Ultimate Lemon Roll

Well...I meant to post this recipe on Friday.

I wanted the last day of August to be met with a lemony goodness kind of cake. I feel like September should be for all things apple.

But alas, it's about 100 degrees here today. So it doesn't yet feel like apple season.

When I lived in NY we would be preparing for all manner of apple festivals by now. Not in Texas.

And let me tell you, getting up early all week long last week to get Little Butt off to school was pretty killer.

I don't think I read the fine print on the stay at home mom contract. I thought I would never have to wake up to an alarm again. I was wrong.

And my goodness, Little Butt is NOT a morning person. By Thursday we were pretty much screaming at each other. That day ended with me being called by the school and having to go pick her up because she threw a fit and wasn't allowed on the bus.

Friday went by without a hitch though so that's good.

Actually, this cake was supposed to be posted on the 20th of August (that's how late I really am). This was the top voted cake for the Cake Slice Bakers! It took me a while to make this cake but I'm glad I did.

I made this cake for my mom's birthday (her belated birthday celebration, are you sensing a theme here??). Her true birthday was taken up by Baby N's birthday celebration but I made this cake for her later. I didn't want her to think her special day wasn't important.

My mom's favorite flavor is lemon so I thought this would be the perfect cake for her. I wasn't wrong. She loved it!

The cake is fluffy and sweet with a little zing from the lemon. But the star of the show is the lemon filling. Not one person didn't want to eat that stuff with a spoon! Basically, the filling is a lemon curd with some whipped cream folded in. It was amazing!

I will warn you though, this is not a cake for the feint of heart. This cake is extremely lemony. If you love lemon, it will be great! If you don't, I would pass on it.

I happened to love it. Happy belated birthday mom!!

Let's bake!

Let's start by making some lemon curd. Whisk together some egg yolks and sugar.

Then stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, salt and butter. Place over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly,  until thickened.

Press the mixture through a mesh sieve.

Then place over a bowl of ice water. Being very careful not to splash water into the lemon mixture, gently stir occasionally until the mixture is well chilled.

Using an electric mixer, whisk up the heavy cream until soft peaks form. Remove the lemon curd from the ice water (try NOT to eat it all with the extra spoon you are holding) and gently fold in a quarter of the whipped cream. Then fold in the remaining cream. Cover and refrigerate.

Now let's make the cake. Whisk together some cake flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar.

In a separate bowl, beat together the egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla.

Add in the flour, one quarter at a time, mixing just until combined.

In a clean mixing bowl, whisk together the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Gradually add in the remaining sugar then kick it up to high until the egg whites become stiff but not dry.

Quickly mix in a quarter of the whites into the batter.

Then gently fold in the remaining whites.

Pour batter onto a prepared pan and smooth it out. Bake it up.

While the cake is baking, get some parchment paper and sprinkle powdered sugar on it.

When the cake is done, you invert it onto that piece of parchment. This didn't work out too well for me. As I was trying to figure out how I was supposed to hold the cake in place, not burn my hands, and get it onto the parchment, it fell out. Half on the table, half on the parchment. Lots of colorful words flew...

But I rolled it anyway dangit! The broken pieces just got rolled up with the rest.

Once the cake is rolled up, let it cool completely.

Once cool, unroll the cake and spread the filling up to an inch of the edge of the cake.

And my broken end??? Just got worse. But I carefully spread filling on it...

Then started rolling back up the cake from that said. Go ahead and roll the cake back up, using the parchment to roll it along. Cut off about a quarter inch slice from each end to get rid of the crunchy edges. Place on a serving platter and place in the refrigerator for at least an hour.

Right before serving, generously top with powdered sugar.

Slice, serve, and enjoy!!



