Wednesday, September 1, 2010
MISCELLANEOUS
Peanut Butter Cheesecake with Chocolate Graham Cracker Crust - This is the best cheesecake I have ever had. I would take this over anything from Cheesecake Factory on any given day. The greatest thing about this recipe is that it is completely foolproof and provides delicious results every time. There are no complicated water baths or anything like that. It's also particularly good when you pour Reese's Magic Shell topping on it and pop it in the freezer for a bit to harden it up.
WHOOPIE PIES
Pumpkin Whoopie Pies with Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Filling - These were super easy to make and don't take up much time. The whoopies bake up puffy and fairly dense. As another way to present, omit the chocolate chips from the filling and instead roll the edges of assembled whoopie pies into the chocolate chips.
BROWNIES
Cocoa Brownies - These are great brownies to make when you have no baking chocolate on hand. They are rich, dense, and best of all, fudgy! For an extra special treat use Hershey's Special Dark Cocoa along with a handful of peanut butter chips or chocolate chips. It should also be noted that these usually take 10 minutes longer to bake, but always start with the minimum time and watch them from there.
Cocoa Brownies pt. 2 - These brownies are similar to the ones above, but use a 13x9 pan so you get more brownies. Additionally, the butter is melted separately and then all ingredients are stirred together, so no stove-top usage required.
Cookie Topped Brownies - These are not entirely quick to prepare. Essentially, you are making cookies and brownies and then baking them together. I omitted the oats, cinnamon, and lemon juice from the cookie dough portion and they still came out great. They can be a little difficult to judge in terms of done-ness.
Mascarpone Brownies - Quite possibly the richest, most decadent brownies ever. This recipe requires baking chocolate, whipping cream, and mascarpone so a trip to the grocery store may be necessary. These brownies take at least 45 minutes to bake. There is also a thick ganache layer on top of the brownies and it needs to set before serving. In all, it takes about 2 to 2.5 hours to make these.
Cocoa Brownies pt. 2 - These brownies are similar to the ones above, but use a 13x9 pan so you get more brownies. Additionally, the butter is melted separately and then all ingredients are stirred together, so no stove-top usage required.
Cookie Topped Brownies - These are not entirely quick to prepare. Essentially, you are making cookies and brownies and then baking them together. I omitted the oats, cinnamon, and lemon juice from the cookie dough portion and they still came out great. They can be a little difficult to judge in terms of done-ness.
Mascarpone Brownies - Quite possibly the richest, most decadent brownies ever. This recipe requires baking chocolate, whipping cream, and mascarpone so a trip to the grocery store may be necessary. These brownies take at least 45 minutes to bake. There is also a thick ganache layer on top of the brownies and it needs to set before serving. In all, it takes about 2 to 2.5 hours to make these.
COOKIES
The New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookie - This is the recipe by Jacque Torres that sent food bloggers heart's atwitter. This is also my favorite recipe, but one of the more time consuming ones. This produces thick and chewy cookies that keep very well. The drawback to this recipe is that the dough needs to chill for 36 hours before being used, and it's better to do what it says than to rush through it. The fridge is magical apparently.
Mom's Sugar Cookies - There is no better sugar cookie recipe than this. I have made it dozens of times and it has never failed me. It makes perfect cut out cookies, but nothing too intricate because these are puffy sugar cookies and any fine details will blur. It's best not to let the dough get to soft or too hard, so try to work fairly quickly.
5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies - These are very easy and quick to prepare cookies. The texture is slightly grainy but absolutely delicious. Slightly underbake these for chewy cookies. Tastes great with peanut butter chips added in as well.
Pretzel Cookies - Easy to make cookies with a salty kick. Add in more pretzels than called for and a bit of extra salt to really kick up the salty-sweet contrast. Additionally, these cookies are better when baked less than the time called for.
Nilla Wafers - Tough dough to work with and it makes your hand cramp when piping it. However, these buttery cookies are VERY addictive. Err on the side of overbaking to avoid strangely chewy cookies. These should be very crisp.
Black & White Chippers - These cookies are reminiscent of Paradise Bakery's famous B&W Chippers. The trick with these is to get them uniformly shaped. To do this, use a very small cookies scoop, or flatten the dough into a rectangular shape about 1/4" thick and cut into squares (that's what PB does). Be very careful not to overbake these cookies, as they dry out quickly.
Double Chocolate Chip Cookies - Super delicious. These cookies are very rich and fudgy, almost brownie like. Use the red scoop and bake at specified temperature for no more than 10 minutes.
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies - Very yummy cookies. I made a substitute and used half peanut butter chips and half chocolate chips and it was really good. Use the red scoop and bake at specified temperature for about 8 minutes.
Mom's Sugar Cookies - There is no better sugar cookie recipe than this. I have made it dozens of times and it has never failed me. It makes perfect cut out cookies, but nothing too intricate because these are puffy sugar cookies and any fine details will blur. It's best not to let the dough get to soft or too hard, so try to work fairly quickly.
5 Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies - These are very easy and quick to prepare cookies. The texture is slightly grainy but absolutely delicious. Slightly underbake these for chewy cookies. Tastes great with peanut butter chips added in as well.
