Blueberry-Peach Dump Cake

Did you think I died?  There's been a lot going on in life and it's only going to get more crazy from here but I'm back on the saddle... I think.  :)

I needed a quick dessert the other night and based on the ingredients I had I decided to go with a dump cake.  If I'm being honest it was less about the ingredients I had and more about being lazy and doing NO research on a dessert.  Dump cake has been around forever and I don't know where the recipe actually originated.  The Pioneer Woman did a post about dump cake so i'll link it back to her.

The best thing about Dump Cake is that it's super easy and you can use whatever you want.  I used blueberry and peaches because that's what I had.  I think blueberry with lemon cake mix would be delicious too.  Go crazy.

Blueberry-Peach Dump Cake:
(Pioneer Woman and the internets)

1 box yellow cake mix
1 can sliced peaches in juice
1 pint blueberries
1 stick butter
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a baking dish mix the fruit together with the vanilla.  Top with the cake mix and dot with the stick of butter.

Bake for 40-50 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the fruit juices have started to bubble up around the crust.

Seriously.... that's the entire recipe.  It's delicious.  Next time you have to make something for desert in an hour pull this out of the recipe box.  It's easy and no one will know that it's cake mix from a box.

Cookie Butter Cookies

Gainesville just got a Trader Joe's!!!  It's awesome.  Mr. T and I went the first Saturday that they were open.  It was so crowded that we didn't get a chance to really look around but one of the things I did manager to grab was a jar of Cookie Butter.

Cookie Butter is the consistency of peanut butter but is made up of gingersnaps (and other stuff).  Alone it's pretty amazing but made into a cookie it transforms into... COOKIECEPTION!!

I want to give this cookie another chance.  I think my downfall was using a super basic cookie recipe.  Mr. T liked them fine but I felt that the lack of flour in them made the sugar granules more obvious.

Cookie Butter Cookies:

1 cup cookie butter
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350.  In a mixing bowl mix the sugar, egg, and vanilla together.  Add the cookie butter and mix until the mixture just comes together.

Spoon onto a cookie sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes.

** I used a fork to make cross hatches in my cookies (just like you would regular peanut butter cookies).  You don't have to though.

Chewy Ginger Cookies

I love ginger cookies.  The older I get the more I lean towards lovely ginger cookies instead of chocolate peppermint cookies for the holidays.  (I still love a chocolate peppermint cookie... make no mistake about it)

These are not ginger snaps.  These are soft and chewy... and delicious.

Chewy Ginger Cookies:
(King Arthur Flour)

1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup molasses
2 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 1/4 teaspoons ground cloves
1 teaspoon ground ginger
2 large eggs
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Sugar for coating: I used regular granulated sugar but sparkling white sugar would be pretty

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease (or line with parchment) two baking sheets.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until they're light and fluffy.

Add the molasses, baking soda, salt, and spices.  Mix well.  Add the eggs, beating well and scraping down the sides of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated.

Add the flour and scrape down the sides again.

Scoop the soft dough into 1 ½" balls and roll them sugar.

Space the cookies on the prepared baking sheets, leaving about 2 ½" between them.

Bake the cookies for about 10 minutes. The centers will look soft and puffy.  Remove the cookies from the oven, and cool them on the pan for 10 minutes before transferring them to a rack to cool completely.

Dairy Free Baked Pumpkin Doughnuts

You made it through Thanksgiving!!  Congrats!  Before you jump into the mountain of leftovers in the refrigerator you'll want something for breakfast. 

My suggestion... PUMPKIN DOUGHNUTS! These are easy to make, delicious, and believe it or not much lighter than having a piece of pie for breakfast (not that you would).

I made two trays of and froze the rest of the batter for future doughnuts.

Dairy Free Baked Pumpkin Doughnuts:
(adapted from King Arthur Flour)

1/2 cup vegetable oil
3 large eggs
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin
3 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 3/4 cups + 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
 
Coating Options:
3 tablespoons cinnamon-sugar
Coconut


Directions:


Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two standard doughnut pans. If you don't have doughnut pans, use a standard muffin tin; they just won't be doughnuts.

Beat together the oil, eggs, sugar, pumpkin, spices, salt, and baking powder until smooth.

Add the flour, stirring just until smooth.

