TWD: Midnight Crackles

Woohoo!  Starting off on the right foot this year by baking and posting in time for the round up! 

This week for the TWD 3-year anniversary, the founder of our fabulous baking group: Laurie of Slush and her amazing helper Julie of Someone's in the Kitchen chose the Midnight crackles from p 74 of Baking from My Home to Yours. 

With the new weight loss goals, I halved the recipe, and only baked 2 cookies to try for some built-in portion control.  I think I'm going to go ahead  and roll out the rest of the dough into balls and freeze them so I can have a cookie or two when "needed" but not worry about a huge plate of cookies tempting me!

These cookies are really quite easy to whip up--I always like anything that doesn't require waiting for butter to soften (I always go too far when trying to do it in the microwave).  But I had a bit of a goof when adding the dry ingredients to my mixer, I accidentally turned it to high rather than low and had a flour/cocoa/spice explosion all over the place!

Oh well, it's not like the kitchen was super clean so it just inspired me to get to cleaning a bit faster!!

I baked up my 2 cookies this morning, and either did not let the dough soften enough or baked them for too short a time b/c they were not exactly crackly...  Oh well.  They were still good.  I don't know how I feel about the chocolate/spice combination either.  It confuses my mouth I think but I really enjoyed my 2 cookies warm from the oven :). 

Happy anniversary to all my fellow TWD bakers, and thanks so much to Laurie & Julie for all your hard work managing this book, and of course to the incomparable Dorie Greenspan who has made all of us better bakers!

(go here for the recipe)

Sopapilla Cheesecake

Apologies in advance for horrid pictures, but I couldn't wait to post this!

Last Tuesday I decided to do a Mexican themed night for our Bible study dinner--complete with burrito casserole and white queso cheese dip (yum!).  I had the peanut butter cookies from the TWD recipe that week, but I wanted something a little more substantial (you know me...I can never just do one thing!). 

When we were kids I remember going to a crazy Mexican-ish restaurant in Denver Colorado called Casa Bonita.  It is really over the top with "cliff divers" and flame jugglers, and crazy shows, but it was one of my very favorite things to do when we would be in Colorado for the summer!  Well, they had this awesome service--instead of a "bottomless bread basket" you got unlimited sopapillas!  Basically fried squares of dough which are sprinkled with powdered sugar or cinnamon sugar and you can eat them with honey--so amazing! 

Several months back I saw a recipe for a sopailla cheesecake while browsing my blogs and it never left my head.  I was shocked to see that I had not bookmarked it, but a quick search in my Google reader directed me to Diana's Cocina.

Now, my picture is nothing in comparison to hers which caught my eye...but I guess that is one of the problems with making things to serve after it gets dark...

I think this is the Bible study girls' favorite thing I've made so far.  They were all groaning as they ate it!  I served it warm and completely plain, but it would be great with some ice cream or whipped cream for that matter...  It was also fabulous cold the next day.  And seriously, this is about as simple as it gets!

Sopapilla Cheesecake
from Diana's Cocina

2 packages of crescent rolls
2 8oz packages of cream cheese (softened)
3/4 cup of sugar
1 stick of butter, melted
2 teaspoon Mexican vanilla (i just used regular...)
Cinnamon-sugar mixture for topping, 2/3 cup sugar, and a Tablespoon of cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350ºF. Open one package of crescent rolls and line the bottom of a lightly sprayed 9x13 baking pan to form bottom crust.

In a large bowl mix with hand held blender the cream cheese, sugar and vanilla until smooth and spoon out over the crust. Take the second package of crescent rolls and spread to form top crust. Pinch perforated edges together where needed.

Mix the melted butter, cinnamon-sugar and pour evenly over top crust.

Bake in oven for 30-40 minutes, depending on preference. Once the crescents are done it is ready.  I actually baked mine for 45 minutes (the same time as the casserole I made that night) and it was perfect!

You should absolutely make this because it is so easy, makes several servings, and is out of this world!

TWD: Raisin(less) swirl bread

I am one of those bakers who has been afraid of yeast for some reason.  I know why:  early in my marriage to hubs, I had just gotten some cookbooks and decided to make some homemade yeast bread.  I had never done it before, but was not afraid.  I got my ingredients out, mixed everything together...and it didn't really rise.  But I was (as I regularly am) confused...I thought maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me and that it really did rise and I just didn't realize it...so I went ahead and baked it.  And it was hard as a rock.  Turned out that my yeast had expired. 

I didn't try yeast again (though I regularly bake sourdough bread) until I made this bread earlier in the year.  It was wonderful, so when I saw that Susan of food.baby chose the (yeasted) raisin swirl bread from pp. 59-60 of Baking from My Home to Yours, I was excited to try again. 

I'm a big fan of cinnamon raisin swirl bread, but after scanning the ingredient list I realized that if I left out the raisins, it would be a big hit w/hubs, so I thoughtfully made a raisinless bread and doubled the cinnamon & sugar in the swirl. 

right out of the oven 

It is SO GOOD!!!  As soon as it came out of the oven we were tearing off bits and yumming it up.  There is still some left b/c it has been a whirlwind few days and I spend yesterday in Louisville and he is in Lexington today, but I enjoyed a slice toasted and buttered today and fell in love!