Pretzel Cookies - Easy to make cookies with a salty kick. Add in more pretzels than called for and a bit of extra salt to really kick up the salty-sweet contrast. Additionally, these cookies are better when baked less than the time called for.
Nilla Wafers - Tough dough to work with and it makes your hand cramp when piping it. However, these buttery cookies are VERY addictive. Err on the side of overbaking to avoid strangely chewy cookies. These should be very crisp.
Black & White Chippers - These cookies are reminiscent of Paradise Bakery's famous B&W Chippers. The trick with these is to get them uniformly shaped. To do this, use a very small cookies scoop, or flatten the dough into a rectangular shape about 1/4" thick and cut into squares (that's what PB does). Be very careful not to overbake these cookies, as they dry out quickly.
Double Chocolate Chip Cookies - Super delicious. These cookies are very rich and fudgy, almost brownie like. Use the red scoop and bake at specified temperature for no more than 10 minutes.
Peanut Butter Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies - Very yummy cookies. I made a substitute and used half peanut butter chips and half chocolate chips and it was really good. Use the red scoop and bake at specified temperature for about 8 minutes.
CUPCAKES
Dark Chocolate Cupcakes - These are very dark chocolate cupcakes that use the Hershey's Special Dark cocoa. They come together fairly quick over the stove top, but the batter is quite runny and can be difficult to distribute. Obviously, omit the bacon unless making these for Jeff. The frosting that accompanies the cupcake recipe is also very good and intensely chocolate. Don't use regular cocoa in place of the dark cocoa. The results are just not nearly as good.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes - I really liked these cupcakes and they are pretty fun to make. For the mini cookie topper, feel free to use any cookie recipe. I actually wasn't very impressed with the included Alton Brown recipe. These are a real crowd pleaser.
Strawberry Filled Lemon Cupcakes - These cupcakes are one of my most requested non-chocolate flavors. I even made the recipe myself! The cake is very moist and lemony and the fresh strawberry puree really makes these great.
Chocolate Cupcakes w/Pumpkin Mousse Filling & Dulce de Leche Buttercream - This is actually my award winning recipe. There are a lot of steps involved, but none of them are too difficult. The dulce de leche can be made in advance and you can make the mousse while the cupcakes are baking. The flavors are very warm and rich so this makes a perfect fall dessert.
Vanilla Overload Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting - These are really great when you want to let vanilla shine. Using vanilla bean paste in both the cupcake and the frosting is what kicks the vanilla flavor up a couple notches.
Chocolate Chip Cookie Cupcakes - I really liked these cupcakes and they are pretty fun to make. For the mini cookie topper, feel free to use any cookie recipe. I actually wasn't very impressed with the included Alton Brown recipe. These are a real crowd pleaser.
Strawberry Filled Lemon Cupcakes - These cupcakes are one of my most requested non-chocolate flavors. I even made the recipe myself! The cake is very moist and lemony and the fresh strawberry puree really makes these great.
Chocolate Cupcakes w/Pumpkin Mousse Filling & Dulce de Leche Buttercream - This is actually my award winning recipe. There are a lot of steps involved, but none of them are too difficult. The dulce de leche can be made in advance and you can make the mousse while the cupcakes are baking. The flavors are very warm and rich so this makes a perfect fall dessert.
Vanilla Overload Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Cream Cheese Frosting - These are really great when you want to let vanilla shine. Using vanilla bean paste in both the cupcake and the frosting is what kicks the vanilla flavor up a couple notches.
MUFFINS
Cinnamon Sugar Muffins - These muffins are reminiscent of cinnamon sugar donuts. They are very light and fluffy. The buttery cinnamon sugar outsides are very addictive. I have not made them in full size muffin tins so I do not know the baking time. This makes a TON of mini muffins, perfect for sharing.
Chocolate Chip Muffins - These are simple to make muffins with just a hint of cocoa in the batter. The muffins are not too sweet or chocolatey, so you don't feel bad eating them for breakfast. This batter uses vegetable oil instead of butter for the fat, so they tend to stay a little bit moister. As with all muffins, be careful not to overbake or they will dry out quickly.
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Muffins - Honestly, I hate these. I think they are not nearly sweet enough and kind of grainy. Glenn absolutely loves them. The batter is a little bit difficult to work with, but pretty easy to make. The jam called for in the recipe can be any flavor, I have never noticed any difference. Use Sugar in the Raw to sprinkle on batter before baking.
Chocolate Chip Muffins - These are simple to make muffins with just a hint of cocoa in the batter. The muffins are not too sweet or chocolatey, so you don't feel bad eating them for breakfast. This batter uses vegetable oil instead of butter for the fat, so they tend to stay a little bit moister. As with all muffins, be careful not to overbake or they will dry out quickly.
Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Muffins - Honestly, I hate these. I think they are not nearly sweet enough and kind of grainy. Glenn absolutely loves them. The batter is a little bit difficult to work with, but pretty easy to make. The jam called for in the recipe can be any flavor, I have never noticed any difference. Use Sugar in the Raw to sprinkle on batter before baking.
COFFEE CAKES
Chocolate Chip Coffee Cake - This is a very well liked coffee cake. It has a slightly crunchy top, but not much streusel. Be liberal with the chocolate chips. The only problem is this coffee cake is very easy to overbake and then it gets dry and nasty.
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