Fill the the doughnut pans about 3/4 full.  I use about 2 1/2 scoops per doughnut.

Bake the doughnuts for 15 to 18 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of one comes out clean.

Remove the doughnuts from the oven, and after about 5 minutes, loosen their edges, and transfer them to a rack to cool.

I made my doughnuts two different ways.  One batch I tossed in cinnamon sugar. 

The other batch I used coconut.  Believe it or not, it was delicious.  All I did for the coconut doughnuts was put some coconut flakes on top of the doughnut batter once it was in the pan.  I stirred it around a little bit to make sure the coconut flakes would stick to the doughnuts.

Pumpkin Walnut Crisp

The pumpkin bug has bit me again!  I found this recipe on Pinterest and since it was super easy to make I decided to give it a shot.

I made this for Mr. T's work potluck last week and forgot to take an after picture.  I wanted to make sure I got the recipe out there before Thanksgiving was upon us.  I'll be making this again on Thanksgiving and i'll try to get a better picture then.

Pumpkin Walnut Crisp:
(Adapted from Rachel Schultz)

15 ounce can pumpkin
1 cup evaporated milk
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 package yellow cake mix
1 cup chopped walnuts
1 cup butter, melted


Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Combine the pumpkin, evaporated milk, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and pumpkin pie spice.

Pour the batter into a 9×13 baking dish and sprinkle the cake mix over the pumpkin mixture.  Arrange walnuts on top of the cake mix.

Pour the butter evenly over pecans, making sure all of the cake mix is moistened.

Bake for 70-80 minutes, or until golden brown and allow to fully cool before serving.

Canned Apple Pie Filling

Apples have been on sale recently and I have been needing a mental break from life so I decided to dive into a weekend of canning.  I decided to go with some apple pie filling mainly because I've never canned pie filling before.

I always forget how much work it takes to make apple pie.  The apples turn brown so quickly and I feel like it always takes me forever to core the apples and get them sliced up.  This is the best part of canning.  I now have 7 pints of apple pie filling that I can use without having to do much work!!!

Canned Apple Pie Filling:
(adapted from Ball Canning)

12 cups sliced peeled cored apples, treated to prevent browning and drained (about 12 medium)
Water
2-3/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup ClearJel
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon apple pie spice
2 1/2 cups unsweetened apple juice
1 1/4 cups cold water
1/2 cup lemon juice
7 pint glass preserving jars with lids and bands

Directions:

Prepare boiling water canner. Heat jars and lids in simmering water until ready for use. Do not boil. Set bands aside.

Blanch apple slices, working with 6 cups at a time, in a large pot of boiling water for 1 minute.

Remove with a slotted spoon and keep warm in a covered bowl.

Combine sugar, ClearJel, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and apple pie spice in a large stainless steel saucepan. Stir in apple juice and cold water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, and cook until mixture thickens and begins to bubble. Add lemon juice, return to a boil and boil for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Drain apple slices and immediately fold into hot mixture. Before processing, heat, stirring, until apples are heated through.

Ladle hot pie filling into hot jars leaving 1 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rim. Center lid on jar. Apply band until fit is fingertip tight.

Process jars in a boiling water canner for 25 minutes, adjusting for altitude. Remove jars and cool.

Check the lids for a proper seal after 24 hours. Lid should not flex up and down when center is pressed.

** When using this in a pie you might find that one jar isn't quite enough to fill your crust.  If this is the case just cut up a couple more apples and add to the whole mix.  When the pie bakes everything will come together perfectly.

Oatmeal Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Fall = Pumpkin! I was in the fall spirit (even though it's still 90 degrees outside) and decided to make some awesome pumpkin oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.  It has to be the most homey cookie ever.

I like to make a big batch of these cookies and freeze the dough.  You never know when you're going to need a pumpkin oatmeal chocolate chip cookie... and you need to be prepared.

Oatmeal Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies:

Ingredients:
1/2  cup (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4  cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2  cup granulated sugar
2  eggs
1  teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2  cups all-purpose flour
1  teaspoon baking soda
1  teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2  teaspoon sal
3  cups quick or old fashioned oats
1  cup chocolate chips
1 can pumpkin, not pie filling

Preparation:

Heat oven to 350°F. In large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and salt; mix well.

