Garden update - my first corn harvest!

August 13, 2011

When I first planted the corn seedlings right before Easter, I made the novice mistake of planting the seedlings too close together.  I had to dig up a few before they grew too big and replant them in a different "line" so they had room to grow.  Furthermore, I also didn't know at the time that you shouldn't plant corn in single-file fashion but clustered together so they can pollinate more easily.  I also happened to plant them so that some got more sun than others.  Eh, I probably committed just about every mistake you can make with corn.

No matter, they still grew!  Thanks to almost daily watering, the ones that got the most sun are higher than my fence and yesterday I harvested 3 full, ripe ears of corn.  There are still a couple dozen ears growing along so fortunately I can harvest them gradually and keep myself supplied with fresh corn.  Kewwwwwl.......

Peanut Butter Surprise Bars - revisited

The "surprise" is the peanut butter cup inside each piece

I've already blogged about these brownies from The Good Cookie by Tish Boyle and normally I wouldn't write them up again even though I'm baking them again but I wanted to post a better picture of them since I have a better camera now than the last time I took a picture of these.  And in case you're new to my blog and haven't seen some of the older posts, I thought I'd link the recipe back up.

I'm making these again because one of my nieces started college already and I promised to send her a care package.  I asked her what kind of brownies she wanted and her response was "the kind with Reeses that you make".  I actually make several different kinds with peanut butter cups but I think this is the one she meant.  And if not, she said she was going through "Tita brownie withdrawals over here" (they call me Tita which is the Filipino word for Aunt) so I figured these would still suffice, lol.

In case you want to see that peanut butter cup close up :)

This is a good brownie to put in a care package because it holds up well, even in warm weather.  Slice into individual pieces, wrap each piece in plastic wrap and ship in a small, sturdy box (the small flat rate USPS box is ideal since you don't have to worry about the weight of the box increasing the cost).  If you're mailing it with other flavors, it's not likely to overwhelm the other food items with peanut butter-ness since it's just the peanut butter cup that comprises the peanut butter part of the brownie.  But wrap it up separately anyway, just in case.

Sometimes you just need a(nother) brownie

The Baked Brownie - made August 10, 2011 from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito

This was one of those weeks where it was hard to juggle work, life, socializing, baking, blogging, exercising, and breathing.  Not to mention "gardening" which this week has consisted of rushing to water my plants before it got too dark by the time I get home and before my evening meetings started.  The weeds have taken over in gleeful abundance but I have no time to care at the moment.  It'll have to wait until the weekend.

In the meantime, a couple of nights ago I had a marathon super woman session - got home from the office with 30 minutes to spare before my 8 pm meeting in which time I managed to water the garden, harvest some tomatoes and throw a pan of these brownies into the oven - go me.  I needed to bake something for someone I was meeting early the next morning before work and for another friend I was meeting for dinner after work last night.  Usually when I'm in a crunch I rely on previously made and frozen cookie dough in my freezer but my stash of baked goods was dangerously low. 

I had wanted to make these brownies from one of the Baked books I got for my birthday as the picture in the book looked so good, nice and fudgy.  Mine baked for less time than the recipe said but the toothpick already came out with a few moist crumbs just a few minutes shy of 30 minutes.  They didn't come out as thick as the ones pictured in the book but they were still fudgy and good.  This is more of a dark chocolate brownie and you can taste the undertones of the espresso.  The only thing I would change next time is to bake this in a slightly smaller pan to make them thicker.

1 ¼ cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons dark unsweetened cocoa powder

11 ounces dark chocolate (60 to 72% cacao), coarsely chopped

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 teaspoons instant espresso powder

1 ½ cups granulated sugar

½ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

5 large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1.   Preheat the oven to 350⁰F. Butter the sides and bottom of a 9 x 13-inch glass or light-colored metal baking pan.

2.   In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, salt and cocoa powder together.

3.   Put the chocolate, butter and instant espresso powder in a large bowl and set it over a saucepan of simmering water, stirring occasionally, until the chocolate and butter are completely melted and smooth.  Turn off the heat, but keep the bowl over the water and add the sugars.  Whisk until completely combined, then remove the bowl from the pan.  The mixture should be room temperature.

4.   Add 3 eggs to the chocolate mixture and whisk until combined.  Add the remaining eggs and whisk until combined.  Add the vanilla and stir until combined.  Do not overbeat the batter at this stage or your brownies will be cakey.

