This post is sort of just to post, and mark everything I bake between now and New Years....
Well, this isn't really anything new, but I'm just putting this in here, showing that I baked now. This is my family's DELICIOUS, AMAZING, TOTALLY FANTABULOUS, SECRETIVE, Chocolate Chip Banana Bread! Adored by many, including Carie, our strange old babysitter who got us into two car crashes. (Insdide joke) Aaaaaaaanyways, I can't really put the recipe up, because then it wouldn't really be a secret, would it? But I can tell you that it is DA BOMB DIGEDY! (I hope that's how you spell it...)
We (being my sister and me) also made a scrum-diddly-UMPtious pumpkin cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting- to put in two words, a yum ball. Or a ball of yum. The essence of yum. Yum in a package. Yum in disguise (as something yummy-looking.) Yum made easy, etc. (Or ect?) (etc, right?) It was moist. It was cream-cheesy. It was fall-y (or if you like it better, autumn-y.) It was... delicious. And made for an ESPECIALLY important occasion- my Dad's birthday!
Strawberry Shortbread bars! (Not to be confused with Strawberry Shortcake, because that is a doll/ action figure.) THESE THINGS ARE RICH! But amazing. A layer of crust, then jelly, then a layer of filling, and then a glaze. YUM! (I really need to think of other adjectives...) They can be cut into small pieces. The important ingredients are: butter, almond extract, sugar, and flour. I hope those give you an idea of the flavor and consistency. And it may not sound like it, but almond extract and strawberry jelly go together surprisingly well! So well that it is deeeeeeel-IIIIIIIIII-scious. (the "IIIIII" should be in a higher voice, for the full effect of writing it that way.)
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Chocolate Peanut Butter WHOOPEEEEEE Pies!
Well. I have decided, with certain suggestions from certain people, to blog on any baked goods I make from now until New Years. So, to welcome home my Dad and my sister, I baked PEANUT BUTTER CHCOLATE WHOOPIE PIES! I *ahem* might have *cough* sampled some of the batter in the process of it being made. And I can tell you that it was one of the richest chocolate batters I have ever tasted. YUM!
So, it was a pretty easy make, but I think that if I baked them again, I might make the size of the cookies a tad smaller, because these things could be called “Peanut Butter Chocolate WHOPPER pies!” They’re practically the size of my face (or half my face, if you want to be literal.) THESE THINGS ARE RICH! And yummy! The thickness I made them, they were about a total of three inches tall when finished. So, if you make them smaller, you can use the allotted frosting, but if you make the huge-o-mong-o, then you should use a leeeeeetle bit more frosting, so the ratio between frosting and cookie is equal. Because these cookies are THICK and RICH and CHOCOLATE. I recommend following the size suggestions in the recipe. I, being only 12 and not having a fully developed sense of size (Or something like that) used about double that. Or more. But they were still YUMMY!
I have to say, there isn't much I didn't like or would change in this recipe. I think it is a very good recipe. Hm... I don't know... maybe a bit more *ahem* sugar to sweeten the unsweetened chocolate in the cookie dough. But oooooootherwise, They are veeeeerrrryyyyyy good.
And the recipe I got from another blog called Kitchen Simplicity, (If you wan to go there, click on that) and if you don’t want to bother actually going to that website, here is the recipe:
So, it was a pretty easy make, but I think that if I baked them again, I might make the size of the cookies a tad smaller, because these things could be called “Peanut Butter Chocolate WHOPPER pies!” They’re practically the size of my face (or half my face, if you want to be literal.) THESE THINGS ARE RICH! And yummy! The thickness I made them, they were about a total of three inches tall when finished. So, if you make them smaller, you can use the allotted frosting, but if you make the huge-o-mong-o, then you should use a leeeeeetle bit more frosting, so the ratio between frosting and cookie is equal. Because these cookies are THICK and RICH and CHOCOLATE. I recommend following the size suggestions in the recipe. I, being only 12 and not having a fully developed sense of size (Or something like that) used about double that. Or more. But they were still YUMMY!
I have to say, there isn't much I didn't like or would change in this recipe. I think it is a very good recipe. Hm... I don't know... maybe a bit more *ahem* sugar to sweeten the unsweetened chocolate in the cookie dough. But oooooootherwise, They are veeeeerrrryyyyyy good.
So, if you would like to lay your eyes upon these little beauties, here are some pictures: (Hopefully, over the course of the year my food photographing skills get better over the year...)
And the recipe I got from another blog called Kitchen Simplicity, (If you wan to go there, click on that) and if you don’t want to bother actually going to that website, here is the recipe:
For Cookies:
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 ½ cups unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 cups organic cane sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups buttermilk, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
For Filling:
- 1 1/3 cup natural organic creamy peanut butter
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar
Preheat oven to 400. Make cookies: Line three rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a small bowl, sift together flours, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla. Beat until well combined. On low speed, slowly add dry ingredients; mix until combined.
