bash

Almond Cherry Biscotti

2012-01-24T10:45:00.000-08:00

Originally fig and hazelnut which I think would be awesome!

Buttery Cherry Almond Biscotti
adapted Food and Wine

2 1/2 cups almonds (10 ounces)
14 ounces dried cherries
1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 3/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Preheat the oven to 325° and position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Spread the almonds on a baking sheet and toast for 12 to 14 minutes, until the skins blister. Let cool, then transfer the nuts to a kitchen towel and rub off as much of the skins as possible. Transfer the nuts to a cutting board and coarsely chop.

Meanwhile, in a microwave-safe bowl, cover the cherries with water and microwave at high power for 1 minute, just until the figs are plump. Drain well. Slice the cherries 1/8 inch thick.

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the butter with the sugar at medium speed until smooth. Beat in the eggs. In a small bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and beat at low speed until combined. Add the nuts and cherries and beat until combined.

Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Transfer the dough to a work surface and roll into six 10-by-1 1/2-inch logs. Arrange the logs on the baking sheets and bake for 30 minutes, or until golden and firm. Let the logs cool for 15 minutes.

On a work surface, using a serrated knife, slice the logs on the diagonal 2/3 inch thick. Arrange the biscotti cut sides up on the baking sheets and bake for about 18 minutes, until lightly browned. Let the biscotti cool, then serve or store.

Make Ahead The biscotti can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

pumpkin bread pudding

2011-11-14T14:07:00.000-08:00

Because it's still fall and I love pumpkins in everything...

And caramel sauce totally not needed, just adding because it was part of the original recipe.

Pumpkin Bread Pudding with Carmel Sauce
via Epicurious

Bread pudding
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 egg bread (about 10-ounces)
1/2 cup golden raisins (omitted)

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 350°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. Stir in golden raisins. Transfer mixture to 11x7-inch glass baking dish. (I used various sized ramekins, loved it) Let stand 15 minutes. Bake pumpkin bread pudding until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 40 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.

Sift powdered sugar over bread pudding. Serve warm with caramel sauce.

pear tart tatin

2011-11-04T14:02:00.000-07:00

Mr. Ha's apples are pretty amazing but so too are the bartlett pears. They are so sweet on their own and make this tart tatin extra special!

Pear Tart Tatin
via Yummy Super

1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
4 medium pears, peeled and sliced
1/2 flaky pastry dough recipe (i used frozen puff pastry)

Preheat oven to 400.

Roll out dough into a large circle about 11 inches in diameter. Put back in fridge to keep chilled.

In a 9 inch cast iron skillet, heat sugar and butter over med high heat. Stir with a wooden spoon until caramel thickens and becomes rich amber color. Take off heat and let cool.

Peel and slice pears, then arrange in a circular pattern over the top of the caramel.

Lay pastry dough over top of pears. Trim and tuck under excess dough. Slice a few vents into the dough to let the steam release during baking.

Bake 30-40 minutes until pastry is golden brown.

pumpkin waffles

2011-10-31T10:41:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Raised Pumpkin Waffles
Adapted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook by Marion Cunningham

1/2 cup warm water
1 package dried yeast
2 cups warm milk
1/2 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar
desired amount of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 large eggs
1/3 teaspoon baking soda

Use a rather large mixing bowl--the batter will rise to double its original volume. Put the water in the mixing bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Let stand to dissolve for 5 minutes. Add the milk, butter, spices, salt, sugar, pumpkin puree and flour to the yeast mixture and beat until smooth and blended. Cover with plastic wrap and place in refrigerator.

Just before cooking the waffles, beat in the eggs, add the baking soda , and stir until well mixed. The batter will be very thin. Pour about 1/2-3/4 cup batter into a very hot waffle iron. Bake until golden and crisp. This batter will keep for several days in the refrigerator. Serve with warm maple syrup.

pumpkin tea cake

2011-10-25T17:47:00.001-07:00

This was simple, well balanced but if I'm going to make something like this I would go ahead and make this but if you're looking for something a little different there is this.

Pumpkin Tea Cake
from Tartine

1 2/3 all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 Tbl + 2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1 cup + 2 Tbl pumpkin puree
1 cup vegetable oil
1 1/3 sugar
3/4 tsp salt
3 eggs
pumpkin seeds chopped and 2 tbl sugar

Preheat oven to 325 Lightly butter the bottom and sides of a 9x5 inch loaf pan

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves into a mixing bowl and set aside

In another bowl, beat together pumpkin puree, oil, sugar and salt. Add eggs one and a time and mix well. Add the flour mixture and stir until combined. Transfer the batter to the prepared loaf pan and smooth the surface with an offset spatula. Sprinkle evenly with the sugar and desired amount of pumpkin seeds.

Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 1 hour.

chocolate sorbet

2011-09-30T15:10:00.001-07:00

The recipe is perfect! Just don't miss any steps, such as blending the mixture, seems to be key. And also using the best quality chocolate.

Chocolate Sorbet
Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

2 1/2 Cups water
1 Cup sugar
3/4 Cup unsweetened dutch process cocoa powder (used Valrhona)
pinch of salt
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped (used Callebaut)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
* I added 1/4 cocoa nibs

In a large saucepan, whisk together 1 1/2 cups of the water with the sugar, cocoa powder and salt. Bring to a boil, whisking frequently. Let it boil, continuing to whisk for 45 seconds.

Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate until it's melted, then stir in the vanilla extract and the remaining 3/4 cup of water. Transfer the mixture to a blender and blend for 15 seconds. Chill the mixture thoroughly, then freeze it in your Ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

granola bars

2011-09-12T17:41:00.000-07:00

I made slight changes and doubled the orginal recipe found Summer Harms

Homemade Granola Bars
4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 c. flax seed
1/2 c. quinoa
1 c. shelled sunflower seeds
2 c. sliced almonds
1 c. shredded coconut
1 1/2tsp. cinnamon (desired amount)
1 1/2 tsp. salt

2/3 c. brown sugar or your favorite natural sweetener
2/3 c. honey
4 T. butter
2 tsp. vanilla
6 T. almond butter

1. mix first 8 ingredients together and place on a rimmed baking sheet. toast in a 400 degree oven for 12 minutes. stir and let cool at least 15 minutes.
2. bring next 4 ingredients to a simmer, stirring continuously. stir in the vanilla and peanut butter and cool for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. put the toasted ingredients and dried fruit in a large bowl and pour the liquid ingredients over it. mix very well.
4. place parchment rimmed baking sheet then place the granola bar mixture in the pan. put another piece paper, roll with a rolling pin to make it very tight, smooth, and even.
5. let set for 2-3 hours and cut into desired bar sizes, package in air tight container in fridge.

chocolate zucchini bread

2011-08-15T14:55:00.001-07:00

This bread has a whole lot going on but when I discovered it on not one but http://asweetspoonful.com/ blogs I thought I should try it. Since making it, the girl asks at least once a day for "chocolate bread please". I made bran muffins this morning hoping she'll think they are similar...we'll see. This recipe is copied exactly from Seven Spoons, copy and paste. The only change I made was using half the amount of chocolate (4 ounces) and swapping the walnuts for pecans. I would really like to try this recipe without the cocoa powder, maybe it would taste more like this? I love that one but if you have an abundant amount of zucchini, as many people do, I think this is a great option for using up all those squash.

Chocolate Olive Oil Zucchini Bread
via Seven Spoons
Ingredients
Softened butter, for pans
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup chopped walnuts, toasted (I used pecans)
8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup olive oil
1 cup well-shaken buttermilk
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups fine-grained turbinado sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups shredded zucchini, see note

Preheat an oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease two 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pans with softened butter. Use a length of parchment to line the bottom and long sides of the pan, forming a sling, and lightly butter the parchment as well. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flours, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir in the chopped walnuts and chocolate. Set aside.

In another bowl, whisk together the olive oil and buttermilk. Add the eggs, sugar and vanilla, and beat until smooth. Stir in the zucchini.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry, stir until combined, taking care not over mix. Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared pans and bake, rotating once, until a cake tester inserted into the loaf comes out almost clean, which should be around 50 minutes. Cool loaves in their pans on a rack for 20 minutes, then grasp the edges of the parchment to ease the bread out.

Makes 2 loaves.

Notes:
For the zucchini, I use the grating attachment on my food processor, taking care not to press down on the feed tube plunger while the machine is running - this gives a light, feathery shredding. Since we want a bread that is damp but not sodden, I sprinkle the emerald-tipped strands across a (lint-free) kitchen towel, then place another atop, patting it down gently. After a few minutes the towels will have absorbed some of the excess liquid and the zucchini is left crisp and ready to go.

chocolate honeycomb

2011-08-09T19:50:00.000-07:00

It's funny to me that we've fallen into the habit of giving each other traditional gifts for our anniversaries but we have. The year six the gift is candy. Seemed easy, cheap and after a nice dinner at Pizzeria Mozza sounded perfect. I've only made this candy once and had actually never heard of it before I made it the first time. It definitely sticks to your teeth but the hubs seems to think it is well worth while and was his present to mark this occasion. There seem to be a lot of recipes out there for this, some with actual honey but this lacks honey but is big on flavor.

Chocolate Honeycomb

1 C sugar
1 C corn syrup
1 Tbl vinegar
1 Tbl baking soda
2 pounds chocolate

Combine first three ingredients in a saucepan. Stir over head until sugar has dissolved. Stop stirring and bring mixture to a biol. Cook until candy thermometer reaches 300 degrees. Remove from heat. Quickly add baking soda and stir. Pour onto parchment lined cookie sheet. Do not spread. Allow to cool.

Melt chocolate over double boiler.

Break candy into large chucks. Dig into melted chocolate. Place on parchment lined baking sheet and allow to harden.

honeyed nectarine crostatas

2011-08-01T15:06:00.000-07:00

The farmer's market has been brimming with the most beautiful fruit. It's absolutely my most favorite time of year to spend at the farmer's market even with the temperatures nearing triple digits. There is such an abundance of berries in colors ranging from yellow to almost black. And the pitted fruit is like candy. I over bought in my haste to hold on to the season and needed to figure out what to do with a few extra nectarines. As I flipped through Food and Wine Annual Cookbook from 2010 I happened upon a recipe calling for fresh figs crostatas. I swapped those out for the nectarines and the end result was a rustic pie that my husband and daughter ate for breakfast.

Honeyed Nectarine Crostatas
adapted from Food and Wine Annual Cookbook 2010
2 1/2 c flour
1/3 cup sugar
kosher salt
1 1/2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup plus 3 Tbl ice water
5 nectarines, sliced
5 teaspoons honey
2 Tablespoons orange juice
1/4 teaspoon fresh thyme
1 egg beaten with a bit of water

In a food processor, pulse the flour with the sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Add cold pieces of butter and pulse until the butter is the size of peas. Add the water; pulse until the crostata dough just comes together. Pat the dough into a disk, wrap well in plastic and refrigerate the disk for 30 minutes.
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the crostata dough 1/8 inch thick. Cut out 5 rounds. Transfer rounds to a parchment paper lined baking sheet and refrigerate them for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 375. In a bowl toss the nectarine slices, honey, orange juice and thyme. Arrange slices on the dough rounds, leaving excess juice in the bowl. Fold over the edges and brush dough with egg wash.
Bake the crostatas for 35 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking, until the crusts are golden. Let stand for 10 minutes.

oat cakes

2011-07-24T15:10:00.000-07:00

A couple months ago when Heidi Swanson's newest cookbook, Super Natural Every Day was released there was quite a flurry of posts from the book on numerous blogs. Each recipe looked like something I wanted to make yet these oat cakes were the first to be made. I found the recipe via 5 second rule. They were hearty, sweet, full of goodness maybe most importantly they were quickly eaten. They aren't your typical muffin with all those oats in there but definitely preferred by me. Two months later the actual cookbook is in my possession and is getting quite a lot of use!

Oat Cakes
via 5 second rule

3 cups / 10.5 oz / 300 g rolled oats
2 cups / 8 oz / 225 g whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon aluminum-free baking powder
2 teaspoons fine-grain sea salt
1/4 cup / 1.5 oz / 45 g flax seeds
3/4 cup / 3 oz / 85 g chopped pecans, lightly toasted
1/3 cup / 2.5 oz / 70 g extra-virgin coconut oil
1/3 cup / 3 oz / 85 g unsalted butter
3/4 cup / 180 ml maple syrup
1/2 cup / 2.5 oz / 70 g natural cane sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to 325°F / 160°C with a rack in the top third of the oven. Butter a standard 12-cup muffin pan.

Combine the oats, flour, baking powder, salt, flax seeds, and pecans in a large mixing bowl.

In a medium saucepan over low heat, combine the coconut oil, butter, maple syrup, and sugar and slowly melt together. Stir just until the butter melts and sugar has dissolved, but don’t let the mixture get too hot. You don’t want it to cook the eggs on contact in the next step.

Pour the coconut oil mixture over the oat mixture. Stir a bit with a fork, add the eggs, and stir again until everything comes together into a wet dough. Spoon the dough into the muffin cups, nearly filling them.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the edges of each oatcake are deeply golden. Remove the pan from the oven and let cool for a couple minutes. Then, run a knife around the edges of the cakes and tip them out onto a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

orange vanilla sorbet

2011-07-15T14:00:00.000-07:00

This recipe is related to last weeks post. When I went to pick out the flavors at Carmela's I knew that I wanted one sorbet for any vegans in attendance. The options are often rotated at Carmela's with a few tried and true that always seem to be on the blackboard. That day there was spiced strawberry sorbet and lemon basil sorbet but a flavor that lingered in my mind but wasn't an option was orange vanilla sorbet. When I saw a post on Chef Speak by the owner of Carmela's with a recipe at the end for lemon basil sorbet I decided to play around with it and make the orange vanilla. We were very happy with the results and will be in permanent rotation here.

Orange Vanilla Sorbet
via Chef Speak

4 cups purified water
2 cups sugar
Zest of 2 lemons
1 vanilla pod
1 1/2 cups fresh squeezed orange juice

Instructions:
Combine 4 cups water and 2 cups sugar in medium saucepan. Stir sugar and water over medium heat until sugar dissolves. Increase the heat and bring to a boil.
Reduce heat to medium and add the orange zest and vanilla pod. Simmer 3 minutes. Strain. Split vanilla pod and add seeds to syrup and chill thoroughly.
Meanwhile, squeeze oranges for juice. Strain juice and reserve in a bowl.
Once orange syrup is cooled, combine with juice. Cool in refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight.
Freeze in an ice cream machine according to manufacturers instructions.

ice cream sandwiches via carmela

2011-07-08T14:34:00.001-07:00

Isn't that a great image? Not mine but one that tempts you on Carmela's website. The Fourth of July weekend was a busy one and I was asked to bring dessert to one of the festivities. I thought ice cream sandwiches would be fun but didn't want to go to the trouble of making an assortment of ice cream. Ice cream is a perfect summer treat but not too many people mention you can get quite hot standing over the stove as you make the custard for the ice cream. I decided to buy four flavors at the new brick and mortar outpost of Carmela's honey lavender, brown sugar vanilla, mint cocoa nib and lemon basil. I also decided to make chocolate ice cream. And two cookies, chocolate chip and whole wheat honey which is this recipe minus the rosemary and cut into a larger size. I think everyone enjoyed making their ice cream sandwiches!

oh banana muffins

2011-06-19T17:21:00.000-07:00

We've started baking weekly around here as an activity. I get some goodies made for snack time and someone has fun pouring and mixing, I am continually surprised at what children are capable of as such an early age! I digress...muffins, I found this recipe via Lovely Mornings. The ingredient list was questionable to me at first but I was willing to give them a try. So very glad I did. They are moist, flavorful and they were eaten quite quickly around here.

Coconut Banana Muffins
slightly adapted from Bonzo, Chooch and Me

1/4 cup unrefined organic coconut oil

2 cups organic whole wheat pastry flour

1/4 cup organic sugar

1 organic egg

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon sea salt

1 1/4 cups coconut milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

3 over-ripe organic bananas, mashed

2 tablespoons fresh ground flax seeds

2 tablespoons fresh organic raw sunflower seeds (to sprinkle on top)

preheat oven to 375 degrees.

combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, flax seeds and egg

in another bowl:

combine coconut milk, oil and vanilla

in a small bowl:

mash bananas

add milk mixture to flour mixture and stir to combine, then add bananas and stir.

spray muffin tin with olive oil and fill the cups with batter.

sprinkle the tops with ground sunflower seeds.

bake for about 25 minutes until they're golden brown

Made 24 mini muffins and a mini loaf :)

oatmeal crackers

2011-06-07T15:13:00.000-07:00

Look at those hands grabbing for some crackers. I so love that she is grabbing for crackers that were made in her own kitchen. A week or so ago after my husband dusted off the remnants of these crackers from a face, hands and clothes he questioned crackers, the processed food that it is, regardless if all the ingredients are organic. Well I saw that as a challenge and remembered seeing these crackers on 101cookbooks not so long ago and decided to give it a go. They were greeted with great enthusiasm even from little Miss's friend who was visiting.

Oatmeal Crackers
via 101cookbooks
1 cup rolled oats
1 1/4 cups whole milk, heated just to boiling
1/4 cup room-temperature unsalted butter (I melted mine)
4 tablespoons natural cane sugar
3 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 1/4 cup / 5.5 oz / 155g dark rye flour
1 1/2 cups / 6.75 oz / 190g all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting (I used whole wheat pastry flour)
more salt for sprinkling

In a large bowl combine the rolled oats and boiling milk. Let stand until cool. To speed this up I sometimes place the bowl in the freezer for about 35 minutes. When cool, stir in the butter, sugar, baking powder, anise seed, salt, and rye flour. Stir in the all-purpose flour, a bit at a time, until a stiff dough forms. Turn out onto a counter top and knead until the dough comes together and is uniform.
Heat the oven to 425F with racks in top and bottom thirds.
Divide the dough into two parts, just so you have a manageable amount to work with. Now, you're going to want to roll the dough out very thin - 1/8th-inch. This way your crackers will have snap. Have a look at the photo up above, and try to get it thinner than that. If your dough is at all stubborn, just let it rest there for ten minutes or so, then try again.

Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheets [they don't spread much), and sprinkle with a bit more salt - flaky salt if you have it. Bake for roughly 14 minutes, but here's the trick. When the cracker bottoms are deeply golden, roughly 9 minutes in, flip each cracker, and brown the flip side as well. Use your best judgement and remove when well done. Cool completely before storing in large air-tight jars.
Repeat with the remaining dough, and cut the scraps into tiny soup crackers.
Makes dozens of crackers, depending on how large or small you cut them.
Adapted from The Great Scandinavian Baking Book by Beatrice Ojakangas.
Prep time: 45 min - Cook time: 15 min

cranberry scones

2011-05-31T14:46:00.000-07:00

A few months back we had a short getaway to Laguna Beach. It was super relaxing, or as relaxing as you can get with an almost 2 year old in tow. One of our best mornings was a late breakfast at Zinc Cafe. The older customers were in love with our little one and entertained her from tables away as we enjoyed our eats. One item was a delicious cranberry scone that was make with fresh cranberries opposed to dried and studded with pecans. Recently, when I had some extra heavy cream in the fridge with an expiration date quickly approaching I decided to try my hand at a new scone. There is whole wheat pastry flour in these but they are pure indulgence with the butter and cream. They are crumbly around the edges but the interior is almost moist and flaky.

Cranberry Scones

2 C Whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 C all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
1 Tbl baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 C sugar
1 C cold salted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 C fresh cranberries
1/3 C pecans
1 C heavy cream

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Sift the flours, baking soda, baking powder together in a large bowl. Add salt and sugar and stir to combine. Add the butter and mix with fingers until they are pea sized. Add the cranberries and pecans. Make a well in the center and add the cream. Mix until rough and shaggy. Dust work surface with flour and knead about 5 times. Pat out dough until it is approximately 1/2 inch high. With a 2” cookie cutter cut out scones. Place on prepared pan about 2” apart. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool

almond chocolate biscotti

2011-05-23T14:07:00.000-07:00

I guess I have a thing about twice baked goods recently. I devoured the May issue of Bon Appetit. Totally makes me want to hop on a plane and head to Italy for some good eats. There was a recipe for biscotti that looked delicious but knew that they had to wait because I had these biscotti on the mind for quite some time and needed to make them first. I've made these twice in the last week, the husband really likes them!, and our only complaint was we felt it needed more almond extract, so the second time around I upped the extract. These are crunchy, good for dunking and aren't totally guilt free but not too indulgent either. These are way back in the archives of 101cookbooks but definitely worth it.

Almond Chocolate Biscotti
slightly adapted from 101 cookbooks
2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/3 cup oat flour
1/3 cup oat bran 1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar 2 large organic eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1/3 cup slivered almonds
3/4 cup good quality semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat your oven to 325.

Combine whole wheat pastry flour, oat flour, oat bran, salt, and baking powder.
Cream the butter and sugar together until creamy, and slightly lighter in color than when you started. Add the eggs and almond extract. Mix until well combined. You will need to scrape down the sides of your bowl a couple of times if you are using an electric mixer - you want an even distribution of the eggs.

Add the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Pulse the mixer on low a couple times so you don't end up with a flour cloud, and then leave it on low for a few seconds - just until the dough becomes stiff and the flour is pretty well incorporated. Stir in the slivered almonds and chocolate chips.
Now it is time to shape and bake your biscotti. The dough should be pretty stiff, and easy to work with but you may want to powder your hands and counter with a bit of flour if you are worried about sticking. Flatten the mound of dough into a flat log shape roughly 4-inches wide by 10 or 12-inches long. It doesn't have to be perfect - rustic looking biscotti taste just as good and I like a little character in my baked goods. Place the dough on an ungreased baking sheet and place in the oven for 25 minutes, you want the dough to get firm and start to brown a bit. This is just the first of two rounds in the oven.

Remove the biscotti from the oven and reduce the oven temperature to 300F. Allow the now-baked dough to cool for about 10 minutes - you need it to firm up a bit so it doesn't just crumble when you go to cut it.

Cut the loaf into individual biscotti roughly 3/4-inch thick. This biscotti doesn't do particularly well sliced thinly if you want to go thinner try letting the loaf cool longer. Arrange the slices cut side up on the baking sheet and return to the oven for a second time around. You want to bake the biscotti until they are dry and firm, roughly 30 minutes. Don't underbake or you won't get the satisfaction of a nice crunch. It is tricky because, they might be slightly soft coming out of the oven, but will firm right up as they cool off on the counter.

raisin pecan crackers

2011-05-16T14:43:00.000-07:00

I was first introduced to Raincoast Crisps by my sister-in-law who always puts together the most amazing cheese plates. The crackers were perfect, crisp with so many yummy things crammed inside each little cracker. I was happy to see they were so easy to find at our local Whole Foods but at $7.00 a box it's hard to justify. I was overjoyed when I found the link on The Kitchn for DIY Raincoast Crisps. I was finally going to be able to make my own addictive crackers for a fraction of the price. They are pretty simple to make. I used three mini-loaf pans and adjusted the recipe only slightly from the original.

Rosemary Raisin Pecan Crisps
via Dinner with Julie
2 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup roasted pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup flax seed, ground
1 1/2 Tbsp. chopped fresh rosemary

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In a large bowl, stir together the flour, baking soda and salt. Add the buttermilk, brown sugar and honey and stir a few strokes. Add the raisins, pecans, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, flax seed and rosemary and stir just until blended.

Pour the batter into three 5x 2 inch loaf pans that have been sprayed with nonstick spray. Bake for about 40 minutes, until golden and springy to the touch. Remove from the pans and cool on a wire rack.

Place cooled loaves in the freezer. Slice the loaves as thin as you can and place the slices in a single layer on an ungreased cookie sheet. Reduce the oven heat to 300° F and bake them for about 15 minutes, then flip them over and bake for another 15 minutes, until crisp and deep golden. They may be lightly flexible but will finish hardening as they cool.

rosemary shortbread

2011-04-26T14:54:00.001-07:00

These little cookies are so good! They are tiny, about 1 1/2-inches big with a dusting of sugar on top and just the right amount of rosemary. I feel like they would be a nice pairing with lavender shortbreads. I recently started to read Seven Spoons and was making my way through the archives when I stopped on these sweet treats. She links back to a recipe on Epicurious. I took some hints from Seven Spoons and made minimal changes to the original recipe.

Rosemary Shortbread Cookies
via EpicuriousIngredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat pastry flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 tsps. chopped fresh rosemary
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons mild honey
1/2 cup confectioners sugar
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 300°F.

Whisk together flour, salt, baking powder, and rosemary in a bowl.

Mix together butter, honey, and confectioners sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at low speed, then add flour mixture and mix until dough resembles coarse meal with some small (roughly pea-size) butter lumps. Gather dough into a ball and transfer to a lightly floured surface. Knead dough until it just comes together, about 8 times. Halve dough and form each half into a 5-inch disk.

Roll out 1 disk (keep remaining dough at room temperature) Cut into desired shapes. Sprinkle with sugar.

Bake shortbread in middle of oven until golden brown, 12-15 minutes. Slide shortbread on parchment to a rack and cool 5 minutes.

multigrain pancakes

2011-04-18T15:24:00.000-07:00

I realize it seems like I'm on some pancake binge but Sunday mornings are special. They deserve a breakfast that is a bit slower and warm, unlike of yogurt & granola breakfast all other mornings. I've made these pancakes a few times. They are thin, almost crepe like. And every time I get nervous they are too thin but no worries, they turn out just right. Sometimes I add a 1/4 a cup of brown sugar before I blend it up. These can be made the night before and stored in the fridge until the morning. Enjoy!

Multigrain Pancakes
via 5 Second Rule
copied word for word!

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup stone-ground cornmeal (I used medium grain because I enjoy the slight crunch)

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 tablespoons cold butter, in pieces

3 eggs

1 cup of plain yogurt whisked with 2 cups milk (or substitute 3 cups buttermilk)

Place two flours, oats, cornmeal, baking powder and soda, and salt in a food processor fitted with the steel blade and process until well blended. Add the butter and process again until it resembles coarse meal. Add the eggs, yogurt and milk and process again until you have a relatively smooth batter. (You'll need to stop the machine once or twice and very carefully sweep the sides with a thin rubber spatula to incorporate all the clingy bits that get stuck there.) Transfer batter to a mixing bowl or, better yet, a very large, lipped 2-quart glass measuring cup (if you happen to have one) and give it a few vigorous folds with your spatula to combine the batter well. It's fine if it's still a bit lumpy.

Preheat a cast-iron griddle, or your favorite pancake-making apparatus, over medium-high heat until a drop of water sizzles, spray it with nonstick spray, and spoon the batter onto the hot surface. Cook a minute or two on each side, or until golden brown. The pancakes will be relatively thin, so they'll cook quickly. Store any unused batter in a tightly covered glass jar in the fridge for up to 3 days.

pink & orange

2011-04-11T13:46:00.001-07:00

Elements from a pink and orange baby shower. I was asked to make a few things for a baby shower, the theme of course "pink and orange". I was to do onesie cookies, two kinds of cupcakes and something I've been quite curious in making...cake pops! They seem to be everywhere, even Starbucks. They were pretty easy to make, the only complication came in getting the white chocolate coating to look like I wanted, smooth and even. Which meant dipping the cake pops in the melted chocolate, swirling them around so they dried evenly and just before they dried completely, dipping them in the pink and orange sugars. I loosely based my cake pops on this posting on the kitchn.

macarons...

2011-04-05T13:38:00.000-07:00

I don't know if I should surrender and give up my attempts at making macarons; leave it to the professionals who make lovely ones in lots of flavors & pretty colors and just be happy? But I'm not happy! I want to make them too! I want them to be pretty and chewy and have a foot and not crack...too much to ask? I attempted once more and these are the results. I wasn't too adventurous I see because they are eerily familiar to these ones. I was scrolling through the kitchn when I saw the post about macaron myths. I couldn't help buy quickly click over and read. So after reading the post on Brave Tart I have new found energy to try these once again. Until then, here is my latest endeavor.

Orange and Chocolate Macarons
adapted from Tartelette

3 egg whites (aged in refrigerator for 3 days)
25 gr granulated sugar
200 gr powdered sugar
110 gr almond flour
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest

Prepare the macarons:
text by Tartlette
In a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the egg whites to a foam, (think bubble bath foam) gradually add the sugar until you obtain a glossy meringue (think shaving cream). Do not overbeat your meringue or it will be too dry. Place the powdered sugar and almonds and grapefruit zest in a food processor and give them a good pulse until the nuts are finely ground. Add them to the meringue, give it a quick fold to break some of the air and then fold the mass carefully until you obtain a batter that falls back on itself after counting to 10. Give quick strokes at first to break the mass and slow down. The whole process should not take more than 50 strokes. Test a small amount on a plate: if the tops flattens on its own you are good to go. If there is a small beak, give the batter a couple of turns.
Fill a pastry bag fitted with a plain tip (Ateco #807 or #809) with the batter and pipe small rounds (1.5 inches in diameter) onto parchment paper or silicone mats lined baking sheets. Let the macarons sit out for 30 minutes to an hour to harden their shells a bit. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 280F (convection - 300F regular). When ready, bake for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on their size. Let cool. Once baked and if you are not using them right away, store them in an airtight container out of the fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer.

I filled them with chocolate ganache

Pear and Buckwheat Pancakes

2011-03-28T14:59:00.000-07:00

I fancy a new blog. Sprouted Kitchen. I can't even remember how I happened upon it first but I did and we've been enjoying quite a few recipes, mostly savory but a few sweet. The recipes just speak to me. They are simple, straight forward and appeal to my ideals of what cooking should be for our family; healthy, local and good. That is where I found this recipe for buckwheat pancakes. The three of us enjoyed them immensely over the weekend.

Ingredients
slightly adapted from Sprouted Kitchen1 Cup Buckwheat Flour
1/2 Cup Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
1/2 Cup Unbleached All Purpose Flour
1/4 Cup Turbinado Sugar
2 tsp. Baking Powder
1/2 tsp. cardamon
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. Sea Salt

2 Tbsp. Unsalted Butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 Cup Buttermilk
1/2 Cup Milk
1 Large Egg
2 Firm Pears

Sift all of the dry ingredients together in a large bowl.

In another bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, milk and butter until combined.

Peel the pears, and grate them in the large holes of a box grater. Add the pears and their juices to the buttermilk mixture. Gently add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until just combined. It should be fairly thick, thin it out to desired consistency.

Heat the griddle over medium heat. Add batter in 1/4 cup mounds to the pan, once the tops start to bubble, check that the bottoms are golden brown and flip to the other side. Cook about 5 minutes total.

Wipe the pan between batches, and rub a little butter in between.

guinness ice cream

2011-03-21T14:02:00.000-07:00

I totally realize that it would have made much more sense to have posted this last Thursday but I didn't know I was going to be making this until Thursday. The first text I received on St. Patrick's Day was "Let's make Guinness ice cream". It was from the hubs and it really meant will you please make me some Guinness ice cream. When I asked if there was a recipe he had in mind, I received "I trust u". So who do I trust when it comes to ice cream perfection...David Lebovitz. I pulled out my The Perfect Scoop book and started to flip. I found Guinness-Milk Chocolate Ice Cream. While at the store stocking up on recipe ingredients I could only find one bar, 3.5 ounces, of milk chocolate and I needed twice that amount. I used 3.5 ounces of a 70%cocoa chocolate bar for the remainder. Other than that I followed the recipe exactly. I know that beer is occasionally used in chocolate cake, I thought mostly for the moisture factor and I guess to give it a little more depth of flavor but I can distinctly remember hearing that you don't taste the beer. Well you definitely taste the beer in this ice cream which is oddly fantastic! The combination with the chocolate is pretty perfect. If there is any leftover stout in your fridge I think this needs to be made.

Guinness-Milk Chocolate Ice Cream
via The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

7 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup whole milk
1/2 cup sugar
pinch of salt
4 large egg yolks
1 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup Guinness Stout
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Put the chocolate pieces in a large bowl and set a mesh strainer over the top.

Warm the milk, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm 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 over the milk chocolate, then stir until the chocolate is melted. Once the mixture is smooth, whisk in the cream, then the Guinness and vanilla. 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

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookie

2011-03-15T14:11:00.000-07:00

I had mentioned that I needed to post these cookies here and now I'm finally doing it. So I'm totally excited about this book, Good to the Grain, or at least the idea of it. I love to experiment with different grains and have found lots of inspiration here. I was pretty excited about these cookies because there have been so many posts related to them. With such high hopes I thought these would be the best but sadly they weren't. They weren't awful but they weren't fantastic. I did package some up and give them to friends (is that horrible?!) and one said they were the best chocolate chip cookies they'd ever had, hmm. Maybe it's just me and I'll explore Good to the Grain a bit more and hope to find something that I love.
Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Good to the Grain

Ingredients
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
2 sticks (8 oz.) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped into ¼- and ½-inch pieces,

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, and preheat to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, and whisk to blend.

Put the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the butter and sugars are blended, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the bowl, and blend on low speed until the flour is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate, and mix on low speed until evenly combined. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and then use your hands to turn and gently massage the dough, making sure all the flour is absorbed.

Scoop mounds of dough about 3 tablespoons in size onto the baking sheets, leaving about 3 inches between each cookie.

Bake the cookies for 16 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies are evenly browned. Transfer the cookies, still on parchment, to a rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.

oatmeal pancakes

2011-03-07T14:30:00.000-08:00

These don't necessarily look incredibly good but I promise that they are. A huge hit in fact in this family on weekend mornings. And because they are so easy to prepare they find themselves on our plates often. It's also a great recipe for anyone with gluten allergies. They are especially good serves with fresh berries.

Oatmeal Pancakes
adapted Bob's Red MillIngredients
•3/4 cup Oat Flour
•3/4 cup Quick Rolled Oats
•1 cup Milk
•2 Tb Sugar
•2 tsp Baking Powder
•1/2 tsp Sea Salt
•2 Eggs
•1 Tb Vegetable Oil

In a small saucepan heat milk till hot; stir in oats; let stand for 5 minutes.
In a mixing bowl combine oat flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add oat-milk mixture. In a small bowl combine eggs and cooking oil; add all at once to flour-oat mixture, stirring just till combined.

For each pancake, pour about 1/4 cup of the batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or heavy skillet. Cook till golden brown, turning to cook other side when pancake has a bubbly surface and slightly dry edges.

alsatian apple tart

2011-02-28T09:35:00.000-08:00

Someone I knew was having a birthday and as I understood they didn't so much like traditional birthday desserts but did mention they like apple pie. I began flipping through some books and happened upon Dorie Greenspan's Alsatian Apple Tart. It seemed perfect...at least to me. Not too sweet, a light custard with crisp sweet Fuji apples throughout with a nice nutty flavor from the crust. Very simple yet quite good. The first time I made the tart I used a traditional pie dish which allowed the crust to come up the sides a bit more, giving a more rustic look. The second time, I did as instructed and used a tart pan with a removable bottom.

Alsatian apple Tart
via Dorie Greenspan Baking: From My Home to YoursSweet Almond Tart Crust
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup ground almonds
6 Tablespoons 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, nuts, 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. Just before you reach this stage, the sound of the machine working the dough will change—heads up. 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 the dough: Butter a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom. Roll out chilled dough on floured sheet of parchment paper to 12-inch round, lifting and turning dough occasionally to free from paper. Using paper as aid, turn dough into 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom; peel off paper. Seal any cracks in dough. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold overhang in, making double-thick sides. Pierce crust all over with fork.

3. Freeze the crust for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer, before baking.

4. To fully bake the crust: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F. Butter the shiny side of a piece of aluminum foil (or use nonstick foil) and fit the foil, buttered side down, tightly against the crust. (Since you froze the crust, you can bake it without weights.) Put the tart pan on a baking sheet and bake the crust for 20 minutes.

