Category Archives: Dessertalicious

Very Vanilla Valentine Cupcakes

Vanilla Cupcakes IIIMost people quickly answer the question, “chocolate or vanilla”? It’s like getting asked “puppies or kittens”, “skier or snowboarder”, Netflix or Prime”.  There is no hesitation…. no waiver…. it’s just an immediate response.  When I get asked “chocolate or vanilla”, the person asking doesn’t have time to finish the question before I respond, “vanilla”.  When I saw this cupcakes recipe, I knew I would love them based on the description. They are super easy to make and a fun valentine treat, or you can adopt for any holiday. If you want to go over the top vanilla, use Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla Extract from King Arthur flour.

Have fun and Happy Valentine’s Day to all!

Ingredients

Cupcakes:
1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
2 tsp vanilla extract 

Frosting:
6 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
1/3 cup vegetable shortening
1/8 tsp salt
4-5 cups confectioners’ sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 to 1/3 cup milk

Method

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease a standard muffin pan or line with greased cupcake papers.

To make the cupcakes, combine the dry ingredients, then mix in the butter with an electric mixer until crumbly (like sand).

Whisk together the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients in 2 additions.

Scoop about 1/3 cup batter into each muffin cup.

Bake the cupcakes for 16 – 18 minutes, until they are lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the cupcakes comes out clean.

Remove the cupcakes from the oven; after 5 minutes turn them out of the pan and onto a cooking rack.

To make the frosting, beat together the butter, shortening, and salt. Add the sugar, vanilla, and 1/4 cup of milk, and beat until fluffy. Add more milk if the frosting is too stiff to spread.   Use a cupcake corer (who has one of these?) or a small spon to scoop out some of the center of each cupcake. Fill and ice with the frosting.

Hedonist or Healthy….. You Decide

Cookies Hedonist or Healthy Wooden BoardEvery Christmas season I get this desire to make and eat a lot of cookies. If you are like me, you have a hedonist side thinking butter, sugar, rich, and gooey. And then you have a healthy side thinking oats, dried fruit, nuts, and light. My inability to make a decision on which to make had me make a batch of each. For the hedonist side, I made these salted toffee chocolate squares (your mouth is watering right now, I know it is). These are in the same family as Edie’s infamous crackle bars with slightly different ingredients. For the healthy side, I made these flourless peanut butter granola balls. Both were delicious, but I’m sure you can guess which ones were devoured first. Yes, the salted toffee chocolate squares — but no surprise there.  

For more cookies, here are some ideas…

Crackle Bars
White Peppermint Meringues
Cowboy Cookies 
Salty Malty Krispy Treats
Coconut Macaroons
Reese’s Redemption Cups
Peanut Butter Krispy Fudge Bars

Salted Toffee-Chocolate Squares

Ingredients

14-16 store bought graham crackers
1 bag (8 oz) toffee bits
1 1/2 cups raw almonds, toasted, then coarsely chopped
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 tsp coarse salt

Method
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line large rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Place graham crackers in a single layer on sheet, edges touching (cover entire bottom of sheet with graham crackers). Sprinkle toffee bits and toasted almonds evenly over graham crackers.

Bring sugar and butter to a boil in a small saucepan. Reduce heat, and cook at a rapid simmer, swirling pan occasionally, until mixture is syrupy, approximately 2 minutes. Immediately pour over graham crackers. Bake until sugar is bubbling, approximately 12 minutes. Immediately sprinkle chocolate bits and salt evenly over graham crackers. Let cool, then cut or break into pieces.

Flourless Peanut Butter Granola Balls

Ingredients

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup natural peanut butter
2 Tbsp unsalted butter (I used Nature’s Path)
1 cup crisped rice cereal (I used Kashi brand)
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick cooking)
1/4 cup dried fruit such as raisins, cranberries, or cherries

Method

Heat honey, peanut butter, and butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until warmed through and smooth, approximately 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in cereal, oats, and dried fruit. Mix to combine well.

Drop mixture by the tablespoon into mini paper cupcake liners. Place on rimmed baking sheet and chill until set, approximately 15 minutes.

