The Geeky Gourmet Has Evolved Into Something Better

When I announced the end of this blog, I got more emails from readers and complaints from friends than I could have ever imagined. I was inspired by the amount of people who actually read The Geeky Gourmet on a regular basis and decided that instead of quitting, I would take a break, get my life back in order, and begin work on something bigger and better. I freely admit that when I started The Geeky Gourmet, I had no idea what I was doing, let alone there would be a significant amount of people that would enjoy reading it. Now, I have began to use my knowledge of blogging and building a website to create something new. It is nowhere close to finished, but I have decided to make it public so that I can get as much feedback as possible. Please look at my new food blog, follow me on Twitter, and "like" me on Facebook. I promise to deliver tasty recipes, drool-worthy photos, and consistent and quality content. As always, I appreciate your support over this past year and look forward to cooking with you in the future.

Kristi

Follow me to a bigger, better kitchen:

http://thesaucyoven.wordpress.com

http://twitter.com/thesaucyoven

http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Saucy-Oven/1506776249487166

The Geeky Gourmet Has Evolved Into Something Better

The Geeky Gourmet Says Farewell.

Running The Geeky Gourmet has been one of the highlights of my year. I have poured my time, effort, joy, frustration, and love into this blog. I started it with no knowledge of photography, blogging, or the majority of the cooking techniques I've written about. I've met many other food bloggers who have encouraged and supported me throughout this year and all of you have a special place in my heart. I've discovered talents I did not know existed through this project, and I owe a huge thank you to every friend who commented on my Facebook, to every blogger in another state or part of the world who bothered to pay attention to what I was writing about and tell me to continue doing it.

It is with great sadness that I say this; but I cannot continue to post to this blog. I have been going through a lot these past couple months in my personal life and it is too hard to give my readers the consistant and quality content that they deserve. I am working towards a stability in my life, and I feel as though I get a little closer everyday but I am not there yet.

I have plans to start another food blog, this one will be exponentially better in content and design. I will be working on it little by little in what spare time I have, and with a little luck I should have it up and running within the next year.

I will still be available to bake for events and lessons and I will be happy to answer any cooking related questions at my personal email: tripsfantastic@gmail.com.

Thank you guys for a great year, and see you soon.

All my love,

Kristi Hamilton

The Geeky Gourmet Says Farewell.

Lavender and Vanilla Bean Mini Angel Food Cakes with White Chocolate Glaze

Light and fluffy, yet rich and decadent; these elegant little cakes are sure to impress.

I have memories of sweet and airy angel food cake, drizzled in thin icing, or topped with bright red, juicy little strawberries in the summertime. In my past, before I got really serious about cooking from scratch, I had made a cake or two with boxed mix. I know I run this concept into the ground, but angel food cake is yet another thing that tastes so much better when made from scratch. I've heard many people talk of being intimidated by angel food cake, but if you follow the directions diligently you won't have any problems.

The addition of the lavender adds a sophisticated element, and the vanilla bean balances the flavors. Top it off with the white chocolate glaze, and the flavor combination becomes quite addictive. I made these for a tasting party a friend of mine was throwing to showcase her catering company, and they didn't last five minutes!

Rather than deal with cutting a cake and serving slices, I decided to use a miniature bundt pan (think muffin or cupcake pan, but bundt shaped). This recipe can just as easily be adapted to bake in a regular tube pan, just adjust the cooking times.

I hope you enjoy making (and eating!) these as much as I did.

Lavender and Vanilla Bean Angel Food Cake

• 1/3 c skim milk
• 1 tbsp culinary lavender
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 3/4 c organic cane sugar
• pinch salt
• 1 c cake flour, sifted
• 12 egg whites at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

Preheat oven to 350F.

Place milk and lavender in a small saucepan. Cut open vanilla bean and scrape out the seeds, add to milk mixture. Bring to a simmer on low/medium heat, remove and set aside.

In a blender or food processor blend the sugar until it is a very fine powdery consistency. Sift half of  the sugar with the cake flour, setting the other half aside.

 In a large bowl, whisk by hand egg whites, infused milk, and cream of tartar. After a minute or two switch to a mixer and beat at medium speed while sifting in the remaining sugar. Once the whites begin forming medium peaks, sift a thin layer of flour over them and then fold in gently with a spatula. Continue with this process until the remaining flour is gone.

Spoon batter into ungreased miniature bundt or cupcake pans, baking until golden brown. The cake should spring back when pressed with a finger. It took me about 10-15 minutes, but watch closely as every oven varies. If you are making one large cake in a tube pan, you will want to extend the time to about 30-35 minutes. Cool thoroughly (at least an hour) on a wire rack.

For the white chocolate glaze, all you need is a couple ounces of chopped white chocolate melted over a double boiler. Add milk, a spoonful at a time until the sauce is just the right consistency to drizzle over the cakes.

Enjoy!

Lavender and Vanilla Bean Mini Angel Food Cakes with White Chocolate Glaze