Daring Bakers Challenge: Pumpkin Donuts

 

So, I am a little late with posting this challenge, but I have been sick as well as a very busy. This was my first encounter with donuts. It may be my last. I really don't like cooking with that much oil. It just makes me feel sick. However, the donuts did taste good. I just needed to learn how to do it. The pumpkin donuts I made were cake donuts, so I didn't need to wait for the yeast to rise or anything. The pumpkin made them seasonal, but I couldn't taste it very much. However, I brought them to a party and everyone raved about how good they were.These wouldn't make it into my bakery, but I am glad I have now made donuts.


The October 2010 Daring Bakers challenge was hosted by Lori of Butter Me Up.
The pumpkin doughnuts are from Bon Appétit: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pumpkin-Doughnuts-with-Powdered-Sugar-Glaze-and-Spiced-Sugar-Doughnut-Holes-230926
 
Pumpkin Doughnuts:
Preparation time:
Hands on prep time - 15 minutes
Chilling time - 3 hours
Cooking time - 10 minutes
Yield: About 24 doughnuts & 24 doughnut holes
Ingredients
All Purpose Flour 3.5 cup / 840 ml / 490 gm / 17 ¼ oz
Baking Powder 4 teaspoon / 20 ml / 24 gm / .85 oz
Table Salt 1 teaspoon / 5 ml / 6 gm / .2 oz
Cinnamon, ground 1 teaspoon / 5 ml / 6 gm / .2 oz
Ginger, ground ½ teaspoon / 2.5 ml / 3 gm / .1 oz
Baking Soda ½ teaspoon / 2.5 ml / 3 gm / .1 oz
Nutmeg, ground ¼ teaspoon / 1.25 ml / 1.5 gm / .05 oz
Cloves, ground 1/8 teaspoon / .6 ml / ¾ gm / .025 oz
White Granulated Sugar 1 cup / 240 ml / 225 gm / 8 oz
Butter, Unsalted 3 Tablespoon / 45 ml / 42 gm / 1.5 oz
Egg, Large 1
Egg Yolk, Large 2
Pure Vanilla Extract 1 teaspoon / 5 ml
Buttermilk ½ cup + 1 Tablespoon / 135 ml /
Pumpkin 1 cup / 240 ml / 285 gm / 10 oz (Canned pure pumpkin or fresh cooked and pureed pumpkin – DON’T use pumpkin pie mix!)
Canola Oil DEPENDS on size of vessel you are frying in – you want THREE (3) inches of oil (can substitute any flavorless oil used for frying)

Powdered Sugar Glaze:
Powdered (Icing) Sugar 2 cup / 480 ml / 250 gm / 9 oz
Whipping Cream (About 32% butter fat) 4 Tablespoon + more if needed / 60 ml
Directions:

Whisk together the first 8 ingredients in medium bowl to blend. Using electric mixer, beat sugar and butter in large bowl until blended (the mixture will be grainy and not smooth). Beat in egg, then yolks and vanilla. Gradually beat in buttermilk; beat in pumpkin. Using rubber spatula, fold in dry ingredients in 4 additions, blending gently after each addition. Cover with plastic; chill 3 hours.

Sprinkle 2 rimmed baking sheets lightly with flour. Press out 1/3 of dough on floured surface to 1/2- to 2/3-inch (12 mm to 15 mm) thickness. Using 2 1/2-inch (65 mm) -diameter round cutter, cut out dough rounds. Arrange on sheets. Repeat with remaining dough in 2 more batches. Gather dough scraps. Press out dough and cut out more dough rounds until all dough is used.

Using 1-inch (25 mm) diameter round cutter, cut out center of each dough round to make doughnuts and doughnut holes.

Line 2 baking sheets with several layers of paper towels. Pour oil into large deep skillet to depth of 1 1/2 inches (40 mm). Attach deep-fry thermometer and heat oil to 365°F to 370°F (185°C to 188°C). Fry doughnut holes in 2 batches until golden brown, turning occasionally, about 2 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer to paper towels to drain. Fry doughnuts, 3 or 4 at a time, until golden brown, adjusting heat to maintain temperature, about 1 minute per side. Using slotted spoon, transfer doughnuts to paper towels to drain. Cool completely.

