Category: Baking

Baking, Breads

Advantium Rolls

by Wendi10 Comments on Advantium Rolls
not my actual roll...for illustrative purposes only.

You may recall that I spent Christmas 2010 with Rose Levy Berenbaum’s Bread Bible recipes for dutch baby and dinner rolls.  Both recipes were so successful and made the day feel like a holiday should that I decided that Rose should be part of Christmas 2011.  Specifically, I wanted to make a batch of cloverleaf dinner rolls so that I could give the Proof setting on the Advantium a whirl.

I was hoping for a Christmas miracle to be honest.  My luck with getting bread dough to rise is spotty.  I follow directions, I use water that is neither too hot nor too cold, I use high quality yeast, and I try my best to surrender my fears to the bread gods.  Maybe our house is a bit on the chilly side.  Or maybe I have evil spirits in the air taking all the mojo out of the yeast.  Or maybe I just needed the Advantium to banish those evil spirits and unleash my bread baking super power.

The first rise of the dough was glorious.  When I took it out of the Advantium, it had grown as though any other outcome was simply inconceivable.  I deflated the dough, gave it a turn or two, and set it back in the Advantium on Proof for the second rise expecting that my good fortune with the first rise must have been a fluke.

Not so.  The second rise was as perfectly executed as the first.  I then portioned the dough, rolled each portion into balls, and set three dough balls into each cup of a muffin tin.  While the big oven heated, the dough went back into the Advantium for the final rise.

Once the dough had achieved about 3/4 of the final rise, my impatience got the best of me.  I brushed melted butter on the top of the rolls, gave them a generous dusting of kosher salt, and set them in the oven to fulfill their cloverleaf destiny.  If I had a been just a bit more patient on the final rise, my rolls would have achieved maximum lift when they hit the intense heat of the oven.  But I wasn’t.  And they didn’t.  And in spite of that, they still emerged golden brown and I eagerly pulled one apart to enjoy its salted, buttery deliciousness.

Is there anything better than bread, still warm from the oven?  The correct answer is no.

The rolls that we didn’t eat with Christmas dinner were carefully wrapped in plastic and stashed in the freezer.  I think they lasted all of two weeks before we had picked the last one off.  Which means that I am long overdue to set a bowl of flour, yeast, and water in my Advantium and harness the super power of the Proof setting.

Want the recipe that I used?  Click here to jump back in time.  The only thing I did differently this year, besides proofing the dough in the Advantium, was letting the starter develop in the refrigerator overnight.  Yes, it added even more time to an already lengthy recipe but it wasn’t like I was doing any more work.

Disclaimer:  As part of my partnership with GE, I received an Advantium oven.  All opinions posted about my Advantium experience are my own.

Baking

Advantium Brownie Bites

by Wendi10 Comments on Advantium Brownie Bites

I cannot tell a lie, one of the perks of going to food blogger conferences is coming home with goodie bags full of products.  Last year at Big Summer Potluck, the goodie bag included a package of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Brownie Mix.  Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to do with it since I don’t typically bake gluten free.  So I stashed it away in the pantry confident that a use for it would present itself.

Fast forward six months later.  I was working on my holiday baking list and realized that the pumpkin bread I was going to be sending to out of town family was a gluten filled no-no for my father in law’s lady friend Linda {hey Linda, bet you never thought you’d see your name here!}.  I wanted her to be able to enjoy the treats but I know NOTHING about gluten free baking except that it’s not something you can do halfway.  Then I remembered that package of gluten free brownie mix….Bob’s Red Mill for the win!

I hadn’t done much baking in the Advantium so I figured now was the time to correct that.  Operation GF Brownie Bites also presented a perfect scenario for me to compare  the final product baked in my traditional oven against the Advantium Quick Cook and Convection settings.

First off, let me say that if I didn’t know these brownie bites were gluten free, I would have never been able to tell.  Bob’s Red Mill does an outstanding job putting together a gluten free mix that will satisfy your brownie cravings.  You might have to search around a few stores to find it locally, but if you need a gluten free baked good, it’s worth the search.

