Quick Cinnamon Coffee Cake

Posted on March 12, 2009 by Bridgett

We have been doing the whole “Weight Watchers” thing around here for about the last two months. I am happy to say that the hubby and I are just about to our ideal weight. Yay!

One thing I always realize when I am trying to be more conscious of my intake is that I LOOOOVE breakfast pastries. Give me a danish and I am a happy girl. Same goes with muffins, scones, coffee cake…

piece-to-eat

While I have been trimming the fat so to speak, I have been making an effort to feed the rest of my family as I at any other time. So I bake here and there and portion it into freezer bags. The teenagers seem to have inherited my love of cake for breakfast so I made this quick little number yesterday.

ready-to-bake As you can see, it’s a smaller sized coffee cake. I made it in a 9″ round cheapo pan and that worked very well. I did turn the temperature down to 350 though and it took a few extra minutes to get done.

baked-with-sugar Next time I will probably cut back on the cinnamon/sugar as it was still very “sandy” on top and the topping was loose. There was plenty in the middle too so cutting back on the amount to sprinkle on top might be a good idea.

Quick Cinnamon Coffee Cake

[print_link]

1 Tbsp. cinnamon

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp. sugar (divided)

1 2/3 cups flour

2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 egg

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

Grease a 9″ cake pan. Mix cinnamon and 2 Tbsp. sugar and set aside. Combine flour, baking powder and salt. Add sugar, milk, egg and melted butter. Mix well. Spread 1/2 batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of the cinnamon and sugar mix. Spread remaining batter on top (spoon into mounds all over to make it easy to distribute). Using a knife or spatula, carefully spread batter to cover middle cinnamon/sugar layer. Sprinkle remaining cinnamon and sugar mix on top. Bake at 375 for 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean.

Chocolate Cake – Hold the Flour

Posted on February 28, 2009 by Bridgett

Last month I decided to join a cooking group called “The Daring Bakers”. Basically, it’s a group of people who all bake one recipe in each month – all the same recipe (with their own twists and creativity) and then we post the outcome on a certain day. That day happens to be today so here’s what we did…

This month’s challenge was perfect for February. I made it for dessert on Valentine’s Day.

This recipe is interesting in that it contains no flour. Actually, it contains just three simple ingredients – chocolate, eggs and butter. Really, does it get any better than that?

I decided to use milk chocolate and my dessert seems to have a lighter color than some of the other bakers. The taste was superb. It is like a fudgy dense brownie.

I baked mine in a square cake pan. I was hoping to find a heart shaped pan to bake it in but couldn’t find one that was worth buying (all too thin). So before baking, I melted some white chocolate and made a heart on the top of the batter. Not quite the same but it impressed the kids .

The February 2009 challenge is hosted by Wendy of WMPE’s blog and Dharm of Dad ~ Baker & Chef.
We have chosen a Chocolate Valentino cake by Chef Wan; a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Dharm and a Vanilla Ice Cream recipe from Wendy as the challenge.

Chocolate Valentino
Preparation Time: 20 minutes
16 ounces (1 pound) (454 grams) of semisweet chocolate, roughly chopped
½ cup (1 stick) plus 2 tablespoons (146 grams total) of unsalted butter
5 large eggs separated

1. Put chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl and set over a pan of simmering water (the bottom of the bowl should not touch the water) and melt, stirring often.
2. While your chocolate butter mixture is cooling. Butter your pan and line with a parchment circle then butter the parchment.
3. Separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and put into two medium/large bowls.
4. Whip the egg whites in a medium/large grease free bowl until stiff peaks are formed (do not over-whip or the cake will be dry).
5. With the same beater beat the egg yolks together.
6. Add the egg yolks to the cooled chocolate.
7. Fold in 1/3 of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture and follow with remaining 2/3rds. Fold until no white remains without deflating the batter. {link of folding demonstration}
8. Pour batter into prepared pan, the batter should fill the pan 3/4 of the way full, and bake at 375F/190C
9. Bake for 25 minutes until an instant read thermometer reads 140F/60C.
Note – If you do not have an instant read thermometer, the top of the cake will look similar to a brownie and a cake tester will appear wet.
10. Cool cake on a rack for 10 minutes then unmold.

Brownie Lovers Unite!

Posted on February 17, 2009 by Bridgett

I love the simplistic manner in which a brownie recipe goes together. No mixer required – dump it all in a bowl and stir. I was in a pinch and needed a quick dessert. My immediate thought was to do a simple brownie. Sometimes it’s just a brownie makin’ kinda day.

brownie

Now that’s a good lookin’ brownie! I finally found a great chocolate brownie recipe. No more boxed mixes for us! As it turns out, it has been on the back of my cocoa container all along.

brownie1

This recipe makes an 8X8 pan but you can double the recipe and bake in a 9X13 – just add a few extra minutes for the baking.

