TWD: Pecan Powder Puffs

There are certain recipes that I've never made that have absolutely nothing to do with difficulty or ingredients.  The Pecan Powder Puffs (aka Mexican Wedding Cookies) for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie, chosen by Tianne of Buttercream Barbie, happen to be one of those recipes.  In fact, I've been ignoring the fact that a really easy recipe for these cookies has been sitting in the book. I was doing a good job of ignoring it up until now too.  

Why?

They are dangerous. Severely dangerous. Sigh.

Years ago, when I first moved to Utah, I was working in a law firm where the secretaries all loved putting treats out on their desks during the holidays. I was working in the firm as a runner (basically a gofer, just like it sounds :) and therefore was exposed to all the various treats hiding around all three floors of the office. These happen to be the only treat I remember.

Anyway, one of the secretaries always brought a huge tub of these cookies and every time I went by I couldn't resist grabbing another one.  When you figure that in an 8-hour shift I went by her desk at least 8 times... well, you can imagine the problem. I fully justified it because working as a runner, on a 3-floor office I figured out that I was walking about 40 miles per week (no joke!) and therefore my 19-year old body could eat whatever the heck I wanted and get away with it (and did).

Fast forward a generous handful of years and that is no longer the case.  I cookie that is cobbled together of pecans, sugar, butter and a bit of flour, then dipped in more sugar before eating and you can imagine that having these babies in my vicinity is a recipe for major weight gain.  Therefore, until today, I had never made them.

Now, my cookies didn't turn out as puffy as the cookies I've usually seen, but I expect is has something to do with oven temperature or high altitude.  Bottom line, they were still incredibly tasty and crumbly and melt-in-your-mouth delightful, so I really didn't care.

And guess what? I was right, they are dangerous, because the batch is already over half gone... and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one who has been eating them.

For more delicious cookies, visit the TWD blog and LYL post.

FFwD: Sweet and Spicy Cocktail Nuts - Sugared Pecans

One of the recipes from Around My French Table chosen for this month's French Fridays with Dorie was for Sweet and Spicy Cocktail Nuts - a mixture of nuts, tossed in egg white and a combination of sugar and spices.  I only had pecans around the house, but wanted to try the recipe because I've never seen or heard of tossing them in egg white first.  My favorite way to make candied pecans up till now - which is a bit of a process and a bit of a mess, but oh so good - is to boil them, then let them dry a bit, then toss them in powdered sugar, and then they are deep fried, then allowed to cool (a method we used long ago from the Sky High cakes book for The Cake Slice Bakers).  While they are crazy good that way, as you can imagine, they are definitely a treat and not anything I feel good about snacking on.  That is why Dorie's method seemed like an interesting and worthwhile alternative.

That said, you know I never leave well enough alone, and since the only cocktails involved around our house involve juice boxes, I bagged the spices in our version.  I used the same amount of sugar called for, then just upped the amount of cinnamon and added a small splash of vanilla.  I have to admit, I'm sure the nuts would have looked nicer had I followed Dorie's directions to remove them from the egg whites individually to get rid of the excess.  Let's face it though.  With three small kids around, there was no time for that.  I tossed, mixed, stirred, dumped and baked.  I did give them a stir in the oven about half way through to help break up all the extra sugar and egg white I dumped in there with them, which was bubbling a bit more than I expected, but didn't seem to do any harm.  So, bottom line, when my pecans were all done they were just a bit clumpier and not as pretty, but they still tasted really good!  

This recipe and method is a definite keeper - we love tossed candied nuts in our salads and this ended up being a lot less messy and not as labor intensive (at least when done the lazy way like me!).

Happy New Year everyone!  Visit the French Fridays with Dorie site to see all the links to this month's recipes under the LYL posts.  I hope you all had a wonderful 2010 - now on to 2011!

Orange Candied Pecans

Here is the recipe for those Orange Candied Pecans I mentioned in my post about the Gingered Carrot Cookies.  The orange flavor is noticeable, but if you wanted to you could just leave the orange out and have a plain candied pecan.

Orange Candied Pecans
Adapted from Gale Gand's Brunch!

Makes about 2 cups

3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup water
1 tablespoon finely grated orange zest
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 cups whole pecans

In a large saucepan over medium heat, stir together the sugar, water, orange zest and cinnamon and bring to a boil.  Turn the heat down to low and add the pecans, stirring constantly.  The mixture will be shiny and clear at first, then will turn opaque and crystalize as the water evaporates.  When the nuts are completely coated in the sugar crystals, after about 5 minutes, they are done.  Spread them out on a baking sheet to cool.

Snack on these or use them in cookies, on ice cream, on salads, on cereal or whatever else you can think of.

Note:  To clean your saucepan easily just let it soak in water overnight.

TWD: Pecan Chocolate Mini Pies

Tuesdays with Dorie this week is brought to us by Beth at Someone's in the Kitchen with Brina. She chose Dorie's "My Favorite Pecan Pie" recipe - for which I am grateful since it was one of the recipes I had earmarked for my choice (back when I thought I would be choosing close to the Thanksgiving holiday instead of last Easter).