Glaze Directions:

1. Whisk powdered sugar and 4 tablespoons whipping cream to blend. Whisk in additional cream, 1 teaspoon at a time, to form medium thick glaze.
2. Can be made up to 3 hours ahead.
3. Add doughnut holes to bowl of spiced sugar and toss to coat.
4. Spread doughnuts on 1 side with powdered sugar glaze.
5. Arrange doughnuts, glazed side up, on racks. Let stand until glaze sets, at least 30 minutes.

Daring Baker Challenge: Decorating Cookies

So, I recently joined the Daring Bakers, which is a blogging group that does a monthly secret recipe. The goal is to get you to try new things. This month's secret recipe was decorating sugar cookies, fancy-style. While I did like seeing how easy it is to make cool designs with frosting (and with a little more time, a lot prettier, better cookies), I am not a huge fan of sugar cookies. If I am going to eat and make something sweet, I better enjoy it! But, this recipe was a success. It got me to make a frosting that contains egg whites, which for anyone that knows me and my raw-egg phobia (that is, besides cookie dough) is a really big deal. Also, I am not the craftsy sort. I get really impatient with trying to make things look perfect, so I am not all that interested in spending a bunch of time making something look cutesy, especially when I know it will go in my stomach shortly. So, again this challenge stretched me to try something that I know I wouldn't do otherwise. I could see me making these for Christmas or something festive like that.


Now for the recipes:
My roommate kept raving about how delicious the cookies were, so there is one big fan. However, I don't really love the icing. It was too sugary--and lacked the whole reason for frosting, which I think is the fluff.  Below is the information of who hosted the challenge. The links for the recipes are below the title of the recipes and the information on how to decorate the cookies I believe comes from Mandy, whose information is below.
The September 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mandy of “What the Fruitcake?!” Mandy challenged everyone to make Decorated Sugar Cookies based on recipes from Peggy Porschen and The Joy of Baking.
That being said, here are the recipes:


Basic Sugar Cookies:
http://www.peggyporschen.com/images/press/pdf/Coso-Bride-Oct-Nov-2008.pdf
Makes Approximately 36x 10cm / 4" Cookies
200g / 7oz / ½ cup + 6 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, at room temperature
400g / 14oz / 3 cups + 3 Tbsp All Purpose / Plain Flour
200g / 7oz / 1 cup Caster Sugar / Superfine Sugar
1 Large Egg, lightly beaten
5ml / 1 tsp Vanilla Extract / Or seeds from 1 vanilla bean
Directions
• Cream together the butter, sugar and any flavourings you’re using. Beat until just becoming
creamy in texture.
• Tip: Don’t over mix otherwise you’ll incorporate too much air and the cookies will spread during
baking, losing their shape.
• Beat in the egg until well combined, make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Add the sifted flour and mix on low until a non sticky dough forms.
• Tip: I don’t have a stand mixer so I find it easier to switch to dough hooks at this stage to avoid
flour flying everywhere.
• Knead into a ball and divide into 2 or 3 pieces.
• Roll out each portion between parchment paper to a thickness of about 5mm/1/5 inch (0.2 inch)
• Refrigerate for a minimum of 30mins.
• Tip: Recipes commonly just wrap the whole ball of dough in clingwrap and then refrigerate it for an
hour or overnight, but by rolling the dough between parchment, this shortens the chilling time and
then it’s also been rolled out while still soft making it easier and quicker.
• Once chilled, peel off parchment and place dough on a lightly floured surface.
• Cut out shapes with cookie cutters or a sharp knife.
• Arrange shapes on parchment lined baking sheets and refrigerate for another 30mins to an hour.
• Tip: It’s very important you chill them again otherwise they’ll spread while baking.
• Re-roll scraps and follow the above process until all scraps are used up.
• Preheat oven to 180°C (160°C Fan Assisted) / 350°F / Gas Mark 4.
• Bake until golden around the edges, about 8-15mins depending on the size of the cookies.
• Tip: Bake same sized cookies together otherwise mixing smaller with larger cookies could result in
some cookies being baked before others are done.
• Tip: Rotate baking sheets half way through baking if your oven bakes unevenly.
• Leave to cool on cooling racks.
• Once completely cooled, decorate as desired.
• Tip: If wrapped in tinfoil/cling wrap or kept in airtight containers in a cool place, un-decorated
cookies can last up to a month.

