Glazed Chocolate Banana Doughnuts

Chocolate covered anything is King in my book. Case in point, these little rascals are worth all the kneading, rolling and cutting it takes to get you to these chocolate dipped beauties. Katie started school recently, and will soon be making Challah bread every week. So I thought I would introduce her to making breads and working with yeast. She had a great time watching and learning, kneading and rolling, and of course glazing the doughnuts and licking her fingers was her favorite part.
My favorite part was the sight of her chocolate covered joyous face, as she enjoyed every finger-licking bite.
The banana flavor was perfection and even though the chocolate glaze was oh so yummy, these would also be nice with either a cream cheese glaze or a maple glaze. Hmmm...for next time.

I know that you will enjoy these warm and freshly glazed rings of scrumptiousness.

Glazed Chocolate Banana Doughnuts
Courtesy of BHG (Prize tested recipe)
Makes 30 Doughnuts plus holes

Ingredients
5 1/2 to 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 pkg. active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk (I used 1%)
1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick)
3 medium bananas, mashed (1 cup)
2 eggs, plus 2 egg yolks
enough vegetable or canola oil to deep fry the doughnuts

For the Glaze
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces
1/4 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp butter
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tsp light corn syrup

Directions
In bowl combine 1 1/2 cups of the flour, the sugar, yeast, and 1 tsp salt; set aside. In saucepan combine milk and butter. Heat until warm (125 F). Add to flour mixture. Add bananas, eggs, and yolks. With mixer, beat on medium for 2 minutes. Stir in 3 1/2 cups flour, adding additional flour 1/4 cup at a time. (Dough will be sticky.) Transfer to a buttered bowl; turn to coat surface. Cover; let rise 1 hour or until doubled.
On floured surface roll dough to 3/8-inch thickness. Cut wth floured 2 1/2-inch doughnut cutter. Reroll dough and repeat. Place cutouts on baking sheet. Cover; let rise 30 minutes or until doubled.
Fry a few at a time in hot oil (365 F) for 2 minutes or until golden; turning once. Remove with slotted spoon; drain. Dip in glaze.

Make the glaze in a microwave-safe bowl combining the semi-sweet chocolate pieces, whipping cream and butter. Microwave for 1 minute and stir. Microwave 3 seconds more. Whisk in the powdered sugar until smooth and corn syrup.

Now, sit back with a favorite cup of warmth and enjoy!

Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter

What can I say....these brownies are a show stopper. It's the browned butter that stopped me in my tracks while reading my bon appetit magazine last month, and I had a batch ready to back that day. I am a huge fan of browned butter on anything sweet or savory, and come one....who can say no to anything with cocoa in it? These brownies are spectacular and very rich, but my oh my, if you love chocolate, you will seriously fall in love with these babies. The browned butter adds a wonderful nutty flavor that is killer. The original recipe calls for walnuts, which would be a great addition, however, it's the one ingredient that I didn't have.
Seriously....make these today! You can and will thank me later!


Pairing Suggestion: A tall glass of cold milk...Oh My

Cocoa Brownies with Browned Butter
Courtesy of Bon Appetit
Makes 16


Ingredients
Nonstick vegetable oil spray
10 tbsp (1 1/4) sticks unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 1/4 cups sugar
3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder (spooned into cup to measure, then leveled)
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs, chilled
1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp unbleached all purpose flour
1 cup walnut pieces (optional)

Directions
Position rack in bottom third of oven, preheat to 325 degrees F. Line 8x8x2 inch metal baking pan with foil, pressing foil firmly against pan sides and leaving a 2 inch overhang. Coat foil with nonstick spray. Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Continue cooking until butter stops foaming and browned bits form at bottom of pan, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat, immediately add sugar, cocoa, 2 teaspoons water, vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt. Stir to blend. Let cool 5 minutes (mixture will still be hot). Add eggs to hot mixture 1 at a time, beating vigorously to blend after each addition. When mixture looks thick and shiny, add flour and stir until blended. Beat vigorously 60 strokes. Stir in nuts if using. Transfer batter to prepared pan.

