The Sweetest Thing I've Ever Made

This Thanksgiving our family has something to be extra thankful for - this little bun was nine months in the making but absolutely worth the wait.



Annalise was welcomed into this world on November 12th (1 day after her due date) at 5:42pm. She weighed 7 lbs 4.4 oz and measured 20-inches long.



Wishing everyone a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with lots of good eats, sweet treats, and holiday cheer.

Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies (TWD)

As previously mentioned, for the month of November, we're posting recipes in any order, not just one particular week. So for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) I'm posting about the Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies chosen by Pamela of Cookies with Boys. I actually made these cookies last year for the holidays and loved them!

The black pepper really gives them a nice flavor, so I recommend adding 1/4 teaspoon instead of just a pinch. The cookies also spread quite a bit while baking, so be sure not to place them too close together on the baking sheet.

My only other tip would be to watch these closely and take them out while they still look a little soft in the middle. This will yield a soft and chewy cookie. If you wait until they look done in the oven, they will be more of a crispy cookie. I guess it depends on the kind of cookie you like :)

If you would like the recipe, you can find it here or on Cookies with Boys. Make sure you check out the TWD Blogroll, to see what everyone else baked up this week.

Thanks Pamela, for choosing this recipe. While I did not have the time bake along with you this week, I will surely be making them again at some point during the holiday season.

* Recipes notes:
- For tips from other TWD bakers, click here.

All in One Holiday Bundt Cake (TWD)

As I pointed out last week, for the month of November, we're switching things up and the recipes can be posted in any order, not just one particular week. So for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) installment, I made the recipe chosen by Britin of The Nitty Britty: All in One Holiday Bundt Cake.


It really is everything you think of when it comes to the holidays. It's a spiced pumpkin cake filled with apples, cranberries, and pecans (though I omitted the pecans). Much better than any traditional fruit cake, in my opinion!

Dorie says it's a one bowl recipe, but I am not sure how it can be when you have liquid and dry ingredients? It is, however, a pretty simple recipe that requires only two bowls. The most time consuming aspect of this recipe is peeling and chopping the apple and chopping up the fresh cranberries.


I read that some bakers had problems getting their cake to release from the bundt pan. I had no such issues, but I did butter and flour my pan. The recipe says to just butter it but I have always buttered and floured my bundt pans so I went ahead and did that and it worked just great.


This was a pretty good cake. I really enjoyed the flavors of pumpkin, apples & cinnamon, and cranberries together. A lot of my apple chunks sank to the bottom of the bundt pan (top of the cake) but otherwise everything came out perfectly.


Thanks Britin, for picking this recipe - it's a great cake for the holidays. If you would like the recipe, you can find it here. Make sure you check out the TWD Blogroll, to see what everyone else baked up this week.

* Another update - I am due tomorrow, with no promising signs of labor thus far, so we'll just have to wait and see when this baby makes her arrival! In the meantime, I'll keep baking along...



* Recipes notes:
- For easy release from your bundt pan, butter and flour it before adding the batter. PAM cooking spray with flour works well, too.
- Baking time was just at 65-70 minutes in my oven.
- Wrapped well, the cake will keep at room temperature for up to 5 days, at which point it will be perfect for toasting, or for up to 2 months in the freezer.
- For more tips, click here.

Cran-Apple Crisps (TWD)

For the month of November, we're switching things up and the recipes can be posted in any order, not just one particular week. So for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) installment, I made the recipe chosen by Em of The Repressed Pastry Chef: Cran-Apple Crisps.


I love baked fruit, and crisps are among my favorite desserts. They take very little time but they're so delicious. This recipe is pretty much your basic apple crisp, with the addition of both fresh and dried cranberries. I have to say that I absolutely loved the cranberries! They were slightly sweet but also tart enough to add a little contrast to the sweet apples. A few bakers thought the filling was too sweet, but I didn't find that to be the case, especially if you serve the crisp with a scoop of vanilla ice cream :)

I made one large crisp in a 1.5 quart casserole dish and then one mini crisp in a creme brulee dish. The mini crisp was done in 45 minutes but the large crisp was done around 50-55 minutes. My only complaint was that the filling was a little runny in the large one, so I would recommend adding more flour to your filling if you are going to make one large crisp instead of individual servings.


Thanks Em, for picking this recipe, I would definitely make it again. If you're looking for a quick and easy dessert for Thanksgiving that will surely be a crowd pleaser, then I would recommend this one. It would be a nice change from all the pumpkin pie, pecan pie, and sweet potato pies that are typically served! If you would like the recipe, you can find it here. Make sure you check out the TWD Blogroll, to see what everyone else baked up this week.

And with eight days left until my due date, I'm not sure when I will be posting another recipe, but stay tuned for an update! :)


* Recipes notes:
- Baking time was increased by about 5-10 minutes for one large crisp as opposed to 8 individual servings.
- Add some extra flour to the filling if you're making one large crisp.
- You can easily make the topping without the use of a food processor by simply cutting the butter in with a pastry blender.
- Omit the sugar from the filling if you prefer something less sweet but keep in mind that the cranberries may seem more tart if you do that.
- For more tips, click here.

Macarons (DB)

The 2009 October Daring Bakers’ challenge was brought to us by Ami S. She chose macarons from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern as the challenge recipe.

I have long been intimidated by the French macaron, so I was excited to see this was the October challenge because I finally had that extra push I needed to overcome my fears. I am sad to report that after baking along with the Daring Bakers for over a year and half now, I failed my first challenge. Despite my efforts, I could not get those characteristic "feet" at the bottom of my macarons.


