things i've made recently

As discussed earlier, I don't have a whole lot of time/energy/ability anymore to bake new things and blog about them. It's not like I can bring a hot plate and a toaster oven to my hotel room and whip things up. Occasionally, I've made something on the weekends that I'm home but they've been my old stand-bys. So as a reminder to you all, I'm re-posting some links to these must-make recipes.

Hot Fudge Sundae Cake
Coconut Macaroons
Banana Oat Shake (lately I've been adding frozen blueberries into the mix with this)
Plum Jam
and Pumpkin Pie 
(lots of pumpkin ideas here, if you are as excited as I am that pumpkin is back in town)

But, don't you worry about me, I've been eating very well. Too well. Remember how much I love San Francisco food?

Also, as soon as I figure my life out and am in a more permanent situation, wherever that may be, I'm going to make this the winter of crock-potting. Would you guys be interested in more than just baking recipes? Or should I stick to what I know best?

As it turns out, I really need this cookbook.

wheat germ chocolate chip cookies

My sister offered to make me dinner a few Sundays ago, and asked if I could bring a treat. I figured this would give me the opportunity to actually bake again and try my current obsession, a recipe that is like my personal form of crack: the Wheat Germ cookie at Specialty's Bakery. The best part about my traveling situation right now is that I get to eat all my favorite foods, including this ridiculous cookie. I found a recipe online that claims to be the same as Specialty's. After searching online for a recipe I found this one, which seemed to be fairly close. While this cookie is pretty exceptional it's not quite the same. I must figure this out, many test batches must be made…
(note: with my add-ons/changes in parenthesis, it actually is fairly similar)


Also, sorry there is no picture, I couldn't get any pictures taken in good lighting, but I figured a post with no pictures is better than no post? Maybe?

3/4 cup old fashioned whole rolled oats
1 cup whole-wheat flour (I used 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour, and 1/4 cup almond meal)
1/2 cup ground flax seeds
1/2 cup raw wheat germ
1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes (I would chop this up or use flaked coconut so it's in smaller pieces)
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt (I would actually use half of this next time I make these)
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup brown sugar
(I added 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 2 tablespoons honey)
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup chocolate chips (Specialty's uses mini chocolate chips)
1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (I used very, very finely chopped pecans)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Coat 2 baking sheets with cooking spray (not required if your using non-stick pans or a silpat)
2. Mix oats and flour in a medium bowl. Add baking soda and salt and whisk until mixed in. Whisk in wheat germ, flax and coconut.
3. Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, egg and vanilla; beat until smooth and creamy. With the mixer running, add the dry ingredients, beating on low speed until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips and walnut pieces using a wooden spoon or spatula. Chill the dough in a refrigerator for at least 1 hour. The dough should be firm before proceeding with step 4.
4. Force a spoon into the dough to remove about 2-3 tablespoonfuls per cookie, at least 1 inch apart, onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake cookies, until firm around the edges and golden on top, about 12 minutes. (I actually decided to bake for 9 minutes on the second batch and preferred that). Remove baking sheets from the oven immediately and cool the cookies for 2 minutes, then transfer to wire racks with a spatula to cool.

**Specialty's version of this cookie is tall and rectangular. If you prefer that shape then mold the chilled dough into a 2" x 2" rectangular log and cut into 1.5" pieces to form the cookie. (I will try this note from the original author next time, I think).

six-week bran muffins

In case you haven't noticed, I haven't been around these here parts too much lately. I've been traveling to and from San Francisco every week for work. I'm there four days a week and pretty much have no energy left-over for baking + blogging when I get home. Not to mention, it's pretty impossible to keep fresh food around when I can't be in one place long enough to consume it. Which is why this recipe is so perfect for me. This recipe you make overnight and can keep (covered *real* tight) in the fridge for up to six weeks. You can just cook a few at a time and voila! Fresh bran muffins. Plus, when it's just me, the fact that this makes 48 muffins works great, cause I won't run out of that very quickly. In case the germ-freaks are totally grossed out about the length of time you can keep these, just cool out. There are a ton of recipes like this online and it's super legit science and stuff.  (Recipe sent to me by my Momz, and found originally by my eldest sister. I do not know the original source—sorry about that!)

5 cups flour

3 cups sugar, plus additional for sprinkling

5 teaspoons baking soda

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

7 1/2 cups (20-ounce box) Post Healthy Classics Raisin Bran (you could add more raisins if this doesn't provide enough, it would be yums to add golden raisins to the mix)

4 cups (1 quart) buttermilk

1 cup vegetable oil

4 large eggs, beaten

Melted butter for brushing the tops of the muffin batter

Ground cinnamon and sugar mixed

1.  In a very large bowl, combine the flour 3 cups sugar, baking soda, and salt.  Stir in the cereal, add the buttermilk, oil, and eggs, and blend until moistened.  DO NOT STIR AGAIN.  Place the mixture into a NON-METALLIC (very important science here, don't think you can be sneaky and get around this - Farrah, I'm talking to you!) container, seal tightly, and refrigerate overnight or for up to 6 weeks.

