One Post, Two Cookies!

I didn't know which of these two types of cookie I wanted to talk about more today, so I just decided to do a two for one today and talk about both! Each cookie is delicious in its own way; your preference would probably be dictated by what kind of mood you're in, or if you prefer chocolate and nutty to smooth and full of cinnamon.

The first cookie, the Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie, is actually adapted from a Cat Cora cookie recipe. Hers is called the Peanutter Cookie, and is made with crunchy peanut butter and salted cocktail peanuts. That sounds amazing, naturally, but I thought I'd try an almond butter variation. I swapped smooth almond butter for the peanut butter, and threw in raw almonds in place of the peanuts. These were super delish! I wouldn't go so far as to say they are healthy cookies, but they certainly did taste a little less guilty than the peanut butter counterpart would. The almond butter is a much more subtle flavor than peanut butter, so the chocolate and chopped nuts really have a chance to shine through. I also added a bit of ground cinnamon, as I think this enhanced the overall taste.

The Snickerdoodle cookies I made are oldies but goodies. I make these at Christmas time each year, and since they are among my son's favorite treats I thought it would be nice to make them for his birthday party. I learned something about cream of tartar that I never knew before. I was confused by the lack of it in this version of the Snickerdoodle recipe (from Martha Stewart). I always associated cream of tartar with this cookie, but it turns out that you only need it if you are using baking soda as the leavener. If you use baking powder, on the other hand, the cream of tartar becomes unnecessary. It has something to do with the chemical reactions, etc. needed to make the cookie rise enough. So, I learned something new while baking these cookies!

Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
adapted from Cat Cora's Classics with a Twist
makes 36 cookies

Ingredients
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. kosher salt
12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup almond butter, crunchy or smooth (or crunchy/smooth peanut butter)
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, preferably 3/4 cup each milk chocolate and semisweet
1 cup coarsely chopped raw almonds (or salted cocktail peanuts)

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Position the oven racks in the middle and upper third. Spray two baking sheets with nonstick cooking spray or line with parchment paper.

2. Whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl and set aside. Beat the butter, almond butter, both sugars, and vanilla extract in a large bowl until creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. On low speed, add the flour mixture in two batches, beating after each addition. When all the dry ingredients have been beaten in, stir in the chocolate chips and chopped almonds with a wooden spoon.

3. Drop the dough by rounded teaspoons onto the baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 11 to 12 minutes, switching the baking sheets halfway through the baking time and rotating them 180 degrees, until the cookies are light golden. Let them sit on the baking sheets for a minute, then transfer to a rack to cool. Cookies will keep for 3 to 4 days in an airtight container.


Snickerdoodles
adapted from Martha Stewart's Cookies
makes 18-20 large cookies

Ingredients
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Put butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.

2. Stir together cinnamon and remaining 2 Tbsp. sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into large balls, using a large cookie scoop. Roll in cinnamon sugar. Space 3 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper.

3. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks for about 5 minutes before transferring to the racks to cool completely. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Baked Sunday Mornings: Tomato Soup Cupcakes

Yes, you read that title correctly. For this week's Baked Sunday Mornings assignment, we were to make the Tomato Soup Cupcakes with Mascarpone Frosting. As bizarre as this cupake may sound, I actually have heard about these before reading the Baked book. I can't say that I ever thought I'd be baking them, though! Lucky for me, then, that this cupcake came up in the rotation for the group.



I've gotten used to setting aside huge chunks of time to make the Baked recipes, and I'm fine with that. However, if you're looking for a nice, easy recipe that is still just as elegant as the other offerings in this book, I definitely recommend that you give these a try. I was able to throw this whole thing together, including frosting the cupcakes, within my two year-old's naptime! I can't beat that!

So, what's up with the whole tomato soup thing, anyway? Where did this originate? Who ever thought to put a can of tomato soup in their cake batter, and then feed it to their loved ones? I really don't know, but they must have been on to something. This is one of those oldey-timey cake recipes that has been passed down for years, and I'm sure a lot of people hold this cake near and dear to their hearts. It is basically a spice cake, almost reminiscent of a carrot cake, without the carrot. The "secret" ingredient (not so secret if you know the title of the recipe, though!) dyes the batter a pale, pretty orange hue that still does not betray its identity. I mean, who would ever guess that the cake is orange because it contains some Campbell's?