5. Carefully remove the foil. If the crust has puffed, press it down gently with the back of a spoon (or prick it with the tip of a small knife). Transfer the pan to a rack and cool the crust to room temperature.

For the filling:
1 pound Fuji apples
1 cup heavy cream
6 Tb. sugar
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375F. Peel, core and slice the apples thinly. Layer the apples overlapping in a circle on the bottom of the crust, the rest of the apples domed in the center. In a bowl that would be easy to pour out of, mix the eggs and sugar, add the cream and vanilla. Pour on top of the apples and bake at 375F for 50-55 minutes. A knife should come out clean when inserted into the custard. Cool completely and dust with confectioner's sugar.

chocolate chip pecan bars

2011-02-22T14:08:00.000-08:00

I was seriously suspicious of these bars in the March issue of Food and Wine because they were being presented as a healthy alternative. For one they aren't so healthy. Secondly, when baked goods are said to be "healthy" they are usually missing something essential. But because they were a staff favorite I thought it was worth a try. I need to post the whole-wheat chocolate chip cookies that have being all over the blogosphere as of late but I'll start with this recipe instead. They are quite good. Canola oil in cookies is a bit strange and I don't like thinking about it but I think it helped keep the bars from getting too dry. The best part is that they are incredibly simple to make.

Chocolate chip pecan bars
via Food and Wine
Ingredients
1 cup pecans
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1.Preheat the oven to 350° and line the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan with parchment paper. Spread the pecans in a pie plate and toast for about 8 minutes, until golden. Chop the pecans and let cool.
2.In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, beat the butter and oil with the granulated sugar and brown sugar until creamy. Beat in the egg and vanilla until smooth. In a small bowl, whisk the flour with the baking soda and salt; beat the dry ingredients into the mixer at low speed. Add the chocolate chips and pecans; beat just until incorporated.
3.Transfer the dough to the prepared baking pan and press into an even layer. Bake for about 20 minutes, until lightly browned and nearly set in the center. Let cool completely, then run a knife around the edges and invert the rectangle. Peel off the paper and invert onto a cutting board. Cut and serve.

i heart scones

2011-02-14T06:00:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

Cherry Almond Scones
1 Cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 Cup flour
1/2 Cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
6 oz butter, cut into small dice
3/4 Cup dried cherries
1/2 Cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 Cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425
Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl combine flour through baking soda, mix. Blend butter into dry ingredients with fingers until mixture is crumbly. Add almonds and cherries. Add buttermilk and almond extract and stir until the dough becomes rough and shaggy. Gather dough together on floured surface, knead gently about 10 times. Divide dough in half. Pat into 7 inch circle 1/2 inch thick. Cut in 8 pie shapes. Bake until puffy and golden brown, 15-18 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack

ginger cookies

2011-02-08T14:54:00.000-08:00

When I worked at Starbucks so long ago, when it was the only one on the Monterey Peninsula my friend Kori and I would sample all sorts of treats so the customers would be tempted to order something extra...or maybe it was the idea that we would get little extra tip...or maybe we just wanted to snack away as we made endless coffee drinks. One of our favorites was the ginger chew cookies. It was huge, spicy and covered with sugar. Kori and I have had the pleasure of baking lots together, usually cookies and a few times ginger ones. When we were chatting recently I told her, "I think I found thee ginger cookie". It is from a new cookbook I received for Christmas, Barefoot Contessa at Home. Ina Garten expresses that these are the ultimate ginger cookie and I might agree! I think you have to follow the directions exactly, especially the "Bake for exactly 13 minutes". Chewy on the inside and crisp on the out.
Ultimate Ginger Cookies
via Barefoot Contessa at HomeIngredients
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup unsulfured molasses
1 extra-large egg, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups chopped crystallized ginger (6 ounces)
Granulated sugar, for rolling the cookies
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 sheet pans with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, ginger, and salt and then combine the mixture with your hands. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the brown sugar, oil, and molasses on medium speed for 5 minutes. Turn the mixer to low speed, add the egg, and beat for 1 minute. Scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula and beat for 1 more minute. With the mixer still on low, slowly add the dry ingredients to the bowl and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes. Add the crystallized ginger and mix until combined.

Scoop the dough with 2 spoons or a small ice cream scoop. With your hands, roll each cookie into a 1 3/4-inch ball and then flatten them lightly with your fingers. Press both sides of each cookie in granulated sugar and place them on the sheet pans. Bake for exactly 13 minutes. The cookies will be crackled on the top and soft inside. Let the cookies cool on the sheets for 1 to 2 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Supposed Best-Ever Brownies

2011-02-01T14:07:00.000-08:00

If you've read more than a few of my blog posts you quickly realize I love chocolate and don't mind enjoying chocolate in the form of brownies. So when the February issue of Bon Appetit arrived in the mail with nut studded brownies and the caption reading, "best-ever brownies" I had to make them. And as I turned to page 91 to see what was so amazing about these brownies I saw that they were made with brown butter, another favorite, I had even higher expectations...possibly too high. I made these and followed the recipe exactly, even using foil to line the pan which I really don't think is necessary and believe parchment would work as well. Okay, there was one slight change, I used pecans instead of walnuts. So the brownies...I feel that you miss out on the complexity of the browned butter with the intensity of the chocolate. And I feel that maybe the use of brown sugar instead of white would have given it more depth. What I did like was the fact that they weren't too sweet, you were able to appreciate the Valrhona cocoa powder I used. They were quiet moist and dense which scores high for me. I'd possibly make these again with some fooling around such as swapping out the white sugar for brown sugar.

Cocoa Brownies with Browned
Ingredients
•Nonstick vegetable oil spray
•10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
•1 1/4 cups sugar
•3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder (spooned into cup to measure, then leveled)
•1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•2 large eggs, chilled
•1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon unbleached all purpose flour
•1 cup pecan pieces

•Position rack in bottom third of oven; preheat to 325°F. Line 8x8x2-inch metal baking pan with foil, pressing foil firmly against pan sides and leaving 2-inch overhang. Coat foil with nonstick spray. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking until butter stops foaming and browned bits form at bottom of pan, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; immediately add sugar, cocoa, 2 teaspoons water, vanilla, and 1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt. Stir to blend. Let cool 5 minutes (mixture will still be hot). Add eggs to hot mixture 1 at a time, beating vigorously to blend after each addition. When mixture looks thick and shiny, add flour and stir until blended. Beat vigorously 60 strokes. Stir in nuts. Transfer batter to prepared pan.

•Bake brownies until toothpick inserted into center comes out almost clean (with a few moist crumbs attached), about 25 minutes. Cool in pan on rack. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Cut into 4 strips. Cut each strip crosswise into 4 brownies. DO AHEAD Can be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

wedding cupcakes

2011-01-27T14:34:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I never posted about this wedding! It was for my dear friend who lives in upstate New York but decided to have her fantastic wedding out here, in Palm Springs at the very fun Colony Palms Hotel It was probably the best wedding I've been to...great people...amazing food. I was absolutely humbled when she asked if I could make the dessert for the wedding, her request...cupcakes. I naturally agreed and made 4 flavors; chocolate with mocha frosting, vanilla with lemon curd, chocolate with vanilla bean frosting and chocolate and chocolate! The photographers took amazing photos but this is one my hubby took before they were devoured.

fleur de sel caramels

2011-01-21T07:47:00.000-08:00

These sweet treats are what filled our holiday goody bags for family and friends. I'm thinking most people are still into their New Years resolutions but Valentine's Day isn't that far off and these would be perfect for any ones sweetie, even yourself. I randomly found this recipe with great step by step photos over at Batter Licker. My big advice...make sure your candy thermometer is working properly.

Via Batter Licker (check out her site for amazing photos and advice!)Fleur de Sel Caramels
Makes 1 lb. of candy

Before I turn any burners on, I typically measure out and pour all the ingredients into their two respective pots and place all remaining tools and ingredients I’ll need (pan to pour caramel on, candy thermometer, measured amount of vanilla/liqueur) within arm’s distance. This helps reduce the probability of mishaps that might typically occur at the most critical points in the caramel-making process (e.g., when the sugar mixture is reaching its optimal “burnt” point before it actually becomes disgustingly over-burnt, and when the almost-finished caramel is approaching the optimal temperature that determines how hard or soft the candy will be).

I usually cook my caramel to 249°F because I prefer a softer caramel that won’t pull out my fillings while I’m eating it, but if you want something a bit firmer, bring it to 251°F. You might need to experiment with one or two batches to get it to your preferred level of firmness.

1 c. heavy cream
5 Tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1 tsp. fleur de sel (sea salt), plus more for sprinkling
1½ c. white sugar
2 Tbsp. corn syrup
¼ c. water
1 tsp. vanilla (or favorite liqueur)

Lightly mist baking sheet with oil, or line with parchment paper (parchment preferred). Set aside.

Bring cream, butter, and fleur de sel to a boil in a small saucepan, then remove from heat. Add vanilla, stir, then set aside.

Boil sugar, corn syrup, and water in a 4 quart heavy saucepan, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil, without stirring but gently swirling the pan to ensure even caramelization, until mixture is either a golden caramel or reddish golden caramel (NB: lighter caramels are more of a simple sweet, whereas the darker red caramels have a more complex, smokier flavor; I prefer mine smokier, but you should make them according to your preference – try two batches and taste test!).

Immediately and carefully stir in cream mixture, which will bubble up. Simmer, stirring frequently, until caramel registers 249°F (251°F for firmer caramel) on candy thermometer, approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

Pour immediately onto baking pan. Do not scrape the sides because they contain solidified sugar crystals that will ruin the candy’s texture (think shards of sugar in your otherwise creamy caramel). Cool for an hour.

Remove caramel from pan, and cut into 3 or 4 strips (depending on preferred size), lengthwise. Roll each strip over itself lengthwise two or three times (NB: If you’re finding the caramel too pliable to work with, put the caramel back on the pan and pop the pan into the refrigerator for 10 to 15 minutes until the caramel hardens up a bit. This will happen sometimes when it’s too warm or humid in your kitchen, so if you notice that it’s humid out, cook the caramel 2 degrees higher than normal. Too-pliable caramels might also mean that your candy thermometer is inaccurate, but before you toss the thermometer, test its accuracy by boiling a pot of water and arranging the tip of the candy thermometer so that it sits in the middle of the water. Water boils at 212F, so if your thermometer reads a different number once the water starts boiling, either invest in a new thermometer or adjust accordingly each time you make candy). Then sprinkle with additional fleur de sel if desired (NB: I’d suggest tasting one piece with salt sprinkled on top and another piece sans salt to see which you like best; in my experience, people have very different preferences here). Slice into bite-size pieces (about half an inch). Arrange the pieces on a dessert plate, or wrap in parchment or wax paper, twisting the ends to seal the candy in.

Caramels will keep approximately 2 weeks at room temperature if kept in an airtight container

spa bars

2011-01-16T08:39:00.000-08:00

I guess I took a month break from blogging, not intended but I'm refreshed and ready to start again. I've been in the kitchen a lot, trying new things, documenting them and now it's time to write. While flipping trough Sunset Magazine I noticed this recipe from this beautiful Vail, Colorado lodge where they are called "spa bars", I like that name better than what Sunset Magazine dubbed them, "fruit and nut chewy bars". This recipe is super easy to put together, no baking required and is quite tasty. Using Medjool dates seems to be key, otherwise the bars will be too dry.

Ingredients
1/3 cup chopped almonds
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup honey
3/4 cup Medjool dates, pitted
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 1/2 cups regular rolled oats
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup chopped dried apples

Preheat oven to 325°. Spread nuts on a rimmed baking sheet and bake until light golden, 10 to 12 minutes.

Warm honey in a microwave until the consistency of thin syrup. In a food processor, pulse honey, dates, cinnamon, and oats until oats are coarsely chopped.

Scrape oat mixture into a medium bowl. Break up any clumps of dates and, if needed, chop any large date chunks. Stir in nuts, cranberries, and apples. Squeeze mixture into a ball. Line baking sheet with foil and oil foil. Using damp hands, firmly pat mixture onto foil into a compact 6- by 12-in. rectangle.

Freeze until rectangle is firm enough to cut, about 20 minutes. Lift rectangle from foil to a work surface and cut into 16 bars. Wrap bars individually. They get moister and chewier after standing at least a day.

Make ahead: Up to 1 week, chilled, or 1 month, frozen; for transport, pack in containers to protect them

gingerbread cupcakes / december bon appetit

2010-12-16T13:50:00.001-08:00

A friend of mine is due with her first little one, a boy, in a few months. She had an early baby shower here in California (she lives in North Carolina) before she got too big and too uncomfortable. I was honored when she asked if I would make a selection of cupcakes. She was wanting spice! And asked if I could make pumpkin, carrot and gingerbread. It was prefect timing when I found the mini gingerbread cakes with cream cheese frosting in the December issue of Bon Appetit. They were spicy and dense and worked well with the sweetness from the cream cheese frosting.

Ingredients
Cakes
•2 cups all purpose flour
•1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
•1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
•3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
•1/2 teaspoon salt
•1 cup (packed) brown sugar
•1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
•2 large eggs
•3/4 cup molasses
•1/4 cup plain yogurt
Frosting
•12 ounces Philadelphia-brand cream cheese, room temperature
•1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
•1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
Preparation
Cakes
•Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line muffin cups with paper liners.
•Whisk flour and next 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl to blend. Beat in eggs 1 at a time, then molasses and yogurt (batter may look curdled). Add dry ingredients and beat to blend, scraping down sides of bowl.
•Fill paper liners 2/3 of the way full. Bake cakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, 20 minutes. Let cakes stand in pan on rack 5 minutes. Remove cakes from pan; cool.
Frosting
•Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese, powdered sugar, and butter in medium bowl to blend. Spread frosting generously over each cake. Garnish each with kumquat slice or ginger.

macarons

2010-12-07T14:23:00.000-08:00

via
I've always wanted to go to France and have yet to. In 2008 I thought I might actually be going to Lyon and was super excited. My good friend was getting married to her French-born husband in his hometown and my husband and I thought this would be the perfect excuse to go to France. A few month after wedding plans started, I found out I was pregnant and ultimately gave birth 6 days before their wedding. Needless to say we didn't make it. What's the next best thing to going to France? eating French Macaroons! My friend's husband recently launched his business Napoleon's Macarons. Great flavors and such a cute site. These would be perfect holiday gifts for those on your Christmas list!

shutterfly

2010-11-30T13:13:00.000-08:00

I love shutterfly! We've been using one of their personal sites to post pictures of our girl since she was born. I was a bit intimated at first but once I got the hang of it, it was totally easy. Our friends and family that don't live as close as we wish are able to keep up to date with what is going on through our monthly albums which act as journals. We've also been super happy with other products they offer. We ordered calenders last year for the grandparents and (lucky girl) great-grandmas. We are thinking of doing our holiday cards this year through them as well. Isn't the starlight joy card so sweet?! But the all wrapped up photo card is pretty cute too! I've been tempted to do one of these mugs as well, as a Father's Day gift maybe Valentine's Day. I wonder if they will be doing the mug + chocolate then. I was thinking of doing a little Christmas party this year. Maybe cookie exchange or some appetizers with some bubbly. Either way shutterfly has cute holiday invitations as well. We've used etsy in the past for our birthday invitations but shutterfly has gotten some really cute birthday card designs recently. I'm a bit smitten over banner girl. Needless to say I think we'll be going with one of the options for our holiday cards this year. We've been so pleased with the service from Shutterfly in the past. Their site is so easy to use. The products look high-end and our recipents have been very happy!

pecan tart / bon appetit november

2010-11-30T11:50:00.000-08:00

We had the yummiest pecan tart for Thanksgiving thanks to this recipe. This also is my November pick from Bon Appetit. The pecan tart came together easily as I prepped the day ahead for our Thanksgiving feast. It was traditional enough, but the complex flavor led to something more than just a pecan pie; it didn't have that sicky-sweet taste though it was quiet sweet. The recipe suggests to hold back on the bits of browned butter and discard them. I think you get so much depth of flavor from those bits that I added them. I was unable to find (but didn't look to hard) for Lyle's Golden Syrup and instead used Karo syrup. I think this recipe would also do well, with some adjustments, as bar cookies that could easily be added to Christmas cookie containers.

