Day 93 - Butterscotch Cookies

Last night while I was working on the blog, I was also on Facebook. 
I love to multitask.
It's so much more productive.
Especially when you're also on social media!
One of my young friends on FB (and I say young because I am truly old enough to be her mother), Ashley, posted that she was baking.  Of course, I was curious as to what she might be baking and am now always on the lookout for new recipes, so I just had to ask.  I also told her that if they were yummy I wanted her to share and I would think about putting it on the blog. 
I really didn't think about it for very long because all day all I could think about was butterscotch cookies and how yummy she said they were.  Ashley even said that her brother, Jared, liked LOVED them and he doesn't like cookies with nuts.
So, it really was a no-brainer.
Ashley is a sweetheart and I miss her.  We used to work in retail together, and she is an extremely intelligent and beautiful woman.  She also has the most beautiful brown eyes.
I love that she loves to bake - something I didn't know about her until recently.
Thanks for sharing these with us, Ashley!  I look forward to making these again in the future.

Butterscotch Cookies

¾ cup salted butter, softened (1½ sticks)
6 oz. cream cheese, softened
¾ cup packed brown sugar
¾ cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 large eggs
3 cups flour
1 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup white chocolate chips
1¼ cups chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350ºF.
In a mixing bowl, combine butter, cream cheese, and sugars and beat until light and fluffy.



Mix in the vanilla and baking soda.
Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition.

At this point, I just wanted to jump into this batter, it was so smooth, and delicious!

Add the flour, one cup at a time, beating thoroughly after each.
Fold in the butterscotch, white chocolate chips, and nuts.
Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until golden brown.

These cookies were SO rich and delicious!  The cream cheese with the two different flavored chips was magical.  I made the first batch without the nuts because I have a family member who doesn't like nuts.  I tasted one of those and one from the second batch and decided I really liked the ones with the nuts the best.  I haven't finished baking all of the batter, but I'm thinking that it will probably make a total of about 48 cookies.

I rate everything I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  My son and daughter thought they should be given 3 rolling pins, but because I'm the boss and I REALLY liked them, I'm going to overrule the youngin's and give them a 3½!  They really are very good.

Happy baking!

Day 92 - Cornbread Muffins

In my daily perusals of blogs the other day, I happened across a site called Bloggers Bake for Hope. 

The following is taken from the About page on Bloggers Bake for Hope:
Bake for Hope is a week long, nation-wide, 100% volunteer-run, bake sale event happening, the week leading up to Mother's Day. Proceeds donated to local Susan G. Komen for the Cure affiliates.

Bloggers Bake for Hope is a virtual bake sale. Bloggers will donate their time, ingredients, and shipping costs so there are no expenses associated with this virtual bake sale. All proceeds from the bake sale will be sent to the Massachusetts Komen for the Cure.

Jen and Cara, two Boston area food bloggers have teamed up for a project called Bloggers Bake for Hope, a virtual bake sale as part of Bake for Hope. Jen serves up sweets at Beantown Baker, while Cara shares healthy, creative dinners at Cara’s Cravings. 

Both Cara and Jen have been successful fundraisers for Susan G. Komen for the Cure in the past. Cara is currently organizing the third annual Bake for Hope at her company’s office site in Marlboro, MA. Last year’s event raised over $2500. Jen has made breast cancer awareness part of her personal mission. In 2004, Jen’s mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Since then, Jen, her sisters, mom, and aunts walk the Race for the Cure every year. Jen and her family have raised thousands of dollars for the various Komen for the Cure affiliates.

Jen and Cara feel a strong connection to the cause, and are avid bloggers with a strong following. Thus, teaming up to host an online bake sale seemed like a fun and natural way to take things to the next level. The virtual bake sale will take place on May 4-6, 2011. Bloggers and bakers from across the country will agree in advance to donate baked goods. Buyers will make virtual pledges on the Bloggers Bake for Hope site, and at the close of the bake sale the highest bidders will be awarded the donated baked goods. They will make their donations via PayPal, and the bakers will then bake and ship their goods. Because the bakers are donating their ingredients, time, and shipping costs, there are no expenses associated with the virtual bake sale. 100% of the proceeds will be donated to the Massachusetts Komen for the Cure. Jen and Cara are challenging their fellow bakers and bloggers to help them raise $2000 through Bloggers Bake for Hope. 


Years ago I participated and raised donations in a cancer walk back in Rhode Island. 
As many of you know my mother passed away from breast cancer in 1992 at the age of 47.  She had been diagnosed in 1977 at the age of 32.  I am also doing this in honor of her sister and my aunt, Jeanne, and my very close friend, Tina, who are both breast cancer survivors.  I am baking two dozen Pignoli Cookies and then shipping them to the person who pledges the most.  
There are many bloggers who will be participating and I am honored to be able to contribute.  I know there will be absolutely delicious items donated and I encourage you all to look at the site and make a pledge on some baked goods.  I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.It's horrible!

