La Receta Famosa de Brownie (por fin!)

Finalmente, traduje la receta que uso siempre para hacer un brownie rico. Me pregunto si es una buena idea, porque tengo la sensación que no me van a invitar a las cenas si pueden hacerlo sin mi! Pero, bueno, acá está la receta más pedida de mi cocina:

El Brownie Más Rico

• 1 1/3 taza (170 gramos) harina (0000)
• 1/2 cucharita (2.3 g) polvo para hornear
• 1/4 cucharita (1.42 g) sal
• 150 gramos manteca
• 3/4 taza (88.5 g) cacao amargo en polvo (no de Nesquik, tiene que ser de buena calidad)
• 2 cucharas de sopa de espresso o cafe fuerte
• 1 2/3 taza (335 g) azúcar
• 2 huevos
• 2 cucharitas de esencia de vainilla
• 3/4 taza (85 g) nueces, picados en trozos
• 42.5 gr. chocolate semi-amargo, picado en trozos 

Enmantecar y harinar una bandeja de 20 x 30 cm. Combinar la harina, polvo para hornear y sal - dejar a un lado. En un baño maria, derretir la manteca y agregar el cacao en polvo y el café. Revolver para combinar y removerlo del calor para que enfrie un poco. En un bowl grande, batir los huevos con el azúcar y agregar la vainilla. Agregar lentamente la mezcla de manteca/cacao. Incorporar la mezcla de harina y después las nueces (guardando un puñado para poner arriba). Poner la masa (si, es un poco pesada) en la bandeja preparada, untándola con una espátula. Salpicar con las nueces y el chocolate picado. Hornear a 175º C por 25-30 minutos, o hasta que un cuchillo salga limpio.

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Blondies

Mostly, I make brownies. But after a recent conversation about peanut butter (and having found that several of my students hadn't tried it) I thought about making a peanut butter version of blondies, and I'm glad I did. It adds just a touch of something special to dress up blondies and make them worthy competition of their all-chocolate cousins. 

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chunk Blondies

from Two Tiny Kitchens

• 1/2 cup peanut butter
• 1/3 cup (75g) butter, softened
• 2/3 cup white sugar (I used a bit less)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed (I did not pack it)
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (I used a pinch more because my peanut butter wasn't salted)
• 1 cup (170 grams) semi-sweet chocolate chunks (I used a bit less)

The original recipe calls for a 9x9 inch baking pan, but I used an 8x12 pan and wouldn't go any smaller. 

Cream together peanut butter and butter, gradually blend in brown sugar, white sugar, eggs and vanilla; mix until fluffy. Combine flour, baking powder and salt and stir into the butter mixture until well blended (I went ahead and used the hand mixer for this since it's somewhat heavy). Fold in chocolate chunks. 

Bake at 375F/175C in a greased pan for 30-35 minutes, or until the top springs back when touched. (I actually cooked it for about 35-40 minutes, but the edges were not as gooey - still, I wanted to be sure the center was fully baked.) Cool and cut into small squares.

To comment on my changes: I used less sugar and it was still perfectly sweet enough. I added an extra pinch of salt (after tasting the batter) because the most common brand here (Sytari) is not salty like American peanut butter. And, yes, I cooked it longer than most recipes require.

I don't know why these are served in small squares, but my great-grandmother cut them the same way. I guess the idea is to make people happy but not fat. :) Portion control. Unless you eat them all. With ice cream. Whoops.

Faux Hostess Cupcakes

Last weekend, a friend of mine boldly went where many many men have gone before. He turned 30. I suppose it gets us all at some point. As I await my birthday, I know there's no point in hiding, but it's not easy to accept that it may be time to act like a grown-up. So, instead, let's eat cupcakes reminiscent of childhood! At a bar! 

