2008 Christmas Cookies

Starting in college, when I was too broke to buy real presents for my friends, I made an assortment of cookies instead as gifts.  And since they were such a big hit the first year, I keep making them year after year.   These cookies are probably the reason why I began to love baking so much.  

This year, I made 3 types of treats: TKO's, Gingerbread Men and Chocolate Rum Balls.  

TKO's are Thomas Keller's version of the Oreo cookie.  They have a white chocolate cream sandwiched between two crumbly chocolate wafers.  When I tasted the wafers by themselves, I felt that they were a little salty and bitter but when they were put together with the very sweet white chocolate cream they became something to rave about.  

The Gingerbread Men came from a Soft Gingerbread Cookie recipe that I used for last year's cookie assortment.   I decided to use the same recipe again because I loved the flavor of the spices and the soft texture of the cookies.  I rolled out the dough about 1/8" on a floured counter and cut out the yummy men with a cutter.  Rolling the dough any thicker didn't work because it rises and spreads making an unattractive gingerbread man.  

Since I was serving these cookies at a party (where booze is always necessary), I thought that Chocolate Rum Balls would be the perfect treat.  They were very easy to make and look especially festive with the Christmas sprinkles.   The recipe I used by Alex Guarnaschelli uses chocolate sprinkles but I decided to mix things up and use red and green sprinkles with snow flakes and candy canes as well as just plain ol' cocoa powder.  Remember to keep the balls in an airtight container.  They harden pretty fast.  You can find the recipe here.

Here are the recipes for the other two:

TKO's
from The Essence of Chocolate
makes about 3 dozen sandwich cookies

Cookie:
1 1/2 cups plus 3 Tbsp all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup plus 1 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
15 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into 3/4" cubes, at room temperature

Filling:
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz. white chocolate, chopped

1. For the Filling: In a small pan, bring the cream to a boil. Remove from heat and add the chocolate. Let stand for 1 minute, then whisk to melt the chocolate until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl, and let stand for 6 hours to thicken up.

2. For the Cookies: In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt, and mix on low speed. With the mixer running, add the butter, a piece at a time. The mixture will be dry and sandy at first, but over 2 minutes, will form pebble-sie pieces that start to cling together. Stop the mixer and transfer the dough to your board.

3. Preheat oven to 350F. Seperate dough into 2 pieces. Roll each piece of dough between 2 pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper to 1/8" inch thick. Using a fluted cutter, cut into rounds. Scraps can be pieced together and rolled out again. Place 1/2" apart on baking sheets lined with Silpat liners or parchment paper.

4. Bake for 12-15 minutes, rotating halfway through baking. Remove and cool in the pan for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to a cooling rack. Cool completely.

5. To Assemble: Lightly whip the white chocolate cream to aerate and fluff up. Transfer filling to a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4" plain tip. Pipe about 1 1/2 tsp in the center of half the cookies. Top with another cookie to sandwich. Gently press down until the cream comes to the edges.

6. Cookies can be stored in a container for up to 3 days. Loosely cover.

Gingerbread Men

adapted from the Big Soft Ginger Cookies on allrecipes.com

Cookie: 

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup margarine, softened

1 cup white sugar

1 egg

1 tablespoon water

1/4 cup molasses

2 tablespoons white sugar

Icing: 

1 cup confectioners' sugar

2 teaspoons milk

2 teaspoons light corn syrup

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Sift together the flour, ginger, baking soda, cinnamon, cloves, and salt. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine and 1 cup sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, then stir in the water and molasses. Gradually stir the sifted ingredients into the molasses mixture.  Roll the dough out on a floured surface, until 1/8" thick.  Cut out cookies using a gingerbread man cutter.  Place each on a sheet pan or cookie sheet about 1 inch apart.  

3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

4.  While the cookies are cooling, whisk together all icing ingredients in a small bowl until smooth.  When cookies are completely cool, decorate the cookies as you wish.  Allow the icing to dry and harden and store cookies in an airtight container.

Red Velvet Cake

For my birthday this weekend, I wanted to have some people over for a low-key night with cake, ice cream and board games. The cake: red velvet, the ice cream: Dreyer's Slow Curned French Vanilla, the board game: Cranium.

I used Sylvia's Red Velvet Cake recipe. No, not because it had my name, but because the reviews were really good on the website and I've seen her make this exact cake on Emeril Live.

You need a lot of red food coloring to give the cake it's signature color. 2 ounces to be exact. Since there is so much, I think I would consider buying an organic food coloring for next time. I added an extra stick of butter on accident. Yes, really "on accident". I didn't notice until I was making the cream cheese frosting and thought, "Doh! I hope I didn't ruin the cake." Well, I thought the cake turned out to be really moist so I might consider adding that extra stick of butter each time I make it. The other changes I made were that I used 8 inch pans instead of 9 inch and I didn't add any pecans in the frosting.

This might be my favorite cake now! OM NOM NOM...

Cornmeal Pancakes

I'm back! After a 3 week vacation in Europe, I am back to blogging!

This post has waited quite awhile to be published. I originally tried this recipe for Cornmeal Pancakes back in August. For me, I loved that the pancakes, by themselves, were slightly sweetened only needing just a little bit of warmed syrup and a dab of butter to make them complete.

