Caramel-Pecan Sheet Cake

Looking for an easy and incredibly delicious cake to take to all your summer festivities?  Look no further.  Caramel-Pecan Sheet Cake fits the bill perfectly.

My husband's favorite dessert is his mother's yellow cake with caramel icing.  For years I heard him go on and on about how good it is. My mother-in-law only seemed to make when I wasn't around but that didn't stop me from trying to replicate it several times.  Each attempt tasted good to me but was always met with "It's good, but it's not the same as Mom's." from my husband.  Desperate to get this right I called her for the recipe and found out it was simply a boxed cake mix and a simple caramel sauce.  My mother-in-law is old school and doesn't cook with recipes or a cookbook so the directions I received were vague and I ended up with another fail on my table.

About a year ago I finally got to taste a slice of the infamous caramel cake.  I love my mother-in-law and she is a great cook, but I didn't see, or taste, what all the fuss was about.  My two sister-in-laws were there and told me that they had tried to make the cake too but it was never right.  I'm not accusing my mother-in-law of leaving an ingredient out or purposely not relaying the recipe correctly, but something was missing.  Let's just say it was mother's love.

This Caramel-Pecan Sheet Cake is the closest I've come to taking the Best Caramel Cake award from my mother-in-law.  I knew it was a contender at first bite.  Incredibly moist, the cake is flavorful from on its own the layer of caramel frosting takes it over the top.  

Cut the pieces bigger than you think you need to.  Trust me.

Caramel-Pecan Sheet Cake
Taste of the South, May/June 2013

1 cup butter (2 sticks)
1 cup water
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup sour cream
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Caramel Frosting (recipe follows)
1 cup chopped pecans, toasted

Preheat oven to 325° F.  Spray a 15x10-inch jelly-roll pan with nonstick baking spray with flour or butter pan well.  Set aside.

In a medium saucepan, bring butter and 1 cup water to a boil.  In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.  Add hot butter mixture to flour mixture, beat at low speed with an electric mixer just until moistened.  Add sour cream, beating well.  Add eggs, one at a time, and vanilla.  Pour batter into prepared pan.

Baked until cake is lightly browned and a wooden pick inserted at the center of cake comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.  Let cool on a wire rack for 20 minutes.

Pour hot Caramel Frosting over warm cake, spreading to edges.  Sprinkle with pecans.  Let cool completely on wire rack.

Caramel Frosting

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup sour cream
2 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large, heavy saucepan, bring butter, brown sugar, and salt to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat; slowly stir in sour cream.

Bring mixture just to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.

Sift confectioners' sugar.  Gradually add confectioners' sugar and vanilla, beating at medium speed with a mixer until smooth.  Use immediately.  

Baked Sunday Mornings - Chocolate Hazelnut Spread

I went back and forth about making Chocolate Hazelnut Spread for Baked Sunday Mornings all week.  At first, I was excited because I do love me some Nutella.  But then I thought why make it when it when the store bought stuff is pretty fabulous.  Skinning hazelnuts is one of the more frustrating kitchen tasks and the thought of spending a bunch of money on expensive and difficult nuts was not appealing either.  But at the last minute I found a bag of chopped hazelnuts on sale and decided to go for it.  

I'm so glad I made this recipe!  Since the step of skinning the hazelnuts was already done for me, it was simply a matter of whirring everything up in the food processor.  And the results were wonderful.  I loved the texture of my homemade version and that it was less sweet than the stuff from the store.  Just yummy.

As delicious as it straight from the jar, I used mine to make a over the top batch of brownies that I'll be sharing here in a few days.  If you are interested in making your own chocolate hazelnut spread, you can find the recipe by visiting Baked Sunday Mornings. While you are there be sure to check out what the rest of the group did with this recipe!

Baked Sunday Mornings - Lemon Pistachio Cornmeal Muffins

Lemon Pistachio Cornmeal Muffins was one of the many recipes in Baked Elements that immediately caught my eye.  But as the date for baking them approached I found myself questioning the combination of flavors.  I love lemon, love pistachios, and love corn muffins.  But all of those elements thrown together?  I had my doubts and decided to pass on baking them.