Copycat Hostess Cupcakes
From Cinnamon Spice and Everything Nice

• 1 cup flour
• 6 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 113 grams / 8 Tablespoons butter, softened
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 eggs, room temperature
• 1 egg yolk, room temperature (use the white for the cream filling)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup boiling water

Whisk together flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, beat butter until smooth and creamy - about 2 minutes. On medium speed, gradually add sugar, beating until light and smooth - about 5 minutes. On low speed, beat in eggs and yolk one at a time, add vanilla. Beat in flour mixture in 4 additions, beating well after each one. Then drizzle in hot water, 2 Tablespoons at a time, until batter is smooth and shiny. Fill cupcake liners no more than half-full. For mini cupcakes,  a rounded teaspoon of batter was enough. For regular cupcakes, use 1/4 cup of batter. Bake at 350F / 180 C until a toothpick comes out clean - about 15-20 minutes. I ended up with 36 mini cupcakes and 2 big ones.

For the cream filling, I used my recipe for meringue frosting and added butter.


Cream Filling

• 2.5 Tablespoons water
• 1/8 teaspoon cream of tarter
• 1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon sugar
• 1 large egg white at room temperature
• 1/2 Tablespoon light corn syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1.5 Tablespoons butter, softened

Whisk first 5 ingredients together in a stainless steel bowl. Set the bowl in a wide, deep skillet with about an inch of simmering water. Be sure the water level is at least as high as the depth of the egg white in the bowl. Beat egg white mixture on low speed until it reaches 140F/60C. Do no stop beating while the bowl is in the skillet. Beat on high speed for exactly five minutes. Remove bowl from skillet and add vanilla, beating on high speed for two to three more minutes to cool. Beat in butter. Transfer to a pastry bag with a star tip. When cupcakes are cooled, insert tip into the middle of the cupcake, about half-way down and squeeze in cream until cupcake is heavier...stop when (or before) it begins to crack.

After filling cupcakes, spread a thin layer of chocolate ganache over the top.

Chocolate Ganache

• 100 grams semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
• Scant 1/4 cup heavy cream

Warm cream for about 10 seconds in microwave. Stir in chocolate and let sit 2 minutes. Stir to combine. If necessary, briefly warm in microwave. Spread a thin layer on cupcakes. Actually, I thought the ganache tasted too much like real chocolate for a copycat Hostess cupcake, so I suppose if you're going for authenticity, you should use a ganache recipe that includes butter and vanilla, too. 

Vegetarian Biscuits & Gravy

This dish should not be confused with all of the healthy recipes I've been posting lately. There's a time and place for healthy food and a time and place for the stuff that makes life worth living. This was for a special occasion: Valentine's brunch. That said, it isn't so bad as this recipe uses veggie patties instead of sausage and I swapped out some white flour for wheat flour in the biscuits - although, I did add cheese. ;)

Biscuits & Veggie Gravy

Parmesan Biscuits (adapted from Alton Brown):

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup wheat flour
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 Tablespoons (28 grams) butter, cold
• 2 Tablespoons (28 grams) vegetable shortening, cold
• 1 cup buttermilk, cold
• 1/3 cup shredded cheese (I used parmesan)

Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a large bowl. Using cool fingertips or a pastry blender, blend butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture looks like crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in buttermilk. Stir just until dough comes together - it will be sticky. Turn out onto floured surface, dust top with flour and fold dough over on itself 5 to 6 times. Press into a 1-inch thick round and cut out biscuits with a biscuit cutter or a glass. Reform scrap dough, working it as little as possible, and cut out the rest of the biscuits. You should have about 12 biscuits. You can lay them out on a baking sheet so that they just touch or you can space them out a little. I pressed my dough out a bit thinner and stacked 2 biscuits tall so that they would split easily. Bake at 450F/230C for 15-20 minutes.

