It’s a challenge to find a granola bar that doesn’t melt when golfing in the summer where the temperature can be over 100 degrees
I made these peanut butter granola bars with rolled oats, honey, peanut butter and eggs. While it hasn’t been over 98 this month these bars held up.
Predominantly peanut butter flavor I added raisins and the bars held up to the heat.
Peanut Butter Granola Bars
INGREDIENTS • 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats • 3/4 cup peanut butter • 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup • 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (optional) • 2 whole eggs • Optional add-ins: pinch of salt (omit if peanut butter is salted), walnuts, pecans, almonds, chia, sunflower, or pumpkin seeds, or dried fruit
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350℉.
In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and mix well. *If your peanut butter is solid at room temperature, heat it for 10-15 seconds to make it a more drizzly consistency before adding to the mix.
Line a 9×9 inch baking dish or pan with parchment paper. This makes it much easier to remove the bars from your dish once baked.
Transfer the mixture to the prepared dish or pan. Very firmly press the mixture into the pan in an even layer — the firmer you press, the better the bars will stick together. If you’re using chocolate chips, sprinkle them on top, then press them down into the bars.
Bake for 15-17 minutes or until the center is baked through and the edges are just starting to brown. Start checking at 14 minutes, as all ovens are different.
Remove from the oven and place pan on a cooling rack.
Let the bars cool completely (this is important) before cutting into 16 squares with a sharp knife
Wanting to try something different than my standard chocolate chip cookie, I made these. I never used tahini before and found they had a pleasant, nutty flavor. Kinda like a very mild peanut butter.
The cookies were crispy, (maybe overbaked a couple of minutes?) front weighted with chocolate, as if that were a problem, delicious and worthy to be made again (and again.)
Salted Tahini Chocolate Chip Cookies
INGREDIENTS Yield: 18 to 24 cookies • 113g (8 Tbl) RT unsalted butter • 120g (½ c) tahini, well stirred • 200g (1 c) granulated sugar • 1 large RT egg • 1 egg RT yolk • 1 tsp vanilla extract • 150g (1 c + 2 Tbl) all-purpose flour • ½ tsp baking soda • ½ tsp baking powder • 1 tsp kosher salt • 230g (1¾ c) chocolate chips or chunks, bittersweet or semisweet • Flaky salt, like Maldon
METHOD
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter, tahini and sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add egg, egg yolk and vanilla and continue mixing at medium speed for another 5 minutes.
Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and kosher salt into a large bowl and mix with a fork. Add flour mixture to butter mixture at low speed until just combined. Use a rubber spatula to fold in chocolate chips. Dough will be soft, not stiff. Refrigerate at least 12 hours (or freeze for 2 hours); this ensures tender cookies.
When ready to bake, heat oven to 325⁰F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick baking mat. Use a medium. ice cream scoop or spoon to form dough into 18 to 24 balls.
Place the cookies on the baking sheet at least 3 inches apart to allow them to spread. Bake 13 to 16 minutes until just golden brown around the edges but still pale in the middle to make thick, soft cookies. As cookies come out of the oven, sprinkle sparsely with salt. Let cool at least 20 minutes on a rack.
I had some over ripe bananas and not being one to thrown them out (or eat them) I looked for a use for over ripe bananas. Sally once again to the rescue!
Everything she said about them is true. Very nice banana flavor and delicious cream cheese frosting. As it contains bananas, which is a traditional breakfast food, and cream cheese, which is a natural on breakfast bagels, I advertised this cake as a breakfast dessert with a clear conscience.
QC Cadre comments were: “Cake is to die for” (hope not!); “Very Delicious”; “The cake is so moist and good and that frosting is fabulous. Very breakfasty.”