Royal Icing:
http://www.joyofbaking.com/RoyalIcing.html
315g – 375g / 11oz – 13oz / 2½ - 3 cups Icing / Confectioner’s / Powdered Sugar, unsifted
2 Large Egg Whites
10ml / 2 tsp Lemon Juice
5ml / 1 tsp Almond Extract, optional
Directions

Nasty Egg Whites

• Beat egg whites with lemon juice until combined.
• Tip: It’s important that the bowls/spoons/spatulas and beaters you use are thoroughly cleaned and
grease free.
• Sift the icing sugar to remove lumps and add it to the egg whites.
• Tip: I’ve listed 2 amounts of icing sugar, the lesser amount is good for a flooding consistency, and the larger amount is for outlining, but you can add even more for a much thicker consistency good for writing. If you add too much icing sugar or would like to make a thinner consistency, add very small amounts of water, a few drops at a time, until you reach the consistency you need.
• Beat on low until combined and smooth.
• Use immediately or keep in an airtight container.
• Tip: Royal Icing starts to harden as soon as it’s in contact with air so make sure to cover containers with plastic wrap while not in use.

Decorating Your Cookies: Royal Icing
The most important thing when it comes to decorating with Royal Icing is the consistency.
There are two ways of flooding your cookies. Some like to do the outline with a thicker icing and then flood with a thinner icing. Some like to use the same icing to do both which saves time and you don’t have to have two different piping bags for each colour you’re using.
The Same Consistency Method
Consistency:
• Mix your royal icing according to the recipe/instructions
• Drag a knife through the surface of the Royal Icing and count to 10
• If the surface becomes smooth between 5 & 10 seconds, the icing is at the correct consistency
• Tip: If your icing is too thick, thin it by adding a few drops of water. Mix, do the 10 second test, then if it’s still too thick, add a few more drops of water, repeat, etc.
• Tip: To thicken your icing, add small amounts of icing sugar until thick enough for the 10 second test
Two Different Consistencies Method
Consistency:
• Mix your royal icing according to the recipe/instructions.
• Separate into 2 different bowls, one lot of icing for outlining, the other for flooding.
• For the outlining icing, drag a knife through the surface of the Royal Icing.
• If the surface becomes smooth at around 10 seconds, the icing is at the correct consistency.
• Tip: If your icing is too thick, thin it by adding a few drops of water. Mix, count to 10 seconds, then if it’s still too thick, add a few more drops of water, repeat, etc.
• Tip: To thicken your icing, add small amounts of icing sugar until thick enough for the 10 second test.
• For the flooding/filling icing, drag a knife through the surface of the Royal Icing.
• If the surface becomes smooth at around 3-4 seconds, the icing is at the correct consistency.
• Tip: If your icing is too thick, thin it by adding a few drops of water. Mix, count to 3-4 seconds, then if it’s still too thick, add a few more drops of water, repeat, etc.
• Tip: To thicken your icing, add small amounts of icing sugar until thick enough for the 3-4 second test.

Colouring
• Separate Royal Icing into separate bowls for each colour you plan on using.
• Tip: Make sure to cover the bowls with cling film or a damp cloth to prevent the top from setting and then making lumps
• Using a toothpick, add gel or paste colouring to each bowl and mix thoroughly until desired colour is reached
• Tip: You can use liquid food colouring but you might not be able to get the desired strength of colour, liquid colouring will also thin out the icing so you’ll need to add more icing sugar to thicken it again.

Making Purple from Scratch

Prepping and Filling Your Bag
• Attach your icing tips to the piping bags using couplers
• Tip: You don’t need to use a coupler but it makes it easier if you want to change tip sizes
• Tip: A size 1 tip is best for doing intricate details. A size 2 tip is good for some details and outlining. Fill or flood with sizes 2 – 5.
• Tip: You don’t need a piping bag, you can use a parchment cone or ziplock bag with a tiny bit snipped off the corner. I would however recommend getting a piping set if you don’t have one as it will be much easier and more precise.
• Stand the piping bags in glasses with the tops of the bags folded over the top of the glass.
• Fill your icing bags with each coloured icing.
• Tie the ends of the piping bags with elastic bands.