But then I got to thinking about some other Baked recipes that involved flavor combinations that left me scratching my head initially but won me over like Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins, and Rosemary Apricot Squares and decided to trust the boys.  Good decision.  They are bright and light in flavor and rich in texture.  Lemon provides the punch of flavor here while the cornmeal provides texture.  The pistachios float between the two worlds adding subtle flavor and a bit of crunch.

Like most cornmeal muffins, these are easy to make and the only special steps involve pulverizing some pistachios and grating some lemon zest.  A lovely, easy recipe to make when you want something just slightly different, but totally delicious.

You can find the recipe by visiting Baked Sunday Mornings.

Blueberry Granola Crunch Pancakes

It's not a secret that I love the Tupelo Honey Cookbook as evidenced here, here, here, here, and here.  So I'm thrilled that they have asked me to help promote their Tupelo Honey Cafe Holiday Recipe Contest!

Do you have an original holiday side, dessert, or leftovers recipe that receives rave reviews?  If so, enter it in the contest to when a chance at a $200 gift card to be used at the Tupelo Honey Cafe Online Store or at one of their restaurants!  The online store not only features great Tupelo Honey Cafe merchandise but also beautiful handmade stoneware, aprons, and other fabulous goodies that you will love to have in your kitchen.  Participants will also be entered in a weekly drawing to win a copy of the Tupelo Honey Cookbook.  Full contest details can be found at Tupelo Honey Cafe.

To get my creative juices following, I pulled out their cookbook and decided to make their Blueberry Granola Crunch Pancakes.  First step - make the THC Granola.  For those of you that have never made granola before - what are you waiting for?  It's super easy and you can customize it to include only the stuff you like.  Tupelo Honey's granola includes loads of oats, almonds, sunflower seeds, dried fruit (I used blueberries), maple syrup, and coconut.  It's addictive.

The pancakes are fairly standard and includes lots of buttermilk making them tender and delicious.  I added a splash of vanilla to the batter because I haven't found much that a splash of vanilla doesn't improve.  The finished cakes are topped with the granola, some more blueberries, butter, syrup, and a dusting of powdered sugar.  I loved the crunch of the granola paired with the tender pancakes.  It was a stack of deliciousness and the perfect way to start a Sunday morning.

Don't forget to check out Tupleo Honey Cafe's contest!

Note:  I halved both of these recipes and still had enough pancakes to feed four and a ton of granola.

Blueberry Granola Crunch Pancakes
Tupelo Honey Cafe:  Spirited Recipes from Asheville's New South Kitchen, Elizabeth Sims with Chef Brian Sonoskus

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
5 tablespoons plus 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon baking powder
3 cups buttermilk
3 eggs
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
1 tablespoon honey
1 cup dried blueberries, reconstituted in warm water and drained
2 cups THC granola (recipe follows)
2 tablespoons melted butter
Powdered sugar, for dusting

Combine the flour, salt, sugar, baking soda, and baking powder in a large bowl.  In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, and honey.  Pour the liquid mixture into the flour mixture and blend well.  Cook the pancakes over medium-high heat in a skillet or on a griddle, using about 1/2 cup batter per pancake, for about 3 minutes per side, or until brown on both sides.  Top with blueberries and granola and drizzle with the melted butter.  Dust with a sprinkling of powdered sugar.  

THC Granola

1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup shelled sunflower seeds (about 4 ounces)
1 1/2 cups sliced almonds (about 4 ounces)
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 cup diced dried apples or other dried fruit of your choice (about 4 ounces dried fruit)
1/2 cup coconut flakes, toasted

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.  In a small saucepan, combine the canola oil and maple syrup and bring to a boil.  Remove from the heat and add the vanilla.  

