Sara Bakes Cakes blog

Crisp rice and marshmallow cookies

Sara — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 03:40:50 +0000

In a word: wow. Recipe to follow as soon as I come down from my sugar high.

Cheater's Chana Masala

Sara — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 21:05:06 +0000

I impressed friends and family alike on Friday night with this yummy and easy recipe from Debbie Koenig's new book, Parents Need to Eat Too, coming out THIS week!

I served this on top of brown rice, with some plain yogurt on top. And since we were on a cheating theme, I made some Cheater's Naan, which Dinner a Love Story (another favorite blog, check it out if you aren't already a fan) wrote about in the fall.

Without further ado:

Cheater’s Chana Masala
From Parents Need to Eat Too

Serves 4
Cooking time: 25 minutes (15 minutes active)

Traditional chana masala—a spiced chickpea stew you’ll find on the menu of almost any Indian restaurant—is a complicated affair, with an ingredient list as long as your arm. We’re not going there. Remember my mantra: New parents don’t have time for authenticity! Instead, I’ve simplified things to make this a quick and easy dish based almost exclusively on pantry items. It still tastes warm and comforting, but you’ll have dinner on the table in no time.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
One 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated, or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
Two 15- to 16-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3⁄4 cup water
One 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (SBC note: I didn't spaced on draining the tomatoes and it still turned out great)
Salt
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon garam masala
Juice of 1⁄2 lemon (about 11⁄2 tablespoons)

Cooked brown rice, plain yogurt, and prepared chutney, optional, for serving

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. When it shimmers, add the onion, fresh ginger, if using, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent but not browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, and ground ginger (if not using fresh) and cook for 1 minute.

Add the chickpeas, water, diced tomatoes , and salt to taste and raise heat to medium. Simmer uncovered (if it spatters too much, cover it partially - SBC note: I used a splatter guard, like this one) until the sauce has thickened, 5 to 10 minutes.

Remove from heat, then stir in the chopped cilantro, garam masala, lemon juice, and salt to taste.

Serve over brown rice and top with a spoonful of yogurt and chutney, if desired.

MAKE BABY FOOD: Leave out the cayenne if you’re nervous about spicy foods, and if you’re wary of the acidity in citrus add the lemon juice after reserving baby’s portion. This’ll puree nicely (make sure to include some of the liquid), or you can serve it as finger food—just smash the chickpeas with a fork, to prevent a choking hazard. SBC note: My 8 and 5 yr olds wouldn't touch it, but I have high hopes for baby #3, and will definitely be making this again for him/her to sample.

I mentioned this before, but Debbie is sending anyone who pre-orders the book before tomorrow (that's Tuesday, Feb 21) a free digital starter kit!

from this...

to this!

Valrhona chocolate chip brownies

Sara — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 18:30:52 +0000

Last but not least, these brownies are an old standby, especially for times when I need to make a sweet quickly and don't want to deal with the mixer and bringing butter to room temp. I've loved these ever since I first cut the recipe from the back of a King Arthur Flour bag 5 years ago. Easy, and so much better than anything you can get from a box!

The key to these brownies is using the best cocoa powder you can find/afford. Regular Hershey's cocoa will work, but won't give you the fudgy richness something like a Valhrona or Callebaut cocoa will. Note: if you're interested in buying Valhrona cocoa in bulk - this place has consistently had the best prices I can find. If you know of a cheaper place, please let me know!

Valrhona Chocolate Chip Brownies
(adapted from King Arthur Flour Company)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 9x13" pan. Note: You can either butter the whole pan or cut a piece of parchment that's approx 9x18 and use it to line the bottom of the pan, with equal amounts of parchment going up each of the shorter sides, then butter the long sides. This creates a sling that will make it a lot easier to take the whole mess of brownies out when they're cooled.

1 c. unsalted butter
2 1/4 c. (460g) sugar
1 1/4 c. (120g) Dutch-process cocoa (I always use Valrhona cocoa)
1 t. salt
1 t. baking powder
1 T. vanilla
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 c. (6 1/4 oz) AP flour
2 c. (12 oz bag) chocolate chips (I use chips from Trader Joe's - only 11 oz, but close enough)

In a medium sauce pan over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat, briefly, just till it starts bubbling; it will become shiny looking as you stir it. (note from original recipe: Heating the butter and sugar a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yeild a shiny top crust on your brownies - who knew? She probably did)

While the butter is melting, whisk together cocoa, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Add the sugar/butter mixture and then vanilla. Stir until combined and allow mixture to cool for about 5 minutes. Add eggs and quickly stir until smooth (if you wait too long, the eggs will start cooking on top - gross). Add the flour, stir and finally, the chocolate chips.

