Snickerdoodles
March 3, 2015
Margaux says..
It’s really difficult for me to get requests for foods or treats out of my husband, except for when it comes to cookies. He loves cookies. If I baked cookies once a week, he would be a happy man. And his taste is simple: chocolate chip is his favorite, and any other simple cookie like unfrosted sugar cookies, chocolate cookies, oatmeal cookies, and snickerdoodles.
Snickerdoodles remind me of my childhood…both my aunt and my grandma made them on a regular basis. The flavor is like cinnamon toast, all buttery and cinnamony, a perfect treat on a dreary winter day.
I love the texture of snickerdoodles…chewy in the center, slightly crispy on the edges. This recipe gives you that perfect texture. I’ve tried tons of different recipes for them, and sometimes they turn out a little too cakey, and sometimes a little too crispy. The Martha Stewart recipe is a winner. And they require very few ingredients, which most people have on hand, so they are the perfect spontaneous baking project!
Snickerdoodles
adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cookies
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups plus 2 tbsp sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift together flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. Put butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Mix in eggs. Reduce speed to low; gradually mix in flour mixture.
Stir together cinnamon and remaining 2 tbsp sugar in a small bowl. Shape dough into twenty 1 3/4-inch balls; roll in cinnamon sugar. Space 3 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Bake cookies, rotating sheets halfway through, until edges are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Cookies can be stored between layers of parchment in airtight containers at room temperature for up to 3 days.
Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
November 21, 2014
Margaux says…
Oatmeal, coconut and chocolate chip really doesn’t adequately describe these cookies. It’s more like: Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate Chip Browned Butter Almond and Craisin Cookies. But that’s too hard to remember. These cookies are jam packed with yummy goodies, and I LOVE cookies with everything but the kitchen sink in them. These are exceptional, and I think it’s the coconut. So, if you’re like me, and love coconut and chocolate together, you should give these a try. My Aunt Cindy emailed me this recipe last spring, and I have made them several times.
The original recipe didn’t call for browned butter, but after making cookies with browned butter in them, I’m always willing to go the extra mile. It really enhances the flavor! These cookies have so much in them, that I don’t feel bad grabbing one for breakfast even. Protein, fiber, carbs, vitamin C…it has it all. Right? 😉
Oatmeal, Coconut and Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes about 24 large cookies
Ingredients
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
6 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups packaged finely shredded unsweetened coconut (see note below)*
12 oz semisweet chocolate chips or chocolate chunks
3/4 cup almonds with skins (4 oz), toasted, cooled, and chopped
1/2 cup chopped dried cranberries or raisins
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Brown the butter: In a large saucepan (preferably light in color so that you can see when the butter browns so that it doesn’t burn), melt one and a half sticks of the butter on high heat. When it’s just melted, start swirling the pan around on the burner, until you see the butter starting to brown on the bottom of the pan (it will appear as little brown bits on the bottom). Remove from the heat, and put the remaining half stick of butter in the pan and swirl around until completely melted. Set aside to allow to cool slightly.
Beat together butter and sugars in a bowl with an electric mixer at medium
speed (or beat by hand with a wire whisk). Add eggs and beat until just blended, about 30 seconds. Let sit for one minute, then beat for 30 more seconds. Then beat in vanilla, baking soda, and salt. Add flour and mix at low speed until just blended (or carefully stir in by hand with a wooden spoon). Stir in oats, coconut, chocolate, nuts and dried fruit.
Arrange 1/4-cup mounds of cookie dough about 3 inches apart on large cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (or greased) (about 8 cookies per sheet). Pat down cookie dough slightly so that it’s about 1/2 inch thick. Bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position and rotating pans halfway through baking, until golden, 12 to 15 minutes total (it should still look just slightly underdone in the center).
Cool cookies on sheets 1 minute, then transfer with a spatula to racks to cool completely. Make more cookies in same manner.
Cook’s notes: I have made these without the browned butter step, also, and they are still great. Just use room temperature butter, and beat it on high speed with the sugars until light in color and texture. I have also used pecans instead of almonds, and left out the craisins altogether, although I like the tartness of the craisins paired with the sweetness of the chocolate.
