Happy Go Marni

Chocolate Pecan Pie with the Flakiest Crust Everrrrrr!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 03 Jun 2012 01:20:00 +0000

This is such an amazing chocolate pecan pie, and I shouldn't be surprised...it's from Alice Medrich! Don't just make it at Thanksgiving time. Pecans are always readily available, and deliciousness should be fair game anytime of year. It's not a difficult recipe, either. The filling is pretty basic, and no challenging cooking technique required. The crust only has a few ingredients and you don't need a food processor. If you want to go all out, choose extra special chocolate. The chocolate shines through in this pie, so splurging on better quality chocolate is actually worth considering here.

Make it for a dinner party, a holiday get together, or for a weekend all by yourself. Just be sure to sign up for an intense cardio class at the gym if you opt for option 3.

I'm thinking there will be more pies in my future. This was really fun to make, impressive, and absolutely beyond delicious. The flaky crust did my guests and me in! I haven't recovered from that yet.

Chocolate Pecan Pie
Adapted from a recipe by Alice Medrich in Chocolate Holidays
Serves 8-10

Crust
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
4-5 tablespoons water

Filling
2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 cup (lightly packed) dark brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon rum, bourbon, or brandy
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 eggs
2 cups pecan halves, toasted
Vanilla bean ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream

For the crust, in a mixing bowl combine the flour and salt. Cut the butter chunks into the flour mixture using a pastry blender or two knives. Continue until the largest pieces are the size of peas and the rest are the size of bread crumbs. Be careful not to overmix or the butter will turn into a paste or even melt. Drizzle 4 tablespoons of water over the mixture and distribute this moisture into the dough with a rubber spatula, folding and pressing as you go, until the mixture is just wet enough to hold together. Add up to 1 tablespoon more water if necessary. Press the dough into a flat disk and wrap in plastic wrap before chilling in the fridge for 30 minutes and up to 3 days before using.

When you're ready to bake the crust, remove the dough from the fridge and let stand until you can roll it out on a lightly floured work surface and it won't crack. Roll the dough into a circle about 1/8-inch thick, rotating the dough as you go. Fold the dough into quarters and transfer to the pie pan. Unfold the quarters and carefully press into the pan so that the dough reaches 1 inch beyond the rim of the pan. With the dough that's hanging over, tuck it under and flute or crimp the edge. Chill the crust in the fridge at least 30 minutes before baking.

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Remove the chilled pie crust from the fridge. Press foil (shiny side down) over the crust, taking care not to wreck the crimped edges. Use a fork to prick the bottom of the crust all over, piercing right through the foil. Use pie weights or dried beans to weigh down the crust. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the foil liner and pie weights and return to the oven to bake for another 10 to 12 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

For the filling, which you should prepare while the crust is baking, combine the chocolate with the corn syrup and butter in the top of a double boiler set over a pan of barely simmering water. Or you can skip the double boiler and cook directly over the stove, but you have to be much more careful about not burning the chocolate. Stir the chocolate until it is completely melted and smooth, then stir in the brown sugar, salt, rum, and vanilla. Add the eggs and continue stirring until well combined and hot to the touch. Remove the pan from the heat and stir occasionally until ready to use.

When the crust is done, remove it from the oven, but leave the oven on. Scatter the toasted pecans over the bottom of the crust. Pour the hot filling over the pecans and return the pie pan to the oven. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the filling is puffed and cracked at the edges, golden brown in spots, but still jiggles in the center if poked or shaken slightly. Unfortunately you can't use the toothpick rule here because if you insert a toothpick, it's not supposed to come out clean. There will be gooey deliciousness stuck to it. As the filling is baking, if you notice that the crust is browning too fast, cover the edges with foil. Cool the pie on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature with vanilla bean ice cream or lightly sweetened whipped cream. Enjoy!

Salted Caramel Ice Cream...The Bi-Rite Creamery Way!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 07:01:00 +0000

I had an out of body experience eating this ice cream. I had to pinch myself to make sure it wasn't a dream. If you've never gone to Bi-Rite Creamery in the Mission in San Francisco, you are really missing out. I remember when I was there last, I got caramelized bananas and they used a giant blow torch from a hardware store, not some dainty creme brulee kitchen torch. They mean business. But more importantly, I remember the salted caramel ice cream. That's because it's the flavor to be reckoned with. It's the flavor people travel far and wide for. And it's unreal.

This month, Bi-Rite released an ice cream cookbook to the world called Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones. Bi-Rite, the world thanks you! It means I can now make salted caramel ice cream at home. And living in L.A., it's not so easy to drive up to SF on a whim whenever I'm craving the stuff.

I saw that Serious Eats had posted the recipe and I decided it was important to test it out at home, make sure it was doable, that the recipe lived up to its reputation, and it wasn't just something to be left to the experts at the ice cream shop. If all went well, I would buy the cookbook because obviously where there's one to-die-for ice cream recipe, there are bound to be more.

Well, the ice cream lived up to its reputation. Ha! Understatement of the century. It was surprisingly doable, and the intense taste of salted caramel was unbeatable. The texture was perfectly smooth and so creamy that it felt almost too indulgent! Every spoonful was filled with guilt!

The bottom line is, I brought Bi-Rite Creamery to my L.A. kitchen and I'm so excited!

Salted Caramel Ice Cream
Adapted from a recipe in Sweet Cream and Sugar Cones by Kris Hoogerhyde, Anne Walker, and Dabney Gough

1 3/4 cups heavy cream, at room temperature
3/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
3/4 cup 1% or 2% milk
1 teaspoon kosher salt
5 large egg yolks

Note from Marni: Before you begin, be sure to read the instructions below completely. There are various ingredients to measure out or combine ahead, as well as having bowls, strainers, and even an ice bath ready. You'll be glad you prepped in advance because the recipe is time sensitive and you can't afford to be measuring things out while the mixture is cooking and you're stirring constantly. Consider yourself warned! :)

For the Caramel: Set a heavy bottom saucepan over the stove. Measure 1/2 cup of the sugar (the remaining 1/4 cup will go in with the egg yolks for the ice cream base). Start with 2 tablespoons of sugar from that 1/2 cup and place in the saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat until the sugar melts around the edges and turns an amber color, about 2 minutes. Add another 2 tablespoons of sugar until it melts, then continue, adding 2 tablespoons at a time until all the sugar is added and melted, stirring frequently. Be careful not to let the sugar burn; scrape the sides and bottom often.

When the caramel is a dark mahogony color, remove the saucepan from the heat and place it on a trivet. Immediately pour all of the cream in. Be very careful to use an oven mitt and protect your hand because the steam from adding the cream can burn you. Stir carefully to incorporate the cream so that no caramel lumps remain. If necessary because the lumps won't go away on their own, put the saucepan back on the stove and cook over low heat until the lumps are melted, then remove again from the heat.

For the Ice Cream Base: With the saucepan still off the heat, add the 3/4 cup milk and the salt to the caramel mixture and stir to blend. Place the saucepan back on the stove and cook on medium-high heat. Allow the mixture to reach a light simmer, barely bubbling, and then reduce the heat to medium.

