Mother's Day Dessert: Lemon Blueberry Marble Cake

I began maternity leave last week and we are still anxiously awaiting the arrival of our daughter!  Last week, I spent a morning searching recipes for a cake to bake for Mother's Day, assuming our baby didn't have other plans.  I came across this recipe for Lemon Blueberry Marble Cake from Lick the Bowl Good Blog.  The blog shared that the original recipe came from the book Sky High.

I chose this recipe because it sounded nice and refreshing for a hot spring day!  While looking over the recipe, I decided I would use the short cut used on Lick the Bowl Good for the blueberry jam.  So I purchased nice blueberry jam, squeezed in the juice of one lemon and then pureed it.  Remember, I am 40+ weeks pregnant!

Then I knew I would need to change the lemon frosting recipe because the original one uses raw eggs. I've never made a recipe that uses an entire raw egg before- just egg whites.  I am curious to try it, just not while pregnant.  Luckily, I have my own lemon buttercream recipe that I LOVE.  It's the same recipe that I use for my Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes which can be found here.

Blueberry Jam from Lick the Bowl Good

Ingredients:

-1 jar of nice blueberry jam (I used Bonne Maman)

-juice of a lemon

Squeeze the juice from a lemon and puree with the jam.  

Now on to the recipe from Sky High:

The Cake

Ingredients:

-2 sticks of butter, softened

-2 C. sugar

-2 tsp. lemon zest (I zested an entire lemon and didn't measure)

-1 1/2 tsp. lemon extract (oddly, something I always have in my baking supplies)

-7 egg whites

-3 C. cake flour (read below for my substitution)

-4 tsp. baking powder

-1/2 tsp. salt

- 1 1/4 C. milk

Cream together the butter, sugar, lemon zest, and extract.  Mix in a few egg whites at a time.  Once well combined, add in the dry ingredients alternating with the milk.  

I hate to get  a second bowl out to mix the dry ingredients. What I always do is mix in the baking powder and salt (or whatever small amounts of dry ingredients are needed).  Then I alternate adding the flour with the milk.  That saves me from having one more dish to wash! (I'd like to insert again, remember I am 40+ weeks pregnant, but I have always done this...)

Then you scoop out 1 C. of the batter.  Evenly distribute the batter between three 8" cake pans that have been greased, floured, and covered with parchment paper.  Using the reserved batter, mix in 2 1/2 Tbsp. of the blueberry jam.  Next, spoon in the blueberry batter and swirl it around to give it the marbled effect.  I used a skewer, which was recommend on the blog to swirl the batter.  I don't think it was the most effective method.  Next time, I think I would use a spoon and fold the blueberry batter in to make the cake more marbled.

Bake the cakes for 20-25 minutes at 350.  Allow the cakes to cool for about ten minutes before flipping them from the pan.  Then allow the cake to cool completely before frosting.

Use the remaining blueberry jam (I thought it was quite runny after pureeing the jam so I put it in the refrigerator it to allow to firm up a bit) to spread in between the layers of cake.

The Buttercream from me!

-1 cup butter, softened
-3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
-1 teaspoon vanilla extract
-2 tablespoons heavy cream
-juice of 1 lemon
-1/2 teaspoon lemon extract

With an electric mixer, cream together butter in a bowl. Add a 1/2 cup of powdered sugar at a time. Mix in one at a time, vanilla, cream, lemon juice and lemon extract. Scrape the sides of the bowl in between adding the ingredients. Beat on high for 10 minutes until frosting is light and fluffy.

This made enough batter for the cake since you use the jam in between the layers of cake. Frost the cake and decorate.

Don't forget the crumb coat when frosting! I think this was one of the most useful cake decorating tips I've ever received!

As always, enjoy!

My Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies

I really did go about the hunt for a new chocolate chip cookie recipe because I thought I was dissatisfied with my go-to recipe.  However, after various taste tests and lots of recipe hunting I realized that I didn't like any of the recipes as much as my go-to.  After testing out many recipes, I did decide to add 1 tsp. of cornstarch to help soften the cookies.

Here is my own recipe for Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies:

-2 stick of unsalted butter, softened
-1 1/4 C. brown sugar
-1/2 C. sugar
-1 egg
-1 tsp. salt
-1 tsp. baking soda
-1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
-1 tsp. cornstarch
-2 C. flour
-1 C. instant oatmeal
-3/4 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Cream butter and sugars until well combined.  Mix in the egg.  Once well combined, add in one ingredient at a time, in the order they appear.