Vegetarian Gravy:

• 2 veggie burgers (or veggie sausage)
• Olive oil, as needed
• 1 Tablespoon (14 grams) butter
• 1/4 cup (or 2 heaping soup spoons) flour
• 2 cups buttermilk (or 2% milk will work) plus extra for thinning, at room temperature
• Veggie powder, salt and pepper to taste
• 1 sprig fresh thyme, stripped
• Handful of fresh parsley, chopped

Cook burgers in a drizzle of oil over medium heat, squishing and flattening them a bit until they start to break up and get crispy on the bottom. Flip them over and repeat - start breaking them down into crumbles. Once thoroughly cooked, remove the crumbles from the pan with a spatula - it's okay to leave some in the pan, and try to leave all of the oil. (Since I didn't use a non-stick pan, I went ahead and added enough water to cover the bottom of the pan, let it warm up and started scrapping out the bits that were stuck - you should probably do this with oil or butter but it seemed excessive.) Add butter and melt, swirling around the pan. Whisk in flour for about one minute. (Alternatively, you could whisk milk and flour together before adding it to the pan.) Add buttermilk, veggie powder, a pinch of salt, thyme, and crack in some pepper. Whisk constantly for a few minutes, making sure there are no lumps of flour. Stir in a handful of fresh parsley. Either let it simmer until it's at a thick enough consistency or whisk in more milk, depending on the consistency you'd like. Add more salt and pepper, if necessary (I think heaps of pepper are necessary). Stir the crumbles into the gravy. After I'd removed the crumbles, it took me about 10 minutes to make the gravy.

Parmesan Heart: 
Now, if it's Valentine's Day (or if you're just really nice) you could make a heart-shaped Parmesan crisp by using a Tablespoon of shredded cheese for each heart and shaping it on a non-stick baking sheet. Bake at about 350F/180C for 7-10 minutes, checking frequently. Then, you can just turn off the oven and let them set in there, getting all crispy for another 10 minutes while you're finishing the gravy. While they're still warm, but not gooey, carefully remove them from the pan.

Serve alone or with other brunch dishes, like scrambled eggs with basil. 

Sprinkle Doughnut Cupcakes

I found this recipe for gorgeous glazed doughnut muffins on MyBakingAddiction and just couldn't leave well enough alone. Not only did I dip them in the glaze, I also dunked them in sprinkles. It was my birthday week. The batter seemed more cakey than muffin-like so I'm calling them cupcakes. I was expecting something more dense, like a cake doughnut, but was pleasantly surprised by their lightness. Of course, the flavor is closer to a cake doughnut than a yeast doughnut and it's slightly reminiscent of spice cake. It would make a delicious take on a cider doughnut if you added cider to the batter and/or the glaze. Although, I think the best combination would be with a maple glaze and a glass of cider. aww, now I miss apple cider. a lot.

Anyway, have you noticed that cupcake shops are springing up all over town? Well, maybe not cupcake-only shops but definitely bakeries with a strong focus on cupcakes. But what the hell are they putting on top?! Is that merengue? Damn it. Whip up a freakin' buttercream for crying out loud.

Doughnut Cupcakes

• 1/4 cup / 57 grams butter
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg 
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 2/3 cups flour
• 1 cup milk

Cream together butter, oil and sugars until smooth. Add the eggs, beating to combine. Stir in baking powder, baking soda, spices, salt and vanilla. Stir flour into the butter mixture alternately with the milk, beginning and ending with the flour and making sure everything is thoroughly combined. Spoon batter into 12 cupcake liners (sprayed with oil to ensure they don't stick) filling the cups nearly full. Bake at 220C/425F for 15 to 17 minutes or until they're a pale brown a cake tester comes out clean.

Glaze:

• 3 Tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (or maple, if that's something that exists in your country)
• 2 Tablespoons hot water

Whisk together all ingredients until smooth. 

Plus, don't forget that you need a crapload of sprinkles. Like, more than 100 grams.

