glazed cherry loaves

My daughter is on a cherry kick, and I was totally going to make her a sweet cherry cake for her bday earlier in the month, but I didn't. I made her a charlotte, which collapsed when I removed the ring. So I sent my husband to the grocery store before guests arrived. She got cherry cupcakes to bring to school, but they were made from a mix, and obviously don't count. Poor kid never gets a cool birthday cake.

So when I spotted this loaf recipe from Averie Cooks I knew I had to make it immediately. Plus I had recently remembered I had this cool twist donut pan and also needed to use that ASAP.

I have made a cherry cupcake recipe in the past, but I think this recipe wins for ease and simplicity. The texture is moist and a bit coarse, and so good! It would have been fine without the glaze, but it's prettier with it. I simply whisked enough milk in powdered sugar to get a drizzling consistency, then added a bit of almond extract for flavor.

Cherry Bread
recipe adapted from : Averie Cooks

one 10-ounce jar maraschino cherries, juice reserved
1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
pinch salt
2 large eggs
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray your choice of baking vessel with non stick spray.

Roughly chop cherries and set juice aside.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt to combine; set aside.

In a small mixing bowl or glass measuring cup, combine eggs, oil, cherry juice, almond extract, vanilla extract.
Pour wet mixture into dry ingredients and stir to combine; don't overmix. Batter will be very thick.
Fold in the chopped cherries.
Divide batter into the prepared pans, smoothing the tops lightly with a spatula. 

Bake until bread is domed, set, and lightly golden. A toothpick inserted in the center should come out clean, or with a few moist crumbs, but no batter. 

My twists baked for about 23 minutes, whereas the three cupcakes I made took about 25 minutes. If baking in larger loaf pans, baking time could be up to 40 minutes.

Cinnamon Roll Cake

I needed a dessert to bring to my parent's house for dinner after the kids had invited themselves over this weekend. I was all set to make Classic Creme Brulée as part of Baked Sunday Mornings, but when I poured the cream in a saucepan, it came out.... not quite liquid.

So.... Spent a couple of hours trying to decide what to make and waited until the very last minute to make this cake.

It's not real pretty, not fancy and not complicated, but it was so good! It hung out on the stove top while dinner was cooking so was still warm and gooey when we had it for dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. The cake itself was moist and light and the topping created gooey swirls of cinnamon and brown sugar yumminess.

This is a very simple 3-bowls and no mixer cake. The batter itself is simply flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, eggs, milk and vanilla whisked together like pancake batter. Melted butter gets poured in the batter and gently combined. The resulting mixture gets spread in a greased 9x13 pan.

The butter for the topping was supposed to be room temperature, but mine was fridge cold, so I simply cut it into some brown sugar, cinnamon and flour. Once it seemed combined enough, I poured it on batter and used a knife to swirl the topping into the batter as best as I could.

My cake baked for way longer than the recommended 30 minute average. Maybe, 45 to 50 minutes total.

Once I got around to it, and while the cake was still warm, I made the quick glaze out of powdered sugar, milk and vanilla, and poured it on top of the cake where it quickly seeped into the nooks and crannies to settle.

Not much to look at, but it made for a homey satisfying dessert, that could totally be considered breakfast.... cause you know: cinnamon!

Cinnamon Roll Cake
recipe source: Rumbly Tumbly

Cake:
3 c. flour
1/4 tsp.salt
1 c. sugar
4 tsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. milk
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. butter, melted

Topping:
1 c. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour
1 Tbsp. cinnamon

Directions:
Mix everything together except for the butter. Slowly stir in the melted butter and pour into a greased 9×13 pan. For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined. Drop evenly over the batter and swirl with a knife. Bake at 350 for 28-32 minutes.

Glaze:
2 c. powdered sugar
5 Tbsp. milk
1 tsp. vanilla

While warm drizzle the glaze over the cake.

jam filled muffins

These muffins taste like my childhood. My mom used to make them often when I was a child, and I have been craving them for a while now, ever since I made strawberry jam I think. I just knew I had to use the jam in these muffins.