I also tried the recipe again this past weekend, tweaking it a bit to use the ingredients I had on hand instead of having to run out and shop.

The original recipe, found on Epicurious, asked for sour cream but all I had in the house was fat free vanilla yogurt. Since I used that, I also cut the vanilla extract down to half and added a dash of heavy cream as well. The pancakes came out just like they did the first time.

Cornmeal Pancakes
from epicurious.com

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1/3 cup fine yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Sift flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into large bowl. Whisk eggs in medium bowl to blend; whisk in sour cream, milk, oil, and vanilla. Gradually add liquid mixture to dry ingredients, whisking just until blended.

Heat griddle or heavy large skillet over medium heat. Working in batches, brush griddle lightly with melted butter. Pour batter by 1/3 cupfuls onto griddle. Cook until bottoms brown, about 4 minutes. Turn pancakes over and cook until second sides brown, about 2 minutes.

Serve with warmed maple syrup and butter.

Carrot Cake

Every time I make Chinese Chicken Salad I buy a bag of shredded carrots, which I never use all of. This time, instead of letting the carrots go to waste, I wanted to make Carrot Cake. Of course, I looked a recipe in Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan and I was not disappointed.

In preparing the cake, the bagged carrots were a little too big so I just pulsed them up in the food processor. I pretty much followed the cake recipe exactly, but I didn't add the full amount of walnuts just because I didn't have that much. Also, I used 8x2 pans instead of 9x2. This made my cake pretty tall but stout. I actually really liked the size of my cake. As for the frosting, I doubled the recipe because I wanted to frost the cake all the way around but still used the original amount of confectioners sugar (I think it would have been too sweet otherwise).

I should have let the cake chill in the refrigerator longer before cutting it because when I did the filling was not set yet and oozed a little as you can see in the picture. After the cake was chilled overnight, it made much better slices.

The cake was very moist and delicious. The frosting was creamy and slightly tangy from the small amount of lemon juice. It kept well in the refrigerator for a few days, covered.

Bill's Big Carrot Cake
from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours

For the Cake:
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
3/4 tsp. salt
3 cups grated carrots
1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans
1 cup shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
1/2 cup moist, plump raisins (dark or golden) or dried cranberries

2 cups sugar
1 cup canola or safflower oil
4 large eggs, room temperature

For the Frosting:
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick (8 Tbs.) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 pound (3 3/4 cups) confectioners’ sugar, sifted
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice or 1/2 tsp. pure lemon extract
1/2 cup shredded coconut (optional)

Getting Ready: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 325° F. Butter three 9×2 inch round cakes pans, flour the insides and tap out the excess. Put two pans on one baking sheet and one on another.

To Make the Cake: Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. In another bowl, stir together the carrots, chopped nuts, coconut and raisins/cranberries.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the sugar and oil together on medium speed until smooth. Add the eggs one by one, and continue to beat until the batter is even smoother. Reduce the speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing only until the dry ingredients disappear. Gently mix in the chunky ingredients. Divide the batter among the baking pans.

Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point, until a thin knife inserted into the centers comes out clean; the cakes will have just started to come away from the sides of the pans. Transfer the cakes to cooling racks and cool for about 5 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the cakes and un-mold them. Invert and cool to room temperature right side up.

To Make the Frosting: Working with the stand mixer, preferably fitted with paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and creamy. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the frosting is velvety smooth. Beat in the lemon juice or extract.

If you would like coconut in the filling, scoop out about half of the frosting and stir in the coconut into this portion.

Lenox Almond Biscotti

I actually made these before the Cheesecake Challenge. The recipe for these also came from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours. I didn't plan it originally, but I added these cookies to the crust for my "test" cheesecake. (Meaning, my first cheesecake blew up in the oven and I had to make another one.) I think the cheesecake crust turned out well and I would probably make it with a mixture of graham cracker and biscotti again in the future.

The dough is a little hard to work with. It is very sticky and wet. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to spread out the dough lengthwise or widthwise on the cookie sheet. I started out going widthwise and realized I didn't have much room so I began forming the log lengthwise. What happened for me is that I didn't have enough room for the second log and the logs spread into each other when baking. If someone makes these, let me know what method worked for you.

The biscotti were VERY almondy. I find that a lot of the time biscotti have more of an eggy flavor, but the almond extract hides that. The extract comes out a lot so I would suggest adding less if you don't perfer the taste.

Lenox Almond Biscotti
from Dorie Greenspan's Baking From my Home to Yours

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup yellow cornmeal
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract
3/4 cup sliced almonds, blanched or unblanched

Getting Ready: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and salt together. Add the cornmeal and whisk again to blend.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter and sugar together at medium speed for 3 minutes, until very smooth. Add the eggs and continue to beat, scraping down the bowl as needed, for another 2 minutes, or until the mixture is light, smooth and creamy. Beat in the almond extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients, mixing only until they are incorporated. You'll have a soft, stick-to-your-fingers dough that will ball up around the paddle or beaters. Scrape down the paddle and bowl, toss in the almonds and mix just to blend.