Try this one – you won’t be disappointed!

Fudgy Cocoa Brownies

adapted from Saco Cocoa

1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup cocoa (I used Saco but I am sure any kind would be great)

1 cup sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla (I actually used 2 tsp.)

1/2 cup flour

1/4 tsp. salt

Add ins (optional): 1-2 cups of whatever you like – nuts, chocolate chips (I used a mixture of white and semi-sweet), raisins, marshmallows, etc.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease an 8X8 inch pan. In a medium saucepan (or microwave), melt the butter. Remove from heat and stir in cocoa until well blended. Add sugar and mix well. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well. Stir in flour, vanilla and salt. Stir just until it’s combined. Stir in any “add ons” you want. Spread in prepared pan. Bake 25-30 minutes.

White Almond Sour Cream Cake

Posted on February 12, 2009 by Bridgett

I know, some love her and some hate her. Myself, I am a huge fan. I’m talking Martha Stewart. As big a fan as I am, you would think I would be a huge fan of her magazine “Living” . But I’m not. I have tried (had a subscription a few different times, have purchased it at the grocery again and again). I just don’t love it.

This month, however, has the best looking cupcakes on the cover for Valentine’s Day. And the issue looked really good while I was waiting in line at the grocery. So I bought it again. And this time I was thrilled. There are a LOT of recipes in there that I will be trying. And some really great cupcake recipes too!

So. inspired by the cover on “Living” this month, I decided to make some cupcakes. I did not use Martha’s recipe yet. I actually used the recipe below as it has been on my list of things to try for some time and I already had the ingredients on hand.

These cupcakes did not disappoint either. I think Martha would be proud .

I decided to line my cupcake pans with the standard blue liners. Don’t you just love the blue and the steel gray together? That is quickly becoming my favorite color combo.

I made the recipe and it made almost 36 cupcakes. I filled the cups with a cookie scoop (such a great tool for this) and filled them about half way. As you can see. they did not dome like standard cupcake mixes do. I like that. It made them very easy to frost.

Here is an inside shot so you can see what great texture it has. The cupcake itself is a very moist cake with a bit of weight to it.

I was not wild about the buttercream I made for these so I am not including the frosting recipe. I’m sure you have a better one – trust me!

White Almond Sour Cream Cake

adapted from a recipe found on the Internet (a long time ago and sadly without a source)

1 box white cake mix (Betty Crocker or Pillsbury)

1 cup flour

1 cup sugar

3/4 tsp. salt

1 1/3 cups water

1/8 cup vegetable oil

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. almond extract

1 cup sour cream

4 large egg whites

Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir together with a whisk. Add remaining ingredients and beat on medium for 2 minutes. Pour into greased and floured cake pans or cupcake tins. Fill about half way full.

Bake in a preheated 325 degree oven until tests done.

Oh So Simple! Roast Beef

Posted on February 6, 2009 by Bridgett

Here in Ohio, we have seen some snow this winter. A lot of snow. Mountains of snow. So much snow that I am sick of it. And I don’t get there too often. I actually love winter and snow. Maybe it’s because I can wear lots of layers to hide those extra 10 pounds. Or maybe it’s all the fun of the cooking that is possible when you’re trapped inside for days on end.

on-platter

There’s nothing better than coming home to roast beef and vegetables. One of my favorite cold weather dishes. It is true comfort food.

This recipe is one of my long-time favorite ways to cook a roast. It is so incredibly versatile and oh so simple. Cook the roast and then slice it and serve. Or you can shred it for burritos. Or you can shred it and put it on buns to make roast beef sandwiches. Or top off salads with little slices of roast beef like we did the second night.

My favorite roast for this recipe is Eye of Round. It is very lean, requiring a long cook time – perfect for this recipe.

ingredients

The roast goes in for an hour with nothing added – totally naked.

cooked-wo-water It gets all nice and browned up. Add the water and seasonings (see recipe below) and top it off with a lid.

roast-in-juice After baking for a few hours, it comes out perfectly done, all browned and crusty. The water has now turned amber and can be made into a gravy if your waist will allow it. We did have gravy. How many days of winter clothes are there left???

Roast Beef

1 eye of round roast

salt

pepper

garlic powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place the roast into a roaster or pan. Be sure to choose something that will allow you to cover it later (preferably with a lid but foil will work). Your pan should not be too much larger than your roast. Bake for 1 hour, UNcovered.

Remove roast from oven. Add about 1″ of water to the bottom of the pan. Generously season the roast with the salt, pepper and garlic powder. COVER the pan.

Turn the oven down to 300 degrees. Place the covered pan back in and cook for 2 additional hours. Depending on how large your roast is, you may want to keep an eye on it. A small roast may not need two hours and a large one may need more.