But I couldn't find my falling-apart Muffins Mania recipe book to save my life. So I asked my mom for a copy of the recipe and finally got to kill my craving.

Tasted just like a remembered them! A moist vanilla scented muffin with a jam center. And I still had some leftover crumble topping from back when I made Strawberry Swirled Muffins, so I went ahead and topped the muffins with some of the crumble topping. Added a nice crunch and extra texture to the muffins.

Jam Filled Muffins
Recipe source: Muffins Mania

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup plain yogurt
1/4 cup milk
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
jam or jelly

Preheat oven to 375.

Blend dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, combine melted butter, yogurt and milk. Beat in egg and vanilla.

Add butter mixture to dry ingredients and stir until moistened.

Spoon half of the batter into 9 well greased muffin cups. Place about 1 tsp jam or jelly in each muffin and top with remaining batter.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

This recipe only makes 9 muffins, but they don't keep very well. So find a few friends, and devour as soon as they are cool enough to handle.

strawberry swirled muffins

It's strawberry season again! The kids and I went strawberry picking with their cousins and my sister-in-law last week. I got amazing pics of the kids from the outing plus, the best strawberries, sweet biscuits to make shortcakes and pie!

I had planned on making balsamic basil strawberry jelly, but didn't get have all the supplies on hand. Then I realized that we had a huge basket of strawberries to eat before leaving for the weekend, so I used up some of them in these muffins.

Chopped strawberries get folded in the muffin batter, then a dollop of strawberry jam gets swirled in. Just before they go into the oven, the top of the muffins get sprinkled with a mixture of butter, flour, powdered sugar and cinnamon.

Strawberry Swirled Muffins
Recipe adapted from A Cache of Recipes by Laura Cole via The Galley Gourmet

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
8 Tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sour cream
1 extra large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup small diced fresh strawberries
2 Tablespoons strawberry jam, divided
3/4 cup streusel topping (recipe below)

Preheat the oven to 350º F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the butter, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla. Gently mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until the mixture comes together. Fold in the strawberries. Evenly fill the muffin tins. Swirl 1/2 teaspoon of strawberry jam into each muffin. Top each muffin with 1 tablespoon of the streusel topping. Bake for 30 minutes. Allow the muffins to cool in the tin for 5 minutes. Remove the muffins and cool completely.

Streusel Topping
makes 1.5 cups, enough for 2 batches of muffins

3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cubed

Combine all the ingredients using a pastry cutter. Store any remaining streusel in an airtight container in the refrigerator or freezer for another use.

These muffins were also fun to make for little hands as there was a bunch of steps they participate in: putting the liners in the cupcake mold, mixing the dry ingredients, cracking the egg in a bowl, whisking the wet ingredients, swirling the jam in the batter, sprinkling on the streusel... a perfect recipe for kids wanting to learn how to bake!

rhubarb crumb cake

It's that time of year again... Allergies, I mean, Spring! I got a bunch of rhubarb last week, and found a bit of time to do something with it! Aside from the usual oatmeal muffins, I made this cinnamony Rhubarb Crumb Cake.

Basically, a buttercake flavored with cinnamon, then a layer of sweetened rhubarb, and sweet crumbs. Pretty straightforward and pretty delicious, but doesn't quite beat Baked's NY-style crumb cake.


Rhubarb Crumb Cake
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart via Pies and Plot

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for pan
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 cups rhubarb, cut into ½ inch pieces1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup confectioners’ sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter an 8 inch square baking pan. Line it with parchment, leaving an overhand and butter the parchment.Make the crumbs. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, sugar, and cinnamon until combined. Pour in the butter and mix together with a fork until all ingredients are moistened and crumbs of various sizes have formed. Refrigerate while you make the cake.

