Blueberry Buckle

I made this for my boyfriend, who's lactose intolerant and thus couldn't eat fresh peach cake. I honestly didn't care for it that much. It tasted like a big blueberry muffin, which is nice, but if I'm gonna eat a cake, I want a cake, not a muffin. He loved it though. He almost ate the whole thing by himself over the course of two days. Making it was a snap though, which is certainly a plus. The recipe also comes from Country Desserts by Lee Bailey.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups plus 1 to 2 tablespoons sifted all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
1 pint blueberries (I didn't quite have a pint)
Whipped cream flavored with rum (I also didn't have this)

Topping
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup sifted all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8-inch springform pan.
2. Sift together the 2 cups flour, baking powder, and salt. Cream the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the egg. Add the flour mixture in 3 parts, alternating with the milk. Toss the berries with the remaining tablespoon or 2 of flour (to separate and scatter evenly throughout the batter) and fold in. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
3. Combine ingredients for topping with a fork to make a crumbly mixture. Sprinkle this over the batter, spreading it with your hand if you like.
4. Bake for 1 hour, then test this for doneness by inserting a cake tester (since I used a 9-inch springform pan, I tested after 40 minutes and it was done.)
5. When the cake has cooled, run a knife around the edges and lift out of pan. Serve it with whipped cream generously spiked with rum.

Fresh Peach Cake

I had been wanting to make this cake for a long time, but I waited for almost a year because peaches are usually no good out of season. I have to say it was worth the wait. The taste isn't complicated or sophisticated by any means and I certainly wouldn't present it to a dessert master. It's peaches and cream with sponge cake, but it's so good that I had a big slice for breakfast. This is from Country Desserts by Lee Bailey.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick margarine, softened
3/4 stick unsalted butter, softened
11/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons sugar
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanila extract
9 large egg whites, stiffly beaten

Cream filling
2 cups heavy filling
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Peach filling
5 to 6 large peaches (I used 7 medium ones)
Juice of 1/2 lemon
2 tablespoons sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Make cream filling first. Mix cream, sugar, and vanilla. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease 3 8-inch round cake pans and line the bottoms with wax paper. Grease the paper and lightly flour.
3. Sift the flour with the cornstarch, baking powder, and salt.
4. Cream the margarine, butter, and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the dry mixture in 4 parts, alternating with the milk and ending with the flour. Mix in the vanilla.
5. Place the beaten egg whites on top of the mixture and fold in with the over-and-under motion. Do not beat, but be sure it is well mixed. Pour batter into cake pans and bake on the middle rack of the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until a cake tester comes out clean. Let cakes cool in pans for 10 minutes, then invert onto cooling racks. Let cool completely.
6. To assemble cakes, peel and chop peaches into small slices. Toss peach slices with the lemon juice and sugar. Whip the chilled cream-sugar filling until it is stiff. The peaches will have given up a bit of juice by then, so pour some of it over the bottom cake layer, a little at a time, to give it a chance to soak in. Put a third of the peach slices on this bottom layer and cover with some whipped cream. Repeated with the remaining layers, holding them with toothpicks if necessary. Keep cake refrigerated, very loosely covered with foil or wax paper, until ready to serve.

Ultimate Fudgy Brownies

I wanted to make some basic, no-frills brownies, so I made these from a recipe out of the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. They came out very good, a bit cakey but still delicious. I followed the recipe for the most part except that I had to substitute cocoa powder and butter for unsweetened chocolate and I used half sugar and half Splenda. Next time, I'd try less sugar and more cocoa powder for less sweet, but more chocolaty flavor.

INGREDIENTS

5 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour

DIRECTIONS

1. Place the oven rack in the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour an 8-inch square pan. Melt the chocolates, butter, and cocoa in the microwave at low, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Let the mixture cool slightly.
2. Whisk the sugar, eggs, vanilla, and salt together in a large bowl until combined. Whisk in the melted chocolate mixture until smooth. Stir in the flour until no streaks remain.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 35 to 40 minutes.
4. Let cool completely on a wire rack to room temperature, about 2 hours, before removing the brownies and cut into squares.

