Golden Graham Cupcakes

Back in February we had our 24th Iron Chef Competition! I can't believe we've been doing it for several years now. Friends have come and gone, but picking some interesting ingredients have remained! Jen hosted this last iron chef, and she chose cereal as the "secret" ingredient. I have to say I was sincerely worried about this ingredient. I did some perusing of recipes and for the most part I could only find dessert options. But, the girls pulled through and came up with some interesting and delicious recipes for the savory courses.

I opted for the sweet course. I figured it would be fun to find a dessert recipe using cereal. It was fun, but definitely difficult. There were a LOT of options, and it was tough deciding on one. Ultimately, I decided on these Golden Graham Cupcakes. Primarily, because my co-workers seriously loved them. But, then again they're easy to please!

I didn't win this particular iron chef, but I thought the recipe definitely hit the nail on the head with the concept! And, it was pretty darn tasty, too! If you're interested in giving this recipe a try; please click here and you will be routed to Your Cup of Cake. Enjoy!

The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies

Who doesn't love a chocolate chip cookie? I mean really. I don't think I could ever date a man who doesn't love a good ol' fashioned chocolate chip cookie. Basically, I don't want to have to eat the entire batch of cookies by myself. Anyway, I found this particular recipe in my handy dandy Cook's Illustrated Cookbook. Seriously, you guys, if you don't have this cookbook you're big time missing out. It's probably my favorite cookbook out of all the cookbooks that I have. And, trust me, I own a ton. Anyway, back to these scrumptious cookies. So, what I think really makes this recipe is the brown butter. Mmm. Brown. Butter. It gives the cookie a more robust flavor, and the chocolate packs a punch. I'm definitely making these cookies again, and I think they might be my new favorite recipe. Definitely an ultimate cookie!

Ingredients:
1 3/4 all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
14 tbsp Unsalted Butter
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chip
3/4 cup pecans or walnuts, toasted and chopped (optional)

Preheat oven to 375. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Next, whisk flour and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
Melt 10 tablespoon butter in 10 inch skillet over medium-high heat. Continue cooking, swirling pan constantly, until butter is dark golden brown and has a nutty aroma, 1 to 3 minutes. Transfer browned butter to a heat proofed large bowl. Add 4 remaining tablespoons butter and stir until completely melted. Add brown sugar, salt, vanilla, and granulated sugar to the melted butter. Whisk well. Add egg and egg yolk; whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, about 30 seconds. Let mixture stand for 3 minutes then whisk for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times until mixture is thick, smooth, and shiny.
Using rubber spatula, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Next, stir in chocolate chips and nuts (if using). Give dough final stir to ensure that no flour pockets remain and ingredients are evenly distributed. Roll the dough into balls and place on cookie sheets. Bake 1 sheet at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, about 10 to 14 minutes, and rotating baking sheet halfway through. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack, and let cookies cool to room temperature.

Ultimate Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies

My friends had a cookout the other weekend, and I was contemplating what to bring. I believe last year I made homemade cupcakes, and while they were somewhat of a hit I got outplayed by someone who brought a box of cupcakes from one of our fabulous local bakeries. Sigh. Well, this year I decided to go with what I'm best at, and that's making cookies! Mmmm. Cookies. 

As per the usual, I found this recipe on Sally's Baking Addiction. And, O.M.G. These were frigging awesome. I kid you not! The cookie was thick and the peanut butter cups just burst in your mouth. Man, I could really use one of these right now. This recipe was very simple to make, and I highly recommend you get in the kitchen this evening and make me some. Oops, I mean make you some! :) Enjoy!

Ingredients:

1 and 1/2 (190g) cups all-purpose flour (accurately measured)
1/2 cup (64g) unsweetened natural cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick or 115g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1/2 cup (100g) light brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
1/4 cup (60g) cup creamy or chunky peanut butter
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons (30ml) milk
1 and 1/4 cups Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, chopped (about 16 Reese’s miniatures)
Drizzle: 1/3 cup (85g) creamy or chunky peanut butter (I omitted this step)

Go ahead and take out a medium sized bowl, and add in the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk to combine, and then set the bowl aside for later.

Now, take out your standing mixer bowl (with the paddle attachment) and beat the butter on high until nice and creamy. This could take about a minute or so. If needed; scrape down the sides of the bowl and then add in the sugars and peanut butter and mix on medium speed until combined. Add the egg and vanilla, and mix till combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl if necessary. Carefully, add in the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Having the speed on low is best for this. Go ahead and add in the milk and stir until just combined. Lastly, add in the peanut butter cups and stir until evenly disbursed. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for an hour or at the most 24 hours.

Once you're ready to start baking; go ahead and pre-heat your oven to 350. Take out your cookie sheets and your dough. Roll the dough into balls and place on the sheet. I believe I got about 20 cookies out of this dough. Anyway, go ahead and place in the oven and bake for about 10-12 minutes. According to Sally, the dough won't spread much (and it didn't) so gently press down on the cookies with the back of a spoon once it comes out of the oven. Transfer to a wire rack, and cool.

