Brewer's Blondies

Not much to say about these. Not much to show either. Just this:

But here's what I will say--just delicious. So easy. So caramel-y (I think because of the malt powder, but I don't really know, I just know that it's yummy). Sort of nutty and warming with a unique flavor. I really, truly loved them. And did I mention they were easy? The recipe is from the first BAKED book.

Now, for the really important news: this book was published a few days early, and I have my copy in my hot little hands. It was hard to put down last night. So much food porn to drool over. So many new things to learn about. So many meals to plan around desserts. I cannot wait to get started.

My girls are scared of the Whiskey Sauce on the Lacy Panty Cakes (which, what a beautiful confluence of campy recipe name and deliciousness, I can't wait to make them--they're like delicate pancakes with graham cracker crumbs in the batter! PLUS WHISKEY SAUCE!). So, I've decided that will be for another time. But I do have a plan for the weekend.


TGIP Rating--Brewer's Blondies--KEEPER. Have you even bought the first BAKED book yet? I don't know what more I can do to convince you.

Next up: Caramel Coconut Cluster Bars. Yes.

Lemon Drop Cupcakes

Another perfect BAKED recipe. Another pretty perfect outcome. It's getting boring isn't it? I should try something super difficult next so that I can have another epic fail, right? The recipe for this is for a full-size cake, but I decided to make cupcakes for ease of transport (to rehearsal). The only difference in the recipe itself is that I added an egg yolk, as is suggested in the cupcake version of the Whiteout Cake recipe. They rose just right, and were lovely and tender. Here is where somebody else posted the Lemon Drop Cake recipe.

No, those aren't poppy seeds, that's black sugar that my friend Dan brought me from Fortnum & Mason. Pretty sparklies.

No stress over the buttercream this time. I feel like maybe I've mastered it. I let it take as long as it took, without forcing it, and I was rewarded. Prima even said maybe she likes buttercream now, and won't ask for canned frosting on her birthday cakes anymore (?!). 

Also, the lemon curd is completely delicious. I promised my girls I'd make raspberry muffins (a mix from here that someone gave me for Christmas) (incidentally, that's where I buy all my flour) for their breakfasts next week, and that they'd be allowed to put lemon curd on them. Even though it seems like dessert. Goodness knows I've been known to eat cherry pie for breakfast.

Here's a thing though: I rarely have time to bake, make frosting, and decorate a cake or cupcakes all in one day. So I end up having to store the cake portion for a day or two on the counter, or longer in the fridge or freezer. And the texture just doesn't stay the same. The cake is just ever so slightly dryer than it would be if eaten on the day it was baked. Is it just me? If not, what do you do about this problem? Should I just always resign myself to brushing cake with simple syrup to give it extra moisture after being stored? Suggestions?

Oooh, also. I made this vanilla cake for our Independence Day celebration. 

 (those are edible gold-dusted white chocolate stars on top--I...dislike red/white/blue
desserts that come out of the woodwork on Independence Day--mainly because blue is not
terribly appetizing to me)

I was really surprised at the outcome of the cake. No adjustments at all for altitude and it came out perfectly. Just a little domed in each pan, with a beautiful, moist texture. The frosting was a little too grainy and sweet for my taste, but she also has a Swiss meringue buttercream that she uses a lot, so I might try that soon. Just for comparison with the BAKED boys buttercream. She also has about a million other recipes that I want to try. Everything she posts looks so beautiful and delicious.

TGIP Rating--Lemon Drop Cake/Cupcakes--KEEPER. I might try the regular cake sometime, with lemon curd in between layers. Sounds delicious.

AND--Vanilla Birthday Cake--KEEPER. But mainly for the cake. The frosting wasn't my favorite.

Next up: Wow, I just have no idea. Things are a little hectic right now, so I may not even have time to bake until September. When I'll probably want to start in on fall-ish things. Although...these look delicious and not too difficult. Or maybe these. Maybe for a Sunday morning...sometime soon. Maybe I need a friend to come over and bake with me on one of my infrequent evenings off. Any takers?