My Aunt Cindy just reminded me that these also can be made subbing half the butter for coconut oil! It gives a more intense coconut flavor. If you still want the browned butter, just brown one stick of butter, and then swirl in the coconut oil once the butter is browned.
*note on coconut: I have used both unsweetened shredded and sweetened (the regular Baker’s shredded coconut found in the baking aisle). The unsweetened is preferable, but in a pinch you can use sweetened. It makes the cookies MUCH more sweet, and I feel like the coconut flavor is lost a little because of that. So maybe decrease the sugar a bit and use only a tablespoon or two of the granulated.
I love these warm, and highly recommend microwaving them for 20 seconds or so before eating them (or just eating them right off the pan!).
Blueberry-Strawberry Shortcake
September 1, 2014
Aunt Suzy says . . .
This weekend I signed up to bring dessert to a get-together with friends. I wanted to make peach pie, but couldn’t find ripe peaches. I remembered it’s the height of blueberry season and one of our farmers grows “everbearing” strawberries, so both were in the market at the same time. I searched the web for some ideas and came across an unusual approach I’d never tried – cooking some of the fruit into a compote and serving the shortcakes with a combination of cooked and fresh fruit. I had some trepidation about this, but thought what the heck! It was declared delicious by all, both with and without whipped cream! (I think this could be made with just blueberries, just strawberries, or a combo of blueberries and peaches as well.)
The Shortcake
We recommend one of two recipes for the shortcake base. One uses butter and cream and one is the Joy of Cooking’s classic cream scones which I like to use when in a hurry – only 4 ingredients, plus heavy cream! Or use your favorite shortcake, biscuit or pound cake.
The Fruit
6 cups total fruit, mixed blueberries and strawberries
4 tablespoons total sugar
juice of 1/2 lime
Make the compote: Place 4 cups fruit (I used 2 cups blueberries and 2 cups strawberries, sliced in half) in a medium saucepan with 3 tablespoons of sugar and the lime juice. Stirring constantly, bring to a low bubble over medium heat, then simmer for 3-4 minutes until fruit is a little soft and juice is slightly thickened. Take off the heat, turn into a bowl and set aside to cool.
Prepare the fresh fruit: Place 2 cups fruit (I used 1 cup each blueberries and sliced strawberries) in a bowl with 1 tablespoon sugar. Let sit at least 30 minutes to macerate.
Final Assembly
Make whipped cream by beating 3/4 cup heavy cream with a mixer on high speed. Just before it’s completely whipped (soft peaks) add 1 tablespoon sugar and whip to moderately stiff peaks. Don’t forget you’re not making butter! Or buy your favorite pre-made whipped cream if you’d like. We won’t tell :-).
Split the shortcakes horizontally. Spoon compote on top of the bottom, top with fresh fruit and then with whipped cream. Place top half of the shortcake on to of the prepared shortcake at an angle. I’m looking at our photo – we were in too big of a hurry to eat this to arrange it all per instructions!
Aunt Judy’s Lemon Creme Sherbet
August 12, 2014
Margaux says…
My aunt Judy lives in North Carolina, and my mom and I went to visit her several times through my childhood. One of the times we were there, I’m thinking when I was in junior high, she served this homemade lemon ice cream. That lemon ice cream stuck in my mind for YEARS…it was SO GOOD. Then on one of our more recent visits, she made it again, without me even suggesting it, and it was exactly as I had remembered. Creamy and tart, and so, so good. But I didn’t have an ice cream maker, so I wasn’t able to make it myself. I’ve always wanted an ice cream maker, though, with this ice cream in mind as one of the first things to make.
Well, this spring I found an ice cream maker at a thrift store…a vintage 1970’s Master Chef. And it works perfectly. I made vanilla ice cream first, just as a test run, and to serve with a chocolate cake I made. But I was dying to make the lemon ice cream. I emailed Aunt Judy for the recipe, and she sent it, along with it’s origins.
She first tasted the lemon ice cream at Maldaner’s Restaurant in Springfield, IL, when my Aunt Annie took her there when she was a teenager. Back then, they called it Lemon Creme Sherbet, and they claim it is based on a recipe from Mary Todd Lincoln. It obviously had the same influence on Judy as it did me, because she went home and tried to recreate it! She says this recipe has the same flavor and texture as the restaurant’s, as far as she can recollect. Now I kind of want to make a trip down to Springfield to check this place out, and taste the sherbet for myself!