Soft-Baked Peanut Butter Lover's Cookies

I have a bit of a problem. I can't stop trying recipes from Sally's Baking Addiction. I think she was onto something when she included "Baking Addiction" in the name of her blog. I'm totally addicted to Sally's Baking. Everything I've tried so far as been so darn good. I haven't tried any of her cake or pie recipes, but I have tried a ton of her cookies. And, add this recipe to the list. I'm in love with this Soft Baked Peanut Butter Lover's Cookie. I love the addition of peanut butter chips and Reese's peanut butter cups. I omitted nuts, because I'm just not a fan of nuts in my cookies. But, feel free to add them in yours. These cookies are heavenly and I guarantee if you decide to share them with your friends and family they will love you for it. I can't wait to try another one of Sally's scrumptious cookie recipes. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup salted butter, softened to room temperature* (If using Unsalted butter then add a 1/4 tsp salt)
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 and 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup honey roasted peanuts (I omitted these)
1/2 cup mini peanut butter cups (OR fun size or regular size peanut butter cups, chopped)
1/2 cup peanut butter baking chips

The first thing I do is chop up the peanut butter cups and set aside in a small bowl. I used about half a regular sized mini peanut butter cups bag. Next, take out a medium sized bowl and add the flour, baking soda, and salt if you're using unsalted butter. Set aside. Next, you'll want to cream together the butter and sugar until well mixed. Then add in the peanut butter, egg, and vanilla in that order. Stir well. Carefully, add in the flour mixture a little at a time to avoid flour puffing up all over the place. Be careful not to over-mix the batter. Carefully, fold in the peanuts (if using), peanut butter chips, and peanut butter cups. Place the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or up to 24 hours.
Once you're ready to start baking the cookies; pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Remove the dough from the oven and let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes. Then, roll up the dough so they stand taller rather than wider, and place on the cookie sheets. Then, gently press down on the dough to slightly flatten them. Bake in the oven for about 8 or 9 minutes or until the edges of the cookies start to look a golden brown. Remove from the oven, and place on a wire rack. I dare you to not eat one right away. So good!

Snickers Bar Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies

Friday was Valentine's Day. Since I didn't have a Valentine to treat; I decided to bake some cookies for my friends instead. Sally's Baking Addiction is seriously becoming my go-to cookie recipe source. I'm loving all the recipes I made, and this one is no exception. Anyway, I chose this particular cookie recipe, because who doesn't love chocolate chips? And, adding a snickers stuffed in the center just elevates the chocolate chip cookie to the next level. I did try the cookie right out of the oven, and it just tasted like a really good chocolate chip cookie. However, a couple hours later I tried the cookie again, and you could definitely taste the snickers. So, I would recommend waiting a half hour or so before biting into one of these scrumptious cookies. And, my 5 Valentine's definitely approved of this cookie! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 cups + 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup (1.5 sticks) salted butter, softened (I used unsalted and added 1/2 tsp salt)
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 egg, at room temperature
1 egg yolk, at room temperature
2 tsp vanilla exract
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
8 fun-sized Snickers bars, cut into 4 pieces each (you may need more depending on how many cookies you get)

First take out a medium bowl and add in the flour, baking soda, and salt (if using unsalted butter). Stir and set aside. Next, add the butter and sugars to your standing mixer bowl and cream together. Then, add in the egg, egg yolk, and vanilla. Reduce the speed of your standing mixer to low and gradually add in the flour mixture. Then, add in the semi-sweet chocolate chips. Stir well. Place the bowl in the fridge for about 30 minutes up to 24 hours.

Before assembling the cookies, make sure you pre-heat your oven to 325. To assemble the cookies take a small pat of cookie dough and flatten then add the snickers piece. Take another pat of cookie dough and add on top of the snickers portion. Roll together and place on cookie sheet. I got about 30 cookies out of the dough. Bake in the oven for about 10-12 minutes or until the edges of the cookie turn a golden brown. Remove from oven, and place on a cooling rack. I advise waiting about 30 minutes or so before biting into the cookie, but I understand if it's too tempting. Enjoy!

Chewy Chocolate Chunk Cookies

I've posted a couple chocolate chip cookies on this blog. You can't have too many, right? I've posted a thin and crispy chocolate chip cookie recipe, a nutella chocolate chip cookie, and now this chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe. I found this recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction, and she offered up a lot of great tips on how to get cookies to come out chewy. She suggests using one egg and an egg yolk and a little corn starch. She also suggests instead of rolling them into balls to roll them so they stand tall. Overall, I think these cookies were a huge hit, and I will definitely make them again. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
2 and 1/4 cups (280 grams) all-purpose flour, measured correctly
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 and 1/2 teaspoons cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1.5 sticks or 170 grams) unsalted butter, melted
3/4 cup (150 grams) light brown sugar, loosely packed
1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar
1 large egg + 1 egg yolk*
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup (180 grams) chocolate chips or chocolate chunks

Take out a large bowl and toss in the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt. Set aside. Next, take out a medium bowl and melt the butter. Then, whisk in the sugars and stir well. Next, whisk in the egg and egg yolk. Stir well. Finally, whisk in the vanilla. Stir well. Then, fold the wet mixture into the dry mixture and mix together. Now, fold in the chocolate chips. The dough will be very sticky because of the melted butter, but just try to get the chips as well incorporated as you can. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours and up to 3 days. 

