Armenian Nutmeg Cake

Going through my file of pictures and doing some general blog maintenance I came across a series of photos for an Armenian Nutmeg Cake that I have, gasp, not shared with you yet!  I've been holding out on you, but rest assured it was not deliberate.




From first cake. Mmmm

I made this one day, ate so much of it myself that I had to make another to save a piece to freeze for feedback and share the rest with friends.

Fresh, this cake rocks my world.  It seriously did.  I called my mother to tell her about it. Uh-huh.

From the second, but not the last, cake.

I found it on mmmisformommy's website and the recipe list was so short and simple, I just had to try it.  Her recipe calls for walnut pieces, but I just wasn't in the mood for nuts - my life is nuts enough to share - so I left them out.  Then, I fell so in love with the velvety rich texture without the nuts that I may forever leave them out.

It is imperative to use fresh nutmeg.  If you are not willing to grate your own or don't own a microplane, just ensure the spice you are using is as pungent and fresh as possible.  Maybe even treat yourself to a new container for this cake.

Armenian Nutmeg Cake

slightly adapted from mmmisformommy

1 cup milk
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 cups brown sugar
3/4 cup butter, chilled and cubed
1 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 egg

- combine the milk and the baking soda. Set aside.

- in food processor, add the flour, baking powder and brown sugar and pulse to combine. 

- add the cubed butter on top and pulse until you get tan-coloured crumbs. 

- press half of the crumbs (2 cups) into a greased 9" springform pan.

- add the egg and the nutmeg to the crumbs remaining in the food processor and process until combined.

- add the milk/soda mixture and and continue to mix until a lumpy sand-coloured batter is formed. 

- pour over top of the bottom crumb layer and bake 350F for 50 minutes, or until it tests as done. 

- cool in pan and remove sides and serve.

 

The second time I made it, I did not use my food processor but rather my pastry cutter which I enjoy cleaning way more than my beast of a machine. 

It's just beautiful as is, could be served at any function, it's gorgeous.

 

The cake lost some of it's flavour after a brief freeze.  The texture was just fine, but it had lost that over-the-top, lose-yourself-in-it spicy-ness it had fresh and barely warm out of the oven.

 

Beauteous!

This would be great served with coffee or tea to chat with a friend, it also travels well in lunchboxes or on a road trip.  

Coffee and noodles, noodles and coffee

Today, I went for a drive. 

It was a beautiful day, perfect temperature for a non air-conditioned car, windows cracked just a bit. 

By the way, one twin can't stand having wind in his hair and the other one would stick her whole head out the window like a dog (tongue flapping and all) if she weren't strapped down so tight.  Yep, they're twins all right!

I asked the wee ones where they wanted to go - big mistake.  They wanted timbits.  Ach!  Well, I dared ask.  So we started at Tim Horton's where the two middle kids got one timbit each.  Done.  I won't ask them again today what they want.  The story gets much better, bear with me.

I decided that because I ran out of coffee that I should go get more.  I also decided I should go buy it straight from the roaster so they can stamp my frequent-buyer card.  ROAD TRIP!  The Just Us! Coffee Roasters Co-op is in Grand-Pré, an hour if you just drive there on the highway and without kids.

But who does that?!

I took the "old road", the #1 highway.  I love, love, love this drive.  The whole thing, once I "get out of town".  I love the Valley in it's entirety.  I could melt there.  I love the views, the smells ("it smell cowwww" today, they said), the tall trees, the houses, the history, the view, did I mention the views?

So, only the wee-est one slept on the way there.  We stopped and got banana bread at Irving and played in a park.  Finally, we arrived in Grand-Pré.  We all pile out and order tuna sandwiches, a coffee in a travel mug (another stamp) and a bag of Espresso Blend, my favourite right now.  We took a seat in the sun room to chow down.  Then we went outside and romped in their garden.  The kids picked so many dandelion bouquets for me and I threw them up in the air so it could rain flowers on us.  They chased two butterflies, they watched the clouds, watched a couple of eagles, they did summersaults.  The counted the tulips.  Four minutes later, they were done in the garden.  Phew!  I *almost* relaxed!