In a medium heatproof bowl, such as a glass bowl, whisk together the 5 egg yolks and remaining 1/4 cup sugar.

Since you can't add this egg mixture directly to the ice cream base because the eggs will turn into scrambled eggs, you have to temper them first and bring their temperature up. To do that, carefully scoop out a 1/4 cup of the hot base mixture and whisk it into the egg yolks. The egg yolks will start to warm up. Add another 1/4 cup of the base mixture into the yolk mixture. Continue little by little until the eggs feel very warm when you touch the bottom of the glass bowl. They are now ready to be added back into the saucepan with the base. Pour all of the warmed up egg yolks into the saucepan, stirring constantly. Continue to cook the mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the base is thick enough to coat the back of a heatproof spatula. This only takes about 2 minutes. You'll know it's ready if you run your finger across the back of the spatula and it leaves the mark of your finger.

Have another medium-size bowl ready, and sitting in an ice bath. Set a fine mesh strainer over the bowl. Pour the hot ice cream base through the strainer into the bowl. Stir the base constantly until it cools down from the ice bath and stops cooking. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in the fridge overnight.

The following night, when the base is completely chilled, pour the base into the ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions and churn for approximately 20 minutes until the ice cream has thickened to a soft serve consistency and the churning slows down. While it is churning, place the ice cream storage container in the freezer so it is really cold when the ice cream is ready and needs to be transferred into its container. Store the ice cream in the freezer and let it firm up for a few hours before serving. Then enjoy a little taste of San Francisco heaven!

The Making of Salted Caramel Ice Cream in Photos
The chilled base is ready to get churned into ice cream...

Pour the base into the ice cream maker...

It's done when the ice cream has thickened to a soft serve consistency and the churning slows down...

Transfer the ice cream to a cold container and store in the freezer to set for a few hours...

Scoop and enjoy!

Marniism: How to Cover a Frosted Cake with Foil so that the Foil Doesn't Stick to the Frosting

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 03:34:00 +0000

NOTE: A Marniism is any sort of useful habit or words of wisdom that I live by and want to share with you. Basically, a Happy Go Marni tip with a better name.

Two weeks ago during Passover, I was helping my mom put away the leftovers from the seder. There were so many leftovers! In fact, there was an entire untouched flourless chocolate cake with a chocolate ganache coating. I guess we overestimated the quantity of food needed. Although looking back, shouldn't this cake have been eaten up and the veggies spared? What's up with our priorities? Anyways, as my mom went to cover this extra cake with a loose piece of foil that was bound to land on the top of the cake and stick to the ganache, I yelled "STOPPPPPP!" I told her about a technique I had learned from King Arthur Flour that protects a cake from having the frosting get stuck to the foil. We applied this trick to our flourless chocolate cake and it worked perfectly!

Here's the tip:

Get a couple of toothpicks and the same number of marshmallows, ideally the large size, but mini marshmallows will work, too.
Stick a marshmallow on the end of each toothpick but don't let the toothpick go all the way through and out the other side of the marshmallow
Stick each toothpick into the top of the cake, spaced evenly apart at the corners of the cake. Don't push the toothpicks all the way down into the cake. You want them to stand tall over the cake.
Then cut a piece of foil large enough to cover the entire cake and tuck under the plate. Rest the foil carefully over the marshmallow-tipped toothpicks. Voila! The foil never touches the top of the cake because of the marshmallow padding! I love this tip!!!

Photo Gallery of the Marshmallow Toothpick Trick!

The Best Banana-Walnut Muffins I've Ever Had in My Entire Life. Seriously.

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 01:15:00 +0000

I can honestly say this is the best banana-walnut muffin I have ever had. And that's a very strong statement I don't take lightly. But it's the truth, and how rude would it be for me to keep such a truth from you!

My mom made this recipe first and then called me up after she tasted one of her wares. She was in shock and awe at the delightful muffin of perfection she had created. She couldn't get over it. I'm not even sure she had finished her second bite when she called to tell me. It was that big of a deal what she had discovered. I asked her where she got the recipe and she said it was a Williams-Sonoma cookbook and Beth Hensperger was commissioned to do the recipes for it. That meant something to me since I own several of Beth Hensperger's cookbooks and she is one of the best cookbook authors I know. I said to my mom, "Is that the one with the dark blue cover?" "Yup," my mom replied. I knew which one it was. Out of the thousand cookbooks I owned, I could picture the cover of this one in my head. And how lucky for me that I had a copy! I mean, it's not like my mom and I overlap exactly on which cookbooks we each own.

So with three bananas getting ripe just days after my mom made this important discovery, there was only one thing for me to do. I set out to see if I could recreate my mom's perfect experience. I made the recipe. And Oh. My. Gawd. Holy Muffin of Muffins. It truly is the best banana-walnut muffin I have ever tasted in my life. I don't know if I'll ever find a better one. No longer will bakery muffins suffice. This has ruined all others for me. I have now been exposed to what a perfect muffin is capable of.

I hope you, dear reader, make this asap, so that you, too, can experience a perfect muffin. It doesn't get any better than this. Although my mom, who added mini chocolate chips to her batch, would say hers is better than mine. I suppose she's got a point.

Best Ever Banana-Walnut Muffins
Adapted from a recipe by Beth Hensperger in Williams-Sonoma Muffins
Makes 9-11 muffins

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped and toasted
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup walnut oil or canola oil
1 large egg
2 or 3 medium to large very ripe bananas, slightly mashed to yield 1 1/4 cups
3 tablespoons buttermilk (or 2 1/4 teaspoons buttermilk powder and 3 tablespoons water...I actually used extra buttermilk powder, about 3 tablespoons total, but followed the 3 tablespoons water)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a standard muffin pan with 10-12 paper liners or grease. The recipe yielded 11 muffins for me, only 9 when my mom made it. If you don't use all of the muffin cups in the pan, fill the empty ones with water to one-third full so you don't scorch or warp the pan.

In a medium sized bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, toasted walnuts, baking soda, and salt (and buttermilk powder if not using liquid buttermilk).

In a large bowl or stand mixer, whisk or beat together the oil, egg, mashed bananas, and buttermilk (or water if using buttermilk powder) until well combined. Add the dry ingredients and beat until evenly mixed, but don't overmix. Scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is incorporated.

Use a mini ladle to spoon the batter into each muffin cup, filling each one to the top of the cup. Don't worry, they crown perfectly and don't overflow onto the muffin pan.

Bake 20-23 minutes, until golden, set, and springy to the touch. Test for doneness with a cake tester or toothpick; it should come out clean. Remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool 5 minutes before transferring the muffins to a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. They are great plain, with butter and/or jam, or cut in half and toasted with butter.

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Stir together the flour, sugar, baking soda, toasted walnuts, and salt; set aside...

In a large mixing bowl, beat together the egg, oil, buttermilk, and mashed banana...
Add the dry ingredients...
Beat until well incorporated...
Spoon evenly into muffin cups, filling all the way to the top...

Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-23 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean...
Remove from the oven and let cool 5 minutes in the pan, then transfer muffins to a rack. Enjoy!