Remove the roast and allow it to cool. If you have time to do this ahead, you can place the roast (in the pan) in the fridge. When you’re ready to get dinner together, skip the fat off the broth. Shred or slice the roast. Make gravy using the broth because it’s just too darned good.

Spectacular Almond Bundt Cake

Posted on February 2, 2009 by Bridgett

I am suffering from a bad case of baking withdrawal. The hubby and I are trying to shave off a few pounds so I have not been doing a lot of baking. Enter Super Bowl Party! The perfect excuse to bake something (read other people who eat). I never thought I could be so excited about football. So, over the weekend I decided to make an Almond Sour Cream Bundt cake.

The recipe goes together in a strange order but I followed it as listed. The batter was rather thick going into the pan. It REALLY filled up my 12 cup Bundt pan. Here’s how it looked after baking (the timing within the recipe was exactly how long it took to bake for me by the way). You can see that the pan is very full.

When it was done baking and I took it out of the pan, I immediately declared this to be the prettiest cake I have ever made. And I have made a LOT of cakes. The cake popped right out of the pan and, as you can see, it did not stick in one single spot. Gorgeous!

I did not see any reason to slather this with icing and decided to make a simple chocolate glaze instead. It really would be good with just powdered sugar too.

I found the cutest vintage cake plate at an antique mall. Here’s a pic which really shows off my new plate.

And I have saved the best for last… this cake is unbelievably good!

crumb The outside has a slight crunch to it, almost a very thin sugary crust. It is really thick, dense, and soooo good. The glaze was a great alternative to icing the cake and I am glad I did that. The chocolate was a great pairing. If you used the orange extract, an orange or lemon glaze would also be fabulous.

Almond Pound Cake Recipe

adapted from Paula Deen

1/2 pound (2 sticks) butter, plus more for pan (I used Baker’s Joy spray)

3 cups sugar

1 cup sour cream

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

6 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract (original recipe calls for 1/2 tsp. orange extract and no vanilla)

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Butter and flour a tube pan and set aside. In the bowl of a mixer, cream butter and sugar together and then add sour cream. Sift flour and baking soda together. Add to creamed mixture, alternately with eggs, 1 at a time, beating after each addition. Add extracts and stir to combine. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes. Cool cake in pan for about 10 minutes and then unmold and cool completely on a wire rack.

A Simple Dinner

Posted on January 30, 2009 by Bridgett

Valerie Bertinelli is featured on a recent Jenny Craig commercial and she is almost in tears as she admits that this year her New Years Resolutions did not have to include her weight. Mine didn’t either. But then I ate like a pig over the Holidays. And gained five pounds. And can hardly fit into my pants. And refuse to buy new ones.

So, the resolution began. I am doing the Weight Watcher thangy. It works for me. I don’t go to the meetings or the weigh-ins any more – I just use the little points calculator and stay within my points. And when the weight drops back off I’ll be allowed to eat like a real girl should.

I am surprised to find that I am having very little trouble with it this go round. Of course it’s only the second week. The hubby is doing it too so maybe that’s why it’s easier this time.

Regardless, I felt compelled to use that weight loss story as an intro to this dish. Maybe because this recipe was made for supper because it fit into my points plan. I really wanted to post something from Ina Garten’s new cookbook so I did roast some zucchini – which didn’t have all the fun veggies in it that Ina used for her roasted vegetables. And really isn’t a recipe from her now. Hey, I had a zucchini in the fridge and there’s a foot a new snow on the ground today. That’s my excuse.

The view from the back porch

So, here it is. A lower fat supper that is quick, easy and pretty darned tasty.

teriyaki-chicken

Chicken Teriyaki

Serves 5

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup sugar

3 tsp. brown sugar

2 tsp. water (may need more if your sauce is thick)

1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced

3/4 tsp. ground ginger

5 boneless chicken breasts (I used 8 Tyson frozen chicken tenderloins)

Combine all sauce ingredients in a non-stick skillet. Cook over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, about three minutes.

Add chicken.

Cook for about 45 minutes, turning the chicken occasionally.

Didn’t I say it was easy? While that simmered I did some plain white rice. I also cubed up a zucchini, tossed it in just a bit of olive oil, kosher salt and ground pepper. Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes. Turn about half way through if you like the sides to all get browned.

Kinda’ boring tonight but it is fast, easy and can be made with chicken straight from the freezer. Enjoy!

Pizza Dough

Posted on January 26, 2009 by Bridgett

I really hate to defrost meat in the microwave. I guess it’s because I actually end up cooking the meat in the microwave. I have not perfected the whole defrost thing. So, my favorite way to defrost is to take it out a few days early and plop it in the fridge. Actually, my favorite way to defrost is to not defrost and buy fresh but that’s just not practical around here.

