Is This Thing Still On?

So, it turns out that if you get a blog started, stick it in a dark corner of the interwebs and forget about it for a little while, it will sprout this odd mushroom-shaped, doughy substance that looks like this:

No, wait... sorry, my mistake. That's no world wide fungi, it's just a popover. I haven't had much spare time for baking adventures (what with work and summer school), but when my mom went on a wild rampage - tearing up most of the southwestern end of Austin - looking for a popover pan, I felt pretty obligated to reconnect with the oven once she'd finally found one. I searched the non-moldy parts of the internet for a recipe and found one called "Best Popovers Ever" which sounded promising, and I am happy to report that it fulfilled.

Best Popovers Ever
From Martha Stewart's Twitter Feed (edited to not sound like it came from a twitter feed)

4 cups flour
1 tbsp + 1 tsp salt
4 cups milk
8 eggs
10 oz grated gruyere
cooking spray

Place a 12 cup popover pan in the oven and heat to 350F.
Sift 4 cups flour with 1T+2t salt.
Heat 4 cups of milk.
Whisk 8 eggs slowly and add the milk & flour.
Spray the hot popover pan with cooking spray and fill just over 3/4 of the way with batter. Top with 5-10oz grated gruyere (depending on your preference) and bake 50 minutes. Invert to remove.


I halved this recipe because nobody (myself included) wanted to wait 2 hours for dinner and we only had a 6 cup popover pan, but 6 turned out to be more than enough! Also, I used about 2-3 oz of gruyere which turned out to be a pretty good amount, but if you want it cheesy then use the full amount.


If that isn't incentive enough to go make some popovers, they're yeast-free! and so easy and delicious! Also, word on the street is that you can make these in a muffin tin... but you didn't hear that from me.

Taffy, Klaus, and Mutiny at the Jalopy

My mom told me how she'd once read that taffy pulling became popular in the days of courting to keep amorous hands busy. I don't know if that's true but I like to think it is. I, however, had to pull this raspberry-flavored saltwater taffy all on my own because other hands were in other geographical locations. And let me tell you, it was quite a workout. But it was worth it!

Salt water taffy
Yields approx. 50 pieces/1.5 pounds

2 cups sugar
2 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup light corn syrup
3/4 cup water
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp flavoring oil or 1 tbsp flavoring extract of your choice
a few drops food coloring to match your flavor

Prepare a heat safe 8x8 dish and a spatula by lightly buttering it. If you are making more than one flavor, prepare a dish and spatula for each flavor. Have your food coloring and flavorings ready.

In a saucepan, sift together sugar and cornstarch. Stir in corn syrup, water, salt and butter. Place over medium heat and stir until sugar dissolves. Cover pan and bring to a boil for 3 minutes. Uncover, place thermometer in pan and cook to 256 - 266 degrees F. The lower temperature will result in a chewier taffy, the higher a more brittle texture. Remove from heat and add food color and flavoring. Stir gently, then pour into prepared dish/pan.


When cool enough to handle (but still warm), butter your hands and pull the warm candy with your fingertips, pulling out to about 12 inches at first. Quickly turn candy back from fingertips of one hand to the other hand, then catch center and pull again. This will incorporate air into the candy.


Continue pulling until taffy is light in color and has a satiny gloss, about twenty minutes. Pull into a long rope and cut into small squares with greased scissors.


Wrap taffy in waxed paper squares, twisting ends to seal. Good luck finding a bowl big enough to hold it and enough people to eat it!


I'll be honest, I haven't had much trouble finding people to eat this. It's much better (and by that I mean easier to chew) if you warm up a piece in your hand or pocket for a few minutes before eating it.

On a completely different note, I got a kitten!

His name is Klaus (which is pronounced like "cloud" but with an s). My boyfriend's mom saved him from traffic on Brodie and let me adopt him, and am I ever glad she did! He used to be incredibly skittish because of his car trauma, but after a few days he warmed up to people and now he is super playful and affectionate! He is a lap cat:

Even my mom is excited to meet him (although she wouldn't openly admit that) and she is a dog person. And on one more completely different note, I wrote a blog post for the Jalopy and if you feel like devoting more of your time to the random crap I like to spout from my brain, flop on over here and read some words!

A Double Whammy. No- a TRIPLE Whammy!

Two posts in two days? What's this all about? I have been cooking up a storm, dear readers (more like a natural disaster, really). Yesterday I had a surprise day off from work so I made salt water taffy (more on that later...), and Sunday was my dad's birthday (happy birthday dad!) so I made him a cake. I went with angel food cake with strawberries and whipped cream because his mom used to make that for him when he was growing up, and the oldest Schmitz offspring (we like to call him Beau) made Shiner Bock- and strawberry bourbon-flavored ice creams for accompaniment, both of which were amazing (granted though, the Shiner Bock was quite strange). He has some supernatural ability to make ice cream ridiculously creamy and delicious. Unfortunately, I didn't think to snap photos of the ice cream :(. And on top of all of that, I had 12 egg yolks left over from the angel food cake (which uses 12 whites), so I made lemon curd which I had been dying to make since the first time I'd heard of it, whenever that was. And the third whammy, which is a surprise whammy, awaits your attention at the end of this post.