I was able to bake today and I'm now a happy camper. 
It was good to be back in the kitchen.

I used The Martha Stewart Living Cookbook, The New Classics, p. 569-570; author, Martha Stewart; publisher, Clarkson Potter/ Publishers, an imprint of Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 978-0-307-39383-8.

Cornbread Muffins - makes 12

5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for the muffin tin
1 cup stone-ground yellow cornmeal
1 cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup confectioners' sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar
½ teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
½ vanilla bean, split lengthwise
2 large eggs
1½ cups buttermilk (I used buttermilk powder and water.)Preheat the oven to 375ºF.
Brush a 12-cup standard muffin tin with melted butter; set aside.  In a large bowl, whisk together the cornmeal, flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 

(*I added 6 tablespoons buttermilk powder to the dry ingredients and just added 1½ cups water to the liquids.*)

In a small bowl, scrape in the vanilla seeds; add the eggs and buttermilk (water), and whisk to combine.  Pour over the flour mixture.  Add the 5 tablespoons butter, and stir until blended, using as few strokes as possible.

Spoon the batter into the prepared tin, filling each cup three-quarters full.

Yeah, almost completely filled and I still had batter left over.

Bake until golden and firm to the touch, 17 to 20 minutes.  Serve warm.

I don't think they were supposed to look like this.

See the little vanilla bean seeds?

I have to say that these were the most moist cornbread muffins (say that 3 times fast!) I have ever had!  They were delicious!  I like cornbread and corn muffins, but I can't stand how dry they are sometimes. 

I use a rating system from 1-4 with 4 being the best, so these muffins earned 3½ rolling pins.  I will definitely be adding these to my recipe collection of keepers even though there was spillage on the tin.

No biggie. 

They were yummy anyway!

Happy baking!

Day 92 on what should be Day 93

Wow.
First of my apologies for not posting yesterday.  I didn't post and I didn't bake. 
I was completely overcome by a headache that lasted 48 hours and made me extremely nauseous.
Even meds. and some wonderful help from my chiropractor couldn't relieve it.  This morning, I feel as if I've been run over by a truck and there is still just an ever so slight ache.
I'm hoping that after I eat some breakfast and take some more pills I can completely kick this thing and start the baking.
Not fun.
365 days of baking with a hiccup on day 92.
We'll pick up where we left off and continue on.
I'll be back later.
Thanks for reading!

Day 91 - Spinach, Bacon & Gruyère Quiche




Mmmmm...dinner.
Boys may not eat cookies, but real men eat quiche, right?
I have to say, my husband has never been a "fan of quiche", but the kids have consistently loved it.  It's been a few years since I've made it, so I cleaned out the cobwebs in my head to access the recipe in my brain.  I also made it tonight because I needed to make dinner and today's recipe for the blog.  There's still a couple leftover chicken enchiladas in the fridge anyway if this doesn't turn out and pecan pie for dessert.
Please note that you may want to read through this whole post and decide what oven temp. would work best for you.  After 8 hours of baking (ok, I grossly exaggerate, but it was taking FOREVER), the quiche still wasn't setting.  Read on and then talk amongst yourselves.  The topic:  oven temperature settings to ensure that you will be having quiche for dinner and not breakfast the next morning. 

Spinach, Bacon & Gruyere Quiche

I used the Fannie Farmer Cookbook Thirteenth Edition for the crust, p. 639; author, Marion Cunningham; publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 0-394-56788-9.


Pastry Shell - 9-inch pie shell
     1½ cup flour
     ¼ teaspoon salt
     ½ cup shortening
     ¼ teaspoon dried dill
     3-4 tablespoons cold water (I ended up using about 7)
 
Preheat the oven to 450ºF. 
Mix the flour and salt.  Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender or two knives.  Combine lightly only until the mixture resembles coarse meal or very tiny peas:  its texture will be uniform, but will contain crumbs and small bits and pieces.  Add dill seasoning.  Sprinkle water over the flour mixture, a tablespoon at a time, and mix lightly with a fork, using only enough water so that the pastry will hold together when pressed gently together.  Roll the dough out 2 inches larger than the pie pan.  Fit it loosely, but firmly into the pan.  Crimp or flute the edges.
Cover with a double lining of tin foil and bake for 8 minutes.  Uncover and bake for 8 minutes more or until crust is set and dry. 
Decrease oven temperature to 325ºF.
(After the uncovered 8 minutes, the bottom of the crust was bubbly and still moist.  I lined it with parchment and poured rice into it to add weight.  Doing this added another 10 minutes to the baking time.)  Notice I also pricked the crust, completely forgetting that I wasn't supposed to do that.  Ah well, it's just too difficult to fill in all those tiny holes...

