C&H SweetSpot - What's New For Bakers Like You

Sweet Spot Archives
Winter 2002
Holiday 2001

Share the Sweetness
Have a great family baking tradition? We’d love to hear about it! Send us your story or favorite family recipe!

Recognized by Culinary’s Best!
C&H is the official sugar of Ramekins Sonoma Valley Culinary School in the San Francisco Bay Area. Ramekins is the Wine Country's premier learning facility dedicated entirely to the education of the home cook, from the amateur to the aficionado. Renowned chefs, authors and culinary experts from across the nation teach their styles and techniques, and share their special recipes with class participants. Located just off the famous Sonoma Plaza, in the heart of California's wine country, Ramekins features all types of cooking classes—both hands-on and demonstration—tours, and Winemaker Dinners year round.

C&H pure cane sugars are used exclusively at the Culinary Center School by visiting chefs and baking instructors.

Attend a baking class and receive a free Baker’s Sugar recipe collection, featuring recipes from Baker’s Dozen members Elizabeth Falkner and Flo Braker.

Visit Ramekins and sign up for one of Ramekins' exciting hands-on and demo baking classes. Check out a class by C&H spokesperson Carolyn Weil who shares her baking tips for cakes, tortes and breads throughout the year.

Spring into Baking!
The perfume of lilacs, the scent of freshly mown grass...and the aroma of baking! It must be spring, the season that brings us back to our senses—and gives us some of our happiest celebrations. From Mother’s Day (May 12 this year) to Father’s Day (June 16), with graduations, bridal showers, and weddings in between, this is the perfect time to show our love and appreciation for the people closest to us. And there’s no better way to do it than with a sweet gift that comes out of your own oven.

Let Them Eat Cake!
If you haven’t baked a cake in a while—or have never made a cake that didn’t come out of a box—it’s time to give your friends and family a real treat! Cakes don’t have to be challenging or complicated to look beautiful and taste wonderful. In fact, with just the basics—flour, eggs, shortening, and sugar (pure cane sugar for the very best results, of course!)—you can create a wide variety of tempting confections.

Our Classic Layer Cake is delicately flavored yet substantial enough to hold up to plenty of frosting—which for many of us is the whole point! And frosting is the way to magically change this cake’s character from tangy (Lemon Fluff Frosting) to caramel-y (Easy Penuche Frosting) to rich and chocolate-y (Chocolate Sour Cream Frosting). Or simply spread whipped cream over each layer, then assemble the layers, cover with whipped cream, and decorate with fresh strawberries, using our photo as a guide.

If you’re a first-time cake baker, it’s easiest to simply pour the batter into a rectangular pan. For a fancier presentation, bake in round layer pans and spread with frosting when the layers have cooled completely. Powdered sugar and Baker’s Sugar produce the silkiest frostings and glazes.

For a very special Mother’s or Father’s Day breakfast in bed, bake a batch of cupcakes or muffins—a tasty way to transform scrambled eggs or cereal into a festive meal. Any cake batter can be used for cupcakes, or try our delicious Black Bottom Cupcakes or Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Powdered Sugar Glaze. And what mom or dad wouldn’t be impressed by creamy, crunchy Banana Macadamia Muffins, served still warm from the oven?

Here Comes the Bride...
Weddings, bridal showers, and graduation parties mean celebratory toasts and a very special centerpiece cake. Make it an affair to remember with a bowl of sparkling tropical punch and a sensational (yet surprisingly easy) cake you’ve baked yourself.

A simple syrup—2 cups water heated with 2 cups sugar until the sugar dissolves—makes the ideal sweetener for almost any party beverage. (And it keeps in the refrigerator virtually forever.) Experiment with fresh or frozen fruit combinations, add fruit juice and sparkling water, then mix in crushed ice. Count on one quart of punch per guest; for extra kick, replace some or all of the sparkling water with champagne.

For a smoother, more puree-like punch, try one of our blender creations.

Paradise Punch combines the tang of ginger with the tropical sweetness of mango and papaya; Strawberry Freeze Breeze matches strawberries, lemon, and a fresh mint garnish.

Continue the tropical theme with a classic party favorite: Carrot Pineapple Cake. Rich, moist, and slightly spicy, it’s spectacular when baked in a fluted Bundt pan. Ice with Orange Frosting, made with C&H Powdered Sugar for a smooth consistency.

One of the most impressive and delectable party cakes you can bake—our Diana's Chocolate Sheet Cake—takes only 20 minutes to bake and serves a crowd. Frost with our Chocolate Walnut Frosting, or prepare a contrasting white Vanilla Buttercream Frosting. For a sweet touch, add fresh flowers or pipe on embellishments with Decorative Icing.

Now, take off your apron and join the party!

Frosting Tip
Before you frost a layer cake, set aside a little of the frosting and thin it with water. Use the thinned mixture to paint a “primer” coat on each layer. Spreading the rest of the frosting will be much easier!

Baker's Profile:
David Lebovitz

Thank goodness David Lebovitz has a lot of energy. He certainly needs it these days as one of America’s busiest bakers, cooking instructors and authors.

The San Francisco Chronicle named him one of the “Top Five Pastry Chefs in the Bay Area.”

He most recently contributed to the Baker’s Dozen Cookbook in addition to writing articles for Fine Cooking, Gourmet and other top magazines. He is on the road from coast to coast teaching pastry classes at the country’s top cooking schools. And, he is working on another book in addition to his “Room for Dessert” (HarperCollins).

David received his training at the top: with Alice Waters at Chez Panisse, where he worked for 12 years. The legendary Waters says about David: “David is one of those rare pastry chefs who knows that in desserts, as in all art, the cliché is true: sometimes less is more.”

David focuses on quality and flavor of seasonal ingredients, using an abundance of fresh fruits such as mangoes, kiwi, passion fruit, kumquats showcased in simple presentation-desserts with clean lines.

“When you search out the best ingredients, do as little to them as possible and serve them in a straightforward way, the presentation follows naturally,” explains David.

David thinks that pure cane sugar is one of these “best” ingredients! David is an especially big fan of our new Baker’s Sugar, and he uses this ultrafine pure cane sugar whenever possible. He also loves our Washed Raw sugar and mentions so in his book, “Room for Dessert.”

See David prepare his showstoppers this summer at select Sur La Table stores in California, Oregon, Utah and Washington. Visit Sur La Table to see the complete schedule.

Visit David at www.davidlebovitz.com.