Bumbleberry Cakes

Fancied Up Chocolate Raspberry

2011-11-23T14:57:00.005-09:00

I have a 14 year old nephew that's kind of a foodie. He wants to be a chef. But he also likes a lot of different foods so when I asked him what kind of cake he wanted for his birthday and he said the same chocolate/raspberry one I'd made for another friend before, I wasn't challenged. It was a smidge disappointing. So I went in search of at least prettying it up. I found a beautiful picture on flickr of a chocolate raspberry cake that I've, regrettably, lost the link to. I attempted to duplicate it and didn't quite succeed but my nephew liked it a lot so that was my main goal.

The thing I didn't prepare for was how time consuming every bit of this cake was. From the ganache to cutting the three layers to making the raspberry filling then chocolate buttercream then whipped cream THEN white chocolate marble decoration. so much work. But I'm glad it came out nice. And it was just as yummy as chocolate and raspberry always are. Win!

And it's six layers with three ganache fills and two raspberries. Mmmm!

More Halloween!

2011-11-07T04:30:00.000-09:00

Every year, my office puts on a Halloween party and they usually ask for desserts to be contributed. This year they're doing a dessert contest but I was just excited to make something creepy. I saw this cake on I Am Baker and thought it was AWESOME so I went about trying to replicate.

She mentions she uses Americolor for the buttercream coloring but I couldn't get my hands on it before the due date so I cheated (again) and used the Wilton bottle of black icing. Now, the legs, on hers, are red and almost gel-looking so I was stumped. I bought the little red gel bottle and that was way too bright. I added black coloring to it and it plunged into darkness; too dark! So I ended up using the leftover red Wilton bottle icing from the little vampire cupcake fangs of last week! Added a little black to darken it and voila! Kind of reddish/black legs!

Thanks to this from I Am Baker to this awesomely creepy design!!

This is Halloween

2011-10-30T12:09:00.003-08:00

woo boy, I've been slacking, right? Well HAPPY HALLOWEEN! All is forgiven??

I made these for the family the other day and completely cheated on the black (I bought the Wilton tubes). I have little patience with getting colors dark but I've heard good things about the AmeriColor brand so I'm going to give them a try when I need a black or red coloring! For now, here are my happy little bloodsuckers!

Have a wonderful holiday, everyone!

Going even more Green

2011-06-12T09:09:00.003-08:00

Soooooo, it's fun lying to kids, isn't it? I'm joking! sort of. My future children can blame MY mom for lying to me as I was growing up, and OFTEN. My mom was notorious for sneaking things into seemingly innocent desserts like brownies and would taunt us AFTER we had sampled them with, "GUESS WHAT'S IN THEM." She'd usually answer me and my brother's bafflement with "zucchini!" or "carrots!" I used to have generally unpleasant feelings from these sneaky vegetable revelations. However I know now why she did it. It is immensely satisfying to trick children into eating things that are good for them. Mwha ha ha haahahha.

Williams-Sonoma has a new catalog and a spread with smoothies that piqued my interest. Especially that attractive looking GREEN thing front and center. I went in search of green smoothies and found several variations. The beautiful thing about smoothies is, they're so versatile. You can almost throw anything in a blender and it'll come out good. But I was on a mission so I followed the one I found on All Recipes, and the highly rated adaptation, relatively close. (Next will be kale!)

Now, the kid in question is my 13 year old nephew who is like most kids his age: he usually recoils at the sight of real vegetables. Sure, he can have some iceberg lettuce or starchy potatoes but get into leafy greens and he gets a ~look on his face. Like he'd rather eat dirt. So I gave him an enticing "We're going to try a GREEN DRINK!" preview. He's generally agreeable but eventually he asked, "What makes it green?" And I said, with a straight face, "Oh, I color it." >)

I sneaked the baby spinach leaves into the blender and kept it hidden behind me as I tossed in the yogurt, ground flax seed, frozen banana chunks and apple and voila! Beautiful green drink!

Now, the adapted comment on All Recipes used plain yogurt and agave syrup for sweetness. I used vanilla yogurt AND agave because, c'mon, I'm selling it to a kid. But only a teaspoon of syrup, so I didn't go crazy.

But you know who did go crazy? The nephew. He loved it. And I only kept it to myself long enough to enjoy the fact that he liked something that was sweet, yeah, but also protein-rich and good for him. He was even pleasantly surprised when I told him it was spinach and wanted to make more when he got home. :)

I can't wait to make this drink for a morning pick-me-up!

GROOVY GREEN SMOOTHIE
Adapted from All Recipes, mamaiscookin

1 frozen banana, cut in chunks
8 ounces vanilla yogurt
1 apple, cored and chopped
1 1/2 cups fresh spinach leaves
1 Tbsp ground flax seed
1 Tbsp agave syrup (optional)

Place the banana, yogurt, apple, spinach and flax into a blender. Cover, and blend until smooth, stopping frequently to push down anything stuck to the sides. Pour into glasses and serve.

Servings: 2

Noodles so good

2011-02-19T06:00:00.005-09:00

In an effort not to sound like a jerk, I restrain myself from talking about my relatively recent vegetarianism. But it's relevant here so, brace yourself; you're going to hear about it.

We had a holiday potluck at work, as usual, and I had a brilliant plan: pick over whatever raw veggies and breads I could scope out. Oh wait, did I say brilliant plan? I meant ~moronic plan. But the truth is, you never know what people put in their foods so it's hard to judge some dishes and it's better to be safe than sorry.

Well, as I strolled along the potluck line, I saw some noodles that, to the naked eye, looked simple and meatless. I took a bit and was surprised to find they were quite lovely; spicy, sesame-y and flavorful. I asked around then cold-called (cold-emailed?) the woman in the office that brought them in, asking for the recipe. She was happy to send it over and I giddily went to making them at home. Here's the thing with these noodles, though: they get better a day or two after they're made. The recipe even calls for letting the oils absorb into the noodles for 4 or more hours but overnight, it's even better!

Also, I didn't have roasted peanuts on hand when I made them and it was still delish (the green onions and cilantro are not as non-negotiable, though).

If you have plain sesame seeds, toasting them is just a matter of warming them up in fry pan until they become fragrant.

I love love love these noodles...

SESAME NOODLES

8 oz. capellini (or thin spaghetti)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 Tbsp dark sesame oil
1 tsp dry crushed red pepper
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp salt (may omit)
2 Tbsp. chopped cilantro
1/4 cup chopped green onion
2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds
1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts

1. Cook noodles, but don’t overcook, as they’ll soften with dressing. Set noodles aside.

2. Heat oil, sesame oil, and crushed red pepper over medium heat about 2 minutes. Stir in honey, soy sauce and salt and bring just to a simmer.

3. Toss warm dressing with pasta and refrigerate, covered for 4 hours or more for flavors to blend.

4. Just before serving, toss in cilantro, green onions, sesame seeds and peanuts.

Enjoy!

Whoopies on Valentines

2011-02-13T17:12:00.006-09:00

I think I'm finally coming to the realization that I don't think things through. When I read a recipe that says, Pistachio Whoopie Pies with Rosewater buttercream, I think, Ooo pretty pink! I go through all the steps to make my first whoopie pies ever then take a bite and cringe. 'ugh it tastes like FLOWER.' Never in my many years have I smelled a rose and thought, Man, I wanna chow down on THAT. But I have no one to blame but myself. It's ROSEWATER. It's going to taste like roses.

That being said, I had some leftover vanilla buttercream from a baby shower cake I made a week or so ago and tried that in one of these instead of the rose flavored. It was very nice, I must say. So my rec, and this is just personal taste, is to go with vanilla for these. And if you're wondering if you might dig rosewater buttercream, just imagine stuffing a rose into your mouth. Good? Okay, then go for it.

As previously mentioned, these are my first whoopie pies. They didn't look as poofy in the picture... Those are normal sized cupcake liners so you can see how big just a small ice cream scoop size produced. They're pretty filling when you smack two together with some flower-flavored buttercream. (Just color the vanilla pink! It'll look the same!!) I'd like to try some other flavors, though; they're a cute idea but have a short lifespan. The recipe recommends serving that day and after storing in a baggie over night, they had gone a little sticky from the moisture and such. So keep their shelf-life in mind!

PISTACHIO-CARDAMOM WHOOPIES
Source: Whoopie Pies by Sarah Billingsley and Amy Treadwell

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup (packed) brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk
3/4 cup ground pistachios

Position a rack in the center of the over and preheat the oven to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, baking powder, cardamom and salt into a medium bowl.

In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and both sugars on low speed until just combined. Increase the speed to medium and beat until fluffy and smooth, about 5 minutes. Add the egg, beating well. Add the vanilla.

Add half of the flour mixture and half of the buttermilk to the batter and beat on low until just incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the remaining flour mixture and 1/2 cup buttermilk and beat until completely combined. Add the pistachios and mix just until combined.

Using a small ice cream scoop or 2-tablespoon scoop, drop about 2 tablespoons of batter onto one of the prepared baking sheets and repeat, spacing them at least 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10 minutes each, or until the cakes begin to brown. Let the cakes cool on the sheet for at least 5 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

Makes about 30 four-inch cakes.

ROSEWATER BUTTERCREAM

2 cups confectioners' sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon rosewater or rose essence
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 to 4 drops red food coloring

In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the confectioners' sugar and the butter, starting on low and increasing to medium speed, until mixture is crumbly, about 1 minute. Add the heavy cream, rosewater, vanilla, salt and red food coloring and beat on high until smooth, about 3 minutes.

OR!

VANILLA BUTTERCREAM
Source: Wilton

1/4 cup solid vegetable shortening
1/4 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon milk

Makes: About 1 1/2 cups of icing

In large bowl, cream shortening and butter with electric mixer. Add vanilla. Gradually add sugar, one cup at a time, beating well on medium speed. Scrape sides and bottom of bowl often. When all sugar has been mixed in, icing will appear dry. Add milk and beat at medium speed until light and fluffy. Keep bowl covered with a damp cloth until ready to use.

For best results, keep icing bowl in refrigerator when not in use. Refrigerated in an airtight container, this icing can be stored 2 weeks. Rewhip before using.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY, EVERYBODY!

Italian Cream Cake is coconutty!

2011-01-30T20:23:00.003-09:00

My family knows I love baking. They also know that there's nothing I love more than baking BIRTHDAY CAKE. The best thing about birthday cakes is, because they come around every year, my fam usually gives me a challenge and requests something different each time. So I get to try new techniques and recipes AND do something for my loved ones at the same time!

This year, my dad just said coconut cake but I had something special in mind. My friend from work and I share our cooking adventures and recipes with each other and she brought in a piece of this Italian Cream Cake a few months ago from her husband's birthday. It was DIVINE. So moist and coconutty. Auuggghhhh. She generously gave me the recipe and I sat on it, waiting for the perfect time to try it. HULLO, BIRTHDAY!

So, a few things first off: when you combine the baking soda and buttermilk, IT WILL FIZZ. I turned away for five seconds and when I looked back, it had overflowed from my cup. You've been warned! Use bigger than a 1 cup measuring cup.

Second, something in the chemical makeup of this batter cooks the eggs. You'll see pieces of scrambled egg and I don't know what I did to cause it. HOWEVER. I picked out the bigger pieces that made me nervous and baked and you couldn't tell ANYTHING in the final cake. So breathe easy; the egg will disappear!

Third, it'll seem like there's not enough icing for a three layer cake. I spread as thin a layer as possible on the insides (not even going all the way to the edge of the cake) and covered generously over the outside because that's the part that matters. You want the pretty swirliness on the outside. The inside layers were fine! The cake itself is sweet enough that it doesn't need too much icing. It was perfect the way it was!

This delish cake went SO FAST. It was just so gooooood. It's absolutely going on my all-time favorites!

ITALIAN CREAM CAKE

Cake
1/2 cup shortening, room temperature
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
5 eggs, room temperature
1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 2/3 cup coconut

Icing
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 box (~ 4 cups) sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup coconut
1 cup chopped nuts (I used pecans)

1. Blend shortening and butter and sugar until creamy. Blend in egg yolks into mixture.

2. Add baking soda to buttermilk. Stir buttermilk and flour, alternately into egg mixture.

3. Beat egg whites until stiff; add vanilla. Fold stiff egg whites into batter, and then fold in coconut.

4. Divide batter into 3 8 or 9” cake pans that are greased and floured. Bake at 350° for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

5. For Icing: Mix butter and cream cheese. Add sugar and vanilla. After mixed, add coconut and chopped nuts. Sprinkle coconut on top of cake after it is frosted. (I did mine just on top but it would look super pretty all the way around the sides too!)

Chewy Sugar Cookies

2011-01-22T14:19:00.003-09:00

One can never have too many sugar cookie recipes. I've discovered this on my neverending journey to find the absolute best. Because I stumbled on a problem: there is no BEST. Sometimes you want chewy sugar cookies and sometimes you want sturdy but tasty ones for decorating and sometimes you want crispy, etc. Old Reliable (Cook's Illustrated) has taken care of one of these categories: the Chewy Sugar Cookie.

There's a few different techniques you can use to make each batch of these different and just a little alteration will affect them dramatically. Just a little more bake time and a perfectly crisp outer ring with chewy center turns into a full-on crunch show. So tread carefully with the first batch and see what works for you.

You can also press the ball of dough with the bottom of a glass to get the aforementioned perfect crisp/chew OR you can leave the dough in balls which results in a chewier, more raw taste (but it's cooked; trust). You can see the difference in appearance as well.

Personally, I like the flatter cookies because they came out with that chewy, soft center every time. I had family over for the holidays as I made these and they were served warm, fresh from the oven. An instant hit! (They keep really well too.)

CHEWY SUGAR COOKIES
Source: Cook's Illustrated

Note: The final dough will be slightly softer than most cookie dough. For the best results, handle the dough as briefly and gently as possible when shaping the cookies. Overworking the dough will result in flatter cookies.

2 1/4 cups (11 1/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 cups (10 1/2 ounces) sugar, plus 1/3 cup for rolling
2 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, melted and still warm
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in medium bowl. Set aside.

2. Place 1 1/2 cups sugar and cream cheese in large bowl. Place remaining 1/3 cup sugar in shallow baking dish or pie plate and set aside. Pour warm butter over sugar and cream cheese and whisk to combine (some small lumps of cream cheese will remain but will smooth out later). Whisk in oil until incorporated. Add egg, milk and vanilla; continue to whisk until smooth. Add flour mixture and mix with rubber spatula until soft homogeneous dough forms.

3. Divide dough into 24 equal pieces, about 2 tablespoons each (or use #40 portion scoop). Using hands, roll dough into balls. Working in batches, roll balls in reserved sugar to coat and evenly space on prepared baking sheet, 12 dough balls per sheet. Using bottom of drinking glass, flatten dough balls until 2 inches in diameter (or a little less than 1/2 inch tall).

4. Bake, 1 tray at a time, until edges are set and just beginning to brown, 11 to 13 minutes, rotating tray after 7 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheets 5 minutes. Using wide metal spatula, transfer cookies to wire rack and cool to room temperature.

Orange Almond Bread Pudding iz gud

2011-01-17T17:24:00.005-09:00

Do you want to know what's great about bread pudding? Everything. Everything is great about bread pudding. The richness, the texture, the simplicity of flavor and the versatility. In my quest for orange recipes for my orange-themed holidays, I came across many, tried a few then made this and knew all my searching hadn't been in vain. After this, I could wipe my hands clean of Orange Christmas 2010; I'd reached the pinnacle of success.

Now, full disclosure: I LOVE bread pudding. So maybe I'm a little biased. Maybe I ate this for breakfast a few times and maybe I also forked it into my mouth, directly out of the pan, because it was so addictive and lovely and I have little self-control. I kinda had my heart set on orange/chocolate recipes and I did find one for bread pudding on Food Network's site but it wasn't popular or reviewed more than 2 or 3 times and those always give me pause. This one, on the other hand, called for almond paste and the minute I see those two words, a flashing neon sign goes off in my head. WINNER. WINNER. WINNER. How does that delicious, yet shamefully unhealthy paste taste so good? Oh right, it's shamefully unhealthy. But it was Christmas so I indulged!

This had such an amazing smell when it was baking up as well and that was a big part of my Christmas baking too. I wanted the scent of orange and cinnamon and warmth permeating the house and this was spot on! And even though it's pictured, I didn't make the caramel sauce the recipe called for. That's a store bought for plate decoration. To me, it needed absolutely nothing else. It's rich and flavorful all on its own! Don't feel the need to add more sweetness to it; let the pudding speak for itself!!

If you have any inclination toward bread pudding at all, you absolutely must try this one. ugh. I miss it like an old friend. ...And it's only been 3 weeks since I've made it. want more!

ORANGE ALMOND BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from: Sweet Pea's Kitchen

2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
Grated zest of 4 oranges
1/2 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
6 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon orange flavored liqueur such as Triple Sec, Grand Marnier or Contreau
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 large egg white, at room temperature
7 ounces almond paste, crumbled
1 loaf (1 pound) of firm-textured white bread, cut into 1/2″ slices

1. In a medium saucepan, warm milk, heavy cream, orange zest and 1/2 cup of sugar to 110 degrees; Stirring often to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for one hour.

2. After one hour, reheat the cream mixture until it’s very warm (110 degrees). In a medium bowl, whisk the yolks then gradually whisk in the warm milk-cream mixture, whisking constantly to prevent eggs from cooking. Whisk in the vanilla extract, almond extract, orange liqueur, and cinnamon. Pour mixture through a strainer into another bowl to remove orange zest. Set aside.

3. Butter an 8x8 baking dish OR a shallow 2-quart baking dish or souffle mold. (Baking time will be longer with 8x8 as it will be thicker, as pictured.)

4. In a small bowl, beat the egg whites and almond paste until smooth. Spread a spoonful of almond paste over one side of a slice of bread, then place the slice in the prepared baking dish, almond paste side down. Continue spreading paste on bread, and layering slices into the dish. Pour the milk-egg yolk mixture over the bread and gently press down, submerging the layers in the liquid.

5. Cover with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator at least an hour or overnight, pressing down occasionally to make sure the top layers of bread are soaked through.

6. Preheat oven to 350°F. If you’ve put the bread pudding in the fridge, allow it to come to room temperature before baking by placing it on the counter for at least an hour.

