chocolate macaroon cake with orange buttercream

i spent some time this week with my old friend, mr. vibraphone! i snuck into the university of north dakota practice rooms, took off my shoes like the good old days, and started regaining my right big toe muscle, the one that ends up doing most of the vibe pedaling. (note to self: get a pedicure.) it was fun and it felt real good that i didn't completely forget everything about this opera that i'm playing in a few weeks and it brought back wonderful memories of when i played it last, at the very beginning of eggboy. oh yeah, i'm going to texas to play an opera in a few weeks!

(do you live in texas? do you enjoy contemporary opera? do you have a babysitter for your kiddos since there is more (fake) blood in this opera than i have ever seen in my entire life? come see me play music in this awesome dark thing! it is amazing!)

other than that, the big news is that from what i've been able to tell in the 1-2 times that i've left the house this week, spring is here! eggboy came in yesterday smelling like he does in the spring and summer, slightly sweaty and kind of dirty. not dirty, like unclean, but dirty like actual dirt on his face that makes him look like a raccoon. i think he's about to put seeds in the ground. i think. 

how kind of spring to show up right in time for passover and easter! i love a springtime holiday. even though it looks like our passover guests are going to be: mr. mumbles the stuffed penguin, mcnugget the stuffed sunny side up egg, ernie, and elijah. maybe elijah will bring a plus one? oh well, more brisket and an automatic afikoman win for me! 

and cake.

*of course*

i made this cake for my friend nina, who is turning 30 this weekend!!! i imagine that a passover birthday can be a little bit like a chrismukkah birthday. presents magically get combined into chrismukkah/birthday presents, birthday cakes on passover magically... don't happen? or are not good? or are actually a macaroon with a candle in it? ok this is kind of that, but a good macaroon. a danny macaroons-inspired macaroon. with a slathering of orange buttercream, because what's that tale about having an orange at your seder? i wanted to make nina a classy tasty cake for a very special birthday, because the person behind egg roll hamantaschen and taco hamantaschen deserves such a thing. and so do you!

happy birthday, nina!!!! 

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chocolate macaroon cake with orange buttercream

makes one 8-inch cake

ingredients

cake:

2 14-oz bags sweetened shredded coconut

1 1/2 c unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp kosher salt

4 large egg whites

4 tsp vanilla extract

2 14-oz cans sweetened condensed milk*

frosting:

2 c unsalted butter, softened*

4 c powdered sugar

a pinch of kosher salt

zest of one orange

2 tsp orange juice

assembly:

chocolate shavings

cocoa powder

orange slices

*if you're looking for dairy free/kosher alternatives, here is a recipe for condensed coconut milk and here is a recipe for homemade dairy condensed milk. i have not tested these, but i will let you know if i do! for the frosting, feel free to sub the butter for your preferred vegan butter.

clues

cake:

preheat oven to 350. grease four 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with parchment. (it's ok if you don't have four pans, you can just bake the layers in batches.)

in a large bowl, mix together the coconut, cocoa powder, and salt. in a separate bowl, whisk together the egg whites, vanilla, and condensed milk. add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir to combine. spread one fourth of the batter into each cake pan (these will be very thin layers) and bake for about 18 minutes, until they're no longer shiny. let cool for 5-10 minutes in their pans and then turn onto a drying rack to cool fully.

frosting:

beat all frosting ingredients together until smooth.

assembly:

stack up your layers with a thin layer of frosting in between them and then frost the cake all over. decorate with chocolate shavings, cocoa powder, and oranges slices as desired.

enjoy!

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-yeh!

pictured: cake stand // wooden utensils

halva + jam hamantaschen

the whole time we were in europe, whenever my phone would get a little bite of wifi and refresh its facebooky self, a new outrageous form of hamantaschen would pop up on my screen and my jaw would drop and i would take eggboy's attention away from his maps and tell him all about them. cheddar biscuit hamantaschen. hand pie hamantaschen. manischewitz hamantaschen. sprinkle (!!!!!!!) hamantaschen. taco hamantaschen!!!!!

like, i'm sorry, original sacher torte, you need to hold on, i'm having a hamantaschen emergency. being present and living in the moment, it's what i do best (?)

fascinatingly, i found a hazelnut filled triangle cookie in the back of a dainty pastry case in lucerne that looked almost exactly like the massive hamantaschen from new york delis. i asked the baker what it was called, curious if lucernians had a different name for it, but she didn't know and i already had a mouth full of marzipan so i didn't get one and now, talking to you, i'm embarrassed by my poor research skills. 

needless to say, i had a big list of things to make as soon as i got home and hamantaschen was number one. (goulash was number two, knödel was number three.) it was a true sign that leah koenig's new book, modern jewish cooking, was waiting for me when i returned. and there are some sexy hamantaschen in that book, both savory and sweet. 

