SOUR CREAM COFFE CAKE WITH CHOCOLATE CINNAMON SWIRL

This is the second coffee cake I have posted on my blog and it beats the last in leaps and bounds. While it didn't wow me it was substantially better. In taste testing it with my family it got solid reviews and I realized that I hoped each bite would wow me...so I am not just in search of the perfect chocolate chip cookie anymore, coffee cake has been added to the quest.

This delightful concoction comes from the book Baked: New Frontiers in Baking by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. These guys put together a great book with recipes from their Brooklyn, NY bakery aptly named Baked. (They have great sweatshirts in the book with the name emblazoned on the front and I really want one!) I really looked forward to working with the recipes these guys put together because of their passion. They left their advertising jobs to open the bakery with their savings and are making it work. Oh my dreams are possible!

They have put together a solid breakfast staple here. Any bake sale or tea party would be happy to have this on their table. And it definitely makes enough for either. The size of the cake is substantial. It is in a 9"x13" pan and fills its entirety. There is also plenty of the soft sand like buttery topping. I am a sucker for this stuff and hate getting a piece of any type of cake that is stingy on topping. These boys know their audience.

Try this one for yourself or when you have company coming. They will be glad you did.

Adapted recipe:

Crumb Topping
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup pecans, toasted
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 1 inch pieces

Chocolate Cinnamon Swirl
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

Cake Batter
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs
16 ounces sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Crumb Topping:
Put the flour, sugar, and salt in bowl of food processor and pulse to combine. Add the pecans and pulse until they are finely chopped and incorporated. Add the butter and pulse until incorporated (book says it should look like coarse sand and it is the perfect description). Cover and refrigerate until needed.

Chocolate Cinnamon Swirl:
Mix cocoa, sugar, and cinnamon in small bowl.


Sour Cream Cake:
Preheat the oven to 350° F and butter a 9×13-inch pan. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl cream the butter until smooth. Scrape down bowl and add sugar. Beat until the mixture is fluffy. Next add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping bowl as you go.

Add the sour cream and vanilla and beat just until incorporated. Add the dry ingredients in three additions, scraping down the bowl before each addition and beating only until each addition is just incorporated. Make sure not to overmix your batter!

Pour one third of the cake batter into the prepared pan and do your best to spread spread batter evenly in pan. Sprinkle half of the chocolate cinnamon swirl mixture over this layer. Spoon half of remaining batter over the swirl mixture and spread it evenly. Top with remaining swirl mixture, then the remaining batter, and spread the batter evenly. Sprinkle the crumb topping evenly over the top of the batter.

Bake in the center of the oven for one hour, rotating halfway through. A toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean when it is ready. Let the cake cool on a wire rack for 30 minutes and serve.

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DORIE'S BEST CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

Dorie Greenspan is a legend in the baking world so when I saw her Baking: From My Heart to Yours on the shelf of my library I couldn't wait to take it home. (Her blog is linked in my Sweet Toothed Blog section.) This was my first of many selections from this book since chocolate chip cookies are one of my brother's favorites and a care package for him was my baking objective. (His opinion has yet to be given since I am still annoyingly waiting for him to return my call.)

Like most bakers I am on the search for the perfect chocolate chip cookie recipe and while this one is very solid, it isn't the BEST for me. The cookies bake up crispy on the edge but chewy in the middles thanks to the high sugar content. The brown sugar gives a nice hint of caramel.

These cookies certainly did not come out looking like the perfect ones in Dorie's cookbook. None of my chocolate chip cookie recipes do, they always have that homemade look. Now they are certainly delicious, but I want it all. I know we teach kids that it is what on the inside that matters but gosh darn it I want the outside to be pretty too! Judge all you want but I am honest, haha.

Now that I have gotten that off my chest I can tell you my sister, who is a tough nut to crack, gave these an 8 out of 10. This is high praise from her. They disappeared pretty quickly from my house. Here is the adapted recipe:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
3/4 tsp baking soda
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup (packed) light brown sugar
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped into chips, or 2 cups store-bought chocolate chips or chunks
1 cup finely chopped walnuts or pecans

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats. (I didn't have either and that worked fine too).

Whisk together the flour, salt, and baking soda.
Beat the butter at medium speed for about 1 minute, until smooth in a large bowl. Add the sugars and beat for about 2 minutes, until well-blended. Beat in the vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time, beating for 1 minute after each.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients in 3 portions, mixing only until each addition is blended. Using a a rubber spatula, mix in the chocolate and nuts.