The Filling

4 slices bacon

½ cup chopped onion

1 large garlic clove, minced

1 8oz. bag fresh spinach, chopped (I suggest taking it out of the bag first ;-) )

1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese

4 eggs, beaten

1½ cups milk

1 tablespoon flour

¼ teaspoon salt

 freshly ground pepper to taste

In a large skillet over medium high heat, cook bacon.  Once cooked, set aside to drain on plate lined with a paper towel, and crumble when cooled.

With at least one tablespoon of bacon drippings in skillet, saute onion and garlic for about 3-4 minutes until softened, making sure burner light doesn't go out or you'll be wondering why it is taking so long to cook.  Yeah.

Add chopped spinach to skillet.

Saute until well wilted (well wilted?  wilted well?), until it decreases sufficiently in pan, about 5-7 minutes.  Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

In a small bowl, combine Gruyere cheese and flour.  Mix until cheese is thoroughly coated.  Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat eggs.  Add milk, salt, pepper, crumbled bacon, and cheese/flour mixture.  Mix well.

Add spinach mixture from skillet to large bowl.  Mix well.  Pour into pie crust.

Ok, this is where you come in.  YOU are now allowed to make an executive decision.  The topic was temperature for the oven so you could eat your quiche at a decent hour for dinner.  What's the verdict?

Here's what I did which I don't think I'd recommend:

The oven was at 325ºF, and after the consulting numerous cookbooks on baking times at that temperature, they all suggested that a quiche (with added ingredients such as bacon, or spinach, or cheese) would take about 45-50 minutes until it was set and a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. 

UN-UNH.

So, I increased the oven temperature to 350ºF and baked it for another 15 minutes.  The edges were starting to puff up and look set, but the knife in the middle came out wet.  Another 15 minutes at 350ºF and maybe a couple minutes more were needed before it was sufficiently baked through.  Totally frustrating!  Fortunately the hungry masses were patient and I was able to temporarily satiate their hunger with sweet potato fries before the quiche emerged form the oven. 

So total baking time: 325ºF for 50 minutes, then 350ºF for 30+ minutes.

Well, I guess it is true, good things come to those who wait.  My husband even liked it this time!  The kids weren't thrilled with the way I had changed it.  I used to use cheddar/Colby cheese and used ½ of a thawed box of frozen spinach that I didn't saute.  I wanted to be different tonight.  I also used a store bought pie crust in the past.  I REALLY liked the taste of the Gruyere.  I had never had it before.  I think I will have to use it again.

I don't think the crust needed the addition of the dill.  Too many flavors and I could only taste it when I was eating the crust without the quiche.

I use a rating system of 1-4 with 4 being the best and this quiche earned 3 rolling pins. 

Happy baking!

Day 90 - Cinnamon Sugar Cookies

I saw these GORGEOUS cookies on Amanda's website, i am baker.  She does absolutely beautiful work and inspired me to decorate some today. My intention was to bake some cookies and decorate them in baseballs and with my son's school logo for today's playoff baseball game.  It could be their last or they could advance, who knows?  So, regardless of the outcome, my plan was to bring cookies.
Who doesn't like a good cookie, especially a nicely decorated one?
"Boys don't like cookies."
Was what I heard when my husband came home from work and asked what I was doing.
Really?
Hm.
What the heck does THAT mean?!  Boys don't like cookies?
Time was passing pretty quickly this afternoon and between some errands and going to the baseball game, I wasn't going to have time to decorate the cookies anyway - scratch the cookies for the game.  I come home from one errand and who's sitting in his recliner eating a cookie?
"What are you doing?"
In the best little boy voice he can muster, "I'm havin' a cookie," replies Mr. 365.
"How many have you had?"
Still using that voice, "I wasn't sure if they were gonna be good or not, so I picked a number and that's how many I got."
I'm over at the counter, "1, 2, 3...you had 5 cookies???!!" These are not small cookies.
"Yup, they're good!"
I'm sure.  For a "boy" who doesn't like cookies. Hmpf.
He later explained that, "guys don't want to eat cookies after a game.  What do you think Big Papi feels like having after he hits a walk-off home run, a cookie?  NAAHHHH!"  Ok, I get it.
But you could have expanded your answer the first time!
I finished frosting after we came home from the game. 

But can I tell you because I really do need to boast - just a little bit?
The team won their game and my son played the game of his life.  He's first in the line-up and for his first at bat, he hit an in the park home run.  I don't know if I've ever seen him run so fast around third base!  It was SO cool!  He's running, and I'm screaming, "Run. Run!!!"  Not that my yelling made him go any faster.
He made a great defensive play later and then was able to knock in the winning run. 
It was wonderful because he's struggled this year and has decided after many years of baseball that this season will be his last.  He's decided to play volleyball in high school and both sports are in the spring here.  So, this is kind of his last hurrah.  I was really very excited for him, and even Mr. Cookie told him he'd done a great job playing a perfect game and gave him a hug.  I love my life!
At dinner, even my son agreed that his teammates wouldn't have wanted cookies after the game.  Oh, well.

