Adventures in Baking: Blueberry & Peach Streusel Muffins

One of my favorite parts of summer is picking blueberries.

Picture by my lovely friend, @the_ash_factor

...and after eating them to the point of self-loathing, turning them into something else delicious:

Like muffins! These were actually extremely delicious and tasted like bakery muffins, if I do say so myself ;-)

Blueberry & Peach Streusel Muffins w/ Cream Cheese Glaze

(muffin recipe adapted from here, glaze recipe from here.)

Makes 16 muffins

Ingredients:

For the streusel topping:

• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tbsp. white sugar
• 2 tbsp. brown sugar, packed
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. butter, melted

For the muffins:

• 1-3/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 c. unsalted butter
• 1-1/4 c. white sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c. buttermilk (or 1/2 tbsp. white vinegar + enough milk to make the volume 1/2 c., left sitting for a few minutes)
• 1 heaping c. blueberries, fresh or frozen
• 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 heaping c. diced, canned peaches

For the glaze:

• 4 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c. unsalted butter, softened
• 1 c. powdered sugar
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Method:

Make the streusel topping:

1. In a small bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, sugars and salt.
2. Add in the butter and mix completely. Set aside.

Make the muffins:

1. Preheat oven to 375° F and line 16 muffin-holes with liners.
2. In a medium bowl, mix together the flour and baking powder.
3. In a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar, salt and vanilla with a mixer until smooth.
4. Beat one egg into batter and mix completely; add second.
5. Alternately mix in flour mixture with buttermilk until combined completely.
6. Toss the blueberries with the remaining 1/4 c. flour. Fold into the batter along with the peaches.
7. Scoop batter into muffin tins; sprinkle with streusel topping.
8. Bake until golden brown and tops spring back when touched, about 25 minutes.

Make the glaze:

1. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until combined and fluffy.
2. Add in in powdered sugar; beat until combined.
3. Mix in vanilla completely.
4. Scrape glaze into piping bag and squeeze over tops of muffins.

Yummy!

Awesome!

Cool!

Adventures in Baking: The Best Brownie Recipe and a Stencil How-To!

I was never really a giant fan of baking brownies... To me, they were the lazy person's chocolate cake, since you just mix ingredients and pour them into a pan. And how could someone mess up chocolate and butter? But then one fateful day...

Out of all of the recipes I cut out from the backs of flour bags, extract boxes, etc., I decided to make this recipe and was completely amazed. I think the trick is to cook them for less time the original recipe calls for. This makes for a crunchy, yet gooey brownie that tastes like true love and happiness. And also, if you're thinking about omitting the chocolate chips...Don't do it. The chocolate chips make this recipe extra tasty.

These brownies were so good that I made them three times in one week. THREE TIMES.

Super Yummy Brownies

(recipe adapted from here.)

Ingredients:

• 3/4 c. cocoa powder
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 2/3 c. butter, melted
• 1/2 c. boiling water
• 2 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1-1/3 c. flour
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 c. semi-sweet chocolate chips

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F and grease a 9 x 13" pan.
2. Stir together cocoa and baking soda in a large bowl.
3. Stir in half the butter.
4. Add boiling water and stir until thickened.
5. Stir in sugar, eggs and remaining butter, until completely combined and smooth.
6. Add flour, vanilla and salt; blend completely.
7. Fold in chocolate chips; pour batter into prepared pan.
8. Bake for 30-35 mins, or until brownies pull away from the sides of the pan.

Stencil How-To:

1. Trace the base of the pan onto parchment paper; cut out.
2. Trace shapes onto the paper (I used the two smaller heart Wilton fondant cutters)
3. Cut out with a (clean) craft knife.
4. Place over still-warm brownies and dust with powdered sugar.

Seriously, one of the easiest recipes to make. AND, it uses cocoa powder instead of melted chocolate, which is a plus for me since I go through 2 pounds of chocolate chips in like a week.

MAKE IT!

Adventures in Baking #9: Chocolate Chip Whoopie Pies w/ Chocolate Buttercream!

A while ago, I had to bake something to bring to a car wash to benefit my class...

...and then it rained, the car wash was canceled, and I was left with 40 whoopie pies.

Oh, well. At least they were tasty!