Add oats, chocolate chips, and pumpkin.  Mix well.

Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack.

Pecan Praline Cookies

I've been in a fall frame of mind and I needed to make some cookies for a friend's birthday so I combined everything and pulled this recipe out of my "need to try" box.  I'm glad I did because they were delicious!

I think that I might go ahead and add these to my Christmas Cookie Exchange list.  I love the icing on top of these; it makes a lovely difference of texture on the cookie.

Pecan Praline Cookies:
(My Own Sweet Thyme)


1 cup butter, softened
½ cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup white sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup finely chopped pecans
Brown Sugar Frosting (see below)
Pecan halves for garnish

In a large mixing bowl, beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer. Gradually add sugars, mixing well. Add egg and vanilla; beat well.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, soda and salt. Gradually add the dry mixture to the creamed mixture, stirring after each addition. Stir in the chopped pecans and chill dough for 30 minutes.

When chilled, remove from the refrigerator. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Place the balls of dough on ungreased cookie sheets or sheets lined with parchment paper.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

After the cookies cool spread the brown sugar frosting over the tops of the cookies and top each cookie with half of a pecan.

Makes about 5 dozen cookies.


Brown Sugar Frosting:

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
½ cup half & half
1 Tablespoon butter
1½ cups sifted powdered sugar (plus a little more if needed)

Combine brown sugar and half & half in a saucepan.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a boil. Boil 4 minutes.

Remove from heat. Stir in butter. Add 1½ cups powdered sugar. Beat at medium speed with an electric mixer until smooth. Add a little more powdered sugar, if needed, to achieve a desired spreading consistency.

Pumpkin Pecan Sticky Rolls

Since it's October and I'm obsessed with Fall and pumpkin stuff I decided to finally get around to making some pumpkin pecan cinnamon rolls.  I've only been talking about this for a couple of years.

















I will admit that I am no expert in yeast breads or cinnamon roll dough but I ended up using WAY more flour than this recipe called for.  My dough was really sticky and I had a horrible time getting it to a workable point.  I didn't use bread flour like the original recipe did so that could be it... or it could be user error.

Pumpkin Pecan Sticky Rolls:
(adapted from The Girl Who Ate Everything)

1/3 cup milk
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup of canned pumpkin
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
1 (1/4 ounce) package dry yeast
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour *you can use all white flour, but I had both so I used both

Filling:
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons melted butter
1/2 cup chopped pecans

Topping:
1/2 cup chopped pecans
4 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
3 tablespoons brown sugar

In small saucepan, heat the milk and 2 tablespoons butter just until warm and the butter is almost melted. In the bowl of a mixer, combine the pumpkin, sugar, nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice, ground ginger, and salt. Add the milk mixture and beat with a mixer until everything is well mixed. Beat in the egg and yeast.

Add half of the flours to the pumpkin mixture and beat on low for 5 minutes, scraping the sides of bowl. Add the remaining flour and mix thoroughly.  This is a very soft dough.

Turn the dough out into lightly greased bowl, cover and let it rise in warm place until doubled, for about 1 hour. Punch the dough down and turn it out onto floured surface. Knead it for  about a minute or until it forms a smooth dough.

Roll the dough into 12x10 inch rectangle and brush the surface of the dough with melted butter.

In small bowl combine the brown sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle the dough with the brown sugar mixture followed by the chopped pecans.

















Beginning with long side of the dough, roll the dough up like a jellyroll. Pinch the seam to seal it up. Using a sharp knife, cut the roll into twelve 1- inch slices.

In a small saucepan melt the butter and then add the pumpkin pie spice, brown sugar, and pecans and stir well.  Pour the sugar mixture into the bottom of a well greased 11x17-inch baking pan. 

















Place the rolls, cut side up, in the pan, on top of the sugar mixture. Cover and let the dough rise until it has nearly doubled, for about 30 to 45 minutes.

Bake the rolls at 350 degrees for about 15-20 minutes or until golden. Let cool for about 10 to 15 minutes and turn the rolls out to allow the gooey sugar mixture to run down the sides of the cinnamon rolls.

Flourless Chocolate Cookies

I've been looking at a picture of these cookies for a couple of months.   I love the fact that these cookies only have a few ingredients and are a great gluten and dairy free option for people that need those options.  For the people that just like chocolate cookies... these are great for that too.

