chocolate chip rice krispie treats

OK, yes we all know how to make these – but my kids (or their friends) sometimes mention that mine taste better than those they buy at the bake-sale.  I often say it’s because I bake with looove and give them a big smile.  Truthfully though, the love comes from a little kosher salt and vanilla – and the added chocolate chunks (although if you’re a purist even just the vanilla and salt will heighten your pleasure).  My whole family enjoyed these yummy treats, even Rob who surprises me here.  I haven’t made them in a while – Greg just said…”mom, I’m so glad you made these again.  They are so good.”  I usually cut them up into reasonable portions (otherwise we are all slicing away day and night), wrap them in plastic wrap, and pop in an airtight container.  Good for a while although they do disappear fairly fast!

chocolate chip rice krispie treats(adapted from the Kellogg’s Rice Krispie cereal box recipe):
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 package mini marshmallows (10.5 oz)
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (please high quality here)
1/3 – 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt (or just about)
6 cups rice  krispie cereal
(about) 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chunks (I happen to prefer Nestle’s chunks here.  Of course you can use chocolate chips instead.)

Spray or butter a 9×9 inch pan.  (I usually double this recipe and use my 9×13 inch pan.)

In a large saucepan, melt butter over low heat.   Once melted, add the marshmallows and stir and until they too have melted.  Watch them – they burn easily.

Add the vanilla and salt, mix to incorporate.  Add the rice krispies and mix.  Add the chocolate chunks and mix in.  (If marshmallow mixture is very warm, some may melt, but that is OK too!)  Pour onto prepared pan. Flatten and push down with the back of a large spoon (easiest if you spray spoon with non stick spray).

Let set for about 45 minutes to an hour.  (Or longer).  Cut into squares and enjoy!

As mentioned – I cut, wrap and place in an airtight container.  But eating right out of the pan is good too.

Another note – sometimes I add some mini chips to the melted marshmallows.  Mix and melt them too – this makes the marshmallow mixture brown and changes the whole look of the bars.  Fiddle a bit.  See what you like to do.  Add peanut butter chips or milk chocolate chips, or maybe even a natural peanut butter laced throughout…next time…

cream cheese pound cake

This pound cake is heaven.  It is rich, thick and flavorful.  The cake is soft and wet in the center, yet forms a really awesome crust on the bottom and top.  Funny the crust is my favorite part – yet Andy complains that it is too hard.  We make a perfect dessert eating pair.  Greg, Sylvie and my mom also love this cake.  Greg’s friend Collin had a bite and said “oh my God, that is amazing!”  Last year, after my friend Jill’s first bite she said, “hmmm…cream cheese.  I love this cake.”  This is heavier and denser than the yogurt cake (obviously) – but nice to have a few go-to pound cakes in your repertoire.  The recipe comes from my sis-in-law Sandy who bakes these cakes during the holidays and wraps them beautifully with cellophane and ribbon.  Great gifts for parties, neighbors, friends, tutors and teachers.  She shared the recipe which is slightly adapted from Martha Stewart’s “Everyday Food” magazine.  The cream cheese pound cake is a breeze to make and even tastes better the day after you bake it.  Oh, and sinful – yet delicious toasted for breakfast with some fresh fruit.  Enjoy!

cream cheese pound cake:
1 1/2 cups(3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp
8 oz (one bar) of cream cheese, room temp
2 3/4 cups sugar
6 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Butter and flour a 4 quart bundt pan, or two 9×5 loaf pans (line with parchment)…or a small bundt and loaf pan.  Have some fun.  Next time I’ll try some in muffin shape.  Place oven rack on lower third of the oven.

With the paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese for a few minutes.  Add the sugar and beat on medium high speed until the light and fluffy – about 5-7 minutes.

Add the eggs, one at a time, on medium to medium high speed, beating well after each addition.  Mix in the vanilla.

Whisk together the flour and salt.  With the mixer on lowest speed, add the flour to the creamed mixture in two additions – and mix until just incorporated.  You can finish by hand to ensure that you don’t over mix.

Spread the batter into the prepared pans and smooth.  Bake until golden and a toothpick comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.

The bundt pan took about 72 minutes to bake.  But time will vary from 68-75 minutes.  For the loaf pan, check after about 50 minutes – but will probably take from 55-65 minutes.   Try not to over bake and dry out the cake.  Keep a watchful eye as one of the cakes best features is the moistness.

