Mrs Kostyras Orange Glaze Food

MRS. KOSTYRA'S SPICE CUPCAKES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush standard muffin tins with butter; dust with flour, tapping out excess. Sift together cake flour, baking powder, salt, and spices three times.
• With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and brown sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with two additions of milk, and beating until combined after each.
• Divide batter evenly among prepared cups, filling each three-quarters full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until golden brown and a cake tester inserted in centers comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes.
• To finish, place cupcakes on a wire rack set over a baking sheet; spoon glaze over cupcakes, and let set. Cupcakes are best eaten the same day they are glazed; keep at room temperature until ready to serve.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S BABKAS

Steps:

• Butter three kugelhopf molds (each 1 1/2 quarts and 8 inches in diameter); set aside. Butter a large bowl; set aside. Heat milk and butter in a saucepan over medium-low, stirring, until butter is melted.
• Sprinkle yeast and a pinch of sugar over the warm water in a small bowl. Let stand until foamy, 7 to 10 minutes.
• Whisk together 4 eggs, the egg yolks, sugar, and salt in a large bowl until thick, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla, liqueur, zests, yeast mixture, and milk mixture; whisk 1 minute more. With a wooden spoon, gradually stir in up to 10 cups flour, 1 cup at a time, until a sticky dough forms. Stir in dried fruits and almonds.
• Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface; knead, dusting with flour if it seems sticky, until smooth and soft, about 10 minutes. Transfer to buttered bowl. Loosely cover with buttered plastic wrap; let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours. Punch down dough. Loosely cover with buttered wrap; let rise until doubled in bulk, 1 1/2 to 2 hours more.
• Punch down dough, and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface; knead 1 minute. Divide dough into 3 equal pieces. With lightly floured hands, roll each piece into an 18-inch-long rope. Fit each rope into a buttered mold; press end of rope into dough to seal. Loosely cover with buttered wrap. Let rise until doubled in bulk, about 45 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together remaining egg and the cream in a small bowl. Brush dough with egg wash. Bake until golden, about 35 minutes. Let cool slightly in molds on a wire rack, about 10 minutes. Unmold onto rack, and let cool completely, larger sides down.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S ORANGE GLAZE

Steps:

• Combine all ingredients in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until melted.

COUNTRY CHEESECAKE

Steps:

• Dough:Sift together flour, confectioners' sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Sift again. Transfer to the bowl of a food processor. Add butter; pulse until largest pieces are the size of peas. Add egg yolks and sour cream; pulse until dough just begins to come together. If dough is too dry, add ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface and knead until dough comes together. Form into a disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm but pliable, at least 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees with rack in center. Lightly butter a 10-inch round springform pan. On a lightly floured surface, roll out dough into a 15-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Fit dough into bottom and up side of pan. With a paring knife, trim dough to about 1/2 inch below the rim. Crimp edges with the tines of a fork. Freeze until firm, 10 minutes.
• Line dough with parchment. Fill with dried beans or pie weights; bake until crust is firm and dry, 18 to 20 minutes. Remove parchment and beans; let cool completely. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees.
• Filling:In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together eggs and egg white on medium speed until thick and pale, about 2 minutes. Gradually beat in granulated sugar to combine. Add farmer cheese, sour cream, lemon and orange zests, raisins, and vanilla; mix until fully combined. Transfer to cooled crust.
• Bake until set at edges but still slightly wobbly in center, 50 to 55 minutes (if cake is browning too quickly, tent edges of crust with foil). Transfer to wire rack; let cool completely. Refrigerate until cold, at least 8 hours; serve.

MRS. KOSTYRA'S PEAR-STUFFED FRENCH TOAST

Steps:

• Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add pear slices and 1 tablespoon sugar; cook, stirring occasionally, until pears are tender and caramelized, about 10 minutes.
• Put eggs, milk, orange juice, eau de vie, if desired, lemon juice, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, salt, and zests in a wide, deep dish. Beat well with a fork.
• Dip brioche slices into egg mixture; transfer to a rimmed baking sheet. Divide pears among half the slices. Top with remaining slices.
• Melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Transfer 2 or 3 pear sandwiches to skillet with a spatula. Cook until deep golden brown on one side, about 2 minutes. Turn; cook until deep golden brown and slightly puffy all over, about 2 minutes more. Repeat with remaining sandwiches. Serve immediately with maple syrup or confectioners' sugar, if desired.

EDWARD KOSTYRA'S BIRTHDAY CAKE

Steps:

• Make the frosting: Place chocolate in a medium heatproof bowl. In a heavy saucepan over medium heat, bring cream to a boil and immediately remove from heat. Pour over chocolate and let sit, undisturbed, for 3 minutes. Gently whisk until combined and smooth. Whisk in the corn syrup.
• Let cool to room temperature, then transfer ganache to refrigerator and chill, stirring frequently and scraping the sides of the bowl with a spatula, until slightly stiff and cool enough to spread, about 1 hour. If frosting becomes too firm, briefly place bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and stir until desired consistency is reached. Frosting should be smooth and spreadable, but not runny.
• Make the cake: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter two 8-by-2-inch round cake pans; line the bottoms with parchment paper. Butter parchment and dust with flour, tapping out excess; set aside. Into a medium bowl, sift together flours, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in eggs, one at a time, and then beat in vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture in three parts, alternating with the milk and beginning and ending with the flour; beat until combined after each addition.
• Divide the batter between the prepared pans and smooth with an offset spatula. Bake, rotating the pans halfway through, until the cakes are golden brown and a cake tester inserted in the centers comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer pans to a wire rack to cool 20 minutes. Invert cakes onto the rack; peel off the parchment. Re-invert cakes and let them cool completely, top sides up.
• Make the orange curd: Combine yolks, orange zest, orange juice, lemon juice, and sugar in a heavy-bottom saucepan; whisk to combine. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula (be sure to scrape the sides of the pan), until the mixture is thick, about 8 to 10 minutes. Let mixture come to a vigorous simmer and cook, continually scraping sides of pan, for 2 minutes.
• Remove saucepan from heat. Add salt and butter, one piece at a time, stirring until smooth. If desired, strain through a fine sieve into a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly onto the surface of the curd to prevent a skin forming. Refrigerate until chilled and very firm, at least 2 hours or up to 1 1/2 weeks.
• Assemble cake: Using a serrated knife, trim the tops of the cakes to make level. Split each layer into two, for a total of four. Place bottom layer on a rotating cake stand and with an offset spatula, carefully top with 1/2 cup of orange curd, leaving a 1-inch border. Place the second cake layer on top, spread with another 3/4 cup of the orange curd. Repeat with the third layer; top with the final cake layer. Insert 3 wooden skewers into the top of the cake to secure.
• For the crumb coat, spread the entire cake with a thin coat of frosting using an offset spatula. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
• Spread the entire cake with remaining frosting, swirling to coat in a decorative fashion. Serve immediately, or refrigerate, covered with a cake dome. Let sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes before serving.