Blueberry Lemon Yogurt Cake

If you've been on Pinterest lately you may have seen a post for strawberry yogurt cake.  I came across it one day and thought it looked fantastic so I repinned it.  Of course, I didn't bother to go to the actual link right then - I hate when I do that - so I didn't realize the pin was no good and went nowhere.  Well when I went back to make it and realized this, I did a little searching and put together a couple of different recipes to make up this one.

I made two different varieties, blueberry and strawberry and added lemon to both.  I also decided to bake this as a loaf cake instead of a bundt cake like the inspiration.  This recipe will make one 8x4" loaf or 2 smaller loaf cakes.  You could also convert this to muffins if you prefer and get 12-15 muffins, make sure to adjust the baking time, I would suggest about 20 minutes.  If you want to do both flavors, bake it in smaller pans or double the recipe, that's what I did to yield this much cake.

A couple of key tips - don't skip the lemon syrup step.  This really makes the lemon flavor soak in and makes a great crust for the cake.  Also make sure to let the cake cool completely before adding the glaze or it will just melt right in.  You can use fresh or frozen fruit in this recipe.  I used fresh because it was on sale and looked good at the store.  If you want to use frozen, use frozen blueberries straight from the freezer.  If you are using strawberries, I like to put mine in a strainer over a large bowl and let the water drain out of them first so they don't make your cake too wet.

Blueberry (or Strawberry) Lemon Yogurt Cake
Recipe adapted from several sources

Cake:
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
Zest of 1 lemon
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups blueberries or strawberries (roughly chopped)

Syrup:
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/4 cup sugar

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
Approximately 2 T lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray loaf pan(s) with baking spray or butter and flour.

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, vanilla extract, and oil until well combined.  Stir in flour, baking powder, and salt until thoroughly incorporated.  Finally gently fold in blueberries or strawberries.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for approximately 50 minutes to one hour until top is golden brown and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool approximately 10 minutes in pan and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Set wire rack over a rimmed baking sheet before adding syrup and glaze.  While the cake begins to cool, make the lemon syrup.  Combine sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir continuously until dissolved, cook about 2-3 more minutes until it begins to thicken slightly.  Use a toothpick or skewer to poke holes in the top of the cake.  You don't want the cake to be right out of the oven at this point, but it should still be warm.  Using a pastry brush or large spoon, brush/ladle syrup over the cake.  Let the syrup soak in and then brush one more time.  Let the cake cool completely.

Prepare the glaze by adding the powdered sugar to a mixing bowl.  Whisk in a small amount of the lemon juice, add more lemon juice until the glaze reaches the consistency of a thick caramel sauce.  You want it pourable but not thin.  Pour/drizzle the glaze over the cake and let it harden for at least 15 minutes before slicing and serving.

Spiced Brown Sugar Shamrock Cookies

I hope you enjoyed your St. Patrick's Day!  Times have changed a bit for us from green beers to green cookies for daycare parties but when your two year old is super excited about "my cookies" these still make it a great day.  These shamrock cookies are Spiced Brown Sugar Cookies with a simple buttercream frosting.

Spiced Brown Sugar Cookies
Originally posted here
Yields approximately 2 dozen large cookies

3 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
1 1/2  tsp vanilla extract

Powdered sugar for rolling

Combine flour, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl and whisk to combine.  In a mixing bowl, cream sugar, brown sugar and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, about three minutes.  Add egg and vanilla and beat until well incorporated.  Slowly add flour mixture, mixing on low speed.  The dough will be very stiff.  Lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap and turn dough out on to plastic.  Form into a disk and wrap tightly.  Chill approximately one hour.  

Remove dough from refrigerator and let stand five to ten minutes at room temperature.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.  Generously sprinkle powdered sugar over work area and rolling pin.  Roll dough to about 1/4" - 1/2" thick and cut into desired shapes.  Transfer to prepared pans and bake about 9-12 minutes.  Cookies shouldn't really brown but will firm up.  Remove from the oven, let stand about one minute on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  When completely cool, frost as desired.

Aubrey's Elmo Birthday Party

My daughter Aubrey turned two in February.  I still can't believe I have a two year old.  She's grown up so much and changed so fast in these past few months.  Her vocabulary has exploded and she's becoming a little parrot.

Although it took her a while to start saying a lot of the words she knew, one that she's had down for a long long time is "Elmo".  The red furry monster is definitely a favorite for her.  Although Sesame Street is now vying for the top TV request with "the Mouse" I think it's safe to say Elmo will be a favorite for a while.  When it came time to think about a theme for Aubrey's second birthday, there was no question that Elmo and friends would be perfect.

I started with an invitation that my sister, Nikki of Doodle Dog Advertising designed for me.  From there Pinterest and Party City helped me out with a few ideas.  My friend Sarah of Sarah's Shirts made Aubrey's adorable Elmo shirt.  I just love how it turned out and it's one of her favorites in her closet.