As I said before, the cake itself came together in no time flat, and baked up beautifully. I loved the nice, domey tops on these! Next comes the frosting, which was a Mascarpone/Butter combo. I've made many a cream cheese frosting, but this was my inaugural batch of mascarpone frosting. While I've heard mascarpone described as a "fancy cream cheese," I actually think it's kind of its own thing. It's good, don't get me wrong. It just was not what I had expected. The frosting, to me, tasted very sweet, almost like a buttercream. Again, that's fine, but I supposed I was in for a tangy, tart/sweet topping to my cake and instead it tasted just sweet. Also, I think that maybe I just whipped this up wrong, because I accidentally threw the butter and mascarpone in the mixer at the same time. Only after this did I read in the book that the butter was supposed to be mixed first, all by its lonesome. Oops. My frosting, as a result of this (perhaps?) seemed a bit thin or something. It was not at all fluffy, but it spread just fine.

I'm glad I tried these, but I can't make any promises that I would bake them again. If I wanted a spice cake, I would probably just make a regular spice cake, sans soup. As for the frosting, if I absolutely had to make the cupcakes again, I would sub in just a cream cheese frosting for the mascarpone. Later this week, I'll be making Martha Stewart's Tiramisu Cupcakes, and they call for a mascarpone frosting as well! The preparation and ingredients differ from this one, so we'll see if I like that one better. Check out how the other members of Baked Sunday Mornings felt about this recipe by clicking on the link here.

Mexican Chocolate Cream Pie

And now, I present to you my fifth and final Cinco de Mayo recipe: Mexican Chocolate Cream Pie! I just had to end on a high note, and this one definitely takes the cake (er, pie?). I found this amazingly flavorful pie in my latest copy of Cooking Light Magazine, and I thought of it when I was planning my Cinco de Mayo menu. I'm glad I did; otherwise this wonderful gem may have slipped through the cracks, and gone unmade. That would have been a real shame.



Now I know Cinco de Mayo was technically yesterday, but so what? You hardly need an excuse to make this pie. I mean, it's straight from a "light cooking" magazine, so anytime can be pie time! If you need any more convincing, I suppose I could try harder....

You start out with a graham cracker crust, enhanced with a big sprinkle of cinnamon and lightened by using part butter, part egg white for the binder. I made mine even more cinnamon-y by using half cinnamon-flavored graham crackers.

Next, you make a spicy chocolate pudding. Man, is this stuff good! It's got both unsweetened dark cocoa powder and real, melted dark chocolate, which makes it taste oh-so-rich. Espresso powder strengthens the chocolate flavor, while a dash of cayenne pepper makes the whole concoction a whole lot more intriguing. The pudding was a snap to make and I found that part of the recipe much more painless than I expected it to be.

Finally, after chilling the pudding layer for a few hours inside the pie crust, you slather on your final layer. Now, this is the one part of the recipe that I may try to improve upon in the future, because you use Cool Whip. Just Cool Whip. Nothing homemade, or complicated. But that kinda disappointed me, because I do try to make things completely from scratch a lot of the time, and my husband could tell right away that this came out of a tub. That's okay, though. The pie was still unbelievably delicious and decadent, especially for a Cooking Light pie. It's the stuff of healthy-living dreams, I promise!

Mexican Chocolate Cream Pie
adapted from Cooking Light
makes 1 (9-inch) pie

Ingredients
5 sheets honey graham crackers
5 sheets cinnamon graham crackers
1/2 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon, plus more for garnish
1/4 tsp. salt, divided
2 eggs, divided (1 egg white for the crust, 1 whole egg and a yolk for the pudding)
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
Cooking spray
2 Tbsp. cornstarch
1 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 tsp. instant espresso powder
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper (cayenne pepper)
1 3/4 cups reduced-fat (2%) milk
2 oz. dark chocolate, chopped
1 (8 oz.) container Cool Whip Lite, thawed

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Prepare the crust: crush the graham crackers in a food processor, until the crumbs resemble sand. Add 2 Tbsp. sugar, the cinnamon, and 1/8 tsp. salt and pulse to combine. Drizzle in the egg white and the 2 Tsp. butter until the crumbs are moistened. Transfer the crumb mixture to a 9-inch pie plate that has been coated with nonstick cooking spray. Press the crumbs across the bottom and up the sides of the pie plate. Bake at 375 for 9 minutes or until fragrant and lightly toasted. Allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

2. To prepare filling, combine 1/2 cup sugar, cornstarch, cocoa, espresso, cayenne, remaining 1/8 tsp. salt, egg, and egg yolk in a medium-sized bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Place the milk in a medium, heavy saucepan over medium-high heat; cook until milk reaches 180 degrees or until tiny bubbles form around edge (do not boil).