When cupcakes have cooled slightly, dip the crown into the glaze and allow glaze to harden. Cool on a rack with something underneath to catch the glaze drippings. (ps - these will make a mess on your liners) Let chill in the refrigerator before the applying second coat of glaze. I brushed on a thin second coat because I didn't want it to be too runny or thick, as the sprinkles would quickly ooze off. Immediately dunk the cupcake into a bowl of sprinkles and allow to set in the freezer for 5-10 minutes. (seriously, they will end up in a multi-color puddle otherwise)

Don't forget to share these with Twink and Starlite and all the slaves your friends in Rainbow Land!

Favorite Chocolate Cupcakes and Dulce de Leche Frosting

I've been baking mucho lately. I should probably work more and bake less, but that is no fun. I've found two excellent chocolate cupcake recipes. One is Smitten Kitchen's flourless Chocolate Soufflé Cupcakes. These are so rich that they don't need frosting but they do need something to fill the little sunken center on top, so I plopped in a scoop of ice cream. The second is a well-traveled Cooks Illustrated recipe for Ultimate Chocolate Cupcakes, which I found the following half-recipe for on Cookie Madness. This is now my go-to recipe for chocolate cupcakes. I guess that's why they're the ultimate.

My Favorite Chocolate Cupcakes
Ganache Filling:

• 1 oz / 28 grams bittersweet chocolate
• 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
• 1/2 Tablespoon powdered sugar

Put all ingredients into a microwave safe bowl. Heat 10-30 seconds, until mixture is warm. Whisk until smooth. Refrigerate until just chilled, no more than 30 minutes.

Cupcakes:

• 1 1/2 oz / 42 grams bittersweet chocolate
• 2 1/2 Tablespoons / 15 grams cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons hot coffee
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons / 58 grams bread flour
• 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons / 72 grams sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 large egg, room temp
• 1 teaspoon vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine chocolate, cocoa, and hot coffee in a mixing bowl. Whisk until smooth and refrigerate for 15 minutes. In a separate bowl, mix flour, sugar, salt, and baking soda. Whisk oil, eggs, vinegar, and vanilla into the cooled chocolate mixture until smooth, then stir in flour mixture. Divide batter between 6 baking cups and place 1 rounded spoon of ganache on top of each cupcake. Bake at 350F/180C for 17-19 minutes, until just firm to the touch. 

The Ultimate recipe includes a creamy chocolate frosting recipe that I didn't make because I'm afraid of eating raw eggs. Instead, I topped with dulce de leche cream cheese frosting. Though, I would also suggest a cream-based mocha frosting or a perhaps even a marshmallow frosting, if you're into that sort of thing.

Dulce de Leche Frosting

from Joy the Baker

• 56 grams / 1/2 stick of butter, softened
• 113 grams / 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 3 ounces (this is half of 3/4 cup) dulce de leche
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 - 2 cups powdered sugar

Beat cream cheese on medium speed for about 30 seconds, until very soft. Scrape down sides of bowl and add butter and dulce de leche. Beat on medium until well incorporated. Add the salt and powdered sugar. Beat on medium for about 3 minutes, until fluffy and lighter in color. I noticed that it wasn't quite thick enough for frosting so I continued to add powdered sugar until I got the right consistency. This makes enough for about 12 cupcakes. The frosting also went well with vanilla cupcakes with chocolate ganache centers.

Peanut Butter Cupcakes with Nutella Frosting

According to a jar of amazingly delicious peanut butter that we were gifted by a friend who had just returned from Cordoba (the province right next to ours), Hernando, Cordoba is the nation's peanut capital. If you ever see a jar of "La Campiña" you should grab it, and a spoon, and go. to. town.

This jar of peanuty goodness inspired me to bake peanut butter cupcakes. And a jar of Nutella inspired the frosting for such. Sometimes, brilliance awaits you in your cupboard. The peanut flavor of the cupcakes is perfect, almost (not quite but almost) overwhelming the Nutella. And they're a bit more dense than a light and fluffy cake. I busted out a spoon to finish one off. I would suggest making these as mini cupcakes - thus having a more equal ratio of peanut to Nutella flavor. Or, making them as smaller cupcakes - I filled about 1/2 - 2/3 full, so this could be reduced.