If the cake is browning too much, you can tent the top with foil or use cake strips if you have them.

Let cake cool for 10-12 minutes, then invert and enjoy!

freshly whipped cream

My friend Ali texted me this AM.  She said she’ll make the gingerbread pudding cake for Thanksgiving, especially since the ready made box somehow failed her.  (She said she followed directions but may have substituted milk for oil or butter for oil – not sure.)  She then asked…do I have to whip fresh cream?  I said YES!  I told her sooo easy and for some reason people seem really scared of this.  She said Betty Crocker probably thought her box was easy too.  Funny.  But this really is.  I can’t tell you how many people are impressed by home made whipped cream, it is nutty to me, only because it is not tricky at all.  And it is so good.  You put the cold cream in a bowl, add a little sugar and whip.  Voila.  There you go.  OK, some dirty dishes…but come on!

I like my cream on the not too sweet side – especially if I’m serving it with something sweet.  But fiddle as you like and to your taste.

freshly whipped cream (double this if making for a crowd, or want left over for fresh fruit – usually do):
1 cup cold heavy cream
2 teaspoons – 1 tablespoon sugar (more or less depending on your taste and the sweet you are pairing it with – I usually go with about 2 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)

In bowl of stand mixer (with whisk attachment) or with hand held beaters – or with a hand held whisk (this is how we did it at the bakery and boy did my arms look good after whipping 3 quarts of cream, three times in a row for a triple chocolate moose cake – but those days are long gone).  Moving on…

Place the cold cream and sugar into the bowl (make sure the bowl is not warm from the dishwasher or sitting out in the hot sun :)) – and whisk on medium high speed until it starts to thicken – add the vanilla if desired and whip it in.

I actually like to whip the rest end by hand, so I have more control and so as not to over whip the cream (which is awful – looks curdled).  But continue in the machine if you like – just watch it.  The cream should have flow – whip just to a soft peak.  Enjoy immensely-

ginger cookies

My friends Joy and Lauri absolutely rave about these cookies.  I must say they are my favorite ginger cookies as well.  No big story here…everyone just loves them.  Greg, Andy, Sylvie, and all of their friends.  Most of my friends.  I usually double the recipe and freeze some dough for later because we go through them so fast.  (Look at the oatmeal cookie post for more instruction on wrapping and freezing).  The cookies are soft inside but have a nice crisp to the edges.  They are addictive and great warm out of the oven, or with tea at the end of the day, and cold too.  Try an ice cream sandwich made with vanilla ice cream.  Fresh and good.  These make great gifts bagged up and with a ribbon.  This time I added chocolate chips to some of the batter – and guess what, they were very tasty too!  Next time I might dip them in tempered chocolate…yum.  But most, especially purists, probably prefer them as they are.  Enjoy-

ginger cookies (adapted from Stars Desserts by Emily Luchetti):
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4  teaspoon ground clove
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper (if you have)
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar, divided in to two 1/2 cup portions
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
8 oz. – 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1/3 cup molasses

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Whisk together the ginger, allspice, cinnamon, clove, baking soda, salt, white pepper and flour.  Set aside.

Beat 1/2 cup of the sugar, the brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy for about 3-5 minutes.  Beat in the egg and then the molasses – mix well – scrape and mix again.

On the lowest speed, add the dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated.  Finish folding the dough by hand.

Refrigerate the dough for about 30 minutes.  Form the dough into about 1 inch balls and roll each ball in the remaining 1/2 cup sugar.  Place on baking sheet about 2 inches apart (these will spread a bit).  And then flatten slightly with your fingers.

Bake for about 12-16 minutes – and as usual check often and before.  The cookies should look set on the outside and golden – yet stay soft inside.  Let cool.  Enjoy!

orange/pumpkin cornmeal cake

I noticed this recipe in Fine Cooking’s Sweet Cakes magazine because of the beautiful photograph of the cake – it looked delicious and pumpkiny – perfect for fall.  I was also curious about the mix of orange, pumpkin and cornmeal. So off I baked.  This cake is rich in color and texture and so very very moist.  I will say that it is not as pumpkiny as I hoped.  But agreed by all – especially the kids – that it was yummy.  I asked Greg’s friend Alex if he tasted the pumpkin and he replied “well, what does pumpkin taste like?”  Greg then followed with…”it doesn’t matter – it is good!”  Friends (kids) Lauren and Zach had equally positive things to say – but again, not about the pumpkin more like “oh, is it lemon?” and “oh, I like carrot cake!”  and more…”doesn’t matter, it’s good.”   Another taster commented how long the cake stayed moist and that it was perfect in the afternoon with her tea.  Regardless of the pumpkin business…it is good.  (Just wanted full disclosure.)  This recipe has a few different steps, but each fairly easy.  Enjoy this fall treat with surprising notes of citrus.  Serve with vanilla yogurt to add another dimension to this sweet.

