Cocoa Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting

My mother is the baker, and I am the cook. That has always been the case in our family. My mother is analytical and scientific in her reasoning, and therefore excellent at measuring with care and substituting ingredients and amounts appropriately. 

    

I'm  more of a creative type when it comes to the kitchen. I create as I go, and very rarely follow a recipe to the dot. Part of my fondness for cooking is the ability to change a dish as I see fit, at any point during its creation. I get frustrated by the patience required by baking, the waiting game and inability to change a recipe once it goes in the oven. The point is, I am not really a baker at heart. This is, I understand, a very odd proclamation to make in the middle of a brownie recipe. Hear me out. 

           

I bake as therapy. You see, I can make a stir fry without much thought at all. But Cocoa Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting? Those require some concentration. And sometimes, in the midst of a particularly bad week, I need to bake. Because when I bake, my mind refuses to wander. I concentrate only on the task at hand.

     

I know, as a frequent multi-tasker, that I don't need to focus all of my attention on leveling off a cup of sugar with the back of a knife. But, somehow, that's just what happens. 

     

Everything else melts away as I bake, using techniques my mother has taught me over a lifetime.

It's quite hard to feel that anything is amis in the world when you watch peanut butter and butter being  whipped together into a light and fluffy frosting. And if that doesn't do it, sampling peanut butter frosting can make just about anybody smile. (Except a person with peanut allergies. Obviously).

The very act of creating a batter, pouring it into a pan and waiting every so patiently for the result is becoming  slightly more appealing to me. Here's why: earlier this evening I stared at an empty 8" x 8" square pan, and now it's filled with delightful, soul-healing, smile-creating brownies. That is quite an accomplishment, if you really think about it. 

I must use this last paragraph to tell you about the brownies themselves and not just about me. Salty. Sweet. Delightful. I should not have waited to make them for nearly four months.  (I've been waiting since May to make this particular recipe, ever since I saw it on Not Without Salt.) It's no surprise I love them, based on my ongoing (and I might add, very justified) love affair with the chocolate and peanut butter combination (as seen here and here). 

Cocoa Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting
Adapted by Ashely from Not Without Salt, from Alice Medrich


Ingredients
Cocoa Brownies
1 1/4 stick (10 Tablespoons) unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large, cold eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
 1/2 cup all-purpose flour


Peanut Butter Frosting
3/4 stick (6 Tablespoons) softened butter
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
pinch salt


Recipe
Cocoa Brownies
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and grease an 8" x 8" square pan.


First, put a medium/large pot with a few inches of water on the stove and turn on the heat (to medium) to bring to a simmer. Be sure a bowl can fit inside of it, with room to stir ingredients, and without touching the simmering water. This is basically a makeshift double boiler. It should look a little like this:

Now that you know that bowl fits in the pot the correct way, take it out and put the following ingredients in it: Sugar, Cocoa Powder, Salt. Mix those ingredients together well, with a fork or a whisk. Then, cut the butter into 1 Tablespoon pieces. The idea here is to get them small enough to melt rather quickly (quicker than if you just threw the whole block of butter in there). 


Place the bowl with the cocoa mixture over the simmering water and stir occasionally with a wooden spoon. Once the butter is almost melted (you should see only 3-4 small pats of butter left in the mixture), remove the bowl from the pot (with oven mits on) and let the mixture cool to warm. The residual heat will melt the rest of the butter. 


Once the mixture is no longer hot, add cold eggs one at a time. If you haven't allowed the cocoa mixture to cool, you will make scrambled, chocolate eggs (accidentally). Stir the eggs into the mixture with a wooden spoon, then add the vanilla extract. Once all of this is well combined, add the flour. Once the flour is integrated into the cocoa mixture (read: you can no longer see any flour), stir the mixture 40 times. 


Pour the batter into the pan, spread evenly and bake for 25-28 minutes, until a toothpick or knife inserted into the center comes out nearly clean. Leave to cool on a wire rack.


Peanut Butter Frosting
In an electronic mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, cream together the butter and peanut butter. Then, incorporate the powdered sugar (I like to add 1/4 cup at a time). 


Frost the brownies once they are room temperature. Sprinkle very lightly with a pinch of kosher salt. Enjoy. Serves 16 brownies.

