jamie of all trades

cranberry bliss bars

one of my favorite holiday treats is the starbucks cranberry bliss bar.  they are such a pretty treat and would make a great gift but all the recipes i found were only for a small pan and i want a large batch.  so i wrote my own recipe.  i tested it at our bake off weekend and they turned out great!

now when you read this recipe, don't freak out!  espeically when it starts with 4 sticks of butter...this makes a lot...a whole half-sheet pan to be exact!

bar:
1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
4 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups white chocolate chips
2 cups dried cranberries, chopped and divided

preheat the oven to 350 degrees. grease and flour an 18 x 13 x 1 inch baking pan.

in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar on high speed for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy.  with the mixer on low, add the vanilla, then the eggs, one at a time, and mix well, scraping down the bowl. In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt and with the mixer still on low, slowly add flour mixture to the butter mixture. fold the white chocolate chunks and 1 ½ cups cranberries in with a rubber spatula.

spread the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. bake for 30-40 minutes. don't overbake! a toothpick may not come out clean. cool completely in the pan.

Frosting:

1 pound (two 8oz. packages) cream cheese, soften and cut into small pieces
6 tbls unsalted butter, soften and cut into small pieces
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
5 cups sifted confectioners' sugar
1 tbls orange zest 

in a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, beat the cream cheese and butter until smooth.  add the vanilla and beat well.  gradually add the sugar, 1 cup at a time, beating continuously until smooth and creamy.  add the orange zest and beat well.  cover and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours to thicken before using.

when the frosting has thicken, spread over the pan of bars.  sprinkle ½ cup dried cranberries on top.  cut into triangle pieces.  enjoy!

 

egg bake 2.0 :: egg bake with a hash brown crust

whenever we do a girls weekend, i.e. bake off, i ususally make an egg bake, also referred to as a green chile quiche, on saturday morning.  the whole situation is ironic since i don't eat eggs {i'm trying to like them!}  this year i took the egg bake to the next level with a hash brown crust.  here's how:

3 cups hash browns, shredded and water removed
2 tbls butter, melted
10 eggs
1/2 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups cottage cheese
1 pound jack cheese, shredded
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 8-oz can diced chilies 

pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.  grease a 9x13 glass baking dish.  in a bowl toss the hash browns with the melted butter.  press the hash browns into the bottom of the baking dish and up the sides to form a crust.  bake for 20-25 mintues until golden brown and starting to crips.

meanwhile, in a large bowl whisk the eggs together.  whisk in the dry ingredients.  stir in the cottage cheese, jack cheese, melted butter and chilies.   pour in the baking dish over the hash brown crust.  lower the oven to 350.  bake for 40-45 minutes or until the edges are brown and the center is firm.  if your guests like serve with a side of salsa or ketchup for the potatoes.

the hash brown crust

the eggs bake right into the hash browns.

classic chocolate cake

i've been using the same chocolate cake recipe for a while now and although it's been good every now and then it doesn't come out right.  the other day the middles were sinking to the bottom!  so i tweaked my old recipe and have found the best version.  stake in the gound.  this is it.

{chocolate cupcake with vanilla frostind dyed pink.}

2 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1/2 cup vegetable oil 
2 eggs
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp vanilla
1 3/4 cups flour 
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup boiling water

preheat the oven to 350.  line 2 muffin pans with cupcake liners.

in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment mix together sugar, cocoa powder and oil.   add eggs on at a time, mix togehter.  slowly add the milk and vanilla and continue to mix on medium low speed.  add in flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in three separate batches.  slowly add the boiling water and mix on medium speed until the batter is smooth.

fill each muffin cup three-quarters of the way full with batter.  {i used a large ice cream scoop.  do not overfill, this batter really puffs up.}  bake for 20-25 minutes.  transfer to wire cooling racks, allow to cool for 30 minutes.  these cupcakes can be made two days in advance, store in an airtight container.

nutella bars

one of my favorite treats ever are peanut butter and jelly bars.  one of my favorite things in the world is nutella.  it was only a matter of time before the two met.  peanut butter and jelly bars meet nutella, nutella meet peanut butter and jelly bars.  luckily they really hit it off, nutella bars were born and they were delicious.  peanut butter, hazelnut and chocolate goodness.

recipe by moi!

