gmail test postie

this is one of my favorites from way back when. I can remember it like 5
minutes ago, back when I tasted my first test email.
it tasted like a flat, smooth glass surface — browse Little Mountain Recipes for more.

Instructions

Prep

  • 1. Seitan / Shallots / Green beans – prep as directed. Store separately.
  • (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
  • 2. Tarragon – Finely chop tarragon. Also fine with dried in a pinch.
  • 3. Potatoes – Peel and cube potatoes. Use cold water when soaking.

Make

  • 1. Heat oven to 425°F / 218°C.
  • 2. Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water and some salt.
  • Cover and bring to a boil.
  • 3. Meanwhile, toss green beans with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
  • 4. Heat a large skillet with cooking oil over medium heat. Add seitan and sear on all sides. Sub-steps:
  • sear on all sides
  • baste with butter until golden
  • 5. Add butter to pan with seitan. When butter melts, add shallots and tarragon.
  • Bundt cake test photo

Ingredients

For the seitan

  • 2 cups seitan, sliced
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 2 tbsp tarragon

For the potatoes

  • 1 lb baby potatoes
  • salt to taste (optional)

For the green beans

  • 1 lb green beans
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
  • Soup reference photo

Notes

  • Adapted from cooksmarts.
  • Don’t make any of the sauce — it’s not good and skip the extra glaze.
  • Reminder: inline code tags are not kept on the card; use bold or italic instead.

Another Recipe Test from Email

Instructions

Prep

  • Seitan / Shallots / Green beans – prep as directed. Store separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
  • Tarragon – Finely chop tarragon.
  • Potatoes – Peel and cube potatoes.

Make

  • 1. Heat oven to 425F / 218C.
  • 2. Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water and some salt.
  • Cover and bring to a boil.
  • 3. Meanwhile, toss green beans with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
  • 4. Heat a large skillet with cooking oil over medium heat. Add seitan
  • and sear on all sides.
  • 5. Add butter to pan with seitan. When butter melts, add shallots and
  • tarragon.

Ingredients

For the seitan

  • 2 cups seitan, sliced
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 2 tbsp tarragon

For the potatoes

  • 1 lb baby potatoes
  • salt to taste

For the green beans

  • 1 lb green beans
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Notes

  • Adapted from cooksmarts.
  • Don’t make any of the sauce it’s not good.

LMR Recipe Plugin Test

This is a test post for the LMR Recipe plugin. It exercises sub-sections and mixed line prefixes.

Instructions

Prep

  • 1. Seitan / Shallots / Green beans – prep as directed. Store separately. (Can be done up to 5 days ahead)
  • 2. Tarragon – Finely chop tarragon.
  • 3. Potatoes – Peel and cube potatoes.

Make

  • 1. Heat oven to 425F / 218C.
  • 2. Place potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water and some salt. Cover and bring to a boil.
  • 3. Meanwhile, toss green beans with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.
  • 4. Heat a large skillet with cooking oil over medium heat. Add seitan and sear on all sides.
  • 5. Add butter to pan with seitan. When butter melts, add shallots and tarragon.

Ingredients

For the seitan

  • 2 cups seitan, sliced
  • 1 shallot, minced
  • 2 tbsp tarragon

For the potatoes

  • 1 lb baby potatoes
  • salt to taste

For the green beans

  • 1 lb green beans
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

Notes

  • Adapted from cooksmarts.
  • Make extra sauce; it’s even better the next day.

Chocolate Orange bundt cake

By MaryAnn Dwyer. Source: The Beach House Kitchen. Servings: 10.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/4 cups freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 Tbsp freshly grated orange zest

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Generously spray a 10-cup bundt pan with nonstick baking spray with flour. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, kosher salt and cinnamon until well combined. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed.
  • Add eggs, one at a time, making sure to beat well after each addition. Add the vanilla. Add the flour mixture in 3 separate additions, alternating with the orange juice, starting and ending with the flour mixture. Fold in the orange zest.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared pan, tapping the bundt pan on the counter to release any air bubbles. Bake until a toothpick inserted near center of cake comes out mostly clean (just a few crumbs), about 50-55 minutes.
  • Cool in pan for 10 minutes. Remove from pan and let totally cool on a wire rack.

