Dark Chocolate Chip Cranberry Pecan Cookies

Yesterday my family and I had the pleasure of attending our neighborhood's National Night Out.  It's an annual event that allows you to meet your neighbors, the local fire and police department, and have your kids get hyped up on cookies, bounce houses, and clown tricks dangerously close to their school night bedtime.  

There were kids galore and plenty of SAHMs like me that I was like a kid in a candy store with so many options for playdates.  I probably came off as a little too excited when I introduced myself to a few new faces but what can I say, I'm ready to find a sense of community.  

To add a bit of healthy competition to the mix, us neighbors got to put our whisks and oven mitts to the test with a Cookie Baking Contest.  As Rachel Ray would say "How cool is that".  Alas I did not win but my husband thinks these cookies are award winning, probably because he helped invent them.  We wanted a seasonal yet Texan charm to a standard chocolate chip cookie so we created a Dark Chocolate Cranberry Pecan Cookie.   They were delish.  The crunch of the pecan mixed with a hidden essence of cinnamon and nutmeg complement the tartness of the cranberries and subtle sweetness of the cacao.   Next time I'll add a bit more chocolate and some rolled oats but the recipe below is a champion in itself.   

Baking and new friends, I think I'm going to like this neighborhood.  

Dark Chocolate Chip Cranberry Pecan Cookies

2 1/4 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 cup butter softened
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar packed
2tsp pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
8oz 60% Cacao Dark Chocolate Chips (next time I'll add the full 10oz bag)
3/4 Pecans
4oz of Dried Cranberries
1/2 cup rolled oats if using

Preheat oven to 375.  Mix the first 5 ingredients together in a medium size bowl.  Set aside.  Cream the butter and both sugars in a larger size bowl with a hand mixture on medium speed.  Add vanilla and eggs to the creamed mixture on at a time, until blended.

Slowly add dry mixture to the sugar mixture.  Fold in chocolate, cranberries, pecans (and rolled oats if using).  Use a rounded tablespoon and drop onto an ungreased cookie sheet.  Bake for about 9 minutes until golden browned.

Coconut Cupcakes with Lemon Curd Filling

Spring is in the air.  Birds are chirping, tulips are blooming, and the spargle is being harvested.   Everything is so fresh and crisp it makes you want to rejoice in awe of Mother Nature.

Rejoicing can mean walks with the family around the plush green field, a stroll through the downtown Farmer's Market, or a simple BBQ with friends.  Invitations to cookouts with neighbors are starting to peak as we dust off our winter hibernation and come out to celebrate this beautiful time of year. 

Of course, Mother Nature has a way to be unpredictable.  Tornados, rain, and a drastic change in temperatures can  put a damper on weekend plans.  It's a time of year to celebrate and a time of year to be flexible.  

Yesterday was such an occasion when a backyard (or in our case, front yard) BBQ became a indoor engagement as the temperature slowly but consistently dropped down from the upper 50's to mid 40's.  It was still wonderful to get together with friends and take a much needed break from a monotonous weekend.  

To freshen up our spread with a taste of spring, I used a recipe I've been saving from William Sonoma;  Coconut Cupcakes with Lemon Curd Filling.  The subtle sweetness of coconut paired with a surprise lemon curd filling momentarily lets your mind escape to slightly warmer local.  Memories of my first Mother's Day Tea at The Westin Monoa Surfrider in Hawaii came to mind. The frosting was light and airy and had reminiscent taste of childhood days eating marshmallow fluff by the spoonful.  I may try my Marscapoon Cream Frosting the next time I make this treat as I think it would compliment the flavors fabulously.  

Overall, these cupcakes were, delicate, refreshing, and slightly exotic.  A perfect accompaniment to a spring time celebration; even an indoor one.  