I adapted this from the Fannie Farmer Cookbook, p. 612; author, Marion Cunningham; publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.; ISBN 0-394-56788-9.

Cinnamon Sugar Cookies - made 26 cookies

¼ pound butter (1 stick)
¾ cup sugar
1 egg
½ teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon milk
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
1 ½ cups flour, approximately (Note: only enough so that it can be rolled without being sticky. I used an additional 3 tablespoons after the 1 ½ cups)
1/8 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon baking powder

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
Cream the butter, then gradually add the sugar, beating until light.
Add the egg, vanilla, cinnamon, and milk and beat thoroughly.

Mix the flour, salt, and baking powder together, add to the first mixture, and blend well.

Roll ¼ inch thick and cut into 3-inch circles.

                                    

Bake on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper and bake for about 12 minutes or until lightly browned.

Here's the link for the frosting recipe from i am baker.  I really enjoyed using it and it was a good consistency to work with.  I should have made it thicker though and used a different tip for writing the letters on the black cookies.  They didn't come out so hot. 
Next time.
To frost the tops, I used about 2 teaspoons of frosting for each cookie base and then finished the decoration.

I started with the ones on the top and finished with the two on the bottom.
They're supposed to be the initials D C.



Mr. Cookie said he preferred to eat them without the frosting.  With it, he thought they were just too sweet.  I liked them both ways.  The rating system I use everyday is on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best and these cookies earned 3 rolling pins.

Channel your inner baker!



Day 89 - Best-Of-All Pecan Pie

     I had to stick my hand into the garbage disposal this morning.  The other day it made a funny sound, like a piece of metal was jumping around in there. 
     And yes.
     I admit it.
     I put it off because I just don't like to deal with things of that sort.  Yes, I could have asked my husband to (using my very deepest man voice) do a manly job and "fix" the disposal (GRAWRRRRRRR).  I'm sure he would have readily accepted the challenge knowing how he likes to "fix" problems even though sometimes when he "fixes" he likes to takes things completely apart and then they cannot be fixed for good unless we pay to have them repaired.  If you know my husband, a mechanic he is not, but he is extremely gifted in his profession.  He has and continues to help many people and I am very grateful and very proud of what he does.  He's awesome.
     To be honest, I truly don't know if his hand would have fit into the mouth of the disposal anyway.  Forgetting that that mystery piece of whatever it was was still in there, I put something down this drain this morning, flipped on the switch and heard it again. 
Doggone it!! 
Son of a gun!!
Oh, ALRIGHT ALREADY!!!
I actually started whining in my head, "oh, I don't want to do this...why do I have to be the one to do it?  Who was it that put this thing down here anyway and why can't THEY get it out??!!  WHY ME??!!"  My husband wasn't home to ask even if I had wanted to.
I don't have a fear of the thing turning on and shredding my hand to bits although the thought has crossed my mind.  No, what really scares me is reaching in there and touching all things SLIMY and DISGUSTING and not being able to SEE what they are.  EEEEEEWWWWWWW!!!!!!!  It grosses me out just thinking about it!  I can handle mice, rats, creepy crawly things and snakes, but touching yucky stuff?  Unh Uh!
No gloves to be had, so I unplugged the thing, closed my eyes ('cause I can always feel things better with my eyes closed, especially if I can't see what it is I'm touching to begin with!) and ever so gently emerged my hand into the abyss.  Ok, it was a very small abyss, but that's the word that comes to mind. 
Abyss. 
Going into the...
Unknown.
Feeling around I could feel the culprit!  A piece of metal something or other.  Wait, no.  That's attached to this other piece of metal which rotates, slices and dices.  Hmmm...wait, what's this?  Something that feels small and it could be...AHA! (as I pull my hand out to view the little devil)

This isn't the actual piece, the real one was chopped up.

Ok, I admit it.  I'm the one who is at fault for this one.  It must have fallen in when I was cleaning up from the Easter Egg Hunt Cookies the other day.  I knew there was a cake decorating piece missing!

You know what?  I'm tired of indenting and I'm not going to do it anymore and it's wasting precious blogging space.  So, I apologize to any English teachers out there who may now have a problem reading this because it's not in correct form.  But hey, isn't that what blogs are about anyway, literary freedom?
I used my trusty Fannie Farmer Cookbook for this one, pages 639 (crust) and 648; author, Marion Cunningham; publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 0-394-56788-9.
Best-Of-All Pecan Pie

Pastry Shell - 9-inch pie shell
     1½ cup flour
     ¼ teaspoon salt
     ½ cup shortening
     3-4 tablespoons cold water (I ended up using about 7)
  
Mix the flour and salt.  Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender or two knives.  Combine lightly only until the mixture resembles coarse meal or very tiny peas:  its texture will be uniform, but will contain crumbs and small bits and pieces.  Sprinkle water over the flour mixture, a tablespoon at a time, and mix lightly with a fork, using only enough water so that the pastry will hold together when pressed gently together.  Roll the dough out 2 inches larger than the pie pan.  Fit it loosely, but firmly into the pan.  Crimp or flute the edges.

