Joe Calleja 6/23/21 Joe Calleja 6/23/21

Quanto Basta Kickstarter campaign launches

I am extremely excited to announce the launch of our Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to publish my first full-length cookbook. What an amazing project: over 100 full colour photographs and 50 easy Italian recipes.

Although we did not reach our Kickstarter campaign goal, we are proceeding to print the book anyway. So stay tuned for information on how to order the book when it’s printed… mid-September to early October.

Joe Calleja 3/22/21 Joe Calleja 3/22/21

Portuguese Sponge Cake

So it seems we are still on a cake kick here in the studio. Who am I to complain when the results are so delicious and rather easy to make? This cake comes from a recipe in the magazine Milkstreet… one of my new faves. The cake is light and has a few contrasting textures in it. The sponge itself, then a thin custard-like layer above, and topped with a crispy layer on top. There’s olive oil in the cake, and a little drizzle on top with additional sea salt give the cake a savoury undertone which balances the sweetness nicely.

A simple ingredient list belies a surprisingly sophisticated cake.

Once the eggs and yolks are blended until tripled in volume, add the dry ingredients then the olive oil. Do the final mixing with a rubber spatula.

Pour the light, fluid batter into the prepared pan.

It may be difficult, but wait until the cake cools completely. At least an hour.

Wait a little longer…

A little longer…

Finally! Remove the sides of the springform pan and use the parchment paper as a sling to move the cake to a cutting board.

Slice, add a drizzle of olive oil and some sea salt if you like. Fresh berries and whipped cream are also great accompaniments. Enjoy!

Joe Calleja 3/9/21 Joe Calleja 3/9/21

François Bakes a Cake

In today’s post, François Bakes a Cake.

François makes really good cakes. Many of them are made with maple syrup. François loves maple syrup. This one is a Maple Cream Cheese-Glazed Cake. Dense, not too moist and not too sweet: really yummy. He says he has to make it again. Oh well…

Joe Calleja 2/23/21 Joe Calleja 2/23/21

Upside Down Pineapple Cake

Upside Down Pineapple Cake is fun and easy when you follow a few simple steps.

I love cake. Add a little fruit to it and I call it healthy! You can’t go wrong with this recipe from Cook’s Illustrated. A few simple tricks take the guesswork out of how to prepare this easy and yummy cake.

We start by making a faux caramel with brown sugar, butter, and a pinch of salt.

Mix it until the butter melts and ingredients are incorporated.

Add your pineapple slices.

Cook until the fruit releases its juices and the liquid reduces down to a syrup.

Put the fruit with the syrup into a single layer in the cake pan.

Add the batter and smooth the top.

Let the cake cool a bit before turning it over on to a serving platter.

Enjoy!