marbled raspberry pound cake

This small, fearless wildling we literally just brought home from the hospital turned three a couple weeks ago, but despite my certainty that we just got her, I won’t lie, this feels like a gazillion years ago because when did she not have hair. Strangers on the street often ask us about her hair, and I get it, I do. She’s small, it is big, and also red and with spiral curls going in every direction and there are three other members of our family and none of us have spiral curls or red hair. This isn’t the only way she’s already her own fierce little person. I was definitely not into dolls or dresses growing up, so I watch with awe as she plays for hours with her very pink baby doll, the doll’s stroller, the doll’s purse, the doll’s crib and high chair; when she comes home after being out all day, she likes to sit quietly with her baby on her lap on the sofa for a while to catch up and it is, objectively (I am known for my objectivity when talking about my kids), one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen.

So when asked what kind of birthday cake she wanted, she said “PINK!” And I said, “But what flavor?” “Pink.” And also, “Not brown, Yacob likes brown.” (This is true.) And I thought about making the pink lady cake but we ended up not having a big party that required so much cake, just bringing cupcakes to camp* and then going out to dinner with family. Instead, I went in a simpler direction, loosely inspired by a marbled pink and white cake we saw in the pastry case at Starbucks (but didn’t try so no idea how the taste lines up), a few weeks before. Adding a spoonful of raspberry puree into the glaze turning it ferociously pink, much to her glee, and stretching it into this doughnut-shaped pan I bought earlier this summer on a whim made it look like a giant pink emoji of a doughnut, an unequivocal hit with three year-olds, eight year-olds, and everyone who saw the cake go by at the restaurant. [I resisted the urge to say “And the color is all natural! And that’s not plasticky fondant!” — for once — but it was hard.]

Of course, you do not need a cutesy cake pan to make this. You can make it as a single loaf or double it in a traditional tube or bundt. You also don’t need much time; I made this entire cake in under two hours and it goes even faster if you don’t have to cool it so the glaze stays in place. As a birthday cake after a big dinner, it was exactly right — not too heavy or sweet, but still cute as a button. It would be great for brunch or lunch this weekend or, you know, now. It’s Cake O’Clock somewhere, right?

* I used the berry buttercream and sheet cake from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook to make pink frosting on vanilla cupcakes.

Previously

One year ago: German Chocolate Cake + A Wedding Cake
Two years ago: Eggplant with Tomato and Yogurt Relish and Blueberry Bread and Butter Pudding
Three years ago: Takeout-Style Sesame Noodles with Cucumber
Four years ago: Summer Squash Gratin with Salsa Verde and Bourbon Slush Punch
Five years ago: Mama Canales-Garcia’s Avocado Shrimp Salsa and Banana Nutella and Salted Pistachio Popsicles
Six years ago: Zucchini Bread Pancakes and Zucchini Tomato and Rice Gratin
Seven years ago: Corn Buttermilk and Chive Popovers and Sugar Plum Crepes with Ricotta and Honey
Eight years ago: Scalloped Tomatoes with Croutons, Raspberry Brown Sugar Gratin and Summer Succotash with Bacon and Croutons
Nine years ago: Watermelon Lemonade, Light Brioche Burger Buns, Blueberry Boy Bait, and Lemony Zucchini Goat Cheese Pizza
Ten years ago: Nectarine Mascarpone and Gingersnap Tart and Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte
Eleven years ago: Pearl Couscous with Olives and Tomatoes and Zucchini Bread

And for the other side of the world:
Six Months Ago: Banana Oat Weekday Pancakes and Stromboli, Scaccia-Style
1.5 Years Ago: An Easier Way To Make Cookies and Guacamole
2.5 Years Ago: Cabbage and Sausage Casserole and Leek, Ham, Cheese and Egg Bake
3.5 Years Ago: Make Your Own Vanilla Extract and Fried Egg Salad
4.5 Years Ago: Homemade Dulce de Leche and Cheese Blintz

Marbled Raspberry Pound Cake

The cake, as written below, makes 1 standard loaf. To make it in the doughnut-looking pan I show, you’ll want to use 150% of the recipe (it bakes in 38 to 40 minutes). To make a bundt or tube cake, you’ll want to double the recipe (it will take anywhere from 45 to 60 minutes, as shapes range a lot). For the doughnut or bundt cake, I double the glaze. For the raspberries, fork-mashing is easier, but if you’re bothered by seeds or want the smooth appearance you see in the top photo, you’ll want to blend the berries and sieve out the seeds. For the glaze, you could make it with a spoonful of raspberry puree (for this, you’ll definitely want a seedless puree), you could make it with lemon juice, or a mix of both. Or you can skip it for a less sweet cake; it’s perfectly lovely with just a dusting of powdered sugar to finish. For a little more lemon flavor, you can squeeze that half lemon you use for zest and measure the juice (it should be 1 to 2 tablespoons), then use that much less sour cream in the white portion of the cake, adding them at the same time. Finally, a little shopping note: Around here, raspberries come from the grocery store in 6-ounce clamshells, which neatly provides the 1 cup (5 ounces) you’ll need for the pink portion of the cake and the last few you’ll need for a pink glaze.