Banana Cake – Sally
INGREDIENTS Banana Cake • 345g (1 ½c) mashed bananas (about 4 medium or 3 large bananas) • 375g (3 c) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled) • 1 tsp baking powder • 1 tsp baking soda • ½ tsp ground cinnamon • ½ tsp salt • 170g (¾ c;12 Tbl) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature • 200g (1 c) granulated sugar • 100g ( ½ c) packed light or dark brown sugar • 3 large eggs, at room temperature • 2 tsp pure vanilla extract • 360 g (1 ½ c) buttermilk, at room temperature* Cream Cheese Frosting • 226 (8 oz) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature • 113g ( ½ c; 8 Tbl) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature • 360g (3 c) confectioners’ sugar, plus an extra 1/4 cup if needed • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract • ⅛ tsp salt
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C) and spray a 9×13-inch pan. Make the cake:
Mash the bananas using stand mixer with paddle on high speed for 1 minutes. Set mashed bananas aside.
Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Set aside.
Using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on high speed until smooth and creamy—about 1 minute.
Add both sugars and beat on high speed for 2 minutes until creamed together. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed.
Add the eggs and the vanilla. Beat on medium-high speed until combined, then beat in the mashed bananas. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients in three additions alternating with the buttermilk and mixing each addition just until incorporated. Do not over-mix. The batter will be slightly thick and a few lumps is OK.
Spread batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 45–50 minutes. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If you find the top of the cake is browning too quickly in the oven, loosely cover it with aluminum foil.
Remove the cake from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to cool completely. After about 45 minutes, I usually place it in the refrigerator to speed things up. Make the frosting:
In a large bowl using a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese and butter together on high speed until smooth and creamy. Add 3 cups confectioners’ sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, then switch to high speed and beat for 2 minutes. If you want the frosting a little thicker, add the extra 1/4 cup of confectioners sugar (I add it). Spread the frosting on the cooled cake. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving. This helps sets the frosting and makes cutting easier.
Cover leftover cake tightly and store in the refrigerator for 5 days.
Bilbo and Frodo lived in the Shire, in the village of Hobbiton, in their home called Bag End. For those who don’t know their last name was Baggins and Bag End was a play on their name. While I love both the books and movies, I actually prefer Bag Uette. No one lives there, but everyone loves them anyway.
These are classic French Baguettes made with AP flour for the soft interior and baked hot for the crisp crust. They require at lease 12 hours of fermentation so it’s best to start it the night before you plan to devour them.
Baguettes Classic French
INGREDIENTS
• 500 g all purpose flour • 360 g water • 10 g salt • 3 g instant yeast about 1 tsp • 25 g honey about 1 Tbsp
METHOD
Mix all ingredients in a bowl, cover with a plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.
Over a period of 1½ hours, do 3 sets of stretch and folds, flipping the dough upside down after each set.
Cover the bowl with a plastic wrap and place in refrigerator overnight for about 12-14 hours.
Turn the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Divide into 3 equal parts and shape into rectangles each ~10 inches long. Cover and let rest for 45-60 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 500F, with a baking stone positioned in the upper half the oven and a bread pan filled with hot water on the bottom rack.
Stretch each dough rectangle slightly and fold into a cylinder, sealing the seams as you roll. Using your hands, roll the cylinders gently stretching them from the center towards the ends to desired length, about 14-15 inches.
Place on a lightly floured couche, seam side up. Cover and proof at a room temperature for about 30-60 minutes, or until the dough has sufficiently proofed. Press dough with a finger. If it springs back slowly it is sufficiently proofed.
Transfer the baguettes to a piece of parchment paper, seam side down and dust off excess flour. Using a bread lame, a sharp knife or a razor blade, make 5 diagonal scores on each baguette. When scoring, use a swift and firm motion to ensure nice and clean cuts.
Open the oven, taking caution not to get burned by steam, and slide the baguettes and parchment paper off onto the baking stone. Close the oven and reduce temperature to 475F. Bake for 15 minutes.
Remove the water pan, rotate the baguettes, drop the temperature to 450F and continue baking for another 15 minutes or until deep golden brown.
Sally rides again, (as opposed to astronaut Sally Ride.) I make a great shortbread cookie (although currently with some chocolate drizzle issues,) but Sally published a Brown Sugar Shortbread cookie, and of course, I couldn’t resist.
These cookies have a slightly higher (brown) sugar and flour content and as slice and baked coolies are rolled into logs rather than flat disks before chilling, but otherwise the methods are similar.
