Soft Pretzels with Jalapeno Cheese Sauce

Well the Superbowl didn't have the outcome that I was hoping for, my team had too many turnovers, I wasn't a fan of the halftime show and the commercials weren't anything exciting, but the food was good at least.  For me these soft pretzels were the highlight of the night.

I debated between a couple different recipes - one from Baking Illustrated and one from Alton Brown.  Although similar the main differences were in the type of flour and the type of sweetener.  The Baking Illustrated recipe used bread flour which has a higher gluten content and therefore creates a chewier dough.  Pretzels are supposed to be chewy so I decided to stick with the bread flour.  The Baking Illustrated recipe also used honey and after reading their explanation, I decided to go with that - it also meant I didn't have to open a package of brown sugar for a couple tablespoons - so it made it a fairly easy decision.  The other key to the recipe which both versions did is to boil the pretzels in a baking soda solution, so make sure you don't skip this step.

The pretzels are best eaten the day they are made or you can freeze them right away and then warm in the oven when you want them.  Don't store them in a covered container on your counter top though or they will end up a little soggy.

I made a simple spicy, garlicky cheese sauce to dip these in because it sounded good and I was already chopping jalapenos and garlic for guacamole and sliders that I was making.  It turned out to be a great dipping sauce for the pretzels adding a spicy kick to the slightly sweet and salty pretzel dough.  They would also be good with mustard or a cheddar cheese sauce.  Of course you can also sub cinnamon and sugar for the salt sprinkled on before baking and make more dessert-like pretzels if you prefer.

Soft Pretzels
Recipe slightly adapted from Baking Illustrated

Dough:
1 package rapid-rise yeast
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp salt
3 cups bread flour (16 1/2 ounces)
1 cup water, at approximately 110 degrees
Approximately 1 T olive oil

Baking Soda Solution:
Approximately 6 cups water
3 T baking soda
Salt for sprinkling on pretzels

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine all ingredients for the dough.  Make sure you are using rapid rise yeast, or you will need to proof your yeast before mixing.  Mix on low speed until combined and then knead about 5-7 minutes on low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic.  Prepare a separate bowl by coating with olive oil, transfer dough to bowl, turning to coat evenly.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place to rise for about one hour or until doubled in size.  Punch dough down, recover and let rise approximately 30 minutes more.

In a large low pan (a 12" skillet with deep sides or a small dutch oven will work perfectly) bring water and baking soda to a boil over medium high heat.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. 

Separate dough into 12 approximately 2 ounce pieces.  Roll each piece into a long string, about 20 inches in length.  Fold pretzels into shape, twisting the ends over each other and pressing lightly to seal dough into shape.  Transfer pretzels, a few at a time to boiling water, cook 30 seconds on each side, turning with a slotted spoon, drain and transfer to prepared baking pan.  Sprinkle with coarse salt and repeat until all the pretzels have been boiled.  They don't need much room on the baking sheet as they won't spread much in the oven.  Bake approximately 12-14 minutes until dark golden brown.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool and serve.

Jalapeno Cheese Sauce

1 T unsalted butter
1 T flour
3/4 cup milk
1 clove garlic, finely grated or minced
1 jalapeno pepper, finely minced
1 cup Colby Jack cheese
1/2 -1 tsp cayenne pepper

In a small sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat.  Add flour and whisk to combine, cooking about one minute until smooth.  Add milk, whisking to incorporate.  Add garlic and jalapeno.  Switch to a wooden spoon and stir frequently until thickened, about 15 minutes.  The sauce should begin to coat the back of the spoon.  Remove from heat and stir in cheese.  Add cayenne pepper to taste. 

Steelers are going to the Superbowl!

Here we go, Steelers, here we go!

Obviously this is old news but I'm a little behind on starting this Superbowl recipe post.  Since half the fun of the Superbowl is making a bunch of appetizers and snacking all day (at least that's half the fun for me) I've got some great recipes to share with you. 

To start off - here are six recipes from the archives in honor of each of the Steelers past Superbowl victories!

Chicken Fajita Quesadillas

Jalapeno Popper Dip

Cheddar Ranch Cheese Ball

Beer Cheese Fondue

Spicy Chicken Tortilla Roll-Ups

Cinnamon Roasted Almonds

Since the Steelers are attempting to win their 7th championship game, here's a 7th recipe for spicy sausage pizza roulade. 