Elmo invitations from Doodle Dog Advertising

Aubrey was in awe when she came downstairs the morning of the party to see that Elmo was everywhere.  We had hung a great big mural of Sesame Street characters on the wall and Aubrey loved them.  I made Elmo and Cookie Monster cookies that she loved, all we heard was "cookie pleeeeease mama."  I haven't worked with fondant in a long time and need to practice a bit more, I ran out of time towards the end on the cake but I think it turned out pretty cute although I would have done a few things differently next time.  The fruit and vegetable trays were one of my favorite ideas I found on Pinterest, they turned out so cute!  We made thank you bags for the kiddos... I just picked up some small red paper bags and filled them with some Sesame Street bubbles, a character medal, some Elmo tattoos, a Memory game, and some candy.  I printed out thank you labels on the Sesame Street sign and folded them over the tops of the bags to close them.

Elmo and Cookie Monster Cookies

Sugar cookie recipes can be found here - I used royal icing to decorate these in layers.  I drew the eyeballs on with an edible marker.  Although they take a bit of time, I love decorating cookies with royal icing.

Sesame Street Cake

I baked this cake, it's one of my favorites as it's a very traditional yellow cake recipe.  I think it's perfect for a kid's party, nothing fancy but it's delicious and it stays so moist.  I brush the layers with a simple syrup before frosting to lock in moisture and use vanilla bean paste instead of extract to add even more flavor.  I filled it with a simple vanilla buttercream and used the same to crumb coat and frost the outside before covering it with fondant.  The fondant is homemade marshmallow fondant, see this post for the recipe and tips.  While it's a little more work, it tastes so much better than the storebought kind.

Oscar and Elmo vegetable and fruit platters

 Oscar is made crispy kale chips, black olives for a mouth, carrots for a nose, and sliced portabello mushrooms for eyebrows.  Some garlic hummus in small plastic cups make up his eyes.  Elmo's face is made up of sliced strawberries.  Sliced purple grapes make his wide mouth and peeled orange slices are his nose.  His eyes are cups filled with marshmallow cream cheese fruit dip.

Opening presents - she had so much fun with it this year!

Pin the Nose on Elmo - stickers are lots of fun for Aubrey and her best buddy Hannah

Aubrey and Madeleine loved the huge "scene setter" I picked up from Party City.  It's actually about 5' by 5' or something huge so it was fun for the girls to see the great big characters in their living room.  Definitely worth the $6 price tag at Party City - I can't believe how nice this was for the cheap price tag.

We had so much fun celebrating with so many friends and family members.  Thank you so much to all of you who came to celebrate my baby girl turning two!  

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes

 

I've only recently started to really appreciate breakfast, I think mostly because it's more fun when your two year old requests "pan-caks" every weekend.  While she gets her share of the Bisquick variety, every once in a while I decide to make some that are a little fancier than the standard.  Making pancakes from scratch really isn't any harder than the box mix, but I'll admit these have a few more steps.  But they are certainly fun for special occasions.  And they are definitely delicious.  I would go so far as to say they might be a tie for the best pancakes I've ever had.

A couple of tips you should read before you begin:

• Make the cinnamon swirl mixture and the frosting before you start cooking, it will go fast once you put the batter on the griddle.  Plus, letting the mixture sit for a few minutes while you make the batter allows it to thicken slightly which will make it easier to work with.
• Keep your pan on medium-low to medium, they might take an extra minute to cook but you don't want them to burn.
• Make the cinnamon swirl mixture a bit on the thick side, like thick maple syrup.  A squeeze bottle works perfectly for this, but you can use a ziploc if you don't have one.
• Wait until you see bubbles all around the edges of pancakes, then add the swirl.
• When you swirl the cinnamon mixture, don't get too close to the edge or it will bubble out of the pancake.
• Don't skip the glaze, it really delivers the cinnamon roll flavor.
• Extra pancakes are perfect to pop in the freezer - put them in a freezer ziploc and then just pop in the toaster to reheat.

Cinnamon Roll Pancakes
Recipe slightly adapted from RecipeGirl

Cinnamon Swirl:
6 T unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp cinnamon

Cream Cheese Glaze:
4 T unsalted butter, room temperature
3 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
3/4 - 1 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 T milk

Pancakes:
2 cups all purpose flour
4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 cups milk (I've used either skim or 2% without issues)
2 large eggs
2 T canola oil

Start by mixing the melted butter, brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl and whisk until smooth.  Transfer to a squeeze bottle or ziploc baggie and set aside to thicken.

Next make the glaze, beat together softened butter and cream cheese until smooth.  Add 3/4 cup powdered sugar, vanilla extract and milk and beat until light and creamy.  Add additional powdered sugar if the mixture is too thin.  Set aside until ready to serve.