7. Sprinkle the top of the bread pudding liberally with sugar. Set the baking dish in a water bath by setting it in a large roasting pan, and then filling the roaster with water until it is halfway up the sides of the pudding’s baking dish.

8. Bake until pudding is puffed up in the center and the top is brown, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. (Place loose aluminum foil over top if center isn't puffed; will keep top from burning.)

9. Let cool until warm. Serve warm. Optional: drizzle with caramel sauce.

Yields: 8-10 servings

Chocolate Pie for keeps

2011-01-17T17:05:00.000-09:00

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this (I have) but I live in Alaska. It's cold. And dark. And every winter, I fight for every bit of sun I can when taking pictures. But when you get off work at 3pm and it looks like that up there at 3:30 in the afternoon, it's hard to stay enthusiastic about taking pics. Some years are better than others, though. This year, I had some time off over the holidays and I took FULL advantage.

My mom wanted to make something different for Christmas dessert because every year we have pecan pie, pumpkin pie, flan and magic cookie bars. She went with a pumpkin flan in lieu of separate pie and custard and I took the opportunity to try a chocolate pie. The pictures don't do it justice because this pie was awesome! Thicker than pudding but as smooth, and rich chocolate but not overwhelming. It's got just as many glowing reviews from Epicurious so you know it's not just me!

It was a little time intensive and took planning but it was totally worth it in the end. Keeper!

CHOCOLATE CREAM PIE
Source: Gourmet, via Epicurious

For crust:

1 1/3 cups chocolate wafer crumbs (from about 26 cookies such as Nabisco Famous Chocolate Wafers)
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup sugar

For filling:

2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 large egg yolks
3 cups whole milk
5 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate (not unsweetened), melted
2 oz unsweetened chocolate, melted
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla

For topping:

3/4 cup chilled heavy cream
1 tablespoon sugar

Make crust:
Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350°F.

Stir together crumbs, butter, and sugar and press on bottom and up side of a 9-inch pie plate (1-quart capacity). Bake until crisp, about 15 minutes, and cool on a rack.

Make filling:
Whisk together sugar, cornstarch, salt, and yolks in a 3-quart heavy saucepan until combined well, then add milk in a stream, whisking. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, whisking, then reduce heat and simmer, whisking, 1 minute (filling will be thick).

Force filling through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl, then whisk in chocolates, butter, and vanilla. Cover surface of filling with a buttered round of wax paper and cool completely, about 2 hours.

Spoon filling into crust and chill pie, loosely covered, at least 6 hours.

Make topping:
Just before serving, beat cream with sugar in a bowl using an electric mixer until it just holds stiff peaks, then spoon on top of pie.

Cooks' note: Pie (without topping) can be chilled up to 1 day.

Oranges for Christmas

2010-12-20T07:17:00.007-09:00

Every Christmas, since I've been living on my own, I've picked a very rigid color theme to decorate my tree and home. At first, my family snickered at me because I couldn't have anything but the Designated Color/Theme wrapping paper under my tree. And I don't know WHY I started doing this. Probably because I'm a control freak. But start I did. The first year was relatively easy: silver and gold. The second year, I had this magnificent idea: turquoise and lime green! My mom balked at me and my enthusiasm deflated and I settled on red, white and silver. I will never go against my instinct again; I regretted it the whole time and the next season, all the stores had those turquoise and green decorations! But the draw to it had passed. If only I'd followed my gut! ARGH.

The year after, 2007, was my Houston Oiler's colors, red and light blue. It was lovely! Then 2008 was inspired by the Pottery Barn garden theme so it was all naturals and greens and golds! I think that one was my favorite because there were birds and butterflies and adorableness. Of course, with all that natural greenery, I went the opposite in 2009 and was all winter: blues and silvers and whites and snow. And that was okay but nothing that I was crazy about.

This year, like every year I'm crazy about a theme, I see one thing and cling to it and make my entire theme around it. This year, it was a wreath from Williams-Sonoma: simple evergreen with dried oranges and pinecones. Orange and chocolate. It hooked me immediately. And the thing is, I don't even really like oranges in general. But they're such a wonderful Christmas tradition that I never even knew about. My theme evolved to winter fruits, oranges and cranberries, so there's splashes of red color mixed in!

First, I made dried orange slices for Christmas ornaments and, dude! They came out WAY better than I could've hoped for! So vibrant and natural and purdy! And EASY. I also made a clove orange pomander (as seen above) that came out lovely! Probably my favorite thing this season so far!

DRIED ORANGE SLICES

1. Preheat oven to 250. Slice oranges 1/4" thick. Dip in mixture of half fresh lemon juice, half water. Place on wire rack set above rimmed cookie sheet. (Or you can place slices directly on your oven rack as some instructions say, but I was afraid of juices dripping in my oven.)

2. Let dry out at 250 for 1 hour, turning slices over every 30 minutes for even drying. Lower oven temperature to 225 and dry for another 2 hours, again, turning every 30 minutes.

3. Take out of oven and let cool to room temperature. I did not even store the dried slices in an air-tight container because I was afraid moisture would build up in it; I WANT them dry and preserved! So I hung them right away and it's been two weeks! So far, so good!

Then I started looking for orange or orange/chocolate recipes. I found a few and, long story short (too late), none have blown my skirt up. I made Cranberry Orange Muffins from Williams-Sonoma that were thoroughly disappointing with fresh cranberries. They were unbearably tart and the recipe called for too many! Then there was an orange-flavored chocolate ganache tart. Mreh. Too simplistic and nothing amazing. I'm waiting for that awesome dessert to wow me and this year, I'm just not feeling it.

I did, however, catch these cookies on Paula Deen's cookie exchange episode. They've been quite finicky for me so I say, watch carefully: since they're chocolate, there's no way of judging their doneness by how dark they are! So the first batch, I followed the Food Network recipe of 10 minutes bake time and they came out as goopy messes. The second batch I went about 13-15 minutes and they were sturdy and had a nice soft chewiness in the center. Perfect! The THIRD batch, I let go for about 15-17 minutes and wow they came out completely crunchy and hard. ARGH. Curse you, brown colored cookies!

So know your oven and make a few batches to find out how you want your cookies. I think it also made a difference in the shape: the first batch, I rolled into balls as I saw the woman do on the show. The second, which came out perfect, I left as round discs and just pat the rough edges down before sugar dusting. That gave them the nice edges and chewy center!

Overall, these are a very chocolatey and delish cookie! They're keepers!

TOP SECRET CHOCOLATE COOKIES
Source: Christy Hyer

2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup Dutch process cocoa powder
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
White Sanding sugar, for garnish

1. In a large bowl, add the butter and sugar and cream together with mixer. Add the eggs and vanilla extract to the creamed mixture and mix until combined. In a medium bowl, mix the cocoa powder, flour, baking soda, and salt. Slowly add the dry ingredients and continue mixing until incorporated.

2. Roll the dough into 2 logs that are about 2-inches high and 1-foot long. Wrap them in waxed paper and place in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Once thoroughly chilled, slice the cookies into 1/2-inch thick rounds and cover with sanding sugar. Place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes.

Remove to a wire rack to cool.

And there's more orange and chocolateness to come! HAPPY HOLIDAYS, EVERYONE!!

Zombies! ...scare me

2010-11-07T17:30:00.005-09:00

I was asked to make something for the office Halloween party and when instructed to make it "gory" and "gross", I had to abandon the adorable pumpkin truffles I was imagining making. I came across this zombie cake by Dessert By Candy last year and looooooved the way it looked! And, also loving a challenge, I decided it was perfect for my needs.

I knew I wouldn't make that intense of a cake for a casual office party - the recipe she uses seems more of a one-layer, dense, flourless cake. Instead, I fell back on my favorite chocolate, the Beatty's Chocolate Cake Ina Garten put out a while ago. I use it for everything, I swear; it's delicious! Then, because this was supposed to be gory, I made my OTHER favorite chocolate accompaniment, raspberry filling! Like BLOOD! Get it??

That left the decoration which was really my focus from the beginning. The fingers are made of marzipan, which I've never worked with before. As I opened the box to find an air-tight tube, I got a little nervous to find the stuff hard as a brick. I should've done more research but I threw the log (unwrapped) in the microwave and heated it slowly until it was more pliable. It started to dry out immediately and I had to work VERY fast to get anything resembling a shape from it. In the end, I wasn't 100% happy with the results (because they didn't look like Dessert by Candy's) but everyone said it worked because the hand was a dead zombie so all the cracks were fine! (And the nails are almond slices, attached with extra ganache.)

Ultimately, the whole thing was a hit! Happy belated Halloween! (And get ready for pumpkin coming your way!)

Green Eating (Mostly)

2010-09-05T19:40:00.003-08:00

I'd like to explain that I've had a slight culinary 180 in the last few months but I'm not sure I can explain it fully myself. I had a crisis of conscience and, simply put, I won't be cooking meat anymore. Or eating it.

Now, this has actually produced a surge in my cooking since I won't run by a McDonald's for dinner anymore. My new eating habits require planning and forethought, which is one of my favorite things about cooking! The finding new recipes and making plans!

I have baked but only a little - the bran muffins I made last year, some with banana and walnut and some with pumpkin (instead of applesauce). They've been my go-to breakfast for the past couple weeks.

Mostly, though, I've been cooking. I made a spinach and mushroom veggie lasagna that combined two recipes - one vegan and one by Gia De Laurentis - that did neither justice, I'm afraid. It was a lot of ingredients and work and in the end, it came out bland. With some salt, it was decent, though.

I've been experimenting with roasting veggies and using my new rice cooker and trying to figure out tofu. It's a learning process and nothing memorable enough to blog about.

Until this, I suppose. I was looking for spinach recipes because I kind of looooooove spinach. I found this pasta from Ina Garten and it has good fats (olive oil) and veggies (spinach/peas) and I used ~fortified pasta for extra fiber/vitamins. I'm not completely sold on "fortified" products when everything says whole wheat (rice/pasta/flour) is best so just go with that. But it just tasted so yummy and was on sale. I think next time I'll just go with whole wheat but this fortified business was worth a try.

This would be a great potluck dish too!

PASTA, PESTO AND PEAS
Source: Ina Garten

3/4 pound fusilli pasta
3/4 pound bow tie pasta (I used rotini because I just love the shape)
1/4 cup good olive oil
1 1/2 cups pesto, packaged
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/4 cups good mayonnaise
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1 1/2 cups frozen peas, defrosted
1/3 cup pignolis (pine nuts)
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Cook the fusilli and bow ties separately in a large pot of boiling salted water for 10 to 12 minutes until each pasta is al dente. Drain and toss into a bowl with the olive oil. Cool to room temperature.

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, puree the pesto, spinach, and lemon juice. Add the mayonnaise and puree. Add the pesto mixture to the cooled pasta and then add the Parmesan, peas, pignolis, salt, and pepper. Mix well, season to taste, and serve at room temperature.

Happy Birthday, AMERICA.

2010-07-10T11:32:00.005-08:00

YES, I am a week late for the 4th of July festivities. But, no, these cookies were not late. I made these two weeks ago in anticipation of a week-long vacation from which I just returned. So I have a good excuse and it's better late than never!

Quick story on how these patriotic treats came to be. See, I'm a big football/soccer fan and have been since I got into it a few years back in London. It was great rooting for the Three Lions (England's national team) but once I got back to the States, it had to be Team USA all the way! (Especially since we were such underdogs and needed support.) So this World Cup, I went all out and, what do you know: America flags, shirts, beads, etc all pop up in stores, right in time for our big games (and July 4th, but whatever).

My 5 year old niece saw me with all this America bling. A few days went by and we were visiting at my mom's house where she proceeded to bring me a set of patriotic cookie cutters that she bought at the store. I said, "What's this?" and she replied, "They're for YOU ... to make cookies. For ME." Oooohhkay! So I kinda had to at that point. I mean, it was sort of an order.

But truth be told, I love doing this stuff. It's not that much work and the final product coming out cute is worth every minute!

I tried a new sugar cookie recipe because I'm always on the prowl for the perfect sugar cookie. These came out nice and soft, held their shape perfectly and were hard to mess up (even after re-rolling). They never browned but did get crisp (though light) if I rolled thin enough. Keep them at a respectable thickness and they'll be nice and soft!

Also, the icing is from those tubes of Wilton "frosting" you buy in the stores. I struggled with the thought of royal icing and in the end, just made do with what I had. Turns out, that sweet frosting is really good on cookies. Think of those Lofthouse soft sugar cookies you get in the store. Mmm. But I piped on the lines and just spread the rest with a knife! It's all about adapting with what you have!

SUGAR COOKIES
Source: Williams-Sonoma

16 Tbs. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 piece vanilla bean, about 2 inches long, or 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat together the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and, using a small, sharp knife, scrape the seeds into the butter mixture. If using vanilla extract, add it now. Mix well.

In a sifter, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. Sift the flour mixture directly onto the butter mixture. Reduce the speed to low and beat until well mixed.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface and divide into 4 equal portions. Shape each portion into a ball, then flatten the balls into disks. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. (The dough can be prepared up to 3 days ahead.) Let it soften slightly at room temperature before continuing.

Position a rack in the upper third of an oven and preheat to 350°F. Prepare 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out a dough disk 1/4 inch thick. Using cookie cutters, cut out desired shapes. Transfer the cutouts to the prepared baking sheets. Gather up and reroll the scraps and cut out more cookies. Repeat with the remaining dough disks

Bake until the cookies are golden on the edges, about 8 minutes. Transfer the cookies to wire racks and let cool completely. Decorate the cookies as desired with colored sugars and decorating pens. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Makes 24 to 30 cookies, depending on cutter size.

And, P.S. I AM heartbroken by our results at the World Cup. But it doesn't lessen my love for our national team and players. They're still awesome and I love them!

Rainbows Pride and Love!

2010-06-27T18:48:00.007-08:00

Happy Pride Month, peeps! I love rainbows and I love equality. Pride Month is right up my alley! In the interest of full disclosure, I saw this recipe on All Recipes as a "clown cake" and went, 'OOOoo, pretty rainbows!' And then I saw Yahoo's sweet Pride color bar and a light bulb went off. HEY, I can kill two birds with one stone: challenge of a new recipe and support my gay friends and family!

First thing's first, I used a box cake and went by it's specifications. The All Recipes one has it's own that I didn't think was necessary based on the fact that it was just food coloring basically. Second thing, and I can't stress this enough, USE TWO BOX MIXES. I used one and somehow made 12 cupcakes out of a box that insisted it would make 24... Like the other 12 got lost in a black hole somewhere. Gone for eternity... And doubling the recipe will just plain make handling the six separate colors easier.

Okay, so they look like a psychedelic trip from the outside which, when I first saw, got me a little heartbroken because I wanted beautiful layers. Then I bit into one:

HURRAH! I evened out some of the first layers with toothpick to the edges but after the first three, I knew it would come out fine when it started to cook down.

RAINBOW CUPCAKES
Adapted from All Recipes, submitted by lovestohost

2 boxes white cake mix
egg whites
water
oil
purple food coloring gel
blue food coloring gel
green food coloring gel
yellow food coloring gel
orange food coloring gel
red food coloring gel

1. Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Prepare cupcake pans with liners or by greasing.

2. Use egg white option of cake box directions. Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until frothy, about 1 minute. Add the cake mix, water, and canola oil; continue beating for 2 minutes on medium speed.

3. Divide the cake batter into six separate ziplock plastic bags. Use a toothpick to scoop a dab of food coloring into each bag. Seal and mix inside bag; add more food coloring, if necessary, to reach the desired shade. Repeat with the remaining colors and bags of batter.

4. Cut corner of bags and pipe 1/6 of the first color in the bottom of all liners. Repeat with the next colors (rainbow going purple, blue, green, yellow, orange and red) until cups are 2/3 full.

5. Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes clean, about 18-20 minutes. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes before removing to cool completely on a wire rack.

Top with your favorite icing (mine is vanilla buttercream)!

Happy Birthday, No One!

2010-06-17T12:57:00.005-08:00

I've been in search of an awesome ice cream flavor because it's summer. Summer = ice cream, always. But over the last few years, I've made all my favorites: cinnamon, pistachio, coffee, coconut, German chocolate, bacon. I kid! The bacon wasn't just a favorite; it was THE favorite. kidding. So while I could make variations of these favorites, I kinda wanted something new. Well. This sounded awesome and while I never order cake batter ice cream at Cold Stone, it always seemed really good.

This is one of those ice creams that tastes like CREAM. Maybe that's the thing with homemade that I'm not used to. Some people like it. I'm on the fence... But it has actual cake mix in it so it's fine frozen but, man, don't let it melt because it becomes this mutant blob of non-solid, non-liquid goop. Not that you would let it melt but still. It's a weird concoction.

It's REALLY strong, though, and hard to eat much of. That's okay; this recipe doesn't make much. It's nice to have something novel to make/try but I don't think I'll be making it again.

CAKE BATTER ICE CREAM
Source: All Recipes, by Ekho

1 cup milk
1/2 cup white sugar
2 egg yolks, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups heavy whipping cream
3/4 cup white cake mix, sifted

Whisk together milk, sugar, egg yolks, vanilla, cream, and cake mix in a saucepan until well blended. Cook over medium-low heat until mixture reaches 160 degrees F (70 degrees C), stirring frequently. Remove from heat and place in the refrigerator or freezer until liquid is cold.

Pour the chilled mixture into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's directions until it reaches "soft-serve" consistency. Transfer ice cream to a one- or two-quart lidded plastic container; cover surface with plastic wrap and seal. For best results, ice cream should ripen in the freezer for at least 2 hours or overnight.

Pies for your hands!

2010-06-10T13:47:00.004-08:00

If y'all don't know by now, I'm here to tell you: I LOVE STRAWBERRIES. And I have some kind of physical compulsion to buy them when they're so beautiful and fresh in the store. So I get home and have a couple containers of strawberries and say, 'Now what?'

This time, the 'what' was hand pies. I'm in constant search of an awesome pie crust and I think my search may be over. I found the strawberry hand pie recipe from Good Things Catered but their dough recipe called for buttermilk which I did not have. So I found one from Epicurious and holy cow. It came out damn near perfect. Flaky and buttery! I don't even care about the filling as long as the crust is good!! To be honest, it's my favorite part of pie. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and it would've been perfect! I can't wait to make it in a whole sized pie and see if it comes out as good.