Notes

  • Glaze: dust with confectioners’ sugar, or do an orange-flavored glaze. I would use 1 cup of sifted confectioners’ sugar mixed with 1-2 tablespoons of orange juice.
  • Option: add a tsp of espresso powder to enhance the flavor of the chocolate.

Brown Sugar Maple Pound Cake

Source: iambaker.net.

Ingredients

For the pound cake

  • 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks / 283.5g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 2 cups (400g) light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
  • 6 large eggs, room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons maple extract
  • 3 cups (390g) cake flour
  • 1/4 cup (61g) buttermilk, room temperature

For the maple glaze

  • 1/4 cup (1/2 stick / 57g) unsalted butter
  • 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
  • 3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
  • 1/2 cup (62.5g) confectioners’ sugar

For the quick glaze

  • about 1/4 cup whipping cream
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp maple extract

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325F. Spray a 10-inch bundt pan with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter on medium speed until smooth, about 3 minutes.
  • Gradually add the brown sugar and granulated sugar, mixing until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
  • Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.
  • Add the maple extract and mix until well combined.
  • With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the cake flour, mixing just until the flour is fully incorporated.
  • Mix in buttermilk until just combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure everything is mixed well.
  • Pour the batter into the prepared bundt pan and smooth the top with the spatula. Bake for 75-80 minutes, starting to check for doneness at 1 hour by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake. If it comes out with just a few crumbs but no wet batter, it’s done. The cake should have a deep golden brown crust on the edges and a lighter center.
  • Once baked, let the cake cool completely in the pan before inverting onto a serving plate.

For the maple glaze

  • While the cake cools, prepare the maple glaze. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine the unsalted butter, maple syrup, and heavy whipping cream. Bring the mixture to a boil and continue boiling for 1 minute.
  • Remove the pan from heat and immediately whisk in the confectioners’ sugar until smooth. Let the glaze cool for 25-30 minutes, or until it has slightly thickened.
  • Once the cake has cooled and the glaze has thickened, drizzle the glaze evenly over the cake.
  • Let the glaze set slightly before serving.

For the quick glaze (in a hurry)

  • Whisk together whipping cream, powdered sugar, and maple extract. Add more sugar or cream to get desired consistency.

Notes

  • No salt or baking soda or powder needed for the cake.
  • For the buttermilk I now use King Arthur’s buttermilk powder with water; this needed 1 tablespoon per 1/4 cup water.

Orange and creme fraiche cake

By Alison Adams. Source: taste.com.au.

Ingredients

  • 250g (1 cup) creme fraiche
  • 3 eggs, lightly whisked
  • 2 oranges, rind finely grated, juiced (or 1 really large orange)
  • 375g (2 1/2 cups) plain flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda
  • 200g (1.8 sticks) unsalted butter, chopped, at room temperature
  • 215g (1 cup) caster sugar
  • 150g (1 cup) icing sugar (also called powdered sugar)
  • 2 tsp milk
  • orange zest, to serve

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350F (180C / 160C fan-forced).
  • Grease a 2.25L bundt pan.
  • Combine the creme fraiche, egg and 80ml (1/3 cup) of the orange juice in a bowl.
  • Whisk together the flour, baking powder and bicarb in a separate bowl.
  • Use electric beaters to beat the butter, caster sugar and 1 tbs of the orange rind in a large bowl on medium speed for 12 minutes or until very pale and creamy.
  • Gradually fold in the flour mixture and creme fraiche mixture, in alternating batches, until the mixture is smooth and combined.
  • Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan. Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the cake comes out clean.
  • Cool in the pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
  • Sift the icing sugar into a bowl. Add the milk, 3 tsp of orange juice and the remaining orange rind.
  • Stir until combined.
  • Drizzle over the cooled cake.
  • Sprinkle with orange zest.

White Velvet Cake

It’s an easy, from-scratch layer cake that’s fluffy and moist with a velvety, tender vanilla crumb. Also called Vintage Buttermilk Cake. Source: Marye Audet-White, restlesschipotle.com.