QC commented how good they smelled while baking, and when sampling, said they taste just like they smell. They’re sweeter than my usual shortbread cookie, no surprise and definitely will be added to the cookie wheel of fortune. (I really should invent one of those someday.)
Brown Sugar Shortbread Cookies
Yield: 24 cookies INGREDIENTS • 170g (¾ cup ;12 Tbl) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature • 200g (1 c) packed light or dark brown sugar • 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract • 281g (2¼ c) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled) • ¼ teaspoon salt For Rolling • 100g ( ½ c) coarse sugar (such as Sparkling or Sugar in the Raw) METHOD
In a large bowl using a handheld mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and brown sugar together on medium-high speed until completely smooth and creamy. Add the vanilla and beat until combined.
Add the flour and salt and beat on low speed until incorporated. Turn the mixer up to medium-high speed and beat until the dough comes together. If the dough is too crumbly and won’t come together after a couple minutes of beating, stop the mixer, pour the dough crumbles on a work surface, and use your hands to bring it together. You can also try sprinkling the dough with a few drops of water and then beat again; or get your hands wet, then press the dough clumps together tightly until it forms one large clump of thick dough.
With lightly floured hands, divide the dough in two. (If you want to be precise, the dough should weigh about 650g, so each half will be about 325g.) Roll and shape each piece of dough into an 8-inch log.
For Rolling: Pour coarse sugar onto a large plate. One at a time, roll the logs in the sugar until the exterior is fully coated.
Tightly wrap the logs in plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours and up to 5 days. Chilling is mandatory for this cookie dough. I always chill mine overnight.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. Set aside.
Remove logs from the refrigerator. Slice each log into 12 equally thick cookies and place cookies on baking sheets about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies for 14–16 minutes, or until set and lightly browned around the edges. Do not over-bake. Allow to cool for 5 minutes on the baking sheet, then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.
Cover and store leftover cookies at room temperature for up to 1 week. After day 1, the cookies will taste crunchier.
Notes Make Ahead Instructions: Baked cookies freeze well up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature, if desired, before serving. You can make/assemble the cookie dough logs and chill in the refrigerator for up to 5 days (see step 5). Cookie dough logs freeze well too, up to 3 months. Allow the logs to thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then continue with step 6. See if you’d like to see a video tutorial for freezing various types of doughs.
Sally’s Rough Puff Pastry is near perfect (my only changes are to tweak it for my baking style. Sally is catering to a larger, international audience while I am catering to myself and my QC Cadre neighbors.)
This bake required a little planning and forethought for me to make/create these pastries, (i.e. where to put the cream cheese or fig, where to place the berries and where/when to slit the dough.) I actually made a life size paper model.
The proof is in the pudding, err… pastry. The Cadre returned a unanimous decision: “Delicious”, “Flakey and Good”, “Wow. Very delicious!! They leave a lingering taste of warm sweetness ! Good job!”
Spread Cream Cheese, Blueberries and folded pastrySpread Fig Preserves, Slits and folded pastryFig Pasty in front, Blueberry in backBoth Pastries cut in half to show layers.
Blueberry-Cream Cheese or Fig Puff Pastry
INGREDIENTS • Puff Pastry (either store bought or recommended rough puff from recipe below) • 1 Tbl Sugar • ~ ½ c. Blueberries (~9 blueberries/pastry) • Cream Cheese (It’s easiest to use spreadable cream cheese) • (For fig pastry replace sugar, blueberries and cream cheese with fig preserves)
METHOD
Wash blueberries and toss with a tablespoon of sugar.
Roll puff (or rough puff) pastry out to a 13”x13” square.
Measure and cut with a pizza cutter six 4”x6” rectangles and position horizontally. (There will be some left over after squaring up the sides.)
Cut staggered diagonal slits on middle 3” of the rectangle
Spread cream cheese on 1½” x 4” edge of the rectangle, being careful not to coat the edges of the pastry.
Place blueberries on the center of the pastry (over the slits). I used ~ 12 blueberries per pastry.
