Photo Courtesy of Brad Lovejoy
Brad, Olivia and I just arrived home from an early Christmas celebration in Eugene. We were able to spend four days with my family, including a lovely evening at my Grammie's house. I have mentioned my grandmother's cooking aptitude several times in past entries and let me just say that this dinner was no exception. She started with a spread of appetizers including an array of gourmet olives, Spanish chorizo and pork skewers. We then moved on to Belgian pork meatballs with cherry sauce, smashed lemon and green onion potatoes, and asparagus. My Grammie was born in Belgium and the meatball recipe is a family recipe that has been passed down for generations. Both the meatballs and potatoes went over like gangbusters with everyone in attendance. Brad and I liked the potatoes so much that I may even prepare the recipe to include on my blog in the near future.
The piece de resistance however, was a wonderful German desert called Kuchen. Basically, Kuchen is a thin, buttery cake that is decorated by baked fruit topping. The cake base is very much like tender pound cake that supports the fruit high on its surface. There are many variations of this desert based on the type of fruit being used. Grammie chose to prepare one plum and one apple for our meal but you can also prepare the dish with nectarines, pears and peaches. I believe other fruits would work as well but I know that apples and stone fruits work for sure. Although I did not prepare the following recipe myself, it was so delicious that I chose to share it anyway.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup soft butter
1/2 cup sugar
3 eggs
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 cup unsifted all-purpose flour
14 to 16 Italian plums or 2 large apples, peeled and sliced
In electric mixer bowl, cream butter with sugar until smoothly blended. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating thoroughly after each addition. Stir in vanilla and flour until batter is well mixed. Butter and flour an 11-inch round shallow pan (a tart pan with removable bottom is the most desirable although you can use a fixed-bottom pan). Spread batter evenly in pan and arrange fruit over the surface according to specific directions.
Bake cake in moderately hot oven (375 degrees) for 40 minutes or until cake feels firm when touched in center. Let cake cool at least 30 minutes on wire rack. Remove pan rim, if possible, and serve cake warm, or cool completely and serve cold. Makes 10 to 12 servings.
For Plum Kuchen, cut 14 to 16 Italian plums (fresh prunes or purple plums) in halves and remove pits. Arrange halves, cut side up over surface of unbaked Butter Kuchen, placing them close together. Sprinkle fruit evenly with 2 to 3 tablespoons sugar, then bake and cool as directed for Butter Kuchen. About 30 minutes before serving the cake, dust surface liberally with powdered sugar. This allows time for sugar to dissolve on the fruit, making a distinct pattern on the cake.
For Apple Kuchen, peel and slice two large apples and arrange slices on surface of unbaked Butter Kuchen, placing them close together. Follow same directions as Plum Kuchen to finish.
Photo Courtesy of Brad Lovejoy
What is so great about Kuchen, you may ask? Where do I start? First of all, the description of this desert being similar to tender pound cake is completely accurate. I happen to love pound cake so the similarity is welcome. I really appreciate that the end result was rich, light, and flavorful. As a matter of fact, I would choose to eat Kuchen over pie any day of the week because I am not a big fan of pie crust. I do however, enjoy pie filling and this desert provides the feeling of pie but in cake form. Finally, Kuchen is aesthetically beautiful. I would be proud to serve it to dinner guests or to take it to an event when I am in charge of providing desert.
Recipe Source:
Mary Moore from her recipe archives
This meal was great. Glad we were a part of it. The kuchen is as advertised. Delicious!! K...you need to find your Ma's recipe for lemon, chocolate swirl pound cake with powdered sugar on top. Yummy. RTHTH
ReplyDeleteI'm looking for a recipe to replace my mom's recipe for kuchen which was lost when my computer crashed a few years age. I was heartbroken when all the recipes she typed up for me of family recipes were lost. My mom had passed away before this happened, so I'm trying to restore some memories. This sounds familiar enough, so I'm going to try it, She used apricots and would make a glaze with apricot pureed and thickened with corn starch over the top after it was baked. So good. I'll let you know if this recipe comes close to the old family one!
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI understand completely. I didn't get my mom's applesauce recipe from her before she passed away and I haven't been able to find anything like it. Have you tried this Kuchen recipe yet? If so, was it anything like your family recipe?
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