Scrape half the dough onto one side of the baking sheet. Using your fingers and a rubber spatula or scraper, work the dough into a log about 12 inches long and 1 1¿2 inches wide. The log will be more rectangular than domed, and bumpy, rough and uneven. Form a second log with the remaining dough on the other side of the baking sheet.

Bake for 15 minutes, or until the logs are lightly golden but still soft and springy to the touch. Transfer the baking sheet to a rack and cool the logs on the baking sheet for 30 minutes.

If you turned off the oven, bring it back up to 350 degrees F.

Using a wide metal spatula, transfer the logs to a cutting board and, with a long serrated knife, trim the ends and cut the logs into 3/4-inch-thick slices. Return the slices to the baking sheet — this time standing them up like a marching band — and slide the sheet back into the oven.

Bake the biscotti for another 15 minutes, or until they are golden and firm. Transfer them to racks and cool to room temperature.

2008 Cheesecake Challenge Results

First, I'd like to thank all our bakers and judges this year. Without you all we wouldn't have such a successful evening! Also, I'd like to thank Delessio Market and Bakery for being our host and for also awarding the winner with a $20 gift card. For the first year, our grand prize was the Golden Whisk, made by Elisha. Great job!

This year's challenge was fruit. We had 5 bakers and surprisingly we each picked a different fruit to showcase in our cheesecakes. Here are the cheesecakes and their baker's:

Banana Caramel Cream Cheesecake by Elisha

Orange Blossom Cheesecake with Pomegranate Raspberry Sauce by Sylvia

Lemon Cheesecake with Lemon Curd by Cynthia

Peach Cheesecake by Jason

Strawberry Cream Layered Cheesecake by Jeff

The cheesecakes were scored by taste, appearance, texture, and originality. Taste being out of 10 points and the other categories worth 5 points each. And finally, here are the results:

Most Original: The Orange Blossom Cheesecake with Pomegranate Raspberry Sauce

Best Texture: The Lemon Cheesecake with Lemon Curd

Best Appearance: The Orange Blossom Cheesecake with Pomegranate Raspberry Sauce

Best Tasting: The Orange Blossom Cheesecake with Pomegranate Raspberry Sauce

Overall Winner: The Orange Blossom Cheesecake with Pomegranate Raspberry Sauce

Orange Blossom Cheesecake

Crust

1 3/4 cups graham cracker crumbs (about 12 whole graham crackers)

1 1/4 cups walnuts (about 5 ounces)

6 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

Filling

4 (8 ounces) packages cream cheese, at room temperature

1 1/3 cups sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/3 cups heavy cream

2 tablespoons grated orange peel

2 teaspoons orange flower water

To make the crust: Butter a 9-inch springform pan and wrap the bottom of the pan in a double layer of aluminum foil.

In a food processor, blend together graham cracker crumbs, walnuts, sugar, salt and cloves until nuts are ground. Scoop out the mixture into a medium bowl and pour over the melted butter. Mix together with hands until all crumbs have been moisten. Press mixture into springform pan, bringing crumbs about 1 1/2 inches up the sides. Put the pan into the freezer while you preheat the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and place the springform pan on a baking sheet. Bake the 10 minutes. Set the crust aside to cool on a baking rack while you are making the filling. Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.

To make the cheesecake: Put a kettle of water on the stove to boil.

In a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the cream cheese at medium speed until soft and creamy. While the mixer is still running, add the sugar and salt. Continue to beat the mixture until the cream cheese is light. Beat in the vanilla. Add eggs, one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each addition. Reduce the mixer to low and add the heavy cream, orange zest and orange flower water.

Put the foil wrapped springform pan into a roasting pan that is large enough to have room around the springform when in it.

Pour the batter into the springform until the batter is just below the rim (about 1/2 inch). If you have left over batter, you can bake the batter in small buttered ramekins. Carefully, open the oven and slide out the center rack. Put the roasting pan containing the springform on the rack. Pour the boiling kettle water into the roasting pan until it comes up about halfway around the springform. Carefully, slide the rack back into the oven.

Bake the cheesecake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the top is slightly browned. Turn the oven off and prop the door open with a wooden spoon. Allow the cheesecake to cool in the oven for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, take the cheesecake out (be careful unwrapping the foil, there may be some hot water) and let it come to room temperature on a cooling rack.

When the cheesecake has cooled completely, cover it with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours. (Overnight is better).

Pomegranate Raspberry Sauce

2 cups pomegranate juice

1 (12 ounce) bag frozen unsweetened raspberries (unthawed)

2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 cup honey

Bring juice to a boil in medium saucepan. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Mix in raspberries and sugar. Simmer until reduced to about 1 1/2 cups, stirring frequently. Mix in honey and bring to simmer. Cooly slightly. Cover and chill until cold. Can be made 1 day in advance and kept in refrigerator.

Spoon over individual slices of cheesecake.

Raisin Swirl Bread

One of the things that I really enjoy eating for breakfast is cinnamon raisin toast or a cinnamon raisin bagel. So, I really wanted to try this recipe when I saw it.

This is yet another recipe from Baking: From My Home to Yours (I think the majority of recipes shown here will be from this book for awhile). This book, while it's my first baking book, is turning out to be my baking bible.