In a large bowl, combine the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, cinnamon, and dried fruit.  Drizzle the syrup mixture over the dry ingredients, mixing well.  Spread out the oats mixture on a rimmed sheet pan and bake for 30 to 40 minutes, until light brown.  You'll know it's done by tasting the almonds.  They should be toasted and not chewy. 

Remove the granola from the oven and cool.  On another rimmed sheet pan, toast the coconut for about 5 minutes, or until just golden brown.  Mix the coconut with the granola mixture.  Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Linking to:
Ingredient Spotlight - Oats

Baked Sunday Mornings - Sawdust Pie

It has been way too long since I've participated in Baked Sunday Mornings!  There were a few recipes that I wanted to make and didn't have time, a few that didn't interest me, and at least one that I made and was too lazy to post.  

Sawdust Pie caught my eye because it's the creation of a restaurant here in Kentucky, Patti's 1880's Settlement.  I've been to Patti's once and it was fabulous.  Delicious bread cooked and served in terra cotta pots is served with strawberry butter and their signature 2" pork chop is legendary.  I would love to go back someday and try some of their other specialties.  

This pie is sort of a cross between a pecan pie and german chocolate frosting.  Its name comes from the addition of graham cracker crumbs, that when you think about it, do look an awful lot like sawdust.  The rest of the filling is made up of pecans, coconut, brown sugar, egg whites, and white chocolate.  It took every ounce of discipline I have (which isn't much) not to use chocolate chips instead of white chocolate.  While I like white chocolate in certain applications, I find it can be too rich and sweet.  I'm glad I stuck to the recipe as written but would have preferred some milk or semi-sweet chocolate instead.

Delicious, rich, familiar yet a little different, Sawdust Pie will have you going back for a second slice.  To find the recipe, visit Baked Sunday Mornings.

Drunk Blondies

Full confession - these blondies weren't drunk.  They weren't even tipsy.  My Drunk Blondies were stone cold sober blondies because I didn't have any bourbon.  I live in Kentucky, in the heart of bourbon country where the majority of the world's bourbon is produced and I didn't have any bourbon.  I am hanging my head in shame and fully expect the Kentucky Colonels to show up at my door to revoke any rights to call myself a Kentuckian.

The issue of drunkenness or sobriety aside, these blondies are damn good.  But how could they not be when they are chock full of butter, brown sugar, chocolate, pecans, and coconut?  Baking up the golden brown that all bakers wish for, they were not only delicious, but pretty.  And surprisingly, not too sweet.  

Moist from a hefty amount of coconut, I think these are the perfect blondie base.  I added slightly more chocolate chips and pecans than the recipe specified and I wouldn't have complained if there had been even more.  Craisins would be a lovely swap for the chocolate or just an addition to the existing ingredients.  Subbing or adding different nuts, chocolates, oats, or dried fruit would result in some fun and interesting combinations.  While I didn't miss the bourbon, I don't think you would get any complaints if you slipped some in...

Drunk Blondies
Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook, Cheryl & Griffin Day

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
2 cups packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 tablespoons bourbon
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup sweetened flaked coconut, toasted
1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease a 9 X 13 X 2 inch baking pan and line with parchment, allowing the ends of the paper to hang over two opposite edges of the pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

Put the butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl and stir with a spoon until smooth.  Add the eggs, vanilla, and bourbon, and mix until thoroughly combined.  Stir in the flour mixture, followed by the pecans, coconut, and chocolate chips.

 Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with an offset spatula.  Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the top is golden brown.  Remove the pan from the oven and let cool completely on a wire rack.  Cut the blondies into bars.  The blondies will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Almond Galette

In my last post, I walked you through my first attempt at making puff pastry.  Stella Parks, recently named as one of Food and Wine's Best New Pastry Chefs, is a local chef and a fellow Kentucky Food Blogger and told me that the puff pastry I made was actually known as a blitz dough.  Puff, blitz, whatever you call it, I had so much fun making it and it took more than a few minutes to decide what I wanted to make with my lovely pastry.

