smitten kitchen hall of fame

As promised, here it is. My own personal Smitten Kitchen Hall of Fame.  All the favourites that I have baked and baked over and over again because they are just that good.

(clicking the titles will take you directly to the original smitten kitchen post)

lemon yogurt anything cake

I went through a phase of making this wonder cake all the time.  It probably coincided with me buying an EasiYo yoghurt maker, which meant there was always yoghurt in the house that needed using up.   It’s great for using up lemons or blueberries or in fact any citrus fruits or berries that you have in the back of the fridge!  I turned it into cupcakes (surprise surprise) and to be honest this photo just doesn’t do this cake justice.  It’s tart and tangy, yet sweet and moist all at the same time.

black – bottom cupcakes

This was more of a novelty find than anything else. I had never heard of them, but once I tried these little bad-boys I was hooked and it led to a whole host of black-bottom / white-bottom (see below) variations.  If you want cheesecake in a cupcake, look no further!

blueberry boy bait

I fell in love with this cake years ago.  It’s buttery and crumbly with a cinnamon brown sugar topping and loaded with blueberries (I double the amount Deb uses).  I’ve made cakes and cupcakes and filled many a loaf and sheet pan with the stuff – I’ve also probably done just as many raspberry boy baits as I have blueberry.  This was also my first encounter with the American coffee cake… what the…?

chocolate pudding pie

After seeing this combination I couldn’t not bake it; butter rich short crust pastry, soothing chocolatey custard (a.k.a homemade pudding) topped off with whipped fresh cream – what’s not to love?

jacked up banana bread

This is my GO-TO banana bread.  I love it because you don’t have to use the kitchen aid as it can all be mixed in one bowl by hand.    It’s so versatile you can literally add ANYTHING to it.  I’ve done loaves, mini loaves, muffins, cupcakes, plain, raisins, sultanas, cranberries, dates, chocolate chips, cocoa, rum, scotch, bourbon, southern comfort (!), oats, rye flakes, flax seeds, marmalade, honey, carrots, pineapple and apple chunks.  You name it I’ve tried it and it always turns out perfect.  If you haven’t got a favourite no-fail banana bread recipe you do now!

dimply plum cake

Another coffee cake. Yes I must like them and this one is good.  It’s rich and buttery with a hint of spice and nestled within the brown sugar cake lies half a baked plum (or apricot) – ingenious!  But what I love most is how it looks especially where the purple from the skin bleeds into pink all around the edge.  Some of the half plums in the cupcakes even look a bit like hearts, it’s just too cute and clever.

carrot cake with maple-cream cheese frosting

( I use a different frosting)

Here I go saving the best till last.  If you think you already have the best carrot cake recipe out there (I did) then think again – try this I beg you.  This is the cake that I have been asked to make more times than I can remember.  This is the cake that after trying it every baker asks you for the recipe.  This is the cake that turns non-cake lovers into carrot cake lovers (I’ve seen it happen with my own eyes).  I sort of feel like I’m giving a secret away but seeing as it was never my secret in the first place it gives me great pleasure in sharing this knowing how much pleasure you’re going to get from it.  Pay it forward and all that.

So there it is, my SMITTEN KITCHEN HALL OF FAME.  I feel like a small weight has been lifted from my shoulders.  For years I’ve been using recipes from Deb’s site that have been great success stories and become part of my regular baking repertoire but never been able to thank her.  So thank you Deb, from smitten kitchen, for always inspiring, informing and delighting me.

11 May This entry was published on May 11, 2012 at 2:30 pm. It’s filed under cupcake, retrospective and tagged 2012, banana, blueberry, cakebook, chocolate, dessert, food, hall of fame, hong kong, lemon, mixed bag, plum, raspberry, smitten kitchen. Bookmark the permalink. Follow any comments here with the RSS feed for this post.