Banana Snack Cake

I had an abundance of overripe bananas on my banana rack, so instead of making more banana bread I made this tasty cake. You can frost the cake with the cream cheese icing as I did, top it with Cool Whip, or just sprinkle it with powdered sugar.
BANANA SNACK CAKE
Adapted slightly from Cafe Zupas

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 1/2 cups white sugar

2 eggs

1 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1 cup mashed ripe banana

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 x 13 inch pan.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in the eggs until combined, then add the sour cream and vanilla and beat until combined.

3. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Beat flour mixture into the wet batter until just combined. Stir in the mashed banana with a spatula. Spread batter evenly into prepared pan.

4. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow bars to cool completely before frosting.

Dark Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Mousse Filling

My brother-in-law, Jay, had a birthday this past weekend and I offered to make a cake. He requested a chocolate cake, so I tried to make it special with dark chocolate frosting and a chocolate mousse filling. This cake recipe never fails me, and the dark chocolate frosting was simple but divine.

The cake (in a photo with horrible lighting...).Jay prepares to blow out the candles as Leslie (who finished a half marathon earlier that morning) and Brady look on. CHOCOLATE CAKE

From Hershey's

INGREDIENTS

2 cups sugar

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup Hershey's Cocoa

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup boiling water

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line three 9-inch pans with wax paper and spray pans with cooking spray.

2. Stir together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla, a beat on medium speed of mixer for 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour batter into prepared pans.

3. Bake 25-30 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely before frosting.

DARK CHOCOLATE FROSTING

From Hershey's

INGREDIENTS

1/2 cup butter
2/3 cup Hershe's Special Dark Cocoa

3 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS

1. Melt butter, stir in cocoa.

2. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount of additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla. Makes about 2 cups frosting.

French Macaroons

I waited until the last minute, but somehow managed to complete another Daring Bakers' challenge. The challenge was to make French macaroons, which as I learned, are completely different than the coconut macaroons that are common in America. This was probably my least successful challenge so far. The macaroons were delicious, but they did not turn out to have "feet" (which as I have learned are a distinguishing characteristic of a French macaroon). I will have to try to figure out what may have caused my lack of feet, although it may remain a mystery forever. I chose to fill my macaroons with chocolate ganache, but they would also be delicous filled with jam.

The 2009 October Daring Bakers' challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macaroons from Claudia Fleming's The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe.
The Process:
The confectioners sugar and almond flour are combined.

The egg whites are beaten to stiff peaks.

The almond flour and sugar are sifted and folded into the egg whites.
The batter is piped onto parchment-lined pans...

...and baked until just golden.

The ganache filling.

The final product, a ganache-filled macaroon.

FRENCH MACAROONS

From Claudia Fleming's The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern

INGREDIENTS

2 1/4 cups confectioners sugar

2 cups almond flour

2 tablespoons granulated sugar

5 egg whites, room temperature

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Combine the confectioners sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until the nuts are very fine and powdery.

2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.

3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour mixture in two batches. Be gentle. Do not overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.

4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip or a zipper bag with a corner cut off.

5. Pipe one-inch sized mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and rasie the temperature to 375 degrees F. Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or until lightly colored.

7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Toffee Chocolate Chip Bars

My husband volunteered to bring a dessert to a potluck at work this week, which really means he volunteered me to make a dessert for him to bring to the potluck. Lucky for him, I am always looking for reasons to bake so I set out to make these bars. I always seem to have an excess of toffee bits on hand, so these bars turned out to be a great use for the toffee bits. Plus, the bars were well received at the potluck and the hubby returned home with an empty container.

TOFFEE CHOCOLATE CHIP BARS
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup cold butter
2 cups (12 ounce pkg.) semi-sweet chocolate chips, divided
1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (8 ounce) package toffee baking bits, divided

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat a 9 x 13 inch pan with non-stick spray, or coat pan with foil and spray foil with non-stick spray.

2. In a large bowl, stir together flour and brown sugar. Cut in cold butter with a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Reserve 1 1/2 cups crumb mixture and press remaining crumb mixture into bottom of prepared pan to form a crust. Bake crust for 10 minutes.

3. Remove crust from oven and pour sweetened condensed milk evenly over the partially baked crust. Reserve 1/4 cup of the toffee bits, and sprinkle the remaining toffee bits evenly over the sweetened condensed milk.

4. Stir 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips into the reserved crumb mixture and sprinkle evenly over the toffee layer. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips over the top.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and sprinkle with reserved 1/4 cup of toffee bits. Cool completely before cutting into bars.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

My parents came down to visit us from Iowa a few weeks ago and, as always, I had to have homemade cookies waiting when they arrived. This time around I opted for peanut butter chocolate chip cookies. These are not only great looking cookies, but they turn out soft and chewy when baked properly.PEANUT BUTTER CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. In a large mixer bowl, cream butter until smooth. Add peanut butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar and beat until well combined. Add in egg and vanilla and mix until combined.

3. In a small bowl, mix flour, salt, and soda until combined. Gradually add flour mixture to peanut butter mixture until just incorporated. Stir in chocolate chips.

4. Using a cookie scoop (approximately one tablespoon capacity), drop dough two inches apart onto prepared baking sheets.

5. Bake for 12-13 minutes or until cookies are just firm around the edges, being careful not to overbake. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Carrot Cake

I absolutely love carrot cake and this recipe does not disappoint. The pineapple keeps it really moist, and the coconut and nuts can be omitted depending on your preferences. I have also made this recipe into cupcakes with success. The shredded carrots.

The dry ingredients are mixed together.

The wet ingredients are stirred into the dry ingredients.

The pineapple, carrots, and coconut are then mixed in.

The batter is poured into the pans.

A slice of the finished carrot cake.

CARROT CAKE

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 3/4 cups white sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups shredded carrots

1 cup flaked sweetened coconut

1 cup chopped walnuts

1 (8 ounce) can crushed pineapple, drained

12 ounces (1 1/2 packages) cream cheese, softened

6 tablespoons butter, softened

4 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 9 x 13 inch pan.

2. Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and sugar in a large bowl. Make a well in the center and add oil, eggs, and vanilla. Mix with wooden spoon until smooth. Stir in the carrots, coconut, walnuts, and pineapple.

3. Pour into 9 x 13 inch pan and bake at 350 degress for about 45 minutes, or until toothpick in center comes out clean. For two 9-inch pans bake for 30-35 minutes, and for cupcakes bake 18-20 minutes. Allow to cool on wire rack. For round pans and cupcakes, remove cake from pans after 10 minutes and then cool completely. The center may sink a little, but this can be easily covered up with some extra icing.

4. To make the icing, cream the butter and cream cheese in a large mixer bowl until smooth and fluffy. Add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until creamy. Chill icing for 10-15 minutes in refrigerator before using.

Vols-au-Vent

I successfully completed another Daring Bakers' challenge this month! This was my first-ever attempt at making puff pastry from scratch. I normally buy the frozen stuff from the grocery, but it was pretty satisfying to make it myself (not to mention super delicious). The September 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Steph of A Whisk and a Spoon. She chose the French treat, Vols-au-Vent based on the Puff Pastry recipe by Michel Richard from the cookbook Baking With Julia by Dorie Greenspan. First, the dry ingredients are placed in a food processor bowl. The dry ingredients and water are pulsed until a ball forms. The pastry dough is rolled into a square before being filled with butter. The butter-filled dough is rolled into a long rectangular shape to begin the layering process. The pastry dough is folded into thirds between each rolling. The shapes are cut from the chilled pastry dough. The vols-au-vent are assembled and brushed with an egg wash. The baked shells and tops are cooled. Once the shells are cooled they can be filled with the mousse. Yum!

Peanut Butter Fudge Treats

The moment I saw these treats on Joy the Baker's blog I knew I had to try them. They are sinfully rich and extremely easy to make. I saved a couple of them for myself, but had to send the rest with my husband to work so I wouldn't eat them all!

The cereal layer is dumped into the pan.The peanut butter fudge is spread evenly over the cereal layer.The chocolate fudge is cooked on the stovetop.The cooked chocolate fudge is spread over the peanut butter layer.