Cranberry Apple Galette

Cranberries straight from Cape Cod

Cranberries straight from Cape Cod

I’ve been on vacation for a few weeks so I wanted to say thank you to my blog partner for all the great posts she put up while I was away. I got back just in time for Thanksgiving, and this is an exciting time for all of us foodies. So many recipes, so little time!  I thought I might have trouble figuring out what to write as a pre-thanksgiving post but then my good friend Kristina arrived at my door with a huge bag of freshly dried cranberries straight from Cape Cod. Kristina is a regular on the Cape and goes to the cranberry bogs each year to gather cranberries for the fall season.

As you can imagine, I was beside myself with this gift and I quickly started scanning my cookbooks and the web for cranberry recipes. I made cranberry muffins, cranberry sauce, and cranberry crisp. I wanted to post them all. I then asked Kristina for her favorite cranberry recipe and she sent me this delicious recipe for cranberry apple galette. I almost shied away from it given its close proximity to the “pie” family (lest we forget, I don’t bake pies….). I decided to ignore my fears and visions of pie fiascos from days gone past, and forge ahead with the recipe. I’m glad I did. This dessert is so good and light…. just the ticket for all those bellies full of turkey.

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
6 Tbsp cornmeal
2 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup unsalted butter, cut into chunks
8 Tbsp sour cream
1/2 cup ice water

Filling:

8 large granny smith apples (about 4 lbs)
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tbsp honey
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
2 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into thin slices

Method

To make the pastry, combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor. Scatter the chunks of butter over the top and pulse for a few seconds until the butter pieces are the size of small peas. In a small bowl, whisk together the sour cream and ice water. Drizzle the mixture over the dough and pulse for a few seconds until the dough is smooth and clings together. Pat the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, to make the fruit filling, peel, core, and slice the apples. In a large frying pan over medium heat, combine the sugar, 1/2 cup water, honey, lemon juice, and cinnamon and heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the apple slices and simmer until opaque, 5-7 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the apples to a bowl and let cool slightly. Add the cranberries to the juices in the frying pan and simmer until they start to pop, about 2 minutes. Transfer the cranberries to the bowl of apples. Boil the juices over medium-high heat until reduced slightly and spoon over the fruit. (Try not to eat too much of the apple cranberry mix while working on the next step!).

Position 2 racks in the middle of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees. Have ready 2 ungreased baking sheets.

Divide the ball of chilled pastry in half. On a lightly floured surface, roll out each half into a round about 12 inches in diameter. Transfer pastry rounds to baking sheets. Divide the fruit filling equally between the pastry rounds and spread it in an even layer, leaving 1 1/2 inch border uncovered. Fold the border over the fruit, pleating the edges to form a broad rim. Lay thin slices of butter over the exposed fruit.

Bake galettes, switching the pans between the racks and rotating them 180 degrees midway through the baking process. Cook until the pastry is golden brown and the apples are tender, 35-40 minutes. Let cool completely on the pans on a wire rack. Cover and store at room temperature until ready to serve. Sprinkle with sugar if desired and serve with whipped cream.

Happy Thanksgiving to all our foodie friends!

Of Stick Season, Care Packages and Macaroons

dead leaves in autumn

Stick season in all its glory.

I know. It’s downright inspiring out there, making it the perfect time to send a care package. I’ve been in the business of care packages lately, the other day breaking a personal record and sending three. One to a kid away at school who is the master of the not so subtle hint. One to a nephew whose birthday I missed…by three months, and one to another kid on a trip where lunch is not included and foraging trumps grocery store preparation.

A care package is really just that. It says you care. It also says I love you. I miss you. I’m sorry I swore so much when you told me you lost your wallet. See? It really can say so much.

So, what to send that is delicious and not so “liquid, fragile or perishable” as to make you a liar, liar, liar at the post office? Here are just a few suggestions:

On Packaging

This fall I discovered a vacuum food sealer in our basement. It had been a wedding present over 16 years ago. I am quite sure I wrote a thank you note but still. Wow. Anyway, the thing works like a charm and if you happen to have one in your basement I highly recommend busting it out for care packages. If such a treasure does not lurk in your basement plan B is:

Ziploc bags and baggies: They keep things fresh and contained. Just make sure everything is fully cooled before it goes in. If not you may be sending a stuck-together clump of good intentions.

