheat oven to 325°F. Toss pecans and melted butter in medium bowl to coat. Add sea salt and toss. Spread pecans in single layer on rimmed baking sheet. Bake pecans until fragrant and slightly darkened in color, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes. Cool pecans on sheet.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature. Before using, rewarm in 350°F oven 5 minutes, then cool.

Triple-Ginger Layer Cake

Crystallized ginger in the moist cake, the frosting, and the garnish lends lively flavor that’s enhanced with ground ginger and cinnamon. Crystallized ginger is sometimes labeled candied ginger. It can be found in the spice aisle or Asian foods section of most supermarkets, or in the bulk section of natural foods stores. It should be tender and chewy with a fresh coating of sugar.
8 to 10 servings

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

3 cups cake flour, sifted

1 cup finely chopped crystallized ginger (about 6 ounces)

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup (packed) golden brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk

2 8-ounce packages Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature

¾ cup (packed) golden brown sugar

⅔ cup powdered sugar

½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup finely chopped crystallized ginger (about 3 ounces), divided

CAKE:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray two 8-inch-diameter cake pans with 2-inch-high sides with nonstick spray. Line pan bottoms with parchment paper. Whisk flour, crystallized ginger, ground ginger, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl to blend, separating ginger pieces. Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Beat in dry ingredients alternately with buttermilk in 3 additions each, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Divide batter between prepared pans.

Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool cakes in pans on racks 10 minutes. Cut around pan sides to loosen cakes. Turn cakes out onto racks, peel off parchment, and cool completely.

FROSTING:
Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and butter in large bowl until fluffy. Add brown sugar, powdered sugar, cinnamon, ground ginger, and vanilla; beat until well blended. Mix in ¼ cup crystallized ginger.

Place 1 cake layer on platter. Spread 1 cup frosting over. Top with second cake layer. Spread remaining frosting over top and sides of cake. Sprinkle remaining ¼ cup crystallized ginger decoratively atop cake.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover with cake dome and refrigerate. Let stand at room temperature 2 hours before serving.

Ginger-Lime Coconut Cake with Marshmallow Frosting

A ginger-scented lime curd fills this buttermilk cake. For this recipe, be sure to sift the flour before measuring it. Since this cake is four layers tall, you’ll need 3 or 4 bamboo skewers to help hold the layers in place as you frost the cake.
10 to 12 servings

3 large eggs

3 large egg yolks

½ cup sugar

½ cup fresh lime juice

¼ cup finely grated lime peel (from about 12 limes)

1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger

Pinch of salt

6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter, cut into pieces, room temperature

5 cups sifted cake flour (sifted, then measured)

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1½ cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

3 cups sugar

8 large eggs

2 cups buttermilk, room temperature

1½ cups sugar

2 large egg whites

⅓ cup water

2 teaspoons light corn syrup

¼ teaspoon cream of tartar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 7-ounce package sweetened flaked coconut

GINGER-LIME CURD:
Whisk eggs, egg yolks, sugar, lime juice, lime peel, ginger, and salt in large metal bowl to blend. Place bowl over saucepan of barely simmering water and whisk constantly until curd thickens, about 8 minutes. Remove bowl from over water; whisk butter into hot curd. Strain curd through fine strainer set over bowl; discard solids in strainer. Press plastic wrap directly onto surface of curd; chill overnight.

DO AHEAD:
Can be made 2 days ahead. Keep refrigerated.

CAKE:
Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Butter four 9-inch-diameter cake pans with 1½-inch-high sides. Line pan bottoms with parchment paper. Butter parchment; dust with flour. Sift flour, baking soda, and salt into large bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in another large bowl until smooth. Gradually add sugar and beat until well blended, about 5 minutes. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, scraping down sides of bowl often. Beat in flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with buttermilk in 2 additions. Divide batter among prepared pans.