Heat a large nonstick griddle over medium-low to medium heat. Add a little butter or oil to the pan and pour out approximately 1/4 - 1/3 cup pancake mix, giving them plenty of room to spread a bit so it's easier to flip.  Once bubbles begin to form around the tops of the pancakes, add a thick swirl of the cinnamon mixture.  Once the bubbles begin to pop, quickly flip each pancake.  Cook until golden brown.  It should take about 2-3 minutes per side to cook.  Stack and top with cream cheese glaze and serve.  This recipe should yield approximately 16 4-inch pancakes.  

Eggnog Crumb Cake

Have some leftover eggnog from Christmas in your fridge?  Forget about spiked drinks, make this cake.  You didn't really want to start that January diet yet anyway.  And you can't just throw it away, it's eggnog.  Despite a few individual pieces, this cake comes together very quickly and easily.  Don't skip the crumb topping - it gives it that NY-style coffee cake topping.  I don't know about you, but I always fight for piece of coffee cake with the most crumb topping, it's my favorite part.  The spiced rum glaze adds a bit of adult sophistication to this cake to take it to the next level.  But if you are serving it to little ones, you can leave out the rum or substitute rum extract (at least I hear this is a viable option but not one I've tried myself).

This will make 2 regular loaf cakes or 4 mini cakes if you have the small loaf pans.  I made two pans, one to take to a Christmas party with my in-laws and one for our wonderful neighbors across the street.  You may have noticed the much improved pictures of this cake -- well my wonderful neighbor happens to be pretty good with her camera and sent me these fantastic shots.  She does family pictures as well as promotional/product photography - check her out at Willow Tree Photography or visit her Facebook page.  I'm going to have to figure out how to work my camera one of these days so I can step up my game on my own pictures.

Enjoy!

Eggnog Crumb Cake with Spiced Rum Glaze
Recipe adapted from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody

Cake:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
2/3 cup Greek yogurt (I used vanilla because it's what I had but you could also use plain)
1 1/3 cups eggnog
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 1/2 cups cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt

Crumb Topping:
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp cinnamon
1 3/4 cups cake flour
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted

Glaze:
2 T eggnog
2 T spiced rum
2 T unsalted butter, melted
1 - 1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

For the cake, preheat oven to 325 degrees and spray 2 regular loaf pans or 4 mini loaf pans with baking spray or butter and flour.

In a large mixing bowl or stand mixer, combine butter and sugar and beat until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes on medium speed.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until incorporated and then mix in yogurt. In a measuring cup, combine eggnog and vanilla extract.  In another bowl, combine nutmeg, cinnamon, cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and whisk or sift to mix.  Alternate additions of 1/3 of the flour mixture with 1/2 of the eggnog mixture, mixing until each addition is just incorporated, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Divide batter evenly among pans and set aside while you prepare the crumb topping.

For the topping, combine sugar, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon, and cake flour in a mixing bowl.  Pour in melted butter and stir with a fork, pastry cutter, or your hands until the mixture forms a crumbly topping.  Evenly spread over prepared cake batter.

Baking will take 30-35 minutes for 4 mini loaves and about 40-45 minutes for 2 regular loaves, the cake is done when a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  If necessary cover with foil if the topping starts to brown before the cake is set.

Once cakes are removed from the oven, allow to cool fully before topping with the glaze.  To make the glaze, whisk together eggnog, rum, and butter in a bowl.  Slowly add powdered sugar, whisking until smooth.  The glaze should be about the consistency of maple syrup when you pour it over the cakes.

Carrot Cake Pancakes for Christmas Morning

To begin with, Merry Christmas!!! I can't even believe that it's Christmas already, how did that happen, shouldn't it still be September or so?  This year has absolutely flown by.  But it's Christmas, which is one of my favorite times of the year.  We are home with my parents in Iowa right now and since the house is full of family, we've been having some fancier than normal breakfasts.

Photos by Dede Holman Photography

If you are in the mood to do the same for a special occasion, I totally recommend these pancakes.  Oh-my-god-good.  So delicious.  The pancakes have a super moist carrot cake flavor and don't skip the cream cheese anglaise, it takes them to a whole new level.  It's not overly sweet like a frosting but it's rich and creamy and a perfect addition.

Excuse the Instagram Pic... no one wanted to wait for pictures

I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas and a great New Year!

Carrot Cake Pancakes
Adapted from Southern Living

1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
2 cups buttermilk
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups finely grated carrots

Heat a nonstick griddle or skillet over medium heat and add a little oil or nonstick spray.

Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.  Separately combine buttermilk, sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla.  Stir wet ingredients into dry until just combined.  Don't over mix, batter should be lumpy.  Fold in carrots.  (You can also add golden raisins at this point or chopped pecans if you would like, I left out both but the original recipe included 1/2 cup of each.)

Pour approximately 1/4 cup of batter into rounds on skillet and cook until bubbles appear all around the pancake, then flip and cook until golden brown. 

