Pineapple Chicken Quesadillas with Strawberry Salsa

Posted on August 15, 2012 by sparecake

This weekend I cooked dinner with my father for the first time in… a long time? Ever? Hard to say. First time in a while, anyway. I was especially glad, then, that he seemed to really like what we made! The quesadillas felt light and summery, but were still quite filling. I normally try to avoid peppers in things, but here they worked.

Dad shredding chicken.

Ingredients:

Quesadillas:

  • 2 8 ounce cans of pineapple chunks, drained
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 vidalia onion, diced
  • 1 small poblano pepper, seeded and diced
  • 2 boneless, skinless grilled chicken breasts, shredded
  • 6 ounces monterey jack cheese, freshly grated
  • vegetable oil
  • 4 tortillas

Strawberry Salsa:

  • 1 medium tomato, chopped
  • 3/4 cup chopped strawberries
  • 1/4 red onion, finely diced
  • 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
  • juice from 1 lime
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Stir together all the salsa ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside. This’ll keep 2-3 days, so you can make it ahead of time.

Put a big splash of oil in a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Add the pineapple, salt, and cinnamon and stir well to coat the pineapple.

Continue cooking until the pineapple gets golden and caramelized, 6-8 minutes, then take the pineapple out of the pan, into a bowl.

Add another splash of oil to the skillet, then toss in the pepper and onion. Cook until the onions are browned and softened, then add to the bowl with the pineapple.

Grease the bottom of the skillet again, and reduce the heat to low. Lay a tortilla down and sprinkle with cheese. Add the pineapple mixture, half the chicken, and another sprinkle of cheese.

“Oh. Right. Guess this isn’t a ‘fold it in half type of deal…”

Top with another tortilla, and cook until the bottom one is golden. Flip carefully, and cook until the other side is golden as well.

Cook the remaining half of things, and serve with the strawberry salsa.

Perfect for a summer dinner on the porch!

Pineapple Chicken Quesadillas with Strawberry Salsa

Lightly adapted from How Sweet It Is.

Quesadillas:

  • 2 8 ounce cans of pineapple chunks, drained
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 vidalia onion, diced
  • 1 small poblano pepper, seeded and diced
  • 2 boneless, skinless grilled chicken breasts, shredded
  • 6 ounces monterey jack cheese, freshly grated
  • vegetable oil
  • 4 tortillas

Strawberry Salsa:

  • 1 medium tomato, chopped
  • 3/4 cup chopped strawberries
  • 1/4 red onion, finely diced
  • 1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
  • juice from 1 lime
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Stir together all the salsa ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.

Put a big splash of oil in a large skillet and heat over medium heat. Add the pineapple, salt, and cinnamon and stir well to coat the pineapple. Continue cooking until the pineapple gets golden and caramelized, 6-8 minutes, then take the pineapple out of the pan, into a bowl.

Add another splash of oil to the skillet, then toss in the pepper and onion. Cook until the onions are browned and softened, then add to the bowl with the pineapple.

Grease the bottom of the skillet again, and reduce the heat to low. Lay a tortilla down and sprinkle with cheese. Add the pineapple mixture, half the chicken, and another sprinkle of cheese. Top with another tortilla, and cook until the bottom one is golden. Flip carefully, and cook until the other side is golden as well.

Repeat with the remaining ingredients, and serve with the strawberry salsa.

Posted in Dinner | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Bacon Apple Hash

Posted on August 13, 2012 by sparecake

It’s pretty rare I have anything more than a bowl of cereal for breakfast, so when I do, it better be something good! (Even if we didn’t get around to eating this until lunch. Still…) This hash pretty much has it all – sweet, bit salty, crunchy… Everything you need! It also makes a bunch more than you’d expect out of those ingredients – I had considered doubling it, but was glad I didn’t as it’s a bunch already.

Ingredients:

  • 2 Russet potatoes, diced
  • 2 apples, peeled, cored and diced
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice mixed with roughly 1 cup water
  • 4 ounces bacon, cubed (I rounded up)
  • 2-3 tablespoons honey
  • salt and pepper, to taste

After chopping the apples, place them in the lemon water to prevent browning, and set aside.

Thanks for doing the cutting, mom!