Bake brownies until toothpick inserted into center comes out almost clean (with a few moist crumbs attached), about 25 minutes (I started checking at 20 minutes and took out of oven at about 23 minutes). Cool in pan on rack. Using foil overhang, lift brownies from pan. Cut into 4 strips. Cut each strip crosswise into 4 brownies.
This can be made 2 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

Now it's time to savor to your hearts content.

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

I can't believe that a month as gone by with just a blink of an eye since my last post. I wanted to squeeze this recipe in amongst all the cooking, baking, shopping and holiday festivities going on this month. I found this recipe on www.noblepig.com, which is a blog I visit quite often for some entertaining reads and great ideas with food and wine. Cathy posted this recipe a while back, as as soon as I saw this fabulous recipe, and I knew this sensational treat was in my near future. Don't you love when you stumble across a recipe you want to try, so you forge the pantry to see what is needed and low and behold, you have everything you need? I love when that happens!

This was so quick to throw together and bake up. I used ready made store bought caramel which you can find in the produce or refrigerated section. It worked perfectly! This one is a keeper! Thank you Cathy for your great inspirations!

I love that you can see the grated apples in the batter!!

Caramel Apple Cupcakes

Noble Pig (Cathy at Noble Pig, adapted this recipe from Everyday)

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp kosher salt

2 eggs, room temperature

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup veg or canola oil

2 tsp good vanilla extract

2-3 Granny Smith or Rome apples (about 1 pound), peeled and shredded

1 1/2 cups chewy caramel candies

1 tbsp heavy cream

(In place of the caramel candies and heavy cream, you can buy pre-made caramel) I went this route and it was a fabulous shortcut.

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a cupcake pan with baking liners. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Grate your apples to ensure you'll get apple with every bite of caramel. In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, brown sugar and granulated sugars until smooth. Whisk in the oil and vanilla. Stir into the flour mixture until just combined; stir in the apples.

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan until almost full. Bake until golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes our dry, 25-30 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool completely.

In a small, microwavable bowl, combine the caramels and cream. Microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring between each one until caramel is melted and smooth. dip cupcakes upside down into caramel and let cool.

Enjoy each and every scrumptious bite!!!

Seriously Good Mexican Hot-Chocolate Cookies

Folks, we have a hands down winner in the cookie department.  These are simply delish!  

As a subscriber to the brilliant Everyday food magazine, I am always amazed at all the new and exciting recipes Martha Stewart shares every month is this wee little publication.  The last page in this magazine is the Cookie Jar,  which of course is always filled with spectacular cookie recipes and great pictures to showcase them.  This particular chocolate delight was in the April 2010 issue, and I was so excited to give it a go.  

I made them twice...the first time I followed the recipe exactly.  Yummy they were, but I wanted a little more kick from the chili powder, and also wanted a deeper chocolate flavor.  So my second attempt, I added more cocoa powder and chili powder, and increased the sugar slightly to compensate for the additional cocoa powder.  The end results were oh so good.  

Thank you Martha, for yet another great cookie recipe to add to my very own Cookie Jar.  

Suggested Pairing:  A cold glass of milk would be perfect here!

Mexican Hot-Chocolate Cookies
Makes about 32

This recipe has been slightly adapted.  See Martha's Recipe here.

Ingredients
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp cream of tartar
pinch coarse salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature (I used salted butter, and added only a pinch of salt)
2 cups sugar
2 large eggs
2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp chili powder (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 400 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds.  In a medium bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt.  In a large bowl, using an electric mixer (see note below), beat butter and 1 3/4 cups sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Scrape down side of bowl.  Add eggs and beat to combine.  With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat until combined.  

In a small bowl, combine 1/4 sugar, cinnamon, and chili powder (if using).  Using heaping tablespoons, form balls of dough and roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture.  Place about 3 inches apart, on parchment or silpat lined baking sheets.  Bake until cookies are set in center and begin to crack, about 10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through.  Let cookies cool down on sheets on wire racks for about 5 minutes.  Then transfer cookies to the wire racks to cool completely.  (Store in an air-tight container for up to 1 week.)

Note: I used a hand mixer to combine the flour mixture into the butter mixture, as over mixing can result in dense and tough cookies.  