Pour batter into the prepared pan, using a rubber spatula or metal offset spatula to smooth it out.

Bake brownies for 28 to 30 minutes, until a cake tester instered into the center comes out dry. The edges of brownies will also come in from the sides of the pan - that's how I usually guage for doneness. With something like this, a little underdone is always better than a little overdone!

Let the brownies cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes. At this point, you can use a spatula to free up the long edges of the pan and gently pull out the whole sheet using the parchment sides. Place on a cutting board or other large flat object and cool in either the fridge or freezer until you're ready to cut them. (I like the crunch that the chips provide, but if you can't wait for that, by all means dig in whenever you'd like it!)

Flip the brownies over, peel off the parchment and flip again so you can cut into squares (or whatever shape you like) - I find a serrated knife works best.

Enjoy! And please post any questions in the comments. I'm quickly realizing that actually typing out a recipe so it makes sense is harder than actually making the recipe!

Salted oatmeal cookies

Sara — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 14:50:40 +0000

You asked (well, at least one of you did), so I delivered. This was the second of three things I made yesterday as part of my birthday baking bonanza - still to come, Valrhona chocolate chip brownies.

This recipe comes from one of my go-to cookbooks, The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book.

Salty Oat Cookies
(from The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book)

1 c. (5 oz) AP flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. table salt
16 T. (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temp
1 c. (7 oz) sugar
1/4 c. (1 3/4 oz) light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 t. vanilla
3 1/2 c. (10 1/2 oz) old-fashioned oats
1/2 t. coarse sea salt (don't use table or kosher salt, you want something big and flaky - I'm a fan Falksalt Crystal Flakes)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 or 3 baking sheets with parchment. Whisk flour, baking soda and table salt together in a medium bowl.

In a large bowl or mixer, cream together butter and sugars until light and fluffy (about 3 mins in a mixer, longer if using a handheld mixer). Beat in the egg and vanilla until combined, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl and beaters as needed.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds (don't overmix). Mix in the oats until just incorporated.

Using a cookie scoop (whatever size you've got, mine is 1 Tablespoon), form balls and place on cookie sheets about 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly with the palm of your hand and sprinkle with the salt.

Bake the cookies until the edges are set and beginning to brown but the centers are still soft and puffy, 15 to 17 minutes, switching and rotating the pans halfway through baking. The cookies may not look completely done by now, but they'll firm up out of the oven.

Cool cookies on a the pans and then transfer to a rack or eat right away. They have the appearance of being wholesome, so I'm all for it if you want to eat a couple for breakfast.

Enjoy!

Happy birthday to me!

Sara — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 22:07:49 +0000

Today I'm celebrating a pretty momentous birthday so to celebrate I decided to do what makes me happiest - baking (and to be honest - eating the batter and dough:)

First up, Lemon Olive Oil cookies from Carrie at Fields of Cake. They happen to be vegan, but don't let that scare you away. They are so good, so easy and a nice shift from the sweet/salty kick I've been on lately.

Just a couple of tweaks to Carrie's original recipe. I didn't have the fancy Lemon Olive Oil she uses in the recipe, so instead used 2t. lemon oil, I prefer Boyajian (bottle is $$ but worth it, it will last forever and I think lemon extract from the grocery store makes the cookies taste like dish soap) plus 3/4 c. olive oil (extra virigin olive oil was too strong, I thought). Finally, I added a 1/2t. of the lemon oil to the sugar I used to coat the balls of dough. Adds a little more sweet lemony goodness.

Enjoy!

I have two more recipes to post (Valrhona chocolate chip brownies and salted oatmeal cookies) but have to get ready for my birthday dinner here (and this place is right next door!) Lucky me! More soon.

Lucky me! (alternate title: Vermouth, it's not just for martinis anymore)

Sara — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:02:40 +0000

I've been lucky enough to get an advance copy of Debbie Koenig's new cookbook, PARENTS NEED TO EAT TOO: Nap Friendly Recipes, One-Handed Meals, and Time-Saving Kitchen Tricks for New Parents, coming out next week from William Morrow.

I first "met" Debbie on Twitter, when we realized we both had a long history in working in book publishing, and we finally met in person this summer. I've always been a fan of her blog, Words to Eat By, and now I love her book, which is aimed at new parents (or soon-to-be again new parents like me), but really is for anyone who has tried to make meal with kids underfoot, just as much.