This is my first attempt at baking a yeast bread, and I have to say: it was backbreaking work! What I thought would only be an hour or two to make, turned out to really be half a days worth. Once the dough is kneaded (my stand mixer fitted with a dough hook came in handy for this job), needs to proofed, then chilled, rolled out, and once it's in the bread pan, proofed again. But, the results were well worth it and I was extremely proud of myself when I saw the final product.

I really liked eating this bread toasted with cream cheese or just plain by itself. I let the loaf cool completely and sliced it. I put the whole thing into the freezer where it kept really well, but it was gone in less than a week anyhow.

Recipe coming soon.

Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Chocolate Chipsters

I got my new cookbook, Baking: From My Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan on Friday and was really excited to try a recipe from it.

I let Phil thumb through it and pick a recipe that he'd like me to make. He picked probably the best recipe for himself, the Peanut Butter and Oatmeal Chocolate Chipsters, a combination of his two favorite cookies.

I halved the recipe, because 60 cookies is really too many for just the two of us. What I really like about the cookbook is that there are often suggestions on how to tweak the recipe for different variations. I followed the recipe exactly but followed the advice of adding peanuts. The book also says that you can add raisins instead of chocolate or in addition to it.

Ingredients
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup peanut butter (chunky or smooth)
1 cup sugar
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chunks, or 1 1/2 cups chocolate chips or chunks

Preparation
Adjust the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat to 350°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, silicone mats. In a large bowl, whisk together oats, flour, baking soda, spices, and salt.

With a stand mixer fitted with a paddle, beat the butter, peanut butter, brown sugar, and sugar on medium speed until smooth and creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time and beat for one minute after each. Beat in the vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients slowly, beating only until blended. Mix in the chocolate chips. (At this point, the dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to 1 day.)

If the dough is at room temperature, drop rounded tablespoonful two inches apart onto the prepared baking sheets. If the dough has been refrigerated, scoop it out by rounded teaspoonfuls and roll the balls between your palms. Place them 2″ apart on the sheets. Press the balls gently with the heal of your hand until they are about 1/2″ thick. Bake for 13-15 minutes, until the cookies are golden and just firm around the edges.

Lift the cookies onto wire racks with a wide metal spatula - they will firm as they cool. Repeat until all the dough has been used.

Makes about 60 cookies.

Recipe from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.

Turkey Tacos

Today, I had a hankerin' for Taco Bell and after driving around for about 45 minutes during my lunch hour without coming across one, I decided to make my own for dinner.

Taco night usually comes around every few months in my house. Normally, I use turkey meat, a taco seasoning packet from the grocery store and serve them with flour tortillas, fresh diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce and sour cream. (Do not use 99% fat free turkey! The one time I did this the meat turned out extremely dry and tasteless. I will never do that again.) I didn't want to make more than one stop so when I saw that Trader Joe's doesn't have a taco seasoning mix but saw that they have cumin, I decided to make my own mix. The recipe is below.

Honestly, all I was looking for was plain old iceberg lettuce and roma tomatoes. Instead, I picked up these awesome looking heirloom tomatoes and some artisan lettuce. I also love the handmade tortillas at Trader Joe's. I heat put them in the microwave and cover them with a wet paper towel to steam for about 50 seconds.

It was my first time making my own seasoning mix and I think it turned out well. I didn't have onion powder so I added extra garlic powder. I also cut down the amount of red pepper flakes because I prefer my food mild. I don't think I'll be going back to the packaged stuff when I have all the stuff in my cupboard already!

Turkey Tacos

1 1/2 lbs ground turkey

salt and pepper to taste

3 tablespoons taco seasoning (recipe follows)

2 teaspoons cornstarch

1 cup water

10-12 flour tortillas

diced tomatoes

shredded lettuce

sour cream

Cook turkey meat in large pan over medium to high heat. Break down the meat with spatula as it cooks. Season lightly with salt and pepper (remember, the taco seasoning has salt and pepper). Drain as much of the fat as possible. Mix cornstarch with water, making a slurry. Sprinkle the taco seasoning over meat and add water mixture. Stir to incorporate all the seasoning. After about 5 more minutes, turn off heat and set aside to cool slightly.

Serve with tortillas, tomatoes, lettuce and sour cream.

Taco Seasoning

1 tablespoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon paprika

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1 teaspoon sea salt

1 teaspoon ground black pepper

Mix together in small bowl or Ziplock bag.

2008 Cheesecake Competition

The official date of this year's Cheesecake Competition is Friday, August 15th at 6:30pm. DeLessio Market and Bakery has offered their patio for our event, so please come and purchase a beverage inside before judging begins.

This year we are awarding the overall winner with the coveted Golden Whisk.

Here's a little background on how it all began:

Last year, Cynthia and Marv wanted to challenge each other in a cheesecake baking contest. Once I heard about it, I had to join in. Word spread and we had ourselves quite a little event and everyone who heard about our competition automatically wanted to be a judge.