Another way to boost Nutella flavor, while cutting into the density of the cake, would be to scoop out a bit of the middle and fill with Nutella. Or double the amount of frosting that I made. Whatever your poison. Or cupcake pan size.

Peanut Butter Cupcakes
from Liv Life

• 1 1/4 cup flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 2/3 cup packed brown sugar 
• 1/4 cup peanut butter
• 42 grams / 3 tablespoons butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 large egg
• 1 large egg white
• 1/4 cup milk

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt - set aside. Beat brown sugar*, peanut butter, butter, and vanilla until blended (4-5 minutes). Add the egg and egg white, beat until combined. Add the flour mixture in a few additions, alternating with the milk - beginning and ending with the flour. Mix until combined. 

Spoon batter into 10-12 muffin cups (I would say to aim for 12). Bake at 180C/350F for 20 minutes or until a tester comes out clean. 

*I used part (about 1/4 c.) white sugar, as I'm quite stingy with my smuggled-in brown sugar

Nutella Frosting
from Good Life eats (I made half of the recipe, as follows)

• 85 grams / 3 ounces cream cheese (Finlandia), at room temperature
• 14 grams / 1 tablespoon butter, at room temperature
• 1/4 cup Nutella
• 1 3/4 - 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Cream butter and cream cheese. Add Nutella and vanilla and continue to cream. Slowly incorporate powdered sugar, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Beat on high until fluffy and smooth.

Overnight (or not) Cinnamon Rolls

There is a secret family recipe for my great-grandfather's famous cinnamon rolls but I am not privy to that information so I tried this recipe and was simply amazed. Amazed, I tell you!

Overnight Cinnamon Rolls

from Alton Brown

Dough:

• 4 large egg yolks, room temperature
• 1 large whole egg, room temperature
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 6 Tablespoons (85 grams) butter, melted
• 3/4 cup buttermilk
• 4 cups AP flour, plus additional for dusting
• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant dry yeast
• 1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
• oil or cooking spray

Filling:

• 1 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 Tablespoon ground cinnamon
• pinch salt
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons (21 grams) butter, melted

Icing:

• 2 1/2 ounces (1/4 cup) cream cheese, softened
• 3 Tablespoons milk
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

See Alton's recipe if you are so fortunate as to have a stand mixer (not that I'm bitter or anything). Otherwise, using a hand mixer, combine egg yolks, egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add about 2 cups of flour along with the yeast and salt. Turn dough out onto a well floured surface and knead by hand for 15-20 minutes kneading in all but 3/4 c. flour and adding more as necessary - dough should be soft and moist but not too sticky. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume 2 to 2.5 hours.

Combine brown sugar, cinnamon and salt; mix until well incorporated. Set aside.

Butter 9x13-inch baking dish. Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface.

Gently shape dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush dough with melted butter, leaving 1/2 inch border along the top edge.

Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving 3/4 border along top edge (I left one all around but will remember not to next time); gently press filling into dough.

Beginning with the long side nearest you, roll dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness.

Using a serrated knife, slice into 1.5-inch rolls; yielding 12 rolls. Arrange cut side down in the baking dish. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator *overnight or up to 16 hours.

*I didn't have all night, so I covered with plastic wrap and left out at room temperature for 30 minutes. Remove rolls from refrigerator (or not) and place in an oven that is turned off. I ended up flipping over the end pieces so that the cut side faced up (opposite of the way they are shown in the picture below) and the gooey goodness would be less likely to ooze out of the roll).

Fill a shallow pan 2/3 full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; about 30 minutes (see pic below). Remove rolls and shallow pan of water from the oven. Cover rolls lightly with plastic wrap or damp towel. Preheat oven to 180C (350F).

When oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown. 25 minutes was enough for me. Keep an eye on them - some commenters that baked for 30 minutes said they were too dry. I misted the rolls with water while still in the oven at about 15 minutes into the cooking time.