Ultimate Lemon Roll
Adapted from The Cake Book

Printer Friendly Version

Ingredients:

Lemon Filling

• 7 large egg yolks
• 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
• 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
• 2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Pinch of salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1 Tablespoon pieces
• 1/2 cup heavy cream

Lemon Cake

• 1 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs plus 1 large egg white, separated
• 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
• 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 Tablespoon water
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
• Powdered sugar for sprinkling and for garnish

Directions:

Lemon Filling

1. Set a fine mesh sieve over a medium bowl and set aside.
2. Prepare a larger bowl 1/3 full of ice water and set aside.
3. In a medium saucepan, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until well combined.
4. Stir in the lemon zest, juice, salt, and butter. Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture thickens, about 7 to 10 minutes. The mixture should coat the back of a wooden spoon and leave a path when a finger is swiped along the center.
5. Remove from heat and immediately strain through the mesh sieve by pressing the mixture through with a rubber spatula. 
6. Place the bowl of lemon curd over the bowl of ice water. Carefully, so as not to splash any water in the curd, periodically stir the curd until it's chilled, about 15 minutes.
7. In the bowl of an electric mixer, whisk the heavy cream on high speed until soft peaks form.
8. Remove the lemon mixture from the ice water. 
9. Gently fold a large spoonful of the whipped cream into the lemon mixture to lighten. Then fold in the remaining whipped cream.
10. Cover the mixture and refrigerate until chilled or up to 2 days.

Lemon Cake

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Spray an 11 1/2 x 17 1/2 inch jelly roll pan with cooking spray. Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper then spray the parchment with cooking spray as well.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the sifted cake flour, 1/2 cup sugar baking powder, and salt. 
3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, using the paddle attachment, on medium speed, beat the egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, vegetable oil, water, and vanilla extract until blended, about 1 minute.
4. Reduce mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture, a quarter at a time, mixing until just blended.
5. In a clean mixing bowl, using the whisk attachment, on medium speed, beat the 4 egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form.
6. Gradually beat in the remaining 1/4 cup sugar.
7. Increase the speed to high and beat until stiff peaks form but before whites are dry.
8. Using a rubber spatula, quickly fold a quarter of the whites into the batter. 
9. Gently fold in the remaining whites.
10. Scrape batter into the pan and smooth the top.
11. Bake for 14 to 18 minutes, cake will start to brown slightly and springs back when lightly touched.
12. While cake is baking, place a sheet of parchment paper about the size of the pan onto a work surface and sprinkle lightly with powdered sugar.
13. Run a paring knife along the edges of the pan to loosen the cake. Carefully invert the cake onto the sugared parchment paper then remove the parchment on the bottom of the cake.
14. Starting with the short end, carefully roll up the cake and parchment paper. Let cool completely.
15. When cool, unroll the cake and fill with the lemon filling within an inch of the edges of the cake. Roll back up the cake, using the parchment to help it along.
16. Using a serrated knife, trim off the crusty edges from either end of the cake.
17. Place the cake on a serving platter and refrigerate at least one hour prior to serving.
18. Immediately before serving, generously sprinkle powdered sugar on top of the cake.
19. Slice, serve, and enjoy!!

Lemon Pie Bars, a Review, and a Giveaway {CLOSED}

Note: The giveaway is at the end of this post. {GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED}

Have you ever heard that some people are really good at one or two things and some other people are pretty good at a number of things?

Well...I'm the latter type. I have many, many different interests. Mostly, my interests reside on the creative side of things. I like drawing and doing makeup. I've taught myself to knit. I've made wreaths. I've toyed with the idea of writing but figure I'll leave that to people who enjoy it. I've considered interior design. I have a degree in Psychology.

Okay. That last one isn't so much creative. But is it not? I wanted to be a therapist for a very long time. Now I don't think it's for me.

The one thing I haven't swayed on is baking. I love to bake. Baking is in my soul, it's in my blood. It's my history, my heritage, my inheritance.

As a young child, I would sit at my grandma's aged, formica topped table and watch her roll pie crust and form apricot fried hand pies. I remember the smells, the tastes, everything. Thinking of that wonderful, simple time brings me a sense of joy that not much else can.

When I picked up a copy of The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook I thought that it looked like a cute cookbook for which I could do a review and a giveaway. I had no idea what was really in store for me.

This cookbook brings back the thoughts of love and warmth that I used to feel at my grandma's kitchen table. The book provides a sense of love, family, community. I found myself on the verge of tears during the introduction.

This book pulls you in and makes you feel like you are home. At the beginning of each recipe are a few words by Cheryl about why the dish is special enough to be in the cookbook. There are stories of celebration and community hidden among the pages. Introductions to each section take you back into the childhood memories of Cheryl and Griff and make you nostalgic. There's even a poem written by a customer about a favorite cookie they sell in their shop.

