Lemon Brownies from 100K Recipes

Lemon Brownies - made October 17, 2025 from 100K Recipes 

1 cup unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

zest of 1 lemon

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

Glaze

1 cup powdered sugar

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons lemon zest

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Add lemon zest and lemon juice, mixing to combine.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating on low speed after each addition until just combined.
5. Add flour and salt; mix on low speed until just combined.
6. Pour into prepared pan and smooth into an even layer. Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
7. In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, lemon juice and lemon zest, whisking until combined into a thin glaze. Cover hot cake with glaze and let cool.

This was a failure. Again, probably not the recipe but the recipe user. Once again, I should've baked it longer. This time, the toothpick test and the recipe guidelines failed me. I baked it for 35 minutes but turns out it still wasn't done. It was a little too mushy for me. The flavor was good so it wasn't a complete failure. But this needed longer in the oven. Also, I wouldn't recommend spreading the glaze while the "brownie" is still hot. The glaze just melts right in and adds to the gumminess of the bar. Actually, if this had been chocolate, the texture would've been perfect and considered fudgy. But since it was lemon, I didn't care for the gumminess. It would've been better had I baked it longer.

Snickerdoodle Pumpkin Bread from Middle East Sector

Snickerdoodle Pumpkin Bread - made October 13, 2025 from Middle East Sector

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

2 large eggs

1 cup pumpkin puree

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Cinnamon Sugar Topping

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 9 x 5 loaf pan with parchment paper and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.
4. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Mix in pumpkin puree and vanilla extract until combined.
5. Add dry ingredients in 2 additions, mixing on low speed after each addition, until just combined.
6. Pour half the batter into prepared loaf pan.
7. In a small bowl, combine topping ingredients, mixing until uniform. Sprinkle half the mixture over the batter in loaf pan and top with remaining batter. Sprinkle remaining topping in an even layer over batter. Gently swirl batter and topping with a butter knife, being careful not to overmix.
8. Bake 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool in pan for 10 minutes before gently removing from loaf pan, lifting up using sides of parchment paper. Remove parchment paper and let loaf cool completely.

If a quick bread could be both a success and a failure, I nailed it with this recipe. The success part is largely due to the original blog coming up with the recipe itself as the flavor was very good, successfully combining pumpkin and cinnamon sugar to tease the taste buds.

The failure part was mine and mine alone. I'm baking in a new kitchen with a new oven at a higher altitude than I've baked in in awhile. Although honestly, I'm not sure how much the altitude has to do with it as I've baked successfully and unsuccessfully, sometimes with the same freaking recipe, at this altitude over the past few weeks. Huh. But I still own the failure part of this as I didn't bake it long enough. Y'all know my dire fear of overbaking things and ending up with dry baked goods. So I tend to err on the side of underbaking. In the case of this quick bread, the recipe said to bake it for 50-60 minutes. At the 50-minute mark, there was still raw batter on the toothpick test. At 60 minutes, the crumbs still looked a little too moist for comfort. At 65 minutes, I started to break out in nervous hives that it had been there "too long" but the toothpick test and poking the soft center didn't make me feel confident it was done. So I compromised by turning off the oven but left the loaf in for another 5 minutes. That's 70 minutes total baking time if anyone's keeping track.

Alas, the bread was still too underbaked. The ends were okay enough but the middle was too gummy. I should've done what I always tell people; baking times in a recipe are just guidelines and vary depending on your oven (and altitude). Go by the toothpick test and, more importantly, your gut. I will have to try this recipe again to do it justice as the flavor really was good. Now I just need the texture to live up to it and bake it properly.

And, because I still struggle writing these blog posts as if we aren't in the middle of a fascist takeover of our country, I have to put in a plug for the No Kings rallies happening across the country tomorrow, October 18. If you can, please go, assemble peacefully, find your community, build solidarity and exercise your First Amendment rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. There are several rallies in my (new) area and the one I officially RSVP'd for asked us to wear yellow.  I don't normally wear yellow (doesn't suit my coloring) but as it happens, I have an oversized shirt I normally use as a sleep shirt that's bright yellow and says "I just want to bake stuff and watch Christmas movies all day". My shirt does not lie. But, despite my introvert preferences, I will still show up for my community and my country. Tomorrow at a rally and every day after however I can. 

Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Browned Butter Frosting from Dear Crissy

Pumpkin Sheet Cake with Browned Butter Frosting - made September 26, 2025 from Dear Crissy

1 15-ounce can pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

2 cups granulated sugar

1 cup vegetable oil

4 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

Frosting

1/2 cup unsalted butter

4 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 9 x 13 baking pan with foil and lightly spray with nonstick cooking spray. 
2. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; set aside.
3. In a mixing bowl, beat together pumpkin puree, granulated sugar and oil. Add the eggs and mix until well combined.
4. Add dry ingredients to the pumpkin mixture and beat until well combined. Pour into prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from oven and let cool.
5. Make the frosting: in a medium saucepan, melt butter and stir constantly until it foams, a nutty aroma arises and milk solid bits are browned. Remove from heat.
6. In a medium bowl, combine powdered sugar, milk and vanilla. Pour browned butter and beat until well combined. Pour into an even layer over cooled cake.

Just a quick write up as my life has taken a very busy turn that doesn't leave me much time for baking or blogging. The baking I've managed to fit in because I need baked goods for certain occasions but I haven't done much trying of new recipes and have stuck to tried and true ones instead.

And when I did try a new recipe like this one, I went with one that I was reasonably confident would turn out. Sheet cakes are easy to make and in general, turn out well. Such was the case with this recipe. It's fall and we've entered my favorite season of the year. Which means pumpkin. 

This turned out soft and fluffy/cakey. The brown butter frosting paired perfectly with the pumpkin flavor which also went well with the cinnamon. With the oil in the batter instead of butter, this is reminiscent of a carrot cake but without the effort of grating carrots. I liked this cake and baked it to share with several of my niece's friends. They liked it too as two of them asked for the recipe. I always maintain being asked for a recipe is the most sincere compliment someone can give. So make this cake and prepare to be sincerely complimented.