3. Gradually add hot milk to egg mixture, stirring constantly with a whisk. Return milk mixture to pan; cook over medium heat 10 minutes or until thick and bubbly (mine only took about 5 minutes), stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add dark chocolate; stir until smooth.

4. Place pan in a large ice-filled bowl for 10 minutes or until mixture cools, stirring occasionally. Spoon filling into crust, and cover surface of filling with plastic wrap. Chill for 3 hours or until set; remove plastic wrap. Spread the Cool Whip evenly over the pudding layer; sprinkle with ground cinnamon to garnish.

Mexican Chocolate Pistachio Fudge

It's Cinco de Mayo, and it's time for dessert! Well, actually, it might not really be time for dessert yet, depending on when you are reading this. But since I have already blogged about a starter, a beverage, and a main course this week, clearly at this point you need a little something sweet to wash it all down with!

So I made this wonderful Mexican Chocolate Pistachio Fudge. We're big fudge fans, the husband and I. But I usually stick to my tried-and-true fudge recipe, and rarely branch out from that. There have been some pretty interesting results the few times I have strayed from what I know works. A certain time I made bacon fudge comes to mind...

Anyway, this fudge is a snap to make. I did use my regular recipe as a base, but I expanded on it and I'm really happy with the results. I made the chocolate more "Mexican"-tasting by adding ground cinnamon and cayenne pepper. I thought pistachios would be great in there, so I mixed in a bunch and then scattered even more over the top. The fudge turned out creamy, rich-tasting, and so interesting with that little bit of spice and heat. You don't really taste the cayenne pepper, but you know it's there because you get a nice little burn at the back of your throat after you've eaten a piece. You could leave it out, and the fudge would still be great, but I think it's necessary in there. It's a fiesta in fudge form (sorry, I couldn't resist)!

Mexican Chocolate Pistachio Fudge
adapted from about.com
makes 36-40 squares, depending on the size you cut them

Ingredients
2 Tbsp. butter
2/3 cup fat-free evaporated milk
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
2 cups miniature marshmallows
12 oz. (1 bag) semisweet chocolate chips
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cayenne pepper
6 oz. raw, shelled pistachios, divided

Directions
1. Line a square, 8x8 inch baking pan with nonstick foil, or regular foil that has been sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside. Combine the marshmallows and chocolate chips in a bowl and set aside.

2. In a medium, heavy saucepan, combine the butter, milk, sugar, cinnamon, cayenne, and salt. Turn the heat to medium-high, and stir until the sugar dissolves. Allow the mixture to come up to a boil. Continue to boil, stirring constantly, for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat.

3. Stir in the marshmallows, chocolate chips, and vanilla, and continue mixing until the marshmallows and chips have almost completely melted. Throw in about 3/4 of the pistachios and continue mixing well. Note: you should work quickly here, because the fudge starts to harden around this point and it becomes harder and harder to stir.

4. Spread the fudge into the prepared pan and even it out, smoothing the top. Before it has a chance to set, sprinkle the remaining pistachios over the top of the fudge and press down lightly so the nuts will stick. Place the pan in the fridge to allow the fudge to set completely before removing and cutting into squares.

Baked Sunday Mornings: New York Style Crumb Cake

Happy Easter! I hope everyone is having a great day. I'm going to talk about a coffee cake that would actually be very appropriate for a holiday, especially if you're having houseguests over. Unfortunately, my coffee cake is long, long gone and will not be served this Easter. But who knows, maybe next year!

So for this week's Baked Sunday Mornings assignment, we made the New York Style Crumb Cake, which I've been drooling over ever since I first purchased this book. You see, this cake reminds me of the good ol' days, when I used to work at Starbucks. The New York Style Crumb Cake was so good there, but so evil. The crumb portion was thicker than the cake portion, which I quickly learned was why people loved it so much. But me? No, I actually preferred the cake to the crumb. I always wound up with a stomachache if I attempted to eat the entire piece of cake.

Well, after trying the Baked version of this cake, I can see why people love the crumbs so much. This coffee cake puts the Starbucks cake to shame. The cake is so moist and light, while somehow also being hefty enough to pass for breakfast food. The crumb topping is nothing short of amazing. It smells of heaven: cinnamon, brown sugar, and butter. I pretty much swooned when I finally took this thing out of the oven. I was originally going to cut this into squares, try a little piece, and send it in to work with my husband. However, once I started cutting, little crumbs started to fall off the cake. I tried one. Then another. Then another. So only a few pieces made it to the office; the rest were thoroughly enjoyed by myself and my two sons.