Full of confidence, I decided to go all-out and make an almond galette.  I love desserts that look and feel like they took a lot of effort, but really don't.  This is definitely one of those desserts.  All wow with little work. I love the decorative flourishes on the top of the galette and was amazed at how easy it was to create with a butter knife and a twist of the hand.  

A sliver of this elegant pastry is perfect to enjoy for breakfast, as a snack, or for dessert.  I'm crazy about almonds and their intoxicating aroma and delicate flavor are the star here.  The filling is cradled between the flaky, tender crust and is full of texture, yet somehow still smooth.

My husband took this to some of my most faithful taste testers and they proclaimed it the best thing I've ever made.  While I don't know if I agree with that assessment, it certainly was delicious.

Linking to:  Tea Party Tuesday, Totally Tasty Tuesdays, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday

Almond Galette
very slightly adapted from King Arthur Flour

1 pound puff pastry
1/2 cup almond filling (or 2/3 cup almond paste)
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup almond flour or very finely ground whole almonds
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon cold water

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Divide the pastry in half, and roll each piece into an 11" square.

Using a 10" round template (or a bowl with a 10" diameter), cut at 10" circle from one piece.  Use an 11" round template (or a bowl with an 11" diameter), cut an 11" circle from the second piece.

To make the filling:  beat the almond filling (or almond paste, if using), butter, sugar, and salt until creamy.  Add the egg yolks and vanilla, and beat until well incorporated.  Mix in the flours.  

To assemble the galette:  Place the smaller circle of pastry on the baking sheet. Spread the filling over the smaller circle, leaving a 1" rim around the edge of the pastry.  

To make the glaze:  Whisk the egg yolk and water in a bowl.  Brush some glaze over the uncovered edge of the smaller piece of pastry.

Center the larger round of dough over the filled bottom crust, and smooth it over the filling.  Using a fork, press and crimp the rim of the galette to seal.

Decorate the galette using the back of a knife to trace a pattern on the surface; poke 5 vent holes, and brush with the remaining glaze.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until it's golden.  Cool before serving.  

Abracadabra Bars

I love magic bars.  You know the ones?  Graham cracker crust and topped with a sinful mixture of nuts, various chips, and coconut and then covered with sweetened condensed milk?  I never make them because I can't be trusted not to scarf up an entire pan in the blink of an eye.

For whatever reason, magic bars were on my mind the other day.  So I set out to improve on what was already pretty perfect.  I'm calling my bars Abracadabra Bars since they taste like they were sprinkled with magic and disappeared faster than a magician can wave his wand.

Change number one - bacon.  Of course.  My daughter asked me the other day why I add bacon to everything.  I thought it was a silly question, especially coming from a person whose hand is constantly being smacked away as she sneaks bites of the bacon that I am putting in everything.  Can't blame her though.  Bacon is at its tastiest when eaten in little bites from a pile of paper towels, still warm from the pan.

Change number two - oats.  I added some instant oats to the crust in addition to the traditional graham cracker crumbs.  This little change added more texture to a bar that is all about texture.  With bacon and oats, these bars are practically breakfast food.

Lastly, I tweaked the quantities on the chocolate and butterscotch chips as well as the coconut. I normally don't have any use for butterscotch chips but their caramel flavor works well here.  Especially in smaller quantities since they can be overally sweet.  More chocolate.  No explanation needed.  Less coconut.  I don't have any rationale for this decision since I adore coconut, just seemed right.

An undesired side effect of writing this post has been two of the most annoying songs of all time, "Do You Believe In Magic" and "Abracadabra" running through my head.  Ugh.


Let me tell you, these were fantastic.  Fantastic.  With their craggy surface is a vertable flavor landscape.  I love the contrast of textures.  The sticky crackle of the bacon, the smoothness of the chips, the chewy coconut, the crunch of the pecans meld together into the perfect combination.  The bacon added the smoky flavor as only bacon can but didn't overpower the other flavors.  One of my best efforts recently!