Make the cake. In a medium bowl, combine rhubarb, brown sugar, and ¼ cup flour. In a small bowl, stir together remaining ¾ cup flour, baking powder, and cinnamon. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar by hand or using a hand or stand mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time until once again light and fluffy. Beat in the vanilla. Mix in the flour mixture and pour into prepared pan. Spread into an even layer. Top with an even layer of rhubarb and finally an even layer of crumbs.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, rotating halfway through if necessary, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Cool completely in pan before cutting and serving. May be stored at room temperature in an airtight container for up to three days or frozen, wrapped in parchment and foil and placed in a zipper bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature for a couple of hours or in a 350 degree F oven for about 15 minutes.

And I still have enough rhubarb leftover to make blueberry rhubarb crisp! Score!

daring bakers: hidden veggies

Using veggies in sweet applications is something I've done before, but only with the very obvious carrot, pumpkin, zucchini and rhubarb (if it counts as a vegetable).

Ruth from Makey-Cakey was our March 2013 Daring Bakers’ challenge host. She encouraged us all to get experimental in the kitchen and sneak some hidden veggies into our baking, with surprising and delicious results!

So I quickly went to the kitchen and grabbed a sweet potato I had been meaning to roast, and microwaved it to make muffins with pecans and flavored with maple syrup.

Maple Sweet Potato Muffins

recipe slightly adapted from : Ontario Sweet Potato

1 cup mashed sweet potatoes
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. ground cinnamon
Dash salt
2 large eggs, slightly beaten
¾ cup salad oil
¼ cup maple syrup
½ cup chopped toasted pecans

1. In large bowl, combine sweet potatoes, flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Add eggs, oil and maple syrup; blend well. Stir in pecans and currants.

2. Spoon evenly into greased muffin cups, filling each ¾ full. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until muffins spring back when lightly touched. Remove muffins from pan and serve warm. Makes 1 ½ dozen muffins.

I thought they were really good, especially the top of the muffins where I had sprinkled some maple sugar! They were pretty greasy though, so I would add some applesauce next time so I can reduce the amount of oil.

honey banana poppy seed bread

C'est inévitable. When I buy bananas just because, they stay on the counter and get too soft to eat out of hand and of course, at that point, I'm too lazy to bake with them. And when I buy bananas *specifically* for baking, they disappear right before my eyes.

I still managed to make this week's Baked Sunday Mornings recipe for Honey Banana Poppy Seed Bread by going back to the store for more bananas. And just in case, I also bought a packet of poppy seeds, then discovered I had an opened one with barely a tablespoon out of it at home. It's not an ingredient I use very often, in fact, the only time I can recall eating poppy seeds is on an everything bagel. But I enjoyed the slight crunch they imparted to this banana bread.

I wasn't feeling all that great when I made this recipe, so I might have forgotten an ingredient, but this banana bread seemed off to me. The batter seemed thin. My usual recipe rises way more than this one did. And looks more rustic. Once I cut into the loaf, I was surprised to see how dark it was inside. I made sure to bake it completely, but I don't think I over-baked it.

    

I really enjoy banana bread, but unfortunately, not this recipe. It just tasted too... toasty to me. But the rest of the fam seemed to like it, so posting it anyway. For the recipe, click on through to the Baked Sunday Mornings Blog and see how the other bakers enjoyed this one!

spiced apple coffee cake

This is one of my favorite breakfast cakes. Yes, there is such a thing.

It's super easy to make, extra moist, and full of apple flavor and goodness. Seriously, the best texture ever! This cake is almost creamy.

The only thing is, it takes forever to bake. I bake my cake in a 8 by 8 glass pan, and it takes about 85 minutes to fully bake. The resulting cake puffs up over high over the edge of the pan, but then settles and cracks a bit to accept the yummy glaze.

Spiced Apple Coffee Cake
recipe slightly adapted from Williams Sonoma

For the apple cake:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
4 small Granny Smith Apples, 1 lb. total, peeled, cored and coarsely chopped
2 tbsp. apple juice
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
8 tbsp (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs

For the vanilla glaze:
3/4 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted
2 tbsp. milk or cream
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat an oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 9-inch round springform pan or square baking pan or baking dish.

To make the cake, in a bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.