It’s easiest to chop the bacon by just cutting it with scissors over the pan. Cook in a skillet over medium low heat until well browned. Remove the bacon, but leave a tablespoon or so of bacon grease in the pan.

Add the potatoes to the hot pan and turn the heat up to medium high. Cook until they start getting nicely browned, 8-10 minutes.

Add the apples (drain them first!) and bacon, plus a few shakes/cranks of salt and pepper. Stir it all together, and cook until it’s all equally hot, which should happen quite quickly.

Drizzle in the honey and stir together, then remove from the heat.

Farmers’ market is where you get the good stuff!

And you’re done! Easy enough! And quite tasty too.

Bacon Apple Hash

From Crunch Time Kitchen.

  • 2 Russet potatoes, diced
  • 2 apples, peeled, cored and diced
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice mixed with roughly 1 cup water
  • 4 ounces bacon, cubed (I rounded up)
  • 2-3 tablespoons honey
  • salt and pepper, to taste

After chopping the apples, place them in the lemon water to prevent browning, and set aside.

Cook the bacon in a skillet over medium low heat until well browned. Remove the bacon, but leave a tablespoon or so of bacon grease in the pan.

Add the potatoes to the hot pan and turn the heat up to medium high. Cook until they start getting nicely browned, 8-10 minutes. Drain and then add the apples and bacon, plus a few shakes/cranks of salt and pepper. Stir it all together, and cook until the apples are warmed. Drizzle in the honey and stir together, then remove from the heat and serve.

Posted in Brunch | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Lemon-Filled Meringue Shells

Posted on August 10, 2012 by sparecake

Wasn’t really sure what to call this, as the Wikipedia leads me to believe pavlova isn’t quite accurate… whatever they are, they’re a bit rough, looks-wise, but spot on, taste-wise.

Ingredients:

  • a double batch of lemon curd
  • 4 egg whites, room temperature
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla, divided
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Beat the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar on medium in a large bowl until soft peaks form. While that’s going, you have time to preheat the oven to 275 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Turn the speed up to high and slowly add the sugar, beating until the mixture is glossy, smooth, and holds stiff peaks. Beat in 1 teaspoon of the vanilla.

You could then spoon out 2-3″ nests of meringue, making a depression in the middle to fill, but I found this a pain. Maybe if you greased the back of a spoon to make the hollow? Anyways, I went with piping for most of them.

Transfer the egg mixture into a piping bag fitted with a wide tip. Starting from the center, draw a spiral outwards 2-3″ big, making sure that each circle touches the one inside it. Cover with a second layer of meringue, making a nice base.

Pipe a single ring of meringue around the outside of the base, then top with a second ring. It should stay standing fine if the egg whites were beaten until stiff.

Repeat with the rest of the meringue, making several more shells. If you have some meringue left and don’t feel like making any more shells, just put it in blobs on the sheet and bake with the rest – meringue cookies are really good!

A variety of messes…

Bake until golden around the edges, about an hour. Mine took a few minutes more.

Turn off the oven and wedge open the door with a wooden spoon or pot holder. Let cool completely in the oven.

When ready to eat, whip the cream until stiff. Beat in the vanilla and powdered sugar.

Fill the meringue shell with lemon curd, then top with whipped cream. Delightful! A pretty summery feeling dessert that won’t make you feel too heavy.

The meringue shells do look fairly shallow, but I think that made for the right proportions of meringue and lemon curd. Oy. This was good.

Lemon-Filled Meringue Shells

  • 1 1/2 cups lemon curd
  • 4 egg whites, room temperature
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla, divided
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 tablespoon powdered sugar

Beat the egg whites, salt, and cream of tartar on medium in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Turn the speed up to high and slowly add the sugar, beating until the mixture is glossy, smooth, and holds stiff peaks. Beat in 1 teaspoon of the vanilla. Transfer the egg mixture into a piping bag fitted with a wide tip. Starting from the center, draw a spiral outwards 2-3″ big, making sure that each circle touches the one inside it. Cover with a second layer of meringue. Pipe a single ring of meringue around the outside of the base, then top with a second ring. Repeat with the rest of the meringue, making several more shells.

Bake until golden around the edges, about an hour. Turn off the oven and wedge open the door with a wooden spoon or pot holder. Let cool completely in the oven.