Drop 1 ½ tablespoons of batter onto prepared baking sheets, spacing 2-inches apart. Bake until set, about 8 minutes, rotating halfway through. When the top of cookie is gently touched, it should feel soft but not wet. Cool completely on a wire rack.
Make filling: With an electric mixer, beat peanut butter and butter on high speed until smooth. Reduce speed to low. Add confectioners’ sugar; mix until combined. Raise speed to high, and mix until fluffy and smooth, about 3 minutes.
To assemble cookies: Spread 1 to 2 heaping tablespoons of filling on the flat side of 1 cookie. Sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining cookies and filling. Cookies can be refrigerated in single layers in airtight container up to 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Update on my Dormant Blogging-ness!
As you can tell, I have not posted for several months now. that is dues to the fact that I have moved back to AMERICA! And am now settled in. But, while we didn't have a large kitchen, were on vacation, or moving, I was unable to bake. Soooooooo, I have decided to move "Bake a batch of cookies per week and blog about it" resolution to next year. I know, I am not doing a New Year's resolution- but honestly, I never specified that. And next year we will not be moving and travelling as much, so hopefully I can bake 52 different types of cookies. (You know, when you say it like that, it doesn't sound like much.) And they will probably be baked on Weekends, so expect the posts to come every Saturday or Sunday. If something comes up or I do go on vacation, I will try and make it up during the week, but it might turn our to be something like 45 cookies recipes.I also will try to take and upload picture every week if my computer will allow it... I will also try to find a link to the cookbooks, because I don't want to get bored of typing recipe, after recipe, after recipe, after recipe, after recipe, after recipe, after recipe, after recipe, after recipe! Whew!So, I will blog next year! PINKIE PROMISE!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Lemon Poppyseed... Muffins...
Just this once, I had to bake muffins instead of cookies because we are leaving on Tuesday and even my family, (who eats cookies at maximum speed) cannot eat a whole batch of cookies that fast. So, I made Lemon Poppyseed muffins from this special little recipe.
Either I did this wrong, or the glaze for this is TERRIBLE! It is basically sticky lemon juice dumped onto of a muffin. It is plain, white, granulated sugar and lemon juice. The sugar dissolves, and then you are left with really sweet lemon juice.
Have you ever poured lemon juice on top of a muffin? Well, I don't suggest it, because muffins have round tops, and so then the lemon juice will slide right off it into the muffin tin. That is what happens in this recipe. I don't know if the person who wrote it meant powdered sugar or not, but that's what I should have used. When I added powdered sugar, it was too late.
Anyways, some glaze stuck and hardened into a sticky glaze, but I got a lot in the tin.
Aside from the complete glaze debacle, the muffins were okay. They didn't jump out at my taste buds and say "YUM YUM MORE!" they said something more like, "Yummy, this muffin's pretty good, but I would rather have chocolate." Although, the reason for this speaking might be because I used healthy sugar. (By healthy sugar, I mean non-sugar sugar, like Splenda.)
Here are other opinions from my family:
My mom says: They tasted just like poppy seed muffins with sugar, but they needed perhaps a bit more lemon.
Ethan: Good. (Why do I even bother putting in his comments?)
Okay, I will confess, the reason why they don't have enough lemon in them MIGHT be because I had to add a handful of water to the bater to make it have enough moisture. I don't know enough to be able to say if that would dilute the lemon taste. If you make this recipe you must follow the directions EXACTLY! when it says "Do not over-mix!" I now interpret that to mean, put the dry ingredients in and mix ONCE! (I mixed two or three times because I was taught to not put two cups of flour in at once.)
Overall, I think this recipe is okay, and I would give it 3 stars. (I took away one star just for the glaze.)
(Pictures will come momentarily...)
Either I did this wrong, or the glaze for this is TERRIBLE! It is basically sticky lemon juice dumped onto of a muffin. It is plain, white, granulated sugar and lemon juice. The sugar dissolves, and then you are left with really sweet lemon juice.
Have you ever poured lemon juice on top of a muffin? Well, I don't suggest it, because muffins have round tops, and so then the lemon juice will slide right off it into the muffin tin. That is what happens in this recipe. I don't know if the person who wrote it meant powdered sugar or not, but that's what I should have used. When I added powdered sugar, it was too late.
Anyways, some glaze stuck and hardened into a sticky glaze, but I got a lot in the tin.
Aside from the complete glaze debacle, the muffins were okay. They didn't jump out at my taste buds and say "YUM YUM MORE!" they said something more like, "Yummy, this muffin's pretty good, but I would rather have chocolate." Although, the reason for this speaking might be because I used healthy sugar. (By healthy sugar, I mean non-sugar sugar, like Splenda.)
Here are other opinions from my family:
My mom says: They tasted just like poppy seed muffins with sugar, but they needed perhaps a bit more lemon.
Ethan: Good. (Why do I even bother putting in his comments?)
Okay, I will confess, the reason why they don't have enough lemon in them MIGHT be because I had to add a handful of water to the bater to make it have enough moisture. I don't know enough to be able to say if that would dilute the lemon taste. If you make this recipe you must follow the directions EXACTLY! when it says "Do not over-mix!" I now interpret that to mean, put the dry ingredients in and mix ONCE! (I mixed two or three times because I was taught to not put two cups of flour in at once.)