Drop tablespoons of cookie dough on the cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes.  The cookies will be very light in color; the bottoms should be a golden brown.

I scoop out my cookies using a cookie scoop. This time I tested to see if it was better so slightly flatten them or not.  I think they tasted the same either way.  When I didn't flatten them, they need 2 more minutes to bake.

These cookies have the right amount of saltiness.  I think the oatmeal adds a nice texture and flavor without feeling like an oatmeal raisin cookie.  The dough is fabulous (not that I've eaten any for about 9 months)!  They cookies remain soft, while slightly crunchy around the edges.  Let me know what you think!

As always, happy baking!

Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes

Our local paper does a cupcake contest each spring.  I have entered a recipe the last two years and have been a finalist each time.  Apparently, I haven't ever blogged either recipe...

The first year, I entered Strawberry Lemonade Cupcakes.  This recipe was an original, but I severely adapted the frosting. Here's the write-up from the Herald Mail.

Last year, I entered our favorite cupcakes- Chocolate Peanut Butter and Carrot Cake.  For the chocolate and peanut butter cupcakes, I included an Oreo truffle filling.  For the carrot cake, I had a pineapple cream cheese filling.  My Loaded Carrot Cake was a finalist.  Here is the write-up from the Herald Mail.

Each year, my mom has said she thinks a Mexican Chocolate cupcake would be great. I have never made or eaten a Mexican chocolate cupcake (or Mexican chocolate for that matter).  Anyway, over spring break, I experimented and today, I submitted them to the Herald Mail's cupcake contest.  We shall see!

Here's the recipe for my original Mexican Chocolate Cupcakes.
I used my favorite chocolate cake recipe- King Arthur Flour's Favorite Fudge Cake.  I adapted it with some spices to make in Mexican chocolate.  Then I created a Mexican chocolate ganache.  Finally, I made a cinnamon buttercream.

Cupcake Ingredients:                                    

1 stick unsalted butter, softened

1/4 C. unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 C. hot water

1 C. all-purpose flour

2 C. sugar

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/4 tsp. salt

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1/4 C. buttermilk

1 egg

Ganache Ingredients:

3/4 C. semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

1/2 C. heavy cream

1/8 tsp. instant coffee granules

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. chili powder

1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper

Cinnamon Frosting:

1 1/2 sticks of unsalted butter, softened

2 1/4 C. powdered sugar

3/4 tsp. pure vanilla extract

3/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. cinnamon

1 Tbsp. heavy cream

For cupcakes: Preheat the oven to 350 and line 12 cupcake tins with liners.  Then mix together butter and cocoa powder until smooth.  Pour in the water and mix until well combined.  Mix in the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, chili powder, cinnamon.  Next add the vanilla and buttermilk.  Last, beat in the egg.  Your batter should be very smooth.  Distribute into 12 muffin tins and bake for about 18 minutes.

For Ganache: Melt chocolate chips and heavy cream over a double broiler.  Once melted, stir in coffee, cayenne pepper, cinnamon, and chili powder.  Allow to cool.  This will be used for the cupcake filling and to drizzle over the icing.

For Frosting:  Whip the butter in your stand mixer.  Mix in the powdered sugar and beat on high speed for several minutes.  Next, add the remaining ingredients.  Mix until well combined.

Assembly:  Core the center of the cooled cupcakes.  Scoop in about a teaspoon of the ganache.  Place the top of the cupcake back on.  Pipe on the frosting.  Drizzle ganache on top.  Enjoy!

I didn't place in the cupcake contest this year, but the recipe was well-loved and I was asked if it could be used to start off a month of home cooking recipes in the paper. Here's the link to the Herald Mail article.

Chocolate Banana Cake and Dog Treats

I am sure it happens to you too.  You buy a bunch of bananas (Did you know a bunch of bananas is called a hand?!?)  and they become overly ripe before you eat them.  We always seem to have at least one banana that this happens to, but last week it happened to the whole hand!  I did what any baker would do- I baked with them.  

The first thing that I made was Double Chocolate Banana Cake from Friday is Cake Night.

I followed the recipe exactly, except for I didn't have mini chocolate chips so I used regular ones.