Pie Filling

3 eggs
1 cup dark corn syrup (I used light - didn't have dark)
½ cup dark brown sugar
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla
1¼ cups pecan halves or coarsely chopped pecans

Topping

1 cup heavy cream, chilled

Preheat the oven to 425ºF.
Set aside the prepared, unbaked pie shell.
Beat the eggs in a bowl with a fork or wire whisk until the yolks and whites are well blended.
Add the corn syrup, brown sugar, melted butter and vanilla, and blend well.

Stir in the pecans, then pour the mixture into the pie shell.

Bake the pie for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges are set and the center quivers slightly.  Don't overbake!



Let the pie cool a bit, and just before serving whip the cream, then spread it over the pie or pass it separately.

I've only ever had Pecan Pie once before and thought it was good.  This one was equally as good and earns a rating of 3½ rolling pins.  My rating system is on a scale of 1-4 with 1 being the worst and not worth the money or effort.  I'm enjoying the process of making the pie crusts!  I'm thinking after I'm done with 365 that I will maybe do a 365 of Pies.  I'm kidding.  I really don't know if I could bake a pie every day for 365 days straight.  Wow, that would be a big undertaking.  Haha.  Yeah, listen to me, as if this isn't.  I don't know.  We'll see.  I'm open to suggestions.

This pie was good.  The crust collapsed a little as you can see in the picture.  I have no idea what that was about.  I also left it in the oven an extra 7 minutes because it wasn't set and when I went to cut it, it still wasn't set, so make sure you keep an eye on it at the end.  Do I have any friends nearby who would like to share some Pecan Pie?  I have plenty!  Help me eat it!

Happy baking!

 



Boston Cream Pie

O.H. M.Y. ~ stop licking the screen {Gross!} But I really can't blame you, I licked the plate! It was my husband's birthday this month and I knew I had no choice but to make his favorite. And luckily for me I happen to love it too! So thanks to my wonderful husband for being born (and my mother-in-law for giving birth) so that we could indulge in this wonderful dessert! This recipe came from Country Living.

Boston Cream Pie


Cake
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
1 t vanilla
1 1/4 cups cake flour
1 1/2 t baking powder
1/4 t salt
1/2 cup milk

Vanilla Bean Pudding
3/4 cup milk
1 cup cream
1 vanilla bean (I used 1 t vanilla bean paste)
3 egg yolks
2 T cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 t salt
1/2 t vanilla (I omitted this because I used the vanilla paste)
1 1/2 t butter

Chocolate Glaze
1/2 cup cream
4 oz dark chocolate (I used 1/2 semi-sweet and half milk chocolate chips)
1 T butter
3 T corn Syrup

For the cake:
Heat oven to 350.  Line the bottom of an 8-in round cake pan with parchment paper.  Butter and flour the pan. Beat the butter and sugar together until fluffy.  Beat in the eggs and yolks, one at a time, and then add the vanilla.

Stir the cake flour, baking powder and salt together using a whisk.  Add the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture alternating with the milk. Beat until the batter is smooth.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely.

For the pudding:
Heat the milk, cream and vanilla bean (with the seeds scraped into the milk) until just simmering in a heavy-bottomed pot.  Whisk together the egg yolks,cornstarch, sugar, and salt.  Slowly add the hot milk tot eh egg mixture, whisking continuously. Return to the pan and cook over medium heat, whisking until the mixture thickens and just begins to boil.  Immediately transfer to a clean bowl and remove the vanilla bean.  Add the butter and vanilla extract and stir until combined.  Put plastic wrap against the whole surface to cover.  Chill before using.

For the chocolate glaze:
Heat the cream to a boil.  Mix the other ingredients together in a bowl.  Pour the hot cream over the top and stir until smooth.  Let it cool slightly to thicken.

Assembly:
Split the cake using a long serrated knife.  Spread the vanilla bean pudding over the bottom half of the cake and place the top layer of cake over the pudding.  Pour the chocolate glaze over the cake, allowing the chocolate to drip down the sides.