I love pecan pie, but often, as Dorie describes herself in the notes before the recipe, pecan pie can often be so cloyingly sweet that a few bites is more than I can handle. I actually made this recipe two times over the holidays - once at Thanksgiving at my parents' home where I made the 'plain' version with really no changes - I just left out the espresso powder, chocolate and cinnamon per Dorie's alternate instructions. If you are looking for a really great, simple and not too sweet straight-up pecan pie then this one is a real winner. I did take some really terrible pictures with my Dad's camera - just bad lighting and unfamiliar equipment, etc etc - but it didn't matter since I never had a chance to get the pictures off the camera.

Since I had really wanted to try Dorie's version (or at least closer to it) with the chocolate though, I decided to just rectify the situation by making the pie again. We are staying home alone this week for the holidays though - just the hubs, me and the two little hooligans I call my sons. Therefore, there was no need to make an entire pie. I made one-third of the recipe, with a few little tweaks here and there (I left in a little more chocolate, vanilla and pecans - just because) and made 4 really adorable 4.5-inch mini pies in little aluminum pie tins I picked up at a local restaurant supply store. I like making the individual portions and serving everyone their own little cute pie sometimes, so these come in handy.

The only other change I had to make to the recipe as far as that goes was in the actual baking times, which was understandably cut in to a much smaller time amount. Once I get all my changes written down and figured out, I promise to share them soon!

Though I have now made Dorie's pie crust recipe several times, it just doesn't quite replace my favorite (1/2 shortening 1/2 butter style recipe) so I went with that this time as well. Mainly, the reason I use that recipe is because it gives me the ability to 'style' the dough a bit more than I ever seem capable of with Dorie's dough - probably just me though.

We really enjoyed our mini pies and I really loved them with the chocolate and cinnamon added in. Really it just depends on your mood I think because this recipe is a real winner either way.

These also made a nice little dessert that I'm saving for dessert tonight -

since today (December 22nd) marks my 11th wedding anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to my husband, Dusty - never a dull moment!

Maple Pecan Scones

Oh my! I don't know when I have been as excited about a change in season! I am so happy that Fall has arrived. I'm usually a real lover of Summer and all its fun and glory, but being pregnant through the entire summer - and sick to boot with it and some other issues - I'm so grateful for cooler temperatures on the way. I can't say I'll feel the same way when Winter rolls around, but I plan to try to enjoy the heck out of Fall.

My apologies in the meantime to my TWD friends and especially Jacque who chose the Cottage Cheese Pufflets as this week's recipe pick - after reading everyone's difficulties with the recipe I just never felt like I was going to be able to commit the time and energy right now. Once I get feeling better I can't wait to give them a try since they are so intriguing.

To start that out, I made these Maple Pecan Scones a few days ago and just couldn't wait to share these with you! I started out with a recipe that I'm sure is fantastic as is, from the guys at Baked, but once I started making changes, I just couldn't seem to stop. I replaced the white sugar with dark brown, changed the walnuts out with pecans, traded out the buttermilk for cream and milk with a little lemon juice, and lastly added in some cinnamon chips and butterscotch chips. The original recipe also makes 12 large scones. I couldn't eat that many all at once - so, I cut the recipe in half, but still used one whole egg.

While the scones described in the Baked book were supposed to be substantial, I hoped with my changes that they would come out soft and light - and they did! They were tender and heavenly, with just a light touch of maple flavor to the scone and added in to that flavor was the touch of maple syrup in the glaze that went on top.

These are perfectly wonderful and totally edible - as in I ate three of them right away! If you want a scone that is easy to make and even easier to eat that will really get you in a Fall mood - look no further!

Maple Pecan Scones

Makes 8 large scones

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Whisk together in a large bowl.

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled

Cut in the butter or rub in with fingertips to large pea-sized pieces and flakes.

1 large egg
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup milk
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure maple extract

Combine and whisk together in a small bowl. Pour over the dry mixture and using a fork, toss to mix and combine to make a soft dough.

1/2 cup toasted pecans
1/4 cup cinnamon or butterscotch chips or a combination

Add in to the dough mixture and mix gently till just combined. Scrape the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat into a circle about 1 1/2 inches high and 8 inches across. Cut into 8 triangle pieces and place on a parchment lined baking sheet a couple of inches apart.

Raw sugar and heavy cream for brushing top and sprinkling

Brush the scones with the cream, then sprinkle generously with raw sugar. Bake scones till golden for approximately 25 minutes.

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla
1 Tablespoon pure maple syrup
2 teaspoons heavy cream

Whisk the glaze ingredients together and use a fork to swirl the glaze over the mostly cooled scones.

Mini Chocolate Chip Pecan Pancakes with Buttermilk Caramel Syrup

If I give you a recipe for the most delicious little pancakes that are like eating dessert for breakfast, say, on a nice Sunday morning, perhaps like tomorrow, will you forgive me for waiting all day to post? Again?

If the pancakes aren't enough, then how about adding on some of the most delicious and incredible sweet, caramel syrup that isn't overly sweet and still has a bit of tang from the buttermilk it is made with?