Cream Cheese Anglaise

1 1/2 cups milk (I used 2%)
4 oz cream cheese, softened (I used 1/3 less fat)
1/3 cup sugar
3 egg yolks
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/8 tsp salt
2 tablespoons butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

Combine milk, cream cheese, sugar, egg yolks, and cornstarch in a blender or a large bowl and use an immersion blender to process until smooth.  Heat mixture in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, whisking regularly.  Boil for approximately one minute, whisking constantly, mixture should thicken.  Remove from heat and add butter and vanilla and whisk to combine.  Pour over pancakes to serve.

Fresh Cranberry Cake

What's on your Thanksgiving menu this year?  I may have to go buy more cranberries so this cranberry cake can be a late addition to mine.  For the most part, I'm sticking with classic recipes this year but adding in a few new items as well.

Cider Brined Turkey and Gravy

Mashed Potatoes

Sweet Potato Casserole - I'm doing a cross between this recipe and a copycat Ruth's Chris Steakhouse version

Dressing with apples and cranberries

Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa

Stove Top Macaroni and Cheese

Cranberry Sauce

Harvest Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash

Crock Pot Apple Butter Yeast Rolls

Classic Pumpkin Pie

Salted Caramel Apple Pie

Pumpkin Roll

If you haven't nailed down your desserts yet, I've got a new one for you to try.  This takes about 20 minutes of prep time, but with a stand mixer about half of that time is just running the mixer.  It's so simple and likely the only thing you don't already have in the pantry are fresh cranberries.  Take advantage of the cheap fresh berries in every grocery store and make this cake while they are in season.  The tart cranberries are perfect with the sweetness of the cake and the light glaze.  Served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, this is a great finish to Thanksgiving dinner.

Fresh Cranberry Cake

Cake:
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup unsalted butter, slightly softened
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
1 T orange zest
2 cups flour
1 tsp cinnamon
2 1/2 cups cranberries

Glaze:
1 cup powdered sugar
2-3 T milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 10" springform pan or 9"x13" baking pan with baking spray and set aside.

Combine sugar and eggs in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl.  Mix 6-8 minutes on medium speed until pale yellow and doubled in volume.  Add in butter and extracts and zest and mix two more minutes.  Add flour and cinnamon and stir until combined.  Fold in cranberries.  Transfer batter to prepared pan.  If you are baking in a springform pan, put the pan on a cookie sheet and put in the oven.  Bake approximately one hour (about 45 minutes in a 9"x13" pan).  Cool completely and remove ring from pan.

Put powdered sugar in a small bowl, add milk one tablespoon at a time, whisking until smooth.  Add vanilla and drizzle over cake.

Peach Spice Cake

So way back in August, I had a basket full of peaches fresh from the orchard that were tempting me from the counter.  I had many plans for them initially, peach cobbler, peach kolaches, peach pie, etc.  This peach spice cake wasn't on the list but as I was perusing a new cookbook that I picked up at The Lady and Sons restaurant in Savannah, GA while we were on vacation, I found a recipe for Fresh Pear Cake that sounded delicious.  Paula Deen can generally be trusted for baked goods so I didn't hesitate for too long before deciding to make this.  But not with pears and a bit of a doctored spice mixture - mostly because I'm not really a big pear fan and I really like ginger with peaches.  I also subbed applesauce for oil because everyone knows Paula's recipes can usually stand to cut out a few calories.  Yes peach season has passed... but you could sub apples for peaches and this would be delicious as well.

Peach Spice Cake
Adapted from The Lady and Sons: Just Desserts

Cake:
2 cups sugar
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp allspice
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 cups peeled, pitted, and diced peaches

Glaze:
2 oz cream cheese, softened
2 T milk
1 cup powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a bundt pan with baking spray or butter and flour.

Combine sugar, flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and allspice in a large bowl.  Add the oil, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla and mix well.  Gently fold in peaches.  Pour mixture into pan and bake for approximately 1 - 1 1/4 hours until a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool about ten minutes in the pan and then invert onto a wire rack to cool completely.

Before serving, combine cream cheese, milk and powdered sugar and whip in a mixing bowl to make a thick glaze.  Pour over the cake.  The glaze should coat a spoon but still run down the sides of the cake.

Apple Cranberry Bars

It's fall!  I'm so excited... I love the crisp fall air, a reason to wear boots and sweaters and apples!  Apples are everywhere these days, and we went and picked tons of them so I've been making lots of apple things lately.  I found this recipe one night while skimming through an old cookbook called Great Food Great Beer - it's actually a beer pairing book from Anheuser-Busch but it has some good recipes.  Of course, this started out as an apple pecan date bar but I didn't have any dates or pecans and decided to double the apples and increased the citrus, etc... you know some minor modifications to basically just make a completely different dessert.  The point however, is that these are absolutely delicious and take about 10 minutes to put together so go do it, you can thank me later.