I also used a 9-inch cake pan, not square pan. The cookbook advises against cutting the brownies until serving as they will dry out. Something to keep in mind. I ended up not taking any photos as they disappeared too quickly.

Maple Walnut Meringue Cookies

I decided I'd experiment more with meringue nut cookie recipe. Since I had some maple sugar laying around, I decided to use them with some walnuts. The outcome was pretty good, but I think I prefer the version with hazlenuts better. Still delicious though.

INGREDIENTS

3 large egg whites at room temperature
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 cup maple sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 cup walnuts

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
2. Lightly butter and barely flour parchment paper and place it on baking sheets.
3. Beat egg whites until foamy.
4. Add salt and cream of tartar then beat until stiff.
5. Stir in sugars gradually while still beating.
6. Fold in nuts carefully.
7. Drop batter onto cookie sheets. These don't spread much, so it can be fairly close.
8. Bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until slightly browned.
9. Allow to cool then carefully peel them off.

Vanilla Crescents

This recipe also came from Country Desserts by Lee Bailey. These were very brittle and easily broken, so the handling was a bit difficult. Making them was a breeze though, other than the part where you attempt to shape them like crescents. The taste was pretty good, but nothing terribly special. Perhaps I should've used more vanilla. I bought expensive Madagascar vanilla beans, so I think I was a bit cheap with them.

INGREDIENTS

1/4 cup sugar plus 2 cups for coating
1 vanilla bean, crushed in chunks
1/2 cup shelled walnuts
2 sticks butter, softened
2 1/3 cups sifted flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place sugar and vanilla bean in a food processor. Pulse off and on a few times until the beans are chopped. Add walnuts and process until finely chopped.
3. Add butter and flour and process, scraping down if necessary, until the dough is pliable.
4. Pinch off walnut-sized dough and shape into balls. Shape balls into small crescents. You can place them close since these don't spread.
5. Bake for 10 minutes then reduce temperature to 300 degrees. Bake for additional 10-15 minutes or until tan and dry. I ended up baking them about 30 minutes total as my oven's not exactly accurate.
6. Roll the hot cookies in sugar.

P.S My significant other's cousins loved these cookies.

Thick-and-gooey Chocolate Chip Cookies

Thought I'd give chocolate chip cookies one more try. I liked this recipe a lot better than the previous one. My significant other is usually not a cookie dough fan, but he loved the dough so much that he volunteered to clean the mixer as well as the bowl. He did say he thought they would have been perfect if they had had nuts in them. This recipe is from New York Times Sunday Magazine.

INGREDIENTS

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons salt
2 sticks butter, softened
1 1/2 cups packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
3 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups chopped bittersweet chocolate

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
3. Sift together flour, baking soda and powder, and salt.
4. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy, about 3 minutes.
5. Add eggs, one at a time, then vanilla.
6. Fold in chocolate then dump the flour mixture. Mix well.
7. Chill the dough.
8. Roll 1/4 cup lumps into balls and place on the sheets. Flatten to 1/2-inch thick discs spaced 2 inches apart. These will spread a lot, so give them plenty of space.
9. Bake until the edges turn golden, about 14-19 minutes.

Meringue Nut Cookies

I baked three different kinds of cookies to give to my significant other's cousin's children, and this is the first one and probably the best. These turned out to be a huge success. Both my significant other and I loved them. Not to mention it's a very simple process though it does take a bit of patience to whip the egg whites stiff. The recipe comes from Country Desserts by Lee Bailey. Hazelnuts are easily replacable by any other kind of nuts. I think I'm gonna experiment with dehydrated strawberries next time. It's safe to say I've been converted. Homemade meringues rule.

