As usual, I like easy recipes.  I found this easy cookie recipe on Nectar & Light.  Mmmm!  Yum!  Chocolate Peanut Butter Love.   I love the name of this cookie, too. 

Without complications, I put together the ingredients, that included peanut butter, sugar, honey, eggs, vanilla, flour, baking powder, baking soda and chocolate chips.  They tasted so good, especially coming straight from the oven.  Soft, warm, sweet.  The mixture of the chocolate chips and peanut butter?   Divine!  Loved it indeed. 

Paz

Chocolate Peanut Butter Love

Nectar & Light

~ 1 c. butter {room temp}

~ 1 1/4 c. peanut butter {preferably smooth Jif}

~ 1 c. sugar

~ 1/2 c. honey

~ 2 organic eggs

~ 1/2 t. vanilla

~ 2 1/2 c. flour

~ 1 t. baking powder

~ 1 t. baking soda

~ 1 c. chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350.  Smooth butter and peanut butter together - add sugar and mix until well blended.  Add honey and mix.  In a small bowl, whisk eggs and vanilla - add to butter mixture and incorporate well.  In another bowl, whisk flour, baking soda and baking powder together - slowly add to wet mixture.  Scrap the bottom of the bowl several times to ensure all of the dry is properly mixed into the wet.  Stir in chocolate chips.

Place the dough in the refrigerator for up to 30 minutes.  Prepare baking sheets with parchment paper.  Using an ice cream scoop {or tablespoon}, create {somewhat} equal sized balls of dough - spacing them about two inches apart on the baking sheet.  Return the dough to the fridge between each sheeting.  Do NOT flatten the dough with a fork or any other means.  Bake each sheet for 12 minutes or until edges just begin to turn gold.  Pull from the oven and let the cookies stand for about 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

*These freeze beautifully and defrost quickly if you really must have one right away

Cupcakes/Fairy Cakes - Nigella Bites

"If you train a man, you train an indiviual but if you train a woman, you train a whole nation."

Kwegha Aggrey, African educator

March 8 is International Women’s Day.  It is an event, which recognizes the achievements of women worldwide.  You can read more about it here and here

Earlier this year, Mari attended the Sundance Film Festival when "Half Life", a movie her cinematographer husband filmed, premiered there.  During that time, she had a chance to see other films, which she shared with her readers.  The story of one documentary, "Puujee", stayed with me for quiet some time.  Japanese photographer Yoshiharu Sekino followed and filmed the lives of a nomadic Mongolian family.  There are three inspiring women in this documentary: Puujee, as Mari describes, a "fiesty and independent-spirited" 7-year old, her "amazing" mother and "sweet" grandmother.  All were accomplished women in their own way despite surviving a series of tradegies.  International Women’s Day reminds me of them.

Zorra (Kochtopf)  and Fiordisale put together an event, where food bloggers were asked to cook/bake something yellow for International Women’s day.  I decided to make these simple cupcakes, which I found on Cook (almost) Anything at Least Once.  The recipe comes from Nigella Bites.

Please excuse me while I go eat another cupcake. 

Later!

Paz

I found this wonderful Pistachio  Cardamom Cupcake with Rice Pudding recipe on Vanilla Garlic.  The name alone conjured all kinds of delicious thoughts.  Pistachio.  I love pistachio!  Cardamom.  I love Cardamom!  Rice Pudding.   I love rice! 

I never tasted these ingredients together.   Who heard of rice pudding in a cupcake?  Not me.  But it sounded like something I wanted to try, for sure.

I started out with the rice pudding, which took much longer to make.  I loved how it turned out nice, sweet and creamy.  Then I prepared the cupcakes.  The aroma of the cardamom and vanilla filled the kitchen transporting me  to a magical place.  Made me do my happy dance. 

The cupcakes tasted delicious.  While some family members and I liked the combination of rice pudding in a cupcake, others didn’t.  So, they ate the plain cupcakes.  I have to say that the cupcake with the rice pudding tastes best when eaten a short time after it comes out of the oven.  Delicious!  I know I’m repeating myself but the cupcake really was delicious.  I took a bite, closed my eyes and savored all the flavors dancing on my tongue.