2.  When ready to bake - preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a 12 cup muffin pan with cooking spray.  Fill each cup 3/4 full with batter.  Brush the top of the batter in each cup with melted butter and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar to taste.  Bake 15-20 minutes. (I actually haven't done that the past few batches to make them a little more healthy and they are still super delish!)

**Here's a tip: if you are cooking less than 12 muffins, you can pour about an inch of water in each leftover muffin cup before you throw them in the oven so that the pan cooks everything evenly.

grilled cheese

a friend sent me this site. now i'm in a visual food coma.

i suggest you look at this if you like grilled cheese sandwiches.
http://grilledcheeseacademy.com/

cherry upside down cake

i keep buying as many cherries as i can find, before they are completely gone till next year. which tends to leave me with an extra cherry or two. i was making a brunch for some friends and wanted to make something a little fancy, so i decided to turn our family favorite, blueberry short cake, into cherry upside down cake, but with a few tweaks, i added 1 tsp. almond extract and 1/4 cup of cornmeal. best decision ever. it had the perfect consistency and flavor and crumb and just overall goodness. why are cherries so darn good? why can't summer last forever? i need fresh fruit and veggies at my disposal every day—as well as this cake.

muffins in the morning

i'm conducting a little survey on this here blog to see what your top 3 favorite muffins are in the morning. you can write in the comments any flavor you like, but i'll give a few options here to jog your memory.

bran

blueberry

poppyseed (lemon or almond or just plain)

chocolate

what about pumpkin or something with coconut or cornmeal? and think as if it's something you want to buy in the morning as a breakfast muffin. lemme know your thoughts, please!

blackberry peach cobbler

i've documented my love for peaches and cobbler before. it's basically the quintessential summer dessert. i saw this recipe for easy, foolproof cobbler on thekitchn. which, if you haven't noticed, is my go to spot for kitchen tips, recipes and inspiration. i had some peaches and blackberries that i had frozen so they wouldn't go bad, so when i saw the recipe, i decided it was fate. it was easy. and it was foolproof. however, one thing to remember: when you freeze fruit, it's a little extra juicy than normal when it thaws out. therefore, it is advantageous to drain some of the juice. i learned this first hand. i actually knew this, but just conveniently bypassed this because i was distracted. distracted baking ≠ smart baking. as for the topping, it's pretty great. i might use a little less sugar and butter next time, or try to integrate what works with this into another recipe. this is why baking is so great, it's like mad science, but with (mostly) delicious results.


1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups sugar, plus a bit more for sprinkling
 (on the fruit)
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, melted  **i would try just one stick next time
fresh berries or fruit (peeled and cut into chunks)

combine the flour and sugar. add the butter, mixing as you go, until the mixture forms a soft dough. it can be slightly crumbly, but you want it to hold together when you squeeze it.

spray a 9x9 baking dish with non-stick cooking spray. put the fruit in the dish — you will probably need about 4 cups of berries or chopped fruit. you want to create a thick layer that comes about two inches up the sides.
 if the fruit is particularly tart, sprinkle with a light layer of sugar (i did a mixture of a little granulated and a little bit of brown sugar). if the fruit is soft and sweet, you don't need it.

take the dough by the handful and pat it into disks that are about 1/4-inch to 1/2-inch thick. lay them on top of the fruit, continuing with the patties, until it is covered. (you may not need to use all of the dough to cover it completely) bake the cobbler at 350 degrees for about 45-50 minutes, until the crust is light golden brown. let cool slightly, then serve with ice cream.

i want this

real bad. a yellow one. all i want in the summer is a frozen treat. a lemon frozen treat, 99% of the time. i saw this recipe for lemon granita on pioneer woman's blog, and i think if i don't get one of these cute lil' things, i'm gonna rock that recipe all summer long.

coconut macaroons

this is the quickest and easiest recipe ever. it's from the pillsbury complete cookbook. i always keep coconut on hand, just so i can whip these out at the last minute if i need something quick to bring somewhere. you can always doctor this recipe a little bit by drizzling or dipping half of them in chocolate. or i've added lime juice a few times for a little something extra. these are by far my favorite macaroon recipe i've tried.

(this only makes enough for 12 cookies, so i usually double it)

2 egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons flour
dash salt
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups coconut

heat the oven to 325°F. grease and slightly flour cookie sheet. in medium bowl, beat egg whites until frothy. add sugar, flour, salt, and almond extract; mix well. stir in coconut. drop dough by tablespoonfuls 2 inches apart on to prepared cookie sheet.

bake for 13 - 17 minutes or until set and light golden brown. immediately remove from cookie sheet.