I made a full batch but baked the first half using the oven drying method described in the recipe. This is supposed to dry the egg whites out to help them grow the "feet." I was sorely disappointed when I pulled my macarons out of the oven and they did not have any feet. So with the second half batch I let the macarons air dry on the counter for one hour and then did the additional oven drying method. Alas, this still did not produce the desired effect :( According to David Lebovitz, a "perfect macaron needs to be folded just-so. One extra fold, and it's all over. Not enough, and you won't get that little foot." Some bakers note that you'll know when the batter is just right because it will flow like "magma." Honestly, I am still not sure what I did wrong... and I would have persisted until I was successful but I am 38 weeks pregnant now and did not have the time nor the energy to make another batch.


The good news was that despite their lack of feet, these macarons were delicious! I made gingerbread macarons inspired by Tartelette and filled my macarons with chocolate ganache. The gingerbread flavor was very subtle (but just right in my opinion) because I used 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger, 1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg, and 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves in the below recipe whereas Tartelette's recipe uses the same amount for just 3 egg whites.


Thanks Ami, for hosting this month's challenge. You finally gave me the push I needed to try my hand at macarons... I am only sad to report that I was unsuccessful. But I am proud to say that at least I tried and that's what being a Daring Baker is all about, right? I promise to try again in the future. Make sure you check out the Daring Bakers' Blogroll to see how everyone else enjoyed these classic French sweets.

Macarons
from Claudia Fleming’s The Last Course: The Desserts of Gramercy Tavern

Ingredients
Confectioners’ (Icing) sugar: 2 ¼ cups (225 g, 8 oz.)
Almond flour: 2 cups (190 g, 6.7 oz.)
Granulated sugar: 2 tablespoons (25 g , .88 oz.)
Egg whites: 5 (Have at room temperature)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 200°F (93°C). Combine the confectioners’ sugar and almond flour in a medium bowl. If grinding your own nuts, combine nuts and a cup of confectioners’ sugar in the bowl of a food processor and grind until nuts are very fine and powdery.
2. Beat the egg whites in the clean dry bowl of a stand mixer until they hold soft peaks. Slowly add the granulated sugar and beat until the mixture holds stiff peaks.
3. Sift a third of the almond flour mixture into the meringue and fold gently to combine. If you are planning on adding zest or other flavorings to the batter, now is the time. Sift in the remaining almond flour in two batches. Be gentle! Don’t overfold, but fully incorporate your ingredients.
4. Spoon the mixture into a pastry bag fitted with a plain half-inch tip (Ateco #806). You can also use a Ziploc bag with a corner cut off. It’s easiest to fill your bag if you stand it up in a tall glass and fold the top down before spooning in the batter.
5. Pipe one-inch-sized (2.5 cm) mounds of batter onto baking sheets lined with nonstick liners (or parchment paper).
6. Bake the macaroon for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and raise the temperature to 375°F (190°C). Once the oven is up to temperature, put the pans back in the oven and bake for an additional 7 to 8 minutes, or lightly colored.
7. Cool on a rack before filling.

Yield: 10 dozen. Ami's note: My yield was much smaller than this. I produced about two dozen filled macaroons.

Cherry Fudge Brownie Torte (TWD)

This week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) recipe was chosen by April of short + rose: Cherry Fudge Brownie Torte. It's a fudgey brownie layer full of chocolate and cherries, topped with a creamy mascarpone mousse.

The brownie layer is very rich and dense. It's nicely contrasted with the light and creamy mascarpone mousse. An interesting ingredient in the brownie layer is ground black pepper. It adds a very subtle flavor to this torte but isn't overpowering. I only added one teaspoon of black pepper - I think two teaspoons would probably be too much. The cherries are a wonderful surprise to bite into and keep this dessert from being too basic.


The torte is simple enough to make but yields a very decadent dessert perfect for serving guests. Thanks April, for picking this recipe, I would definitely make it again. If you would like the recipe, you can find it here. Make sure you check out the TWD Blogroll, to see how everyone else enjoyed this fudgey treat.


* Recipes notes:
- I used semisweet chocolate chips instead of chopped chocolate.
- I omitted the kirsch due to my little bun in the oven :) I simply boiled the cherries and water until almost all of the water was evaporated, then added the preserves with a splash of water until it seemed a good consistency.
- For more tips, click here.com

Sweet Potato Biscuits (TWD)

This week's Tuesdays with Dorie (TWD) recipe was chosen by Erin of Prudence Pennywise: Sweet Potato Biscuits. I love biscuits but have never seen anything like this, so I was eager to try this recipe.

I've never had any problems with making biscuits. The key is to use really cold butter and to not overwork your dough. When cutting the biscuits you also need to make sure you press straight down, as twisting the cutters can inhibit some of the rise in the biscuits.


This recipe presented a lot of problems for me though. Even though I used 29 ounces of canned sweet potatoes (instead of 30 ounces), my dough was super sticky and moist. Not sure where the extra moisture came from? It was so hard to work with; I had a lot of trouble cutting my dough into biscuits. Then after they went in the oven, they hardly rose at all. I know my baking powder isn't too old, so that wasn't the issue. I am not sure what went wrong, but my biscuits look pretty pathetic.

Thankfully, aesthetics aside, these tasted great :) I enjoyed them with some butter and brown sugar. These would be great to make the morning after Thanksgiving, when you want something besides leftovers but don't want to spend too much time in the kitchen.


Thanks Erin for picking this recipe, I loved it. If you would like the recipe, you can find it here. Make sure you check out the TWD Blogroll, to see how everyone else enjoyed this perfect-for-fall breakfast treat.

* Recipes notes:
- Consider putting your butter in the freezer to get it extra cold before using it.
- For more tips, click here.