So how did the Advantium do?  For me, baked goods from the gas oven are the standard to which all comparisons are made.  My gas oven, if not entirely level, is reliable.  I can usually tell by smell, touch, and sight when baked goods are done.  When in doubt, I have my trusty cake tester.  The brownie bites that I baked in my gas oven were moist and chocolatey.  The tops were firm but the interior was soft and yielding.  That was my control batch.

I have to admit I modified the pre-programmed Quick Cook brownie setting to eliminate the microwave from cycling on at all since I was using a metal baking pan.  Metal in the microwave is a big no-no.  The Quick Cook brownie bites were drier and cakier than my control batch.  They still had a rich chocolate taste but they weren’t as moist, even after cutting the cooking time by five minutes.  I wouldn’t have thought to do that but the Advantium beeped to tell me to check for doneness before the end of the cooking cycle.  Well played Advantium.

For the last batch, I switched the Advantium over to the Convection setting.  My mini-muffin pan fit perfectly on the metal turntable so I didn’t bother installing the wire shelf.  When all was said and done, this was my unqualified favorite batch.  These brownie bites were even moister than the ones from the gas oven.  The tops had just enough firmness to give the bite a little structure but gave way easily to the perfectly undercooked brownie middle.  Once fully cooled, the bites were sturdy enough to pack and ship but were still a perfect light bit of chocolatey, gluten free goodness.  Advantium Convection for the win!

Linda, I hope that Jim shared the brownie bites with you.  If not, let me know and I will bake up another batch exclusively for your enjoyment.

Disclaimer:  As part of my partnership with GE, I received an Advantium oven.  All opinions posted about my Advantium experience are my own.

Baking, Dessert, Sweets

Toffee Shortbread Bites

by Wendi13 Comments on Toffee Shortbread Bites

I find it somewhat ironic that for someone who has a hobby devoted to stringing together words into sentences and stories, I am sometimes completely unable to find the right words to express the thoughts in my head.  Usually, this bit of irony rears its head when I am trying to convey my gratitude to someone.  Too often the words “thank you” just don’t seem enough.  Thank you is what I say when someone holds a door open for me or tells me to have a nice day.  It’s what I say without even thinking.  90% of the time, it’s enough.  But there are moments, the other 10%, when it falls short.

Because expressing my gratitude, especially when someone’s kindness has touched me beyond words, is an affirmation. An affirmation that I am not alone.  An affirmation that I am worthy.  An affirmation that no matter what the challenge may be, there is grace and compassion in the world.  But Hallmark hasn’t come out with that line of cards yet.  So until they do, I fall back on a tried and true trick….I wrap my thanks in butter, sugar, and flour.

In my experience, the language of baked goods is universal.

Toffee Shortbread Bites

Adapted from Desserts 4 Today, Abby Dodge

BAH Note: These shortbready cookies have a crumbly dough that should come together in your hands.  If you go to form the dough and it will not hold together, add more butter 1 tablespoon at a time, until it will.  Because of this diversion from Abby Dodge’s ratio, and some smaller portioning on my part, I squeezed nearly 48 of these beauties out of what should have been a batch of 24 (below).

  • 10 tablespoons room temperature butter
  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
  • 8 ounces chocolate covered toffee candy bar, chopped

Heat the oven to 350 degrees and line a mini muffin pan with paper liners.

On low speed, beat together the butter and sugar in the workbowl of stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment for approximately 1 minute or until combined.

Add the flour and mix on low for another minute or just until all the flour is combined with the butter and sugar.  Stir in the chopped candy bar bits on low just until t hey are mixed into the dough.

Shape the dough into 1 inch balls and place into the prepared pan.  Work quickly so that the buttery dough does not start to get soft and melty in your hands.  Bake for 15 – 19 minutes, turning the pan halfway through, until the cookies have puffed and the tops look cracked and just a little dry.

Cool on a rack completely before serving or storing in an airtight container.

{printable recipe}

Baking, Dessert, Sweets

Ruth’s Brownies

by Wendi9 Comments on Ruth’s Brownies

Let’s get the elephant out of the room and state the obvious…clearly this was not my finest moment.  All of my missteps turned incredible brownie possibility into a hot mess of reality.  Let’s review, shall we:

Misstep #1

I forgot to turn the temperature down when I put the pan in the oven.