In another bowl, toss the apples with the juice. In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cardamom and cinnamon. Add to the apples and toss to coat. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, combine the butter, cream cheese, granulated sugar and vanilla and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the flour mixture in 2 or 3 additions and beat well until smooth. Using a large rubber spatula, gently fold in the apples just until evenly distributed, no more than a few strokes. Do not overmix. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly.

Bake until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, 60 to 70 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners sugar, the 2 tbsp milk and the vanilla until smooth and pourable. Adjust the consistency of the glaze by adding more milk, a few drops at a time, if needed.

Remove the sides of the springform pan, if using, and place the cake on a wire rack set over a piece of waxed paper to catch any drips. While the cake is warm, drizzle with the glaze. Let the cake cool to room temperature. Cut into wedges or squares to serve. Makes one 9-inch cake.

Note: If using a glass baking dish, reduce the oven temperature to 325°F.

banana fritters

So I had bananas ripening on the counter and was debating making banana muffins from the Bouchon Bakery book (awesome recipe, awesome book by the way), and these Banana Foster Fritters because they were on the Baked Sunday Mornings recipe schedule. Upon consultation with my husband, we decided to try something new, and went with the fritters.

Banana Fritters do not photograph very well. Or, I cannot photograph Banana Fritters very well. In my defense, I made them after dinner one night, when there was absolutely no natural light available. And I might have had the oil too high, and they might have looked a bit burnt on the outside. I even tried covering them with powdered sugar... yeah. Not pretty!

But they were easy. A simple matter of mixing wet ingredients with dry ingredients, and setting the mixture aside in the fridge while heating up oil. Or in my case, while going to the store to get oil, and getting it up to temperature.

There was a rum dipping sauce recipe to go along these fritters, but I went with a simple powdered sugar glaze instead. And I still don't have rum, so I didn't include it in the recipe. So the Banana Foster Fritters suddenly became simple glazed Banana Fritters.

Reviews were mixed. I enjoyed them still warm from the oil, but the next day, not so much. My husband did not like the banana flavor/texture, but would like me to try the same recipe with apples next time, as the donut texture was good. Another taster texted me that they were real (expletive) good after tasting them an hour or so after them being fried. So if you like banana flavored baked goods, I suggest trying this one. I mean, it's fried dough... hard not to like!

For the recipe and to see how the other bakers enjoyed these, visit the Baked Sunday Mornings blog!

eggnog muffins with cranberry filling

On boxing day I was confronted with a massive amount of leftover food from Christmas parties. I had a carton of eggnog that was about to expire, so I had to find creative way to use it before then. I made eggnog waffles, and then turned to the internet to find a muffin recipe that I could make and freeze for lunches when we go back to work and school in January.

I was looking for a muffin recipe that didn't require the use of a mixer, since it was being used for something else, and I didn't have any softened butter I could use for these muffins, so I found what I was looking for at Annie's Eats.

As I was spooning the batter in the cute little baking cups, I thought that I could make use of other leftovers, and added a spoonful of cranberry sauce in each of the half filled baking cups before adding a bit more batter on top.

Eggnog muffins with cranberry filling

recipe lightly adapted from Annie's Eats

Yield: one dozen

1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground nutmeg
1 cup eggnog
¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
1 tbsp. apple cider vinegar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 cup sugar

1/4 cup cranberry sauce

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F. Line cupcake pans with paper liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and nutmeg; whisk to combine. In another bowl combine the eggnog, vegetable oil, vinegar, and sugar. Whisk until well blended. Add in the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated.

Divide the batter between the prepared cupcake liners, filling the cups 1/2 full. Add a spoonful of cranberry sauce to each liner, and fill each liner 2/3 full with the rest of the batter.  Bake 22-24 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

They came out absolutely delicious! My mom used to make muffins filled with jam, and these totally brought back memories. The muffin itself is sweet and flavorful, and very moist. The cranberry sauce complemented the muffin nicely. A nice burst of freshness in the sweet muffin.