• Butter or cooking spray to coat pan
• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea or table salt
• Finely grated zest from half a lemon
• 1/2 cup (115 grams) unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour plus 1/2 cup (65 grams) all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2 cup (125 grams) sour cream, reme fraiche, or full-fat plain yogurt
• 1 gently heaped cup (140 grams or 5 ounces) fresh raspberries
• 3/4 cup (90 grams) powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon raspberry puree (for a pink glaze, from a few tablespoons or 1 ounce fresh raspberries), or lemon juice
• 1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a standard loaf pan (either 8″x4″ or 9″x5″, or any size between, will work here) with nonstick baking spray or butter, making sure to get into the corners.

Place sugar and salt in a large bowl. Zest lemon into sugar and rub it together with your fingertips; this helps the lemon release the most flavor from it. Add butter and use an electric mixer to beat it with the sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition. Scrape down bowl. Sprinkle cake surface with baking powder and mix it until very well combined. Scrape down sides of bowl again. Add 1 cup (only) of the flour and beat just until it’s no longer visible.

Place raspberries in the bottom of a second medium-large bowl and mash with a fork until mostly broken down but still a little lumpy; you’ll have about 1/2 cup mashed. [If you really dislike raspberry seeds and/or want a smoother look, you can blend the berries until smooth and press them through a fine-mesh strainer — into this second bowl — to remove seeds.] Pour half of the cake batter on top of raspberries (if you have a scale, you can zero out the weight of the bowl and raspberries; half the batter weights 277 grams) but wait, don’t mix it yet.

Instead, go back to the first bowl of batter, the one without raspberries, and add sour cream. Beat to combine. Add 1/4 cup flour, and beat just until smooth. (By beating the “white” batter first, you can reuse you beaters without washing them for the pink batter without muddying the look.)

Beat the raspberries and second half of the cake batter together until smooth. the raspberry sauce into the other half of the batter until combined. Add final 1/4 cup flour, and beat just until smooth.

Dollop batters in alternating spoonfuls into bottom of prepared loaf pan. Roughly “checkerboard” the rest in, meaning that you’ll drop a pink batter dollop and then a white one and vice-versa until both batters are used up. Drop your pan onto the counter a couple times from a few inches high, to help tap out air bubbles. Use a butter knife or small offset spatula to make a few figure-8s through the batters, marbling them together — but just a little, say, 4 to 5 figure-8s. Any more and the swirls may not look distinct when you cut the cake.

Bake loaf cake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out batter-free. Let cool for 15 minutes in pan, then run a knife around cake and gently remove. Let cake cool completely on rack (I hasten this along in the freezer) before glazing, if using a glaze.

To make your glaze, place powdered sugar in a medium bowl and add raspberry puree (for this, it’s best if you press the berries through a fine-mesh sieve to remove seeds, or it won’t have a smooth pink look) or lemon juice. Whisk to combine, but it will almost definitely be too thick. From here, add milk, a teaspoon at a time, until you can whisk the sugar into a thick but loose glaze. Spoon on top of cooled cake and nudge it to the edges with your spoon or an offset spatual so that it drips where you’d like it to. Cover with sprinkles, if using.

Rate this:

Nice recipe article from smittenkitchen

J.T. Daniels standing out in USC quarterback battle

Aug 3, 2018

• 

  Kyle BonaguraESPN Staff Writer

  Close

  • Covers the Pac-12.
  • Joined ESPN in 2014.
  • Attended Washington State University.

LOS ANGELES -- It was only Day 1, but true freshman quarterback J.T. Daniels made a positive impression on coach Clay Helton as USC opened training camp Friday, kicking off a three-way competition between him, redshirt sophomore Matt Fink and redshirt freshman Jack Sears for the starting job.

Helton met with the quarterbacks collectively and said he communicated his expectations for how he'll determine the starter.

"Always in my mind for the quarterback, it's about decision-making, timing and accuracy and, most important, moving the ball and being productive about putting it in the red zone," Helton said.

With that in mind, Helton's assessment of Daniels, who graduated from nearby powerhouse Mater Dei High School with a year of eligibility remaining, indicated he's very much an option to start the opener against UNLV.

"Extremely accurate," Helton said of Daniels. "Very, very knowledgeable. For an 18-year-old kid to come out here do what he did today was very impressive. It's like he's already been in a camp before, to be honest with you. I was highly impressed."

Daniels wasn't with the team during spring practice as he finished his high school coursework, but did work out with the team during its player-run practices over the summer. Friday was the first opportunity he had to showcase his ability, side by side with USC's other quarterbacks, in front of the coaching staff.

Offensive coordinator Tee Martin tried not to read into too much how the quarterbacks played considering it was the first day and the team wasn't in pads but acknowledged there isn't a grace period: The evaluation process has begun.

"Every [practice] counts, but some count more than others," Helton added. "I think when you get into team segments and you get in live scrimmages and Porter Gustin is breathing down your neck and you step up and throw and make it accurately and on time, that puts a lot of weight on me.

"Throwing nice routes on air is nice, you take that into account, but it's about moving the team productively into the end zone."

Helton said he expects to publically name a starter before the opener, but has not set a firm deadline for when that announcement will come.

