Desserts

Dessert Recipes

Pumpkin Caramel Oat Bars

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I was tempted to not even post this recipe since these bars did not photograph very well.  But Ben brought some of the more attractive specimens up to work, and apparently they were devoured within an hour.  Some people at work asked for the recipe, and Ben assured them I would be posting on the blog.  So, despite the not so great photo, here they are.  These are tasty.  Pretty messy, and a little difficult to eat and cut, but oh so tasty.

This recipe is from the McCormick website, and I did use mostly McCormick spices.  Here is the link.  My vanilla was from Belize (thanks, Kate!) and my cinnamon was….not really sure where this container of ground cinnamon came from now that I think about it.  Anyway, all the spices make this a dessert that makes your entire house smell delicious.  I might have said this before, but I love fall baking.  Instead of using caramels that require a lot of tedious unwrapping I used those caramel pieces that come with the wooden sticks for making caramel apples.  Something I just do not get.  Caramel apples.  Who really eats those things?  It seems like too much work.

My bars did not cut out very neatly.  I might have needed to bake them a little longer.  I also think it would help to press the crumb topping into the caramel layer so that the crumbs don’t fall off the bars when they’re cut.  Regardless of looks though, these are quite good.  Enjoy! (more…)

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Pumpkin Cookie Pies

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It is starting to really feel like fall here.  The evenings are cool, the leaves are starting to change and fall off the trees, and it is now permissible to make fall flavored desserts!  So, in honor of this wonderful season I bought 4 cans of pumpkin and am going a little crazy baking pumpkin desserts.

Today I made soft, almost cake-like pumpkin cookies sandwiching a smooth cream cheese frosting.  After making a few of the sandwiches I decided to simply ice the rest of the cookies.  I made the cookies a little big, and so two of the cookies with the filling just made them a bit daunting.

This recipe is from Tasty Kitchen.  Here is the link. If you look at this recipe you will notice that one tedious element is piping the cookies onto individual pieces of parchment paper.  I just used an ice cream scoop and dolloped the cookie batter onto a large piece of parchment.  This works just fine, but does give the cookies more of a mounded appearance.  I fit 6 cookies per sheet and made a total of 35 cookies.

These cookies are quite soft, and the frosting makes them even harder to transport since you can’t stack them.  So, these may be a dessert I make and serve from my our kitchen instead of trying to take them somewhere…like I did today.  Ben liked them because they were not too sweet, and my friend Jackie said they had the texture of a pumpkin bread.  They are quite good after chilling in the fridge for a few hours and eaten cold.

I think fall is my favorite baking season.  Maybe I’ll make a pie here pretty soon.  You don’t have to have a reason to make a pie, right?

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Raspberry White Chocolate Almond Bars

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My friend Jackie made these for my baby shower this past weekend.  She has made them before, so I knew what I was in for.  These bars are pretty incredible.  Everyone loved them, and a lot of people asked for the recipe.  The recipe is from a Nestle cookbook that Jackie owns.  I found it online here.

The ingredient list is short and sweet.  I haven’t personally made them but I think the directions are not too difficult, just a bit tedious.  I think there are some ways around some of the silly instructions, but I need to try this myself first to see.  The only problem Jackie has had is the bars sticking in the pan, even with a generous greasing and sugaring.  When I get around to making these, I’ll let you know if I discover a magical trick for that.

Make these, and make them tonight if possible.  I must warn you that if you are in the house by yourself with a pan of these you could make the mistake of eating the entire pan.  So either exercise some self control or make them and give most of them away.  Or you could do like I did, and just eat way too many of them.  These are delicious.  Thanks, Jackie!