Linking To:  Six Sisters Strut Your Stuff Saturday Link Party

Abracadabra Bars

6 strips bacon
1 cup graham cracker crumbs
1/2 cup instant oats
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup butterscotch chips
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 cup grated or shredded coconut
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 

Line 9 x 13 inch pan with sheet of parchment paper so that paper hangs over sides creating a sling.

Chop bacon into small pieces and cook until crisp.  Drain and set aside.

Mix graham cracker crumbs, oats, and butter in bowl until combined.  Press into bottom of pan.  Spread pecans evenly over crust then follow with butterscotch chips, chocolate chips, bacon, and coconut.  Pour sweetened condensed milk over.

Place pan in oven and bake for about 20 - 25 minutes, until top is slightly brown.  Cool in pan for at least 30 minutes, longer if possible to allow bars to set.  Remove bars using parchment paper sling and cut.

Baked Sunday Mornings - Pecan Tassies

"These are dangerous."  My husband's reaction after trying Pecan Tassies, this week's recipe from Baked Explorations.  

Dangerous, indeed.  Pecan Tassies are basically teeny pecan pies.  So teeny they can be eaten in one bite, or two if you are trying to mind your manners.  And unlike a whole slice of pecan pie, these are too easy to mindlessly pop into your mouth, one after the other.  

I really liked the cream cheese crust here.  Flakey and tender, it was the perfect vehicle to house the sticky mixture of eggs, brown sugar, and pecans.  Most pecan pies I have made in the past use a heavy helping of corn syrup to achieve the sticky, syrupy consistency of a traditional pecan pie filling but I didn't miss it here.  My favorite part is the shelf of sugar that capped each pie and broke in the most satisfying manner when you bite into it.  

And to think I almost didn't do this recipe because I had a 'been there, done that' attitude.  Another keeper from the Baked boys!

To view my fellow Baked Sunday Mornings' bakers goodies, visit our blog, here.

Pecan Tassies
Baked Explorations, Matt Lewis & Renato Poliafito

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
6 ounces cream cheese, softened, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour

2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup toasted pecans, coarsely chopped

In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese together on medium speed until the mixture is lump free.  Add the sugar and beat again for 15 seconds.  Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl.  Add the flour in four parts, at low speed, until the mixture is just combined and a dough forms.  Pinch off a walnut-size piece of dough, roll it into a ball, and set it aside.  Continue pinching and rolling until all the dough is gone.  You will end up with approximately 40 pieces.  Place each ball into an individual mini muffin pan, then use your fingers to press the dough into the bottom and up the sides of each pan.

Once all the tassie shells have been formed, place the muffin pan in the refrigerator while you make the filling. 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs just until they break apart.  While whisking, gradually add the brown sugar until completely combined.  Add the vanilla and salt and whisk again.  Add 1/2 cup of the chopped pecans and stir until they are completely mixed in.

Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup pecans into the tassie shells.   Spoon in enough filling into the shells until they are about three-quarters full.

Bake for about 15 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 250 degrees F and bake for another 10 minutes, or until the filling is set.

Allow the tassies to cool for at least 30 minutes.  Serve them warm or at room temperature.  Pecan tassies taste best the day they are made; however, you can wrap them in plastic and keep them at room temperature for up to 2 days.  