5.   Sprinkle the flour mixture over the chocolate mixture.  Using a spatula (not a whisk), fold the flour mixture into the chocolate until just a bit of the flour mixture is visible.

6.   Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.  Bake in the center of the oven for 30 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until a toothpick inserted into the center of the brownies comes out with a few moist crumbs sticking to it.  Let the brownies cool completely, then cut them into squares and serve.

Since my baking has been so limited lately, I'm linking this to a few of the link parties I normally participate in at once:

Tightly covered with plastic wrap, the brownies keep at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Baking Book Giveaway winner

And the winner is.....Cindy B!  Congratulations, Cindy - please email me at pastrychef17@gmail.com and send me your address and I will mail out Gorgeous Cakes to you by this weekend.

Thanks to everyone for your comments and recipes.  I deliberately did not "advertise" the giveaway beyond my blog as I figure I'd rather the book go to people who come regularly and and read my blog.  Keeping the pool of entrants small gives you a greater chance of winning, right?  Don't worry if you didn't win this time.  I will be doing this again :).

My blog's been quiet for the past few days as I've been out of town but I just got back and I hope to get back to it this week.  I don't have a backlog of anything new that I've baked so I've got to get busy.

Still more brownies

One-Pot Brownies - made July 31, 2011 from The Chocolate Companion by Cynthia Shade Rogers (book #148)

This is my last brownie post of the week as I ran out of time to make more for the goodie bags I needed this week.  I'm almost afraid to post the original name of this recipe in case it pops up for anyone searching for "pot brownies".  The "pot" in this case refers to the top half of the double boiler you should melt the butter and chocolate in and mix in the rest of the ingredients.  If you were searching for another kind of pot, move on, lol.

This is one of those fall-back, foolproof brownie recipes where if you're in a hurry and pressed for time, you can throw this together in the time it takes for the oven to preheat.  I need a bunch of brownies and only have a small amount of baking time so this one met my needs perfectly.  Of course I couldn't resist dressing it up a bit and added small dollops of dulce de leche in the middle of the brownie.  This one turned out fine although I'm either very jaded about brownies or else...I'm very jaded about brownies.  I wouldn't say this is really a standout.  It's fine but I probably won't remember anything about it once the next recipe crosses my path.

½ cup butter

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate

1 cup of sugar

1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

2 eggs

½ cup flour

½ cup walnuts (optional)

1.     Preheat the oven to 325⁰F.  Grease an 8-inch baking pan lined with foil.

2.     Melt butter and chocolate together in a medium-sized heavy saucepan.  Add vanilla extract and mix well.

3.     Let cool to lukewarm.

4.     Quickly beat in two eggs with a wooden spoon.

5.     Stir in flour and nuts, if using.

6.     Pour into baking pan and bake for 30 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out with moist crumbs.

Brownies - what else?

Brownies - made July 30, 2011 from Dessert University by Roland Mesnier (book #147)

Don't forget to enter the baking giveaway a couple of posts below by leaving a comment in that post - entry period until midnight PST on Sunday, August 7.

Second brownie post in a row.  Which must mean it's serious brownie making time again as I need them for at least a dozen goodie bags this week.  And no matter how much I like the recipes I've already tried, when given a choice, I prefer trying another new one.  When it comes to brownies, I'm sometimes recipe agnostic.  Many of them are quite similar but there is a certain technique in having them turn out well.  Heaven knows I've practiced long enough and often enough to be able to make decent brownies.

For fudgy brownies, this recipe recommends taking the pan out halfway during baking time and rapping it on the counter to deflate the air in it and make the brownies more dense.  I've read other recipes that do the same thing but I've rarely tried that method.  This seemed like a good time to experiment.  And of course I can't leave well enough alone so not only did I make this brownie but I covered the top with the nutella crunch topping.  Decadence.  Brownies.  Same thing.

Actually, I'm glad I did because otherwise this would be a thin brownie.  It was good but I wouldn't say it struck me as anything out of the ordinary had I left it as is.  But it made a good base for the nutella crunch.  It was almost like a dense chocolate cake than a true brownie but was good nonetheless.