So eventually we had 4 bakers, 6 judges, Jollibee's fried chicken, and our theme ingredient: pumpkin. Last's year winner was Miss Elisha's marbled pumpkin cheesecake with a semisweet chocolate crust, served with fresh hand-whipped cream . Here's the recipe she used:

Marbled Pumpkin Cheesecake

Crust

1 1/4 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 cup butt or margarine, melted
2 cups semisweet chocolate mini morsels, divided

Directions: In medium bowl, combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar and butter. Press onto bottom of greased 10-inch springform pan; sprinkle 1 cup of chocolate morsels.

Cheesecake

3 8 oz. packages of cream cheese
1 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 3/4 cup pumpkin puree
4 large eggs
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1/4 cup cornstarch
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

Directions: In small, heavy saucepan over low heat, melt remaining chocolate morsels. Stir constantly until smooth. In large mixer bowl, beat cream cheese, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Beat in pumpkin.

Beat in eggs and evaporated milk. Beat in cornstarch, cinnamon and nutmeg.

Remove 1 cup pumpkin batter; stir into melted chocolate. Pour remainder of pumpkin batter into springform pan. Pour chocolate mixture over top. Swirl.

Bake in preheated 325 degree oven for 60 minutes, or until edge of filling is set. Turn oven off; allow cheesecake to stand in oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven to cool completely. Cover and chill for several hours.

I'm still looking for the pictures we took that night. Stay posted!

Peanut Butter Hazelnut Brownies

On the 4th of July Greg invited us to hang out at his place. My mother raised me right and taught me to always bring something when you are a guest at someone's house. Since I didn't want to go to the store, I decided to make something with the stuff I had at home.

These Peanut Butter Hazelnut Brownies have peanut butter and Nutella (Mmmmm...). I followed the directions exactly and they were underdone so if you make them give them longer than 30 minutes and keep checking on them. Remember, the toothpick test doesn't quite work with brownies. They should still be a little wet in the middle, but of course if the tester comes out covered in batter, it's probably not done.

I have to say, these brownies were really good and if I didn't use up all the Nutella I had, I'd make these again... and soon. I was originally looking for a peanut butter swirl brownie, mostly because they look and taste good. These don't have any swirls in them, which is why I overlooked the recipe at first, but you definitely taste it in there.

Can someone tell me why brownies get the crackled skin on top and cake doesn't?

Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches

It was a friggin' hotter than hot weekend and there was no better time than to make Brownie Ice Cream Sandwiches.

Making the brownie was the easy part, but assembling the sandwich made quite a mess. Next time, I think I'd use Martha's recipe for Classic Ice Cream Sandwiches, which is in this months Everyday Food.

Martha's recipe directs you to cut the thin sheet of chocolate cake in half, spread the soften ice cream on one half and top with the other. Then, freeze until set and use a serrated knife dipped in warm water to cut the sandwich into individual portions.

Rachel's on the other hand, has you cutting the brownie into 2 in by 4 in pieces, assembling, then freezing. I found this to be really hard on a warm day because I couldn't work fast enough and I had ice cream soup all over the place. I should have followed my gut to change the directions in Rachel's recipe, but wanted to try it her way... that won't happen again.

Also, I think I would prefer an ice cream sandwich made with cake. The brownie was very rich and a little hard to bite into after frozen. If following Rachel's recipe, make sure to press down on the brownie as it cools to make the layer thinner. I probably should have done this more.

All in all, these were very good. I made half with Haagen Dazs Vanilla and the other half with Dreyers Slow Churned Mint Karaoke Cookie. I wished the sandwiches had more ice cream in them!

Molten Lava Cakes

This week's Friend Favorite (actually, Boyfriend Favorite) is a Molten Lava Cake. The first time I made this for him was on Valentine's Day and he really enjoyed it. These are yummy individual cakes that are cakey on the outside but when you dive into them they ooze with chocolate. I really like them with a fresh berry sauce and fresh whipped cream, as pictured above.

The original recipe I found makes 4 individual cakes but I halved the recipe and added a little more flour. Also, I've made this recipe with semisweet chocolate and it still comes to be a good product. I'm sure if you wanted a less intense chocolatey flavor (but who does!?) you can use milk chocolate instead.

In the picture is a strawberry sauce, but I've made them with raspberry sauce before. Simply puree about a cup of berries in a food processor and strain out the seeds. Add sugar or corn syrup to sweeten the sauce, if needed.

The whipped cream was also simple to make. Whip 1/4 heavy cream with 1 tablespoon (or more if you like it sweeter) and 1 teaspoon of vanilla and until thick. I over whipped my cream in the picture, but I don't mind my whipped cream being too thick.

I feel that this recipe is really easy to make and it looks like a really elegant and sophisticated dessert. So, trick all your friends and make it!

Molten Lava Cakes

serves 2

Ingredients

4 tablespoons butter

cocoa powder for dusting

2 ounces bittersweet chocolate

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon flour

Directions

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Butter and dust two 4 ounce ramekins with cocoa powder.

In the top half of a double boiler set over simmering water, heat the butter and the chocolate until the chocolate is almost completely melted.

Whisk egg, egg yolk and sugar together until light and thick.

Pouring slowly, beat in the melted chocolate and butter into the egg mixture. Add flour and mix until just combined.

Divide the batter between the ramekins and bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes or until tops are set and not runny. Invert cakes onto serving plates. Serve immediately with fresh whipped cream and berry puree, if desired.