Chocolate Chip Whoopie Pies with Chocolate Buttercream

(cookie recipe adapted from here)

Cookie: 

Ingredients:

• 2 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 c. butter, softened
• 3/4 c. light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 tsp. vinegar + enough milk to measure 2/3 c. (or 2/3 c. buttermilk)
• 85 g semisweet chocolate chips

Method:

1. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.
2. In a large bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
3. Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined.
4. Beat in half the flour mixture, followed by the milk. Add the second half of the flour mixture and beat until combined.
5. Fold in the chocolate chips.
6. Preheat an oven to 350° F.
7. On baking sheets lined with parchment paper, pipe 1+1/2 inch circles.
8. Bake for 10 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through.
9. Let cool for 5 minutes, and then place onto a wire rack to cool completely.
10. Fill with:

Chocolate Buttercream:

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 c. (180 g) powdered sugar
• 5 1/2 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
• 1/8 tsp. salt
• 4 1/2 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1-2 tbsp. milk, as needed

Method:

1. Beat the sugar, butter, salt and cocoa powder until combined.
2. Add the vanilla extract and beat together.
3. Add milk until the right consistency is reached.

Mmmmmm! SO good. Even non-whoopie pie eaters liked them because of the buttercream instead  of the usual marshmallow fluff-based filling.

Happy July!

Adventures in Baking #8: Chocolate Bread Swirl with Chocolate-Nutella Filling

I disappeared for a while, but I made a ton awesome stuff while I was gone. But without a doubt, the most awesome was this:

I made it yesterday, but had to wait until this morning to cut it because I'm picky about lighting when it comes to taking pictures. Chocolate + Nutella + more chocolate = best breakfast ever. I kinda threw stuff together, but surprisingly, this is one of the best things I've ever made. It tastes like something you could get from Panera! ;-)

Chocolate Bread Swirl with Choco-Nutella Filling

(Bread recipe adapted ever-so slightly from here)

Ingredients:

Bread Starter:

• 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
• 1 c. lukewarm water (~110° F)
• 1 c. + 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour

Bread:

• 2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1/4 c. cocoa powder
• 1/3 c. + 2 tbsp. white granulated sugar, separated
• 2 tsp. active dry yeast
• 1 c. warm water
• 1 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
• cooking spray
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tbsp. half-and-half or heavy cream

Filling:

• 3/4 semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/4 c. white granulated sugar
• 3 tbsp. Nutella

Method:

Make the starter:

1. In a small container, dissolve the yeast in the water for 10 minutes.
2. Add the flour and stir until completely mixed.
3. Let sit, at room temperature and loosely covered, for at least 6 hours.

Make the Bread + Filling:

1. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, 1/3 c. sugar, yeast, water and 1/4 c. starter. Mix thoroughly. Let rest for 15 minutes.

2. Scrape the dough onto a floured surface and knead in the butter and salt, until smooth and stretchy, about 10 minutes.

3. Spray a large bowl with cooking spray and place the dough inside, rolling it around to coat all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled, ~1 1/2 hours.

4. Leave the dough in the bowl, but gather the edges and pull to the center. Let rest another 30 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, make the filling: In a double boiler over med-high heat, melt the chocolate chips, sugar and Nutella together, and stir until combined.

6. Let cool slightly, until <120° F. Also, coat a tube pan with cooking spray.

7. Assembly:

Sorry about the wonky white-balance in picture 3 :-(

1. On a floured surface, roll the dough into a rectangle, ~30 inches long.
2. Spread the filling onto it, leaving about an inch as a border.
3. Roll as you would for cinnamon rolls.
4. Cut the roll in half, lengthwise.
5. Twist the pieces together (I found it easiest to put the open sides up).
6. Place into your tube pan (I had a two piece one, which made it so much easier. Take out the inner part and place the twist little-by-little onto it. Replace into the outside piece). Tuck in any awkward ends.

Time to rise!

8. Cover the dough with plastic wrap, and let rise until doubled, about 2 hours.

9. Preheat oven to 400° F. Also, in a really small bowl, beat the egg yolk and mix with the half-and-half or heavy cream.

10. Brush onto the top of the bread, and then sprinkle remaining sugar over the top.

Oven-ready!

11. Place the bread in the oven. Reduce the temperature to 350° F.

12. Bake for 1 hour, placing a sheet of tinfoil on the top, halfway through the time, to prevent burning.

13. Let cool, remove from pan, and enjoy with a cup of tea.

The ultimate breakfast. Enjoy!

Adventures in Baking #7: Rainbow Cake, 2.0

I had to make something for a shindig I was attending, and I decided to go all out and make a 6-layer rainbow cake.

Last year, I made a pretty rainbow cake for my dad's birthday:

I think that the new version is much better.

I got tons of compliments and praise, so I decided to share the recipe. It's much, much easier to make than it looks. I'm also in love with the cake I used so much that it's my new go-to cake recipe.