Cardboard takeout boxes: They pack well, resist collapse and make nice little serving vessels for the recipient:

Tupperware: Especially excellent when sending to a kid faced with his or her first kitchen. They’re young. They don’t know the beauty of Tupperware. Teach them.

Play the USPS game: If you are sending it far across the country, go for broke and figure out how to fill a flat rate box to the gills. Go for the heavy stuff and feel like you beat the system.

Popcorn: If you do have some space you need to fill, fire up the popcorn. Package it in appropriately sized baggies to fill whatever space you need. Envision those little air bubble pillows that come in the way-too-big Amazon package with two CD’s. Or just pour it in there and let someone on the other end clean up your mess.

Bonus Recipe: These are brilliant—easy, sturdy, moist, yummy and cheap. Oh did I say that? Of course money is no object when you care. The recipe comes right off the package of Bakers coconut. Don’t overthink the macaroon.

Coconut Macaroons

Ingredients

1 pkg.  (14 oz.) BAKER’S ANGEL FLAKE Coconut (5-1/3 cups)
2/3 cup  sugar
6 Tbsp  flour
1/4 tsp.  salt
4 egg whites
1 tsp  almond extract (or vanilla for the underprepared)

Method

  • Heat oven to 325°F.
  • Combine coconut, sugar, flour and salt in large bowl. Stir in egg whites and extract until blended.
  • Drop coconut mixture into 36 mounds, 2 inches apart, onto greased and lightly floured (or parchment-lined) baking sheets, using about 1 Tbsp. coconut mixture for each.
  • Bake 20 min. or until edges are golden brown. Immediately remove from baking sheets to wire racks; cool completely.

Macaroon Pro Tips:

Topped Macaroons: Prepare as directed, pressing 1 almond or 1 drained candied cherry (surely they jest) into top of each mound of coconut mixture on baking sheet before baking as directed.

Chocolate-Dipped Macaroons: Prepare Coconut Macaroons as directed. Cool. Melt 8 oz. Semi-Sweet Chocolate as directed on package. Dip cookies halfway into chocolate; let excess chocolate drip off. Let stand at room temperature or refrigerate on waxed paper-covered tray 30 min. or until chocolate is firm. Makes 36 servings, 1 cookie each.

Store in tightly covered container at room temperature up to 1 week.

Reese’s Redemption Cups

 

Go ahead...you deserve it. Take a bite of creamy, chocolatey, nut buttery goodness with loads of crunch and nothing at all spooky.

Go ahead…you deserve it. Take a bite of creamy, chocolatey, nut buttery goodness with loads of crunch and nothing at all spooky.

Last year, the day after Halloween I posted a recipe featuring a giant bowl of kale. I know. Mean. This year I’m going to be much nicer. This year you got a day of hedonism and now the Halloween step down program. Gradual detox comes in the form of a no-junk-in-the-trunk version of Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups featuring your nut butter of choice along with creamy chocolate, coconut butter and as much healthy crunch as you dare. I was going to call them Luscious C Cups—creamy, crunchy, chocolatey, coconutty—but kind of worried how that would pan out on a search engine.

Kale or no kale, I urge you to step away from the leftover Halloween candy and the booty your kids naively believe they have hidden from you. None of it will make you feel good. That said, you deserve something wonderful. Oh yes you do.

So get on out to the store, stock up on some healthy stuff that needs  a spot in your kitchen anyway, and make yourself a stash of luscious choco-coconutty crunch cups for your freezer or fridge. They are easy and quick to make and actually make a good, healthy energy boost for that exercise regime that you are so going to stick to as a pre-holiday health insurance policy.

Some notes, as ever: I got these from Mama’s Weeds who got them from Thriving Lisa so they have had some tweaks along the way, but the basic method and ingredients stay the same. I am hardcore on the crunch factor, so I make mine with all three crunch agents—coconut, hemp seeds and chia seeds. If that’s a bit too groovy for you, I recommend at least doing the coconut. But you know yourself and your people, so do what feels right.