My New Favorite Trader Joe's Item: Reduced Guilt Spinach & Kale Greek Yogurt Dip

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 07:17:00 +0000

I am in love with this new dip. I bought it on a whim a few days ago, because for the past few months of Trader Joe's visits, I've been eying their traditional spinach dip, even picking it up to admire it, but then always placing it back on the shelf. It's not exactly healthfood (though the green vegetable in it sure makes it deceiving!).

So on my most recent visit to Trader Joe's, I was beside myself and jumping out of my skin when I saw a new product right next to the spinach dip. It even looked like spinach dip. Heck, it is a dip and it does have spinach in it. It's Reduced Guilt Spinach & Kale Greek Yogurt Dip! And right on the front of the package label, it says it's 50% of the fat of regular spinach dip. SOLD! 16 ounces of deliciousness for $3.99. My middle-of-the-night need-a-snack prayers have been answered.

After multiple instances of eating this dip, I must say, it tastes so much like the spinach dip we're all used to - the one you often see in sourdough bread bowls at parties - that I may never need to go back to the original.

I just thought you all should know.

Oh, and I've been crazy busy lately, but I'll go back to blogging baked goods soon. I have a lot to share with you.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 05:06:00 +0000

Banana + chocolate + peanut butter make for such a heavenly flavor trio that honestly, I read it and I hear angels singing. "Ahhhhhhhhhhh," sing the angels.

This recipe came from a duo of amazing bakers who own a bakery in Brooklyn called Baked. One day I'm going to make a trip to Brooklyn just to visit them (and get pizza). Anyways, I tweaked a couple things in the recipe, added in chocolate chips, swapped the sour cream for yogurt, added a little extra of that dairy, and boom. Here it is. My dream cupcake.

One of the many benefits of getting a recipe online is that sometimes other readers have already chimed in and written reviews, shared suggestions, rated the recipe. In this case, I noticed two frequently recurring comments about the frosting: 1. It's the most incredible frosting on Earth. 2. The recipe makes way too much frosting and you can cut it in half. So, I decided I wasn't going to modify the frosting (it ain't broken!), but I also decided I wasn't going to cut the recipe in half. I like a cupcake with a lot of frosting. Plus, I was planning to pipe the frosting on rather than spread it with a spatula. And piping uses more frosting than spreading. As it turned out, I made a wise decision. I used up every last drop of the frosting on my 52 mini cupcakes. And I wouldn't have it any other way!

Please, pretty please, make this. Don't delay.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Cream Cheese Frosting
Adapted from a recipe by Matt Lewis and Renato Poliafito that was published on Epicurious.com (and in Bon Appetit April 2010)
Makes 12-15 cupcakes or 48-52 mini cupcakes

Cupcakes:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 very ripe large bananas, peeled
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons plain lowfat yogurt
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 overflowing cup of mini semisweet chocolate chips (tossed in 2 tablespoons of the dry ingredients)

Frosting:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter (do not use old-fashioned or freshly ground)

For cupcakes:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Line 12 standard (1/3-cup) muffin cups with paper liners or48 to 52 mini muffin cups. Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl to blend.

In a small bowl, pour in the mini chocolate chips and add in 2 tablespoons of the dry ingredients, tossing to coat the chocolate chips (this will help prevent the chips from falling to the bottom of each cupcake while baking).

In another medium bowl, mash bananas with fork until smooth. Mix yogurt and vanilla into bananas.

In the large bowl of a stand mixer (or using a hand mixer), beat sugar and butter in large bowl until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add egg and egg yolk and beat until well blended. Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with banana-yogurt mixture in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture and beating just until blended after each addition. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups, filling to 3/4 full in each mini muffin cup.

Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center of each comes out clean, about 18-20 minutes for regular size cupcakes, or 13-14 minutes for mini cupcakes. Transfer cupcakes to rack and let cool completely.

For frosting:
Sift powdered sugar into large bowl. Add cream cheese, butter, and peanut butter. Using electric mixer, beat mixture until smooth. Spread frosting over top of cupcakes with a metal spatula, dividing equally, or scoop frosting into piping bag with a large tip to decorate the top. Frosting can be made 1 day ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Whisk dry ingredients together and set aside...

Toss the chocolate chips in a small bowl with two tablespoons of the dry ingredients...

In another bowl, mash bananas and stir in yogurt and vanilla...

These are your wet ingredients! Set aside...
In a mixer, beat butter and sugar together, then add eggs...

Add dry ingredients and wet ingredients alternately, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients, then stir in the chocolate chips...
Scoop batter into cupcake liners to 3/4 full...
Bake at 350 degrees for 13-14 minutes for mini cupcakes, 18-20 minutes for regular size cupcakes, then cool completely on wire rack...

For the frosting, sift powdered sugar into bowl, then add peanut butter, butter, cream cheese...
Beat frosting until smooth and pipe or spread onto cupcake tops...
Enjoy!

Pumpkin, Cinnamon, and Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 18:58:00 +0000

It's February and I still have leftover cans of pumpkin. What a great reason to make pumpkin cookies. Not to mention, I have a bag of cinnamon chips that I picked up at the King Arthur Flour headquarters in Vermont last fall and they deserve to be featured in something where they can truly shine. These cookies allow them to shine.

The crunch from two kinds of chips combined with canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice result in a fantastic cookie. As is common with pumpkin cookies, these are more on the cakey side than the chewy side. But I love them. I had a friend over the night I made these and let's just say, it's a good thing he has such a fast metabolism (we can all despise him). He must have inhaled 10 cookies without much of a breath between bites. I'm already thinking I should make another batch of these. I still have more canned pumpkin to go through, and there are more friends to feed!

Pumpkin, Cinnamon, and Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from a recipe on the Keep It Sweet blog
Makes about 5 dozen cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 cup canned pumpkin (do not use pumpkin pie filling - it's not the same thing!)
3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup cinnamon chips (King Arthur Flour sells amazing cinnamon chips, just FYI!)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together: flour, salt, baking soda, and pumpkin pie spice. Set aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer or using an electric hand mixer, beat the butter and sugars together until fluffy and light in color.

Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until incorporated, 1-2 minutes. Then beat in the pumpkin.

Gently stir in the dry ingredients and do not overmix.

Stir in the chocolate chips and cinnamon chips.

Scoop tablespoonfuls of cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing each mound 1 inch apart because they will spread. Bake 8-10 minutes. The cookies will look set when done, and you can test this by lightly pressing your finger against the top and if it doesn't leave an indentation, it is ready. Cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Step-by-Step in Pictures

Beat the butter and sugars together...

Add the eggs...

Add the vanilla...

Add the pumpkin...

Stir in the dry ingredients...

Stir in the chocolate chips and cinnamon chips...

Scoop out tablespoonfuls of cookie dough onto the prepared baking sheet...

Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes. Allow to cool, then enjoy!

Unicorn Poop Cookies, the Most Magical Cookies in All the Land

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 05:48:00 +0000

I simply cannot take credit for such an amazing cookie. The Unicorn Poop Cookie is the brainchild of a genius named kristylynn84 (at least, that's her username on Instructables). Try it at home! She provides the recipe and step-by-step instructions here. And she even made a cheesy-good video set to classical music that beholds such a beauty.