When you're ready to bake; take out the dough from the fridge and allow to soften for 15 minutes. Pre-heat your oven to 325, and line the cookie sheets with parchment paper or silpat. Roll the dough so they're taller rather than wider. Bake the cookies for 11-12 minutes. The cookies will come out of the oven looking soft and underbaked. Allow the cookies to cool on the cookie sheet for 10 minutes. Then, move cookies to wire rack to cool completely. 

Nutella Swirl Cheesecake Bars

"If this fell on the ground; I would pick it up and eat it and never regret it." This was told to me by a fellow co-worker after he inhaled one of these scrumptious cheesecake bars. There's your answer whether or not these little devils are good or not. This was the second recipe I used from Sallys Baking Addiction to include in my cookie bag. They have a velvety, nutellay (made up word), and cheesy taste. The graham cracker crust gives it a nice little crunch and help hold everything together. This recipe was quite simple to make, and as you can see from the above quote very much loved. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Crust
12 full-sheet graham crackers (or 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs)
6 Tablespoons (90 grams) melted unsalted butter
1/3 cup (67 grams) granulated sugar

 Filling
16 ounces cream cheese (2 standard packages or 450g), softened to room temperature
1 large egg
1/4 cup (50g) granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/3 cup (100g) Nutella, slightly warmed*

First, pre-heat your oven to 350 and get out an 8x8 baking dish. Place parchment paper in the baking dish so enough hangs over the edge. Set aside.

If you're using graham crackers then you will need to take out your food processor and place the crackers in the processor and pulse until it's a fine crumb. Get out a medium bowl and pour in the graham cracker crumbs, add in the melted butter, and sugar. Stir well, and pour into the baking dish and press down gently. Bake for 5 minutes, and then take out and set aside.

Now, in your standing mixer add in your cream cheese, sugar, egg, and vanilla and beat on medium speed until smooth and creamy; about 3 minutes. Pour the mixture on top of the graham cracker crust. Gently spread evenly. Take the warmed nutella and dump in batches onto the cream cheese mixture. Take a knife and make swirls. Then, bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the cheesecake has set and the edges are a golden brown. Allow to cool for about 30 minutes, and then place in the fridge to further cool for about 3 hours. Enjoy!

Oreo Truffles

If there's one thing you have to make this year (okay, maybe next year) it's these oreo truffles. OMG! They are so heavenly. What do I mean by heavenly, you ask? Try rich, chocolaty, smooth, delicious. Your friends will think you're a gourmet chef. And, you know the best part of this; it's so friggin' easy!!!!! Seriously, all you do is dump a package of oreos into a food processor. Then, dump that along with one package of cream cheese into a standing mixer, and stir it all up. Roll it into balls and dip in chocolate, refrigerate, and wa-la you're done!!!!!!! I've basically just told you the recipe. I received a ton of compliments on these little truffles, and you will too! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
36 OREO Cookies, finely crushed, divided (Just use one package of oreos, which equals 36 cookies)
1 pkg.(8 oz.) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
4 pkg.(4 oz. each) BAKER'S Semi-Sweet Chocolate, broken into pieces, melted

Like I said above; take out your food process and toss in the oreos. Process until the cookies are a fine crumb. Pour into your standing mixer, and add in the cream cheese. Stir until well blended. Roll into balls and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. This makes about 48 truffles. Take out a medium bowl and put the chocolate in it. Then, microwave for 2 minutes, but be sure you stir the chocolate every 30 seconds. Working in batches of about 4 truffles; place in the chocolate and coat well while using a fork to take the truffles out of the chocolate. Place the truffle on a cookie sheet. Toss some sprinkles on top and then refrigerate for a couple hours. Enjoy!

Candy Cane Kiss Cookies

Every year I bake cookies for those co-workers who are lucky enough to get a batch from me. I have a lot of fun perusing various food blogs trying to figure out what I'm going to bake. This year I settled on 2 cookies, an oreo truffle, and a nutella cheesecake brownie thing. Sally's Baking Addiction is my new favorite food blog. I was salivating looking at her pictures. 2 of the recipes that I made for my co-workers were courteous of her website. Funny enough I had just tried Hershey Peppermint Kisses at a Stella and Dot Trunk show. I knew I had to make these cookies after devouring those kisses. I was right; these cookies are heavenly. They're not real sweet, but I thought they had a nice flavor especially when you bite into the velvety hershey kiss. And, then the mini candy cane pieces in the hershey kiss give it a bit of a crunch. I definitely agree with Sally; do not over-bake these cookies. Bake them at the allotted 8 to 11 minutes, and you'll be fine. Give these a whirl; your co-workers will thank you. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
10 Tablespoons (145g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 and 1/2 cups (190g) King Arthur unbleached all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
sprinkles
24 Candy Cane Hershey Kisses

