dessert

Loving Lately

Easter Recipe Ideas

In spite of the snowfall this week, spring is here. Which means lighter desserts, such as pavlovas topped with berries and lemon curd, and berry sprinkled tarts are popping up all over my feed. Love.

I’ve assembled a few of my favorite ideas from Martha Stewart, and Southern Living, etc. I’m pretty sure some of these will appear on our dessert table this Sunday.

Recipe photo courtesy of Armando Rafael via MarthaStewart.com

Key lime pie is such a lovely transitional dessert for the season. The brightness of lime is a welcomed diversion from heavier winter flavors, and the light green is as indicative of spring as the buds on the trees. Martha Stewart has given us a No-Bake Key Lime Cheesecake, an “airy, mousse-like treat” that boasts completion in 35 minutes… she’s got my attention.

Image courtesy of Camillestyles.com

And how about this beautiful Almond & Blackberry Cream Pavlova from CamilleStyles.com? Gorgeous! (Also, the featured image.) I’m ecstatic about all of the fresh fruit coming into season. And I’m always ready to welcome the light crunch followed by the dense chew of the sweet marshmallowy treat known as pavlova. Always. Bring it.

Southern Living Photographer Hector Sanchez;Food Stylist Torie Cox;Prop Stylist Caroline Cunnignham Banana Pudding

There is just something about Easter dessert that is etched in my mind with cream puddings and silk pies; much more than chocolate bunnies and jelly beans. I love banana pudding. Truly. It is comfort food in dessert form. So when I was reading 50+ Delightful Spring Desserts from Southern Living, it was natural to click on the Coconut-Banana Pudding Recipe feature from MyRecipes.com… Coconut and Banana? Definitely yes.

He is Risen!

Happy Easter everyone!

Featured Image courtesy of CamilleStyles.com

Maraschino Cherry-Almond Biscotti

On any given day, it’s possible that I have a pre-breakfast snack. (This is a no judge zone.)

On average, I wake at 6:30 am… by 7:00 I’m hitting the gym. Bahaha! Just kidding. (In a dream world though…) But Seriously, by 7 I have a cup of coffee in hand and a mouthful of “something” as I go about my morning routine. Sometimes it’s the crust of a peanut butter sandwich, or some apple slices that didn’t fit in the snack bag for my kid’s packed lunch, other times it’s lemon water and Greek yogurt for a metabolic jump start. For me these first few bites kick off the day and set the tone for my morning. When I really want it to satisfy, it’s biscotti (or a Kind granola bar, because those are just candy I get to call health food). This Maraschino Cherry Almond Biscotti recipe is perfection for those days that you want that- life is good and I’m so fancy feeling… maybe I should get a mani?

1/2 cup butter softened

1 tablespoon almond extract

2 eggs

3 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup sliced almonds, toasted

1 cup maraschino cherries well drained, patted dry, and finely chopped (reserve the juice, secret recipe at the end 😉 )

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Toast your almond slices on a parchment lined cookie sheet for about eight minutes, let cool and set aside.

Chop drained maraschino cherries and strainer a bowl (reserving juice). Place cherries on a paper towel to remove excess moisture so that your biscotti stays crunchy. Set aside.

Beat sugar and butter until smooth, add almond extract, and eggs until combined.


Using a sifter add flour, baking powder, and baking soda and mix until dough is formed. Fold in almonds and cherries.

If dough is crumbly,  turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a couple minutes.

Now divide dough in half and shape each half into a rectangle about 12” x 2.5”, and place each half on an ungreased cookie sheet.


Bake for 30 minutes or until the center of the dough is firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and cool. Once cooled, cut each rectangle on the bias into ½” slices using a serrated knife. Place slices, cut side down, on the ungreased cookie sheet.

Bake about 15 minutes. When they are lightly browned move to a cooling rack.

Once they’re cool they are ready to be enjoyed (and totally delicious in their own right). Or you can decorate them like we did using milk chocolate, white chocolate, sliced almonds and our own maraschino cherry white chocolate.

To make Maraschino Cherry-White Chocolate Glaze: simply melted ½ cup of white chocolate over a double boiler and whisk in about ¼ cup of the (room temperature) reserved maraschino cherry juice.