Honey Glazed Almonds

I didn't plan it, but looks like I am posting back to back Cooking Light recipes! I love that magazine. It doesn't feel like a healthy cooking magazine. The recipes are always approachable, doable, and look delicious.
Honey Glazed Almonds are not only delicious, but ridiculously fast and easy. I've made several different types of glazed, candied, or spiced nuts in the past, but these were by far the easiest and one of the best. Each nut is coated with sweet, spicy, and smoky flavor. Honey, hands down one of my favorite ingredients, provides the sweet. Chipotle chile powder adds a touch of spiciness, and cumin adds subtle smokiness. You could certainly play around with different spices, but this combination is pretty darn good. A great, healthy option for on the go snacking, these would also make fantastic holiday gifts. You can make a ton of almonds (or nuts of your choosing) for very little money. Package in a cute jar or tin, and voila, a great hostess or co-worker gift!
Honey Glazed Almonds Cooking Light, November 2011 1 1/2 cups raw, unblanched almonds 1 tablespoon sugar 1 1/2 tablespoons honey 1/2 teaspoon ground chipotle chile powder 1/4 teaspoon ground cumin 1/4 teaspoon salt 1. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 2. Place the almonds in a medium nonstick skillet; cook over medium heat for 6 minutes or until lightly toasted, shaking pan frequently. Combine the remaining ingredients in a 2-cup glass measure. Microwave at HIGH for 30 seconds. Add honey mixture to pan, and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Arrange almond mixture on prepared baking sheet in a single layer; let stand 10 minutes. Break apart any clusters.

Toasted Almond Chocolate Chocolate Chip ice Cream with Salted Caramel Sauce

The other day I was sitting at work wishing for something chocolate. Preferably some insanely chunky chocolate ice cream. Since fulfilling this wish wasn't possible at the moment, I jotted down two ideas for ice creams to make later.

First on my list was this one, Toasted Almond Chocolate Chocolate Chip with a Salted Caramel Sauce. Baskin Robbin's chocolate almond ice cream has been a fave of mine for many years now and I wanted that combination to be the base for this recipe. I decided to use plain, whole almonds, coarsely chopped, and then toasted to bring out their full flavor. To that, a generous handful of high-quality, semi-sweet, coarsely chopped chocolate. I wanted the presence of the add-ins to be known with each bite so everything thing was chopped less than more.

I went looking for a chocolate ice cream recipe that I hadn't used before. I knew I wanted it to use a custard base to ensure a decadent and creamy mouth feel. Alton Brown's recipe caught my eye and I decided to use it. While I find his recipes a bit too scientific for my taste, I have had good luck with the few that I have tried.

Following the the recipe to a tee, I ended up with a delicious ice cream, but I wanted a more intense, richer chocolate flavor and may play around with it more to see if I can perfect it. Then again, I'm just as likely to try a different recipe altogether!

On to the salted caramel sauce. A couple of months back I got a hankering for salted caramel and made some following a recipe from one of my Baked cookbooks. I pretty much hated it and made another recipe, this time from the Barefoot Contessa which turned out perfectly.

Fast forward to my ice cream when I decided to use the same recipe - and completely blew it. I came up with a couple of errors on my part and gave it another shot. Burnt it this time. Did you know that burnt caramel actually is kind of red? I didn't know that before but certainly do know. My persistence paid off the third time and I was rewarded with a velvety, slightly salty sauce to drizzle over my ice cream.

I have to say this is the best ice cream I've ever made! A little bit of effort but a lot of delicious!

Toasted Almond Chocolate Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

adapted from Good Eats, Alton Brown

• 1 cup plain, whole almonds, coarsely chopped
• 1 1/2 ounces unsweetened cocoa powder, approximately 1/2 cup
• 3 cups half-and-half
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 8 large egg yolks
• 9 ounces sugar
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 2 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
• 
  

• Place the cocoa powder along with 1 cup of the half-and-half into a medium saucepan over medium heat and whisk to combine. Add the remaining half-and-half and the heavy cream. Bring the mixture just to a simmer, stirring occasionally, and remove from the heat.

  In a medium mixing bowl whisk the egg yolks until they lighten in color. Gradually add the sugar and whisk to combine. Temper the cream mixture into the eggs and sugar by gradually adding small amounts, until about 1/3 of the cream mixture has been added. Pour in the remainder and return the entire mixture to the saucepan and place over low heat. Continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens slightly and coats the back of a spoon and reaches 170 to 175 degrees F. Pour the mixture into a container and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Stir in the vanilla extract. Place the mixture into the refrigerator and once it is cool enough not to form condensation on the lid, cover and store for 4 to 8 hours or until the temperature reaches 40 degrees F or below.