So, when I forget to take something out and need a nice supper, here’s a favorite. I would venture to say that there’s no way to mess this dough up (provided you follow the directions of course). It is easy and quick to put together. And I have never had this dough fail to please.

These reheat really well. They are great for a lunch box with the kids.

This is my regular dough recipe but if you’re on Weight Watchers, you will be happy to know that each calzone has about 4 and a half points for the dough (per my calculations). Add some sauce and veggies, a bit of cheese and you have a very satisfying meal. We eat ours with raw carrots and sometimes a tossed salad.

Pizza Crust (or dough for calzones)

makes two pizza crusts or 8 calzones

1 envelope yeast (I use active yeast out of the jar=2 1/4 tsp.)

1 cup warm water

3 1/4 cups all purpose flour

1 tsp. salt

3 Tbsp. oil (vegetable or olive)

Mix water, oil, and yeast together. In a large bowl, mix flour and salt. Make a well in flour and add yeast mixture to flour and salt. Stir just until a ball forms. Knead on floured surface until dough is elastic (about 5 minutes). Place in lightly greased bowl and turn dough ball to coat. Cover and let rise in warm spot for about 45 minutes.

Punch down.

For pizza: Divide dough into two pieces. Roll out and place on pizza pans. Bake (no toppings yet) at 450 for 10 minutes. Remove and top with desired sauce, toppings and cheese. Bake an additional 10-15 minutes.

For calzones: Divide dough into eight pieces. With hands, pat and stretch each piece into a small round. Put about 1 Tbsp. sauce in center and then top with desired fillings, being careful not to get too close to the edges. Fold in half and squeeze/press edges together. Cut a few holes in top to vent. Place on cookie sheet. Bake at 400 for 15 minutes or so – whatever it takes to get nice and brown. I serve these with warmed sauce for dipping.

Jumbo Chocolate Chip Muffins

Posted on January 22, 2009 by Bridgett

When I have a hankerin’ for something chocolate, these always do it for me. I usually make these as the recipe calls for-12 regular sized muffins. And it makes 12 good sized muffins, mind you.

But my daughter has been requesting muffins that are as large as “Otis Spunkmeyer” muffins – you know, the kind you buy in packs of three at the grocery and sometimes in single packages at a cafeteria? I was appalled and slightly mifffed that she was actually BUYING pre-packaged, full of all kinds of bad stuff, Otis S. muffins in the morning before school.

Not to be outdone by Otis, I decided to try making her favorite muffins in my colossal muffin tin. If you don’t have one of these yet, do yourself a favor and get one. This one in particular is a Wilton jumbo muffin pan and I must say it is very nice. It’s heavy and cleans up very well – I highly recommend…

lg-muffin-pan

Like I said before, this recipe is for 12 decent sized regular muffins. I was a bit worried about having too much batter for the 6 muffin pan but it went pretty well. The cups ended up being about 3/4 full.

dough-in-pan

I turned the temperature down a bit, figuring that the larger muffins would burn on the outside before the inside got done at 400degrees. I was right. I baked them for 20 minutes at 375 and the insides were still a bit runny but the outsides were done. I turned the oven down to 350degrees and baked them for about 3-4 more minutes and they turned out great. Next time I will bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes and I think that will be perfect.

muffins-cooling

I took them out of the cups after just a few minutes. They were sticking just a tad so I stuck a spoon in on each side and then popped them out. All came out fine and were placed on a rack to cool.

Much better than anything that comes in plastic!

Chocolate Chip Muffins

makes 12 muffins in regular pan (or 6 in a jumbo muffin pan)

2 cups flour

1 Tbsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 egg, beaten

1/3 cup margarine, melted

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup sour cream

1 1/2 cups chocolate chips, divided

1 cup pecans (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees for 12 muffins or 350 degrees for jumbo muffins. Spray muffin pan with Pam. Put first 5 ingredients into mixing bowl and use wisk to break up brown sugar and stir (can sift if desired but if this is good enough for Martha…). Stir in egg, melted margarine, milk and sour cream until blended. Fold in one cup of chocolate chips and nuts (if desired). Fill muffin tins. Sprinkle remaining chocolate chips over top of muffins. Bake for 20 minutes if you’re making 12 regular sized and for 20-25 if you’re making the big boys.

Spectacular Eats

where the ingredients are always changing

Category Archives: Recipes

Quick Cinnamon Coffee Cake

Chocolate Cake – Hold the Flour

Brownie Lovers Unite!

White Almond Sour Cream Cake

Oh So Simple! Roast Beef

Spectacular Almond Bundt Cake

A Simple Dinner

Pizza Dough

Jumbo Chocolate Chip Muffins