When ready to eat, whip the cream until stiff. Beat in the vanilla and powdered sugar. Fill the meringue shells with lemon curd and top with whipped cream.

Posted in Dessert | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

Posted on August 8, 2012 by sparecake

Right, so, the cookies I meant to make last week! They were, as expected, really good, although I think if I make them again I might try swapping out some of the butter for even more cream cheese? We’ll see. Either way, still very worth eating. The floor hockey team (those of us who weren’t too hot to eat) thought they were really good.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
  • 1 cup Oreo cookie crumbs (a bit less than 1/3 of a package, crushed)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line two sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth again.

Add the flour and beat on low speed until incorporated.

Stir in the chocolate chips with a spoon or spatula.

Scoop the dough into small balls.

I later got my lip caught in that scoop…

Roll in the Oreo crumbs.

Place on the lined sheets.

Bake 12-15 minutes, rotating once in the middle, until golden at the edges.

Delicious! They’re not quite as soft as I pictured, which isn’t a bad thing, just…letting you know. They’re firm, but not super crunchy, cookies. I like them.

Oreo Cheesecake Cookies

From Brown Eyed Baker.

  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
  • 1 cup Oreo cookie crumbs (a bit less than 1/3 of a package, crushed)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line two sheets with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the sugar and vanilla and beat until smooth again. Add the flour and beat on low speed until incorporated. Stir in the chocolate chips with a spoon or spatula.

Scoop the dough into small balls and roll in the Oreo crumbs. Place on the lined sheets and bake 12-15 minutes, rotating once in the middle, until golden at the edges.

Posted in Dessert | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

Posted on August 6, 2012 by sparecake

Last Monday I decided to go to New York that Thursday to see Simon Amstell (some NSFW bits). Tuesday I bought some ingredients for oreo cheesecake cookies, but Wednesday I found out Simon’d gone vegan a year or two ago, so readjusted and made these Thursday morning before heading to the bus down to NY. TL/DNR: These cookies are vegan and can be made fast.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • cinnamon, to taste
  • handful vegan chocolate chips (good quality semi-sweet and most dark chocolates should be vegan, check the ingredient list)
  • 1 cup raw sugar
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and chocolate chips. Stir together, then make a well in the center. I never measure the chocolate or cinnamon, just do a few shakes of cinnamon and a big heap of chocolate. It always ends up being the very most chocolate that the dough can handle, but…fine by me!

About that much chocolate…

And a few dashes of cinnamon…

Then make a well.

In a medium bowl, stir the sugar into the oil. Add the vanilla and water and stir to combine.

Pour the liquid mixture into the dry, and stir together until just combined, so you no longer see any dry flour.

If you need a bit more chocolate, add it now! Roll the dough into balls and place on ungreased baking sheets.

I forgot that these cookies don’t spread AT ALL, so there’s not a lot of need to space them out. If you want cookie-shaped cookies, rather than balls, gently flatten each ball with the palm of your hand. Bake 9 minutes, rotating halfway through. It’s ok if they seem slightly underdone, as they firm up while cooling.

Should have flattened them!

Let cool several minutes on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. I brought mine to NY, and Simon said it was the first time anyone had ever brought him cookies. Yay!

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies

From VegWeb.

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • cinnamon, to taste
  • handful vegan chocolate chips
  • 1 cup raw sugar
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 cup water

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and chocolate chips. Stir together, then make a well in the center.

In a medium bowl, stir the sugar into the oil. Add the vanilla and water and stir to combine. Pour the liquid mixture into the dry, and stir together until just combined. Roll the dough into balls and place on ungreased baking sheets. Gently flatten each ball with your palm.

Bake 9 minutes, rotating halfway through. Let cool several minutes on the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely

Posted in Dessert | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Super Chocolatey Cookies

Posted on August 3, 2012 by sparecake

Man, the internet on the bus I spent all morning on wanted nothing to do with wordpress, making it awful difficult to get on and share this recipe.  Annoying, as it’s a good one!

These are probably the chocolate-iest cookies I’ve ever had, which won’t surprise you when you see the ingredient list. If you like chocolate, these are the ones for you!

Ingredients:

  • 1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
  • 3 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease two baking sheets and set aside. Melt 1 cup of the chocolate chips in the microwave and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Gradually beat in 1 cup of the powdered sugar. Continue beating until it looks like fluff. (Yay!)

