busy busy bee

So the last few weeks have been a little crazy, and its about time I got on to share with you a few things I've been baking up. Most of what I've made recently has gone to my church, as they just had their annual bake sale. The bake sale included an array of Lebanese foods and baked goods. Every year it get bigger and better, and everyone is encouraged to bring some of their own home baked goods to sell. This year I made several pies, cookies, cupcakes, cakes, and even candy. So I hope those who bought them my treats enjoyed them, and I promise they were made with much love and devotion.

Here are the goods...and let me just say that it took EVERY OUNCE of my will power to not dive right in to these.

The Butterscotch Maple Pecan Pie...

and Chocolate Chip Pie that I didn't capture :(

Mississippi Mud Cake. To. Die. For.

Cinnamon Roll Cake, from The Repressed Pastry Chef.

For the cookies I made scrumptious Monster Cookies, courtesy of my dear friend Grace who got me HOOKED on these; and Vanilla Bean Iced Sugar...

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes from Martha Stewart, of course ;). Please understand that it's almost stupid how these smell and taste like everything you want in a snickerdoodle.

Lastly, the Cookies & Creme Mint Chocolate Bark. I actually bought some cookies & creme bark at Whole Foods weeks ago (it was amazing I might add). So after considering making classic peppermint bark, I thought why not put these mint oreos to good use!

I'll be back on later to post recipes so sit tight.

Flavor of the Month: Cookies & Pumpkin Cheesecake Cuppies

This month's flavor, Pumpkin of course. I love love love Flavor of the Month. It really gets those creative juices flowing :), and I love seeing the intuitive ideas of other bakers out their. You can really go about baking/cooking with pumpkin in so many ways. I incorporated pumpkin & spice to a recipe I've been meaning to bake since I bought the book. Again, this one comes from Martha's Cupcake book, and is originally a cookies and cream cupcake.

Bakers on blogs like 52 Cupcakes have made the original recipe, which I still want to tackle... :/ But in light of Halloween, and America's favorite cookie coming out with bright orange creme filling, I thought it would more fun to make these a pumpkin cheesecake cuppie to match that festive orange.

So there you have it.

Don't you love how there is no need to prepare a crust? All there is to do is place a cute little Oreo in the liner.

These were incredibly easy to make, obviously I altered the original recipe to fit a pumpkin flavored cheesecake, but also to make a smaller batch. The only hard part with these cuppies is the waiting requirement. Obviously, being that they are a cheesecake, they need time to set. So brace yourself guys. These must be refrigerated after they're baked/cooled atleast 4 hrs or up to overnight! Trust me though, they're worth the wait. Please Enjoy! And at the end of the month you can check bakeat350's blog to see everyone who posted their pumpkin treats!

Cookies & Pumpkin Cheesecake Cuppies:

(Adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcakes)

Ingredients:
24 whole cream-filled sandwich cookies, and 12 coarsely chopped

2 (8 oz.) pkgs. cream cheese, room temperature (I used the 1/3 less fat and it worked fine)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup pure pumpkin

1/2 tsp. cinnamon, and ground ginger

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg, and ground cloves

pinch of salt

2 large eggs, room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees. Line standard muffin tins with paper liners. Place 1 whole cookie in the bottom of each lined cup.
2. With an electric mixer on medium high speed, beat cream cheese until smooth, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Gradually add sugar, and beat until combined. Beat in vanilla.
3. Add pumpkin, spices, and then finally the eggs one at a time, beating to combine and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Stir in chopped cookies by hand.
4. Divide batter evenly among cookie-lined cups, filling each almost to the top. Bake, rotating pan halfway through, until filling is set, about 22 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Refrigerate at least 4 hours (or up to overnight). Remove from tins just before serving.