Go ahead and set your oven to 350 degrees to pre-heat. I only needed one baking sheet as I was able to fit 24 of the cookies on it. Be sure you line the baking sheet with parchment paper. Take out a medium sized bowl and add in the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside. Meanwhile, cream your butter and sugar using a standing mixer for about 5 minutes. Next, add in the egg yolks, your vanilla, and scrape down the sides if necessary. Then, slowly add in the flour mixture with the speed on low. I added it a little at a time. The dough will come out pretty thick. Take out a couple bowls and add in the sprinkles. I used two different kinds as you can see from the picture above. Roll the dough into 1 inch balls, and then dip into the sprinkles. Place on the cookie sheet. Continue doing this until you've filled up the cookie sheet. Place in the oven and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. The cookies will look slightly underbake. Trust me; this is fine. I over-baked a batch of mine, and they were pretty crunchy. Remove the cookies from the oven, and let rest for 5 minutes. Then, add the hershey kisses into the center of the cookie and gently press down. Sally gave a great tip to place the cookie sheet in the oven for a couple minutes, which will help the kisses maintain their "kiss" shape. This worked great for me. Enjoy!

Reese's Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

The combination of peanut butter and chocolate really can’t be beat. I mean there are other delicious food combinations (hello, grilled cheese and tomato soup, cheese and wine, and bacon and…anything.) But nothing is quite as perfect together as peanut butter and chocolate. There are thousands of delicious recipes involving this dynamic duo and I decided to try one this weekend. I have always loved the peanut butter cookie with a chocolate kiss, but this recipe (found on Cup of Sugar, Pinch of Salt) takes that to another level by replacing the kiss with a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup. The genius part is making the cookies in mini-muffin pans instead of on a sheet. That way, the cookies are tall enough to handle a mini Reese’s Cup. So smart, and tasty!

Ingredients
1 package Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups Miniatures (you’ll need about 40)
½ cup butter, softened
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup creamy peanut butter
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt

Start by putting your Reese’s Cups in the freezer. Trust me, they will be much easier to handle this way when you are pushing them into hot cookies later. Preheat the oven to 375 and spray your mini muffin cups with cooking spray. In a medium bowl mix together butter, sugar, brown sugar, peanut butter, egg and vanilla until it gets all light and fluffy (just a couple minutes). Then stir together flour, baking soda and salt in a separate bowl before adding it to the peanut butter mixture. Beat until it’s blended. The dough will seem a tad dry, but don’t worry. This helps you form the cookie balls. 

Roll them into 1-inch balls and place one in each of the mini muffin cups. I found that smaller balls were harder to push the cups into, so make sure they are at least an inch. Bake about 10 to 12 minutes (ten worked for me) until the balls have puffed up and are lightly browned. While they are baking, remove the wrappers from the Reese’s cups (trust me, don’t wait). You have to move fast, so when you pull the muffin tin out, immediately push Reese’s cups into each of the cookie tops. Don’t be afraid to push them firmly, and in fact, I had to go back through and give them each a second push. Let them cool for about five minutes in the tin before gently removing them from the pan and letting them cool. The Reese’s cup will get somewhat molten inside the cookie, so keep them upright and let them cool for a few hours. 

Contrary to most cookies, I would avoid eating them warm and wait until the cup has set up. There is something overwhelming about it when the chocolate is all melty. I think because the center of the cup stays together so it just becomes a kind of weird chunk. Anyway, I have a feeling you won’t heed my warning so you’ll find out for yourself!

Nutella Swirl Bundt Cake

Our friends hosted a Fourth of July cookout. We were asked to bring a side dish for those who wanted to bring something. I, on the other hand, wanted to bring a dessert. I know whenever I go to a cookout I always want something sweet after the main course. However, I wasn't sure what I wanted to bake. I contemplated bringing this lime pie, see's fudge, or finding something on the Internet that I've never made before. Ultimately, I opted to bring something I've never made. I found this recipe from My Catholic Kitchen , and I thought it sounded pretty good. You know how much I love nutella (at least you do if you've been reading this blog long enough) and a bundt cake is a fairly easy cake to make. Unfortunately, it didn't come out of the bundt pan too well. This is probably because I left to go to the pool and it sat too long in the pan. Oh well. It still tasted great. I thought it had the right amount of sweetness. Overall, it was a big hit as I had no leftovers to take home with me. And, the cook out was a smashing success. Lots of good food, great company, and we even got to see some fireworks.

Ingredients:
1 1/3 cup softened butter
2 1/2 cups sugar
6 large eggs, room temperature
3 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup Nutella spread

First take out your bundt pan and grease well with cooking oil spray. Set aside. Pre-heat your oven to 325 degrees. Now, take out your mixing bowl and add your softened butter and the sugar. Beat until the mixture is light and fluffy. Then, add your eggs one at a time while the mixer is on low speed. Add in the vanilla. Then, add in the flour alternating with the buttermilk and finishing with the flour. Pour half the batter into the bundt pan. Then, microwave for 30 seconds the nutella. Pour as evenly as you can the nutella spread onto the batter. Then, add the remaining batter. Take a bamboo stick or chopsticks and swirl it in the batter. Bake for an hour to an hour and 10 minutes in the oven. Rotate the pan half way thru to ensure even baking. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before removing from the pan. Sprinkle with powder sugar if you desire.