I also thought this was really good in an old-fashioned ice cream soda! When I was a kid, whenever my dad took me to Dairy Queen, I would order an old-fashioned chocolate ice cream soda. It was my absolute favorite. They took it off the menu when I was a teenager, and I rarely see them on menus at ice cream shops. They should make a comeback, because they’re really good. My dad said that when he was a kid, there was an ice cream soda stand in Peoria, IL, that had every flavor you could imagine. I had some lemon flavored La Croix on hand, so I thought it would be fun to try a lemon ice cream soda. I’m sure it’s supposed to have lemon syrup in it as well, but to me this was perfect. Not to sweet, nice and tart and creamy, and the soda makes the best ice crystals with the ice cream. Just pour some soda water over ice cream and you’re set! Of course, I added some whipped cream, too.
Lemon Creme Sherbet
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 1/3 c. sugar
4 tsp. flour
1 1/3 c. half and half
1/3 c. milk
1/8 tsp. salt
****************************************
1⁄2 c. milk
1⁄2 c. lemon juice
1 1⁄2 tsp. grated lemon rind
Beat egg and yolk in medium bowl until fluffy. Set aside. Mix next five ingredients in heavy saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly till mixture thickens (10 – 15 min).
Slowly add small amount of hot mixture to eggs whisking thoroughly. Return this mixture to pan. Cook and stir 1 additional minute. Chill.
Add remaining milk and lemon juice. Mixture will be curdly. Process in ice cream maker, folding in lemon rind just before packing to freeze.
Cherry-Cream Cheese Hand Pies
July 25, 2014
Margaux says…
I was at the farmer’s market yesterday and saw that sour cherries are still available around here. I was surprised, because I know that sour cherries are only available for a short while…and we picked ours a month ago! But of course I wasn’t thinking about the fact that there are a few different varieties of them, and the ones available now are a darker red shade, but still just as sour. So, I wasn’t going to post this recipe because I thought the season was over, but we’re in luck around here! Grab some this weekend and bake these…I promise you won’t be sorry. The crust is heavenly, and I love hand pies because the crust to filling ratio is perfect. And these are a perfect dessert to bring to your friend’s BBQ! No serving hassle at all…just put them on a plate and watch them disappear.
Sour Cherry-Cream Cheese Hand Pies
adapted from a Smitten Kitchen recipe for rhubarb cream cheese hand pies
The Crust:
3 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons table salt
1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, very cold and cut into small cubes
3/4 to 1 cup buttermilk
Whisk together flour, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Using a pastry blender, two forks, or your fingertips, work the butter into the flour until the biggest pieces of butter are the size of tiny peas. Gently stir in 3/4 cup buttermilk with a rubber spatula, mixing it until a craggy mass forms. Using your hands, knead it just two or three times to form a ball. If it doesn’t come together, add remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it does, then gently knead again. Divide dough in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and flatten into a disc. Chill in fridge for at least an hour or up to two days or slip plastic-wrapped dough into a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months.
The Cherry Filling:
1 lb. pitted sour cherries (about 4 cups)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp instant tapioca
Place cherries and sugar in a medium saucepan with sugar and tapioca and stir to combine. Cover and cook at medium-low heat for 15 minutes, no need to stir. Increase the heat to medium, remove the lid and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes, until thick enough that if you run a spoon across the bottom of the pot, you can see a trench quickly form and disappear. Spread mixture on a large plate in the fridge or freezer to cool quickly, then scrape into a bowl. Keep cold until needed; it will be thicker and easier to “scoop” onto the pie bases.
The Cream Cheese Filling:
4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 large egg yolk
Beat cream cheese, sugar, zest, juice and yolk together in a small bowl with an electric hand mixer until smooth. Keep cold until needed.
Assembly:
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water
Coarse sugar
Heat oven to 400 degrees. Line two to three baking sheets with parchment paper. Beat your remaining egg and 1 tablespoon water and keep aside with a pastry brush.