Overall, I think this recipe is okay, and I would give it 3 stars. (I took away one star just for the glaze.)
(Pictures will come momentarily...)
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
Craving Cookies
Today's post is a little different because, since my mom is out of town, and we need to use up our old bananas, I looked up a cookie recipe on www.allrecipes.com. (this recipe is courtesy of GODGIFU) They are called Craving cookies, and they include a blend of Peanut Butter, Mashed Bananas, and Chocolate. I thought it would be an interesting mix: so I gave it a try!
They turned out well, except for here's the thing: I burned one batch, but one batch was good, and they tasted great! They're good, but they aren't cookies I would want to have as much as, say, Reeses cookies. my family who was here liked them, but there are still left overs after two weeks, so, maybe they aren't the best.
So, to sum it up: They're good, and if you like peanut butter, and bananas together, then make them. But, if you're lukewarm on the idea, I don't suggest them as a must make!
They turned out well, except for here's the thing: I burned one batch, but one batch was good, and they tasted great! They're good, but they aren't cookies I would want to have as much as, say, Reeses cookies. my family who was here liked them, but there are still left overs after two weeks, so, maybe they aren't the best.
So, to sum it up: They're good, and if you like peanut butter, and bananas together, then make them. But, if you're lukewarm on the idea, I don't suggest them as a must make!
Monday, March 21, 2011
White Chocolate Fudge Bars: Variation
This week, I baked some bars from 500 Cookies entitled White Chocolate Fudge Bars. But, seeing as I can't get white chocolate easily here, I did the variation of using normal chocolate for melting, and butterscotch chips for putting inside the bars.
I found these bars utterly amazing, and I think using butterscotch and normal chocolate made it possibly even better than otherwise. It is especially better if you do not enjoy white chocolate. I highly recommend these, and my fellow family members found them:
Mom: Tasty
Dad: Delicous.
Brother: Edible (just ignore his opinion!)
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Chocolate and Orange Sandwich Cookies
This week I made Chocolate and Orange Sandwich Cookies from 500 cookies. I choose them because I like the taste of chocolate and orange together and I wanted to see if they were as good as the Chocolate and Orange scones I made. (Verdict: Well, they are full chocolate with a stronger orange taste, so they are better. But not by that much.) I found these cookies delicious, but there could be some slight adjustments to the recipe to make them even better. For me, that is. After questioning my family I have come up with these opinions:
Mom: Wow! I like the subtle hint of orange. (Personally I am surprised at this because I found the Orange quite strong)
Dad: I like the combination!
Brother (you can't expect it to be good): They're good. (oh well)
If I were to do this recipe again, I would rather not add the orange zest to the frosting, because it make the frosting grainy in texture. I also might take away a little bit of the orange juice from the frosting to make it less orangy. I might just be more sensitive to it, but I found the orange very strong, and a little too strong for my liking.
Here is the recipe from 500 Cookies:
(I will add this later, but right now I need to post this!)
Mom: Wow! I like the subtle hint of orange. (Personally I am surprised at this because I found the Orange quite strong)
Dad: I like the combination!
Brother (you can't expect it to be good): They're good. (oh well)
If I were to do this recipe again, I would rather not add the orange zest to the frosting, because it make the frosting grainy in texture. I also might take away a little bit of the orange juice from the frosting to make it less orangy. I might just be more sensitive to it, but I found the orange very strong, and a little too strong for my liking.
Here is the recipe from 500 Cookies:
(I will add this later, but right now I need to post this!)
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Peanut Butter and Jelly Thumbprints
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Ingredients:
3/4 cup superfine sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 cup (8 ounces) peanut butter
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/3 cup raspberry jelly or Nutella*
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F (or 190 degrees C)
Combine all the ingredients, except for the jelly in a large bowl. Mix until smooth.
Roll the mixture into 1 in. (2.5 cm.) balls. If they are a bit sticky, use a little flour on your fingers.
Place the balls onto non-stick baking sheets about 2 in. (5cm.) apart and, using a floured thumb, make a deep impression in each ball of dough. Bake for 10- 12 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.
Fill each impression with Jelly. Store in an airtight container for 4-5 days.
This is supposed to make 3 dozen.
*One variation of this recipe is to add 1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips to the dough, and then fill the impressions with Nutella. (If you have never heard of Nutella for some strange reason, it is next to the peanut butter in a grocery store.)
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| Doesn't your mouth just water? |
Saturday, March 5, 2011
COOKIES!
In this blog, you will learn of my baking escapades as I attempt to bake 43 different types of cookies. (That depends if we move and I am interrupted.) I will choose 43 recipes, that are able to be done with German ingredients*, from the books entitled "Big Fat Cookies," (Even the cover makes my mouth water) and "500 Cookies" (500 hundred whole recipes!) If I am un-able to bake one week, that is because either a) my mom says we have to many sweets or b) I am busy doing something else and am un-able to.
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