These little pancakes, which are only about 3-inches across each, are fluffy, tender and studded with pockets of melted, chocolatey goodness plus a few lightly toasted pecan pieces for good measure. Wow. sorry, I just lost my train of thought thinking about these again. I have a sneaking suspicion I may be making these for breakfast again tomorrow.

I first saw this recipe over at Joy the Baker's blog when she made them with milk chocolate. I have made these with milk chocolate too, but with the buttermilk caramel syrup I really liked the contrast of the bittersweet chips instead. I can't imagine that whatever kind of chocolate you wanted to use with this recipe wouldn't just be awesome.

Mini Chocolate Chip Pecan Pancakes
Adapted from Joy the Baker

Makes approx. 24 3-inch pancakes

2 eggs
2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups buttermilk
4 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup bittersweet or semisweet (or milk) chocolate chips
1/3 cup coarsely chopped, lightly toasted pecans

oil or cooking spray (for cooking)

Beat together the eggs, buttermilk and vanilla in a large bowl. Add the melted and cooled butter and mix well. In another bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt, mix well to combine. Add the flour mixture to the liquid mixture and stir well until mostly smooth. Fold in the chocolate chips and pecans. Let the batter stand while the griddle heats.

Heat griddle or pan over medium heat, or about 350 degrees. Add a teaspoon of oil to the pan or spray with cooking spray. You can test to see if the pan is hot enough by adding a few drops of water, if or when the drops start to dance its hot enough.

Pour 2 Tablespoons of batter at a time onto the griddle for each pancake. Cook on the first side until bubbles that form start to pop. You can also gently lift up the pancake to make sure the bottom is not overcooking, if it is the pan may be too hot and you will need to adjust the heat. Flip the pancake over with a spatula and cook until golden brown. Repeat until all the batter is gone. Let cooked pancakes rest on a heat proof plate in a 200 degree F oven until ready to serve.

Buttermilk Caramel Syrup Recipe

Cake Slice Bakers: Banana Cake with Praline Filling and White Chocolate Ganache

The Cake Slice Bakers this month chose to make this Banana Cake.  It is actually a very small amount of banana that goes into the cake, but it was quite tasty.  I didn't get a picture of the interior this time, but it was a light speckled color, kind of like a very light banana bread.  

The filling is made from pecan pralines and was a bit intimidating to read about making, but was quite easy to do.  I will make my pralines this way from now on I think.   Basically, we boiled the pecans, then drained them, then coated them with powdered sugar and deep fried them.  Yes.  You heard me right.  Boiled then fried.  It was fun though and oh my, were they delicious!

Part of the pralines are then chopped up and added into the white chocolate ganache.  I have attempted a white chocolate ganache four times before this and failed miserably each time.  I finally had success this time by making sure I had plenty of time to wait and lots of patience.  I am pretty sure I failed all those other times because I rushed the process.

Either way, the cake and the process of making the components was fun.  I took this to my Mom for a belated birthday cake and everyone really enjoyed it.

Make sure to check out all the other beautiful cakes by visiting the Cake Slice Bakers blogroll. You can get the recipe over at Gigi Cakes.

TWD: Tall & Creamy Toffee Cheesecake

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank Laurie for starting this amazing group. As she already knows, this is my weekly therapy session and I don't know where I would be without it! Thank you so much to all of you who come here each week and leave comments. There really aren't words to express how much it means to me. I hope that the coming year is a joyful, peaceful and prosperous one for all of you! I also want to thank Dorie for such an amazing book with such a wonderful array of not only recipes, but stories and insight and ideas that a group like this can be formed around. At our house, this is the go-to book for all ideas and is commonly referred to as The Big Baking Book by my five year old, who loves to flip through the pages and tell me things we should make. I know that this book will be an heirloom and well loved and used for years to come.

After last week's butterscotch excursion I just couldn't seem to let go of that brown sugar depth of flavor - not that I ever do anyway - but as I was making the Tall and Creamy Cheesecake, chosen by Anne of Anne Strawberry I decided I had to play around with the flavor a bit. I knew that this cheesecake recipe was going to be good, but when I served it to our friends on Christmas Day the immediate WOW from all at the table was a nice gift to get.

To play with the flavors of the cheesecake I made the following changes and additions.

First, I made 1 1/2 times the crust amount because I really love a lot of crust. I didn't want to go overboard and double the recipe, but I did want a bit extra that originally called for - that is just preference though.

The major change I made to the recipe was to divide out, at the very beginning, 1/3 cup each of the sugar and cream portions of the cheesecake. I substituted dark brown sugar for that 1/3 cup portion and combined the cream and brown sugar in a small sauce pan and let it boil, then simmer together until nice and golden, thick and syrupy to make a kind of toffee syrup. I set this aside to cool completely before moving on to the rest of the cheesecake. From there, I just followed the regular directions, up until the point of adding in the vanilla, at which point I also drizzled in the toffee syrup. I used sour cream for the remaining portion of cream or sour cream in the recipe.

I really love the creamy, golden color that the toffee flavor added to this cheesecake. I also made Peabody's toffee sauce and added some pecans to it to spoon over the top of the cheesecake. All I can say was that I think I could drink that toffee sauce for breakfast, lunch and dinner (did I mention I used to just eat straight brown sugar from the bag when I was little? Yeah. It is an obsession).