Dust your counter or pastry mat with a lot of flour, unwrap the first half of your dough and start rolling your dough by pressing down lightly with the floured pin and moving it from the center out. Be patient about rolling, don’t press too hard, and it won’t crack as easily. Roll until 1/8″ thick. I cut mine into circles using a 3″ biscuit cutter, but you can also cut into 3″ squares using a pizza wheel or pastry cutter. You won’t have as much dough scraps left if you cut into squares, but I really wanted rounds. If doing rounds, you’ll have quite a bit of scraps, which you can form back into a ball, refrigerate for 30 minutes, and then re-roll and cut some more. It will make for slightly tougher crust on those, but I didn’t think it made that big of a difference. If your dough becomes soft, slide onto baking sheets and freeze for 15 minutes. It will make it easier to assemble.
Brush half the squares very, very lightly with the egg wash; these will be your bases. Cut a small vent in the other half of the squares; these will be your lids. In the center of each egg washed square, put a small dollop (a measured teaspoon) of cream cheese, then cherry filling on top. Don’t overfill! Top each filled base with a vented square. Press outer edge of top and bottom all around to seal with your fingertips or a fork. Transfer pie to a baking sheet, spacing 1-inch apart. Brush the tops with egg wash and sprinkle generously with coarse sugar. Repeat with remaining dough, including second half from fridge, and fillings (you will probably have some fillings left over…you can do what I did and re-roll the remaining scraps a third time and make a tiny little pie for someone who won’t mind tough pie crust, like my son. 🙂 )
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, until puffed and golden, and even more brown at edges. Transfer to cooling racks and cool to room temperature before serving.
Sour Cherry Pie
July 20, 2014
Margaux says…
My family farm has a couple of cherry trees, and this year we just happened to be in town (its 2.5 hours south of Chicago) when they were ready to pick! We picked as many as we could in 20 minutes, and got just enough for a pie and some hand pies I made a week later. Last year we got lucky with cherries, too, and I made this slab pie, which is also fantastic. It’s always hard to decide what kind of dessert to make when you only get cherries once a year. Next year, I vow to spend more than 20 minutes picking cherries (someone will have to entertain the children!), so that we have enough to freeze for later. Then I can make a pie, a slab pie, this sour cherry crumble pie that Aunt Suzy posted about years ago, and this cake that looks really good.
I found this recipe while reading a Smitten Kitchen blog about a strawberry rhubarb pie recipe that I used recently. The idea is that you bake the crust before baking the pie, so that the bottom crust isn’t soggy. I like that idea. It’s what I do with my single crust baked pies, like peach and custard pies, so why wouldn’t I do it with cherry? The results were just as I wanted…no soggy bottom crust. Instead it was nice and crisp, buttery and delicious. Instead of a traditional lattice top, I used a round cookie cutter to make a decorated top. I could have layered them and added more, because I didn’t think about the fact that they would shrink during baking. So I recommend putting more on than you think are needed.
Twice-Baked Sour Cherry Pie
adapted from Melissa Clark’s recipe in The New York Times
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, more for rolling out dough
3/8 teaspoon kosher salt
15 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
1 cup sugar
2 to 3 tablespoons instant tapioca
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2 pounds sour cherries (about 6 cups), rinsed and pitted
1 tablespoon kirsch or brandy
3 tablespoons heavy cream, or 1 egg yolk lightly whisked with 1 tbsp water
Demerara sugar, for sprinkling.
1. To make dough: in bowl of a food processor pulse together flour and salt just to combine. Add butter and pulse until chickpea-size pieces form. Add 3 to 6 tablespoons ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, and pulse until mixture just comes together. Separate dough into 2 disks, one using 2/3 dough, the other using the remaining. Wrap disks in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour (and up to 3 days) before rolling out and baking.
2. Heat oven to 425 degrees. Place larger dough disk on a lightly floured surface and roll into a 12-inch circle, about 3/8-inch thick. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Line dough with foil and weigh it down with pie weights. Bake until crust is light golden brown, about 30 minutes.