PEANUT BUTTER FUDGE TREATS

From Joy the Baker

INGREDIENTS - Rice Crispies Layer
3 tablespoons butter

4 cups mini marshmallows or 40 regular marshmallows (about 10 ounces)
6 cups Rice Crispies cereal

INGREDIENTS - Peanut Butter Fudge

1 cup butter
1 cup peanut butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 pound powdered sugar

INGREDIENTS - Chocolate Fudge
2 tablespoons butter

2/3 cup evaporated milk

1 2/3 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 cups mini marshmallows

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

DIRECTIONS
1. Coat a 13x9x2 inch pan with cooking spray.

2. In a large microwave-safe bowl, microwave the marshmallows and butter for one and a half minutes. Stir, and continue to microwave in 30 second increments until melted and smooth. Add cereal and stir until well coated.

3. Using a buttered spatula or wax paper, evenly press the cereal mixture into the prepared pan and set aside.

4. For the peanut butter fudge, microwave the butter and peanut butter for 2 minutes on high. Stir and microwave on high for 2 more minutes. Add vanilla extract and powdered sugar to the peanut butter mixture and stir to combine. Pour over the cereal layer in the pan and spread evenly. Cool in the refrigerator while you make the chocolate fudge.

5. For the chocolate fudge, combine butter, milk, sugar, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil and cook 4 to 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in marshmallows, chocolate, and vanilla. Stir vigorously for about 1 minute, or until marshmallows melt and mixture is thoroughly combined. Pour over peanut butter fudge, spread evenly, and place in refrigerator to set and cool.

6. Once set, remove from refrigerator and let treats sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before cutting. Cut in small squares. Treats are best served at room temperature.

Brown Sugar Gelato

I checked out a variety of cookbooks from the library last week and was inspired to make some homemade ice cream. I lightened up the original recipie just a touch by using fat free half and half instead of whole milk, but the end result was still rich and delicious! I also made the recipe small enough to fit into my 1 1/2 quart automatic ice cream maker in one batch.

BROWN SUGAR GELATO

Adapted From Desserts by the Yard

INGREDIENTS

1 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons fat free half and half
1/4 cup heavy cream

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

2 large egg yolks

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

DIRECTIONS
1. Combine the half and half, heavy cream, and 1/4 cup of the brown sugar in a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Whisk the egg yolks with the remaining 1/2 cup brown sugar and granulated sugar in a bowl. When the half and half and cream come to a simmer, remove from the heat and slowly ladle 1/4 cup into the egg yolks while whisking. Once the milk is incorporated into the eggs, whisk the eggs back into the hot milk. Be sure to scrape all the eggs into the pot with a rubber scraper.

2. Place the pan over low heat and immediately begin to stir the custard. Stir until the consistency is like thick cream. The custard is ready when the temperature reaches 180 degrees F.

3. Remove pan from the heat and immediately pour the custard through a fine mesh strainer into another bowl. Place this bowl in an ice bath to cool to custard quickly (and make sure that no water or ice from the bath seeps into the custard bowl!). Once the custard has cooled (about 5-10 mintes) chill it in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours.

4. Transfer the cold custard mixture to an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturers instructions.

5. Transfer the gelato to a freezer container and freeze for 2 hours, or until firm.

Dobos Torte

This is my first month doing the Daring Bakers' Challenge, and it was definitely challenging. I learned some new skills and enjoyed making the torte, so I will undoubtedly be participating in future challenges. The August 2009 Daring Bakers' challenge was hosted by Angela of A Spoonful of Sugar and Lorraine of Not Quite Nigella. They chose the spectacular Dobos Torte based on a recipe from Rick Rodgers' cookbook Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Caffes of Vienna, Budapest, and Prague. Enjoy!
Before I started mixing up the cake batter, I traced the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan to make circles on six pieces of parchment paper.
The egg yolks and powdered sugar are beaten until they are pale yellow and the batter forms a thick ribbon when the whisk is lifted above the batter.
The egg whites are beaten until soft peaks form, then the remaining powdered sugar is beaten in until stiff. This mixture is folded into the egg yolk mixture.
The flour and salt are folded in.
The cake batter is spread into the shape of a circle on the parchment paper.
Each layer is baked and the parchment paper is peeled off.
Each cake layer is trimmed into an 8-inch circle. I used the bottom of an 8-inch round cake pan as a template.
Chocolate is chopped for the buttercream.
The eggs and sugar are beaten until pale and thickened.
The egg mixture is then cooked over a double boiler until it begins to thicken.
The chocolate is added to the egg mixture.
While the chocolate mixture cools, the caramel is made.
The caramel is poured over a layer of cake and cut into triangles.
The butter is added to the cooled chocolate mixture to complete the chocolate buttercream.
Each layer of the torte is spread with buttercream.
The sides and top of the torte are then covered with the remaining buttercream.
The caramel triangles are placed on top of the torte.
View from the top.
My husband and I didn't care for the caramel triangles, so I took them off and decorated the cake with grated dark chocolate.

Tunnel of Fudge Cake Balls

When I started this little baking project I intended to make a tunnel of fudge cake. However, when I inverted the bundt pan, I ended up with a nice ring of fudge on my countertop. It was a tunnel of fudge disaster! The cake was too delicious to throw away, but as you can see from the photo below, it was not presentable in its disastrous state. My husband suggested that I just make cake balls, and I ended up being really pleased with the results. Unlike traditional cake balls, I didn't add any frosting to the cake mixture - the fudge was gooey enough to hold the balls together once I mixed up everything. See my previous post for instructions on making cake balls.
I started the cake by adding butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and vanilla to a large mixer bowl.
The mixture was creamed until very light and fluffy.
Eggs and chocolate were mixed in.
After the flour mixture and nuts were added, the batter was poured into the bundt pan and placed in the oven.
Disaster strikes! I quickly turned the pan back over to prevent anymore of the cake from spilling onto my countertop. There was only one thing I could do...
So I put the cake in a bowl...
...and turned the disaster into cake balls.
The balls were dipped in white almond bark and decorated with melted chocolate.
Disaster never looked so tasty!

Nutella Oatmeal Cookies

I love love love Nutella. I generally prefer to eat it out of the jar with a spoon, but I decided I could expand my Nutella horizons and use it to make some cookies too. The cookies turned out really well, and had an exquisite soft and chewy texture. For a more pronounced hazelnut flavor, try adding some hazelnut liqueur to the dough.
NUTELLA OATMEAL COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup Nutella
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups rolled oats

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment.

2. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter, Nutella, and sugars until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs and beat until combined.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and beat just until combined. Add the oats and beat until combined.

4. Cover the dough and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

5. Drop the dough by rounded tablespoons onto the baking sheet lined with parchment. Bake 8-10 minutes or until the edges are just set. Allow cookies to cool on the sheets for 5 minutes, then remove cookies to a wire rack to col completely.

Smores Bars

I had a jar of marshmallow creme that had been sitting on my pantry shelf for quite sometime, and these bars looked like a delicious way to finally use it. I have a tendency to impulse buy baking items at the grocery store that I don't need and don't have plans for using. I just get so excited when presented with a whole aisle full of yumminess! My friend Sarah posted these treats on her blog, and they looked so tasty that I had to give them a try.
The graham cracker dough is layered into the bottom of the pan.
Chocolate chips are sprinkled on top.
Next comes the marshmallow creme.
Then the remaining dough is flattened and pieced together on the top.
Let them cool completely before slicing.
SMORES BARS
Adapted slightly from The Application of Heat

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (6 ounces) milk chocolate chips
1 jar (7 ounces) marshmallow creme

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8x8 inch pan with foil and spray with cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined.

3. In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt. Add to butter mixture and mix at low speed until combined.

4. Divide dough in half and press half of the dough into an even layer in the bottom of the prepared pan. Scatter the milk chocolate chips over the dough. Drop the marshmallow fluff by spoonfuls over the chips and dough and spread into a layer with the help of a greased spatula. Place remaining dough in a single layer on top of the fluff. This is best achieved by flattening the dough into small flat shingles and layering them together until the pan is covered.

5. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool completely before cutting into squares with a lightly oiled knife.

Yellow Bundt Pound Cake

My aunt and uncle sent me some wonderful birthday gifts, which included a really cool Nordicware bundt pan and lovely bundt-friendly cake carrier. What a great reason to bake a cake! I immediately began searching for a recipe so I could try out the new pan. I am always worried that my bundt cakes won't come out of the pan properly, but luckily this one turned out beautifully!
This is the fancy bundt pan that I used.
A tasty slice.

YELLOW BUNDT POUND CAKE
Adapted slightly from The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book

INGREDIENTS
3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup buttermilk, room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 1/4 sticks unsalted butter, cut into chunks and softened
2 cups sugar
3 large eggs, room temperature
1 large egg yolk, room temperature

DIRECTIONS
1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup bundt pan with bake release spray. Whisk the flour, salt, baking powder, and baking soda together in a medium bowl. In a small bowl, whisk the buttermilk, vanilla, and lemon juice together.

2. In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 6 minutes. Beat in the eggs and egg yolk, one at a time, until combined, about 1 minute.

3. Reduce the mixer speed to low and beat in one-third of the flour mixture followed by half of the buttermilk mixture. Repeat with half of the remaining flour mixture and the remaining buttermilk mixture. Beat in the remaining flour mixture until just incorporated.

4. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Wipe any drops of batter off the sides of the pan and gently tap the pan on the counter to settle the batter. Bake the cake until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached, 50 to 60 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through baking.

5. Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then flip it out onto a wire rack. Let the cake cool completely, about 2 hours, before serving. Dust with powdered sugar, if desired.

Gooey Double Chocolate Cookies

I have another summer cookout to head to this evening so I needed to bake up something easy and portable. Since we will be outside the whole time and it is over 100 degrees, a cookie seemed like the best option. These cookies are very decadent and almost brownie-like. The bittersweet chocolate chips add depth and keep the cookies from becoming too sweet. Look how gooey the insides are!

So easy and so delicious!
GOOEY DOUBLE CHOCOLATE COOKIES

INGREDIENTS
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
4 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 bag (11.5 ounces) Ghiradelli bittersweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. In a bowl set over a pot of simmering water, melt the unsweetened chocolate and butter. Remove from the heat and cool slightly.

2. In a large bowl using a fork, combine the eggs, vanilla and sugar. Mix just until incorporated and set aside.

3. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt into a medium bowl. Set aside.

4. Add the melted chocolate to the egg mixture and mix just until combined. Stir in the sifted dry ingredients and mix just until combined, then stir in the bittersweet chocolate.

5. Cover the batter with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour to chill thoroughly.

6. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

7. Divide the dough into 18 portions. Grease hands to prevent dough from sticking, and shape the portions into balls. Place the balls on a greased, parchment-lined sheet pan, leaving 2 to 3 inches between each.

8. Bake until the edges of the cookies are just set and the center is still soft, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. Place the cookies, still on the parchment, on a rack and cool completely before serving. They will be very soft.

Hummingbird Cake

Happy Birthday to me! Today is my birthday so of course I had to bake a cake. I have been thinking about making a hummingbird cake for a while, so I decided to give it a try. I've heard that hummingbird cakes are traditional southern cakes, so now that I live kind of in the South (Dallas) it seemed like a fitting choice. Oh, and it was pretty darn delicious too!
THE PROCESS:
Whisk together the dry ingredients.
In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, oil, and vanilla extract.
Chop the toasted pecans and bananas.
Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.
Fold in the pecans, banana, and crushed pineapple.
Divide the batter into the three pans.
Cool the baked cakes completely.
Whip up the frosting.
Fill the cake layers with frosting.
Add a crumb coat to the sides.
Frost and decorate!
Now try a slice...or two.

HUMMINGBIRD CAKE
From America's Best Lost Recipes

INGREDIENTS - CAKE
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 (8-ounce) can crushed pineapple packed in juice
1 1/2 cups pecans, toasted and chopped, plus extra for garnishing, if desired
2 ripe bananas, peeled and chopped

INGREDIENTS - ICING
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
4 cups confectioners' sugar
16 ounces cream cheese, cut into 8 pieces, softened
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS
1. For the Cake - Adjust two oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour three 9-inch cake pans. Whisk the flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a large bowl. Whisk the oil, eggs, and vanilla in a medium bowl, add to the flour mixture, and whisk until combined. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the pineapple (with the juice), pecans, and bananas. Divide the batter evenly among the prepared pans and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating and switching the pan positions halfway through baking. Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 minutes, then turn out onto racks to cool completely, at least 30 minutes.

2. For the Icing - With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat the butter and confectioners' sugar until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add the cream cheese, one piece at a time, and beat until incorporated. Beat in the vanilla and salt. Refrigerate until ready to use.

3. Spread about 1 1/2 cups of the frosting on one cake layer. Top with a second cake layer and another 1 1/2 cups frosting. Top with the final cake layer and spread the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. The cake can be refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Sugar Cookies

I'm going to a 4th of July party later this evening and I wanted to bring something festive. I decided to make sugar cookies, ice them, and then sprinkle with red and blue sugar. Of course I had to use my star-shaped cookie cutter to add to the festiveness!

SUGAR COOKIES
From the Betty Crocker Cookbook (circa 1960)

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
1. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium mixing bowl.

2. Cream together butter and sugar; add eggs and vanilla and mix until light and fluffy.

3. Add dry ingredients to the butter mixture a little at a time and mix until combined.

4. Wrap dough in plastic and refrigerate overnight.

5. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

6. Roll out dough to about 1/8" thickness and cut out cookies.

7. Bake for 5-6 minutes, or until edges are the lightest of browns. Do not overbake.

8. Cool completely before icing.

Best Blueberry Muffins

I've been buying lots of blueberries lately, so it seemed natural to make some muffins. I like this recipe better than the blueberry muffin recipe I posted back in March. Enjoy!
The blueberries.
The melted butter and milk mixture.
The dry ingredients.
The blueberries are folded into the muffin batter.
The batter is scooped into a muffin tin and sprinkled with sugar.The finished product. Delicious!

BEST BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
Adapted From Gourmet Magazine

INGREDIENTS
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
1/3 cup whole milk
1 whole large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Generously butter muffin pans.

2. Melt butter in a small saucepan over moderately low heat, then remove from heat. Whisk in milk, then whisk in whole egg, yolk, and vanilla until combined well.

3. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a bowl, then add milk mixture and stir until just combined. Fold in blueberries gently but thoroughly.

4. Divide batter among 12 muffin cups, spreading evenly. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar.

5. Bake for 20-22 minutes or until tops are light brown and a wooden toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean.

Blueberry Lemon Cheesecake

I am on a cheesecake kick. Plus, I bought a huge tub of blueberries and needed to use some of them up. This lemon blueberry cheesecake is just another take on the same basic cheesecake recipe used in my previous post. Experiment and make your own tasty combination!
The crust.
The filled crust.
Cooking the blueberries and preserves.
The blueberries are poured over the cheesecake to set in the refrigerator.
Once the cheesecake has chilled, the outer ring of the pan is removed.
The inside.
A nice slice.
LEMON BLUEBERRY CHEESECAKE
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS - CRUST
1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
1 heaping teaspoon lemon zest
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

INGREDIENTS - FILLING
4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
5 eggs

INGREDIENTS - TOPPING
2 cups fresh blueberries
1 cup blueberry preserves
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

2. Prepare a water bath by placing a large pan filled with about 1/2 inch of water into the oven while it preheats.

3. In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, lemon zest, and melted butter. Press the crumb mixture into and up the sides of a 9-inch spring form pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray.

4. Wrap a large piece of foil around the bottom of the pan to keep the cheesecake in the water bath.

5. In the large bowl of an electric mixer beat the cream cheese, sugar, sour cream, vanilla, and lemon juice. Mix for a couple of mines or until the ingredients are smooth and creamy. Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl and then add them to the cream cheese mixture. Blend the mixture just enough to incorporate the eggs.