Misstep #2

When I realized that I hadn’t lowered the temperature and tried to turn it down to 350, I neglected to hit the “start” button so the temp didn’t change and the batter continued to bake at 400 degrees.  In all I’d say it baked at too high a temp for a good 20 minutes which probably explains why the edges puffed up like a souffle.

Misstep #3

After 30 minutes a tester came out clean, despite Ruth’s comment that the normal toothpick test doesn’t really work for these brownies.  Worrying that I had overbaked them, I pulled them out of the oven early.

As you can see from my actual, didn’t add or delete any elements, photo above, the brownies were only about 3/4 set.  It was absolutely impossible to cut them into anything resembling a square.  However….if I would have had a bowl of vanilla ice cream, the partly set/partly molten chocolate lava would have been the perfect topping to spoon in.  Sadly, there was no ice cream to save these brownies from their fate of being tipped into the rubbish bin.

The saddest part of all this is that when I scraped the batter into the pan and then stole a lick or two from the spatula, this was hands down the best brownie batter I had ever tasted.  Don’t let my failure to turn the perfect batter into the perfect brownies keep you from giving this a try.  Learn from my missteps….or at least have a pint of vanilla ice cream ready to go in the freezer just in case.

Ruth’s Brownies

Adapted from Ruth Reichl, Tender at the Bone

BAH Note:  When I need to melt butter and chocolate, I usually do it in the microwave.  I tend to either work in 30 second intervals, stirring in between each, or setting the cook time for 2-3 minutes on 20% power and stirring every 30-45 seconds, repeating as necessary.

  • 2/3 cup butter
  • 5 ounces unsweetened chocolate (not cocoa powder)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup sifted flour

Heat the oven to 400 degrees.  Butter and flour an 8 or 9 inch square baking pan and set aside.

Melt the butter and chocolate in the microwave or on top of the stove in a double boiler.  When they have completely melted, stir in the vanilla and set the bowl aside.

Beat the eggs and salt in the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.  Add the sugar and beat for 3-5 minutes on medium until the mixture becomes almost white in color.

Reduce the mixer to low and stir in the melted chocolate until it is just combined.  Add the flour and continue to mix on low just until there are no white steaks of flour remaining.  Transfer the batter to the prepared pan.  Place the pan on a baking sheet and put it in the oven.

IMMEDIATELY REDUCE THE OVEN TO 350 DEGREES.

Bake for 40 minutes, rotating the pan half way through the cooking time.

Let the brownies cool completely before cutting into 12 servings.

{printable recipe}

Baking, Breakfast/Brunch

Bran Muffins

by Wendi12 Comments on Bran Muffins

This is the tale of two muffins.  Two bran muffins.  On the surface, they are completely identical.  I used the exact same recipe for both batches of muffins.  So what could possibly be different about them?  I’ll give you a hint, it has everything to do with how I baked them.

One muffin was baked in my big oven.  400 degrees for 20 minutes.  The other muffin was baked in my Advantium.  380 degrees for 16 to 18 minutes.  One muffin was made on a lazy afternoon.  The other muffin was made after a long day of work.  Can you tell which is which?

I typically avoid baking on weeknights because I’m tired, I’m cranky, and it’s tiresome to have to haul out all of the pots and pans that live in the oven in order to heat it up and bake something.  But after the Advantium arrived, I wanted to challenge myself to see if its super powers could make baking accessible to me during the week.

The proof is in the picture.  The muffin on the right is from the batch that I made on a Thursday night.  It helped that the recipe I used was minimally fussy and didn’t require me to break out the stand mixer, let the batter rest, or otherwise allow me to get sidetracked from my muffin mission.  It also helped that I halved the original recipe and only baked up a dozen of these on a weeknight.  Sometimes the smaller capacity of the Advantium totally works to my advantage.

So the two muffins may look the same, but how did they taste?  If I hadn’t known which batch of muffins of which, I wouldn’t have been able to tell you which came out of the big oven and which came out of the Advantium.

Weeknight baking mission accomplished.

