Halloween Cake Pops

I saw these on the cover of Family Circle magazine and instantly wanted to make them. After buying everything (a rather expensive indeavor when you add the lolly-pop sticks, Styrofoam, and chocolate), at 10:30 the night before we (I conned Joel into helping me) were ready to roll. the chocolate melts, lolly-pop sticks, styrofoam were all found at Michael's Craft store.

I recommend baking the cake (store box cake mix) a few days before.

Once it is cool, crumble it up into small pieces.

Add store bought frosting (in no way are these good for you, hello transfat). only use 3/4 of the container, otherwise they'll be too wet.

roll into balls about the size of a walnut. if done properly, 1 cake should yield about 48 balls. put the cake balls onto a baking sheet lined with wax paper and put into the freezer, cover. you can do up to this part, days or even a week or two ahead.

I recommend watching the video - the shortening does help immensely to get the chocolate to the perfect consistancy.

Also mini M&M can be used for many different things - eyes, nose, stems. chocolate chips make good animal ears. we decorated everything at once. Joel dipped the cake pops and I decorated and put them in the Styrofoamto set up.

lessons learned - think ahead about transporting. the largest piece of Styrofoam is not easily transported with 2 car seats. have 2 people handy when ready to decorate. the first few will not be perfect, that's ok. the food markers are not vibrant - get the paint if you want something defined. keep the cake balls cold prior to dipping, they'll have a tendency to crumble otherwise

In these pictures I made 3 cakes - devil's food with chocolate frosting, vanilla with vanilla, and lemon with cream cheese. We started decorating around 10:30 at night and finished at 1.

Chocolate-Avocado Mousse Martinis with Fresh Raspberries

This does not nearly do justice to how dark and velvety the mousse looked in person.

The fabulous LRK also turned me onto this recipe, which comes from Sheryl Crow's cookbook, If It Makes You Healthy: More Than 100 Recipes Inspired By the Seasons.

If you didn't know that this dessert was vegan, you would swear it was loaded with butter and cream. The texture is more closer to ganache than mousse -- I was amazed at how dense, creamy, and decadent the avocados made it. Because I am a complete fool for dark chocolate, I used Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder, which resulted in a mousse that was dark as sin with a rush of deep, intense chocolate flavor. The tartness of the raspberries cuts the richness and keeps you from going into a complete chocolate coma.

The martini glasses serve no purpose other than to look pretty; you could use small dishes or ramekins to serve. I bet that adding a splash of Grand Marnier, Chambord, Domaine de Canton, or the like would take it to yet another level.

The mousse was darker than my table.

Ingredients

• 2 large ripe avocados
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (Sheryl likes Green & Black's organic fair trade cocoa powder, but I'm a fan of the Special Dark)
  
• 1/2 cup agave nectar, plus more to taste
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract (which I thought I had, but I didn't, so I omitted)
  
• 1/2 pint fresh raspberries, for garnish

Instructions

1. Halve and pit the avocados and scoop out the flesh. Transfer the avocado flesh to the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade. Using a spoon, break up the avocado a little in the food processor.

2. Add the cocoa powder, agave nectar, vanilla extract, and almond extract to the processor and process for 1 to 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and then process again until the mousse is very smooth, 1 to 2 minutes longer.

3. Taste the mousse and if not sweet enough, add more nectar, 1 teaspoon at a time. Pulse to mix.

4. Spoon the mousse into martini glasses or similar serving vessels. Cover the glasses with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 8 hours.

5. Serve the mousse chilled and garnished with raspberries.

Yields 3 to 4 servings. I doubled it since I expected 5 people, and the servings were quite generous.

Whole wheat chocolate chip cookies

I saw this recipe at Orangette and was somewhat skeptical that they could really taste as good as the original recipe. I think I'm a convert. Maybe it's my tastebuds changing as I get older, but I really like the nutty quality that the whole wheat flour gives. They also aren't too terribly sweet. I used a whole bag of chocolate chips, mostly because I didn't really care to measure out 8 oz. They turned out just fine.

I also made mine much smaller, because I like petite cookies... if you want bigger cookies, just drop a little more and cook a little longer.

Whole wheat chocolate chip cookies

Ingredients:
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 ½ tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 ½ tsp. kosher salt
2 sticks (8 oz.) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes
1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
8 oz. bittersweet chips (or an entire bag)

Method:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Line baking sheets with parchment.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, and whisk to blend.