Angel food cake is a glorious thing. Heavenly, even. Really lives up to it's name, it does. And when you top it with fresh, almond flavored whipped cream and strawberries... it becomes indescribable.

Angel Food Cake

Ingredients
1 1/4 cups sifted cake flour
1 1/2 cups granulated white sugar, divided
12 egg whites, at room temperature
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in the center of the oven. Have ready a 10 inch angel food cake pan (do NOT, under any circumstances, grease the pan).

In a medium bowl sift together 3/4 cup granulated white sugar and the sifted cake flour.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until foamy. Add the cream of tartar, lemon juice, and salt and continue to beat on low until soft peaks form. Gradually beat in the remaining 3/4 cup granulated white sugar, about a tablespoon at a time, until glossy stiff peaks form (be careful not to over beat). Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in the vanilla extract and almond extract.

Sift the flour mixture over the egg whites (about one quarter of the flour mixture at a time) and gently but quickly fold (do not stir) the flour into the egg whites with a large rubber spatula. (Folding instead of stirring incorporates the flour without deflating the egg whites that you've just spent so much time beating air into!)

Pour the batter into the ungreased pan (the cake batter needs to climb up the pan while it bakes; a greased pan won't allow it to do this, resulting in a very flat and dense cake) and bake in the preheated oven for about 40 - 45 minutes. The cake is done when a wooden skewer inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean and the cake springs back when gently pressed. Do not over bake.

Immediately upon removing from the oven invert the pan. Suspend the pan by placing the inner tube on the top of a wine bottle or a flat topped glass. (Cooling the cake upside down allows the structure to set up without collapsing.) Allow the cake to cool for about 1 1/2 hours.

When completely cool, run a metal spatula or knife around the sides of the pan to loosen the cake, then remove the cake from the pan by turning upside down and slamming on the counter. Place the cake on your serving plate. To cut the cake, saw back and forth with a serrated knife, then serve and enjoy!


For the whipped cream, combine 2 cups whipping cream, 1/8 to 1/4 cup sugar (depending on how sweet you want it) and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract. Beat on high with a hand mixer until it reaches the consistency of whipped cream (but don't over beat it or you will end up with almond-flavored butter!). Serve immediately or chill, covered, in the fridge until ready to use.

With this celestial combination, you just can't go wrong. Incidentally, lemon curd also goes really well with angel food cake.


I've heard it said many times before, and I concur, that this stuff is sunshine captured in a jar.

Lemon Curd
Makes 3 cups

1 cup butter, cut into cubes and divided
1 cup sugar
zest of 4 lemons
juice from 4 lemons, plus enough to make 1 cup
10 egg yolks

In a heavy saucepan, combine 1/2 cup cubed butter, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and egg yolks. Whisk until everything but the butter is combined, then turn the heat to medium-medium-high, whisking constantly until the curd thickens and the whisk leaves a trail. Turn off the heat and add the remaining 1/2 cup butter, whisking until melted. Transfer the curd to 2 glass jars and chill in the refrigerator. Do with it what you will (I may or may not be eating it by the spoonful).


Are you ready for the third whammy? Well I have some preliminary information first. Remember my employment? It's at this truck here:

which used to be located about 30 feet from my building. However, it has since been relocated to the corner of 15th and San Antonio (which is only a few blocks from where it used to be), and the grand re-opening will be this Thursday. And now for the third whammy (I fear this phrase is quickly becoming exhausted): an original Table 7 creation will now be available to the general public! I have been given the responsibility/honor of making bread pudding with the stale loaves from the Jalopy, and after a few trial runs, I think we're about ready to release it upon request to Jalopy patrons!

It varies from chocolate chip to bourbon-soaked raisin, depending on my mood and the ingredients I have on hand. It sits upon a puddle of chocolate sauce and is topped with spiced bourbon-soaked cherries, almonds, and powdered sugar. And it is utterly delicious, if I may say so myself. I've had several people tell me that they don't even like bread pudding, but found mine delicious! Comments like that are the highest honor, the reason I do what I do. So I really hope you austinites come out to see me at work, get some sandwiches, and eat some bread pudding! If you've made it this far, many congratulations to you! Thanks for reading!

It's officially ice cream season

It's hot out, you guys. Even worse than the heat, though, is the humidity, which can make 80 degrees feel like 160 (and a 10 mile bike ride feel like 40 miles). So it's a good thing there's ice cream to lower those internal temperatures, eh? In honor of strawberry season, I opted for plain old, cold, creamy strawberry ice cream. It doesn't get much better than that, does it?