Day 88 - Popovers

     It's been brought to my attention that some people are trying to leave comments, but I am not receiving them. Please make sure when you do post a comment that you scroll down to the bottom of the day's post and where it says 0 comments or 2 comments, click that.  'Post a comment' will come up.  Enter your comment in the box then you can preview it or post it.  You'll be asked to "Comment as:______ and pick an account or set one up if you don't already have one.  It's really pretty simple.  Also, you will have to type in a security word for spam purposes, and I moderate all comments before they are posted.  It sounds complicated, but I gave you play by play instructions.  This is important because of my upcoming announcement.  (DRUMROLL!)  In celebration of my 100th day of baking, I will be doing a giveaway here on the blog!  So, stay tuned for rules and requirements.
     I hope everyone had a wonderful, blessed Easter and were able to spend it with family and friends!  If you didn't celebrate it, I hope you had a really wonderful weekend and were able to spend it with people you really love and care about. 
     We had a quiet one here.  Yes, the Easter Bunny brought some treats to the teenagers, and brought an extra Cadbury Creme Egg for mom (I'm looking forward to when they go on sale tomorrow!).  Since our daughter was heading back to college today, I decided I'd surprise the kids and make them the strawberry (of course, strawberry!  It seems like those and lemons are really the only fruits I make things with.) blintzes they love so much.  It requires a good 2-3 hours of prep work between making the crepes, filling, and frying, but it's well worth it and I only do it 3 times a year at the most for those "special occasions".  I started putting all the ingredients together before the three of them woke up.  As they walked into the kitchen at separate times they saw that I was busy, but never even put two and two together or asked what I was doing which was odd, but I like flying under the radar.  So, the look on my son's face was priceless when I told him I was making them!  His jaw dropped, his eyes were huge and he was speechless.  He then ran over to me professing his love for his mother and wouldn't stop hugging.  It was very funny.  His sister just kept looking at him as if he'd lost it.
     Since it was a long morning in the kitchen, and I'm starting to feel feverish again (really thought I was kicking this bug), I decided to take it easy on the baking today and made popovers to go with the tri tip roast we had for dinner.  Having never made them before, I imagined that they'd bake up pretty high and would be delicious like the Yorkshire Pudding I had made years ago.  I found this recipe in my New Doubleday Cookbook, p. 662; authors, Jean Anderson and Elaine Hanna; publisher, Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 0-385-19577-X.

     Popovers - makes 6

     1 cup sifted flour
     ½ teaspoon salt
     ¾ cup milk
     ¼ cup cold water
     2 eggs

     Preheat oven to 450ºF.
     Beat all ingredients in a small bowl with a rotary beater until just smooth.  Scrape bottom of bowl with a rubber spatula once or twice during beating. 

     Spoon into a well-greased muffin tin, filling each cup two-thirds.

Ok, not two-thirds, more like really close to the rim!

     Bake 40 minutes until well browned, puffed, and firm.

     (Note:  For dry, crisp popovers, bake 35 minutes, quickly cut a small slit in the side of each popover so steam can escape, and bake 5-10 minutes longer.)

     Serve immediately with plenty of butter.

With butter...YUM!!!

     I didn't use a small bowl or a rotary beater.  I used my Kitchen-Aid which worked just fine.  My rotary is making funny noises and me thinks it's time to retire it, especially since with funny noises comes a certain burning smell.  I filled the muffin tin just below the rim as you can see in the picture, and still had some batter left over, but I didn't want to completely fill them.  Also, I baked them for 35 minutes, thought they were becoming too brown, put a slice in the top (because I can't follow directions) and left them in for only another 5 minutes.
     We thought these were really good and earned 3½ rolling pins!   My rating system is on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  My husband didn't like the fact that they didn't have much flavor, but they're to accompany a meal and complement it, not detract from it.  They were really tasty plain, but quite delicious with the butter.   
     Happy baking!

Day 87 - Chicken Enchiladas

     This household needs a day's break from desserts, so today it's dinner.  This recipe comes from a good friend and old neighbor, Michelle P.  We had wonderful times with the neighbors in our old cul-de-sac.  So many, many stories and memories  - countless water balloon fights with a launcher that resulted in a dent in our car, our weekly fireside chats and get-togethers, Michelle calling 911 when I passed out and smacked my head on the sidewalk (THAT was a fun night for me, and no, I had not been drinking! I have a history of fainting.), burning the Christmas trees in the fire pit which became a towering inferno because the trees were so dry, and chalk on driveways, etc.  And I love Michelle despite the fact she is a Yankees fan.
     She has told me that she is a daily reader of 365 and for that I am extremely grateful.  She shared this recipe with me a few years ago and it's been a hit ever since - the family LOVES them!  A big thank you, Michelle!

     Chicken Enchiladas

     10-12 chicken tenders
     1 large chopped onion
     Lawry's or cajun seasoning
     1 jar Cheez Whiz
     1 small can chopped jalapenos
     1 can refried beans
     1 can sliced black olives (optional)
     2 cans Macayo's Enchilada Sauce
     2 bags shredded Mexican cheese
     2 packages flour tortillas

     Preheat oven to 350ºF.
     Cook chicken in large frying pan over medium heat.

     Shred chicken in pan as it is cooking.
     Add onion, and salsa - enough to cover meat, but not so much that it is runny.
     Add desired amount of Lawry's or cajun seasoning.
     Add jar of Cheez Whiz, ½ teaspoon of jalapenos (or more if desired, or you can omit)
     Add enough refried beans to thicken the mixture.