This recipe is really easy and essentially a rolled up pizza, so you can change up the filling to whatever your favorite pizza toppings are.  I would recommend staying away from things with a high water content though, like pineapple if it's on the top of your list, so that you don't end up with soggy bread.  You can use any bread dough you want for this - a standard pizza crust from scratch or even roll out a dough like Pillsbury's French bread dough, they even have one that doesn't contain any high fructose corn syrup or trans fats.  That's what I used for this one since I didn't have any pizza dough ready to go and I had a coupon to try their Simply Rustic French bread dough. 

Spicy Sausage Pizza Roulade

12 oz hot ground Italian sausage
1 green bell pepper, diced
1/2 red onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pizza or french bread dough
1 tsp pizza seasoning
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 cup shredded pizza or mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
2 T butter, softened
1 tsp garlic powder
Pizza sauce for serving

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a baking sheet with baking spray or line with parchment paper.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add sausage and crumble as it browns.  After about 2 minutes, add onions, peppers and garlic.  Cook until sausage is just cooked through and vegetables are softened.  Remove from heat and drain any grease off the sausage.  Lightly flour a smooth counter surface and roll out dough into a large rectangle, about 12x18 inches.  Evenly sprinkle pizza seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes over dough.  Spoon sausage mixture onto bottom third to half of the long edge of the dough, leaving an edge of about one inch open at the outside.  Next add cheeses directly next to the sausage mixture on the 2nd third of the dough, a little overlap is fine.  The final third should be open. 

Begin rolling from sausage side, rolling the dough gently into a long tube.  Pinch the seams to seal the dough and place the dough seam side down on prepared pan.  Fold the ends under slightly, pinching to seal the ends.  Bake about 25 minutes and remove from oven.  Add garlic powder to melted butter and brush over the top of the bread dough and return to the oven for about five more minutes until golden brown.  Cool at least 5-10 minutes before slicing into 1/2 inch thick slices.  Serve with warmed pizza sauce.

Chipotle Chicken Pasta

Have you ever used the chipotle in adobo peppers you can usually find the Mexican or ethnic aisle of your grocery store?  I absolutely love them.  They have such awesome flavor.  I add them to chili, salsa, taco meat, and all kinds of things.  The adobo sauce adds such a great smoky heat.  Chipotles in adobo are dried, smoked jalapeno peppers cooked in a sauce of spices like cumin and garlic among other things, vinegar, tomato sauce and ancho chilis, there is often a little brown sugar added too. They are spicier than a jalapeno though so be careful.  If they are too hot for you, you can scrape out the seeds to cut down on the heat.  The ones I buy come in a small can that looks like this.

As for this pasta, I wanted a spicy pasta with a light cream sauce.  I added lots of bell peppers, onions, and cilantro to give it extra flavor.  I let the chicken marinate in a little lime juice, cilantro and spices for about half an hour before cooking it to give it some extra flavor.  I used whole wheat pasta to make it a little healthier.  I've cut back on the chipotles in this recipe from the way I made it the first time.  Although I was fine with using three chipotle peppers, my husband thought it was just too spicy so I would start with one pepper and taste it along the way.  That way you get the flavor but adjust the heat to suit your own tastes.  I didn't take out the seeds.  Remember though that it will get a little hotter as it cooks.  I used farfalle or bowtie pasta but feel free to substitute whatever shortcut pasta you would like.  This makes a lot of pasta - about 8-10 servings.

Chipotle Chicken Pasta

2-3 skinless, boneless chicken breasts (about 2 lbs)

1/4 cup lime juice

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup cilantro, finely chopped

1 tsp ancho chili powder

1 tsp salt

2 T olive oil

1 lb farfalle pasta

1 large red bell pepper, diced

1 large green bell pepper, diced

1 red onion, diced

1 chipotle pepper + 1 T of adobo sauce, minced

1/2 cup chicken stock

1/2 cup heavy cream

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Trim fat from chicken breasts and cut into bite-size pieces.  Combine lime juice, 1/2 of minced garlic, 1/2 of cilantro, chili powder, and salt and mix together.  Pour over chicken to coat and marinate chicken about 30 minutes. 