I made these Pistachio Cardamom Cupcakes with Rice Pudding in honor for my friend who just celebrated a birthday.  Happy birthday month, Nancy!   Besos desde New York! 

Paz

Pistachio  Cardamom Cupcakes

Vanilla Garlic

Makes 12 cupcakes/ 350 degree oven

What you’ll need:

1 ½ sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup of sugar

3 eggs

¼ teaspoon of vanilla extract (optional)

½ cup of whole milk

¾ cup of unsalted, unroasted pistachios

1 cup of flour

2 teaspoons of ground cardamom

2 teaspoons of baking powder

½ teaspoon of salt

What you’ll do:

1-  Cream the butter and sugar until soft and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time until well incorporated.  Scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure complete mixture.

2-  Place pistachios in a food processor and chop until finely ground.  All the flour, cardamom, salt, and baking powder until pulse once or twice to mix.

3-  Add the mild and vanilla extract if using it to the butter mixture.  Mix wll.  Add the pflour-pistachio mixture and mix until blended.

4-  Place into cupcake papers, and bake for 16-20 minutes, unitl a cake tester comes out cloean (no crumbs) in a 350 degree oven.  Let cool on a wire rack.

5-  Cut out small cone shapd pieces of the cupcake and scoop the rice pudding into the little cupcake potholes you’ve made.  Cover with chopped pistachios.

Rice Pudding

Mastering Simplicity

Serves 4-6 (enough for cupcakes, plus a lot more for snacking!)

What you’ll need:

¾ cup of long grain rice

1 bay leaf

5-6 cups of whole milk

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

1 cup of sugar

large inch of salt

What you’ll do:

1-  Place rice in a small sauce pan with the bay leaf and two cups of water. Bring to a boil over high heat and then drain.  Transfer rice and bay leaf to a heavy 3 quart pot.

2-  Add 4 cups of milk, the sugar, vanilla bean, and the salt.  Place over very low heat, stirring occasionally until milk has been absorbed by rice, about an hour.   Rice should be tender and rice should be creamy.  Add another 1 or 2 cups of milk and continue cooking for another 20-30 minutes.  Stir often to prevent the bottom from burning.  Revove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

Pistachio Cardamom cupcakes without the rice pudding.  Some preferred that.

Yikes!  I had to shell A LOT of pistachio nuts but it was worth it.  I love pistachio nuts. 

On a roll, after making Kaiser Pancakes, from my Austrian cookbook, I decided to try another recipe.  This time, I made Steinkogler Gugelhupf — an Austrian cake.  This was interesting for me to make, since the recipe called for the use of  yeast.  I thought one used yeast only for bread.  Hmmm…  Well, I followed the instructions, used the yeast and watched my concoction rise, before putting it in the oven. 

Instead of one large cake pan, I used a pan with individual cups.  That way, everyone could have his/her own small cake, instead of a slice.  I liked the way it turned out.  Very nicely molded cakes. 

The cake had a interesting taste to it.  I’m not sure how to describe it — a hint of cornbread taste? I don’t know.  However, the confectioners sugar gave it a sweet taste.  I’ll have to ask Angelika how it’s supposed to taste.

In the meantime, a few weeks ago, I watched The Sound of Music (for the billionth time).  If I had to make something for the Austrian family in the movie, I’d make them this cake and hope that they’d like it.  

Now, for those of you who are familiar with the film, sing along with me:

Raindrops on roses,
And whiskers on kittens,
Bright copper kettles
And warm woolen mittens.
Brown paper packages
Tied up with string,
These are a few of my favorite things.
Cream colored ponies,
And crisp apple strudel.
Doorbells and sleighbells
And schnitzel with noodles,
Wild geese that fly
With the moon on their wings,
These are a few of my favorite things.
Girls in white dresses with blue satin sashes,
Snowflakes that stay on my nose and eyelashes,
Silver white winters that melt into springs
These are a few of my favorite things.
When the dog bites,
When the bee stings,
When I’m feeling sad.
I simply remember my favorite things,
And then I don’t feel so bad!