Enjoy!

Chocolate Covered Potato Chips with Anise and Fennel

Seriously....who doesn't love the combination of a salty potato chip covered in sweet melted chocolate?  I was hooked the first time I tried this yummy treat.  A little candy shoppe in Northern New Jersey made these sweet-salty delights, and it was a rare occasion when they didn't sell out daily.  The swanky packaging made the experience that much better, and how I swoon for cute and over-the-top packaging.

So when i saw this intriguing take on this treat...I simply couldn't wait, and my kitchen was soon filled with the aroma of melted chocolate and lots of little seeds.  

Mark Bittman, an American food journalist and author, traveled to Denmark to check out Noma, the restaurant that earned the title of "The Best Restaurant in the World."  He found this award-winning recipe and re-created it for the simple home cook.  You can find the original recipe at http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/38863227/ns/today-foodwine/

Potato Chips with Anise and Chocolate
Makes about 5-10 servings

Ingredients
About 1 pound good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped into bean-size pieces, (I used 1 bag of chocolate chips)
50 nice potato chips, unsalted (I used salted potato chips...I couldn't resist)
1 tsp anise seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds

Directions
Melt almost all of the chocolate in the top of a double boiler (or a clean metal pan set over simmering water) ; use a candy thermometer and remove the chocolate from the heat when it reaches between 110F to 115F.  (I didn't feel the need to use a candy thermometer, I just took it off the heat once it was all melted.)  

Pull the chips through the melted chocolate to cover them, then cool on a parchment covered tray.  Sprinkle the anise and fennel seeds over them before they cool completely.  I placed the tray in the fridge to cool completely.  

Enjoy!

Vanilla Angel Cake

This is the perfect light and delicious dessert to serve to your guests this holiday weekend!  Top with some fresh berries, homemade whipped cream and enjoy to your hearts content.  Next time, I will try  slicing the finished cake in half, and spreading on a raspberry jam or homemade lemon curd.  YUM!

After testing with two cakes, I suggest using a light colored baking pan as it produced a lighter (in color) cake. 
Also I would suggest using a mixer to beat the egg whites to a stiff peak and adding the yolks in to the mixer to blend, then fold in the remaining ingredients by hand with a spatula.  It really does make a difference in the cakes density.  Don't get me wrong...they were both delish, but the second produced airier results.  Lauren does everything by hand, including the egg whites.  (She Rocks!)
One other thing...Lauren's recipe bakes at 400 degrees for approx. 1 hour.  I found in my oven, it was beautifully done in 20 minutes at 350 degrees.  Maybe my oven is just a lot hotter.  

Pairing Suggestion:  My favorite match would be a Canadian Ice Wine.  I think that you would agree!

Vanilla Angel Cake
Slightly adapted from French Food at Home (Lauren Calder) 

Ingredients
6 eggs, separated (yolks will go in later) 
1 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla powder (original recipes calls for vanilla extract) 
1 cup sifted all-purpose flour 
Fresh berries for serving
top with homemade whipped cream or creme fraiche

Direction 
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter and line with parchment paper a 9-inch light colored round cake pan.  
Beat the whites to stiff peaks in a mixer.  Beat in the yolks,  one at a time.  Fold in by hand the sugar, vanilla and sifted flour.  You should have a very high, moussy batter.  

Pour the batter into the greased pan and bake until golden on top, risen high, and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 20 minutes.  (My oven runs hot...you may need a little longer to cook your cake.)

Let the cake cool for about 20 minutes and transfer to a serving platter.  
Cover with fruit and serve with garnish of your choice (whipped cream, creme fraiche or ice cream.) 

Enjoy!

Vanilla Scented Strawberry Brown Butter Bettys

Strawberries seem to be everywhere out here....with the farmers markets practically giving them away, it's not surprising that every week I find myself walking away with three or more pints of the oh-so-lush ruby fruit.  Then comes the thoughts of, "what other sweet treats can come of these beauties?"    
That's when I stumbled upon Deb's recipe at Smitten Kitchen of these little gems.  Of course they were a must try the instant that I saw them.  Even though they were perfect as is, I only slightly adapted them to suit my love of vanilla.  