I always knew baking was magical, but this takes it to a whole new level.

Board Certified Banana Fudge Brownies with Walnuts

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 08:01:00 +0000

I brought these to work and people went bananas! I've learned over years of bringing treats to parties, work, friends' houses, etc, that certain flavor combinations are definite hits with crowds. And the popular opinion whole-heartedly supports chocolate and banana together. These brownies are the real deal. They mean business. Monkey business. So so good!

I doubled the recipe and used 3 ripe bananas I had on hand. The recipe supposedly comes from the California Walnut Board. Did you know such an organization existed? That's some serious dedication to a nut! The "supposedly" above is because my mom sent me the recipe, which she had saved on a recipe card in a binder, and can't recall for sure, but thinks it's from that walnut board. I'm going to assume she's right. Because board certified brownies simply sound better. It's like they passed a test or something. And hey, based on the faces of the lucky recipients of the batch I made, they passed with flying colors.

If you happen to know for sure that these don't come from the California Walnut Board, or heck, that the board is a fantasy all together, please keep it to yourself. I purposely didn't check Google for accuracy because I like a little mystery now and then. And I can't bear the thought of these brownies not being board certified. It would ruin my day. ;)

Banana Fudge Brownies with Walnuts

Adapted from a recipe by the California Walnut Board (if memory serves my mom right...hehe)
Makes an 8-inch pan of brownies (recipe can be doubled and baked in a 9x13-inch pan)

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
6 ounces semisweet chocolate (can use chocolate chips)
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/3 cup mashed ripe banana (about 1 small)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/3 cup chopped walnuts, toasted

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottom only of 8-inch square pan. I like to line my pan with foil and then grease the foil so it's easy to lift the entire tray of brownies out and slice on a cutting board.

In a saucepan, melt together the butter and chocolate. Remove from the heat and beat in the flour, sugar, mashed banana, vanilla, baking powder, salt, egg, and walnuts with a wooden spoon.

Spread batter evenly in prepared pan.

Bake 20-25 minutes or until center is set (do not overbake or the brownies will be dry). Cool in the pan on a wire rack, then cut into 2-inch squares. Or smaller, bite-size squares, which is my preference.

Step-by-Step in Pictures

Melt the chocolate and butter together...

Remove from the heat and add the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt...

Add the banana, egg, and vanilla...

Stir in the toasted walnuts...

Spread evenly in the prepared pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes at 350 degrees F...

Cool, then slice and serve!

One Bottle of Beer Bread

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 06:00:00 +0000

Do you know why the song "99 Bottles of Beer" is called "99 Bottles of Beer"? Here's a nifty story. Believe it at your own risk. There once were 100 bottles of beer. A nice round number. But someone stole a bottle to make this beer yeast bread and then there were only 99!

Got an extra bottle of beer lying around? This yeast bread recipe calls for exactly one bottle. No need to use a glass measuring cup because you use the whole bottle! I love that it's the perfect quantity! And each time you make this bread, it will come out a little different because you can continue to change up the brand of beer you use.

I was at my parents' house when I made this. They are not the drinking kind. But I did find one random, lonely bottle of beer in the fridge in their garage, and I knew they wouldn't miss it. So I used an Italian beer called Birra Moretti La Rossa. The loaf was great! It's got white whole wheat flour in it, which gives it a hearty flavor. Would be great for making sandwiches. Turkey or cheddar! And of course, it's best enjoyed with a tall ice cold beverage in a frosty glass, if you catch my drift. ;)

One Bottle of Beer Bread

Adapted from a recipe by Marcy Goldman in The Best of Betterbaking.com

Makes 1 large loaf

1/4 cup warm water

1 tablespoon instant yeast

2 tablespoons sugar

1 1/2 cups warm beer

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 cups white whole wheat flour

2 to 2 1/2 cups bread flour

1 egg white, beaten until foamy, for glazing

Grease or spray a 9x5-inch loaf pan. Place on a lined baking sheet.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the beater attachment, stir together the water, yeast, and sugar. Let stand for 2 to 3 minutes until the yeast is dissolved.

Add the beer, oil, salt, white whole wheat flour, and 1 cup of the bread flour. Mix until well combined, then switch from the beater attachment to the dough hook attachment. Add the remaining bread flour, only as much as is needed to form a smooth, elastic dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Knead for a few minutes. Then transfer the dough to a floured work surface and knead by hand for a few minutes.

Spray the inside of a large bowl and place the dough in the bowl, then turn to coat both sides with the oil. Cover and let rise until almost doubled in size, about 30 to 45 minutes.

Return the dough to the floured work surface, pat it down to deflate it, and then shape it into a loaf. Place in the prepared pan. Brush the top of the loaf with the foamy egg white. Cover the pan and let rise until almost doubled in size, about 30 to 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Slash the top of the loaf with a very sharp knife in two diagonal lines. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the top is browned and the bottom sounds hollow when tapped. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for the first 15 minutes, then remove to the wire rack to cool completely outside of the pan.

Step-by-Step in Pictures

Dissolve the yeast in water and sugar...

If you look closely, you can see that the entire bottle of beer has been poured into the measuring glass to make exactly 1 1/2 cups...in other words, no need to measure! Pour the whole bottle in the mixing bowl!

Add the beer, oil, salt, white whole wheat flour, and 1 cup of bread flour...

Add enough additional bread flour to form a smooth, elastic dough...

The dough will start to pull away from the sides of the bowl...

Let the dough rise in a greased bowl, covered, until doubled in size. Then shape into a loaf and place in the prepared pan. Brush with the foamy egg white, let rise again until doubled in size, then slash the top of the loaf with two diagonal lines...

Bake at 375 degrees F for 35 to 40 minutes...

Let cool on a wire rack, then slice and enjoy with an ice cold bottle of BEER!

A Tool to Help You Make My Award-Winning Lucky Charms Ice Cream

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 03:00:00 +0000

Remember that Award-Winning Lucky Charms Ice Cream I blogged about back in April? One of the steps for making the ice cream required separating the toasted oat grain cereal from the marshmallows. And as a dedicated ice cream maker, I handpicked those marshmallows out, one by one, because what else was I going to do? It was a labor of love.

But I just read in a blog that someone invented a sifter that almost perfectly separates the marshmallows from Lucky Charms cereal! I know you are celebrating quietly in your seat.

The only minor challenge is that you need to own a 3D printer (or become friends with an owner of one) because that's how you create your sifter. The sifter shape reminds me of a paper tea cup with holes in the bottom. So, go invest in a 3D printer and then make delicious Lucky Charms Ice Cream! How much do 3D printers cost? Small price to pay!

Step-by-step instructions for making your own sifter here.

I Want a Wonder Woman KitchenAid Stand Mixer and I'm Ready to Fly to Brazil to Get It

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 18:24:00 +0000

Looks like KitchenAid's Brazilian division is offering a Wonder Woman edition of the KitchenAid stand mixer. And a peace and flower edition! And a bugs edition! And a skull and cross bones edition! Gahhhhh! View the Brazil KitchenAid stand mixer Facebook photo album here. Maybe they'll add more designs soon!