Apple Cranberry Bars
Adapted from Great Food Great Beer

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
2 cups sugar
7 T unsalted butter, room temperature
1 egg
2 egg whites
1/4 cup applesauce
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup dried cranberries (Craisins)
3 large apples, chopped into small pieces
1 T lime juice (you can use lemon if you prefer), plus 1 tsp zest
1/2 - 3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 T milk

Preheat oven to 325 degrees and butter a 13x9" baking dish.  Combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a mixing bowl and set aside.

In another large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.  Add egg and egg whites, one at a time, beating after each addition.  Add applesauce and vanilla.  Gradually add the flour mixture, stirring just until combined.  Chop apples, you don't need to peel them but you can if you prefer.  Toss with lime juice and zest and add to batter along with the cranberries.  Stir gently to incorporate and transfer batter to prepared baking dish.

Bake about one hour until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  The bars will puff up in the oven but settle a bit as they cool, becoming more dense.  Cool completely.

Whisk together powdered sugar and milk to make a glaze.  Drizzle over the pan and cut into pieces.  If you can't wait until they are cool, don't worry they are perfect warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Zucchini Bread

If you planted squash in your garden this spring you probably have an abundance of zucchini right about now or if you're like me and thought about planting a garden, never got around to it, but got lucky enough to have your husband's coworker share her abundance of zucchini, go ahead and make this zucchini bread recipe.  I've sung the praises of quick breads before (Jalapeno Cheddar Bread, Pecan Streusel Topped Banana Bread, or Lemon Poppy Seed Bread) but they are so easy!  You can literally have this in the oven in 15 minutes.  Can't do that if yeast is involved!

This makes a great treat for a mid afternoon snack, a quick breakfast, or even a light dessert served plain or with a dab of butter.  It is slightly less of an indulgent with the oil replaced with unsweetened applesauce.  You could also use whole wheat flour for half of the all purpose flour to make it even healthier but I didn't have any on hand.  This recipe will make two loaves and they freeze very well so go ahead and make both even if you won't go through them in a few days. Or give one to the neighbors, or in my case, your zucchini supplier.

Zucchini Bread
Adapted from Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook

3 cups flour
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
2 eggs
2 cups sugar
2 cups grated zucchini (approximately 2 small zucchini)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup golden raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray two 8" loaf pans with baking spray.  In a large mixing bowl combine flour, cinnamon, soda, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg.  Stir to combine.  In a second mixing bowl, whisk eggs until lightly beaten, add sugar, zucchini, and applesauce.  Make a well in the center of the flour mixture and mix in wet ingredients all at once.  Stir just until moistened.  Add pecans and raisins to the mixture and fold in.  Divide batter evenly between pans and bake for 50-55 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool in pan for about 15 minutes, run a knife around the edges to loosen and remove from pan.  Cool completely on a wire rack.  Wrap tightly in plastic wrap to store or freeze.

Berries and Cherries Fruit Salad

I have a hard time deciding which season is my favorite - summer or fall.  The abundant sunshine, time at the pool, beach vacations, and fresh fruit everywhere make me love summer.  But I love fall because I can wear jeans and boots, football season, the lack of humidity and 100 degree temperatures and anything with apples and cinnamon so it's a tie in my mind.  But while summer is here, I love to take advantage of all the fresh fruit that is in season.  The grocery store is full of cheap, fresh, local fruits that are delicious.  Why not use it to make a super simple, healthy side dish?  This fruit salad is the result of a Kroger sale on fresh berries last week and some gorgeous cherries that I had to buy.  It would also be good with the addition of fresh pineapple, kiwi, grapes, apples, etc.  Really anything goes, just add what you like.

This is perfect for a summer potluck or picnic too since it doesn't require refrigeration.  It's great for adults and kids, although remember that it is recommended that kids under one year of age shouldn't have honey.  My toddler absolutely loved this, but I did make sure I chopped the fruit a bit smaller than I normally would have if it was just being served to adults.

This also makes for a great dessert spooned over vanilla ice cream or with a dollop of whipped cream if you are going for a healthier option.

Berries and Cherries Fruit Salad

2 cups sliced strawberries
1 cup blackberries
1 cup raspberries
1 cup pitted, sliced cherries
1 tsp lime zest
2 T lime juice
2 T honey

In the bottom of a medium size bowl, whisk together lime juice, zest, and honey.  Add sliced fruit and gently stir to coat with sauce.  Refrigerate for at least one hour to allow the flavors to combine.  The juices from the fruit will add to the sauce as well.  Stir gently just before serving.

Blueberry Crumb Cake

My baby girl loves fruit - and sometimes she's a little bit picky when it comes to anything else.  And by a little bit picky, I mean she eats fruit and that's it lately.  So I've been trying to find more fruits that she'll eat to add some variety and also trying to come up with some variety in what I use the fruit in.  She used to eat anything you gave her, up until the past few weeks, now she turns down her former favorites, unless its fruit.