This cheesecake was by far THE BEST CHEESECAKE we have ever had. Not only the texture, but the flavor and ease of making the recipe, now put this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe in the running as my favorite recipe so far. I am still a chocoholic at heart, so the Gooey Chocolate Cake hasn't quite been unseated yet, but this cheesecake comes very close.

Make sure to head on over to see all the other amazing creations put together by my Tuesdays with Dorie friends.

TWD: "Pumpcan" Pie - Thanksgiving Two-fer Pie

Host for this week: Vibi of La casserole carrée
Recipe for this week: Thanksgiving Twofer Pie
Tuesdays with Dorie Blogroll
Baking From My Home To Yours

So, what can I say about this pie other than that it was really delicious? I made this for a get together with my family Saturday night while my brother was visiting from the Oregon/Washington State area. I used a rather deep dish, so we decided to increase the amount of pecan filling by half to make sure the pie came all the way to the top. This resulted in a very, very golden crust because the pie had to bake twice as long before it set up.

This was a rather homely pie when cut, but, like I said, it sure tasted good - especially with a little vanilla bean ice cream. The only other change I made was to use maple syrup in place of the rum and also partly in place of the corn syrup in the pecan filling. This was mainly just out of necessity since it was imitation syrup (in other words, maple flavored corn syrup) when I started baking and didn't realize I was mostly out of corn syrup.

I am still running super behind, but I wanted to get this up in time for those that are making it later this week for their Thanksgiving table. I do recommend covering the edges of your crust with foil when the pie is back in the oven baking with the filling so that it doesn't overbrown. As I mentioned, since I had to back mine twice as long to get it to set up there wasn't a lot of hope. The crust was still delicious though - flaky and with a deep caramel color and flavor.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

CEiMB: Turkey Roulade with Apple-Cider Gravy

Well, well, well. This week guess who got to choose the recipe for Craving Ellie in My Belly? ME! I chose the Turkey Roulade with Apple-Cider Gravy.

This recipe, along with a couple others will even air on Food Network later this month.

I have several recipes flagged, but I decided on this one because 1) it is November, and though everyone will get their fill of turkey at the end of the month, I thought this might be a good starter for the month and could make a really great lighter Thanksgiving and 2) I just love turkey!

This is my favorite recipe from the book so far. The turkey is tender and the stuffing was flavorful and delicious. This turkey roulade is served with an apple cider 'gravy' too that really helps take it from just a good recipe to a really great recipe.

The bread I used for the stuffing was the most multi-grain-ish bread I could find, one called 'health-nut' which I think also added to the great flavor and texture. While this recipe is somewhat involved I didn't think it was overwhelming so.

I took one shortcut that I think, while probably not as healthy, helped save me some time and added to the flavor of the stuffing. Instead of chopping and caramelizing the onion for the stuffing base I just used a package of onion soup mix. I also left out the dried cranberries and made a fresh cranberry relish I've had bookmarked for a while, with a few changes, to serve on the side.

I also had some baby red potatoes left from my parents' last trip to the farmers' market and roasted those along side the turkey. Everything was done right around the same time and it was all really great! I will definitely make this one again! Make sure to check out how the others in the group and see how they did this week!

Turkey Roulade with Apple-Cider Gravy
1 (2 1/2-pound) skinless turkey breast, butterflied
1/2 cup dried cranberries (I left these out of mine)
2 tablespoons canola oil, divided
1/2 large onion, diced (about 1 1/2 cups), plus 1 cup sliced onion (I used one package of onion soup mix combined with about 2/3 cup of water, plus 1/2 cup sliced onion)
2 large garlic cloves, minced
5 slices day-old whole-wheat bread, crusts removed, cubed (about 2 1/2 cups) (I left the crusts on and used a multi-grain bread with sunflower seeds in it)
1/3 cup lightly toasted chopped pecans (I used about 1/2 cup)
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons fresh crumbled sage or 3 teaspoons dried, divided
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth, divided
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup apple cider
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar (I only used about 2 tablespoons)
1 teaspoon cornstarch dissolved in 1 tablespoon cold water (I just reduced the gravy a bit more until it was the thickness I wanted)

Special equipment: kitchen twine (cotton twine / string - I just asked my butcher for about 12 inches worth)

Place the turkey breast between 2 sheets of plastic wrap and pound lightly with a meat mallet to an even thickness of about 3/4-inch. Set aside while stuffing is prepared.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the cranberries in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, cook for 1 minute, then remove from heat, drain and reserve. (I skipped this since I left the cranberries out).

Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the diced onions and cook, stirring, until onions are golden but not charred, about 12 to 15 minutes. Add the garlic and cook an additional 2 to 3 minutes. (This is where I just cooked the garlic in the oil, then added the onion soup mixed with the water to the pan). Add bread, cranberries, pecans, 2 tablespoons fresh or 2 teaspoons dried sage and 1/2 to 3/4-cup chicken stock, depending upon consistency of stuffing; (you want the mixture to be moistened, but not too wet, since the turkey will release moisture when cooked). Cook over low heat for about 2 to 3 minutes, remove from heat.