Cornbread Puddings

Yesterday, was mine and Phil's 3 year anniversary and he took me out to one of my favorite restaurants. To return the favor I offered to make him anything he liked tonight. He requested Mac 'n Cheese and Cornbread. You'll find out more about Martha Stewart's awesome Mac 'n Cheese in the next blog.

They didn't call these Cornbread Puddings for nothing. Because they have sour cream in them, they are uber moist, just like a Yorkshire Pudding. The original recipe makes 24 mini muffins, but I don't have a mini muffin pan (yet) so I just made regular ones. I was looking for just a regular sweet and crumbly cornbread muffin, but these were a nice surprise.

Martha Stewart's Macaroni and Cheese

I've read from a few blog's that Martha's Macaroni and Cheese is pretty much the king of all Mac 'n Cheeses. (Wipe the drool off your face, Mary.) So, when Phil requested Mac 'n Cheese I knew I had to try this recipe. The recipe makes a large portion, 12 servings, but I was easily able to cut the recipe in half. I still used 2 tablespoons of butter to make the bread crumbs, which would have only been one if I stuck to halving everything. We had two good sized servings for dinner and enough for lunch the next day. Another thing I heard that was really great about this recipe is that leftovers heat up well, which doesn't always happen with other Mac 'n Cheeses.

The dish was hot and creamy and friggin delicious. You can really tell that the nutmeg is in there and it isn't overpowering. I think I will definitely be going back to this recipe whenever I have the hankering for Mac 'n Cheese (sorry blue box.)

Toffee Peanuts

I needed inspiration for new recipes to try so I started asking my friends what their favorite treats are. So, the month of June is dedicated to my friend's favorites.

Mary isn't a huge sweets fan so she didn't say what her favorite sweet is but I know she LOVES toffee coated peanuts.

I found the recipe on recipezaar.com. The only thing I did differently was to salt the nuts right when they came out of the oven because I found them to be a little under seasoned. As the peanuts cooled, the flavor became stronger and tastier! I probably have little candy bits stuck in my teeth as we speak.

Toffee Peanuts

Ingredients

1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter, melted
2 tablespoons corn syrup
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
2 cups unsalted dry roasted peanuts

Directions
1. In large bowl, combine sugar, butter, corn syrup, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Add peanuts, toss to coat. Transfer to 15x10x1 inch baking pan.

2. Bake at 300 for 20-25 minutes or until bubble and golden brown, stirring once. Be sure to keep an eye on these. Cool on wire rack; break apart if necessary. Store in an airtight container.

Chai Tea Cupcakes

I myself am not a big fan of chai tea, but someone I adore does. When I see chai I always think of Elisha so when I saw these Chai Tea Cupcakes, I knew I'd make them for her. The original recipe that I found on Mady by Melis is below.

For me, the recipe made 8 cupcakes. I like a little dome top on my cakes so I may have filled the cups more full then others would but I think that the recipe really could yield about 12 cakes if you only fill the cups about half way. Or even better, 24 mini cupcakes.

For the frosting I used Magnolia's Vanilla Buttercream recipe, which I found on the Food Network site along with Magnolia's recipe for vanilla cupcakes. The recipe can frost about 24 cupcakes so I cut it in half and there was still plenty left over. Maybe I made it wrong but the consistency wasn't what I was expecting (not as stiff as I would prefer) but the good thing is it gave my cupcakes a frothy topping, like a chai latte.

Oh, and of course I used eco-friendly unbleached cupcake liners for my always green conscience friend, Elisha. They are made by IF YOU CARE® and also have a variety of other environmentally friendly products.

Chai Tea Cupcakes

Ingredients

1/2 cup milk
1 or 2 chai tea bags
1/2 cup sugar
2 oz butter, softened
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cardamon
pinch of salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place liners into cupcake pan.
Heat up milk on stove, remove from stove. Place tea bags into milk, cover and steep for 5-10 minutes.
Cream sugar and butter together. Mix in egg and vanilla. Mix in milk.
Sift flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, cardamon, nutmeg, cloves and salt together. Mix dry and wet ingredients together.
Divide batter into cupcake liners. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until a tester inserted comes out clean.
Allow to cool before frosting with your favorite buttercream frosting. Sprinkle with cinnamon.

Peanut Butter Silk Pie

Before we left for Hawaii, I promised Phil that I'd make him any dessert he liked when we got back. He chose this recipe for Peanut Butter Silk Pie.

I had a number of other things to do today, so I didn't make my own graham cracker crust as originally planned. My good friends, the Keebler Elves, helped me out with that. All I did was brush a little beaten egg onto the crust and stuck in the oven for about 8 minutes to make it crispy and golden.

The recipe calls for a layer of fudge on the bottom, so I got a chance to bust out my new candy thermometer. I've never made fudge before and I didn't want to "fudge it up" (that one's for you Lisha) so I watched that thermometer like a hawk. Making the fudge was pretty easy so you might see more fudge recipes in the future. But it looked like the fudge layer was a little too thick and dense, which later caused problems when I cut into the pie.

The recipe told me to mix the all the filling ingredients at once. Next time, I would beat the cream cheese and peanut butter until smooth, then add the sugar, vanilla and milk. This time, what I got were lots of little cream cheese lumps.