10 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 ¼ cups sugar

3 large eggs

1 large egg yolk

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch salt

5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups pecan pieces

1 recipe Semisweet Chocolate Glaze, warmed

Semisweet Chocolate Glaze (I substituted the nutella crunch topping instead of the glaze)

One 12-ounce bag semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup plus 6 tablespoons heavy cream

1.     Preheat the oven to 400⁰F.  Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking pan and line the bottom with parchment paper.

2.    In a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed, cream the butter and sugar together until fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes.  Add the eggs and the egg yolk one at a time and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl after each addition.  Add the vanilla, salt and cocoa powder and mix well.  Beat in the flour until well combined.  Stir in the nuts.  Remove the bowl from the mixer, scrape down the sides, and give the batter a few more stirs by hand to make sure that all the ingredients are well incorporated.

3.    Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a spatula.  Bake for 10 minutes.  Then, for fudgy brownies, remove the pan from the oven and tap it on the counter to make the rising brownies collapse.  Return the pan to the oven and bake until firm to the touch, 8 to 10 minutes more.  Do not overbake or your brownies will be dry.  Remove the pan from the oven, place it on a wire rack, and let the brownies cool completely in the pan.

4.    Make the glaze: Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl.  Bring the cream to a near boil in a small saucepan.  Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and whisk until smooth.  Cool to room temperature.

5.    Invert the cooled brownies onto a baking sheet and peel off the parchment paper. 

6.    Place the uncut brownies back in the pan.  Rewarm the glaze if necessary, and pour the glaze over the brownies, smoothing it evenly wit ha spatula.  Brownies will keep in the refrigerator, loosely draped with plastic wrap, for up to 1 week.

Cookies n Cream n Caramel Brownies, oh my

Bethlehem Brownies - made July 30, 2011 from Christmas Cookies from the Whimsical Bakehouse by Kaye and Liv Hansen (book #146)

Just a wee bit too underdone

The original name of these brownies is Bethlehem Brownies since they're in a Christmas cookie book but I've decided not only to take liberties with the name but with the brownies themselves.  I'm still on a bit of an Oreo cookie kick and have been noodling on how to make brownies even more decadent.  For this one, I not only did an Oreo cookie crust again but I also added a thin layer of caramel between the Oreo cookie crust and the brownie.  Not to mention adding chunks of Oreo cookies to the brownie itself.  Can't have too much of a good thing.  And if you really want to get super freaky with the cookies 'n' cream theme, serve these with a scoop of Cookies n Cream ice cream, with rivulets of hot fudge and chunks of Oreo cookies on top.  Oh yeah.

The original recipe is as is below.  My modifications: I made a half recipe of just the brownies without the recipe topping and baked them in a 9 x 9-inch pan.  For the Oreo cookie crust, I used 1/2 to 2/3 of a 16.6-ounce package of Oreos (er, more or less, not counting the ones I ate while I was putting these together), pulverized them to crumbs in my food processor, added 4 tablespoons of melted butter and 1 teaspoon of vanilla and patted into a firm, even layer in a foil-lined 9" square pan.  I spread a thin layer of caramel (amount is up to you: melt caramels with a bit of milk until of a spreadable consistency) over the cookie crust, chopped up chunks of more Oreos to add to the brownie batter then spread the batter brownie in the pan, covering the caramel layer completely.

Because the brownies were relatively thick, I baked these for around 40-45 minutes in my oven.  The edges came out with moist crumbs and the middle was still a little liquid which normally meant I should leave them in longer but I took them out anyway, trusting that they would firm up when cool.  Uh, I was wrong.  They turned out to be a little too underbaked, even for me, so I put them back into the oven in the hopes of salvaging them.  I was only marginally successful.  I underestimated how moist the caramel would make the brownies and how much longer I should've baked brownies of this thickness.  And the second baking made the top crust more pronounced.  Some people like a top crust on their brownies but I don't.  These were good but could've been better if I had baked them long enough the first time.  That's a lesson learned for next time.  Always trust the toothpick test.

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

4 cups granulated sugar

8 large eggs

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

¾ cup cocoa powder

½ teaspoon salt

1 ¼ cups semisweet chocolate chips

1 ½ cups chopped walnuts, optional

Topping

12 ounces (3 sticks) unsalted butter, softened

1 ¼ cups dark brown sugar, packed

¾ cup heavy cream

3 cups sweetened shredded coconut

1 cup chocolate chips, M&Ms or Sno-Caps

1.       Preheat the oven to 350⁰F. 

2.       Lightly grease the sides and bottom of a 12 x 16 x 3-inch pan.  In addition, line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.