Salt and pepper the inside and outside of the turkey breast. Spread the stuffing on the turkey, leaving about 1 1/2 to 2-inches uncovered on all sides. Roll up and secure tightly with kitchen twine, trying to keep all stuffing intact.

Heat 1 tablespoon of canola oil in a large Dutch oven or medium-sized roasting pan until hot. Sear stuffed turkey breast on all sides until lightly browned, 3 to 4 minutes per side. Add sliced onion and 1 1/2 cups chicken stock, cover tightly and roast in the oven until turkey reaches 160 degrees F when an instant-read thermometer is inserted into inner layer of meat, about 60 to 65 minutes. Remove the turkey breast from oven and transfer to a cutting board to rest.

Make the gravy:
Add apple cider, 1/2 cup chicken stock, vinegar and remaining sage to the onions, chicken stock and juices in the roasting pan, bring to a boil and cook for approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced by 1/3. Slowly add the cornstarch mixture, stirring constantly, and cook for 3 minutes more. The gravy should not be thick, just slightly thicker than a jus. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Makes 1 1/2 cups gravy.

Remove twine from turkey breast and slice into 1 1/2-inch thick pieces. Serve with gravy.

Roasted Baby Red Potatoes
2 lbs baby red potatoes, washed and cut into quarters
1 Tablespoon butter, melted
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic and parsley seasoning (I used McCormick's California Style blend)

Toss the potatoes with all the other ingredients and place in a shallow baking dish in a single layer. Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees F for 40 minutes. Remove foil and test for tenderness. Allow the potatoes to bake uncovered until the desired tenderness and the potatoes have browned a bit (about 7 minutes).

Cranberry Pear Relish
(Adapted from Food Network)
1 - 12 oz bag fresh cranberries
1 Asian pear, washed and chopped into small pieces
1 tangerine, washed and cut into small wedges, peel and all
1/2 cup light brown sugar
pinch of kosher salt
3 Tablespoons chopped, toasted pecans

Place the tangerine pieces in a food processor and process well. Add the cranberries, pear, brown sugar and salt. Process well until a coarse but small texture. Cover and refrigerate for at least two hours and up to two days. Add the pecans just before serving.

Inside Out German Chocolate Cake

Cake. Yes, I love cake. For all the baking I've done over the years though, it is really only the past few years that I have stopped using mixes though. My cakes don't always turn out the way I want, but it is just so fun to try. There are a lot of skills involved with cake baking though that I still need a lot of work on. Especially my decorating skills. That is why when Laurie (our Tuesdays with Dorie fearless leader and the Master Mind behind Cupcake Hero) decided to start up a new event called Layers of Cake I told her to count me in.

The challenge for me this time around was to think of something different than my normal frosting. I have so many layer cake recipes bookmarked, but for this first round I had a couple in mind. This one really caught my eye because of the filling as well as the ganache. Seriously, what is not to love about this recipe? It is a wonderful chocolate cake layered with a mixture of toasted pecans and coconuts and baked sweetened condensed milk (so essentially, dulce de leche) then enrobed in a thick layer of really good chocolate.

This is definitely the way to make a German Chocolate Cake as far as I'm concerned!

Inside Out German Chocolate Cake
Courtesy of the Bridge Street Bakery in Waitsfield, Vermont, from Owner and Chef Mary Laulis via Gourmet Magazine

For cake layers
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup whole milk
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
3/4 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon almond extract
3/4 cup boiling-hot water

For filling
7 oz sweetened flaked coconut
4 oz coarsely chopped pecans (1 cup)
14-oz can sweetened condensed milk
1 tablespoon vanilla

For glaze
2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
10 oz fine-quality semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
3 tablespoons light corn syrup

Special equipment: 3 (9-inch) round cake pans

Make cake layers:
Preheat oven to 350°F and oil cake pans. Line bottoms of pans with rounds of parchment or wax paper. Sift together sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl.

Whisk together whole milk, butter, whole egg, yolk, vanilla, and almond extract in another large bowl until just combined. Beat egg mixture into flour mixture with an electric mixer on low speed, then beat on high speed 1 minute. Reduce speed to low and beat in water until just combined (batter will be thin).

Divide batter among cake pans (about 1 1/2 cups per pan) and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, switching position of pans and rotating them 180 degrees halfway through baking, until a tester comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes total.

Cool layers in pans on racks 15 minutes. Run a thin knife around edges of pans and invert layers onto racks. Carefully remove parchment or wax paper and cool layers completely.

Make filling:
Reduce oven temperature to 325°F.

Spread coconut in a large shallow baking pan and pecans in another. Bake pecans in upper third of oven and coconut in lower third, stirring occasionally, until golden, 12 to 18 minutes. Remove pans from oven.

Increase oven temperature to 425°F.

Pour condensed milk into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate and cover tightly with foil. Bake milk in a water bath in middle of oven 45 minutes. Refill baking pan with water to reach halfway up pie plate and bake milk until thick and brown, about 45 minutes more. Remove pie plate from water bath.