It was my first time using the rigid kind of baking cups for muffins. I was happy to see that they kept their shape while baking on a rimmed baking sheet, and pleasantly surprised that did not become discolored while baking by the fat in the batter. So glad I stocked up when I saw them a little while back! So cute!

pumpkin chocolate chip loaf

Another Baked Sunday Mornings, another recipe I didn't make. Bad blogger! The scheduled recipe was for a Burnt Sugar Bundt Cake with Caramel Rum Frosting. I didn't have a use for a huge Bundt cake, and couldn't justify making it just for us, especially since I'm 5 days late making my husband's birthday cake.

What I could justify though, was making this pumpkin chocolate chip loaf for Teacher's Appreciation Day.

The recipe is out of Baked's first cookbook. I'm sure I've made it before pre-blog but I was happy to make it again. I liked how simple is was to prepare, and the fact that I didn't need to use the stand mixer, especially since I made it at 5:30 am before school. Didn't want to wake up the girls with the mixer!

The resulting loaf tastes like fall, and is super moist! We love if for breakfast.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Loaf
from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons salt
1 3/4 cups pumpkin puree (a 15-ounce can)
1 cup vegetable oil
3 cup sugar
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup (12 ounces) semi- or bittersweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour two 9-by-5-by-3-inch loaf pans.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, spices, baking soda and salt.

In another large bowl, whisk together the pumpkin puree and oil until combined. Add sugar and whisk again. Whisk in the eggs one at a time then the vanilla. Add 2/3 cup room-temperature water and whisk to until combined. Fold the chocolate chips into the wet ingredients with rubber spatula.

Fold the dry ingredients into the wet, being careful not to overmix the batter. Spread the batter into the prepared pans, and gently knock the bottom of the pan onto the countertop to even out the batter. Use a spatula to smooth the top.

Bake in the center of the oven until a toothpick comes out clean, about 75 to 90 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before inverting the loaf onto the rack to cool completely before serving. The loaf will keep for 3 days or more wrapped in plastic wrap or in an airtight container at room temperature.

That's all that was left by the time I got around to taking a cross section picture! It was that good!

espresso banana muffins

I had bananas ripening on the counter and they were past their prime eating out of hand stage. So they quickly became banana muffins. To be frank, I had wanted a healthier recipe than this one, but there was no moving my daughter from in front of the computer. She was lost on youtube... So I had to fall back on my collection of neglected cookbooks, and remembered this banana muffin recipe from the first Baked cookbook.

The Baked guys include espresso powder in these, and it totally boosts the flavor of these incredibly moist muffins.

In typical quickbread fashion, the dry ingredients are mixed in one bowl, and the wet ingredients in another, then they quickly get mixed together until just combined. It is one of their easier, less involved recipe, and you've got to love the simple, simple method that get you the most ridiculously moist muffins!

Baked’s Banana Chocolate Chip Espresso Muffins
Recipe source: Baked: New Frontiers in Baking, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

1-1/2 cups mashed, very ripe bananas (about 4)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1/4 cup whole milk
1 large egg
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (6 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray.
In a medium bowl, stir together the bananas, sugars, butter, milk, and egg.
In another medium bowl, whisk together the flour, instant espresso powder, baking soda and salt. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the well and stir just until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.
Fill each cup about 3/4 full. Bake in the center of the oven for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the muffin comes out clean.
Move the muffin pan to a cooling rack, and let cool for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove the muffins from the pan and let them finish cooling on the cooling rack.
Muffins can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 days.

I was too lazy to melt butter, so I used vegetable oil instead, with no noticeable change in the final product. I also almost never measure mashed banana and use what I had on hand, in these muffins, 3 medium ones. And switched out the cup of chocolate chips for half a cup of miniature ones. Super yummy! I love keeping those in the freezer for buzy mornings.

peanut butter & jelly snack cake

I skipped last week's Baked Sunday Mornings recipe for Peanut Butter Bars because, although I was totally craving a peanut butter and jelly dessert, the recipe, with it's pie crust, peanut butter mousse filling and oaty topping just didn't appeal to me. What I really wanted, was this:

A cakey peanut butter bar drizzled with strawberry jam and topped with chopped peanuts for some crunch. And it didn't disappoint! The textures in this cake are totally my thing, and I could eat an entire pan!

