Double Chocolate Apple Cardamom Cake. Photo: Michele Phillips
When it comes to serving guests dinner in your home, leaving a positive, lasting impression is key. Enter: Dessert. There’s a balance between conventional (tried and true) and debut (a first timer); and complementary (makes sense with the entrée) or innovative (a counter balance of flavor).
For ideas, we turned to Editorial Advisory Board members Michele Phillips, food blogger, writer and photographer, and Mary Cornelius, communications specialist with Minnetonka Public Schools. They offered recipes for a successful exclamation point to any fall or holiday meal.
Double Chocolate Apple Cardamom Cake
When the three Cs of the pantry set—cardamom, chocolate and cinnamon—are on the shopping list, the results are anything but average. “This recipe for Double Chocolate Apple Cardamom Cake is single-handedly responsible for my love of all things cardamom, and I never get tired of its wonderful layers of flavors,” Phillips says. “My favorite thing about this cake is the expressions on peoples’ faces after taking their first cardamom-scented bite. The chocolate, spices and applesauce are absolutely wonderful together.”
- 2 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tsp. baking soda
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
- 2 tsp. ground cardamom
- 1 tsp. Kosher salt
- ¼ tsp. ground cloves
- ¼ tsp. finely ground black pepper
- 2 cups unsweetened applesauce
- 2 large eggs
- ½ cup vegetable or canola oil
- ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter – melted, more for the pan
- 1 cup semisweet mini chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare a 12-cup Bundt pan with butter and flour (or baking spray), and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, add the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom, salt, ground cloves and pepper. Whisk dry ingredients together. Add the applesauce, eggs, oil and melted butter, and whisk to combine. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour batter into prepared Bundt pan. Bake for 50–60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out fairly clean. Transfer the pan to a rack, and let the cake cool for 10 minutes, then invert it onto the rack and let cool completely, about 20 minutes.
To Serve (optional): Powdered sugar sprinkled on top, crème fraiche or sour cream, fresh apple slices
The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, or refrigerated for up to a week. *Recipe adapted from Food and Wine, December 2007
3 Ingredient Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cake
This 3 Ingredient Dark Chocolate Pumpkin Cake saves a bit of time in the kitchen with winning the trifecta of cake mix, a can of pumpkin and chocolate chips. “If you’re looking for something light and airy, this cake probably isn’t for you,” Phillips says. “If you’re into rich, decadent, dense, flourless-like chocolate cakes like I am, then you’re in for a treat! By the way, this cake just happens to pair deliciously with a good pinot noir.”
- 1 dark chocolate fudge boxed cake mix (I used Duncan Hines.)
- 15 oz. pumpkin puree (I used Libby’s brand.)
- ½ cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips (I used Nestles Toll House.)
- powdered sugar for garnish, optional
Preheat oven to 350 F. Prepare a 10-cup Bundt pan with baking spray or butter and flour. Add cake mix, pumpkin puree and mini chocolate chips to a bowl, and stir with a spatula until completely combined. Pour batter into prepared bundt pan, and smooth to level. Bake for 20–30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out fairly clean. Cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then invert cake onto serving plate and allow to cool completely. Sprinkle with powdered sugar to serve (optional). Refrigerate any leftovers in an air-tight container for 3–5 days.
Recipe Notes
- Use just the cake mix. Omit any other ingredients (such as water, oil or eggs) called for on the box.
- If you’re using a dark or coated cake pan, you may need to bake it for a few extra minutes. Test the cake several times prior to the end of the suggested baking times to avoid over-baking.
- I check my cake after 20 minutes and again at 25, etc., until it’s ready.
- Please note that the testing toothpick will not be completely clean when you test because of the chocolate chips. Just bake until the batter no longer sticks to the toothpick.
Cranberry Pie With Thick Pecan Crumble
When a recipe is a winner on the taste buds and serves double duty, we’re all in. “One of my very favorite Thanksgiving recipes is this Cranberry Pie With Thick Pecan Crumble from Smitten Kitchen,” Cornelius says. “I made it one Thanksgiving—the very first one I hosted in my new house. The tart/sour flavors paired perfectly with ice cream after a delicious turkey dinner, and it worked as a delicious breakfast for the rest of the weekend when I needed a break from cooking and baking, as well!” Can we add “genius thinking” to the recipe notes?