3. While pie crust is baking, prepare filling. In bowl of a food processor, combine sugar, tapioca and cinnamon (use more tapioca if you prefer a thicker, more solid filling, and less if you like a looser, juicier filling). Run the motor until tapioca is finely ground. Place cherries in a bowl and add sugar and tapioca mixture. Drizzle in kirsch or brandy and toss gently to combine.
4. When pie crust is ready, transfer it to a wire rack to cool slightly and reduce heat to 375 degrees. Remove foil and weights. Scrape cherry filling into pie crust.
5. Place smaller disk of dough on a lightly floured surface and roll it 3/8-inch thick. Use a round cookie cutter (or several round cookie cutters of different sizes) to cut out circles of dough. Arrange circles on top of cherry filling in a pattern of your choice.
6. Brush top crust with cream or egg wash and sprinkle generously with Demerara sugar (as you can see in photos, I forgot my sugar. Oops.) Bake until crust is dark golden brown and filling begins to bubble, 50 minutes to 1 hour. Transfer pie to a wire rack to cool for at least 2 hours, allowing filling to set before serving.
Coconut Cream Pie
May 31, 2014
Margaux says…
We really love coconut around here. It seems like every other yummy treat I make has coconut in it. Last week I made coconut almond granola (just tweaking my original granola recipe a bit, taking out cashews and maple flavoring and adding coconut extract and slivered almonds), and coconut cream pie. Whenever I make a quiche, which is what we had for dinner last Thursday, I make a full recipe of pie dough and save the other half for a single crust pie. I can’t believe this is the first time I’ve made coconut cream pie…it’s one of my favorites! This recipe is simple, classic, and delicious.
Coconut Cream Pie
adapted from Joy of Cooking
Prepare a baked 9″ pie crust. My favorite recipe is this.
Prepare the coconut: Spread 1 1/3 cups shredded sweetened dried coconut in a 9″ cake pan and toast, stirring occasionally, in a 300 degree oven until golden brown, 20-30 minutes. Set aside.
The filling:
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups milk
5 large egg yolks
3 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/2 tbsp vanilla
1/2 tbsp pure coconut extract
Whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and salt in a medium heavy bottomed saucepan. Gradually whisk in the milk. Vigorously whisk in the egg yolks until no yellow streaks remain. Place over medium heat and bring to a bare simmer, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon or rubber spatula. Remove from the heat, scrape the corners of the saucepan with the spoon or spatula, and whisk until smooth. Return to the heat and, whisking constnatly, bring to a simmer again and cook for 1 minute. Off the heat, whisk in the butter, vanilla and coconut until the butter is melted and completely incorporated. Stir in all but a few tablespoons of the coconut (set the rest aside for later), and then spoon the filling into the prepared pie crust. Press a sheet of plastic wrap directly on the surface and cool to room temperature. Move the pie to the refrigerator and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
Meanwhile, make the whipped topping:
Beat 1 cup whipping cream and 1 tsp coconut extract on high speed in a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, adding sugar to taste as it’s beating, until stiff peaks form (I like my whipped cream on the less sweet side, so I only add about 1-2 tbsp sugar).
Top the cold pie with whipped cream, and then top the whipped cream with the reserved toasted coconut. Serve immediately. It will keep, sealed with plastic wrap and refrigerated, for a couple of days.
Coconut Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
March 2, 2014
Margaux says…
Like I said before, January and February are the official Birthday Months around here. I crank out cakes and cupcakes every other day, it seems, which is great for me because I get to try out all the recipes I pin on Pinterest but don’t have to eat it all and gain a million pounds. Cupcakes are especially fun because we can keep a few for ourselves to taste test.
I’ve posted about coconut cupcakes before, and I still stand by that amazingly delicious recipe that is like sweet cake from the gods. That frosting recipe is seriously out of this world. But I also love this recipe. I love the combo of vanilla and coconut, and this frosting is also pretty darn good. I found this recipe on Epicurious a few years ago, made them a few times, then forgot about it and rediscovered it last month. I will definitely be making these again!
