Saturday, December 31, 2011

Oatmeal Fudge Bars

I christened my new Test Kitchen Cookbook (Thanks, big brother!) with this recipe for New Year's Eve. It was a good choice for sure!

 Ingredients:
1 1/2 c. quick cooking oats
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c. light brown sugar, packed
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
12 Tbsp. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Filling:
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. light brown sugar, packed
4 tsp. instant coffee powder
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/8 tsp. salt
18 oz. (3 c.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
4 Tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
2 eggs

Directions:
For the crust:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Prep a 9x13 pan by creating a foil sling and greasing.  In a bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.  Stir in butter.  Measure out 1 1/4 cups of the mixture and set aside for the topping.  Sprinkle the remaining mixture in the prepared pan, and press firm with the bottom of a measuring cup.  Bake crust for 8 minutes, until light golden brown.  Let cool on wire rack for an hour.

For the filling:
Whisk together flour, sugar, coffee, salt, and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave for 1-3 minutes, until smooth, stirring frequently.  Let cool slightly, then whisk in the eggs.  Stir with the flour mixture just until incorporated.  Spread evenly over the cooled crust.

Sprinkle the filling with reserved topping.  Bake at 325 degrees for 25-30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool for 2 hours before cutting.  Makes 24 squares.



Friday, December 16, 2011

Cinnamon Roll Cake

Yes, I found this on Pinterest. And yes, I will repin this on Pinterest. I love Pinterest. I love this cake even more!

My brother loves cinnamon rolls, and as often as he'd love for me to make them, I just don't have the time.  So, this year for his birthday, I decided to try out this Pinterest recipe that combined Cinnamon Roll and Cake.  He (and all his co-workers) LOVED it.  He said, "How did you do this?! It's a cinnamon roll, but its cake! It's perfect!" He almost didn't share, but it's a good thing he did considering how much butter there is in this! (Oh well, can't live with it, can't live without it!)


Ingredients:
Cake:
3 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. white sugar (I used a little less)
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 T. flour
1 T. cinnamon

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

Directions:

For the cake, mix together the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder.  Whisk together the eggs, milk and vanilla, then add to the flour mixture.  Slowly stir in the melted butter.  Spread evenly in a greased 9x13 pan.  For the topping, mix all the ingredients together until well combined (I used my food processor).  Drop evenly over the batter and "swirl" with a knife.  Bake at 350 degrees for about 25-30 minutes.

For the glaze, whisk all the ingredients together until smooth.  Drizzle over the cake while warm.


Thursday, December 15, 2011

Baked Apples

Need a quick, healthy dessert?  Here's your answer!


Ingredients (per 1 serving):
1 apple
1/2-1 T butter
2 T. brown sugar
Cinnamon

Directions:

Hollow out the apple (I just used a knife to get out the core, then a spoon to make the hole a little bigger).  Peel a thin strip off the apple so that it can breathe in the oven.  In a small dish, mix together the butter and brown sugar, then put the mixture inside the apple. Place the apples in a baking dish and cover the base of the dish with water.  Sprinkle apple generously with cinnamon.

Bake at 350 degrees until desired softness, about 15-20 minutes.  Serve with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce, or just gobble up!

Friday, December 2, 2011

Christmas Tree

So, technically, this isn't a recipe post...

... sorry...

it's sort of related to food.

Sort of.

Tomato cages is "sort of related to food", right?

Okay, it's a stretch.

Anyways... I just really wanted to share this cute and frugal decorating idea, as we get in the Christmas spirit!


Tomato Cage Christmas Tree! 

Ha.

Not sure if I love it or not, but it's cute. =)

Pumpkin Scones

As you all are well aware, I'm on a pumpkin kick....

Pumpkin Scones - Delicious!


Ingredients:
1 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
2 tsp. baking powder
3/14 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. allspice
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar (brown will give a richer flavor)
1/2 c. butter, cubed and chilled
1 egg
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/2 T. white sugar mixed with 1 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  In a bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.

In a separate bowl, beat together egg and pumpkin.  Fold this mixture into the dry ingredients, just until moistened.  Turn dough out onto a floured surface and pat into two circles, about 1/2-3/4" thick.  Cut each circle into 6-8 wedges (depending on how big you want them).

Place triangles on ungreased cookie sheets.  Sprinkle generously with cinnamon-sugar. Bake until golden brown, 12-14 minutes.