Put the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the butter and sugars are blended, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.

Add the flour mixture to the bowl, and blend on low speed until the flour is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl.

Add the chocolate, and mix on low speed until evenly combined. (If you have no stand mixer, you can do all of this with handheld electric beaters and/or a large, sturdy spoon.) Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and then use your hands to turn and gently massage the dough, making sure all the flour is absorbed.

Scoop mounds of dough about 1 tablespoon in size onto the baking sheets.
Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool. Repeat with remaining dough.

Grasshopper Pie

Grasshopper pie has been a favorite of mine for... well, ever. There used to be a restaurant back where I grew up in Wisconsin Rapids, WI called Wilbern's that was an authentic Midwestern supper club. Whenever our family went there for dinner, it was always an event. Dad would don a sport coat, and Mom would put on a dress, some lipstick, and a spritz of perfume. After our delicious dinner in the dining room, we head to the bar for an after-dinner drink before leaving. Mom liked to order grasshoppers, and if I was being really good she would let me sneak a sip of her drink... cool, creamy, minty heaven. I knew that candy was dandy, but grown-up drinks were even more delicious! Grasshopper pie always brings back memories of those special occasions when we would dress up for a night on the town.

Not only that, but I also think of grasshopper pie in particular (not really the drink) as a classic dessert from the golden age of dinner parties in the '60s, what you might serve after you had your rumaki and your glazed ham with pineapple rings. So, in the spirit of nostalgia and keeping it real, I served grasshopper pie at our last dinner club meal.

This is mostly "Grasshopper Pie II" from allrecipes.com. It's a recipe that would make Sandra Lee proud, with its premade chocolate pie crust and melted marshmallows in place of sugar and gelatin. That said, it doesn't really taste "Sandra Lee-d" (and I know you know what I mean when I say that).

Also, I opted to freeze the pie rather than chill it. The firmer texture makes it easier to cut and serve, plus it reminds me more of the ice cream drink I've loved for so many years.

Ingredients:

• 1 (9 inch) prepared chocolate cookie crumb crust
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 32 large marshmallows
• 6 tablespoons creme de menthe
• 1/4 cup white creme de cacao
• 1-1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
• 2 drops green food coloring (optional)
• 12 Andes mints, chopped

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan combine evaporated milk and marshmallows. Stir over low heat until marshmallows are completely melted. Chill until mixture holds its shape when dropped from a spoon.
2. Slowly pour creme de menthe and creme de cacao into marshmallow mixture while stirring constantly. Continue to stir until all ingredients are thoroughly combined.
3. Pour whipping cream into a large chilled mixing bowl. Add a few drops of green food coloring if desired. Whip cream until stiff. Gently fold whipped cream into marshmallow mixture.
4. Spread mixture into pie crust and top with chopped mints. Freeze overnight before serving.
   

Jamaican Sweet Potato Pudding

Grating the sweet potatoes for this tasty dessert gives your arms a workout! I served this topped with a simple rum sauce.

from Sugar and Spice & Everything Irie - Veda Nugent and Marrett Green

2 pounds sweet potatoes (4 to 5 potatoes)
2 1/2 cups coconut milk
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 cup raisins or currants
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven to 300 F. Grease a 9 inch square baking dish.

2. Peel and grate the sweet potatoes.

3. In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, coconut milk, flour, sugar, raisins, butter, vanilla, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon. Mix well.

4. Pour the mixture into the baking dish and bake for 45 to 60 minutes or until the liquid is absorbed and the top of the pone is golden brown.

Cool before serving.

Cardamom meringues

Everyone seems to love these cookies, and they are incredibly easy to make. This recipe produces cookies that I would call "medium-rare" in the meringue world: they are brittle on the outside and very chewy on the inside. For a slightly firmer cookie, leave the baking sheets in the oven until cool so that the residual heat continues to cook the meringues. For a crisp meringue, bump the temperature up another 15-20 degrees and leave in the oven until cool.*

From Swedish Cakes and Cookies (2008)

Ingredients:

• 3 egg whites
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 210 degrees F (100 degrees C)
• Beat the egg whites with half the regular sugar until stiff, preferably with an electric mixer.
• Add the remaining sugar, beating until thick and glossy, with no granules left.
• Combine the powdered sugar, cornstarch, and cardamom and fold into the egg white mixture.
• Spoon into a piping bag with a star tip and pipe small kisses or other shapes onto a parchment-lined baking sheet. (MG - You can just as easily drop heaping teaspoonfuls of batter onto the baking sheet. Not as pretty, but also not as messy.)
• Bake on the center oven rack for 45-60 minutes, or until they are very dry and light.