Flourless Chocolate Cookies:
(King Arthur Flour)

2 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder, optional but good
1 cup cocoa powder, Dutch-process (European-style) preferred*
3 large egg whites
2 teaspoons gluten-free vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease two baking sheets. Or line with parchment, and grease the parchment.

Stir together all of the ingredients till smooth. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, and stir again till smooth.

Drop the soft, batter-like dough onto the prepared baking sheets in 1 1/2" circles; a tablespoon cookie scoop works well here.

Bake the cookies for 8 minutes; they should spread, become somewhat shiny, and develop faintly crackly tops.

Remove the cookies from the oven, and allow them to cool right on the pan.

Spiced Fig Cake

I made fig jam this weekend and had some left over figs.  Figs are sweet and since I didn't have any bacon or prosciutto around I decided on a fig cake.

As I've said before chemistry is not my forte so I went looking for a basic cake recipe to use with my figs.  I came across this one on All Recipes and went nuts making to work for me.

I used Brown Turkey Figs for this cake (I used up all my Black Mission Figs in the jam I made earlier that day).  I don't honestly know what the difference is between them;  Publix didn't have a good explanation on the picture.

Spiced Fig Cake:
(adapted from allrecipes.com)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 egg
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 cup chopped fresh figs

Frosting:
3 figs, finely chopped
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons fig jam (optional, but it's super good)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray two 8-inch round cake pans with vegetable oil spray.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, salt and baking powder.

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter with the sugar until fluffy. Add egg and beat well. Add flour mixture alternately with the two milks. Fold in vanilla extract, almond extract, cinnamon, nutmeg, and chopped figs.

Divide into two prepared 8 inch round cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out dry.  Let the cake cool before trying to frost.

To make the frosting:

Using a mixer mix the cream cheese, powdered sugar, vanilla, and jam (if using) together in a small bowl.  Fold in the finely chopped figs and the fig jam.  If you want the frosting to be thicker add more sugar.  If it's too thick add a couple teaspoons of water or cream, but be careful not to add too much.


This isn't going to be a frosting that comes out beautifully in a piping bag but it'll make a really pretty, homey looking cake (and it's delicious... so who the crap cares?!).

Cherry Cheesecake Dip

I went to a football party recently and was in charge of desserts.  I decided to make another Pinterest recipe and went with cherry cheesecake dip. 

I made this recipe the night before and let it chill overnight.  It really took no effort and everyone loved it.

I don't know who the original owner of this recipe is but every recipe is basically the same. 

Cherry Cheesecake Dip:

1 jar marshmallow fluff
1 package cream cheese
1 container cool whip
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 can cherry pie filling
Graham crackers for dipping

Mix together the marshmallow fluff, cream cheese, and vanilla extract.  Fold in the cool whip and spread out in your serving dish.  Top with the cherry pie filling and chill until you're ready to eat!

Turtle Cheesecake

We had an office birthday recently and I decided to make a cheesecake instead of getting a "normal cake".  I knew the recipient would like the cheesecake so I decided to go with it.

This is the same basic cheesecake recipe I use for everything but I cut it in half and added all of the things that make a turtle cheesecake wonderful.

Turtle Cheesecake:

3 packages of cream cheese
2 eggs
1 tablespoon flour
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 Tsp Vanilla
pinch of salt
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2-1 cup caramel syrup or ice cream topping
1/2 package Oreos
2 tablespoons butter

large spring form pan

 Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Take a spring form pan and grease it well with either non-stick cooking spray or butter.

Either process the oreos in a food processor or put them in a large ziploc bag and beat them with a rolling pin.  Add the melted butter and press the crust into the spring form pan.  Add more oreos or butter as needed.

Cream the cheese and sugar well. Add corn starch, flour, vanilla salt, cream again.

Add eggs, one at a time, add half of the pecans and mini chocolate chips.

 

Make sure cake is thoroughly mixed and smooth. Pour into pan.  Pour half of the caramel sauce over the cheesecake and swirl with a knife.

 

Bake the cheesecake for about 45 minutes and then sprinkle the top of the cheesecake with the remaining pecans and mini chocolate chips.  Continue baking the cheesecake until it's lightly brown on top and the center is solid to the touch for about another hour.  Remove from oven, spread the rest of the caramel on top and let the cheesecake cool. 