Plus, it dirtied exactly two bowls! Did not have to spend an afternoon washing dishes like I would have if I had made the Baked recipe.

Peanut butter & jelly snack cake
recipe adapted from Dawn Finicane

1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 large egg
1 cup peanut butter

1 jar of strawberry or raspberry jam/jelly

Preheat oven to 350F. Line an 8x8 square baking pan with parchment paper.
In a large bowl mix the flour, brown sugar, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Beat in the softened butter until mixture resembles wet sand. Do not over beat. 

Remove between ¾ - 1 cup of the mixture to a medium bowl and set aside.
Add the buttermilk and the egg to the remaining mixture. Pour into the prepared pan, spreading evenly. Take the remaining flour mixture that was set aside and mix in the cup of peanut butter.
Drop the peanut butter mixture onto the cake by tablespoons, spacing it evenly. Do not press the mixture into the batter; just let it sit as is.
Bake for about 30 -35 minutes, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. 

When the cake has cooled slightly, warm the jelly in the microwave and drizzle it over the cake.  Cool on a wire rack before slicing.

I don't know if it's the weather or the week vacation that makes me want to bake, photograph and blog again. It was so nice taking pictures outside today! Hoping to get blogging regularly again soon!

double chocolate loaf with peanut butter cream cheese spread

I've missed a few challenges, but i'm back in for February's. The Daring Bakers’ February 2012 host was – Lis! Lisa stepped in last minute and challenged us to create a quick bread we could call our own. She supplied us with a base recipe and shared some recipes she loves from various websites and encouraged us to build upon them and create new flavor profiles.

I'm quite familiar with quickbreads, probably the first things I've ever made since they are so simple. As I kid, my mom let me mix muffin batter. Being so excited to help, I'm sure I totally overmixed the batter, resulting in dense and heavy muffins and loaves. But now I know better. Barely mix wet and dry ingredients together, bake, you're done.

I had missed this recipe when the Baked Sunday Mornings group made it before I joined, so I thought this was the perfect time to try it. I used 72% chocolate, and it was very deeply chocolaty. A little too much for my liking, but the peanut butter cream cheese spread complimented it quite nicely.

Double Chocolate Loaf with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Spread
recipe source: Baked Explorations, by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

For the Double Chocolate Loaf
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder, (like Valrhona ), sifted
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
8 ounces good-quality dark chocolate (60-72%), coarsely chopped

For the Cream Cheese Spread
5 ounces cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup sugar

Make the Double Chocolate Loaf
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and position the rack in the center. Butter a 9 by 5 inch loaf pan, dust it with flour, and knock out the excess flour.

Place the brown sugar in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Press out any lumps with the back of a large spoon. Add the cocoa, flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolk until blended, then add the buttermilk,oil, and vanilla; whisk until combined.

Turn the mixer to low and slowly stream the wet ingredients into the dry ones, mixing just until combined. Stir in the dark chocolate chunks by hand.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then turn it out onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Make the Peanut Butter Spread
In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together the cream cheese and peanut butter until smooth. Add the sugar and beat until incorporated. (If you are not using the spread immediately, place it in a ramekin, tightly cover it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for up to 3 days.)

Serve the loaf plain or toasted, topped with the peanut butter spread.

The loaf will keep , in an airtight container or wrapped tightly, at room temperature for up to 3 days.

pumpkin cheddar muffins

I totally wasn't feeling this week's Baked Sunday Mornings recipe. I mean pumpkin and cheese? In a muffin. With cayenne and black pepper. In the breakfast section of the Baked book. Right... So I consulted my husband who said I should probably try it, since there hasn't been very many bad recipes in the book so far.