The recipe from Good Things Catered calls for 3 cups of strawberries and that was a little too much for the pie dough that I had. I cut that by a cup but kept the sugar content because my strawberries were actually a tad tart. I wish I would've tasted before I baked; I would have added more sugar. So TASTE YOUR BERRIES and then judge how much sweetness needs to be added. Mine needed a bit more.

But overall, this was a smashing success, mostly because I CONQUERED PIE CRUST. And they're so darn cute! Lookit the widdle hand pies!

PASTRY DOUGH
Adapted from: Epicurious (Original recipe for full pies here.)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes

1/4 cup cold vegetable shortening (preferably trans-fat-free)

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 to 7 tablespoons ice water

Freeze cubed butter and shortening until frozen; 15-30 minutes. Combine flour and salt in food processor to mix. Add butter and shortening and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Drizzle 5-7 tablespoons of ice water over mixture while lightly pulsing until just incorporated. Do not overwork dough, or pastry will be tough. (Personal note: I usually process until it forms a ball and this time, I decided not to. I used 6 tablespoons of water and the mixture did not pull together. Instead, it was clumpy but when I pressed with my fingers, it held. There were dots of butter visible in dough.)

Turn dough out onto a powdered sugar-dusted work surface and form together. Cut pie dough in half and form into two disks. Wrap both portions in plastic wrap and freeze. Pastry dough can be chilled up to 2 days ahead.

STRAWBERRY HAND PIES

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered (or cubed; make small pieces)

2 Tbsp granulated sugar

2 tsp fresh lemon juice

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line baking sheets with parchment.

In medium bowl, combine strawberries, granulated sugar and lemon juice and set aside.

Let frozen pie dough disk defrost, 30 minutes to an hour. Dough should be very cold and hard to roll out. Roll onto a powered sugar-dusted work surface to about 1/8 in thickness, moving and turning over constantly to avoid sticking. Using round pastry cutter (or trace knife around small plate), cut out about 5-6 inch rounds.

Place round onto baking sheet and place about 2-3 Tbsp strawberry mixture into center.

Using pastry brush dipped in a small amount of egg, brush the edge of half of the round. Fold dry edge onto egg brushed half, forming semicircle shape, and press edges together to seal with the tines of a fork.

Brush the top of the pie with egg mixture and sprinkle with sugar. Use a small knife to make a 1 inch slit in the top of the pie for steam to escape. Repeat with remaining pastry dough.

Place in oven and bake until tops are beginning to turn golden brown, about 20 minutes. Let cool on sheets for 7-10 minutes and then transfer to wire rack to cool completely. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Summer Strawberry Season!

2010-05-17T19:22:00.008-08:00

YOU GUISE. Seriously, you guys. SRSLY. I LOVE strawberries. Like, I would marry them if I could. They're perfection. And it's STRAWBERRY SEASON OMG.

Now, my mom made one of the best cakes I've ever had for my birthday and do you know what I did? I left my camera at home. And it was GORGEOUS. She made this Almond Chiffon Cake with mixed berries beautifully piled on top (it looked just like that pic) and it was DELISH. I'm really disappointed that I forgot my camera but it was a crazy-awesome birthday and I got caught up.

To continue on the OMG FRESH BERRIES kick, I picked up some strawberries this weekend and got right to using them! The first is this strawberry tart which, okay, tarts? They are TIME CONSUMING. You prepare the ingredients by laying some out to come to room temp (or freezing butter for the dough), then you assemble the dough and put that back in the freezer once it's in the pan. Make the pastry cream (which I'm getting better at with practice) then throw that in the fridge for a couple more hours. You bake the tart crust and set that out to cool. Once that's cool and then the cream is properly chilled, you can finally prep the strawberries and assemble everything! It took most of Saturday.

But it was TOTALLY worth it. I love fruit tarts. It was a hit with the family too! Success all around! I should make more tarts...

STRAWBERRY TART

SWEET TART DOUGH
Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home To Yours

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick plus 1 tablespoon (9 tablespoons; 4 1/2 ounces) very cold (or frozen) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk

1. Put the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl of a food processor and pulse a few times to combine. Scatter the pieces of butter over the dry ingredients and pulse until the butter is coarsely cut in—you should have pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and some the size of peas. Stir the yolk, just to break it up, and add it a little at a time, pulsing after each addition. When the egg is in, process in long pulses—about 10 seconds each—until the dough, which will look granular soon after the egg is added, forms clumps and curds. If dough does not come together, add 1-2 Tbsp of cold water, 1 Tbsp at a time, until you can pinch dough together.

Turn the dough out onto a work surface and, very lightly and sparingly, knead the dough just to incorporate any dry ingredients that might have escaped mixing.

2. To roll or press the dough into the pan: Butter a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom.

If you want to roll the dough, chill it for about 2 hours before rolling (unless you've used frozen butter and the dough comes out of the processor firm and cold, in which case you can roll it immediately). I find it easiest to roll this dough out between two sheets of plastic film – make sure to peel away the film frequently, so it doesn't get rolled into the dough.

If you want to use the press-in method, you can work with the dough as soon as it's processed. Just press the dough evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the pan. Don't be too heavy-handed – press the crust in so that the edges of the pieces cling to one another, but don't press so hard that the crust loses its crumbly texture.

PASTRY CREAM
Tartine

2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup + 1 tbsp sugar
2 large eggs
4 tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 tsp salt
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 tsp vanilla extract

Pour the milk into a heavy saucepan. Add the salt, place over medium-high heat, and bring to just under a boil, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, whisk together the cornstarch and sugar. Add the eggs and whisk until smooth (don't let the eggs and sugar stand together for too long or else the sugar will cook the eggs *so I've heard*).

When the milk is ready, slowly drizzle about 1/3 of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking continuously. Pour the egg-milk mixture back into the hot milk and continue whisking until the custard is as thick as lightly whipped cream, about 2 minutes. The mixture must come just to the boiling point (slow bubbles, not boiling vigorously, or you will curdle the eggs, yuk). Remove from heat and immediately pour through a sieve into a bowl. Stir in the vanilla extract. Let cool for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Cut the butter into 1 tbsp pieces and whisk into pastry cream 1 tbsp at a time until smooth.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, pressing directly onto the top of the cream to prevent a skin from forming and put in the refrigerator to cool for 3 hours or up to 2 days.

Assemble tart inside pan to prevent crust breaking. Cover with desired fruit! (For a glossy coat, microwave about 1/4 cup apricot (or raspberry or strawberry) jam for 30 seconds or until liquid enough to brush over fruit.)

Pig Cake!

2010-05-07T19:49:00.004-08:00

Every year I make my mom's birthday cake at the beginning of April and she makes mine at the end. We're both pretty easy to make happy - I like anything pink or with berries and she likes chocolate. This year, she felt like something different and she produced a recipe she'd cut out of the Houston Post over 20 years ago (1987 omg!). It was a cake she'd had at a potluck and *remembered* liking it a lot but couldn't exactly remember why. So she gave the recipe to me and said Make it so!

Personally, I'm a little offended by ~cake mixes. Mostly because sometimes cake mixes are just plain better than homemade. They're so soft and effortlessly fluffy... It's not FAIR. It's cheating! However. This recipe called for a mix which made it super easy to make.

It was also super easy to EAT. They say it's called "Pig Pickin' " because you make a pig of yourself. I will support this claim. We all went back for seconds. I'll keep this cake in rotation, no problem. Mmmm!

PIG PICKIN' CAKE
Adapted from: Ann Valentine

1 package yellow cake mix with pudding
1 11-ounce can mandarin oranges, UNDRAINED
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1 (20-ounce) can crushed pineapple, UNDRAINED
1 9-ounce carton frozen whipped topping thawed
1 (3.75-ounce) package vanilla instant pudding mix

Grease two 9-inch layer cake pans. Line bottoms with waxed paper; grease again; set aside. Combine cake mix, mandarin oranges, eggs and oil; beat 2 minutes at highest speed of electric mixer. Reduce speed to low; beat 1 minute. Stir in walnuts. Pour batter into prepared pans. Bake at 350 for 20 to 25 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pans on racks 10 minutes; remove layers from pans, let cool completely.

Combine remaining 3 ingredients; beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer; let stand 5 minutes in refrigerator or until mixture is of spreading consistency. Spread pineapple mixture between layers and on top of cake - you may frost sides if desired. Chill at least 2 hours before serving. Store in the refrigerator.

Irish Cream tastes like Irish Cream

2010-03-23T15:12:00.006-08:00

I've done better at baking, I HAVE. See this cake?? I made it almost two weeks ago as a tester for a work potluck! It was BEFORE St. Patty's, I promise. I just never got around to posting. It's been a busy few weeks.

So in my search for Irish and/or St. Patty's themed food, I came across an insanely high rated Irish Cream cake at All Recipes. Sounded promising. I made it with minor adjustments (an angel food pan instead of Bundt so the top was flat and could be dressed prettier) and dug in with high hopes. Yeah, it tasted like alcohol. Okay, not ENTIRELY. Actually, the second day, the alcohol in the glaze and cake was much more subtle and the cake had absorbed most of the glaze to make it nice and moist. But there was still Irish cream in it. I don't know what I was expecting; it's an IRISH CREAM CAKE. Now, I enjoy my liquor as much as the next gal but there's just something about mixing certain desserts and alcohol. I didn't love it. But those I tested it on thought it was quite nice. So maybe I'm a harsh critic.

If you like a little bite to a moist cake, this one will hit the spot.

IRISH CREAM BUNDT CAKE
Source: All Recipes, by Sue Haser

1 cup chopped pecans
1 (18.25 ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix
4 eggs
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup Irish cream liqueur
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1/4 cup Irish cream liqueur

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 10 inch angel food (or bundt) pan. Sprinkle chopped nuts evenly over bottom of pan.

In a large bowl, combine cake mix and pudding mix. Mix in eggs, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup oil and 1 cup Irish cream liqueur. Beat for 5 minutes at high speed. Pour batter over nuts in pan.

Bake in the preheated oven for 60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes in the pan, then invert onto the serving dish. Prick top and sides of cake; I used a chopstick for larger holes. Spoon glaze over top and brush onto sides of cake. Allow to absorb glaze repeat until all glaze is used up.

To make the glaze: In a saucepan, combine butter, 1/4 cup water and 1 cup sugar. Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup Irish cream. If it looks curdled, whisk quickly until glaze becomes smooth.

Sprinkle extra chopped pecans on top for decorative dressing.

Making Coffee ~Irish

2010-03-08T17:21:00.003-09:00

Okay, not REALLY. I mean, I could've added some whiskey to my coffee but, ew. Whiskey's not my scene. Not that this Bailey's Irish Cream coffee IS, but I had to try it, at least once. I envisioned something a little sweeter, I suppose (and added some sugar to it anyway). Alas, alcohol still tastes like alcohol in coffee. Now, I like coffee and I like drinking but, to me, the two shouldn't mix. It's just weird. I'm very picky about my coffee. ~Flavors in it (aside from the occasional mocha) just get in the way. I'll take my Americano, thank you very much.

But, for those wondering, this was simply a straight cup of fresh brew with Bailey's Irish Cream substituted for cream and a teaspoon of sugar. And whipped cream on top. To those of you who enjoy a kick to your coffee, I say, Go crazy!

March is rolling along nicely, isn't it? :)

Soft Sugar Cooks

2010-03-02T17:35:00.004-09:00

OKAY, well, there's my green; my March obligation is fulfilled! I KID. I'm planning more, trust.

I like to bake junk to thank people for being awesome to me. Or just to give because I like them. Or if it's a day ending in Y. I like giving bakery to people, okay? So a friend loaned me a TV series on DVD some time LAST YEAR. It got shuffled around in my house and shelved and I never got around to it. I pine for my loaned out DVDs sometimes so I had to make her a thank you for putting up with my forgetfulness. You can't really go wrong with straight-forward sugar cookies.

I planned to make a recipe another friend gave me. Naturally, I misplaced it (hey, like the DVD!), so I started rifling around in my saved recipes. This one caught my eye, even though it's from All Recipes, because it proclaims it's a "State Fair Blue Ribbon winner". WELL. I'm intrigued.

I love soft cookies in general so I was on board for this. They never browned up so I worried a little as I watched them in the oven but the called for 12+ minutes past with nary an edge browning. Turns out, they were perfect: lightly crispy on the outside and soft/chewy near the middle. I passed them out and everyone loved them! I later warmed them up a little in the microwave at half power for 30 seconds and woo wee. WARM COOKIES ARE TEH BEST. With a glass of milk, these are kind of perfect!

SOFT SUGAR COOKIES IV
Submitted by Laura Stearns, All Recipes.com

2/3 cup shortening
2/3 cup butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar for decoration

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter, shortening and sugar. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt, stir into the creamed mixture until dough comes together. Roll dough into walnut sized balls and roll the balls in sugar. Place them on an unprepared cookie sheet about 2 inches apart. Flatten lightly with bottom of glass.

Bake cookies 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, until bottom is light brown. Remove from baking sheets to cool on wire racks.

February and chocolate, CHECK

2010-02-28T06:48:00.006-09:00

AH HA. I caught you, last day of February! Take THAT, procrastination!

These are just a few mini cupcakes I made in a hurry for Valentine's. They're a box mix. I know. I bring shame on my family. HOWEVER the buttercream icing is real! It's my favorite [because it's so terrible for you]. And they were serious good. Two quick bites of delish. :)

VANILLA BUTTERCREAM ICING

1 cup Crisco Shortening
1/2 stick butter, room temperature
2 tbsps heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar, sifted (measure then sift)

In your mixer bowl, beat the shortening until it's smooth, add the butter and beat together until smooth and light and fluffy. Add smaller amount of the heavy cream indicated in the recipe and the vanilla and mix well.

Add half the powdered sugar and mix for 5 minutes on low-med speed. Add remaining sugar and mix well. Add more cream or powdered sugar if necessary to adjust the consistency

Add coloring as desired.

I'm making a resolution here and now: MARCH is going to be my baking month. I always tell myself I'm going to make calendar-appropriate recipes like Irish soda bread and green stuff but I never do. Well, I'm putting the pressure on myself right now. SOMETHING GREEN IS GOING TO BE HAPPENING IN MARCH. Or at least have the spirit of Irish-ness.

Chocolate and failure

2010-02-01T20:07:00.004-09:00

You know, when I started this blog, it was not to be Niki's Baking Triumphs or anything. It was meant to chronicle the ups and downs, the successes and failures, of my baking adventures. I guess I lost sight of that, only wanting to publish my wins and sweep the failures under the rug. I got the impression that people reading might be taking my posts as an endorsement of the recipes I attempted instead of reading through and discovering I found it lacking or ho-hum.

I would be lying if I said I hadn't baked since those little pumpkin pies, way back in October. I've baked plenty. The holidays always bring out the excitement in me so I made my annual peanut butter blossoms, sweet potatoes for Thanksgiving and a bread pudding for my dad visiting. So baking was going on, I simply didn't have the time (or natural lighting of daylight to take pictures thanks to living in this eternal night wasteland called Alaska; DEAR MIDNIGHT SUN SUMMER, WHERE ARE YOU). But I digress. There's been baking but no posting. Which brings me to now.

I got another idea in my head that I couldn't shake. A pie. A chocolate pie. And Julie & Julia was no help; just as Keri Russell's pie maker in Waitress whipped up a dark chocolate pie, so too did Amy Adams in that flick and both immediately inspired me to want one of my own. But this idea was very specific; it was of a dense but soft, almost cheesecake-consistency but not. Something you could cut into but would melt in your mouth with a not too overpowering taste. Almost a flourless chocolate cake but not so strong. Anyway, I went on the hunt.

The first chocolate pie I found was a "grandma's" recipe so I thought, hey, that might work. I don't understand why they're not just called chocolate PUDDING pie because that's what they are. Or is that assumed? I don't know; I've never had someone else's chocolate pie. I imagined something dark and rich and solid and that certainly wasn't. Also, the crust called for oil as the fat and after reading The Best Recipe book, it explains that oil makes for a hard crust because it holds no water that can evaporate during the cooking process and release air that makes crusts usually pocketed and flaky. Yeah, I'm never using oil in pie crust again.

The next I tried was from a friend from work who I often discuss cooking techniques with. She has a wealth of experience and she's an awesome source of help. She gave me a Fudge Pie recipe and I thought, Ooo, that sounds promising! Thick like fudge! I made it and it wasn't quite as thick as fudge. My version was definitely thicker than the pudding pie and it tasted lovely but it was still pretty soft (more like a soft cheese consistency) and not exactly what I was searching for.

Then I started rifling through my mom's old newspaper cut-out recipes and booklets. I found a Fudge Brownie Pie in an old Eagle Brand recipe booklet and figured a thicker, brownie consistency might be just what I'm looking for. Yeah, no. It tasted like a brownie in a completely unnecessary pie crust. Disappointment continued.

Upon talking it over more with my mom, I began to realize I was really in search of one thing: a silk pie. And not a FRENCH silk pie because those seemed to be more airy and light and with whipped cream and such. But a silk pie like the kind we used to get all the time from one business that pulled up stakes and moved out of town: the Alaska Silk Pie Company. Yeah, they're not in Alaska anymore and they charge around $40 to send about a 6" pie here. But their pies are heavenly. That can't be denied.

So I went looking for silk pie recipes. The thing about silk pies is they're not baked and raw eggs are used. On their cooking channel special, the creator of the Alaska silk pies said she used 'pasteurized eggs'. Well, the only thing we could come up with was Egg Beaters. (I've since discovered techniques for home pasteurizing that are intriguing...) I found a seemingly simple French Silk pie recipe I figured I could weigh down with less beating and went to using Egg Beaters. It curdled up on me about 2/3 of the way through. I freaked out and called Mom for advice. She said throw it in the blender and that did the trick perfectly: it went back to a nice, smooth consistency. It called for refrigeration but when I uncoiled the spring form pan, it barely held together and it was, unfortunately a true French Silk filling; it was meant for a pie crust and meant to be soft. The other thing that bothers me a little is the fact that Egg Beaters is mostly egg whites which have a higher water content than whole eggs. Did that have something to do with the consistency? Perhaps.