I'll be blogging soon about one of her many excellent and easy recipes in the next couple of days (I'm torn between Cheater's Chana Masala and Broccoli Cheddar Pinwheels - might have to make both!), but in the meantime, I've already flagged a lot of her tips for a well-rounded pantry, including my favorite discovery: dry vermouth!

Since I've been pregnant, I've kept mine wine consumption to a minimum but sometimes a recipe calls for a spash or two of white wine - what's the point in opening a whole bottle that eventually will go bad in the fridge? Dry vermouth is shelf stable - open it, use as necessary, and store in the cabinet - it will always stay as good as new.

More tips and receipes from Debbie's new book to come soon!

THIS JUST IN: Pre-order the book by Feb. 21 (that's next Tuesday, so hurry!) and get an excellent and awesome Digital Starter Kit - with bonus recipes, a baby food making how-to, a countdown to baby food guide to the third trimester (right up my alley) and lots of other handy stuff. Visit Debbie's website for more details. Go now, what are you waiting for?

Happy accidents

Sara — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 02:33:02 +0000

So at the end of the last post I mentioned that the chocolate pretzel layer separated from the toffee on the last batch I made - making it a great "factory seconds" gift for close friends, and a evil snack for pregnant me, but not the delicious and nice looking teacher gift I'd imagined.

Before my teeth started to rot, I had to figure out another way to use the tasty but ungiftable toffee pieces. Why not in cookies?

First step - use your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. THIS one, from Debbie at Parents Need to Eat Too is mine (and should be yours too, if you know what's good for you).

Next - chop up your favorite pretzel toffee recipe into small chunks (this should be your favorite, if it isn't already) and replace chocolate chips with these delicious little nibbles.

That's it! The toffee will melt a lot at the edges, making for some ugly misshapen cookies, but don't let that scare you. Once cool, you'll have one of the best cookies you've ever eaten (that's just my opinion, but hey, it's my blog).

Enjoy!

Pretzel toffee!

Sara — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 16:21:13 +0000

You asked for it (or at least a couple of you did on Facebook and Instagram)

Pretzel Toffee

(adapted from TheKitchn)

1 lb. unsalted butter
3 Tbsp. water
2 cups sugar (400 g)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
12 oz finely chopped semi or bittersweet chocolate (can also substitue 1 12oz bag of your favorite chips, I use Trader Joe's Pound Plus 72% Dark Chocolate Bar)
8 oz crushed mini pretzels (I use these) - you can also try crushed peppermints, flaky sea salt, toasted nuts, whatever suits your fancy.

In a large skillet, melt butter, water, sugar, and salt over medium high heat. Stir constantly and rapidly with wooden spoon. Boil, stirring rapidly, until mixture turns a deep golden tan. Quickly remove from heat so as not to burn the mixture. Stir in the vanilla (it will splatter and bubble up).

Pour mixture into rimmed cookie sheet or baking pan, lined with foil (my go-to pan for this is 10x15). Allow to cool slightly, about 5 minutes, then sprinkle evently with chopped chocolate. When chocolate looks glossy, spread chocolate evenly with an offset spatula, and sprinkle with pretzels. Press pretzels into chocolate using the back of a large spatula.

Cool 8 to 12 hours at room temp, then break toffee into chunks.

Note: I've made a couple times recently and put the sheet in the fridge to cool down more quickly. Don't do this! The chocolate and toffee cool down at different times and then the layers separate from each other when you break it.

Step by step photos to come...

On hiatus...

Sara — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 18:58:41 +0000

I'm taking some time off from baking to focus on my next project, baby #3, due in May!!! (Insert various "bun in the oven" jokes here...) During this time off, I'm going to work harder to update the blog with photos of projects I haven't had time to post, and will also start posting recipes.

Happy baking!

Ilan's rock star cake

Sara — Wed, 07 Sep 2011 19:06:54 +0000

Ilan the rock star turned 6 this weekend so naturally he requested a rock star birthday cake. His mom isn't a big fan of lots of food coloring, so I kept it simple. 12" chocolate cake with chocolate buttercream and fresh strawberry filling, minimal color in the decorations, all of which can be easily removed and hidden away from sugar seeking kids while the cake's being cut.

Everything handmade from gumpaste and fondant. The moisture on the cake was condensation - cake spent the night in the fridge and the morning in my warm-ish kitchen. It went away eventually:)