Bake at 350

Monday, November 23, 2009

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars

I'm pretty sure Debby Boone was referring to pumpkin and chocolate when she sang, "It can't be wrong, when it feels so right..."

{My apologies to those of you in your 20's...you'll need to google it.} ;)

Because I can't get enough pumpkin and pumpkin season is about to end, I give you...

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Bars
{recipe adapted from Everyday Food, Nov 2004}

2 c all-purpose flour (could use white whole wheat here)
1 & 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp cloves
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp coarse salt
1 c unsalted butter, room temp
1 & 1/4 c sugar
1 egg
2 tsp vanilla
1 c pumpkin puree
12 oz chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350. Line bottom and side of 13x9" pan with foil, leaving an overhang on all sides.

Whisk together the flour, spices, baking soda and salt.

Cream together the butter and sugar on medium-high until smooth. Beat in the egg & vanilla. Beat in the pumpkin puree (it will look curdled...do not worry).

Add the dry ingredients and mix on low just until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Using an offset spatula (or the back of a spoon), spread the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for about 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean (or with a few crumbs, not batter). Cool completely in the pan.

Lift the bars from the pan using the foil. Peel off the foil and cut into squares.

{They are delicious!!!}

Alright...bring on the gingerbread!!!

Flavor-of-the-Month (traditions) reminder. . . .

Ten days until Flavor-of-the-Month November!!! We will link up on the 3oth. Our theme this month is "Traditions." Do you have a recipe from your mom, grandmother, favorite aunt or (let's not leave out) dad that is a family tradition? Maybe you have a recipe you would like to START as a family tradition.

Please join us! Last month, we had a great response with FOTM Pumpkin!!! I am so excited for this month. I'm making a {very 70's, I think} recipe I haven't had in ages, but my mom made it every year at Thanksgiving.

EVERYONE is WELCOME!!! We'd love to have you join in!

{It's a great way to introduce new readers to your blog!}

Here's more info on Flavor-of-the-Month...and here....and here. And here is a link to see our previous events.

One more item of business (oh, I feel so professional!)...if you are participating in Drop In & Decorate, please take pictures and email them to me along with info on where your cookies were donated. I'd like to have all of the pictures in my December 10th. I'll do a round-up of the goodies on the blog.

Want more info on how to get involved? Click here!

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Brown Sugar and Spice Cut-out Cookies

I don't mess with my cookie recipe much. Sometimes, I change up the extracts or add vanilla bean paste, but usually I stick with what works.

Fall spices were calling to me, though, and I thought I'd try to use them in a cut-out cookie. It worked!!! These cookies are lightly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and allspice. I replaced half with sugar with light brown sugar. The cookies ended up slightly softer, but still sturdy enough for decorating.

If you're making cookies for Thanksgiving, these are perfect!

Brown Sugar and Spice Cookies

3 c unbleached, all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/8 tsp nutmeg (freshly grated, if possible)
1/8 tsp allspice
1/2 c granulated sugar (I use sugar that I've stored vanilla beans in)
1/2 c light brown sugar (packed)
2 sticks butter
1 egg
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and spices, set aside.

Cream the sugar and butter. Add the egg and extracts and mix until well-blended.

Gradually add the flour mixture and beat just until combined, scraping down the bowl, especially the bottom. (The dough will be quite thick...you may need to knead in stray bits of flour from the bottom of the bowl by hand.)

Roll on a floured surface and cut into shapes. Place on parchment lined baking sheets and bake for 9-12 minutes, depending on the size of your cutter. Let sit a few minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a cooling rack.

To decorate these cookies, I used pale green, ivory and light orange for the pumpkins. After being outlined and filled, they dried completely overnight.

For the sparkly accents, mix a small amount of meringue powder with water. With a child's paintbrush, paint the area you would like to be sparkle-d (that's a word, right?).

Then, shake on sanding sugar all over the cookie. Turn the cookie upside down and shake off the excess. (I do this over a basket coffee filter and use that to funnel the extra back into the container.)

These are waiting in the freezer to be donated on Thanksgiving for Drop In & Decorate. Are you making some, too? If so, I'd love to have pictures and details of where and how many cookies you donated by December 10th. Thank you!

OH...and did you guess? I have 221 cookie cutters. :)

Cut-out cookies WITHOUT a cutter. . . .Works For Me Wednesday

Don't get me wrong...I love a good cookie cutter. In fact, I have a terribly hard time resisting a cute cutter. Anybody care to take a guess at how many I own? {I counted just for you.}

Sometimes, though....

...the perfect shape is nowhere to be found,
...you waited too long to order,
...or, $12.95 plus $8.00 shipping just isn't in the budget.

Here's where a template comes in handy.

{yellow rose cookies}

Making one is simple. Sketch the design you want, trace the shape on a manila folder and cut.

Now, just place it on your dough and trace cut around it with a paring knife. (I always roll my dough on wax paper...a little extra protection for the counter tops if you're using this method.)

{bun in the oven cookies}

Templates are best for simpler cookies. I strongly advise against using a template to make a snowflake or the skyline of Dallas.

Yes, it does take a lot longer to cut out a batch of cookies with a template. I'm guessing about 4 times as long or more. Instead of "boop, boop, boop" with the cutter (yes, my cutters make that sound), you'll be tracing around the shape with a paring knife.

{pickle cookies}

The edges of the cookies will be rougher than if a cookie cutter had been used (see above). You can always gently press the rough parts in, but be careful not to ruin the shape. I tend not to worry about it much.

Custom cookie templates work for me. Head on over to Kristen's to see all the other Works For Me Wednesday ideas!

I want to know....how many cookie cutters do you own? And, any guesses as to how many I have?

Bake at 350's Works for Me Wednesday archives are here.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Goat Cheese & Leek Tart

Hang with me, people...I went savory.

