Kitchen Sense: The Retro Recipe Project
Dusting off the Book Jackets to Bring New Life to Outmoded Recipes
This is a moist, almost blondie-like cake, flavored with fresh coffee, cinnamon and chocolate that maintains the essence of the original recipe. Don’t cheat yourself by using a cheap cup of Joe—fresh, locally roasted coffee will give these squares better flavor.
Ingredients
- 1½ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg, beaten
- ½ cup plus 2 tablespoons freshly brewed coffee, cooled and divided
- ¼ cup roughly chopped bittersweet chocolate
- ¼ cup chopped raw almonds
- 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350° and grease an 8- by 8-inch or 9- by 9-inch square metal baking pan.
Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon and set aside. Using an electric mixer, cream butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in beaten egg and coffee. Then add the dry mixture to the wet coffee mixture. Stir in chocolate and nuts and pour into the prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until set but still a little wobbly in the center.
Just after removing the cake from the oven, mix the remaining 2 tablespoons of coffee with the confectioner’s sugar until smooth. While still warm, ice cake with the mixture by pouring it over the top. Let the icing firm slightly as the squares cool.
Adapted from Mrs. Harold C. Dodge, Block Island Cookbook: A Collection of Favorite Recipes.
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