Strawberry Ice Cream
an original recipe by yours truly

Ingredients:
2 cups whole milk
1 cup heavy cream
1 cup granulated sugar
4 egg yolks
Pinch salt
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 Tbsp. vodka (optional)
2 tsp lemon juice
2 cups strawberries, hulled and halved

Method:
In a bowl, combine 1/4 cup sugar, strawberries, and lemon juice. Macerate with a fork and set aside.
Combine whole milk, 1/2 cup cream and 1/2 cup sugar in saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Whisk the egg yolks with 1/4 cup sugar and pinch of salt in a separate bowl. Once the milk mixture is steaming, temper it into the eggs by pouring a small amount at a time into the egg yoks, whisking constantly, then pour the custard back into the saucepan and heat until thickened (it should coat the back of a spoon).
Once the custard has thickened, pour through a sieve into a large bowl (this catches any bits of egg that might've cooked). Stir in remaining cream and vanilla extract. Add in strawberry mixture (I pulsed my strawberries in the food processor first because I didn't want big pieces in my ice cream) and chill in refrigerator until ready to churn.
Make ice cream according to maker's directions. In the last few minutes of churning, add the vodka if using (the alcohol keeps the ice cream from getting too hard/unscoopable in the freezer). Transfer to a freezer-safe container and freeze until firm.


If you don't have an ice cream maker, you can add the vodka when you add the strawberries and then stick the whole mixture in the freezer. Every 30 minutes or so, remove it from the freezer and whisk/beat the mixture vigorously to break up ice crystals. Repeat this process until you've reached soft serve consistency. This method makes for a less creamy (but equally delicious) ice cream!

Then when you're subjected to an atrocious amount of summer heat, scoop some ice cream

and enjoy!

Triathletes and the Insanities They Suffer

It's been a long day, dear readers. Let me start off by apologizing for my cruddy photos before I move on to discuss my mother's early morning fit of insanity. In her defense, she wasn't the only one: this morning, 1500 very motivated females took part in the Danskin triathlon (which benefits breast cancer research, woop!). Three of those 1500 were my mom and her friends, Sue and Julie. I call them crazy because just watching a triathlon exhausts me, let alone actively participating (I wouldn't actually know). And I say it's been a long day because I managed to roll out of bed at 5:30 am (my dad might be able to take some credit here) in order to spectate. All three triathletes finished looking incredibly happy, so a big congratulations to them! Afterwards, I spent many an hour in the kitchen making strawberry ice cream (do I hear my next post calling?) and banana pudding to celebrate. But first, a story: While walking to the triathlon from the parking area at 6:30 this morning with the husbands and a son of the formerly mentioned triathletes, a bobcat darted across the road in front of us and promptly scaled a six-foot barbed wire fence, to which one-year-old James declared, "meow!" It was adorable.

And now for a few words on banana pudding (more apologies for my disjointedness. This post is all over the place!). I like to think I make a pretty good banana pudding, but I've been absolutely forbidden to reveal the recipe, or my mom would have my head! Fortunately for you, the key is to do nothing. I mean, you have to make a vanilla pudding (you could even spring for the instant-from-a-box kind, but if you have the time, I strongly recommend making your own) and then layer it with Nilla wafers and sliced bananas, but then you just stick it in the fridge and don't touch it for a few hours (overnight is awesome). This lets the flavors meld together so that the pudding is less like separate components forced to inhabit the same container and more like tasty ingredients that want to be best friends.


I'll give you a second to cringe at the lighting (or lack thereof) in this picture... And so that you're not left empty handed, here's a recipe for vanilla pudding which is not the one I use, but which looks promising:
Vanilla Pudding
(adapted from the New York Times Cookbook)

• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 1/2 cup sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 3 cups whole milk
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

In a heavy saucepan mix the cornstarch, sugar and salt. Gradually whisk in the milk, then whisk in the egg yolks. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture boils and thickens. Immediately remove from the heat and whisk in the vanilla. Set aside to cool for about an hour, whisking occasionally.

To make banana pudding, spread a small amount of the cooled pudding in the bottom of a container, making sure the entire surface is covered. Cover with a layer of Nilla wafers, and then add a layer of thinly sliced banana. Cover the bananas with another layer of pudding, then a layer of Nilla wafers and a layer of sliced banana, respectively. Repeat until you've used all of the pudding, making sure to end with a layer of either pudding or Nilla wafers (but NOT banana- you don't want any banana exposed to the air or it will brown terribly). Cover and refrigerate for at least a few hours or overnight. When ready to serve, spread a layer of whipped cream over the top of the pudding, then dig in!



And a final CONGRATULATIONS!! to all the 2010 Danskin participants, but especially to my mom, Sue, and Julie!

The Pie Hole (caution: possible spoilers lurk)

Have you guys ever seen that show "Pushing Daisies"? It was this really awesome show on ABC about a pie maker who can bring people back from the dead for 1 minute, but if he doesn't re-kill them before the minute is over, then someone else dies instead. Unfortunately, it joined some of its fellow great shows (see: Arrested Development) in the tv afterlife. There was one episode in Pushing Daisies where a dead girl adds cheese to the crust of a pie for her aunts (who don't know she's out of her grave) because she knows they love cheese. Since seeing that episode (here comes my point), I wanted to make an apple pie with a cheddar crust. And make an apple pie with a cheddar crust I did (twice).