Bran Muffins

Adapted from The Muffin Myth

BAH Note: There’s nothing fussy about these muffins.  They are full of wheat bran which I was readily able to find in the grocery store.  Look for Bob’s Red Mill brand.  I think they are the bran muffin equivalent of a blank canvas…sturdy and up for the job but they aren’t out to wow you.  So you might want to add in some fresh fruit and spices you like to give them a little something special.

Advantium Tip: To modify the recipe below for use in your Advantium, place the metal cooking tray on the turntable (instead of the glass tray) and install the wire rack in the bottom position.  Select Convection Bake from the menu and set the temperature to 380 degrees.  You will want to start checking for doneness after about 15 minutes.  Depending on how full you’ve filled your cups, the muffins should be done in approximately 16 to 18 minutes.

  • 1 cup applesauce
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 3 cups wheat bran
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 cup white whole wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Heat your oven to 400 degrees and line approximately 18 muffin cups with liners.  Mix the applesauce, brown sugar, eggs, milk, water, and vanilla together in a large bowl.  Combine the wheat bran, flours, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in another bowl.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until just combined.

Using an ice cream scoop, fill your muffin cups (the muffin myth said she got 12 out of the recipe but I made mine a bit smaller and got about 18) and bake for 20 minutes or until the tops are firm.

Cool in the pan for 15 minutes before turning the muffins out on a wire rack to cool completely.  Leftover muffins can be wrapped in plastic and frozen.

{priable recipe}

Disclaimer:  As part of my partnership with GE, I received an Advantium oven.  All opinions posted about my Advantium experience are my own.

Baking, Breakfast/Brunch, Sweets

Pumpkin Bread

by Wendi13 Comments on Pumpkin Bread

You may feel like you’re experiencing a bit of deja vu seeing that photo.  Yes, you saw it when I talked about the quick bread frosting I made with the new Kerrygold Premium Spreadable Butter.  You even got the recipe for the frosting.  But I didn’t really talk about what was under the frosting.  And that must be addressed.

Back in October I was introduced to this pumpkin bread by my friend Mary.  She stopped by for a visit and brought along a wee loaf of it for me to enjoy.  Now let me say that a visit from friends is an absolute pleasure.  But when they also come bearing gifts lovingly made with their own hands….multiply that by infinity.

After only one bite I was badgering Mary for her recipe.  And she told me that she had found it on allrecipes.com.  A few google moments later, I pulled the recipe up on my phone and had her confirm that I found the right one before I could continue in any kind of normal conversation.

A few weeks later, I went about making the pumpkin bread not knowing the chain of events that it was about to start.  First, I used it as the delivery vehicle for the quick bread frosting as part of the Kerrygold competition.  Then, I took some to work for a birthday celebration….congratulations, you’re a year older, please have a slice of quick bread.  I also delivered a loaf to the folks at the coffee shop who get my morning caffeination needs met Monday through Friday and to my chiropractor and his staff for taking such good care of me after the latest fender bender.  Lastly, I sent the rest of the batch off to the Headquarters staff of my sorority to thank them for all of their support in the last few months.

Yes, I was using butter, sugar, and pumpkin to express my thanks and appreciation.  Or in the case of the competition, to share my #butterlove…it’s what I do.  And I do it for the joy that I receive from the act of expressing my gratitude or sharing my love of something with others.  It’s as simple as that.  But sometimes, that gratitude has a way of being returned to me.  Take the Headquarters staff.  They had no idea that a lovebomb was coming their way.  When it arrived, it made them feel special.  And it could have ended there with their enjoyment of the pumpkin bread and cookies.  But they took a moment to sit down and write me a note to tell me how much they enjoyed the treats and to thank me for thinking of them.  It made my heart smile.

And then, most unexpectedly, my chiropractor asked me whether I sell any of the things I bake because he had 16 guests coming for Thanksgiving and wanted to include the pumpkin bread in their holiday meal.  If I hadn’t been so relaxed and dreamy from the adjusting he was doing, I would have probably laughed because it has never been my ambition to do the cooking and baking as my profession.  On the contrary, I do it as a bit of personal therapy.  So I told him that what I don’t keep for our personal enjoyment I give away.  And then I asked whether I could give him a batch of pumpkin bread for his Thanksgiving.  Because really, is there a bigger honor than being asked to share something I have made with someone’s family for Thanksgiving?  In that moment, I felt the Universe beaming my gratitude back to me.