Heat a large pot of water to boiling.  Add generous amount of salt and add pasta.  Cook according to package directions until al dente.  Drain and set aside.  Meanwhile, add olive oil to large saute pan and heat over medium heat.  Add chicken, bell peppers, onions and remaining garlic and cook about 6-8 minutes until chicken is cooked through and vegetables are softened.  Add chicken stock and chipotle pepper and adobo sauce and cook until stock is reduced by about 1/3.  Reduce heat to low and add cream and cheese.  Stir to combine and return pasta to sauce pan and toss to evenly coat with sauce.  Cook about 5 minutes and top with remaining cilantro and serve.

We have a winner!

Thank you to everyone who participated in my contest this week to win a copy of Michael Chiarello's cookbook Bottega and some lemon-pepper panko breadcrumbs to try courtesy of General Mills and MyBlogSpark.  Thank you to all of you for reading and following my blog!

There were 48 comments telling me about what they would make with panko breadcrumbs -- I got a few new ideas to use from them.  I chose the winner via a random number generator and the winning number was entry number seven.

Amber from Texas Tales said...
How exciting! I love exploring new recipes and reading cookbooks. Would love to win. In the meantime, I'll have to try out these panko bread crumbs. I enjoy cooking our tilapia or catfish in seasoned bread crumbs, and it might be time to mix it up a little!

Amber - I think you'll like the panko -- it will make an extra crispy crust on your fish!  Enjoy the cookbook and thank you for reading my blog!  I've sent you an email with the details. 

Carrot Cake

So for at least the past week I have been wanting carrot cake -- I'm not sure why but I'm chalking it up to pregnancy cravings.  I finally had a halfway decent excuse to make one since we were having friends over for dinner.  While I love the carrot cake cupcakes I've made in the past, I wanted to try a new recipe that used pineapple since I had some crushed pineapple in the fridge that I needed to use up.  (The cupcakes are a great recipe to try if you prefer your carrot cake sans additions.)  It was an excellent decision, I found an Ina Garten recipe that used pineapple (although it called for fresh but I subbed in the canned that I already had) and it also added in raisins and walnuts (although I made another substitution and used pecans since I had those in the pantry).  Just make sure if you do use canned pineapple that you get the kind packed in its own juice not heavy syrup, you don't need to add extra sugar to the recipe.  It turned out to be really moist and topped with a cream cheese frosting, a perfect choice to satisfy my craving.

This cake is really forgiving, there's no complicated mixing instructions, you don't have to sift flour and most of the ingredients you probably have on hand.  I also added some extra spices to the recipe.  It originally called for cinnamon but I added some ginger and nutmeg as well.  A thick cream cheese frosting is always a good combination for carrot or other spice cakes and is really easy to whip up.  I used my normal cream cheese frosting which has a 1:1 ratio of cream cheese to butter.  To that, I add vanilla, milk or cream and powdered sugar.  Make sure you whip the frosting really well to incorporate plenty of air, this will help give it a light texture and make it the right consistency to frost your cake.  I did end up with about an extra cup of frosting even after converting this from a 2-layer to 3-layer cake. 

The original instructions were to use 2 8-inch pans but unless your cake pans are deeper than standard cake pans, I think you would have overflow problems, I split it into 3 8-inch pans and thought the layers were still pretty substantial.  They do bake up pretty flat so there was no trimming required to assemble.

Carrot Cake
Recipe adapted from Ina Garten via Food Network

Cake:
2 cups sugar
1 1/3 cups canola or vegetable oil
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups flour, plus 1 T
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped pecans
1 pound carrots, peeled and grated
1/2 cup crushed pineapple, drained

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour three 8-inch round cake pans (or you can use baking spray) and line with parchment paper if desired (I didn't and it came out just fine but with a more delicate cake or if I'm not just making it for myself, I usually do). 

Combine sugar, oil, eggs, and vanilla in a mixing bowl and mix on medium speed for about two minutes until light yellow in color.  In a separate bowl, combine flour, soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt and whisk together.  Add to mixing bowl and mix on low speed until just incorporated.  Batter will be pretty thick at this point.  Toss raisins and pecans with remaining one tablespoon of flour.  Fold raisins, pecans, carrots and pineapple into batter until well distributed.   Divide batter evenly among pans and bake about 30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool in pans about ten minutes and then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. 