Chocolate Cupcake with Strawberry Buttercream

The last couple posts have been fairly healthy; a couple salads and a pasta salad. Even the smoked wings are fairly healthy except for the ranch dip, perhaps. Alas, I'm here to post a so not healthy recipe but it's a so very good recipe!! Recently, a friend turned 35, and I offered to bring something for her celebration. I was told that if I brought one of my baked goodies they would be very happy. I found out that our friend loves chocolate and strawberries. I've seen several recipes floating around for cupcakes with strawberry frosting, and I thought it would be the perfect thing to bake. I decided to use this chocolate cupcake recipe. But, I shouldn't have started cleaning my bathtub while the cupcakes were baking, because they ended up a tad overbaked. Doh! I don't think anyone noticed. Hopefully. I found the strawberry buttercream from Sweet Lavender Bake Shop. It was quite scrumptious. Granted, the recipe calls for 4 sticks of butter! Yowza! Alas, this isn't a frosting you want to make every day, but once a year should suffice. Overall, I think the cupcakes were a big hit. The birthday girl approved, too! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Cupcake Batter:
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
3/4 cups good cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup buttermilk, shaken
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

Strawberry Buttercream:
5 large egg whites
1 cup granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
4 sticks unsalted butter, almost room temp (cut into little cubes)
2 tsp vanilla extract
½-1 whole vanilla bean
3/4 cup fresh strawberry puree macerated with 2 tablespoons sugar

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 cupcake pans with cupcake liners. Set aside. Take the bowl from your standing mixture and add in the sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix together to combine. Take a medium sized bowl and add in your buttermilk, vegetable oil (I used canola oil), eggs, and vanilla. Stir. Slowly add the liquids to the dry ingredients while the speed of the mixture is on low. Once combined; slowly add in the coffee. Now, I was pretty concerned because the mixture was very liquidy (sorry, just made up a new word). Have no fear; just pour the mixture directly into your prepared cupcake liners. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the middle of a couple cupcakes. Remove from oven and cool completely.

Now to make the strawberry buttercream; take out your blender and puree the strawberries. I used a pint of fresh strawberries. Measure out 3/4 of the strawberry puree and pour into a small bowl. Add 2 tbsp of sugar. Stir and set aside. Next, get out a medium sized saucepan and add water about half way. Bring to a boil. Add the bowl from your standing mixer to the saucepan to create a double boiler. Add the egg whites and sugar and whisk constantly until the sugar melts. This should only take a couple minutes if that. Remove the standing mixer and attach it back to the mixer. Attach your wire whisk and whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks. This takes about 10 minutes. Make sure they egg whites have cooled by touching the bottom of the bowl. Next, one square at a time add the butter into the egg whites. Continue to do this until the butter is fully incorporated. Add the vanilla and the vanilla bean. Lastly, add the strawberry puree to the mixture. Stir until full incorporated. Filly a pastry bag with a large star attachment and pipe onto the cooled cupcakes. Enjoy!

Cream Cheese Brownies

I've been getting a lot of slack lately at work. Not because of how I'm performing, or anything, but due to not bringing in any goodies lately. It's not that I don't want to, but I just haven't felt like baking. I think the warm weather has something to do with it. I mean who feels like turning on a hot oven on a 90 degree day? Personally, I would prefer firing up my ice cream maker and making some watermelon sorbet. Mmm. Alas, this weekend wasn't sunny and 90 degrees. Nope, try rainy and in the low 70s. Bleh. But, it worked out for my fellow co-workers, because I decided to try a new brownie recipe. I found this recipe in my handy Cook's Illustrated cookbook, and it was definitely yummy. The brownies turned out very moist and chocolatey (new word?). Plus, the cream cheese almost convinced you that you're eating a brownie cheesecake. Almost. I highly recommend this recipe, and if you bring it into work your co-workers will be most appreciative and complimentary! Promise!
 

Ingredients
Brownie Base:
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking powder
4 oz bittersweet chocolate or semisweet chocolate (I used semi-sweet chocolate chips)
2 oz unsweetened chocolate
8 tbsp unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 large eggs
Cream Cheese Filling:
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 large egg yolk

