orange Archives | butter loves company

It has been far too long since I’ve broken out one of my favorite culinary tools: the kitchen torch. This is the little flamethrower of flavor that elevates crème brulée to more than custard and makes snowy meringue frosting golden-tipped and tasting of toasted marshmallows.

This recipe for Chocolate Buttermilk Cake with Tangerine Curd and Toasted Meringue has what may seem like a lot of steps, but you can easily split them up as to not feel overwhelmed. Bake the cakes and prep the curd one day, then make the meringue and assemble the next. The cake is super moist from the buttermilk and lusciously chocolate-y from the cocoa (I used special dark). The tangerine curd is tangy and quite citrus-forward, but also so smooth and creamy. If you prefer, you could use any kind of oranges or stick to a traditional lemon only curd. Top with fluffy meringue fired up with your kitchen torch and you have yourself a super fun and delicious cake!

Torched desserts always make me think of my mom. Along her love of crème brulée for its toasted tops, I inherited my mom’s style inclination for black clothes and tailored fashion. This watch from JORD watches is a perfect example of that and served as the inspiration for this recipe and its deep chocolate color and golden meringue tips. The band is made from ebony wood so it’s lightweight, but bold in style and I absolutely love the large watch-face and gold accents. JORD makes these gorgeous wood women’s watches and men’s watches with all different wood materials and in a variety of colors. I can’t wait to wear it all spring long. It goes perfectly with my wardrobe and with this fun chocolate buttermilk cake if I do say so myself!

The wonderful JORD team is also offering a giveaway to help you to grab your very own! Enter to win a $100 Gift code to use towards your own JORD watch. Click here to enter!

To make things more fun, everyone will automatically receive a $25 code just for entering! The contest will close on 3/26 at 11:59pm. Both the $100 and the $25 codes will expire on 5/31/2017. Best of luck everyone!

A big thank you to JORD Watches for partnering with me on this post. All opinions are my own!
Luxury Wooden Watch

I recently came across a quote reading, “Cooks are superheroes with backwards capes.” It warmed my heart. As Supergreg begins a new professional venture in the world of superheroes, and I continue my adventures in the food world, I felt it comforting to read a line that so perfectly rounded out our home. One cape on the back, and one cape on the front!

Where Superman’s weakness is kryptonite, and Daredevil flounders amidst overpowering assaults of noise, this cook crumbles at the mere thought of French Macarons. Make no mistake though, I don’t consider it a weakness to love these fluffy-yet-somehow-crunchy little delights. In fact, I adore eating the pretty pastel pastries built of almond flour and meringue. The chewy, moist centers sandwiched within lightly crisped shells are basically an edible work of art. The problem is, you see, they can be a bit finicky in the making. I’ve lost many batches where the batter was too thick or too thin resulting in either empty shells or Hershey Kiss-shaped meringue drops. Stir the meringue too long, and risk a batter too runny. Too short, and you’ll end up with a tray of pastries resembling the poo-emoji (whoops!). I ogled at the beautiful macarons I hoped to make, complete with the signature “little feet”—those ruffle-y bottoms on the otherwise smooth shells.

If you’ve ever experienced a baking kryptonite of your own, I encourage you to keep trying. While I still have a ways to go, I was finally able to achieve feet with this recipe adapted from the base macaron instruction from Serious Eats. Because we are in the heart of citrus season, we brightened it up with a bit of Cara Cara oranges from the Hollywood Farmers’ Market. (If you follow along on Instagram, you know it’s my favorite weekly stop.) With orange zest in the shells and freshly squeezed juice swirled within a sweet and rich cream cheese filling, these Cara Cara Orange Macarons are ready to save your day!

Looking for another citrus season recipe? Check out this lemon loaf with lavender glaze.

chocolate buttermilk cake with tangerine curd and toasted meringue

cara cara orange macarons