This news came to me while I was staring depressingly at my plain white uber-boring white mixer. I've already vented on this blog in the past about my white mixer, wishing I had a fun color like turquoise or hot pink. Now that I see these special edition patterned ones, forget the solid bright colors! (Though honestly, anything is more fun than white!)

Do I have to fly to Brazil to get one or do they ship internationally? I'm ready to book my flight.

Honey and White Whole Wheat Bread

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 08:01:00 +0000

It's the darndest thing. I was watching an episode of Man vs. Food on the Travel Channel, and this cook was featured demonstrating how he makes meat pastries (or pasties, as the restaurant calls them) from scratch, rolling out the dough with a vintage commercial dough roller, and hand filling and shaping each pastry. My mouth was watering. And within a minute of watching that, I got the urge to make homemade dough. The guy on the episode wasn't using yeast, but I think my craving to make dough was so strong, and unspecific enough, that pretty much any type of dough would do.

I pulled out a bread book from my extensive collection, and selected the first thing I saw that I had all the ingredients for without needing to stop at a grocery store. This Honey and White Whole Wheat Bread was the winner.

The bread has a delicious, hearty, sweet taste, and is a bit dense from all the whole wheat. I think next time I'd use a cup of all-purpose flour to replace one of the cups of white whole wheat, just so it isn't quite such a heavy dough, as is typical of whole wheats. But I can't really complain, because I can't stop eating the loaf, and it makes delicious toast with a little butter spread on top. I made split pea soup from scratch last night and intend to have honey and white whole wheat bread and a cup of soup each night for dinner this week. We'll see how that goes. The loaf might not last that long...

Honey and White Whole Wheat Bread
Adapted from a recipe by Judith M. Fertig in Prairie Home Breads
Makes 1 loaf

1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon warm water
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon salt
3 cups white whole wheat flour, plus more if needed

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and stir to dissolve the yeast. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy.

2. To the yeast mixture, add the honey, oil, salt, and flour, 1 cup at a time. Add more flour as necessary to form a soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

3. Knead the dough for 3 to 4 minutes, until smooth and elastic. Then place in an oiled bowl, and turn over so both sides are coated with oil. Cover and let rise at room temperature until doubled, about 1 hour.

4. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan and set aside. Punch down the dough in the bowl and turn it out onto a floured work surface. Shape the dough into a loaf and place, seam side down in the prepared pan. Cover and let rise at room temperature until doubled, about 1 hour.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Bake the bread for 30-35 minutes, until golden brown on top and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. Remove from pan and cool on a wire rack.

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Combine the yeast and warm water, allow to get foamy, then add in the honey, oil, salt, and flour...

Add enough flour to form a soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl...

Knead the dough on a floured work surface for 3 to 4 minutes, then cover and let rise until doubled in size...
Shape into a loaf and place in prepared pan, then cover and allow to rise again until doubled in size...
Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes, until golden brown...

Cool on a wire rack, then slice and serve!

Super Chewy Homemade Soft Pretzels

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 07:01:00 +0000

I have a weakness for soft pretzels. They are my kryptonite, and the thing I gravitate toward at baseball games, festivals, street fairs, malls, Costco, you name it. And yet I'd never tried making them at home. It was time.

When I found this recipe and read the instructions, I had one thought: I've done this before. Ok, no, it wasn't to make pretzels, but it was the exact same method of boiling, then baking. It was to make bagels! That was definitely a comfort as I approached this slightly intimidating pretzel project; I already had experience doing almost the identical thing. And as a result, I already owned a bagel strainer, which would come in handy when making the pretzels.

These pretzels freeze great, so if you don't think you can eat all 16 within two days, I recommend freezing them in Ziploc bags and defrosting one at a time as you have a craving. Just keep in mind that if you choose salt as your topping, the salt will get soggy and absorb into the top of your pretzel once frozen; better to freeze the ones you top with seeds and eat up the salt-covered ones first. Drizzle some yellow mustard on them, and there you have it, the real deal.

Mall shmall. Make soft pretzels at home! Though who am I kidding? The very next time I'm at a mall, I'm sure I'll succumb to the kryptonite.

Soft Pretzels

Adapted from a recipe by King Arthur Flour
Makes 16 pretzels

1 tablespoon sugar
2 cups room-temperature water
1 tablespoon active dry yeast or 2 teaspoons instant yeast
3 cups white whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons sugar or non-diastatic malt powder (King Arthur Flour sells this!)
1 tablespoon salt
2 1/2 to 3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

6 cups water
2 tablespoons baking soda

1 egg
1 tablespoon water
sesame seeds, poppy seeds, pretzel salt, or other topping of your choice

If using active dry yeast, combine the sugar, water and yeast in a large bowl or stand mixer, and stir until dissolved. If using instant yeast, there's no need to mix these ingredients together first; simply add them directly to the bowl like the other ingredients. Add in the white whole wheat flour, malt/sugar, salt, and all-purpose flour. Only add as much all-purpose flour as is necessary to form a soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl (the dough should not be sticky). Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface, knead well, place in a greased bowl, and turn over in the bowl so both sides of the dough are greased. Cover the bowl and let rise until doubled in size.

Return the dough to the floured work surface and divide the dough into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece of dough between your hands until it is a pretty lengthy log, then lay it on the board and shape into a pretzel. Repeat until all 16 pretzels are shaped.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

In a large soup pot, boil the water and baking soda together. To add a pretzel into the water without burning yourself, carefully lay a pretzel onto a bagel strainer, then lower the strainer into the water until the pretzel comes off and floats in the water. The pot will hold 3 to 4 pretzels at a time. Because the pretzels will float to the top, boil for 30 seconds, then turn the pretzel over to boil for another 30 seconds on the other side. Using the bagel strainer, transfer the boiled pretzel to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat. Leave enough space between the pretzels on the baking sheet to account for them growing in the oven. They will puff up in all directions and you don't want them to stick to each other!

Beat together the egg and 1 tablespoon of water to create an egg glaze. Brush the glaze on the pretzels and sprinkle with your topping of choice. Bake for 10-14 minutes, until the tops of the pretzels are golden brown.

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Dissolve the yeast and sugar in water, then add the white whole wheat flour, salt, malt/sugar, and some of the all-purpose flour...

Continue to add all-purpose flour until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl...

Knead the dough on a floured work surface, then place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise until doubled...
Divide the dough into 16 pieces...
Shape each piece into a log...
Then shape the log into a pretzel...
Place a pretzel on a bagel strainer and carefully lower the strainer into the boiling water...

Boil for 30 seconds on each side...
Strain excess water from the pretzel as you transfer it from the pot to a baking sheet...
Brush with an egg glaze, then sprinkle with seeds or salt...

Bake at 450 degrees F for 10-14 minutes, until golden brown...

Try not to eat all 16 at once. Enjoy!