In a medium bowl, combine another cup of the powdered sugar with the cocoa, cornstarch, and salt. Because both cocoa and powdered sugar can be clumpy, it’s not a bad idea to actually sift here. I did, for once!

Beat the dry goods into the egg mixture on low speed until just combined. Stir in the chocolate, which should have cooled to near room temperature by now.

Stir in the remaining chocolate chips.

At this point, it’s looking way too gloopey to roll into balls. I actually turned around to yell something about it down the hall to my mother. By the time I’d turned back, though, it had started firming up into a workable dough.

Pour the remaining 1/2 cup of powdered sugar in a bowl or pie dish, and roll balls of the dough in the powdered sugar until well covered. Place on the greased pans.

Bake until puffed, and until there are visible cracks in the powdered sugar, about 10 minutes. Cool on the pans 10 minutes then transfer to a rack to finish cooling.

Super chocolatey, super delicious! My friend Danielle sent me the recipe for these 2 or 3 weeks ago. Going to see her tonight (…I’m writing this a day in advance!), but I’ve got different cookies for that. I’ll be sharing that recipe Monday! Cookies everywhere!

Deep Dark Chocolate Cookies

From Divine Baking.

  • 1 1/2 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
  • 3 large egg whites, room temperature
  • 2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, divided
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease two baking sheets and set aside. Melt 1 cup of the chocolate chips in the microwave and set aside.

In a large bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Gradually beat in 1 cup of the powdered sugar. Continue beating until it looks like fluff.

In a medium bowl, combine another cup of the powdered sugar with the cocoa, cornstarch, and salt.

Beat the dry goods into the egg mixture on low speed until just combined. Stir in the room temperature melted chocolate and the remaining chocolate chips. The dough will soon firm up, and become a rollable consistency.

Pour the remaining 1/2 cup of powdered sugar in a bowl or pie dish, and roll balls of the dough in the powdered sugar until well covered. Place on the greased pans. Bake until puffed, and until there are visible cracks in the powdered sugar, about 10 minutes. Cool on the pans 10 minutes then transfer to a rack to finish cooling.

Posted in Dessert | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Hot Chocolate Muffins

Posted on August 1, 2012 by sparecake

Weeeell these were pretty delicious. After the frozen hot chocolate recipe, why not hot chocolate in muffin form? They both have fluff, foodstuff of the gods!

This recipe makes 16 or 17 muffins. I don’t have 2 muffin tins, so I just also used a 10X10″ pan for the rest of the batter.

Ingredients:

Hot Chocolate Muffin:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 ounces powdered hot chocolate mix
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2  teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2  teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 4 ounces unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Marshmallow Cream Cheese Filling:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 cup marshmallow fluff
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease two muffin tins (or one and a 10X10″ pan). In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, hot chocolate powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl or large measuring cup, combine the butter, sour cream, and buttermilk.

In a large bowl, beat together the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed until the eggs become pale yellow, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat another 30 seconds.
Add half the flour mixture and beat on low until combined. Add the buttermilk mixture, and again beat until combined. Add the remaining flour and mix until just combined.

Stir in the chocolate chips, then spoon the batter into the muffin tins, filling halfway.

In a new or cleaned large bowl, beat the cream cheese and fluff on medium-high for 2 minutes, or until smooth. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the bowl and get any fluff blobs hiding down there. Add the remaining ingredients and beat another 2 minutes.

Spoon into a piping bag with a large tip, stick deep into the middle of the batter for a muffin, and squeeze until you see the cream cheese filling around the piping tip.

Repeat for the remaining muffins.

If you’ve used a square pan, just fill it roughly evenly with the cream cheese filling.

Bake 16-20 minutes (my muffins were done in 16, the bigger cake needed another 3). Test with a toothpick, being sure to test the chocolate part, not the filling.

These are nice! The cake part’s pretty light and fluffy, and the filling is moist and cream cheesy. And there’s lot of filling, too, at least if  you use it all up!

Hot Chocolate Muffins

A tiny bit adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody.