Blueberries with Cinnamon and Maple Whipped Cream

As the Fourth of July fast approaches, I keep flashing back to childhood memories of fruit-based desserts. When I was a kid, my aunts would bake up tarts and cakes using blueberries, strawberries and raspberries to celebrate Independence day. We'd eat these delicacies on paper plates with plastic forks, sitting flat on the driveway in summer dresses, waiting until the moment we could light off fireworks and play with sparklers. Because of that history, something about this light dish screams Independence day and hot July days to me. To my lovely and inspiring cousin Nilmini, happy happy birthday. And to everybody else in the U.S.A., Happy Independence Day! Enjoy the fireworks.

Blueberries with Cinnamon and Maple Whipped Cream
By Institute of Culinary Education, adapted by Alexandra Rogers


Ingredients
1 c. heavy whipping cream
5 Tbs maple syrup
2 cups fresh blueberries, washed and picked over
Cinnamon


Recipe
Wash 2 cups fresh blueberries and be sure to pick out any sour-looking, wrinkled or bright purple/pink blueberries.  Lay the blueberries on a single later on paper towel so they dry.


Divide the blueberries between 4 wine glasses, placing about 1/2 cup blueberries in each glass. (Other glass containers work for this as well--but only use a container that can hold at least 1 cup). 


In a medium bowl, beat heavy whipping cream until soft peaks form (see an example of soft peaks, here). Once soft peaks firm, add the maple syrup and beat until heavy whipping cream forms stiff peaks--or, basically, until it looks like real whipped cream. 


Top each serving of blueberries with a light dust of cinnamon, then 2 spoonfuls of Maple whipped cream. Add one more light dusting of cinnamon atop the maple whipped cream and serve, immediately. 


There will be extra maple whipped cream--I like to set it out in a bowl, alongside a jar of cinnamon, and let guests adjust for themselves. Serves about 4.

Banana Pudding with Nilla Wafers

The first time I ate this banana pudding, I ended up about an hour into the wrong part of Brooklyn. I was so focused on the pudding that I didn't notice when the train I was on went over the East River instead of under it, or when I missed the last stop where I possibly could have transfered to a train traveling the right direction. That's how good this pudding is. (Let's leave aside the fact that I have no sense of direction). 

The fateful day when I was introduced to this pudding was also my first day of work ever in NYC. Now, again, I work quite nearby the source of this delightful pudding (Magnolia Bakery). I think about it all the time. Sometimes I wish I could just eat this for lunch. And dinner. And breakfast. And, of course dessert. Really, it's that good. You have to try it. And then, if you're in NYC, you need to go to Magnolia Bakery and try it. (Plus, you'll look less like a tourist if you aren't in line for the cupcakes only...)

Banana Pudding with Nilla Wafers
From the Buttercup Bake Shop Cookbook
By Jennifer Appel of Magnolia Bakery and Buttercup Bake Shop, Adapted slightly by Alexandra Rogers


Ingredients

1 1/2 cups cold water

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

2/3 cup instant vanilla pudding powder

3 cups heavy cream

1 box Nilla wafers

6-8 medium bananas, peeled and sliced

8 16 oz. cups

Recipe

On the low speed of an electric mixer, blend the water, milk and pudding powder until thoroughly mixed, about 1 minute. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours (or overnight) until firm.

Blend water, sweetened condensed milk and pudding powder together until mixed thoroughly, on the low speed of an electric mixer (about 1 minute). Refrigerate the pudding mixture for at least 4 hours, until firm. If you like, this can be left overnight.

In a separate bowl, preferably another electric mixer bowl, whip the heavy cream until soft peaks form (about 6-7 minutes). Soft peaks have formed when you remove the beaters from the bowl and the mixture forms little peaks at the end of the beaters, but soft, wilting little peaks. (See image from fitsugar, below, for guidance).

Gently fold the pudding mixture into the whipped cream until well incorporated. I like to use a rubber scraper and try to incorporate as much air into the bowl as I can while I mix. 

In a large bowl, or (as I prefer) several small glasses, layer nilla wafers, pudding mixture and bananas. Layer until cups are full and pudding is gone and decorate with crushed nilla wafers on top. Refrigerate for about 60 minutes before serving. Serves 7-8.

Blueberry Upside-Down Cake

Although the weather has been swinging between rainy and grey and sunny and super hot here in NYC,   it feels--officially--like summer. And, as I might have mentioned before, I truly believe that upside down cakes are an official summer dessert.