Here's what you need:
-3 ripe bananas
-3/4 C. brown sugar
-1/2 C. applesauce (I used my mom's homemade applesauce which has just a hint of cinnamon in it)
-1 tsp. vanilla
-1 egg
-1 C. flour
-1/2 C. unsweetened cocoa powder
-1 tsp. baking soda
-1/4 tsp. salt
-1 C. semi- sweet chocolate chips

I placed the peeled bananas right in my stand mixer bowl.  I figured I could let the mixer mash up the bananas.  Then I mixed in the brown sugar.  Once that was well combined, I added the applesauce, vanilla, and egg.  I kept my mixer on a low speed while I added each ingredient.  Next, came the flour, the cocoa powder, salt, and baking soda.  I scraped the sides of the bowl once and added the best part- the chocolate chips.

I baked this in a greased pan at 350 for 25 minutes.  The result?  An extremely moist, chocolaty-rich banana cake.  When I read the blog post, I thought, "This is banana bread and I would never count it as cake in my house."  Then I ate it.  Don't get me wrong, I definitely ate it as a breakfast food (after all I had it baked before 7:30 am on Saturday), but it is extremely rich and could certainly count as dessert.

Up next on my too many ripe banana extravaganza? Dog treats for my Lilybug, of course!

I have baked a lot of different types of homemade dog treats for Lily.  She's no picky eater so there haven't been any she doesn't like!  I have made peanut butter ones, ones that use beef broth, the following recipe seems to be very healthy and a huge hit of Lily's.

This recipe is for Banana Carrot Dog Treats from Homemade Dog Treats Now.  I first tried this recipe after a friend sent me the pin because carrots are by far Lily's favorite snack.  When she was a puppy, she would even take bananas out of the grocery bag and peel them herself.  I knew she would love this recipe.

The first time I made this, I followed the recipe precisely.  This time I made a few changes.
Here's what you need:
-1 C. whole wheat flour
-1 C. of oatmeal (I only had about a 1/3 of a cup so I mixed in some prepackaged instant oatmeal).*
-2 bananas*
-2 Tbsp. coconut oil
-1 1/2 C. chopped carrots*
-1 Tbsp. parsley
-1 egg

Because I switched out the plain oatmeal for packaged instant oatmeal, I omitted the tablespoon of brown sugar that the recipe calls for.  I figured the packaged oatmeal had plenty of sugar added already.  Also, since I had so many ripe bananas, I added an extra banana to this batch.  You can tell too because the banana scent is even more intense (that or it could be my pregnancy nose!).  The original recipe calls for two carrots.  I only had baby carrots on hand- I finely chopped about 1.5 cups of carrots instead.

Once again, I started by placing the bananas right in the mixer bowl and let the paddle mash the bananas.  Then I added the flour and oatmeal.   Once that was well combined, I added the remaining ingredients.

Then you can roll out the dough, I always use a heart shaped cookie cutter for Lily.  They bake at 350 for about 30 minutes.

Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Scones

There is no better treat than homemade breakfast during the week!  On Friday, our schools had a two hour delay so I was able to whip something up for breakfast. I usually make pancakes (from scratch) because that's what my mom always did.  I decided not to because I made pancakes last week and caught the stomach bug.  Let's say I wasn't ready for pancakes again.

On that note...

As I stayed snuggled up in my bed and on Pinterest, each recipe I thought sounded great, I didn't have all of the ingredients on hand.  Then I remembered seeing a pin for Chocolate Chip Scones that looked good.  For whatever reason, I hadn't pinned it.  I found the recipe for Chocolate Chip Scones from Sally's Baking Addiction.  Luckily, I had everything I needed (basically).

Ingredients:
-8 Tbl. of unsalted butter (cut into chunks)
-2 C. flour
-2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
-1 tsp. cinnamon
-1/2 tsp. salt
-1/2 C. heavy cream
-1 egg
-1 tsp. vanilla extract
-1 C. semi-sweet chocolate chips

I used the same measurements that were posted on Sally's Baking Addiction.  My only ingredient change was that I didn't use the mini semi-sweet chocolate chips. The scones were great with regular chocolate morsels.


The process I used to make the scones differed slightly.
Here's what I did:
First, cut the cold butter into chunks.  Place it in the bowl of the stand mixer.  Stir in the flour.  Allow the flour and butter to mix until the butter is broken into small, pea-sized pieces.  Then add the remaining dry ingredients.






In a separate dish, gently whisk the heavy cream, eggs, and vanilla.








Next, pour the liquids into the dry ingredients and mix until well combined.  Last, add the chocolate chips and stir until the chips are nicely distributed.




