dessert explosion!

this is quite possibly the most i've ever baked in one morning...it's a little over the top when i'm just hit with the inspiration to bake this much. but enough chit chat, happy dad's day (most of these were for him). and on to the yummy stuff!

Blueberry Yogurt Loaf 

(adapted from smitten kitchen)

makes 1 loaf

1 1/2 c + 1 T all-purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp kosher salt

1 c plain yogurt

1 c plus 1 T sugar

3 extra large eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 c olive oil

1 1/2 c frozen blueberries

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease an 8 1/2 by 4 1/4 by 2 1/2-inch loaf pan. Line the bottom with parchment paper. Grease and flour the pan.

Sift together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt into 1 bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, lemon zest, vanilla and oil. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Mix the blueberries with the remaining tablespoon of flour, and fold them very gently into the batter. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 50 (+) minutes, or until a cake tester placed in the center of the loaf comes out clean.

Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup lemon juice and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves and the mixture is clear. Set aside.

* Comes out very wet/dense. Not sure how I feel about that. Would be great with the lemon flavor but didn't have lemons on hand. Or spread with lemon curd. 

Oatmeal Cranberry Chocolate Chip cookies

(from Ocean Spray)

1/2 c + 2 T (1 stick and 2 T) butter, softened

2/3 c brown sugar

2 large eggs

1 1/2 c old-fashioned oats

1 1/2 c flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 5-oz Ocean Spray Craisins

2/3 c semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 375F. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs mixing well. In another bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda and salt. Slowly add dry ingredients to butter mixture. Stir in craisins and chocolate chips. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown on top. Let cool.

* Would taste better without chocolate chips and nuts in their place

Chocolate Hazelnut Crunch Cookies

(from SugarHero)

1 1/3 c all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c (1 stick) butter, softened

1/2 c chocolate hazelnut spread (like Nutella)

1/2 c sugar

1/2 c brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 c chopped toasted hazelnuts

2/3 c semi sweet chocolate chips

To toast hazelnuts:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Coarsely chop 1/2 c filberts and place on baking sheet in the oven and bake for 10-15 min, lightly tossing throughout. Let cool.

For cookies:

Preheat oven to 375F. In a medium bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside. In a larger bowl cream the butter, chocolate hazelnut spread, sugar, and brown sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla extract and beat until smooth. Slowly mix in flour until just combined and then add hazelnuts and chocolate chips.

Scoop small spoonfuls onto cookie sheet, bake until lightly golden about 10 minutes. They will smoosh and spread but if tiny not too bad.

Makes  about 3 dozen cookies.

*These are sweet cookies and are very thin on the crunchier side.  

Olive Oil-Basil Cornmeal Cake with Strawberry sauce

(adapted from Better Homes and Gardens)

1 c all-purpose flour

1/2 + 1/3 c yellow cornmeal

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

3/4  c granulated sugar

1/2 c skim milk

1/2 c olive oil

1 T dried basil

1/2 T sparkling sugar

Strawberry Sauce recipe

2 c frozen strawberries, thawed

1 T granulated sugar

1/2 tsp balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 375F. Grease and flour a 9" cake pan, set aside. In a medium bowl combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt. Set aside.  In a large bowl, combine eggs, sugar, milk and olive oil. Mix dry ingredients and basil into wet mix and pour into prepared cake pan, spread evenly. Sprinkle with sparking sugar. Bake about 30 minutes. Cool cake in pan for 10 minutes and then remove cake from pan. Cool cake completely and when serving top w/ Strawberry sauce.

For the sauce, combine strawberries, sugar and balsamic vinegar until smooth. Cover and chill for up to 24 hours.  

*This one comes out very cornbready, might be b/c i put in too much cornmeal. but w/o the sugar would make great cornbread for thanksgiving.

still with me??? sugar rush hasn't gotten to you yet? just one more and it's my favorite of the bunch!