I have tried this with almond butter, peanut butter and even sunbutter (which was a way to sneak in some extra sugar), and they’re all good. So use what you’ve got, swap away and love the one you’re with, baby. I do believe this is the perfect dessert after a nice bowl of kale.

Ingredients

2/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup almond butter or nut butter of choice
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup maple syrup or agave
1/4 cup chia seeds (optional)
1/4 cup hemp seeds (optional)
1/4 cup shredded coconut (optional, but not really)
pinch of salt

Method

  • Melt your coconut oil however you like—put the container in the microwave or in a pot of warm water stove top.
  • Mix your melted coconut oil, nut butter, maple syrup/agave and cocoa powder.
  • Stir in your crunchy mix-ins.
  • Add the salt. Remember the salt!
  • When all your ingredients are combined, corral 12 regular sized cupcake wrappers or many more mini ones in a flat container or dish.
  • Spoon mixture into the wrappers, making them whatever the heck size you want. (Know that cutting one in half or even quarters will not decrease your likelihood of eating the entire unit. The science on this is legit.)
  • Once your wrappers have been filled, put them in the freezer until firm (20-30 minutes).
  • Unwrap them at this point or right before you eat them. It’s all good. Move them to an air tight container and store in the freezer, or in the fridge if you like a softer texture.

 Pumpkin-face

How About Them Apples?

Full disclosure. This post is really an excuse to put up my favorite video clip of the season. Behold the way one chef dealt with a huge order of tarte tatins.   

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nbzw6y0pF3U

If more men knew that this was a step in the process of making apple pie we’d have a whole lot more male pie bakers. And while we are on the subject of men and food prep, you might enjoy the exploits of our favorite Russian Food hacker  (the kiwi and the pomegranate hacks were news to me).

But power tools aside, this is also the right time to remind everyone of all the great things to do with apples. There are lots of them this year, though not really in our orchard, which is a mixed blessing. No hauling bushels and grain sacks full of apples to the cider maker, but no homegrown apple cider. There are, however, more apples than we can possibly use, and here are my favorite ways to approach the task.

For Snacks:

Best, of course, is just eating these crisp juicy apples, which are the ideal for taking on the road or the trail. But when you need something a little more interesting, get dipping. Peanut butter and almond butter are excellent, healthy options, as is vanilla yogurt or one of my faves, a mixture of ground flaxseed and cinnamon. If you really need to make the hard sell on apple slices serve them with Nutella or, even better, with homemade salted caramel Cholliesauce.

For Breakfast:

It’s time for apple cheddar scones. It just is. Trust me on this. For apple cheddar pancakes (thank you Doug Haney) thinly slice up some Granny Smith or Mac- like apples and cook them down. Slice up sharp cheddar. Add both to the pancake right after you pour it on the griddle and cook the cakes as usual. You know to top them with–only real stuff!

For Lunch:

Add thinly sliced apples to your sandwich, especially if it’s in turkey and cheddar or grilled cheese family. Make a frittata with chopped apples and cheddar. Make an apple/ butternut squash soup like this one , or my slacker no recipe version that I swear I will post soon.

For Dinner:

Dip them in Guinness Fondue. Serve up some pork tenderloin with homemade caramelized applesauce. See below.

For Dessert:

If you haven’t already made this Apple Cake, do it! If you don’t have the mojo to make the cake at least make the brown sugar frosting and just smear it on an apple and call it good. Really good. The frosting is totally easy and all-time delish. And, especially if your apples aren’t winning any beauty contests make a Joni Mitchell apple pie.

For Fun:

Finally, if you prefer to drink your apples, mix up some hard cider sangria and enjoy the season!

Caramelized Applesauce Plus

rosy applesauce

Rosy pink applesauce from tree to table with one little stop on the stove.

This came about as a total mistake, after I got distracted while making a batch of applesauce with the thin-skinned apples that come off my favorite tree.  It appeared to be yet another burned disaster, another charred pot headed to the graveyard, but it did smell pretty good. The happy result was Applesauce Plus, which is sweet without added sugar and prettily pink. It was an instant family fave.

Ingredients:

  • As many tart, unpeeled red-skinned apples as you want.
  • Squeeze (or more) of fresh lemon juice.