Fall Spiced Doughnuts

I had a craving on Sunday but I had already been to the grocery store and I wasn't about to leave the house again.  I wanted doughnuts and I wanted them bad.  I went on a googling frenzy until I could find a recipe that was made up of items I already had in the house and was baked.

I came across this recipe for fluffy cake doughnuts. I added some more spices to the recipe, including pumpkin pie spice, which is one of my favorites. It gave me a hope that fall is right around the corner.

These don't get the crispy edges that fried cake doughnuts have but they are dang good, and much better for you than the fried versions.

Fall Spiced Doughnuts:
(adapted from allrecipes)

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup white sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
A dash of ground ginger
3/4 cup milk
2 eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon shortening
    
Glaze:
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon water
1/8 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon caramel syrup or ice cream topping

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Lightly grease a doughnut pan, I used Pam.

In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice. Stir in milk, eggs, vanilla, and shortening. Beat together until well blended.

Fill each doughnut cup approximately 3/4 full. Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, until doughnuts spring back when touched. Allow to cool slightly before removing from pan.

To make the glaze mix everything together.  If the glaze is too runny add more sugar, too thick add more water.   I made this version a little on the thin side.

Bayou Brownies

My friend Devon hasn't let me down yet.  She's great when advice on cameras, running shoes, and confectionery treats.


















These brownies (or are they blondies?) are no exception to the rule.  Holy crap they're amazing... and seriously rich... and seriously easy.  The ingredients are really common and most people have all of them in their pantry.  The other bonus.  Since they're SO rich you can cut them in smaller pieces and make the batch stretch farther (or eat the whole pan, go nuts).

Bayou Brownies:
(The Food Bitch Blog- from Southern Living)

Ingredients:

1 c. chopped walnuts
1/2 c. butter, melted
3 large eggs
1 (18 1/4 ounce) package yellow cake mix
8 oz. whipped cream cheese
1 (16 ounce) package powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 325* & line a 9×13 pan with aluminum foil. Grease or spray with non-stick spray. Set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together walnuts, butter, 1 egg & cake mix until smooth. Pour into pan & level with hands or a spatula.

In another large mixing bowl on medium speed, mix together remaining eggs, cream cheese & powdered sugar until smooth. Pour over walnut mixture. Bake for 40 minutes or until cream cheese layer settles. Let cool on a wire rack & cut into squares.

Peach Cobbler

I've been canning all weekend.  I have 1 quart + 19.5 pints of peach jam sitting on my counter.  Even after all of those jars of jam I still have 5 peaches in my fruit bowl.  To be frank, I'm tired of making jam so in order to use those last few peaches I decided to make a cobbler.  It's a classic dessert and easy to make.

There is something comforting about a cobbler.  It was my grandma's go to dessert when I was a kid and we always looked forward to it.

Peach Cobbler:
(basic cobbler recipe, measurements from Food Network- cause Grandma never measured anything)

Cobbler filling:

4 cups peeled and sliced fresh peaches
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon flour

Cobbler crust:

1 cup flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 tablespoons brown sugar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2/3 cup buttermilk
1 tablespoon brown sugar, for topping
   

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Generously butter a 1 1/2-quart shallow baking dish. Place the sliced peaches in the dish and sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and flour. Mix gently and spread evenly again. Bake for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile combine all dry ingredients for cobbler crust in a bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or your fingers, to make the texture like coarse crumbs. Add buttermilk and stir to form a soft dough.

Remove fruit from oven and drop rounded spoonfuls of dough on top. Sprinkle with last tablespoon of brown sugar and return to oven. Bake about 20 minutes, until fruit is bubbly and crust topping is golden brown.

Toffee Butterscotch Cookies

I'm on vacation but Mr. T is working this week.  I love being able to sit around and watch trashy tv (Real Housewives of Everything!!!) but I just can't do it all day.  I get anxious and there are only so many chores that I'm going to do on vacation.

This leads to me making a mess in the kitchen and experimenting.  I found a recipe in my Martha Stewart Baking Handbook for a White Chocolate Butterscotch Cookie and decided to work with it since chemistry isn't really my thing.