Soft and Chewy Ginger Molasses Cookies

(from Confessions of a Cookbook Queen)

Ingredients

2 1/4 c all-purpose flour

2 tsp ground ginger

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground cloves

1/2 c (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened

1/4 c shortening

1/2 c white sugar

1/2 c packed light brown sugar

1 egg

1 T water

1/4 c molasses

Icing (optional)

1 c powdered sugar

1-2  T water

splash vanilla

Preheat oven to 350F. Line baking sheets w/ parchment paper or silpat. In a medium bowl mix all dry ingredients (flour through cloves). Set aside. In a large bowl cream butter, shortening, white sugar, and light brown sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg, water, and molasses until combined. Slowly mix in dry ingredients until combined. Cover and chill for at least one hour. Roll dough into desired size (I went with about a 1/2 T size) and flatten hand (will stick completely to the bottom of a glass cup) and place about 1/4" apart on cookie sheet. Bake for about 7 minutes. Remove and cool. Prepare frosting if desired by mixing powdered sugar, water and vanilla and frost.

*She's not lying when she says you have to make these cookies ASAP. If you are a ginger cookie fan these are amazing. Soft and chewy, gingery and molassy. By far my favorite gingerbread cookie yet.

happy mother's day!

it's mother's day! i know i said i was doing a banana series, but i'm taking a quick break to bring you yummy goodness. this year is for M and for new mom- s1. for mother's day the family is having crabs, but i also got a chance to try out this cauliflower recipe and made some dessert as well (i hate to admit that the frozen cranberries from thanksgiving lasted until now...but no wasting of food, and it turned out pretty darn good:)

my friend actually found this awesome recipe and as we were paying attention so well in class, we got sidetracked by this. the crust is a cauliflower base and it's actually really tasty. i think processing the whole cauliflower i got more than the 4 cups that the recipe called for and i think it would have been better w/ more cheese and egg to bind and also baking a bit longer. i put in about 2-3 tsp of frozen garlic paste which melted into the cauliflower after i microwaved it. (it's awesome that you can cook things in the oven)

toppings included: green pepper, tomato (too watery), kale, onions, avocado (i preferred it broiled in the oven over topped fresh afterword) w/ fresh mozzarella on top. i baked the crust for i think 10 minutes (b/c the edges were crisping) but i should have baked it longer b/c it was still a pretty soft crust. also, spread oil or spray the tray/aluminum foil w/ oil so it doesn't stick. i only made one pizza and am saving the crust to make it fresh tonight. eummm, just writing about it i want some more. time for a break...


ok, back :D my tummy is happy again. so for dessert i figured the frozen cream cheese and frozen berries needed to be used up (although M loves angel food cake, that will have to wait until after finals)

i tried my hand at jam making. i boiled the frozen cranberries in a small amount of water w/ lemon juice (i think it was about 1.25-1.5 cups of cranberries w/ about 1/2 cup of sugar. i boiled the cranberries and popped them as i went, once it boiled i added the sugar and stirred constantly for about 5 minutes. even though it didn't seem to make the pectin-esque jam, after a while it became jelly-ish (although it did make a film, but just mix that in).

this is sort of baking in my mind- cranberry cheesecake bars modified from pillsbury's raspberry version. the frozen cream cheese consistency changes a bit w/ the ice particles so i'm not sure how that works out and i also added in an additional 1/2 cup of cream cheese b/c the crust to cheesecake ratio seemed a bit too heavy on the crust side. i also didn't add the jam on top. it's hanging out in the fridge right now waiting to be cut into by M, but i'll get back to you on the texture and taste of frozen cream cheese (but the cranberry jam tasted pretty good- i like it on the tart side).

happy mother's day to all the moms out there (who all seem to be at home depot...:)

* finally got around to trying the cheesecake squares, i don't know if i pressed the crust in too tight but it turned out like shortbread (which is not a bad thing) and was hard to get to come out w/ the cheesecake. so we sort of ended up eating the cheesecake part and then topping the shortbread cookie-esque crust w/ cranberry jam.