Use your finger to wet the outer 4” edge of the pastry and fold over to the center of the pastry. Repeat with the other cream cheese coated edge, butting the end up against the first fold. Press gently to seal.
Use your fingers, with a little flour if the dough is sticky, to seal the ends. Turn over and place on a parchment paper line baking sheet.
Bake at 400 F for 25-30 minutes, rotating the pans midway.
Rough Puff Pastry
INGREDIENTS • 166 g (1⅓ c) all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring hands, surface, and dough • 1 tsp granulated sugar • ½ tsp salt • 170 g (¾ c or 1½ sticks) unsalted Kerry Gold butter, very cold and cubed • 6–8 Tbl ice cold water
METHOD
Cut the butter into ~1/4” cubes then return to the fridge to chill for 30 minutes.
Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. Place the cold and cubed butter on top. Gently toss the flour and butter together with your hands, and then briefly rub the butter into the flour to begin combining. Do not break down the butter too much in this step. This step is only possible if the butter is very cold.
Begin adding the ice cold water 1 Tablespoon at a time until dough forms 1 large shaggy clump with big chunks of butter in your bowl. Use your hands to toss the mixture together after you add each Tablespoon. (Start with 2 Tablespoons of water before tossing together.) As the dough begins to hydrate after about 4 Tablespoons of water, you can start lightly squeezing or clumping the dough together with your hands to help bring it together. Mixture will still be very shaggy. If your dough feels sticky and wet before adding 6 Tablespoons of water, your butter was likely too warm– you can continue with the recipe, but the dough will not be as flaky.
Pour the shaggy clump of dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. There will still be large chunks of butter at this point and that’s a good thing. Begin patting the dough down with lightly floured hands until it’s ¾ – 1” thick, about a 5×8” rectangle. Fold the dough into thirds as if you were folding a business letter. Use your hands to gently flatten and smooth out any cracks in your dough. Wrap it up tightly in plastic wrap.
1st refrigeration: Refrigerate dough for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.
Roll & Fold: Take the dough out of the refrigerator to begin the “rolling and folding” process. If the dough chilled for longer than about 3 hours, it’s likely very stiff so let it rest for about 5 minutes before you begin rolling. Lightly flour a work surface. The dough gets sticky, so make sure you have more flour nearby as you roll and fold. Use your hands to gently flatten the dough into a small square. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 6”×12”x ½” thick. The exact dimensions are not important, but the thickness is. As you roll, it’s best to flip the dough over once or twice to make sure it’s not sticking to your work surface. Lightly flour your work surface as needed. Fold the rectangle into thirds as if it were a business letter. Turn it clockwise or counter clockwise and roll it out into a 6”×12”x ½” thick rectangle again. Then, fold into thirds again. Turn it clockwise or counter clockwise. You’ll repeat rolling and folding 4 more times for a total of 6 times.
2nd Refrigeration: Wrap up/seal tightly and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes and up to 24 hours before using in your recipe. You can also freeze the dough at this point. See freezing instructions.
Use wherever you would use frozen store-bought puff pastry. To bake plain, roll pastry dough into a 10×16” rectangle and cut into desired portions. Fill if desired, and paint with an egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 Tbl water.)
Bake 400°F until golden brown and puffy, about 25-28 minutes.
NOTES
Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare as instructed in steps 1-3. At this point the dough can be refrigerated up to 24 hours (see step 4). You can also prepare the dough through step 5. At this point the dough can be refrigerated for up to another 24 hours (see step 6).
During or after this second chilling time, you could also freeze the dough for up to 1 month. (I don’t recommend freezing the dough before the rolling and folding step.) Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using in a recipe that calls for 1 lb puff pastry dough (or 1 store-bought package with 2 sheets puff pastry).
I made Sally’s rough puff pastry for the first time about three weeks ago. It was delicious, and while a little time consuming, totally worth it. My first attempt was a puff pastry wrapped Brie cheese, topped with fig jam and covered with roasted plum compote. EVERYONE including those who professed to not like plum, and/or Brie loved it.
I used Sally’s recipe again to make some “cover versions” of a blueberry/cream cheese pastry and a Feuillete au Chocolat (puff pastry and chocolate.)