Spoon the dough by slightly rounded tablespoonfuls onto the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between rounds

Bake the cookies one sheet at a time and rotating the sheet at the midway point for 10-12 minutes, or until they are brown at the edges and golden in the center. They may seem under baked in the middle but that is perfect. Let the cookies cool for 1 minute and then carefully remove and place on wire racks. I dare you not to eat them now, haha.

Repeat with the remainder of the dough, cooling the baking sheets between batches.

(The dough can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days, or frozen.)

Makes about 45 cookies.

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CHOCOLATE CUPCAKES WITH PEANUT BUTTER ICING

Sorry for the delay in posting. I have been dealing with that change of season cold and it is not pleasant. Luckily I knocked out 2 items at once before it hit so I have some goodies to post. I was feeling ambitious as I put together a care package so I made these cupcakes and some good old chocolate chip cookies.

I enjoy Ina Garten's show and have seen her make these special cupcakes on more than one episode. Being a fan of the peanut butter cup, I thought this was a recipe that couldn't miss and had been looking forward to testing it out myself. On the most recent episode of Ina's show she said this was one of the treats that helped her snag her husband. Well let me tell you it must really be love because it isn't these mini cakes!

The cupcakes do have a great flavor to them. I think it is the cocoa that gives them their taste rather than using melted chocolate or something of the like. Their lack of appeal to me is how dense they are. Even in your hand these feel heavy for a cupcake. I like a light and fluffy cake so these, while I am sure they have their place in many hearts, are not for me.

The icing on the other hand is a winner for peanut butter fans. It is very fluffy and has a strong peanut butter flavor without being overwhelming. With another cupcake this would really be a star. Ina credits her friend Kathleen King with the icing recipe. So thumbs up Kathleen!

Here is the the cupcake and icing recipe adapted from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa at Home cookbook:

Cupcakes:

2 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, shaken, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream, at room temperature
2 tablespoons brewed coffee
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup good cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt


Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

With an electric mixer cream the butter and both sugars on high until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Reduce the speed to medium, add the eggs 1 at a time, then vanilla and mix well.

Whisk together the buttermilk, sour cream, and coffee in one bowl and sift together the rest of the dry ingredients (flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt) in another bowl.

Add the buttermilk mixture and the flour mixture alternately in thirds to the mixer bowl on low. Mix only until blended.

Divide the batter among the cupcake pans with paper liners. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes then remove from pans. Wait until the cupcakes are completely cool before frosting.

Icing:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 cup creamy peanut butter
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/3 cup heavy cream


Mix the confectioners' sugar, peanut butter, butter, vanilla, and salt on a medium speed with an electric mixer. Mix creamy, scraping down the bowl with a rubber spatula as you work. Add the cream and beat on high until the icing is smooth and fluffy.

Makes about 14 cupcakes.

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RASPBERRY MARBLED BROWNIES

Brownies to Die For! has done it again. This is another winner from Bev Shaffer's book and I am tellin' ya she is making me a believer in the power of the brownie. This one works with one of my favorite combinations: chocolate and raspberry. Throw in cheesecake and you've got quite the pleaser. Make sure to add extra raspberry preserves to the recipe. I put in the given amount and it was too sparse. I doubled it and still felt there was room for more. These sure weren't pretty to photograph but they sure tasted delish.

Recipe adapted from Brownies to Die For!: The Complete Guide for Brownie Lovers by Bev Shaffer:

Brownie base:
1/4 cup unsalted butter
3 oz. semisweet chocolate, chopped coarse
1 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped coarse
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

Cheesecake base:
8 oz. cream cheese, room temp.
3 tbsp. confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 tbsp. seedless raspberry preserves

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 9" square pan (I only had an 8" so I just baked mine a little longer)

Prepare the brownie base: Melt the butter and chocolate in a medium saucepan over low heat. Stir until smooth and take off heat.

Whisk in the sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add the flour, baking powder and salt just until the ingredients are combined. Save 1 cup of the mixture and spread the rest out in an even layer in your greased pan.

Prepare the cheesecake base: Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer in a medium bowl until creamy. Beat in sugar, egg, and vanilla on a medium speed until all ingredients are mixed well. Spread mixture gently over brownie base.

Now to finish the dish, drop tablespoonfuls of the brownie base you saved earlier on to the cheesecake layer. Then drop raspberry preserves in the spots where there is no brownie base. I choose to to rotate the two in rows. Just makes it easier and ensures each brownie has enough of both.

