Category: Baking

Thanksgiving Recap!

Sadie1 Comment

I need to apologize off the bat for not taking any pictures. I have a lot of excuses, but at the end of the day, I really just forgot. So in lieu of my own photos, here’s a list of the odds and ends I baked last week with links to the recipes:

Pumpkin Bread: First time trying this specific recipe. It turned out great! Perfect flavor and not too sweet (btw, I subbed the ginger for pumpkin pie spice so it was a pretty standard pumpkin flavor), plus I added walnuts for a little crunch! Not to brag, but my dad did say he preferred it over my mom’s cranberry nut bread. Just sayin…

Chocolate Cake: This is the traditional birthday cake recipe. We had a few birthdays to celebrate from the past few weeks so we turned the Wednesday dinner before Thanksgiving into a little birthday dinner. I probably make this recipe at least 4 times a year, I wonder why (you can do the math).

Ricotta Cookies: These are quickly becoming a family favorite. They are soft and vanilla, with a colorful icing. I’ll probably be making another batch in the next few weeks.

Double Chocolate Cheesecake Cookies: I pinned these a while ago from one of my favorite blogs. They were easy to make and very tasty. I was a little sloppy with the drizzle icing, but it tasted good!

Almond Biscotti: A standard for my holiday baking. They aren’t an ooey gooey crowd pleaser, but it’s the perfect evening snack with your tea when you have a big meal in the afternoon, or mid afternoon snack with your coffee during your holiday shopping.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars: These are a crowd pleaser every time, and are a must have during our family’s Thanksgiving. Easy and delicious!

Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats: I know I just made these a couple weeks ago, but my mom had some extra marshmallows that she wanted me to use up. So I made them again, and guess what, they were still delicious!

Gingersnaps: I made these for my mom to use in her molasses gingersnap ice cream. I know it sounds weird, but it’s awesome! These gingersnaps are the perfect flavor and texture, spicy and crunchy!

Energy Balls: I don’t think I’ve blogged about these yet but I’ve made them a few times. They’re a quick no-bake snack that is pretty healthy. I make a bunch and stick them in the freezer, and they mysteriously disappear rather rapidly in my house…

Pumpkin Cheesecake: I’ve made this before in individual ramekins, but this was the first time in 9 inch cake form. It turned out great with the exception of the crust. I tried to sub gingersnap crumbs for graham cracker crumbs in the crust recipe, and it turned out a little too tough. I think the gingersnap crumbs were too fine, so when I packed them down they turned into a very solid crust. Other than that though, it was the perfect dessert for our New York Post-Thanksgiving Chanukah latke fest!

This list is not counting the savory things I made fore the main event! At the end of the week I didn’t understand why I was so tired, but after writing out this list, I sort of get it.

What did you bake this Thanksgiving?

Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats!

Sadie4 Comments

Even though most retailers and coffee shops seemed to have bypassed November and moved straight onto December and Christmas, I plan to eat pumpkin right through pie leftovers on Black Friday. Thank you very much! I’m not quite sure when Christmas season started right after Halloween, and Thanksgiving became the red headed step-child, but I’m not a fan. Thanksgiving is the best holiday of the year!

So anyway, I wanted to make some treats for a team meeting at work because we were having more people actually in person than usual. One of my teammates recently learned that she needs to stick to a gluten free diet, so I decided to go the gluten free direction because I feel bad that she never gets to snack with us anymore.

The Star of the Show
The Star of the Show

Rather than try to adapt a gluten recipe, I wanted to make something that is gluten free to begin with. The obvious choice? Rice Krispie treats! And if that wasn’t enough of a crowd pleaser to begin with, let’s add pumpkin!pumpkin!

These were definitely a crowd pleaser! When I was looking for recipes online I initially found several using pumpkin spice Jello instant pudding mix rather than pumpkin puree. While I’m not so opposed to that method, my grocery store didn’t have the flavor. I didn’t have the time to shop around, so I went with a recipe that actually just used pumpkin and pumpkin spice. It totally worked, plus it was probably a little better to use pumpkin rather than a pudding mix.

Pumpkin Spice Rice Krispie Treats

Adapted from Bake Love Give, yields about 20 bars depending on size

Ingredients

  • 4 Tbs butter
  • 1 10 oz bag of mini marshmallows (plus a little extra if you like them extra gooey)
  • 1/3 cup pumpkin puree
  • 1 tsp of pumpkin pie spice (a little extra if you want to turn up the spice)
  • 6 cups Rice Krispies (Gluten Free if you want to be strict gluten free)
  • 5 oz. white chocolate chips (melted for drizzling)

Method

  1. Melt butter in a pot over medium heat.
  2. Add marshmallows and stir until melted. Add pumpkin puree and pumpkin spice. Stir to combine and turn off heat.
  3. Add Rice Krispies and extra marshmallows if desired. Stir until well combined and spoon into 13 x 9 baking pan to cool. Alternatively you can portion out the batter with an ice cream scoop or into cupcake molds.yum!
  4. Once treats have cooled, melt the white chocolate chips in microwave for 30 second intervals. Make sure you don’t burn it! Use a fork to drizzle it over the treats for a little extra je ne sais quoi!

finished product

I ended up also making flourless chocolate cookies, obviously gluten free, and obviously fantastic. Both of these hit the spot!

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

Sadie3 Comments

Let’s be honest, what is there not to like about the title of this post? This past weekend I needed to bring some food to a cookout, and since I haven’t done much baking this summer, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to put my new kitchen to work. This is officially the inaugural batch of cookies in my new apartment.

As you may or may not know, I eat bananas quite regularly, and I’m always worried about keeping a ripe supply at all times for my morning smoothies. Last week, however, I got a little overzealous and I ended up with some extras that got ripe real fast. And thus: cookies with bananas.

I quickly searched some of my favorite food blogs and ended up with this great recipe from How Sweet It Is. I love that blog!  Let me tell you something. These are the best cookies I’ve made in a while. They are a great chewy texture that make them soft but not too light and cakey. Plus, I feel like the peanut butter and banana add some healthy components to a typical chocolate chip cookie, without making it a full on granola bar.

BTW, These get even healthier when they are transported in an organic spinach container.
BTW, These get even healthier when they are transported in an organic spinach container.

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

Adapted from How Sweet It Is, yields 18-20 cookies

Ingredients

  • 2 cups plus 2 Tbs AP Flour
  • 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 8 Tbs Butter, melted and cooled
  • 6 Tbs Peanut, Butter melted and cooled
  • 1 egg yolk, room temp
  • 1 cup brown sugar loosely packed
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 medium ripe bananas mashed
  • 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips
  1. Preheat oven to 350 (How Sweet It Is recommends 325, but my oven needed to be hotter).
  2. Combine the dry ingredients in one bowl: flour, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

    stuff
    I decided to play the game: use every bowl and every utensil in the kitchen. It makes cleanup a breeze!
  3. Combine melted and cooled butter and peanut butter in a different bowl. Wisk it together with the sugars and egg yolk. Then wisk in the mashed banana and vanilla extract. The mixture will not be smooth. DSCN1856
  4. Slowly add the dry to the wet and use a wooden spoon to mix it (no hand mixer needed). And finally fold in the chocolate chips.ummmm chocolate
  5. Portion out the cookies onto parchment lined cookie sheets and bake 10-15 minutes at 350 (again, my oven was way off from what the original recipe suggested so use your judgement). Cookies should be a light golden brown.scoop it outout of the oven
  6. Allow to cool, and enjoy!