Decorating: Outlining
• Fit the piping bag with a size 2 or 3 tip.
• Tip: Or snip a very small bit of the corner off of a parchment cone or Ziploc bag
• Hold the piping bag at a 45 degree angle above the cookie where you want to start the outline.
• Gently squeeze the piping bag and start moving in the direction you want to outline the cookie.
• Start lifting the piping bag away from the cookie so that the flow of icing falls onto the cookie, making it an even and neater outline.
• As you start to reach the beginning of the outline, bring the piping tip closer to the surface of the cookie to meet the start of the icing outline.
• Tip: If you’re doing an intricate cookie, like a snow flake, you won’t be able to lift the tip as far away from the cookie.
• If you’re doing a different colour border, eg a black border, let the outline dry before flooding. If using the same colour for the outline as you’re flooding with, begin flooding after doing the outline.
Decorating: Flooding
• Fit the piping bag with a size 2-5 tip, the bigger the area being filled, the bigger the tip.
• Tip: Or cut slightly more off the corner of a Ziploc bag to create a slightly larger opening.
• Quickly zigzag back and forth over the area you want to fill.
• Tip: You need to be quick when flooding the cookie so don’t worry too much if it’s not filled in neatly.
• Using a toothpick or clean paintbrush, push the icing around into the gaps that are still remaining.
• Either pick up the cookie and tip it from side to side to even out the filling, or lightly bang the cookie down on your kitchen counter.

Decorating: Melding Colours
• If you would like to add lines or dots to the base colour that you flooded the cookie with so that they meld and dry as a smooth surface, you need to add the lines/dots/patterns as quickly as possible after flooding and smoothing the surface of the cookie.
• Tip: Make sure to have all the colours you’re planning on using ready and close by so that you can switch between colours quickly
• Simply pipe other colours onto the flooded surface in patterns or lines which you can either leave as that or then drag a toothpick through to make marbling patterns.

Decorating: On top of flooding
• If you’d like to do other patterns/outlines or writing on top of the flooded surface so that they are raised above the flooded background, simply allow the icing to dry, preferably over night.
• Fit the piping bag with tip sizes 1-3.
• Pipe patterns or write on top of the dry icing
• Tip: For writing, the consistency of your icing should be thicker rather than thinner, drag a knife through your icing and when the surface smoothes around 12-15 seconds, the consistency is correct.

I got bored after three cookies, and they were all slightly misshapen and the icing ran off so I stopped making them.

Graham Crackers

So, summer means hiking, and hiking means good hiking snacks. Luckily, I have just discovered the smorgasbord of food blogs, sharing with me delicious treats to make. (My favorite waste of time tastespotting.com. It is a collection of the Web's best food pictures, updated constantly.) There are tons of recipes that you can make from scratch.
   One I just discovered is graham crackers, which are also a great hiking food. I am headed out on a trip where I will be doing a lot of hiking. Thus, it is time for graham crackers. These crackers surprisingly taste like, well, graham crackers. I love them because of the sea salt that you add. It gives this kick of saltiness that I always love combined with sweet flavors. The key thing with these crackers is to make them thin. They aren't as crunchy and crumbly if they aren't thin. Enjoy!

Graham Crackers
 from 17andbaking.com

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons (375 grams) unbleached all-purpose flour (can swap 1/2 cup for whole wheat flour, or 1 cup for whole wheat pastry flour)
1 cup (176 grams) dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon (6 grams) baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt (4 grams)
7 tablespoons (3 1/2 ounces or 100 grams) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen
1/3 cup (114 grams) mild-flavored honey, such as clover
5 tablespoons (77 grams) milk, full-fat is best
2 tablespoons (27 grams) pure vanilla extract

1. Pulse the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in a food processor to incorporate. If you don't have a processor, like me, you can whisk it together. Add the butter and pulse on and off, on and off until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal. At this point, I used a hand mixer. It took some work, but I got it done.

 2.  In a small bowl, whisk together the honey, milk, and vanilla extract. Add to the flour mixture and pulse on and off a few times or mix on low until the soft, sticky dough barely comes together.