The recipe I used for this pie called for half of a pound of extra-sharp cheddar in the crust, but I felt like I was eating gold fish (as in the cracker, not the living creature) encrusted apple filling. Now, I'm not saying this is a bad thing, but I'm not saying it's a good thing either... So when my dear mother requested this to serve to my kindergarten teacher (turned family friend), I opted for regularly-sharp cheddar, no "extra"s to be found. The mellower cheese really helped the apples shine without being overpowering and out of place, and it didn't taste like a fancy version of a kid's after-school snack. Next Thanksgiving, I highly recommend adding cheese to your apple pie to take it up a couple levels. The First Thanksgiving feasters would approve.


Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust

For crust:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 lb sharp cheddar, grated
1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1/4 cup cold vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
6 to 8 tablespoons ice water
1 tablespoon milk

For filling:
2 medium Gala apples
3 large Granny Smith apples
2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/8 teaspoon cloves
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Make crust:
Stir together flour, salt, and cheese in a large bowl. Add butter and shortening and blend with your fingertips or a pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size lumps. Drizzle 6 tbsp ice water evenly over mixture and gently stir with a fork until incorporated.
Squeeze a small handful; If the dough doesn’t hold together, add more ice water, 1 tbsp at a time, stirring until incorporated. (Be careful not to over-stir the dough or it will become tough.) Turn dough out onto a work surface and divide in half, then form each half into a 5-inch disk and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill until firm, at least 1 hour.

Make filling and bake pie:
Peel and core apples, then cut into 1/4 inch pieces. Toss with sugar, flour, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and nutmeg until evenly coated.
Put a foil-lined baking sheet in the middle of your oven and preheat to 450°F.
Roll out 1 piece of the dough (keep the remaining disk chilled) on a lightly floured surface with a lightly floured rolling pin into a 13-inch round. Fit into a 9-inch pie dish. Roll out the remaining piece of dough into an 11-inch round.
Transfer the filling to the pie dish and dot with the 2 tbsp butter, then cover with the top crust. Press edges together and trim off overhang. Lightly brush the top crust with milk, then cut 5 (1-inch-long) vents.
Bake on the hot baking sheet for 20 minutes, then reduce temperature to 375°F and bake until crust is golden-brown and filling is bubbling, about 40 more minutes. Cool long enough to eat without scalding your taste buds, then serve.

As you can maybe tell from my picture, I decided to do a lattice top crust because I think it looks cool. If you concur, check out this excellent how-to, which has pictures showing how to make a lattice top (it's really, really easy, I promise!). I tried to find a video demonstration, but most of them were annoying right from the start or used rulers to measure the dough strips, which I absolutely will not stand for! No rulers in baking, that's my rule #2. (Rule #1 is don't stress, because I tend to do that and a flat cookie is just not the end of the world.) What was I talking about? Oh right, pie. Go make this pie just so you can eat it warm a la mode. And then go watch Pushing Daisies or Arrested Development or something.

Fear Not the Sticky Sweet

A while ago I had a slight cinnamon roll obsession but was too afraid of yeast to make the real deal. I ended up with several batches of mediocre cinnamon roll muffins (one batch of which suffered from burning oven debris and came out with an odd smokey flavor) and eventually gave up, dissatisfied. Later on I found a recipe which promised "Cinnabun Clones," but it required a bread machine: a kitchen gadget which I lacked. I stowed away the recipe anyway in case I ever happened upon such a machine (so far, no cigar). Finally, finally, I found a recipe. Someone had the sense to adapt the very bread-machine-making recipe I'd saved and had posted it to the interwebs (yay interwebs!). And by that point, I'd overcome my fear of the temperamental factor that is yeast. Behold, a most marvelous creation:

I won't say how many of these I ate today, but I will justify myself by saying that I ate them as they should be eaten. That is, prepared the night before and stuck in the fridge for the second rise overnight, then baked at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes before being devoured by myself, my parents, and 3 friends after a very hilly bike ride. In other words, we earned it.

And now, a lesson in yeast:
If you're as interested in cinnamon rolls as I am, please don't be afraid of the yeast (or the calories, for that matter - they're worth it... in moderation). There is fear in the unknown, so educate yourself. The hardest part of working with yeast is not killing it, but that's actually easy to avoid. This recipe starts off by dissolving yeast in warm milk (some recipes call for water, but the principle is the same). If the milk is too cold, the yeast won't dissolve, but if it's too hot the yeast will die. The ideal temperature is right around 100 to 110 degrees F, but slight variation is okay- you don't need a thermometer. I go for the "pleasantly warm" feeling. If it feels uncomfortably hot, like water you wouldn't want to be immersed in, it's too hot. Let it cool off for a minute. On the other hand, you want it hotter than lukewarm. Trust your judgment. After the yeast is dissolved, you don't have to worry about it anymore; the hard part is over! And the reward is so... rewarding. If you're wary, check out these gooey contents:

Cinnabun Clone Cinnamon Rolls

Dough:
2 1/2 teaspoons (1 packet) active yeast
1 cup warm milk (110 degrees F)
1/2 cup white sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted and slightly cooled
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs, room temperature
4 1/2 cups bread flour

Filling:
1/3 cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick), softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar (also called powdered sugar)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt


Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk in a large bowl. Mix in the sugar, butter, salt, and eggs. Add the flour and mix well. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, then form into a ball and put in a greased bowl, turning to coat. Cover with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

After the dough has doubled in size, turn it out onto a large floured surface, cover again with the towel and let rest for 10 minutes. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar and cinnamon.

Roll the dough into a large rectangle, about 1/2 inch thick (the original recipe said to make a 16x21 inch rectangle but I didn't measure). Spread the 1/3 cup butter evenly over the dough and sprinkle with the sugar/cinnamon mixture (don't skimp on the filling; use it all!). Lightly roll or pat down the cinnamon/sugar mixture into the butter.

Roll the dough longways into a log and trim off either end, then cut it into 12 pieces. Place rolls in a lightly greased 9x13 inch baking pan (this is the size that the original recipe calls for, but I strongly recommend using a slightly larger pan if you have one, as 9x13 is a little small). Cover and let rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. If you're preparing these the night before you plan to bake them, put them in the refrigerator instead of letting them rise for 30 minutes, then take them out an hour before you plan to bake them so they can come to room temperature.

Bake rolls in a preheated oven until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. While rolls are baking, beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in the vanilla and salt. Add the confectioners sugar a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Spread the frosting on the warm cinnamon rolls before serving. Then dig in for bite after perfect, gooey bite.

Blueberry Muffins

So... have I mentioned YAY SUMMER!!? It's here, it's hot, and it's wonderful. No matter your expectations, summer just never disappoints. I am also proud to announce that I am no longer a broke college student! I dropped out!! Only joking, I just got a job. I'm now working at a giant sandwich trailer located about 30 feet or so from the door of my building. My commute time is like 90 seconds, which is awesome. But anyways, on to the important stuff: these blueberry muffins. With a cinnamon streusel topping. Yeahhh. I started making these muffins as a morale booster for a family that my mom is friends with, and boy do they work (well, they boost my morale, anyway). I mean, just check out these blueberry bombs:

Blueberry Crumb Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/3 cup greek yogurt
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 egg
1/3 cup milk (more or less)
1 tsp vanilla
8 oz (about 1 1/2 cups) fresh blueberries

For crumb topping:
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tbsp + 2 tsp flour
2 tbsp cold butter, cubed
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon


1. Preheat oven to 375F and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners and spray with a non-stick spray.
2. Combine flour, sugar, salt and baking powder in a medium bowl.
3. Place yogurt and vegetable oil into a 1 cup measuring cup, then add the egg and enough milk to fill the cup. Mix this with flour mixture.
4. Fold in the vanilla and blueberries, then set aside to make the topping.
5. In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, flour, butter, and cinnamon, using a fork to cut the butter into the dry stuff. (At this point I usually stick the topping in the freezer to keep the butter from melting while I fill the muffin tin with the batter.)
6. Distribute muffin batter evenly between muffin cups, then sprinkle generously with the topping.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out sans crumbs.

The end result is ridiculously rewarding. Seriously, look at that blueberry goodness:

As a plus, these freeze quite well. Just let them sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes to defrost, or zap them in the microwave for a few seconds.

Happy Birthday Brother: The Grand Finale

You know how some foods are just vehicles for others, like chips and their cheesy passenger, queso? This cake is one of those (yes, there is a cake under all those mini Reese's!). The cake is a buttermilk chocolate cake, which I actually found pretty bland, despite everyone's assurances that it was delicious (I'm pretty sure they were just being nice). It's the icing atop the cake that really stands out: Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting. I didn't know you could combine peanut butter and cream cheese, but I did and MAN ALIVE am I glad!

For the cake I used this recipe from Jonesing For and changed it up a bit. The original recipe called for a ganache poured over the cake, and I'm sure that my omission of that is the reason for the lack of chocolately flavor.

Chocolate Buttermilk Cake

Ingredients
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped (I suggest using 4 oz if you're not topping with ganache)
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup greek yogurt
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
2 eggs
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I suggest adding another 1/4 cup each of cocoa powder and sugar for more flavor)
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup strongly brewed fresh coffee, cooled
1 cup reduced fat buttermilk


Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 365° F. Grease and flour 3 8-inch cake pans and set aside.
2. Melt the chocolate in a medium bowl in the microwave or over a double boiler and let cool until there’s no longer steam rising from it. Whisk in the oil, yogurt and sugar until smooth, then whisk in the eggs.
3. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Add half of the dry ingredients to the chocolate mixture along with 1/2 cup of the coffee and 1/2 cup of the buttermilk; whisk until smooth. Add the remaining dry ingredients, coffee and buttermilk and whisk until smooth.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Be careful not to overbake. Let the cakes cool on a rack for 10 minutes, then turn them out and let cool completely.