3.       Cream butter and sugar together.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition.  Add vanilla extract.

4.       Sift together flour, cocoa powder and salt.  Add to the butter mixture and mix on low speed until combined.

5.       Fold in chocolate chips and walnuts, if using.

6.       Spread evenly in prepared pan.  Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until a skewer comes out with a few moist crumbs.  Let the pan cool completely on a wire rack.

7.       To make the topping: In the bowl of an electric mixer at medium speed, cream butter and dark brown sugar until light.

8.       Add heavy cream and coconut and mix at low speed, until just combined.

9.      Spread the coconut mixture evenly over the cooled brownie.  Broil until the top is browned.

10.   While still hot, sprinkle the top with the chocolate chips, M&Ms or Sno-Caps.

11.    Refrigerate overnight.  Cut into 2-inch squares to serve.

Baking Book Giveaway!

Last week, I had linked my Lemon Drizzle Traybake post to two link parties, Sweet Tooth Friday hosted by Alli n Son and Sweet Indulgences Sunday hosted by A Well-Seasoned Life.  I've participated in the link parties every week (when I remember) and they're always filled with amazing desserts, many of which I can only admire but probably can't replicate.  Some are quite fancy and I just don't have that kind of decorating talent or inclination.  So imagine my surprise when this simple, unfrosted, couldn't-be-easier-to-make lemon cake got the most views from both link parties.  Go figure!

So then it seems like a shame that I'm unlikely to use the baking book it came from that often.  As I mentioned in the original post, this book is filled with gorgeous, incredible-looking cakes.  Yet I chose the lemon drizzle traybake recipe to make from it simply because it was the easiest, least fussy one.  But for someone more decorating-inclined than I am, they might like this book and be able to replicate the gorgeous cakes within it.  I'm a big believer in using what you have and if you're not going to use it, give it to someone who will.  So I'm going to offer this book, Gorgeous Cakes by Annie Bell, as a giveaway.

To enter in a random drawing for the book, leave a comment in this post and tell me anything: your favorite dessert (a link to the recipe would be nice but not necessary), the best thing you ever ate or made, your favorite thing to make, how long you've been baking, or any other random tidbit about yourself that you want to share.  I'll accept entries through midnight PST next Sunday, August 7, 2011.  I'll do a random drawing from all the entrants and contact the winner on Monday, August 8.  Good luck!

Frrrrozen Hot Chocolate

Frrrrozen Hot Chocolate - made July 28,. 2011 from Sweet Serendipity by Stephen Bruce (book #145)

More even smoothness with the second attempt

With much of the country in record-breaking heat waves these days, the last thing most people want to do is turn on their ovens.  So take a break with this icy cold confection - Frrrozen Hot Chocolate, a specialty from Serendipity in Manhattan.  It's a cross between really good chocolate milk and a chocolate milkshake.  Or think of it as a chocolate milkshake without the ice cream.  I personally don't like milk and hardly ever drink it.  I only buy the full-fat version when I need to bake something with it.  But I do like this version of milk - with "frozen" chocolate.

The key thing to watch out for when making this is you need to really whisk the chocolate together with the milk and let it cool to room temperature.  If you don't and you add it too soon to the ice and the rest of the milk, bits of chocolate will solidify.  That's not necessarily a bad thing but for really creamy smoothness the way it's served at Serendipity, you want a more uniform chocolaty slushiness.  I had to make this twice because the first time I had the chocolate-bits issue and my second try was more successful.  And using the good chocolate is an absolute must here.

A close-up of my first attempt

6 half-ounce pieces of a variety of your favorite chocolates

2 teaspoons storebought hot chocolate mix

1 ½ tablespoons sugar

1 ½ cups milk

3 cups ice

Whipped cream

Chocolate shavings

1.       Chop the chocolate into small pieces and place it in the top of a double boiler over simmering water, stirring occasionally until melted.  Add the hot chocolate mix and sugar, stirring constantly until melted.  Add the hot chocolate mix and sugar, stirring constantly until thoroughly blended.  Remove from heat and slowly add ½ cup of the milk and stir until smooth.  Cool to room temperature.