Stir in coconut, pecans, and vanilla and keep warm, covered with foil.

Make glaze while milk is baking:Melt butter in a 3-quart saucepan. Remove pan from heat and add chocolate and corn syrup, whisking until chocolate is melted. Transfer 1 cup glaze to a bowl, reserving remaining glaze at room temperature in pan. Chill glaze in bowl, stirring occasionally, until thickened and spreadable, about 1 hour.

Assemble cake:
Put 1 cake layer on a rack set over a baking pan (to catch excess glaze). Drop half of coconut filling by spoonfuls evenly over layer and gently spread with a wet spatula. Top with another cake layer and spread with remaining filling in same manner. Top with remaining cake layer and spread chilled glaze evenly over top and side of cake. Heat reserved glaze in pan over low heat, stirring, until glossy and pourable, about 1 minute. Pour glaze evenly over top of cake, making sure it coats sides. Shake rack gently to smooth glaze.

Chill cake until firm, about 1 hour. Transfer cake to a plate.

Cooks' notes: Cake keeps, covered and chilled, 3 days. Bring to room temperature before serving. For easier handling when assembling cake, place bottom layer on a cardboard round or the removable bottom of a tart or cake pan.

TWD: Pecan Honey Sticky Buns

Oh, how I love sticky buns and cinnamon buns and pretty much all the breakfast treats - this is well known and well loved territory for me. So, I have been eyeing this recipe ever since my copy of Baking From My Home to Yours got here. I have tried many recipes, but have never been completely satisfied with them. So, after trying so many recipes, how did Dorie's recipe for Pecan Honey Sticky Buns, chosen by Madam Chow for this week's Tuesdays with Dorie recipe?

This recipe absolutely holds its own and then some. I have a very specific criteria for what I am looking for in the "perfect" sticky bun and this recipe met them all.

First, I look for a soft, rich - but not over the top - dough - shouldn't be too "bready" but shouldn't disintigrate either. Second, in my opinion the caramel/glaze should be sufficient to have a nice amount for each bun and plenty of nuts, plus it has to be fairly simple to put together and hold up well (not turn to inedible hard brittle after 30 minutes out of the oven).

I went ahead and made a loaf of brioche with the second half of the dough (and sorry, didn't get pictures - bad Holly!). It was delicious as bread as well, but a bit richer than I am used to eating for my bread. As a sticky bun or cinnamon roll recipe though this was awesome. The brioche was really quite easy to put together (and yes, I have a stand mixer to help me - but I will do this by hand next time just to compare).

So, this was absolutely another winner as far as I'm concerned. Make sure to check out all the other TWD gals (and guy(s) - woo hoo!) to see more sticky madness!

Pecan Honey Sticky Buns
Makes 15 buns

For the Glaze:
1 cup (packed) light brown sugar
1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1/4 cup honey
1-1/2 cups pecans (whole or pieces)

For the Filling:
1/4 cup sugar
3 tablespoons (packed) light brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

For the Buns:
1/2 recipe dough for Golden Brioche loaves (see below), chilled and ready to shape (make the full recipe and cut the dough in half after refrigerating it overnight)

Generously butter a 9-x-13-inch baking pan (a Pyrex pan is perfect for this).

To make the glaze:
In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring the brown sugar, butter, and honey to a boil over medium-low heat, stirring frequently to dissolve the sugar. Pour the glaze into the buttered pan, evening it out as best you can by tilting the pan or spreading the glaze with a heatproof spatula. Sprinkle over the pecans.To make the filling: Mix the sugars and cinnamon together in a bowl. If necessary, in another bowl, work the butter with a spatula until it is soft, smooth and spreadable.

To shape the buns:
On a flour-dusted work surface, roll the chilled dough into a 16-inch square. Using your fingers or a pastry brush, spread the softened butter over the dough. Sprinkle the dough with the cinnamon sugar, leaving a 1-inch strip bare on the side farthest from you. Starting with the side nearest you, roll the dough into a cylinder, keeping the roll as tight as you can. (At this point, you can wrap the dough airtight and freeze it for up to 2 months . . . . Or, if you want to make just part of the recipe now, you can use as much of the dough as you'd like and freeze the remainder. Reduce the glaze recipe accordingly).

With a chef's knife, using a gentle sawing motion, trim just a tiny bit from the ends of the roll if they're very ragged or not well filled, then cut the log into 1-inch thick buns. (Because you trim the ragged ends of the dough, and you may have lost a little length in the rolling, you will get 15 buns, not 16 - I cut mine a bit too thick and ended up with 12 buns, which worked just fine as well.) Fit the buns into the pan cut side down, leaving some space between them.

Lightly cover the pan with a piece of wax paper and set the pan in a warm place until the buns have doubled in volume, about 1 hour and 45 minutes. The buns are properly risen when they are puffy, soft, doubled and, in all likelihood, touching one another.Getting ready to bake: When the buns have almost fully risen , center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Remove the sheet of wax paper and put the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat. Bake the sticky buns for about 30 minutes, or until they are puffed and gorgeously golden; the glaze will be bubbling away merrily. Pull the pan from the oven.The sticky buns must be unmolded minutes after they come out of the oven. If you do not have a rimmed platter large enough to hold them, use a baking sheet lined with a silicone mate or buttered foil. Be careful - the glaze is super-hot and super-sticky.