And now for the frosting! I honestly cannot remember where I got the recipe for this frosting, but I thank you, whoever you are.

Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

10 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
5 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2/3 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until light and fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar 1 cup at a time, mixing thoroughly after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl often. Continue to beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes.

2. Add the peanut butter and vanilla and beat until thoroughly blended.

Assemble your cake, top with chopped mini Reese's, and enjoy!

Happy Birthday Brother: Part 2

Welcome to the cookie segment! This is not a picture of a stack of plain old chocolate chip cookies. These cookies are jacked up on crushed oreos and vanilla pudding mix for extra flavor and a chewier texture. These, as well as sugar cookies in the shape of an M-Dot* because my brother is an Ironman, make up part 2 of my brother's birthday present. Commence drooling... NOW:


Cookies&Cream Cookies:
adapted from Nestle Tollhouse's original cookie recipe

2 sticks softened butter
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1- 3.4 oz (not instant) pudding mix, any flavor (I used vanilla)
2 3/4 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 rows (32) Oreo Cookies, broken into pieces
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Cream butter and sugars until well combined. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in vanilla.

2. Place pudding mix, flour, baking soda and salt into a large bowl and stir to combine. Slowly stir dry ingredients into wet ingredients, then stir in oreo pieces and chocolate chips until just combined.

3. With a medium cookie scoop or a spoon, scoop dough onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 7-9 minutes or until cooked, but still soft (if the bottoms start to burn, place an empty metal baking sheet on the rack directly below the cookies to block direct heat). Let cool on baking sheet for 3 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

And don't forget the milk!


Wait a second, you didn't think this post was over, did you? I did mention M-Dot shaped sugar cookies, didn't I? Did I also mention that they are dipped in and drizzled with chocolate? No? Well, they are. Unfortunately, I gave all but one of these cookies to my brother without photographing them first, and when I went back to my lone cookie, I found he was missing his head and one leg:

Alright, so maybe I went ahead and ate his leg upon finding his headlessness, but I definitely did not eat his shoulder:

Okay fine, so I did. He was destined for this fate, anyway! His tasty, tasty fate... I commandeered this sugar cookie recipe from I Am Baker.

Sugar Cookie Recipe

¾ cup butter, room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
powdered sugar for dusting
2-3 cups chocolate chips (if you want to dip your cookies in chocolate)

In a large bowl, combine butter and sugar until smooth. Add eggs and vanilla and combine.

In a separate bowl, sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking powder, and salt (don't skimp on the sifting- it prevents flour from clumping up in your dough).

Slowly add dry ingredients into wet batter until fully incorporated.

Drop dough onto a large piece of saran wrap, mold it into a 4×4 square, and refrigerate for at least one hour or overnight.

When ready to bake the cookies, generously dust a flat surface with powdered sugar and roll out the dough. Use plenty of powdered sugar, more than you think you need! Doing so will spare you a serious frustration headache. Use cookie cutters to cut out your desired shapes, then use a metal spatula to transfer them to a parchment or silpat lined baking sheet.

Bake at 325-350 degrees for 5 to 8 minutes. My cookies puffed up a lot during the baking, so as soon as they came out of the oven I went over them again with the cookie cutter to get clean edges. This produced a lot of cookie scraps. I am not complaining.

Once cookies cool, melt chocolate chips in a wide, shallow dish. Drop cookies in one at a time, using a fork (or two, as the case may be) to fish them out. Place dipped cookies on a sheet of wax paper to dry. Decorate as you please!

*M-Dot: the international symbol for an Ironman, which is a race of superhuman proportions consisting of a 2.4 mile swim, followed by a 112 mile bike, followed by a 26.2 mile run, all within 17 hours. Yes, my numbers are correct. The (non-beheaded) M-Dot looks like this:

Happy Birthday Brother: Part 1

As I mentioned previously, my brother's 22nd birthday was this week. As I've also mentioned previously, I am but a poor college student :( So as part of my birthday present to my brother, I invested much of my time this week into making various food items. First on the list: Coconut Chocolate Ice Cream with a Caramel Swirl. I was going for a Samoa (as in the Girl Scout cookie) flavored ice cream but the finished product tasted nothing like a samoa. Luckily for me - I mean, for my brother - this ice cream was delicious in a completely different way. The recipe is adapted from a chocolate ice cream recipe by David Lebovitz, who also happens to be the ice cream god.