My Favorite Things  (The Sound of Music)  — Lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II

Hey!  Maybe next time, I’ll make schnitzel with noodles (what’s schnitzel?), as mentioned in the song, or crisp apple strudel… Hmmm…  It’s one of their favorite things!

Paz 

Gugelhupf before I sprinkled with powdered sugar

Steinkogler Gugelhupf

Imperial Austrian Cuisine by Renate Wagner-Wittula

Ingredients

150g (5oz) butter

100g (3 1/2 oz) sugar

6 egg yolks

350g (1lb) flour

approx. 250ml (8 fluid oz) milk

30g (1oz) yeast

2 egg whites

pinch of salt

butter to grease pan

flour for dusting

almond slivers

confectioners’ sugar

Preparation:

Combine yeast, a small amount of warm milk, a pinch of sugar, and 1 Tbs. flour in a mixing bowl and keep warm.  Then melt butter in pan and stir until foamy.  Now, mix in the sugar, egg yolks, flour, milk, pinch of salt and the yeast mixture — stir vigorously until the batter forms bubbles and no longer adheres to the sides.  Beat the egg whites until stiff and fold in.  Grease a Gugelhupf mold with butter, dust with flour and sprinkle in the almond slivers.  Pour in the batter, cover and let rest in a warm location.  Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 340-350°F (170-180°C) and bake the Gugelhupf for about 1 hour, sprinkle with confectioners’ sugar and serve.

The von Trapp Family

The Sound of Music (1965)

Dan of Saltshaker made some good-looking, tasty-sounding dinner rolls, a while ago, which enticed me to make them, too.

For those who are familiar with my blog, I like easy recipes and this one was relatively easy.   ;-)  The recipe calls for white flour and whole wheat flour but I just used white flour.  My rolls came out well, with a tiny exception — the shell was a little hard.  Edible but hard.  I’m not sure why?  Can anyone explain?  The inside was nice and soft.  Or was it supposed to be that way?  All in all, I liked my rolls.  Thanks, Dan!  You can find his recipe below.

 Olive Oil Bread Rolls

Saltshaker

Makes approximately 3 dozen

In the bowl of a mixer fitted out with a bread hook (or you can do this by hand if you like):

2 teaspoons of sugar
1½ cups warm water (that’s for here, you’ll need to experiment, I’d start with 1 cup and work up if needed)
1 packet of yeast

Let sit until the yeast proofs - all bubbly looking - about 5 minutes. Add:

½ cup good olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups white flour
1 cup whole wheat flour (you can go up to 2 cups, and cut the white flour to 3, and still get a nicely texture roll, more than that and they tend to get dense and heavy)

Mix at low speed with the dough hook until it all comes together. You might have to stop once or twice and push stuff down from the sides, and, if need be, add more water - however, add it in very small amounts - bread dough changes texture very suddenly - I tend to add about a teaspoon at a time until it all comes together as one mass. Once it’s all in one mass, increase the speed - not too much, just a bit, and let it knead for about 5 minutes - until the dough is very smooth and elastic.

Mound the dough into one ball and either in the same bowl or another, cover with a small towel and place somewhere warm to rise. Let it double in size, then punch it down. Form it into small balls - a little smaller than a golf ball is about the size I use - but you can make smaller, bigger, or even form this dough into loaves if you prefer. I line them up on a silpat, a non-stick silicone sheet atop a cookie sheet, and let them rise, covered with the towel, again, until doubled in size. Bake in a 350°F oven for 35 minutes, until nicely browned, and if you flip one over and flick it with a finger, it’ll sound hollow. If you make loaves, it’ll take more like 45-50 minutes to bake, you’ll have to check it a few times until you get the “speed” of your oven down right. Let cool to room temperature and serve… or, I suppose, you could serve them pretty much hot, right out of the oven.