Coconut Vanilla Bean Cupcakes
Reduced coconut milk:
2 13-to 14-ounce cans unsweetened coconut milk
Cupcakes:
2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/3 cups sugar
3 large eggs
Seeds scraped from 1 split vanilla bean or 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup reduced coconut milk (see above), room temperature
Frosting:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup reduced coconut milk (see above), room temperature
Seeds scraped from 1 split vanilla bean or 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut, lightly toasted (for garnish)
For reduced coconut milk:
Bring coconut milk to boil in large deep saucepan over medium-high heat (coconut milk will boil up high in pan). Reduce heat to medium-low; boil until reduced to 1 1/2 cups, stirring occasionally, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove from heat; cool completely. Transfer to small bowl. Cover; chill (coconut milk will settle slightly as it cools). DO AHEAD: This should be made at least 8 hours ahead so that it can settle. Can be made up to 2 days ahead. Keep chilled.
For cupcakes:
Position rack in center of oven; preheat to 350°F. Line eighteen 1/3-cup muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add sugar; beat on medium-high speed until well blended, about 2 minutes. Add 2 eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition and occasionally scraping down sides of bowl. Beat in seeds from vanilla bean and remaining egg. Add half of flour mixture; mix on low speed just until blended. Add 1 cup reduced coconut milk; mix just until blended. Add remaining flour mixture; mix on low speed just until blended. Divide batter among muffin cups. Bake cupcakes until tops spring back when gently touched and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Transfer cupcakes in pans to rack; cool 10 minutes. Carefully remove cupcakes from pans and cool completely on rack.
For frosting:
Using electric mixer, beat butter in large bowl until smooth. Add sugar, 1/3 cup reduced coconut milk, seeds from vanilla bean, and salt. Beat on medium-low speed until blended, scraping down sides of bowl. Increase to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy.
Using pastry bag fitted with large star tip, pipe frosting onto cooled cupcakes. (Alternatively, top each cupcake with 2 tablespoons frosting. Using small offset spatula, swirl frosting over top of cupcakes, leaving 1/2-inch plain border.) Sprinkle with coconut. DO AHEAD: Can be made 1 day ahead. Store in airtight containers; chill. Bring to room temperature before serving.
Fluffy Yellow Cupcakes with Milk Chocolate Frosting
February 18, 2014
Margaux says…
It’s cake season around here…we have several birthdays in January and February in our family, so I’m basically making cake after cake for about two months. This is one of my favorite cake recipes…I typically make it as a 9″ layer cake, but my sister-in-law wanted cupcakes for her birthday party, and they turned out really great. I’ve posted about the frosting before, on a similar cake that I’ve made often, and also love, but since I discovered this Cook’s Illustrated version I may just make this one from now on whenever I’m wanting a yellow cake. Because of science-y Cook’s Illustrated details, this cake is fluffier and has a finer crumb. And the frosting is silky and delicious…you have to try it!
Fluffy Yellow Cupcakes with Milk Chocolate Frosting
from Cook’s Illustrated
2 1/2 cups cake flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon table salt
1 3/4 cups sugar (12 1/4 ounces)
10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 large egg yolks, room temperature
3 large egg whites, room temperature
1. Adjust oven rack to middle and heat to 350 degrees. Place 27 cupcake liners into cupcake tins (or grease two 9″ round cake pans and line with parchment paper, then grease and flour). Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and 1 1/2 cup sugar in a large bowl. In 4 cup liquid measuring cup or medium bowl, whisk together melted butter, buttermilk, oil, vanilla and yolks.
2. In clean bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites at medium-high speed until foamy, about 30 seconds. With machine running, gradually add remaining 1/4 cup sugar, continue to beat until stiff peaks form, about a minute or so. Transfer to another bowl and set aside.
3. Add flour mixture to now-empty mixing bowl fitted with a whisk attachment. With mixer running at low speed, gradually pour in butter mixture and mix until almost incorporated (a few streaks of dry flour will remain), about 15 seconds. Stop mixer and scrape whisk and sides of bowl. Return mixer to med-low speed and beat until smooth and fully incorporated, 10-15 seconds.
4. Using a rubber spatula, stir 1/3 of the whites into the batter to lighten, then add remaining whites and gently fold into batter until no white streaks remain. Fill each cupcake liner evenly, about 3/4 full.