This blueberry upside down cake is a Martha Stewart recipe (that version is a bit fussier than mine), though it was originally introduced to me by my boyfriend's mother (she also introduced me to that ever famous, well-loved goat cheese and prosciutto strata). She brought this blueberry upside down cake out for dessert one night when we were all gathered around an outdoor table, finishing a perfect grilled summer meal and overlooking a prairie. It was a picturesque summer night--one of those evenings where there's a slight breeze and everyone at the table is newly tan and happily exhausted from a day in the sun. Trust me when I say: next time you have a summer evening--you should really pair it with this blueberry upside-down cake. You should also throw some vanilla ice cream in the bowl. Here's wishing you one of those unforgettable summer nights soon...happy cooking!

Blueberry Upside-Down Cake
Adapted from Martha Stewart by Alexandra Rogers


Ingredients
4 Tablespoons butter, melted plus a little extra to grease the pan
1/3 cup + 3 Tablespoons light-brown sugar
1 1/2 cups blueberries, washed 
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/4 cup milk, room temperature


Recipe
1. Heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a bread loaf pan. Pour 2 Tablespoons of the melted butter into the bottom of the pan and evenly coat by tilting the pan in every direction.
2. Sprinkle 3 Tablespoons of brown sugar over the butter, on the bottom of the pan.
3. Pour 1 cup of blueberries over the loaf pan and set aside.
4. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt. I find it's best to use a whisk to get some air into the mixture. 
5. In another bowl, place 2 Tablespoons of remaining butter and 1/3 cup brown sugar and the egg and milk, and beat together with a fork.
6. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Mix until just combined. Do not over mix. 
7. Pour half the batter into the loaf pan. Sprinkle 1/2 cup blueberries over the batter and spread the remaining batter on top of that.
8. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean (without any doughy batter stuck to it).
9. Serve with vanilla ice cream, to up to 8-10 friends and enjoy outside on a summer evening.

Mother's Day Gift Ideas: for the chocoholic mother

Is your mother a chocoholic? Mine is.That might explain the prevalence of rich, chocolate recipes on this blog. (Wondering why I'm rambling about my mother? It is not only because she is awesome, but also because it's mothers day on May 8th. You should probably do something about that...I've come up with some ideas for you.)

1. Indulgent Chocolate Brownies--These are from a recipe perfected, fittingly, by my mother. Man, is she the queen of chocolate desserts...They've gotten stunning reviews from my followers, so I'd really encourage these. Plus, they're mailable.

2. Chocolate Cookies with Peanut Butter Chips--Never had a good reason to buy peanut butter chips before? (Seriously, do you need a reason?) Well, anyway, these are it. Also, they're mailable.


3. Double Chocolate Loaf with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Spread--Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Spread + Double Chocolate Loaf Shaped Dessert? That, my friends = heaven. Simple math, really.


4. Chocolate Pots de Creme & Almond Wafers--This is a recipe from Just A Taste, by Kelly Senyei, and it is almost as adorable as it is show-stopping. Don't skimp on the almond wafers, you'll want extra. And check out Just A Taste, it is one of the blogs that inspired to me to get started. I made these on Mother's Day last year and they went over very well.


Now, you may be thinking--this is all well and good but my mother lives miles, hours, even continents away. Well, my good people, that is what the U.S. Postal Service is for. (or Fed Ex, or whatever is most painless for you). Options #1 and #2 are easily shipable and should stay good for quite a few days after baking. And think of how happy mom will be to receive a care package from YOU, instead of the other way around! Options #3 and #4 are recommended for close-by mothers, since they would be significantly harder to ship.

Chocolate Cookies with Peanut Butter Chips

The last few weeks were a little rough. I barely saw my kitchen, my bed or my boyfriend. Meanwhile, my little graduate school community was experiencing quite a few hardships. So, I decided to bring cookies into school. Because cookies make everything better.

There is something about getting lost in the ritual of baking that calms me down. It's funny, because I don't consider myself a baker (I'm much more natural as a cook because I tend to think of measuring as an option). Maybe growing up in a house where my mother baked to solve problems or soothe heartache actually rubbed off on me. I love the smell of butter and sugar coming together, and the way the aroma of vanilla extract rises out of the bowl as I add it. Snacking on dough while rounding spoonfuls of batter onto a cookie sheet is sweet (pun intended). Concentrating on getting the right amount of flour and baking soda and salt puts my mind in the kitchen and nowhere else. I'm hoping the people that eat these cookies will have a moment of relief as well. 