Method:

Cut the cores from the apples and put them in a pot, barely covered with water. Boil until the water is thick and bubbly and the pot smells a bit like caramel. This takes a while, so you’ll want to ignore them for a while, but not be so far away that all the water boils away and you ruin your pot.

When the apples are sticking to the bottom just a bit and the pot smells really good, turn off the stove and let the whole thing cool. Smash the apples through a sieve or a food mill like this one (which is totally worth having), and add a squeeze of lemon. Enjoy it as is or on pretty much anything.

Apple Cake with Brown Sugar Frosting

It's apple picking season!

It’s apple picking season!

 

It’s apple picking season, hooray! I love this time of year when there are so many variations of apples and you want to try them all. To celebrate, we’ve decided to make September’s ingredient of the month apples. And so it’s time to get going with your apple tasting, apple picking, and apple recipes. I’m sure this will keep you busy for a while.

I was trying to think of what I wanted to post using apples, when on a hike a friend mentioned an apple cake he made recently. He was explaining the recipe and my mouth was watering for the next 10 minutes. I asked him for the recipe and it was from one of our favorite sites, King Arthur Flour. And so, I went home, bought the ingredients and went to work chopping, mixing, and baking. All was going well until I realized I was making this cake on a Monday night and I had no plans to go anywhere this week except driving the kids to soccer. What was I to do with a whole apple cake! I threatened my blog partner that I was going to drop it at her house under the cloak of darkness so she couldn’t refuse. Not that either of us didn’t want a piece or two – but a whole cake? You’ve seen my dessert posts – you know how much I like dessert!  This was very dangerous.

I decided to see if my husband and son would dig into it for dessert that night and maybe make a dent in it. They are big fans of dark chocolate so I wasn’t sure an apple cake would trump the specialty chocolate in the cabinet. Sure enough, one piece led to two, which lead to many more slivers until much of the cake was gone. Needless to say, it was a huge success. Make this cake, but be sure you have plenty of people to share it with or you might be on a cleanse the next day to ward off the sugar coma!

Ingredients

Cake
2 1/3 cups flour
1 2/3 cups sugar
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 large eggs
1/2 cup (8 Tbsp) unsalted butter, softened
4 cups peeled, cored, chopped apples, about 1 1/3 pounds whole apples
1 cup diced toasted walnuts

Frosting
7 Tbsp unsalted butter
2/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk (regular, soy, or almond)
2 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla extract 

Method

Preheat oven to 325. Grease and flour 9 x 13 inch pan.

To make the cake, mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl except the apples and nuts. Beat until well combined. The mixture will be very stiff and maybe even crumbly. Add the apples and nuts and mix until the apples release some of their juices (I did this step by hand and squeezed a little bit as I mixed). Continue to mix until you form a thick batter, somewhere between cookie dough and brownie batter in consistency.

Spread the batter in the prepared pan, smoothing with wet fingers (wet fingers are key as this stuff will stick to you like crazy and you’ll never get it spread across the pan evenly).

Bake cake for 30-45 minutes (I give a wide range because the recipe said to bake for 45 minutes and luckily I checked the cake at 30 minutes and it was done!). Basically, set the timer for 30 minutes, check for doneness by inserting a toothpick into the center of the cake to see if it comes out clean. If clean, then take the cake out of the oven and let cool. If it needs more time, continue to bake, checking every few minutes.

To make the frosting, melt the butter in a small pan over medium heat. Stir in the brown sugar and salt and cook, stirring until sugar melts. Add the milk, bring to a boil, and pour into a mixing bowl to cool for 10 minutes.

After 10 minutes, stir in confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. Beat well; if mixture appears too thin, add more confectioners’ sugar. Spread on cake while the frosting is still warm. Serve it up.

Best Ever Brownies

Best Ever BrowniesI recently went to a cookout and the host served these brownies. When the dessert dish got passed around, I was thinking, “meh”, brownies, not really my thing but I have such a sweet tooth that I took a small piece. OH. MY. GOD. They were unbelievably good. I couldn’t figure out how to quickly get the dish back to me so I could grab another one before they were all gone. I started to rave about them to everyone who touched the dessert dish so they didn’t stand a chance of making their way back to me (if only I had kept my mouth shut…darn it). In the end, one brownie was probably enough anyway and my mind had quickly turned to making sure I got the recipe. Surprisingly, the guy who made them was playing tough to get with his secret squirrel recipe. Finally, with patience and persistence, I was able to get it out of him but not without some cajoling and bribing.