Today, I used yet another third batch of her pastry to make my own version of the blueberry/cream cheese pastry and a fig filled (figs are ripe in my backyard) pastry.
Over the course of these bakes I mildly modified Sally’s recipe. In the first two trials I used high fat content (and expensive) Kerrygold butter. Today I used my standard Costco unsalted butter. I could not discern and difference in baking, taste of flake.
I also cut the butter into 1/4” cubes, then return it to the refrigerator for 30 minutes to really firm up and chill the butter. (It’s worth it.)
I try to turn, roll and fold the dough 6-8 times, I really do, but usually lose count and simple repeat until it feels right. I chilled it overnight and I chilled it for 3 hours, other than it’s being hard to roll, no difference. I also froze one batch for 3 days and when thawed could not tell the difference between it and the unthawed batch.
Since I do all the measuring I can in grams, my version lists weights before volumes, but other than that, I follow her recipe to the letter.
Rough Puff Pastry – Sally
INGREDIENTS • 166 g (1⅓ c) all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring hands, surface, and dough • 1 tsp granulated sugar • ½ tsp salt • 170 g (¾ c or 1½ sticks) unsalted Kerrygold butter, very cold and cubed • 6–8 Tbl ice cold water
METHOD
Cut the butter into ~1/4” cubes return to the fridge to chill.
Whisk the flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. Place the cold and cubed butter on top. Gently toss the flour and butter together with your hands, and then briefly rub the butter into the flour to begin combining. Do not break down the butter too much in this step. This step is only possible if the butter is very cold.
Begin adding the ice cold water 1 Tablespoon at a time until dough forms 1 large shaggy clump with big chunks of butter in your bowl. Use your hands to toss the mixture together after you add each Tablespoon. (Start with 2 Tablespoons of water before tossing together.) As the dough begins to hydrate after about 4 Tablespoons of water, you can start lightly squeezing or clumping the dough together with your hands to help bring it together. Mixture will still be very shaggy. If your dough feels sticky and wet before adding 6 Tablespoons of water, your butter was likely too warm– you can continue with the recipe, but the dough will not be as flaky.
Pour the shaggy clump of dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. There will still be large chunks of butter at this point and that’s a good thing. Begin patting the dough down with lightly floured hands until it’s ¾ – 1” thick, about a 5×8” rectangle. Fold the dough into thirds as if you were folding a business letter. Use your hands to gently flatten and smooth out any cracks in your dough. Wrap it up tightly in plastic wrap.
1st refrigeration: Refrigerate dough for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.
Roll & Fold: Take the dough out of the refrigerator to begin the “rolling and folding” process. If the dough chilled for longer than about 3 hours, it’s likely very stiff so let it rest for about 5 minutes before you begin rolling. Lightly flour a work surface. The dough gets sticky, so make sure you have more flour nearby as you roll and fold. Use your hands to gently flatten the dough into a small square. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 6”×12”x ½” thick. The exact dimensions are not important, but the thickness is. As you roll, it’s best to flip the dough over once or twice to make sure it’s not sticking to your work surface. Lightly flour your work surface as needed. Fold the rectangle into thirds as if it were a business letter. Turn it clockwise or counter clockwise and roll it out into a 6”×12”x ½” thick rectangle again. Then, fold into thirds again. Turn it clockwise or counter clockwise. You’ll repeat rolling and folding 4 more times for a total of 6 times.
2nd Refrigeration: Wrap up/seal tightly and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes and up to 24 hours before using in your recipe. You can also freeze the dough at this point. See freezing instructions.
Use wherever you would use frozen store-bought puff pastry. To bake plain, roll pastry dough into a 10×16” rectangle and cut into desired portions. Fill if desired, and paint with an egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 Tbl water.)
Bake 400°F until golden brown and puffy, about 25-28 minutes.
NOTES
Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: Prepare as instructed in steps 1-3. At this point the dough can be refrigerated up to 24 hours (see step 4). You can also prepare the dough through step 5. At this point the dough can be refrigerated for up to another 24 hours (see step 6).