Golden Brown Butter and Pecan Praline Tart
via Bon AppetitIngredients
crust
•3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
•1 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
•1/4 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
•1/2 teaspoon salt
filling
•1 large egg
•1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
•1/2 cup golden syrup (such as Lyle's Golden Syrup)
•1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•1 cup coarsely chopped pecans, toasted

•Cook 3/4 cup butter in heavy small saucepan over medium heat until butter turns golden brown (nut-colored), watching carefully to prevent burning, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat. Pour melted brown butter into 1-cup glass measuring cup. Let melted butter stand until barely warm, 15 to 20 minutes.
•Meanwhile, position rack in center of oven and preheat to 375°F. Butter bottom and sides of 9-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom. Whisk flour, brown sugar, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Add 1/2 cup of barely warm melted brown butter and stir with fork until moist dough forms (mixture will resemble wet sand). Transfer dough to prepared tart pan. Using fingertips, press dough firmly and evenly onto bottom and up sides of pan (dough will look glossy). Let crust rest 5 to 10 minutes at room temperature. Bake crust until set and just golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes.
Filling
•Meanwhile, whisk egg and brown sugar in medium bowl until well blended. Whisk in golden syrup, whipping cream, and salt. Stir in remaining melted brown butter, leaving most of darkened solids behind in bottom of measuring cup. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into warm crust, distributing pecans evenly.
•Bake tart until filling is browned and slightly puffed and set at edges (center will still move slightly when pan is gently shaken), 25 to 27 minutes. Cool tart completely in pan on rack (center of filling will set as tart cools). DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover loosely and store at room temperature.

world peace cookies

2010-11-25T14:05:00.000-08:00

I think I may have mentioned world peace cookies once before. I think I thought they were all over the blogosphere as well as in print but it's sad to me to think I haven't written about them. THese are a favorite in this house. And when it was my hsuband's birthday a few weeks ago he wasn't so interested in a cake but instead a few of his favorite cookies, including this one. And the picture above pretty much descripes how they last in our house...by the time I got a picture there was one left with a few crumbs. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone :)

World Peace Cookies
via Bon Appetit
Ingredients
•1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
•1/3 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
•1/2 teaspoon baking soda
•11 tablespoons (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) unsalted butter, room temperature
•2/3 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
•1/4 cup sugar
•1 teaspoon vanilla extract
•1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
•5 ounces extra-bittersweet chocolate (do not exceed 85% cacao), chopped (no pieces bigger than 1/3 inch)
Preparation
•Sift flour, cocoa, and baking soda into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth but not fluffy. Add both sugars, vanilla, and sea salt; beat until fluffy, about 2 minutes. Add flour mixture; beat just until blended (mixture may be crumbly). Add chopped chocolate; mix just to distribute (if dough doesn't come together, knead lightly in bowl to form ball). Divide dough in half. Place each half on sheet of plastic wrap. Form each into 1 1/2-inch-diameter log. Wrap each in plastic; chill until firm, about 3 hours. DO AHEAD Can be made 3 days ahead. Keep chilled.
•Preheat oven to 325°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using thin sharp knife, cut logs crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Space 1 inch apart on prepared sheets. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies appear dry (cookies will not be firm or golden at edges), 11 to 12 minutes. Transfer to rack; cool. DO AHEAD Can be made 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

blondies

2010-11-23T13:56:00.000-08:00

I've had this aversion to blondies for so long. I thought they were a sad substitute for brownies that I was actually unwilling to try them. I've been missing out! I saw a tweet by Ashley at Not Without Salt saying she would be enjoying this blondie with a cup of coffee, for some reason I was compelled to click on the recipe and super surprisingly compelled to make these. They are so good and the best part is they take about 5 minutes to put together. I undercooked mine slightly because that's they way I like my brownies and chocolate chip cookies. If you enjoy a gooey chocolate chip cookie you've got to try these.

Blondies
adapted Simple Recipes
Ingredients
1/2 cup of butter, melted
1 cup of tightly packed dark brown sugar
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon of vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon of baking soda
Pinch of salt
1 cup of all-purpose flour
1/3 cup of chocolate chips
1/3 cup of chopped pecans

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly butter and flour an 8X8 pan. Whisk together the melted butter and sugar in a bowl. Add the egg and vanilla extract and whisk. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt, mix it all together. Add the chocolate chips and pecans. Pour into the pan and spread evenly. Bake for 20 minutes or until desired doneness. Allow to cool. Cut into squares and serve.

cheese straws

2010-11-06T19:49:00.000-07:00

October came and passed without a recipe from Bon Appetit. I don't really have an excuse. I bought the ingredients to make the maple pots de creme but those ingredients found their way to other endeavours. Maybe it was the unpredictable temperatures here in LA, I never knew if it was going to be in the 90's or raining! I feel as if today we have truly settled into fall. It was a warm-ish day with wind that blew the golden leave, and yes some green ones, to the ground. We worked on a new word today "leaf" as there were a multitude around us. So what does this have to do with cheese straws? Nothing. But if you are looking for a quick something to go with a great salad this might just do the trick. I followed the recipe on the back of the puff pastry sold at Trader Joe's and had cheese straws for our dinner within a half hour.

Preheat over to 400. One sheet of puff pastry, slightly defrosted. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet. Brush sheet with egg wash. Grate favorite cheese on top. Slice long strips with pizza wheel. Separate slightly. Bake for 15 minutes or until golden. Enjoy

chocolate chip shortbread

2010-10-25T14:13:00.001-07:00

I was in desperate need...at least it felt that way...for some chocolate and cookies but wanted something different than the standard chocolate chip cookie. My search ended when I found this recipe below in Not Without Salt. They were just what I was looking for, not to sweet, easy to make and best of all I could leave the log of dough in the fridge and slice off the amount I wanted, perfection. I ended up using a large piece of chocolate, cut into small chunks but I think you could just as easily, and probably easier! use mini chocolate chips.
Take a look at her homemade twix bars. If I get the chance before Saturday these will be the grown-up treats at my daughter's first Halloween party. No need to have 17-month-olds hopped up on sugar.

Chocolate Chip Shortbread
via Not Without Salt

3/4 pound butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
12 ounces mini chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and 1 cup of sugar until they are just combined. Add the vanilla. In a medium bowl, sift together, with a whisk, flour and salt; then add them to the butter-and-sugar mixture. Mix on low speed until the dough starts to come together. Add the chocolate chips until just mixed in. Roll into a log about 2 inches in diameter. Cover in wax paper or parchment. Chill until firm.

Carefully slice the log into 1/4″ cookies. Place the cookies on an sheet pan covered with parchment. Bake for 11-13 minutes, until the edges begin to brown. Allow to cool to room temperature.

Oat & Dried Apricot Scones

2010-10-11T13:28:00.000-07:00

Another Sunday morning, another new recipe. These scones were adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe found in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook. I was pretty excited when I purchased this book a few years back but I have to admit I rarely use it. I'm sure somewhere in it there are amazing recipes but I haven't found them. I can't say a somewhat nutritious scone is an amazing recipe but these are very good, if a bit humble, morning treats. I liked the texture, a bit crumbly, very different from the butter laden scones I usually make. And they must be good because they didn't last long around here, even the baby enjoyed them!

Oat and Dried Apricot Scones
adapted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
1 cup oats
1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 stick unsalted butter, cold, cut into pieces
1/2 cup of diced apricots
1 egg
1/2 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
In large bowl whisk oats through salt. Using your fingers mix the butter into flour mixture until it resembles coarse crumbs. Fold in apricots.
Whisk egg and buttermilk. Add to flour mixture; fold in, until the dough just comes together.
Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat dough into two equal circles. Cut circles in 1/8. Place triangles on prepared pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until lightly golden. Transfer to wire rack to cool.

bday cake for mom

2010-10-05T13:59:00.000-07:00

My mom had a birthday recently and we celebrated at our place. When I asked her what kind of cake she wanted she replied, "coconut and pineapple". I took inspiration from that and decided to make a coconut cake with pineapple sorbet on the side. I found inspiration from a recipe in Bon Appetit a few months back for a coconut cake with hibiscus sauce cake. The recipe suggests making it in a sheet pan but I decided to do two 5" cake pans and there a little batter left over. I used a simple buttercream frosting and exchanged the vanilla extract for a small amount of coconut extract and natural unsweetened coconut. It turned about to be a very simple but cute cake, if I do say so myself.

Vanilla Cake
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup buttermilk
4 large egg whites
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups sugar
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter two 5-inch cake pans. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Whisk buttermilk, egg whites, and coconut extract in another medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy. Add flour mixture to butter mixture in 3 additions alternately with buttermilk mixture in 2 additions, beating to blend well between additions and occasionally scraping bottom and sides of bowl with rubber spatula. Transfer batter to pans.
Bake cake until pale golden and tester inserted into center comes out with some crumbs attached,20-25 minutes. Cool cake completely in pan on rack.

blueberry-cornmeal pancakes / bon appetit sept

2010-09-27T13:29:00.000-07:00

I'm squeezing this in at the end of the month, my monthly pick from Bon Appetit There were lots of yummy looking desserts in this months issue, I was especially intrigued with Crack Pie but with temperatures soaring in the 100's here in Los Angeles, there was no way I was turning on the oven! Every Sunday morning we have something special for breakfast, a deviation from our normal yogurt (for me and the baby) and cereal (for the hubs) breakfast. This recipe in the R.S.V.P section was tempting and became our special something this Sunday morning. I was concerned when I was adding all the cornmeal that it might end up tasting like a tortilla rather than a pancake (which I love, but for breakfast I was hoping pancake). These were definitely pancakes. They were dense which worked well with plenty of warm maple syrup! My husband said he wished there were more blueberries and even maybe mixed in...I think he has a great suggestion.

Blueberry-Cornmeal Pancakes
via bon appetit
4 to 6 servings.
1 1/2 cups medium-grind cornmeal
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 Tbl baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp kosher salt
2 cups buttermilk
2 large eggs
1/4 cup canola oil
butter for the griddle
1 cup fresh blueberries
warm pure maple syrup

Whisk first 6 ingredients in large bowl. Whisk buttermilk, eggs and oil in medium bowl; add to dry ingredients and whisk to blend. Let stand for 20 minutes.
Preheat griddle or heavy large skillet over medium heat, brush with melted butter. Working in batches, spoon 1/2 cup batter onto griddle for each pancake. Sprinkle each with 2 Tablespoons berries. Cook until golden brown and just cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Serve with syrup.

brownies w/ ginger ice cream and salted caramel!

2010-09-21T14:02:00.001-07:00

To me this is the perfect transitional dessert. Warm caramel and brownies...winter. Ice cream...summer. Together with the warmth from the ginger screams fall to me. I found this on Tartelette. I totally cheated when it came to making the ginger ice cream. Bought a pint of good vanilla ice cream and added grated ginger, that I grated on a microplane and mixed it into the softened ice cream. Then scooped it back into the container and back into the freezer. I used this recipe for the brownies and made the caramel sauce. If you cheat in the ice cream department, as I did, this ends up being a very uncomplicated dessert.

For the salted butter caramel sauce:
via Tartelette
1 1/4 cup (250 gr) granulated sugar
80 ml water
1 stick (115gr) salted butter at room temperature, cut into small pieces
150 ml heavy whipping cream

In a heavy saucepan set over low heat, combine the sugar and water. Cook just until the sugar is dissolved. Add the butter. Let it come to a boil and cook until it reaches a golden caramel color. Remove from the heat and add the cream. Whisk to combine and put back on the stove. Let it come to a boil again over low heat and cook 25-35 minutes until you reach a creamy consistency.

Rosemary Olive Oil Cake

2010-09-08T13:25:00.000-07:00

When I was an undergrad our school had a dance at the Monterey Aquarium. Yes, it was college...why we had a dance and why I decided it was a good idea to go I'll never know. But the cool aspect of it was it was at the Monterey Aquarium at night, closed to the public, with great music. So when I started reading Heather's from 101cookbooks post on this Rosemary Olive Oil Cake and it started with her talking about a conference she attended at the aquarium I was immediately drawn in. And I'm glad I was because I think I may have skipped over this recipe. Heather writes, It's one of those cakes that is distinctive and memorable in an understated way I think that says it all. It sounds a bit odd but is a must try. I didn't have spelt flour so instead used whole wheat pastry with the all-purpose.

Rosemary Olive Oil Cake
adapted 101cookbooks

3/4 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
3 eggs
1 cup / 240 ml olive oil
3/4 cup / 180 ml whole milk
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, finely chopped
5 ounces chopped into 1/2-inch pieces
2 tablespoons sugar for top crunch
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper.
Add all the dry ingredients into a large bowl, incorporate with whisk. Set aside.
In another large bowl, whisk the eggs, olive oil, milk and rosemary. Using a spatula, fold the wet ingredients into the dry, gently mixing just until combined. Stir in the chocolate. Pour the batter into the pan, spreading it evenly and smoothing the top. Sprinkle with the second sugar.
Bake for about 40-50 minutes, or until the top is domed, golden brown, and a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean.
The cake can be eaten warm or cool from the pan, or cooled, wrapped tightly in plastic, and kept for 2 days.
Serves 8 -12.
Recipe originally adapted from Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce

berry, honey and yogurt pops / bon appetit august

2010-08-25T13:08:00.000-07:00

via

This absolutely beautiful picture was taken by photographer Christian Weber. Me trying to take a picture of my popsicles was near impossible and I didn't want you missing out of this great recipe because I couldn't get a great picture, really even a non blurry one for some reason. The recipe calls for fresh blackberries, I instead used 12 ounces of frozen raspberries and 6 ounces of frozen blueberries and followed the directions. They are the prefect little something you need when it is 100 degrees out. I took the advice of Molly and used little paper dixie cups to make my popsicles. We are definitely going to be making these again!

strawberry butter

2010-08-18T11:43:00.000-07:00

I have a thing for strawberries...I think I've mentioned before the story of little me dragging my grandmother's yellow kitchen chair with a white vinyl seat across the linoleum floor to get some freshly sliced strawberries on the counter. I'm not sure who found me but when they did my face was covered with strawberries and I don't think there was much dessert left for the family. When I saw this recipe over at Dash and Bella I knew I had to try it. Mmmm, really good! We used it all week on toast, pancakes, maybe a bite on it's own. The saltiness adds complexity to it which I think is what makes it so good. Follow the directions carefully because there are some tricks. Excuse the picture...the pancakes were waiting and I had to get the picture before we devoured it!

zucchini & carrot bread

2010-08-13T15:14:00.000-07:00

My little one eats veggies for breakfast...really! And there is no sugar in it, yay! I promise I'm not going to keep posting only healthy recipes but with someone in my house who is now interested in what we are eating, I'm trying to find alternatives to my standard baking recipes. This was kinda thrown together while getting inspiration from a few different sources. I made 2 mini loaves but think the recipe would do well in a standard loaf pan or maybe a mini muffin tins. I seriously threw all the ingredients in a bowl and stirred.
1/2 Cup Agave Nectar
1/4 Cup Vegetable Oil
1 egg
1 medium zucchini, grated
1 large carrot, grated
1 Cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

Baked at 350 (in my mini loaf pan) for 35 minutes.

salted caramel ice cream

2010-08-05T19:55:00.001-07:00

This is some yummy, yummy ice cream! Several weeks ago when I mentioned making ice cream sandwiches this was one of the ice creams. This is how it went...I was craving ice cream like this, specifically their salted caramel ice cream. I googled salted caramel ice cream and this recipe was the first on the list. With great reviews I decided to make it. My only complaint was that I wasn't able to get it hard enough. I made it again and for some reason the ice cream consistency was more to my liking but the flavor was right on both times. I also tweaked the amount of salt, adding twice as much as the recipe suggests. Here is the recipe.

healthy chocolate chip cookies

2010-07-29T11:15:00.000-07:00

So healthy cookies...I could see people quickly passing this post up but don't! Really these are surprisingly yummy. So yummy in fact that we polished them off in one weekend, embarrassing but true. I've mentioned before my admiration for Heidi Swanson over at 101 Cookbooks and this is another one of those great ones. I have an addiction to my own oatmeal-chocolate-chip cookie. It was the first thing I felt that I made really well, which maybe inspired me to continue on this baking adventure, hmm. Anyway, they are full of refined sugar and fat and I can never eat just one, or just five! This cookie lets me indulge without feeling weighed down and super guilty afterwards. I made no changes to the original recipe, check the recipe out here

mixed berry shortcakes / bon appetit july

2010-07-20T15:47:00.000-07:00

It has been pretty hot here in the LA area the last several days...do I dare say it is cooling off? Last week we had mini celebration for my niece a few days before her birthday. Since it wasn't the actual BIG day where a cake is necessary, mixed berry shortcakes seemed like the perfect dessert on a hot summer evening. I enjoyed the use of not just strawberries but raspberries and blueberries as well. And the addition of a little almond extract along with vanilla extract in the dough added a nice subtle flavor. This is my monthly pick from Bon Appetit July issue. You can find this delicious recipe here

apricot (freezer) jam

2010-07-15T10:51:00.000-07:00

Remember me mentioning the apricots? Well here is another recipe in which I used some of the surplus. I just followed the recipe which was included in the pectin box. Make sure to find the original type, not the "no sugar" needed. Those won't set correctly if you use sugar. I realize that apricot season is pretty done for us here but you can do this with all types of fruit, especially berries. I found this cute labels at Eat Drink Chic, aren't they great?! For more inspiring freezer jam posts check out this and this.

vanilla shortbread cookies

2010-07-14T15:33:00.000-07:00

Where have I been?!?! I have been in the kitchen tons but finding the time to post, especially when someone doesn't like to take naps, makes it a little challenging but guess who is sleeping right now?!?! These cookies were fantastic, really simple and were a great addition to the ice cream sandwich making process. I tweaked the recipe only slightly. It calls for one vanilla bean, 1/2 the bean in the cookie dough and the other 1/2 coating the outside. I was worried I would loss some precious beans around the outside and decided to put the whole bean in the cookie dough. You can find this wonderful cookie at Dash and Bella

apricot sweet tart

2010-06-25T12:17:00.001-07:00

My mom has this small but quite prolific apricot tree. I've been overloaded with apricots the last week and from that came this tart. I used the sweet tart dough recipe from Tartine. It's different than the pate brisee recipe that I usually use with fruit tarts, with the addition of eggs and sugar...and I like the difference. The recipe below allows for four 9" tart shells. I used one of those and guesstimated how many apricot quarters would work and then sprinkled vanilla sugar on top of that before I baked it on a parchment lined baking sheet at 375 for 45 minutes.

Sweet Tart Dough
from Tartine
by Elisabeth Prueitt and Chad Robertson

1 Cup, plus 2 Tbl unsalted butter, room temp
1 Cup sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 Eggs, room temp
3 1/2 Cups all purpose flour

Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter, sugar and salt and mix on medium speed until smooth. Mix in 1 egg. Add remaining egg and mix until smooth. Stop mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Add the flour all at once and mix on low speed just until incorporated.

One a lightly floured work surface, divide the dough into 4 equal balls and shape each ball into a disk 1/2 in thick. Wrap well in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hour or overnight.

Roll out dough and use.

chocolate pudding / bon appetit june

2010-06-15T10:53:00.000-07:00

This is pretty much the ultimate chocolate pudding! And this month's pick from Bon Appetit. It's funny that I keep finding recipes I just have to do in the "R.S.V.P/reader's favorite restaurant recipes" section. There are always lovely articles dedicated to sweets, such as this months desserts section. There are beautiful pictures to entice you but instead I'm once again picking a picture-less recipe. When I read the reader write that he "always (goes) to The Sandbar...have a fantastic chocolate pudding that I order every time", I thought I have to make this.