I can’t promise you that this pumpkin bread will bring you fame or fortune.  But it just might bring you a bit of gratitude when it’s least expected.

Pumpkin Bread

Adapted from allrecipes.com

BAH Note: Go ahead and bake up two batches like I did…the quantities below make a single batch. Because according to Mary, the loaves freeze beautifully.  So even if you plan on giving most of it away, stash a well wrapped loaf or two in your freezer for your own enjoyment.   You  will likely need to mix each batch separately, unless you’ve got a ginormous mixing bowl.  And be sure that you’re using canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.

  • 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin puree
  • 4 eggs
  • 1 cup vegetable oil
  • 2/3 cup water
  • 3 cups sugar
  • 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour six 3×5 disposable aluminum loaf pans and set them on a baking sheet.

In a large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree, eggs, oil, water, and sugar until combined.

In a separate bowl, using a clean whisk or a fork, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices.

Stir the flour mixture into the pumpkin mixture until they are just combined.  Pour the batter into the loaf pans and bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating your pan halfway through the cooking time, until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.

Transfer the loaves to a rack to cool completely before wrapping in several layers of plastic wrap for freezer storage.

{printable recipe}

Baking, Dessert, Sweets

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

by Wendi3 Comments on Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

2011.  The year I turned 40.  Oh my.  The funny thing is that I’m writing this about a week before the actual birthday and it won’t post until well after the day has come and gone and I take my first few steps down the road towards that next big number.

40.  In my mind it doesn’t feel much different than 20 or 30.  Except maybe for the morning after a night with the box of wine.  Then I definitely feel it….damn liver ain’t what it used to be.  But then I start to think about other people I know and what marked their lives at the same age.

For instance, at age 40 my parents had children that were teenagers…closer to college age than the middle school years.  At 40, my grandparents had raised one child and were less than a decade away from beginning to raise two grandchildren.  At age 40, my father and both of my grandfathers had been to war and back.  I tell myself those were different times with different opportunities and expectations.

Could I see myself as the quintessential housewife as personified by Harriett Nelson?  Unlikely.  I’d more likely have been Lucy Ricardo on a good day or Betty Draper on a bad one.  Although I say that from the perspective of living in, and being shaped by, one age and wondering if that version of me would have fit in another age.

I can’t really imagine my life being different than what it is.  Sure, there are hopes that may never be realized but there are also things I never thought to hope for that have been part of my world.  I am not one to believe that the absence of something unknown is greater than the actual presence of something else.

So what is it exactly about the age 40 that strikes fear into the hearts of countless 39 year olds?  What is it that sends people into the first stages of mid life crisis and what symptoms should I be on the watch for to indicate that I’ve stepped into the danger zone?

While you ponder those mysteries of life, I’m going to make myself a batch of peanut butter and jelly bars.  It may not be a traditional treat to celebrate ones birthday but I think I’ve pretty much established over the last 40 years that I’m not exactly traditional.

Peanut Butter and Jelly Bars

Adapted from Bon Appetit, March 2011

BAH Note: If it weren’t for the prevalence of peanut allergies, I would say these should be mandatory at all bake sales.  Imagine the best parts of a pb&j (without the pesky crusts) in one bite sized morsel.  If you ask The Googley about peanut butter and jelly bars, you’ll see that all the cool kids are making them.  Not that that’s a reason that you should. But you really should make them…you know you want to.

  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3/4 cup peanut butter
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
  • 1 stick of butter, softened
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup jelly

Heat your oven to 350 degrees and completely line an 8″ square baking dish with aluminum foil, leaving an inch or two overhang around the edges.  Lightly spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray.

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

In the workbowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the peanut butter, brown sugar, and butter until smooth.  Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.  Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until combined.

Transfer half of the dough to the prepared baking pan and press it into an even layer.  Place the pan in the refrigerator.  Put the remaining dough in the freezer for 10 minutes.