During or after this second chilling time, you could also freeze the dough for up to 1 month. (I don’t recommend freezing the dough before the rolling and folding step.) Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using in a recipe that calls for 1 lb puff pastry dough (or 1 store-bought package with 2 sheets puff pastry).
I make these cookies occasionally and love them (almost as much as those 2-serving-packages available commercially.) My issue with mine was it never looked right to seal the dough on the side of the cookie. I saw another method to wrap and seal the fig so today, was a method development bake..
Instead of sealing the dough by pinching the edges together and pressing with the tines of a fork, I wrapped the dough around the fig filling and pressed the edges together on the bottom of the cookie. It took a little thought and work to figure out the mechanics.
The method to make the dough and filling is the same as previously published. One change I will make is to cut the cookies apart after the log is baked. If done when the log is hot, they cut nicely and result in a nice sharp edge, unlike these (right photo) that flowed slightly.
Homemade Fig Cookies – Bookend Fold Seal
INGREDIENTS • 1 pint fresh or preserved figs or 12 ounces dried figs • 1 ½ cups AP flour • ¼ teaspoon baking powder • ¼ teaspoon salt • ¼ tsp ground cinnamon • 1 stick butter • ⅓ cup sugar • 1 egg • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • 2 tablespoons orange juice
If you are using: • Fresh figs: Remove stems and boil figs with 2 cups of sugar in 1 cup of water for 45 minutes. Drain and cool. (This seemed to be too much sugar and water.) Try cutting in half. If too thin, cook down until temp reaches about 210⁰F. • Dried figs: In a bowl, pour boiling water over figs (stems removed) and let rest 10 minutes. Drain all but 2 tablespoons water and stir in 2 tablespoons corn syrup + ¼ teaspoon cinnamon. • Preserved figs: Drain syrup. METHOD
Puree figs in food processor into a thick paste (if too thick or thin to spread evenly, add a little water or flour until spreadable consistency is reached).
Combine flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt together and set aside.
Cream butter and sugar in a mixing bowl.
Add egg and vanilla, mix until smooth
Add orange juice and combined dry ingredients to bowl and mix until dough forms.
Divide dough in half and roll into two rectangles ~4”x ~10 x ~½” and chill for 30 min to set butter and make it easier to roll and fold. It’s helpful to make make the rectangles as even as possible to make the next step easier.
Roll dough out between parchment paper into an 5”x14” rectangle ~ ¼” thick.
Return to the refrigerator for another 30 minutes, repeat for the second disk.
Flip rectangle over to release the dough from the parchment paper.
One rectangle at a time, spread fig paste onto the center 1½ ” of each rectangle, lengthwise.
Using the parchment paper to help, fold uncovered dough over fig paste.
Butt the two edges of the dough together and push together to seal then flip the cookie right side up.
Move to a clean piece of parchment paper and place on a baking sheet.
Bake 25 minutes at 350⁰F until crust begins to brown.
While still warm cut each log into 2” pieces
Note:
Try to either spray or lightly flour the parchment paper to help when removing the dough rectangle from the paper.
If necessary wet the edges of the fold over portions of the dough to help seal.
My instructions for Vivian’s birthday cake were that it was to be a “Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate cake.” This is neither the prettiest or most imaginative cake I have made but it’s the most chocolate.
The cake (#1 chocolate) is my Extreme Chocolate Cake, which is universally loved and complimented, (by me also.) The frosting is new to me, a cream cheese chocolate frosting (#2 chocolate.) It is whipped up into a lighter, less sweet frosting when compared to my usual buttercream frosting. (My fav, however, is Italian Meringue.) The top of the cake is covered with chocolate shards (#3 chocolate) created during my failed attempt to make chocolate tubes. To be continued.
Around the bottom of the cake are shortbread cookies, shaped like 7’s with a chocolate foot (#4 chocolate.) Mission accomplished and she was very happy. (Me too.) There is also a golden shortbread trophy on the top as a result of her fabulous year swimming.
Extreme Chocolate Cake
Makes two 9” round cakes and can be scaled up, as this cake was INGREDIENTS • 2 cups white sugar • 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour • 3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder • 1 teaspoon salt • 2 eggs • 1 cup milk • 1/2 cup vegetable oil • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract • 1 cup boiling water
METHOD
Preheat oven to 350⁰F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour two 9 inch cake pans.