Dark Chocolate Pudding with Caramel Cream and Pistachio Praline
Serving 6 (I got 8)

1/4 cup cornstarch
pinch of salt
2 cups reduced fat (2%) milk, divided
1 tsp vanilla
1 2/3 cups plus 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
7 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 cup sugar, divided
2 Tbl water
1/2 cup chilled heavy whipping cream
pistachio praline (recipe to follow)

Whisk cornstarch and salt in bowl. Add 1/3 cup milk, then vanilla; whisk until smooth. Stir 1 1/3 cups milk, 1 2/3 cups cream, chocolate, and 1/2 cup sugar in heavy large saucepan over medium heat until mixture is smooth and begins to bubble. Whisk in cornstarch mixture. Boil 2 minutes, whisking constantly. Divide among 6 bowl (or 8 teacups). Chill uncovered until cold, at least 3 hours.
Stir 1/2 cup sugar and 2 Tbl water in medium saucepan over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium-high; boil without stirring until syrup is deep amber, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides with wet pastry brush, about 5 minutes. Carefully stir in 1/2 cup cream (mixture will bubble vigorously). Stir over medium heat until caramel bits dissolve. Cool caramel. Beat 1/2 cup chilled cream in medium bowl until peaks form. Fold in caramel.
Spoon caramel cream over puddings. Sprinkle Pistachio Praline over and serve.

Pistachio Praline
3/4 Cup sugar
3 Tbl water
3/4 cup unsalted natural pistachios, lightly toasted.

Line large rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil. Combine sugar and 3 Tbl water in heavy medium saucepan over medium-low heat and stir until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to medium-high and boil caramel without stirring until syrup is deep amber, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides with wet pastry brush, about 6 minutes. Stir in pistachios, coating evenly with caramel. Transfer mixture to prepared sheet and quickly spread out praline in even layer. Cool completely. Peel praline from foil breaking into pieces. Transfer praline to processor. Using on/off turns, coarsely chop praline.

sunday morning waffles

2010-06-07T19:49:00.000-07:00

You must try these waffles!!! They are incredibly good...crispy, light, not too sweet, perfect for soaking up rich maple syrup or topped with whipped cream and berries. I usually don't get too excited over waffles, pancakes, french toast unless they are pretty much perfection and these are. The other wonderful thing about them is you do most of the work the night before! That is right, on Saturday night when you get back from where ever you've been or in my case get the girl to sleep, go to the kitchen, whip a few ingredients together. The next morning there is little to do but enjoy and isn't that the way Sunday mornings should be? For the recipe go here

1st birthday!

2010-06-01T19:59:00.001-07:00

The girl turned one year old at the beginning of May. We celebrated by having friends and family over for lunch which included cake (using this frosting) and cookies as favors. I'm a strict mom and made sugar free "cupcakes" more like scones, for the little one to eat while the rest of us devoured the cake. I realize she won't remember this day but we will!

blueberry cornmeal cake - bon appetit

2010-05-20T10:43:00.000-07:00

Here is the May installment of my Bon Appetit choice. There are quite a few ingredients for this recipe but it must be needed because this cake is amazing!!! A perfect start to any weekend, sliced warm with a cup of tea, or coffee, in the morning and you are ready to go...or stay and relax. The recipe comes from Huckleberry Bakery and Cafe in Santa Monica. My husband and I stopped in on one of our last day trips before little miss was born, so it's been over a year since my visit and they were newly opened then. What we tried was great, especially their salted caramel squares, yum. The description in the magazine is spot on, "this cake is crusty outside and super-moist inside". The recipe calls for 3 cups of fresh blueberries. When I was preparing to make this, the only fresh blueberries I could find were nearly $5 a pint, so I went with a bag of frozen organic blueberries from Trader Joe's. They worked well but I am curious how fresh blueberries would taste.

Blueberry Cornmeal Cake
1 1/2 C all purpose flour
2/3 C yellow cornmeal
2 t baking powder
2 t baking soda
6 Tbl vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 Tbl vanilla extract
1 t honey
10 Tbl unsalted butter, room temp
3/4 C plus 3 Tbl sugar, divided
1 1/2 t salt
1 C ricotta cheese
1/3 C plain yogurt
3 C fresh blueberries (I used frozen)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spray 10" diameter springform pan with 2 3/4" sides with nonstick spray. Whisk flour and next 3 ingredients in medium bowl. Whisk oil, eggs, vanilla, honey in another medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter, 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in large bowl until creamy. With mixer running on medium speed, gradually add egg mixture; beat to blend. Beat in flour mixture just to blend. Add ricotta and yogurt; beat on low speed just to blend. Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Scatter 1 1/2 cups blueberries over. Spoon remaining batter over in dollops, then spread to cover blueberries. Scatter remaining blueberries over. Sprinkle remaining sugar over.

Bake until top is golden brown and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 15 minutes (took me 1 1/2 hours). Cool completely in pan on rack.

almond biscotti with chocolate

2010-05-13T10:27:00.001-07:00

Where have I been?!?! The girl turned one at the beginning of the month and I must confess I was a bit into the planning of her celebration. I'll post a few pictures soon of the goodies I made for the occasion. Today's post is of a recipe I've done before here with one delicious change, dipping the bottoms in chocolate. Such a simple addition that makes a huge impact. I made it really easy on myself...melted some good quality chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and dipped the bottoms of each biscotti in the chocolate. It takes a few hours to set. Or do like my husband did, stick a few in the freezer, and you have a equally as good cold treat.

raisin, walnut & pecan bread - bon appetit

2010-04-28T19:18:00.000-07:00

My monthly post on a recipe chosen from Bon Appetit. This months recipe comes from the RSVP section, reader's favorite restaurant recipes. I was craving something not too sweet and wanted to excerise my bread making abilities. The writer writes, "I've been addicted to the raisin-walnut bread from DEL VECCHIO'S BAKERY..." This is unfortunate because as I was trying to link the bakery to this post, I discovered that the bakery closed this past Saturday. At least those lovers of Del Vecchio's now have this recipe. It made a decent loaf of bread, great in the morning with scrabbled eggs or as a snack with a slice of sharp cheddar cheese. I'm planning on trying it as french toast in the morning...we'll see how it turn out. It's a pretty simple recipe but one you need to plan for a bit in advance because the the chilling the dough needs to do in the refrigerator.

Raisin, Walnut and Pecan Bread
via Bon Appetit April 2010

Makes 2 loaves
2 Cups warm water (105-115 F)
3 1/2 ounce envelopes active dry yeast
1/4 Cup vegetable oil
2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
5 1/2 Cups bread flour
2 Cups of raisins
1/2 Cup chopped pecans
1/2 Cup chopped walnuts
1/2 Cup (packed) brown sugar

Mix first 2 ingredients in large bowl. Let stand until yeast dissolves, about 10 minutes. Stir in oil, sugar, and salt. Add 5 1/2 cups flour; stir until shaggy dough forms. Transfer to work surface; knead until smooth, adding more flour as needed for soft but not sticky dough, about 8 minutes. Add raisin and all remaining ingredients, knead to blend (I found this a bit tricky and there were some raisins and nuts lost). Brush another large bowl lightly with oil. Place dough in bowl; turn to coat. Cover with plastic; chill overnight.

Line large baking sheet with parchment. Divide dough in half. Form each dough half into 6-inch round; place on prepared baking sheet, spacing apart (I put onto two separate cookie sheets). Cover; let rise in warm draft-free area until doubled, about 2 hours.

Preheat oven to 350. Bake bread until golden brown and bottom of bread sounds hollow when tapped, about 45 minutes. Cool completely before slicing.

mixed berry scones

2010-04-18T15:30:00.000-07:00

I've been making some version of these scones for the last ten years. This morning was the first time it dawned on me to replace some of the white flour with whole wheat pastry flour. It gave the scones a nice nutty flavor which I will do again. These are very quick to whip together in the morning and enjoy with coffee or tea.

1 Cup whole wheat pastry flour
2 Cup flour
1/2 Cup sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
6 oz butter, cut into small dice
1 Cup frozen berries (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries)
1/2 Cup sliced almonds
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 Cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425
Line cookie sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl combine flour through baking soda, mix. Blend butter into dry ingredients with fingers until mixture is crumbly. Add almonds and berries. Add buttermilk and vanilla and stir until the dough becomes rough and shaggy. Gather dough together on floured surface, knead gently about 10 times. Divide dough in half. Pat into 7 inch circle 1/2 inch thick. Cut in 8 pie shapes. Bake until puffy and golden brown, 15-18 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack.

cupcakes + an 11-month-old

2010-04-08T10:24:00.000-07:00

Remember this post cupcakes + 9 months pregnant = wow ? Some how a year has past. My life has changed in so many incredible ways while other things stay the same. Such as an extra large order of cupcakes. Even with little miss it was some how easier this year to complete this order, maybe because I didn't have major sciatic pain or maybe it's because I have a wonderful hubby who helped entertain the little one while I baked.

banana espresso chip breakfast bread

2010-04-02T15:15:00.001-07:00

Heather Swanson's cookbook Super Natural Cooking is the way I aspire to eat. I have a long ways to go but try to make something from either her cookbook or her fantastic website 101 cookbooks at least once a week. A few weeks back we found ourselves with an abundant amount of very ripe bananas. This doesn't happen in our house too much these days since we have an 11 month old who could live on bananas alone, just like her older cousin! Instead I can't seem to keep enough bananas in the house. So it was a treat to discover I was going to get to make some banana bread. My go to banana bread if chock full of sugar and butter, which is good, very yummy but I was hoping for something a little different. I found this recipe in Super Natural Cooking as muffins and followed the recipe and poured the batter into a prepared loaf pan instead of several muffin tins. I think I've just found my new go to banana bread/

Espresso Banana Muffins
adapted from Super Natural Cooking

2 Cups of whole wheat pastry flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
1 1/4 chopped toasted pecans
1 tablespoon fine espresso powder
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temp
3/4 cup natural can sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup plain yogurt
1 1/2 cups mashed overripe bananas
3/4 cup chocolate chips

Heat oven to 375, postilion racks low in oven and butter loaf pan

Combine flour, baking powder, salt and 3/4 cups of pecans, and the espresso powder in a bowl and whisk to combine.

In a separate large bowl, cream butter until light and fluffy. Beat in sugar and then eggs, one at a time. Still in vanilla, yogurt, mashed bananas and chocolate chips, then briefly and gently mix in the dry ingredients.

Pour into prepared loaf pan. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of pecans. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until tester comes out clean. Cool in pan for 5 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

blood orange upside down cake - bon appetit

2010-03-23T19:35:00.000-07:00

Here is my pick for my monthly recipe from Bon Appetit. I decided on the Blood Orange Polenta Upside Down Cake. I thought this cake was stunning. I liked how it was unusual, making it in a skillet. I thought it was rather easy to pull together. But unfortunately, I also felt it was lacking something. I couldn't put my finger on it. I like simple cakes with good flavor which this seemed to have but....maybe it was the cornmeal...maybe that texture just wasn't for me? Mary the Food Librarian made a very similar cake a few weeks back. It turns out the same beautiful result but I have a feeling I might enjoy eating her cake more. For the Bon Appetit recipe check it out here.

lemon biscuits & tea

2010-03-16T11:08:00.001-07:00

I love going out for tea. Not a tea bag tossed into some hot water in a paper cup with a plastic lid but real tea. Tea poured from a pretty pot into a pretty cup with a saucer, served along side little sandwiches, scones and maybe some clotted cream. Last Sunday my daughter "invited" my mom over for tea. Yes, the little one is only 10-months-old but I thought you can never start to early with the tradition of tea. This was a very simple tea...tea, of course, and these lemon biscuits served with lemon curd. The recipe is adapted from the March issue of Bon Appetit, I should say inspired since the actual recipe is involved and looks delicious. These on the other hand were simple and tasty and has me wondering if there would be much difference in lemon flavor if I had used Meyer lemons.

Lemon Biscuits
adapted from Bon Appetit
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
3 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons, packed, finely grated lemon peel
3 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup creme fraiche
1 tablespoon raw sugar

Preheat oven 375. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchement paper. Whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt into medium bowl to blend well. Stir in lemon peel. Add butter cubes and rub in with fingertips until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add milk and creme fraiche; stir until dough begins to clump together. Gather dough together. Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and press out to 7-inch round. Using 2 1/4 inch diameter cookie cutter dipped into flour, cut out rounds. You should get 8. Transfer to baking sheet, sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake until golden about 20 minutes.

cranberry zucchini loaf

2010-03-11T14:29:00.001-08:00

I perfer a slice from a loaf of quick bread than a muffin. I'm not sure my reasoning but the fact holds true. I had a bag of fresh cranberries in the freezer that I had bought during the holidays. I was craving a breakfast item that I could use them in. After flipping through some cookbooks I came across this recipe in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook, cranberry-zucchini muffins with a quick bread variation. The variation..cooking it in a different container (loaf pan) and adjusting the time, easy enough. The recipe hit the spot, it is delicious! The one change I did was replacing the all-purpose flour with whole wheat pastry flour. If our vegetable garden is as plentiful as I hope it is, I will be making this loaf of bread often.

Cranberry-Zucchini Loaf
Adapted from Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook
1 1/2 Cups all-purpose flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup grated zucchini
1/2 cup fresh or frozen whole cranberries.

Preheat oven to 375. Prepare 9x5 inch loaf pan coated with butter or cooking spray.
In medium bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; set aside
In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, sugar, oil, and vanilla. Stir in zucchini. Add the flour mixture, and stir until combined but don't over mix. Using a rubber spatula, fold in the cranberries. Pour into prepared pan.
Bake, rotating halfway through, for 45-50 minutes. Transfer to wire rack and cool before serving.

chocolate caramel macarons

2010-03-04T15:30:00.000-08:00

So did I mention I love chocolate? You don't have too look around to much at this blog to discover my umm...addiction...to chocolate. And with my never ending vigor to perfect the macaron I had to try a chocolate version. Here is what I did with this recipe, I added 3 Tablespoons of Valrona cocoa powder and omitted the orange zest. I filled each chocolate macaron goodness with caramel that my husband received as one of his Christmas gifts from my mom. These were good and I got a lot of positive feedback from them but I preferred the orange chocolate ones I did a few weeks ago. And today I sampled a blackberry macaron that has me craving a full on fruity version.

milk chocolate souffles - bon appetit/feb

2010-02-22T10:23:00.000-08:00

Yes, my second installment to my year long journey of baking one recipe from each issue of bon appetit for 2010. This month I decided to make the mouth watering Milk Chocolate Souffles with Nougat Whip. I'm all about dark chocolate but recently I've been rediscovering milk chocolate and enjoying it. I haven't switched sides, when offered a choice I will still pick dark. I think what I've discovered is that I was eating pretty low quality milk chocolate. But when you branch out and discover that there are some pretty good, if not excellent, milk chocolate to be found it's enjoyable. I bought Lidnt, which the recipe suggested, and used their extra creamy milk chocolate which happened to be on sale at Cost Plus. We enjoyed these on Valentine's night after we'd gotten home from a great dinner. I was able to make them ahead and pop them into the oven as we relaxed. Whipped up some of the nougat whip and we devoured our souffles. I liked the crunch from the almonds in the whip. It was a little tricky getting a great shot of these because they began to deflate and the whip melted, I have new appreciation for food photographers! For the recipe and to see the amazing picture of these souffles click here.

granola

2010-02-17T10:32:00.000-08:00

Days before I was to deliver little miss, I made a huge batch, probably 4 pounds, of granola. It must have been some sort of nesting instinct because that granola served us well in the days that followed. It was super easy for the hubs to fill up a bowl, pour some milk and bring it to me in bed while I nursed. And since then we've been stocking our house pretty regularly with granola. It's not always the same recipe...that would get boring. Our latest favorite comes from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking I've made a few adjustments to the add-ins, such as slicked almonds instead of whole, and added a dash of ginger. It's super easy to make and tastes good over plain yogurt or with some soy/cow milk.

Easy Homemade Granola
adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking
2 cups rolled oats
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon sea salt
3 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup sliced almonds, toasted
1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted
1/3 cup raisins
1/3 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 325. Line baking sheet with parchment.

In a large bowl toss oats with cinnamon, ginger and salt.

In another bowl stir oil, honey, brown sugar and vanilla. Whisk until combined.

Pour homey mixture over the oats and use your hands to combine well. Pour mixture onto prepared baking sheets. Spread out evenly. Bake for 10 minutes. remove from the oven and using a metal spatula mix granola. Bake another 10 minutes, repeat. Bake another 10 minutes. Remove from the oven. Sprinkle remaining ingredients over the granola. When cooled transfer to an airtight container. Will keep for 1 week at room temperature. If placed the in the fridge, lasts even longer.

orange chocolate macarons

2010-02-09T10:06:00.000-08:00

Ever since I was lucky enough to taste a variety of Laduree macarons from Paris I've had an obsession. Whenever I'm at a shop that has macarons and they look edible, I buy one. But attempting to actually make them after a sad-sad attempt a few years back has not been at the top of my to do list. With the new year I felt it was time to tackle my fear. I went over to Cannelle et Vanille because I felt that with all her experience and great recipes that it would be harder to fail. I decided to do a spin of her Lavender and Orange Macarons. All the measurements were in grams which is great except for me when it comes to smaller amounts. I decided I wanted a cute scale instead of a more practical digital scale a few years back and when it comes time to do the small amounts it is more of a challenge. I'm posting her recipe with my changes. I filled each macaron with ganache instead of the orange buttercream as she suggests. The flavor was amazing, my product not perfect. I think I whipped the egg whites until they were a bit too stiff. It just means I get to practice more!

LAVENDER AND ORANGE MACARONS
via Cannelle et Vanille
Makes about 4 dozen small macarons

181 grams almond flour
243 grams powdered sugar
138g egg whites
3 grams egg white powder (1 1/4 teaspoon)
2 grams of finely ground sea salt (1/4 teaspoon fleur de sel)
81 grams granulated sugar
Zest of one orange

In a large bowl, sift together the almond flour, powdered sugar and salt. Set aside.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, add the egg white and the egg white powder. Whip in medium speed until egg whites start to increase in volume. I know a lot of recipes say to whip the egg whites at high speed but I find that it is better to start slower to build a better structure for the meringue.