Peanut Butter Butterfinger Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 07:01:00 +0000

Believe it or not, I am still using up the chopped candy pieces I acquired from the birthday party my friend hosted for her husband back in April. She had an ice cream-themed party with a gazillion toppings so you could build your own amazing sundae. At the end of the party, she sent me home with lots of the leftover toppings, not knowing what to do with them. I've been having a blast baking with them or snacking on them plain. Already used up the Oreos, Kit Kats, M&Ms, and mini peanut butter cups.

This time around, I took her crushed Butterfingers and decided to add them to a peanut butter cookie. And not just any peanut butter cookie. David Lebovitz's. I added some vanilla to his recipe, tossed the crushed Butterfingers in at the last minute, and shaped the dough into cookie logs so I could slice and bake. Oh man, these cookies are amazing. They are chewy and peanut buttery, and then they have these baked Butterfinger bits in them that add some caramelized crunch. I could not be happier with the result!

Peanut Butter Butterfinger Cookies

Adapted from a recipe by David Lebovitz in Ready for Dessert

Makes 30 cookies

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup packed light brown sugar

1 cup creamy peanut butter (not natural; I used Skippy)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 large egg, at room temperature

1 cup chopped Butterfingers (this is a rough estimate; feel free to use more or less!)

In a small bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, and salt). Set aside.

In a stand mixer or large bowl with hand mixer, beat the butter, both sugars, and peanut butter together on medium speed until smooth. Blend in the vanilla and egg. Add the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated. Stir in the chopped Butterfingers.

Leave in the bowl, covered, or shape the dough into a couple of logs wrapped in plastic wrap. Then chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours or overnight. You can also freeze the cookie dough logs in Ziploc bags to make cookies at a later date.

When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper. Drop balls of dough onto the baking sheet or slicing the logs into approximately 1/2-inch thick discs and space evenly apart. Use a fork to flatten the tops of the cookies. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, rotating the sheets front to back and top shelf to bottom shelf halfway through baking. The cookies will look slightly underdone, but start to look golden around the edges. Underdone is the key to chewy cookies!!

Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then transfer to cooling racks.

Step-by-Step in Pictures

Whisk together the dry ingredients and set aside...

In a large bowl, beat together the butter, sugars, and peanut butter...

Blend in the egg and vanilla...

Stir in the dry ingredients...

Stir in the Butterfinger bits...

Mix just until incorporated...

Shape into cookie dough logs and wrap in plastic wrap. Chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or freeze in a Ziploc bag...

If you're going to freeze to bake at a later time, be sure to include some instructions on the Ziploc bag so you'll know how to finish off the baking!

When you're ready to bake, slice the log into discs...

Place the discs evenly apart on a baking sheet, then press down with a fork to create a crosshatch design...

Bake at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes. Err on the side of underbaking them...

Yummo!!

The Award for Coolest Eating Utensils Goes to...Bitten Silverware

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 07:39:00 +0000

A guy named Mark Reigelman, an artist, created this genius silverware. I'm not sure what it would feel like to hold these in your hands while eating - perhaps a bit (pun intended) sharp or uncomfortable? But worth it, right? Way to go, Mark. I am awarding you with the Happy Go Marni Award for Coolest Eating Utensils.

And now it's time to meet the man. This is Mark(s) Reigelman. In the Info section of his site, he dedicates a page to his Team. When you get there, this is what you see. A bunch of Marks. Ha!

Girl Scout Pie, er, Cookie Chart

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Tue, 06 Sep 2011 07:18:00 +0000

Source: Wired Magazine

Photo Credit: Celine Grouard

Just read this in Wired Magazine. According to Girl Scout Cookie sales data, here's how the cookie crumbles. Most popular cookie is Thin Mint, followed by Samoas. BUT! If you combine the Peanut Butter Sandwich and Peanut Butter Patties, peanut butter cookies are very well represented, in fact inching out Samoas. Go PB! I hope I've gotten you in the mood; it's almost Girl Scout Cookie Season. This concludes today's cookie report.

Oreo Kit Kat Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 04 Sep 2011 07:01:00 +0000

Chocolate chip cookies are the new kitchen sink cookie. Or maybe it's not new but I'm just late to discover this. You can pretty much take any chocolate chip cookie recipe and then toss in additional ingredients you have on hand. I can't vouch for the results each time, since what you add in might be extremely weird or even gross, but I can say it's a lot of fun to experiment, and a great way to get rid of leftover candy bits.

So recently I decided to take a traditional chocolate chip cookie recipe, and add in chopped Oreo cookies and Kit Kat pieces. An Oreo cookie in a chocolate chip cookie is very meta, very redundant, and that is a very good thing. The Kit Kat pieces add some crunch because of the wafer, and they remain intact after baking.

Put on your lab coat and experiment with chocolate chip cookie mix-ins!

Oreo Kit Kat Chocolate Chip Cookies
Adapted from a recipe in Southern Living Best Loved Cookies
Makes approximately 5 dozen cookies

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 (12-oz.) package semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped or crushed Oreo cookies (the quantity here is flexible)
1 cup chopped Kit Kat bars (feel free to use slightly more or slightly less)

Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter and the sugars until creamy. Add the eggs, one at a time, then the vanilla.

Combine the dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, and salt) in a small bowl, then gradually add to the creamed butter mixture. Finally, stir in the chocolate chips, Oreo cookies, and Kit Kat bars.

Chill the dough in the fridge for an hour or shape into logs, wrap in plastic wrap, and freeze in plastic storage bags in the freezer for ready-to-go slice-and-bake cookies (just be sure to write the baking time and oven temperature on the bag as a reminder for later).

Drop tablespoonfuls of dough onto an ungreased cookie sheet, or slice 1/2-inch discs of dough from the thawed out dough logs that were in the freezer.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 7 to 12 minutes. I prefer soft, chewy, slightly underdone cookies so I bake on the shorter end of the time range. Remove the cookies from the oven and cool on cookie sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Beat the butter and sugars until creamy...

Add the eggs and vanilla and beat until incorporated...
Beat in the dry ingredients...

Stir in the chocolate chips, Oreo cookies, and Kit Kat bars...

Chill the dough in the fridge for an hour...
Or shape the dough into logs, wrap in plastic wrap, and freeze in bags until ready to use...
Place tablespoonfuls of dough evenly apart on a baking sheet...

Bake at 350 degrees F for 7 to 12 minutes, then allow to cool, and enjoy!

Dill Pickle Bread, Because Weird is Fun!

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Fri, 12 Aug 2011 07:01:00 +0000

I think it took me all of 5 seconds to decide if I would make this bread. Usually there's a whole lot of deliberation before I decide what baking project I will take on. I'll sit with several cookbooks, mark them with post-it notes, and anywhere from an hour to 3 hours later, I've made my choice. None of that happened with this pickle bread. I basically read the title, read the pickle ingredients it called for (just to make sure it sounded pickly enough for my satisfaction), and made my way to the kitchen. It was that simple.

This bread truly tastes like pickles. And sure, that is a little weird but it is surprisingly good. The texture is an absolute 10. Soft and chewy. And it has a sour flavor similar to sourdough.

