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.

vt = maple syrup

among other things as well, but i will be moving there in the fall, so i should start getting to know my new home, yes? spent last week up in New England (and have the but bites to prove it) and also came back with "The Official Vermont Maple Cookbook" (2nd ed). it's got recipes for real foods as well as breakfast and desserts. so of course, i have my lovely jar of maple syrup from the vermont country store still left and so i picked a recipe that was quick and fast (trying to bake before my nephew sleeps so i don't make any noise is a very interesting dilemma, if only i was getting skinnier...haha).

i chose the maple gingerbread recipe and made just one tweak for ease and to decrease calories and boost the nutritional value of it.

Maple Gingerbread (makes 1 large loaf)
2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ginger powder
1 tsp baking soda
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup maple syrup (i used B grade)
1 cup plain Greek yogurt (the recipe originally called for 1 cup sour cream, if that's what you have on hand, feel free to use)

Preheat oven to 325F. Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix maple syrup with beaten eggs and add yogurt. Combine the dry and wet ingredients and pour into greased bread pan (or 8" x 8" cake pan) and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden brown and pulling from edges. You can serve with whipped cream or ice cream (it tastes really good as a bread too by itself). Eat it when it's warm, it's amazing then!

*you can really taste the ginger in this bread, although while it was baking all i could smell was the maple syrup. the bread is really soft and moist (go yogurt!) and it would probably make great french toast bread or bread pudding but it's so good by itself that it might take away from the taste. now i'm out of maple syrup again....and still a dozen recipes to go...guess i need to make another trip to VT before i move there!

and lest you think there's no future dietitian in me, here's the low down on maple syrup- i never knew it had manganese and riboflavin (along with other minerals)!

i'm not done! if you're looking for a super quick and easy dinner idea this can be prepped the morning of (or night before and kept in the fridge until you can pop it into the oven). it's also very versatile and can be made to fit your tastebuds and what's on hand in your kitchen.

i'm calling this mexican lasagna b/c it takes the form of lasagna and i had lots of mexican ingredients on hand. i spooned salsa on the bottom of the baking dish, layered corn tortillas next, then i had frozen broccoli and kale so in that went. then followed chickpeas and black beans (rinsed and drained), chopped onions and sprinkling of mozzarella cheese. i made two layers and left it in the fridge while i was at work. when i got home i popped it into a 350 F oven and baked for about 20-30 minutes or until the cheese is nice and melty (feel free to add or take away any ingredients- avocado, olives, chicken for you meat eaters, etc would all be really good in this)