Buttermilk Pie and an Amazing Woman

So, Buttermilk Pie. I had honestly never even heard of the stuff until about a year and a half ago. That's when my friend Teresa told me about it. This is her (on the left):

First, let me tell you about Teresa. You know how you have a favorite sister (I said you, not me), and a favorite aunt (again, you, not me), and a best girlfriend, and those times when you're so thankful your mom is around, even when you're a grown-up, and that elementary school teacher you'll always remember because you just felt comfortable around her, even when the rest of the world made you feel awkward?  All those women rolled into one beautiful package--that's Teresa. I was lucky enough over the course of a journey with one play to have Teresa on stage with me as my sister, my mother, my boyfriend, THE GODDESS. And next weekend I get to play her wife. In this. LUCKY ME. She is one of my favorite actors to watch and to be on stage with. And she is one of my very favorite people in the world. Passionate and smart and funny and hard-working and unbelievably talented. And, aside from my blood relations, she is the woman I look up to and respect more than any other. And I trust her. To give me good pie recipes. Like this one.


Buttermilk Pie *click here for printable version*
recipe courtesy Teresa Sanderson

1 stick butter (melted)
1-3/4 cup sugar
3 Tbls. flour
3 eggs (beaten)
1 cup buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cinnamon (or nutmeg, depending on tastes)
1/4 tsp salt

Whisk ingredients together and pour into a 9 inch pie crust (I prebaked my crust and was happy with how crispy it stayed, but you don’t have to). Bake at 350 for 45 to 50 minutes.

Serving suggestions: warm with vanilla ice cream, or chilled with your favorite berries.


Such a simple recipe. Such unassuming ingredients. And you would honestly be surprised at how sweet (but not overly) and creamy and completely delicious this is. She told me last night that it's her grandmother's recipe. Her grandmother who cooked for 25 ranch hands daily, and sometimes didn't have enough fruit for a pure fruit pie, so she made this and put fruit on top. Perfect.

One thing: when I cut into it, it wanted to leak. Like so:

Just the first piece. After that it seemed to, I don't know, reabsorb it's own liquid? Did I do something wrong Mama? It tasted good, does it look right?

Also, baby version (in the back with smashed raspberries on top:

Or, as certain tv characters call it, a cup-pie.


TGIP Rating--Buttermilk Pie--KEEPER. Now I know what to do with all my leftover buttermilk. Seems like I'm always buying a quart of buttermilk for a recipe that only requires 1/3 cup. Also, I think it might be good with sliced peaches on top. Will have to make it again to be sure.

Next up: I'm working on a production of Romeo and Juliet. I'm playing the Nurse, and in the unedited version of the script, the Nurse says that Juliet will be 14 "on Lammas Eve at night". Lammas is August 1, so Juliet's birthday is July 31! Cool thing to know, right!? And, even though she is a fictional character, I'm going to make her a birthday cake (well, probably cupcakes). Something lemony. Seems like what a 14-year old in Verona in summertime would want.

P.S. Reporting on hand pies: I made some cherry pies (bottom right in the picture above), but only got one bite, so I don't really know that I can report on how they tasted. More tries to come...

Triple Berry Summer Buttermilk Bundt

Sometimes I decide at the last minute to make a thing. And it's so easy that I end up putting it together between setting a pot to boil on the stove and throwing the pasta for dinner into said pot. And since I'm making dinner and a cake at the exact same time, the last thing on my mind is taking pictures.  So this is all you get:

Basically, what I'm saying is, yes, there are some cakes that are so easy even YOU can make them.  And you know who you are. Here's the recipe.

The cake itself is super moist and delicious. The lemon gives it a little brightness that I like. I used only raspberries and blueberries because I don't love blackberries (most of the time they're too tart for me) (unless I've picked them myself in the wilds of Washington, blissfully unaware of the spider problem the bushes reputedly have) (*willies*). And I guess I forgot that I also don't love baked berries. AND, the icing was SUPER sweet. Which, have you met me? Not usually a problem. So, this is a recipe I'd definitely like to try some other options with.

