Happy Cake

This cake is freakin awesome!  Seriously, it is!  My co-worker re-named it “happy cake” cause it just makes you happy!  This is the kind of thing I need to get out of my house immediately or I am in real danger of eating the ENTIRE cake.  This is really easy to put together and sooooo delicious!  I see many more of these cakes in my future.

First, break up the almond paste, add sugar then butter and mix until light and fluffy



Next, add eggs and vanilla.

Once the eggs and vanilla are incorporated, add the zest and the dry ingredients. 

Fill the prepared bundt pan with the batter and bake (my cake was done in about 40 minutes, not the suggested 45-50 minutes).




When the cake comes out of the oven let it cool in the pan for about five minutes.  After it has rested invert the pan and hope for success (this part always terrifies me!).  While the cake it still warm brush it with the glaze.  Don't be stingy with it and don't forget the sides!

When the cake cools the glaze with form a crunchy like crust on top of the cake and it is delicious!!! 

MMMM!!!  This was just one of MANY pieces eaten by me

Enjoy this!

Happy Cake

3/4 cup sifted all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
5 large eggs- room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup almond paste - room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 cup unsalted butter - room temperature
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon orange zest
Glaze
3 tablespoons lemon juice
3 tablespoons orange juice –
3/4 cup sugar

1.  Oven 350F, rack in lower third; grease bundt/tube pan
2.  Sift dry ingredients together twice
3.  In a bowl combine eggs and vanilla – set aside
4.  In mixer fitted w/paddle, beat almond paste on low until it breaks up
5.  with mixer running, slowly add sugar and beat until incorporated
6.  add room temp butter, 1 Tablespoon at a time
7.  increase speed to med-high and beat until fluffy and incorporated
8.  add eggs in a steady stream
9.  removed from mixer and fold in zests with a spatula
10. fold in dry ingredients
11. fill pan and bake 45-50 minutes until tooth pick comes out with moist crumbs.
12.  cool in pan 5 minutes.
13.  Meanwhile, combine glaze ingredients (sugar, citrus juices)  DO NOT HEAT
14.  With a pastry brush, glaze cake while hot.  Let cool completely.
15.  Cake will keep for several days tightly wrapped.

Graham Crackers

I LOOOOOOVE graham crackers and these are so above and beyond it’s not even funny.  While looking at the recipe I was very overwhelmed but I gotta tell you, these were way easier than I expected them to be and WELL worth the effort! 

First, make the dough.

I like to shape mine into a rectangle before chilling because I feel that it makes even rolling easier.

After you get your dough rolled out to the correct thickness, cut your crackers.  I used a pizza wheel and a ruler and they still didn't come out even.  I am going to invest in a rectangle cookie cutter with fluted edges just to make these (that's how good they are!). 

Once they are on their sheet pans, give them a generous sprinkle of the cinnamon sugar and throw them in the oven.

Muy delicioso!  <---- Sorry, I was just in Mexico

Of course they are fabulous just they way they are BUT it just wouldn't be me if I stopped here...

Ummmm yeah....this is really about to happen

Yep yep...those are homemade marshmallows 

Uh huh, that's a blow torch

 OMG

 FOOD ORGASM

I feel fat.

Graham Crackers

2 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour

1 cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher or coarse sea salt

7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes and frozen  <----I didn't do this.  Came right from the fridge
1/3 cup mild-flavored honey

5 tablespoons milk

2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract

3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon  ground cinnamon

Make the dough: Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade or in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Pulse or mix on low to incorporate. Add the butter and pulse on and off on and off, or mix on low, until the mixture is the consistency of a coarse meal.

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 dough barely comes together. It will be very soft and sticky. 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. Meanwhile, prepare the topping by combining the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and setting aside.

Roll out the crackers: Divide the dough in half and return one half to the refrigerator. Sift an even layer of flour onto the work surface and roll the dough into a long rectangle about 1/8 inch thick. The dough will be sticky, so flour as necessary.  Cut crackers into desired shape. 