First pre-heat your oven to 325 degrees. Take out your 8x8 baking pan and place foil inside so the edges hang over the pan. This will make lifting the brownie out of the dish easier. Spray with cooking oil, and set aside. Take out a small bowl and add the flour, baking powder, and salt. Whisk and set aside. Now, take out a medium sized sauce pan and fill half way with water. Bring to a simmer, and then place a medium sized bowl in the saucepan. Place the butter and chocolate in the bowl. Stir occasionally, so the butter and chocolate melt and come to a smooth consistency. Remove the bowl from the saucepan, and then add the sugar and vanilla. Then, whisk in the eggs one at a time. Continue whisking until the mixture is completely smooth. Next, add the dry ingredients that you had set aside earlier, and whisk until just incorporated. For the cream cheese filling; beat the cream cheese in a small bowl with sugar, vanilla, and the egg yolk until just combined. Transfer half the brownie batter into the prepared baking dish. Then using a spatula add in half the cream cheese mixture. I just plopped about 3 spoonfuls into the brownie mixture. Then, add the remaining brownie batter and add the remaining cream cheese mixture. Then, use the tip of a knife and swirl the batter and cream cheese filling. Bake until the edges of the brownies have puffed slightly, and the toothpick inserted in center comes out with several moist crumbs attached. About 50 to 60 minutes. I believe mine took about 50 minutes to bake. Be sure to turn the brownie mixture half way thru baking to ensure it cooks evenly. Let brownies cool in pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Then, remove the brownies from the pan using the edges of the foil. Let cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 1 1/2 hours. Refrigerate until chilled, at least 3 hours. Cut brownies into 2-inch squares and serve.

Momofuko Compost Cookies

Back in October we had Iron Chef Chips and I was tasked to make a dessert utilizing the "secret" ingredient chips. Well, I tried a lot of recipes before I eventually settled on the Ice Cream Chipped Pie. One of the recipes I tried is this Momofuko Compost Cookie from Plumpie Cooks. It was actually a pretty big hit amongst my co-workers, but I didn't feel it tasted a lot like chips. However, it was a very tasty cookie. I enjoyed the saltiness that the chip brought to the cookie as well as the combination of reese's peanut butter chips and the variety of chocolate chips. Plus the fun thing about making momofuko compost cookies is you can use a variety of ingredients from oats to rice krispies to ritz crackers. It's all up to you and what you like as far as what to include in the cookie. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks), room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar
1 Tbsp corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup graham flour (optional)
2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp Kosher salt
1 cup oats
2 1/2 cups your favorite baking ingredients (options: chocolate chips, other flavored chips, Rollos, Cocoa Krispies, m&m’s, reese’s peanut butter cups)
1 1/2 cups your favorite snack foods (options: chips, pretzels, yogurt covered pretzels, ritz crackers, etc.)

Set your oven to pre-heat at 375 degrees. Take a medium bowl and combine the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. Take out your standing mixer with the paddle hook, and beat the butter, brown sugar, and corn syrup for two minutes until fluffy and pale yellow in color. Then add in your eggs and vanilla and mix. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula as you see fit. Mix for an additional 5 to 10 minutes until the mixture becomes a pale color and kind of doubles in size.  Slowly add in the flour mixture. Mix just until the dough comes together being careful not to over-mix. On low speed, add in your favorite ingredients that you will be using; chip, chocolate chips, reese's peanut butter chips, pretzels, etc. Beat until it is just incorporated. Take out your baking sheets and line with parchment paper. Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out the dough onto the sheets.

Once your cookies are portioned onto you baking sheets wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour or up to one week. According to Plumpie Cooks; if you bake the cookies while they are at room temperature they will not set properly in the oven. Pre-heat your oven to 375. Remove the plastic wrap and bake for 9 to 12 minutes. You may want to turn the baking sheet half way thru the cooking process to ensure even cooking. Around 9 minutes the edges of the cookies will start to brown; let them bake a couple minutes longer especially if they still look doughy in the center. Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack.

Carrot Cupcakes

It was our friend's birthday on January 2nd, and we wanted to do something nice for her since she's always doing nice things for us. I found out from her husband that one of her favorite desserts is Carrot Cake. Since we were going to celebrate the night we played volleyball; I thought it would be a great idea to make these into cupcakes. I found this recipe from Simply Recipes and I thought it turned out great. My only gripe, and really I was the only one who noticed, was the abundance of cardamon in the cake. I think 2 teaspoons of cardamon is a bit much, so the next time I make these I will cut it back to just a teaspoon. Overall, the birthday girl really liked the cupcakes, and I think they were a big hit. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup of chopped walnuts
• 1 pound of carrots
• 3 large eggs
• 1/2 cup of buttermilk (or add a teaspoon of lemon juice to regular milk and allow to stand for 10 minutes)
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
• 2 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon of orange zest
• 3 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon of baking soda
• 2 teaspoons of baking powder
• 1 teaspoon of kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons of ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon

First, pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees, and place the chopped walnuts onto a baking sheet. Put the walnuts in the oven and bake for about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside. Next, rinse carrots and peel and grate. Set aside. Take out the bowl from your standing mixer and add the carrots, eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, sugar, vegetable oil, and orange zest. Whisk thoroughly. Take out a large bowl and add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cardamom, and cinnamon. Gently stir the flour mixture into the carrot mixture. Be sure not to over-mix. Then, fold in the toasted chopped walnuts. Scoop the cupcake batter into your cupcake muffins using an ice cream scoop. It should make about 24 cupcakes. Place in your 350 degree oven and bake for about 20 minutes (or until a toothpick comes out clean when inserted into the cupcake) making sure you rotate the pans halfway thru the baking time. Allow cool in the muffin pan for about 5 minutes then remove the cupcakes and allow to cool on a wire rack.