INGREDIENTS

3 large egg whites at room temperature
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups hazelnuts

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.
2. Lightly butter and barely flour parchment paper and place it on baking sheets.
3. Beat egg whites until foamy.
4. Add salt and cream of tartar then beat until stiff.
5. Stir in sugar gradually while still beating.
6. Fold in nuts carefully.
7. Drop batter onto cookie sheets. These don't spread much, so it can be fairly close.
8. Bake for 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until slightly browned.
9. Allow to cool then carefully peel them off.

Big And Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I wasn't a fan of these cookies, but I'm not a cookie person to begin with, while my significant other and his mother are. They both loved these cookies. The recipe comes from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook. I substituted chopped dark chocolate for semisweet chocolate because I had a bag laying around. Certainly any kind of chocolate could be substituted. I also used only one kind of sugar out of laziness.

INGREDIENTS

3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/4 cups packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 (12-ounce) bag semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS

1. Put the oven racks to the upper- and lower-middle positions and heat the ovens to 325 degrees. Whisk the flour, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl and set aside.
2. Beat the butter and sugars in a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until combined, 1 or 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs, egg yolks, and vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl and beaters as needed.
3. Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly mix in the flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. Mix in the chocolate chips until incorporated.
4. Working with 1/4 cup of dough at a time, roll the dough into balls and lay on two parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced about 2 1/2 inches apart. Bake until the edges are golden but the centers are still soft and puffy, 17 to 20 minutes, rotating and switching the baking sheets halfway through baking.
5. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then serve warm or transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

Gingerbread Cookies

I made these cookies for a friend since she had posted on MySpace that she really wanted fully decorated gingerbread cookies. I think they turned out decently, but I probably won't make them again since I'm not hugely into gingerbread cookies and it was such a pain in the butt to handle sticky molasses. It was fun to decorate them though. This recipe is also from The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook.

INGREDIENTS

Cookie:
3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon ginger
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces and softened
3/4 cup light molasses
2 tablespoons whole milk
Frosting:
3 tablespoons whole milk
1 tablespoon cream cheese, softened
1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar

DIRECTIONS

1. Process the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, baking soda, cloves, and salt in a food processor until combined, about 10 seconds. Scatter the butter pieces over the top and using short pulses, process to a very fine meal, about 15 pulses. With the machine running, slowly pour the molasses and milk through the feed tube and process until the dough forms a soft mass, about 10 seconds.
2. Scrape the dough onto a counter and divide it in half. Working with one half at a time, roll the dough out to a 1/8-inch thickness between 2 large sheets of parchment paper. Slide the rolled dough and parchment onto a baking sheet and refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees with oven racks at the upper- and lower-middle positions. Cut shapes out of the rolled dough using cookie cutters and lay on two parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced about 3/4 inches apart. Bake until the cookies are light golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes, rotating and switching the baking sheets halfway through baking.
4. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 2 minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
5. Whisk 2 tablespoons of the milk and the cream cheese together until smooth. Add the confectioners' sugar and whisk until smooth, adding the remaining milk as needed until the glaze is thin enough to spread easily. Glaze and decorate the cookies when they are completely cooled.

Cheddar Cheese Bread

This cheese bread recipe was found on The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, which is my favorite cookbook for basic, reliable recipes. This bread was a breeze to make and was very popular on the dinner table. It was also delicious toasted. The only downside is that it contains so much dairy product. I may experiment with yogurt instead of sour cream and milk substitute in the future.

INGREDIENTS

3 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated on the large holes of a box grater (1 cup)
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
4 ounces extra sharp cheddar cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/4 cups whole milk
3/4 cup sour cream
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 large egg, lightly beaten

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees with an oven rack at the middle position. Generously coat a 9 by 5-inch loaf fan with grease then sprinkle 1/2 cup of the Parmesan evenly over the bottom of the pan.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt, cayenne, and black pepper together in a large ball. Use a rubber spatula to stir in the cheddar, breaking up clumps, until it is coated with the flour mixture. Whisk the milk, sour cream, melted butter, and egg together in a separate ball. Gently fold the milk mixture into flour mixture using a rubber spatula until combined only enough. Do not overmix.
3. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan evenly over the top. Bake until deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center of the loaf comes out with only a few crumbs attached, 45 to 50 minutes.
4. Let the loaf cool in the pan for 10 minutes before unmolding onto a wire rack to cool for at least 1 hour.