Chocolate Cookies with Peanut Butter Chips
By Reese's


Ingredients
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 cup cocoa powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1-1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
2 eggs
1-2/3 cups (10 ounce bag) peanut butter chips
2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla


Recipe
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking soda, cocoa powder and salt, then set aside.


In the bowl of a standup mixer, beat butter and sugar together until fluffy and well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, then add vanilla. Once wet ingredients are well combined, add the dry mixture slowly. 


Once all ingredients are well combined, add peanut butter chips. Drop rounded teaspoons of dough onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Do not bake over 10 minutes. The cookies will rise in the oven, but will fall while cooling. 


Makes approximately 4 dozen cookies. Maybe more, if you don't eat the dough while cooking, like I did...Enjoy with milk.

Candied Pecans

I know, I know, it is National Nutrition Month. No place for anything candied, you say? I beg to differ. These make a welcome addition, in moderation, to the Mixed Greens Salad I am posting this week. They add a much needed deep sugar flavor and intense crunch. They are also lovely to munch on (again, in moderation) if you need a small fix of something sweet. 

Candied Pecans

By Alexandra Rogers

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups chopped pecan pieces, toasted (at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 5-7 minutes)

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon kosher salt 

 

Recipe

Prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and have two forks nearby. Set aside, very near the stove.

Pour sugar into a small pot. Cook sugar on medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. The sugar will begin to melt, and within a few minutes will begin to turn an amber color. When the sugar has just turned amber (no white sugar should be left) pour toasted pecan pieces into the pot and stir very quickly to coat pecan pieces with sugar mixture. Once the nuts are coated (this should happen within 30 seconds), pour the pecans onto the parchment paper-lined baking sheet and work quickly with a fork to separate the clump into separate pieces. After about 1 minute, sprinkle with salt.

Crêpes

During summertime in New York City, there is a rotating street fair. Happenstancing upon these random markets is one of those little luxuries in life and most of the luxury comes from one reliable presence at these street fairs: crêpes, prepared when you order, as you like them, and wrapped in a little cone. I can't tell you how many times I have shown up to work with powdered sugar all over my face because I tried to eat a crêpe (and succeeded) while running up first avenue. 

Anyway, point is, crêpes are delightful. I'd been craving something sweet after cooking tons of savory, healthy recipes in honor of National Nutrition Month, when I realized: crêpes are light, not to sugary at all and make for a sweet and guilt-free end to a healthy meal. I get to missing dessert sometimes, and I figured you might too. Plus, making crêpes is an undeniably awesome party trick. They're really easy to make, but let's just keep that our little secret, okay?

Crêpes
By Alton Brown


Ingredients
2 large eggs
3/4 cup skim milk
1/2 cup water
1 cup flour
2 Tablespoons butter, melted
Butter for coating the pan


Recipe
Mix all ingredients together in a blender (pulse for 10 seconds) or whisk together in a large mixing bowl until thoroughly combined. Refrigerate mixture for 1 hour (it will keep as batter for 48 hours).


Pull batter from fridge and heat a crepe pan over medium/medium-high heat. Coat the pan with butter. Once the pan is hot and the butter is melted, use a 1/4 cup measure to make each crepe. Pour mixture into pan and swirl around very quickly. (It might take you a couple tries to get this right. Don't worry about it. Practice makes perfect.)  Cook for 30 seconds, until slightly browned on bottom side. Flip and cook for another 10-15 seconds. Slide the crêpe off the pan and onto a cutting board (lay flat) to cool.  Yields about 10 crepes. 


I garnished mine with lemon juice, sugar and fresh raspberries. Other sweet options include a light spread of nutella (otherwise we can't call it healthy anymore) and fresh cut bananas. These crêpes can also be made savory via toppings.


Enjoy!

Key Lime Pie

Hello readers. I'm writing today to ask you for help. What started as a citrus-phase (as seen here) has now gone spinning out of control into a pie phase. There are two slices of this key lime pie left sitting in my fridge and I am doing everything I can not to finish the pie tin and lick it clean. Do any of you happen to have some extra self-control you can lend me? I'm a sucker for a graham cracker crust. 