What You'll Need for the Golden Brioche Dough (this recipe makes enough for two brioche loaves. If you divide the dough in half, you would use half for the sticky buns, and you can freeze the other half for a later date, or make a brioche loaf out of it!):

2 packets active dry yeast (each packet of yeast contains approx. 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1/3 cup just-warm-to-the-touch water
1/3 cup just-warm-to-the-touch whole milk
3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1/4 cup sugar
3 sticks (12 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature but still slightly firm

What You'll Need for the Glaze (you would brush this on brioche loaves, but not on the sticky buns):
1 large egg
1 tablespoon water

To Make The Brioche:
Put the yeast, water and milk in the bowl of a stand mixer and, using a wooden spoon, stir until the yeast is dissolved. Add the flour and salt, and fit into the mixer with the dough hook, if you have one. Toss a kitchen towel over the mixer, covering the bowl as completely as you can-- this will help keep you, the counter and your kitchen floor from being showered in flour. Turn the mixer on and off a few short pulses, just to dampen the flour (yes, you can peek to see how you're doing), then remove the towel, increase the mixer speed to medium-low and mix for a minute or two, just until the flour is moistened. At this point, you'll have a fairly dry, shaggy mess.

Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula, set the mixer to low and add the eggs, followed by the sugar. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for about 3 minutes, until the dough forms a ball. Reduce the speed to low and add the butter in 2-tablespoon-size chunks, beating until each piece is almost incorporated before adding the next. You'll have a dough that is very soft, almost like batter. Increase the speed to medium-high and continue to beat until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 10 minutes.

Transfer the dough to a clean bowl (or wash out the mixer bowl and use it), cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, 40 to 60 minutes, depending upon the warmth of your room.

Deflate the dough by lifting it up around the edges and letting it fall with a slap to the bowl. Cover the bowl with the plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator. Slap the dough down in the bowl every 30 minutes until it stops rising, about 2 hours, then leave the uncovered dough in the refrigerator to chill overnight. (After this, you can proceed with the recipe to make the brioche loaves, or make the sticky buns instead, or freeze all or part of the dough for later use.)

The next day, butter and flour two 8 1/2-x-4 1/2-inch pans. Pull the dough from the fridge and divide it into 2 equal pieces. Cut each piece of the dough into 4 equal pieces and roll each piece into a log about 3 1/2 inches long. Arrange 4 logs crosswise in the bottom of each pan. Put the pans on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat, cover the pans lightly with wax paper and leave the loaves at room temperature until the dough almost fills the pans, 1 to 2 hours. (Again, rising time with depend on how warm the room is.)

Getting Ready To Bake:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

To Make the Glaze: Beat the egg with the water. Using a pastry brush, gently brush the tops of the loaves with the glaze.

Bake the loaves until they are well risen and deeply golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer the pans to racks to cool for 15 minutes, then run a knife around the sides of the pans and turn the loaves out onto the racks. Invert again and cool for at least 1 hour.

Other Tuesdays with Dorie:
Madeleines
Florida Pie
Peanut Butter Torte (& Bars) (Winner - Our Secret Ingredient)
Fluted Polenta & Ricotta Cake
Bill's Big Carrot Cake
Marshmallows - Dark & White Chocolate (Winner - Our Secret Ingredient)
Chocolate Gooey Cakes

Mississippi Mud Brownie Cupcakes. 'Nuff Said.

I couldn't pass up the chance to participate in my first Cupcake Hero since this month's theme was marshmallows, which since there is usually no dairy in it makes it a treat near and dear to Aidan's heart. In fact, at his request two Christmases ago we even started making homemade marshmallows for the holiday. I love Laurie's blog, Quirky Cupcake, and I've wanted to send something in for the competition for a while now.

It is obvious that I love chocolate, so these cupcakes should come as no surprise. You may remember that I recently posted about some Dark Chocolate Raspberry Spiked Brownies (and the lameness of my kitchen that I don't even have a real sized (8 or 9-inch) square baking dish for some reason). Anywhoo, in that post I also mentioned that I used the other half of the batter for something else - well, this was it!

I made this recipe with six jumbo cupcake cups filled 3/4 full using a 2-inch high liner (if you don't use a liner, just grease the cups and fill them 2/3 full). If you use the full batter for this, then I'm sure you would easily get 12 jumbos out of it, probably more.

I topped these with homemade Marshmallow Creme, Dark Chocolate Ganache and Homemade Praline Crumbles. Get the recipe for the brownie base here.

Make sure you have a nice glass of cold milk handy with these Mississippi Mud Brownie Cupcakes. They are rich, but not too dense and the marshmallow creme and other toppings balance each other out perfectly.

Homemade Marshmallow Creme
2 large egg whites
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
2 tablespoons water
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Combine the ingredients with a pinch of salt in a metal bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water and whisk constantly until thick and hot to the touch. Remove from heat and using either a handheld electric mixer at high speed or standing mixer with whisk attachment until thick and glossy, about 10 minutes. Spread a thick layer onto each cupcake and allow to set for at least 5 minutes before dipping into the warm chocolate ganache.

