April ABC challenge: Meringue-topped Coffee Cake

 

This month's challenge is coffee. That takes me back to a little place in Charlottesville, Virginia called Sunshine Bakery. They used to have this coffee-flavored cake that was so good! I've never had anything like it before or since, and 30+ years later, I still crave that cake. For one thing, outside of panaderias, I never see coffee-flavored cake. (And trying to look up recipes for one gets you a lot of plain breakfast cakes with streusel topping.) But it also had the most unique texture -- firmer than normal, with really large air holes for a cake, almost like an English muffin. It would probably be considered inferior by a trained pastry chef, but it was delightful. It also had a whipped coffee (perhaps mocha) frosting, not too sweet. Unfortunately, that bakery is long gone, and with it the elusive recipe. Alas.

For this recipe, I halved the original, which called for an 8" x 8" baking pan. I used a pan slightly smaller than an 8" x 4", so the cake was taller, but was done in the same time.  Here's what I used:

1/3 cup milk, warmed
1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/8 cup light-brown sugar
1/2 egg plus 1 yolk, beaten
3/4 cup all-purpose flour, sifted
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 1/16 teaspoon salt

Topping
1 egg white
1/4 cup plus 1/2 teaspoon superfine sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tablespoon sweetened, shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 325F; grease and line a 7.25" x 3.5" loaf pan. Dissolve coffee granules in milk; cool. In a bowl, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Gradually beat in egg. Fold in flour and cinnamon alternately with coffee-flavored milk. Turn out batter into prepared pan.

To make topping, whisk egg whites until soft peaks form. Gradually whisk in 1/4 cup of sugar; spread over batter. In a bowl, mix remaining 1/2 teaspoon of sugar, cinnamon, and coconut; sprinkle over the meringue. Bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until a fine skewer inserted into the center comes out clean and meringue is crisp. Cool in pan 5 minutes, then carefully remove and cool on a wire rack. 

This rose really weirdly -- only on one side. My oven is about 25 degrees hotter from back to front, but it's hard to believe it made that much of a difference across a 4-inch pan! Perhaps it had something to do with how the meringue attached to the pan.  (Was one side greased more than the other?) It also rose a LOT, rising well above the top of the pan, but sunk back down a bit as it cooled. And yet there was no noticeable difference in the crumb from one side to the other. Odd.

This cake was actually was more like a "coffee cake" than a dessert -- mild in flavor and sweetness.  The coffee flavor wasn't detectable, surprisingly -- it tasted more of cinnamon and molasses, even though it contained neither.  The coffee probably added a complexity to the overall flavor. I'd want to at least double the coffee quantity. The meringue was a nice touch, but the coconut topping was unnecessary -- probably more for appearance than anything else. To make this more rich, it could be nicely decadent with a dark chocolate ganache drizzle.

Conclusion:  The cake was very light and fluffy while warm, but firmed up and became more dense and moist the next day. (The recipe directs this to be eaten the same day it's made, probably due to the meringue, but I liked it better the second day and the meringue was fine.) I'd be inclined to leave off the coconut topping mixture entirely and perhaps serve this with a whipped coffee frosting instead of the meringue, particularly in the fall because of its warm spice flavors.

Recipe:  "Meringue-Topped Cake" from A Gourmet's Guide to Coffee & Tea by Leslie Mackley

Knedlíky (Czech Bread Dumplings)

I made Chef John's Bohemian Orange Chicken the other night, but it turned out way too salty for my tastes. To help cut the salt, I made the recommended bread dumplings to accompany it.  His recipe makes two loaves; I reduced that by half to make just one.  I also cut the salt way back, just for this particular preparation, since the meal didn't need any additional salt. (Although I think even under ordinary circumstances I probably wouldn't use all the salt called for in the recipe unless the main dish was particularly bland. You can always add salt to your plate.)

Here's what I used:

1/2 cup warm milk
1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
1½ teaspoon white sugar
1³/₈ 7/8 cup quick-mixing flour (such as Wondra®) all-purpose flour
1/2 cup corn meal
1/2 ³/₁₆ teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 large egg, beaten

Proof the yeast in the warm milk with the sugar. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, corn meal, and salt. Add the yeast mixture and egg to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until it starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and forms a dough, adding more flour if needed. Knead on a lightly floured surface until dough is smooth and slightly elastic, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, flipping the dough to coat the top in oil. Cover and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 2 hours. Transfer back to your work surface; press out the excess air and form dough into a relatively uniform ball, then roll into a log about 2 to 2½ inches wide. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let proof for 20 to 25 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a steady simmer. Carefully pick up the risen dough and transfer to the simmering water; bring back to a simmer. Cover tightly and let simmer for 10 minutes. Uncover, flip, and continue to simmer for another 10 minutes. Transfer to a plate and poke all over with a toothpick or wooden skewer, which releases the steam from the center. Use a piece of string or thread to cut into 3/4- to 1-inch dumplings. Transfer to a serving plate.

Chef John's Note:  You can substitute half all-purpose flour and half semolina flour for Wondra® if you can't find it.

These dumplings were indeed very absorbent and yet stayed firm, rather than getting soggy.  I wonder whether it's the egg that makes them like that, or the boiling? Chef John's note says you can use semolina, although I think in the video he calls out corn meal; probably either would work. I didn't really notice the corn meal when they were fresh, but after moistening day-old dumplings with water and heating gently in the microwave, they reminded me of spoon bread. One unpleasantness:  the loaf was a bit soggy in the area of the expansion crack. (The cracks are considered undesirable -- now I see why -- but I don't see how to avoid them unless the dough was completely risen before being placed in the hot water.) After finishing the chicken, I used the leftover dumplings semi-successfully as a hotdog bun. It was okay.

Conclusion:  Well, it's nothing to write home about.  It's basically a plain, white bread, even plainer than ordinary bread because of being boiled.  It does the job of providing a neutral base for the main dish, though it's way more filling than noodles or rice.

Recipe:  Czech Bread Dumplings (Knedlíky) via Food Wishes at allrecipes