Coconut Cupcakes with Lemon Curd Filling

adapted from William Sonoma

For the cupcakes:

1 3/4 cups cake flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp kosher salt

3/4 cup unsalted butter at room temp

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1 tsp. pure vanilla extract

1 cup sweetend shredded coconut (plus 1 cup slightly tosted for garnish)

3/4 cup buttermilk

1 cup lemon curd (I used a store bought one)

7minute frosting (see recipe below)

or Marscapone Cream Frosting (see recipe here)

Preheat Oven to 350 degrees F

Line 12 - 16 standard muffin cups with paper liners.  In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt.  In a large bowl using a paddle attachment or an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light, 2-3 minutes.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.  Add the vanilla and beat until well combined.  Fold in 1 cup coconut.  Add half of the flour mixture and beat on low speed until combined.  Continuing to beat on low speed, add the buttermilk and then the remaning mixture.

Fill the muffin cups 1/2 way full.  Add about a tbsp of lemon curd in the center, on top of the batter, of each cup.  Divide the remaining batter into each cup until it is about 3/4 full.  

Bake for about 18-22 minutes until lightly golden brown.  Cool in pan for 5 minutes and then on a wire rack for about an hour.  

Frost cupcakes with desired frosting and sprinkle with toasted coconut.  Refridgerate for up to four days but serve at room temp

7 Minute Frosting

3 large egg whites at room temperature

3/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup water

2 tbs light corn syrup

1/8 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp pure vanilla extract

In a heatproof bowl, whisk together the egg whites, sugar corn syrup, sal, and water.  Set the bowl of (but not touching) barely simmering water in a saucepan.  Using a hand mixer, beat on medium high speed to stiff peaks, about 5 minutes.  Remove the bowl from over the water and continue to beat until the mixture cools about 2 minutes.  Add the vanillla and beat until blended.  Frosting doesn't keep well so use right away.  Frosts about 12-18 cupcakes

Simply Baking Disasters

The past few posts I've shared have been, as my husband has described, tooting my own horn.  Yes I am proud of my accomplishments and excited about my new hobbies, however, I don't want to come off as someone who always has my $#*! together.  Guess what readers, I am not perfect.  Gasp!  Shocking, right?!  It's a wonderful thing about the online world.  You can filter yourself so that people have a certain perception of you.  Well, you'll rarely hear me use this phrase in person (I'm just not that cool), but my online ego wants to say today "I'm keeping it real".

Why did I decide to come out of my "Martha Stewart" shell today?  Well, because Ladies and Gentlemen, I have had not one, not two, but THREE baking disasters....in.a.row.  That is NOT a good thing.   Oh, and these were not labor intensive, crazy difficult, having to search the corners of the earth for the best ingredients desserts.  No, these were 2 child proof (with adult supervision) recipes and 1 box cake mix.  Yes, only two  months after I shared my new found passion of cake decorating in Simply Beautiful Cakes and shared a fabulous recipe in Raspberry with Champagne Cupcakes I have been humbled enough to realize that yes, I am still going to make mistakes.  Instead of hiding behind them, I am going to share them with you.  Hopefully in turn, it will encourage you to continue pushing on with what ever hobby you are trying to embark on because as the old adage goes, practice makes perfect. 

Baking Disaster #1

 

Looks can be certainly be deceiving.  I made these "beauties" for my niece's 5th birthday party, which also happened to fall on one of the most stressful days of my life.  Apparently, I am not cut out to be an emotional baker and should stay away from the oven while in the process of hearing back about a business agreement (aka Dream House).  The baking powder may have been a bit dated but regardless, my Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes tasted a bit more like muffins.  Thankfully, 5 year olds only care about the  frosting..which was delish.

Baking Disaster #2

My friend and I wanted to throw our neighbor a baby shower.  My friend arranged it, hosted it, and prepared the dinner.  I was in charge of the cake.  I made strawberry cake (from a box) and made a strawberry butter cream frosting.  I didn't account for an unseasonably warm weekend unfortunately which resulted in the icing all over the counter. They tasted great, the guests were understanding, and if I learned anything from this "experiment" it was that wine glasses turned over make fantastic cupcake stands.