I will say, using a cup of pickle juice pretty much means there's no juice left in your jar of pickles. And the recipe only calls for one chopped pickle. So I guess that means you have to eat the rest of the pickles right then, or host a pickle party that afternoon so they don't go to waste. Or I guess you can save the pickles for later. But since you've used up the pickle juice, what liquid do you put back in the pickle jar so the pickles will last? If you are a pickle expert, please advise in the comments below!

My brilliant mom made the suggestion that this bread would be perfect for a corned beef sandwich. Or how about pastrami! Makes sense since you eat dill pickles at the same deli where you get your corned beef or pastrami sandwich. Why not in the same bite? Jewish delis, are you listening?

Dill Pickle Bread
Adapted from a recipe on What's Cooking America

1 generous cup lukewarm dill pickle juice
3 teaspoons instant active dry yeast

1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon dried dill weed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large dill pickle, finely chopped

3 cups bread flour or unbleached all-purpose flour

In a standmixer or large bowl, stir together the warm pickle juice, yeast, and sugar. Add in the oil, dill, salt, chopped pickle, and 1 cup of the flour. Beat until incorporated. Gradually add the remaining two cups of flour, adding an additional tablespoon of flour at a time until the dough forms a soft, elastic ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Knead the dough on a floured work surface. Place in an oiled bowl and turn once to coat. Cover the bowl and leave in a warm place to rise until doubled in size, about an hour.

Turn the dough out onto the floured work surface and shape the dough into a loaf by rolling or stretching it into a rectangle, then folding it in thirds like a letter, turning it over, and tucking the ends underneath.

Spray a 9x5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray, then sprinkle the bottom and partway up the sides with cornmeal. Place the shaped dough into the loaf pan and cover. Allow to rise in a warm place about 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Using a very sharp knife, make three diagonal slashes in the top of the dough. Brush the top with water. Bake for 25-35 minutes. If the bread starts to get dark brown but isn't done baking yet, cover the top with foil and return to the oven. To check for doneness, remove the loaf from the pan and tap the bottom with your finger. It should make a hollow sound. If it doesn't, return the loaf to the pan and return the pan to the oven to bake for a few more minutes.

When done baking, remove from the oven and allow to cool out of the pan on a wire rack.

Step-by-Step in Pictures

Combine the sugar, yeast, and pickle juice...

Chop up a pickle or two!

Add in the oil, dill, salt, chopped pickle and 1 cup of the flour...

Add in the remaining 2 cups of flour...

Mix and add a tablespoon at a time of flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl...

Knead the dough, then place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise for about an hour...

When the dough is ready, it will have doubled in size...

Shape the dough into a rectangle...

Fold the dough in thirds like a letter going into an envelope...

Tuck the ends under and pinch to seal...

Place in a greased loaf pan that has been dusted with cornmeal, cover and let rise about 40 minutes...

Once risen, slash the top of the loaf three times, then brush the surface with water...

Bake at 400 degrees F for 25 to 35 minutes...

Let cool out of the pan...

Slice and serve with butter or use for a corned beef or pastrami sandwich!

Oatmeal M&M Cookies, Where M&M Stands for Mmmmmmm

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 07:01:00 +0000

M&Ms are one of my favorite things to put in cookies. And the M&M cookie at Diddy Riese near UCLA is one of my all-time favorites!

M&Ms are also great eaten straight out of the bag. (Stating the obvious.) But I was feeling like baking, and I view candy as a baking ingredient as much as it is a treat on its own. I'm funny like that. You'd be surprised to see my liquor cabinet. It's pretty extensive. I mean, for someone who is not a big drinker, my liquor cabinet is impressive and actually shocking. People come over and see my booze and jump to ALLLLLL the wrong conclusions. That stuff is 99% for baking! Ok, and maybe on occasion I'll have a shot while I'm in the kitchen.

When I'm browsing at the grocery store, I often look at ingredients as "baking potential" as opposed to stand-alone stuff. You should try that method of thinking sometime. Go to your local grocer and view everything with a different eye - a baker's hat, if you will. You'll be surprised the sort of fun things you'll discover. Pinenuts in biscotti? Sure! Crushed potato chips in chocolate chip cookies? Yes, please! Thinking with your "baking potential" brain on means entertaining DIY projects. Brilliant ideas. Delicious baked goods-in-the-making.

But back to M&Ms. It is no surprise to anyone that M&Ms lend themselves well to baking. So today, I stuck them in oatmeal cookies from my new Williams-Sonoma Baking Book.

Oatmeal M&M Cookies
Adapted from a recipe in The Williams-Sonoma Baking Book

Makes about 3 dozen cookies

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

1/3 cup finely chopped walnuts

Approximately 1 cup M&Ms (or more...or less...whatever you want!)

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the butter. Remove from the heat and stir in the granulated sugar and brown sugar (I used a big wooden spoon). Then add the egg and vanilla and stir until fully incorporated.

Over a sheet of wax paper, sift together the dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Carefully pour the sifted ingredients into a bowl and stir to blend. Add the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, and stir to combine, then stir in the oats, walnuts, and M&Ms. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease 2 baking sheets.

Use a cookie scoop or tablespoon to drop tablespoon-size balls of dough onto the cookie sheets, spaced evenly apart (about 2 inches because the dough will spread). Use a metal spatula or the bottom of a glass to flatten each ball of dough to about 1/3-inch thick disk.

Bake the cookies for about 11-15 minutes, until golden brown. Err on the side of underbaking, especially if you want a chewy cookie. Remove from oven and let cool on the cookie sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer the cookies to wire racks to finish cooling.

Step-by-Step in Pictures

Melt the butter in a saucepan, remove from heat, and stir in the granulated and brown sugars...

Stir in the vanilla and egg...

Sift the dry ingredients together and stir to blend...

Add the dry ingredients into the butter-sugar-egg mixture...

Stir in the oats and walnuts...

Stir in the M&Ms...

Cover the bowl and chill in the fridge for an hour...

Shape the dough into balls...

Place evenly apart on the baking sheet and press the tops down with the back of a glass or a metal spatula...

Bake at 350 degrees F for about 11 minutes...

Enjoy!

How to Have a Half Birthday Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 22:06:00 +0000

Today is my half birthday. The 6 month mark. That is worth celebrating, right? I was thinking of baking myself a half birthday cake. But what exactly does that look like? Does it mean I bake a whole cake and toss out half or give away half? Or do I only bake half the recipe? But in a round cake pan so it looks like a whole cake? Or do I bake a cake in a cake pan that looks like half a round cake? DING DING DING!

My friend Jan sent me a link to this half-round cake pan. It's perfect for celebrating half birthdays! Let me know if you have a different interpretation of how to bake a half birthday cake. I'm very interested. Particularly because I love finding excuses to bake. Not that I need excuses...

Sally Lunn Bread: The Bread That Thinks It's Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Wed, 13 Jul 2011 07:39:00 +0000

I finally made Sally Lunn Bread. I've seen various versions of this famous bread in a lot of my cookbooks and couldn't figure out what the allure was. Why were so many cookbooks including it?