6. Pour the cream cheese filling into the crust.

7. Carefully place the cheesecake into the water bath in the oven. Bake for 12 minutes at 475 degrees, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees and bake for 50-60 minutes or until the top of the cheesecake turns a light brown or tan color.

8. Remove the cheesecake from the oven to cool.

9. While cheesecake is cooling, combine blueberries, preserves, and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring often until preserves are melted and blueberries have heated through. Set mixture aside to cool.

10. After the cheesecake and the blueberry mixture have cooled to room temperature, pour the blueberry mixture over the cheesecake. Cover with foil and chill for 6-8 hours before removing the outer ring of the pan and serving.

Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake

I haven't baked a cheesecake for about three and a half years, so I figured it was time. Raspberry and chocolate are a classic flavor combination and work very well in this cheesecake. I don't think I've ever used a true water bath before. I was worried it would be a huge mess, but it actually worked out okay and kept the cheesecake from cracking horribly.
THE PROCESS: First I scraped the cream filling out of a bunch of chocolate sandwich cookies and then made crumbs with the chocolate wafers.
The crumbs are mixed with butter and pressed into the pan with a drinking glass.
The cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and sour cream are mixed until smooth and fluffy.
Eggs are added and mixed just until incorporated.
Half of the mixture is poured into the prepared pan.
The raspberry jam is spread over the cream cheese mixture and swirled in with a butter knife.
The remaining cheesecake mixture is poured over the swirl, then the whole pan is placed in a water bath in the oven.
The water bath kept the cheesecake from forming major cracks.
The ganache is poured over the cooled cheesecake and fresh raspberries are used for decoration.
Here is the inside.
Yum!

RASPBERRY TRUFFLE CHEESECAKE
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS - CRUST
1 1/2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs
1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted

INGREDIENTS - FILLING
1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
4 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
5 eggs

INGREDIENTS - TOPPING
2/3 cup heavy cream
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
fresh raspberries (optional)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F.

2. Prepare a water bath by placing a large pan filled with about 1/2 inch of water into the oven while it preheats.

3. Microwave the raspberry jam for 30 seconds and stir until until smooth. Set aside to cool.

4. Measure 1 1/2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs into a medium bowl. Mix in the melted butter. Press the crumb mixture into a 9-inch spring form pan that has been sprayed lightly with non-stick spray. Use the bottom of a drinking glass to press the crumb mixture flat into the bottom of the pan and about an inch up the sides.

5. Wrap a large piece of foil around the bottom of the pan to keep the cheesecake in the water bath. Put the crust in the freezer.

6. In the large bowl of an electric mixer beat the cream cheese, sugar, sour cream, and vanilla. Mix for a couple of minutes or until the ingredients are smooth and creamy. Whisk the eggs in a medium bowl and then add them to the cream cheese mixture. Blend the mixture just enough to incorporate the eggs.

7. Remove the crust from the freezer.

8. Pour half of the cream cheese filling into the crust. Drizzle the raspberry preserves over the entire surface of the filling. Use a butter knife to swirl the raspberry into the cream cheese. Pour the other half of the filling into the crust.

9. Carefully place the cheesecake into the water bath in the oven. Bake for 12 minutes at 475 degrees, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees and bake for 50-60 minutes or until the top of the cheesecake turns a light brown or tan color.

10. Remove the cheesecake from the oven to cool. When the cheesecake is cool, cover with foil and chill for at least 4 hours.

11. For the topping, place the chocolate into a small bowl. Heat the heavy cream until it nearly boils and pour over the chocolate. Let mixture sit for about a minute, then whisk together until shiny and dark brown. Pour over cheesecake and decorate with fresh raspberries, if desired. Chill at least 2 more hours before serving.

Peanut Butter Candy Cookies

These cookies combine creamy peanut butter, Reese's peanut butter cups, and Reese's pieces. Now that's what I call a peanut butter triple threat!

PEANUT BUTTER CANDY COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup peanut butter cups, roughly chopped
1/2 cup mini Reese's pieces baking bits

DIRECTIONS
1. Roughly chop peanut butter cups and put in the freezer for at least an hour. This will keep them from falling apart when mixed into the cookie dough.

2. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter, peanut butter, sugar, and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla until combined. Beat in baking soda, baking powder, salt, and flour until just combined. Fold in mini chocolate chips and peanut butter cups. Chill dough for at least an hour.

3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

4. Shape dough into 1-inch balls and sprinkle tops with Reese's pieces baking bits. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer cookies to wire rack to cool.

Pineapple Coconut Bars

I haven't made these bars since law school, when I made them for my friend Wynn's birthday. He absolutely loves these sweet little treats and still talks about them. I found this recipe somewhere on the internet, and adapted it to suit my tastes. These bars are super simple to make and require just a handful of ingredients. If you're short on time (or just feeling lazy) these are a must do!

COCONUT PINEAPPLE BARS
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1 box butter recipe yellow cake mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 can (8 ounces) crushed pineapple, well drained
1 1/3 cups shredded sweetened coconut
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup sliced almonds

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 13x9x2-inch pan with foil and coat with cooking spray.

2. In a medium bowl, stir together dry cake mix, butter, and cinnamon until crumbly. Press evenly into prepared pan. Sprinkle pineapple mixture over crust. Sprinkle with coconut. Pour sweetened condensed milk over coconut. Top with almonds.

3. Bake 25-27 minutes or until set and almonds are light golden brown. Cool completely before cutting.

Chocolate Chunk Oatmeal Cookies with Pecans and Dried Cherries

My parents are coming down to visit this coming week so I decided to start doing some baking in preparation for their arrival. My dad always keeps bags of dried cherries in his pantry for snacking on, so I think he will enjoy these chewy cookies.
CHOCOLATE CHUNK OATMEAL COOKIES WITH PECANS AND DRIED CHERRIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup shortening
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups rolled oats
1 cup toasted pecans, chopped
1 cup (5 ounces) dried cherries, coarsely chopped
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a small bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

3. In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter, shortening, brown sugar, and sugar at medium speed for about a minute. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and add the egg and vanilla; beat until fully incorporated. Beat in flour mixture on low speed just until combined. Then add oats, pecans, cherries, and chocolate, beating until just incorporated.

4. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls on parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until edges have begun to set. Cool cookies on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Peanut Butter Filled Chocolate Cupcakes

I made these cupcakes to take to the office along with the coconut cupcakes posted previously. Matt also took half of this batch to work, and one of the women there requested that I send a diet plan next time.
I had to dissect one to show the peanut butter filling.
Here are both kinds of cupcakes in my snazzy new cupcake carrier.
PEANUT BUTTER FILLED CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS - CUPCAKES
3/4 cup flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons hot water
6 tablespoons milk
1 large egg
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

INGREDIENTS - FILLING
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
3/4 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup heavy cream

INGREDIENTS - ICING
8 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS
1. For the cupcakes, preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of a heavy mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; add sugar.

3. Turn the mixer on low and add, in order, water, milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat on medium, briefly, to achieve a smooth batter.

4. Scoop the batter into muffin tins lined with baking cups; each cup should be about half full. Bake for about 20-22 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely.

5. For the filling, put the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, and vanilla in a small bowl. With an electric mixer, beat the ingredients until they are creamy. Add heavy cream and beat until the mixture is soft and creamy. Use to fill cooled cupcakes.

6. For the icing, melt the chocolate with the cream in a heavy saucepan and cook over very low heat until the mixture is smooth and glossy. Transfer the mixture to a bowl and refrigerate until cooled but not to firm, 30 to 45 minutes. Using a mixer, beat on high speed until thick and creamy. Pipe or spread onto filled cupcakes.

Coconut Cupcakes

My boss celebrated his birthday earlier this week so I made two batches of cupcakes. Since we only have three people in our office, I sent half of the cupcakes with Matt to the lab and brought the other half to the office. They were yummy!
COCONUT CUPCAKES
Adapted From the Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

YIELD - 12 to 15 cupcakes

INGREDIENTS - CAKE
12 tablespoons butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
7 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut

INGREDIENTS - FROSTING
8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon pure almond extract
3/4 pound confectioners' sugar, sifted

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

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

3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold in 3 1/2 ounces of coconut.

4. Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each liner nearly to the top with batter. Bake for 20-22 minutes, until the tops are golden and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely.

5. Meanwhile, make the frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth. Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining coconut.

Apple Coffee Cake with Crumble Topping and Brown Sugar Glaze

I had a lot of apples in the fridge and I really wanted a coffee cake, so it seemed like a good idea to made a coffee cake with apples. I wasn't feeling creative so I followed this Emeril recipe exactly. The cake doesn't look too pretty (it's really brown), but it tasted delicious!
This is the cake before I put the glaze on.
Here is the inside of the glazed cake. Look at all those yummy apples!

Cream-Filled Chocolate Sandwiches

I've been eying this recipe for a while so I decided to give it a try this afternoon. They turned out pretty well, although I would prefer if the chocolate in the cookies shined through more.
The dough is scooped onto cookie sheets and flattened with a sugar-dipped glass.
The baked cookies are set aside to cool.
The filing is whipped until fluffy.
Filling is spread on the bottoms of half of the cookies.
The remaining cookies are placed on top to complete the sandwich.

CREAM-FILLED CHOCOLATE SANDWICHES
From Martha Stewart's Cookies

INGREDIENTS - COOKIES
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sugar, plus more for flattening cookies
10 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large egg, room temperature

INGREDIENTS - FILLING
1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup shortening
3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Into a bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream sugar and butter until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add egg; beat to combine. With mixer on low speed, gradually add flour mixture; continue beating until dough is well combined.

3. Using a 1 1/4-inch ice cream scoop, drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Dip bottom of a glass in sugar; press to flatten cookies to about 1/8 inch thick.

4. Transfer to oven and bake until cookies are firm, 8-10 minutes. Remove cookies to wire racks to cool completely.

5. To make filling, combine butter and shortening with an electric mixer. On low speed, gradually add confectioners' sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add vanilla and beat to combine.

6. To assemble, place cream filing in a pastry bag and pipe about 1 tablespoon filling onto the flat side of half the cookies. Place remaining cookies on top, and gently press on each to squeeze filling to edges. Filled cookies can be stored in airtight containers at room temperature up to 2 days.

Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

I love toffee so I am always drawn to the toffee bits on the baking aisle. Needless to say, I now have several packages of toffee bits in my pantry. This seemed like a good way to use some of them up!

TOFFEE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 bag (8 ounces) toffee bits
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

3. In a large mixer bowl, cream butter, shortening, sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in vanilla and eggs. Gradually add flour mixture, beating just until combined. Stir in toffee bits and chocolate chips.

4. Drop cookies by tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool on cookie sheet for at least 5 minutes. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Apple Cherry Pie Pockets - Pillsbury Bake-Off 2009

These little pies represent my entry into this year's Pillsbury Bake-Off competition. Even my pickiest taste tester (who also happens to be my husband) thought they were really delicious!
APPLE CHERRY PIE POCKETS
From Hannah's Kitchen

YIELD - 6 Pies

INGREDIENTS
1 box (15 ounces) Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust
4 medium Gala apples, peeled, cored, and chopped (about 4 cups)
3/4 cup dried cherries
1/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 dash salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
3 tablespoons coarse sugar (turbinado works well)
6 tablespoons Smuckers caramel ice cream topping

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2. Peel, core, and chop apples and place in a 2-quart saucepan. Add cherries, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, butter, flour, lemon juice, 2 tablespoons water, and vanilla extract. Stir and cook over medium heat until apples start to soften and release their juices, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

3. Unroll the two pie crusts and cut each crust in half, then cut each half into thirds, resulting in 12 triangle-shaped pieces of pie dough.

4. In a small bowl, combine the eggs and 1 tablespoon water to create an egg wash.

5. Place 6 triangles of dough onto a flat work surface and brush the edges of each piece with the egg wash. Spoon apple mixture into centers of each triangle, being careful not to pile too high (about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of the mixture should fit). Spread mixture evenly to within 1/4 inch of the edge of the dough.

6. Place the remaining 6 triangles of dough on top of each of the 6 triangles on the work surface. Carefully press the edges together to seal each triangle. Then use a fork to crimp the edges all the way around each triangle.

7. Brush each of the 6 filled triangles with egg wash and sprinkle with 1/2 tablespoon of coarse sugar. Carefully place each triangle on the parchment-lined baking sheets. Using a sharp knife, cut a 1-inch slit in the middle of each pie pocket to allow steam to escape when baking.

8. Bake the pie pockets for 15-17 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then remove to wire racks to cool further. Pies may be served warm or cooled.

9. When pies are ready to be served, place each triangle on a plate and drizzle with about 1 tablespoon of the caramel ice cream topping.

Chocolate Raspberry Crumb Bars

My Mom has been making these bars for years. They are easy to make and oh so decadent! If you don't like nuts, feel free to omit them - the bars are still delicious without them.
CHOCOLATE RASPBERRY CRUMB BARS
From Nestle Toll House

YIELD - 36 bars

INGREDIENTS
1 cup (2 sticks) butter or margarine, softened
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups (12 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup seedless raspberry jam

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking pan.

2. Beat butter in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in flour, sugar, and salt until crumbly. With floured fingers, press 1 3/4 cups crumb mixture onto bottom of prepared baking pan; reserve remaining mixture.

3. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are golden brown.

4. Microwave 1 cup chocolate chips and sweetened condensed milk in medium, uncovered, microwave-safe bowl on high power for 1 minute; stir. Chips may retain some of their original shape. If necessary, microwave at additional 10- to 15-second intervals, stirring just until morsels are melted. Spread over hot crust.

5. Stir nuts into reserved crumb mixture; sprinkle over chocolate filling. Drop teaspoonfuls of raspberry jam over crumb mixture. Sprinkle with remaining chocolate chips.

6. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until center is set. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.

Monster Cookies

I was planning on shipping some treats in the mail, and since this cookie is fairly sturdy I thought it would travel well and be a nice addition to my package of goodies. I have made these cookies numerous times and they are always a crowd favorite. The M&M's can be mixed right into the batter, but I think it is more visually appealing to set them on top of the cookies before they bake.

MONSTER COOKIES
Adapted Slightly From The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion

INGREDIENTS
3 large eggs
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon corn syrup
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 cups smooth peanut butter
4 1/2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cup butterscotch chips
3/4 cup M&M's (mini or regular size)

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment (or lightly grease).

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the eggs, sugars, vanilla, corn syrup, baking soda, and salt. Stir in the melted butter, then the peanut butter, oats, and flour, mixing until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chips and candy. Let the dough rest for 30 minutes so the oats can absorb some of the butter.

3. Drop by scant 1/4-cupfuls onto the prepared baking sheets. Use your fingers to flatten cookies slightly, then bake for 12 minutes, until cookies are a light golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Peach Crumble Bars

These buttery bars can be made with any flavor jam or preserves you choose.
PEACH CRUMBLE BARS

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup peach preserves

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease one 8-inch square pan and line with greased foil.

2. Combine brown sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, and rolled oats. Rub in the butter using your hands or a pastry blender to form a crumbly mixture. Press 2 cups of the mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread preserves to within 1/4 inch of the edge. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top, and lightly press it into the preserves.

3. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Allow to cool before cutting into bars.

Chocolate Eclairs

Today I made mini eclairs with chocolate ganache glaze. It was my first time attempting to make pate a choux dough so I was ready for an adventure. I used Gale Gand's recipe from Food Network and it turned out pretty well.
First I made the pastry cream and let it chill in the refrigerator.
Then I mixed up the pate a choux, piped the dough onto a baking sheet, and baked up the shells.
After the shells cooled, I filled a pastry bag with pastry cream and filled the shells.
The filled shells were then dipped in the ganache glaze.
Finally, the eclairs were placed on a baking sheet in the refrigerator to set.

Cranberry Oatmeal White Chip Cookies

These are my mom's favorite cookies. I often halve this recipe, but I made a full batch during my visit to Ames so Mom could stock-pile the freezer.