orange/pumpkin cornmeal cake:
cake–
2 sticks or one cup of soft butter
1 cup sugar (which reader Anne pointed out that I forgot to include my in initial post as she was getting started.  thank you!)
1 tablespoon grated chopped orange zest
1 large egg
2 large eggs, separated
1 cup pumpkin puree (not pie filling)
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup fine-ground yellow cornmeal
syrup–
1/2 cup fresh orange juice from about 2 oranges
1/2 cup sugar

Butter a 9 inch bundt pan (click to show better butter detail – scroll down in baking tips) and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Separate your eggs and keep both whites and yolks.  In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and cornmeal.

With your paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy about 3-4 minutes.  Add the egg yolks (one at a time) and then the egg and beat well after each addition.  Scrape down the bowl, and beat again.  Beat in the pumpkin puree and vanilla.

In three additions, slowly add the reserved dry mix to the mixer – stirring on lowest speed (or gently by hand) until just incorporated.

Beat the 2 egg whites until soft peaks form.  I find this easier to do by hand with a whisk but you can certainly do with a hand mixer.  Or, you can transfer your pumpkin batter into another bowl, clean the mixing bowl well, and then beat your eggs with the whisk attachment.  (If you bake a lot, you may want to invest in a second bowl for your stand mixer.)

Then gently fold the egg whites into the pumpkin batter – until you can’t see any more streaks of whites, but be careful not to over due it here.

Pour the batter into the prepped pan and bake for about 40-45 minutes (mine took 43 minutes).  Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then invert onto wire rack to cool.

While the cake is cooking, make the orange syrup.  Juice the oranges and place the fresh juice in a saucepan with the sugar.  Mix until sugar dissolves and there isn’t any white sugar on the bottom of the saucepan (it will burn if so).  Boil the mixture for about 2 minutes and then remove from heat.

When cake is warm, brush with the orange syrup.  You can repeat when cool if desired.  For service, dot the  syrup on the side of the cake (if plated) or serve on the side and accompany with vanilla yogurt.  I’m hungry now…

banana bread (quick and easy)

This recipe was given to me by my sis-in-law Sandy and it is a keeper!  I make it for bake sales, morning coffees, afternoon snacks and dessert.  I make it with or with out chocolate chips or nuts and in various sizes and shapes.  My kids seem to love them in a muffin shape and that helps with quantity control – otherwise they just might eat the loaf.  Zach and Lauren were over and that trick didn’t work, as Zach who’s 13 tried to convince me that I should cut into the loaf and that he should get thirds.  I gave in!

(aunt sandy’s) banana bread:

(This makes 2 (9×5) loaves or 1 loaf, 12 muffins, and one mini-loaf, but switch it up and see what shapes you want to make.  I imagine the recipe yields about 30 muffins if you forgo the loaves.  The banana bread freezes very well too – just wrap well and freeze.  Home-made banana bread on the fly.)

4 cups flour (look @baking tips for flour measurement)
2  teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups oil
2 7/8 cup sugar
4 eggs well beaten
6 very ripe bananas, mashed
chocolate chips to taste  (optional but I usually add a lot!)
chopped walnuts to tast (optional)

Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.  Butter or spray your loaf pans and line bottom with parchment.  (As you are cutting, cut some extras for the next time you bake.)  If using muffin pans, line with cupcake liners.

Whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt and set aside.

Combine oil, sugar and eggs and gently add to the flour mixture until almost incorporated.  Add the mashed bananas (and chocolate chips and/or nuts if using) and mix until combined.  Try not to over mix.

Pour into your prepared pans and bake the 9×5 loaf for about 1 hour, but as usual please check before that and often.  The bread is done when it pulls away from sides and has a nice spring to it.