I have to say that it really is so worth the effort, the way you assemble the crumb top. I did what the book advised, and let the crumbs lay out after the ingredients had all been mixed in. By slightly drying them out, they were very easy to break off into chunks and scatter across the cake batter. After being baked, those crumbs were decadent, sinful, and addictive. I'm definitely a New York Crumb Cake convert!

I can't wait to see how the other Baked Sunday Morning members' cakes turned out! We have such great photographers in the group; I know that looking through all the pictures will just make me crave this cake all over again! You can check them out by clicking here for the blogroll.

CEIMB: Blueberry Coffee Cake

It was my turn to pick the recipe for Craving Ellie in My Belly again this week, and I was craving something sweet! I have been recording old episodes of Ellie's cooking show, which now air on Cooking Channel, and recently saw an episode where she made this Blueberry Coffee Cake. As soon as I saw it, I knew that it would be my next choice for the group.



It's a lower-fat variation on an old classic: moist, lightly sweetened coffee cake, with a middle layer of fresh blueberries, cinnamon, sugar, and walnuts. The cake batter is topped with more streusel, and then baked until nice and golden brown.

Since I will look for just about any opportunity to use my silly brownie pan (the one that pre-slices the brownies/cake/granola bars for you), I decided to utilize it here. What can I say, I just happen to take my portion control seriously! I like the peace of mind of knowing that each slice of cake is evenly cut; that way, when I calculate the calories and such, I can feel more confident that it'll be the same with each slice. The drawback to using this pan is that I think once the slices are cut, they don't stay as fresh as they would if you just cut slices as you ate through the cake.

That said, I think this cake actually kept very well. I had it in an airtight container for about 5 days, and the cake was still very good on the last day. I preferred eating it warm to room temperature. Microwaving the cake for just about 20 to 30 seconds before eating it really served to wake up the flavors better.

I did love this cake, although you could definitely tell it was healthier than "regular" coffee cake. It lacked the sweetness of other coffee cakes, but that was just fine with me. It just helped you experience the other flavors better. I adore cinnamon, so of course I loved it here. The blueberries really brought a welcome tangy punch to the table, and the walnuts were just perfect. I could see this being a coffee cake that I revisit when I have overnight guests, or even just when the boys and I might be in the mood for something different thrown into our breakfast routine.

Thanks to everyone for baking along with me this week! For some reason, the link to this recipe over at the CEIMB site doesn't work anymore, but hopefully this one will. To check out the blogroll, click here.

CEIMB: (Mexican) Mocha Cake with Chocolate Glaze

This week's Craving Ellie in My Belly was a little something different; it was a chocolate cake! We've been making a lot of main dishes for the group lately, which I love, but it was great to be able to switch things up a bit this time. Chaya, of Chaya's Comfy Cook Blog, chose for us to make Ellie's Mocha Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting.



This was my third time making this cake, and each time I've done something differently. I love that this recipe is so versatile; I can imagine so many variations on the base chocolate cake here. Last time I made it, I used dark cocoa powder and it turned out super, duper chocolatey and delicious. This time, I wanted to spice it up...literally! I thought it would be fun to make this into a spicy mocha cake, and add a few Mexican-tinged flavors to the batter. I cut the recipe in half (because the other times I've made this, I have found that it makes an awful lot of cake!). Then, I added 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon each of cayenne pepper and ground black pepper to the batter. I felt like a bit of a mad scientist, playing around with this cake! It was a fun experiment.

I used my trusty old brownie pan, again, and it worked out well for the most part. I noticed that not all the slices of cake baked up evenly, so I had some shorter pieces and some larger ones. I reduced the cooking time by about 5-7 minutes, and it was just enough.

I also wanted to do something else for the frosting this time. I opted to make a very simple chocolate glaze to pour over the tops of the slices. I used 1 cup plus 3 Tbsp. confectioners' sugar, 3 Tbsp. milk, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, and 3 Tbsp. cocoa powder to form my glaze (pictured above). The glaze was mostly hardened and set, and then I transferred the cake pieces to the fridge. When I poked around to try a slice later on, I noticed that the glaze was softer than it had been. I guess the fridge softens it back up. It didn't matter, though: it was still totally scrumptious! I highly recommend this variation if you're ever looking for a uniquely flavored, slightly good-for-you chocolate cake to take somewhere!