Back into the car, I pulled out of the parking lot not in the direction of our house and the boy twin noticed and said that was okay.  I explained that I wanted to find fresh pasta.  I knew there was a place and I could picture it in my mind so I was going to find it.  Just past the gorgeous town of Wolfville lies a village called Port Williams.  Oh my.  Gorgeous.  I told you, I love the Valley.

I found the Pasta Studio no problem.  AH!  I've never shopped here before!  I was so excited.  I asked what they had in the fridge today and tasted two kinds to see what I thought the kids would like, I would've eaten anything from them.  I decided on the cracked black pepper tagliatelle.  I wanted so much to try everything.

With my treasures of fairly traded, organic coffee and hand-made-with-local-ingredients pasta, both companies with a mind for the future, our bodies and the environment, I started for home.  The kids slept the whole way home, good for them and for me.

I tell you, they gobbled up that pasta so quickly and with gusto.  They absolutely loved it.  "More", "more"!  Awesome!  I cut up a chicken breast sliced very thinly and fried it quickly in a pan with a touch of salt and turned off the burner and added the pasta just to heat (it comes cooked and tossed in a bit of EVOO, heat and eat, baby!).  I served it with yellow pepper strips and milk.

My camera is on vacation so I can't give you any pictures today.  Please click on the links in the text above to visit the sites of the products I mentioned.

Microwave Brownie in a Mug (single serving)

Midnight snack tonight.

Not too much to look at, but you can see the ooey, gooey centre just slightly undercooked.
Yes, please!

Microwave Brownie in a Mug
adapted from Chow
3 Tbsp granulated sugar, slightly rounded
3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp butter, melted
3 Tbsp water
1/4 tsp vanilla
A dash of salt
1 tsp Just Us! Espresso Blend ground coffee (optional, but highly recommended)
- In a small bowl or mug, mix sugar, cocoa and flour well.
- In a large mug (or small bowl), melt butter.  Add water, salt, vanilla and coffee, if using. Whisk.
- Add dry ingredients, whisk well.  Clean off edges of the mug with your clean finger, lick finger.
- Microwave for 60-75 seconds: 60 seconds for a molten bottom, 75 for uniformly done.

NOte on the coffee: you can use 3 Tbsp strong, brewed coffee (hot or cold) (and omit the 3 Tbsp water) to avoid the grits of coffee grinds in your cake, but I rather like the bits in my cake.

I cooked it in the microwave for 60 seconds.  (one measuring spoon and one button on my microwave!)

Perfection when served as is.

Then again, you could stick a small chunk of dark chocolate in the centre while hot, top with ice cream, whipped cream, Newfie cream (Carnation canned cream, like clotted cream I think), crème douce (whipping cream, heavy cream), or dust with icing sugar, or a ganache (nah, that's just too rich).

You can double (or more) this recipe. Then you can cook two at one time (I recommend two bowls) or use half now and store half in the cupboard for later... like later tonight when you're up with your toddler AGAIN and it only takes one beep of the microwave to cook it - One Minute button, thank you. Um, combine the dry ingredients and store those, then add the wet when you NEED CAKE FAST. I know what I'm talking about here!

EDIT: I have made it with cow's milk, soy milk, Earth Balance and applesauce in place of the melted butter. You take your pick.

If you have time to think and plan ahead, make a pan of these luscious brownies, they freeze really well and you can ship them across the country (though this costs a small fortune as they are dense and heavy).


SMALLER SERVING
It has come to my attention that the full recipe above is rich (yes, you're welcome) but perhaps too much for 1 person in one sitting.  Here is the math worked out for 2/3 of the cake above:
2 Tbsp sugar
2 Tbsp cocoa
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp flour
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp butter, melted (or applesauce or Earth Balance, melted)
2 Tbsp water (or brewed coffee and omit coffee granules)
1/8 tsp vanilla
dash salt
2/3 tsp coffee granules
- mix dry
- melt butter in cereal bowl, add water, vanilla, salt and coffee (if using).
- add dry, mix well
- microwave 50 seconds to 1 minute


Did you share your brownie?  You don't have to, you know...
Did you add anything to it? 

Did you top it with something?