3.  Lay out a large piece of plastic wrap and dust it lightly with flour, then turn the dough out onto it and pat it into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Wrap it, then chill it until firm, about 2 hours or overnight.

4.  Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator.
5.  Sift an even layer of flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/8 inch thick (thinner is better). The dough will be sticky, so flour as necessary. Cut the dough into 2″ squares using a fluted cookie cutter or rolling cutter.

6.  Place the crackers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets and sprinkle with the topping. Chill 15 to 20 minutes in the freezer. Repeat with the second batch of dough. Gather any scraps together into a ball, chill until firm, and re-roll.
8.  Adjust the oven rack to the upper and lower positions and preheat the oven to 350°F. Prick the crackers with a fork or wooden skewer, then bake 15 – 20 minutes, or until golden brown, rotating the pans halfway through. The cracker will not seem completely firm, but will harden as it cools. You might want to test out a few crackers to see what time works best for you.

Sticky Toffee Pudding-or Heaven on Earth

Before I go on an extended description of the transcendental nature of this dessert hitting your taste buds and removing, momentarily, all sorrow and pain--let me explain something. Pudding  in the dialect of the Britons is not the Jell-O-packet concoction that we Americans think of. Pudding is essentially the word for cake.
  Now that there is more clarity on the name of this  loveliness, I will begin to explain what this particular pudding is all about. I first tried this pudding while studied abroad in Scotland. So, this treat is not just a dessert for me; it is the entrance to memory--memory of a land I adore. Needless to say, I had very high expectations for this dessert and this recipe succeeded. Imagine rich caramel sauce with layers of flavor poured abundantly over a moist, warm spiced cake and you have Sticky Toffee Pudding. As I took my first spoonful of the sticky toffee (the sauce was done before the cake was fully cooked), I kept saying again and again to myself, I can't believe this tastes this good; I can't believe I cooked this. It is one of those recipes that you feel like has come from a restaurant with a skilled chef at its head. The best part is that anyone can make this cake. There is nothing super hard about any of it. The only thing for you to do is mix it up real quick, sit back, relax, smell the ambrosial aromas swell within your kitchen, and then forget about all the sugar and butter that is in it.
Cheers!

Sticky Toffee Pudding
(recipe from http://www.recipezaar.com/recipe/Udny-Arms-Sticky-Toffee-Pudding-113993)

Ingredients

Pudding

• 1/2 cup butter
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 2 eggs
• 3 cups flour
• 8 ounces dates (pitted and cut into pieces)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups boiling water

Sauce

• 1 cup butter
• 2 3/4 cups brown sugar
• 1 pint whipping cream

Directions

For the Pudding:.

1. Cream butter and sugar until white and fluffy.[Yes, it is correct that you are using powdered sugar, and yes, you are essentially making icing here.]
2. Beat in eggs gradually.
3. Fold in flour. [The consistency is a dry dough, kind of like a pastry.]
4. In a separate bowl pour the boiling water over the dates and soda.
5. When water is absorbed, add other ingredients and cream mixture.[There is a lot of water still left over. When it says "water is absorbed" it means that the dates have plumped up not that the water is removed.]
6. Bake in 9" x 13" cake pan in moderate hot oven (350 F) for 40 minutes. 

For the Sauce:

1. Mix all ingredients and bring to a boil.
2. Poke holes in top of cake and pour half of mixture over top, allowing sauce to soak into cake.
3. Brown under grill before serving.
4. Keep remaining sauce hot and spoon onto still warm pieces of cake cut into 3" squares.
5. Top with whipped cream. [The cake is just fine without whipped cream, but it is very rich. This would taste delicious with vanilla ice cream. There is plenty of extra sauce to pour over ice cream.]

This cake is so good; I hope any readers out there will try this cake. It is a definite on my bakery list. Please enjoy!

Amazing Bread

So, this bread may very well be the genesis of my love of bread making. Oh, the loveliness that is warm bread fresh from the oven. I really can't think of very many things that are more amazing than that smell, wafting through the air, entering my soul with the warmth of a mother's hug. Homemade bread is like, in the words of the great Michael Jackson, L-O-V-E, L-O-V-E, love.