Sure we have plenty of bananas, strawberries, yogurt with fruit, cottage cheese with fruit, melon, pineapple, and applesauce, but I figure at least fruit is good for you, she could have been even more like her mama and decided the only food she would eat for several months running was French toast - yes I went through that phase when I was about the same age she is now.  The quirks of toddlers... she'll move on eventually, everyone does.  For now, I'm making things like banana bread, strawberry muffins, and this blueberry crumb cake.  And hey, it's delicious, so I recommend you try it, fruit addiction or not.

And if you have any tips on getting a picky toddler to branch out a bit or you have some great fruit suggestions, I would love them.

Blueberry Crumb Cake
Slightly adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours


Cake:
2 cups flour, plus 2 tsp for berries
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp grated nutmeg
6 T unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp grated lemon zest
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp lemon extract
1/2 cup buttermilk
2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Crumb topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 T unsalted butter, cold

Coat an 8x8 baking pan or Pyrex dish with butter or baking spray and preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir to combine.  In a mixing bowl, combine butter, sugar and lemon zest and cream on medium speed for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing for about one minute after each addition.  Add vanilla and lemon extracts and mix to combine.  Add 1/2 of the flour mixture, mix until just combined.  Add buttermilk and mix until combined then remaining flour mixture, mixing until incorporated.  Finally, lightly toss blueberries with remaining 2 tsp flour and fold into the batter.  Pour batter into prepared dish and smooth the top.

In a small bowl, combine sugars, flour, salt, and cinnamon for crumb topping.  Add butter and cut in with a fork, a pastry blender or your fingers until it forms a crumbly mixture.  Sprinkle liberally on top of batter and bake for approximately one hour, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool slightly and serve warm or at room temperature.  Keep any leftovers covered once it's fully cooled.

Hummingbird Cake

Have you ever had hummingbird cake?  Think tropical carrot cake full of pineapple and coconut.  It may sound weird but this is a quick and easy cake that will give you ridiculously good results.  This works equally well as  a quick bundt cake to serve coffee cake style or as a layer cake sandwiched with layers of cream cheese frosting, just double the recipe.

Hummingbird Cake
Adapted from Annie's Eats

Cake:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp coconut extract
1 cup vanilla greek yogurt
2 ripe bananas, mashed - approximately 1 cup
2/3 cup shredded coconut
1 cup crushed pineapple, drained

Icing:
3 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
2 T milk
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease and flour a bundt pan.

Combine flour, baking soda, powder, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl and whisk to combine.  Separately cream butter and sugar for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until thoroughly combined.  Add in extracts and yogurt and mix to combine.  Add 1/2 of the flour mixture, mixing on low speed until just combined.  Mix in the bananas and then follow with the remaining flour mixture.  Once combined, stir in coconut and pineapple.  Transfer to prepared pan, smooth out the top and bake about 45-55 minutes until a knife or skewer comes out clean.

Cool in pan for about 20 minutes.  Cover a cooling rack with parchment paper, place on top of bundt pan and invert cake and cool completely.

For icing, whisk cream cheese until smooth, whisk in milk and vanilla.  Add powdered sugar and mix until smooth.  Add more powdered sugar if necessary to reach desired thickness.  Stir in coconut.  Spoon over the top of the cooled cake, cut and serve.

My baby girl turned One!

Yes it was two months ago... and I'm just now getting around to sharing a few of the details.  I know, life has been a little crazy around here as we prepare for baby number 2... can't believe she'll be here in another 6 weeks or so, and try to finish up all the remodeling projects - the new nursery and master bathroom being at the top of the list.  But even in those two months, I still can't believe my baby girl is over a year old, walking, jabbering constantly and really developing quite the personality.

For Aubrey's party - we did a little bit of a circus/carnival theme - I'll admit largely due to the fact that I was slightly obsessed with the pennant flag banners that are popping up all over the place right now.  I just love them and thought they would make adorable party decor.  My sister Nikki, of Doodle Dog Advertising, made some adorable invitations for the party featuring a cute little elephant that I decided to use for the cookies too.

Photo by DoodleDog Advertising

I combined the elephants with some friendly little lions inspired by cookies that I had bookmarked quite a while ago from Bridget at Bake at 350.  I love the way they turned out, but a word of warning, don't ever try to layer your cookies with wax paper when you run out of parchment paper at 10 pm, the wax paper stuck to the frosting in several places and I had to do some minor cookie reconstructive surgery the day of the party.  My go to sugar cookie recipe can be found here.

For the cakes, I knew I wanted to make Aubrey a simple smash cake and I tied the main cake back to our circus theme with a mini-pennant banner strung from plastic carnival stripe straws.

I used a basic white cake recipe (also seen here) from Magnolia Bakery for both to keep things simple and filled and frosted them with a simple buttercream.  Sprinkles and a fun corkscrew candle were all the decoration the smash cake needed and a simple dot pattern adorned the main cake.

Finally I made a 3rd cake (2nd smash cake) for a photo shoot with Dede Holman Photography the following week so we could have some adorable pictures to document the occasion.

