Snickerdoodles

It seems that I'm always posting dessert recipes. It's not that I'm constantly making desserts, it's just that I'm more prone to take pictures of my 'fancy' desserts and share them. Let me assure you, I do make plenty of dinners in addition to the yummy desserts I've documented.

Let's move on. Last night I had a dream about my grandma's snickerdoodle cookies and couldn't get them out of my head. So I convinced Zak to make some with me on our day off together. He didn't mind at all, and did an excellent job measuring everything. I got to roll out the cookie dough; he's not very fond of getting his hands dirty if he doesn't have to. But it was still fun to bake together. Currently we are waiting for the second batch to come out of the oven and boy, do they smell just like Grandma's! Here is the recipe I used, which is halved from her original recipe.

1/2 c. shortening
3/4 c. sugar
1 egg
1 1/3 c. flour
1 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

2 T. sugar2 T. cinnamon

1. Mix together shortening, sugar and egg.
2. Add in flour, cream of tartar, baking soda & salt.
3. Chill dough (optional); roll into balls the size of wlanuts.
4. Roll in cinnamon and sugar mixture.

Bake at 400 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes OR at 250 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes. (Tip: make sure to under-cook them by a minute, otherwise there will be a slight burnt flavor to them.)

Makes at least 2 dozen cookies, plus some extras!

so beautiful and round

mmmmmm

Homemade Oreo Cookies

I found this recipe on some blog that looked intriguing. I had never thought about making oreo cookies from scratch before, but after this recipe, I think I will from now on. They taste a little different than the store ones, but in a way that I can't describe. I don't know. They were pretty good and are great with milk. I will say one thing though: make tiny, like dime-sized cookies on the baking sheet, because these things expand like you wouldn't believe. It took a few pans to get them down to the average oreo size. Oh, and this recipe will make something like 50 or so small cookies. We have a ton of them leftover.

Cookie:
1 1/4 c. flour
1/2 c. unsweetend cocoa
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1 c. sugar
1/2 c. + 2 Tbl. butter, room temperature
1 egg

1. In a medium-sized bowl, mix flour, cocoa, baking soda and powder, salt and sugar.
2. Beat in the bugger and egg, continue mixing until dough comes together in a mass.
3. Make little balls (dime-sized, seriously) of dough and flatten slightly on hand (they also turn out very thin and crispy), place about 1 inch apart on greased pan.
4. Bake for 8 - 9 minutes at 375 degrees, set on a rack to cool.

Filling:
1/4 c. unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 c. vegetable shortening
2 c. powdered sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract (or vanilla bean paste, which is what the blog author used)

1. Place butter and shortening in a mixing bowl, and mix at low speed.
2. Gradually beat in the sugar and vanilla.
3. Turn mixer on high and beat for 2 - 3 minutes until filling is light and fluffy.
4. The blog author talked about using a piping bag or something to place the filling on a cookie; I just took a small spatula and spread it on the bottom cookie and made sure the top cookie was about the same size, and gently pressed them together.

yum! (see the different sizes? yeah, these things get big quick)

Tuxedo Chocolate Cake

This. Cake. Is. Fantastic.

However, it takes a fair amount of time to make, it is huge, and one piece is probably a fair amount of your caloric intake for the day. But it is worth it, because it it divine. Here we go.

Cake:

4 c. sugar

1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

4 c. flour

1 Tbl. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. buttermilk

1 Tbl. vanilla

1 c. unsalted butter

1 c. canola or vegetable oil

2 c. water

4 large eggs

Whipped Cream Filling & Frosting:

4 c. chilled whipping (heavy) cream

1 1/4 c. powdered sugar

Chocolate Glaze:

4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped into small pieces

1/2 c. whipping (heavy) cream

1/4 c. Lyle's Golden Syrup OR Dark Karo (corn) syrup [the Lyle's stuff is apparently British, so I did some research to find a reasonable substitute]

2 tsp. vanilla

1. Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Prepare three 9-inch round cake pans; lightly grease pans with shortening, line with parchment paper, and then lightly grease the top of the paper and dust with flour.