Rainbow Cake

(recipe adapted from here)

Makes: 48 small servings (as pictured above) or 24 large servings (pictured below)

Ingredients:

• 9 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp. salt
• 2 tbsp. baking powder
• 2 c. (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 tbsp. + 2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 3 c. white granulated sugar
• 6 large eggs
• 3-4 c. milk (as needed)
• Food coloring

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400° F.

2.In a medium bowl, combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Set aside.

3. In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy.

4. Add eggs, one at a time, and combine completely.

5. Add flour mixture alternately with milk, beginning and ending with flour mixture.

6. Divide the batter evenly into 6 containers.

7. Add food coloring to make a layer of red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple. (Make the colors darker than desired, as they tend to fade once baked)

8. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper (trace the outline, cut on the inside and use little dots of batter in the corners of the cookie sheet to hold parchment down). Grease and flour the sides.

9. Add one color to a cookie sheet and spread evenly.

10. Bake for 5 minutes, rotate 180° and bake an additional 5 minutes.

11. While it is baking, pour another container of batter into other sheet.

13. Let finished layer cool and then invert onto wire rack and refill the sheet with more batter.

14. Repeat until all batter is baked.

15. Assemble layers in rainbow order, putting the minimum amount of frosting between each.

Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

• 2-8 oz. bricks cream cheese, softened
• 1 c. (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softend
• 7 c. powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

Method:

1. Beat together cream cheese and butter until smooth.

2. Gradually add powdered sugar and mix until combined.

3. Add vanilla and combine completely.

I got hungry whilst taking pictures. I ate probably two pieces of cake... :'(

I've never received more compliments on something I've baked EVER.

Adventures in Baking #6: Happy World Nutella Day!

Happy World Nutella Day!

The only day I can feel justified in doing this...

I took this day not only to celebrate the complete awesomeness of Nutella, but also to use it as an excuse to make some yummy food.

Thought I'd share...

Nutella Pinwheels:

(dough recipe from Sunset Pies and Pastries)

Makes: About 3 dozen

Ingredients:

• 1 c. (1/2 pound) unsalted butter
• 1 package or 2-1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
• 1/4 c. warm water (approximately 110° F)
• 4 yolks (save the whites and make this)
• 1/4 c. white granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
• 1/2 tsp. Kosher salt
• 1 5 1/3 fl. oz. can evaporated milk (approximately 160 mL)
• 3 1/3 c. all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
• 1 c. Nutella
• 2 tbsp. half and half

Method:

1.  Heat the butter in a small saucepan until completely melted; let cool to 110° F.

2.  In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water and mix to combine. Stir in 3 egg yolks, 1/4 c. white granulated sugar , salt, evaporated milk and cooled butter.

3.  In a large bowl, place 3 1/3 c. flour. Pour in the yeast mixture and stir to combine.

4.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 day and up to 3 days.

5.  Punch down dough, roll into a thickness of about 1/8". Cut into 3"x3" squares.

6.  Assemble:

I. Take a little square and place it on parchment.

II. Use your weapon of choice to cut the corners at a 45° angle (about [√18]/3 inches long, which is    about 1.5 inches for you less precise people)

III. Spoon on a dollop (1-2 tsp.) of Nutella into the middle.
IV. Fold.
V. Fold.
VI. Fold!
VIII. Repeat!

7. Let chill in the fridge for 10 minutes, then to rise in a warm area for 20 minutes.

8. Preheat oven to 375° F.

9. In a small bowl, combine the last egg yolk and the half and half. Whisk to mix.

10. Brush over the tops of the pastries and sprinkle them with sugar. With the tip of the handle of a spoon, punch in near the areas where the arms of the pinwheels meet, like this:

11. Bake for about 10 minutes, until golden brown.

12. Let cool, then enjoy with a mug of Nutella hot cocoa:

Nutella Hot Chocolate for One:

(recipe adapted from here)

Ingredients:

• 1 c. (8 fl. oz.) Vanilla Soymilk (feel free to use milk. I didn't because the smell of warm milk grosses me out)
• 1 generous spoonful (1 1/2 - 2 tbsp.) Nutella

Method:

1) Pour soymilk into a microwave-safe mug and microwave for about 1 minutes and 30 seconds to 2 minutes.
2) When the milk is steaming hot, take a spoonful of Nutella and stir it in.
3) Enjoy!

Have a wonderful Nutella Day!

Adventures in Baking #5: Red Velvet, Stained Glass and Checkers, oh my!

Last night, I stayed up until 5 in the morning. What was I doing?

^ This!

I made four different kinds of cookie: Cheesecake filled red velvet, chocolate checkerboards, spiced sugar cookies and stained glass sugar cookies. I stayed up soo late because I was going to a cookie swap this morning and wanted to have everything ready to go, but I ended up being waaay too tired to go (~2 hours of sleep. Haha!)