The muffins took about 30 minutes – and the mini-loaf about 40 but again, check early and often.  The mini loaf is a nice little gift for a friend, teacher or for someone that you appreciate.  A little cake brings a lot of smiles.

whole-wheat chocolate chip pancakes

I think because my mom often sent me to school with a kiss and a cold pop-tart (sorry mom), I am now one of those moms who really insists that we all eat something healthy in the mornings and that we all sit together to eat it!  It can be a challenge to make it happen since all three kids have school at different times, but we usually can manage 5-7 minutes together.  The harder problem is Andy — who unlike his brother Greg and sister Sylvie, really dislikes cereal.  Not only that, he refuses most breakfast items unless they happen to have chocolate or chocolate chips in them.  That being said,  I’m always on the look out for healthy pancakes.  Of course I mess that up a bit with some added chocolate chips but I hope that the benefits of merely eating, and eating together will somehow win the fight over the chocolate in the AM.  So I decided to try Ellie Krieger’s Whole Wheat pancakes for a change.  They were a hit!  Especially with the chocolate.  Oh, and Andy just read this and said, “I’m eating whole wheat pancakes?!” – guess they are good.  Ellie serves these with an delicious looking strawberry sauce, but Andy eats them plain (well with chips)  and no need for syrup.

whole-wheat chocolate chip pancakes (adapted from The Food You Crave by Ellie Krieger)

3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
mini-chips (to taste and optional)
2 large eggs (room temp if possible)
1 cup buttermilk (low fat)
3/4 cup low or non fat milk
1 tablespoon honey
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
cooking spray
chocolate chips

In a large bowl, whisk the 2 flours, baking soda and powder, salt, cinnamon and chocolate (if using).  In a medium bowl, beat the eggs, buttermilk, milk, honey and vanilla.  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix gently until just mixed.  Do not over work or over mix this batter.  It should be lumpy.

Spray the non-stick pans with cooking spray and then heat over medium (at the start) to low heat.  Pour the batter from 1/4 or 1/8 cup measures and then add a few full sized chocolate chips to the pancakes.  Turn pancakes when they start to bubble and they are brown on the bottom.  Then cook about another 1 1/2 minutes depending on the heat.  I like to cook them on low heat – especially at the end of the batch because the pan gets super hot and they can burn easily.

I like to double the recipe and make many extra.  Once cool, I wrap the pancakes in groups of 3-4 pancakes and place in a plastic bag or airtight container and freeze.  (I just read about Freeze-tite – a product that is best for the freezer from the same maker as my beloved Stretch-tite!)  Every night I pull out a pancake pack to defrost and in the morning I microwave or heat in the toaster oven.  Every day I have home-made pancakes for my chocolate-loving cereal-hating son Andy.  And yes, he better love me forever.

teddie’s apple cake

I brought this apple cake to my friends  house the other night for dessert.  Well, I brought the apple cake and my fudgy brownies because I didn’t know if they were chocolate or fruit fans. Turns out they are both.  Lucky me…lucky them!  Laura said delicious!  And added – this looks like a cake but tastes like a pie!  And she is right.  This cake forms a delicious crumb on the top that I could just shave off and gobble up.  But I try to eat it piece by piece and not just the crunchy top.  My mother sent me this recipe via her friend Sally who said that yummy is an understatement.   Sally has the original recipe that was printed  in the NYT Magazine from 9/30/73!  (36 years ago today!)  My chocolate-loving son Andy thoroughly enjoyed this cake after school (who wouldn’t?)  Dress the cake up with vanilla ice cream and caramel sauce for a Saturday night dessert.

teddie’s apple cake (adapted from the NYT Magazine 9/30/73
1 1/2 cups oil (veggie or canola)
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3 cups four (about 18 oz.)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves (have fun here and add spice to your taste…I did)
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3 cups peeled, cored and thickly sliced apples (a firm apple is good here)
1 cup chopped walnuts ( I like to toast these first – 5-8 min in 350 oven – but optional)
3/4 cup raisins

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees and butter and flour a nine inch angel food pan.

Whisk together the flour, salt, spices and baking soda and set  aside.

In electric mixer (or hand held) beat together the oil and sugar – then slowly add eggs one at a time and the vanilla and beat until the mixture is creamy.  Gently stir the flour mixture into the batter and blend half way – then add remaining ingredients and mix until just incorporated.

Pour into prepped pan and bake for about an hour and 10-20 minutes.  As usual – try not to over bake.  Check the cake after 50 minutes to gage how it is doing and then check every 10 to 7 minutes – and toward the end every 5-3 minutes thereafter to pull it when just cooked.