     Bring skillet contents to boil and simmer until mixture thickens.
     Add olives if desired.
     Coat bottom of two 13 X 9-inch baking dishes with some of the enchilada sauce.
     Fill tortillas with mixture, roll and place in pan, seam side down, side by side.

     Completely fill both pans and pour remaining enchilada sauce on top.

     Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.  They will be finished when it appears as if the sauce has soaked in.

     Completely cover with shredded cheese and bake uncovered for another 10 minutes.

     It's been a while since I made this and I spaced when I purchased the tortillas.  I bought ones that were too big and didn't fit in the baking dish the way I wanted.  So, I suggest using the small tortillas.

     This is a big hit with the family and I like that it makes two large servings.  That way I can make it for a large gathering (ok, I haven't done that yet), or freeze one dish so that we can have it on a busy activity night.
     I use a rating system of 1-4 with 4 being the best and this dish earns a 3½.  The flavors are wonderful and it can definitely be spiced up if you like it hotter.
     Happy baking!

Day 86 - Strawberry Carbon Dioxide Muffins - Intriguing, hunh?

  Are they SAFE to eat?

     The muffins are in the oven and I guess you could say that this was one of my "experimental baking days".  Uh-hunh.  I had strawberries sitting in the fridge because it has been "strawberry week" since they were on sale, so I wanted to incorporate them into something tonight.  I'm pressed for time, seeing as how it is now 10:30 pm and this is the first time I've been home all day for more than 45 minutes.  I left around 8 am to pick my daughter up at college for the weekend, and returned home around 1:30 to take my other daughter down to the DMV so she could take the road test for her driver's license.  Of course, any trip to the DMV is not a short one and requires a lengthy waiting period.  It is a very good place to people watch though, just like the airport.  After a good three hours, including travel time, waiting, and actual test taking, I am happy to report we now have a new driver in the family (happy at least until we receive the next month's statement for our car insurance).  Since we have all three kids home for the weekend we decided to go out to dinner and then go to a movie.  WHEN AM I SUPPOSED TO BAKE?!  My husband thought I should skip it for a day, but morally, I just don't think I can do that.  I said I was going to do this EVERY day. 
     But everything worked out, at least my having time enough to put something into the oven and blog about it.  I really have no idea how these are going to taste.  I remember having strawberries with balsamic vinegar and it was pretty good; in a muffin though, I'm not too sure.  I mixed the batter, added the vinegar, and started to notice that the baking powder was "working".  I then added the strawberries and popped them into the oven.  As I was cleaning up, I remembered back in junior high doing this really cool experiment where we built a volcano and used baking powder, vinegar, and red food coloring.  We put the baking powder in the mouth of the volcano, the red food coloring on top of that and then poured the vinegar into it.  WOW!!! That thing was spurting red, bubbly, foamy, runny, goop!  For kids in junior high, in the early 80's, in a small town in Rhode Island, it didn't get much better than that.  So, remembering this experiment, I decided to look the combination of baking powder and vinegar up and this is what I found:

Baking powder is sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃) and some other stuff, vinegar is mainly acetic acid (CH₃COOH) in water.
Na⁺HCO₃^- + CH₃COOH → CH₃COO^-Na⁺+ CO₂ + H₂O
The resulting gas is carbon dioxide, you also get some water and some aqueous sodium acetate.

     Rosy - The Naked Scientists.com

This explains why I named them Strawberry Balsamic Carbon Dioxide Muffins.  I think the use of carbon dioxide really starts people wondering, don't you think? 

     Oops!  There goes the timer!  I'm off to retrieve these from the oven!  It does smell kind of yeasty and weird in the house.

    

     Strawberry Carbon Dioxide Muffins - makes 6 muffins

     1 cup white flour

     1½ teaspoons baking powder

     ¼ teaspoon salt

     1 tablespoon sugar

     1 egg, slightly beaten

     ½ cup milk

     2 tablespoons melted butter

     1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

     ½ cup diced strawberries

     Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

     Butter muffin pans.

     Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar in a large bowl.



Ok, BRAIN FART!  Since when do you add an egg to your dry ingredients?!

     Add the egg, milk, butter, and balsamic vinegar, stirring only enough to dampen the flour; the batter should not be smooth.

     Gently fold in the strawberries.

     Spoon into the muffin pans, filling each cup over two-thirds full.

     Bake for about 20-25 minutes until golden brown.

     The strawberries were a nice addition because I really liked the flavor and they made the muffins really moist.  The vinegar, I have to say, gave the muffins a little kick.  They weren't bad, just different.  However, I don't know if I'd make them again unless to improve them, and I'm certainly not making them for company.