Have a fabulous morning… and day… evening…

Loving Lately

It’s holiday-season crunch time… the last inning… the homestretch… the- you get the point. Decorations are up. Plans are set. Presents are bought, made, and wrapped (well, in some homes- not mine yet). There’s only one thing left to do… eat! Which in reality is numerous things; shop, prep, cook, bake, serve, clean, etc. But don’t think you have to do it all by yourself. I love that these days we have so many easily accessible handcrafted options; just a click or phone call away! And if you’re looking to put dessert over the edge and wow your guests (even if it’s just your kids, because let’s face it, they are the most important), have I got a tip for you: Baking Bros!

Birch Buck Cake

You know I love my home state of Michigan. And there is nothing more I’d rather do than showcase local talent. Baking Bros, of Lansing Michigan, is loaded with it. Founders, Stephen (the recipe guru) and Andrew (decorator extraordinaire), began their side business baking for co-workers, friends, and family. Of course, with ability like this, it’s only fair that they let the rest of us have a turn in line.

BakingBros Starting Lineup! Funfetti, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Red Velvet, Carrot Cake, and Lemon Blueberry

If you catch the tagline on the Baking Bros Facebook Page, you will see that they are categorized as a “Cupcake Shop” -which is fantastic… but can I just take a moment to showcase these macarons? 

Grey and Gold Chocolate Macarons

Because, I think they could just as easily refer to themselves as a “Macaron Shop”. And incidentally, how cute would those be served at a New Year’s Eve party?

What about a Christmas ham?

Thanksgiving Ham Cake!

Just kidding. That’s cake.

Really, it’s colored fondant.

I swear!

It’s true that holidays are in the forefront this time of year, but as I have mentioned before this is also birthday season for many of my friends. And I actually wish one of my kids was having a birthday right now, because I have a great idea. It’s so good, I can taste it. And it tastes like dirt (just go with it). It sounds like hammer and chiseling. Or maybe brushing? It sounds like exactly whatever archeologists do on their sites; because we are digging for dinosaur fossils! (I don’t know about your kids, but my boys love dinosaurs.) For this hypothetical party, I would order some fake bones, from like Amazon or something, and bury them in the beach area of our back yard (a good sized sand box would work too.) I’d have to make up some wild story about how a T-Rex must have had an epic battle and ripped this [insert dinosaur name here] limb from limb! (How else would the pieces get scattered around?) I’d have a big tarp where we would lay out our pieces, as we tried to put the puzzle of bone shapes together. Eventually, after a successful dig and fossil assembly, we’d be starving… we would wash up, eat something tasty and sensible (TBD), and follow it up with the perfect cake. Can you see it? I can. It looks like this:

Dinosaur Dig!

Are you kidding me! Is that the cutest dinosaur cake you’ve ever seen? Yes, it is. And I am seriously going to order it, as soon as I can talk one of my kids into a dinosaur birthday party. Coincidentally, it is Andrew’s birthday today, the artistic genius behind that idyllic cake. Happy Birthday Andrew!

As much as I would love to plan this party (and I would), I need to focus. Christmas morning is almost here! And do you know what would make that morning extra special? A cup of freshly brewed coffee and these Double Iced CinnaMuffins from Baking Bros. If you are lucky enough to live in the mid-Michigan area, they deliver! (The rest of you keep on the look-out for shipping options in the future 😉 )

Double Iced CinnaMuffins

Thanks to Stephen and Andrew for being so fun to feature! 

For more information and ordering options check out:

Baking Bros

828 Powderhorn

Lansing, Michigan 48917

www.thebakingbros.com

(908) 246-2626

All images in this post are courtesy of Baking Bros. and used with permission

Monster Pops

Those who know me, know that I’m not really a Halloween fan. Do I love adorable kid costumes? Yes. Do I like to be scared? No. If it were up to me we would just skip to Thanksgiving and have intermittent costume parties throughout the year. However, I do like to send in treats to my kids’ seasonal classroom parties. Usually, I like to follow the KISS method (Keep It Simple Stupid). My check list goes something like this, (in order of importance):

  1. Will it taste good?
  2. Is it cute?
  3. Is it realistically easy enough for me to do?

If it checks the criteria, it’s usually a no brainer- no need to keep digging.

Tada! I found these on Lilluna.com! (And you can get all of the details by clicking on the link.) So cute! So simple. I love that it’s not gory or scary… And who doesn’t love Rice Krispy Treats?  You can buy the melting candy already colored, and pre-packaged Krispy Treats. (Also, FYI it’s great for those peanut free classrooms!) This year I was in charge of the snack for both of my elementary schooler’s parties. So I get to use this twice! Bonus!