In terms of the butters, really all I do is let butter come to room temperature so it’s soft, and then add things to it, whipping it all together with a spoon or fork, and then leaving it at room temperature for enough time for the flavors to come together - don’t over-add stuff to it, the flavors will develop as the butter sits - better to go subtle than too intense.

For more info, go here.

Foccacia

All month long, in preparation for November’s Daring Baker’s Challenge, I carried the recipe around with me in my bag to read, during a moment’s respite, and acquaint myself with the instructions.  Last Monday all Daring Bakers blogged about their baking results.  I should have done the same, right?  Wrong.  I forgot to bake my bread and post about it.  With so many things to do, it totally skipped my mind.  Yikes! 

If you’re curious about the Daring Bakers and their challenges, this is the way Tanna of My Kitchen in Half Cups accurately describes the group and its goal: 

"Each Daring Baker challenge is an opportunity to unleash your power as a Daring Baker.  Daring means whatever your level of experience, you are ready to reach just a little bit beyond where you’ve been comfortable. 

The Daring Bakers, now into the 300 range, from all over the globe is a very diverse group (Have you ever heard more of an understatement).  Part of that diversity is the level of experience the individual brings to the group.  In yoga, all start with the same position.  In the DB, all start with the same recipe.  In yoga, the beginning student to the most advanced doing the same position each reach just past their comfort level, each working very hard, each look very different at the end of the exercise.  In the DBs, all start with the same recipe and most especially by design with this challenge, each presentation will be different from all others."

I really like her analogy to yoga.  Tanna chose the November’s Daring Bakers challenge — Tender Potato Bread, a recipe from Home Baking by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid.  A week later, I arise to the Daring Bakers challenge and unleash the Daring Baker within.

Being a Daring Baker, I get to try new recipes, techniques, and take risks, as Tanna points out and I did it  again with the challenge of making Tender Potato Bread.  I’d never tasted this, much less thought of making such a bread.  What I liked about Tanna’s choice was that she was very detailed.  Her instructions answered all my questions before I could ask them. 

Also, I liked the fact we had a choice in the types of bread to make — loaves, rolls or foccacia. I always wanted to make foccacia, so that’s what I chose to make.  The bread making process was challenging for me, especially since the dough was very soft.  Very soft.  Tanna warned us about this but I think my dough was softer than usual.  When I put it on the board and tried to knead it, it felt like something out of The Blob.  Luckily, I was able to shape my foccacia and bake it. I loved the simple topping of olive oil, coarse salt, and rosemary leaves (Tanna also offered a topping variation of anchovy and onions). 

I really liked the taste of this bread — the potatoes really gave it a distinct or as Tanna described, savory, taste.  Very nice.  I have some left over, which I’ll take to work for lunch.  I’m having fun unleashing the Daring Baker within.  It’s a challenge, but it’s also fun learning process.

You can find the recipe on Tanna’s blog here and check out the Daring Bakers official blogroll to see what others have done. 

 Paz

For more info, go here.

Yes.  I’m still baking breads and still having fun. 

Here’s another recipe I liked in Ruth’s cookbook Every Kitchen Tells Its Stories.  This banana bread recipe is from her Grandmother.  She’s right it’s so easy to make.  The ingredients were readily available and it didn’t take long to put them together and bake.  Within a short time, I had a tasty banana bread set on the stove top, waiting to cool.  It didn’t last long — perhaps a day and a half.  Then it was all gone. 

Paz

Thanks to all the very encouraging and head-swelling comments I received after I tried my very first Daring Bakers Challenge, I set out to meet the next challenge — Bostini Creme Pie — chosen by Mary at Alpineberry. 

Ugh!  It. Was. Hard.  But I made it. 

I’m not sure if the pie is suppose to look like the ones in my photos but it’s what I came up with.  The good thing about these Daring Bakers Challenges is that I’m gaining baking experience and making foods that I never dreamed about making.  I’m glad I survived this experience.  Yay!

My name is Paz.  And I’m a Daring Baker.  

You can find the recipe here.