5. Bake until toothpick comes out clean, about 17-19 minutes. Let cool on rack in pans for 10 minutes, then remove from pans and cool completely. Frost with milk chocolate frosting.
Milk Chocolate Frosting
While cakes are cooling, prepare frosting.
20 tbsp butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
3/4 cup dutch processed cocoa powder
pinch table salt
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla
8 oz. high quality milk chocolate, like Ghiradelli, melted and cooled slightly
In a food processor, process butter, sugar, cocoa, and salt until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed, about 30 seconds. Add corn syrup and vanilla and process until just combined, 5-10 seconds. Scrape sides of the bowl, then add chocolate and pulse until smooth and creamy, about 10-15 times.
Fill a pastry bag with frosting and either cut the tip off so that there’s about a 1/2″ round opening, or fit with a piping tip. Swirl frosting generously on cupcakes. Eat and be happy!
Best Pumpkin Pie
November 26, 2013
Margaux says…
Pumpkin pie is one of my favorite pies, and we have them at our house more than just for Thanksgiving. I like to use Joy of Cooking’s recipe, which yields a crispy, flaky crust, and custardy, delicious filling that’s not grainy or soggy. The key is the blind-baked crust, which is pre-baking your pie crust lined with foil and pie weights. I like to do this with all of my one-crust pies, ever since I read about it in Joy. It really does produce superior results.
Aunt Suzy says . . .
I have made only a few pumpkin pies in my time. It seems for holiday gatherings, others make the pumpkin and I bake apple or pecan-sweet potato pie – like this Thanksgiving! And I usually follow Mom/Granny’s lead and use the recipe on the side of the can of pumpkin. 🙂 I’ve always been satisfied with the results, but then I’ve never had this version! One thing I will say is that I think pumpkin pie is best made with canned pumpkin. Every time I’ve had it with fresh pumpkin puree, it seems watery. How about you Margaux? What are your thoughts on fresh vs. canned pumpkin?
Margaux says…
I definitely ALWAYS use canned pumpkin. Not only does it seem watery with fresh, but often grainy and stringy. Yuck. It’s really not worth the extra step, because canned pumpkin is just that…pumpkin, no additives. You would have to have commercial grade equipment to get it the consistency that canned is, which is perfect for pies. I was happy to see that there was a little section about it in the November issue of Martha Stewart Living…their test kitchen came up with those same results.
Blind Baked Pie Crust
1/2 recipe pastry dough, like this one
1 egg yolk
salt
Roll out pie dough. Carefully place it in a 9″ pie plate, trim the edges leaving a 1″ hang over, fold it under and crimp. Place in freezer and freeze for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Take pie shell out of freezer and cut a large piece of aluminum foil. Place foil into pie plate, shiny side down, carefully pressing it into the corners and leaving a good amount hanging over the sides. Fill with pie weights, dried beans or rice (I keep dried beans on hand and use them over and over again). Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and carefully remove foil. Prick crust all over with fork and put in oven again for another 5 minutes or so, until the crust is golden. Meanwhile, beat egg yolk with a pinch of salt. When crust is done, brush with egg yolk all over and bake for another minute or two, until the glaze is set.
Pumpkin Pie Filling
A note about eggs in the recipe: If you like your pie more custardy, use 3 eggs. If you like a stronger pumpkin flavor and a denser filling, use only 2. I like to use 3.
2-3 eggs (see note above)
2 cups pumpkin puree
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 cups evaporated milk or half-and-half
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp salt
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Whisk eggs together in a large bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
While mixture is sitting for a few minutes, place foil around the fluted edges of the crust (or use an aluminum pie sheild…one of my favorite kitchen gadgets). Warm crust back up by placing it in the oven for 1-2 minutes, until it is hot to touch. Pour filling into the hot crust, place in oven and bake for 40-50 minutes, until center seems set but quivery, like gelatin, when you tap the side of the dish. Cool on a cooling rack to room temperature. Serve within one day, store in the refrigerator.
Whipped Cream
1 cup cold heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp sugar
Place all ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium high until soft peaks form, no longer. Serve dollops on slices of pie. Store remainder in refrigerator in airtight container. Whip with a wire whisk for 10-15 seconds when ready to use again.
Sweet & Savory Kitchens 