Dark Chocolate Ganache
4 oz fine-quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
½ cup heavy cream

Finely chop chocolate and place in a heat-proof bowl. Heat the cream in a small saucepan until hot, but not boiling. Pour over the chocolate and let it sit for a few minutes to melt the chocolate. Whisk together until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Allow it to cool til it is just slightly warm. Dip the marshmallow creme topped cupcake into the chocolate and invert and sprinkle immediately with the praline crumbles.

Praline Crumbles
(Adapted from Recipe by Gale Gand)
Show: Sweet Dreams
Episode: Cajun Sweets

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup cream
1 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup roasted chopped pecans

In a heavy saucepan combine the sugar, brown sugar, and cream and bring to a boil. Cook on medium heat to softball stage (238 degrees F), then add the butter and pecans. Continue cooking until hardball stage (245 degrees F). Spoon large dollops of it onto a silicone mat or parchment lined baking tray. The pralines will spread and crystallize as they cool. After they have cooled enough to touch break them up into small pieces to use as topping. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

My New Favorite Thing - Taste & Create VII

I decided to RSVP for the latest round of Taste & Create again. I had such fun the last go around and this is such a fun and unique event. I am so glad that I did because my partner, Michelle, of Sugar & Spice has so many amazing posts. First off, I love, love, love her blog - the name, the layout, the recipes, everything about it is amazing. Without Taste & Create I'm still sure I would have found Michelle's blog, but I'm so glad that this event helped me find it that much sooner.

There were so many things that I wanted to make, and have bookmarked to do so, but when I was trying to figure out what to make, I kept coming back to a TWD recipe for Pecan Sour Cream Biscuits. Now, I know that this item has already been blogged by all the TWDer's back in January, but I decided to give it a go anyway. I had already decided to make a big pot of chili for dinner and I decided, since the chili I was going to make promised to be savory and rich (yes, I add a little bittersweet chocolate to it). These biscuits would be perfect with it. And, oh, I wasn't disappointed. Even with my own little mess up in the recipe (umm, 5 Tablespoons of butter, Holl, not a full stick - whoops - this blog should probably be renamed "cooking while distracted"), these biscuits were still tender, flavorful and amazing.

I think the thing I love most about these biscuits, is well, the pecans and brown sugar. No shocker there that I am a huge fan of both brown sugar and pecans. I think I have proved that already on this blog. Anyway, they were absolutely wonderful with the chili (which I will provide the recipe for as well soon) and aside from that I had a last minute idea to serve the biscuits. I usually slather mine with butter, but this time, since I still have some Dulce de Leche from the other day, I decided to put a little of that on it. All I can say is WOW. I mean, seriously, WOW. Of course, it is no shocker that this would be a natural combination, but still, the result was nothing short of delicious.

So, without further ado, here is the recipe for the biscuits. I will post that chili soon, but I will definately be making these biscuits often.

Thanks to Nicole at For the Love of Food for creating this event and to Michelle over at Sugar & Spice for her lovely blog.

Pecan Sour Cream Biscuits
(Source: Dorie Greenspan “Baking: From My Home to Yours” p.25)

(Makes about 12 biscuits)

2 cups all-purpose flour (or 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour and 1/3 cup cake flour)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 cup (packed) light brown sugar
5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces
1/2 cup cold sour cream
1/4 cold whole milk
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans, preferably toasted

Getting Ready:
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Get out a sharp 2-inch-diameter biscuit cutter and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

Whisk the flour(s), baking powder, salt, and baking soda together in a bow. Stir in the brown sugar, making certain there are no lumps. Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat the pieces of butter with flour. Quickly, working with your fingertips (my favorite method) or a pastry blender, cut and rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly. You’ll have pea-size pieces, pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and pieces the size of everything in between– and that’s just right.

Stir the sour cream and milk together and pour over the dry ingredients. Grab a fork and gently toss and turn the ingredients together until you’ve got a nice soft dough. Now reach into the bowl with your hands and give the dough a quick gentle kneading– 3 or 4 turns should be just enough to bring everything together. Toss in the pecans and knead 2 to 3 times to incorporate them.

Lightly dust a work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Dust the top of the dough very lightly with flour, pat the dough out with your hands or toll it with a pin until it is about 1/2 inch high. Don’t worry if the dough isn’t completely even– a quick, light touch is more important than accuracy.

Use the biscuit cutter to cut out as many biscuits as you can. Try to cut the biscuits close to one another so you get the most you can out of the first round. By hand or with a small spatula, transfer the biscuits to the baking sheet. Gather together the scraps, working with them as little as possible, pat out to a 1/2-inch thickness and cut as many additional biscuits as you can; transfer these to the sheet. (The biscuits can be made to this point and frozen on the baking sheet, then wrapped airtight and kept for up to 2 months. Bake without defrosting– just add a couple more minutes to the oven time.)

Bake the biscuits for 14-18 minutes, or until they are tall, puffed and golden brown. Transfer them to a serving basket.