Raspberry White Chocolate Almond Bars

AKA Razz-Ma-Tazz Bars from Nestle

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter or margarine
  • 2 cups white chocolate chips, divided
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
  • 1/2 cup seedless raspberry jam
  • 1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease and sugar 9-inch square baking pan.
  2. Melt butter in medium, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 1 minute; stir. Add 1 cup morsels; let stand. Do not stir.
  3. Beat eggs in large mixer bowl until foamy. Add sugar; beat until light lemon colored, about 5 minutes. Stir in morsel-butter mixture. Add flour, salt and almond extract; mix at low speed until combined. Spread 2/3 of batter into prepared pan.
  4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes or until light golden brown around edges. Remove from oven to wire rack.
  5. Heat jam in small, microwave-safe bowl on HIGH (100%) power for 30 seconds; stir. Spread jam over warm crust. Stir remaining morsels into remaining batter. Drop spoonfuls of batter over jam. Sprinkle with almonds.
  6. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until edges are browned. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars.
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Double Chocolate Marshmallow Chex Bars

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Today I cleaned out my pantry and the cabinet that houses all of the medicine, vitamins, paper goods, cookie cutters, cake decorating gadgets, and some other random junk I own. It felt so good to throw some things away and get everything organized.

The most impressive things I tossed were a box of generic NyQuil from HEB that expired in 2007 and a pretty large container of Gatorade mix that also was “Best By” June of 2007. Why did we still have these things? We moved to Amarillo in 2008. Why did I not throw them both away when we moved?

Anyway, our pantry is not exactly spacious. A few items that I don’t use often had been tossed on top of a bunch of other things on the very top shelf. Out of sight, out of mind.  After cleaning everything out I couldn’t find another place for these items, and I couldn’t bear to put them back where they had been after I’d cleaned everything up. So, I made these cereal bars.

I used the rest of a box of Chex I’d needed to make Chex mix a while back and a bag of mini marshmallows. It was nice to get rid of those items, but I still have a few other items that I’ve got to use up to have a truly tidy pantry. Stay tuned for what’s coming next! I have some very interesting ideas.

Once I had mixed up these bars and pressed them into the pan I had some doubts about how they would taste.  I let them cool in the fridge for about an hour, then I sliced a small corner for myself.  Then I sliced a large hunk of this stuff for myself!  The Chex mix gives a different texture than Rice Krispies would, and the combination of white, milk chocolate and marshmallow is pretty addictive.  You could use any cereal, any combination or any flavor of baking chips and probably add any other tasty bits your heart desires and come up with something quite yummy.  So, run wild and go create goodness with cereal!

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Triple Hot Chocolate Cookies

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This recipe is from the Tasty Kitchen blog, Pioneer Woman’s recipe sharing community.  I sometimes forget to look here for recipes, but thanks to my Google Reader I am reminded to check it out every now and then when there is a new post.  The site is organized well, and is easy and fun to search through.  If you haven’t checked it out, you should.  Here is the link to the recipe for these cookies.

These cookies have three kinds of chocolate, and that is never a bad idea.  To make these cookies chocolate, you mix in hot chocolate mix instead of cocoa which creates a lighter chocolate flavor and color.  I loved the combination of different kinds of chocolate and the subtle chocolate flavor in the cookies themselves.

I had three chunks of Callebaut chocolate left over from various things I’ve made, and so I chopped that up to get my white, milk and dark chocolate pieces instead of using chips.  This process seems to infuse every bite with soft chocolate since you end up with some shards of chocolate and some chunks when you chop a block of chocolate.  The shards melt into the cookie and don’t keep shape like a chip would, so the texture is different.  If I had the $$$ to buy this kind of quality chocolate for every baked good I would use it every time.  Although, a chocolate chip cookie isn’t quite the same without Nestle semi-sweets.  So, I guess there are exceptions.

The only other change I made was to use a smaller scoop.  I used an ice cream scoop roughly equal to golf ball size.  I baked them for 9 minutes, let them cool for about 4 minutes and then transferred them to a cooling rack.  They should look just a little too soft when you take them from the oven.  These are quite treat to enjoy while still warm with a glass of really cold milk.  But not to worry, they will not disappoint you if you eat them the next day.  Enjoy!

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Cream Cheese & Oat Bars

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There isn’t much to say about these creamy, yet crunchy, sweet, yet salty and incredibly yummy bars except that they are terrific.  They are lovely and simple, and I will be marking this one in my recipe collection as one that is an all around pleaser and something I will probably make many times in the future.

I found this recipe on Bake or Break.  The title is what initially drew me to the post, but then I saw the photo and knew I really had to make these bars.