So I sent him to the store to get a can of pumpkin puree, and aged cheddar. Since this was one of the few recipes in the book that are "two bowls, mix wet ingredients with dry ingredients and bake", I quickly whipped these muffins up. Interestingly enough, they were baked in a 400 degree oven, for 20 minutes, and when I pulled them out, they were a tiny bit over baked. They smelled really interesting in the oven. I tasted one right away, and was really intrigued by the flavors. This muffin was surprisingly good! It has spicy end notes that are quite pleasant. Although I did eat it for breakfast, I think it would pair really well with a hot bowl of tomato soup! Perfect fall food!

To get the recipe and see how the other Baked Sunday Mornings bakers thought of this one, click on through to the new www.BakedSundayMornings.com page!

pumpkin apple streusel muffins

I know it's now November and I said that I only bake with pumpkin in October, but this recipe is just too good not to share!

Many years ago, I made these so often that we actually got totally sick of it. It took a few years before I could make it again, and I swore that I would only make it in the fall. So now I totally look forward to the cooler weather so I can bake these.

Although I usually bake this batter in muffin tins, this time around, I baked it in a 9x13 pan. A round pan works too... very forgiving recipe!

Pumpkin Apple Streusel Muffins
recipe source: allrecipe.com

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups white sugar
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup canned pumpkin puree
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cups peeled, cored and chopped apple

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 teaspoons butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease 18 muffin cups or use paper liners.
2. In a large bowl, sift together 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, 2 cups sugar, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together eggs, pumpkin and oil. Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture; stirring just to moisten. Fold in apples. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups.
3. In a small bowl, mix together 2 tablespoons flour, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle topping evenly over muffin batter.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

These are insanely moist and flavorful. It is a sweet cake, especially the streusel, but I still enjoy it for breakfast one in a while. And the perfect recipe to use up leftover pumpkin puree, as it calls for only a cup of the stuff. So if you buy a big can, make the whoopie pies, you'll get just enough leftover to make this recipe!

pumpkin scones

I have a love-hate relationship with pumpkin. I like it in cakes, cupcakes, baked goods that involved butter, sugar, flour and spice, but don't even offer me pumpkin pie, mousse, crème brûlée or any other custardy pumpkin dessert. Not for me! I'll pass, thanks!

We love fall flavors here. Pumpkin, apples, cinnamon, nutmeg... And for some reason, we try to get in as many pumpkin recipes as we can in October...

So pumpkin scones had to be made! These are super tender and almost fluffy pastries, covered in a simple powdered sugar glaze. They are supposed to be drizzled with a spiced glazed too, but I ran out of powdered sugar, and tried to use powdered milk instead, and it got all gritty, and yeah. It was a mess. A tasty mess, but it made my drizzled scones unfit for the camera. The scones were delicious as is, almost dessert worthy with the glaze, and absolutely delicious with the spiced drizzle. Make it. Make sure you have enough powdered sugar!

Pumpkin Sconesrecipe source: Brown Eyed Baker via the shoe box kitchen

For the Scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/2 cup canned pumpkin puree
3 tablespoons half-and-half
1 large egg

For the Powdered Sugar Glaze:
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk

For the Spiced Glaze:
1 cup plus 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 pinch ground ginger
1 pinch ground cloves

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with fit the paddle attachment, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger. Add the butter and toss with a fork to coat with the flour mixture. Mix on medium-low speed until the texture resembles coarse cornmeal, with the butter pieces no larger than small peas.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, half-and-half and egg. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, and form the dough into a ball. Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form into a 1-inch thick rectangle about 4 inches by 12 inches. Use a large knife to slice the dough making three equal portions. Cut each of the portions in an X pattern (four pieces) so you end up with 12 triangular slices of dough. Place on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 14-16 minutes, or until light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

While the scones are cooling, make the powdered sugar glaze by mixing the powdered sugar and milk together until smooth. When scones are cool, use a pastry brush to spread plain glaze over the top of each scone. Allow to firm.

While the powdered sugar glaze is firming, combine all of the ingredients for the spiced glaze. Drizzle over each scone and allow the icing to dry before serving (about an hour).