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature

2 cups (18 ounces) creamy peanut butter (recommended: Skippy)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 13-oz jar of nutella

2/3 cups salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

preheat the oven to 350.  grease a 9x 13 by 2-inch cake pan. {tip - you can use the butter wrapper to easily grease the pan.}

in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light yellow, about 2 minutes. with the mixer on low speed, add the vanilla, eggs, and peanut butter and mix until all ingredients are combined.  

In a small bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. with the mixer on low speed, slowly add the flour mixture to the peanut butter mixture. mix just until combined.

spread 2/3 of the dough into the prepared cake pan and spread over the bottom with a knife or offset spatula. spread the nutella evenly over the dough. 

drop small globs of the remaining dough evenly over the nutella. don't worry if all the nutella isn't covered; it will spread in the oven. sprinkle with chopped peanuts and bake for 40-45 minutes, until golden brown. allow to cool for a while, otherwise these fall apart.  cut into squares. 

banana whoopie pies

the other day after i made my pumpkin whoopie pies i got to thinking about other flavors i could make.  somehow banana popped into my head.  this is a great way to use up overripe bananas and leftover frosting.  have i discovered a recipe made from leftovers?

recipe by moi!

1 stick (1/2 cup) melted butter
1 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 cup {about 3} overripe bananas, mashes
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cloves, ground
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 2/3 cup flour

preheat the oven to 350.  line two baking sheets with parchment paper or slipat.  in a large bowl, whisk together the melted butter and brown sugar until smooth.  whisk in the eggs, banana, cinnamon, cloves, vanilla, baking powder and soda and salt.  using a rubber spatula, fold in the flour.

using an ice cream scoop or tablespoon, drop 12 generous mounds of batter, spaced evenly, onto each baking sheet.  bake until springy to the touch about 10 minutes.  transfer to a rack to cool completely.

fall chocolate bark

it's time to face the facts.  fall is here.  you can try and fight it but trust me, it's much easier to embrace the changing leaves and the fact you now have to wear socks.  

so i have, and the first thing i'm starting with is fall chocolate bark.  chocolate bark is popular at the holiday time, william sonoma makes a fabulous one. but i decided to make some and fall-ify it.  plus this is super, super easy to make.

 

recipe by moi!

1 lbs semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate chips or chunks
1/2 cup pistachios, chopped
1/2 cup dried cranberries, chopped
1/2 cup dried apricots*, chopped
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
{all these ingredients are optional.  you can swap any of them for your favorite nuts or dried fruit}
*i actually used dried fuji apples b/c the dried apricots at whole food just weren't orange enough.

in a double boiler or glass bowl over a small pot of boiling water, melt chocolate until smooth.

in a 12x19" pan lined with foil, spread the melted chocolate.  sprinkle pistachios, dried cranberries, apricots and pumpkin seeds over the chocolate.  chill for 30 minutes.

{chillin' in the fridge}

remove from the foil and break into large pieces.  store in an airtight container in a cool place for up to one week.

 

pimm's cup

i came home two saturdays ago, after my whirlwind cupcake day and was exhausted. all i could think about was laying on the couch and watching bethenny getting married? with a cocktail.  so that's what i did.  i made myself a pimm's cup.  i saw the recipe on orangette and thought they sounded good.  i didn't have all the ingredients on hand but i had enough to make it taste really good.

 

joat's revised pimm's cup

:: 1 oz pimm's no. 1
:: 3 oz reed's ginger beer
:: mint leaves
:: lemon wedge

pour pimm's no.1 and ginger beer into a glass.  fill with ice until the liquid almost reaches the top.  garnish with mint leaves and squeeze the juice from lemon wedge.  enjoy!