Baking Disaster #3

 My little family and I went apple picking last weekend.  As usual with apple picking, you get all caught up in the fun of it but are then left will all of these apples that you have to do something with.  Today I had my friend's two year old daughter Sarah over for the day and she loves baking.  I thought it was only appropriate to turn those apples into something extra delicious.  Apple Muffins were in our game plan for the day.  Yesterday I made apple sauce that was extra sweet so I thought it would make a great substitute for oil and sugar to make our treats a little healthier.  I should have known something was off when it looked more like dough than batter.  My two two year old helpers and I were left with what I can only describe as Apple Biscuits. The cupcake liner clung to these dry little suckers.  My helpers seemed to enjoy them as they gobbled down 1 1/2 for dessert.  I did have to smile as Sarah (the articulate child she is) began recalling all of the ingredients that are supposed to go into muffins to make sure we didn't forget anything.  I guess she was as confused as I was at our creation.  Jude, didn't really seem to notice....

So there you have it.  I am not perfect.  You know who else isn't perfect, my husband.  Although he does come close at times and this amazing Chocolate Cake with Chocolate Cherry Filling topped with Dark Chocolate Shavings he made me for my birthday was indeed perfection.  Apparently we can only have one decent baker in the house at a time and this month, he took the cake. 

Champagne with Raspberry Cupcakes

I love the story of how I met my friend Britney.  It’s one those “it’s such a small world” moments.  Britney had posted an ad for her babysitting services on our Wiesbaden military community Craigslist-esq site.  I was in the market for a babysitter and inquired.  Of course, being the cautious mommy I was, I went to Facebook to see if I could get an impression of her before we met.  Turns out we have a mutual friend.  Not a mutual friend here in Wiesbaden but a mutual friend from Iowa.  We both contacted our mutual friend Emily and soon discovered that we grew up in the same town, went rival high schools and were a year apart.  Even crazier she now she lives directly across the street from my Stairwell 10 in Stairwell 9 with the same apartment number 1.  Weird.

 

We arranged to meet and I knew I would either have a new babysitter or a new friend.  My attitude was in “mom” mode when we met just in case it turned out to be the former.  She came by, I had Sesame Street music on in the back ground and I offered her a cup of coffee or tea like the good Southern Girl I was raised.  After chatting with her a bit and reminiscing about good ol’ Des Moines, I felt that I set the stage all wrong.  Instead of Sesame Street and Tea, I felt like turning on some 80’s dance music and popping open a bottle of champagne.  Not because we are alcoholics wanting to drink at 10 in the morning, but because she is that much fun.  I liked her immediatly.  

Britney has this bubbly, rock star, but genuine personality.  Her business profile for BB Design Photography, states “there is glitter in my veins”.  She has a passion for all things creative and makes things that I wouldn’t be shocked to see at a local boutique.    We share interests in photography, design, Audrey Hepburn, Glee, among other things yet our personalities are very different.  While I can’t say the same for her, I adore her Summer Brights personality to my Autumn Neutrals.  

When Brittney sent out invitations for a house warming party with a request to bring something delicious, I had a mini panic attack.   I wanted to bring something tasty yet something that reflected her.  I searched the biggest recipe box known to man (Google) and combined a few different recipes to create this fabulous. sparkly, and bubbly creation below.   Serve these with a bottle of champagne on your next girls’ night in… and don’t forget the glitter.

Champagne with Raspberry Cupcakes

1 Box White Cake Mix

1 ¼ cup Champagne (cheap is fine, save the Dom Perigon for drinking)

1/3 cup Canola Oil

3 Egg Whites

2 tbsp Seedless Raspberry Preserves

Champagne and Raspberry Frosting

1 cup butter at room temperature

6 TBSP Raspberry Preserves

4 cups powdered sugar

1/3 cup Champagne

Heat oven to 325F.  Place cupcake liners in regular size muffin tins.

In a large bowl, mix cake mix and champagne.  Add oil, eggs, and raspberry.  Use and electric mixer and beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes.  Divide evenly into muffin cups.  Bake about 20 minutes turning halfway through for more even cooking.  Cool for about 10 minutes and remove from pan to cool completely before frosting.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, use an electric mixer to cream butter and raspberry preserve to a smooth consistency.  Add champagne, mix, and then add powder sugar one cup at a time.  Beat with mixer until smooth*

Put frosting in a bakers bag or large ziplock bag with the end snipped off and frost cupcakes.  Add pink sugar, silver glitter sprinkles, pearls, and a raspberry garnish.  Enjoy!