The book is full of stunning, vintage like photos. The recipes are simple and easy to understand. There are no big words, the recipes are written as if you were explaining to a friend how to make a beloved recipe.

The book is broken down into 9 chapters:

1. Breakfast
2. Coffee Cakes, Quick Breads, and Sweet Yeast Breads
3. Cupcakes and Cakes
4. Pies, Cobblers, Crisps, and Tarts
5. Puddings and Custards
6. Cookies
7. Brownies and Bars
8. Confections
9. Savories

I have so many recipes on my to make list from this book. Seriously. It's bad. I want to make just about everything in this book.

I will admit. I have tried a number of these recipes. So far I've tried the snickerdoodles, cinnamon biscones with vanilla glaze drizzle, the hummingbird cake with cream cheese frosting, and of course, these lemon pie bars. Not one thing on this list has disappointed. 

My dear friend Monica came over the day that I made these lemon pie bars. She decided to make the Drunk Blondies and we ended up trading bars with one another (so I've tried these too. That's 5 recipes so far!). I won't spend a lot of time on these bars because she is blogging about them today. After you are done here, you should pop over and read about these bars as well!!

These lemon pie bars were absolutely amazing. The perfect amount of tang and sweet. The crust was buttery and felt like it melted in your mouth as it gently crumbled upon each bite. The first [few] bars I ate were just the bars by themselves. However, I made some whipped cream for the pictures and fell even more in love with the bars than when they were naked! And I don't even like whipped cream!! But the sweetness and cloud like texture of the whipped cream just enhanced the lemon pie bars and made them extra special.

So without further ado, let's bake!

First, mix together some graham cracker crumbs, butter, and sugar.

Press the mixture into a pan and bake it up. Take it out to cool.

While the crust is cooling, whip up the filling. Toss together some cream, egg yolks, lemon zest, lemon juice, and sweetened condensed milk and whisk it until thoroughly combined.

Pour the filling over the cooled crust.

Place in a water bath and bake it until it no longer jiggles. After it has baked, remove the bars from the water bath and let cool to room temperature. Place the pan in the fridge and allow to get really cold.

Slice into bars and top with whipped cream if you are into that kind of thing.

Serve and enjoy!!


Lemon Pie Bars
Adapted from The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook

Printer Friendly Version

Ingredients:

For the Crust

• 3 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 24 crackers)
• 12 Tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
• 2 Tablespoons sugar

For the Filling

• 1 cup heavy cream
• 2 teaspoons lemon zest
• 1 cup fresh lemon juice
• 2 (14 ounce) cans sweetened condensed milk
• 6 large egg yolks

Directions:

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 9x13 inch baking pan and line with parchment, allowing the ends of the paper to hang over two opposite sides of the pan.
2. In a medium mixing bowl combine the graham cracker crumbs, melted butter, and sugar with a fork until evenly moistened. 
3. Press the mixture firmly and evenly into the bottom of the prepared pan until level.
4. Bake the crust for 8 minutes or until lightly golden. Let cool while preparing the filling.
5. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F.
6. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, lemon zest, lemon juice, sweetened condensed milk, and egg yolks until well combined.
7. Pour filling over the cooled crust and level with a plastic spatula.
8. Place the baking dish into a larger pan and pour water into the larger pan until the water reaches about halfway up the sides of the smaller pan.
9. Bake about 20 to 25 minutes or until the center no longer jiggles and the edges are puffed.
10. Remove pan from water bath and let cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate until cold.
11. Cut bars into squares, top with whipped cream if desired.
12. Serve and enjoy!

And what good is a cookbook review without a giveaway?? I loved this cookbook SO much that I want to share it with the world. Unfortunately, I can't afford that, so I'm giving one lucky person a copy of this wonderful cookbook. Here are the rules:

GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED

To enter this giveaway you MUST answer THIS question in the comments:

1. What is your favorite food/baking memory from back in the day?

For additional entries please leave a comment for each entry:

2. Follow Jolts & Jollies through Google Friend Connect or RSS feed

3. "Like" Jolts & Jollies on Facebook

4. Leave a comment on Monica's drunk blondies saying I sent you (If you are here from Monica's blog, leave an extra comment saying so)

This giveaway is open to US residents only (sorry) and will close at 11:59pm CDT on Tuesday, July 31st.

