We’re looking for the perfect peanut butter cookie. Something with a fine texture — soft and crumbly. I also would like a ribbon of peanut butter or peanut butter chunks in it (I love Reese’s peanut butter chips but would rather have something with natural ingredients), although this is not necessary. Is there anything from the Martha Stewart cookie book that looks like it might work as a starting off point?
Lemon Bars May 18, 2008
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_23697,00.html
Everyone at the BBQ really liked these lemon bars. I decreased the sugar in the filling to 2.5 cups because some of the comments said it was too sweet. I think I could have decreased it even more if I wanted to. Or maybe added a little more zest. I also did not cool the crust before pouring in the filling.
One annoying thing was that when I dusted them with powdered sugar, the sugar just soaked in. So they weren’t as pretty as I would have liked. Maybe next time I’ll do a glaze with the sugar and lemon juice instead.
Overall, definitely worth making again. Especially in the summer. Doesn’t hot weather just seem to go so well with lemon bars?
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Ina’s Lemon Bars
For the crust:
1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups flour
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
For the filling:
6 extra-large eggs at room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (4 to 6 lemons)
1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 cup flour
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.For the crust, cream the butter and sugar until light in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Combine the flour and salt and, with the mixer on low, add to the butter until just mixed. Dump the dough onto a well-floured board and gather into a ball. Flatten the dough with floured hands and press it into a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking sheet, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides. Chill.
Bake the crust for 15 to 20 minutes, until very lightly browned. Let cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on. For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and flour. Pour over the crust and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature. Cut into triangles and dust with confectioners’ sugar.
Baking Class #6 – Pate a Choux May 18, 2008
Today’s class was on pate a choux. My partner and I made garlic gougeres and swans. That’s right…swans! I think they were the fanciest things I’ve ever made. Some of them came out very pretty. And some not so much. But it was pretty cool to make! You just pipe out the pate a choux body shape and neck shape and use creme mousseline (pastry cream with whipped cream folded in) to stick in the wings and neck in. This is a prettier version of what they looked like: http://l.yimg.com/www.flickr.com/images/spaceball.gif.
I really liked the cheese puffs and want to have a party so I can make them as an appetizer!
All the creme puffs, éclairs, and everything else was really good. The thing I love about French pastries is that they aren’t too sweet. Very rich, but not overly sweet.
Banana-Walnut Chocolate-Chunk Cookies May 15, 2008
Martha Stewart’s Cookie page 170
These cookies were a big hit at work today. They are a cross between chocolate chip cookies and banana bread. While they were very delicious, I had a bit of an issue with just how soft they were. There was a lot of butter in them (a stick and a half) and I wonder if a little less would make these cookies a little more chewy. But it might just be the banana that makes the texture what it is. Of course, maybe its just me. One of my co-workers did mention that he loved the soft texture of the cookies.
And one nice thing about them was that they have pretty healthy ingredients (if you ignore the extra butter). It’s made with some WWF, oats, and bananas. And there is only a cup of sugar total (1/2 white and 1/2 light brown).
Cracked Wheat Loaf May 15, 2008
Page 290: The Bread Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
I love bread! How do I know this? Because there is nothing left of this loaf of bread. I made it on Sunday. I didn’t share. Yum! Instead of using regular WWF, I used White WWF. It made the bread look like it wasn’t wheat and probably gave it a more mellow taste. I will definitely try this again with the regular WWF. Yum!
Baking Class #5 – Custards May 12, 2008
Class #5 was about custards. We made baked custards (flan, creme caramel, pots de creme, and creme brulee). I’ve actually done (more than?) my share of custards before. But everything was yummy and RICH. We also did ice cream. My group did mint chocolate chip–my favorite! We just put a ton of mint leaves in the cream when we were boiling it. It turned the creme a light green color. At the end, we just added some chopped up chocolate. I definitely need to get an ice cream maker! I think I’m going to try the Kitchen Aid ice cream maker attachment…
Buttermilk Biscuits May 8, 2008
I’ve made the Martha Stewart Baking Handbook ones twice. The first time I did it with powdered buttermilk. The next time with real. Both came out good, but they rose up kind of rounded and weren’t as flaky as I’d like. Maybe the same recipe would be OK if I made them thicker, used a bigger biscuit cutter, and/or refrigerated them before baking…
My favorite cookies May 6, 2008
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_25046,00.html
Jam Thumbprint Cookies
3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash
7 ounces sweetened flaked coconut
Raspberry and/or apricot jam
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar until they are just combined and then add the vanilla. Separately, sift together the flour and salt. With the mixer on low speed, add the flour mixture to the creamed butter and sugar. Mix until the dough starts to come together. Dump on a floured board and roll together into a flat disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 30 minutes.