Remove the pan from the refrigerator and spread the jelly over the base in an even layer.  Remove the dough from the freezer and use your fingers to crumble the dough over the jelly layer.

Bake for 30 minutes until the top is golden brown.  Cool the bars completely in the pan before using the foil handles to remove the bars from the pan.  Peel the foil from the edges and cut into bars.

Store leftovers in an airtight container.

{printable recipe}

Baking, Dessert, Sweets

Chocolate Sponge Puddings

by Wendi14 Comments on Chocolate Sponge Puddings

My house has been taken over by canning jars.  They are everywhere.  My kitchen, my dining room, inside my refrigerator, and down in my basement.  Some are full of obvious things, like jam and marmalade, and not so obvious things, like salad dressing and bacon grease.  Others hold dry goods like rice, dehydrated mushrooms, and pasta.  But it’s the ones that sit empty, waiting to fulfill their destiny as a vessel, that taunt me.

So I try and find creative ways to use them.  Did you know that an 8 ounce canning jar holds one serving of soup perfectly?  It does and so I use them when I pack soup in my lunch.  It’s this creative use of jars that, to me, explains the explosion of the “in a jar” phenomenon.  Pie in a jar?  Yep.  Cupcake in a jar?  Absolutely.  I’ve also seen fruit cobbler in a jar, cookie mix in a jar, and of course cocktails in a jar.

What you don’t realize when you start canning is that the empty jars will take up a lot of freaking space.  So it’s better to actively use them for something, anything, than to find room to store them all.  Besides, everything looks absolutely adorable when served in a jar.  Hence, “in a jar” trends.

This of course is only my opinion and is not backed up by any scientific research or independent measurements.  Basically, it’s just me:

A) Trying to justify my continued acquisition of jars

B) Finding an way to transition to a recipe for Chocolate Sponge Pudding….baked in a jar.

C) All of the above.

Chocolate Sponge Puddings

Adapted from Melissa d’Arabian

BAH Note: Despite the simplicity of the recipe, I struggled a fair bit.  My egg whites fought being incorporated into the batter.  And I had to nearly double Melissa’s recommended cooking time in order to get the puddings to set.  Of course, I didn’t find out that they needed more cooking until I had a spoonful ready to pop in my mouth…so that one didn’t make it back into the oven and we’ll write that serving off as quality control.  After some additional time in the oven, the bottom of the pudding was rich and thick while the top was spongelike and cakey.  You can make these in ramekins but I used small (4 ounce) canning jars.  So where I say “jars” below, you can pretend it says ramekins if that’s what you have.

  • Nonstick cooking spray
  • 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 eggs, separated
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt (I used vanilla salt, because I had some)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1/4 cup whole milk

Heat the oven to 325 degrees and spray the insides of 4 small canning jars with nonstick spray.  Divide 1 tablespoon of sugar among the jars and completely coat the inside with the sugar.

Combine the cocoa, flour, and salt in a small bowl.  In another bowl, or mixing cup, combine the milk and vanilla.  In a medium bowl, beat the egg yolks with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar with a hand mixer until the sugar dissolves and the yolks are very pale yellow.  Add the half of the cocoa mixture and then half of the milk to the eggs in two additions, beat until smooth and then add the remaining cocoa and milk and thoroughly combine.

In a separate bowl, using clean beaters, whip the egg whites until stiff peaks form.  Gently fold the egg whites into the batter until incorporated, being careful not to overmix the batter, and divide the batter among the jars.

Fill a baking pan or dutch oven large enough to hold the jars with enough hot water to come halfway up the sides of the jars.  Carefully place the jars in the water bath and bake for 15 to 30 minutes or until the sides of the cakes begin to pull away from the jar and the top of the cake springs back when lightly touched.

Carefully remove the jars from the water bath (if you have canning tongs, they would be perfect) and serve immediately.  Leftovers can be refrigerated…but I can’t really imagine there being any leftovers.