Hot Chocolate Muffin:

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 4 ounces powdered hot chocolate mix
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2  teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2  teaspoon salt
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 cup buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup sour cream
  • 4 ounces unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips

Marshmallow Cream Cheese Filling:

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
  • 1 cup marshmallow fluff
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease two muffin tins (or one and a 10X10″ pan). In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, hot chocolate powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In another bowl or large measuring cup, combine the butter, sour cream, and buttermilk.

In a large bowl, beat together the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed until the eggs become pale yellow, about 3 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat another 30 seconds. Add half the flour mixture and beat on low until combined. Add the buttermilk mixture, and again beat until combined. Add the remaining flour and mix until just combined. Stir in the chocolate chips, then spoon the batter into the muffin tins, filling halfway.

In a new or cleaned large bowl, beat the cream cheese and fluff on medium-high for 2 minutes, or until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and beat another 2 minutes. Spoon into a piping bag with a large tip, stick deep into the middle of the batter for a muffin, and squeeze until you see the cream cheese filling around the piping tip. Repeat for the remaining muffins.

Bake 16-20 minutes. Test with a toothpick, being sure to test the chocolate part, not the filling.

Posted in Dessert | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Green Onion and Cheese Bread

Posted on July 30, 2012 by sparecake

What to do when ‘your’ Olympian breaks your heart by not getting anywhere near gold? Bury those emotions under a warm comforting blanket of cheesy carbs! It’s what all the pros do, I’m pretty sure.

This bread uses King Arthur’s Vermont Cheese Powder, which for some reason only comes in 6 ounce packages, not the vat-sized amount I would like all at once… You can substitute more shredded cheese, but it won’t have as strong a flavor, and maybe not as light a texture either.

This recipe makes 2 loaves, which is good as only about a slice was left here of the first loaf 24 hours later…

Oh, and if you buy green onions for this and don’t use them all, just save the bottom, with the roots, and put it in a glass of water. They re-grow pretty indefinitely, and you can just keep cutting off what you need with scissors when you need it. May have learned that from Crunch Time Kitchen?

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups warm water
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup Vermont Cheese Powder
  • 6 cups bread flour
  • 1 tablespoon thinly sliced green onions, green part only
  • 3 tablespoons melted butter
  • 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for sprinkling

Stir together the water, sugar, and yeast in your mixer’s bowl and let sit until the yeast is activated and you can’t see the water anymore.

Stir in the salt, olive oil, and cheese powder. Don’t worry if you don’t get all the lumps evenly mixed in.

Add a cup of flour, and stir with the dough hook and the mixer on low. Continue adding flour, cup by cup, until the flour is all added and the dough is mostly in one lump.

Turn the mixer up to medium and beat 3-5 minutes, until well mixed and smooth. Keep an eye on it while it mixes – my mixer kept edging forward, trying to nosedive off the counter.

Grease a large bowl. Sprinkle the dough lightly with flour so that you can pick it up without getting stuck to it. Shape into a ball and place in the greased bowl, rolling so that it’s greased all over. Cover with plastic wrap and set somewhere warm to rise until doubled, about an hour.

Rose a ton, then deflated a ton.

Gently press the dough all over to deflate it. Divide in half, setting one half aside. Pat the other piece into a roughly 9X9″ square. Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with half the green onions and cheese.

Roll into a log, then put in a 9X5″ bread pan, pressing gently so that the dough reaches all four sides for the whole length of it. Brush with more butter, and sprinkle with more cheese.

Repeat with the other half of the dough, cover, and let rest until doubled, 30-40 minutes.

Silicone bread pan makes for weird shapes!

Preheat the oven to 350 and bake 30 minutes, or until well browned, and hollow sounding when tapped on the bottom.

Remove from the pans and cool on a wire rack.

It’s a bit hard to see, but there is a nice cheesy swirl through there!

I’m a big fan of then cutting slices, heaping on a bit more grated cheese, and toasting. Perfect breakfast!

Yum! I’ll be submitting this post to yeastspotting.

Green Onion and Cheese Bread

  • 2 cups warm water
  • 1/3 cup white sugar
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 cup Vermont Cheese Powder
  • 6 cups bread flour
  • 1 tablespoon thinly sliced green onions, green part only
  • 3 tablespoons melted butter
  • 1 cup grated parmesan cheese, plus more for sprinkling

Stir together the water, sugar, and yeast in your mixer’s bowl and let sit 5 or 10 minutes until creamy. Stir in the salt, olive oil, and cheese powder. Don’t worry if you don’t get all the lumps evenly mixed in. Add flour one cup at a time, stirring together with the dough hook on low speed, until all the flour is added and the dough holds together.Turn the mixer up to medium and knead 3-5 minutes, until well mixed and smooth.