Photo by Dede Holman Photography

For other food at the party I stuck with some simple spins on carnival food - spicy whiskey BBQ sliders (slightly modified from Pioneer Woman - I used ground turkey instead of beef and cut out the majority of the butter and served them on Hawaiian roles), kettle corn, fruit skewers on a stick and animal crackers with a vanilla honey yogurt dip (a simple combination of vanilla yogurt, a little honey for sweetness and some lime zest), nachos with cheese dip and guacamole, mini corndogs muffins (recipe found on Iowa Girl Eats) and veggies and dip.

Traditional White Birthday Cake
Recipe slightly adapted from Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

Cake:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 cups self-rising flour
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp vanilla extract
4 egg whites

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 3 8" baking pans baking spray and line the bottoms with parchment rounds.

Cream the butter on medium high speed until smooth. Add the sugar gradually, beating until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Combine milk and vanilla in a measuring cup. Add flour in 3 parts, alternating with the milk, beating well after each addition, beginning and ending with flour. Set batter aside.

Add egg whites to a clean mixing bowl and begin beating on low speed, gradually increasing speed to high as egg whites thicken. Beat until the egg whites make soft peaks. Gently fold into cake batter, 1/3 at a time.

Bake 22-25 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Cool in pans for about 5 minutes, loosen the edges with a knife if necessary, and turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely.


Note: this recipe will make 2 2-layer 6" smash cakes or 1 3 layer 8" cake, so double the recipe if you want to make the 2-tier cake and a smash cake.  In the pictures above, the smash cakes are each built with 2 6" cakes cut in half horizontally to make 4 total thin layers and then torted with buttercream.  The 2-tier cake is done the same way with a 6" cake over an 8" cake.  I did use small wooden dowels for stability when stacking the tiers.

Buttercream Icing

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/4 cup heavy cream

1 lb powdered sugar

Beat butter in a large mixing bowl for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy, add in vanilla and cream and mix on low speed until incorporated.  Add powdered sugar in a several additions to prevent it from making a giant cloud of sugar all over your kitchen.  Mix on low speed until incorporated and increase speed gradually to medium high and whip an additional 1-2 minutes.  Icing should be thick but easily spreadable. 

Note: this will make enough icing to torte and ice at least one smash cake but you will need more to do all of the cakes above.

Caramel Praline Cheesecake

Yes I know, everyone is on a diet right now.  Oh wait, I mean "lifestyle change."  Taking a break from rich desserts, cookie jars, and cheese-filled appetizers.  Well, I'm not going to lie, we kind of are too, and I actually made this way back at Thanksgiving, I just haven't had a chance to share it with you yet.  But despite that, I'm still going to tell you to find an occasion to make this cheesecake.  A birthday, an anniversary, a special dinner for Valentine's Day, Saturday... you know, whatever works in your life.  I'm not the biggest cheesecake lover, but this one is good.  Rich and creamy and topped with a delicious caramel sauce and candied pecans... it doesn't get much better.  And go ahead, use the 1/3 less fat cream cheese if you want, I used it for two of the four packages and it turned out perfectly. 

The best part for those of you Type A dessert makers, the caramel sauce will hide any cracks that you might have.  I got lucky with this one though and it came out perfectly without a crack.

Caramel Praline Cheesecake

Adapted slightly from Taste of Home

Crust:

1 package (about 10) graham crackers

1 T sugar

6 T unsalted butter, melter

Filling:
4 8 oz packages cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
5 large eggs
2 cups sour cream (16 oz)
1/4 cup milk
1 T bourbon vanilla extract

Topping:
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 T unsalted butter
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
10-12 pecan halves

Spray a 10-inch springform pan with baking spray and place on a double layer of aluminum foil big enough to fold up around the pan.  Wrap the overhanging foil around the sides of the pan to seal it. 

In a food processor, combine the graham crackers and sugar for the crust.  Pulse 5-6 times until fine and crumbled.  Add melted butter and pulse 2-3 more times until the mix begins to hold together slightly.  Pour mix into prepared pan and press into the bottom in an even layer.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Heat a few cups of water in a tea kettle or microwave in a large measuring cup.  In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar for 3-5 minutes on medium speed until smooth.  Beat in flour and then eggs, one at a time, mixing on low speed just until combined.  Add sour cream, milk, and vanilla and mix to combine.  Pour mixture into crust.  Place the springform pan inside another larger pan (like an 11"x13" baking pan or a 12" cake pan) and pour the hot water around the outside of the springform pan to a depth of approximately 1" to form a water bath.

Bake for about 75 minutes, until the center appears dull.  The cake should still jiggle slightly in the center.  Remove springform pan from the water bath and transfer to a wire rack.  After about 10 minutes, run a knife around the edge of the pan to loosen and continue to cool about 1 hour.  Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 4 hours or overnight.