Good article originally from ESPN

marbled raspberry pound cake

This small, fearless wildling we literally just brought home from the hospital turned three a couple weeks ago, but despite my certainty that we just got her, I won’t lie, this feels like a gazillion years ago because when did she not have hair. Strangers on the street often ask us about her hair, and I get it, I do. She’s small, it is big, and also red and with spiral curls going in every direction and there are three other members of our family and none of us have spiral curls or red hair. This isn’t the only way she’s already her own fierce little person. I was definitely not into dolls or dresses growing up, so I watch with awe as she plays for hours with her very pink baby doll, the doll’s stroller, the doll’s purse, the doll’s crib and high chair; when she comes home after being out all day, she likes to sit quietly with her baby on her lap on the sofa for a while to catch up and it is, objectively (I am known for my objectivity when talking about my kids), one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen.

So when asked what kind of birthday cake she wanted, she said “PINK!” And I said, “But what flavor?” “Pink.” And also, “Not brown, Yacob likes brown.” (This is true.) And I thought about making the pink lady cake but we ended up not having a big party that required so much cake, just bringing cupcakes to camp* and then going out to dinner with family. Instead, I went in a simpler direction, loosely inspired by a marbled pink and white cake we saw in the pastry case at Starbucks (but didn’t try so no idea how the taste lines up), a few weeks before. Adding a spoonful of raspberry puree into the glaze turning it ferociously pink, much to her glee, and stretching it into this doughnut-shaped pan I bought earlier this summer on a whim made it look like a giant pink emoji of a doughnut, an unequivocal hit with three year-olds, eight year-olds, and everyone who saw the cake go by at the restaurant. [I resisted the urge to say “And the color is all natural! And that’s not plasticky fondant!” — for once — but it was hard.]

Of course, you do not need a cutesy cake pan to make this. You can make it as a single loaf or double it in a traditional tube or bundt. You also don’t need much time; I made this entire cake in under two hours and it goes even faster if you don’t have to cool it so the glaze stays in place. As a birthday cake after a big dinner, it was exactly right — not too heavy or sweet, but still cute as a button. It would be great for brunch or lunch this weekend or, you know, now. It’s Cake O’Clock somewhere, right?

* I used the berry buttercream and sheet cake from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook to make pink frosting on vanilla cupcakes.

Previously

One year ago: German Chocolate Cake + A Wedding Cake
Two years ago: Eggplant with Tomato and Yogurt Relish and Blueberry Bread and Butter Pudding
Three years ago: Takeout-Style Sesame Noodles with Cucumber
Four years ago: Summer Squash Gratin with Salsa Verde and Bourbon Slush Punch
Five years ago: Mama Canales-Garcia’s Avocado Shrimp Salsa and Banana Nutella and Salted Pistachio Popsicles
Six years ago: Zucchini Bread Pancakes and Zucchini Tomato and Rice Gratin
Seven years ago: Corn Buttermilk and Chive Popovers and Sugar Plum Crepes with Ricotta and Honey
Eight years ago: Scalloped Tomatoes with Croutons, Raspberry Brown Sugar Gratin and Summer Succotash with Bacon and Croutons
Nine years ago: Watermelon Lemonade, Light Brioche Burger Buns, Blueberry Boy Bait, and Lemony Zucchini Goat Cheese Pizza
Ten years ago: Nectarine Mascarpone and Gingersnap Tart and Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte
Eleven years ago: Pearl Couscous with Olives and Tomatoes and Zucchini Bread

And for the other side of the world:
Six Months Ago: Banana Oat Weekday Pancakes and Stromboli, Scaccia-Style
1.5 Years Ago: An Easier Way To Make Cookies and Guacamole
2.5 Years Ago: Cabbage and Sausage Casserole and Leek, Ham, Cheese and Egg Bake
3.5 Years Ago: Make Your Own Vanilla Extract and Fried Egg Salad
4.5 Years Ago: Homemade Dulce de Leche and Cheese Blintz

Marbled Raspberry Pound Cake

The cake, as written below, makes 1 standard loaf. To make it in the doughnut-looking pan I show, you’ll want to use 150% of the recipe (it bakes in 38 to 40 minutes). To make a bundt or tube cake, you’ll want to double the recipe (it will take anywhere from 45 to 60 minutes, as shapes range a lot). For the doughnut or bundt cake, I double the glaze. For the raspberries, fork-mashing is easier, but if you’re bothered by seeds or want the smooth appearance you see in the top photo, you’ll want to blend the berries and sieve out the seeds. For the glaze, you could make it with a spoonful of raspberry puree (for this, you’ll definitely want a seedless puree), you could make it with lemon juice, or a mix of both. Or you can skip it for a less sweet cake; it’s perfectly lovely with just a dusting of powdered sugar to finish. For a little more lemon flavor, you can squeeze that half lemon you use for zest and measure the juice (it should be 1 to 2 tablespoons), then use that much less sour cream in the white portion of the cake, adding them at the same time. Finally, a little shopping note: Around here, raspberries come from the grocery store in 6-ounce clamshells, which neatly provides the 1 cup (5 ounces) you’ll need for the pink portion of the cake and the last few you’ll need for a pink glaze.

• Butter or cooking spray to coat pan
• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea or table salt
• Finely grated zest from half a lemon
• 1/2 cup (115 grams) unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour plus 1/2 cup (65 grams) all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2 cup (125 grams) sour cream, reme fraiche, or full-fat plain yogurt
• 1 gently heaped cup (140 grams or 5 ounces) fresh raspberries
• 3/4 cup (90 grams) powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon raspberry puree (for a pink glaze, from a few tablespoons or 1 ounce fresh raspberries), or lemon juice
• 1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a standard loaf pan (either 8″x4″ or 9″x5″, or any size between, will work here) with nonstick baking spray or butter, making sure to get into the corners.