I used pecans instead of cashews, and simply left out the apple butter because the only jar I found at the grocery store cost $8, and I wasn’t about to pour $8 onto a crumb crust and cover it with cream cheese.  I am sure the apple butter would have been delicious, but they are wonderful without it as well.  Ben’s dad really liked them and suggested maybe raspberry jam instead of the apple butter, which I think would add a great tartness to this sweet bar.

The bottom crust is thick.  I would maybe take a little more of the crust mixture out and put it on top next time.  The original recipe calls for removing 1 1/2 cups of the mixture…I would take out 1 3/4 or even 2 cups.  After you bake the crust, you do not have to wait for it to cool completely.  I waited about 10 minutes before pouring on the cream cheese mixture.  If you plan to spread either apple butter or jam, you may want to wait a bit longer so that you don’t break the bottom crust while spreading.

The cream cheese filling is perfect as is; I wouldn’t change a thing.  I did use one low-fat package of cream cheese, and am sure using all low-fat would be fine.  So, I guess I did change one thing.

We ate these while they were still a little warm, and then the next day after chilling in the fridge.  I liked them both warm and cool, although the butter is chilled so much straight from the fridge that I feel it needs a few minutes to warm up before the flavor of the butter can really be appreciated.  Man, I love butter.

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Daring Bakers: Ice Cream Petit Fours

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This challenge sure snuck up on me…like many other Daring Bakers challenges of the past.  Thankfully I remembered enough in advance to get this dessert completed in time!  We had an option this month to complete one or both of these desserts; ice cream petit fours and baked Alaska.  One day I will try baked Alaska, but I chose to make the petit fours only.

The August 2010 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Elissa of 17 and Baking. For the first time, The Daring Bakers partnered with Sugar High Fridays for a co-event and Elissa was the gracious hostess of both. Using the theme of beurre noisette, or browned butter, Elissa chose to challenge Daring Bakers to make a pound cake to be used in either a Baked Alaska or in Ice Cream Petit Fours. The sources for Elissa’s challenge were Gourmet magazine and David Lebovitz’s “The Perfect Scoop”.

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Brown Butter Toffee Blondies

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Martha Stewart offers a “Cookie of the Day” email that I have been getting for over a year now.  I have made a few of these cookies, but rarely do the cookies just scream out and beg for me to make them.  These brown butter blondies, however, were something I just couldn’t resist.

Browned butter is something special.  You can smell the nuttiness as it begins to brown in the pan, and the rich flavor that it gives to baked goods is tremendous.  This brown butter frosting is delicious, and worth a try on the pumpkin cookies, on vanilla cupcakes, and especially nice on pumpkin cake or bread.

These blondies are rich, and so your sweet tooth can be satisfied with a small square.  But, if you’re like me, you justify having a second small square since you only had one small piece to begin with!  Make sure to let these cool completely before cutting and removing from the pan.  They will seem a bit gooey in the center after 40 minutes of baking, but resist the urge to keep baking.  Just let them sit and be patient.  I replaced the walnuts called for in the original recipe with pecans, but everything else in the recipe remained as written.  Here is the link to Martha’s recipe.

Brown Butter Toffee Blondies

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
  • 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pan
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 2 cups packed light-brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • 1 cup toffee bits

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-by-13-inch baking pan.
  2. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the butter until it turns golden brown; remove from heat, and let cool. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
  3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine browned butter and both sugars; stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Attach bowl to mixer; add eggs. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add vanilla, and beat to combine. Add flour mixture, walnuts, and toffee bits. Mix until thoroughly combined, and pour into prepared pan.
  4. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 35 to 40 minutes (do not overbake). Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely before turning out of pan onto a cutting board. Cut blondies into 3-inch squares. Blondies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days.
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Cold Oven Pound Cake

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Another recipe from America’s Best Lost Recipes that I received for my birthday and where I got the recipe for the peach puzzle.

The only unexpected thing about this pound cake is the baking process.  The pan goes into a cold, as in DO NOT PREHEAT, oven.  It then cooks for an hour and a half.  I’m not sure if the time the cake is sitting in the heating oven is what creates such a nice crusty exterior, but that crust is lovely.  Encased within the crust is the soft, sweet, buttery cake that just melts in your mouth.