Crust
- 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp. granulated sugar
- ½ tsp. fine sea or table salt
- 4 oz. cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks
- ¼ cup very cold water, plus an additional tablespoon if needed
Filling
- 4 ½ cups fresh or frozen cranberries
- 1 cup granulated sugar, plus 1–2 Tbsp., if desired, to taste
- few gratings of orange zest (Clementine zest works great here, too.)
- pinch of salt
- 1 Tbsp. cornstarch
Streusel
- ⅔ cup rolled oats or 1/2 cup oat flour
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup light or dark brown sugar
- ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp. coarse or sea salt
- ¾ cup pecans, toasted if you have the time
- 6 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled
To Serve
- powdered sugar
- sweetened whipped cream with a splash of vanilla extract
- vanilla ice cream
To make the pie dough by hand, with my one-bowl method: In the bottom of a large bowl, combine the flour, salt and sugar. Work the butter into the flour with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles a coarse meal and the largest bits of butter are the size of tiny peas. (Some people like to do this by freezing the stick of butter and coarsely grating it into the flour, but I haven’t found the results as flaky.) Add 1/4 cup cold water, and stir with a spoon or flexible silicone spatula until large clumps form. Use your hands to knead the dough together, right in the bottom of the bowl. If necessary to bring the dough together, you can add the last tablespoon of water.
To make the pie dough with a food processor: In the work bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt and sugar. Add butter and pulse machine until mixture resembles a coarse meal and the largest bits of butter are the size of tiny peas. Turn mixture out into mixing bowl. Add 1/4 cup cold water, and stir with a spoon or flexible silicone spatula until large clumps form. Use your hands to knead the dough together, right in the bottom of the bowl. If necessary to bring the dough together, you can add the last tablespoon of water.
Both methods: Wrap dough in a sheet of plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least one hour or up to 48 hours, or you can quick-firm this in the freezer for 15 minutes. Longer than 2 days, it’s best to freeze it until needed.
To form the crust: On a floured counter, roll the dough out into a 12- to 13-inch circle-ish shape. Fold dough gently in quarters without creasing, and transfer to a 9-inch standard (not deep-dish) pie plate. Unfold dough, and trim overhang to about 1/2-inch. Fold overhang under edge of pie crust, and crimp decoratively. Return to fridge until ready to fill.
Optional: If you’d like to par-bake the crust, once you’ve rolled it out, freeze it for 10 minutes inside your pie tin, until solid. Prick unbaked crust with a fork several times. Line it with lightly buttered foil. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or pennies. Bake at 400 F (205 C) on rimmed baking sheet for 15 minutes. Remove paper or foil and weights, and bake 5–10 more minutes until crust is golden brown and lightly crisp.
Heat oven: (Or reduce oven heat, if you just par-baked your crust) to 375 F (190 C).
Filling: Combine all filling ingredients—no need to defrost frozen cranberries, they’ll just need a couple extra minutes to warm up—in a medium saucepan over medium heat. After about 5 minutes, berries will begin to leak juices. Cook, stirring for 5 minutes more until filling is loose. If desired, you can lightly crush the mixture once or twice with a potato masher, but try to leave most berries intact. Transfer filling to a bowl to let it cool slightly for 5–10 minutes while you make the crumble topping.
Topping: If using whole oats, grind them to a powder in a food processor. Add pecans and coarsely grind them too. Add remaining ingredients except the butter, pulsing a few times to combine. Add butter, pulsing until crumbles form. Sprinkle topping over cranberry filling.
Bake: For 45–50 minutes, until juices are bubbling enough that they splash a bit onto the crumb topping. If pie browns too quickly, cover top with a piece of foil for remaining baking time. Transfer to a wire rack to cool a bit before serving showered with powdered sugar and alongside whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