Puffed Artichoke Pie

Yet another try at a recipe from Stop and Smell the Rosemary. This was actually quite successful. I think it could've been more flavorful if I used less ricotta cheese and substituted some other cheese though as the filling did taste a bit bland after the first few bites. The recipe was for a 7-inch springform pan, but I used a 9-inch one here instead.

INGREDIENTS

1 package frozen puff pastry dough, thawed
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
15 ounce ricotta cheese
4 ounces Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (1 cup)
1 1/2 cups frozen artichoke hearts, thawed, drained, and quartered
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
salt
freshly ground pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Cut 2 9-inch diameter circles from each piece of pastry, reserving leftover pastry. Line bottom of a 9-inch springform pan with one of the circles and line sides with pieces cut from leftover pastry. Refrigerate pan and remaining pastry circle until ready to use.
2. Reserve 2 tablespoons of the beaten eggs. Pour remaining eggs in a medium bowl. Add ricotta, Parmesan, artichoke hearts, and nutmeg. Mix thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon evenly into prepared springform pan. Top with remaining pastry circle, pinching edges together to seal. Brush top of pie with reserved 2 tablespoons beaten egg. Refrigerate 20 minutes to firm.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake 55 minutes to 1 hour or until golden brown and puffy. Cut into wedges and serve warm.

Traditional Mexican Christmas Cookies

This was another recipe that I found on Smell and Stop the Rosemary. They were like cinnamony sugar cookies. Good, but nothing special.

INGREDIENTS

Cookie:
2 sticks unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups plus 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
sugar
Topping:
1 cup sugar
1 ounce semi-sweet chocolate, ground
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Beat butter, sugar, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon until light and fluffy. Gradually add 1 1/2 cups flower and baking powder, beating at low speed until well blended. Stir in additional 1/4 cup flour until dough can be shaped. Roll dough into 1 1/4-inch balls. Place 3 inches apart on ungreased parchment paper. Flatten each ball into 2-inch rounds with bottom of a glass which has been buttered and dipped in sugar. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until edges are golden brown.
2. Combine sugar, chocolate, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Three or four minutes after removing cookies from oven, coat both sides of cookies with this mixture, one at a time. Cool on wire racks.

Mint Chocolate Cupcakes

I found this recipe on a cookbook called Stop and Smell the Rosemary. I thought they were pretty good, but apparently they weren't as good as I thought as four cupcakes were left alone and thrown in the trash after a few days. My desserts go pretty fast, usually within two or three days, at my boyfriend's parents' so I most likely won't be making these again. I again made minor changes to the recipe, one of them being omitting mint in the frosting. Everybody agreed it was a good decision.

INGREDIENTS

Cake:
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
1 stick and 2 2/3 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
2 teaspoons peppermint extract
1 cup milk
Frosting:
3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate
4 tablespoons unsalted butter

DIRECTIONS

1. Melt chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. Stir until smooth. Remove saucepan from heat. Cool frosting until spreadable.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line muffin cups with paper liners. Whisk flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa. Cream butter and sugar until light, about 5 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in peppermint extract. Slowly blend in flour mixture, alternating with milk, until blended. Spoon batter into paper liners, filling each cup 3/4 full.
3. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until cake test comes out clean. Do not overbake. Cool cupcakes on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Remove cupcakes to wire rack to cool completely. Frost when cooled.

Banana Bread

I've tried a bunch of banana bread recipes and found this one to be one of the easiest and most reliable. I found this recipe at allrecipe.com submitted by Shelley Albeluhn. This is with minor changes I made in the process of baking.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas (I used 4 small bananas)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture. Stir only enough to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Check after 60 minutes then every 5 minutes for doneness. Let bread cool, then turn out onto a wire rack.