Store in a dry place. Makes approximately 35 cookies.

* Of course, it could also be that my oven runs cool. If you give this recipe a try, let me know how they turned out for you.

Finnish Spoon Cookies (Lusikkaleivat)

These cookies are a little fussy but worth the effort. The browned butter imparts a nutty flavor to the dough. Use cloudberry jam to make them extra special.

Some of the recipes I found specifically called for letting the cookies sit for a couple of days before serving to allow the flavors to blend. I did this for my Scandinavian dinner, and I agree that the flavor was better after a couple of days. Of course, they are delicious when they are freshly made, too.

Recipe courtesy of foodnetwork.com

Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• Pinch fine salt
• 1 large egg yolk
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup jam, such as a berry, plum or cloudberry
• Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.

• Melt the butter in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over medium heat. Continue to cook, swirling the pan occasionally, until the butter browns lightly and smells slightly nutty, about 15 minutes. Transfer the butter to a medium bowl -- be sure to get all the tasty brown bits -- and cool slightly.

• Meanwhile, whisk the flour, baking powder and salt in another medium bowl.

• Whisk the egg yolk, sugar and vanilla into the cooled browned butter.

• Stir the dry ingredients into the butter mixture to make a uniform but crumbly dough that looks like wet sand.

• Scoop out dough with a small teaspoon (the kind you set the table with, not the ones you measure with). Rock spoon gently back and forth against the side of the bowl, packing the dough into the spoon, then scrape/slide the spoon against the inside of the bowl to make spoon-shaped cookies. Trim excess dough with your fingers and slide out onto the prepared pans, preserving their shape. (Try to make sure you form an even number of cookies, since these sandwich together.)

• Bake cookies until just browned, about 12 to 15 minutes. Cool almost completely on the baking sheets, and then transfer cookies to a rack to cool.

• When cool, spread 1/2 teaspoon jam on the flat side of a cookie, and then sandwich together with a second cookie. Repeat until all cookies have met their match. Lightly dust the cookies with the confectioners' sugar. Serve.

The dough looks like wet sand.

Pressing the dough into spoon-shaped halves is a painstaking process.

The cookies are cooling before assembly.

Finished cookies dusted with powdered sugar.

The dough can be prepared several hours ahead and stored at room temperature. Freeze baked cookie halves wrapped tightly in plastic wrap, followed by aluminum foil for up to 2 weeks. When ready to serve, defrost at room temperature and assemble as desired. Store sandwiches in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Do not store with crisp cookies, as moisture from the jam will soften the texture of other crisp cookies.

Tastes like spring -- lavender sorbet

I made this tasty treat for my Easter dinner dessert. The recipe is so easy, and the results are deliciously elegant. The most difficult part is finding culinary lavender: around here, Penzeys Spices carries it, but it's all behind the counter and you have to ask an employee about it. You'd think you were asking for some sort of black-market item like real pre-bathtub-meth-lab Benadryl. But if you don't have a Penzeys or other gourmet specialty shop near you, surely you can use the magic of the interwebs to bring some lavender your way.

Lavender Sorbet

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sugar
• 2 cups water
• 1 tablespoon culinary-grade lavender buds
• 2-1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons vodka

Directions:

• In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar and water until sugar dissolves.
• Add lavender and lemon juice, and stir until mixture comes to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer for 5 minutes.
  
• Remove from heat, cover, and let stand for about 10 minutes.
• Place a fine strainer over a large bowl and pour syrup mixture through, straining out lavender flowers. (I like to use a coffee filter to collect the lavender flowers and let the flowers dry, to have candied lavender buds for a garnish. And to eat as a little treat, but that's just me.)
• Chill syrup mixture in refrigerator for about 2 hours or until cold.
• Transfer syrup mixture to ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions. In last 2 minutes of processing, add vodka to mixture. (Because alcohol has a lower freezing temperature than water, you don't want to add it too soon in the freezing process. Adding it at the end allows the sorbet to freeze well and build up volume, but the vodka will keep the sorbet nice and soft and easy to scoop.)

Makes 6-8 one-scoop servings.

Hey Blondie!