Grease a large bowl. Sprinkle the dough lightly with flour and shape into a ball. Place in the greased bowl, rolling so that it’s greased all over. Cover with plastic wrap and set somewhere warm to rise until doubled, about an hour.

Gently press the dough all over to deflate it. Divide in half, setting one half aside. Pat the other piece into a roughly 9X9″ square. Brush with melted butter, then sprinkle with half the green onions and cheese. Roll into a log, then put in a 9X5″ bread pan, pressing gently so that the dough reaches all four sides for the whole length of it. Brush with more butter, and sprinkle with more cheese. Repeat with the other half of the dough, cover, and let rest until doubled, 30-40 minutes.Preheat the oven to 350 and bake 30 minutes, or until well browned, and hollow sounding when tapped on the bottom. Remove from the pans and cool on a wire rack.

Posted in Bread | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Lofthouse Cookie Bars

Posted on July 27, 2012 by sparecake

Most of you are probably familiar with the colorful temptress of the bakery section, Lofthouse cookies. They’re thick, cakey cookies with brightly colored frosting and sprinkles. They’re not everyone’s favorite kind of cookies, but if you do like them, you’ve probably had a late night or two where you ate a whole package, and later only said you regretted it to keep up appearances. This recipe is supposed to mimic them, but in bar form. I don’t think it’s a perfect match, but they definitely are delicious, cakey, and …could be colorful, if you could find the dang food coloring!

Ingredients:

Cookie Bars:

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Frosting:

  • 2 large egg whites
  • 4 ounces salted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup shortening, softened
  • 4 1/2 cups of powdered sugar.
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
  • food coloring and sprinkles, if desired

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray. I forgot the spray and they still came off pretty easily, but I bet it would help when you’re spreading the dough on in the first place.

Cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar.

Add the egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated.

Add the dry ingredients and beat on low until just combined.

Press the dough evenly into the lined pan. At first I thought that there wasn’t enough dough to cover the pan without gaps, but there was. I eventually resorted to just smooshing it around with my fingers, and it worked out. Bake 20 minutes until the edges begin to turn golden.

Cool completely before frosting. To make the frosting, first beat the egg whites. You don’t need to reach soft peaks or anything, just beat them for a minute or two, then add the butter and shortening and beat on high.

This looks awful!

Add half the powdered sugar and beat until creamy. Add the remaining powdered sugar, extracts, and coloring, and beat again until light and creamy.

Frost the cooled cookie bars and top with sprinkles.

If you let the frosting set for a few hours, you can cut them up and take them to travel. Say, to a floor hockey game that you’re going to win, 10-0?

Lofthouse Cookie Bars

Bars from Cookies and Cups, frosting from Cookie Madness.

Cookie Bars:

  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup butter, softened
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Frosting:

  • 2 large egg whites
  • 4 ounces salted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup shortening, softened
  • 4 1/2 cups of powdered sugar.
  • 3/4 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
  • food coloring and sprinkles, if desired

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a jelly roll pan with foil and spray lightly with cooking spray.

Cream the butter, cream cheese, and sugar. Add the egg and vanilla and mix until incorporated. Add the dry ingredients and beat on low until just combined. Press the dough evenly into the lined pan. Bake 20 minutes until the edges begin to turn golden. Cool completely before frosting.

To make the frosting, first beat the egg whites, then add the butter and shortening and beat on high. Add half the powdered sugar and beat until creamy. Add the remaining powdered sugar, extracts, and coloring, and beat again until light and creamy.

Frost the cooled cookie bars and top with sprinkles.

Posted in Dessert | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

American Sandwich Bread

Posted on July 25, 2012 by sparecake

A lot of the breads I make are ridiculous all day affairs, which is fine for me, as I am sort of underemployed. Not everyone has all the time in the world, though, so here’s a bread that, yeah, still takes a few hours, but you can do it in a morning and have it on the table at lunch. I know, because I did it this Sunday!