Wine Pairing:  A superb pairing would be a Canadian Icewine.  YUM!  (look for a blog soon dedicated to this alluring sip) 

Vanilla Scented Strawberry Brown Butter Bettys
Adapted slightly from SmittenKitchen
Makes 6 Bettys

Ingredients
1 stick salted or unsalted butter
1 tsp granulated sugar
6 slices good quality white bread, crusts removed
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp lemon zest, finely grated
1 tsp vanilla powder (can use 1 tsp vanilla extract)
1/8 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
2 cups strawberries, stemmed and sliced
vanilla ice cream or creme anglaise to serve

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in middle.

In a small pot, melt butter over medium heat.  Once melted, reduce heat to medium-low.  The butter will melt, then foam, then turn clear golden and finally start to turn brown and smell nutty.  Stir frequently, scraping up any bits from the bottom as you do.  Don't take your eyes off the pot as while you may be impatient for it to start browning, the period between the time the butter begins to take on color and the point where it burns is less than a minute.  Remove from heat. 

Lightly butter muffin cups with some of the brown butter, then sprinkle with granulated sugar.  Roll bread slices with a rolling pin to flatten.  Brush both sides with additional brown butter, then gently fit into muffin cups. 

Stir together brown sugar, zest, salt, vanilla powder and panko, then add strawberries and toss to coat.  Stir in remaining brown butter.  heap strawberry mixture into cups, pressing gently.

Cover pan with foil and bake 15 minutes.  Uncover and bake until strawberries are very tender, about 10 minutes more.  Let stand 5 minutes before removing from pan.  Serve warm or at room temp. 

I served with a dollop of vanilla bean ice cream. 

Enjoy!

Easy Peasy Coconut Risotto Rice Pudding

Here is a super tasty rice pudding for all you coconut lovers out there. The great thing about this dish is that it only uses 5 ingredients. It is a labor of love which requires about 40 minutes of stirring occasionally, but so well worth the decadent creaminess you end up with. You are so going to enjoy this one. By simply adding 2 tbsp of good quality cocoa powder in the first step, you can make this a chocolate rice pudding.

Enjoy...as I know you will!

Coconut Risotto Rice Pudding
Food & Wine
Serves 6-8

Ingredients

1 quart whole or 2% milk
1 cup arborio or risotto rice
1/2 cup sugar
on 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
Garnish with coconut flakes or shaved chocolate of your choice

Directions
In a large saucepan, combine the milk, rice and sugar with 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Simmer over moderate heat, stirring frequently, until the rice is tender and suspended in a thick, creamy sauce, about 30 minutes. Stir in the coconut milk and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the rice is very tender and the liquid is thickened, about 10 minutes. Let cool slightly.
Spoon the rice pudding into bowls, garnish and serve.

Enjoy!

Swedish Apple Pie Cake

So this recipe came from my grandmother June, the best ever grandma who loved to spoil her grandkids, but also happened to be a fabulous cook. She has had some pretty amazing homemade treats come out of her kitchen. Her coconut cake is my favorite...and that will be a featured in another post soon. But for now.....let's focus on this very quick and easy dessert. It has a cake like consistancy and is very light. Oh my yumminess!!!!! Oh, and did I tell you how quick this is to make. It takes just minutes to mix the ingredients together. Ok, so it took me about 5 minutes to peel, core and dice the apples...but hey...did I tell you how quick this is. This most certainly is a great dessert to make with your kids. The best thing is that they can say they created a homemade dessert.

This can be garnished and served in so many different ways....In fact, the next time I make this, I'm going to serve it with a caramel sauce on the side. Oh my......I can't wait!

Happy baking!

Wine Pairing: This would be great with an Icewine. Try Inniskillin 2006 Icewine. If you like dessert wines...you will love this!

Look for a post soon dedicated to my passion for Icewines.

Swedish Applie Pie Cake

Ingredients

1 cup flour

1 cup sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 cup walnuts or pecans chopped

2 cups apples peeled and diced

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Butter a 10 inch pie plate.