I finished the pie with dollops of what I had left of the Cool Whip (piped from a ziplock bag and a star piping tip) and shavings of chocolate.

Homemade Samoas

This weekend is Jennifer's wedding and tomorrow we're making all the flower arrangements for the big day. Our Aunt Danette suggested that we each bake some cookies so that we have something to snack on while we work.

I've been wanting to try this recipe for Homemade Samoas for a couple months now because Samoas are my all time favorite Girl Scout cookies. I go on a hunt from them every year and last year I couldn't find any Girl Scouts selling cookies in the city and I almost had them deliver boxes to my house. It's probably a dangerous thing that I found a way where I can have these cookies all year round.

The recipe calls for a 1 1/2 inch cookie cutter, but mine were slightly bigger. So, my cookies are bigger than what you'll normally find. Eating one of my cookies is probably like eating two regular Samoas (and that's definitely not a bad thing). This recipe uses caramel candies, but I've seen others where you can make your own caramel from scratch.

I liked very much how these came out and I think they really taste like the real thing.

Lemon Pound Cake

In most cases, I don't like lemons. I think they spoil my food. Then again, sometimes I think I'm a cooking retard. I asked "Are there uses for lemons other than in a thirst quenching lemonade or... (I don't know what else lemons are used for)?" All I know is that my parents hardly ever used lemons for anything, and always gave away our yearly lemon crop from our backyard. But I'm beginning to think I'm wrong about lemons. It makes food taste good, but in the right dose. For example, I was looking for a quick dinner and didn't feel like eating out. So, I found a recipe for Shrimp Scampi Linguini by the Barefoot Contessa, which called for a little bit of lemon juice added at the end. I thought that the lemon added just the right something. Who knew?! Lots of people, I'm sure. One thing I have always loved that uses lemons is lemon pound cake. Ask Phil. I must have told him a thousand times that I love lemon pound cake. With that said, this week's recipe is Gale Gand's Lemon Pound Cake

The cake turned out nice and dense, like a pound cake should be. The recipe calls for a lemon-sugar glaze at the end and I have to say that it gave the cake too much lemony-ness (that's not a word, I know). I should have read through all the reviews, because many others agreed. Also, I think I was looking for a cake with an icing, not a glaze, balancing sour and sweet. Anyways, this is my first pound cake and all in all I think it turned out well.

Just Bragging...

"Oh, Sylvia! Where did you get that shiny, huge, perfectly red cherry for your giant cupcake? They're not even in season yet!"

FOOLED YOU!

As I was decorating the cake and putting my finishing touches on it, I felt that the cupcake was missing a certain something. Was it more frosting? No. Was it giant sprinkles? Maybe. Is it a big red cherry? Oh definitely, yes!

I didn't want to make a trip out to the store so I played around with a few ideas. First, I mushed up some cake scraps and tried to make a ball, but it just fell apart over and over again. Then, I noticed some cookie dough in my freezer. Brilliant! I cut off a small piece and rolled it in my hands to form a small ball. Then, I rolled it around in some red food coloring and viola! The stem is made from a toothpick bent in a couple places and painted with food coloring. Now, you've got yourself an awesome decorative cherry!

WD-40 for Cakes

No, this blog isn't about mayo.  

Tonight is my brother's 35th birthday party and, as promised, every person I know is getting a giant cupcake on their birthday this year.   (Refer to Birthday Cupcake blog in March).  I came across Angie Pangies' Professional Style Pan Release on tastespotting.com and decided that I'd use this goo instead of greasing and flouring the pan the old fashion style.  

The grease was easy to make and stores at room temperature or in the fridge for a few months, so you won't have to make it every time you bake.  Simply brush it onto the pan before pouring the batter in.  The top and bottom to my giant cupcake popped right out.  No sticking at all.  I'm really excited I found the recipe for this goop!  

Banana Cupcakes with Honey Cinnamon Frosting

Elisha sent me this recipe in the good old fashion postal mail last week.

I hadn't been keeping the promise to myself that I would try one new recipe a week, so I decided that this cupcake would be the subject of my first "official" blog.

The recipe was torn out of Martha Stewart's Everyday Food magazine, but you can also find the recipe online here.

I followed the recipe exactly but, instead of adding fresh banana as a topping, I caramelized the slices in butter and sugar. The cupcake looks dense like a muffin on the inside, but is quite moist and fluffy once you take a bite.

Phil doesn't pay anyone a lot of compliments, but I take it as one that he already ate 2 tonight. Don't worry Lisha, I'm saving you one.

Jennifer's Wedding Shower

On Sunday, I hosted a wedding shower for my cousin, Jennifer and her fiance, Jeff. Seeing as I've never even been to a bridal shower, I didn't quite know what I was doing but I tried my best to make the day enjoyable for the couple.

My goal for deciding on a menu was to provide enough snacks and appetizers for everyone without ruining their dinner, since it was an afternoon shower. I chose dishes that were mainly finger foods and could be served buffet style.