When the egg whites are almost fully whipped and very fluffy, slowly start adding the sugar, sprinkle it in. After all the sugar is incorporated, continue to whip the meringue in high speed now until semi stiff peaks have formed. This is when we will add the orange zest.

Add the meringue to the almond flour and powdered sugar mixture and with a spatula, fold the meringue into the dry ingredients. This is called “macaroner” and is also a tricky part. It is better to fold slowly and test a couple of macaroons because it is possible to over fold this mixture. We are looking for a shiny mass. For this amount of ingredients, I would say that it will only take about 10 to 15 strokes. But again, it is better to check for consistency. We are looking for a mass that spreads a little but not too much otherwise our macaroons will be flat.

Pipe the mass onto half sheet pans lined with silpats (i used parchment paper)

Let them sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes so they dry. We want the tops to not stick to our finger when we touch them. This will ensure a crack-free macaroon.

Have your oven preheated at 325 degrees. Bake one sheet pan at a time positioning it in a middle rack. Bake for about 8 minutes and rotate sheet pan to ensure even baking. It should take about 14 minutes but that depends on the oven. We want to be able to pick up the macaroon without it falling apart but we don’t want to over bake it either. It is better to bake it slowly so no browning occurs.

Remove them from the oven and slide the silpat onto a cold surface. Let them cool on the silpat.

I then filled them with ganache when they were cool.

chocolate-nut tart bon appetit

2010-02-02T13:33:00.001-08:00

I made a sort of resolution with myself that I needed a routine of sorts which would have me making a new recipe on a regular basis. The idea that excited me the most was to make one dessert from each issue of Bon Appetit starting with the January 2010issue. In that issue there was a great section called "All American Comforts" unfortunately none of the recipes were speaking to me. Yet the first image in the section "Fast Easy Fresh" was this great picture of the Chocolate-Nut Tart with Dried Fruit. It was fast and easy, especially because I had a frozen pie crust just waiting to be used in the freezer. I didn't want to run to the store for any extra ingredients so I made a few small changes and omitted on ingredient. The tart is fantastic, chewy dried fruit, crunch from the mixed nuts and an intense chocolate flavor.

Ingredients
1 refrigerated pie crust (half of 15-ounce package)
1/4 cup raspberry preserves (I used apricot)
1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips
1 cup assorted nuts (I used cashews and pecans), toasted, coarsely chopped
1 cup assorted dried fruit (I used golden raisins and cranberries)
Large pinch of coarse kosher salt
1/3 cup toffee bits, such as Skor (I omitted this)

Preparation
Preheat oven to 450°F. Press pie crust onto bottom and up sides of 10-inch-diameter tart pan with removable bottom; trim edges, if needed. Pierce crust all over with fork. Bake until deep golden brown, about 12 minutes. Cool. Spread preserves over bottom of crust.
Bring cream to simmer in heavy medium saucepan. Reduce heat to low; add chocolate chips and stir until melted and smooth. Remove from heat. Stir in nuts, fruit, and coarse salt. Spread chocolate mixture in crust. Sprinkle toffee bits over tart. Chill until set, about 2 hours. Serve cold or at room temperature.

coco-nana bread

2010-01-26T15:35:00.000-08:00

I noticed the group over at Tuesdays with Dorie made coco-nana bread. I made this bread in October, took some pictures but never got around to posting them. One of the main reasons...I wasn't totally impressed by it. It is super chocolatey, it calls for 1 cup of cocoa powder. I would prefer to have the bananas absent and have a true chocolate bread. I would reserve the bananas for traditional banana bread. Though I'm about to contradict myself in a way because I'm a fan of chocolate chips in banana bread, hmm Maybe you just need to make it yourself and let me know. You can find the recipe over at Obsessed with Baking

pain au chocolat

2010-01-20T08:17:00.001-08:00

I promise this will be the last post on croissants and I will move on. But I couldn't move on until I mentioned chocolate croissants or pain au chocolat, that is so fun to say! So what happens is you cut out some rectangles instead of triangles out of the croissant dough and place 1 ounce of a chocolate baton in the center of each rectangle. From there you just roll it up, starting with the long side, encasing each bit of chocolate in the center. You can buy fancy batons at such places as Whole Foods or you can make your own. Melt some chocolate, bittersweet or remients of whatever you may already have. I used a leftover bit of schaffenberger 70% and valrhona milk chocolate. I melted both chocolates together. Then on a piece of parchment paper I had on the counter took my spoon and drizzled baton sized lines of chocolate. Once they were hardened they were ready to use. If you go to the effort of making croissant dough, I definitely recommend making each one of these. Next time I hope to also make pain au jambon, ham and cheese, yum!

almond croissants

2010-01-12T10:20:00.000-08:00

Last week I posted my adventure with croissants. When making them you have more than family and yourself can eat in a reasonable amount of time, so what to do with left over croissants...almond croissants! These are actually my favorite kind and was waiting for the plain ones to get a bit stale so that I could fill them with frangipane and devour a crispy yet moist croissant aux amandes. It was worth the wait. To find just the right recipe i turned to the famous Parisian over at chocolate and zucchini she discusses her dislike of the super sweet almond croissant which I've encountered too many times. Her recipe is perfect, lovely almond flavor without overpowering it with sugar. I halved her recipe since I had only four croissants left. There was leftover syrup but just the right amount of creme.

Almond Croissants
adapted from chocolateandzucchini.com

1 tablespoons sugar
50g (1/4 C) sugar
50g (1/3 C) whole blanched almonds, or 50g (1/2 C) almond powder
a pinch of salt
50g (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, diced
1 eggs
powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons of sliced almonds

To make the syrup combine 1/2 cup water, 1 tablespoons sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a slow boil over medium heat, and simmer for a minute, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat, transfer into a shallow soup plate, and let cool completely.

To make the filling combine 1/4 cup sugar, the almonds and the salt in the bowl of a food processor, and mix until finely ground. Add the butter, and mix again until well blended. Add in the egg and process until creamy.

Preheat the oven to 350° F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Work with each croissant one by one and dip it into the syrup, coating both sides and the ends well, the croissant should be quite moist. Slice horizontally like you would for a sandwich, and place on the cookie sheet. Spread the inside with about two tablespoons almond filling, and place the top back on. Spread the top with another tablespoon almond filling, and sprinkle with sliced almonds. Repeat with the remaining croissants and filling.

Put into the oven to bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until the almond cream is set and golden. Transfer onto a cooling rack, dust with confectioner's sugar, and serve, slightly warm or at room temperature.

new year's croissants

2010-01-04T13:32:00.000-08:00

I had wanted desperately to make croissants last new year's but as my belly grew and my energy waned i found myself in the frozen food aisle at Trader Joe's buying frozen, although very yummy, chocolate croissants. This year I attempted again, wondering how I would do the multi day project with a 7-month-old and with my husbands help I did it! I had first made croissants in class with a lot of guidance and support. They turned out but not quite as good as I had hoped. This time I decided to use the recipe from the Tartine cookbook. I loved the results. The preferment I believe was key in creating the complex flavor. Thank goodness they are a challenge to make because I would eat too many otherwise. Until next New Year's here is the recipe.

Croissants
adapted from Tartine
via kitchenmusings
Preferment:

¾ cup non-fat milk (6 oz/150 ml)

1 tbsp active dry yeast (15ml)

1 1/3 cup all-purpose flour (6 ¼ oz/175g)

Dough:

1 tbsp + 1 tsp active dry yeast (20ml)

1 ¾ cup whole milk (14 oz/425 ml)

6 cups all purpose flour (28 oz/800g)

1/3 cup sugar (2 ½ oz/70g)

1 tbsp + 1 tsp salt (20 ml)

1 tbsp unsalted butter (15ml)

Roll-in butter:

2 ¾ cup unsalted butter (22 oz/625g)

Egg wash:

4 large egg yolks 2 oz/60 ml

¼ cup heavy cream

pinch salt

To Make the Preferment:

In a small saucepan, warm the milk to take the chill off (between 80° to 90 °F). Pour the milk into a mixing bowl, sprinkle the yeast over the milk, stir to dissolve the yeast with a wooden spoon, and then add the flour, mixing with a wooden spoon until a smooth batter forms. Cover the bowl with cheesecloth and let the mixture rise until almost double in volume, 2 to 3 hours at moderate temperature or overnight in the refrigerator.

To Make the Dough:

First measure out all your ingredients and keep them near at hand. Transfer the preferment and then the yeast to the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Mix on low speed until the yeast is incorporated into the preferment batter, which will take a minute or two. Stop the mixer as needed and use a spatula to clean the bottom and sides of the bowl, folding the loosened portion into the mixture to incorporate all the elements fully. When the mixture has come together into an even, well-mixed mass, increase the speed to medium, and mix for a couple of minutes. Slowly add half of the milk and continue to mix until the milk is fully incorporated.

Reduce the speed to low, add the flour, sugar, salt, melted butter, and the rest of the milk, and mix until the mass comes together in a loose dough, about 3 minutes. Turn off the mixer and let the dough rest for 15 to 20 minutes. This resting period helps to shorten the final mixing phase, which comes next.

Engage the mixer again on low speed and mix until the dough is smooth and elastic, a maximum of 4 minutes. If the dough is very firm, add a little milk, 1 tablespoon at a time. Take care not to overmix the dough, which will result in a tough croissant that also turns stale more quickly. Remember, too, you will be rolling out the dough several times, which will further develop the gluten structure, so though you want a smooth dough, the less mixing you do to achieve that goal, the better. Cover the bowl with cheesecloth and let the dough rise in a cool place until the volume increases by half, about 1-½ hours.

Lightly flour a work surface. Transfer the dough to the floured surface and press into a rectangle 2 inches thick. Wrap the rectangle in plastic wrap, or slip it into a plastic bag and seal closed. Place the dough in the refrigerator to chill for 4 to 6 hours.

To Make the Roll-in butter:

About 1 hour before you are ready to start laminating the dough, put the butter that you will be rolling into the dough in the bowl of the mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until malleable but not warm or soft, about 3 minutes. Remove the butter from the bowl, wrap in plastic wrap, and place in the refrigerator to chill but not resolidify.

Laminating the dough:

Lightly dust a cool work surface, and then remove the chilled dough and the butter from the refrigerator. Unwrap the dough and place it on the floured surface. Roll out the dough into a rectangle 28 by 12 inches. With the long side of the rectangle facing you, and starting from the left side, spread and spot the butter over two-thirds of the length of the rectangle. Fold the uncovered third over the butter and then fold the left-hand third over the center, as if folding a business letter. The resulting rectangle is known as a plaque. With your fingers, push down along the seams on the top and the bottom to seal in the plaque.

Second turn:

Give the plaque a quarter turn so the seams are to your right and left, rather than at the top and bottom. Again, roll out the dough into a rectangle 28 by 12 inches, and fold again in the same manner. Wrap in plastic wrap or slip into a plastic bag and place in the refrigerator for 1 ½ to 2 hours to relax the gluten in the dough before you make the third fold, or “turn”.

Third turn:

Clean the work surface, dust again with flour, and remove the dough from the refrigerator. Unwrap, place on the floured surface, and again roll out into a rectangle 28 by 12 inches. Fold into thirds in the same manner. You should have a plaque of dough measuring about 9 by 12 inches, about the size of a quarter sheet pan, and 1 ½ to 2 inches thick. Wrap in plastic wrap or slip into the plastic bag, place on a quarter sheet pan, and immediately place in the freezer to chill for at least 1 hour. If you intend to make the croissants the next morning, leave the dough in the freezer until the evening and then transfer it to the refrigerator before retiring. The next morning, the dough will be ready to roll out and form into croissants, proof, and bake. Or, you can leave the dough in the freezer for up to 1 week; just remember to transfer it to the refrigerator to thaw overnight before using.

Making the croissant:

When you are ready to roll out the dough, dust the work surface again. Roll out the dough into a rectangle 32 by 12 inches and 3/8 inches thick. Using a pizza wheel or chef’s knife, cut the dough into long triangles that measure 10 to 12 inches on each side and about 4 inches along the base.

Line a half sheet pan (about 13 by 18 inches) with parchment paper. To shape each croissant, position a triangle with the base facing you. Positioning your palms on the two outer points of the base, carefully rolling the base toward the point. To finish, grab the point with one hand, stretching it slightly, and continue to roll, tucking the point underneath the rolled dough so that the croissant will stand tall when you place it on the sheet pan. If you have properly shaped the croissant, it will have 6 or 7 ridges.

As you form the croissants, place them, well-spaced, on the prepared half-sheet pan. When all the croissants are on the pan, set the pan in a draft-free area with relatively high humidity, and let the pastries rise for 2 to 3 hours. The ideal temperature is 75 °F. A bit cooler or warmer is all right, as long as the temperature is not warm enough to melt the layers of butter in the dough, which would yield greasy pastries. Cooler is preferable and will increase the rising time and with it the flavor development. For example, the home oven (turned off) with a pan of steaming water placed in the bottom is a good place for proofing leavened baked items. To make sure that no skin forms on the pastries during this final rising, refresh the pan of water halfway through the rising.

During this final rising, the croissants should at least double in size and look noticeably puffy. If when you press a croissant lightly with a fingertip, the indentation fills in slowly, the croissants are almost ready to bake. At this point, the croissants should still be slightly “firm” and holding their shape and neither spongy nor starting to slouch. If you have put the croissants into the oven to proof, remove them now and set the oven to 425 °F to preheat for 20 to 30 minutes

About 10 minutes before you are ready to bake the croissants, make the egg wash. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, cream, and salt until you have a pale yellow mixture. Using a pastry brush, lightly and carefully brush the yolk mixture on the pastries, being careful not to allow the egg wash to drip onto the pan. Let the wash dry slightly, about 10 minutes, before baking.

Place the croissants into the oven, immediately turn down the oven temperature to 400 °F, and leave the door shut for the first 10 minutes. Then working quickly, open the oven door, rotate the pan 180 degrees, and close the door. This rotation will help the pastries to bake evenly. Bake for 6 to 10 minutes longer, rotating the pan again during this time if the croissants do not appear to be baking evenly. The croissants should be done in 15 to 20 minutes total. They are ready when they are a deep golden brown on the top and bottom, crisp on the outside and light when they are picked up, indicating that the interior is cooked through.

Remove the croissants from the oven and place them on a wire rack to cool. As they cool, their moist interiors will set up. They are best if eaten while they are still slightly warm. If they have just cooled to room temperature, they are fine as well, or you can rewarm them in a 375°F oven for 6 to 8 minutes to recrisp them before serving. You can also store leftover croissants in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day, and then afterward in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. If you have stored them, recrisp them in the oven before serving.

traditional pecan pie

2009-12-24T19:33:00.000-08:00

Here is the post for the other pecan pie, finally. This is definitely more traditional, no chocolate. It is super simple to whip together if you have a pie crust handy. My husband preferred this one over the other. I can't say which was my favorite. This one has an intense sugar component. It made me think of a I heard someone once say, "I haven't had diabetes before"...it's that sugary but some how still very good.

Pecan Pie
pie crust
2 eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon flour
1 1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans, leave enough whole to cover top

Fit pie crust in a 9 inch pie dish.

Mix eggs through butter together well. Pour over chopped pecans in pie dish. Place whole pecans on top.

Place on top of a cookie sheet because it may bubble over. Bake at 325 for 35 - 40 minutes. It will still be soft in the center.

salted brown butter rice krispie treats

2009-12-05T19:12:00.000-08:00

I've mentioned my love of brown butter before. But I never thought of using it in rice krispie treats. Over at Smitten Kitchen, Deb, admits her fasantation with these treats with a few different variations. When she declared these an "epic" I had to see if she was right. And she is! These are amazing!!! Super easy to make and just get over the fact that there is twice as much butter as the original recipe because they are so worth.

bourbon chocolate pecan pie

2009-11-28T15:09:00.000-08:00

Pecan pie is so perfect for either Thanksgiving or Christmas celebrations. And on my little ones first Thanksgiving, I couldn't help but make pecan pie. My husband is quite the traditionalist when it comes to pecan pie. And I should know this after last year with this tart, it wasn't his favorite. But put chocolate in about anything and I'm happy. When I saw this recipe in Baked I had to give it a try. I loved it! It was super simple to throw together (something necessary with a 6-month-old) and the texture with the chopped pecans and melted chocolate was like eating a piece of candy, mmm. Because the pie crust recipe made two crusts I was able to make another pecan pie, more traditional, that I will post soon.

Bourbon Chocolate Pecan Pie
adapted from Baked: New Frontier in Baking
Pie Crust (makes enough for two single crust pies)
3 cup flour
1 Tbl sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup cold unsalted butter
3/4 cup ice cold water
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together and place in a bowl of a food processor. Cut the cold butter into cubes and add to flour mixture. Pulse in quick bursts until pieces resemble peas. While pulsing, drizzle ice water into food processor through tube. As soon as the dough comes together in a ball, remove from food processor and divide into two equal balls. Flatten into a disk and wrap each with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the disks until firm, about 1 hour.

Filling
2Cups pecan halves, toasted
3 large eggs
3/4 cup light corn syrup
3 Tbl. sugar
4 Tbl dark brown sugar
3 Tbl unsalted butter, melted
pinch of salt
1 tsp vanilla
3 Tbl bourbon
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped

Dust work surface with flour. Roll dough out into a 12" round. Transfer to pie dish. Wrap and freeze the crust until firm, about 2 hours, or up to 3 months.
Preheat oven to 325.
Coarsely chop 1 cup of pecans and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until combined. Add the corn syrup, sugars, butter, salt, vanilla and bourbon. Whisk again until combined. Stir in the chopped pecans and set the filling aside.
Spread the chocolate evenly along bottom of the frozen pie shell, Slowly pour the filling on top of the chocolate. Arrange the remaining pecan halves on top of the filling.
Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, then cover the edges (or if using a tart pan ignore this part) loosely with aluminum foil and bake another 30 minutes Test the pie by sticking a knife in the center of the filling. If if comes out clean it is down, otherwise bake for another 5 minutes and test again.
Cool the pie on wire rack and serve warm or at room temperature.