Thanks to Chaya for allowing me to revisit an old favorite in a new way! For the full recipe as written by Ellie, check out the whole thing on Food Network's website, here. And to see what the other CEIMB-istas did with this one, be sure to head on over to the blogroll, here.

Meatless Mondays: Chocolate and Strawberry Stuffed French Toast

Happy Valentine's Day! In honor of the occasion, I decided to make my Meatless Monday a breakfast-themed one, and do a super-decadent french toast sandwich for you. I got this one from Ellie Krieger, so it only seems super-decadent! In fact, it is actually a kinda nutritious breakfast! The thing that makes it indulgent is the inclusion of chocolate, but of course a bit of chocolate in the morning never hurt anybody as long as there was some fresh fruit and whole grains accompanying it!

This is a stuffed french toast recipe. Only three ingredients are required for the inside of the sandwich: ricotta cheese, fresh strawberries, and chocolate chips. You assemble your sandwiches, dip them in an egg/milk mixture seasoned with vanilla and ground cinnamon, and fry them up on your griddle as you would with traditional french toast. I did make some swaps for this; I used a combination of 2% milk and water as opposed to skim milk, and I substituted one egg white for a whole egg. I also added in the cinnamon; we're big fans!

These french toast sandwiches were surefire hits over the weekend! It truly felt like we were eating dessert for breakfast, which was just fine with me on a special occasion. I paired the sandwiches with some breakfast sausage (turkey for the boys, meatless links for me!) and it really made a nice meal that kept us good and full all morning long. I couldn't believe this recipe came from a healthy cookbook, but that's Ellie for you. She's always surprising me with how good healthy food can taste! Anyway, I think this would make a fantastic Valentine's Day treat, whether for breakfast, lunch, or a really yummy, sweet dinner. I hope you have a great day!

Chocolate and Strawberry Stuffed French Toast
adapted from Ellie Krieger
makes 4 sandwiches

Ingredients
3/4 cup 2% milk
1/2 cup water
2 large eggs
1 large egg white
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 cup low-fat ricotta cheese
8 slices whole-wheat sandwich bread (Ellie removed her crusts; I did not)
4 oz. fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
2 Tbsp. bittersweet chocolate chips
Cooking spray
2 tsp. confectioners' sugar

Directions
1. In a large bowl, whisk together the milk, water, eggs, egg white, vanilla, and cinnamon. Set aside.

2. Spread 1 Tbsp. of the ricotta cheese on 4 of the bread slices. Top each with about 6 slices of strawberry and 1/2 Tbsp. of the chocolate chips. Cover each with another piece of bread to form sandwiches.

3. Spray a large nonstick skillet or griddle with cooking spray and preheat over medium heat. Carefully dip each of the sandwiches into the egg mixture (I learned the hard way that you should not dip the whole slice of bread into the egg; that makes the sandwich soggy on the inside. Rather, you want to dip the lower half of a bread slice, carefully flip the sandwich, and then dip the lower half of the other bread slice). Place each sandwich on the skillet or griddle and cook until the outside is golden brown. The center should be warm and the chocolate should be melted. Ellie says 3-4 minutes per side should do it, but mine were on the griddle more like 6-7 minutes per side.

4. Transfer sandwiches to serving dishes. Top with extra strawberries, if desired, and sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.

Cocoa-Coconut Granola

I made this granola about a month ago, and for some reason I never got around to posting about it until now. It's not because I forgot all about the granola; in fact, I eat a bit of it every other day for breakfast. I stir it into a bowl of cereal, and it really gives the cereal some heft. Whole grains, sweet coconut, and a nutty crunch combine to provide energy to your morning and a great balance to your daily first meal. Add a serving of fruit and a cup of coffee to the cereal/granola combo, and you've got it made!

I love this twist on the traditional granola because it adds a kiss of cocoa flavor, warm spices (in the form of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom), and sticky-sweet agave nectar to the more tired formula. It creates a unique granola, one that I've become hooked on and have looked forward to every single time I've had it. And, this being my first time making granola, I've been very pleasantly surprised with 1) the sheer simplicity of making this myself, and 2) how well it keeps! I've had this stuff in an airtight container for the past month, and it's still perfect! It doesn't require refrigeration; all the ingredients, for the most part, are pantry staples. I couldn't have been happier to discover yet another grocery-store purchase item that I can now conveniently make in my own kitchen. I defy you to find a box in the cereal aisle of granola that tastes as good as this!