Ingredients:

  • 3 1/2 cups bread flour
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 cup warm milk
  • 1/3 cup warm water
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 1 package rapid-rise yeast

Adjust your oven rack to a low shelf and preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Once the oven’s reached 200, leave it on for 10 minutes and then turn it off.

Meanwhile, combine the flour and salt in the bowl of your stand mixer and attach the dough hook. Combine the remaining ingredients in a 1 quart measuring cup. (If you’re microwaving the measuring cup to heat the liquids/melt the butter, don’t put the yeast in until it’s done in the microwave.)

Turn the mixer on low and pour in the milk mixture slowly.

Beat on slow until the dough comes together. I stopped it and scraped at the bottom once or twice to get the flour off the bottom/sides. (The mixer probably would have gotten it eventually, but I was impatient.)

When the dough has come together, turn the speed up to medium and knead until smooth and satiny, about 10 minutes. Stop several times to scrape the dough off the dough hook and away from the sides of the bowl as needed. Having the mixer on medium may feel way too fast, but actually helps fling the dough off the hook so you don’t have to scrape it off as often. While it kneads, lightly grease a large bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly to form a smooth round ball. Place the ball in the greased bowl, rotating to coat the ball all over. Cover with saran wrap.

Place the bowl into the off, but warm, oven, and let rise until doubled, 40-50 minutes. Grease a 9X5″ bread pan.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press into a rectangle 1 cm thick and 9 inches long.

Roll the dough up into a 9″ long log, pressing to seal the seam. Place, seam-side down in the prepared bread pan, and press down gently to spread evenly so the dough reaches all four corners.

Cover once again with saran, and place somewhere warm to rise until doubled, 20-30 minutes. I put mine in the oven to start, but took it out when I needed to preheat the oven.

Preheat the oven to 350 and put a spare baking pan below, if you have room, or on the same low shelf as you’ll be putting the bread. Boil 2 cups of water.

When the bread has risen, put it in the oven and pour the two cups of water into the empty baking dish, being careful not to burn yourself with steam or spatters. Bake 40-50 minutes, until well browned, and hollow sounding when tapped on the bottom. Transfer to a wire rack and cool to room temperature.

I quite liked this bread. There’s just enough of a hint of the honey and butter, and a nice light texture. No surprise, then, that this also comes from my Cook’s Illustrated cookbook, as they’re brilliant. I’ll be submitting this one to yeastpotting.

Oh, and apparently what makes this “American” is something about having butter and milk, creating a more tender crumb than European breads.

American Sandwich Bread

From The Best Recipe by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated.

  • 3 1/2 cups bread flour
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 cup warm milk
  • 1/3 cup warm water
  • 2 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 3 tablespoons honey
  • 1 package rapid-rise yeast

Adjust your oven rack to a low shelf and preheat the oven to 200 degrees. Once the oven’s reached 200, leave it on for 10 minutes and then turn it off.

Meanwhile, combine the flour and salt in the bowl of your stand mixer and attach the dough hook. Combine the remaining ingredients in a 1 quart measuring cup.

Turn the mixer on low and pour in the milk mixture slowly. Beat on slow until the dough comes together then turn the speed up to medium and knead until smooth and satiny, about 10 minutes. Stop several times to scrape the dough off the dough hook and away from the sides of the bowl if necessary. While it kneads, lightly grease a large bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead briefly to form a smooth round ball. Place the ball in the greased bowl, rotating to coat the ball all over. Cover with saran wrap. Place the bowl into the warm but off oven, and let rise until doubled, 40-50 minutes.

Grease a 9X5″ bread pan.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and press into a rectangle 1 cm thick and 9 inches long. Roll the dough up into a 9″ long log, pressing to seal the seam. Place, seam-side down in the prepared bread pan, and press down gently to spread evenly so the dough reaches all four corners. Cover once again with saran, and place somewhere warm to rise until doubled, 20-30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 and put a spare baking pan below, if you have room, or on the same low shelf as you’ll be putting the bread. Boil 2 cups of water.

When the bread has risen, put it in the oven and pour the two cups of water into the empty baking dish, being careful not to burn yourself with steam or spatters. Bake 40-50 minutes, until well browned, and hollow sounding when tapped on the bottom. Transfer to a wire rack and cool to room temperature.

Posted in Bread | Tagged , | Leave a comment