I absolutely love plain pound cake.  It’s for the same reason I would rather have a plain slice of cheesecake than one with caramel, chocolate or fruit sauce.  Simple is just the only way to go sometimes, and with pound cake you can focus on the textures and delicate sweet vanilla flavors instead of whatever extras are interfering.  I know even while I type this that sometime very soon I will probably have to eat my words and fall in love with some fancy pants pound cake.  But, for today at least, I am a plain pound cake lover.

The only complaint I have with this cake is that it gave me some trouble coming out of the pan.  I can grease and flour a pan with the best of them, but it still stuck…not terribly, but it wasn’t exactly picture perfect.  Despite this minor imperfection in appearance, the cake is delicious and definitely worth trying.

Cold Oven Pound Cake

America’s Best Lost Recipes

Ingredients

  • 3 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup skim milk (or 1%)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 5 eggs, separated
  • 2 sticks butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup vegetable shortening
  • 3 cups sugar

Directions

  1. Grease and flour a 12-cup tube pan.
  2. Whisk flour and salt in a medium bowl.  In a separate bowl, whisk milk, vanilla and egg yolks.  In a separate bowl beat egg whites to soft peaks.
  3. In a separate bowl beat butter, shortening and sugar on medium high until fluffy.
  4. Reduce speed to low and flour mixture and milk mixture alternately, in 4 batches, beating after each addition until just combined.
  5. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in the egg whites.  Scrape batter into prepared pan and place in a COLD oven.
  6. Heat the oven to 300 F and bake for 45 minutes.  Increase the temperature to 325 and bake for an additional 45 minutes.
  7. Cool the cake in the pan for 20 minutes, run a knife around the edge, then turn the cake out onto a wire rack to cool completely.
  8. Serve plain or with fresh berries and whipped cream.
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Buttery Jam Cookies

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A good friend of mine makes jam every year and brings me a few jars when we see each other.  It is so much better than store bought!  The last time she was in Amarillo, she brought me 2 jars of blueberry jam.  I used one of those jars in these cookies.

These cookies are delicate, cake-like in texture, and are not overly sweet.  This recipe is from TWD, Tuesdays with Dorie.  Members cook their way through Baking from My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan. I am not a member of this baking group, but after trying this recipe I may decide to join when they start accepting new members!

I only made slight changes to this recipe.  I drizzled some glaze on the cooled cookies and added sliced almonds to half of the batter.  I would consider pecans next time.  When I mixed in the jam it just didn’t look like quite enough, so I added a little more.  I ended up mixing blueberry jam with a little strawberry rhubarb and the combination was nice.  You really can use any kind or combination of jam, so this is a truly versatile recipe that you can adapt to your personal taste.

These would be perfect with an afternoon cup of coffee or tea, and I even think you could pull off eating them for breakfast.  Enjoy!

Buttery Jam Cookies

Adapted from Dorie Greenspan

Ingredients

Cookies:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. ground ginger
  • 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 8 tbsp. (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
  • 2/3 cup sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 tbsp. whole milk
  • 1 tsp. vanilla extract
  • 1/3 cup jam (any flavor)
  • ¼ cup sliced almonds (optional)

Glaze:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 1 ½ tablespoons milk
  • 1 teaspoon almond extract

Directions

  1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and place two racks in the oven, one in the upper third of the oven and one in the lower third of the oven. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Sift together the flour, baking powder, ginger, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of an electric mixer, with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar (on high speed) for 2 to 3 minutes until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat on high speed for an additional minute. Add the milk and the vanilla extract and beat on high speed for 30 seconds. Add the jam and beat on low speed for 1 minute. Add the dry ingredients, with the mixer on low speed, just until they’re mixed in. Stir in almonds here if using.  The dough will be extremely thick and stiff.
  4. With a an ice cream scoop or a teaspoon, drop spoonfuls of the dough onto baking sheets, forming cookies that are about 1 inch to 1-1/2 inches in size.
  5. Bake the cookies for 10 minutes, rotating the trays from top rack to bottom rack halfway through.
  6. Once baked, let the cookies sit on the pan for a minute or two and then remove to a wire rack and let cool completely.  Drizzle with glaze if desired.
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