The Bundt-y Hunter: Episode One

This winter I became obsessed with the Chrysanthemum Bundt pan by Nordic Ware.  It ceased production a few years ago, and no one in Canada was selling it.  I found a few American retailers who claimed they were selling it, and my sweet friend Meridith tried ordering it for me, but every time, the answer was the same - they didn't actually have it in stock and hadn't bothered to find out that Nordic Ware wasn't actually selling it any more.

I tried Ebay, but as much as I wanted the pan, I wasn't willing to pay what others were, and I kept getting outbid.  Eventually I found a knock-off silicone version and ordered it.  But I knew, in my heart of hearts, that it wasn't the same - not even in the same ballpark. 

I returned to Google, using every technique I could think of. And eventually I found a kitchen supply store in the South of England that had a website claiming to sell the Chrysanthemum cake pan.  I sent an email to confirm if it was actually available and then went to bed.  By the time I got up the next morning, I had 2 emails from Marsha at the store, letting me know they didn't have the pan in the store but that she was contacting Nordic Ware UK to confirm availability....and then a forward from Nordic Ware UK, which made it clear to me that the situation was URGENT:

• The Chrysanthemum pan is on the leaflet at the moment and at current sales levels we have about 6 months stock (240).  However after this stock is sold we will not be manufacturing any for the foreseeable future. Nordic Ware say they are 'resting' the design. 

 Two weeks later I received an update from Marsha, accompanied by a refund for the difference in the cost of shipping I was charged and what it actually cost.  It's like Marsha was a Fairy Cakemother:

Hi Rachel, IT'S HERE!!!!!   
The pans have just arrived.  I have taken out the beautiful Chrysanthemum and it is being packed for today's Royal Mail collection for Airmail to you.

This week both of the cake pans (original and knock-off) arrived.  And it was clear which was nicer, but it seemed like the only way to identify the best pan was through a cake-off.  I think the photos speak for themselves.

Knock-off

Original, sporting a Raspberry Chocolate Bundt cake recipe from Baking Bites.

  
On the next episode of Bundt-y Hunter, we are hot on the trail of the Bavaria pan.... 

Nesting

Erica Sweet Tooth posted another adaptation of chocolate chip cookie dough truffles.  Where Erica goes, I will follow.

Cream Egg Cupcakes

I either need a kitchen scale, or I should never again attempt a recipe which only gives measurements in weights.  Inspired by this recipe on Sweet Cherrie Pie last week, Rushika and I attempted to make Cadbury Creme Egg cupcakes this afternoon.  But something went horribly wrong, and this is what our first attempt looked like:

A liquidy, spilling over mess.  At least it didn't set the kitchen on fire. 

We started over with Martha Stewart's Devil's Food Cupcakes, which were much more successful. Once cooled, we scooped out space for the creme egg filling.

Because I wasn't too into the idea of making something called "curd" we used the recipe from Instructables Homemade Cadbury Creme Eggs.

AMAZING.

One of These Things Is Not Like the Other

So, while nursing a back injury, I have spent a lot of quality time lying on my floor. One of the things I amused myself with was researching cake pans. They are starting to trickle in from across the world now, which is all very exciting. But something went horribly awry with my Bavaria cake pan. Made by Nordic Ware, this cake pan is a thing of artistic beauty. It's featured in All Cakes Considered and I was daydreaming of the art deco cakes I was going to bake with it. Here is what I ordered:
When I picked it up from the post office last week, something seemed little off about the dimensions of the box. When I opened it up, this helaciousness is what I found:

Ummmmm, what? After emailing the company, I was informed "Looks like shipping made a mistake on the item sent to you. The Bavarian bundt pan is sold out and they accidentally packaged this item because it looks similar."

Oh. Hells. No. On what planet do these two cake pans look alike???????? One is a piece of art, the other will be making fruit jellos a la 1950.

The Bee's Knees

Last month Williams-Sonoma started carrying a Honeycomb Cake Pan. It looked glorious. Unfortunately, the backwater town I live in does not have a place of worship Williams-Sonoma store and I thought I was doomed to scour the ends of the Internet to track one down. Luckily my brother was coming to visit and driving through Toronto and he sweetly made an emergency pit stop to pick up my pan.
Today I finally got a chance to take the cake pan for a test run. The honey cake recipe on the packaging didn't really appeal to me. But Ezra Pound Cake's adaptation of Paula Dean's Brown Sugar Pound Cake sure as hell did.

I realized half way through that the cake takes two hours to bake. Apparently I will never learn to read all the way through a recipe before getting started. Luckily my friend Sarah was over to help with the cake and craft while it baked. The wait was definitely worth it:



We were too impatient to wait for the cake to cool down before trying it, so I don't know about the "pull apart" feature. But I can say that adding a caramel glaze was a total success.