Especially a graham cracker crust with coconut. And the creamy, tangy filling in this pie? Well, I'm a sucker for that, too. This recipe is made with regular, grocery store limes, instead of juiced key limes or persian limes. My mother has perfected it, adapted from The New Best Recipe cookbook. We like to serve it with a bowl of freshly whipped cream and allow guests to garnish their own slice, instead of pre-decorating the pie.There's nothing like topping your own slice of heaven with a gigantic spoonful of airy whipped cream. 

Key Lime Pie

Adapted by Marcella Rogers from The New Best Recipe

Ingredients

Lime Filling

4 teaspoons grated lime zest

1/2 cup strained lime juice (from 3 or 4 regular limes)

5 large egg yolks

1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk

Graham Cracker Crust

9 graham crackers (5 ounces), broken into rough pieces

2 Tablespoons granulated sugar

5 1/2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1/3 cup unsweetened coconut 

Whipped Cream Topping

3/4 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup confectioners sugar

1/2 lime, sliced paper thin

Recipe

Whisk zest and yolks in a medium glass, plastic or clay bowl for about 2 minutes, or until it takes on a light green color. Beat in milk and lime juice. To thicken, set aside at room temperature for at about 30 minutes.

Heat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit and adjust oven rack to center position. In a food processor, pulse graham crackers until they are fine crumbs (about 30 seconds)--this should result in 1 cup of crumbs. Add the sugar and coconut, then slowly add the butter. Pulse until the mixture resembles wet sand. Press mixture into a 9-inch pie pan, evenly. cover with saran wrap and refrigerate lined pie plate for at least 20 minutes to firm up the crumbs. Bake until lightly browned and fragrant, about 15 minutes. Cool pie crust to room temperature--this will take at least 20 minutes.

Now, your lime filling should have thickened a bit. Pour the lime filling into the prepared graham cracker crust and bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit until the center of the of the pie is set. This should take about 15-17 minutes. Let pie cool to room temperature, then refrigerate to chill (for at least 3 hours). 

Right before serving (within an hour), make your whipped cream. In a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, whip the heavy whipping cream until it forms soft peaks. Gradually add the confectioners sugar while whipping. Serve the whipped cream with your key lime pie and garnish with thinly cut lime slices, if you wish. 

This pie can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to one day. 

Serves 8-12  (depending on how big you cut the slices).

Double-Chocolate Loaf with Peanut-Butter-Cream-Cheese Spread

I've had this recipe bookmarked since October, 2010. I've admired it numerous times but it seemed too sinful  rich irresistible to have in our home. Because, although I'm not the most diet-friendly cook (as seen here, here and here), I don't think it wise to have a double-chocolate-loaf with peanut-butter-cream-cheese spread just sitting around. Nobody has that much self control...

 

So, I waited. I knew the perfect opportunity would roll around. And, people, of course it did.  I enrolled in a class that meets in the late afternoon and has a treat schedule. It is my turn to feed the class tomorrow. My classmates are going to love adore me. Of this, I'm certain.

 

Isn't there something lovely about a sweet loaf? It seems less sinister and unhealthy than a slice of cake because..well, it is shaped like bread. I think my love for sweet, loaf shaped desserts stems back to a childhood filled with delicious zucchini bread. My aunt would serve it warm from the oven, and we'd slather on cool, creamy butter. Now that is a quick bread memory.

This is no zucchini bread, but it does find a balance between all the good things in life.The chocolate is so dark, the flavors so deep, that they flirt with bitter. But, only enough to balance out the sweet peanut butter flavor of that heavenly peanut-butter-cream-cheese spread. (seriously, with a name like that, could it be anything other than heavenly?) If you want to make it, but need an excuse, I can almost guarantee that this bread will make you instantly popular at your place of work (or study).

This delightful recipe is taken from Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented, which was written by Baked's Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito. It came to me via my TastingTable NYC daily email.

Double-Chocolate Loaf with Peanut-Butter-Cream-Cheese-Spread
Adapted by Tasting Table NYC from Baked Explorations: Classic American Desserts Reinvented
(Stewart, Tabori & Chang)


Ingredients
Double-Chocolate Loaf:
3/4 cup tightly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk 
3/4 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
8 ounces good-quality dark chocolate (60 to 72%), coarsely chopped


Peanut-Butter-Cream-Cheese Spread:
*I adapted this from the original recipe*
8 ounces cream cheese, softened
6 Tablespoons creamy peanut butter
1/3 +1/6 cup granulated sugar


Recipe:
Double-Chocolate Loaf
Butter and flour a loaf pan (9"x5"). Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.