{printable recipe}

Baking, Dessert, Sweets

Deb’s Snickerdoodles

by Wendi14 Comments on Deb’s Snickerdoodles


I used to be a fantastic English student in my day.  I had stellar powers of comprehension and understanding…although I couldn’t diagram a sentence to save my life.  {tangent} Do kids today still learn that? {end tangent}  I could expound upon a theme with ease and fair amount of SAT appropriate words.  And I could compare and contrast.  Yes I could.  Although 20+ years later, I can’t exactly recall the kinds of things I was comparing and contrasting, but I know I did it well.

In my present day, non classroom based life, I don’t often find myself handed many opportunities to go all comparey and contrasty.  Sure there are moments of do I like x better than y, but there’s no requirement to dig deeper and go below the obvious.  And as a result, my powers of compare and contrast have diminished.  What was once an automatic response that kicked in and stimulated my rational thinking skills is now more likely to elicit a response of “huh? you want to know what, can’t you see i am in the middle of {insert trashy reality television show here}” rather than a well thought out analysis.

I suppose I should have kept my nose in the books.  If I had, perhaps I could present you with a concise, articulate summary of a tale of two snickerdoodles.  But instead, I chose to rot my brain with trivia and television after college.  So the best I can do is to tell you that if you’re looking for a classic snickerdoodle, this is the recipe you want to try.  The cookies are crisp and delightfully buttery.  They make me override any sense of reason I may have and compel me to keep shoving them in my mouth.  That being said, they are not the only snickerdoodles around.  You want a softer, domed cookie?  Then click here and give these cream cheese snickerdoodles a go.  The cakier cookies are perfect as is or you could layer some ice cream or frosting between two and make a snickerdoodle sammich.

I don’t think that paragraph above would have necessarily gotten me a good mark in English class.  So maybe we can forget about the comparing and contrasting and just get to the baking?  What do you say?

Deb’s Snickerdoodles

Adapted from Martha Stewart, as seen on Smitten Kitchen

BAH Note: I suggest that you make the dough the night before you want to bake the cookies.  Yes, it’s a pain to remember to plan these things but this dough will not go from bowl to oven with a good long time out in the Fridigaire.  If you don’t have that kind of time, give it at least an hour or two in the fridge before rolling and baking.

  • 2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 sticks butter, at room temperature
  • 1 3/4 cups sugar
  • 2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
  • 2 large eggs

Whisk together the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.  In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar until light and fluffy, approximately 2 minutes.

Add the eggs and beat until thoroughly combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.  Add the flour mixture and mix until thoroughly combined.  Cover the top of the bowl and refrigerate overnight.

15 minutes before you are ready to bake, heat the oven to 400 degrees and line a sheet pan with parchment.  Mix the remaining 1/4 cup sugar with the ground cinnamon in a small bowl.  Using a small ice cream disher, scoop out two tablespoons of dough for each cookie, roll the dough into a ball which is then rolled in the cinnamon sugar, and place about two inches apart on the baking sheet.

Bake for approximately 10 minutes, or until the center is just set and starting to crack.  Cool on the sheet pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a rack to cool completely.

Leftovers, if there are such things, can be stored in an airtight container.

{printable recipe}

Baking, Dessert, Sweets

Coconut Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

by Wendi21 Comments on Coconut Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

I’m calling this Coconut Cake a happy accident.  Although, in the moment there was very little I was happy about.  I started out to make a batch of Ina’s Coconut Cupcakes for a coworker’s birthday.  And I failed spectacularly.  Instead of the batter rising nicely to form perfect cupcake tops, it spread all over the top of the ungreased muffin tin.  The result of which was two dozen decapitated cupcakes.

It was not a pretty picture.

But it was a pretty funny picture and when I posted it on Twitter I got some great comments.  @breadandputter asked “who came along and chewed off all the tops?”  And @creativculinary said “Oh no…not Ina. Not coconut. Not cupcakes?”   She also suggested that I use a “high altitude” explanation to account for the carnage.  If my house even sat on top of a hill I’d run with that idea.  Sadly, the fault was squarely on me.