Ingredients

  • 4 cups cake flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla (I used clear vanilla)
  • 2 cups buttermilk, room temperature
  • 6 egg whites, unbeaten, room temperature

Equipment

  • 3 8-inch round cake pans
  • stand mixer
  • rubber spatula

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Grease 3 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with a circle of wax paper or parchment. Set aside. (My pans are Wilton with high sides. If you have pans with lower sides you may get 4 layers instead of 3.)
  • Sift together the flour, salt, baking powder and baking soda in a large bowl. Set flour mixture aside.
  • Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
  • Beat in vanilla.
  • Add dry ingredients in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk, beating well after each addition.
  • Add egg whites and beat at medium speed for two minutes.
  • Divide equally between prepared pans.
  • Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes, reduce heat to 325 and bake for 25 minutes more, or until the cake tests done (a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean).
  • Cool in pans 10 minutes, then turn out and finish cooling on a wire rack.
  • Fill and frost as desired.

Notes

  • Storage: wrap the unfrosted cake layers in plastic wrap and store for 2 days at room temperature, or freeze for up to three months. Once frosted, room temperature for up to 5 days depending on the frosting.
  • Tip: make sure everything is at room temperature for best results.
  • Large eggs were used for the egg whites in this recipe.
  • Start creaming butter and sugar with the paddle attachment, then switch to the whisk attachment to finish it off. It takes about 7 minutes to cream the butter properly.
  • Using parchment or wax paper rounds on the bottom of the cake pan allows you to remove the cake easily.
  • Use any frosting you like. Cream cheese frosting is good here.
  • If you accidentally over-bake the cake and it seems dry, brush with sugar syrup. Bring 1/2 cup sugar and 1/2 cup water to a boil, stirring constantly until sugar dissolves — about 2 minutes. Cool completely and brush on 2 tablespoons per layer.

Key Lime Bundt Cake

This cake makes it into the top 5 favorites! Source: bakerbynature.com.

Ingredients

For the cake

  • 3 cups (360g) all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 cups (340g) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup (227g) brick-style full-fat cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 cups (398g) granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 5 large eggs, room temperature
  • 1/2 cup (113ml) key lime juice
  • 3 tablespoons (36g) key lime zest, finely grated
  • 2 tablespoons (28ml) canola oil

For the soaking syrup

  • 1/3 cup (76ml) key lime juice
  • 1/2 cup (99g) granulated sugar

For the icing

  • 2 cups (228g) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 1/2 tablespoons (35ml) key lime juice
  • lime zest, finely grated, for garnish (optional)
  • lime spirals for garnish (optional)

Instructions

For the cake

  • Preheat the oven to 325F. In a medium mixing bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together until well combined. Set aside.
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.
  • Gradually add in the sugar, then increase the speed to medium-high and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract.
  • Reduce the speed to medium, then add in the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the lime juice, lime zest, and oil.
  • Reduce the speed to low and add in the flour mixture, mixing just until combined.
  • Generously grease a 10-inch (12-cup) bundt pan, being sure to coat all of the nooks and crannies. I suggest using a non-stick baking spray that has flour in it, or greasing the pan with shortening or butter, then dusting it with flour.
  • Scrape the cake batter into the pan and, using a rubber spatula, evenly smooth the top.
  • Bake for 60 to 65 minutes, or until the cake is golden brown AND a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow the cake to cool in the pan, set on a wire rack, for 10 minutes. Then invert the cake onto the rack.
  • Slowly brush the warm lime soaking syrup all over the cake, top and sides, allowing it to sink in before adding more.
  • Once all of the syrup has been added, set the cake aside to cool completely, about 2 1/2 hours.

For the soaking syrup

  • In a medium saucepan, combine the lime juice and sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook, whisking frequently, just until the sugar has completely dissolved. Remove from heat and use as directed above.

For the icing

  • In a large liquid measuring cup or bowl, combine the sugar and salt. Whisk in the lime juice, mixing until just combined. The mixture should be super thick and just barely pourable. If the glaze is too thick, add more lime juice, a teaspoon at a time. If the glaze is too thin, add more confectioners’ sugar, a tablespoon at a time.
  • Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake. Decorate with lime zest and lime spirals, if using. Then allow it to set for 20 minutes. Slice and serve!

Notes

  • If you cannot find key limes, you can use bottled key lime juice and just regular lime zest.
  • This cake was developed specifically to be baked in a bundt pan; results may vary in a 9×13-inch pan or as cupcakes.
  • Make sure your butter and cream cheese are at room temperature or they won’t properly cream.
  • Do not cut back on the sugar or your cake will be overly tart. Don’t substitute brown sugar — the molasses undertone doesn’t pair well with key lime.