2. In a (very) large mixing bowl, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; whisk together to mix.

3. In a small bowl, combine buttermilk and vanilla.

4. In a medium saucepan, combine butter, oil and water. Heat over low heat until the butter is melted, stirring often.

5. Pour the butter mixture into the sugar/cocoa mixture. Using an electric mixer or a wire whisk (which works just fine), stir until combined and smooth.

6. Crack the eggs into a small mixing bowl and whisk thoroughly to break up the eggs, then add to batter, stirring until combined. Add the buttermilk mixture and stir until everything is thoroughly combined.

7. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake 40 - 45 minutes or until center tested with a toothpick comes out pretty and clean.

8. Place pans on a wire cooling rack for 15 minutes, then remove cakes from pans to cool completely. Make sure they are cooled completely before frosting, at least one hour.

9. In a large mixing bowl (it works a little better if you chill the bowl and mixing tool beforehand), beat the 4 c. whipping cream until soft mounds form. Gradually add the powdered sugar and beat until thick and stiff.

10. Place one cake on the plate you are going to use, thickly spread some of the whipper cream over the top. Top with the remaining cake layers, coating the top of each with the whipped cream. Cover the sides of the cake as well, and make it as smooth as possible over the top and sides.

11. Refrigerate the cake at least one hour to stabilize the whipped cream before glazing.

12. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium bowl.

13. In a small saucepan over medium low heat, heat the 1/2 whipping cream until it is hot and just beginning to steam.

14. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate, stirring until it's completed melted. Add the Golden Syrup (or dark Karo corn syrup) and vanilla, stirring until completely melted.

15. Pour the chocolate mixture into a pitcher, or liquid measuring cup with a pouring spout and let it cool for 8 - 10 minutes (if it sits longer than that, it will thicken up too much to pour over the cake, so set a timer).

16. Slowly pour the glaze over the cake. Cover the top entirely, then let some of the glaze drizzle down the sides, allowing some of the whipped cream to show through.

17. Refrigerate the cake until the glaze is set and the whipped cream frosting is firm at least one hour. To serve, slice the cake with a long serrated knife.

cooling

I used foil pans, since I didn't have enough pans, so it was kind of a challenge...I had to fill in the gaps with extra whipped cream

more or less frosted

with the glaze, ooh

look how lovely!

Enchiladas

I love the enchiladas that my family makes. A few years ago, when my brother, cousin and some friends were over for Sunday dinner, I tried to make them. Unfortunately, it did not go as planned, and I ended up turning them into a casserole, layered like lasagna. It tasted good, but kind of scarred me, and I didn't really want to try them again for a long time.

I conquered my fears last month, and made near-perfect enchiladas! They rolled perfectly and everything. Yesterday I made some for the guys as they were working on the car, and they did not come out as I had hoped (the tortillas were a huge pain in the butt), but still, delicious. I realized I haven't updated this blog in like, two months, so I felt I needed to share some recipes. Here is the enchilada one.

Filling:

1 lb. hamburger, cooked with 1 chopped onion (do not drain, loses the flavor)

2 - 3 c. grated cheese

1 can chopped black olives

salt & pepper to taste

Sauce:

1/2 c. oil

1/2 c. flour

1 tsp. salt

1 - 2 tsp. chili powder

3 - 4 c. water

1. Mix oil, flour, salt and chili powder over medium heat, like making a white sauce. When it starts to bubble, add in the water, slowly. Bring to a boil.

2. Dip tortillas in hot sauce, fill with meat, cheese, olives, roll up and secure with a toothpick (or two, or three, depending on how the tortilla cooperates).

3. If desired, sprinkle with extra cheese and sauce before baking at 350-degrees for 25 - 30 mins.

Makes 12 - 14, depending on how packed you fill them. Oh, and we have always used those small, corn tortillas, so I'm not sure how many they make with larger, ones. Zak wants me to try it with a flour tortilla sometime, so we'll see.