3rd birthday

2009-11-15T16:24:00.000-08:00

I had the honor of making my neice's birthday cake and cupcakes for her third birthday bash. Her mom found the cutest accessories at Pretty Smitten for the cupcakes, too cute. There is something special about making cakes for others for celebratory events.

almond turtles

2009-11-05T12:56:00.000-08:00

When it comes to Halloween I feel like it is a great excuse to eat sweets, candy in particular. But I'm not very interested in the mini-sized supermarket / convenient store standards. This year, after watching an episode of Giada at Home, I decided to make almond turtles. These were beyond easy to make. And so very delicious! The one change I made was using salted almonds instead of the the smoked almonds called for in the recipe. These made pretty huge turtles and the next time I make these will try them in mini muffin pans instead of the standard size. Don't get me wrong, I didn't mind devouring the giant candy but I think it would be best slightly smaller. I think these might make an appearance in my holiday goody containers I make each year.

Ingredients
Vegetable oil cooking spray
1 cup (5 ounces) coarsely chopped almonds

Caramel:
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups light brown sugar
1 tablespoon water
3/4 cup bittersweet (60 percent cacao) chocolate

Directions
Spray a 12-count muffin pan, liberally, with vegetable oil cooking spray. Put the almonds in the bottom of each muffin cup and set aside.

For the caramel: In a 3-quart, heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the cream, butter, sugar, and water. Stir over medium heat until the mixture is smooth. Bring the mixture to a boil and cook, without stirring, until a candy thermometer registers 240 degrees F, about 5 to 7 minutes. Let the mixture cool for 30 seconds. Using a long-handled, metal spoon, carefully spoon the caramel over the nuts. Allow the caramel to harden, at room temperature, for 1 hour.

Put the chocolate chips in a medium stainless steel or glass bowl. Set the bowl over a saucepan of barely simmering water and stir occasionally until the chocolate has melted, about 4 minutes. Spoon the chocolate over the caramel and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Using a thin-bladed spatula, remove the turtles from the pan (caramel will be hard). Let the turtles stand at room temperature for at least 1 hour (to allow the caramel to soften) before serving.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature

halloween cookies

2009-11-01T17:57:00.000-08:00

It is obvious that this post should have been yesterday, is my daughter at six month an excuse? I keep promising that I will get more regular with my postings. Not letting a month go in between. Well without further delay...halloween cookies. I used my standard sugar cookie recipe, cut them out with this very spooky spider cut out and decorated them with black royal icing. While shopping, the ease of parking has definitely become more of a priority with little miss. I find myself at deCroupte's ,a cake shop with tons of parking, to purchase everything from cake boxes to cookie cutter.

pumpkin bread

2009-10-06T20:10:00.000-07:00

As soon as the calender turns to the tenth month I pull out all my stored away pumpkin recipes. Pumpkin bread is definitely one of the first I make. It makes the whole house smell like autumn. I've been enjoying the recipe you can find on the back of the Libby's canned pumpkin puree but the ingredients lead more toward cake than bread. In the morning I want to at least think I'm eating a little healthy. I adjusted a few ingredients with great results. I know what you are thinking, 3 cups of sugar...healthy...let's just say healthier.

Pumpkin Bread
adapted from Libby's canned pumpkin puree
2 Cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 Cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbl pumpkin spice
dash of cinnamon and nutmeg
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 Tbl salt
1 Cup granulated sugar
2 Cup brown sugar
1 15 oz pumpkin puree
4 large eggs
1/2 Cup vegetable oil
1/2 Cup applesauce
1/2 Cup orange juice

Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 loaf pans with parchment paper
Combine flour through cinnamon in large bowl. In another bowl combine sugar through orange juice and mix with wire whisk. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture, stir until moistened. Spoon into prepared pans.
Bake 50 - 70 minutes or until wooden pick is inserted into center and comes out clean. Cool in pans on wire racks.

salted butter caramel sauce

2009-09-24T12:55:00.000-07:00

So it's still be insanely hot these last few weeks and the fire might now be officially out in the foothills behind us but we are still finding ash on our cars in the morning. Needless to say it hasn't been baking weather. I'm hoping for fall temperatures to arrive soon, I have some baking to do!

This caramel sauce came in handy to pour over chocolate ice cream I had made. I think I could have drank the sauce I loved it so much!

Salted Butter Caramel Sauce
from The Perfect Scoop
by David Lebovitz
6 Tbl butter, salted or unsalted
3/4 Cup sugar
1 Cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt (i used fluer de sel)

Melt butter in large, deep heavy-duty saucepan or Dutch oven. Stir in the sugar and cook, stirring frequently, until the sugar is deep golden brown and starts to smoke.
Remove from the heat and immediately whisk in half of the cream until smooth (wear an oven mitt, since the mixture will steam and splatter and may bubble up furiously). Stir in the rest of the cream, then the vanilla and salt. If there are any lumps of caramel, whisk the sauce gently over low heat until they're dissolved. Serve warm. Makes 1 1/2 Cups

ginger scones

2009-09-09T11:51:00.000-07:00

There is a place nearby in Pasadena called Euro Pane. They've got a lot of things going for them and one of their cult followings is their ginger scones. From what I understand, the baker/owner use to work at La Brea Bakery before opening up her own place. This recipe comes from La Brea Bakery via epicurious.com. The shape of these scones are different from those you'll find at Euro Pane but the taste is almost identical.

Ginger Scones
adapted from epicurious.com
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon grated lemon peel
11 tablespoons chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons whipping cream
2/3 cup diced crystallized ginger

Preheat oven to 400. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In the bowl of a food processor combine flour, sugar, baking soda and grated lemon, blend. Add butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Transfer to a large bowl and toss in ginger. Make a well in the center and add 3/4 cup of cream, or like I did, rush and add the 2 tablespoons as well. Mix until moist with fork or hands. Transfer to a floured surface and knead dough 8-10 times. Divide dough in half and pat each portion into 3/4 inch thick round. Cut rounds into 6 wedges each and transfer to baking sheet. If you have those 2 tablespoons of whipping cream left, brush the tops of the scones. Bake until lightly browned, about 18 minutes.

Creamiest Lime Cream Tart

2009-08-25T07:54:00.000-07:00

My friend Linda over at Tender Crumb (www.tendercrumb.blogspot.com) has finally gotten her turn at picking the weekly recipe for Tuesdays with Dorie, Creamiest Lime Cream Meringue Pie. I first heard about the blog from her, a few months after its inception. And though I participated for awhile, I dropped out. When I saw that it was Linda’s week to choose a recipe I had to join in. And I thank Linda for picking this recipe because I never would have. I’m not a fan of meringue and would have figured it was another boring All-American pie, I much prefer the French style as Dorie compares the two in her book. But when I saw that the recipe for the lime portion was very similar to her recipe for The Most Extraordinary French Lemon Cream Tart, I was excited. I did a little fooling around with it. I made the graham cracker crust and used a rectangular tart pan and two very small tartlet pans and filled it with the lime cream; and just omitted the meringue portion. Oh My!!! It is that good! The hint of ginger is perfection. If this didn’t have a total of 2 sticks of butter, in the crust and the cream, I think I could happily sit down with a fork and devour the entire tart. Thanks so much Linda for choosing this recipe!
The recipes that follows is for the pie, just omit the meringue for the tart

Creamiest Lime Cream Meringue Pie
From Baking: From My Home To Yours By Dorie Greenspan

Makes 8 servings

FOR THE FILLING
1 cup sugar
Grated zest of 3 limes
4 large eggs, preferably at room temp
¾ cup fresh lime juice (from about 6 limes)
A 1 inch chunk of fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 ½ sticks (10 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon size pieces, at room temperature

Getting ready: Have an instant-read thermometer, a strainer and a blender (first choice) or food processor at hand.
Bring a few inches of water to a simmer in a saucepan.
put the sugar and zest into a heatproof bowl that can be set over the pan of simmering water. Off the heat, rub the sugar and zest between your fingertips for a few minutes, until the sugar is moist and the fragrance of lime is strong.
Whisk in the eggs, then whisk in the juice, ginger and cornstarch.
Set the bowl over the pan and start stirring with the whisk as soon as the mixture feels tepid to the touch. Cook the lime cream until it reaches 180 degrees F. As you whisk- you must whisk constantly to keep the eggs from scrambling – you’ll see that the cream will start out light and foamy, then the bubbles will get bigger, and then, as it gets closer to 180 degrees F, it will start to thicken and the whisk will leave tracks. Heads up at this point – the tracks mean the cream is almost ready. Don’t stop whisking or checking the temperature, and have patience – depending on how much heat you’re giving the cream, getting to temp can take as long as 10 minutes.
As soon as it reaches 180 degrees F, remove the cream from the heat and strain the cream into the container of the blender (or food processor); discard the rest.
Let it cool until it reaches 140 degrees F, about 10 minutes.
Turn the blender to high speed (or turn on the processor) and add the butter a few pieces at a time. Scrape down the sides of the container as needed as you incorporate the butter. After all the butter is in, continue to blend the cream for another 3 minutes. If you find the machine is getting really hot, work in 1-minute intervals, giving the machine a little rest in between beats.
Pour the cream into a container, press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface and refrigerate the cream for at least 4 hours, or overnight. (The cream can be packed airtight and frozen for up to 2 months; thaw overnight in the refrigerator.)

Graham Cracker Crust
makes a 9-inch crust

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
3 tablespoons sugar
Pinch of salt
1/2 stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted

Butter a 9-inch pie plate.
Stir the crumbs, sugar and salt together in a medium bowl. Pour over the melted butter and stir until all of the dry ingredients are uniformly moist. Turn the ingredients into the pan and use your fingers to pay an even layer of crumbs over the bottom of the pan. Put the pan in the freezer while you preheat the oven. (The crust can be covered and frozen for up to 2 months.)
Center a rack in the over, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place the pan on a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a rack.

FOR THE MERINGUE
4 large egg whites, at room temperature
½ cup sugar

To finish the pie with the meringue: Preheat the broiler.
Whisk the cream to loosen it and spoon it into the pie shell. Place the pie plate on a baking sheet.
Working in a clean dry mixer bowl with the clean whisk attachment, or in a large bowl with a hand mixer, whip the egg whites at medium speed until opaque. With the mixer running , add the sugar in a slow stream and continue to beat until the whites are glossy and form firm peaks.
Spread the meringue over the lime filling, swirling it if you’d like. Make sure the meringue comes all the way to the edges of the crust, because it will shrink when it bakes.
Run the pie under the broiler until the meringue is golden and the tips are dark brown. Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool for about 15 minutes, then refrigerate for at least 3 hours before serving.

coffee chocolate chip ice cream

2009-08-04T11:59:00.000-07:00

This summer has been strange here in Southern California. June found us with mostly overcast skies and even days with drizzle. In July we had some scorching days and now that it's August it is a bit humid but not too hot, thank goodness. I did go on an ice cream kick during those hot days. One of my favorite ice creams in coffee with heath bar bits mixed in, mmm mmm mmm. I took the vanilla ice cream recipe I've been using lately and added a heaping tablespoon of instant espresso when I was dissolving the sugar into the milk. And then at the end of the ice cream mixing in the ice cream machine, I added 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips that I had coarsely chopped. I was quite please with the results but next time I'm definitely heading to the store to pick up a heath bar and try that.

Coffee Chocolate Chip Ice Cream
adapted from David Lebovitz recipe
1 Cup Whole Milk
3/4 Cup Sugar
2 Cups Heavy Cream
1 heaping Tablespoon Instant Espresso
pinch of salt
6 Large Egg Yolks
3/4 tsp Vanilla Extract
1/2 dark chocolate chips, coarsely chopped

Warm the milk, sugar, espresso, half of the cream and salt in a medium saucepan until sugar is dissolved. Set aside. Pour remaining cream in a large bowl with a mesh strainer on top. In a separate medium bowl, whisk egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm 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, scrapping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Add the vanilla extract and stir until cool over an ice bath. Chill in the refrigerator. When ready to churn, add the chopped chocolate. Follow manufacturer's instructions for your ice cream.

daring bakers - milan cookies

2009-07-27T14:16:00.000-07:00

The July Daring Baker's challenge was hosted by Nicole at Sweet Tooth. She chose Chocolate Covered Marshmallow Cookies and Milan Cookies from pastry chef Gale Gand of the Food Network. We were given the choice to either do both or choose one of the recipes. I opted for the Milan Cookies. My grandmother has quite the sweet tooth. When I was small and visiting her house I always knew there would be a treat. Either her stash of candy in her nightstand (shh...don't tell grandma I'm sharing her secrets) or in the kitchen drawer a batch of cookies. One cookie that seemed to find itself in the kitchen drawer again and again were Peppridge Farm Milano Cookies. I recently enjoyed a few. When I checked out the packaged, I was surprised to see there were hydrogenated ingredients in it. I thought that was going to be the end of Milano cookies for me until this months challenge. Whoopee, I was excited to see that I was going to be able to make my very own! I think these taste a bit different than those of Peppridge Farm and with a little experimenting I believe I could get them just right. This recipe called for quite a bit of lemon and vanilla extract which I'm guessing isn't the case for those found in the little white bag.

Milan Cookies
Recipe courtesy Gale Gand, from Food Network website

Prep Time: 20 min
Inactive Prep Time: 0 min
Cook Time: 1 hr 0 min
Serves: about 3 dozen cookies

• 12 tablespoons (170grams/ 6 oz) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 1/2 cups (312.5 grams/ 11.02 oz) powdered sugar
• 7/8 cup egg whites (from about 6 eggs)
• 2 tablespoons vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons lemon extract
• 1 1/2 cups (187.5grams/ 6.61 oz) all purpose flour
• Cookie filling, recipe follows

Cookie filling:
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 8 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 orange, zested

1. In a mixer with paddle attachment cream the butter and the sugar.
2. Add the egg whites gradually and then mix in the vanilla and lemon extracts.
3. Add the flour and mix until just well mixed.
4. With a small (1/4-inch) plain tip, pipe 1-inch sections of batter onto a parchment-lined sheet pan, spacing them 2 inches apart as they spread.
5. Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 10 minutes or until light golden brown around the edges. Let cool on the pan.
6. While waiting for the cookies to cool, in a small saucepan over medium flame, scald cream.
7. Pour hot cream over chocolate in a bowl, whisk to melt chocolate, add zest and blend well.
8. Set aside to cool (the mixture will thicken as it cools).
9. Spread a thin amount of the filling onto the flat side of a cookie while the filling is still soft and press the flat side of a second cookie on top.
10. Repeat with the remainder of the cookies.

baked brownies

2009-07-22T11:46:00.000-07:00

I made a promise that I was going to be posting more and it's been over 2 weeks since my last post. Okay...I have been baking but coming up with the time to write something has been the real challenge. A few weeks back I made the Baked brownies. They were quite tasty and super easy to make. I didn't need any equipment, unless you count the stove top. They were intensely chocolaty and I liked that they used both cocoa powder and chocolate. My husband still prefers the Tartine recipe but I don't...know these were so good. For the recipe and to see who got me to try the recipe in the first place head over Tender Crumb (tendercrumb.blogspot.com...I really need to figure out the problem with my links!)

2009-07-06T15:52:00.000-07:00

My birthday was on Saturday...yes July 4th. My mom use to call me her little firecracker and now this year I have one of my own. And because of the tasks that go with new motherhood, I haven't been posting as much. I started making my birthday cakes when I was in junior high after a disappointing cake, you can't be disappointed with the birthday cake on your birthday! This year I made it super simple and baked a flourless cake, then topped it with red raspberries and blue blueberries. There are tons of recipes online and any will do. My tips...make sure not to over bake the cake, easily done and then you don't get the right texture. And the second, use the best quality chocolate available.

blueberry scones

2009-06-18T16:07:00.000-07:00

When I was living in Santa Barbara a few co-workers threw me a bridal shower. It was a lot of fun including sitting on the floor playing the board game Life. Among the delicious food they served were these tremendous scones. I think I ate about 3 of them and then was given a few to take home. One of the hostesses use to live in Oakland and would frequent the Cheese Board Collective in Berkeley. I remember her telling me that the food was pretty amazing but there was also another cool aspect of the place, all the workers were part owners in the business. There were no bosses or managers and they all held a share in the business. How cool is that!

Blueberry Scones
Adapted from The Cheese Board Collective Work

3 ½ C all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
1 Tbl baking powder
½ tsp salt
¾ C sugar
1 C cold salted butter, cut into ½” cubes
¾ C dried blueberries
¾ C half and half
¾ C buttermilk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Sift the flour, baking soda, baking powder together in a large bowl. Add salt and sugar and stir to combine. Add the butter and mix with fingers until they are pea sized. Add the dried blueberries. Make a well in the center and add the half-and-half and buttermilk. Mix until rough and shaggy. Dust work surface with flour and knead about 5 times. Pat out dough until it is approximately ½ inch high. With a 2” cookie cutter cut out scones. Place on prepared pan about 2” apart. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack to cool

brown butter tart

2009-06-10T19:00:00.000-07:00

I love brown butter tarts. Raspberry ones. Blueberry ones. They almost never disappoint. But I did have an exceptional raspberry brown butter tart about a year ago and I've been on a quest to find it again. I think the key to what made that one so exceptional was the insane amount of sugar (it was sweet!) and it was slightly under baked, giving it the quality of a confection while still being a baked good. I made this recipe as it was written in the June issue of Bon Appetit. My only change was under baking it slightly. It was quite scrumptious but still not quite like that "one" I had. So some more tweaking will have to be done until I find perfection but in the mean time this is a great recipe. http://www.bonappetit.com/magazine/2009/06/brown_butter_raspberry_tart

strawberry shortcake

2009-06-02T11:28:00.000-07:00

The weather is definitely warming up and the markets seem full of berries, though I must admit I haven't been shopping much. But I was the lucky recipient of a basket full of strawberries and while checking out some blogs I noticed this recipe over at smittenkitche.com. Deb declares "I’m warning you, when you find your shortcake nirvana, the reasons pile up that you should make them again". I can't agree more. I would have been skeptical of the hard boiled egg yolks in the recipe, possibly skipping the recipe entirely, if I hadn't already made a successful recipe using the same technique. The shortcakes are light while at the same time being rich. They're good enough to eat on their own, especially when you've managed to consume all the berries.