We had a lovely dinner of soup and rice casserole. The dishes are washed and put away. It's nearly time to put on the pajamas and settle in for a little tube time before bed. But there's something missing. I'm craving something a little sweet, but nothing that requires a whole lot of effort (did I mention the dishes were already washed?).

Enter the blondie. It's just like a brownie, hold the cocoa. I actually slightly prefer blondies over brownies. The cocoa sometimes hides the buttery caramely goodness that a blondie offers.

Just like with brownies there are 2 schools of perfection. There are those who like the edge pieces, so you get a little crispiness--hence the As Seen on TV: All edge brownie pans.

I am in the other school, those who like the goopy middle pieces. If not for the whole raw egg thing, I'd actually prefer just to eat the dough straight from the mixing bowl. Since that's not (a good) option, I prefer my blondies rare... for those who are in the crispy edges group, just add some more time to the recipe.

Just as an aside, the flavor of the brown sugar really comes through pretty strong here. This time I used Trader Joe's organic brown sugar and I have to say, it had a much deeper flavor than, say the Giant brand of brown sugar. I don't always buy organic sugars; I just happened to be at TJ's when I remembered that I was out. It was a happy accident.

Blondies (Emily-style)

Time: 1 hour (most of it baking)

Ingredients

1/2 c. butter, melted

1 c. brown sugar, packed

1 egg, beaten

3/4 c. all purpose flour

1/4 c. wheat flour (if you don't have it on hand, just use all AP flour)

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 tsp. almond extract (optional)

large pinch salt

handful of dried cherries (optional)

handful of chocolate chips (optional)

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Mix together butter & brown sugar.

3. Add the egg and mix.

4. Add the remaining ingredients and stir until combined.

5. Pour batter into a greased square baking pan.

6. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the middle is just set*.

Note: This is largely going to depend on how big your pan is. I used an 8X8 pan and 35 minutes was just right for my rare blondie tastebuds. If you're using a bigger pan, start with 20-25 minutes and check as you go.

Bon Appetit!

Milk Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Cake

Also from the Egyptian website (touregypt.net, if you're curious). Pumpkin is allegedly also eaten in Egypt... and according to National Geographic, pumpkins grow on every continent but Antarctica. So it is plausible that this would be served at a dinner table in Egypt.

This cake was a hit dessert at my last dinner night, and it was even better the next day, after the flavors had a chance to mingle with one another. And for what its worth, it made for a great breakfast. It has eggs in it, which is of course a breakfast food, and pumpkin is high in Vitamins A and C. So the cake is, you know, practically health food.

Ingredients:

• 3 c. all purpose flour
• 2 1/4 c. granulated sugar
• 3/4 c. brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp. pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 6 oz. milk chocolate chips
  
• 1- 15 oz. can pumpkin
• 3/4 c. melted butter or margarine
• 6 eggs slightly beaten or equivalent egg substitute
• Oven 350F
• Tube pan or fluted tube pan (Bundt pan)

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 350F
• Generously spray the tube pan with nonstick spray.
• Set aside 1/2 c. flour in a small bowl
• In a large bowl, combine the remaining flour, sugars, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
• Place the chocolate chips in the reserved flour and toss to coat. Set aside.
• In another bowl combine the pumpkin, melted butter, and eggs.
• Add the pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until combined. Add the chocolate chip mixture. Stir until combined, then pour the batter into the tube pan.
• Bake for 60 minutes or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean, when tested near the center of the cake.
• Cool pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Gently remove the cake from the pan and cool for 30 minutes. Garnish with powdered sugar or drizzle with icing.

Makes 12-16 servings.

I don't have a picture of the cake, so instead I will share a pic of the ladies enjoying dinner. The two dips were a saffron aioli and a lemony carrot dip with toasted cumin seeds.

Sopapilla Cheesecake

Apparently this is an incredibly popular recipe on the web (probably because it is so easy). Once I found it, I found about a million copies of the recipe with slight variations.

Sopapilla Cheesecake
2 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 (8 ounce) cans refrigerated crescent rolls
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, room temperature

Preheat an oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9"x13" baking dish with Pam. Beat the cream cheese with 1 cup of sugar and the vanilla extract in a bowl until smooth. (I don't have a mixer and was able to do this by hand.) Unroll one can of crescent roll dough and press the two rectangles into the 9"x13" pan to cover the bottom. Evenly spread the cream cheese mixture into the baking dish. Unroll the other can of crescent rolls, press them into a 9"x13" and shape, and put this on top. Stir together 3/4 cup of sugar, the cinnamon, and the butter. Dot the mixture over the top of the cheesecake. Bake in the preheated oven until the crescent dough has puffed and turned golden brown, about 30 minutes. Cool completely in the pan before cutting.

