OK - I'm not bragging, but I'm pretty good at baking. Every once in a while, there's a flop and usually its for a group. Thought you might enjoy Mike's coworkers' comments on my most recent baked caramel bars. They were probably number two on the list of worst outputs from my kitchen. Number one was when I served cheesy sausage rolls with WAY TOO MUCH cayenne to a group of elderly church women. Enjoy!
"Hey, could you make treats for my co-workers who I hate?"
"How about a cookie with a layer chocolate, layer of cookie, and a layer of concrete?"
"I feel like I'm on a geological survey...Searching for a pocket of natural gas within the caramel"
"Hey, let's make some delicious treats that no one can eat!"
"It's like the jaws of life going through hood sheet metal and then hitting the engine [groaning sound effect]"
"Oh XXXX...my teeth"
I think I'll avoid bringing these to any Thanksgiving holiday gatherings!
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label recipes. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Friday, February 12, 2010
Sugar Cookies & Royal Icing
With only eleven days until we leave for China, you would think I'd have more important things to do than post a sugar cookie recipe! Not promising I won't leave this recipe for another, but this is currently our favorite. I leave the dough extra thick so that they are easier for everyone to decorate. The royal icing makes lots and the egg whites are cooked. I don't like the taste of meringue powder so it is worth the extra step.
This isn't the most flattering picture, 
but I wanted to document the Valentine cookies Charlie decorated for himself and Mike. Rob already licked the icing off so I'm not sure who decorated his.
but I wanted to document the Valentine cookies Charlie decorated for himself and Mike. Rob already licked the icing off so I'm not sure who decorated his.Sugar Cookies
Ingredients
Makes about 2 dozen 4-inch cookies
4 cups sifted all-purpose flour, plus more for surface and more if needed
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Royal Icing (See below)
Directions
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Turn out dough, and divide in half. Flatten each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Let one disk of dough stand at room temperature just until soft enough to roll, about 10 minutes. Roll out dough on a lightly floured work surface to just under 1/4-inch thick, adding more flour as needed to keep dough from sticking. Chill in refrigerator until firm, about 30 minutes. Cut out cookies using desired cutters or templates. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets as you work. Roll out scraps, and repeat once. Repeat with remaining disk of dough. Chill cookies in freezer until very firm, about 15 minutes.
Bake cookies, switching positions of sheets and rotating halfway through, until edges turn golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Decorate with icing. (Cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 week.)
From Martha Stewart Living, December 2009
Makes about 2 dozen 4-inch cookies
4 cups sifted all-purpose flour, plus more for surface and more if needed
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Royal Icing (See below)
Directions
Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat butter and sugar with a mixer on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Reduce speed to low. Gradually mix in flour mixture. Turn out dough, and divide in half. Flatten each half into a disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight.
Preheat oven to 325 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds of oven. Let one disk of dough stand at room temperature just until soft enough to roll, about 10 minutes. Roll out dough on a lightly floured work surface to just under 1/4-inch thick, adding more flour as needed to keep dough from sticking. Chill in refrigerator until firm, about 30 minutes. Cut out cookies using desired cutters or templates. Transfer to parchment-lined baking sheets as you work. Roll out scraps, and repeat once. Repeat with remaining disk of dough. Chill cookies in freezer until very firm, about 15 minutes.
Bake cookies, switching positions of sheets and rotating halfway through, until edges turn golden, 15 to 18 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks. Decorate with icing. (Cookies can be stored at room temperature for up to 1 week.)
From Martha Stewart Living, December 2009
Royal Icing
5 egg whites
6 T sugar
5 tsp water
3/8 tsp cream of tartar
Combine and cook over simmering water to 160F.
Add pinch of salt. Whisk eggs with mixer on med-high to soft peaks. Beat in 2 tsp lemon juice and 5 cups powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time. Beat in 1 tsp vanilla and 1/4 tsp almond extract. Add water or sugar to reach desired consistency.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Breakfast Bars
Started making these for Mike to take to work.
2 T vegetable oil
2 1/2 c oats
1 cup dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, cherries, etc)
1/2 flax seeds
1 cup nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds, etc)
1 t kosher salt
1 c honey
½ c creamy peanut butter
1 t vanilla
Combine oats, fruit, seeds, and nuts. In a small saucepan, combine oil, salt, honey, peanut butter, and vanilla. Heat until combined. Mix into dry ingredients. Spread in a 9x13 greased pan. Bake 25 minutes at 325F until nicely browned. Cool & cut. Store individually wrapped in the freezer.
2 T vegetable oil
2 1/2 c oats
1 cup dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, cherries, etc)
1/2 flax seeds
1 cup nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds, etc)
1 t kosher salt
1 c honey
½ c creamy peanut butter
1 t vanilla
Combine oats, fruit, seeds, and nuts. In a small saucepan, combine oil, salt, honey, peanut butter, and vanilla. Heat until combined. Mix into dry ingredients. Spread in a 9x13 greased pan. Bake 25 minutes at 325F until nicely browned. Cool & cut. Store individually wrapped in the freezer.
Yeast Crackers
A nice crisp cracker that is pretty homely in appearance.
1 c warn H2O
1 t yeast
3 T EVOO
3 c AP Flour
2 t kosher salt
2 t honey
1/4 c grated Parmesan
1 egg, beaten with 1 T water
3 T chopped rosemary
Mix yeast with water & let sit until foamy. Mix remaining items through honey. Knead a few minutes. Add cheese and knead to incorporate. Oil bowl and refridgerate at least one hour. Divide into 16 pieces, roll as thin as possible, brush with egg wash, and top with rosemary, salt, pepper, and additional cheese. Bake 15 to 20 minutes at 350F.
1 c warn H2O
1 t yeast
3 T EVOO
3 c AP Flour
2 t kosher salt
2 t honey
1/4 c grated Parmesan
1 egg, beaten with 1 T water
3 T chopped rosemary
Mix yeast with water & let sit until foamy. Mix remaining items through honey. Knead a few minutes. Add cheese and knead to incorporate. Oil bowl and refridgerate at least one hour. Divide into 16 pieces, roll as thin as possible, brush with egg wash, and top with rosemary, salt, pepper, and additional cheese. Bake 15 to 20 minutes at 350F.
Caramel Apples
Served these to Grandpa Gentle while Grandma was in Hawaii. Didn't think about the difficulty eating with a beard!
1 1/4 c sugar
1 1/4 c packed brown sugar
1 1/4 c dark corn syrup
8 T unsalted butter
2 c cream
1/4 t salt
2 1/2 t vanilla
9-12 apples, chilled with sticks
Stir sugars through salt plus 1 c cream in a large pot. Boil over medium-high heat, gently add second cup of cream. Continue to boil briskly to 245F. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool 10 minutes. When the caramel thickens a bit, dip chilled apples and place in the fridge to set. Refridgerate for up to 2 days.
1 1/4 c sugar
1 1/4 c packed brown sugar
1 1/4 c dark corn syrup
8 T unsalted butter
2 c cream
1/4 t salt
2 1/2 t vanilla
9-12 apples, chilled with sticks
Stir sugars through salt plus 1 c cream in a large pot. Boil over medium-high heat, gently add second cup of cream. Continue to boil briskly to 245F. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla. Let cool 10 minutes. When the caramel thickens a bit, dip chilled apples and place in the fridge to set. Refridgerate for up to 2 days.
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