S'mores

This past weekend I visited several friends down in dallas for a little red river rivalry. Unfortunately the Sooners didn't quite bring it home this year, but I did get to spend some quality time with old friends Thursday and Friday evening. This trip to Dallas was one of the many that I got to stay at the Wilshusen's residence. They really know how to keep my belly smiling by offering the best treats like JD's Chippery cookies or cupcakes from Society Bakery (these were voted one of Ellen DeGeneres top ten cupcakes!). My friends and I also managed to fix up our very own sweet treats. After Thursday night's indulgence of a S'mores Sundae at The Porch, we got to cook up our own s'mores fireside at my girl friends country BBQ shower. I was uber eager to blog about these s'mores because not only do I now know that I'm a PRO mallow roaster, but these s'mores were perfectly classic.

As far as the recipe, you probably could guess that these call for now more than graham crackers, marshmallows, and Hershey's chocolate.

Fix your self a nice fire (preferably outdoors)

Break a graham cracker sheet in half and place a good piece of chocolate on one end (I like to put chocolate on both ends. hehe)

Slide two marshmallows on the end of a long toothpick or wire.

Roast the mallows according to your liking. (I prefer them to be nicely golden brown, crisp on the edges but not tooooo overly done)

Once roasted, place mallows on the side of the graham cracker with chocolate, then sandwich the other cracker and pull away your stick/wire.

there you have it. a s'more. so simple. now eat. mmm.

Martha's Cupcake Club: Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes

Hooray for PUMPKIN! The cupcake choice for the month of October comes from Kim of What the Whisk. She made the wise and festive decision that we bake up Pumpkin Patch Cupcakes. I've eaten so much pumpkin lately that I'm beginning to think that I might turn in to one. As for these pumpkin cupcakes, they were good. Really good. My little brother would say they were fantastic after he ate maybe 6? They made the entire house smell like thanksgiving. I was thinking to my self..."ya got some turkey to go with that cupcake?" haha.

With these I made mini cupcakes, just to switch it up a bit. I halved the recipe and came out with about 48 :/ (that's still a lot). I also decided to change up the frosting on these little cakes. Martha suggests you use cream cheese frosting. Well, I mean duh. Her cream cheese frosting is out of this world, and there is no doubt that it would make these cupcakes outstanding. But, (there is a but) I've indulged in many spice-like cakes recently and all have involved cream cheese icing. I needed something else. After browsing through the book, I found a very simple and SUPER fast icing: sweetened condensed milk glaze. Check page. It's a pretty basic, but what I like is that it gives the show to the pumpkin. All this glaze does is add a little extra creamy sweetness in your mouth. It's not overpowering and could certainly outfit many different flavors.

Finally, as you can see, I didn't get to making the marzipan pumpkins :(. I just didn't have enough time, so I dressed them with little candy corns, candy pumpkins, and pieces of pumpkin bark (so so so good, and still pretty cute?). The thing I like most about these pumpkin cupcakes is that they were not too rich and didn't leave you feeling guilty. Maybe that's because they were mini? Anyway, I'm excited to hear what others thought about these fall treats! Check out the Martha's Cupcake Club blog to see other bakers and what they came up with!

snickerdeliciousness

Fall is hitting Oklahoma and you can't understand how happy this makes me. It is so much more than a wonderful feeling. In order to harp on this feel good time, I decided to disregard all the crazy things going on this month and instead dig in to to the many recipes I'm wanting to bake. The other night, I thought I'd start out with a good timeless favorite: SNICKERDOODLES! Of course these aren't just any snickerdoodles, they are Martha Stewart's. Therefore, these cookies absolutely perfect in every single way :)

No, but really. They are. They smell sensational. And as far as taste, put yourself back to when you were five. Back to when you ran in to the kitchen from playing outside, grabbed two cookies and a glass of milk (just enough to spoil dinner right?). Then, just as you bite down you heard that slight, itty-bitty, eency weency crisp from the edge. Now it doesn't stop there my friends. After hearing that slight crisp is when the cookie tells you how perfect it is. How? Well, just after the edges you will find their flawless texture of a slightly dense, cake-like, moist goodness on the inside. You can NOT eat this slowly. You also are not allowed to have just one. Your body will not have it. It will have two. Atleast.

