Frosting cream cheese

Cream Cheese-Lemon Zest Frosting (page 90)... 

Fill and frost the cake with the Cream Cheese—Lemon Zest Frosting (for added oomph, add V2 tablespoon minced fresh ginger to the frosting). 

FILL AND FROST THE CAKE with cream cheese frosting and let chill. Tint l/2 cup frosting lemon yellow, and use the IO tip to pipe 5 dots in a circle to create simple buttercup flowers. Then combine any remaining yellow frosting with some additional cream cheese frosting and tint it leaf green. I use tip 67> which pipes small fern stems. Pipe the center stamen with cream cheese frosting and chill to set. 

Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely. Top with caramel—cream cheese frosting. 

To MAKE THE CAKE pictured on page 52> quadruple the recipe, in two 8-inch pans, and 2 6-inch pans. Triple the caramel—cream cheese frosting as well. Because this cake contains chunks of apples, don t try slicing it into thinner layers, or you ll have a mess on your hands. Fill and frost the cakes, then chill. Follow the directions for tiering a cake on page 242, and then your cake is ready to decorate. 

This cake was a hit at my early Brooklyn dinner parties, especially since I used to be pretty heavy-handed with the rum. Now that I serve the cake at dinners where there are kids, I tend not to include the booze. I addpureedpineapple to the batter, so it s super-moist and tartgy. Fresh pineapple gives this cake amazjrtgflavor, andjou can use the excess jruit for other delicious recipes such as the Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese—Lemon Zest Frosting... 

Stuffed mushrooms were rich and, well, meaty - mushroom caps stuffed with a mixture of soy, scallions, carrots and black mushroom in a spicy, black mushroom sauce. Also excellent were the black bean quesadillas - an unusual mix of feta cheese, black beans, brown rice, corn and sun-dried tomatoes in a flour tortilla. A tangy, house-made salsa makes the dish. The sesame noodles salad is also a crowd-pleaser - chilled lo mein noodles mixed with sesame and peanut butter. Save room, though. The biggest hit at Cafe Sunflower is the vegan carrot cake - a killer dessert with a tofu cream cheese frosting that will fool even the most die-hard sweet tooth. 

Remove the pan to a baking rack and let cool before cutting into 24 bars (otherwise the brownies will tear and crumble). Frost with Cream Cheese Frosting, (below) if desired. 

---