Time and the Conways | The Backstage Baker

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Brookies

Bars November 7, 2017 Leave a comment

Brook Bloom Brooke Bloom enjoying a Brookie

“Time and the Conways” opened on October 10 and I’m a little behind in my posting — this recipe was from their last Wine and Unwind in the rehearsal space before going to the theatre.

“Brookies” are that classic combination of brownie batter and cookie dough (get it? Brownie + Cookie = Brookie.) James made these with a nod to Brooke Bloom who plays Madge Conway. Brooke is also a new mom who is juggling being in a Broadway show and having a newborn baby. I had the good fortune to see the show this past Sunday, enjoy Wine and Unwind with the cast and crew, and interview Brooke. Can I just say that she is amazing?

First, her baby is three months old. That means she started rehearsals four weeks after giving birth. Can you imagine? I can’t. “I auditioned when I was nine months pregnant,” she told me. “I really did it as a lark because who could have thought I looked right for the role then?” Well, Rebecca Taichman for one!

“When I got the call, I thought that there’s no way I can do this. I’m breastfeeding, the baby is just a month old — it’s impossible. But I’m blessed with a very supportive husband, and my mother has also been a huge help. The producers even gave me a dressing room to use as my nursery so I could feed the baby during tech.” Wow, it sounds like Sweden or something over there at the American Airlines Theater! But isn’t that the way we SHOULD be treating working mothers?

Okay, I’m off my soapbox. Here’s the recipe for Brookies — enjoy!

Brookies

Brookies

Ingredients:

Cookie Layer:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Superfine sugar for dusting

Brownie Layer:
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon salt

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13-inch baking pan and then sprinkle the bottom with a thin layer of superfine sugar.
In a large bowl, beat together the softened butter, light brown sugar, 1/4 cup white sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract. Add 1 egg; beat until light and creamy, about 2 minutes.
Whisk 1 1/4 cups flour, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and baking soda together in another bowl. Gradually stir flour mixture into butter mixture until dough is combined. Stir chocolate chips into dough. Pat dough down into the bottom of the prepared baking pan to cover completely.
Stir 1 cup white sugar, melted butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract together in a bowl; add 2 eggs and beat well. Mix cocoa powder into butter mixture until well-combined. Stir 1/2 cup flour, baking powder, and 1/8 teaspoon salt into cocoa mixture until batter is combined.
Pour brownie batter over cookie dough and spread to cover completely.
Bake for 20-25 minutes in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brookies comes out clean. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Anna Camp and Gabriel Ebert enjoying a little Wine and Unwind Anna Camp (Hazel Conway) and Gabriel Ebert (Alan Conway) enjoying a little Wine and Unwind

The Backstage Baker ON STAGE!

Cakes, Gluten-free September 17, 2017 Leave a comment

The cake on the prop table decorated with fresh strawberries and fat free, sugar free Greek yogurt. Mmmmmm.

Sometimes, there are things asked of stage manager that are far outside their job description . . .

Now, as mentioned in a recent post, the Backstage Baker is stage managing “Time and the Conways” for the Roundabout. They just started previews at the American Airlines Theater and I hear it’s a smash. (So get those tickets now, because this is a limited run that closes on November 26.)

This show offered James a baking challenge and believe it or not, it’s not the first time he’s been called on to create something edible to appear onstage eight times a week. (The last time was for a blueberry pie that Dianne Wiest made and baked onstage in the play “Memory House” back in 2005. Here’s the review where the pie features prominently.)

But back to “Time and the Conways.” It so happened that one of the actors was staged to devour a mini-bundt cake, but no one wants to consume a sugar-filled, gluten-based cake eight times a week.

Backstage Baker to the rescue! Late one night, right the middle of technical rehearsals, he got home and started experimenting. Could a pancake batter of eggs and banana be turned into a cake? Would it even be edible? Would it hold the bundt shape and look like an elegant confection worthy of the Conways? More importantly, would the actor be able to eat it with gusto? Into the wee hours, he baked. The cakes auditioned the next day and were a hit! Now you can see them on stage eight times a week at The American Airlines Theatre.

Matthew James Thomas (who plays Robin Conway) about to do the taste test.

It passed the first audition… now to the call back, on stage and in front of the director.

It’s hired! Now, should you ever find yourself in this situation, here’s the recipe:

Robin Conway’s Gluten Free, Sugar Free Mini Bundt Cakes

Ingredients:

1 really ripe banana mashed
2 eggs separated
1 Tablespoon Coconut Flour
1 /2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla

Method:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Separate eggs and whip whites until soft peaks form. Mix bananas and egg yolks together, add flour. Mix well. Add cinnamon and vanilla, then stir gently into whites until incorporated.
Pour into two mini-bundt pans. Bake for 22-25 minutes until set.
Cool in pan 5 minutes and then invert onto a cooling rack.

Raspberry Stuffed Mini Dark Chocolate Cakes with Chocolate Truffle Icing

Cakes, Chocolate, Wine and Unwind August 29, 2017 1 Comment

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Our Backstage Baker is busy busy — he’s already deep in rehearsal for his next Broadway show, J.B. Priestley’s Time and the Conways, starring Elizabeth McGovern and directed by Indecent’s Rebecca Taichman. (FYI, Indecent closed on August 6, but if you missed it, you can catch it on November 17 on PBS’ Great Performances. Check your local listings, as they say.)

Last week was the first Wine and Unwind for the Conways cast, and James made the Flourless Chocolate Cake already posted on the site. (As an aside, do you realize there are over 85 recipes posted here? All made by James for the various shows he’s worked on over the past four years.)

This week, he tried a new recipe, and it seems like a keeper. Enjoy!

Fresh Raspberry Stuffed Mini Dark Chocolate Cakes with Chocolate Truffle Icing
NOTES: The individual cakes are made in cupcake pans and then inverted to cool, iced and served.
This recipe is great for a party since it makes 24.

Ingredients
for the mini cakes:
Nonstick Coconut Oil cooking spray
1/2 cup butter
2 large eggs
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder or unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 3/4 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup buttermilk
2 cups raspberries

for the Chocolate Truffle Icing:
1 cup whipping cream
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 1/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips
1 teaspoon vanilla

Method:

Let butter and eggs stand at room temperature for 30 minutes while you preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat twenty-four 2-1/2-inch muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray; set aside.

In a medium bowl, stir together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a small bowl, combine granulated sugar and brown sugar. Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat butter with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Gradually add sugar mixture, about 1/4 cup at a time, beating on medium speed about 5 minutes or until light and fluffy, scraping side of bowl occasionally. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in vanilla.

Add about 1/4 cup flour mixture and 1/4 cup buttermilk to butter mixture, beating on low speed. Keep adding flour and buttermilk until finished and beat until just combined. Beat on medium to high speed for 20 seconds more.

Divide half of the batter among the prepared muffin cups. Divide the 2 cups raspberries among muffin cups, adding 3 or 4 berries to the center of each cup. Spoon the remaining batter over berries in muffin cups. Do not fill the cups fully.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the centers comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes from pans; cool completely on wire racks.

To Prepare Chocolate Truffle Icing:
Put cream and corn syrup in a small pan and boil over low heat stirring constantly. Add chocolate chips and let set 2 minutes. Whisk to combine and add vanilla.

To glaze cupcakes, invert one cake at a time onto a slotted spoon. Hold the cake over the bowl of icing and spoon icing over cake, allowing excess to drip down side. Place glazed cakes on a wire rack set on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Chill about 20 minutes or until icing is set.

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