Some of Martha's recipe can be a little more complex than most, but not these cookies. They are so easy to make, and you probably won't even need to make a trip to the store because you should have the ingredients in your cupboard. Also note that though the recipe states they make 1 1/2 dozen, I came out with about 30? These rock. Trust me, my family once called me the cookie monster ;)

Snickerdoodles:

recipe from Martha Stewart's Cookies

2 3/4 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temp
1 1/2 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2 Tablespoons sugar for topping

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon for topping

Use these directions from the Martha Stewart Website, except the book is slightly different so bake at 350.

Flavor of the Month: Kevin's not-so microwavable Macaroni and Cheese

It's that time again! Bakeat350's fabulous Flavor of the Month and this month's flavor was a tribute to John Hughes. For those who don't know, the very famous writer/producer/director/etc. recently passed away. Hughes made movies like Sixteen Candles, Christmas Vacation, and The Breakfast Club to name a few. These movies are absolute classics, making this tribute a lot of fun.

With so many great movies, the decision making process was not so easy. At first I wanted to do something with Sixteen Candles. My younger brother turned 16 this month so the setup was pretty perfect. Unfortunately he already had a cake lined out, so that idea was out.

Next up, my boyfriend Oliver. He lovessss movies. And special thanks to him for bringing the 'ah hah' moment on this one. Think of the first Home Alone (written by Hughes) toward the end of the movie, when Kevin is still alone at home and has the house ready and booby trapped for the wet bandits to come. Before all the madness with the bandits Kevin seats himself for dinner and says the memorable line, "Bless this highly nutritious microwavable macaroni and cheese dinner and the people who sold it on sale. Amen." Haha... And what better to bake up than some homeade Macaroni and Cheese? I love Macaroni and Cheese and thank you again Oliver, your idea was PERFECT. This was my first attempt at baked mac & cheese and will NOT be my last. It was so so so so yummy, and stupidly easy. I really can not wait to make it again, and I also can't wait to see what everyone else at Flavor of the Month came up with!

Classic Baked Macaroni and Cheese

recipe from Southern Living October 2009

Makes 6-8 Servings

Ingredients:

2 cups milk

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 (10-oz.) block extra sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded*

1/4 teaspoon ground red pepper (optional)

1/2 (16-oz.) package elbow macaroni, cooked

1. WHISK FLOUR INTO BUTTER

Preheat oven to 400°. Microwave milk at HIGH for 1 1/2 minutes. Melt butter in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium-low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute.

2. WHISK IN WARM MILK

Gradually whisk in warm milk, and cook, whisking constantly, 5 minutes or until thickened.

3. WHISK IN CHEESE

Whisk in salt, black pepper, 1 cup shredded cheese, and, if desired, red pepper until smooth; stir in pasta. Spoon pasta mixture into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish; top with remaining cheese. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until golden and bubbly.

*Whisk warm milk into the flour mixture to ensure a lump-free sauce.

*We also recommend shredding your own cheese for a creamier texture

Oliver's Birthday Cookie Cake

Happy birthday to you, happy birthday too you, happy birthday to....It's Ollie's Birthday! And I made him his favorite, cookie cake. He may have turned 23, but he's still young at heart. Without question his favorites have always been cookie cake or white on white. Plain. And. Simple. But hell, we all love a little cookie cake right?

This cookie cake was simply a blondie recipe spread on a pizza pan. This has become a "go-to" recipe for me, because not only is it so so good but it can be whipped up in a flash. It really is the best and as smitten kitchen puts it, they're infinitely adaptable. Whatever you want inside, you get. For Oliver's cookie cake I used chocolate chunks, butterscotch morsels, and just a little bit of toffee bits. This recipe keeps your blondie ooey gooey, and your cookie cake moist! The only thing it needs is a big scoop of vanilla ice cream :D

Hope Ollie enjoyed it and has the best birthday ever! Can't wait for our next celebration... MY BIRTHDAY! I'm thinking a sugar cookie cake with some killer icing?