TidyMom is having a Love the Pie! party today and I decided to make something a little different because woman cannot live by cookies alone. (I've tried.)

The only requirement was that the pie had to be made with a Pillsbury pie crust. No problem here, I think I used them exclusively the first 50 times I made pie. ;)

Goat Cheese and Leek Tart
(modified from Nov. '03 Everyday Food magazine)

1 Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust
1 bunch leeks, white & pale green parts only, thinly sliced into half moons and washed well (see tips below)
1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
coarse salt & pepper
4 oz. herb & garlic goat cheese, room temp
2 oz. plain goat cheese, room temp
2 oz. cream cheese, room temp
2 TBSP milk
3 egg yolks, divided
1/4 tsp dried thyme

Preheat the oven to 350 with rack on the lowest shelf. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Toss washed and dried leeks with oil, salt & pepper.

Beat together the goat cheese, cream cheese, milk, TWO of the egg yolks and thyme until smooth. Lightly season with salt & pepper.

Place the pie crust on the baking sheet.

Spread goat cheese mixture on top, leaving a 2-inch border.

Top with leeks.

Fold edge of crust over the filling, pinching folds together to seal.

With a fork, beat together th remaining egg yolk with 1 TBSP water. Use a pastry brush to apply to dough.

Bake until the crust is golden brown, about 45-55 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into wedges and serve at room temperature.

TIP: To clean leeks....
(I know this not because I cook with leeks a lot, but because I have watched more than my fair share of FoodTV.)

Cut off the dark green tops and roots of the leeks. Cut in half lengthwise, then into half moon shapes.

Place in a bowl of cold water and swish around with your hands to loosen the dirt.

Let sit a few minutes and the grit & dirt will fall to the bottom of the bowl. I like to do this in a glass bowl, so I can SEE the dirt.

Scoop out the leeks and dry on paper towels.

I promise, back to sugar tomorrow. :) Be sure to check out all of the pie fun (and add your own) at TidyMom's Love the Pie! Party.

Oh...one more thing....this is a really good tart that will give you really horrible breath. If you're going to be smooching somebody, make sure your smoochee has eaten the tart, too. :)

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Molly's baby shower. . . .part 2

Alright, so we had "Bun in the Oven" cookies for my sister Molly's baby shower favors, but what for the dessert table?

The invitations to the shower were these:

{Image from www.invitingco.com, names changed to protect the innocent :)}

So, I went with pickles and ice cream cookies!

I was nervous about pickles....I mean, how cute can pickle cookies be, really. But, you know what, I actually loved them!

My lovely assistant (read: husband) made another template for the pickle shape. See how the edges are a little rougher than if I had used a cookie cutter?

I'll let you in on a little secret....I CANNOT pipe straight and even criss-cross lines. Oh, believe me when I tell you, these pictures are of the BEST cones!

When my husband came to take a look at them, I was lamenting the fact that I can't pipe straight lines. He said, "No, you can't...but keep them that way...they're whimsical." Reason #487 why I love that man. ♥

You've been warned...if you purchase these through the shop, your cones will have lines that are, um, "whimsical."

Happy Baby, Molly! I can't wait to find out if we will have a new little niece or nephew!!!

Related Posts:

*What did you crave when you were pregnant? I craved McDonald's cheeseburgers...and still do!*

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Cookies for Giving. . . .Works For Me Wednesday

One of the best things about baking and decorating cookies is giving them away.

{Keep reading...there is a way for you to help!}

Have you heard about Drop In & Decorate? It is a fabulous, nonprofit organization and the brainchild of food writer Lydia Walshin of The Perfect Pantry.

The idea behind Drop In & Decorate is simple: bake some cookies; gather a group of family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, your worship group or book group to decorate the cookies together; donate the cookies to a nonprofit agency serving basic human needs in your own community.

It’s a simple idea in a complicated world, and something anyone can do. The 10,000th cookie will be decorated and donated by the end of this year. Will it be yours?

If you’d like to host your own Drop In & Decorate® event, Pillsbury and Wilton would like to help.

Pillsbury has donated 50 VIP coupons, worth $3.00 each, off any Pillsbury product -- including sugar cookie mix and icing -- to be distributed, first come, first served, while supply lasts, to anyone who plans to host a Drop In & Decorate event (max. 5 coupons per person). And we'll include a Comfort Grip cookie cutter, donated by Wilton, to people who plan to host cookies-for-donation events.

Write to lydia AT ninecooks DOT com for more info on how to get your free coupons and cookie cutters.

NOW, here's my idea...

I'd really love to bake 500 cookies are have you all over to decorate, but I don't have that many squeeze bottles. :)

So, what do you say to a Bake at 350 virtual Drop In & Decorate event? Invite the neighbors, decorate with your kids, decorate by yourself, whatever.

Let's try to donate them the first week of December...but if you need to do it sooner, please go ahead.

There are a few guidelines:

For your cookies to count as an official Drop In & Decorate event, you must donate decorated sugar cookies. No cupcakes, no brownies...cookies. (Need ideas? You're in the right place!)
The cookies must be donated to an agency serving basic human needs (food, shelter, etc.). They can go to a senior center, food pantry, domestic violence shelter, Ronald McDonald House, even a nursing home. But not to benefit an individual.
Email me (bridget350{AT}gmail{DOT}com) telling me how many cookies you donated and where they were donated. Email pictures, too! I'll post all of the totals and some pictures here on the blog and pass all of our info on to Drop In & Decorate.
Optional: tweet about your baking and giving using hashtag #dropindecorate.

AND, you can grab one of the cute little badges for your blog. {See sidebar.}

So, who's with me? Like Lydia says, "Cookies make people smile, and bring a bit of happiness to people in difficult circumstances."