I made these with the intention of them being breakfast, but when I offered a second scone to my husband, he declined and said he was going to get some breakfast. Although they are not quite breakfast material, they sure didn't last! Every single one of them was eaten promptly, but as dessert.

zucchini bread

My parents were at the cottage last week, so I inherited their entire CSA share from Farmer Daizy and Farmer Johnny aka, their neighbors from Luxy Farm. It's really incredible to get fresh-from-the-farm-veggies, especially when we're used to getting so-so (if we're lucky) veggies from the grocery store. I was so excited to get a huge zucchini, among the green beans, garlic, pattypans and carrots. We had a beautiful pasta primavera for dinner that night, but I was saving that zucchini to bake with. Actually, I've been waiting an entire year to make zucchini bread again!

I usually use the classic Betty Crocker recipe to make zucchini bread, but I thought I'd try a recipe with less sugar, less fat and more fiber, so I can eat it for breakfast without feeling too guilty. Off to tastespotting to find yummy looking recipes. I was hesitating bewteen 5 of them when I decided to make this Whole-Wheat Zucchini Bread with Cinnamon, mainly because I could also use up the plain yogurt and the buttermilk that were about to expire in the fridge.

I love how simple quick breads can be. Dry ingredients in one bowl. Wet ingredients in another. Combine the two, bake, and you've got zucchini bread!

Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread with Cinnamon
recipe adapted from simple bites

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup canola oil
3/4 cup plain yogurt
1/3 cup buttermilk
1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups finely grated zucchini

Preheat oven to 350°F. Oil two 8×4 inch loaf pans.
In a bowl, sift together dry ingredients and set aside.
In a large bowl, beat eggs until foamy; beat in yogurt, buttermilk, oil, sugar, and vanilla. Combine well. Stir in grated zucchini.
Fold flour mixture into the wet ingredients and stir until just combined.
Spoon batter into loaf pans. Bake for approximately 50 minutes.
Remove from oven and cool 10 minutes in the pan. Loosen the sides and remove from pan. Cool loaf completely before cutting. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

My daughter and I cut into that loaf while it was still warm and devoured way too much of it for an afternoon snack. Especially since she didn't want anything to do with it at first. She had two slices. It was really good. You couldn't tell it was made with whole wheat flour. Very moist. Flavorful. Tasted like zucchini bread.

After making the two initial loaves, I still had a bunch of shredded zucchini leftover, so I decided to try another one of the recipes I had originally picked. This blogger described this Whole Wheat Zucchini Bread as "only slightly sweet and not heavy". I baked it in square muffin tins and this recipe gave me 12 Zucchini Bread Squares. I was not a fan of this one. I found the bread too dense, dry and it didn't taste like anything. Oh well. Nothing a little icing couldn't fix!

blueberry muffins

As a teenager, I worked at a rest stop that included a coffee/donut place. That place had super good blueberry muffins. Very unhealthy, completely devoid of nutritional anything, a super fluffy and moist crumb. Blueberries. Big sugar crystals on top.

The blueberry muffins I grew up on were not like that. At all. So when I moved out of my parents' house and had to make my own muffins, I discovered this recipe. And that was that. Anytime I'm craving big fluffy muffins full of sugar and not much else, this is the recipe I use. Whether it's blueberries, raspberries or mini chocolate chips, this recipe hits the spot. Now if only I could figure out how to make humongous like the donut place, all would be right in the world.

fluffy blueberry muffins
recipe adapted from All Recipes
yields 9 muffins

1/2 cup buttermilk or plain yogourt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 egg whites
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup blueberries
2 tablespoons white sugar crystals for decoration

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a muffin tin with 9 paper liners.

In a large bowl, whisk together the buttermilk/yogurt, oil, lemon juice, egg whites. In a separate bowl, stir together the flour, 3/4 cup sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and mix until just blended. Gently stir in the blueberries. Spoon batter evenly into the prepared muffin cups. Sprinkle remaining sugar over the tops for decoration.

Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the top springs back when lightly touched. Cool muffins in the tin on a wire rack.

I love it when fresh blueberries just burst and become yummy! That, plus the moist crumb of these muffins and the crunchy sugary top makes these perfect for pretty much any time of day.