Put first 6 ingredients into a bowl and stir all together. Once combined add your vanilla extract, nuts and apples. Stir until all combined and pour mixture into your buttered pie plate.

Bake for about 30-35 minutes. Your cake will puff up a little and a toothpick should come out clean.

Let rest about 30 minutes and serve warm with ice cream or also good at room tempature.

I think that you will like this one!

Enjoy!

Lemon-Cornmeal Cake

If you are looking for something different in a cake, then you must try this one. I got this recipe from Woman's Day magazine. It's so perfect, that I found no reason to alter it. What I love about this cake is that it's not too sweet because of the addition of cornmeal, and the yogurt makes it super moist. The best part is that my husband loved it, and he is usually not a cake person.

Instead of the sugar glaze, you would also have a winner with a chocolate ganache drizzle.

I know you will enjoy this one as much as we did!

Lemon-Cornmeal Cake

Ingredients

Baking spray (cooking spray with flour)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

2 tsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, softened

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 tbsp grated lemon zest

1/4 cup lemon juice (about 2 smalls lemons)

4 large eggs

1 cup buttermilk or plain yogurt, stirred to loosen

Sugar Glaze

1 cup sugar

1/3 cup lemon juice

Directions

Heat oven to 325 degrees. You'll need a 10-cup decorative tube pan or a 12-cup Bundt pan coated with baking spray. In medium bowl, whisk together flour, cornmeal, baking powder and soda, and salt.

In large bowl beat butter, sugar, lemon zest and juice with mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time until blended. With mixer on low, alternately beat in flour mixture and yogurt until batter is smooth. Scrape into prepared pan; level top with spatula.

Bake 55 to 65 minutes until a wooden pick inserted in cake comes out clean. Cool cake in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sugar glaze:

Whisk glaze ingredients in a small bowl just until combined (sugar will not be totally dissolved). Invert cake from pan onto rack; place rack over a baking sheet. Brush glaze all over hot cake until absorbed (sugar crystals will be evident). Cool completely. Transfer cake to a serving plate and cover. Let cake rest several hours, or overnight, before serving. Store cake covered at room temperature up to 4 days. Cut into thin slices to serve.

Tip: Use lime zest and juice for a zesty alternative.

If you are in the mood for a Chocolate Ganache drizzle, this is a simple one:

1/2 cup heavy cream

3 1/2 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped (preferably 70 percent cacao)

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

Bring cream to a boil in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Pour cream over chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Let stand for 2 minutes. Add butter, then whisk mixture until smooth. Let cool, stirring often. Use immediately.

Angel Food Cake

Ok, so here we are at the beginning of the new year, and as it is usually a time where we reevaluate our goals, priorities and plan our year ahead, I thought a yummy good for you treat would be in order to start the new year off. I for one seem to start every year with thoughts of fitness and eating healthy to improve my life and well-being, as I'm sure a lot of you do. What better way than to start with a dessert first.
This satisfying Angel Food cake is firstly very tasty, but quick and easy as well.

Wine Pairings: Riesling and Gewurztraminer would pair well with this.

Angel Food Cake with Strawberries in a Balsamic reduction drizzle

12 egg whites
1 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup of cake flour
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 tablespoon honey
Fresh strawberries

Preheat over to 350 degrees.
Combine egg whites, salt and cream of tartar in bowl of stand alone mixer. Beat on medium speed until frothy. Add vanilla extract, lemon juice and zest. Mix on high speed until soft peaks form. Gradually add sugar and beat until mixture forms stiff peaks. Now using a spatula, sprinkle flour into the egg white mixture, carefully folding until all is incorporated. Spoon batter into an ungreased 10-inch nonstick angel food cake pan. Bake for 30 minutes. Top will be brown and toothpick should come out clean. Invert pan for about 1 hour to cool completely.

In saucepan, add balsamic vinegar and honey and reduce over medium heat. Mixture will be thick and syrupy, and will coat the back of a spoon. Set aside to cool.

Using spatula, loosen cake from sides and middle. Push bottom of cake pan out through the top and release bottom of cake from pan. Place on serving platter. Cut into slices, top with sliced strawberries, and drizzle with balsamic reduction. Enjoy!