Cocoa-Coconut Granola
adapted from Everybody Likes Sandwiches
makes 3.5-4 cups granola (I cut the original recipe in half)

Ingredients
2 Tbsp. cocoa powder
2 1/4 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds, shelled and roasted
1/2 cup roughly chopped almonds
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
Large pinch each ground nutmeg and cardamom
6 Tbsp. brown sugar
2 1/2 Tbsp. agave nectar
2 Tbsp. honey
6 Tbsp. applesauce
1 Tbsp. olive oil

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients (from cocoa powder through brown sugar).

2. In a small saucepan, combine the agave nectar, honey, applesauce, and olive oil. Warm the ingredients just until the mixture is extra runny; pour over dry ingredients. Mix until everything is coated in the wet ingredients.

3. Pour the mixture into a large glass baking dish (or several cookie sheets that have sides) and spread evenly in a single layer. Bake for about 45 minutes to an hour, removing from the oven every 15 minutes to stir the mixture. Once the mixture has almost completely dried out, remove from the oven and allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container. Mine has kept for about 4 weeks now, and it's still just as great now as it was the day I made it!

Baked Sunday Mornings: Farm Stand Buttermilk Doughnuts

Our assignment for this week's Baked Sunday Mornings was to make the Farm Stand Buttermilk Doughnuts. As luck would have it, I had already tried my hand at these back in October, but I'd never blogged about them. I think it probably had something to do with the fact that our doughnuts did not exactly turn out picture perfect. Okay, they actually came out looking a bit deformed! But they were absolutely delicious, so they are definitely worth telling you about. Maybe somebody out there can learn from my mistakes!

I started out on the wrong foot with these because I was short an ingredient: sour cream. Instead of sour cream I just added more buttermilk, if memory serves me correctly. Turns out, that sour cream must be kinda essential to these dougnuts, because I had a heck of a time with my dough. It was so sticky and loose, you couldn't even form doughnut shapes. Well, you kinda could, but then you couldn't actually lift them and drop them into the hot oil without them becoming all misshapen. So we started to just form blobs out of the dough, but then we discovered that the inside centers were still raw (which was a total bummer, since we had our two sons waiting and waiting for the doughnuts to cool enough to eat, only to discover that they had icky, gooey middles). Fortunately, the doughnut hole-sized treats we made worked out perfectly, since they took next to no time to make.

As I think you can probably tell from below, the doughnuts were a huge winner once we started working out the kinks! The biggest hit was the cinnamon sugar topping with our boys; they are cinnamon addicts. I personally favored the chocolate glaze; we topped those with orange sprinkles since it was almost Halloween when we made these. I skipped the vanilla glaze, but I would love to try it sometime.

I was tempted to make these again specifically for the group, but I decided that it was worthwhile to just blog about the ones I had made previously. After all, it is a lesson in what not to do! However, I do apologize for subjecting you to these silly deformed doughnut pictures!

To check out how the other members of the group did with this, be sure to check out the post on these doughnuts over at Baked Sunday Mornings, here. The full recipe is posted there, too, for your convenience!

Baked Sunday Mornings: Monkey Bubble Bread

So last week, when I made the Nutella Scones for the Baked Sunday Mornings group, I was really supposed to have made Monkey Bubble Bread. However, I knew that I had been wanting to make the Monkey Bread for Christmas morning, so I decided to make and post about it one week late. In this case, it's definitely better late than never. This recipe's a killer.

This is some of the most addictive, rich, gooey, coma-inducing stuff I've ever made, hands down. It is not for the faint of heart. That said, I had an absolute ball making it (no pun intended!). The yeast dough is very easy to work with; you divide it into 60 little balls, which you then dip into butter and dark brown sugar/cinnamon. You take all your balls and arrange them in a bundt pan as though you are building a brick wall. Once all the yumminess has baked, you wait 5 (agonizing) minutes before flipping the bundt pan over and releasing the bread out into the wild. Once the bundt pan has been removed, all the melted butter/brown sugar gooey-ness oozes down the sides and the middle and just soaks in and envelops everything in its decadence.

It is truly one of those treats that I just could not fathom making on any other occasion than Christmas, that one day out of the year where I can justify myself eating something so evil (in a good way, of course!).