While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by mixing cream cheese (with hand mixer, if that's what you've got) until creamy. Add milk and combine. Sift in powdered sugar and mix until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.

Orange Blueberry Yogurt Loaf

This recipe is adapted from Ina Garten by way of Smitten Kitchen, who provides a list of suggested variations on Lemon Yogurt Anything Cake. I decided on an orange/blueberry combination, using frozen berries. I was really afraid that these berries would sink since they were so wet after thawing - I let them sit in a sieve to thaw/drain for an hour then spread them out on paper towel for a while. I've changed the recipe to include only half of the amount of vegetable oil, since it really wasn't necessary and next time I might just leave it out and sub extra yogurt.

Orange Blueberry Yogurt Loaf

• 1 1/2 c. + 1 T. flour
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1/2 t. kosher salt
• 1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt (a 500 g. container didn't quite have enough so I tossed in a spoonful of vanilla yogurt also)
• 3 eggs
• 2 t. grated orange zest (I went a little over this using 2 oranges)
• 1/2 t. vanilla extract
• 1/4 c. vegetable oil
• 1 1/2 c. blueberries
• 1/3 c. freshly squeezed orange juice

Glaze

• 1/2 c. powdered sugar
• 1 T. freshly squeezed orange juice

Grease and flour a loaf plan, lining the bottom with parchment paper. Sift together 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, whisk together yogurt, 1 cup sugar, the eggs, orange zest, and oil. Slowly mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients. Toss the blueberries with the remaining 1 T flour (I used 1.5 T for my frozen, wet berries and mixed in a dry bowl instead of letting any flour touch wet paper towel). Gently, but quickly, fold berries into batter and pour immediately into prepared pan.

Bake for about 50 (+) minutes or until a cake tester placed in the center comes out clean. Meanwhile, cook the 1/3 cup orange juice and remaining 1 T. sugar in a small pan until the sugar dissolves. Set aside. Allow loaf to cook in the pan for 10-15 minutes before flipping out onto a cooling rack. Place rack over a sheet pan. While loaf is still warm, use a toothpick to poke holes all around, then pour the orange-sugar mixture over the top and allow it to soak in.

Combine powdered sugar and orange juice to make the glaze (the amount I used is half of what Ina's recipe calls for, but it was plenty). Pour glaze over cooled loaf. My berries may have clustered a little but they didn't sink...success!

Gooey S'mores Brownies

Yes, I've been reading Joy the Baker's blog again. Back at it with the brownie thing. This time, I wanted to use up the rest of the s'mores supplies that my family brought down from the US. I haven't seen marshmallows or graham crackers anywhere in Argentina so you may have to do some importing for this recipe. After reading through the comments for S'mores Brownies, I decided to go with a more fudgy batter, but I thought the mallow placement and incorporation of graham crackers was genius. So I combined these elements with this batter. I really wanted them to be reminiscent of s'mores, so I used pieces of Hershey's chocolate for an authentic flavor. I also wanted a more gooey marshmallow so I didn't add them until 15 minutes into cooking time.

I'm so in love with these brownies. They're very similar to the taste of a s'more combined with everything you love about brownies. These are my favorite.

Gooey S'mores Brownies

• 1 1/3 c. flour (plus another 2 T. if using Argentine flour)
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 150 g. butter
• 3/4 c. cocoa powder
• 2 T. strong coffee
• 1 2/3 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 t. vanilla extract
• 1 c. graham cracker, broken into pieces
• 1 Hershey's chocolate bar, broken into small pieces
• 12 marshmallows

Butter and flour a baking dish - the baking time for this recipe is based on using an 8x12 glass pan - if you use 9x13, you will want to decrease baking time by possibly 10 minutes. (Note that Joy's recipe is for 18-25 minutes.) Preheat oven to 350.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt - set aside. Combine butter and cocoa powder in a double boiler, add coffee and stir to melt ingredients - set aside to cool slightly. Whisk together eggs and sugar, add vanilla. Slowly add chocolate mixture to sugar mixture. Add flour mixture and stir to combine. Fold in the graham crackers.