Put the brown sugar in a bowl, preferably a mixer bowl fitted with the paddle attachment. Use the back of a kitchen spoon to press out any lumps in the brown sugar. Then, add the granulated sugar, cocoa powder, flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Mix together with paddle attachment, making sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.


In another bowl, whisk the egg yolk and eggs together thoroughly. Add buttermilk, oil, and vanilla extract, beating together quickly. Once the liquid mixture is smooth and combined, slowly add the mixture to dry ingredients in the mixing bowl. The mixture should be on low and you should mix only until the ingredients have combined. Leave the lumps! Remove the bowl from the mixer and fold the chopped chocolate bar in by hand. 


Pour the batter into a buttered and floured loaf pan and bake in a 350 degree Fahrenheit oven for 1 hour, or until a toothpick or knife inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.


Let the cake cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then remove from the pan and allow to cool completely.


Peanut-Butter-Cream-Cheese Spread
In the bowl of a standing mixer, add cream cheese, peanut butter and granulated sugar. Use the whisk attachment to beat the ingredients together until fluffy and well-combined. Spread this mixture on the chocolate loaf and you are golden.

Miniature Strawberry Pies

Valentine's Day is upon us, friends. To be honest, I've never really gotten into the whole hallmark holiday thing. Mostly because I hope that my relationship with the person that I love (my valentine, if you will) is filled with romance, and not just on one day in February. But, I'm burying the lead here. It turns out that mini strawberry pies are delicious writing this recipe post has transformed my feelings about the holiday. (And, mini strawberry pies are delicious).

It isn't quite right to say I've never gotten into valentine's day. Way back when, I'd spend a long time crafting messages to my friends on the candy heart-filled valentines my mom would buy me from Walgreens. Sometimes, I'd even make my own cards out of colorful cardboard. Mostly, I pined for the moment when the big heart envelope at the back of my desk chair would be filled with nice messages from my friends. And hopefully from the dreamy boy in the back of the room. But hey, I was 7. Can you blame me for getting swept up in it all? 

Somehow, in the years that followed, I stopped caring so much about valentine's day. It started to annoy me. In fact, I really only planned this post for my readers--in case one of you out there really loved Valentine's Day and felt cheated out of an appropriately romantic post. 

But something happened while I was making these miniature desserts. I was standing there, over my mixer, in the kitchen of my apartment. The apartment that I share with boy I've been happily dating for a lot of years now. The apartment that our friends call, fondly, "the apartment," as if they live there too. And I started to think, maybe Valentine's Day isn't so terrible after all. 

If it gives me an excuse to shower kindness and candy miniature strawberry pies on the people I love, I'm in. There is something adorable and undeniably sweet  about these individual desserts. Happy Valentine's Day!

Miniature Strawberry Pies
Alexandra Rogers


Ingredients
Crust
1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
3 Tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup butter, melted


Filling
16 ounces strawberries (one container), sliced thin
1/4 cup water
1 Tablespoon flour
1/4 cup sugar
8 ounces cream cheese
3 Tablespoons low fat sour cream
3/4 cup powdered sugar


Recipe
Crust
In a medium bowl, mix graham cracker crumbs and sugar together thoroughly. With a fork, mix melted butter into the crumbs and sugar. Press into four 6 ounce ramekins to form miniature pie crusts. These should be the dish you intend to serve dessert in. Chill for at least one hour.


Filling
Set the best 1/3 of the sliced strawberries aside, for layering on the dish. Mix 1/4 cup water, 1 Tablespoon flour and 1/4 cup sugar together in a small bowl or mug. Place the remaining 2/3 strawberries in a small pot, and pour the flour mixture over the strawberries. Place on medium heat for about 15 minutes, until the strawberries become tender and the mixture reduces. Stir occasionally to keep from burning the bottom of the pot. Set aside for later use.


In a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to beat together the cream cheese and sour cream. Incorporated the powdered sugar evenly. Beat for about 3-5 minutes, until fluffy, and set aside. But, keep the electric mixture handy.


Now, remove the serving dishes with the crust inside from the refrigerator. Fill each dish about 1/2-2/3 full with the cream cheese mixture. On top of the cream cheese mixture, layer the fresh strawberries. On top of that, place the jam-like mixture you made on the stove. Place all dishes back in the refrigerator and chill for at least a few hours, so the top strawberries set. Serve cold, with a spoon, to somebody you love. Serves 4-5 6 ounce portions.