The thoughts and opinions given in this review are strictly my own. I have not been compensated in any way for this review and am paying for the giveaway copy myself.

Lemon Cornmeal Cookies

I have always been a huge fan of lemon desserts.

There is something about the citrusy tang from the lemon and the sweet from the sugar that gets me every time.

When I make a lemon dessert, I'm often reminded of the bittersweet nature of life as well.

How can these two flavors, the bitter and the sweet, work together in such harmony??

This last weekend, The Hubble was able to come for another quick weekend visit. These visits are usually no more than 2-3 days. This time, he flew in on Friday afternoon and had to leave again Monday afternoon.

Though the visit was amazing, it was way too short. And I also know that it was the last quick weekend visit we will have. Bittersweet.

The next visit we will have from The Hubble is going to be about 2 weeks! I love that we will have him so long, but I also know that will be the last time we will see him before he deploys. Bittersweet.

My Father in Law is here this week. He came over the weekend (which is why The Hubble surprised us with another visit). The time with him, my Mother in Law and the kiddos has been exceptional...but that means they are leaving this weekend. Bittersweet.

I am definitely the kind of person that believes you can't know good without knowing the bad so I do understand how bitter and sweet can make such a great marriage. Without one, we wouldn't know the other right??

Now, on to these cookies.

As the weather is starting to cool off and Autumn is slowly making her presence known, we should savor these last moments of summer.

And what better way to do that than a light, yet hearty lemon cookie??

These had just the right amount of lemon balanced with the sugar. I loved the added texture from the cornmeal in this cookie. It really gave it that something extra.

I suggest you make these cookies and share them with loved ones. And consider how wonderful life really is!!

(Please read all the way to the end of this post, after the recipe. Thanks!)

In a small mixing bowl, combine the flour, zest, salt and cornmeal.

In a large mixing bowl, combine the butter, sugar, egg and lemon juice until incorporated.

Add in the dry ingredients a little at a time until just combined.

Roll about 1 1/2 Tablespoons each of dough into balls and place them on a cookie sheet. Flatten the dough slightly with your fingers into a thick disk.

Bake the cookies until the edges are a nice golden brown color. Cool them on the sheet then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Serve them up and enjoy!!

Lemon Cornmeal Cookies
Slightly adapted from Martha Stewart

Printer Friendly Version

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 12 Tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, cornmeal, lemon zest and salt. Set aside.
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix together the butter, sugar, egg and lemon juice.
4. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the butter and sugar mixture until just combined.
5. Roll dough (about 1 1/2 Tablespoons each) into balls and place on cookie sheet. Use fingers or the back of a spoon to flatten dough slightly.
6. Bake until edges are lightly golden, about 20-25 minutes.
7. Let cool on the baking sheet a few minutes then transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely.
8. Serve and enjoy!!

Another thing that is hurting my heart right now are the wildfires in the surrounding Austin areas. Since moving here to the Austin area, I have fallen in love with this place. But the drought has been hard and the wildfires that are exploding in the area are devastating. I am especially heartsick for those in Bastrop where the fire is still raging out of control. We have friends whose homes are being threatened out there and too many people have lost everything...including two people who have lost their lives. If there is anything you can do to help...Please consider donating to the American Red Cross of Central Texas. The families affected by these fires need so much help right now.   

Blackberry Sage Lemonade Sorbet: A #BakeTogether Recipe

Growing up in an Army Brat I never truly payed attention to what that meant for my mom.

Now that I am an Army Wife, I tend to have a bit more...perspective into the life of a military spouse. And let me tell you, I'm not liking it too much these day. But that's only because we are trying to get into a deployment groove before the actual deployment. It's complicated.

One of the things that I've learned to take in stride and not stress over is the anniversary celebration.

The Hubble and I are coming up on our 9 year anniversary in September but we won't be able to spend it together. Now, we've been lucky. We've spent more anniversaries together, at this point, than we have apart.

Year 1 (2003): Apart. He was in Missouri for Army training, I was living in New Mexico.
Year 2 (2004): Apart (but just barely). He had to be in Arizona on the day so I flew out to El Paso, Texas. We saw each other the night before.
Year 3 (2005): Together. We figured the third time must have been the charm.
Year 4 (2006): Together. We thought it would be apart but he was sent home from deployment early.
Year 5 (2007): Together. We were new parents by this point though.
Year 6 (2008): Together.
Year 7 (2009): Together. He was deployed but scheduled his R&R 9 months into the deployment so he could come home for that day.
Year 8 (2010): Together. He was in training in Missouri again but this time I moved with him.