Place the crackers on one or two parchment-lined baking sheets and sprinkle with the topping.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.
.
Bake for 15 to 25 minutes, until browned and slightly firm to the touch, rotating the sheets halfway through to ensure even baking.


Marshmallows
From Food Network

• 3 packages unflavored gelatin
• 1 cup ice cold water, divided
• 12 ounces granulated sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
• 1 cup light corn syrup
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1/4 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• Nonstick spray

Place the gelatin into the bowl of a stand mixer along with 1/2 cup of the water. Have the whisk attachment standing by.
In a small saucepan combine the remaining 1/2 cup water, granulated sugar, corn syrup and salt. Place over medium high heat, cover and allow to cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Uncover, clip a candy thermometer onto the side of the pan and continue to cook until the mixture reaches 240 degrees F, approximately 7 to 8 minutes. Once the mixture reaches this temperature, immediately remove from the heat.
Turn the mixer on low speed and, while running, slowly pour the sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin mixture. Once you have added all of the syrup, increase the speed to high. Continue to whip until the mixture becomes very thick and is lukewarm, approximately 12 to 15 minutes. Add the vanilla during the last minute of whipping. While the mixture is whipping prepare the pans as follows.

Combine the confectioners' sugar and cornstarch in a small bowl. Lightly spray a 13 by 9-inch metal baking pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add the sugar and cornstarch mixture and move around to completely coat the bottom and sides of the pan. Return the remaining mixture to the bowl for later use.
When ready, pour the mixture into the prepared pan, using a lightly oiled spatula for spreading evenly into the pan. Dust the top with enough of the remaining sugar and cornstarch mixture to lightly cover. Reserve the rest for later. Allow the marshmallows to sit uncovered for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.
Turn the marshmallows out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch squares using a pizza wheel dusted with the confectioners' sugar mixture. Once cut, lightly dust all sides of each marshmallow with the remaining mixture, using additional if necessary. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.

Fortune Cookies

I really have wanted to make these for sometime now and FINALLY got around to doing it.  They are actually pretty easy just a little labor intensive and time consuming.  The other downside is that you will most likely burn your finger tips (like I did) but hey, baking is pain right?  Oh wait…that’s beauty…eh either or…  I should also mention that this recipe is not the greatest.  It seems too thick to me.  I thinned it out with double the water and it STILL seemed too thick.  I will have to tweak this some before I make these again.  The end product was very tasty and soooo cute!  If I hadn’t gotten lazy I would have dipped them in chocolate and sprinkles…

After you get your fortunes ready and your batter mixed, spread 3 inch circles onto parchment lined sheet pans.  Again, my batter was too thick.  Even in the recipe its says the batter should resemble pancake batter...mine was creamed butter.  I made due with what I had. 

 I par-baked mine for about 3 minutes (or until they no longer looked wet).  Par-baking makes shaping them MUCH easier.  When you go to shape these cookies you have to work fast! They harden within a minute of being out of the oven.  After par-baking all of the cookies, I returned 3 to the oven at a time to finish baking.

As soon as they come out of the oven you have to start shaping.  start by laying your fortune in the center of the cookie

Fold the cookie in half around the fortune














Using the edge of a glass, bend the cookie in the center of the side without the seam.

After you have the cookie shaped, put them in a cupcake pan so they hold their shape until they cool. 

As you can see...mine did not brown evenly and that is because my batter was too thick.  They still came out pretty well







And now for the finished product!

ENJOY!

Fortune cookies

3 egg whites

3/4 cup white sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted and cooled

1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons water

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets, or line with parchment paper. Have fortunes ready to go on small strips of paper

In a large glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites and sugar on high speed of an electric mixer until frothy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to low, and stir in melted butter, vanilla, almond extract, water and flour one at a time, mixing well after each. Consistency should resemble pancake batter. Spoon the batter into 3 inch circles on the prepared baking sheets. Leave room between for spreading.