Pour batter into prepared pan and top with chocolate pieces. Bake for 15 minutes, remove from oven and quickly place the marshmallows on top of the batter (don't worry if it seems not to stick - don't push them in too hard). Put brownies back in the oven for another 15-20 minutes. (Adjust time if using a larger or metal pan).

Allow to cool for 20 minutes, cut into 12 squares, then I recommend eating immediately while still warm.

Everything Brownies

I debated what to call these for a while. 'Everything But the Kitchen Sink Brownies'? Too long. 'If It Ain't Broke Brownies'? Confusing. 'Turtle Brownies'? Eh. 'Dulce de Leche Swirl Brownies'? Not descriptive enough. In the end it does't matter. They're superb. Not to mention they're the lovechild of Joy the Baker's Old School Fudge Brownies mixed with a bit of inspiration from David Lebovitz's Dulce de Leche Brownie recipe.

I thought about just making the entire DL recipe but I'm so addicted to Joy's batter that I figured 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' (hence the name consideration). Typically, I'll make these brownies with walnuts and chocolate chunks and they're divine. But I've been meaning to toss in some readily available, always in abundance dulce de leche. And so I did. Heaven help me.

Everything Brownies

• 1 1/3 c. flour
• 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. salt
• 150 g. butter
• 3/4 c. cocoa powder
• 2 T. strong coffee
• 1 2/3 c. sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 t. vanilla extract
• 3/4 c. chopped walnuts
• 1/4 c. chocolate chips or chunks
• 200 g. (or 1 c.) dulce de leche

Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with aluminum foil - I used a glass baking dish is closer to 8x12 inches. Grease foil.

Combine flour, baking powder and salt - set aside. Combine butter and cocoa powder in a double boiler, add coffee and stir to melt ingredients - set aside to cool slightly. Whisk together eggs and sugar, add vanilla. Slowly add chocolate mixture to sugar mixture. Add flour mixture. Fold in the nuts.

Pour half of the batter into the baking pan. Add half of the dulce de leche in dollops - drag a knife through to swirl. Add the other half of the brownie batter and repeat with the rest of the dulce de leche. Sprinkle on the chocolate chips. Bake for 25-30 minutes if using a glass baking dish - or until a knife inserted comes out without crumbs (don't be fooled by clinging dulce de leche, though). 'Too Much of a Good Thing Brownies'? As if. These are already gone.

Feliz Navidad...again

Well, I suppose that Christmas is here again. That year went by quickly. Too quickly. But at least I squeezed in some time for Christmas treats. This year, I added more cookies, chocolate dipped pretzels and pumpkin bread to my holiday repertoire.

The pretzels are half dipped because I didn't want to make a complete mess and they turned out great! I melted about 30 grams of chocolate in the microwave-stirring every 10 seconds until smooth (I melted both semi sweet and white chocolate separately). That was enough to cover 15-20 pretzels each. Then I had a blast with the toppings. After dipping (5 pretzels at a time) and carefully placing on a baking sheet covered with wax paper, I added sprinkles, mini chocolate chips, or a drizzle of melted chocolate. Then let set in the fridge for 30 minutes.

Mom's Pumpkin Bread

I know this recipe as Mom's Pumpkin Bread, but it may be from a can so please don't sue me if you own it.