Place sugar and salt in a large bowl. Zest lemon into sugar and rub it together with your fingertips; this helps the lemon release the most flavor from it. Add butter and use an electric mixer to beat it with the sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition. Scrape down bowl. Sprinkle cake surface with baking powder and mix it until very well combined. Scrape down sides of bowl again. Add 1 cup (only) of the flour and beat just until it’s no longer visible.

Place raspberries in the bottom of a second medium-large bowl and mash with a fork until mostly broken down but still a little lumpy; you’ll have about 1/2 cup mashed. [If you really dislike raspberry seeds and/or want a smoother look, you can blend the berries until smooth and press them through a fine-mesh strainer — into this second bowl — to remove seeds.] Pour half of the cake batter on top of raspberries (if you have a scale, you can zero out the weight of the bowl and raspberries; half the batter weights 277 grams) but wait, don’t mix it yet.

Instead, go back to the first bowl of batter, the one without raspberries, and add sour cream. Beat to combine. Add 1/4 cup flour, and beat just until smooth. (By beating the “white” batter first, you can reuse you beaters without washing them for the pink batter without muddying the look.)

Beat the raspberries and second half of the cake batter together until smooth. the raspberry sauce into the other half of the batter until combined. Add final 1/4 cup flour, and beat just until smooth.

Dollop batters in alternating spoonfuls into bottom of prepared loaf pan. Roughly “checkerboard” the rest in, meaning that you’ll drop a pink batter dollop and then a white one and vice-versa until both batters are used up. Drop your pan onto the counter a couple times from a few inches high, to help tap out air bubbles. Use a butter knife or small offset spatula to make a few figure-8s through the batters, marbling them together — but just a little, say, 4 to 5 figure-8s. Any more and the swirls may not look distinct when you cut the cake.

Bake loaf cake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out batter-free. Let cool for 15 minutes in pan, then run a knife around cake and gently remove. Let cake cool completely on rack (I hasten this along in the freezer) before glazing, if using a glaze.

To make your glaze, place powdered sugar in a medium bowl and add raspberry puree (for this, it’s best if you press the berries through a fine-mesh sieve to remove seeds, or it won’t have a smooth pink look) or lemon juice. Whisk to combine, but it will almost definitely be too thick. From here, add milk, a teaspoon at a time, until you can whisk the sugar into a thick but loose glaze. Spoon on top of cooled cake and nudge it to the edges with your spoon or an offset spatual so that it drips where you’d like it to. Cover with sprinkles, if using.

Rate this:

Nice recipe article from smittenkitchen

Nick Saban decide between Tua Tagovailoa or Jalen Hurts Alabama Crimson Tide starter

Wilton Speight persuaded to join UCLA Bruins after hearing Chip Kelly pitch

marbled raspberry pound cake

This small, fearless wildling we literally just brought home from the hospital turned three a couple weeks ago, but despite my certainty that we just got her, I won’t lie, this feels like a gazillion years ago because when did she not have hair. Strangers on the street often ask us about her hair, and I get it, I do. She’s small, it is big, and also red and with spiral curls going in every direction and there are three other members of our family and none of us have spiral curls or red hair. This isn’t the only way she’s already her own fierce little person. I was definitely not into dolls or dresses growing up, so I watch with awe as she plays for hours with her very pink baby doll, the doll’s stroller, the doll’s purse, the doll’s crib and high chair; when she comes home after being out all day, she likes to sit quietly with her baby on her lap on the sofa for a while to catch up and it is, objectively (I am known for my objectivity when talking about my kids), one of the cutest things I’ve ever seen.

So when asked what kind of birthday cake she wanted, she said “PINK!” And I said, “But what flavor?” “Pink.” And also, “Not brown, Yacob likes brown.” (This is true.) And I thought about making the pink lady cake but we ended up not having a big party that required so much cake, just bringing cupcakes to camp* and then going out to dinner with family. Instead, I went in a simpler direction, loosely inspired by a marbled pink and white cake we saw in the pastry case at Starbucks (but didn’t try so no idea how the taste lines up), a few weeks before. Adding a spoonful of raspberry puree into the glaze turning it ferociously pink, much to her glee, and stretching it into this doughnut-shaped pan I bought earlier this summer on a whim made it look like a giant pink emoji of a doughnut, an unequivocal hit with three year-olds, eight year-olds, and everyone who saw the cake go by at the restaurant. [I resisted the urge to say “And the color is all natural! And that’s not plasticky fondant!” — for once — but it was hard.]

Of course, you do not need a cutesy cake pan to make this. You can make it as a single loaf or double it in a traditional tube or bundt. You also don’t need much time; I made this entire cake in under two hours and it goes even faster if you don’t have to cool it so the glaze stays in place. As a birthday cake after a big dinner, it was exactly right — not too heavy or sweet, but still cute as a button. It would be great for brunch or lunch this weekend or, you know, now. It’s Cake O’Clock somewhere, right?

* I used the berry buttercream and sheet cake from The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook to make pink frosting on vanilla cupcakes.