Paz 

Ed. Note:  LOL!  After looking at some of the Bostini Creme Pies created by others, I see that I put way too much chocolate on my pie. LOL!  Hey, what do I know?  I’m still learning.  To see other beautiful Bostini Creme Pies creations, check out the official Daring Bakers’ Blogroll. 

I’m going to face the fact that my Challah braid will never be as nice and perfect-looking as the ones sold in the store or the ones I see that others make.  But they taste damned good, if I do say so myself.

This is the second Challah that I’ve made.  I think my first one looked a little better than this present one.  I braided that previous dough a little better even though its outcome didn’t look perfect. With this Honey-Vanilla Challah, I was a bit distracted when I braided the dough.  After putting it in the oven, it came out like so.  *sigh*

Oh well!  That’s beginners bread-baking luck for me, I suppose.  Perhaps, I’ll get better with more practice.  In the meantime, I liked the taste of this Challah.  The honey and vanilla didn’t overpower the bread but instead gave it a pleasant taste.

Something’s missing from my bread.  Can you tell from the picture?  As I mentioned above, at some point while preparing the challah, I got distracted (a little bit of drama in the household) and forgot to perform the last set of instructions.  Any guesses?  I forgot to brush the dough with a mixture of egg and olive oil.  No matter.  Like I wrote earlier:  My Honey-Vanilla Challah still tasted good.  Damn good.  Yes it did.

I got this recipe from Baking and Books.  Thanks, Ari.

Oh, I almost forgot:  Does anyone have any tips for me for making a nicely braided challah that won’t pull apart in the oven?  I’d appreciate it.

Paz

Honey-Vanilla Challah
Adapted from “The Bread Bible” by Beth Hensperger, “The Good Enough to Eat Breakfast Cookbook” by Carrie Levin, “The Bread Baker’s Apprentice” by Peter Reinhart and “The Bread Bible” by Rose Levy Beranbaum, among others.
Ingredients: Makes 1 Loaf

Baking and Books

In a large bowl using a whisk combine the yeast, sugar, salt and 1 cup of the flour. Add the warm milk, 2 eggs, 4 tablespoons of olive oil, then the honey and vanilla. (Add the olive oil first, then use the same measuring spoon to add the honey - residual oil on the spoon will make the honey slide right out.) Vigorously mix the ingredients until smooth, scraping the sides of the bowl halfway through, about 3 minutes. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, switching to a wooden spoon when the dough becomes too thick for the whisk. Continue mixing the dough until it is too stiff to stir.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until soft and springy, about 4 minutes. If the dough is sticky, dust with flour 1 tablespoon at a time - just enough to prevent it from sticking to the surface. The dough is done when it’s smooth and small air bubbles show under the skin. If you press your thumb into it the impression should bounce back. This is a slightly firm dough, which is exactly what you want for easy braiding later on.

Place the dough in a deep container greased with 1 tsp of olive oil. Turn the dough once to coat the top and cover with plastic wrap. Allow it to rise at room temperature until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease it with non-stick spray. Gently deflate the dough by pressing your fingers into it, then turn it out onto a lightly floured surface.
Divide into 3 equal portions, and roll each portion out into a smooth, thick strip about 20 inches long, with the ends slightly thinner than the middle. Lay these ropes side-by-side, not quite touching.

Beginning in the middle and working towards you, braid the lower half of the three ropes. To braid, alternately move the outside ropes over the one in the center - left over, right over, left over -until you come to the end. Now go to the other side of your working space and braid the other half, this time moving the outside ropes under the center one. Braid tightly - you don’t want any gaps. When you finish braiding each side crimp the tapered ends together, then tuck them under.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F and place the braided dough on your baking sheet, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until almost doubled in bulk, 30 to 40 minutes.

Just before the rising time has finished whisk together 1 egg and 1 teaspoon of olive oil, this is going to be the glaze for your bread. Gently brush the dough with a thick layer of it. Place the dough in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the bread is a deep golden brown and sounds hollow when you thump it on the bottom. Transfer to a baking rack to cool. Allow to cool completely before slicing - or at least wait until it’s warm, not hot - then enjoy!