Praline Lace Cookies

Remember a few weeks ago when I promised you healthy recipes? You know, the sort that would actually help you in whatever diet-based resolutions you had made? Well, I lied. I mean, I gave you two, but then I remembered these cookies. And then I had to share this recipe. 

Like many truly fabulous recipes, finding the origin takes some digging. These cookies are, apparently, an inn keeper's family recipe. At this inn, the cookies are served to all the guests--one of whom was a friend of my mother's friend's friend. That's right, this recipe has traveled a bit. At some point after receiving the recipe, we added toffee bits to it, and those toffee bits give the cookies their praline-like flavor. Pair them with a glass of milk (I used a glass that showed a little love for my favorite borough) and you are set. Makes 3 dozen cookies.

Praline Lace Cookies
Adapted from the Heritage House Bed & Breakfast Cranberry Lace Cookies recipe


Ingredients
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup uncooked old-fashion rolled oats
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
2/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg at room temperature, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups coarsely pecan pieces
1/2 cup dried cranberries
4 ounces toffee bits


Recipe
Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Whisk flour, baking soda and salt together in a small bowl. Then, add in oats and set aside. In a large bowl (a mixer bowl, if you have one), cream butter and both sugars together. Once the mixture is light and fluffy, add the egg and the vanilla. Fold in the flour and oats mixture, then stir in pecans, toffee bits and cranberries. 
Place 1" balls of dough on a greased or parchment-lined cookie sheet, with ample room between them. These cookies will spread as they cook! Bake for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.

Cranberry Christmas Cake

As I may have mentioned in previous posts, I love traditions. Especially ones related to food. And, especially ones related to Christmas. See where this is going?

 

Every Christmas Eve, my parents host a small lunch where we make beef stroganoff (post forthcoming), and this Cranberry Christmas Cake. It is a relic of sorts, brought back from childhood Christmas dinners with the Troups. The recipe was given to my mother by Meg Troup, a woman who taught me all about garden-fresh salads, table manners and style. When Mrs. Troup's husband retired after years as a doctor, the story goes, she threw two retirement parties: one for her husband, and one for herself. She retired from being a homemaker and her husband whipped up dinner from then on (more on those meals later, rest assured). She took charge of the salads that started the meal and many times, the desserts that ended them. We were a well-fed bunch, to say the least.

 

Back to this divine cake, though. The cake gets drizzled with a buttery, caramel-like sauce. Drenching the cake in sauce is also an (excellent) option.

The sweetness of the sauce might be overwhelming but for the tart, fresh cranberries in the cake. The flavors pop surprisingly in your mouth: for one of the easiest recipes I have ever made, the resulting flavor contrasts are slightly complex.

The recipe is at the bottom of this post, and I know it might be a bit late to use it for your official Christmas dinner. But, truly, there is no better way to end a meal than with a sweet, warm, dessert in a bowl. It is truly cozy and you certainly don't need to wait until the next holiday season to try it. In fact, you could serve it for New Year's Day dinner! 

I apologize for the lateness of this post, but you'll have to excuse me. I left on Christmas day to join my family for a few weeks in Sri Lanka. And as I'm sure you can understand, it is very hard to get anything done with a view like this:

 

Best wishes for 2011 and Happy New Year!

Cranberry Christmas Cake

Meg Troup

Ingredients

{Cranberry Cake}

1½ Tablespoons soft butter

½ cup sugar

½ cup milk

1 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 cup fresh cranberry halves

{Sauce}           

½ cup butter (1 stick, room temperature)

1 cup cream

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

(I never said it was low calorie. I just said it was a delicious tradition)

Recipe

{Cranberry Cake}

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Butter and flour a 9” round cake pan. In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder and salt together. In a larger bowl (or a fitted mixer if you’ve got one), mix butter and sugar together. Alternate between adding milk and dry mixture until all ingredients are well blended. Gently, and thoroughly, fold in cranberries with a spatula or wooden spoon. Spread mixture evenly in pan, bake for 30-40 minutes. Cool cake until it is warm on wire rack.

{Sauce}

After cake is out of oven, place butter, sugar and cream in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk together while the butter melts and bring to a boil for 1 minute, remove from heat and add vanilla. Serve cake warm and pour sauce onto individual servings right before eating. Try to remember that licking the bowl is A-Okay.