Previously

One year ago: German Chocolate Cake + A Wedding Cake
Two years ago: Eggplant with Tomato and Yogurt Relish and Blueberry Bread and Butter Pudding
Three years ago: Takeout-Style Sesame Noodles with Cucumber
Four years ago: Summer Squash Gratin with Salsa Verde and Bourbon Slush Punch
Five years ago: Mama Canales-Garcia’s Avocado Shrimp Salsa and Banana Nutella and Salted Pistachio Popsicles
Six years ago: Zucchini Bread Pancakes and Zucchini Tomato and Rice Gratin
Seven years ago: Corn Buttermilk and Chive Popovers and Sugar Plum Crepes with Ricotta and Honey
Eight years ago: Scalloped Tomatoes with Croutons, Raspberry Brown Sugar Gratin and Summer Succotash with Bacon and Croutons
Nine years ago: Watermelon Lemonade, Light Brioche Burger Buns, Blueberry Boy Bait, and Lemony Zucchini Goat Cheese Pizza
Ten years ago: Nectarine Mascarpone and Gingersnap Tart and Herbed Summer Squash and Potato Torte
Eleven years ago: Pearl Couscous with Olives and Tomatoes and Zucchini Bread

And for the other side of the world:
Six Months Ago: Banana Oat Weekday Pancakes and Stromboli, Scaccia-Style
1.5 Years Ago: An Easier Way To Make Cookies and Guacamole
2.5 Years Ago: Cabbage and Sausage Casserole and Leek, Ham, Cheese and Egg Bake
3.5 Years Ago: Make Your Own Vanilla Extract and Fried Egg Salad
4.5 Years Ago: Homemade Dulce de Leche and Cheese Blintz

Marbled Raspberry Pound Cake

The cake, as written below, makes 1 standard loaf. To make it in the doughnut-looking pan I show, you’ll want to use 150% of the recipe (it bakes in 38 to 40 minutes). To make a bundt or tube cake, you’ll want to double the recipe (it will take anywhere from 45 to 60 minutes, as shapes range a lot). For the doughnut or bundt cake, I double the glaze. For the raspberries, fork-mashing is easier, but if you’re bothered by seeds or want the smooth appearance you see in the top photo, you’ll want to blend the berries and sieve out the seeds. For the glaze, you could make it with a spoonful of raspberry puree (for this, you’ll definitely want a seedless puree), you could make it with lemon juice, or a mix of both. Or you can skip it for a less sweet cake; it’s perfectly lovely with just a dusting of powdered sugar to finish. For a little more lemon flavor, you can squeeze that half lemon you use for zest and measure the juice (it should be 1 to 2 tablespoons), then use that much less sour cream in the white portion of the cake, adding them at the same time. Finally, a little shopping note: Around here, raspberries come from the grocery store in 6-ounce clamshells, which neatly provides the 1 cup (5 ounces) you’ll need for the pink portion of the cake and the last few you’ll need for a pink glaze.

• Butter or cooking spray to coat pan
• 1 cup (200 grams) granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon fine sea or table salt
• Finely grated zest from half a lemon
• 1/2 cup (115 grams) unsalted butter
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 cup (130 grams) all-purpose flour plus 1/2 cup (65 grams) all-purpose flour, divided
• 1/2 cup (125 grams) sour cream, reme fraiche, or full-fat plain yogurt
• 1 gently heaped cup (140 grams or 5 ounces) fresh raspberries
• 3/4 cup (90 grams) powdered sugar
• 1 tablespoon raspberry puree (for a pink glaze, from a few tablespoons or 1 ounce fresh raspberries), or lemon juice
• 1 to 2 tablespoons milk

Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a standard loaf pan (either 8″x4″ or 9″x5″, or any size between, will work here) with nonstick baking spray or butter, making sure to get into the corners.

Place sugar and salt in a large bowl. Zest lemon into sugar and rub it together with your fingertips; this helps the lemon release the most flavor from it. Add butter and use an electric mixer to beat it with the sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition. Scrape down bowl. Sprinkle cake surface with baking powder and mix it until very well combined. Scrape down sides of bowl again. Add 1 cup (only) of the flour and beat just until it’s no longer visible.

Place raspberries in the bottom of a second medium-large bowl and mash with a fork until mostly broken down but still a little lumpy; you’ll have about 1/2 cup mashed. [If you really dislike raspberry seeds and/or want a smoother look, you can blend the berries until smooth and press them through a fine-mesh strainer — into this second bowl — to remove seeds.] Pour half of the cake batter on top of raspberries (if you have a scale, you can zero out the weight of the bowl and raspberries; half the batter weights 277 grams) but wait, don’t mix it yet.

Instead, go back to the first bowl of batter, the one without raspberries, and add sour cream. Beat to combine. Add 1/4 cup flour, and beat just until smooth. (By beating the “white” batter first, you can reuse you beaters without washing them for the pink batter without muddying the look.)

Beat the raspberries and second half of the cake batter together until smooth. the raspberry sauce into the other half of the batter until combined. Add final 1/4 cup flour, and beat just until smooth.

Dollop batters in alternating spoonfuls into bottom of prepared loaf pan. Roughly “checkerboard” the rest in, meaning that you’ll drop a pink batter dollop and then a white one and vice-versa until both batters are used up. Drop your pan onto the counter a couple times from a few inches high, to help tap out air bubbles. Use a butter knife or small offset spatula to make a few figure-8s through the batters, marbling them together — but just a little, say, 4 to 5 figure-8s. Any more and the swirls may not look distinct when you cut the cake.