CRANBERRY OATMEAL WHITE CHIP COOKIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1 cup butter, softened (may substitute shortening)
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 cups quick-cooking oats
1 1/2 cups (1-6 ounce package) dried cranberries
1 1/2 cups white chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl cream the butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Beat in eggs and vanilla until combined.

3. In a small bowl combine the cinnamon, baking soda, salt, and flour. Gradually add to sugar mixture until just combined.

4. Stir in the oatmeal, dried cranberries, and white chocolate chips.

5. Drop by tablespoon-size cookie scoop onto cookie sheets lined with parchment and bake for 8-10 minutes, just until the edges are lightly golden. Cool cookies on the sheet for 2-3 minutes and then transfer to cooling rack.

Double Chocolate Walnut Cookies

I got this recipe from an old Toll House cookbook my parents have had on their bookshelf for years. These made a nice chocolate cookie.

DOUBLE CHOCOLATE WALNUT COOKIES
From The Nestle Toll House Cookbook

INGREDIENTS
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 packets (1 ounce each) Nestle choco bake pre-melted unsweetened chocolate
1 package (12 ounces) semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped walnuts

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a small bowl combine flour, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

2. In a large bowl cream butter, sugar, and brown sugar. Add egg and vanilla and mix well. Add Choco Bake and mix until completely incorporated. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chips and nuts.

3. Drop by rounded tablespoons onto ungreased baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes or until edges are set but centers are still soft. Cool on baking sheets for 2-3 minutes and remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Apple Pie Pockets

I am working on a recipe for the Pillsbury Bakeoff, so I can't share the recipe yet, but here are some photos of my apple pie pockets. I tested this recipe on my parents and brother and everyone seemed to enjoy them.
Cooling pies.
I made a small pie with the extra crust and filling and added an oatmeal crumb topping.
There were deer in my parent's backyard keeping an eye on me while I was baking.

Red Velvet Cake Balls

I just returned home after visiting my family in Ames, Iowa for a few days. I gave my Mom a lesson on how to make cake balls, and this is the result of our efforts.
Our process:
Mom crumbled the cake, leaving the crusty edges in the pan to be snacked on later.
We added cream cheese frosting to the cake crumbles and formed them into balls.
We dipped the balls in chocolate and decorated them with melted white chips.
Then we put them in mini paper baking cups and sampled our treats.

Ultimate Brownies

My quest for the best brownie may have ended today. These are awesome! I adapted the recipe from Ina Garten's recipe for Outrageous Brownies. I also learned how important it is to follow this recipe and chill the brownies in the pan in the refrigerator before trying to handle them. After the brownies cooled in the pan for 2 hours I took them out of the pan to try a little piece, thinking I would just pick up the 8" x 8" square on a sheet of wax paper and move it to the fridge. Unfortunately, I tried to stick my hand under the uncut brownies to lift them and a huge chunk (about a third) broke off and fell directly on top of my dog, Zeus, who happened to be standing right under me feet! Needless to say, he hated it, and then I had to scramble around to pick everything up so he couldn't eat any of the mess. The only saving grace in the whole disaster was how delicious the brownies were!
Zeus has fully recovered from being hit with falling brownies. At least they were cool!
ULTIMATE BROWNIES
Adapted From The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook

INGREDIENTS
10 tablespoons butter
1 1/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips, divided
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2 eggs
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour, plus 4 teaspoons flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/3 teaspoon kosher salt

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8-inch square pan with foil and coat with cooking spray.

2. Melt together the butter, 2/3 cup chocolate chips, and unsweetened chocolate on top of a double boiler. Cool slightly. Stir together the eggs, instant espresso, vanilla, and sugar. Stir in the warm chocolate mixture and cool to warm temperature.

3. Stir together 1/3 cup flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the cooled chocolate mixture. Toss the remaining 2/3 cup chocolate chips with the 4 teaspoons flour to coat, then add to the chocolate batter. Pour into prepared pan.

4. Bake for 22-25 minutes, or until tester just comes out clean. Halfway through the baking, rap the pan against the oven shelf to allow air to escape from between the pan and the brownie dough. Do not over-bake! Cool thoroughly, refrigerate well and cut into squares.

Browned Butter Blondies

The past few days I've been looking at recipes for blondies, and today I put together a winner! The key to rich flavor in these bars is browning the butter used in both the bar and the icing.
BROWNED BUTTER BLONDIES
From Hannah's Kitchen

BLONDIE INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup butter
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped pecans

ICING INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup butter
2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
2-3 tablespoons milk

DIRECTIONS
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Melt 1/2 cup butter in 2-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly and watching closely, until butter just begins to turn golden brown (about 6-8 minutes). Immediately remove from heat and cool 5 minutes. Stir in brown sugar and 2 teaspoons vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Add flour, baking powder, and salt; stir until just combined. Fold in pecans.

3. Spread batter into greased 8-inch square baking pan (it will be thick). Bake for 22-26 minutes, or until bars are lightly browned and begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack.

4. Once bars are cooled, melt 1/4 cup butter in 1-quart heavy saucepan over medium heat. Cook, stirring constantly and watching closely, until butter just begins to turn golden brown (about 4-6 minutes). Immediately remove from heat and cool for 5 minutes.

5. Combine cooled browned butter, powdered sugar, and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla in small bowl. Stir in enough milk for desired frosting consistency.

6. Spread frosting over cooled bars. Cut into bars.

Triple Chocolate Brownies

I made a batch of triple chocolate brownies this morning. The "triple" part comes from the semi-sweet chocolate, unsweetened chocolate, and cocoa powder. These were good, but I'm still hunting for something a little more fudgy.

Matthew in the Kitchen

Matt also made a pie for the pie party, and he waited until I was out of the house to get in the kitchen and get creative. It was quite a creative pie. He used a Jello no-bake Oreo pie mix, and then added peanut butter eggs, gummy worms, and the heads of cocoa Peeps (he cut the bodies off and ate those) to the pudding pie mixture. He topped the pie with chunks of Oreos and whole Peeps.

This is the completed pie.
It looks kind of cute from the outside.
Here is the inside of the pie. It may not have been the most conventional (or tasty) creation, but it was definitely the most talked about!

Lemon Cream Cheese Pie

Yesterday I made this lemon cream cheese pie so I can take it to the pie eating party today. The lemon filling is bright and fresh, and is well-balanced by the cream cheese layer below.
First I made the lemon filling and let it cool to room temperature.
While the filling cooled I mixed up the cream cheese layer.
The cream cheese layer is then spread into the cooled pie shell.
Next, the lemon filling is spread on top of the cream cheese layer.
Make sure the lemon filling completely covers the cream cheese layer.
Finally, use the reserved cream cheese mixture to pipe decorations onto the pie.
The inside has two gorgeous layers.
Yum!

LEMON CREAM CHEESE PIE

INGREDIENTS
1 baked 9-inch pie pastry
1 1/2 cups sugar
6 tablespoons cornstarch
Pinch of salt
1 cup water
2-3 drops yellow food coloring (optional)
2 teaspoons lemon zest
2/3 cup fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons butter
12 ounces cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup powdered sugar
3/4 whipped heavy cream (about 6 tablespoons cream, whipped)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

DIRECTIONS
1. In a saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch, and pinch of salt.
2. Stir in water, lemon juice, lemon zest, and food coloring (if using) and breing to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook and stir for 2 minutes, or until mixture is smooth and thickened.
3. Remove lemon mixture from heat, stir in butter, and cool to room temperature (about an hour).
4. Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Fold in the whipped cream and 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
5. Reserve 1/2 cup of the cream cheese mixture to be used for garnish.
6. Spread the remaining cream cheese mixture into the baked pastry shell.
7. Top with the cooled lemon filling.
8. Scoop the reserved 1/2 cup cream cheese mixture into a pastry bag with a star tip. Pipe stars onto the pie, or garnish with reserved cream cheese mixture as desired.
9. Chill in the fridge for a minimum of 8 hours, or overnight.
10. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Pie Crust

A bunch of my husband's grad school friends are getting together tomorrow afternoon to eat pie. Everyone is supposed to bring a pie, so I decided to bake mine this afternoon. Since I am making a filled pie with a lot of flavors, I figured I didn't have to do anything special for the crust. While I was at the grocery I grabbed a two-pack of Pillsbury frozen deep dish ready-to-bake crusts. I have used the Pillsbury crusts from the refrigerator section that you unroll, but this seemed even easier (and cheaper). I also wanted the disposable pie plate so I don't have to worry about bringing home my glass pie dish. As the pictures below show, these frozen crusts were a disaster! I only needed one, but after I followed the directions precisely and it came out cracked all over the place, I decided I better try again with the second crust. Horrible! I ended up breaking up those crusts into pieces and putting them in a freezer bag to be used for parfaits or ice cream topping. Then I washed out the disposable pie plates and made a from-scratch crust recipe that was billed as "no roll." It turned out MUCH better. I guess if you want something made right you really have to make it yourself!