Here's what was served:

Crab and Shrimp Dip
Bruschetta
Dill Dip
Fresh Fruit Salad
Sparkling Lemonade
Sugar Heart Cookies with Turquoise Icing

The crab/shrimp dip is a recipe that I got from my friend Marilyn. It is a version of her mother's crab dip. I changed her recipe a little bit just by sauteing the onions for a few minutes, because I found that without doing so gives a very strong onion flavor.

For the bruschetta, I decided to serve the toast and the topping separately because I didn't know how fast it would go or how long it would be sitting out. Serving it separately allowed the guests to serve themselves without the toast getting soggy. Also, the guests could decide for themselves how much topping they wanted. I saw this done at a work tea party and it seemed to work out really well so I wanted to try it.

My touch on the lemonade was 1) make it sparkling and 2) serve frozen lemon slices to act as ice. I love sparkling beverages (in fact, it's more of an addiction and should probably cut back) and I love sweet and tart lemonade. So, I found a good recipe on allrecipes.com for a basic lemonade and substituted club soda for some of the water. In my opinion, I could have added more club soda than I had included in the recipe below, but that's how I made it for the party. The second idea was one that just popped into my head and purely experimental. It worked out great in the beginning, but Jennifer's uncle mentioned that the lemonade was getting too tart as the lemons were melting so we added more club soda. It might have worked out better if there was a combination of frozen lemon slices and plain old ice. I'll have to test it out next time!

For the party favors, I made small heart shaped sugar cookies with turquoise (the bride's wedding color) icing. I've had problems with sugar cookie recipes that spread out too much and lose the shape of the cookie cutter. I found a recipe on allrecipes.com that seemed popular and wouldn't give me this problem. I made a batch of Christmas cookies that really turned out great. Paired with the icing recipe, they looked pretty pro, if you ask me.

I put two cookies into a clear baggy along with some personalized M&M's (each M&M had either Jennifer or Jeffrey on it, and candies came in either aqua or white) and tied them up with white ribbons. Check out mymms.com to personalize your own bag. I wish I had pictures of the favors. Something I need to be better about in the future, but Sunday was pretty hectic.


Crab and Shrimp Salad/Dip

1 16 oz can of crab meat
1/2 lb baby shrimp
2 stalks of celery - diced
6 eggs - boiled and diced
1 onion - diced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
1 cup mayonnaise
salt and pepper to taste
breadcrumbs
paprika for garnish

Saute the onions and let cool. Combine crab meat, shrimp celery, eggs, onions, sour cream and mayo in large mixing bowl. Add salt and pepper to desired taste. Pour mixture into casserole or baking dish. Sprinkle breadcrumbs and paprika on top. Serve cold as a salad or warm in the oven for 20-25 minutes and serve as a dip with crackers or toasted bread.


Bruschetta

Topping:

8 plum tomatoes seeded and diced
5 basil leaves, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
a pinch of dried oregano
1 tbsp. olive oil
2 tbsp. parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in medium mixing bowl. Allow to sit 10 to 15 minutes to allow flavors to mix.

Toast:

1 baguette
olive oil
cloves of garlic

Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Cut the baguette into half inch slices. Spread the slices out onto a baking sheet. Brush a small amount of olive oil onto each slice. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown and toasted. Take the sheet out and rub garlic clove on each slice.

For the party, I served the bruschetta topping separate from the toast so that the toast doesn't get soggy sitting out. For smaller parties, or if serving right away, spoon the topping onto each slice of toast and serve.


Dill Dip

1 cup Mayo

1 cup sour cream

1 tbsp. dill weed

1 tbsp. Beau Monde seasoning

Mix all together and chill. Serve with cracker or carrots and celery.


Fresh Fruit Salad

Half of a cantaloupe, cut into cubes
Quarter of a watermelon, cut into cubes
1 cup of strawberries, cleaned, stemmed and cut in half
2 kiwis, peeled and sliced
2 mangoes, peeled and cubed

Combine all fruits in a large mixing bowl.


Sparkling Lemonade

2 lemons
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups of lemon juice
4 cups of water
4 cups club soda

Slice lemons about a quarter inch thick. Place on a tray in one layer. Put the tray in the freezer for about 30 minutes to allow the lemon slices to freeze and harden.

In a small saucepan, pour sugar and cover with 1 cup of water. Bring to a boil and stir to dissolve the sugar until clear. Allow the syrup to cool to room temperature and chill.

Combine lemon juice, remaining 3 cups of water and club soda in a pitcher. Add frozen lemon slices to keep chilled. If left out, remember to check on the taste of the lemonade because it may become more tart as the lemons melt. Add more club soda if too tart.


Sugar Heart Cookies with Icing

Cookies:

1 1/2 cups butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt

In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Cover, and chill dough for at least one hour (or overnight).

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Roll out dough on floured surface 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick. Cut into shapes with any cookie cutter. Place cookies 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 6 to 8 minutes in preheated oven. Cool completely.

Icing:

1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons milk
2 teaspoons light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
assorted food coloring

In a small bowl, stir together confectioners' sugar and milk until smooth. Beat in corn syrup and almond extract until icing is smooth and glossy. If icing is too thick, add more corn syrup.

Divide into separate bowls, and add food colorings to each to desired intensity. Dip cookies, or paint them with a brush.


Phew! That was a long post!