Carrot cookies

This is an adaptation from a recipe I saw on 101cookbooks.com. I didn't have most of the ingredients, except for the carrots and the oats, but I gave it a whirl anyhow, substituting what I did have on hand. Here's the recipe I made. I kind of like these because they aren't over-the-top sweet, plus it has carrots, so it HAS to be healthy, right?


Carrot cookies

Ingredients:
1 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt (kosher)
1 c. rolled oats
2/3 c. sunflower seeds
1 c. shredded carrots
1/2 c. brown rice syrup (the original called for maple syrup, but alas I was out!)
1/2 c. coconut oil heated through
1 T fresh grated ginger

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Line cookie sheet w/ parchment paper
2. Combine the first 6 ingredients in a large bowl.
3. In a smaller bowl combine the brown rice syrup, coconut oil and ginger. Stir until they are completely combined.
4. Add the liquid mixture to the dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
5. Drop spoonfuls of the batter onto the prepped cookie sheet.
6. Bake for about 10 minutes until the cookies are golden on top and bottom.
7. Cool on a rack and enjoy (if you can wait that long).

Chocolate Chip Cookies on Crack

A few weeks ago Kim mentioned these in one of her blogs. I knew immediately I wanted to try it because who doesn't love cookies and ice cream? A big shout-out to Rebecca for actually mixing the cookies for me - otherwise we would have just eaten ice cream and that wouldn't have been nearly as fun.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/mighty-appetite/2009/04/chocolate_chip_cookies_on_crac.html

I used the recipe that Kim suggests (although any recipe you like would do). It nicely filled 6 4-inch ramekins (see picture). I topped with caramel ice cream and it was heavenly.

Pistachio cardamom cake

This is a dense cake which is reminiscent of Middle Eastern cuisine, but I used it as the sweet end to the Indian inspiration dinner. This cake with its rich buttery pistachio crumb and the underlying warmness of the cardamom is a sure-fire hit. The cake is drizzled with a lemon syrup which makes the flavor nice and light.

If you've never worked with cardamom it tastes a little bit like cinnamon, but with a little more heat. For the longest time, I held off on buying this spice because it's kind of expensive, and I wasn't sure what else I would use it for. Well, the possibilities are many. You can use a 1/2 tsp. or so of cardamom pretty much anywhere you'd use cinnamon: think cinnamon buns, any cake mix, apple pie, pancake/waffle/crepe batter, or even sprinkled on your morning yogurt with fruit.

You can buy cardamom in 2 forms: pod and ground. The ground cardamom is what is used in this recipe it is simply the tiny seeds from the cardamom pod that have been finely ground down. The pods are also handy (though slightly more difficult to find). I usually throw the pods into the rice pot or stew-like dishes to intensify the flavor--4 to 6 are usually plenty.

Pistachio Cardamom Cake (from Moosewood New Classics)

Ingredients
Cake:
1/2 c. unsalted butter, at room temperature
3/4 c. sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1 c. semolina flour
1/2 tsp. ground cardamom
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 c. unsalted pistachios, plus 12 whole pistachios
1/2 c. nonfat plain yogurt

Syrup:
1/4 c. water
1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 Tbs. lemon juice

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F. Butter a 7X11 inch baking dish
2. With an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar.
3. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition.
4. Add the vanilla
5. Grind 1/2 c. of the pistachios in a spice grinder (or food processor) to the consistency of a coarse meal.
6. In a separate bowl, combine the semolina, cardamom, cinnamon, salt, and pistachios.
7. In alternating batches, add the yogurt and the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture, beating well after each addition, to form a smooth batter.
8. Spread the batter inot the prepared pan. Bake for about 30 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
9. About 5 minutes before the cake is done, combine the syrup ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Boil rapidly for about 2 minutes and then remove from heat and set aside.
10. When the cake is ready, cut it in half lengthwise and then cut it into thirds crosswise to form six square pieces. Cut each square on the diagonal to make 12 triangular pieces.
11. Pour the syrup evenly over the cake and gently press one whole pistachio into the center of each triangle of cake.