Swirl with a spatula or knife to create a marbled pattern on top. Bake for about 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs on it. Cool completely and then cut into bars. Makes about a dozen bars.

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ASHKENAZIC SOUR CREAM COFFEE CAKE

What is a breakfast without some sort of coffee cake? I took a stab at a very basic one this time in an attempt to find the best basic recipe I could build off in the future. Although this one is fine and dandy, it is not THE ONE. I found this recipe on Epicurious from The World of Jewish Desserts by Gil Marks. It is your basic sour cream coffee cake and it got good reviews in my household but I am the toughest nut to crack and I didn't really like it. It was fairly simple to follow and not a lot of effort for a good looking final product, but I didn't care for the texture. It is very dense and spongy. I was very careful not to over mix the batter and still the texture just was not to my liking. I like a coffee cake that melts in your mouth. It smelled heavenly in the oven but just could not live up to its own hype. If I were to make this one again, which I won't, I would double the amount of streusel. There just did not seem to be enough to go in the middle of the cake and the top. If you love toppings like I do you will definitely feel the same.


**After my posting I sent the rest of the coffee cake with my mom to her school's teachers' lounge. The cake got rave reviews. I tried another piece myself, and yes, still don't like it. Go figure!

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BUTTER SANDWICH COOKIES

These delectable little bites came from the cookbook 500 Cookies from Sellers Publishing . I am always skeptical of butter cookies but these are very moist. They take quite the process to make though. The dough for the cookie itself is very difficult to work with since there is so much butter in it. I had to keep putting it back in the refrigerator because it would become sticky and soft very quickly. It made what appeared to be a simple recipe very time consuming (and annoying). It took me my whole afternoon to make about 20 sandwich cookies. Phew! The good news is they are a hit! I really needed one after the last two misses. At least all the hard work paid off.

The final product is reminiscent of a linzer cookie but the proportions are much different. For the filling I used raspberry preserves and the cream cheese mixture the recipe provides. I only filled the cookies with a thin layer of each because overloading them made them too sweet and basically caused the filling to squeeze out of the sandwich the minute you bite into one. Jelly on your shirt is never a good look.




Here is the adapted recipe and since it was pretty vague to begin with I added some notes to help:

Cookies:
1 1/4 cups butter
3/4 cup fine sugar
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
1/4 tsp. salt
2 cups flour

Beat the butter minus 2 tbsp., sugar, and vanilla until creamy. Beat in the egg. Add salt and flour until mixed. Shape the dough into a flat ball and refridgerate for 30 minutes or until firm enough to roll out. (You may want to divide the dough into 2 rounds so you can work with one until it gets soft and swap it for the cold dough. It will help keep the process moving).

Heat the over to 350 degrees. Roll out the dough to a thickness of 1/8" and cut out circles approximately 2" in diameter. Any shape will work so use the cutter you like. Put the cookies on a nonstick baking sheet about 1" apart and bake for about 11-12 minutes. Be careful not to over bake, this keeps the moist texture. I only let mine brown slightly at the edges. Cool the cookies on a wire rack completely before adding the filling.

Beat the remaining butter with the confectioner's sugar until soft. Stir in the cream cheese. Spread preserves on one side of the cookie and the cream cheese mixture on the other half. Sandwich together and serve. Dust with powdered sugar if you like.

Makes about 2 dozen cookies which can be stored in a sealed container for about one week.

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LEMON AND CHOCOLATE CHIP LOAF CAKE

Unfortunately I have not brought you a winner here folks. The bread isn't bad but but it is sickly sweet and intensely lemon. I thought it would be a nice breakfast treat but this is definitely more of a dessert loaf.

The recipe comes from The Essential Chocolate Chip Cookbook by Elinor Klivans. The book is cute and filled with lovely pictures which I have thumbed through many times. This is my first foray into trying the recipes though and the result is unimpressive. The experience has made me come up with a new rule for my blog though...if a book produces 2-3 bad recipes in a row I must move on and chock it up as a lost cause. Anybody can make it look good in print, but we are looking for results here!

When I made the bread it called for a lemon syrup to be poured over it as soon as it comes out of the oven. Against my better judgment, I followed this step and I think it was definitely unnecessary and did not add anything of value to the final product. It actually may be the downfall of the loaf cake. I hesitated but then went back to my aim of this project and that is to try the recipe as it is written. I can change it the next time, if it makes the cut, but the first go 'round is a learning experience. Besides, one of these times that extra step may be exactly what the goodie needed!