Once your dough is set, I divided it into two mounds of dough.  I rolled out each mound of dough to about a 1/2 inch thick disc.  Then I divided each disc into eight slices and placed on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.  This resulted in 16 scones.  I baked the scones at 400 for 17 minutes.

I was a fan of these scones! I decided to call them Cinnamon Chocolate Chip scones because the cinnamon flavor isn't subtle.  This process for using the mixer is the same way I make all of my scones now.  This method has worked out well for me and was the one I shared back here with Lemon Cream Scones.

As always, happy baking!

Red Velvet Oreo Truffles

A few weeks ago, in  a post, I mentioned how I bought these:  Red Velvet Oreos.

When I first heard that Nabisco was making Red Velvet Oreos, my very first thought was "Red Velvet Oreo Truffles?!"

Have you ever eaten Oreo Truffles?  The recipe is all over the internet and can be found on Kraft's website.

Let me tell you...The first time I had Oreo truffles I thought I had eaten a tiny, bit of heaven.  A neighbor had made them and given some to my mom.  My mom was raving about them and was generous enough to share.  I've made Oreo truffles many times.  They take almost no time, but are incredibly delicious!

I have even made brownies and topped them with Oreo truffle and then topped that with melted chocolate.  That's a recipe I should bake again!

Anyway, I tracked down some Red Velvet Oreos the day they were released- February 2.  Who knew that cookies had a release date?  I bought two packages and was waiting until Valentine's to pull open the seal and try these Oreos.

The cookie by itself was good, but definitely not my favorite kind of Oreo (am I right, Sarah?)  That could start me on an embarrassing tangent about , but I won't go there...
Oreos

What You Need:
-2 packages of Red Velvet Oreos (for truffles you need 36 and these only come in small packages)
-8 oz. of cream cheese (I always opt for the 1/3 reduced fat cream cheese- that way they're "healthy")
-melting chocolate of choice, I use Candy Melts
-Sprinkles or additional crushed Oreos for decoration

In a food processor, crush 36 Oreos.  Transfer Oreo crumbs to stand mixer bowl.  Stir in softened cream cheese.

Then mold the mixture into small balls and place on a cookie sheet.  Freeze the truffles for about 15 minutes.  This step makes the dipping easier.

Then dip in your favorite melting chocolate.  For this, I used white chocolate.  Candy Melts also has a Red Velvet flavor which I was tempted to try, but I didn't want the truffles to be too overpowering in their red velvet flavoring.

After making many cake pops, I must say that dipping these truffles without being on a stick was a pain!  When you make cake pops, you can tap off the extra chocolate and end up with a smoother coating. Before the chocolate hardens, top with your choice of sprinkles.  Keep in the fridge and enjoy!

I have to confess that I have only eaten one. One. Yes,  you read that correctly. I am recovering from the flu and haven't gotten my appetite yet.  Everyone who I've shared them with loves them though!

Baklava

I interrupt my posts from Everyday Food:  Great Food Fast from the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living to bring you this post on Baklava.

I first tried Baklava around the holidays.  One of my mom's coworkers wife made Baklava and it was heavenly! The other weekend I came across a recipe for Baklava on Pinterest.  When I mentioned this to Pat, he was very intrigued and was hoping I would try out this recipe sooner rather than later.

The recipe I used came from Natasha's Kitchen.  After reading over the post on Natasha's Kitchen, I thought that Baklava looked simple to make.  As it turns out, Baklava was very simple to make; it did, however, take a while (about an hour and a half to assemble) and some patience.

Following the recipe from Natasha's Kitchen, here's what you'll need:

1 (16 oz) pkg Phyllo dough, thawed 
2 sticks melted butter
4 C walnuts, finely chopped
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 C granulated sugar
juice of 1/2 lemon
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup honey



Natasha's Kitchen has a great step by step post about how to make the Baklava.  Here are my suggestions:  thaw the Phyllo dough in your fridge overnight so you are ready to begin in the morning.  You will want to do this in the morning because it takes about an hour and a half to prepare, another hour and a half to bake, and several hours to cool.   (Although, I can attest to the fact it can be eaten after about 2 hours).  

The original post said to make the sauce first, but I decided to get working on the assembly.  I started by chopping the walnuts in my food processor and adding the cinnamon.  