I'm glad I finally got to make Monkey Bread from scratch. I have made it several times before, but always the "cheat" way, with tubes of refrigerated biscuit dough. Let me just tell you, this way is so much better and so well worth the extra time and effort it takes to make. As my five year-old son told me on Christmas morning, "Mom, there is nothing in the world that tastes better than Monkey Bread!" So there you have it!

Since I'm about the last one to blog and post about this, make sure to check out the other posts on this scrumptious bread by clicking over to the Monkey Bread Leave Your Link, here. That is also where you'll find the full recipe. Enjoy!

Almond and Pumpkin Seed Brittle

Happy Halloween! We're getting ready for a big night of trick-or-treating with the kids tonight. We've got our 5 year-old dressing up as Shaggy and our 23 month-old dressing as Scooby-Doo. Since both boys are huge fans of Scooby-Doo, this year's theme was a no-brainer. I hope to be able to get some picture of the boys in their costumes posted here in the next week or so. In the meantime, though, I offer you some lovely brittle!

Nothing screams Halloween more than candy and pumpkins. This Almond and Pumpkin Seed Brittle is a very tasty little treat that would make a great snack for the trick-or-treaters, or their parents. We served it at a Halloween party that we helped out with yesterday at my in-laws'. It's great finger food, and the guests seemed to enjoy it.

Now, I have to confess something. This is actually my second attempt at making this brittle. The first time I made it, I burned the candy and ended up with a very, very dark brittle. It was almost the color of a milk chocolate, but it sure didn't taste like chocolate! It had a salty, bitter taste (yes, I tried it, and yes, I actually ate way more of it than was rational, considering it was a flub!) and nobody else in my household would even touch the stuff.

I did use a candy thermometer, even though the recipe did not indicate that I had to. I read other brittle recipes online and was trying to go by what they were telling me to do, temperature-wise. I thought I needed to take the temp all the way up to 320-ish, although other recipes say to remove the candy from the heat at about 300. Plus, I think the thermometer was off, and I took the candy too far because I was relying on the temperature I was reading from it. Making this stuff is trickier than I thought it would be, mainly because there's such a fine line between perfect and burnt. Maybe in the future I should rely strictly on the recipe's instructions, and shouldn't depend on a thermometer to tell me what's right!

Though this second batch turned out much, much better, it's still pretty dark. Maybe I need to be removing the candy from the heat even sooner than the recipe says to? I dunno, but it really doesn't matter this time because this brittle is dee-licious! The pumpkin seeds I used were lightly salted, and then you add more salt to the candy before adding your nuts. This results in a delightfully sweet/salty combo, enhanced by a dash of cinnamon for extra spice. The cinnamon was something I threw in on a whim; it wasn't part of the original recipe. I'm glad I added it; I can never have enough cinnamon! I really think it works in the brittle.

Almond and Pumpkin Seed Brittle
adapted from The Craft of Baking
makes 1 1/2 pounds

Ingredients
Nonstick cooking spray
2 cups sugar
8 Tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 Tbsp. kosher salt (the recipe called for 1 1/2 Tbsp., but my pumpkin seeds were salted so I cut down on that)
4 oz. (about 1 cup) pumpkin seeds, salted and toasted
4 oz. (about 1 cup) raw almonds, left whole or halved, toasted

Directions
1. Lightly coat a rimmed baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray; set it aside (Nonstick aluminum foil worked great, too!). Mix together the salt and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside.

2. Combine the sugar, butter, water, and corn syrup in a large saucepan. Stir together so that all of the sugar is wet. Cook the mixture over high heat without stirring until it turns a dark amber color, about 10 minutes. (I used my candy thermometer to bring the mixture up to about 320 degrees. In the future I would probably aim for between 300 and 320, just so that the brittle is a little bit lighter in color.) Remove from the heat.

3. Carefully whisk in the baking soda, followed by the salt and cinnamon; the caramel will rise and bubble. Using a wooden or metal spoon, fold in the pumpkin seeds and almonds. Pour the brittle onto the prepared baking sheet, and using the back of the spoon, spread it out into a layer about 1/2-inch thick. Let it cool completely.

4. Break the brittle into bite-sized pieces, using a mallet or the back of a heavy knife. The brittle can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

MSC: Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

It's that time again; time to post another selection from the Martha Stewart Cupcakes Club! This one, Snickerdoodle Cupcakes, was chosen by Katie of Katiecakes. I'm really glad this one was picked, as anything with cinnamon is always a hit here at my house. I'd been wanting to try these out but never really had an excuse to make them. Now was my opportunity, finally!