     I have a rating system of 1-4 with 4 being the best and I have to give these 2 rolling pins.  No one else is awake to try them, so other opinions will have to wait until tomorrow morning along with the pictures.  Sleep well, everyone.
     And yes, they are safe to eat.

     Happy baking!

    

    

    

Day 85 - Easter Egg Hunt Cookies (Surprise!)

     Want some Easter goodies?

     I found these INCREDIBLE looking bundles of deliciousness on the blog In Katrina's Kitchen.  What a great blog!  OH. MY. GOODNESS!  I left her a comment saying that I just HAD to use these for one of my baking days and share them with you.  Yes, you and just you.  Because I know you'll like them!  And, I have a history with Cadbury Creme Eggs.  A LONG history.  I remember seeing those brightly colored wrappers in my grandmother's kitchen back in 19..., ok, the early 80's.  So I was what, a preteen?  I loved them then and I still absolutely love them now.  AND, I have loved them in between then and now.  So much so (and I wrote this in that comment to Katrina, too), that when they started selling them again (because they only sell them for a few months of the year) in late January of 1992 up until my delivery/due date on April 3rd, 1992, I ate one. EVERY. SINGLE. DAY.  And I'm not talking the baby ones, neither.  NOPE, I ate a single large Cadbury Creme Egg every day for about 2½ months while I was pregnant with our first child, our daughter.  It's no wonder I gained 52 lbs. during that pregnancy, but it is amazing I wasn't diagnosed with gestational diabetes.  Every day.  They were and still are a tiny piece of heaven.
     These cookies were also great to make because I was able to bring out my mini muffin tin from hibernation and give that baby a good scrubbing.  In the 20 years we've been married, I've used that thing only once.
     Here are some tidbits from the Cadbury egg website (Hershey's owns the rights to manufacture, advertise and distribute these delectable morsels in the U.S.):

Quick Facts
So, how do people eat their Creme Egg?

53% of people bite off the top, lick out the 'creme' then eat the chocolate

Nope, not me.  Too diificult when I'm driving 'cause I'm usually eating these in the car immediately after purchasing it in the store.

20% just bite straight through - YUP!  That's ME!!!

16% use their finger to scoop out the 'creme' - WHY would I waste some of that precious creme on my FINGER??!!

How people unwrap their eggs can also reflect their Creme Egg eating style, we have...

Delicate Peelers - To achieve a considered, methodical & subtle eat
Stage Peelers - Who unwrap just enough to keep the 'creme' off their fingers
Quick Discarders - Who rip off the foil as they just can't wait to eat their Creme Egg

     Easter Egg Hunt Cookies

     2½ cups flour
     1 teaspoon baking soda
     1 teaspoon salt
     ½ cup shortening
     ½ cup butter, softened
     ¾ cup granulated sugar
     ¾ cup packed brown sugar
     1 teaspoon vanilla
     2 large eggs
     36 mini Cadbury Eggs

     Optional:
     green frosting ( I used the buttercream frosting that I used from Wilton on my son's birthday cake) (Note, today I made only ½ the recipe for the Wilton frosting, and didn't even use all of it.)
     jelly beans    

     Preheat oven to 350ºF.
     Cream butter, shortening, both granulated and brown sugars, and vanilla in a mixing bowl.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing in thoroughly.

     In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt.  Gradually add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients.  The dough will start to pull away from the mixing bowl.

     Using just under a tablespoon of dough, wrap a mini Cadbury egg so that it is completely covered.  After wrapping, I rolled it around in my hands and made sure it was spread evenly around the egg.  Place the cookie inside a well greased mini muffin tin.  Do not use much more than a tablespoon of dough or the cookie will spread over the top of the pan as muffins will tend to do.

     Bake for 9-12 minutes until golden brown.
     Allow cookies to cool in pan for 15-20 minutes until you can twist them out.  Using your fingertips, gently try to twist the cookie to remove it.  If the cookie seems to soft or like it will break apart, wait 2 minutes and try again. (I waited only about 12 minutes with the first batch and the tops were coming off.  But they were easy to put back together.  The second batch I left in the pan until they were almost completely cooled and they twisted right out without any problems.  I was so psyched!) Katrina suggested not having the cookies cool in the pan completely, but I found that it worked best for me.  It may also have been that instead of using a whole cup of shortening, I decided to use ½ shortening, ½ butter.  You can decide which would be best for you.

     Allow cookies to cool completely before frosting.  Top with jelly beans.

     I don't need anyone else's help in rating these puppies.  I'm giving them 4 rolling pins!  Haha, even without the cookie dough I'd give them a 4!  I have a rating system for my baked goods which is based on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being an Oh. My. Goodness!
     I just hope I've posted this with enough time for you to find some mini Cadbury eggs.  If you make them, I want to see, so please post a picture here on our 365 Facebook page and while you're there, "Like" us!
     Thank's for reading and happy baking!  I'd say have a great weekend, but I'll be back every day.  :-)