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Top Chef Just Desserts

Good news dessert lovers! Bravo has announced the premiere of a new Top Chef spinoff and this one will feature desserts and pastries only. A dream come true for the sweet enthusiast I am. I find the Top Chef series to be top notch and I actually learn a lot from the episodes. Now it will focus on the tips I really want to learn. It premieres September 15th at 11pm EST.

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BUTTERMILK BERRY MUFFINS

My plan on this blog is to test a dessert and breakfast/brunch baked good weekly. Since I completed my dessert with much success I sought my morning item. While researching the competition I came across this muffin recipe from the blog Joy of Baking. It utilizes buttermilk and berries and promised to be bursting with flavor. Well unfortunately it was not a recipe I will be keeping in my repertoire.

It was easy as far as quick breads go, minimal effort. I used frozen berries and with the 90 degree humidity we are having in my neck of the woods they started to thaw as soon as they hit my table. Hence the bleeding in my batter and the blue tinged final product. I folded them in extra gently but c'est la vie.

The muffins themselves are very dense. Even being heavy handed with the berries they still seemed lacking. The taste is fairly bland but if you like your coffee with a treat that doesn't overpower, this might be for you. I was told that they tasted like Bisquick and when you take the time to make something from scratch that is the last thing you want to hear. The search for the perfect muffin continues.

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ESPRESSO CHEESECAKE BROWNIE BARS

Welcome to my very first blog post! I knew I had to start off big so let me present you with these delectable bars. In my love of dessert cookbooks I came across a title that screamed for my attention...Brownies To Die For! A bold statement and one that needed to be tested. I enjoy a delicious brownie from time to time but they are not my favorite of treats. I usually make them when I am feeling lazy and really want something quick out of the oven (or when I really just want to lick the batter off the spoon). The thought that brownies could be more than just an everyday treat had me intrigued.

The book itself is filled with loads of seemingly delicious brownie ideas and great pictures that accompany. I must say I am a sucker for beautiful pictures and bold names. There are many I would like to try but I knew these espresso bars would be first. And they certainly did not disappoint!

The recipe was clear and easy to follow. I was actually surprised at the ease of putting these together since they are layered. The only hold up in the whole process is the fact that they need to be refrigerated after baking so everything can firm up. It is hard to wait several hours when the smell of melting chocolate and espresso fill the air of your kitchen, but I did refrain. Proud I am.

These bars are absolutely delicious and got rave reviews from my whole clan. The tray was pretty much gone by the end of the next day. That is always the best sign of something's success in my opinion. Even my future brother in law, or F.B.I., loved them and he lives in a foodie household so this is high praise.

A word about the consistency though...these are not brownies in the typical sense of the word. The brownie base is very dense. It is more like an extremely rich chocolate torte or fudge. I myself love the fudgy style brownies and these are not gooey like those. If you are looking for cake like brownies you won't find them here. Try them anyway! You can't go wrong with this crowd pleaser.

Recipe adapted from Brownies to Die For!: The Complete Guide for Brownie Lovers by Bev Shaffer

Brownie base:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped coarse
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Espresso layer:
1 1/2 cups chocolate cookie crumbs (I made my own using Nabisco Chocolate wafers)
1 tsp. instant espresso powder
1/4 cup unsalted butter
8 oz. cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease a 8" square pan.

Make the brownie base first-Melt your chocolate and butter over low heat in a large saucepan or in a double boiler. Stir frequently to keep chocolate from burning and get a smooth consistency.

Remove the pan from the heat and beat in sugar and vanilla with an electric beater. Slowly add the eggs and beat at medium speed.

Stir in the flour and chocolate chips slowly and pour into pan.

Now to begin the Espresso layer, mix together cookie crumbs, butter, and espresso powder in a medium bowl. Take out 1/3 cup of this mixture to go on top of the bars. Sprinkle the rest over the brownie layer in the pan.

Get the electric mixer again and a medium bowl. Beat the cream cheese until it is smooth. Beat in egg, sugar and vanilla. When smooth start scooping the mixture onto the crumb layer and spread evenly with a rubber scrapper.

Bake the bars for 25 minutes. (Mine baked for about 35, the cream cheese wasn't baled enough but use your judgement).

Cool on a wire rack completely before refrigerating until firm.

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