And I still had nothing to take to work for the birthday celebration.  Despite the fact that I was pretty steamed about the three sticks of butter that got sacrificed in the name of cupcake mutilation, I laid another two sticks out to soften while I washed the bowls and beaters and grody muffin tin with the caked on remnants of my failure.  By the time Coconut Cake was mixed, baked, and cooled I may have had a little bit of an attitude.

But there was still frosting to make.  In spite of my crankiness towards the cake, the frosting and I were on great terms.  It whipped up in no time and spread beautifully onto the layers.  Once the final bit of cream cheese goodness had been applied, I mentally moved on from Coconut Cake.  I even put the recipe in the recycling bin without transcribing it for the blog.  I was ambivalent about its very existence after a day that involved 6 sticks of butter, 10 eggs, and 5 cups of sugar.

At work the next day, we cut into Coconut Cake.  And I came home and dug that recipe out of the recycling.

The cake was moist without being wet or soggy.  And the coconut in the batter gave it an unexpected texture but didn’t overwhelm the cake with a coconutty flavor.  As a vehicle to move frosting into my mouth, it was excellent.  Once everything came up to room temperature after spending the night in the refrigerator, the frosting was smooth and creamy; not overly buttery and not overly cream cheesey.  There was the added bonus of apricot jam mixed into the frosting between the layers.  It worked perfectly with the rest of the flavors.

So yes, Coconut Cake was a happy accident.  Coworkers were happy.  I was happy.  The only person not happy in this whole thing was The Mistah.  He didn’t get to sample the cake.  But don’t feel sorry for him.  He’s got two dozen mangled coconut cupcake bottoms to tide him over until I pull the next treat out of the oven.

PS – Don’t be fooled by that less than sexy picture above.  That’s what happened when I didn’t get a shot of the cake at home and had to use the office’s aged digital camera to document its existence.

Coconut Cake

Adapted from Bon Appetit, March 2011

BAH Note: Make sure you use a container that will hold at least two cups when you mix the baking soda into the buttermilk.  The buttermilk will react with the baking soda and the mixture will double in volume.

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/3 cups sweetened flaked coconut
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 cups sugar or 1 cup sugar and 1 cup vanilla sugar
  • 2 sticks butter at room temperature
  • 5 large egg yolks
  • 4 large egg whites at room temperature
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt (vanilla salt if you have some)

Heat your oven to 350 degrees.  Line two 9″ round cake pans with parchment rounds and spray the prepared pans with nonstick cooking spray.

Mix the flour and coconut in a medium bowl.  In a separate bowl, combine the buttermilk and baking soda.

In the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar for approximately 2 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add the egg yolks and beat to combine.  Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately, beginning and ending with the flour.  After the last of the flour is added, stop mixing once the batter is just combined.

In a separate bowl with clean beaters, beat the egg whites and salt until stiff peaks form.  Mix 1/3 of the whites into the batter and then fold in the remaining whites until just blended.

Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans and bake for approximately 35 minutes or until the cakes are set and a tested inserted in the center comes out clean or with just a crumb or two.  Cool the cakes in the pan for 10 minutes before turning them out onto racks to cool completely.

{printable recipe}

Cream Cheese Frosting

Adapted from Bon Appetit, March 2011

BAH Note: My butter wasn’t exactly at room temperature when I made the frosting.  But after a few moments in the mixer, everything was just fine.  Be sure to start the mixer out on LOW speed or you will have powdered sugar all over your kitchen.

  • 3 1/3 cups powdered sugar
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 stick butter, at room temperature
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/2 to 1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
  • 3 to 4 tablespoons jelly, jam, or preserves (optional)

Combine the sugar, butter, cream cheese, and vanilla in the work bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment.  Mix on low speed until the sugar starts to work into the butter and cream cheese then increase the speed to medium high until completely smooth.

If adding a fruit filling in the frosting between the layers, transfer about 1 cup of the frosting into a separate bowl.  Mix in the fruit filling to taste before spreading it onto the top of the bottom cake layer.  Top this with the top cake layer and use the remaining plain frosting to frost the top and sides of the cake.  Sprinkle coconut over the top of the cake and press some into the sides as well.

Let the frosted cake set in the refrigerator.  Allow it to come just to room temperature before serving and store leftovers in the fridge.

{printable recipe}