I highly recommend these brownies. My friend said to add a can of tuna fish – and that was his big secret. I left the can of tuna out, and I’m sure you’ll do the same, but I think the real key is the brown sugar. Make some extra so that when you bring them to your next party, you can keep at stash at home to enjoy the next day.

Ingredients

1 cup butter, softened
4 1-oz blocks unsweetened chocolate squares
2 cups brown sugar, packed
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips (optional)
1 cup walnuts, chopped (optional)

Method

Preheat oven to 350.

Melt butter and chocolate squares in small pan. Make sure this mixture is not too hot later when you add the chocolate chips or the chips will melt (bad).

Mix flour, sugar, baking powder in a bowl. Add melted chocolate/butter mixture and vanilla. Mix well.  Add eggs, mix again.

Add chocolate chips and walnuts if desired. Don’t add tuna fish!

Grease baking pan (I used 9×13 inches rectangular baking pan).  Pour brownie mixture into pan and spread evenly.  Bake in 350 degree oven, approximate 30-35 minutes (depending on they type and size of the pan, you may need slightly more or less baking time, so check them at 25 or 30 mins and go from there).

Hit the Trail Scones

Not just for tea time. These trail mix-y scones can go the distance.

Not just for tea time. These trail mix-y scones can go the distance.

Scones. They sound so proper, so fancy, so….much of a pain to make. I used to think scones were too labor intensive to consider for every day food. That was until early one morning I was confronted with the task of making something get-out-of-bed worthy and take-on-the-road worthy within an hour. Scones saved my butt.

Here’s why: They call for cold butter vs softened; they involve no eggs and therefore no separate mixing vessels; they require only one baking sheet vs muffin tins that must be greased or lined with the ever-elusive muffin liners. Scones vs muffins? No contest! And that’s before the short cuts.

I know the sermon—baking is a science, weigh vs measure, be exact, blah blah, blah. But in the real world short cuts are important. Sometimes knowing they are there, whether or not you use them, gives you the mojo you need to embark on creating something delicious. That is why I am including my own short cut version along with the legit directions.  

There’s nothing really trail-like about these scones, other than the fact that I made them as I was leaving on a long hike and wanted to bring something that was sturdy enough to travel but more enticing than trail mix. I needed a way to use up some cream and incorporate the chocolate chips and nuts that were just begging for the proper vehicle. Knowing that I could use a food processor, dump the whole shebang on a baking sheet and form the scones right on that same sheet made them a possibility. Out of this scenario, the Hit the Trail Scone, and it’s slightly healthier cousin, the Almond Joy scone, were born.

“Are they ok?” I asked my son who shies away from my more adventurous creations, particularly those involving nuts. “They’re ridiculous!” he said. “Don’t put them on the blog—keep them secret!” But you know how I feel about secret recipes, so here they are.

Please customize them to make them all yours!

Ingredients

2 cups (10 oz) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (1 3/4 oz) granulated sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 stick butter (4 oz) (cold, cut into pieces)
1 cup (8 oz) heavy cream (cold)
*1/2 – 3/4 c miniature chocolate chips (depending on preference)
*½ cup roasted almonds, coarsely chopped

* any combo of dried fruits, nuts and/or chips will work, so use what you love or what you have on hand. Think dried cranberries and walnuts, dried figs and almonds, white chocolate and macadamia nuts, butterscotch chips and walnuts for Ron Burgundy fans, peanut butter chips and crumbled bacon for Elvis fans, etc.

Topping
1 egg, lightly beaten (or more of that cream you need to use up)
2 Tbsp sanding sugar, granulated sugar or coconut sugar.

Official Method

Preheat over to 425 degrees

Mix together dry ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry blender, two knives or your  fingers.

Add chopped nuts, chocolate and cream to ingredients in the bowl and blend together quickly with a spatula. Do not overmix.