As I'm sure you can tell from my pictures, I decided to simplify this recipe by making just the cupcake, and not the frosting. There were several reasons for this. For one thing, my kids aren't the biggest frosting fans, so I knew it would not be missed by them. For another, I knew the 7- minute frosting would not be doable here because I would not be able to serve these immediately after assembling, as Martha's instructions tell you to do. I would like to try her 7-minute frosting recipe sometime, but it just wasn't meant to be this time. So, I considered making a different type of frosting for these, such as cinnamon cream cheese frosting or just a buttercream of some kind. But in the end, I decided to just make a half-recipe of the cupcakes and leave them as is.

This turned out to be a wise decision, because my frosting-hating 5 year-old son is absolutely addicted to these! What I did when putting these together was to sprinkle a cinnamon/sugar mixture over the top of each cupcake, then I put them in the oven to bake. I was hoping that this would give each cupcake a nice, sugary crust, but that didn't quite happen. The tops of the cupcakes were very moist, not that this is a bad thing. As for the cake itself, it was....well, it was good. It was pretty standard, as far as cakes go. The addition of a hefty amount of cinnamon was very nice, but otherwise it was just a basic yellow cake recipe. I am willing to bet, though, that frosting would definitely have made this much, much better! If I ever have an occasion to serve these right away, I will try these with the recommended frosting, promise!

Thanks to Katie for the pick this month! And if you'd like to check out the other MSCers' results, be sure to visit the blogroll.

Apple Cinnamon Rolls

Well, I am proud to say that I have now made cinnamon rolls, from scratch, without the aid of a bread machine or any other type of "cheating." It's a miracle! Of course, never one to stick to the traditional, I opted to make these ooey gooey Apple Cinnamon Rolls, and they were divine.

These rolls incorporate a sweet, sticky filling of caramel and finely chopped apples into the proceedings, rather than the standard butter/sugar/cinnamon mixture. Just before baking, the rolls are sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar, but without all that butter inside, these rolls actually are a little bit better for you, too!

Of course, they certainly don't taste healthy. These are oozy, melty, and decadent just as they are. The apples add just enough tart texture to make them complementary to the sweetness, rather than detract from it. If you're looking for an excuse to use up some fall apples this year, I highly recommend these rolls. Plus, as far as yeast dough-type things to make, I found this to be very doable and not difficult at all.

I'm so happy that I'm finally beginning to conquer my fear of yeast, and these rolls are baked proof that the results are well worth the effort. The recipe makes two pans' worth of rolls, so I was able to bake one pan after an overnight rise, and then I froze the other pan for a rainy day. Oh, and one final note: the caramel/apple mixture that serves as the filling is to die for, and has become the inspiration for yet another decadent treat that you will be seeing me blog about in the near future. Look for it soon!

Apple Cinnamon Rolls
from Breadworld
makes 24 rolls (2 pans)


Ingredients
For the rolls:
5 to 5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
4 1/2 tsp. RapidRise yeast (2 envelopes)
1 tsp. salt
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup butter or margarine
3 large eggs

For the apple filling:
2 large cooking apples, peeled and chopped
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg

For the cinnamon sugar topping:
3/4 cup sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg


Directions
Make the apple filling: 1. Combine the apples, flour, sugar, and butter or margarine in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; cook for 3 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low; cook 10 minutes, stirring constantly, until thick. Remove from the heat. Stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg; cool completely.

Make the rolls: 1. In a large bowl, combine 1 cup flour, sugar, undissolved yeast, and salt. In a saucepan on the stove, heat the water, milk, and butter until very warm (120 to 130 degrees F). Gradually add to flour mixture. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed with an electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add eggs and 1 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed, scraping bowl occasionally. Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cover; let rest 10 minutes.

2. Divide dough into 2 equal portions. Roll each portion into 12x8-inch rectangle. Spread Apple Filling evenly. Beginning at long end of each, roll up tightly, jelly-roll style. Pinch seams to seal. Cut each roll into 12 equal pieces. Place, cut sides up, in greased 9-inch round pans. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 45 minutes. (After covering the pans, they can be frozen at this point, or if you're preparing this in the evening for the next morning, you can refrigerate these overnight.)

Prepare cinnamon sugar topping and bake rolls: 1. In a small bowl, combine all of the cinnamon sugar ingredients, then stir well to fully incorporate.

2. Sprinkle the risen rolls with the cinnamon sugar topping. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 to 30 minutes, until browned on top. Remove from pans; serve warm.