Toffee Butterscotch Cookies:
(adapted from a Martha Stewart recipe)

1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup toffee bits (chocolate covered or plain)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a small bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, and salt.  In the bowl of a stand mixer mix the butter, shortening, and brown sugar until it's a light color, around 2-3 minutes.  Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix, scraping down the sides as needed.

Once the wet ingredients are mixed slowly add the flour mixture.  Once the flour is incorporated add the butterscotch chips and toffee bits and fold in with a spoon or spatula.

Spoon the batter on the cookie sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown.

Shortbread Candy Bars

Yay for candy! I have a ton of candy pieces in my pantry and I need to start using them.  This is one of the easiest ways to use up candy pieces and make something delicious.

This is a basic shortbread recipe.  I used these toppings but you could very easily switch them out.  I've made shortbread with strawberry jam and white chocolate chips before.  It's delicious.  Try new things, it's good for you.  ;-)

Shortbread Candy Bars:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips, chopped
1/2 cup butterscotch chips, chopped
1/2 cup toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and place oven rack in the center of the oven. Line the bottom and sides of an 8x8 square baking pan with aluminum foil.

In a bowl whisk the flour with the salt.  In a bowl beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Beat in the vanilla extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then add the flour mixture and mix until everything has just come together.

Spread the mixture evenly on the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for about 20 minutes or until the shortbread is golden brown.  Remove from oven and scatter the chocolate and butterscotch chips over the hot shortbread. Return the shortbread to the oven for a couple of minutes (until the chocolate softens). Take a knife or small spatula and spread the chocolate chips out.  Sprinkle the toffee bits over the chocolate and place the pan on a rack to cool.

Once the chocolate has set remove from the pan and cut into 16 squares.

Flavored Sugar

Wanna look cool and impress people with only a little bit of effort?!  Me too!  Making flavored sugar is one way to do that.  It's really easy and they add a lot to the different dishes you're making. 

Making a lemon pie?  Use lemon sugar!  Making an orange tart?  Use some orange sugar!  I love using the vanilla bean sugar in my coffee.  (I think I need to go make a cup of coffee) 

Citrus Sugar:

The peel of 1 orange and/or lemon (little to no white on it)
Enough plain white sugar to fill whatever container you're using, I used a mason jar

Lay the citrus peel out to dry for a couple of hours.  Moisture is not going to be the best friend of this sugar.  Letting it dry will keep the sugar from caking up.


















After the peel has dried some layer the peel and sugar in a jar. 

I like to let the peel sit out in the air, on top of a paper towel for at least half an hour.  This helps keep the sugar was caking up. 

Seal up the jar and let it sit for a couple of weeks.  I like to shake mine every couple of days so that the flavor will get all over everything.

Vanilla Bean Sugar:

1 vanilla bean per container.  Again, I used mason jars.
Enough sugar for your container

Split the vanilla bean down the middle.  All of the goodness is inside that little pod.

Fill your container up half way with sugar, stick the vanilla bean in the jar and fill the rest of the container up.  Let sit for a couple of weeks and enjoy.

Coconut Macaroons

We have just finished up the spring holiday season.  Passover and Easter were the same weekend this year and everywhere I looked there were coconut desserts galore, especially coconut macaroons.  I decided that this, and the fact that I had every ingredient needed to make these little desserts in my panty, was a sign... so I whipped up a batch.

I looked at quite a few macaroon recipes and they were all pretty similar.  I decided on this version from Ina Garten because she used a can of sweetened condensed milk, which is awesome. I think I'm going to add these into my dessert rotation.  They were really easy to make and the ingredient list is small.

Note:  If you are looking to make these for Passover I can't attest to the Kosherness (is that a word?) of them.

 

Coconut Macaroons:
(Ina Garten)

Ingredients:
14 ounces sweetened shredded coconut

14 ounces sweetened condensed milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Combine the coconut, condensed milk, and vanilla in a large bowl. Whip the egg whites and salt on high speed in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until they make medium-firm peaks. Carefully fold the egg whites into the coconut mixture.

Drop the batter onto sheet pans lined with parchment paper using either a 1 3/4-inch diameter ice cream scoop, or 2 teaspoons.

 

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown. Cool and serve.