Now here we are at Year 9. We will spend it apart because I'm in Texas and he's in Florida. Then Year 10 will also be spent apart because he'll be in Afghanistan and I...won't be. Ha!

I'm thankful that we've had the opportunity to share so many together.

When he came home for R&R during the last deployment for our anniversary, we decided to take a weekend trip to San Antonio. While we were there, we were looking in the phone book for somewhere to go eat. I found out that San Antonio has a Melting Pot there! I had heard so much about it and wanted to try it!

In true The Hubble fashion, he thought it sounded "suspicious." He was definitely skeptical but reluctantly went with me.

Not even halfway through our meal he was a convert. He thought it was the most awesome restaurant! Since then, he's been the brainchild of fondue parties and he even decided we needed to take some good friends to the one here in Austin.

We took these friends to The Melting Pot a couple years ago actually. But S ordered this drink from the bar (I always get wine there). She ordered a Blackberry Sage Lemonade. Say what???

I know! I did a double take there too!

I tried her drink that night and have not forgotten the flavor combination since then.

I've always wanted to use this flavor combination but never had an opportunity...until I was introduced to Abby Dodge's #BakeTogether.

Basically, Abby posts a recipe and an idea. You take those and you run with them! Go back to the original post and provide a link to your blog post so Abby can feature it on the roundup.

I jumped over in the first couple days of July and realized I had just missed the June Sorbet.

But wait! Abby says on Twitter. She's running behind this month so go forth and make sorbet!

It hit me in that moment! Blackberry Sage Lemonade Sorbet! Perfect!!!

She said "Let there be sorbet!"

And there was.

It was perfect in every way.

It was sweet, tart and fresh from the herbs.

My niece said it tasted like Summer.

My mom couldn't get over the "interesting" flavor and just kept eating it.

My sister didn't even speak in between spoonfuls.

I think this was definitely a success.

And SO easy to make!!!

The only thing I would change would be to strain the blackberry puree through a sieve. The seeds were annoying to me, but my family didn't seem to mind.

Anyway. I think I've rambled enough. Let's make a sorbet...old school style because I don't have an ice cream maker!

You are going to start by boiling some sugar and water together in a medium saucepan.

Toss your fresh blackberries in a food processor and process them until they are fully pureed.

Then (after straining out the seeds???) pour the puree, the lemon juice and the sage into the saucepan. Let cook another few minutes then remove from heat. Allow to cool completely. Also, make sure you taste it at this point to be sure it tastes exactly how you want it.

Then pour it into a 13x9 inch baking dish. Place that dish in the freezer (make sure it's level and undisturbed). Every 30 minutes, take a table fork and run it through the mixture. The sides should start freezing after the first 30 minutes. You will have to do this about 4 times. The freezing time takes about 2 hours. When the mixture is fully frozen...

Scoop it out of the dish and serve it to your family and friends. Or if you don't want to share, serve some to yourself and sit on the back porch with a spoon and a good book. Either way you have it...enjoy!!!

Blackberry Sage Lemonade Sorbet
Adapted from Abby Dodge

Printer Friendly Version

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 12 ounces fresh blackberries, rinsed and well dried
• 3 1/2 Tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon fresh sage, roughly chopped

Directions:

1. In a medium saucepan, place the water and sugar. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the sugar dissolves.
2. (At this point, if you don't want seeds, push the mixture through a fine metal sieve. If you want NO chunks, do this after step 3 so as to also remove the sage chunks)
3. Pour the puree into the sugar water mixture. Add the lemon juice and sage. Cook, stirring about another minute. Remove from heat and let cool completely. 
4. Place mixture in a 13x9 inch baking dish and place in freezer, make sure the  space is level and secure.
5. Let freeze about 2 hours, or until mixture is thoroughly frozen; scraping and stirring the mixture with a table fork every 30 minutes.
6. Serve and enjoy!

If you are interested in the ice cream maker directions. Please head over to Abby's post. And feel free to join in while you are over there!