For the topping, stir together sugar and water in a heavy saucepan over medium heat.  Stir constantly with a wooden spoon until the sugar is melted.  Cook approximately 15 minutes more without stirring until golden brown.  Reduce heat to low and gradually add the heavy cream.  Cook and stir until the sugar is completely melted and smooth.  Using a candy thermometer, increase heat to medium and cook, stirring constantly until the temperature reaches 225 degrees.  Remove from the heat and add butter and vanilla.  Cool to room temperature.  Pour evenly over the cheesecake. 

In a small skillet, toast pecan halves over medium heat for a few minutes just until fragrant.  Press one pecan into each slice of the cheesecake or garnish as desired.

2011's Top 11 Recipes

As 2011 comes to a close (how is that possible?? Didn't it just start?) I'm going to share this year's most popular recipes.  There are a few repeats from last year as some of the "greatest hits" continue to pop up. 

The number one recipe is this White Cheddar Chicken Pasta.  This recipe has become a staple around here and is a quick and easy dinner to throw together.  It's also super versatile.  No wonder it remains a hit.

In the number two spot is this recipe for Chicken Enchilada Soup.  Perfect on a chilly fall or winter day, this soup can be made on the stovetop or in a crockpot. 

In third place is another all-time favorite still sticking with the spicy trend... Spicy Chicken Tortilla Roll-ups.  These are a perfect appetizer for a New Year's or Superbowl party.  They come together quickly and you can make them in advance too.

For fourth place, you moved on to dessert and like these S'mores Cupcakes as the top cupcake recipe I've posted over the last three years.  And I can understand why, they are quite impressive especially when you break out the kitchen torch to give them the marshmallow frosting that toasted look and taste.  If you haven't made these yet, you really should try them.





Coming in fifth is another easy weeknight pasta dish.  These lasagna roll-ups are the perfect solution to a classic Italian dish without all the work and without three days of leftovers in the fridge if you're not cooking for a crowd.  Plus these can be made with so many variations.  Try using chicken, beef or Italian sausage in place of the turkey, an alfredo sauce or pesto cream sauce in place of the marinara.  There are all kinds of options to keep these fun.

New to the list of favorites this year is another appetizer that I originally made for the Superbowl this year.  These classic soft pretzels with jalapeno cheese sauce are easier than you might think and make a fantastic weekend snack or party appetizer.  The cheese sauce can be used with the pretzels or use at a queso dip for chips or pour it over enchiladas for even more cheesy goodness.  If you want to experiment with some pretzels, compare this classic method which uses bread flour and boils the pretzels in a baking soda bath to this latest version of Cheese-Stuffed Everything Pretzels that I just tried which uses all-purpose flour and skips the baking soda bath with fantastic results.

In seventh place, a cookie recipe that mimics those super soft grocery store sugar cookies.  Made with a cake mix, this isn't your standard sugar cookie recipe but it does yield delicious cookies and it takes about five minutes to mix up.  You don't have to roll and cut anything and decorations are as easy as a few colored sprinkles if you want them.  I know it's past "cookie season" but these Soft and Thick Sugar Cookies are worth it.

The list is rounded out with cupcake recipes. 

In eigth place, Snickers Cupcakes, a rich chocolate cupcake, filled with caramel and topped with caramel buttercream and chopped Snickers bar pieces.  I've since decided I prefer to add a little chopped candy bar to the caramel filling in the center as well as it helps hold the cupcake together a little better. 

Next up is another chocolate favorite, Chocolate Cherry Coke Cupcakes.  Again these start out with a chocolate cupcake base but this time they get filled with a cherry filling, topped with a Coke glaze and frosted with whipped cream frosting.  A cute little cherry on top make these an adorable and nostalgic favorite.

Next on the list, is a cupcake that could be breakfast or dessert.  Apple Cinnamon Roll Cupcakes are a delicious, portable (although still sticky) cinnamon roll baked up in cupcake form.  The method is the same as a classic cinnamon roll but the cupcake presentation adds a cute touch for a brunch or other gathering.

Finally, the last favorite of the year is a cupcake I baked up for my husband for his birthday this year.  These Orange Creamsicle Cupcakes would definitely make my short list of favorites as well.  The cake is super moist and has a light orange flavor.  The combination of orange buttercream and marshmallow cream filling give the cupcake that creamsicle flavor that takes these over the top.

That wraps up the list of 2011 reader favorites.  All in all, 2011 was a great, although extremely busy, year for my family. 

Of course, my favorite thing I "baked" in 2011 was our daughter, Aubrey, who arrived in February.  I can't believe it's time to start planning her first birthday party now.

 

From there the year was a blur of selling our house, weddings, vacations, and buying and remodeling our new house that still hasn't really ended but as the year comes to a close, I'm trying to appreciate what we have and live more in the moment rather than rushing to get to the next big thing.  Happy New Year to all my wonderful readers, thanks for putting up with a lot more sporadic posting than I would have liked this year.  Although I don't see 2012 calming down any, I'm hoping I can squeeze in some recipes with a bit more regularity.  I've got some great ones to share with you.