But by george, I've got it! Now that I've made it and tasted its richness and analyzed its dense cross section and feared I'd be home alone with the loaf eating all of it in one sitting, I understand. It's cake bread. Er, not cake, but cake bread. As in bread that has cake-like qualities. Notice the eggs, milk, and butter called for in the recipe. Your everyday white sandwich bread does not contain any of those ingredients. Sally Lunn Bread is special!

I just want to know, with a stick of butter already in the dough, is it wrong to slather a slice with butter before you pop it in your mouth? Don't judge me.

Sally Lunn Bread

Adapted from a recipe in Fast Breads by Elinor Klivans

Makes 1 large round or 2 rectangle loaves

1 1/4 cups milk, any fat content

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast (one 1/4-oz packet)

3 large eggs

Choose your baking pan first. Use either a 9 1/2- or 10-inch tube pan or two 8x4- or 9x5-inch loaf pans. Butter the bottom and sides of the pan(s). I used two 9x5 but wish I had used two 8x4 so the bread would be taller (but either is fine!). Line the bottom with parchment paper and then butter the parchment. Yes, that's a lot of buttering.

In a small saucepan on medium heat, combine the milk and butter until a thermometer reads around 130 degrees F. Remove from the heat and allow to cool considerably (if it's still too hot to stick your finger in it, it is not ready to use).

In a stand mixer, blend together 1 cup of the flour, the sugar, salt, and yeast on low speed. Carefully add the milk-butter mixture and beat on low until smooth. Cover the bowl with a towel and allow to rest for 10 minutes.

Beat in the eggs on low speed for about 1 minute. Add the remaining 3 cups flour and mix for 6 minutes. It's totally normal that the dough is a bit thin and sticky and doesn't pull away from the sides of the bowl. Avoid the urge to add unnecessary extra flour. And don't worry about kneading it. Simply scrape the sticky dough into the prepared pan(s).

Place the two pans side by side on your countertop and cover with plastic wrap or a towel and allow to rise for about 1 hour. It's ready when the dough has risen about halfway up the sides of the baking pan(s).

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Bake the bread until golden brown and the top is firm to the touch, about 50 minutes. If you're using smaller pans, the baking time may be less, so err on the side of checking the bread early. The bread should rise to the top of the pan(s). Remove from the oven and allow to cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Then invert onto a cooling rack and turn over so they are cooling right side up. Be sure to remove the parchment paper before they are left to cool.

To store the bread, place in a plastic bag and seal to keep airtight. Leave at room temperature for up to 3 days. Makes great toast, especially after 3 days when it's not as fresh!

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Heat the milk and butter, then set aside to cool...

In a stand mixer, combine the yeast, sugar, salt, and 1 cup of the flour...

Add the milk-butter mixture, then cover and let rest for 10 minutes...

Beat in the eggs...

Add the remaining flour and mix for several minutes...

The dough will be sticky and that's OK...

Scrape dough into two prepared loaf plans, cover and let rise for an hour, and then bake at 375 degrees F for up to 50 minutes...

Remove from oven and let cool on a wire rack in the pans for 10 minutes...

Remove from the loaf pans and cool directly on the wire rack...

Slice and serve!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 07:01:00 +0000

GASP! SHOCK! AWE! BEHOLD! A cookie dough truffle! Why haven't I heard of this before?! And for all you raw-egg-freaker-outers, there are no eggs in this cookie dough so don't get your panties in a bunch. Instead of eggs to bind the dough together, you use sweetened condensed milk!

Go crazy with topping choices. I opted for brightly-colored star sprinkles and some white chocolate that I melted and placed into a piping bag for a few more designs. The effect is so cool! For the 4th of July (Happy Independence Day to you!), try red, white, and blue candies, sprinkles, or dyed white chocolate. These would be festive and perfect to celebrate the holiday.

The truffles set up in a short time and then look really elegant and fun. And one of the best ways to customize this is, if you already have a favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, feel free to use that dough instead of this one. Just replace egg with sweetened condensed milk. Voila.

Cookie Dough Truffles
Adapted from a recipe on FoodNetwork.com that was featured on Paula's Best Dishes, Episode: Sweet Somethings
Makes 5 dozen truffles

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 (14-ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
1/2 cup semisweet mini chocolate chips (it's important they are mini!)
Semisweet chocolate for melting (I used a LOT, maybe 18 ounces or more?)

In a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed, cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add vanilla. Gradually beat in flour on low-medium speed (unless you want flour in your face). Then add the can of sweetened condensed milk. Add mini chocolate chips and mix until well combined. Chill the dough, covered, in the fridge for about an hour. Shape into 1-inch balls. It helps to use a cookie dough scoop to get evenly sized balls. Place on wax paper-lined baking sheet; chill 2 hours. You want the balls really firm before you roll them in the melted chocolate.

Melt chocolate in a glass bowl and place the bowl over a hot water bath so the chocolate stays liquidy and melty. Otherwise, you'll find yourself constantly microwaving the bowl of chocolate and huffing and puffing. Drop a cookie dough ball into the melted chocolate, turn to coat completely with a spoon. Lift up using a fork, thin spatula (such as metal offset spatula), or specialty dipping tool, shaking any excess chocolate off. Place on a wax paper-lined baking sheet. While the chocolate is still setting, top with desired sprinkles so they'll stick. If you want to pipe melted white chocolate on top instead of sprinkles, it's not as critical that you decorate right away because the white chocolate will stick no matter what. Once the baking sheet is filled, place in the fridge to chill and completely set the truffles. This takes about an hour. Then they're ready to serve!

Step-by-Step in Pictures
Cream together the butter and brown sugar...

Add the vanilla...
Add the flour...
Add the sweetened condensed milk...

Stir in the mini chocolate chips, then chill in fridge...
Shape into 1-inch balls of dough and return to fridge to chill...
Dip the balls in melted chocolate, then top with sprinkles...

Or decorate with melted white chocolate in a piping bag...

Chill the truffles in the fridge to set the chocolate completely, then enjoy!

I Would Do The Same Thing

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Mon, 04 Jul 2011 05:55:00 +0000

Click image to view larger

My mom just sent me this comic strip. It was published in today's San Jose Mercury News.

Lucy and I are clearly related. I would do the same thing.

Celebrate New York With My Friend Christina's Rainbow Cupcakes

noreply@blogger.com (Marni) — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 16:14:00 +0000

Photo Credit: Tastes Like Yum on flickr
Photo Reprinted with Permission

I am very excited by the news that New York has just legalized same-sex marriage, becoming the largest state to do so. And while perhaps this political news is out of place on a baking blog, I am going there!

My friend Christina and I go wayyyyy back, back to high school in the Bay Area. Christina is a GREAT baker. And actually, I have to give her extra credit because she is up to just about any challenge to turn a "normal" recipe into a vegan one. It's quite impressive. Well, on her own fabulous blog Tastes Like Yum, she just posted a tribute to this fresh-from-the-oven New York law. Rainbow cupcakes! While her cupcakes are vegan, you can use a dairy yellow cake recipe instead and follow her instructions for creating the rainbow layers. Her pics are very helpful!

Visit Christina's Rainbow Cupcake blog post here and let's all toast to New York and hope we see more states follow suit soon. Rainbow cupcakes everywhere! All the time!