Tuesdays with Dorie: more like Thursdays with Dorie :(

Okay so obviously I'm late on this one. My younger brother had his 16th birthday last Friday, so my weekend was filled with birthday and football festivities. His cake was done by the fabulous Amy Cakes of Norman, OK. She is incredible. Not only are her designs beautiful, but her cakes are devine. They are moist and full of flavor! In need of a cake, call her. Or me of course ;)

But anyhow, back to TWD. This weeks recipe was chosen by Jacque of Daisy Lane Cakes. I must admit when I first read Cottage Cheese Pufflets, I thought I'm not so sure that I care for this one? Turns out these pufflets were wonderful and I'm so happy that my tardiness did not get the best of me. The prep work wasn't the most friendly. I was a bit frustrated while working with the dough. It was sticky and crazy, even after chilling overnight! But on a good note, I'm left wanting to make these over and over again. The texture of the dough is somewhat biscuit-like. It's light, flaky, and not too sweet.

The sweet comes from what is inside, and the possibilities are endless for filling these pufflets. On this batch I chose to use rasberry preserves, peanut butter & jelly, peanut butter & banana, and everyone's favorite: PeCaN PuMpKiN bUtTeR. My mom and I thought these could most definitely be filled with something more hearty such as mushrooms, sausage and egg, etc.

Now, Dorie claims these are best eaten fresh the day they are made, so I stuck half the dough in the freezer to make another time. I'm glad I did because she is right, they really are best right after they come out! As for my first batch, I think I made them too small? But there was something nice about their size, they were light, easy to eat, and pretty cute :) After looking at other blogs I know my next batch could be a little better, so please check out other TWD pufflets! Visit the Tuesday's with Dorie blog to find bakers and other fun stuff on Baking with Dorie.

Martha's Cupcake Club: Chocolate Chip Zucchini Spice Cupcakes!

September has been a pretty great month so far. One extra special thing that came to me just recently was my long-awaited (not that long really hehe) email from Martha Stewart's Cupcake Baking Club. The email simply stated that I was now a member and to start baking! First off, I'm loving Martha Stewart's Cupcakes cookbook. It covers all the bases for every cupcake you'll ever need to know how to bake. Trust me when I say that when I opened that email, the smile on my face was priceless. I could NOT wait.

This month we're starting off with the Zucchini Spice Cupcakes. I've always heard that zucchini bread is delicious and I'm almost embarrassed to say I have never tried it. So, needless to say, I was very excited to bake these.

I even got crazy and added the half a bag (bout a cup) of semisweet chocolate chips. I couldn't help it. They were sitting in the pantry... whispering... no actually they were yelling... and begging to be used. A little chocolate never hurt anyone ;)

These turned out very yummy. They were a bit more muffin-like than cupcake, but still a tasty treat as we transition in to fall. What really turns these bad boys around is the cream cheese icing. Ohhhh, the cream cheese icing. If perfect Martha knows one thing, it's cream cheese icing. I would do a triple axle double twist flip (I'm not really sure if that even exists) in to the bowl and swim in it. It was just stupid it was so good. I can't wait to check out how everyone's cupcakes turned out. Be sure to visit the Martha Stewart Cupcake Club, everyone's cupcakes from last month were decadent and you'll really want to check out all the other bloggers Zucchini Spice cupcakes!

Tuesdays with Dorie: Espresso Cheesecake Brownies

I'm thrilled to announce that today is my first ever Tuesday's with Dorie post. Dorie Greenspan's Baking From My Home to Yours is a wonderful book and with out a doubt my new favorite. No but really. I feel like I'm constantly carrying this book around , drooling of course, and anxious to make absolutely everything out of it. Last week, I made the applesauce spice bars. They were perfect and such a tease as they smelled and tasted like everything I love about fall season. But this weeks recipe, Espresso Cheesecake Brownies, were another animal.

Thank you to Melissa, from Life in a Peanut Shell, for picking this one. She clearly knew that anything with the words espresso, cheesecake, and brownie would be absolutely delicious. And that they were. I will definitely be making these bad boys again, especially since I forgot to pair the first batch with coffee :(. Also wanted to note that I didn't have a 9x9 inch square pan that the recipe called for, so I used my trusty 9 inch spring form pan. It worked perfectly, and instead of squares I cut them in to small triangles.