Bake loaf cake for 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out batter-free. Let cool for 15 minutes in pan, then run a knife around cake and gently remove. Let cake cool completely on rack (I hasten this along in the freezer) before glazing, if using a glaze.

To make your glaze, place powdered sugar in a medium bowl and add raspberry puree (for this, it’s best if you press the berries through a fine-mesh sieve to remove seeds, or it won’t have a smooth pink look) or lemon juice. Whisk to combine, but it will almost definitely be too thick. From here, add milk, a teaspoon at a time, until you can whisk the sugar into a thick but loose glaze. Spoon on top of cooled cake and nudge it to the edges with your spoon or an offset spatual so that it drips where you’d like it to. Cover with sprinkles, if using.

Rate this:

Nice recipe article from smittenkitchen

J.T. Daniels standing out in USC quarterback battle

11:53 PM ET

• 

  Kyle BonaguraESPN Staff Writer

  Close

  • Covers the Pac-12.
  • Joined ESPN in 2014.
  • Attended Washington State University.

LOS ANGELES -- It was only Day 1, but true freshman quarterback J.T. Daniels made a positive impression on coach Clay Helton as USC opened training camp Friday, kicking off a three-way competition between him, redshirt sophomore Matt Fink and redshirt freshman Jack Sears for the starting job.

Helton met with the quarterbacks collectively and said he communicated his expectations for how he'll determine the starter.

"Always in my mind for the quarterback, it's about decision-making, timing and accuracy and, most important, moving the ball and being productive about putting it in the red zone," Helton said.

With that in mind, Helton's assessment of Daniels, who graduated from nearby powerhouse Mater Dei High School with a year of eligibility remaining, indicated he's very much an option to start the opener against UNLV.

"Extremely accurate," Helton said of Daniels. "Very, very knowledgeable. For an 18-year-old kid to come out here do what he did today was very impressive. It's like he's already been in a camp before, to be honest with you. I was highly impressed."

Daniels wasn't with the team during spring practice as he finished his high school coursework, but did work out with the team during its player-run practices over the summer. Friday was the first opportunity he had to showcase his ability, side by side with USC's other quarterbacks, in front of the coaching staff.

Offensive coordinator Tee Martin tried not to read into too much how the quarterbacks played considering it was the first day and the team wasn't in pads but acknowledged there isn't a grace period: The evaluation process has begun.

"Every [practice] counts, but some count more than others," Helton added. "I think when you get into team segments and you get in live scrimmages and Porter Gustin is breathing down your neck and you step up and throw and make it accurately and on time, that puts a lot of weight on me.

"Throwing nice routes on air is nice, you take that into account, but it's about moving the team productively into the end zone."

Helton said he expects to publically name a starter before the opener, but has not set a firm deadline for when that announcement will come.

Good article originally from ESPN

Nick Saban decide between Tua Tagovailoa or Jalen Hurts Alabama Crimson Tide starter

Scott Frost, Clemson's D-line and Kyler Murray among offseason storylines

Stanford Cardinal coach David Shaw says CFP should look at schedules

Jul 31, 2018

• 

  Heather DinichESPN Senior Writer

  Close

  • College football reporter
  • Joined ESPN.com in 2007
  • Graduate of Indiana University

Stanford coach David Shaw said the College Football Playoff selection committee should pay greater attention to when teams have byes during the season, and how the entire schedule is laid out.

Shaw, who sat down with ESPN on Tuesday for a wide-ranging interview, said he has thought a lot about the playoff this summer. He has spoken with several committee members this offseason, and CFP executive director Bill Hancock on Monday.

"How the schedule lays out may be more important than strength of schedule," Shaw said. "What I mean by that is, if you look at USC last year, to play 11 straight games without a bye -- all Division I opponents, no I-AA opponents, and play right into the Pac-12 championship game and win that one -- that to me is more impressive than just having a strong schedule but then having a Week 7 bye, or a Week 8 I-AA opponent, which kind of gives you a break."

Last season was the first since 1995 that USC played the entire regular season without a bye week. Its two losses were on the road -- a Friday night at Washington State, and Oct. 21 at Notre Dame. In spite of beating Stanford for the Pac-12 title, USC finished No. 8, right behind three-loss Auburn, which had a bye week between back-to-back road games against Arkansas and Texas A&M.

The difference was that Auburn earned two November wins against the committee's No. 1 teams in Georgia and Alabama.

Hancock said Tuesday the 13-member committee does consider more than just who a team played and where the game was.

"The matter of analyzing teams is complex, and the committee goes through great lengths in comparing teams in many respects, in comparing the data and also in comparing schedules," Hancock said. "The committee certainly considers every aspect of a team's schedule, including the sequencing of games, sequence of opponents, and sequence of open dates."

Shaw said his view on scheduling is "a new way of looking at it."

"I think looking at how difficult it is for the student-athletes to play consecutive weeks and then, we're one of the few conferences that will play a significant number of Friday night games," he said, adding that the Friday night road winning percentages are "very, very low."