So, just in case you were looking for a last minute idea… This here, highly recommended! (I just wish I had thought of it…) 😉

Apple & Brie Pie

For more than one holiday, my sister and I have wrapped a small round of brie (to bake) in puffed pastry. Before it’s wrapped, we top the brie with walnuts, dried cranberries, and honey. It’s served with (buttery) crackers, and it’s amazing. One could lighten it up by serving it with some apple slices or celery… You do you. Naturally, due to my butter inclination, it lead to that would make a good pie.

2 – Pie Crusts, homemade or store bought

5 medium Apples (up to 7 small), peeled and sliced about ½ inch thick

Juice of 1 Lemon

1 Tbsp Flour

2 Tbsp granulated Sugar, plus more for sprinkling

3 Tbsp Brown Sugar

1/2 tsp Cinnamon

1/8 tsp Nutmeg, freshly grated

1 Tbsp Honey

1 sprig fresh thyme, finely chopped (or small leaves striped from stem)

1/2 cup dried Cranberries

5 oz. Brie cheese, diced into ½ inch cubes

2 oz. White Cheddar, shredded

1/2 cup Walnuts, chopped

1 Egg white + 1 splash water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 375º.

Blind bake 1 pie crust in a baking dish 10-12 minutes. (Blind bake means to pre-cook the crust, without filling using pie weights, rice or dry beans in parchment paper set on top of the crust.) Set aside.

Meanwhile, place apple slices, lemon juice, flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, thyme, and cranberries in a bowl.

Gently toss until all is mixed well. In the pre-baked crust, evenly distribute apple mixture and brie pieces. Cover the apple and brie filling with an even layer of shredded cheddar cheese. Next place an even layer of chopped walnuts over the cheese.

Carefully lay the second pie dough (in a pattern or not) over the top of the layered pie filling.

Side note: My inspiration for the diamond pattern came from the latest issue of Martha Stewart’s Living Magazine:

(If you do not have a pattern, cut a few slices in the top of the dough to release steam.) With a pastry brush (or spoon), lightly cover the pie dough with the egg wash, and sprinkle with sugar.

Bake for 30-35 minutes, until cheese is oozy, crust is browned, apples are softened but still a little firm, walnuts are toasted, and flavors are melded.

Let stand 10-15 minutes. Serve warm.

…Or at room temp.

…Or for breakfast the next day.

…(Because I can easily eat cheese, crackers and fruit for breakfast. Same thing?)

Chocolate-Covered Strawberries

Happy Valentine’s Day! Today is the day we show our love… I love my husband… I love my kids… I love chocolate-covered strawberries! They are little, red, sweet, and fruity gifts wrapped in chocolate packages. The best part is, well, eating them. But the second best part is that they require very little skill. I don’t know if you’ve made them before, but I want you to know that it is so easy a four-year-old can do it.

As organic as possible:

2 pints (16-18) fresh Strawberries

1 bag (approx 11.5 oz.) Milk-Chocolate chips

1/2 bag (approx 6 oz.) Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips

1/2 bag (approx 6 oz.) White Chocolate chips (optional)

I know in a lot of professional dessert shops, they don’t rinse the strawberries. They actually use a soft brush and clean them like you would a mushroom. I understand the reasoning: you don’t want the extra moisture content to separate the berry from the chocolate. I get it. That said, I’m a little weird about not rinsing my fruit off.

I do use organic strawberries; which is important to me, not eating all of the toxic pesticides, not to mention GMO’s… But this is about Valentine’s Day -so let’s not go there! All I’m saying is that I rinse off my berries. Then pat them dry with a paper towel and let them sit until they are dry again. (I also realize that for someone who cares about the earth I use way too many paper towels.)

Now that we’ve got the dirty part out of the way, let’s get back to those clean berries. When they’re dry, all you need to do is melt your chocolate.

 

If you have a heavy bottomed saucepan, you could put the heat on low and let the chocolate slowly melt. However, it’s a more subtle and foolproof way to do the traditional double broiler method. Just put about an inch of water in the bottom of a sauce pan and set a glass bowl on the top (not touching the water) and set the heat on med-high letting the water come to a boil. Stir often until the chocolate is melted through, and no more chocolate lumps are visible. Carefully move the bowl to your work station (most likely the counter top).

Next, simply hold the berries by their green tips and dip and roll the fruit around in a chocolate bath until the berry is mostly covered with chocolate.