2.       In a blender place the remaining cup of milk, the room temperature chocolate mixture, and the ice.  Blend on high speed until smooth and the consistency of a frozen daiquiri.  Pour into a giant goblet and top with whipped cream and chocolate shavings. 

Milk Chocolate Caramel Cookies

Milk Chocolate Caramel Cookies - made July 25, 2011 from Milk & Cookies by Tina Casaceli (book #144)

For my birthday, I received 4 baking books - the two Baked cookbooks I mentioned previously and the third one is this book (I will write up the 4th when I try a recipe from it).  It's really cute and has yummy-looking pictures inside.  The only drawback is while it's billed as having "80" recipes, it's really 80 varieties of cookies with only a handful of master cookie recipes.  As in, you make a base vanilla dough or a base chocolate dough and the recipes only change based on the add-ins you incorporate yet the book counts each different add-in mix as a different recipe of cookie.  While it's not what most people expect from a cookbook, it's pretty much the reality of many bakeries and that's what this book is from.  Still, we mustn't discount the yummy-looking pictures as that's half the appeal of any cookbook.
I chose the Vanilla Base Dough to try with the milk chocolate and caramel add-ins since those are two of my favorites when it comes to cookie-types.  For the milk chocolate, I added a combination of milk chocolate chips and chopped up Hershey kisses.  Kraft sells the caramel bits in 11-ounce bags which is nice as they're the perfect size for a cookie.  When you mix it in and portion out the dough into balls, make sure the caramel bits are tucked inside the dough rather than clinging to the outside.  Otherwise they'll not just melt during baking but also harden once they're baked and cooled.  Which makes chewing a little more problematic.

I liked this cookie but I also had it warm, 10 minutes out of the oven, so it was hard not to like it when the edges were crisp and the middle was moist and chewy.  I also loved the milk chocolate and caramel but the cookie was almost a trifle too sweet because of the add-ins.  I didn't taste any when they had cooled completely so I don't know if the caramel bits tucked inside the cookie were too chewy or not.  I gave the test cookies away to someone at work and she liked them so I guess they turned out well, even at room temperature (or she was being nice, lol).

Vanilla Base Dough

2 ½ cups (7 ½ ounces) old-fashioned rolled oats

2 cups (8 ounces) all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 ½ cups (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup (7 ounces) granulated sugar

1 cup (7 ounces) light brown sugar

2 large eggs, at room temperature

½ tablespoon pure vanilla extract

2 cups (12 ounces) milk chocolate chips

2 cups (14 ounces) caramel bits (if you don’t have caramel bits, cut square caramel bandies into small pieces)

1.     Preheat the oven to 350˚F. 

2.     Line two baking sheets with nonstick silicone baking mats or parchment paper.  Set aside.

3.     Put the oats in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade and process until finely ground.  Transfer the ground oats to a mixing bowl.  Stir in the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.

4.     Put the butter in the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle.  Begin beating on low speed to soften.  Increase the speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes, or until light and creamy.

5.     With the motor running, gradually add the granulated sugar and then the brown sugar, beating until very light and creamy.

6.     Add the eggs, one at a time, and beat to incorporate, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula after each addition.  Beat in the vanilla and when blended, slowly beat in the reserved dry mixture.

7.     While the dough is still streaky, remove the bowl from the mixer and scrape the paddle clean.

8.     Lightly flour a clean, flat work surface.

9.     Scrape the dough onto the floured surface.  Lightly flour your hands and finish mixing the dough by using a gentle kneading motion, working until the dough is just blended.  Do not overwork the dough, you want to be certain that all of the ingredients are blended together.

10.   Using a wooden spoon, stir in the chocolate chips and caramel bits, mixing until evenly distributed. 

11.   Using a tablespoon or small ice-cream scoop, make mounds of dough.  Roll the dough into balls about 1 ½ inches in diameter.  Place the balls, about 2 inches apart, on the prepared baking sheets.  Using your palm, gently flatten each ball to make a puck-like shape about 2 inches in diameter.

12.   When all of the cookies are formed, place in the oven and bake for about 15 minutes, or until lightly browned around the edges and set in the center.  Do not overbake; you want some chewiness in the center.

13.   Remove from the oven and, using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to wire racks to cool.

Storage: Store, airtight, at room temperature for up to a week.  Dough can be stored, airtight, in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for up to a month.