Good article originally from ESPN

Stanford Cardinal coach David Shaw says CFP should look at schedules

12:44 PM ET

• 

  Heather DinichESPN Senior Writer

  Close

  • College football reporter
  • Joined ESPN.com in 2007
  • Graduate of Indiana University

Stanford coach David Shaw said the College Football Playoff selection committee should pay greater attention to when teams have byes during the season, and how the entire schedule is laid out.

Shaw, who sat down with ESPN on Tuesday for a wide-ranging interview, said he has thought a lot about the playoff this summer. He has spoken with several committee members this offseason, and CFP executive director Bill Hancock on Monday.

"How the schedule lays out may be more important than strength of schedule," Shaw said. "What I mean by that is, if you look at USC last year, to play 11 straight games without a bye - all Division I opponents, no I-AA opponents, and play right into the Pac-12 championship game and win that one - that to me is more impressive than just having a strong schedule but then having a Week 7 bye, or a Week 8 I-AA opponent, which kind of gives you a break."

Last season was the first since 1995 that USC played the entire regular season without a bye week. Its two losses were on the road -- a Friday night at Washington State, and Oct. 21 at Notre Dame. In spite of beating Stanford for the Pac-12 title, USC finished No. 8, right behind three-loss Auburn, which had a bye week between back-to-back road games against Arkansas and Texas A&M.

The difference was that Auburn earned two November wins against the committee's No. 1 teams in Georgia and Alabama.

Hancock said Tuesday the 13-member committee does consider more than just who a team played and where the game was.

"The matter of analyzing teams is complex, and the committee goes through great lengths in comparing teams in many respects, in comparing the data and also in comparing schedules," Hancock said. "The committee certainly considers every aspect of a team's schedule, including the sequencing of games, sequence of opponents, and sequence of open dates."

Shaw said his view on scheduling is "a new way of looking at it."

"I think looking at how difficult it is for the student-athletes to play consecutive weeks and then, we're one of the few conferences that will play a significant number of Friday night games," he said, adding that the Friday night road winning percentages are "very, very low."

Good article originally from ESPN

Former college football coaches put skills to work in cannabis and Chick-fil-A

Former college football coaches put skills to work in cannabis and Chick-fil-A

Washington Huskies top Pac-12 Power Rankings

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott optimistic after bad postseasons for football, basketball

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott optimistic after bad postseasons for football, basketball

Washington Huskies top Pac-12 Power Rankings

Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott optimistic after bad postseasons for football, basketball

Washington Huskies top Pac-12 Power Rankings

Texas' iconic Wishbone offense, at 50, still influential in college football

North Carolina's Larry Fedora says football is under attack

Mayer’s Picks – the Best of 2018 (So Far), the Albums

It’s been a good year for music so far this year (and the rest of the year is looking quite nice, too). Here, in no particular order, are some of my favorite releases from the first half of 2018.

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HOW TO BE OK ALONE by BRENT COWLES

Cowles shares a debut solo full-length that is emotionally raw and spiritually uplifting. How To Be OK Alone is a tremendous rock record that showcases the range of Cowles talent as a singer and a songwriter.

Key Tracks: The Fold, Tequila Train, Keep Moving, Gina Joon, Places, How to Be OK Alone

Featured Twangville coverage of Brent Cowles: Mayer’s Playlist for Spring 2018, Part 1, SXSW 2018 – The Sounds, Part 1, Monday Morning Video – Brent Cowles “The Fold”, and Monday Morning Video – Brent Cowles.

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CONCRETE AND MUD by SAM MORROW

Morrow serves up my favorite country album so far this year, chock full of no BS attitude and heavy southern grooves.

Key Tracks: Heartbreak Man, Paid By the Mile, Quick Fix, Good Ole Days, Weight of a Stone, Skinny Elvis

Featured Twangville coverage of Sam Morrow: Mayer’s Playlist for Spring 2018, Part 2, SXSW 2018 – The Sounds, Part 3 and Monday Morning Video – A Premiere from Sam Morrow.

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FALSE RIVER by ANDREW DUHON

Duhon takes his time between albums but they are well worth the wait. His latest, the follow-up to 2013’s outstanding The Moorings, is filled with sweet (if sometimes melancholy) stories, honeyed vocals and soothing arrangements. False River plays with a timeless charm.

Key Tracks: Comin’ Around, Heart of a Man, They Don’t Make ’em, Gotta Know, Still Holding On, Easy Ways

Featured Twangville coverage of Andrew Duhon: Mayer’s Playlist for Spring 2018, Part 3 and Readers’ Pick: Andrew Duhon – False River.

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WATCHING IT ALL FALL APART by FRUITION

It took me 10 years to discover Fruition but better late than never, right? Their latest hooked me immediately with its potent blend of folk, rock, soul and a touch of psychedelia.

Key Tracks: Northern Town, There She Was, I’ll Never Sing Your Name, Turn To Dust, Should Be (On Top of the World)

Featured Twangville coverage of Fruition: Mayer’s Playlist for Winter 2018, Part 1.

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WIDDERSHINS by GRANT-LEE PHILLIPS

Great music is inspired by the world in which we live, the best musicians are able to capture the resulting anxiety and emotion in song. Grant-Lee Phillips reacts to the social and political unrest around us with a collection of songs stirring and aggrieved.