Bake for 5 to 7 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges begin to brown slightly. Quickly remove one at a time, place a message in the center, and fold in half. Fold the ends of the half together into a horse shoe shape. If they spring open, place them in a muffin tin to cool until set.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

This cake/pie is exactly what would happen if cheesecake and pumpkin pie got together and had a kid.  It’s DELICIOUS.  This is definitely more of a cheesecake than a pumpkin pie and it has to be treated as such.  Although the recipe directions don’t mention anything about a water bath I would highly recommend using one.  For those of you that don’t know a water bath is, it’s when you bake the cheesecake in the oven inside of an extra pan filled with water (about ½ way up the cheesecake pan).  This method helps to keep moisture in the air of the oven, provides for a more gentle heat and helps the cheesecake bake evenly.  If you do not use a water bath the most common problem is that the outside of your cheesecake bakes faster than the inside which is the #1 cause for cracking and drooping.  The only issue you may face with the water bath is that water seeps in and makes your crust soggy (which is exactly what happened to me).  The good news is that it usually dries out and all is ok. 




1^st things 1^st…make the crust.  This recipe has a gingersnap crust (of course I used Sweetzel’s gingersnaps) and the original recipe called for hazelnuts but I decided that pecans would be better so that’s what I used.  Dont forget to butter and flour your pan (its very important in this case).  After you grind your ingredients, pres them into your prepared pan. 

                                                                                                   

The next step is to mix your batter until smooth and pour over crust.

 

Now your ready to set up your water bath.  I find that it is much easier to place the pan the water is going into (with the cheesecake inside of it) in the oven before adding the water.  As you can see see I wrapped the pan in foil before I even poured the batter in.

Let this bake for about an hour and a half.  It is hard to tell when a cheesecake is done.  I always check to see if the center is set and usually give the pan a shake.  If the cheesecake uniformly wobbles it should be set all the way through.  The key is to refridgerate overnight.

The most difficult part of this whole process (for me at least) is removing the cheesecake from its pan.  Honestly, I have no good tricks for you....aside from keep your fingers crossed and say a quick prayer.  I made it all the way through the baking process without any cracks until I went to remove it from its pan.  Luckily, I have some tricks up my sleeve and covered the cracks with candied pecans.

Enjoy!

1 1/2 cups gingersnap cookie crumbs

3/4 cup ground pecans

3 tablespoons brown sugar

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 cups canned solid pack pumpkin

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/3 cup maple syrup

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground allspice

4 eggs

1.       Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9 inch springform   pan.

2.       Using a fork, combine gingersnaps, pecans, 3 tablespoons brown sugar and melted butter. Press mixture onto the bottom and two inches up the sides of the pan to form the crust.

3.       With an electric mixer, beat cream cheese and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the pumpkin. Mix in the cream, maple syrup, cinnamon, allspice and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, mixing until smooth.

4.       Pour batter into prepared crust. Bake in the preheated oven for 90 minutes, or until center of cheesecake is set. Allow to cool in pan for 30 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.

GingerSNAPS

OMG I have found my new favorite thing.  As many of you know I am a Sweetzel’s gingersnap junkie.  Seriously, I have an addiction and it’s not funny.  I literally don’t go down the cookie aisle of the supermarket because if I see that black and orange box I will not be able to say no.  Anyways… these gingersnaps are circling the edge of being better (if that’s even possible).  SOOO good.  I made them on a whim and took them to Thanksgiving dinner and they were a huge hit (I also ate like a dozen of them before we left the house...big hit with me too).  All I can say is OMG.  You can bet your tush they will be making an appearance on my holiday cookie trays this year. 

The recipe is a pretty standard cookie recipe; the only extra step is rolling the portioned dough balls in sugar before placing them on sheet pans. 

Fresh from the oven

See...I just couldn't help myself....