Now, I share this precious recipe with you. It is the recipe that began my inquiry into finding the best bakery recipes around. It goes by no other name but Amazing Bread. My only challenge left with this bread is to practice making it just as wonderful as a whole wheat or half whole wheat rendition.

This recipe comes in two sizes, so I will do each size (4 loaves and 2 loaves--they are probably about a 2 pound size loaf each)

Amazing Bread

4 Loaves:

5 1/3 C. warm water (so as to not kill your yeast, but warm enough to wake those little guys up.)*

2 Tbsp. yeast
2/3 C. sweetener**
2/3 C. oil
2 Tbsp. salt
13 1/3 C. flour (you can do half of the flour whole wheat and half regular white wheat)

2 Loaves:
2 2/3 C. warm water*
1 Tbsp. yeast
1/3 C. sweetener**
1/3 C. oil
1 Tbsp. salt
6 2/3 C. flour

*For those of you who have never baked with yeast before, I generally try to get the water just a little warm to the touch. You aren't looking for hot water.
**I use honey here, which I think makes a little difference. The loaves come out smelling like honey, but if you want to use sugar, it will still be a great loaf of bread.

So, I have made this bread by hand and by throwing all the ingredients into my bread maker on dough setting and then cooking it in the oven. (I personally hate the way my bread machine cooks bread. The crust is usually disgusting, so I just use it to mix up doughs.)

When making it by hand, you mix the first five ingredients together. If you want to proof your yeast, you can put the first three ingredients in a bowl and wait for the yeast to bubble, showing that it is awake and ready to make some amazing bread for you. Then I mix in about three cups of flour until combined. I keep adding a cup of flour at a time. Around the time I have 6 cups in the batter, I need to take the dough out and begin kneading it on the counter. I continue to add the flour until the dough is no longer sticky. As with most baking, the flour measurements are not exact. If you get a nice, not-too-sticky dough after 6 1/3 cup, you can stop. If you still have a sticky dough after adding all the called for flour, then add some more. (The measurements I describe in this paragraph are for the 2 loaf version.)

After you have kneaded the dough together, place it back in your mixing bowl, cover it with a greased piece of plastic wrap and let rise until doubled.

After it has doubled, knead the bread once more in flour on your counter. Split into loaves and place in greased pans. I have cooked this bread in bread pans and also just free form on a cookie sheet. Both taste great, just different looks. Let rise, covered,  until doubled once more.
Once doubled, cook at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. I have had to work with this 20 minutes quite a bit depending on the size of the loaf, so you will want to check the centers of your bread.

And then you enjoy this blessing of bread that has entered your home. It is a lovely, lovely treat--especially with honey or jam.

Here is a picture of these loaves using some "antique" bread pans I just inherited from my grandma. There is something magical about these pans. They cooked the bread perfectly--perfect crust, perfect bottom, perfect inside. I am excited to own these pans. But, don't worry. This bread turns out really well no matter how I have made it.

Cheers!

Irish Soda Bread

So, I had never eaten or baked this bread before, so I am not sure what it is supposed to taste like.  But it is interesting, and not in a bad way. It has a very distinctive flavor. No, I don't want to make this bread again and again, but it is fun to make around St. Patrick's Day. I also think it is really cool that it tastes as good as it does without using any yeast.

Quick story about this bread before I move on to the recipe. We had a potluck on St. Patrick's Day at work. I brought the Irish soda bread. After lunch, I ran it up to our breakroom and put it in th fridge. When I came up three hours late to claim my bread, someone had taken it. I was shocked. I work with a bunch of elderly volunteers doing Church history. I guess it must of just looked that good.


Irish Soda Bread (from Our Best Bites blog)
 

1 cup flour 

2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour 

1 1/4 teaspoons salt 

1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda 

2 teaspoons white sugar 

4 Tbs butter

2 cups buttermilk 

1/4 cup vegetable oil 

For Topping:

1 tablespoon buttermilk or milk

1 teaspoon white sugar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Grease a cookie sheet or other shallow baking pan.

 

Whisk together the flour, whole wheat flour, salt, baking soda, and 2 teaspoons sugar in a bowl.

Cut the butter into the flour mixture until pieces are crumb-size. 

Make a well in the center of the mixture and pour in the oil and buttermilk. (As you can tell, I underestimated the depth that would be needed so make a large well.