Chocolate-Coconut Ice Cream

1 1/2 cups whipping cream
3 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa
3 ounces semisweet chocolate chips
1 can (14 oz) coconut milk
3/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
5 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Put 1 cup of the cream in a saucepan and sift the cocoa powder into it. Heat on medium-low heat, whisking to blend in the cocoa. Bring to a boil, then immediately reduce to a simmer for 30 seconds, whisking constantly. Remove from heat and add the chocolate chips, stirring to melt and incorporate. Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup cream, then pour the mixture through a metal strainer (to catch any cocoa powder lumps) into a large bowl, scraping out as much as you can. Place the bowl in an ice bath.

Warm the coconut milk, sugar, and salt in the same saucepan. Whisk the egg yolks in a bowl while you wait for the mixture to warm. When the coconut milk mixture is just warm (don't let it boil!), pour it slowly into the yolks, whisking vigorously to temper them. Pour the whole mixture back into the saucepan and cook, stirring constantly. When the mixture has thickened (it should coat the back of a wooden spoon), pour it into the cream-chocolate mixture through the strainer to remove any cooked bits of egg. Add the vanilla and stir until the mixture has cooled. Refrigerate immediately.

When the mixture is sufficiently cool, freeze according to your machine's instructions. If you're adding the caramel swirl, alternate layers of ice cream and caramel in a freezer-safe container after churning the ice cream.

If you don't have an ice cream maker, go buy one! OR, instead of refrigerating the mixture after everything has been combined, put it in a container and stick it in the freezer. Every 30 minutes, remove the mixture from the freezer and whisk vigorously to break up the ice crystals. Keep doing this until you have reached ice cream consistency, but keep in mind this method makes for a more icy, less smooth (but still delicious!) ice cream.


As you can see in the picture, I made shortbread to go along with the ice cream because samoas are shortbread cookies covered in caramel, coconut, and chocolate. However, I preferred the ice cream sans shortbread, so I'm leaving the recipe out of this post. If anyone really, really wants it, just ask and you shall receive. I did, on the other hand, go with the caramel swirl. I decided to use a simple 1 part water, 2 parts cream, 3 parts sugar recipe because I'd never made caramel before:

3/4 cups sugar
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup cream

Combine the sugar and water in a small-ish saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally until it begins to boil. Stop stirring it and increase the heat to high, watching it carefully (if hot spots appear, swirl the pan gently). Once it turns amber in color remove from the heat and wait for a few seconds, then pour the cream in slowly, whisking while you do. The caramel will bubble up when you add the cream, so be careful not to get burned! Keep whisking the caramel until the more solid parts melt.

If you opt for the caramel swirl in your ice cream (which you should, because it's pretty amazing), make the caramel AT LEAST an hour ahead of time. If it's too warm, it will melt your ice cream. Also, this recipe makes a little more caramel then you need so I wouldn't recommend using all of it. Unless you're a caramel fanatic, in which case you can use as much as you like. More power to you and so on.


The idea and recipes for samoa ice cream and components were adapted from My Kitchen Quest.

How Risks Can Lead to Reward: A Delicious Tale

There is nothing in this world quite like the first bite of a crunchy, melty, gooey, chocolately s'more. Except for maybe the next bite, not to mention the second s'more. But that's besides the point, which is this: s'mores are delicious. And after having made an absurdly over-sized batch of marshmallows, I figured some of those should have the privilege of being displayed in their proper place between a graham cracker and a piece of Hershey's chocolate. However, I had to take it one step further. Many moons ago I saved a recipe for s'mores bars because really, how could you go wrong? And on surveying said recipe, I was disappointed to see this last looming ingredient: 1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff, not melted marshmallows. Why not melted marshmallows? What would happen? You guys, I have a confession. I do not understand marshmallow chemistry. I'm sorry, science has never been my strong point. So I looked for other s'mores bar recipes, and while there's a slight tweak here and there, they all specify no marshmallows. But by gad, I had marshmallows and I wanted to use them. So I did. And they were delicious.


Granted, the marshmallows did melt and become very sticky and kind of chewy, but these were SO GOOD that I didn't care. In fact, I really liked the weird texture of my melted marshmallows; it gave a little character to the s'mores bars. If you have the option between marshmallows and marshmallow fluff without having to make a special trip the the store, I would probably recommend the marshmallow fluff. Really though, these were amazingly delicious anyway.

Smores Bars

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 King size or 3 regular Hershey's bars
1 1/2 cups marshmallow fluff (or about 15 marshmallows cut in half if you want to stick it conventional methods)

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350*F and grease an 8 inch square pan.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugars. Beat in the egg and vanilla.
3. In a small bowl whisk together the flour, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder and salt. Slowly add this to the butter mixture.
4. Press half the dough into an even layer covering the bottom of the greased pan.
5. Place the chocolate on top, arranging it to cover as much of the surface as possible.
6. Spread the fluff on top of the chocolate, using a greased spatula to smooth the top. (Or, if you decided to go the devil-may-care route, place marshmallow halves on top of the chocolate, covering most of it.)
7. In sections at a time, flatten the remaining dough and place it on top of the marshmallow, covering completely.
8. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until lightly browned.




My brother's birthday (22! happy birthday George!) is this week and I might have a couple things planned, so stay tuned listeners. It's about to get intense.

Here's to Fulfilling Promises

A short while ago (a very short while, this is only post four after all) I said I would post an original recipe which I did not steal - nay, borrow - from another blog. So here it is.


Yes, it is oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough, but also no, it is not just oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough. When I first really got into baking as a hobby, I made primarily healthy stuff because my mom and brother are chronic exercisers, and biking on junk food is the most uncomfortable feeling. I adapted a lot of recipes by replacing butter with bananas and that sort of thing, and one thing led to another and then to healthy oatmeal chocolate chip cookies! I'll be honest with you though, dear readers, these don't taste like the sweet, gooey oatmeal cookies that are essentially butter meets sugar. These are chewy, banana-y, cinnamony, chocolatey-sweet little mounds of satisfaction. They are the lovechild born of a granola bar/cookie romance, and so I deem them granola cookies.


Granola Cookies
an original Table 7 recipe

3 over-ripe bananas (the browner, the better)
2 cups rolled oats
3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 tablespoon vanilla
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Mash bananas in a big mixing bowl with a fork and mix in rolled oats and applesauce.
3. Add vanilla and cinnamon, stirring to combine.
4. Add pecans, coconut and chocolate chips.
5. At this point, you can either let the mixture sit for about 10 minutes or add about 1/4 cup of whole wheat or all purpose flour to make the dough stick together.
6. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and flatten slightly with a fork (these cookies won't spread so feel free to place them right next to eachother).
7. Bake for about 12 minutes or until slightly browned.

These cookies are extremely versatile and pretty much impossible to mess up. You can replace the pecans, coconut and chocolate chips with whatever you want, and last time I made these, I used a little applesauce, yogurt and some milk instead of the 3/4 cup applesauce. You can add peanut butter. If you want them sweeter, you can add some honey or agave nectar or whatever. Seriously you guys, anything you want! (Just make sure your dough holds together so your cookies don't fall apart!)


Granted, they may not look like much, but they are DELICIOUS (if I may say so myself).

Delicious Clouds of Pure Sugar

Nope, not cotton candy. It's so much better than that. It's homemade marshmallows:

Haha ohhh man... But no, seriously this time:

I'd been wanting to try homemade marshmallows for a long time, but when candy thermometers and gelatin are involved in my kitchen endeavors... well that changes things. After conquering yeast while making bageldogs, however, I had some faith in myself and decided to give these marshmallows from Ezra Pound Cake a try. And, in case you were wondering, it's true what they say: homemade marshmallows are way better than the store-bought variety.

For the first time I figured I'd stick to the basic vanilla flavor, but if I make these again I'm definitely breaking out the Bailey's. Or the Kahlua...


Marshmallows
adapted from Ezra Pound Cake

plenty of powdered sugar (for dusting)
3 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1/2 cup cold water
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup hot water
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or flavoring of your choosing


1. Grease a 13 by 9 inch baking pan with oil or nonstick spray, and dust it thoroughly with powdered sugar.

2. Pour the cold water into a large bowl and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Set it aside to soften.

3. Set a large saucepan on the stove with a candy thermometer clipped to the side. Add the granulated sugar, corn syrup, hot water and salt, and cook the mixture over medium-low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the sugar is dissolved.

4. Turn up the heat to medium, and bring the mixture to a boil (without stirring it!) until your candy thermometer reads 240°F. This takes a few minutes, so don't get distracted and forget about it like I almost did (twice).

5. When the sugar mixture reaches 240°F, take the pan off the stove and pour the sugar mixture over the gelatin mixture. Stir it to disolve the gelatin.

6. Using an electric mixer, beat the mixture on high speed until it’s bright white, thick and nearly tripled in volume.

7. In a separate bowl with clean beaters, beat your egg whites until they just hold stiff peaks.

8. Add the egg whites and vanilla (or whatever flavoring) to the sugar mixture, and beat until everything is just combined.

9. Pour the mixture into your prepared pan and sift powdered sugar over the top of the marshmallow. I recommend laying a piece of lightly oiled plastic wrap directly on top of the powdered sugar at this point to create a seal and prevent the top of your marshmallow from drying out.

10. Pop the pan into the refrigerator, and let the mixture chill until it’s firm. This will take at least 3 hours, but you can leave it in the fridge for up to 24.

11. When your marshmallow is ready, run a knife around the edges of the pan to loosen. Turn the pan upside-down on a large cutting board, and starting at one corner, use your fingers to loosen the marshmallow from the pan so that it falls onto the board.

12. Using a knife or scraper, cut the marshmallow into 1-inch cubes by pressing down rather than sawing back and forth.

13. Sift some more powdered sugar into a bowl and add marshmallows in batches, tossing them to evenly coat in sugar.


This makes a lot of marshmallows but fear not! they probably won't last very long. You can keep them in an air tight container at room temperature for about a week, or just eat them all immediately and suffer the consequences of sugar-overload before the sugar coma kicks in.