Frosting:

To make the frosting; beat a cup of softened butter and 16 oz of softened cream cheese in your standing mixer until well combined. Sift in 1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar. I added a teaspoon of vanilla to give it a flavor boost. Spread onto cooled cupcakes.

Nutella Cream Tart

What better way to start out the new year than with a Nutella tart? Yep. That's precisely what we did on New Year's Eve. I was tasked to bring a dessert to the New Year's Eve party, and how could I resist making a Nutella dessert? Well, to break up the Nutella-monotony; I brought this Brown Butter Ice Cream, which was also a big hit. Thanks to Megan's Cookin for posting this recipe. It is so, so, so good. It isn't a heavy dessert, but smooth and silky. You can definitely taste the Nutella, but I think the flavor of this hazelnut spread is taken down just a tad by the addition of cream cheese, heavy cream, and sweetened condensed milk. Yeah, this isn't a pie you want to eat if you've made New Year's resolution to eat healthier or get in shape, but once you do meet your resolutions this is the perfect tart to celebrate with! Enjoy!

Ingredients:
Pie Crust:

• 25-30 chocolate wafers, crushed
• 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• Pinch of salt

Filling:

• 1 3/4 cups heavy cream, divided
• 1 cup nutella
• 3/4 cup (6 ounces)cream cheese, softened
• 1/3 cup plus 2 Tablespoons sweetened condensed milk
• dark chocolate shavings, for garnish

To make the pie crust; add the chocolate wafers to your food processor and process until the cookies are fine crumbles. Melt your butter and add a pinch of salt. Then combine the cookie mixture with the butter. Press into your 9 inch tart pan. Place the tart in the freezer and start your filling.

To make the filling; combine the nutella, cream cheese, sweetened condensed milk in your standing mixture.  Mix until combined but don't over-mix. Take out a medium bowl, and add in 3/4 cup of the heavy cream. Then using an electric hand mixer beat until the heavy cream forms soft peaks. Gently, fold in the whipped cream into the nutella mixture until it's well combined. Take out your tart from the freezer, and gently spoon the nutella mixture over the crust. Whip the remaining cup of heavy cream until it forms soft peaks. Gently, spread this on top of the nutella mixture. Refrigerate for a couple hours, or overnight.

Brown Butter Ice Cream w/ Chocolate Chips

I've become a convert of browned butter. It really gives a flavor boost to a dish. You can utilize browned butter in giving steaks more flavor, adding a nice boost to chocolate chip cookies, and now gives a complex and nutty flavor to ice cream. This ice cream is probably fairly similar to butter pecan ice cream, but I'm not too positive. However, it is a very delicious ice cream and relatively easy to to make. I came across this recipe on Portuguese Girl Cooks' Blog. To take it up a notch I decided to throw in jumbo semi-sweet chocolate chips. If you like the nuttiness of browned butter then I think you will like this ice cream. It's creamy, smooth, and delicious. As a matter of fact; it was a big hit at a New Year's party I attended. People even went back for seconds! Enjoy!

6 tablespoons (3/4 sticks) unsalted butter
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 cup whole milk
6 large egg yolks
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 oz jumbo semi-sweet chocolate chips

Take out a small frying pan; and melt the butter over medium to medium-high heat. Swirl the pan some to help with the browning. It'll take around 5 to 10 minutes for the butter to brown. You don't want the butter to burn, so pay careful attention to it as it cooks. The butter should have a nice nutty smell and look amber in color. Pour the butter thru a fine mesh strainer into a small bowl and set aside.
Take out a large saucepan, and bring the milk and heavy cream to a simmer. Meanwhile, add the egg yolks, vanilla, sugars, and salt to a standing mixer. Stir until the mixture is nice and thick. Slowly, add in the browned butter. Slowly, whisk in the hot milk mixture into the standing mixer. Then, immediately add it to your saucepan and cook (while stirring) until the temperature of a candy thermometer reads 170 degrees. Plus, the back of the spoon should have a nice coating on it. This will take about 5 minutes.
Strain the custard into a bowl and place in the fridge for a couple hours until cold. Once the custard is cold; process in your ice cream mixture according to the manufacturer's directions. Right at the end of the ice cream making add in the semi sweet chocolate chips. Then, pour into a container and seal air-tight. Place in your freezer and freeze until firm.

Nutella Buns

Sigh. I really need to stop with the whole Nutella situation. I think I have a problem, and it's probably time I seek help from Nutella Anonymous. I'm sure such a program exists. I mean; I know I'm addicted to this stuff, and I am pretty positive others are, too. Sigh. Well, here you go. Another delicious Nutella recipe. I found this particular recipe from Saveur and decided to try it the other night. OMG. Straight out of the oven it was simply divine. I inhaled one right before I was to eat my dinner. The next day was good, but definitely not as tasty as straight out of the oven. I would suggest warming them in the oven if you eat it the following day. I'm sorry. Please don't be mad at me for posting another heavenly Nutella recipe. Enjoy!