*The raspberry preserves seemed to separate slightly from the frosting bind.  I’m not sure if this was the cause but I discovered that the preserves I used were “sugar free” and made with Splenda.  While it didn’t affect the taste and added a neat shimmery appearance, I’ll use 100% raspberry preserves next time.

Simply Beautiful Cakes

I have a new hobby.  I bake cakes.  Actually, no, it’s more than that.   I bake cakes, make them look pretty, photograph them, and spend the next week eating them.  It would be a regular hobby if I didn’t spend the following week cursing myself as I stare furiously at the scale’s proclamation of a few unwelcomed pounds.  *sigh* Such is life.

Anyway, I bake cakes.  Nothing fancy, but I add just a simple additional touch.  I do have a friend who creates masterpieces with cakes and should really start baking more and blogging about them so that she can market herself and eventually open up her own business…ahem, Tammy.   

Regardless, despite the simplicity of it, it did not come naturally for me.  I’ve had quite a few cake (and pies and cookies and…) disasters.  There was the You Might As Well Be Sucking on a Lime, Key Lime Pie, the Shredded Carrot Mash Adhered by a Cake Texture, Carrot Cake, and of course my infamous Three Tries Is Not a Charm, Resorted to a Box Mix, Forgot an Essential(very expensive) Ingredient and The Homemade Icing Hurt your Teeth, Chocolate Cake.  My poor husband was the recipient of all of these disasters (two birthdays and a Valentine’s Day).  It’s the thought that counts, right?!

You can imagine my excitement when YouTube became popular and professionals would actually have a tutorial on how to make cakes look pretty AND taste good.  The whole crumb layer thing was pure genius.  Even better, was April 2011 issue of Real Simple had an article on how to make and decorate cakes like pros…simply.   I loved this magazine before, but I so love it even more now!

I would practice here and there for special occasions and was amazed at how easy it was and how much better I got at decorating.  I even found a solution to the cake itself.  As another equally inspiring friend told me, “why mess with something that’s been perfected”.  So yes, I use good Ol’ Betty Crocker to assist me in the kitchen…for most recipes anyway.  There is just no substitute to homemade carrot cake (as long as you follow the directions of course).  More on that another time though.

My icing is usually homemade and has been (almost) perfected.  One ingredient that I love right now is Mascarpone.  It’s a less tangy, creamier and more decedent cream cheese.   It’s fabulous and simple. It's so fabulous that I had to write a post about my new found hobby just so I could share with you.  Loe and behold, below are a few recipes that I’ve adapted to make a simply fabulous icing.  Remember, simple really does go a long way.  Enjoy.

Mascarpone Cream Frosting

Adapted from JustJENN

8 oz Mascarpone

½ cup Confectioner’s Sugar (I like a little less than recommended)

Pinch of Salt

1 TBSP Vanilla Extract (I like a little more than recommended)

1 ½ Cup Whipping Cream

“In a medium bowl combine mascarpone cheese, sugar, salt and vanilla. Stir together until smooth, and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form – don’t overdo it, the last thing you want is for it to curdle. Then fold the whipped cream, into the mascarpone mixture until combined. If you get it just right, you will get a nice sweet fluffy frosting.”

Independence Day Cake: Lemon Cake with Mascarpone Cream Frosting, Topped with Fresh Strawberries and Blueberries

Chocolate Mascarpone Icing

Adapted from Real Simple’s Chocolate Sour Cream Icing

12 oz Semi Sweet Chocolate

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature.

2 Cups Confectioner’s Sugar

1 cup Mascapone

Pinch of Salt

Preparations As Directed by Dawn Perry:

1. “Heat the chocolate in a double boiler or medium heatproof bowl set over (not in) a saucepan of simmering water, stirring often, until melted and smooth. Remove from heat and let cool, 10 to 15 minutes.”
2. “Using an electric mixer, beat the butter on high until light and fluffy, 3 to 5 minutes. Reduce mixer speed to low. Gradually add the sugar and beat until smooth, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add the chocolate, sour cream, and salt and beat to combine.”

Yellow Cake with Strawberry filling topped with Chocolate Mascapone Icing and Fresh Straweberries