Key Tracks: Walk In Circles, King of Catastrophes, Scared Stiff, The Wilderness, Another Another Then Boom, Totally You Gunslinger, History Has Their Number

Featured Twangville coverage of Grant-Lee Phillips: Mayer’s Playlist for Winter 2018, Part 1, Mayer’s Picks – Best Albums of 2016 and Monday Morning Video – Grant-Lee Phillips “Cry Cry”.

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TENKILLER by MARIE/LEPANTO

Will Johnson and Justin Peter Kinkel-Schuster team up for an album filled with restrained but bluesy rockers alongside ethereal folk songs.

Key Tracks: High Desert, Inverness, Famished Raven, Simple Scenes, Features/Fights, Rest Be Mine

Featured Twangville coverage of Marie/Lepanto: Mayer’s Playlist for Winter 2018, Part 2.

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OUT FROM UNDER by MICHAEL MCDERMOTT

Michael McDermott is one of contemporary music’s most remarkable storytellers. Out From Under, like his previous work, is filled with colorful characters – sometimes autobiographical, sometimes not – trying to make their way in a difficult world.

Key Tracks: Knocked Down, Sad Songs, This World Will Break Your Heart, Rubber Band Ring, Never Goin’ Down Again, Sideways

Featured Twangville coverage of Michael McDermott: Michael McDermott Comes Out From Under (Album Premiere), Mayer’s Picks – Best Albums of 2016 and Mayer’s Playlist for June 2016.

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ELI PAPERBOY REED MEETS THE HIGH & MIGHTY BRASS BAND by ELI PAPERBOY REED AND THE HIGH & MIGHTY BRASS BAND

New music from Eli Paperboy Reed is all too infrequent. But leave it to the R&B master to hit the bulls-eye with this collaboration with the High & Mighty Brass Band. The group revisits gems from the Paperboy catalog, pumping up the horns, of course, with monstrous results.

Key Tracks: As I Live and Breathe, Walkin’ and Talkin’, Take My Love With You, I’m Gonna Getcha Back, Come and Get It

Featured Twangville coverage of Eli Paperboy Reed: Mayer’s Playlist for Spring 2018, Part 2, Mayer’s Playlist for June 2016 and Monday Morning Video – Eli Paperboy Reed Takes On Ray Charles.

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DON’T TALK ABOUT IT by RUBY BOOTS

Ruby Boots is on the move. Set aside that she relocated from Australia to Nashville and then travelled to Dallas to record her Bloodshot Records debut. Said album radiates confidence and charm, driven by her determined rock songs and captivating voice.

Key Tracks: It’s So Cruel, Don’t Talk About It, Easy Way Out, Break My Heart Twice, I’ll Make It Through, Infatuation, Don’t Give a Damn

Featured Twangville coverage of Ruby Boots: Mayer’s Playlist for Winter 2018, Part 2, SXSW 2018 – The Sounds, Part 2, Folk Alliance 2018 – Mayer’s Picks, Part 2 and Readers’ Pick: Don’t Talk About It by Ruby Boots.

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LIVE AT THE HAYBARN THEATRE by SESSION AMERICANA

There’s nothing better than seeing Session Americana live. For those who can’t (or for those who have and want an on-demand reminder), this December 2016 recording is a glorious testament to their songwriting and performing prowess.

Key Tracks: Barefoot Soldiers, It’s Not Texas, Riding With the Ghost, Mighty Long Time, Brown Eyed Women, The Driving, Ain’t Living Long Like This

Featured Twangville coverage of Session Americana: The Berkshires Seemed Dreamlike – A Special Boston Playlist (Part 2), Monday Morning Video – A Visit To Beer Town and Shakin’ with Session Americana.

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QUIET AND PEACE by BUFFALO TOM

One of Boston’s finest prove that rock and rollers can mature with grace and do so on their own terms. The lyrics may reflect their lives as career and family men, but the power trio feistiness remains intact.

Key Tracks: All Be Gone, Overtime, Roman Cars, Freckles, Lonely Fast and Deep, In the Ice, The Only Living Boy in New York

Featured Twangville coverage of Buffalo Tom: The Berkshires Seemed Dreamlike – A Special Boston Playlist (Part 1) and Mayer’s Picks: Best Albums of 2011.

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NEIGHBORS AND STRANGERS by KINGSLEY FLOOD

Naseem Khuri has never been one to pull his punches and the current political climate only adds fuel to the fire. Rather than be subsumed by the world around him, he tempers his response with some deft exploration of social and personal relationships. All are set, of course, to some tremendous rock arrangements.

Key Tracks: Find Me Out, Fifth of July, Still So Still, Little Man, Bottom of the Barrel, Not Right Yet, Carry On Fine, Never Been Home

Featured Twangville coverage of Kingsley Flood: The Berkshires Seemed Dreamlike – A Special Boston Playlist (Part 2), I Will Remember Massachusetts, Part 2 – A Special Boston Playlist and Hazy Shade of Winter — A Special Boston Playlist.

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LAS CRUCES by BUCKLEY

Awash in electric guitars and heavy with raw melodies, Buckley channels Neil Young and Crazy Horse. Las Cruces explodes with energy and conjures up images of a Harley-Davidson rumbling down a rural highway. It is quite simply an album that bleeds ragged glory.

Key Tracks: Las Cruces, Three Chiefs, Old Glory, Consuela, Downtown, Bakersfield

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About the author:  Mild-mannered corporate executive by day, excitable Twangville denizen by night.

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Groovy article from twangville