Then, you layer the thawed Phyllo dough by placing one sheet of Phyllo dough, then smearing it with melted butter.  For the first set of dough, you use 10 sheets of dough.  Next, sprinkle about 3/4 C of the walnuts and cinnamon to coat the dough.  Continue with 5 butter/ Phyllo dough layers, and more nuts.  Repeat 3 more times.  End with ten more layers of butter/ Phyllo dough.  Before you put the Baklava in the oven, you cut the it into pieces.  

Bake at 325 for about an hour and a half.  After you put the Baklava in the oven, you need to make the syrupy sauce.  Heat the sugar, lemon juice, water, and honey on the stove for until boiling.  Yes, as Pat said, "You need to add sugar to the honey?!" Then simmer until the sugar dissolves.  Remove it from heat to allow it to cool.

Once the Baklava is golden brown, remove it from the oven and pour the sugariness on top!  There should be a nice sizzling sound.  I, then, topped mine with some more of the crushed walnut and cinnamon mixture.

Allow it to cool and enjoy!  My non-chocolate loving husband devoured 3/4 of the pan in 5 days.  He is ready for more!

This was not as sweet as the Baklava I originally tried.  I think you could make more syrup to pour over the top.  I also should have melted more butter.  The top layer was a bit flaky and not as cohesive as the other layers.  Next time, I would probably melt 2 1/2 sticks of butter.  The only annoying part of this process was putting the first sheet of Phyllo dough down after the nut layer.  This layer wanted to shift around when I was spreading on the melted butter.  You will probably need to trim your Phyllo dough to fit your pan.  I was about to cut half of the dough at a time with my kitchen scissors.  This recipe is definitely a keeper and definitely something that you can make and enjoy too!

Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies: The Next Attempt at my Go-to Recipe

Without realizing it, my third recipe selection for my new, go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe also comes from AverieCooks.  This is the same blog where my previous recipe came from.

This week I made "The Best Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies" from AverieCooks.  On the blog, Averie shared that this recipe was based off of her Oatmeal Scotchies recipe.  As I looked the recipe over, I thought it looked very similar to my Oatmeal Raisin cookies so I made some adjustments to the original recipe.

Awhile ago, before searching for a new go-to recipe I tried yet another recipe from Averie Cooks for Soft and Chewy Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate Chip cookies.  Pat and I both loved these cookies!  They used coconut oil instead of butter and also have shredded coconut in them.  Pat has become a fan of coconut, which is why I decided I would try out that recipe.  However, we both that they were a good cookie, but really should be Oatmeal Coconut Raisin cookies.  Of course, I tested that out. This time, we thought the cookie was good, but that my go-to Oatmeal Raisin cookie was better.

That being said...

Here is my adapted recipe for "Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies" from AverieCooks.

Ingredients:
1 large egg
1/2 C unsalted butter
1/2 C light brown sugar
1/4 C granulated sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3/4 C all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp of salt*
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned whole rolled oats (I used quick cook)*
3/4 C all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp of salt*

3/4 C semi-sweet chocolate chips*

Begin by creaming the butter and sugars.  Next, mix in the egg and vanilla.  While the mixer is on a low speed, add the baking soda, salt, and flour.  Stir until well combined.  Then add in the oatmeal.  Finally, mix in the chocolate chips.

Form large balls of dough and flatten slightly.  Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes and enjoy!

My adaptions:

As I mentioned, I wanted these to be chocolate chip cookies, not chocolate chip cookies that you wished were oatmeal raisin (because that should never happen!).   

• The original recipe called for 1/2 tsp to a whole tsp of cinnamon which I omitted.  
• Once again, I put in my usual amount of 1 tsp. salt, where AverieCooks suggested a pinch.  
• The original also called for either raisins or nuts, and I omitted because I didn't want the cookie to be a trail mix cookie; I wanted a chocolate chip one.
• AverieCooks also said not to use quick cook oats, but I always use them when I bake, so I figured I should with this recipe too.
• I also cut back on the chocolate chips.  I know you're probably surprised!  But this recipe is about half of what my normal recipe is, but the recipe was for the same amount of chocolate chips.
• This dough also required refrigeration. I skipped that step because frankly, I didn't see the point.  This is quite similar to my oatmeal raisins and that doesn't get refrigerated.  Also, with all of the adaptions I made, it was quite similar to my current go-to recipe and that also does not get refrigerated.

Thoughts?

I thought the cookies were great! They were the most soft cookies I have made in the last 3 attempts.  I made them four days ago and they are still soft.  Even with my adaptions because of the amount of oatmeal, Pat thought that they should have been oatmeal raisin cookies.  He did love the cookie dough though- thought it tasted like my regular dough!  I have one more recipe to try that a friend sent my way, but then I think I am going to tweak my current go-to and share the results- it's similar to this adapted recipe.  

Happy baking!

The Search Continues: Chocolate Chip Cookies

This weekend I decided to try out another chocolate chip cookie recipe.  These cookies were good, big step up from the recipe I shared last week. This week I tried out a recipe from Averie Cooks.  Their recipe for "The Best Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie."

Here's my slightly adapted recipe from Averie Cooks:
(I changed the salt and chocolate chips).

3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened 

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp. of salt
2 cups all-purpose flour
one 3.5-ounce packet instant vanilla pudding mix
1 C. of semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream the butter and the sugars.  Add the egg, vanilla, baking soda, and salt.  Then mix in the flour.  I always mix in 1 cup at a time.  Next, add the vanilla pudding mix.  Stir in the chocolate chips.

Scoop the dough into large balls, then flatten.  Refrigerate for at least two hours.  Then pull out the chilled dough and bake at 350 for about 11 minutes.  

Here are my thoughts about the cookies:

     *The cookies are soft, but I definitely wouldn't call them chewy.

     *The cookies  have a nice flavor.  I was afraid between the vanilla pudding mix and the vanilla extract that the cookies would be too vanilla-y.  Also, I am VERY glad that I put in my usual 1 tsp. of salt, instead of the pinch of salt recommended by Averie Cooks.  

     *I find it inconvenient to have to refrigerate chocolate chip cookie dough- it's not like the cookies get rolled.

     *The cookies have a short shelf life.  I made the cookies Saturday morning, now Monday morning, the cookies are no longer very soft.

     *Adding pudding mix to your go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe, seems annoying.  I wasn't so sure of the purpose of using it.  I found on Seasoned Advice that the purpose is like cornstarch- to help soften your cookies.  I'd prefer to add cornstarch, instead of buying instant pudding mix for my cookies.  

     *The depth of the cookies were nice and noted by Pat and a dear friend.  

I'll try out a few more recipes, but I think I am going to end up making some minor tweaks to my current go-to recipe.  

The Hunt for the Best Chocolate Chip Cookie

Chocolate chip cookies are a staple at my house!  When I was little, we would make chocolate chip cookies all the time.  My mom still makes them regularly and keeps them in the freezer- she prefers them frozen.

I could go on and on about my love for chocolate chip cookies and the regularity in which I make them too.  I do have to admit...I've made them a lot less frequently since I've become pregnant.  Let's face it- one of the best things about chocolate chip cookies is getting to eat the dough, which I can no longer do!

My first regular (okay, my mom's first regular) chocolate chip cookie that I made was Crisco's.  We would use margarine instead of Crisco though.  Then we mixed it up and started using unsalted butter. Those days were years and years ago.

The second regular chocolate chip cookie recipe was the Nestle Toll House one. You know, the recipe right on the bag of chocolate chips.  I am sure nearly everyone has made this recipe.

Then one day, probably 10 plus years ago, my mom discovered an even better chocolate chip cookie. This recipe was from a friend and I adapted the recipe many times.  This recipe was the perfect mix of chocolate, salt, and even included oatmeal (a healthy cookie! haha).  Lately, these cookies have been too crunchy for my liking, but I LOVE the flavor.  Recently, I have decided that it is probably time for a new go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe.  So I have begun a hunt!

I am going to taste test various chocolate chip cookie recipes until I find my new go-to!  I will share my thoughts on each recipe.

My first attempt at a new go-to comes from Host the Toast.  The recipe is for "The Best Chewy Cafe-Style Chocolate Chip Cookies."  I picked this recipe for a few reasons:  the pictures of the cookie look incredible and she talks about how soft the cookies are and even mentioned that they may be softer on the second day.  I followed the recipe exactly.

Here are my thoughts:

• The cookie has a nice buttery flavor.
• The cookie was soft, but only for a few hours...
• The cookie could really use more salt.

Adaptions to consider to my current go-to:

• Try adding cornstarch, like in this recipe.

I know that I am doing you all a big favor by trying out all of these chocolate chip cookie recipes...It really is a burden having to taste test all of these cookies! Stay tuned for my next attempt at the best go-to cookie recipe.

What Happened to November? Top Ten Posts 8 and 9

   

I knew I needed to write my next blog post, but I was shocked to see I hadn't written since October!  What happened to November?  I guess I have been too tired from my pregnancy, plus teaching Kindergarten (and dance), and grad work.  Plus it is quickly becoming the most wonderful time of the year! I have certainly spent much, too much time on Pinterest searching for Christmas ideas.

Two weeks ago, I tried 6 new recipes.  A new dinner recipe each day for the week.  I have to say they were all a huge hit, aside from the last one.  I am sure I will post these recipes when I make them again- which I am certain will happen again soon!

For Top 10 Post 8:
I am going to link back to my Fourth of July post:  Happy Fourth of July:  Celebrating with Something Sweet!  This is by far my favorite cake pop recipe.

I have tried the Wilton version of cake pops by baking a cake, breaking it up, and mixing it with icing. This method I have tried with store bought frosting and my own buttercream.  I have to say, cake pops this way are so much better with homemade buttercream.  A cake decorator said she couldn't tell the difference between store bought and homemade icing.  I, however, tasted a HUGE difference.

Even better than this method, is the baked cake pop.  I used the recipe from Nordic Ware.  The cake pops are more of a brownie consistency, but they were so rich and wonderful.  I prefer this method because there was less time waiting on cooling and refrigerating.  Also, I feel that the Wilton cake pop idea is too sweet once you've mixed in the cake and the icing, then dip it in chocolate.

I haven't made cake pops since the 4th, but I will be making some more this week.

For Top 10 Post 9:
Again, I am linking back to a previous post.  My post on carrot cake- Favorite Cake.  Let me note, the title does not denote my favorite cake, but Pat's.  As you know, I am a huge chocolate and PB fan, BUT  this carrot cake is something! My recipe is adapted from Southern Living.


Now the tough part...to decide what the remaining recipe is for the Top 10 out of 300!  Stay tuned!

Top Ten #6 and #7: Apple Goodness

Last week, I was scrolling through my "Recipes I've Tried" board searching for the Orange Peel Shrimp recipe.  As I was searching, I was trying to find some of our other favorites that I hadn't made in awhile.  I came across two of my FAVORITE apple dishes:  Apple Egg Rolls and Apple Cake.  Looking at my pins, the first time I made both dishes was more than two years ago.

The apple egg rolls are a quick and easy dessert that originally came from thriftyfun.com.  The first time I made this recipe, I followed it exactly.  Since then, I have cut waaaaaay back on the sugar and I do not even bother with the whipped cream. The whipped cream was tasty, but the egg rolls are so full of flavor, you really don't need any additional flavor, especially sweetness.  Aother main difference I found is, I believe the original post used wonton wrappers. I continue to use egg roll wrappers.  As a result, I make 6 apple egg rolls each time.  My last change, is that I do not do the egg wash to wrap the egg rolls.  Just like in my crab rangoon, I seal the wontons shut with water.  

Apple Egg Rolls

Ingredients:

- 2 Macintosh apples, peeled and chopped into small pieces

-juice of 1 lemon

- 3 Tbsp. of sugar

-4 Tbsp. of flour

-2 tsp. cinnamon

-1/4 tsp. allspice

-1/8 tsp. salt

-6 egg roll wrappers

Optional

-cinnamon sugar

-butter

Once your apples are peeled and chopped, squeeze the lemon juice over the apples.  Mix well.  In a separate bowl, combin the remaining ingredients.  Then mix the flour, sugar, and spices in with the apples.  

Next, place about 1/6 of the apple mixture onto each wrapper.  Fold and seal with water.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.  After 20 minutes, you may coat with butter and sprinkle on cinnamon sugar.  Finally, bake for 5 more minutes and enjoy!

Another apple (and all time) favorite recipe comes from Paula Deen for Uncle Bob's Fresh Apple Cake.  This recipe is honestly, the best apple cake I have ever made.  I follow the recipe exactly from Paula Deen.  

The batter is nice and thick so I always use my mixer.

Be sure the apples get nicely coated from the spices.

Be sure the apples get evenly distributed in the batter and that your bundt pan is nicely greased and floured. My cake always plops right out!

After the cake cools for an hour, you can mix up and pour on the glaze.

I didn't go through this recipe because I do follow it exactly from Paula Deen.  This recipe is so wonderful.  Be sure to check out both of these recipes, that apple egg rolls are quick to whip up!

Enjoy and happy baking!