Oven-Fried Parmesan Chicken

I found this recipe on a Yahoo site and decided to try it. It turned out pretty well, but we had leftovers for days. I would add a few more spices (especially salt) to the breading or to the chicken itself, but overall, it was pretty tasty and easy...once I got all the skin off the chicken.

2 eggs, beaten
1/4 c. milk
1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese
1/2 c. fine dry bread crumbs
2 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. black pepper
4 lbs. meat chicken pieces, skinned (I used 16 drumsticks)
3 Tbl. butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 375 degree F. Grease two large shallow baking pans; set aside.
2. In a small bowl, combine egg and milk.
3. In a shallow dish, combine Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, oregano, paprika, and pepper.
4. Dip chicken pieces into egg mixture; coat with crumb mixture.
5. Arrange chicken pieces in prepared baking pans, making sure pieces don't touch. Drizzle chicken pieces with melted butter.
6. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes or until chicken is tender and no longer pink (170 degree F for breasts; 180° degree F for thighs and drumsticks). Do not turn chicken pieces during baking. Immediately transfer chicken to a covered container; serve within 1 hour. (Or cover and chill chicken; transport in an insulated container with ice packs.)

Lemon Cheesecake Cookie Bars

So I found this recipe on some site, and decided to make them because I had a lot of cream cheese sitting around. And cream cheese is my favorite dessert component of all time (sorry, chocolate), so I figured, why not? The original recipe didn't call for so much lemon/lime, but I wanted to use up the ones in the fridge. Plus, I know Zak likes citrus flavors. Oh, and I added in raspberries from the freezer to balance out the citrus zing.

1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup melted butter
8 ounces cream cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
5 -6 Tbl. fresh lemon juice
3 Tbl. fresh lime juice
1 - 2 Tbl. grated lemon zest
1/2 Tbl. grated lime zest
10 or so raspberries
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

1. Mix brown sugar, nuts & flour together.
2. Stir in the butter and work until it resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside 1 cup of the mixture for the topping; press the rest firmly into the bottom of an 8x8" pan.
3. Bake at 350° for 12 - 15 minutes; leave oven on.
4. While crust is baking, cream the cream cheese and sugar together.
5. Add the egg, lemon & lime juices, milk, vanilla, zests, vanilla. Beat thoroughly. Add raspberries (if desired), beat thoroughly. Pour over baked crust
6. Sprinkle remaining crumb mixture over top of cream cheese mixture; bake for 20 - 25 minutes. Cool completely before cutting into squares. Makes 16 2" cookie bars.

Cranberry Bread

I remember my mom making this recipe a lot around Christmas time and giving them as gifts to her friends, people in the ward, etc. I am thinking of making this for some of my friends for Christmas, but wanted to do a 'test run' before. I played around with the recipe and it came out just delicious! Zak took some to work and it was a hit, so it looks like my plans will continue as scheduled...

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 Tbl. lemon zest
1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 eggs
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
6 Tablespoons plain yogurt
1-1/2 cups fresh cranberries, washed

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift together flours, salt, baking soda, and cream of tartar; set aside.
3. Place sugar & lemon zest in a food processor or blender and process until lemon zest is finely grated.
4. Add butter and process until smooth; add eggs one at a time; mix well.
5. Add vanilla and yogurt and mix until smooth; transfer mixture to a separate bowl.
6. Place cranberries in food processor and pulse on and off until coarsely chopped.
7. Add cranberries to dry mixture, mix to combine.
8. Stir butter-yogurt mixture into flour-cranberry mixture and mix well.
9. Place into greased/floured pans and bake 50-60 minutes (40 for mini loaves) or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
10. Cool on a rack for 30 minutes; remove from pans and continue cooling. Wrap well and refrigerate 24 hours before serving.

This bread freezes really well. This recipe makes either one big loaf or three mini loaves.