Here is the beautiful homemade pie shell, baked and ready to be filled.
Here are the Pillsbury frozen disaster pie shells.
NO ROLL PIE CRUST

YIELD - 1 - 8" or 9" pie crust

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 cup oil
2 tablespoons milk

DIRECTIONS
1. Mix dry ingredients together with a fork in a pie pan.

2. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the oil and milk.

3. Mix with a fork until it is combined and makes a ball.

4. With your hands, flatten and press the dough into the pan and up the sides, fluting the edge.

5. Bake at 375 degrees F for 10-12 minutes until golden.

Big Fat Chocolate Chip Cookies

I may have finally found "the one." These jumbo size chocolate chip cookies are thick without being too cakey, and still soft without being undercooked. Delicious!
Look at the size of that big guy!
The insides are thick and gooey.

BIG FAT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

YIELD - 12 large cookies

INGREDIENTS
8 ounces unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 eggs
3 cups bread flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Stir together flour, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.

Beat cold butter and sugars just until they come together. Do not overbeat! Add eggs and mix until combined. Then add flour and mix until blended. Stir in chocolate chips. Dough should not be sticky, nor should it be dry and crumbly.

Divide dough into 12 rough mounds. Do not shape or smooth the mounds, as you will not get the craggy texture on the top of the cookie. Bake cookies, 6 at a time, on an ungreased insulated baking sheet for 20 minutes. Cool cookies on baking sheet for 10 minutes. Remove cookies to wire rack to cool.

Raspberry Cream Sandwiches

I needed to use up some white chocolate that was reaching the end of its life span, so I decided to make these raspberry cream sandwich cookies. The cookie is a basic vanilla sugar cookie, with white chocolate raspberry ganache sandwiched in the middle.
First, I baked and cooled the cookies.
Then I mixed up the ganache, let it chill, and stirred it again.
Ganache is spread on the bottom of one cookie before being topped with another.
The cookies are ready to eat.

"Perfect" Chocolate Chip Cookies

The new issue of Cooks Illustrated came in the mail today and contained a recipe titled "Perfect Chocolate Chip Cookies." In my never ending quest to find the perfect chocolate chip cookie, I had to give these a try. Instead of creaming the butter and sugar until fluffy, the butter is browned and whisked with the sugars. This resulted in a very rich and buttery cookie. Matthew, my official taste tester, thought the cookies might be a little too rich and buttery. I liked them a lot, but there is always room for improvement and the search for my perfect cookie continues.

Coconut Macaroons

This afternoon I made coconut macaroons.
I drizzled chocolate glaze over some of them.
COCONUT MACAROONS

INGREDIENTS
2 1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
1 tablespoon sugar
2 large egg whites
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well.

3. Form mixture into 1 1/2 tablespoon size mounds and place on prepared baking sheet, spacing about one inch apart.

4. Bake until golden brown, about 15-17 minutes.

Cuban Bread

This morning I baked two loaves of Cuban bread, and I have already eaten half of one of the loaves. The recipe is for beginner-level bread bakers so give it a try. You can either knead the dough by hand, or use the dough hook on your mixer. There is nothing like fresh bread right from the oven!
CUBAN BREAD
From Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads

YIELD - 2 plump loaves

INGREDIENTS
5 to 6 cups of bread or all-purpose flour, approximately
2 packages dry yeast
1 tablespoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
2 cups hot water (120-130 degrees F)
Sesame or poppy seeds (optional)

DIRECTIONS
1. This recipe requires one baking sheet, Teflon, greased, or sprinkled with cornmeal, or lined with parchment paper.

2. Mixing - Place 4 cups flour in a large mixing bowl and add the yeast, salt, and sugar. Stir until they are well blended. Pour in the hot water and beat with 100 strong strokes, or 3 minutes with a mixer flat beater. Gradually work in the remaining flour (using fingers if necessary), 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough takes shape and is no longer sticky.

3. Kneading - Sprinkle the work surface with flour. Work in the flour as you knead, keeping a dusting of it between the dough and the work surface. Knead for 8 minutes by hand or with a dough hook until the dough is smooth, elastic, and feels alive under your hands.

4. Rising - Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and put in a warm place (80-100 degrees F) until double in bulk, about 15 minutes.

5. Shaping - Punch down the dough, turn it out on the work surface, and cut into 2 pieces. Shape each into a round. Place on the baking sheet. With a sharp knife or razor, slash an X on each of the loaves, brush with water, and, if desired, sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds.

6. Baking - Place the baking sheet on the middle shelf of a cold oven. Place a large pan of hot water on the shelf below, and heat the oven to 400 degrees F. The bread, or course, will continue to rise while the oven is heating. Bake for about 50 minutes, or until the loaves are a deep golden brown. Thump on the bottom crusts to test for doneness. If they sound hard and hollow, they are baked. (If using a convection oven, reduce heat 50 degrees).

7. Turn the loaves out onto metal racks and cool before slicing. It freezes well.

Cakey Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am still searching for the best chocolate chip cookie recipe ever, so I try lots of them in hopes that "the one" will be found. These were good, but not the best ever, so I will keep trying and tinkering with new recipes.

Chocolate Cake Balls

I had some leftover chocolate cake in the freezer that was taking up space so I defrosted it and made cake balls. Cake balls are essentially crumbled cake, mixed with frosting, rolled into balls, and dipped in candy coating. Most recipes on the internet call for a boxed cake mix and canned frosting, but I used leftover homemade cake and homemade chocolate frosting. Below I have posted a basic recipe for cake balls made with boxed mix and canned frosting. You can substitute any flavor cake mix and frosting, and you can use any flavor candy coating as well.
THE PROCESS:
After the crumbled cake is mixed with frosting, it is shaped into balls. I put them in the freezer to harden before they are dipped.
Next, the chilled cake balls are dipped in melted candy coating and placed on wax paper to harden.
Then, I melted some white candy coating to decorate them.

CAKE BALLS

INGREDIENTS
1 (18.25 ounce) package chocolate cake mix
1 (16 ounce) container prepared chocolate frosting
1 (24 ounce) package chocolate flavored confectioners coating

DIRECTIONS
1. Prepare cake mix according to package directions using any of the recommended pan sizes. When cake is done and has cooled for at least 30 minutes, crumble into a large bowl and stir in the frosting until well blended.

2. Melt chocolate coating in a glass bowl in the microwave, or in a metal bowl over a pan of simmering water, stirring occasionally until smooth.

3. Use a small scoop to form balls of the cake and frosting mixture. Dip the balls in chocolate using a toothpick or fork to hold them. Place on waxed paper to set. Decorate with additional candy coating if desired.

Italian-Style Almond Biscotti

This evening I was craving some crunchy biscotti so I whipped these up. American-style biscotti have more fat in them, yielding a less crisp cookie, while the Italian-style have very little fat, resulting in a much crisper cookie. This recipe is for basic biscotti, which can be dressed up with nuts, dried fruit, anise, or mini chocolate chips.
THE PROCESS:
First, the dough is shaped into a log and baked.
The dough then cools on the baking sheet before slicing.
Next, the log is cut into slices.
The slices are placed back on the baking sheet for a second trip to the oven.
The cookies are then cooled on a rack and ready to eat.

ITALIAN-STYLE ALMOND BISCOTTI
From The King Arthur Flour Cookie Companion

YIELD - 14 to 16 biscotti

INGREDIENTS
2 large eggs
2/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons almond extract
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment.