Roll the dough into 1 1/4-inch balls. (If you have a scale they should each weigh 1 ounce.) Dip each ball into the egg wash and then roll it in coconut. Place the balls on an ungreased cookie sheet and press a light indentation into the top of each with your finger. Drop 1/4 teaspoon of jam into each indentation. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the coconut is a golden brown. Cool and serve.
Cornbread May 6, 2008
http://www.marthastewart.com/recipe/cheddar-cornbread?autonomy_kw=cornbread&rsc=header_5
We made this cornbread. It was good, but more cornmealy than what I’m looking for. I would rather have something with a softer texture that would taste good with honey butter. I saw Ina make cornbread today and she said that letting the batter sit for awhile made it more moist. Here’s her recipe…
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,1977,FOOD_9936_37507,00.html
I also saw this on martha stewart. It has sour cream in it. I’m not sure if it would be too much…
http://www.marthastewart.com/mini-cornbread-puddings?autonomy_kw=cornbread&rsc=header_1
Cinnamon Rolls May 5, 2008
http://www.foodnetwork.com/food/recipes/recipe/0,,FOOD_9936_33873,00.html
Dough:
4 large egg yolks, room temperature
1 large whole egg, room temperature
2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/4 cup
3 ounces unsalted butter, melted, approximately 6 tablespoons
6 ounces buttermilk, room temperature
20 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 cups, plus additional for dusting
1 package instant dry yeast, approximately 2 1/4 teaspoons
1 1/4 teaspoons kosher salt
Vegetable oil or cooking spray
Filling:
8 ounces light brown sugar, approximately 1 cup packed
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
Pinch salt
3/4-ounce unsalted butter, melted, approximately 1 1/2 tablespoons
Icing:
2 1/2 ounces cream cheese, softened, approximately 1/4 cup
3 tablespoons milk
5 1/2 ounces powdered sugar, approximately 1 1/2 cups
For the dough: in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, whisk the egg yolks, whole egg, sugar, butter, and buttermilk. Add approximately 2 cups of the flour along with the yeast and salt; whisk until moistened and combined. Remove the whisk attachment and replace with a dough hook. Add all but 3/4 cup of the remaining flour and knead on low speed for 5 minutes. Check the consistency of the dough, add more flour if necessary; the dough should feel soft and moist but not sticky. Knead on low speed 5 minutes more or until the dough clears the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface; knead by hand about 30 seconds. Lightly oil a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl, lightly oil the top of the dough, cover and let double in volume, 2 to 2 1/2 hours.
Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Mix until well incorporated. Set aside until ready to use.
Butter a 9 by 13-inch glass baking dish. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Gently shape the dough into a rectangle with the long side nearest you. Roll into an 18 by 12-inch rectangle. Brush the dough with the 3/4-ounce of melted butter, leaving 1/2-inch border along the top edge. Sprinkle the filling mixture over the dough, leaving a 3/4-inch border along the top edge; gently press the filling into the dough. Beginning with the long edge nearest you, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. Firmly pinch the seam to seal and roll the cylinder seam side down. Very gently squeeze the cylinder to create even thickness. Using a serrated knife, slice the cylinder into 1 1/2-inch rolls; yielding 12 rolls. Arrange rolls cut side down in the baking dish; cover tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator overnight or up to 16 hours.
Remove the rolls from the refrigerator and place in an oven that is turned off. Fill a shallow pan 2/3-full of boiling water and set on the rack below the rolls. Close the oven door and let the rolls rise until they look slightly puffy; approximately 30 minutes. Remove the rolls and the shallow pan of water from the oven.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
When the oven is ready, place the rolls on the middle rack and bake until golden brown, or until the internal temperature reaches 190 degrees F on an instant-read thermometer, approximately 30 minutes.
While the rolls are cooling slightly, make the icing by whisking the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer until creamy. Add the milk and whisk until combined. Sift in the powdered sugar, and whisk until smooth. Spread over the rolls and serve immediately.
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For these cinnamon rolls, I didn’t knead the dough for the second five minutes. The dough came together very quickly. I’m actually not sure that I needed to do the whole initial fives minutes. I thought the dough could have been more tender…maybe I overmixed?
But overall, I got pretty good reviews. I forced the dough to rise by putting in the oven (off) with a pan of hot water. While that means the dough didn’t get to develop as much favor I don’t think it took that much away since its highly seasoned (sugar/cinnamon) anyway.
Also, I doubled the cream cheese and milk for the frosting. Next time, I won’t double the milk. The frosting was good, but it was too watery.