Let the excess drip off and then place them on a wax paper lined baking sheet.

It’s a simple as that, and you can totally stop there and eat your berries -and be happy. But my sweetheart happens to like white chocolate so I took it a step further and melted a little more goodness. This time because of the small amount, I microwaved the white chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl for 30 seconds, then 15 second intervals, stirring in between, until the chocolate was smooth.

Because I am not a pastry shop I just used a Ziploc baggy with a hole cut in the corner for my drizzle.

Using a back and forth zigzag motion, draw the white lines across your chocolate-covered berries. Let the kids help, this doesn’t have to be perfection! (Unless you’re selling them, then you need to be meticulous… please refer to another blog.)

The work is done! Let the berries set for a while until the chocolate cools and hardens. If you have a refrigerator large (and sparse) enough to hold the trays… Lucky you! Just kidding. It can help the chocolate set faster.

And if you have a little extra chocolate that you don’t want to waste… Consider dipping in cookies, or graham crackers!

 Or of course, cleaning out the bowl yourself is always a viable option.

I hope your day is full of LOVE! (and chocolate)

Aunt Shirley’s Sugarless Banana Walnut Cake

This week my Great-Aunt Shirley went to be with the Lord. She was remarkably witty and kind, and very much a part of my childhood. She was also a diabetic, although I never heard her complain. She and my grandmother were diligent in controlling the disease as much as possible with their diet. In her memory, I wanted to share one of her recipes. I think this is my first purposefully published sugar-free recipe; which seems befitting. And I’ll tell you what I love about it (besides that it came from my great-aunt), is that she didn’t try and substitute the sugar with something artificial. The bananas are the only sweetness, and the walnuts actually shine. I think it would be great served warm with a small pat of butter in the morning with your coffee. Or, depending on your GI intake, I might drizzle a small amount of honey (maybe a tablespoon or so for the whole cake – 9 servings) over the top while it is warm and can soak it up to represent more of a dessert to which we are accustomed. Enjoy.

As organic as possible:

2/3 cup mashed Bananas (approx 2)

1/2 cup Butter or Margarine, softened

3 Eggs

2 cups all-purpose Flour

2 tsp Baking Powder

1 tsp ground Cinnamon

3/4 cup Water

1 cup Walnuts

In a mixing bowl, beat bananas and butter until creamy.

Add eggs and beat well.

In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon; add to banana mixture alternately wit water, beating well after each addition.

Stir in nuts.

Spoon into a greased 9 inch square baking pan.

Bake at 350° for 30 minutes or until cake tests done. Cool. Yield: 9 servings.

Because I just have to, here is a picture of my grandma (top left) with her brother and sisters, Aunt Shirley is top center.

And this is Aunt Shirley as I will always remember her.

 

Stroopwafels

I know I’ve mentioned it before, my fascination and appreciation of the Dutch stroopwafel. Visiting that street vendor was a highlight of my trip to the Netherlands. New York has its hot dogs. Paris has its crêpes. And Amsterdam has its stroopwafels. If you haven’t tried one before, imagine being attracted by a similar smell of an ice cream shop that is making its own waffle cones. But instead of cones, they are making fresh waffled cookie type sandwiches with a thin caramel-esque syrup-y  inner layer that you can hold in your hand while you walk around the outdoor market or town. They can be purchased in different sizes, but the stroopwafels are globally known for their cup-sized roundness; because the idea is that they come back to life as they are warmed through while resting on the rim of your morning (or afternoon… or evening…) coffee or tea. And the unfortunate truth is that I haven’t had any stroopwafels since being stateside that tasted remotely like what I remembered in Holland. Until now. When these are fresh, they are incredible.

As found on Food.com

Waffle cookies

4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 (1/4 ounce) package active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water
Filling

1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
1 cup unsalted butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
6 tablespoons dark corn syrup

DIRECTIONS

Preheat a pizzelle iron. Or in my case a Belgian Cookie Iron.
To Make Waffles: Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.

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Cut butter into the flour.

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Mix in the sugar, cinnamon, eggs and yeast mixture.

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Mix well and set aside to rise for 30 to 60 minutes.

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Roll dough into 12 small balls.

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Squeeze each ball into the preheated pizzelle (or Belgian cookie) iron…

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and bake for about 30 seconds.

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Place the little beauties onto a wax paper.

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To make perfectly rounded edges, use a large biscuit cutter to trim off the excess. (Optional)

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Using a butter knife or the like, cut (or separate) the waffles into two thin waffles.