That was kind of disappointing, but I had tons of fun baking for 9 hours straight! (And I'm still not baked out... I have 2 rum cakes in the oven now as I type this and I'm making 2 more tomorrow along with some muffins)

They were all pretty darn good, so I thought I'd share the recipes!

Cheesecake Filled Red Velvet Cookies:

For the Filling:

• 1 8-oz. brick cream cheese, softened
• 2 c. powdered sugar
• 2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the Cookie:

• 1 18.25-oz. box red velvet cake mix
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c. veggie oil

Directions:

The Filling:

1. Cream together cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl. When thoroughly combined, place in a plastic bag.
2. Cut a small hole in one corner of the bag and pipe dots onto parchment paper (about 2 tsp. of filling for each ball)
3. Freeze for at least two hours. (To save space, feel free to put layers of cream cheese balls over each other with parchment paper separating them)

The Cookie:

1. In a medium-sized bowl, stir together the cake mix and baking powder.
2. Add the eggs and oil and mix until thoroughly combined.
3. Refridgerate for about 30 minutes to let the dough firm up.

Assembly:

1. Take a glob of dough (well over a tbsp.) and roll it in your hands. Flatten into a circle with a diameter of about two inches.
2. Place a cream cheese ball in the center, fold in half, and completely conceal. Reroll into a spherical shape as necessary.
3. Place onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Repeat with rest of dough.
4. Refridgerate for about 30 minutes (this is so that the cookies won't spread out too much when baking and turn into a mess).
5. Bake at 350° F for 8-10 minutes, until the tops of the cookies look deliciously cracked.

BAM!

Stained Glass Cookies:

Ingredients:

• 1 c. (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 1 large egg yolk (save the white for another recipe coming up!)
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 6 oz. butterscotch hard candies

Directions:

1. Put the candies in a plastic bag and hit with a blunt object until they are a fine powder (or use a food processor, if you possess such nice technology unlike me)
2. Cream the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add egg yolk and vanilla. Beat until combined.
3. Add the flour and mix untilthe dough comes together into a ball.
4. Divide the dough into 3 balls. Wrap each with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
5. Take one ball of dough and knead it a little to soften it up.
6. Roll to about 1/8 inch thick and cut out with cookie cutters. Put scraps back in the fridge.
7. Place onto lined cookie sheets and use a smaller cookie cutter to cut out a small shape from the center.
8. Into the the small cutout, use a spoon to place the ground up candies to be level with the cookie dough.
9. Bake at 375° F for about 6 minutes, until the cookies are golden brown.
10. Cool completely before moving.

KA-POW!

Chocolate Checkerboards:

Ingredients:

• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 2 1/2 c. and 1 1/2 tbsp. all-purpose flour, separated
• 1 c. (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/4 c. semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 egg white (saved from last recipe!), lightly beaten

Directions:

1. Microwave the chocolate chips until melted. Set aside and let cool slightly.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together baking powder, salt, and 2 1/2 c. flour.
3. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add the egg and vanilla, and combine completely.
4. Turn the mixer onto low and gradually add the flour mixture until just incorporated.
5. Mass the dough, and divide into halves.
6. With one half, combine with the chocolate and 1 1/2 tbsp. flour.
7. Divide each half into halves again (so...quarters.)
8. Roll all pieces of dough on a piece of plastic wrap to the same size rectangle, about 11" x 4".
9. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.
10. Take one chocolate and one white piece of dough. Unwrap.
11. Brush the top of one with the egg white and press the other onto the top. First, cut the edges so that the pieces completely match up. Then, cut into 1/2" wide strips. Repeat with remaining pieces of dough.
12. Brush the sides with egg white and press 3 strips together in an alternating pattern. Repeat with all strips.
13. Wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate again for about 30 minutes.
14. Unwrap, cut into slices about 1/8" thick. Lay on a lined cookie sheet and bake at 350° F until just golden on the edges, about 6-8 minutes.

WHAM!

Spiced Sugar Cookies:

Ingredients:

• 3 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. grated nutmeg
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c. milk
• sprinkles

Directions:

1. Sift the first four ingredients into a medium-size bowl.
2. Cream the butter, sugar and vanilla extract until light and fluffy.
3. Add the flour mixture, alternating with the milk, to the butter mixture, while combining completely with the mixer.
4. Let the dough chill in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.
5. Roll out about 1/8" thick and cut out shapes. Put on the sprinkles.
6. Bake at 350° F for 10-12 minutes, until just golden-brown on the edges.

POW!

Without a doubt, one of the best things about the holidays is all of the baking you get to do :-)

I hope everyone's pre-Christmas baking is going well!