Turn dough on floured board and pat into a big square or round, 1-inch or so thick. Cut dough into shapes of roughly equal size. Move pieces to parchment or Silpat lined baking sheet.

Bake as directed below.

Short Cut Method

The short-cut method begs for artistic license.

The short-cut method begs for artistic license.

Mix together dry ingredients in bowl of food processor. Add butter to processor and pulse until the butter is in smallish bits. Do not over process!  (Butter bits give scones their flakiness. Without the bits, scones become not very excellent muffins.) Pour contents of food processor into a large bowl. Add nuts and chocolate chips to food processor and pulse several times until they are broken into bite-friendly bits.

Pour chocolate chips and almonds into bowl with other ingredients and stir until just mixed. Add cream and blend together quickly. Do not overmix.

Roughly divide dough into two equal mounds. Plop each mound onto it’s own side of one baking sheet and shape each into a round or square. Do not over handle the dough (body heat and scones do not mix! See above butter bits intel).

Score each circle deeply into 8 wedges (or cut all the way through and move pieces slightly apart to allow them to cook more quickly. If you go with the square, score or cut it into similarly sized shapes of your choice.

Baking for both methods

Brush with egg wash or with cream. Sprinkle with sugar, or coconut sugar if you want to take this tropical theme seriously.

Bake for 14-16 minutes (or more depending on size) until golden brown.

Almond Joy Scones

Make as above but substitute well-mixed, full-fat coconut milk for cream, and if you’re a real coconut freak like me mix in ½ cup toasted, unsweetened coconut flakes with the chocolate chips and almonds. These take a few minutes longer to bake.

Bring it

These grab and go babies travel well in the car, in a pack, in a picnic basket, on a boat or to any gathering anywhere.

Salty Malty Krispy Treats

 

Salty Malty Treats

There’s nothing like a classic… with a twist…and a swig of milk.

Malty Salty Krispy Treats

When it comes to recipes, what makes a classic? It has to be something so good that it stands on its own with no real need for improvement. It has to feature some basic key ingredients that are critical to its identity. It evokes nostagia as well as instant gratification.

I’d put Rice Krispy treats in that category. They are easy and inexpensive to make, tolerant of heat and cold, indestructible in their creation, transport and chosen arena of consumption. They require neither utensils nor serveware nor culinary skill. Oh, and most importantly, pretty much everyone loves them.

Truthfully, they warrant no improvement. But then again, sometimes it’s fun to take you and your snack over the edge to greatness by making a brilliant twist on a classic.

That’s what we’re doing here. We’re taking Rice Krispy treats and adding chopped up malted milk balls and a sprinkling of sea salt. Joy the Baker takes this experiment over the top by using browned butter (vs margarine) and adding malt powder. This gives them a hint of sophistication, which is important because when you spike your Rice Krispies and marshmallows with Whoppers you are definitely going for some high-brow cred.

There’s not a whole lot else to say about these, except that they earned the rare teenager rave at a recent party, which in my book is enough to make something a new classic.

Malty Salty Krispy Treats

Makes 9 big squares (no shame in doubling up!)

Ingredients

6 Tbsp unsalted butter
40 large marshmallows
1/4 tsp salt
6 cups rice cereal
1/3 cup malted milk powder (or “Classic Malt” Ovaltine if you can’t find the real stuff)
1 cup coarsely chopped Whoppers candy.
Coarse sea salt for topping

Method

In a large saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter. Melt butter until is begins to crackle and sizzle. Add marshmallows to the melted butter just as it begins to brown and reduce heat to low. Add salt and stir until the marshmallows are completely melted, and the marshmallows and butter are thoroughly combined.

Quickly add rice cereal and malt powder and stir to combine.  The mixture will be thick and sticky.

Allow mixture to cool just slightly before adding 3/4 cups of the Whoppers candy.  Stir until just combined.

Press the mixture into a 9×9-inch square greased pan. Sprinkle with salt. Use a greased piece of wax or parchment paper, or a sturdy clean plastic bag, to firmly press the mixture into the pan. The krispies will be thick.  Press the remaining Whoppers pieces into the top of the treats.

Allow to rest at room temperature (or speed it up in the fridge) until set and sliceable. Slice into 9 large squares.