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Spread the filling…
To Make Filling: In a saucepan boil the brown sugar, the remaining one cup of the butter, cinnamon (this is a must-have ingredient), and dark corn syrup until it reaches the “soft ball stage” (234-240°F, 112-115°C), stirring constantly.

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To Assemble: Cut each waffle (or separate) into 2 thin waffles and spread with filling.

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I used an offset spatula and my fingertip table…

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Repeat this process until all the filling is used. If using store bought, simply spread about 1 tablespoon of filling on one waffle cookie, and place a second cookie on top.

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Makes about 12 servings. Look at these!!!

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Tip: Try eating stroopwafel by resting it over a warm cup of coffee or tea — the steam will warm these up just right.

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Juan’s Flan

My husband happens to be my biggest supporter. You may have noticed his regular comments on Sadie’s Nest as Owen. He also promotes my blog amongst his colleagues. How nice is it that they positively respond with kind words and even recipes! I am truly flattered, and at the same time extremely frightened! I don’t want to disappoint you Juan!! My flan did not turn out pretty…  I am secretly referring to it as Frankenflan. Just keeping it real: a day in the life of an experimental home cook. But that’s what it’s about, trying new things! Thank you so much for sharing a family recipe with me, “a traditional Mexican dessert that originated in Spain.” In spite of its (my flan’s) appearance, it was amazingly delicious!

For the syrup:

  • 1 cup sugar

First you have to make the syrup, which is made by melting the sugar in a pan until it turns into a mustard-like color. Then you spread it over the mold carefully because it gets really hot. (And in Sadie’s experience it cools and hardens quickly- so work fast!)

For the custard:

  • 1 can evaporated milk
  • 1 can condensed milk
  • 6 whole eggs
  • 1 – 8 oz. bar Cream cheese

 

Mix all of the ingredients in a blender. After mixing, pour the liquid contents in the mold that already has the syrup. (Because I don’t own a cool flan mold, I used a traditional glass pie dish.)

In a preheated oven at 350 degrees, you place the mold inside another larger mold (or as Sadie did, place the pie dish in a larger rectangular baking dish)  and pour room temperature water at the same height as the flan mixture in the mold. Bake for 45 min. 

*Please note: Perhaps because Sadie doesn’t have a traditional flan mold or one to place it in for its water bath, I needed to add another 10-15 minutes of carefully watched time until my flan was set.

Let it cool, then remove it from the mold, and place in a refrigerator for a couple of hours. Serve and cheers to Juan! 😉

Isaiah’s Chocolate Dipped Peanut Butter Cookies

School’s out. So what do you do when your mom thinks she’s a home-ec teacher circa 1991 and you have a hankering for a chocolatey treat? You get out the measuring cups and mixing bowls so you can make yourself something awesome! I’m so proud of him, I’m beaming. And I’m eating some outstanding deliciousness. Chocolate and peanut butter are such a great combination. But don’t take it just from me, let’s hear Isaiah tell us about it: “They’re made with peanut butter, and they’re cookies.” (Cue the crickets)


Adapted from William-Sonoma’s The Cookbook for Kids

As organic as possible:

For Cookies

1/2 cup Butter

3/4 cup Brown sugar

1/4 cup Sugar

3/4 cup Chunky peanut butter

1 Egg

1/2 tsp Vanilla

1 1/4 cup Flour

1 tsp Baking soda

1/4 tsp Salt

 

For Chocolate Dip

1 1/4 cup Semisweet chocolate chips

1 Tbsp Vegetable shortening

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Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, beat the butter, brown sugar, granulated sugar, and peanut butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until blended. Add the egg and vanilla and beat until blended. Add the flour, baking soda, and salt and beat on low speed until blended.

Shape the dough into 1 1/2 inch balls, placing 12 balls at least 2 inches apart on each baking sheet. Using a fork, press twice into each cookie to make a crisscross pattern. Bake the cookies until golden, 8-10 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks and let cool completely.

Meanwhile, add the chocolate chips to a microwave-safe bowl. Add the shortening. Microwave on high for 1 minute, stir. Then microwave for 30 seconds longer or until melted.

One at a time, dip half of each cookie into the melted chocolate, then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. When all the cookies are dipped, place the baking sheet in the refrigerator just until the chocolate is set, about 5 minutes. Store the cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Warning! This may attract on lookers.

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Another Warning! This is messy.

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But they’re worth it.

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