Use the first set of ingredients to make the cake. In a medium bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Add the eggs, milk, oil and vanilla, mix for 3 minutes with an electric mixer. Stir in the boiling water by hand. Pour evenly into the two prepared pans.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes in the preheated oven, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean or 205⁰F internal temp. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pans to cool completely.
Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting – Sally
INGREDIENTS • 339g (12 oz) full-fat brick cream cheese, softened to room temperature* • 170g (¾ c; 12 Tbl) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature • 420g (3½ c) confectioners’ sugar • 55g (⅔ c) unsweetened natural or dutch-process cocoa powder • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract • 1–2 tbl heavy cream • pinch salt
METHOD
In a large bowl using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the cream cheese for 1 minute on high speed until completely smooth and creamy.
Beat in the butter until combined. Add the confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, vanilla extract, 1 Tablespoon milk, and salt and beat on medium-high speed until combined and creamy.
Add 1 more Tablespoon of milk to slightly thin out, if desired. Taste, then add another pinch of salt if desired.
Cover and store leftover frosting for up to 5 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the refrigerator then beat the frosting for a few seconds so it’s creamy again.
Notes
Make Ahead Instructions: Cover and store leftover frosting for up to 5 days in the refrigerator or up to 3 months in the freezer. After freezing, thaw in the refrigerator then beat the frosting for a few seconds so it’s creamy again.
Tip for Piping Cream Cheese Frosting: Refrigerate the frosting inside the piping bag for at least 30 minutes prior to piping. Cream cheese frosting holds its shape much better when it’s piped cold.
This recipe is enough to frost 18-24 cupcakes, one 9×13-inch sheet cake, or one 3 layer cake.
Sometimes you think something couldn’t be improved, but in this case you would be so wrong. I was about to make a new (to me) recipe of Tahini chocolate chip cookies when Sally sent out her recipe. Stand aside Tahini there is a new cookie in town
These cookies are thicker and are more cohesive than my standard Nestles recipe. It shows to go, even childhood favorites (until today,) can be replaced.
Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies – Sally
INGREDIENTS • 281g (2 ¼ c) all-purpose flour • 1 teaspoon baking soda • 1 ½ teaspoons cornstarch • 1/2 teaspoon salt • 170g (12 Tbl) unsalted butter, melted & cooled for 5 minutes • 150g (3/4 c) packed light or dark brown sugar • 100g ( ½ c) granulated sugar • 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk, at room temperature • 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract • 225g (1 ¼ c) semi-sweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
METHOD
In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt together. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, whisk the melted butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar together until no lumps remain. Whisk in the egg and egg yolk until combined, then whisk in the vanilla extract. The mixture will be thin. Pour into dry ingredients and mix together with a large spoon or spatula. The dough will be very soft, thick, and shiny. Fold in the chocolate chips. The chocolate chips may not stick to the dough because of the melted butter, but do your best to combine them.
Cover the dough tightly and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to 3 days. I highly recommend chilling the cookie dough overnight to prevent overspreading.
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats. If the dough has chilled for longer than 2 hours, let it sit at room temperature for about 15 minutes.
Using a cookie scoop or Tablespoon measuring spoon, scoop the chilled cookie dough, about 3 scant Tablespoons (about 2 ounces, or 60g) of dough for XL cookies or 2 heaping Tablespoons (about 1.75 ounces, or 50g) of dough for medium-large cookies. Roll into a ball, then use your fingers to shape the cookie dough so that it’s taller rather than wide—almost like a cylinder. This helps the cookies bake up thicker. Repeat with remaining dough. Arrange the cookies 3 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets.
Bake the cookies for 13–14 minutes or until the edges are very lightly browned. The centers will look very soft, but the cookies will continue to set as they cool. Cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely. While the cookies are still warm, I like to press a few more chocolate chips into the tops—this is optional and only for looks!
Store tightly covered at room temperature for up to 1 week.
aBatteredOldSuitcase 