there are a lot of sexy things in that book in fact. a sundae with tahini, pistachios, and figs. jalapeño-shallot matzo balls. savory french toast with za'atar butter. it's like leah asked me what all of my favorite ingredients were and then fancied them up in the most inspiring and beautiful ways. there's already a stain on the hamantaschen page, and i look forward to getting the rest of it all dirtied up and loved to bits. 

these hamantaschen use the dough from leah's book, which is extra convenient because it doesn't require softening butter or cream cheese, and so you don't need to use an electric mixer. it's also totally dairy free. for the filling, i took some of my own liberties and used halva spread from sesame story, which is the creamiest halva i've ever had, but you can also make your own and do what leah does and add a brilliant pinch of cayenne. and then any jam will do. i pulled out blueberry, blackberry, apricot, and strawberry... the more kinds you use, the more you get to taste test :)

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halva + jam hamantaschen

makes about 36 cookies

ingredients

dough (from leah koenig's modern jewish cooking):

2 1/2 c/315 g all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp kosher salt

1 tb fresh orange juice

1/4 c/60 ml vegetable oil

2/3 c/130 g sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon zest

filling:

halva spread

jam

clues

whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. 

in a large bowl, whisk together the orange juice, vegetable oil, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and lemon zest until combined. slowly stir in the flour mixture until the dough begins to come together. turn the dough out onto a flat surface and knead a few times with your hands until it is smooth, but not sticky. (if the dough appears too dry, knead in more orange juice, 1 tsp at a time. if it looks too wet, knead in up to 1/4 c/30g more flour, 1 tb at a time until you reach the right consistency.)

divide into two flat discs, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or overnight.

preheat oven to 350f/180c and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment. remove half of the dough from the refrigerator and roll it out on a lightly floured surface to 1/8-in/4-mm thickness. use a 3-in/7.5-cm round cookie cutter or glass to cut out circles and transfer them to the baking sheet, 1/2-in/12-mm apart. re-roll scraps and cut out additional circles.

spread about 1/2 tsp of halva spread in the center of each circle and then add a small dollop of jam. fold the left side over on an angle, followed by the ride side and then the bottom, forming a triangle-shaped pocket. pinch the seams firmly to seal. repeat this process with the remaining dough.

bake for 15-20 minutes, until lightly browned. let them cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, and then transfer them to a wire rack to cool completely. store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

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-yeh!

halva rugelach

i am stressing out right now because there isn't enough snow on the ground. i came here for the snow. i bought the last pair of bean boots for the snow. i'm having my wedding here for the snow. i ate a lot of bread and cheese this past month so that i could plump up for the snow. where is all the snow!!!!!

i've been checking the weather forecast like a farmer and there is not one unit of snow in the next 10 days. not even a subzero temperature. it will be in the 40s on saturday. i hate it. h8 it. 

all i want to do is sit by a frosty window with eggboy and a peppermint mocha as we watch herds of snow come twinkling into our lives by the foot. and then in two and a half weeks when we get married, i want to be this and this and i want to make rosemary syrup and pour it over a cone of snow served in one of the 500 snowcone cones that i just ordered from the internet restaurant store. 

does anybody know a snow dance? or perhaps a shredded coconut company that will come and sprinkle coconut everywhere? can you people in new york place some in a box and send it to me????

*at least there are cookies*

rugelach has always provided warm fuzzy comfort to me, even when it's not cold, mostly because it's one of mum's specialties. she sent me packages of it all the time when i was in college and my friends went gaga over "jody's rugelach." she usually fills it with chocolate or cinnamon sugar, but this version is filled with a pimped out version of halva spread. they are best straight out of the oven with a nice hot beverage. 

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halva rugelach

makes 20-24

ingredients

dough:

1 c unsalted butter, softened

8 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 c sugar

2 large egg yolks

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp almond extract

1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 c all-purpose flour

filling:

3/4 c tahini

1/4 c honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

a pinch of kosher salt

a pinch of ground cinnamon

egg wash + topping:

1 large egg

1 tb honey

a splash of water

toasted sesame seeds

sprinkles, optional

powdered sugar, optional

clues

in the bowl of a stand mixer, beat together the butter and cream cheese. add the sugar, and then add the egg yolks, one at a time. beat in the extracts, sprinkle in the salt, and then add the flour. dough will be quite sticky. divide it into two parts, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and then refrigerate for 4 hours or overnight.

prepare the filling by mixing together all of the filling ingredients until smooth.

preheat oven to 375. working with one half of the dough at a time, roll it out on a floured surface into a rectangle (about 9 inches by 13 inches). spread half of the filling in a thin even layer all over the rectangle, leaving a 1-inch wide space along the long edge furthest from you. roll the dough up like a jelly roll, beginning from the edge that's closest to you. cut it into 1 1/2-inch pieces and place them on a baking sheet lined with parchment, 1 inch apart. repeat with remaining dough.

beat together the egg, honey, and a splash of water, and brush it onto the tops of the rugelach. sprinkle on toasted sesame seeds and sprinkles, if using.

bake until slightly browned, begin checking for doneness at 18 minutes.

dust with powdered sugar if you'd like and enjoy!

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this is part of honestly yum's virtual cookie swap!! check out these amazinggggg cookies that i wish we were actually real-life swapping:

buckwheat + oat flour christmas cutouts from a brown table

salted white chocolate oatmeal cookies from honestly yum

spiced cocoa polvorones from the bojon gourmet

pine nut cookies from shutterbean

matcha coconut macaroons from i am a food blog

gingerbread madeleines with molasses glaze from the kitchy kitchen

white chocolate and cranberry biscotti from what's gaby cooking

peppermint hot chocolate cookies from bakers royale

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-yeh!!

new york

i am back.

back from a week of challah, schnitzel, new bffs, and old ones.

halva crème brûlée, halva frosting, pickles, and fish.

san fermin, bagels, hummus, and za'atar.

epic is an understatement, turnt is more like it!

this week was like camp, with babka class instead of pool time and jewish food royalty instead of counselors. we shuffled around town, learning history through food and creating bonds over meals that had me so full on love, i nearly exploded. 

my time there ended with a zooey deschanel sighting (!!!!), four added pounds, and rob's album release party, and by yesterday, i was ready to be back on the farm with my netflix and eggboy and our new range hood that he spent the entire week building from scratch. 

i probably will not shut up about my trip for the next few posts, but for now i should get my rear end on the treadmill and leave you with a few links for new york things i tried and loved:

bar bolonat: home of the first olive i ever loved, the best za'atar i ever had, and a halva crème brûlée that had us nearly licking the dish.

la boîte: the fanciest spice blends i ever done smelled, including a smoked cinnamon which i plan on putting all over venison this week.

gefilteria: we had a pickling workshop with the owner and it was the funnest! only then i was the worst fermenter in the world and didn't take care of my pickles and they made my hotel room smell like a million butts had farted at once. 

hummus place: this might be my dessert island restaurant. give me all the hummus, pita, and kadaif. 

yonah schimmel's knishes, russ & daughters, and katz's: you simply cannot come to new york to learn about jewish food without going to these places. more on these later though, as i have a little lower east side jewish food article coming out soon!

zucker bakery: a little east village bakery with israeli yummies like za'atar crackers and tahini pastries. (they were the ones that had the turkey sufganiyot last year!)

la vara: my new love affair with olives continued here (who am i??) and i also loved their crispy eggplant with honey and salt baked fish with harissa. 

breads bakery: a wonderful bakery from israel that has the softest, most perfect challah in all the land. we took a challah and babka making class and i learned so much and got nutella all over my hands. new bff talia and i delivered our babka to the food52 office afterwards and it was the happiest afternoon ever.

blackseed bagels + mile end: the future of deli is upon us and it tastes to gosh darn good. we spent a day at their beautiful kitchen on the water in red hook, eating bagels, learning how to make the fluffiest ever matzoh balls, and eating schnitzel.

cafe glechik: a ukrainian restaurant out in sheepshead bay. our meal put every meal in game of thrones to shame. it was one of those banquet-y meals where you fill up on like a million different dishes, drink a bunch... and then they come out and announce the main course. 

wythe: after a failed attempt at sneaking into the brooklyn bowl to see san fermin (alias: rachel green), new bff jacob and i sipped away our sorrows at the wythe rooftop and it almost made everything better. fast forward two days when we heard that the ebola guy was in a bowling alley in williamsburg the same night that we *tried* to get into a bowling alley in williamsburg: no, just no. ohmygod. no. but we did get to see san fermin the next night and it was cray, as always.

shalom japan: shortrib cholent, toro toast with scallion cream cheese, sake challah... oh and a heated toilet seat. get at me!!!!

taam-tov: a secret uzbeki restaurant in the heart of the diamond district, it's kosher with chinese influences, and it was so delicious.

kalustyan's: an epic spice and specialty foods store where i stocked up on odd ingredients like soapwort root, sodium acetate, and nigari flakes... things that just do not come to north dakota without a personal invitation.

new york public library menu archive: menus from the inauguration of the statue of liberty, a dinner with the queen in 1957, a meal from the astor house in 1843... we got to hold these things!!!!!! it was so freaking fascinating. did you know that there used to be a soda and fruit juice dispenser's union??

shopsin's: it was difficult to keep my shit together because all of the rules scared me, but mac and cheese pancakes, a post modern grilled cheese where the cheese was on the outside, and kenny shopsin yelling that no one knows what a fucking kazoo is before handing brian a kazoo and listening to him play beyoncé on it made it all worth it.

el rey: i spilled coffee all over myself there and i still had a delightful time because i was with lydia and brian and we ate beet pickled eggs with za'atar.

sammy's roumanian: this review of sammy's is perfect. i love that place so much. it was the perfect end to our week. 

with the exception of the wythe, shopsin's, and el rey, all of these meals and classes were enjoyed through the tent food nyc workshop. i can't recommend it enough!!!!!! you should apply. and pack stretchy pants. i'm happy to answer any questions you have if you're thinking about applying.

-yeh!!!!