(my favorite) fudgy brownies

I’ve been making these brownies for as long as I can remember.  And they are truly fabulous.  Seriously yummy, fudgy and wet.  The recipe has been written up many times – always titled Katharine Hepburn’s Brownies.  Hard to believe, but I find the original recipe too sweet (I think because I add so many chocolate chips to the batter).  When I bake these, I generally  multiply the recipe by four.  I fill a (parchment lined) half sheet pan with the batter and once cool, I wrap and freeze the whole sheet.  I cut and serve as needed throughout the month.  The recipe below is for one 8 inch square pan – but I’ve cooked them in 9 inch rounds as well.  Just watch the baking time.  You can also double the recipe for a thicker brownie as these come out fairly thin.  And of course again, adjust the baking time.

favorite fudge brownies (adapted from Katherine Hepburn’s Brownie Recipe)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
2 oz. unsweetened chocolate
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
chocolate chips to taste (I go heavy)
chopped walnuts to taste (optional)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Line the pan with foil so that it comes up the sides of the pan.  If you need two sheets, go for it.

Melt butter and chocolate in a medium-sized metal bowl over a pot with (about) an inch of simmering water.  Remove bowl from heat when melted and add the sugar.  Mix eggs with vanilla and add to the butter mixture.  Mix well.  Gently stir in the flour, salt and chocolate chips (and nuts if using) and mix until just incorporated.  Do not over mix.  Spread into pan and bake.  I don’t have a set time here – the key is to bake these until they are just cooked.  Set the time for 30 minutes, but then check every 5-7 minutes thereafter.  They should take about 35-40 minutes, but it really can change each time.  People often tell me that my desserts are good and I do think that half the battle is to not over bake.

Once cooked and cool – pull the foil (with brownies inside) out of the pan with two hands.  Then you can easily cut and serve.  Of course, you can just stick a spoon in there and start to eat when hot and warm out of the oven.  (OK, sometimes I do this.)These are fudgy and rich – and although I do like them with ice cream, they are really  great on their own.

oatmeal raisin cookies

I cannot believe that my first post is for oatmeal raisin cookies! I have to blame it on our friend Jason – who is coming to dinner on Saturday night. Unlike Rob and I, Melissa (his wife), and all of our (6) collective kids, Jason is just not happy with a chocolate cookie, cake or dessert. Crazy, but true. Since I’m pressed for time and already have chocolate chip cookie dough in the freezer I figure an oatmeal raisin cookie will do the trick.  This recipe was given to me by my friend Jill who said it is The Best oatmeal cookie she’s ever eaten.  And Jill knows her cookies. The recipe calls for plenty of butter so I knew it would be good. But as I was finishing with the batter, I just couldn’t help myself…I had to add some chocolate chips to the dough.  I reserved some plain Jason dough for Saturday night, but experimented with the rest – dividing it into three bowls and adding semi-sweet, milk chocolate, and white chocolate chips to each. The result was great.  Saturday night came and went.  Jason actually loved the white chip cookies.  And my chocolate-loving son Andy said that the plain oatmeal raisin were one of his favorites!  Success.  Thank you Jill.

oatmeal raisin cookies

2 cups butter, softened
2 cups white sugar
1 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large eggs
3 cups all purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3 cups rolled oats (not quick)
2 cups raisins
1 1/2 cups pecan halves
And chocolate chips – milk, dark or white to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees
Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
In large bowl, cream butter, sugars and vanilla together until light and fluffy and sugar is completely dissolved. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well with each addition. Combine flour, baking soda and cinnamon and salt; mix well and gradually stir into creamed butter mixture. Fold in rolled oats, raisins and pecans. I find it is easiest to do this part by (clean) hands. Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto parchment. Bake for 12-15 minutes in pre heated oven. Cool and enjoy.

This recipe makes a lot of cookies – so I decided to roll and freeze some dough for the next time I need cookies. I do this often and it is easy. Pull out your plastic wrap or parchment – and form a log of dough – wrap it up, label and bag – and pop in the freezer.  I just read about Freeze-tite – a product that is best for the freezer from the same maker as my beloved Stretch-tite!

oatmeal

The next time you need cookies, the dough will be on hand and ready to slice and bake. Just adjust the baking time if you take directly from the freezer – the cookies will take longer to bake.

If you think ahead, pop in the fridge before you bake, or pull out on the counter to soften first.