Ingredients:
1 (¼-oz.) package active dry yeast
¼ cup, plus 1 tsp. sugar
½ cup milk
9 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened, plus more for greasing
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 eggs
4 cups flour, plus more for dusting
¾ cup brown sugar
⅔ cup coarsely chopped pecans
1½ cups Nutella
1 tsp. ground cinnamon

Take out a small bowl and add the yeast, 1 tsp sugar, and 1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees). Stir and let sit for 10 minutes or until the yeast mixture is nice and foamy. Meanwhile, take out a small saucepan and pour in the milk and bring to a simmer. Turn off the heat and set aside for 5 minutes. In a mixing bowl, add 4 tbsp softened butter, remaining sugar, salt, yeast mixture, and 2 eggs. Stir in the milk and add the flour a little at a time. I actually ended up using all 4 cups. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead by hand for about 3 minutes. Place in a lightly-greased large bowl and then set it in a warm oven (85 degrees) so it can rise for a couple hours or until doubled in size.

Once the dough is about ready to be pulled from the warm oven, take out a small sauce pan and add the brown sugar and the remaining 4 tablespoon of butter. If you are using the pecans add them to the saucepan. Once the brown sugar and butter is melted; pour this into a 9x13 baking dish. Set aside.

Once the dough has doubled in size; remove from the oven. Now, set the oven temperature to pre-heat at 375. Then, punch down the down and let rest for a minute or two. Roll out the dough into a 15x20 rectangle. Carefully, spread the Nutella around the dough while leaving an inch border around the edges. Take your remaining egg and lightly whip. Then using a brush, dip into the egg wash and spread along the 1 inch border. Carefully, roll the dough into a log and cut using a sharp knife into 12 rounds. I think I got about 8 or 9 rolls out of the dough. Transfer rounds cut side up to the baking dish. Sprinkle with cinnamon if you are using and place in the oven. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the rolls are a nice golden color. Once ready, remove from the oven and let cool for a couple minutes. Serve inverted on a plate and drizzle with the syrup from the baking dish.

Martha Washington Candies

Who doesn’t love candy? And, who doesn’t love chocolate, pecans, butter, and coconut? Well, if you are like me and you love all 4 of those ingredients then you will love these Martha Washington Candies. I used to make these candies all the time at Christmas back in my college years, because they are really super simple to make. But, be warned; they make a ton. And, you will probably find yourself popping a few in your mouth; you know, just to make sure they taste okay. This is another recipe where I think my mother got it from her mother. But, either way it’s super creamy and delicious. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

Ingredients:

4 sticks butter, melted

1 2 pound bag of powdered sugar

2 cups chopped pecans

1 can sweetened condensed milk

2 tsp vanilla

10 oz bag of coconut

1 12oz bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips

¾ block of paraffin wax (find in the canning section of your grocery store)

Take a large bowl, and combine all these ingredients thru the coconut. Mix well. Set in the fridge for a couple hours to cool.

Around the 2^nd hour, take out a small saucepan and combine the wax and the chocolate. Let  the mixture melt over medium heat. Once the mixture is melted; set the heat on low/warm. Now, remove the candy mixture from your fridge, and using a small ice cream scooper; scoop out the candy, roll into a ball, and dip into the chocolate mixture. I used a slotted spoon to help coat the candies in chocolate. It can get pretty messy with your hands. Then, place the candies on a wire rack with parchment paper under it so the candies can set. It should make around 60+ candies. Best to keep in the freezer as they can get really soft if left at room temperature. Enjoy!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Clusters

You know what’s good? Simple. Easy. Uncomplicated. Especially during the time of year when things are often busy, difficult and stress-inducing. And these little clusters are the epitome of simple. Just 4 ingredients, a microwave, and some wax paper and you’ve got a simple little chocolatey candy that tastes really impressive. I love to include these in my Christmas cookie gifts because I always overcommit myself to difficult cookies and these are a lifesaver to fill out the tin at the last minute. (And hey, I hear Santa is a big fan as well).

Ingredients

12 oz semisweet chocolate chips

10 oz peanut butter chips

3 cups (give or take) unsalted peanuts

Sea salt for garnish

Are you ready for this? Simply empty the bags of chocolate and peanut butter chips into a large microwave safe bowl. Melt them. This is really easy if you have a melt setting on your microwave, but if not, just make sure to keep the power on fairly low and check it often. Melt until you can stir it together with no lumps and make sure the chocolate and peanut butter is completely combined. Then pour in your peanuts. You might want to start with fewer nuts and stir it in, then see where you are as far as your nut to chocolate ratio. You can always add more.

Once your nuts are stirred in, set out some wax paper on your countertop. Use a big spoon to drop clusters of these chocolate nuts. This will get messy, I promise. Just go slow and don’t lick your fingers until you’re done. Once you’ve laid out your clusters, go back and sprinkle just a touch of sea salt on top before they’ve completely set. If you wait too long, the salt will not stick, so you may have to work in batches. And that’s it! I guarantee you’ll get lots of compliments and guess what, you don’t have to tell anyone how easy it is to make. I won’t tell.