My family brought down the bag of pretzels but you can also find them in the international aisle at Jumbo. Mom also brought a can of pumpkin but it's probably easier to make your own puree if your can opener looks like this:

I made a few changes to her recipe - using chai tea in place of water and substituting 1 t. of baking powder for one of baking soda. I also didn't fill up the whole cup of oil and added a little vanilla. Next time I'll toss in a cup of nuts. Here's the resulting recipe:

• 3 1/3 c. flour (I used mostly sifted wheat flour - but the wheat flour at Coto is nearly like white flour instead of true wheat flour)
• 2 t. cinnamon
• 1 t. nutmeg
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 t. baking powder
• 3 c. sugar
• 1 can (15oz) pumpkin puree
• A bit shy of 1 cup oil (I used sunflower)
• 4 eggs
• 2/3 c. chai tea
• 1/2 t. vanilla

Mix all dry ingredients except sugar and set aside. Mix sugar, eggs, and oil in a super large bowl (see how mine nearly overflowed). Add tea and vanilla. Slowly add flour mixture - add pumpkin last. Mix well. Split batter between 3* floured bread (budin) pans filled 2/3 full. Bake 40 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean. Cool slightly (15 minutes) and flip out of pan while warm.

*I couldn't fit 3 pans nicely in my tiny oven so I baked in 2 (one was rather large) pans for 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Most deliciously served with cream cheese :)

Merry Christmas!

Fruity Goodness

I don't know why I do this, but I always seem to take fresh, good-for-you fruit and mix it with flour, butter, sugar, and any other number of ingredients to make delicious, warm, not-so-good-for-you treats. It's a rare day when a fruit from my kitchen gets eaten in its full nutritional glory. But at this point, it's research. I'm still learning about cooking, baking, and food...and putting together a list of recipes that I will return to year after year. And so, in the name of research, I present 2 keepers and one that needs work.

Banana Oatmeal Pancakes
adapted from Joy the Baker's Oatmeal Cookie Pancakes

• 1 egg, beaten
  
• 1 c. buttermilk
• 28g. (2 T.) melted butter, cooled
• 1/4 t. vanilla extract
• 3/4 c. flour (I used wheat-white combo)
  
• 1 T. baking powder
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4. t. cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1 T. brown sugar
  
• 1/4 c. old fashioned oats
• 1 banana, sliced
  

Mix together eggs, buttermilk, cooled melted butter and vanilla. Add flour, bp, bs, salt, spices, sugar and oats. You can fold in banana now or add later. Coat pan with cooking spray and heat over medium heat before adding batter - 2 T. per pancake. I like to add the banana slices into the cooking pancake. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side. The batter is very oatmeal cookie-ish! This makes plenty of pancakes for 2 hungry eaters.


Banana Strawberry Muffins
from The Joy of Baking

• 113 g. (1 stick) melted butter
• 3/4 c. light brown sugar
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 2 large bananas, mashed
• 1 c. fresh strawberries, sliced into bite sized pieces
• 2 1/4 c. flour (I used wheat-white combo)
  
• 1 1/2 t. baking powder
• 1/4 t. baking soda
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/2 t. salt

Whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, vanilla extract and mashed banana. Stir in melted butter until combined.

In a separate bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Gently fold in the berries, making sure they are coated with flour. This helps to prevent the berries from sinking during baking. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and stir only until the ingredients are just combined. Do not overmix the batter or tough muffins will result. Bake at 180C (350F) for 20-25 minutes.

This recipe is brilliant, the muffins were delicious!

Strawberry Chocolate Chip Muffins
from Recipe Lover

• 1 1/2 c. strawberries
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 2 c. flour
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 t. salt
• 3/4 c. plain yogurt (or buttermilk, or sour cream)
• 1 egg
• About 50g. (3/4 T.) melted butter
• 1/2 c. chocolate chips

Combine strawberries and sugar and let sit for at least an hour so that the juices come out. Combine flour, bs, bp, and salt. Strain liquid from strawberries and mix well with cooled melted butter, egg, and yogurt. Stir into flour mixture. Add strawberries and chocolate. Bake at 200C (400F) for 20-30 minutes.

These didn't turn out so hot for me. Maybe the wheat flour overshadowed the strawberry flavor or maybe it's because I used buttermilk instead of yogurt. But these didn't seem sweet enough and were a little rubbery. Gotta tweak this one.

Well, that's a few for the recipe file!