Stir with a spatula until dry mixture is completely moistened. Move the dough to a lightly-floured surface. Lightly knead the dough a few times and then form into a round ball and pat down a little. 

Place the dough into the prepared pan; pat down and around to form a round loaf. Cut a cross into the top of the loaf with a sharp knife. Brush the top with 1 tablespoon buttermilk or milk, and sprinkle 1 teaspoon sugar over the top. 

Bake in the preheated oven for 30 minutes. Reduce heat to 375 degrees F, rotate pan and bake another 25-30 minutes. 

Allow loaf to cool on a wire rack for about 15 minutes before slicing. 

Cheers!

Success #2: Hu La La Cookies

So, it is official, Lion House has the best recipes. 2 out of the 3 recipes I have made were exceptional (the other recipe wasn't bad either, but just not amazing). This cookie recipe is thick, crunchy, and rich.

  The recipe is different than your average cookie mix. You mix in most of your dry products first, and then  cut in butter (like a pastry). Finally, you add in eggs to make it a dough. Yes, this process takes a little more tender, loving care--but it is beyond worth it.
   Now, for all those out there that do not like coconut tons, these cookies do have a lot of coconut in them, but the flavor is not overwhelmingly coconutty. The coconut adds more to the texture than it does to the flavor.
   Just one last note before I get to the recipe. The cookie dough is dry and needs to be patted together to make into cookies. It also does not spread much at all, so whatever size you make, it will end up being the same size.

Enjoy these amazing cookies!!!

Hu La La Cookies

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups coconut
2 cups rolled oats (I used quick-oats, but old-fashioned oats will just make it chewier.)
3 egss
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups milk chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, sugars (I always get excited when you have a reason to pluralize non-count nouns. Yup, I am a grammar dork.), baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

Cut in butter and mix until well blended. [This will take a bit of time. I used a fork, but if you have a pastry cutter, that will work even better. Don't worry if it is still very dry when the butter is mixed in. It will turn into a dough with the eggs.)

Add coconut and oatmeal and mix briefly. [I also like that the recipe uses the word briefly here. I am not sure what that means exactly, but I just mixed the coconut and oats all the way in.]

Add eggs and vanilla. Mix well. [This also takes a bit of stirring, but even if you don't believe it, there is enough liquid to make the whole bowl into a dough.]

Stir in chocolate chips.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes. Makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies.

Oatmeal Fudge Squares--My First Absolute Success

Ok, so this past weekend I was stuck in my apartment all by myself. My roommates were out of town. With the beginning of the Olympic games and a lot of work I need to catch up on, I barricaded myself into my apartment to watch and work and bake--so maybe the work part went out the window. Anyway, I discovered this delicious and bakery worthy cookie square. I made some for a party the next day and everyone said they were amazing also.
  Thus, I present to you these morsels of loveliness. Served hot, they are the perfect pairing for ice cream--fudge and cookies. Served cool they are some of the richest and scrumptious snacks you have ever had. I got the recipe from the mother of all Mormon baking books, Lion House Baking.

Oatmeal Fudge Squares

Ingredents:
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups packed brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups quick-cooking rolled oats (I used old-fashioned and they turned out fine)
1 (14-oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 (12-oz.) package semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup margarine
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9X13-inch baking pan and set aside. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar.

Add eggs and vanilla.

 

In a small bowl, sift flour, baking soda, and salt (I used a whisk.) and add to creamed mixture. Mix in oats.

In heavy saucepan, mix sweetened condensed milk, chocolate chips, and margarine and heat until chocolate is just melted. Stir in vanilla and nuts. (To tell you the truth, I forgot to add the vanilla both times I made this. I also didn't have nuts. I didn't miss either in the finished concoction.)

Spread two-thirds of the dough into prepared baking pan. 

Spread with chocolate mixture. Drop remaining one-third of dough on top by spoonfuls. Bake for 25 minutes. Cool (or don't), then cut into bars. Makes 36 bars. 

These are seriously amazing. The picture does not do it anywhere near justice. The fudge-cookie combination is so, so good. Yum!

Cheers!