So here I am. Four failures in and nothing to show for the quest. My mom caved and ordered an Alaska silk pie just to have a reminder and it was just as good as we remember. I'm afraid I'm going to have to try again because it was just so lovely.

As for posting, I will attempt to keep up here too; even when my kitchen is a den of failure. This blog is to chronicle ALL my adventures. Especially the losses so I won't make the same mistakes. NEVER FORGET.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T11:01:00.005-08:00

I think these are kind of perfect in every way. Cute, Halloween-y, pumpkin, bite size; the list of their attributes goes on and on! I found them posted on Facebook by a friend and was shocked to find I'd never heard of Bakerella before. Her blog is AMAZING. It's such a treat to find a baker that is both creative and imaginative in their recipes. I want to thank Bakerella for sharing such darling ideas with the world!

I took these little cuties to work for the Halloween bake sale and they went like hot cakes! I was a little sad to see them go so fast, to be honest; I would've made more if I had known two pie crusts (a top and bottom) made only 24 little pies and that they tasted so yummy. And 24 seemed like a lot until I took them in and they disappeared! Needless to say, they were well received!

This is a definite keeper recipe!!

MINI PUMPKIN PIES
Source: Bakerella

2 refrigerated ready-to roll pie crusts

8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 eggs + 1 egg white
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
Pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter

Optional
1/2 cup chocolate morsels
vegetable oil
re-sealable plastic bags

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Use cookie cutter to cut 12 pumpkin shapes from each pie crust. You will need to roll the dough thinner than it comes out of the box.

Press dough shapes into a 24 cup mini muffin tray. (Make 12 at a time, alternating cups to make sure pie crusts don’t overlap each other.)

Brush egg whites from one egg to the top edges of each pie. Mix cream cheese, sugar, canned pumpkin, remaining 2 eggs, vanilla and pumpkin pie spice together until thoroughly combined. Spoon mixture into each pumpkin-shaped pie crust. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

Remove pies to cool and repeat with second pie crust. Place the muffin tray in the freezer to cool it quickly for re-use.

Makes 24 pies. Keep refrigerated.

To decorate, melt chocolate in a heat-proof bowl in the microwave on medium. Heat in 30 second intervals, stirring in between until melted. Add a little vegetable oil to make the chocolate more fluid. Transfer to a re-sealable plastic bag and cut the corner off. Drizzle or draw faces on pies.

Boo, ghosts. Boo.

2009-10-29T14:35:00.007-08:00

Halloween is, by far, my favorite holiday. I'm not sure why because I've never been big on costumes or being scared at haunted houses or even trick-or-treating. But I guess it's fall and cute/spooky treats and decorations. Pumpkins were sent from Jesus as the greatest food stuff known to man. This is not a pumpkin entry; that's coming up next.

THIS is a Halloween cake entry because I seem to have those every other year. My best friend has a fall baby on the way (due late November) and she loves Halloween just as much and so decided the baby shower would be a perfect opportunity to have the best of both worlds. Hallo-baby party-shower! I'd seen these petits fours on Martha Stewart last year and almost died of the cute. I HAD to make them. But the holiday rolled around and went and I missed the chance. When this shower came up, I knew it would be the perfect occasion.

The thing about this blog I think I've found most fulfilling is the ability to go through a recipe, experience the process, and then post my reactions, good and bad, and try to help others not make the same mistakes. Or, in this case, say flat out: I will not make this recipe again. Don't get me wrong; another baker might look at it and decide it'll be worth the trouble. I can only say that from my standpoint, it's not.

I devised a few shortcuts from the word go that I thought would help me out. I'd bake the cake and freeze it so a hard (and not pillowy soft) cake would cut through easier when using the small biscuit round cutter. Yeah, no. Turns out, the cold cake stuck to the metal cutter and subsequently couldn't cut the third and fourth rounds neatly at all. There was much cleaning, cutting, cleaning, cutting.

I then saw that the pan made the cake too tall for the stumpy little ghosts. I had to go through and cut all the tops off the cylinders although this did provide me with a fun little sampler disk of cake. Mmm.

And that's another thing: this recipe WASTES so much cake. There's just something in me that cringes at having leftover bits with nothing to do with. I froze the trimmings and have yet to decide their fate.

So I piped the little cones of buttercream on top and froze that as well. There's always an issue of exposed cake drying out so I had to do a quick freeze for the frosting to set up then went back and lightly covered a hollow cake pan with plastic wrap so only the tops were touching. Froze them again so I could glaze the day of the shower.

Now. The glaze. Perhaps a more experienced petits-fours-making-person would've thinned it out further but there were two issues: #1. I didn't know if a thinner glaze would set up or if it would remain too liquid, and #2. Would a thinner glaze show the imperfections of the cake/frosting instead of being a smooth, ghosty outside? I don't know the answer to either still because I was too chicken to try thinning the glaze. As it is, it's kind of thick and VERY sweet. The ghosts came out okay but not great. The witch hats, however, were a small disaster. The chocolate "glaze" is nothing more than a ganache that completely smothers the tiny round of delicate cake. With the buttercream cone on top of that, you've got a giant helping of chocolate and frosting and not much else. I wanted to throw them away but, again, felt uneasy wasting food. They were an unadulterated failure, though.

One last thing: the chocolate piping. I wish I'd read Bakerella's notes on piping chocolate for faces in which she instructs to add a little vegetable oil to make the substance more fluid because MARTHA sure didn't. So, thanks to Martha Stewart, the chocolate was too thick, hard to manage and came out looking junky. Bakerella's, on the other hand, came out looking great (that's the pumpkin coming up next). Thanks for nothing, Martha!

The guests at the party were extremely nice and said they really liked the little ghosts but I was disappointed. I will absolutely never make these again but I'm glad I went through the experience and could pass it on to you guys. Attempt at your own risk!

GHOULISH PETITS FOURS
Martha Stewart

For witch hats, make petits fours through step two. Then create a brim using a dab of icing: Affix each petit four to a 2-to-2 1/2-inch chocolate wafer cookie. Proceed to step three, coating with Chocolate Glaze instead of Butter Glaze. In lieu of step four, wrap one or two pieces of licorice lace around the base of the hat immediately after glazing.

Makes about 40
White Sheet Cake
Confectioners' Sugar Icing
Butter Glaze
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, for eyes and mouth

Using a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter, cut out circles from cake. Brush off any crumbs with a pastry brush.

Fit a pastry bag with a plastic coupler, and top cake rounds with icing in a ghost or hat shape, about 1 inch high.

Place a wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet; set aside. Set an iced cake round on a fork; hold over bowl of glaze. Using a large spoon, drizzle glaze evenly over cake and icing until completely covered. Transfer to wire rack. Repeat with remaining rounds. Let set, about 5 minutes.

Place chocolate in a heatproof bowl microwave at 50% power, stirring chocolate every 30 seconds until melted. Add small amount of vegetable oil to make more fluid. Transfer to a disposable pastry bag or resealable plastic bag; snip off tip with scissors. Pipe eyes and a mouth onto ghosts.

WHITE SHEET CAKE

Makes one 12-by-17-inch cake

1 cup (2 sticks) plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for baking sheet and wire rack
4 1/2 cups sifted cake flour (not self-rising), plus more for baking sheet
2 tablespoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups sugar
7 large egg whites

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 12-by-17-by-1-inch rimmed baking sheet. Line bottom with parchment paper. Butter parchment, and dust with flour, tapping off any excess. Set sheet aside.

Into a medium bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a measuring cup, combine milk and vanilla; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until very smooth. With mixer on medium speed, add sugar in a slow, steady stream; beat until mixture is light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Reduce speed to low. Add reserved flour mixture in three batches, alternating with reserved milk mixture, and starting and ending with flour. Mix until just combined; do not overmix. Set aside.

In a clean bowl, beat egg whites until stiff but do not let dry peaks form. Fold one-third of the egg whites into batter to lighten, then gently fold in remaining whites in two batches.

Scrape batter into prepared sheet; smooth top with an offset spatula. Bake in oven until cake is springy to the touch and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool 15 minutes. Loosen sides of cake with a small metal spatula or paring knife; invert onto a buttered wire rack. Peel off parchment. To prevent splitting, reinvert cake so top is facing up. Let cake cool completely.

CONFECTIONERS' SUGAR ICING
(I would HALVE this; it made WAY too much)

Makes about 7 cups

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter (3 sticks), room temperature
3 pounds confectioners' sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk, plus more if needed

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugar until well combined. Add salt, vanilla, and milk; beat until icing is smooth and creamy. The icing should be thick enough to pipe and hold its shape. If icing seems too thick, add 1 tablespoon milk at a time until proper consistency is reached. Use immediately, or refrigerate in an airtight container up to 2 days. If refrigerating, bring icing to room temperature before using, and lightly beat until creamy if necessary.

BUTTER GLAZE
Makes about 1 1/2 cups

2 1/2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
5 tablespoons milk

Place sugar in a medium bowl, and set aside. In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Immediately pour the melted butter into the bowl with the sugar. Add the milk, and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cover bowl, and store at room temperature until ready to use.

CHOCOLATE GLAZE (for witch hats)
Makes 1 1/2 cups

6 ounces best-quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
1 cup heavy cream

Chop the chocolate into small pieces, and place in a medium bowl. In a small saucepan, heat cream over medium-high heat until just simmering, and pour it over the chocolate. Let mixture stand 5 minutes, then stir until smooth. Let stand at room temperature about 10 minutes before using.

Pumpkin Goes On

2009-10-12T16:26:00.003-08:00

My life can go on: I found pumpkin. Correction: my mom found pumpkin. The not-that-long story is, I went in search of canned pumpkin to replenish my supply for the fall after making the pumpkin brownies. The first grocery store had an empty shelf where it SHOULD have been. I thought it was weird but whatever; I’d just go to another store. A week or so later, I hit another and WHAT- another empty shelf!? I mention the strange phenom to my mom who then discovers there’s word (on the web) that there’s a pumpkin shortage this year. I freak out a little and proceed to spread the word to family and friends to fall on a can of pumpkin like it’s the end of times and it’s the last food on the planet. Hit two more stores on separate sides of town and BOTH are empty shelves. Hope fades.

Then Mom calls Sunday afternoon from Wal-Mart of all places with the news. There’s tons! Fall/Halloween has been saved! I immediately turned on my oven to preheat, ready to use the only can I had in my cupboard RIGHT AWAY.

I had a pumpkin Costco muffin a few weeks ago and it was bliss. But Costco muffins are kind of amazing, aren’t they. I’ve been wanting pumpkin muffins ever since. This recipe popped up on a few other blogs and with their ringing endorsement, I was eager to try too. The original recipe didn’t have a crumb topping like Costco’s muffin and to be honest, that’s one of my favorite parts. So I found a separate crumb topping recipe (for blueberry muffins), added a little cinnamon to it and voila! Pumpkin muffins with crumb topping.

Oh and one other thing: the blog I found the recipe on accidentally put a whole can of pumpkin in the batter when it calls for only 8 ounces (the can is 15 ounces, so, almost double). She raved that it was still good and moist so I thought, what the Hell, man; I’m craving the pumpkin and more can only make it better! They came out really delicious and moist! I did have to add some baking time (around 35-38 minutes) but still.

This made 6 large muffin cups then had a little left over that perfectly I filled a mini muffin pan. I love having little two-bite pieces of muffin around. This is definitely something I’d make again!

PUMPKIN MUFFINS WITH CRUMB TOPPING
Adapted from Gourmet/The American Club

Makes 6 large muffins / 1 dozen small muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 can solid-pack pumpkin (15 ounces)
1/3 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 1/4 cups plus 1 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

CRUMB TOPPING

1 cup all-purpose flour
3 Tbsp light brown sugar
2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
Pinch of salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Put oven rack in middle position and preheat oven to 350F. Put liners in muffin cups.

Whisk together flour and baking powder in a small bowl.

Whisk together pumpkin, oil, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, 1 1/4 cups sugar, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until smooth, then whisk in flour mixture until just combined.

For crumb topping, in a medium bowl, combine the flour with the brown sugar, granulated sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Stir in the melted butter, then pinch the mixture until it forms pea-size clumps.

Divide batter among muffin cups (each should be about 3/4 full), then sprinkle tops with crumb topping mixture. Bake until puffed and golden brown and a wooden pick or skewer inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean, 30 to 35 minutes.

Cool in pan on a rack 5 minutes, then transfer muffins from pan to rack and cool to warm or room temperature.

Fall starts today

2009-09-20T16:35:00.003-08:00

Fall is official in my house. It always starts with the football season beginning (last week) and then the Halloween candy appears in the grocery stores. But it's not OFFICIAL in my house until I haul out the tubs of Halloween decorations, light up my favorite fall spice candle and bake something with pumpkin. Today, it has arrived.

These are the pumpkin swirl brownies from Martha Stewart and they sounded so damn easy, how could I pass them up? I was also assured the pumpkin & chocolate flavors meshed well by my last chocopumpkin attempt with muffins. There would be a big difference between the two, but I'll get to that in a second.

I had to adjust the baking time because I didn't have a 9" square pan, but an 8"; it took an added 20 minutes and it was only just coming out with the toothpick clean. I also didn't add any nuts as the original recipe suggests sprinkling on top and now I wish I had. I think walnuts would've been perfect. My instinct to omit them was completely wrong.

Now, the difference from these brownies and the muffins: the thing about the muffins was, it was all pumpkin then lovely little bits of chocolate chips. In these brownies, there is equal amounts of pumpkin and chocolate and, to be honest, the chocolate kind of takes over. It's like they stepped into the ring and the pumpkin got KO'ed. However, the batter doesn't mix completely (as you can see from the layers), so you can taste them separately. The cayenne, especially, is noticeable in the pumpkin layers (and it's the tiniest bite but it's good!)

These were good but I kind of want a big pumpkin flavor when I make something with it. My pumpkin craving wasn't satisfied at all from this so I'm definitely looking for what's next!

PUMPKIN SWIRL BROWNIES
Source: Martha Stewart

Makes 16

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups sugar
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups solid-pack pumpkin
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

Optional: 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts or other nuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan or dish. Line bottom of pan with parchment paper; butter lining.

Melt chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.

Whisk together flour, baking powder, cayenne, and salt in a large bowl; set aside. Put sugar, eggs, and vanilla in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; beat until fluffy and well combined, 3 to 5 minutes. Beat in flour mixture.

Divide batter between two medium bowls (about 2 cups per bowl). Stir chocolate mixture into one bowl. In other bowl, stir in pumpkin, oil, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Transfer half of chocolate batter to prepared pan smoothing top with a rubber spatula. Top with half of pumpkin batter. Repeat to make one more chocolate layer and one more pumpkin layer. Work quickly so batters don't set.

With a small spatula or a table knife, gently swirl the two batters to create a marbled effect.

Bake until set, 40 to 55 minutes. Let cool in pan on a wire rack. Cut into 16 squares.

Chocolate & Raspberry always works

2009-09-17T13:51:00.006-08:00

I saw the movie Hot Fuzz the other day and while it was awesome, one moment stuck out: Nick Frost's character was munching away on a chocolate cake with some sort of red filling. I was asked to make a cake for my friend's birthday and that's the first thing I proposed.

This was another one of those collecting pieces of recipes from all over to create something. I get nervous when I do this; it feels like creating a Frankenstein monster. Who knows if it'll be okay or such a disaster, the townsfolk start gathering their pitchforks. Thankfully, it was the former.

I went with the trusty Ina Garten but, more importantly, a chocolate cake she'd featured in her show from a "Beatty", that had unheard-of positive reviews. 5 stars, almost across the board. And I could very well go to Food Network.com and add my own rave review because this cake was phenomenal. It was moist but not too dense, perfectly chocolately without being overpowering. Absolutely terrific.

Now, for the red filling, I had to start scouring the web in search of what existed in my mind but which I wasn't sure I'd seen materialized outside of a Simon Pegg movie. A few came up that never sounded exactly right but then I finally stumbled on a straightforward Raspberry Filling recipe from Wilton.com, strangely enough. I'd never used any of their recipes before but this appeared so easy and I was going for a simple taste that wouldn't complicate the cake. It came out exactly as I'd hoped, thickened by the corn starch and tart but still sweet and seriously hard to stop eating.

To even out the tartness of the raspberry filling and the richness of the chocolate, I added a layer of whipped cream. Chocolate ganache topped it off and voila! Chocolate raspberry cake! It was a hit with the birthday girl and my family. I was honestly surprised at how much I enjoyed it. It took some time to prepare all the components but it was absolutely worth it!

BEATTY'S CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH RASPBERRY FILLING

Source: Ina Garten

Butter, for greasing the pans

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans

2 cups sugar

3/4 cups good cocoa powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk, shaken

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Chocolate Ganache (recipe follows)

Raspberry Filling (recipe follows)

Whipped cream (recipe follows)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans.

Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.

Assemble the bottom of the cake, flat side up, with a layer of raspberry filling then whipped cream (recipes follow). Set top cake layer on the filling layers. Refrigerate to set filling layers to cakes.

Make chocolate ganache then let come to room temperature. You may need to let it sit in the fridge as well (continue stirring every five minutes or so to allow to chill evenly). When it is a thick, spreading consistency, spread evenly over cake. It will be a thin layer (ganache is dense and strong) so it is easiest to pour all ganache in the center and slowly work out and down the sides with a flat spatula.

Serve soon or refrigerate if storing. Whipped cream will not keep long.

RASPBERRY FILLING

Adapted from: Wilton.com

1 pkg (16 ounces) frozen raspberries packed in sugar thawed

1/3 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1 teaspoon lemon juice

Makes: Filling serves 2 cups.

Drain raspberries, reserving liquid. Add enough water to liquid to equal 1 1/4 cups.

In large saucepan, combine liquid, sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice; mix well. Heat and stir until mixture boils and thickens. Cool completely.

WHIPPED CREAM

1/2 cup heavy cream, well chilled

1 tbsp confectioners' sugar

1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Place a mixing bowl and beaters from electric mixer in the freezer or refrigerator until well chilled, about 15 minutes.