  Pour into an ice cream maker and process according to the manufacturer's directions. Add chopped almonds and chocolate to process for last couple of minutes of processing. Freeze until firm.

  Salted Caramel Sauce

  adapted from Barefoot Contessa at Home, Ina Garten

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon fleur de sel salt
• 
  
• Mix 1/3 cup water and the sugar in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Cook, without stirring, over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes, until the sugar dissolves. Increase the heat to medium and boil uncovered until the sugar turns a warm chestnut brown (about 350 degrees F on a candy thermometer), 5 to 7 minutes, gently swirling the pan to stir the mixture. Be careful; the mixture is extremely hot! Watch the mixture constantly at the end, as it will go from caramel to burnt very quickly. Turn off the heat. Stand back to avoid splattering and slowly add the cream and vanilla. The cream will bubble violently and the caramel will solidify; don't worry. Simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until the caramel dissolves and the sauce is smooth, about 2 minutes. Stir in fleur de sel. Allow to cool to room temperature, at least 4 hours. It will thicken as it sits.

FFWD - Quinoa, Fruit and Nut Salad

Quinoa. Kween-wah. This odd little seed is not only fun to say, but easy to prepare and delicious to eat.

A superfood that has received a ton of press recently, quinoa is the star of the Quinoa, Fruit and Nut Salad that was voted as the first French Fridays with Dorie recipe for April. Upon reading the ingredients that include a variety of nuts and dried fruits, I immediately thought we were making another variation on trail mix (see Beggar's Linguine). However, that one worked out extremely well so I just went with it.

The quinoa is easy and fast to fix. After a quick boil, the seeds look kind of like something out of the ocean with their curly little tails. Dorie recommends using a mixture of nuts and fruits but I wanted to keep it simple and use what I had on hand. I tossed dried cherries and toasted almonds to the cooled quinoa. The salad is coated with a dressing of olive oil, lemon juice, ginger, and a nut oil (or additional olive oild). I used a delicious Meyer Lemon Olive Oil I picked up from Bistro Blends at food fair last fall and loved the extra hit of lemon. I used dried ginger as directed by Dorie but really couldn't taste it and may try minced fresh ginger in the future. I kept this simple and didn't do the greens and yogurt. Maybe next time.

Too anxious to let it sit, I tasted it and was blown away with the nutty flavor and texture of the quinoa combined with the crunch from the almonds and sweet chewiness of the cherries. I fully expected to be underwhelmed but ended up really enjoying this. I'm anxious to try other recipes using quinoa and totally get its popularity.

Versatile, inexpensive, easy, and healthy? Quinoa rocks!

SMS Butterscotch Pralines

I first tried to make pralines after a visit to Savannah, Georgia at least fifteen years ago. The candy shops along River Street entice you into their shops by handing out melt-in-your-mouth pecan pralines and I couldn't wait to recreate the experience at home. Unfortunately, my pralines were a disaster! The recipe is simple, yet the sugar has to be cooked to just the right temperature to get the right consistency. This failure kept me from trying pralines again until now.

Tess over at the Cookin Chemist selected Butterscotch Pralines as this week's Sweet Melissa Sunday's recipe. Several of the SMS bakers had trouble cooking the sugar and/or getting it to the right consistency but they all thought the taste of the candies was great. I readied myself to be frustrated by sugar that would take forever to get the right temperature and then still not set up properly. BUT, it didn't happen! Everything worked beautifully! I made sure to have everything in place so that when the sugar reached the right temp, I would be ready to mix and scoop quickly. I also changed my sugar cooking strategy from babysitting it to just turning the burner on, throwing in the candy thermometer and then walking away until it reached about 225 degrees. At that point, I just checked it every few minutes until it reached the correct temperature of 238 and then got it off the heat. The mixture does set up insanely fast and I would have liked all of my candies to puddle a little more to get the traditional praline shape but the shape doesn't affect the flavor at all. I toasted my pecans in the oven for a few minutes since this recipe has so few ingredients and I wanted the pecan flavor to be prominent. I also was a little short of a full cup of light brown sugar and used dark brown to make up the difference.