Scottish Shortbread

In honor of Robert Burns's birthday in January (the 25th), the recipe for this time is Scottish shortbread. I have been apprehensive to share this recipe because I think there is room for improvement, but it is not too bad. The recipe is good, but I think the texture could be a little bit more crumbly like Walker's shortbread. But before the recipe, a poem by Rabbie Burns. In time for Valentine's Day, a romantic poem with a little crassness.

To a Louse:

Ha! whaur ye gaun, ye crowlin ferlie?
Your impudence protects you sairly;
I canna say but ye strunt rarely,
Owre gauze and lace;
Tho', faith! I fear ye dine but sparely
On sic a place.

Ye ugly, creepin, blastit wonner,
Detested, shunn'd by saunt an' sinner,
How daur ye set your fit upon her-
Sae fine a lady?
Gae somewhere else and seek your dinner
On some poor body.

Swith! in some beggar's haffet squattle;
There ye may creep, and sprawl, and sprattle,
Wi' ither kindred, jumping cattle,
In shoals and nations;
Whaur horn nor bane ne'er daur unsettle
Your thick plantations.

Now haud you there, ye're out o' sight,
Below the fatt'rels, snug and tight;
Na, faith ye yet! ye'll no be right,
Till ye've got on it-
The verra tapmost, tow'rin height
O' Miss' bonnet.

My sooth! right bauld ye set your nose out,
As plump an' grey as ony groset:
O for some rank, mercurial rozet,
Or fell, red smeddum,
I'd gie you sic a hearty dose o't,
Wad dress your droddum.

I wad na been surpris'd to spy
You on an auld wife's flainen toy;
Or aiblins some bit dubbie boy,
On's wyliecoat;
But Miss' fine Lunardi! fye!
How daur ye do't?

O Jeany, dinna toss your head,
An' set your beauties a' abread!
Ye little ken what cursed speed
The blastie's makin:
Thae winks an' finger-ends, I dread,
Are notice takin.

O wad some Power the giftie gie us
To see oursels as ithers see us!
It wad frae mony a blunder free us,
An' foolish notion:
What airs in dress an' gait wad lea'e us,
An' ev'n devotion! 

Shortbread:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 3/4 cup butter

Instructions:

     Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Blend all ingredients well. Dough will be stiff and crumbly.

Press into a 9 x9 inch buttered dish.

 Prick top with a fork.

Bake until pale golden brown on the edges. Cool and cut into squares. (I dumbly forgot to take a picture of the shortbread after it was done cooking, but it stays relatively light like the way it is before it is cooked.)

Be prepared for buttery goodness. Cheers!

Delicious Chicken Pot Pie--on the edge of bakery recipes

Hello, welcome to wholesome, easy, and delicious. When you figure out how to arrive at an adjective, let me know. So, the recipe for this time is chicken pot pies. This was exciting for many reasons. One: pastry dough (that was made easy by buying frozen piecrusts). Two: using my ramekins for the first time. See, I received four ramekins from my lovely mother two or three Christmases ago. I didn't know what to make with them until I thought about the wonderfulness that is chicken pot pies--and this recipe is easy! Just think you, too, can be as happy as Thuy was to eat this deliciousness.

Ingredients:

2 unbaked pie crusts

1 lb. chicken breasts.

1 12-16 oz. bag of peas and carrots or mixed vegetables, thawed

1 onion, minced

butter

5 medium-small red potatoes, diced

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1/2 tsp. Kosher salt (more or less, to taste)

Ground black pepper to taste

Okay, so the above ingredients are a guideline to follow, but I ended up just mixing everything together to what looked like a good mixture.

First, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Boil potatoes. If you don't want to wait for the potatoes, I just microwaved them. You can also use leftover baked potatoes from a previous meal.

While the potatoes are cooking, saute the onions with a little butter until they are translucent.

In a bowl, mix together the vegetables, the chicken, and the cream of chicken. Season to taste.

 Fill the ramekins with the mixture. If you do not have ramekins, you can use oven-safe mugs. Or you can cook it in a pie for a family-size portion.

Using a butter knife, cut circles from the pie crust (make sure the crust is thawed out before you start making the pies). Place on top and pinch or use a fork on the rim to seal the crust. Cut air holes in the center.

Place in oven for 35-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Serve, eat, enjoy!

 

This recipe was adapted from one found on ourbestbites.com