Strawberry Shortcake
Adapted from Claudia Fleming and Russ Parsons
via smittenkitchen.com

1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
3 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
2 hard-boiled egg yolks
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 cup whipping cream, beaten to soft peaks

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, egg yolks, and salt. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and zest, if using, and pulse until the flour resembles coarse meal. Add 2/3 cup of cream and pulse until the dough comes together.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and gather into a shaggy mass. Knead a couple times to make it into a cohesive mass and then pat it into a rough circle about 6 to 7 inches in diameter, and 3/4 to 1-inch thick.
Using a sharp knife, cut the circle into 6 wedges and arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush the tops of the shortcakes very lightly with heavy cream and sprinkle lightly with the coarse sugar. Bake until risen and golden brown, 18 to 20 minutes. Turn the pan around halfway through to ensure even cooking.
Place shortcake on a plate whole, my preferred way otherwise everything gets soggy, top with berries. Spoon whipped cream generously over the strawberries. Serve immediately with any remaining whipped cream on the side.

cherry strudel - daring bakers

2009-05-27T11:10:00.000-07:00

The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! And Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafes of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.

I wasn’t super excited about this recipe but was up for the challenge of making the strudel dough. I wondered how thin I could make the dough without it tearing and how challenging the dough would be to work with. I was pleasantly surprised to find that the recipe was quite user friendly. I was able to get quite close to the dimensions suggested in the recipe, 2’ x 3’, and was lucky to be without holes or tears in the dough, though I think I could have made it thinner. The notes were helpful, especially the one reminding me to take off my jewelry before starting to stretch the dough, something I often forget to do.

The filling was where we could get creative. And as many other bloggers have mentioned recently, summer is upon us in Southern California with the arrival of pitted fruits at the farmer’s markets. My grandmother dropped by some beautiful cherries a few days ago which seemed like the perfect addition to the strudel. I used a pint of pitted cherries, 1/3 cup of chopped pecans and ½ cup of chopped semi-sweet chocolate for the filling. To do it again I would definitely add a bit of sugar and some spices, possibly cinnamon. I blame sleep deprivation for this missing piece.

The cherry strudel was easy enough and turned out pretty good but I’m not sure that I will be making it anytime soon. If I did, I think I would try the traditional apple filling that comes with the strudel dough recipe.

What made this recipe seem extra special was my husband holding our 3-week-old daughter while I rolled and stretched the dough, telling her that she should get use to this as her “mommy” will be doing quite a bit of baking.

Apple Filling
2 tablespoons (30 ml) golden rum
3 tablespoons (45 ml) raisins
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon (80 g) sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick / 115 g) unsalted butter, melted, divided
1 1/2 cups (350 ml) fresh bread crumbs
strudel dough
1/2 cup (120 ml, about 60 g) coarsely chopped walnuts
2 pounds (900 g) tart cooking apples, peeled, cored and cut into ¼ inch-thick slices (use apples that hold their shape during baking)

1. Mix the rum and raisins in a bowl. Mix the cinnamon and sugar in another bowl.

2. Heat 3 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high. Add the breadcrumbs and cook whilst stirring until golden and toasted. This will take about 3 minutes. Let it cool completely.

3. Put the rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line a large baking sheet with baking paper (parchment paper). Make the strudel dough as described below. Spread about 3 tablespoons of the remaining melted butter over the dough using your hands (a bristle brush could tear the dough, you could use a special feather pastry brush instead of your hands). Sprinkle the buttered dough with the bread crumbs. Spread the walnuts about 3 inches (8 cm) from the short edge of the dough in a 6-inch-(15cm)-wide strip. Mix the apples with the raisins (including the rum), and the cinnamon sugar. Spread the mixture over the walnuts.

4. Fold the short end of the dough onto the filling. Lift the tablecloth at the short end of the dough so that the strudel rolls onto itself. Transfer the strudel to the prepared baking sheet by lifting it. Curve it into a horseshoe to fit. Tuck the ends under the strudel. Brush the top with the remaining melted butter.

5. Bake the strudel for about 30 minutes or until it is deep golden brown. Cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing. Use a serrated knife and serve either warm or at room temperature. It is best on the day it is baked.

Strudel Dough
1 1/3 cups (200 g) unbleached flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons (105 ml) water, plus more if needed
2 tablespoons (30 ml) vegetable oil, plus additional for coating the dough
1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar

1. Combine the flour and salt in a stand-mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix the water, oil and vinegar in a measuring cup. Add the water/oil mixture to the flour with the mixer on low speed. You will get a soft dough. Make sure it is not too dry, add a little more water if necessary.
Take the dough out of the mixer. Change to the dough hook. Put the dough ball back in the mixer. Let the dough knead on medium until you get a soft dough ball with a somewhat rough surface.

2. Take the dough out of the mixer and continue kneading by hand on an unfloured work surface. Knead for about 2 minutes. Pick up the dough and throw it down hard onto your working surface occasionally.
Shape the dough into a ball and transfer it to a plate. Oil the top of the dough ball lightly. Cover the ball tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to stand for 30-90 minutes (longer is better).

3. It would be best if you have a work area that you can walk around on all sides like a 36 inch (90 cm) round table or a work surface of 23 x 38 inches (60 x 100 cm). Cover your working area with table cloth, dust it with flour and rub it into the fabric. Put your dough ball in the middle and roll it out as much as you can.
Pick the dough up by holding it by an edge. This way the weight of the dough and gravity can help stretching it as it hangs. Using the back of your hands to gently stretch and pull the dough. You can use your forearms to support it.

4. The dough will become too large to hold. Put it on your work surface. Leave the thicker edge of the dough to hang over the edge of the table. Place your hands underneath the dough and stretch and pull the dough thinner using the backs of your hands. Stretch and pull the dough until it's about 2 feet (60 cm) wide and 3 feet (90 cm) long, it will be tissue-thin by this time. Cut away the thick dough around the edges with scissors. The dough is now ready to be filled.

Mile High Devil's Food Cake - Cake Slice

2009-05-20T15:56:00.000-07:00

Because I have a newborn this is going to be an insanely short post. I made the cake, iced it and took pictures all very quickly. I haven't even cut into it yet but when I leveled it off i had a taste and licked the spatula to the buttercream when I was done with it and separately both tasted great! Check out the other The Cake Slice Bakers for more information and the recipe. Hope to be better at posting regularly again soon.

chocolate ice cream

2009-04-30T14:29:00.000-07:00

I was craving chocolate like crazy last weekend. I'm never one to pass on chocolate to begin with but I had an overpowering desire to make something intensely chocolaty. Instead of baking I pulled out The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz and turned to the Chocolate Ice Cream page. He writes "My search for the ultimate chocolate ice cream ended the day I opened my ice cream maker and took a taste of this version." I feel the same way. I did make a few adjustments just because I refused to go to the store and get exactly what I needed but I don't think my changes made much difference in the overall flavor. The recipe calls for 2 cups of heavy cream and I only had 1 cup. And 1 cup of whole milk but I had 2 cups so I made the exchange there. This is so deeply rich and delicious that I licked the paddle on the ice cream maker to make sure none went to waste.
Chocolate Ice Cream
adapted from David Lebovitz
1 Cup heavy cream
3 Tbl unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder (i used valrona)
5 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped (i used the chocolate chips i had on hand)
2 Cup whole milk
3/4 Cup sugar
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Warm the heavy cream with the cocoa powder in a medium saucepan, whisking to thoroughly blend the cocoa. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and add the chopped chocolate, stirring until smooth. Then stir in 1 cup of the whole milk. Pour mixture into a large bowl and place a mesh strainer on top of the bowl.
Warm the remaining milk, sugar and salt in the same saucepan. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm milk into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape back into saucepan.
Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scrapping the bottom as your stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the chocolate mixture until smooth. Then add the vanilla. Still until cool over ice bath. Place in the refrigerator until thoroughly chilled. Then follow manufacturer's instructions on your ice cream maker.

Cheesecake Centerpiece – Daring Bakers

2009-04-27T07:56:00.000-07:00

The April 2009 challenge is hosted by Jenny Bakes. She has chosen Abbey’s Infamous Cheesecake as the challenge.

This is my first month participating in the Daring Bakers and I feel like this was an easy welcome. After seeing last months lasagna I was feeling a bit intimidated but this cheesecake made me much more comfortable.

Jenny stated that “the real challenge this month is to take this basic recipe and play with it. Make it unique. Make a showstopper of a dessert”. The possibilities seemed endless but when I saw there was fresh lemon juice in the recipe I decided to go with the citrus theme. I swapped out the graham cracker crumbs with homemade citrus shortbread cookies for the crust. To the cheesecake, I followed the ingredient list exactly except for omitting the liqueur, which said was optional, and added the zest of one lemon. Under the section “some variations from the recipe creator”, I saw a lavender-scented cheesecake with blueberries. I think that lemons and blueberries go so well together that I topped the cheesecake with a variation of the blueberry sauce listed below, using a bit of orange juice, organic frozen wild blueberries from Trader Joes and a sprinkling of sugar. I warmed it up in a saucepan and then let it cool completely before topping the cheesecake.

I’ve make cheesecake many times but this was the first that a recipe suggested leaving the cheesecake in the oven for an hour after the initial baking with the oven turned off to continue cooking. I’ve also used a water bath when making a cheesecake and never had any water seepage but when I pulled the foil away there seemed to be a bit of water. In the end it didn’t seem to diminish the crust at all. I was very pleased with this cheesecake and will definitely be making it again, maybe lavender-scented.

Abbey's Infamous Cheesecake:
crust:

2 cups / 180 g graham cracker crumbs
1 stick / 4 oz butter, melted
2 tbsp. / 24 g sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
cheesecake:
3 sticks of cream cheese, 8 oz each (total of 24 oz) room temperature
1 cup / 210 g sugar
3 large eggs
1 cup / 8 oz heavy cream
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 tbsp. vanilla extract (or the innards of a vanilla bean)
1 tbsp liqueur, optional, but choose what will work well with your cheesecake

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (Gas Mark 4 = 180C = Moderate heat). Begin to boil a large pot of water for the water bath.

2. Mix together the crust ingredients and press into your preferred pan. You can press the crust just into the bottom, or up the sides of the pan too - baker's choice. Set crust aside.

3. Combine cream cheese and sugar in the bowl of a stand-mixer (or in a large bowl if using a hand-mixer) and cream together until smooth. Add eggs, one at a time, fully incorporating each before adding the next. Make sure to scrape down the bowl in between each egg. Add heavy cream, vanilla, lemon juice, and alcohol and blend until smooth and creamy.

4. Pour batter into prepared crust and tap the pan on the counter a few times to bring all air bubbles to the surface. Place pan into a larger pan and pour boiling water into the larger pan until halfway up the side of the cheesecake pan. If cheesecake pan is not airtight, cover bottom securely with foil before adding water.
5. Bake 45 to 55 minutes, until it is almost done - this can be hard to judge, but you're looking for the cake to hold together, but still have a lot of jiggle to it in the center. You don't want it to be completely firm at this stage. Close the oven door, turn the heat off, and let rest in the cooling oven for one hour. This lets the cake finish cooking and cool down gently enough so that it won't crack on the top. After one hour, remove cheesecake from oven and lift carefully out of water bath. Let it finish cooling on the counter, and then cover and put in the fridge to chill. Once fully chilled, it is ready to serve.

Pan note: The creator of this recipe used to use a springform pan, but no matter how well she wrapped the thing in tin foil, water would always seep in and make the crust soggy. Now she uses one of those 1-use foil "casserole" shaped pans from the grocery store. They're 8 or 9 inches wide and really deep, and best of all, water-tight. When it comes time to serve, just cut the foil away.

Prep notes: While the actual making of this cheesecake is a minimal time commitment, it does need to bake for almost an hour, cool in the oven for an hour, and chill overnight before it is served. Please plan accordingly!

Some variations from the recipe creator:
** Lavender-scented cheesecake w/ blueberries - heat the cup of heavy cream in the microwave or a saucepan until hot but not boiling. Add 2 tbsp of lavender flowers and stir. Let lavender steep in the cream for about 10-15 minutes, then strain the flowers out. Add strained cream to cheesecake batter as normal. Top with fresh blueberries, or make a quick stovetop blueberry sauce (splash of orange juice, blueberries, a little bit of sugar, and a dash of cinnamon - cook until berries burst, then cool)
** Cafe au lait cheesecake with caramel - take 1/4 cup of the heavy cream and heat it in the microwave for a short amount of time until very hot. Add 1-2 tbsp. instant espresso or instant coffee; stir to dissolve. Add this to the remainder of cream and use as normal. Top cheesecake with homemade caramel sauce (I usually find one on the food network website - just make sure it has heavy cream in it. You can use store-bought in a pinch, but the flavor is just not the same since its usually just sugar and corn syrup with no dairy).
** Tropical – add about a half cup of chopped macadamias to the crust, then top the cake with a mango-raspberry-mandarin orange puree.
** Mexican Turtle - add a bar of melted dark chocolate (between 3 and 5 oz., to taste) to the batter, along with a teaspoon of cinnamon and a dash of cayenne pepper (about 1/8 tsp.). Top it with pecan halves and a homemade caramel sauce.
** Honey-cinnamon with port-pomegranate poached pears – replace 1/2 cup of the sugar with 1/2 cup of honey, add about a teaspoon or more (to taste) of cinnamon. Take 2 pears (any variety you like or whatever is in season), peeled and cored, and poach them in a boiling poaching liquid of port wine, pomegranate juice/seeds, a couple of "coins" of fresh ginger, a cinnamon stick, and about a 1/4 cup of sugar. Poach them until tender, then let cool. Strain the poaching liquid and simmer until reduced to a syrupy-glaze consistency, then cool. Thinly slice the cooled pears and fan them out atop the cooled cheesecake. Pour the cooled poaching syrup over the pears, then sprinkle the top with chopped walnuts and fresh pomegranate seeds.
Some variations from Jenny (from JennyBakes):
**Key lime - add zest from one lime to sugar before mixing with cream cheese. Substitute lemon juice, alcohol, and vanilla with key lime juice.
**Cheesecakelets - put in muffin tins, ramekins, or custard cups. Try baking 20-35 minutes, or until still a little jiggly, and cool as before.

Cake Slice - Chai Cake w/ Honey Ginger Cream

2009-04-20T07:59:00.000-07:00

This months cake chosen by the members of the Cake Slice was the Chai Cake with Honey-Ginger Cream, from Sky High: Irresistible Triple-Layer Cakes. I made this cake to take to work and it seemed to be enjoyed by all. Sometimes I feel bad taking a cake to them that I haven’t tried myself, letting them be the guinea pigs of sorts but I don’t think they mind much. I tweaked the recipe a bit when it came to the frosting. I was really wanting to add some decorations and practice my skills with gum paste. Using the cream cheese glaze recipe that went with the cake just wasn’t going to cut it. Instead I used a traditional cream cheese frosting and added the honey and ginger. The flavors were fantastic! I never would have thought you could create such a great spice cake by steeping tea into the milk that goes in to the batter. Another great cake from Allisa Huntsman. I will definitely be making this cake again...and again...

Chai Cake with Honey-Ginger Cream

1 and 1/3 cups of milk
6 chai tea bags, without added sweetener, such as Tazo (I used 4 decaf chai and 2 black tea bags)
4 whole eggs
2 egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
2 and 3/4 cups of cake flour
2 cups of sugar
4 and 1/2 teaspoons of baking powder
3/4 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon of ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon of salt
8 ounces of unsalted butter at room temp.

Preheat the oven to 350 Degrees F. Grease the bottom and sides of 3-8”’ cake rounds and line with parchment paper. Grease the paper as well. (I used two 9” cake rounds instead)
In a small saucepan bring the milk to a simmer over low med-low heat. Add the tea bags, careful not to let the paper tag fall into the milk. Remove from heat and allow the tea to steep for 5 minutes. Remove the teabags and squeeze out the milk. Let the chai milk cool completely.
In a medium bowl mix the eggs, egg yolks, vanilla, and 1/3 cup of the chai milk. Whisk together.
Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, cardamom, and salt in the bowl of a mixer. Beat on low for 30 seconds. Add the butter and the remaining chai milk, on med-low speed. Raise the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy. Add the egg mixture in three additions scraping the between additions. Divide the batter evenly among the pans.
Bake the cakes for 26-28 minutes (it took my cake about 35 minutes but remember I used a 9” pan), or until a cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean. Allow the cakes to cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Remove cakes from pans and peel off parchment paper. Cool completely.
To assemble the cake place one layer flat side down a serving plate and top with 2/3 cup of icing. Spread to the edge and repeat with second layer. Place third layer on top and spread the remaining ginger cream on top allowing it to drizzle down the sides of the cake like icicles.

Honey Ginger Cream

2 and 1/2 cups of confectioners sugar
6 ounces of cream cheese at room temp.
6 tablespoons of unsalted butter at room temp.
1/2 cup of honey (any kind as long as liquid)
1/2 teaspoon of fresh grated ginger
Place all the ingredients in a food processor. Pulse to blend together, then scrape the sides of the bowl and pulse until smooth.
OR
I was wanting more of a frosting than a glaze so I altered the recipe. I used 12 oz cream cheese, 1 ½ lbs of powdered sugar, 1 cup butter and the same amount of honey and grated ginger. I mixed it all together with my mixer and had a more traditional cream cheese frosting with the hints of honey and ginger, great combination.

200 cupcakes + 9 months pregnant = wow!

2009-04-13T11:58:00.000-07:00

I feel like I can accomplish anything right about now. I was able to get my order for 200 cupcakes made and delivered on time with this huge belly I've been toting around. No recipe today because they are all recipes I've posted on before, check out the archives under cupcakes. Hope to have an actual new recipe up very soon :)