TGIP Rating--Triple Berry Summer Buttermilk Bundt--TO BE TWEAKED. I'm thinking I'd like to make this with halved cherries, and maybe just a dusting of powdered sugar on top.

Next up: What is it with me and the hand pies? Next Tuesday, July 24, is a Utah holiday--Pioneer Day. Those of us who have less of a pioneer connection like to call it Pie-and-Beer Day. I'm seriously going to spend the day baking pies. Lots of things in mind. Mainly, miniature cup-pie versions of buttermilk, and fresh strawberry pie, and cherry hand pies. I'm doing it. Nothing can stop me. Except exhaustion.

Midweek Surprise: Cherry Chocolate Focaccia

My PLAN had been to NOT cook last weekend. Give myself an opportunity to do something else (clean, nap, get my hair done). But then I ran across this recipe. And there was no turning back. Another recipe containing all the things I love.

Perfect for Sunday breakfast. I whipped it together Saturday night (not difficult), left it on the counter overnight and it was ready for us to eat as soon as we rolled out of bed.

Yum.


TGIP Rating--Cherry Chocolate Focaccia--KEEPER.

Chocolate Mousse Pie with Caramel Whipped Cream

This recipe is in progress. It was good, but too rich. Even for me. Which means it's certainly not for the faint-hearted or those who can't eat chocolate after 7 pm because it disturbs their sleep. I'm dialing back the chocolate, decreasing the amount of mousse, and increasing the amount of caramel whipped cream. Stay tuned. And if you live near me, prepare to be invited over to be a guinea pig. When I get the recipe right, I think it will have been well worth the testing.

TGIP Rating--Chocolate Mousse Pie with Caramel Whipped Cream--IN PROGRESS. I already have notes on the recipe about what to change.

Next up: I bought myself this dear little book. I'm doing it. I'm making handpies.

French Macarons (chocolate)

You probably won't believe me when I tell you these are easy to make. Those "crinkled feet" (that's what the book calls them--cute, huh!) on the flat side of each cookie--don't they look like there's some ancient and extremely difficult process involved?

Something that French people are raised knowing how to do, but that would be beyond our (my?) American abilities? THESE COOKIES ARE EASY TO MAKE. I don't even know how those crinkled feet happened. I followed the directions, and they appeared. So, I'm saying that's all you need to do too: follow the directions.

I used a recipe from this:

What I like in this book is that it starts with some basic recipes for both cookies and fillings, and then presents more exotic flavors with tons of suggestions for yummy-sounding cookie/filling flavor combinations. It makes it seem like there are ONE THOUSAND kinds of macaron I could make. Which I like. I like it when my dance card is filled with recipes I want to try. And these are so delightful they may end up my new obsession. Here's what I like about them:

• easy to transport
• small enough that a "serving" doesn't kill your diet (especially if you make chocolate cookies with chocolate filling, which I did--so rich and delicious that ONE is ENOUGH)
• look fancy and pretty without much effort
• kind of surprising--they're so lightweight you think they'll explode like a meringue when you bite into them, but they don't;  they collapse in on themselves and reveal a chewy center that is completely unexpected

Also, they are "trending" right now (yeah, I just said that), so there are a million and one books devoted to the mighty macaron out there. Full of pretty. Dessert porn. I don't think we'll see "Macaron Wars" on the Food Network anytime soon, since the batter should sit on the pan for at least 15 minutes (ideally, longer) before baking.

BUT. Maybe we'll start seeing bakeries devoted to them?

The food processor is my friend.  Regular sugar with a bit of a whizzing around becomes superfine sugar. Add cocoa and a few other ingredients=macaron batter.

TGIP Rating--Chocolate Macarons--KEEPER. Lots more to learn. Lots more options to try.

Next up: A rework of an old recipe. mr. wants Chocolate Mousse Pie for his birthday. So I'm going to throw together a little of this and a little of this and a little of this and see what happens.