Absolutely AMAZING

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 1/2 cup sugar in a shallow bowl, for finishing

Directions

Set racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees. Combine the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices in a bowl; stir well to mix. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together on medium speed the butter and sugar for about 5 minutes until very light, fluffy and whitened. Add the egg and continue beating until smooth. Lower speed and beat in half the dry ingredients, then the molasses. Stop the mixer and scrape down bowl and beater. Beat in the remaining dry ingredients. Remove bowl from mixer and use a large rubber spatula to finish mixing the dough. Use a small ice cream scoop to scoop out 1-inch diameter pieces of dough. Roll into balls between the palms of your the hands, then roll in the sugar. Place the balls of dough on the prepared pans leaving about 3 inches all around each, to allow for spreading. Bake the cookies for about 15 to 20 minutes, or until they have spread, the surface has crackled, and they are firm to the touch. Cool on racks and ENJOY….Lord knows I did J

Vanilla Cupcakes with Vanilla Frosting

Vanilla Cupcakes

I know, I know, I’ve been gone for a really long time!  Sorry!  Things have been pretty crazy lately but the good news is that I have a ton of new recipes to share (I’ve been stockpiling).  This vanilla cake/icing recipe is my new go to.  It is delicious and makes the perfect birthday cake and of course great cupcakes.  The pictures below are from Halloween (obviously) but you can be sure I am going to readapt them for the holidays (coming soon I PROMISE).  The recipe is super easy but it is a little different that what you may be used to when it comes to mixing cakes. 

The first step is to get all of your ingredients together in the bowl of your mixer.  Turn your mixer on low and let it combine the ingredients for you.  After you give them a good mix you want to add your COLD butter (cut into ½ inch pieces) kind of like what you would do for a pie crust or a biscuit.  Just allow the mixer to run long enough for coat the butter chunks with the dry ingredients.

After you get your butter coated, whisk together your eggs, milk and vanilla in a separate bowl until combined and add to butter/dry ingredient mixture in three stages, scraping the sides of the bowl in between additions.  The batter you end you end up with WILL BE LUMPY and that’s OK!

The next step is to divide the batter into prepared pans (be it either cupcake or other) and bake.  The cake comes out moist and buttery....its just so good.  The icing is also really simple to make its just butter, powdered sugar, vanilla and a little milk.  It comes together fast and is also easy to work with. 

Here are some pictures of my finished product dressed up for Halloween

Just in case you're wondering...The graves themselves are sugar cookies that I wrote RIP on in black icing, the little ghosts are just marshmallow that I stuck together and the "dirt" is ground oreos.

Billy's Vanilla Cupcakes

1 3/4 cups cake flour, not self-rising
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch cubes
4 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 325°. Line cupcake pans with paper liners; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flours, sugar, baking powder, and salt; mix on low speed until combined. Add butter, mixing until just coated with flour.

2. In a large glass measuring cup, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla. With mixer on medium speed, add wet ingredients in 3 parts, scraping down sides of bowl before each addition; beat until ingredients are incorporated but do not overbeat.

3. Divide batter evenly among liners, filling about two-thirds full. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 17 to 20 minutes.

4. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Repeat process with remaining batter. Once cupcakes have cooled, use a small offset spatula to frost tops of each cupcake. Decorate with sprinkles, if desired. Serve at room temperature.

Frosting

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
6 to 8 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter until smooth and creamy, 2 to 3 minutes. With mixer on low speed, add 6 cups sugar, milk, and vanilla; mix until light and fluffy. If necessary, gradually add remaining 2 cups sugar to reach desired consistency.





 

Stuff I've Been Working On

I feel like I've been away for a looooong time!  The good news is that I have been very busy baking my tush off.  Here are some of the things I've been working on!

Sugar cookies decorated as sugar skulls!  I totally <3 them!

Phillies and Philly Phanatic cupcakes and cookies

(I hope they weren't the cause of our terrible luck)



EAGLES Cupcakes!

A Friend's B-day Cake

Stay tuned for more Halloween themed desserts!