Combine the heavy cream, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla extract in the mixing bowl.

With an electric mixer on low speed, begin beating the cream, gradually increasing the speed to high as cream thickens. (Do this slowly, or the cream will splatter.)

Beat until the cream is thickened, past soft peaks. It should have some structure so it can stand on its own as a layer under the top of the cake.

CHOCOLATE GANACHE

Source: Ina Garten

1/2 cup heavy cream

8 ounces good semisweet chocolate chips

1/2 teaspoon instant coffee granules

Cook the heavy cream, chocolate chips, and instant coffee in the top of a double boiler over simmering water until smooth and warm, stirring occasionally.

A return with cheesecake

2009-08-23T11:59:00.004-08:00

I know. I KNOW. I've been MIA for months. The thing is, I've been trying to eat better and that consists of no baking cupcakes or puddings or ice creams. Too much unnecessary temptation! However something started happening recently that will absolutely change my mind: FALL.

I love fall stupid. I sing its praises every year, it seems like. I get excited about pumpkin stuff and warm puddings and cozy autumn harvest-themed teas. So there's no way I'm going to skip baking this fall. To go along with the season, I had a craving for something a little heavier and a little stronger. Cheesecake was something I hadn't made for years (the last was unremarkable) so I decided on that. But regular cheesecake is kind of boring so I went with my favorite: turtle.

I found a highly reviewed recipe by Tyler Florence named The Ultimate Cheesecake. It was your standard with a blueberry sauce on top so I made a few adjustments (taking out the lemon zest and swapping graham cracker crust for chocolate). Then I settled on mini chocolate chips instead of a chocolate sauce, hoping to replicate Lawler's turtle cheesecake as closely as possible. Of course, there's always little things with every recipe...

I watched the video Food Network supplied with the recipe as it baked because I got conflicting reports from the comments left by others. After 45 minutes, Tyler showed what it should look like and boy was it dodgy looking. He said he liked his cheesecake to have a smooth and silky consistency but, to be honest, that's not the kind of cheesecake I like. When I think cheesecake, I think THICK. Like, a solid brick that your fork leaves indentions in and you have to take small bites because it's so strong. This was not that.

And while it wasn't my perfect cheesecake, it still came out pretty good. The chocolate, pecans and caramel couldn't've hurt. I'd like to try another cheesecake because, like the pound cake, I have a tiny compulsion to keep trying things until they turn out perfect...

ULTIMATE TURTLE CHEESECAKE
Adapted from Tyler Florence

Crust:
2 1/2 cups finely ground chocolate cookies
1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Filling:
1 pound cream cheese, 2 (8-ounce) blocks, softened
3 eggs
1 cup sugar
1 pint sour cream
1 tsp vanilla extract

Caramel Topping
1 cup semisweet mini chips
1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a mixing bowl, combine the cookie crumbs and butter with a fork until evenly moistened. Lightly coat the bottom and sides of an 9-inch springform pan with nonstick cooking spray. Pour the crumbs into the pan and, using the bottom of a measuring cup or the smooth bottom of a glass, press the crumbs down into the base and up the sides. Refrigerate for 5 minutes.

For the Filling:

In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese on low speed for 1 minute until smooth and free of any lumps. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, and continue to beat slowly until combined. Gradually add sugar and beat until creamy, for 1 to 2 minutes. Add sour cream and vanilla. Periodically scrape down the sides of the bowl and the beaters. The batter should be well mixed but not over-beaten. Pour the filling into the crust-lined pan and smooth the top with a spatula.

Set the cheesecake pan on a large piece of aluminum foil and fold up the sides around it. Place the cake pan in a large roasting pan. Pour boiling water into the roasting pan until the water is about halfway up the sides of the cheesecake pan; the foil will keep the water from seeping into the cheesecake. Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. The cheesecake should still jiggle (it will firm up after chilling), so be careful not to overcook. I turned off the oven and let it sit inside for 30 minutes (Tyler suggests to just ‘Let cool in pan for 30 minutes’). Chill in the refrigerator, loosely covered, for at least 4 hours. Loosen the cheesecake from the sides of the pan by running a thin metal spatula around the inside rim. Unmold and transfer to a cake plate. Drizzle caramel topping then mini chips and pecans over the surface.

Slice the cheesecake with a thin, non-serrated knife that has been dipped in hot water. Wipe dry after each cut.

Tres!

2009-06-05T18:37:00.004-08:00

I visited Puerto Rico with family and friends last year for the first time and had many foods I'd never even heard of. Some were familiar (because I'm Mexican and we have common recipes) and some were not (the pervasiveness of plantains was impressive).

We were treated to some desserts one night and I had tres leches for the first time. Now. I've done some research and the origins are widely disputed though most argue it is from Mexico. I was a little ashamed I'd never had it before but on further investigation, it's also considered a holiday (Christmas) dish so it's not an everyday sweet like pan dulce or anything. My shame was slightly alleviated.

I found a well-reviewed recipe from Emeril Lagasse and got to it. His recipe says to bake this deep, super wet cake for "25 minutes". At 25 minutes, it was 80% still solid liquid. I think my total bake time came out closer to 45-50 minutes so be prepared to let it go and start checking with a cake tester as you go along.

I did a little shortcut and used Cool Whip for the top because I'd heard it was just as good and it totally was! And the whole thing was terribly addictive and yummy. The leches made the cake nice and moist but not so much that it was falling apart. It was a lovely consistency that was sweet (thanks to the condensed milk) but not TOO sweet.

However. The version I had in Puerto Rico was less rich; more milky. It even left behind a little milkiness on the plate when you took a bite. I'm not sure if it was the relative density of this cake that soaked it all up or the thickness of the leches (evaporated milk, condensed milk and CREAM), but this one didn't bleed milkiness at all. It was delicious but not exactly the same as the one I had. And this was VERY rich. One piece (with a glass of milk because, clearly, there isn't enough in a cake called Tres Leches) and you're all good!

This is one easy recipe I know I'll be making again!

TRES LECHES
Adapted from Emeril Lagasse

Cake:
6 large eggs, separated
2 cups granulated sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cream topping:
1 14-ounce can evaporated milk
1 14-ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup heavy cream

Icing:
1 tub Cool Whip
maraschino cherries for decoration

To make the cake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease and flour a 9 by 13-inch baking dish and set aside.

In the bowl of a mixer, beat the egg whites on low speed until soft peaks form. Add the sugar gradually with the mixer running and peak to stiff peaks. Add the egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after the addition of each.

Sift together the flour and baking powder and add to the egg mixture, alternating with the milk. (Do this quickly so the batter does not lose volume.) Add the vanilla. Bake until golden, 40-50 minutes.

To make the cream topping: In a blender, combine the evaporated milk, condensed milk, and heavy cream and blend on high speed.

Remove the cake from the oven and while still warm, pour the cream mixture over it. Let sit and cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate until well chilled, at least 4 hours or overnight.

To assemble: Remove the cake from the refrigerator and spread the icing evenly across the top. Add cherry to individual slices.

Yes. More lemon.

2009-05-31T14:40:00.003-08:00

I think about half of my baking comes from having ingredients I need to use or lose. Okay, maybe a quarter. This is one such recipe.

I STILL had lemons sitting around that I just couldn't ignore for another weekend but knew absolutely what I DIDN'T want to make from them (cake/cupcakes or sorbet/ice cream). That left me with a tart (which I've done before) or curd. Making the tart shells seemed like too much effort so I settled on curd.

It's relatively easy to make in the same way custard is; you cook it VERY slowly over low heat so the eggs don't curdle. I was actually considering cooking longer (even though I went the recommended time) because I imagined curd as thicker. However, I saw a bit of cooked egg and immediately took it off the fire (then put it through a sieve, of course).

It was quite good because c'mon; it's full of butter. What's not to like?

I then had to make some scones for it to go on and they're like mildly sweet biscuits. I think I could do better but they are better than my first batch many moons ago which were like hockey pucks. I'm improving!

SCONES
Adapted from: Tyler Florence

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks
1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing the scones

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

In a food processor, mix together the dry ingredients; the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Cut butter into cubes and pulse into processor until mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Transfer to large bowl and make a well in the center. Pour heavy cream into well and fold everything together just to incorporate; do not overwork the dough. (Refrigerate or freeze for a few minutes to firm up butter if it has gotten warm.)

Press the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 12 by 3 by 1 1/4 inches. Cut the rectangle in 1/2 then cut the pieces in 1/2 again, giving you 4 (3-inch) squares. Cut the squares in 1/2 on a diagonal to give you the classic triangle shape. Place the scones on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush the tops with a little heavy cream. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until beautiful and brown. Let the scones cool a bit before you serve.

LEMON CURD
Source: Williams-Sonoma

5 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
Grated zest of 2 lemons
6 Tbs. (3/4 stick) unsalted butter

In a heavy saucepan, combine the egg yolks and sugar and whisk vigorously for 1 minute. Add the lemon juice and zest and whisk for 1 minute more. Set the pan over low heat and cook gently, stirring constantly, until slightly thickened, 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the butter. Let cool, stirring occasionally. Cover tightly and refrigerate before using. Makes about 1 cup.

WHIPPED CREAM

1/2 cup heavy cream, well chilled
1 tbsp confectioners' sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

1. Place a mixing bowl and beaters from electric mixer in the freezer or refrigerator until well chilled, about 15 minutes.

2. Combine the heavy cream, confectioners' sugar, and vanilla extract in the mixing bowl.

3. With an electric mixer on low speed, begin beating the cream, gradually increasing the speed to high as cream thickens. (Do this slowly, or the cream will splatter.)

4. Beat until the cream forms soft peaks. Test to see if it is ready by turning off the mixer and lifting the beaters out of the cream - if the cream makes soft peaks that topple over slightly, then it's done.

Serve immediately or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 2 hours.

Altogether, it was delish!

Lucky number 4

2009-05-29T04:12:00.001-08:00

I think me and pound cake are done, professionally. #1, was bland and disappointing. #2, was okay but dry and nothing special. #3, I completely screwed up (under-baked in an attempt to not dry it out) AND it tasted junky. #4, was the best yet but still not Perfection In A Loaf Pan. What can I say; I seek perfection.

With four, count them, FOUR ultimate disappointments, I think I'm through with pound cake. At least for now. Maybe I'll go back to it some day. I just need to move on.

I would like to share this recipe, however, because it did come out the best of what I tried. It was from the ever-trustworthy Williams-Sonoma. It wasn't dry but not overly moist. It came out nice and soft (due to the very light and fluffy beat-the-butter phase) but not entirely a cake-like consistency. It was definitely worth making though I, personally, will probably continue on, in search of the Perfect pound cake before I make this again.
POUND CAKE
Source: Williams-Sonoma

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
12 Tbs. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. almond extract (optional - but seriously do it)
2 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature

Preheat an oven to 325°F. Lightly grease an 8 1/2-by-4 1/2-inch loaf pan, preferably glass, and dust with flour.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt until blended. In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter, sugar, vanilla and almond extract on medium to medium-high speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition until just blended. Sprinkle half of the flour mixture over the egg mixture and stir until both are just incorporated. Stir in the sour cream, then sprinkle with the remaining flour mixture and stir until evenly distributed.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and tap gently on the counter to even out and settle the ingredients. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, about 70 minutes, or longer if using a metal pan. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 15 minutes.

Run a thin knife around the inside of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack and lift off the pan. Place the cake on one of its sides and continue cooling. Serve warm or at room temperature. Serves 8 to 10.

Making candy now

2009-05-16T11:34:00.005-08:00

So, remember that aside I made in the coconut ice cream post about every time I have coconut I start wishing there was some chocolate with it? It was more than an aside in my life. It was a CRAVING.

A normal individual might get in their car, drive to the store and purchase that which they crave: a Mounds bar. To those unacquainted, it's a chocolate covered, coconut-filled candy. And it's delish. I, however, am almost shamefully lazy and didn't want to drive to the store. So I made it.

I went with the first semi-reputable recipe I could find that got rave reviews. I had all the necessary ingredients (I love having tons of chocolate and coconut cream just sitting around my house) so I went to it.

I did run into a slight snafu when I opened the can of coconut cream and found something that appeared to be a greyish-tan sludge. I'm talking tub paste here, people. The kind your kids spoon out with that stick attached to the top of the lid. D: Needless to say, I called in for help and Mom assured me that could probably (maybe?) be okay. The label on the can said it might solidify in cooler temperatures and I am in Alaska so, okay. I set the can in a bowl of warm water and waited it out. It turned liquid in no time so all was well. Crisis averted.

The coconut mixture itself was extremely wet and sticky and impossible to shape. I wish I could've figured out another way. Another problem I encountered was coating the frozen coconut balls; my chocolate was not warm enough or maybe just not thin enough because it coated too thick. I didn't hear complaints from the people who ate them but they're just not very pretty all globbed up with chocolate...

Other than that, I got a great reaction from those who did try them! They're sweet but they definitely defeated that chocolate and coconut craving I was having!

HOMEMADE MOUNDS BARS

12 ounces flaked coconut
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1/2 can cream of coconut milk
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
1 tsp of vegetable shortening

Mix together coconut, confectioner's sugar and cream of coconut. Roll into 1-inch balls and chill thoroughly or freeze. Freezing is not necessary, but it helps with the chocolate coating.

Melt chocolate and vegetable shortening in double boiler (or microwave in 30 second intervals and careful not to burn) and dip frozen centers, using a wooden skewer or toothpick.

One batch makes about 60 pieces of candy.

Coco-crazy.

2009-05-05T06:29:00.000-08:00

It's that time again! Summer is upon us (a whopping upper 50s in Alaska! BREAK OUT THE SANDALS AND JEAN SHORTS!). That can only mean one thing: it's finally respectable to start making ice cream again. I should disclose the following factoid: Alaska eats the most ice cream per capita in the United States. Think about that for a second because we get about 3 months of summer and the rest is 40 and below from there. I've personally worn that factoid like a badge of honor; I've TOTALLY driven through McDonald's just for an ice cream in the dead of winter.

That being said, I don't MAKE a lot of ice cream in the winter. That just seems weird. But almost overnight, the sun started coming out and even though it's 50's-ish, it's still summer to us!

As previously mentioned in the last post, I started with coconut to duplicate a recipe I saw on a beautiful Flickr picture. I browsed my ice cream cookbooks and didn't find the coconut gelato she made, but did find a Toasted Coconut Ice Cream from David Lebovitz and this is the guy who came up with the bacon ice cream so I had to trust him. He's some sort of an authority on good ice cream so I felt I was in good hands.

And, man he was right. I don't mind taking two days to make something (the cooking then overnight freeze time) if it comes out this good. The coconut flavor infused in the ice cream is delicate but distinct and stands on its own perfectly. HOWEVER, I will admit that while I'm enjoying something purely coconut, my mind always wanders to chocolate (Mounds bars!) or maybe sliced almonds (Almond Joy!).

I even added more coconut on top of the ice cream when I devoured it because double double coconut is even better!

A quick note: the recipe requested unsweetened coconut but I didn't have that so I had to use sweetened. I kept the same amount of sugar that was called for, meaning mine would have come out slightly sweeter than Lebovitz' original. So you may want to weigh your options when deciding which road to take; I thought the sweetness of mine was perfect!

TOASTED COCONUT ICE CREAM
Source: David Lebovitz

Makes about 1 quart (1 liter)

1 cup dried, shredded coconut, preferably unsweetened
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup sugar
Big pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
5 large egg yolks
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract, or 1 teaspoon rum

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Spread the coconut on a baking sheet and bake for 5 to 8 minutes, stirring it frequently so it toasts evenly. Remove it from the oven when it's nice and fragrant and golden brown.

In a medium saucepan, warm the milk, 1 cup of the heavy cream, sugar and salt and add the toasted coconut. Use a paring knife, and scrape all the vanilla seeds into the warm milk, then add the pod as well. Cover, remove from the heat and let steep at room temperature for 1 hour.

Rewarm the coconut-infused mixture. Set a mesh strainer over another medium saucepan and strain the coconut-infused liquid through the strainer into the saucepan. Press down on the coconut very firmly with a flexible rubber spatula to extract as much of the flavor from it as possible. Remove the vanilla bean pieces and discard the coconut.

Pour the remaining 1 cup heavy cream into a large bowl and set the mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm coconut-infused mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.

Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir in the cream. Mix in the vanilla or rum and stir until cool over an ice bath.

Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

More Lemon!

2009-04-30T16:44:00.008-08:00

One of my primary motivations in what I bake is seeing a picture of something and saying, 'I want to eat that with my face right now.' Such was the motivation for this recipe and/or utter replication of one woman's picture. The original, far superior, Flickr picture is here. I stumbled on it while looking through shots of pound cake because I was still determined to remedy my foul up from a few weeks ago. She identified it as Lemon Pound cake with Blueberry Sauce and Coconut Gelato. Mmmmm. Yes please.

I stuck with Rose Levy Beranbaum for the lemon pound cake. You know how you have an idea of what something SHOULD taste like, even if you've maybe never had it that way? I always thought pound cake was supposed to be moist and melt-in-your-mouth a little. I was informed that it's not like that and that it's ultimately dry. I still have a sneaking suspicion my pound cake recipe is out there somewhere...

That's not to say this was bad - not at all. The light lemon was perfect: not too tart and not overwhelming. It only calls for zest in the actual batter and then you brush a lemon syrup over the rest of it later that is also very gentle and lovely. I especially enjoy it warmed up a little but I love warm cake so. That's me.

NOW. The lemon pound cake/blueberry sauce/coconut ice cream; it gets a C+ in my book and here's why: the coconut ice cream (which I'll post about next) is so mild, it's taken over even by the light lemon of the cake. And the blueberry sauce, Ina Garten's recipe, was surprisingly disappointing. There wasn't enough blueberry flavor; it kind of just tasted like syrup with a hint of blueberry. In the end, the cake was good alone and the ice cream was good alone but together they kind of cancelled each others' flavors out.

But reconstructing that beautiful picture was fun. :)

LEMON POUND CAKE
Source: Rose Levy Beranbaum

Ingredients at room temperature

3 tablespoons milk
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon loosely packed grated lemon zest
13 tablespoons unsalted butter (must be softened)
1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Grease and line the bottom of one 8-inch by 4-inch by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan with parchment or wax paper, and then grease again and flour.

In a medium bowl lightly combine the milk, eggs and vanilla.

In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients and lemon zest and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to blend. Add the butter and half the egg mixture. Mix on low speed under the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase to medium speed (high speed if using a hand mixer) and beat for 1 minute to aerate and develop the cake's structure.

Scrape down the sides. Gradually add the remaining egg mixture in 2 batches, beating for 20 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients and strengthen the structure. Scrape down the sides.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the surface with a spatula. The batter will be almost 1/2 inch from the top of the 4-cup loaf pan. Bake 55 to 65 minutes (35 to 45 minutes in a fluted tube pan) or under a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Shortly before the cake is done, prepare the Lemon Syrup: In a small pan over medium heat, stir the sugar and lemon juice until dissolved. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, place the pan on a rack, poke the cake all over with a wire tester (or toothpick), and brush it with 1/2 the syrup. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Loosen the sides with a spatula and invert onto a greased wire rack. Poke the bottom of the cake with the wire tester, brush it with some syrup, and reinvert onto a greased wire rack. Brush the sides with the remaining syrup and allow to cool before wrapping airtight. Store 24 hours before eating to give the syrup a chance to distribute evenly. The syrup will keep the cake fresh a few days longer than a cake without syrup.

BLUEBERRY SAUCE
Source: Ina Garten

1 1/2 pints fresh blueberries, rinsed
1 cup sugar
1 splash vanilla
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Combine the blueberries and sugar in a large heavy saucepan. Add 1 cup water and the lemon juice and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes, or until the mixture begins to thicken.

Remove from the heat and cool to room temperature, cover and refrigerate.

The lemon madeleines of doom

2009-04-26T07:35:00.005-08:00

You know, the idea to make lemon madeleines started innocently enough. I just wanted something easy to get me back into baking after a winter-induced hiatus. And then the debacle with the oven breaking happened but I was determined to still make them once it came back. I mean, I still had the lemons and those things go bad if you don't use them.

And the thing about madeleines which makes them great and terrible at the same time is, they don't last more than a day. I'd argue a few hours, to be honest. Because they're best when they're warm out of the oven and after a few hours, they're dry and a little stale. The second day, they're useless. I probably won't make them again unless I have someone over to enjoy them as well.

But they're quite lovely anyway. :)

LEMON MADELEINES
Source: Martha Stewart

Makes 2 dozen

3/4 cup unsalted butter (1 1/2 sticks), melted, plus more for pans
1 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted (not self-rising)
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
3 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (2 to 3 lemons total)
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter (or Pam spray) two madeleine pans; set aside.

Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl; set aside.

Put eggs, egg yolks, granulated sugar, vanilla, and lemon zest and juice in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium-high speed until pale and thickened, about 5 minutes. Mix in butter. Using a spatula, fold flour mixture into egg mixture. Let rest 30 minutes.

Pour batter into buttered pans, filling the molds 3/4 full. Bake cookies, rotating pans halfway through, until edges are crisp and golden, 7 to 8 minutes. Let cookies cool slightly in pans on wire racks. Invert, and unmold. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature up to one day.

Fairycakes

2009-04-22T05:05:00.004-08:00

I lived in London for a few years (I'm American) and while I was there, I have to admit - and my sincerest apologies to any Brits reading this - but I had pretty bad experiences whilst exposed to English baking. There was just something I didn't GET. From the Christmas puddings to the dense, dry cakes; I suspect I just didn't know where to find GOOD bakery because the local shop on the high street just wasn't it.

So when I started investigating these cupcakes and discovered the glaze-like icing more or less classified it as traditionally British and therefore a "fairycake", I got a little nervous. I did a little further investigation and found that "fairycakes" are kind of just what the British call cupcakes and there's no set recipe or characteristic to the cake itself. A weight was lifted. So I chose something light because, you know. Fairies. (C'mon; I was getting in the spirit!) I found a White Velvet Butter Cake recipe in Rose Levy-Beranbaum's Cake Bible and was intrigued by her endorsement as "the softest and most delicate of all butter cakes". Perfect!

Now, one characteristic that DOES seem a standard of fairycakes is baking the cake small and low enough so the runny icing can be caught by the cup sides and it makes this darling-looking cupcake. Well. I thought I filled them low enough but the damn cakes just rose and went all normal on me. Next time, I'll try half full or maybe even less than that!

I was pleasantly surprised with the cake, though. Rose wasn't lying; it's lovely and soft. AND despite it being soft, it worked; sometimes, when cupcakes are too soft, they're hard to handle or can't take the weight of even a basic buttercream or frosting. Because I was using such a light icing, the soft cake was perfect.

However, the icing didn't come out tasting as I expected. I'll chalk that up to inexperience. I used just powdered sugar and lemon juice, expecting the sugar to dull out the lemon. Yeah, that didn't happen. So instead of just being a sweet icing, it's lemon icing. But that's okay because the cake itself isn't too sweet and the two go well together (but lemony).

So, I have the powdered sugar sifted and the lemon juice waiting to put together for the icing when I realize I have no sprinkles. That was the whole point of these things - that you just sprinkle pretty sparklies on top and they sink into the thin icing while it's wet and it still looks adorable! And I have NONE. So. Plan B. I whipped out my white chocolate, melted it, added some coloring and started using toothpicks to put it in these tiny flower molds. I was surprised to see how cute they came out looking (especially since I had nothing else).

It's my birthday today so these are kind of perfect to post. Because they're pink and fun and wee!

WHITE VELVET BUTTER CAKE
Source: The Cake Bible, by Rose Levy Beranbaum

4 1/2 large egg whites
1 cup milk
2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
3 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter (must be softened)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl lightly combine the egg whites, 1/4 cup milk and vanilla.

In a large mixing bowl combine the dry ingredients and mix on low speed for 30 seconds to blend. Add the butter and remaining 3/4 cup milk. Mix on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase to medium speed (high speed if using a hand mixer) and beat for 1 1/2 minutes to aerate and develop the cake's structure. Scrape down the sides. Gradually add the egg mixture in 3 batches, beating for 20 seconds after each addition to incorporate the ingredients and strengthen the structure. Scrape down the sides.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pans and smooth surface with a spatula. The pans will be about 1/2 full. Bake cupcakes 15 to 18 minutes (or two 9-inch by 1 1/2-inch pans greased and bottoms lined with parchment then greased again for 25 to 35 minutes) or until a tester inserted near the center comes out clean and the cake springs back when pressed lightly in the center. (Cake will be light and will not brown even when done.) The cakes should start to shrink from the sides of the pan only after removal from the oven.

Let the cakes cool in the pans on racks for 10 minutes. For 9-inch pans, loosen the sides with a small metal spatula and invert onto greased wire racks. To prevent splitting, reinvert so that the tops are up and cool completely before wrapping airtight.

LEMON ICING
Sift powdered sugar to remove lumps. Mix with freshly squeezed lemon juice until icing is in a thick but runny enough consistency to slowly run over top of cupcakes. Add small amount of coloring if desired.

I'm back, baby

2009-04-17T18:33:00.004-08:00

After my last disappointing baking venture, I took a week or so off then decided to try something new. I settled on something easy but good, fresh for spring and pretty: lemon madeleines. I got everything set up, turned on the oven to preheat, mixed all the dry ingredients, had the eggs broke in a bowl and at room temperature. I'm just about to mix the wet and dry ingredients together when I notice the oven has never beeped that it's preheated. Curiously, I open the door and see that it's dead cold. :-O WUT.

Long story short, two weeks later a new (expensive) part is shipped in and the repair guy restores old [not-so] faithful! IT'S BACK. And I've been DYING to bake for the past two weeks like crazy. Well, tomorrow's the day!!

But before all this happened (the day before, to be exact), I got my mom's birthday cake baked. She wanted something chocolatey and I remembered this cake from last year as rather intense. What I DIDN'T remember was that it calls for deeper pans than I had because it expands a lot. Thankfully, I remembered before the pans went into the oven (I made a mini 6" cake with the extra batter). So. Beware, if you make this. It makes a lot of cake. But moist and yummy! Good the next few days too!

Double Chocolate Layer Cake

Simple

2009-03-30T14:55:00.007-08:00

I am embarrassed, of course, at my lack of updating. But trust in the fact that it's not that I've been baking up a storm and just neglecting my blog; I haven't been baking ANYTHING. It's all the XBox's fault; I got one for Christmas and never got off of it.

I finally found the motivation to bake something and had to scrounge up what I had in the house. That ended up being the most basic of basics: vanilla pound cake. It needed something extra, though, and I immediately thought of berry compote (because I had frozen mixed berries).

I grabbed a high rated recipe from All Recipes and you know what? I'm kind of starting to get irritated with All Recipes. Or, at least, the people reviewing on it. I made this highly rated recipe and it is utterly mediocre. I mean, to have that many stars, you'd think it'd be mouth wateringly AWESOME. But it's just not. It's bland and absolutely NEEDS the compote or other accompaniment. I always thought of a good pound cake as one so buttery and delish, it melts in your mouth a little. Because of all the butter. Delicious butter... But this one doesn't.

The berry compote, however, I got from Williams-Sonoma and it IS good. I think I'm going to stick to legit sources from now on... I won't be making this pound cake again but the compote is a keeper. I used a bag of frozen mixed berries that included raspberries, blueberries and marrionberries.

Together, they're good, but maybe that's because you're mostly just tasting the compote...

Cream Cheese Pound Cake III
Source: All Recipes, Submitted by: Nanci

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
1 1/2 cups butter
3 cups white sugar
6 eggs
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (160 degrees C) grease and flour a 10 inch tube pan.

2. In a large bowl, cream butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add sugar gradually and beat until fluffy.

3. Add eggs two at a time, beating well with each addition. Add the flour all at once and mix in. Add vanilla.

4. Pour into a 10 inch tube pan. Bake at 325 degrees F (160 degrees C) for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Check for doneness at 1 hour. A toothpick inserted into center of cake will come out clean.

Berry Compote
Source: Williams-Sonoma

6 cups mixed berries
5 Tbs sugar
2 tsp lemon juice

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together the berries, 2 Tbs. of the sugar and the lemon juice. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until most of the berries have broken down and the mixture is thickened, about 30 minutes; reduce the heat if the compote sticks to the pan. Remove from the heat and let the compote cool to room temperature.

Holiday Cookies

2008-12-31T13:14:00.006-09:00

A few weeks ago, I made about 12 dozen cookies to give away to family and friends for the holidays. I made sugar (a bust), peanut butter blossoms, magic cookie bars, chocolate chip cookies and biscochitos. I sent packages of a variety of these goodies to friends and that was the most fun. My friends were pleasantly surprised to receive a box of cookies out of no where which makes me all kinds of giddy!

Peanut butter blossoms are a tradition every Christmas and I used this same awesome recipe for the chocolate chip cookies. This is the first year I made the biscochitos, though, which are a Mexican (or Spanish, if you want to go that far back) cookie that we always get at the Mexican bakeries in Houston. I had a few recipes but the first I tried called for lard. Now, I've never SEEN lard, I've never SMELLED lard and I've certainly never COOKED with lard before. It was definitely different. I actually kind of thought it smelled like turkey. Weird, I know. But I made the cookies which vaguely smelled (like turkey, to me) and I just couldn't give them away. I made another batch with Crisco and they were SO MUCH better. My mom said, after comparing the two, that the lard cookie tasted richer. I agree but mostly because the Crisco cookie might've been lighter because it didn't have that heavy turkey taste. (I kid! But seriously; that mess is OFF.)

So I sent out the Crisco biscochitos to my friends in the shapes of Christmasy stars! Because my first attempt at sugar cookies was a bust, I had a second go at them. (See further down.)

It's funny but I made all those cookies and because I planned to give so many away, I really only ate one or two from each batch. I had to save the rest for others! So I made another pan of Magic Cookie Bars that stayed home for family. They're kind of my favorite bar-thing on the planet so. I gots to have some for meeeee.

BISCOCHITOS

1 cup vegetable shortening
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
2 to 4 Tablespoons red wine, brandy or sherry
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons crushed/ground anise seed
3 cups flour
2 teaspoons baking powder, optional
1/2 teaspoon salt, optional

Cinnamon Sugar:
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350°.

Beat lard with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Slowly beat in the sugar, then the egg. Beat in 2 Tablespoons of the wine and the anise seed. Toss the flour together with the baking powder and salt, if using. Gently stir in, adding more wine as needed to form a soft dough. Let stand for 10 minutes or cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

On a lightly floured surface, roll out 1/4-inch thick and cut into shapes as desired. Dip the top side of each cookie in the cinnamon-sugar and place on ungreased cookie sheets, about 1 inch apart.

Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, depending upon size, just until the edges turn a pale blond. Let cool a few minutes then remove to a wire rack to cool. Store in a cookie jar or airtight container.

THEN I committed myself to making sugar cookies and it came down to Christmas Eve but I did them. Next year I'll prepare better and do them right but these came out cute. :)

Mini Pies!

2008-12-05T05:00:00.004-09:00

As I mentioned in the last post, I made a chocolate pecan pie for work and didn't get to taste it. Then my mother made the same pie for Thanksgiving and I had a small piece (because there were three pies to sample!). So the week after Thanksgiving, I realized I didn't get my pecan pie fix like I shoulda. I didn't want to make a whole pie for myself. C'mon give me some credit; I do have some control. However I needed it so the solution was clearly MINI pie.

I used the same Pecan Pie recipe from the last post (without the chocolate) and simply split the filling recipe in half. I used the equivalent to one pie crust and it made five mini tart/pies. The only adjustment I had to make was to the baking time: I lowered the temperature to around 320 degrees and it ended up baking 40 minutes or so. The toothpick test will let you know when they're done!

They're perfect for one serving of your very own little pie! :)

Invisible cakes and pies

2008-11-30T11:31:00.006-09:00

Okay, here's the thing: I HAVE been baking over this past month. However. It's been for work parties and such so I haven't been able to take proper pictures and cut them open, etc. Unless I cut a piece out and took it to work that way. 'Happy Birthday! Oh BTW, I already had a piece. That's cool, right?'

So I've made a pumpkin cake with cream cheese icing which was pretty all right. I'd make it again (and might so I can post about it and someone other than my coworkers can taste it). I also made a pumpkin pie for Thanksgiving that was an experiment that I didn't love. It involved a crumb topping that didn't work out. I won't make that again.

Then I made a chocolate pecan pie which is a Thanksgiving tradition in my family. It's very rich and very sweet but we love it; we have it every year. It might look like a lot but trust me, if your tastes run decadent, this pie is definitely for you.

SOUTHERN CHOCOLATE PECAN PIE

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter (melted)
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs
1/2 cup chocolate chips (plus more for drizzling on top)
1 to 1/2 cups pecans
1 9-inch deep dish pie shell (unbaked)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Mix sugar and butter well in mixing bowl. Add syrup, salt and vanilla. Mix again. Add eggs one at a time and mix after each.

3. Spread chocolate chips over bottom of unbaked pie crust. Spread pecans over chocolate chips. Pour mixture on top of both chocolate and pecans.

4. Bake until top is brown and pie set (about 45-55 minutes). Toothpick stuck in center of pie should come out almost dry.

5. When pie is completely cool, drizzle melted white and dark chocolate on top (easiest way is to slowly microwave in a Ziplock freezer bag and cut small hole in bottom corner of baggie).

Spider Cake

2008-11-03T17:22:00.005-09:00

This is getting to be a THING, methinks...

I made this for the cake walk at my work and the woman who picked it was very pleased! She had a gathering the next night and said all her friends enjoyed it and asked for the recipe! It was awesome!

It was just my usual chocolate cake in two layers and vanilla buttercream (recipe here). The lady who took it really liked the frosting. lol. I thought, who doesn't??

The black is the premade Wilton tube frosting; I didn't want to mess with trying to color my own because black is never as good as Wilton's makes it. And it tasted fine!

It didn't come out perfect; if I were to do it again, I'd use a thinner tip for the web and I'd make a GIANT spider (possibly with balloons...)

Pumpkin On!

2008-10-10T11:57:00.001-08:00

The pumpkin madness continues! I noticed a weird trend, though, when I jumped back in my blog to last fall: THEN I made a bread pudding, a pumpkin dessert, some chocolate chip cookies, some strawberry and tea cookies, a crème brûlée... Are we sensing a pattern here? Yeah, these are all things I've made THIS fall too. Granted, they're variations on flavors this year but still. Seems like in the fall I get cravings for a lot of the same stuff: comfort foods and pumpkin! I have to make it my mission to try some new stuff when I get back from my vacation.

But back to THIS recipe. The funny thing about pumpkin desserts which inevitably have the same familiar spices is, they kind of all remind you of pumpkin pie. This crème brûlée was just like that, pie-like, only in a softer texture.

The exciting thing with this crème brûlée, however, is that I borrowed my mom's serious, hardware-section blow torch and it worked PERFECTLY. No more putting the custards under a broiler and hoping they come out evenly done (but always burning just a little bit too much). I had complete control to make it an even, perfectly browned, sugar top! I will never use anything else again!

And my mom said it didn't need whipped cream but I just can't help it; pumpkin just seems wrong without it...

PUMPKIN CRÈME BRÛLÉE
Source: Williams-Sonoma

1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 tsp. freshly grated cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/2 tsp. freshly grated ginger
3/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
5 egg yolks
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
6 Tbs. pumpkin puree
1/3 cup plus 4 tsp. granulated sugar
1 Tbs. firmly packed light brown sugar

Preheat an oven to 300°F. Have a pot of boiling water ready.

Pour the cream into a small saucepan and whisk in the cinnamon, allspice, ginger and nutmeg. Set over medium-low heat and warm the cream mixture until bubbles form around the edges of the pan and steam begins to rise from the surface, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let stand for 15 minutes.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, vanilla, salt, pumpkin puree, the 1D3 cup granulated sugar and the brown sugar until smooth and blended. Slowly pour in the cream mixture, stirring until blended. Pour the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl. Divide the mixture among four 8-fl.-oz. ramekins and place in a large baking pan. Add boiling water to fill the pan halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Cover the pan loosely with aluminum foil and bake until the custards are just set around the edges, about 30 minutes.

Transfer the ramekins to a wire rack and let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 3 days.

Just before serving, sprinkle 1 tsp. granulated sugar evenly over the surface of each custard. Using a kitchen torch according to the manufacturer's instructions, move the flame continuously in small circles over the surface until the sugar melts and lightly browns. Refrigerate until sugar top hardens slightly then serve. Serves 4.

Flaky Cookies and Tea

2008-10-07T06:00:00.001-08:00

Sometimes the easiest dishes taste the best. There's something pure and perfect about simple flavors. My mother made these cookies MAYBE twice, about ten years ago, and I still remembered them. There's almost nothing to them but they're flaky, sometimes chewy (with cooked jelly) and they're altogether lovely.

And I've got a serious soft spot for strawberry sweets and tea. Of course, you can use whatever jelly or jam you like best! Go crazy!

A word of advice: these won't rise at all. I recommend making them the thickness you'd like in a buttery cookie (1/2-inch is ideal to me) and make deep wells for the jelly. It likes to escape its cookie when it can!

And one more warning? They're super addictive. Good luck having just one...

CREAM CHEESE / JELLY COOKIES

3 ounces cream cheese (may use 1/3 less fat)
1 stick (4 oz) unsalted butter, softened (*if using salted, omit salt)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 pinch salt
jam, jelly, or preserves, your favorite

Cream the cream cheese and butter together. Blend in flour and salt.

Roll out on a floured surface and cut into lines dividing lines 2 x 1 inch long. Press a trowel in center with end of spoon or finger/thumb. Place a dab of preserves or jam in the center of each cookie.

Bake on an ungreased cookie sheet at 375 degrees for about 10 to 15 minutes.

Pumpkin Season Begins

2008-09-26T04:50:00.002-08:00

There's something kind of perfect about pumpkin. Not only is it good for you (it is, for serious), when paired with the classic spices of cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves, it immediately evokes this feeling of warmth, familiarity and family. It might solely be an American thing because the traditional pumpkin pie is mandatory at Thanksgiving dinner every November, every year, without fail. Pumpkin then becomes this symbol of tradition and comfort. That flush of happiness that pumpkin flavors provoke is genuine and impossible to manufacture. It's home.

Therefore, I'm always eager to get going on the pumpkin train when fall rolls around. August is always a little too soon (the summer clings on!), September is good but October is GREAT. November, of course, is virtually Pumpkin Month, what with Thanksgiving and all. Last year I had great plans and then fell short on nearly all of them. I ended up only making pumpkin chocolate chip muffins and a pumpkin bread that wasn't fantastic (so it never got posted). This year, I am not falling down on the job. I have at least three more pumpkin-centric recipes that I WILL be making over the next two months. But first, there is bread pudding:

I think I can safely put bread pudding up there as one of my favorite things ever. I've made three different kinds now and each one has been delish. I found this recipe on Epicurious.com and adapted it for individual servings (the original is for an 11x7 pan) and, again, I used the plain hoagie bread instead of the "egg bread" that's called for. The beauty of bread pudding seems to be how versatile it is. I'm sure an egg bread such as Challah would have been just as good. I also played it safe because I was changing up the recipe and baked the ramekins in a water bath, lowered the temperature and cut the bake time virtually in half. Smaller portions bake faster and all. The water bath may be unnecessary so exclude at your own risk!

Then there's the caramel sauce that goes along. I'll admit this seemed a little unnecessary once you taste the finished product. Pumpkin is a strong enough flavor with it's spices to stand on its own; you don't need caramel taking anything away from that perfect combination. Unless you're a stickler for decoration, I'd skip it. It looks like it enhances the dish, but it doesn't really. A dollop of whipped cream is all you need to go with pumpkin goodness. I'm seriously beginning to love the consistency of bread pudding and this one came out lovely!

PUMPKIN BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from Bon Appétit

Makes about 8-9 individual ramekins

2 cups half and half

1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin

1 cup (packed) plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

10 cups 1/2-inch cubes bread (about 10-ounces)

Optional Caramel Sauce

1 1/4 cups (packed) dark brown sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1/2 cup whipping cream

For bread pudding: Preheat oven to 330°F.

Whisk half and half, pumpkin, dark brown sugar, eggs, pumpkin pie spice, cinnamon and vanilla extract in large bowl to blend. Fold in bread cubes. Let stand 15 minutes.

Transfer mixture to 8 ramekins. Set in a large pan and fill halfway up ramekins with boiling water. Bake pumpkin bread pudding until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare caramel sauce: Whisk brown sugar and butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Whisk in cream and stir until sugar dissolves and sauce is smooth, about 3 minutes.

Serve warm with a dollop of whipped cream and drizzle with caramel sauce.

Chocolate. Bread. Pudding!

2008-09-21T10:46:00.003-08:00

There's a restaurant chain in Houston, TX, where I'm from, called Pappa's. The original was seafood but over the past 30+ years, they've expanded to separate restaurants specializing in Cajun, barbeque, steak, burgers, Greek and Mexican. It's at the excellent Pappasito's Cantina (the best Mexican restaurant that I know of) that I first tasted chocolate bread pudding.

It was magnificent. It contradicted what I believed bread pudding to be - it was solid, rich and decadent. It quickly became a staple of the ultimate meal at Pappasito's. The restaurant serves it at room temperature (or even slightly chilled) with crème anglaise AND a scoop of cinnamon ice cream. The two creamy sides compliment the rich chocolate dessert perfectly.

So when I went in search of a chocolate bread pudding recipe, I started getting discouraged: those with pictures clearly looked nothing like the kind from Pappasito's. They were more traditional bread pudding, thin, kind of goopy or loose, and none had terrific reviews. Then I stumbled on one called "DOUBLE Chocolate Bread Pudding" and I was intrigued. The recipe was directly from a restaurant called South City Kitchen in Georgia and the picture looked JUST like Pappasito's (in terms of consistency). However, it called for croissants instead of a regular French bread and having seen bits of bread-bread in Pappasitos', I knew I would have to alter their recipe. That made for a little uncertainty but once the finished product came out, I had absolute NO complaints.

It was better than I could've hoped for. VERY close to Pappasitos' recipe. I even made sure to have crème anglaise with it! I ended up using hoagie bread which are just small (about 5-6 inch long), oval loaves and they weren't stale or hard. They were still soft and they soaked up the custard very well, making a solid pudding.

This is, without a doubt, one of my favorite things. If you enjoy rich, chocolatey desserts, you MUST make this.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from South City Kitchen, Vinings

8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, cut into small chunks
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
4 eggs
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 pinch salt
8 ounces bread (about 3 large hoagie-sized pieces)
1 cup (6 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 225 degrees. Place the semisweet chocolate in a large mixing bowl and set aside. In a saucepan over medium heat, heat the milk, cream and butter until butter is melted. Add to the semisweet chocolate, cover with a plate and set aside for a few minutes, then whisk until smooth.

In a small bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Beat a small amount of the warm chocolate mixture into the eggs, then whisk all of the egg mixture into the warm chocolate mixture.

Break up the bread into about 1-inch pieces and fold them into the custard mixture. (Add only enough to coat the bread very well and have a little liquid left over.) Then fold in the chocolate chips.

Pour into a buttered 2 quart baking dish (or 8-inch square pan). Bake until set, about 1 1/2 hours. Let rest at room temperature for 10 minutes; serve warm. Chill remainder as soon as possible. Leftovers can be reheated in a microwave oven.

CREME ANGLAISE
Source: Williams-Sonoma

2 cups milk
2 eggs plus 1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract

Rinse the inside of a nonaluminum saucepan with water and shake out the excess water. Pour in the milk, place over medium-low heat and cook until small bubbles form around the edges of the pan, about 5 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine the eggs, egg yolk and sugar and whisk just until blended. Gradually whisk in half of the hot milk, then pour the egg mixture into the pan. Set over low heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon and leaves a clear trail when a finger is drawn through it, 6 to 8 minutes. Do not allow it to boil.

Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve into a bowl. Stir in the vanilla. Cover with plastic wrap, pressing it directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming, and let cool. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours or for up to 2 days.

Makes about 2 cups.

Reddish Pink Velvet

2008-09-20T06:38:00.008-08:00

You know, I love trying new recipes but I've run into a predicament: if I make something that I've never had before, I don't know if it's RIGHT. That is to say, I'm not sure that I've made it in the usual way it's supposed to be. Now, I guess one could argue that as long as it's good, it's a success. But not me; I wouldn't argue that. That's silly logic.

So I got bored the other day and decided to try red velvet cupcakes. The first recipe I had saved was Paula Deen's and I thought, Hell, she's a Southerner; these should be as standard as they come.

The batter was pretty sticky looking and I only had one tablespoon of red dye on hand (who has that much liquid red dye sitting around??). So it looked like pink glue. They baked up fine but once I took a bite, they were kinda... plain. I was expecting a dense, dark and rich cake, akin to chocolate in its texture. This was kind of just regular, fluffy cake with a tiny hint of cocoa.

Needless to say I was disappointed and a little baffled. Surely this is not how most red velvet cakes come out... I've SEEN them; they're THICK. I sort of concluded that it must be this recipe that was less than stellar. I would like to try a different one but I've got to get to the store for more red dye. Maybe some other time; I wasn't terribly impressed with the taste so I'm not in a rush to duplicate.

Besides, it's FALL. Time for pumpkin and warm, yummy foods!

RED VELVET CUPCAKES
Source: Paula Deen

For the cupcakes:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 pound cream cheese, softened
2 sticks butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

For the cupcakes:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12-cup) muffin pans with cupcake papers.

In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In a large bowl gently beat together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.

Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for about 20 to 22 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy.

Cook's Note: Frost the cupcakes with a butter knife or pipe it on with a big star tip.

The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies?

2008-09-08T17:40:00.006-08:00

My local newspaper ran an article from the New York Times by David Leite in which he went in search of the "perfect chocolate chip cookie". He went to New York City's best bakeries and got all the insider tips. Custom chocolate made exclusively for bakers, small batches baked so they are always fresh, warming trays for customers who wanted their cookies all nice and gooey.

One of the most interesting things was offered by Dorie Greenspan who noted that salt was incredibly important when dealing with sweet baked goods. Not only mixed in the cookie itself but sprinkled on top as well. I was intrigued. The recipe called for sea salt that I did not have. I used kosher salt and it was a VERY interesting addition. GOOD-interesting and something that was always present in chocolate chip cookies but somehow enhanced the contrast to sweet without being overwhelming.

Another unusual practice that was common across the board for the professional bakers was refrigerating the dough for at least 36 hours! This technique is said to "allow the dough and other ingredients to fully soak up the liquid - in this case, the eggs - to get a drier and firmer dough, which bakes to a better consistency." To be perfectly honest, it worked like a charm! I've never made cookies that came out so evenly cooked and soft yet still firm and crispy around the edges. These are absolutely the best chocolate chip cookies I've ever made!

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
Source: David Leite

2 cups minus 2 tablespoons (8 1/2 ounces) cake flour
1 2/3 cups (8 1/2 ounces) bread flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 1/2 sticks (1 1/4 cups) unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups (10 ounces) light brown sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (8 ounces) granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons natural vanilla extract
1 1/4 pounds bittersweet chocolate disks, at least 60 percent cacao content (I roughly chopped mine into at least halves)
sea salt

1. Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

2. Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla. Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds. Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them. Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.

3. When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.

4. Scoop six 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie. Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more. Repeat with remaining dough or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day. Eat warm with a big napkin.

Makes 1 1/2 dozen 5-inch cookies.

Chunky Indeed

2008-09-01T07:37:00.005-08:00

I bought the Ben & Jerry's ice cream recipe book with high hopes. Finally! The secrets of some of my favorite ice creams revealed! well. It didn't exactly work out that way.

I tried the coffee recipe of theirs and it was good but I've never had their coffee ice cream anyway so I couldn't compare. So I moved on to banana because I HAVE had Chunky Monkey. Boy howdy; that was NOT Chunky Monkey. The consistency of the cream was icy (probably because the banana itself is quite watery) and I couldn't understand why it came out so wrong. I'm not especially surprised Ben & Jerry's didn't reveal their REAL recipe but, geez; something close would've been nice.

I should have given up but you know me; failure is not acceptable. It has to be right. So I went in search of another recipe and found one even titled "chunky" and made reference to being damn close to the famous flavor. I went to it and finally, something resembling the original! And so incredibly easy! Win!

In an effort to make it even closer to the brand flavor, I melted down some Dove dark chocolates and spread them in a thin (1/8 inch) layer on parchment paper. I chilled the chocolate in the fridge until hard and roughly cut it into rectangle pieces (maybe 2 x 1 1/2"). I don't love the texture of chocolate chips in ice cream and merely chopping a bar would make chocolate shavings throughout the mix. This worked really well. Homemade chocolate chunks. :)

I was pleased with how nice this one came out. It'd be even better with some chocolate syrup drizzled over top (but what wouldn't be better with that?)

CHUNKY BANANA NUT ICE CREAM
Adapted from All Recipes, Submitted by: Stephany Brown

4 bananas, broken into chunks
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup white sugar
1 1/3 cups heavy cream, chilled
2/3 cup cold milk
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 cup dark chocolate chunks

In a blender or food processor, combine bananas, lemon juice, vanilla, sugar, cream and milk. Puree until smooth. Transfer mixture to the freezer canister of an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions.

When ice cream begins to stiffen, add walnuts and chocolate chunks.

Bacon Ice Cream. Yep.

2008-08-28T16:16:00.007-08:00

One of the best things about cooking is the excitement of trying something new, creating something or just doing the unusual because you can. My friend posed a challenge to me a few months ago, after I got my ice cream maker: she'd seen it on Top Chef and when I asked what flavor she wanted, she enthusiastically proposed BACON. She was probably half kidding but I take challenges seriously and she promised she'd at least try it if I made it.

I mulled it over for a while, thought about ways to infuse the custard base with bacon flavor (heat the cream with bacon bits then strain them out?). I planned, plotted, and was just about to just throw stuff together and see what happened. Then I found a recipe on David Lebovitz's blog and that was that. He starts by "candying" the bacon. Pretty much the same as making a sweet bacon (say, maple bacon). I really like the idea of baking the stuff, though; I have issues with frying bacon. I know, it seems easy but there's always SOMETHING that gives you problems. Bacon is one of my enemies...

Sizzle sizzle!

And the finished product. It was kind of difficult to cut but that's because it wasn't crisp (which I didn't want for the ice cream, to be honest). So it's sticky from the brown sugar and soft. Messy messy. But wait! There's more... The custard is a simple, brown sugar base (with vanilla and a splash of whisky) and it was really good by itself. But if I didn't add the bacon then it would just be brown sugar ice cream and that's not what this was about. NO.

So I put it together and gave it a taste. It tastes like... [drum roll] ice cream and bacon. IKR?? Yeah, it's pretty straightforward. BUT the friend that requested it, liked it so that's all that mattered. (And a few more people who tried it were pretty okay with it!) It's something I can say I've tried now and that's something! BACON ICE CREAM
Source: David Lebovitz

For the candied bacon;
5 strips bacon
about 2 tablespoons light brown sugar

For the ice cream custard:
3 tablespoons salted butter
3/4 cup (packed) brown sugar, light or dark (you can use either)
2 3/4 cup half-and-half
5 large egg yolks
2 teaspoons dark rum or whiskey
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
optional: 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. To candy the bacon, preheat the oven to 400F (200C).

2. Lay the strips of bacon on a baking sheet lined with a silicone mat or aluminum foil, shiny side down.

3. Sprinkle 1 1/2-2 teaspoons of brown sugar evenly over each strip of bacon, depending on length.

4. Bake for 12-16 minutes. Midway during baking, flip the bacon strips over and drag them through the dark, syrupy liquid that's collected on the baking sheet. Continue to bake until as dark as mahogany. Remove from oven and cool the strips on a wire rack.

5. Once crisp and cool, chop into little pieces, about the size of grains of rice. (Bacon bits can be stored in an airtight container and chilled for a day or so, or stored in the freezer a few weeks ahead.)

6. To make the ice cream custard, melt the butter in a heavy, medium-size saucepan. Stir in the brown sugar and half of the half-and-half. Pour the remaining half-and-half into a bowl set in an ice bath and set a mesh strainer over the top.

7. In a separate bowl, stir together the egg yolks, then gradually add some of the warm brown sugar mixture to them, whisking the yolks constantly as you pour. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.

8. Cook over low to moderate heat, constantly stirring and scraping the bottom with a heatproof spatula, until the custard thickens enough to coat the spatula.

9. Strain the custard into the half-and-half, stirring over the ice bath, until cool. Add liquor, vanilla and cinnamon, if using.

10. Refrigerate the mixture. Once thoroughly chilled, freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. Add the bacon bits during the last moment of churning, or stir them in when you remove the ice cream from the machine.

ChocoNanaButter, Experiment 2

2008-08-19T20:04:00.005-08:00

The chocolate-banana-peanut butter experimenting continues. I feel a little like a mad scientist, just concocting stuff with three ingredients and hoping it'll hold together. My more wackier ideas are looking better and better as I work on the balance of said ingredients. The key seems to be the banana is very easily overpowered by the strong chocolate and peanut butter flavors. Even here, with banana creme filling in the cupcakes, the intense chocolate and creamy peanut butter completely take over and then just a hint of banana comes through in a bite.

I'd like to start toying with more predominantly banana recipes (like banana ice cream with chocolate or maybe peanut butter cup chunks stirred in) to see if that helps balance the flavors. I also bought banana flavoring which I am, admittedly, terrified of (mostly because it's "imitation" and alcohol based). I'm just not too comfortable with putting something like that in my cooking...

But even if you're not feeling adventurous or, you know, inclined to this ChocoNanaButter creation, the straight peanut butter and chocolate cupcakes are amazing. They're Ina Garten's (with a guest author for the peanut butter icing) so you know they're good.

The icing is sweet buttery goodness..

PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE & BANANA CUPCAKES
Adapted from Ina Garten

Chocolate Cupcakes

12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, shaken, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
2 tablespoons brewed coffee
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup good cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Kathleen's Peanut Butter Icing, recipe follows
Banana Creme Filling, recipe follows
Chopped salted peanuts, to decorate, optional

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and 2 sugars on high speed until light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes.

Lower the speed to medium, add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla and mix well. In a separate bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee. In another bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt. On low speed, add the buttermilk mixture and the flour mixture alternately in thirds to the mixer bowl, beginning with the buttermilk mixture and ending with the flour mixture. Mix only until blended. Fold the batter with a rubber spatula to be sure it's completely blended.

Divide the batter among the cupcake pans (1 rounded standard ice cream scoop per cup is the right amount). Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes, remove from the pans, and allow to cool completely before filling with banana creme and frosting.

Kathleen's Peanut Butter Icing:

1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup heavy cream

Place the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on medium-low speed until creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high speed until the mixture is light and smooth.

Banana Creme Filling

1 cup milk
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
2 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
1 large banana
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Heat the milk in a heavy bottomed pan until very hot but not boiling.

Mix the sugar, flour and salt together in a bowl. Stir in the hot milk and beat until well blended. Pour back into the pan and continue to stir vigorously over low heat for minutes, until very thick and smooth. Add the egg yolks and cook for a few more minutes. Cool, stirring from time to time.

Mash the banana and beat it until smooth. Add tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 teaspoon vanilla (optional), and stir the mixture into the cooled filling.

Cut a cone out of the cooled cupcakes. Trim tip of top cone, fill cupcake with cooled banana creme and return top of cupcake.

Frost each cupcake with Peanut Butter Icing and sprinkle with chopped peanuts, if desired.

Pictoral Ode to Pluots

2008-08-16T08:10:00.003-08:00

From Wikipedia: The pluot is a complex cross hybrid of plum and apricot, being ¾ plum and ¼ apricot in percentage. The pluot, like the aprium, is derived from the half-plum–half-apricot hybrid called the plumcot.

Here, I have two varieties of the pluot and the small, yellowish fruit was sweeter but both were extraordinary.It melts in your mouth like liquid candy. Best fruit EVER.

Healthy = Healthy!

2008-08-10T06:34:00.002-08:00

It's not that I feel guilty, per se, for the overly sweet and fatty foods I've been making of late but sometimes you just feel like something that might actually be good for you. I went in search of a tasty, healthy muffin and came across these wildly popular bran muffins on All Recipes.

Their popularity is undoubtedly rooted in the versatility of these simple muffins. Don't want oil? Yank it out and replace it with healthy applesauce, pumpkin, cooked and pureed carrots, squash or banana! Want some extra oomph? Add shredded carrots, dates, pecans, walnuts, carob chips or coconut. It all works!

I, personally, am a big walnut fan so I played it safe and kept it simple. I used applesauce and a little cinnamon to compliment that then threw in some walnuts. These make the perfect on-the-go breakfast because they're packed with all that healthy junk I've been neglecting lately. AND the applesauce makes them incredibly moist and so tasty!

CLASSIC BRAN MUFFINS
Adapted from All Recipes.com, Submitted by Janet Kalman Villada

1 1/2 cups wheat bran
1 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup applesauce
1 egg
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup walnuts

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease muffin cups or line with paper muffin liners.

2. Mix together wheat bran and buttermilk; let stand for 10 minutes.

3. Beat together applesauce, egg, sugar and vanilla and add to buttermilk/bran mixture. Sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Stir flour mixture into buttermilk mixture, until just blended. Fold in walnuts and spoon batter into prepared muffin tins.

4. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool and enjoy!

ChocoNanaButter, Experiment 1

2008-08-06T15:05:00.002-08:00

About a year ago, Reese's put out a special Elvis edition of their peanut butter cups with banana creme added to commemorate his famous peanut butter/banana fried sandwiches. Ever since, I've been fascinated with the peanut butter/banana/chocolate combo. I've envisioned pies, stuffed croissants and more. It fell by the wayside when summer rolled around and the rich, thick dessert held little appeal. Well. My experimental side won out.

As far as experiments go, this one was a moderate success. I wouldn't say complete for a few reasons. It's messy and it's only OKAY. I think, maybe, my proportions were off - the ratio of chocolate to peanut butter was too much when dealing with a stronger flavor (dark chocolate) to smooth peanut butter. And the banana was nearly drowned out completely.

But it's worth trying. If you do decide to try at home, start with less chocolate than you'd think (I used about four of the individual Dove dark chocolates and I think it was too much). They melt and they're strong so take it easy on those! Even when you think there isn't enough (of chocolate or peanut butter), keep in mind that they're going to melt and alllll run together in the gooey sandwich.

Be prepared with many, many napkins...

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER BANANA SANDWICH

2 pieces bread
2 tbsp butter (or as needed)
2-3 tbsp peanut butter
1-2 ounces chocolate, chopped
1 banana

In a frying pan, melt 1 tbsp of the butter. Make sure butter does not burn. Slice the bananas into 1/4-inch thick slices. Spread the peanut butter on 1 slice of bread and place chopped chocolate on peanut butter. Cover with banana slices in a single layer and top with the remaining slice of bread. Spread the remaining butter on one side of the sandwich. Grill the sandwiches in the frying pan, unbuttered side first, until each side is golden brown and chocolate is melted.

Cut diagonally and serve.

Warm AND Summery

2008-07-31T17:45:00.004-08:00

About a week ago, it got unseasonably cold up here in Alaska. It rained and rained and that's characteristic of August up here. There's even talk about it possibly being the Coldest Summer Ever (with the fewest days to get above 65 degrees). I think we'll probably just eek it out but it'll be close.

But as it was, it was cold and rainy but still "summer" so I had a dilemma. I wanted something warm but not autumn-y. The solution presented itself in the form of a spicy tortilla soup. Warm, fulfilling but not wintery. I found it on All Recipes and went with several modifications, as always. And maybe it's just me but the cheese and sour cream seemed kind of essential. I taste tested it from the pot without both and was a little uncertain. Then I bowled it up with the accompaniments and VOILA! Delish!

CHICKEN TORTILLA SOUP
Adapted from All Recipes.com, Submitted by Betty

2 skinless, boneless chicken breasts
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
1 cup frozen corn kernels
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 cup chunky salsa
~4-5 corn tortillas (or tortilla chips)
1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese (optional)

In a large pot over medium heat, boil the chicken in a little water with a garlic clove and salt until done. Let the chicken cool until it can be handled and shred the chicken by hand. In the soup pot, saute the onion until tender, add the chicken and spices and then add the broth, corn, onion, chili powder, lemon juice and salsa. Reduce heat to low and simmer for about 20 to 30 minutes.

Cut the corn tortillas into narrow strips. Spray with a little cooking spray, add salt to taste and bake in the oven until crisp (or fry in a little olive oil on the stove until light golden).

Top bowls of soup with the Monterey Jack cheese, tortilla strips and a dollop of sour cream.

Banana = Healthy, right?

2008-07-27T17:24:00.006-08:00

You know when sometimes you just get the craving to make something for no reason? That was the impetus for this. Random craving to bake. I froze a few bananas (I'm on a fruit-freezing spree, huh?) and I just felt like using them for no reason in particular. I let them thaw out, cut off the end and squeezed that junk out. Couldn't be easier!

I read a few reviews that were left on this recipe from the user submitted All Recipes.com and most substituted oil for butter which I did. The muffin itself is quite satisfying but as others noted, what makes them REALLY good is the crumb topping. Mmm. They wouldn't be half as good without it, to be perfectly honest. :)

But I've been having one for breakfast over the past week, convincing myself that bananas make it healthy. ...I'm going to make some bran muffins (with applesauce instead of oil) so I'm TRYING for healthier, okay??

BANANA CRUMB MUFFINS
Adapted from All Recipes, Submitted by Lisa Kreft

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 bananas, mashed
3/4 cup white sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup oil
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Lightly grease 10 muffin cups, or line with muffin papers.

2. In a large bowl, mix together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, beat together bananas, sugar, egg and oil. Stir the banana mixture into the flour mixture just until moistened. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.

3. In a small bowl, mix together brown sugar, 2 tablespoons flour and cinnamon. Cut in 1 tablespoon butter until mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. Sprinkle topping over muffins.

4. Bake in preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean.

Cuckoo for Coco

2008-07-20T07:32:00.004-08:00

For my birthday back in April, my best friend got me this adorable cupcake tree that I've wanted since the beginning of time. Or, uh, since I first saw it a few years ago.

She got me the one for mini cupcakes which I've, surprisingly, never made before. I know, right? I'm a cupcake maniac; you'd think I'd be all over the map with my cupcake adventures. I've also never made (or eaten) coconut cake. So, naturally, I went to my reliable Ina. They were good, of course, but I find Ina's cakes sometimes to be a little more dense than I'd like. I'm not looking for a chiffon-type texture but something a little lighter. I'll definitely try another recipe later to compare the two. Maybe my perfect cake is a pipe dream...

But these were absolutely worth making. They were a hit with my taste testers! :)

COCONUT CUPCAKES
Source: Ina Garten (cupcakes) and Williams-Sonoma (icing)

For the Cupcakes:

3/4 pound unsalted butter at room temperature (3 sticks)
2 cups sugar
5 extra-large eggs at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk
14 oz. sweetened, shredding coconut

For the vanilla frosting:

12 Tbs. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons heavy cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups sweetened, shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar for 5 minutes – until light and fluffy. With the mixer running on low, add the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In three parts, alternately add the ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold in 7 ounces of coconut.

Lin a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each cup to the top with batter. Bake for 20 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely.

While cupcakes are cooling, make the icing. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter, confectioners' sugar, cream, vanilla and salt on low speed until smooth, about 3 minutes. Pour the 2 cups coconut into a shallow bowl.

Using an icing spatula, frost the top of each cupcake, mounding the icing in the center. Holding the bottom of each cupcake, roll the frosted top in the coconut.

Blueberries Better With Crumbs

2008-07-17T17:00:00.002-08:00

I had these blueberries left from my massive fruit buying bonanza a few weeks ago, so I quickly froze them before they went bad and went in search of a recipe. I was thisclose to making blueberry pie but backed out; I was told they're just not that good.

One can never go wrong with blueberries and streusel topping, though. I found this out last year when I made blueberry muffins. This was very nice as well; moist and perfectly sweet with the combination of the streusel top. It's definitely a serve-the-day-of dessert, though. It goes dry pretty fast. But right after cooling completely? Perfectly soft and delicious!

BLUEBERRY CRUMB CAKE
Source: Ina Garten

For the streusel:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

For the cake:
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (3/4 stick)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2/3 cup sour cream
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup fresh blueberries
Confectioners' sugar for sprinkling

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour a 9-inch round baking pan.

For the streusel:

Combine the granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a bowl. Stir in the melted butter and then the flour. Mix well and set aside.

For the cake:

Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment on high speed for 4 to 5 minutes, until light. Reduce the speed to low and add the eggs 1 at a time, then add the vanilla, lemon zest, and sour cream. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the batter until just combined. Fold in the blueberries and stir with a spatula to be sure the batter is completely mixed.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread it out with a knife. With your fingers,
crumble the topping evenly over the batter. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. Cool completely and serve sprinkled with confectioners' sugar.

Pistachios in Your Ice Cream

2008-07-05T14:37:00.006-08:00

Ah, on to my third favorite flavor of ice cream (after coffee then cinnamon): pistachio. You know, Williams-Sonoma's recipes are swiftly becoming a safe bet; every one I've tried has come out really well. This was no exception. Creamy but not too sweet; a terrific balance of nutty pistachios and sweet cream!

Now that I've covered my absolute favs with success, I'm going to move on to more challenging flavors (banana, peanut butter?). The good news to all this ice cream making is, I'm getting pretty decent at getting a custard together. Practice really builds the confidence, you know? So much so, I think I'm ready to tackle more experimental flavors like... bacon. (I KNOW, RIGHT? Madness! Wish me luck...)

PISTACHIO ICE CREAM
Source: Williams-Sonoma

1 cup unsalted whole pistachios, roughly chopped
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 egg yolks
Pinch of salt
1/2 tsp. almond extract

Preheat an oven to 350°F.

Arrange the pistachios in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake, shaking the pan occasionally, until the nuts are lightly golden and toasted, 5 to 7 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

In a mini-food processor or standard-size food processor, combine 1/2 cup of the pistachios with the sugar and process until finely chopped and well blended. Reserve the remaining 1/2 cup pistachios.

In a saucepan, combine the milk, cream and the pistachio-sugar mixture and stir to blend. Set the pan over medium-low heat and warm the mixture, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved and steam begins to rise from the surface, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the heat and let the mixture steep for 10 to 15 minutes.

In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and salt until blended. Form a kitchen towel into a ring and place the bowl on top to prevent it from moving. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the pistachio-cream until smooth and blended, then pour the egg mixture back into the pan. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring slowly and continuously with a wooden spoon or spatula, until the custard thickens and a finger drawn across the back of the spoon leaves a path, 8 to 10 minutes; do not allow the custard to boil.

Pour the custard through a fine-mesh sieve set over a clean bowl; discard the pistachios. Nestle the bowl in a larger one filled halfway with ice and water and cool the custard to room temperature, stirring occasionally. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.

Stir the almond extract into the custard, transfer to an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturers instructions. At the end of the freezing stage, add the remaining 1/2 cup pistachios and continue processing just until they are blended into the ice cream. Transfer the ice cream to a chilled container, cover and freeze until firm, at least 3 hours or up to 3 days, before serving.

Makes about 1 quart.

Lemon Bars: $1

2008-07-02T05:00:00.003-08:00

The best (and worst) thing about fruit is it's freshness and fleeting shelf life. Nothing compares to a piece of fresh fruit but if you're not in the mood, it forces you to use it anyway, damnit, because if you don't, you've just wasted good fruit.

I bought a bag of lemons for my lemon tart because it saves a lot of money. Turns out, it didn't take 10-12 lemons to make one tart. Who knew. Okay, I did, but I didn't know what else I could make with the lemons until I came across an extremely high rated recipe on All Recipes.

As usual, I looked over the recipe itself and then the top most useful comments left by reviewers who have modified the original. I almost always use the altered recipe, for better or worse. This time, it came out really REALLY better. It was lemony without being too strong and perfectly proportioned with the straight-forward crust. They call this Bake Sale Lemon Bars and I can see why: they need nothing accompanying them whatsoever. No whipped cream, no big glass of milk. I was surprised how well the tart lemon and sweetness added balanced.

Oh and so not to be wasteful, I candied the peels. They make cute decoration but lack substance: they taste like sugar with a hint of lemon! But, still. Cute decoration. :)

As for the bars themselves, this recipe is definitely a keeper!

BAKE SALE LEMON BARS
Submitted by: Elaine, modified by GOURMETMOMMY

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter or margarine, softened
6 eggs
1 3/4 cups white sugar
6 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup lemon juice

1/3 cup confectioners' sugar for decoration

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

2. Combine the flour, 2/3 cup confectioners' sugar, and butter. Pat dough into prepared pan.

3. Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, until slightly golden. While the crust is baking, whisk together eggs, white sugar, flour, and lemon juice until frothy. Add 3 drops yellow food coloring. Pour this lemon mixture over the hot crust.

4. Return to the preheated oven for an additional 20 to 25 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Dust the top with confectioners' sugar. Cut into squares.

CANDIED LEMON PEELS
Source: Epicurious, Gabrielle Carbone

1 lemon, washed well
2 1/2 cups sugar

Use a vegetable peeler to remove the peel from the lemon in vertical strips. Try to remove only the yellow zest, avoiding as much of the white pith as possible. Save the lemon for another use.

In a small saucepan, combine the peels with 2 cups cold water. Bring to a boil, then drain off the water. Again add 2 cups cold water, bring to a boil, and drain. Repeat the process a third time, then remove the peels from the pan and set aside.

Measure 2 cups of the sugar into the pan and add 1 cup water, whisking until the sugar dissolves. Add the peels and bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the peels are tender and translucent, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain the peels and let cool.

Measure the remaining 1/2 cup sugar into a medium bowl and add the peels. Toss to coat. Using a fork or your fingers, remove the peels one at time, gently shaking each to remove excess sugar. Store in an airtight container. The peels will keep for several weeks.

Buffalo Style

2008-07-01T05:21:00.001-08:00

I absolutely love good Buffalo chicken wings. When I was at university in Austin, TX, there was a place (Wing Zone for all you with access) that had the best wings I could find. And they were close and fast and I swear I ordered from them so much, they probably knew my name and order by heart ('Oh, hi, Niki! 10 Medium wings with potato wedges and ranch dip, right?').

I've had a hard time since moving away from my beloved Wing Zone to find a chicken wing of equal caliber. Hot but not too hot, fresh and really, really saucy. So I've gone without for a while but every so often, the craving rolls around. Usually it's when I see the words "buffalo chicken"... This just so happened when I was browsing chicken recipes the other day and came across this one.

I'd never stuffed anything before so it was a mystery to me but I was more concerned with cooking the meat all the way through than the cheese melting out everywhere. Of course, the bleu cheese taste was practically lost in all this melting away cooking process and I only cooked the minimum amount of time. Were I to make this again, I'd probably skip the stuffed part and just add a side of homemade bleu cheese sauce/dressing. Then I could drench the chicken in the buffalo sauce and be good to go because the sauce? Awesome. I did add a little more hot sauce than it called for but that's my personal taste and you'll have to decide for yourself when it comes to that. But I definitely liked how that sauce came out. It brought (awesome) teardrops from my eyes.

SPICY BUFFALO STYLE STUFFED CHICKEN BREASTS
Adapted from George Duran via Food Network

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/4 cup blue cheese
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 stick unsalted butter
4 tablespoons hot sauce OR to taste (recommended: Frank's Hot Sauce)
2 tablespoons white vinegar
Celery, sliced thin, to serve

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Using a sharp knife, cut a pocket into each chicken breast. Stuff 1/2 of the blue cheese into each breast. Secure the openings with toothpicks and season with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a nonstick, oven-proof skillet over medium heat and sear the chicken on both sides until browned, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Put the chicken into the oven until it is cooked through, about 8 to 10 minutes.

In a small pot, add the butter, hot sauce, and white vinegar and cook over medium heat until bubbling. Pour half the sauce over the hot chicken and cook over medium heat for 1 minute. Remove the toothpicks and serve with extra sauce garnished with sliced celery.