2. In a medium bowl beat the eggs, sugar, baking powder, salt, and extract until creamy looking; the mixture will be light-colored and as thick as pancake batter. Lower the mixer speed and add the flour, beating gently just until it's totally incorporated.

3. Transfer the dough to a prepared baking sheet and shape it into a log about 14 inches long, 3 inches wide, and 3/4 inch thick.

4. Bake the dough for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the pan for 5 to 25 minutes. Five minutes before cutting, use a pastry brush to very lightly coat the log with water. This will make slicing easier.

5. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees F. After 5 minutes have elapsed, cut the biscotti into 1/2- to 3/4-inch slices.

6. Set biscotti upright onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer cookies to rack to cool.

Bittersweet Chocolate Souffles

Tonight I made souffles for the first time and they turned out great!
BITTERSWEET CHOCOLATE SOUFFLES
From Cooking Light Magazine - January 2002

YIELD - 8 servings

INGREDIENTS
Cooking spray
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1/2 cup Dutch process cocoa
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup 1% lowfat milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks
4 large egg whites
1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 tablespoon powdered sugar

PREPARATION
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Coat 8 (4-ounce) ramekins with cooking spray, and sprinkle with 2 tablespoons granulated sugar.

Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, cocoa, flour, and salt in a small saucepan. Gradually add milk, stirring with a whisk until blended. Bring to a boil over medium heat; cook until thick (about 3 minutes), stirring constantly. Remove from heat; let stand 3 minutes. Gradually stir in vanilla and egg yolks. Spoon chocolate mixture into a large bowl; cool.

Place egg whites in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at high speed until foamy. Gradually add 1/4 cup granulated sugar and cream of tartar, beating mixture until stiff peaks form. Gently stir one-fourth of egg white mixture into chocolate mixture; gently fold in remaining egg white mixture and the chopped chocolate. Spoon into prepared ramekins.

Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until puffy and set. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve immediately.

Orchestra Cookies

Per Aaron's request, I made cookies and brought them to our orchestra rehearsal last night. I think everyone enjoyed them, and there were none left when rehearsal ended.

I made one batch of snickerdoodles...
...and one batch of oatmeal chocolate chip.

Blueberry Muffins

This morning I made blueberry muffins for Matthew for breakfast.
BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/3 cup milk
1 cup fresh blueberries
2 tablespoons coarse sugar

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease 12 muffin cups or line with muffin liners.

2. Combine flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder in a mixing bowl. Create a well in the flour mixture and add the oil, egg, and milk. Stir just until combined. Fold in blueberries.

3. Fill muffin cups and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon of coarse sugar (or more to taste).

4. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until light golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

5. Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then remove muffins and place on cooling rack.

Christmas Cookies 2008

I made a lot of cookies this past Christmas.

Coconut washboards with almond icing.
Raspberry almond pinwheels and orange chocolate rounds.
Chocolate cherry drops, orange vanilla rounds, and pecan cookies.
Peach crumb bars and lemon poppyseed melts.
Chocolate cookies with mint chocolate chips.
Toffee and chocolate chip bars.
Monster cookies, chocolate dream cookies, and oatmeal cookies with cranberries and white chips.

Brady's Birthday

I made this cake for my newphew's 2nd birthday. He is really into trains right now. The cake was dark chocolate with raspberry mousse filling and vanilla buttercream icing.

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies

My mom clipped the recipe for these pies from a magazine and sent it to me. They really do taste like little red velvet cakes.
RED VELVET WHOOPIE PIES
From Better Homes and Gardens Magazine - December 2008

CAKE INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 - 1oz bottle red food coloring (2 Tbsp)

FILLING INGREDIENTS
1/4 cup butter, softened
4 oz cream cheese, softened
1 7oz jar marshmallow creme

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheets with parchment and set aside.

2. In medium bowl combine flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

3. In large mixing bowl beat butter on medium to high for 30 seconds. Beat in brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk, beating after each addition just until combined. Stir in food coloring.

4. Spoon batter in 1- or 2-inch diameter rounds, about 1/2 inch high on prepared baking sheets, allowing at least 1 inch between each round.

5. Bake 7 to 9 minutes for 1-inch cookies or 9 to 11 minutes for 2-inch cookies, or until tops are set. Cool completely on baking sheets on rack. Remove cooled cookies from baking sheets.

6. In medium bowl, beat all filling ingredients until smooth.

7. To fill, dollop Whoopie Pie Filling on flat sides of half the cookies. Top with remaining cookies, flat sides down. Makes 60 one-inch or 42 two-inch cookies.

8. To store, refrigerate in airtight container up to 4 days. Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Orange Parfaits

I made these parfaits for Valentine's Day dessert. They are layered with chocolate cake, orange chocolate mousse, and orange liquor whipped cream.

Boston Cream Cupcakes

I also made Boston cream cupcakes today for Matt to take to work tomorrow. I really want to try one, but it would look weird to send him with only 11 cupcakes so I will hold back. I did eat some of the extra pastry cream and ganache, so I guess that's close enough.

The recipe below is adapted from Cook's Country magazine. I did not care for the magazine's recipe for yellow cupcakes, so I substituted a different one; however, I did stick with the recipes for pastry cream and chocolate glaze as published.
BOSTON CREAM CUPCAKES
Adapted from Cooks Country Magazine - June/July 2006

YIELD - 12

PASTRY CREAM
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
3 large egg yolks
1/3 cup sugar
Pinch salt
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 2 pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

CUPCAKES
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup white sugar
4 egg yolks
6 tablespoons milk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

CHOCOLATE GLAZE
3/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup light corn syrup
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

DIRECTIONS
1. For the pastry cream: Heat cream in medium saucepan over medium heat until simmering, stirring occasionally. Meanwhile, whisk egg yolks, sugar, and salt together in medium bowl. Add cornstarch and whisk until mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 15 seconds.

2. When cream reaches full simmer, slowly whisk it into yolk mixture. Return mixture to saucepan and cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until thick and glossy, about 1 1/2 minutes. Off heat, whisk in butter and vanilla. Transfer pastry cream to small bowl, press plastic wrap directly on surface, and refrigerate until cold and set, at least 2 hours or up to 2 days.

3. For the cupcakes: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour a 12-cup muffin tin. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

4. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg yolks one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk, mixing just until incorporated. Pour batter into prepared muffin tin.

5. Bake in the preheated oven for 18 to 20 minutes, or until tops spring back when lightly tapped. Cool 10 minutes before removing to cooling racks.

6. For the glaze: Cook cream, corn syrup, chocolate, and vanilla in small saucepan over medium heat, stirring constantly, until smooth. Set glaze aside to cool and thicken for 30 minutes.

7. To assemble cupcakes: Insert the tip of a small knife at a 45-degree angle about 1/8 inch from the edge of the cupcake and cut all the way around, removing a cone of cake. Cut away all but the top 1/4 inch of the cone, leaving only a small disk of cake. Fill the cupcake with 2 tablespoons pastry cream and top with the disk of cake. Set the filled cupcakes on a wire rack set over parchment paper. Spoon 2 tablespoons of glaze over each cupcake, allowing it to drip down the sides.

8. Refrigerate until just set, about 10 minutes. Cupcakes can be refrigerated for up to 2 days; bring to room temperature before serving.

Matthew's Birthday

This is the cake I baked today for Matthew's birthday. It is a white mascarpone cake with raspberry filling and a lemon mascarpone whipped cream icing.

LEMON MASCARPONE CREAM
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1 cup heavy cream, whipped
1 cup (8 ounces) mascarpone cheese, room temperature
Zest of one small lemon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS
In large bowl of a mixer, whip cream on high speed. Gradually add in lemon zest, lemon juice, and sugar. Continue whipping until stiff peaks form. Fold in mascarpone cheese.

RASPBERRY FILLING
From Hannah's Kitchen

INGREDIENTS
1 (12 ounce) bag frozen raspberries, thawed and drained
3/4 cup raspberry preserves

DIRECTIONS
In small bowl, stir raspberries and preserves together. Spread on cake layers.