Thanks to Susan for your pick, and check at the LYL post on the TWD site to see who baked along this week!

a brunch for special ladies

Sorry that I have been MIA for a bit...life has been ca-razy.  I will update more on this later, but here in Bowling Green, KY we've also had some of the horrible flooding that has affected the midsouth lately, and it was my birthday, and I have some developments coming up in the next few months that I will tell you at the beginning of June,  and my house is a mess!

Before I post about recent happenings, I decided that I would like to give you some yummy yummy recipes that would be perfect if you want to have a mother's day brunch.  I will be having a family cookout, but I made these yesterday for some other very special ladies--Nurses!  That's right, today is Nurse Appreciation day--so get out there and hug a nurse or bring her (or him...there are male nurses, just not at my office) some goodies!

 some of our lovely nurses in front of their breakfast table

the spread :)

And now for the recipes...

So this coffee cake...when I saw it in one of my holiday baking magazines (you know...when i freak out and spend all my money...) I had to make it.  However, I did not need one this big for me and hubs (i'm already too fat...).  So I made it for my sister-in-law and her girls.  It got rave reviews...but I hadn't gotten to try it!  So when I started planning on what to make for Nurse Appreciation breakfast I couldn't get this one out of my head.  I actually scoured the rest of my recipes for an easier overnight coffee cake, but nothing looked this delicious, so at 8:50 pm I began to make the cake...not even my butter was softened!  I generally go to bed right around 10 and, needless to say, that didn't happen last night.  But I think it was worth it!

YUM!

Cinnamon-roll coffee cake
Cuisine at home Holiday baking 2009

For the Caramel Topping:

• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• pinch table salt
• 1 cup chopped toasted pecans

For the Streusel:

• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 Tbsp. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp table salt

For the Cake:

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. table salt
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1/4 cup low-fat vanilla yogurt (I used regular sour cream)
• 2 eggs
• 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar

Preheat oven to 350* F.  Coat a 9 inch round, 2 inch deep cake pan w/nonstick spray (i did not have this size pan, and used a 10 in. round springform pan.  a bit of the filling leaked out of the bottom, so if you go that route I would recommend lining your springform pan w/parchement, or at the very least, set it on top of a baking sheet--which i did)

Stir together the 3/4 cup brown sugar, cream, and a pinch of salt for the caramel topping in a measuring cup (not sure why the measuring cup is "necessary").  Pour caramel into the prepared pan, spreading to coat bottom of the pan. Sprinkle pecans over caramel.  Also, I was a bit "off my game" last night and measured this out backwards at first...1/4 cup brown sugar to 3/4 cup cream.  Then I realized it was WAY too liquidy...anyone know a recipe that calls for that mixture that has already been combined??


Process the 1/2 cup born sugar, 1/3 cup flour, the 1/2 stick butter, cinnamon, and 1/4 tsp. salt fo rthe streusel in a food processor, pulsing until the mixture is sandy but without clumps; set streusel aside.

Whisk the 1 1/2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, and 1/2 tsp. table salt for the cake in a bowl; set dry ingredients aside.

Whisk together buttermilk, yogurt (or sour cream), and eggs in a measuring cup with a pouring spout (pouring spout is helpful here...); set aside.

Using a hand mixer (?? I used my kitchenaid), cream together the 1 stick butter and 3/4 cup granulated sugar in a bowl, only until combined.  Alternately add flour mixture and buttermilk mixture to the creamed mixture, strating and ending with dry ingredients.  Blend only enough to incorporate the dry ingredients into the batter.

Spread half of the batter over teh caramel in the cake pan, then sprinkle w/half the streusel.  Carefully spread remaining batter over streusel in cake pan; top w/the remaining streusel. Okay, I don't think the seperation of the streusel is necessary.  Half of what I had on the bottom just made a mess and fell off, so when I make this again I will at least do 3/4 in the middle, maybe all of it.

Bake coffee cake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-60 minutes.  Cool cake for 5 minutes on a rack, then run a paring knife around the sides to loosen cak.  Invert onto a serving platter while hot.  Let cake cool slightly before serving. 


Next is an overnight sausage breakfast casserole, a la Sarah!  I got some basic guidelines from Cooks.com and then threw together a dish based on what I had on hand.  Here it is!

Overnight Sausage Breakfast Casserole

• 1--1 1/2 pkg. Kings Hawaiian Bread 
• 1 lb. pork sausage, cooked and drained
• 6 large eggs, beaten
• 2 cups milk (or one cup skim milk + one cup cream)
• 1/2 tsp. black pepper
• 1/4 tsp. onion powder
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 cup fiesta blend shredded cheese
• 1 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (i really just eyeball the amount of cheese...) 

Tear Hawaiian bread into bits and layer across the bottom of a greased 9x13" pan 
Layer half the sausage over bread, followed by half of the cheese.  Then repeat layers.
Whisk together eggs, milk, and spices until combined.  
Pour over bread/sausage/cheese mixture, pressing down on the top of the solid ingredients to make sure that egg mixture reaches the top.
Refrigerate overnight if desired.
When time to bake,  preheat oven to 350* F.  Bake for 35-45 minutes until set.

**I also think this would be GREAT with veggies mixed in...peppers, onion, mushrooms, etc...but there are some picky eaters at my office so I stuck to meat and cheese ;)