The pralines are incredibly SWEET but delicious. I really like the butterscotch flavor and have had to hide them or I will eat them until I am literally sick. This recipe is definately a keeper!

Thanks for hosting this week Tess! You can find the recipe on her blog here and check out the other SMS bakers, here.

SMS Peanut Butter Truffles

Truffles just sound decadent and therefore complicated, right? But they are truly one of the easiest candies to make and once you have the basic recipe, are infinitely adaptable. I loved the hazelnut truffles the SMS group made last year, but unfortunately did not care for this week's Peanut Butter Truffles.

When I read that Peanut Butter Truffles were on the lineup, I immediately had visions of a fancy Reese's Cup type creation or something along the lines of the Newman's Own PB cups I have fallen for. I had a terrible day at work earlier in the week and called my husband at home to read me the ingredients for this recipe so that stop by the store to pick up anything I didn't have on hand and them make them that evening. A little cooking therapy to help me unwind and decompress. Upon hearing that the recipe called for bittersweet chocolate, that voice within todl me that I should use semi-sweet chocolate instead. Ignoring her, I bought the bittersweet and ended up with a recipe that was too rich for my liking. I also found the peanut butter flavor wasn't strong enough and didn't balance well with the dark chocolate. I did enjoy the saltiness of the peanuts and think this recipe would be fantastic with milk chocolate and double the peanut butter.

Thanks to Mara of Love Your Mother for hosting this week! You can find the recipe on her beautiful blog!

Pine Nut Butter Cake

I Heart Faces is a great website that sponsors photography challenges for bloggers. I just found it today and this week's challenge is one of my favorite topics - desserts! While this photo is not my favorite, I did love the dessert and I don't have time to make something else before the entry deadline later this evening.


I knew immediately that I would make this Pine Nut Butter Cake when I came across it on the beautiful blog So Good and Tasty and ended up making it that same day.

The cake was incredibly simply to make using pantry ingredients, no special equipment, and no special prep (no butter to soften- yay!) and was absolutely delicous! The brown sugar gives the cake a wonderful caramel flavor and the butter adds richness. Pine nuts are always in my pantry, but if they are not in your house, any nut would work beautifully. Chocolate chips, dried fruit, or a combination of toppings would also work; however, the beauty of this cake is in its simplicity.

A huge hit in our house, I expect this to become a regular around here!

Pine Nut Butter Cake
So Good and Tasty

6 ounces(12 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted
1 cup cane sugar or granulated sugar
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 extra large eggs, at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons pine nuts

Center a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat to 350˚F. Generously butter or spray a 9" round cake pan. Dust the inside with flour, shake off excess. Cut a round piece of parchment paper to fit the bottom of the pan. Butter the parchment round and place in the pan, butter-side up.
Place melted butter in a large bowl. Add the sugars and stir together with a rubber spatula until thoroughly blended.

One at a time add the eggs to the butter mixture. Mix evenly, scraping the sides down as you go. The mixture may look curdled as the eggs are added, but it will smooth out. Then add the vanilla and stir to blend.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour and salt, then add to the butter mixture in 3 stages, blending well after each addition.

Transfer the batter to the prepared cake pan. The batter is very thick, so use a rubber spatula to spread it evenly into the pan.

Sprinkle the pine nuts evenly over the top of the cake.

Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean.

Remove the pan from the oven and cool completely on a rack. Invert the pan to remove the cake, then peel the parchment paper off the back of the cake. Re-invert the cake onto a serving plate.

Cut into wedges and serve at room temperature.

Store the cake tightly wrapped in aluminum foil at room temperature up to four days. Freeze up to 3 months, wrapped tightly in several layers of plastic and aluminum foil. Defrost overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving.