I am still alive; Lavender Cake and Farmers' Market Recipes

Almost two weeks since I last wrote. Wow. I feel like I ought to confess or something. This has been a whirlwind, constantly moving from one endeavor to another, spinning and spinning and spinning, but here I am and rather than being in the same place, I feel that I have accomplished so very much. First, I would like to post some recipes that I have made recently because I have been baking and cooking plentifully, much to the joy of my friends here in Flagstaff--especially my roommate Tim. Some of these have been grand endeavors and some small affairs, but they have spurred an admiring little following to devour whatever I produce. Here's the list: peach pie with homemade crust, lavender cake with lavender frosting, hearty pear-walnut/almond-basil soda bread (two different times, mildly different recipes), chocolate brioche, farmers' market bruschetta, and farmers' market marinara. I won't provide recipes for all of these delights, but I want to provide a few.

White Cake with Lavender
Original at AllRecipes.com
I made this for Cori's birthday and though I liked it, the frosting ended up very sweet. The lavender amount was nice, but I could have used more, I think.

Ingredients
2 3/4 cups sifted cake/pastry flour
4 teaspoons baking powder (I used 3 tsp due to my high altitude)
3/4 teaspoon salt
4 egg whites
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (though I plan to blend turbinado sugar and honey in the future, probably about 1/2 cup honey and 1/2 cup turbinado sugar)
3/4 cup butter
1 cup whole milk
2 teaspoons dried lavender flowers
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
9 inch round cake pan

Directions
1. Gradually heat milk until just before boiling--try not to scald, which forms a thin layer on top--and stir in dried lavender. Allow to steep while preparing other ingredients.
2. Blend flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.
3. In a mixing bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Blend sugar and honey if applicable. Mix in 1/2 cup sugar or sugar combination, beating only until meringue will hold up in soft peaks (peaks may not be possible with turbinado and honey).
4. Cream butter in a mixing bowl. Gradually add remaining sugar or sugar mixture, and cream together until light and fluffy. Add sifted ingredients alternately with lavender-milk a small amount at a time, beating after each addition until smooth. Mix in flavorings. Fold meringue into batter thoroughly. Spray nine-inch cake pan round thoroughly or use parchment paper to line the pan (I found a spring-form pan at the thrift store I plan on using in the future), and pour batter in.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 to 35 minutes. Cool cake in pan 10 minutes, then remove from pan and transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling. (Original directions use a 15x10 inch cake pan, or two 9-inch rounds which I did, but the cakes were so thin the tore as they came out. Experiment for yourself, but I think that one cake in a 9-inch pan may provide the best result. Baking length will increase appropriately.)

Lavender Frosting
Original at Everything Baked
The same recipe, sans food coloring and I kept the flowers in the frosting.

Ingredients
1/3 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon dried lavender
at least 3 cups powdered sugar

Lavender Frosting Instructions

Gradually heat milk in a saucepan until just before boiling, stir in lavender and remove from heat. Cover and allow to steep for at least ten minutes. Pour lavender milk into mixing bowl and beat in powdered sugar a little at a time until reaching the desired consistency. (A glaze uses less sugar, whereas a frosting requires more but is sweeter. If you are using this for a single cake rather than a layered one, I would suggest a glaze consistency.) Spread or pour (if a lighter glaze) immediately over cake.

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Farmers' Market Bruschetta
I did this last summer and really enjoy it. It is a way to make use of cheap seconds at the market, enjoying the great flavor of tomatoes later in the year. Bruschetta can be frozen and lasts well in the fridge because of the red wine vinegar. It is highly flexible for local accents and personal tastes. Cutting everything up takes time, especially the tomatoes which can be blanched, peeled, and smashed if preferred.

About 8 lbs fresh tomatoes, diced (I'm pretty much guessing here)
1-2 Tsp coarse sea salt
About one bulb of garlic, coarsely chopped
1-3 big red or white onions, diced
About 1/2 cup shallots, finely chopped
Other fresh veggies as desired
About 1/4 cup dried oregano
3 Tbsp dried thyme
3 Tbsp dried parsley
2 Tbsp dried rosemary
2 Tbsp black pepper, preferably coarse ground
1 to 1 & 1/2 cups olive oil
1/2 to 1 cup red wine vinegar

Prepare fresh ingredients and add tomatoes with salt to a large pot and bring to a boil. Allow tomatoes' excess water to boil out before adding onions, shallots, and herbs. Keep the mixture at a low boil to allow the dried herbs' flavor to disperse and for them to absorb some moisture. (This will also drive roommates crazy.) Add olive oil and red wine vinegar, stir, and return to boil. Taste and add further herbs, salt, and veggies to taste.

Allow to cool and store in the refrigerator or freeze. Allow frozen bruschetta to thaw thoroughly (24 hours in the fridge), stirring regularly.

To serve, lightly toast thick slices of bread (French or Italian styles, preferably), evenly spread bruschetta on toasted bread and broil for 7-11 minutes. Optionally top with grated cheese. If the bruschetta is room temperature or warmer, toasting on bread will go more smoothly; if cold, the bruschetta tends to saturate the bread quickly.

Farmers' Market Marinara
To get rid of my rapidly spoiling tomatoes, I used most of my remainder for marinara. A similar process, but involves more boiling and no red wine vinegar.

4-6 lbs fresh tomatoes, finely diced or smashed
1 Tbsp coarse sea salt
6-10 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/4 cup shallots, finely diced
1 onion, finely diced
1/4 cup dried oregano
2 Tbsp dried rosemary
other herbs as preferred
1/2-3/4 cup olive oil

Boil tomatoes with salt until thick, stir in remaining ingredients and cook to desired consistency, season to taste. The marinara will thicken somewhat when cool, but may loosen up when heated for eating. Can freeze, but similar to bruschetta for later use.

Both of these can likely be easily canned if you know what you're doing. At this altitude, I would need equipment I don't have and time I can't really afford, so into the freezer it went. I probably made the equivalent of a half-batch and, after all the water boiled out, got something like a big bottle of marinara. It is pretty good, though.