 

i also needed one of this bad boys yesterday.  i'm having car problems... again.  please think good car thoughts for me.  thank you! xxoo
 

oscar party + monster cookies

i held a little oscar party at my house on sunday.  for dessert i wanted to make something that used up some m+m's that were um, left at my house.  i remembered monster cookies from working at an espresso cart in college had m+m's in them...along with many other things.  which you can mix and match depending on what's in your baking drawer.  this is a great recipe to use up those half bags of butterscotch chips, chocolate chips or m+m's.

recipe by moi

1 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 cups flour
3/4 cup oatmeal (optional)
1/2 m+m's (optional)
1/2 butterscotch chips (optional)

preheat oven to 350.  line two cookie sheets with silpat or parchment paper.

with a mixer on medium speed cream butter and both sugars together.  add eggs and vanilla and mix until combine.  sift together baking soda, salt and flour.  in batches add to the butter mixture and stir until incorporated.  stir in your treats - oats, m+m's, butterscotch chips, peanuts, walnuts, reese's pieces.  whatever you like.

spoon a tablespoon or so amount of dough, or using a small ice cream scoop, drop onto the cookie sheets.  bake for 12-15 minutes.  allow to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before moving to a wire rack to completely cool.

they might not be the best looking cookies but the tasted great.

i printed out these cutie oscar ballots from twig and thistle.  they cost me a fortune to print, i just had to use nice card stock.  should have asked how much!  whoops.  i know now for next time.

turtle cheesecakes or engagement cakes?

i had some girlfriends over on friday night for dinner, wine, chatting, catching up, bonding and most importantly dessert.  we do this a few times a year and it's one of my favorite things.  mostly for connection time but eating dessert is up there too. 

i don't know what made me decide on turtle {caramel + pecans} cheesecakes but i did.  perhaps they should be called engagement cakes?  we ate these friday night and the very next day my friend kris' boyfriend, kevin, proposed to her! woo hoo!  congratulations kris + kevin.

another recipe written by moi!

 

1/4 cup butter, melted
1 cup crushed chocolate cookies
8 oz cream cheese, soften
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
1 cup sugar 
3 eggs
1/4 caramel
1/4 cup toasted pecans

preheat oven to 350.  in a mixing bowl, stir melted butter and chocolate cookies together until all the cookies crumbs are covered.  line a muffin tin with cupcake papers, scoop in enough cookie crumb mixture to cover the bottoms.  press in with the bottom of a glass.  bake for 5 minutes.

in the bowl of an electric mixer, beat cream cheese, ricotta cheese, sugar and eggs together until smooth.  pour into the muffin tin, about 3/4 of the way full.  bake for 30 minutes, allow to cool and then refrigerate for at least 1 hour, even overnight is okay.  drizzle with caramel and top with nuts.

{the pack up real nice for an engagement celebration too!}  

butternut squash curry soup

last week my co-worker and i went to macrina bakery right by our work and had the {hands down} most delicious soup - a butternut squash curry soup.  it looked like baby food but it was one of the most luxurious things i've ever tasted.  i came home, read up on two similar style soup recipes and created this one. another recipe by moi {which i've also started a category for in case you want to see all the recipes i've written}

 

1 large butternut squash, peeled and cubed
2 tbls olive oil
1/2 white onion, chopped
4 medium sizes carrots, peeled and chopped
1 clove garlic minced
4 cups chicken stock 
salt + pepper
3-4 tbls curry powder
1/4 cup cream

 

cut the top off the butternut squash and peel the skin off.  cut in half, scoop out the seeds and cut into 1-inch chunks.  set aside.  in a large pot, heat the olive oil, add the onions and cook for 5 minutes, until soft.  add carrots and garlic, cook for 1 minute.  add butternut squash and cook for another minute or so. 

 

add salt, pepper, curry and stir so the squash, onions and carrots are coated.  add chicken stock and bring to a boil.  reduce heat to a simmer for 15-20 minutes.

 

remove from heat and puree in either a food mill or immersion blender until smooth.  return to heat and pour in cream.  stir until smooth.