Frosting:
1 package cream cheese (I used 1/3 less fat), at room temperature
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
3-4 T milk
1 pound powdered sugar

Combine cream cheese and butter in mixing bowl and beat on medium-high speed about three minutes until light and fluffy.  Add vanilla and first three tablespoons of milk and mix on low to incorporate.  Slowly add powdered sugar, mixing on low until incorporated.  Increase speed and whip about two minutes, adding additional milk if necessary to reach desired consistency.  When cakes are completely cool, spread about 1/4 of the frosting on top of the first layer, spread evenly, top with 2nd layer, add another 1/4 of the frosting and top with remaining layer.  Add a generous amount of frosting to the top of the cake and smooth working out with a spatula to the edges and down the sides of the cake. 

A Giveaway and an Easy Weeknight Dinner

***This contest is now closed - Thank you for participating!***

Well it's a good thing I didn't make a New Year's resolution to blog more often -- oh wait I did that??  FAIL!  These last couple of weeks have really just gotten away from me.  In a bit of good news, I have gotten a lot done, work has been busy, the nursery is finished and all the baby's laundry is cleaned and put away, and my freezer is full of meals frozen for easy dinners once she arrives.  So there's my excuse.  To make it up to you -- here's a GIVEAWAY for a beautiful cookbook, Bottega by Michael Chiarello Chef Chiarello is the host of Easy Entertaining on the Food Network and chef at Bottega Napa Valley Restaurant.  Along with this great cookbook, you'll also receive a box of the Progresso Lemon-Pepper Panko Breadcrumbs that I used in the recipe below to try out.

To enter the contest, simply leave a comment at the bottom of this post telling me what you would like to try to make or what your favorite dish using panko breadcrumbs is.  For a second chance to win, "like" Homemade by Holman on Facebook by clicking on the link in the side bar of this page and leave a separate comment telling me you're a fan.  All entries must be made before Tuesday, January 25 at 6 pm Eastern and must include a valid email address to be eligible. 

Speaking of the recipe... I promised a quick and easy dinner and this definitely meets those qualifications.  You can have all this ready to go in about twenty minutes.  If you have never used panko breadcrumbs before, they make a much crisper breading than traditional breadcrumbs.  I generally just buy the unflavored variety in the grocery store and season them up as needed but these lemon-pepper flavored breadcrumbs work great with the pesto pasta.  In the interest of full disclosure, I had pesto on hand when I decided to make this as I made a big batch this fall when I had an abundance of basil from the garden and froze it.  But pesto is really easy to make and only takes a few minutes, so I've included the recipe below (although this will make more than you need but you can freeze the extra.)  You can also find pesto in the grocery store if you want a pre-made version.

Lemon Pepper Panko Crusted Chicken with Pesto Pasta

Serves 4

Chicken:

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, butterflied and cut into 4 pieces

1 egg

1/4 cup milk

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 cup panko breadcrumbs

3 T olive oil

Pasta:

8 oz spaghetti (I used whole wheat)

1/4 cup pesto sauce

Salt

Pesto:
1 cup packed basil leaves
2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup pine nuts
1/3 cup olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with foil (if desired, you can cook directly on the baking sheet but foil makes for extra easy cleanup).  For the chicken, set up two wide shallow dishes for the breading process.  In one dish, beat egg and add milk, salt and pepper and whisk to combine.  In the second dish, add breadcrumbs.  Pound chicken breasts to an even thickness approximately 1/2" thick.  Dip each piece in the egg mixture, coating both sides and letting any excess drip off before transferring to the breadcrumbs.  Coat both sides, lightly pressing the breadcrumbs into the chicken to ensure they are well-coated.  Heat a large skillet over medium high heat, add olive oil.  When the oil is hot, add chicken breasts and cook about 2-3 minutes per side until golden brown.  Transfer to baking sheet and continue cooking in the oven until cooked through, about 5-10 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken.

For the pasta, heat a large pot of water to boiling over high heat.  Generously add salt and add pasta to boiling water.  Cook pasta to al dente according to package directions.  Drain and toss with pesto sauce.

For the pesto, combine basil, garlic and pine nuts in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped, slowly stream in olive oil with processor running until uniform. Stir in cheese and pour over pasta.

Please note: Giveaway provided by General Mills via MyBlogSpark.  Although these products were provided to me free of charge, the opinions above are my own and are not influenced by General Mills or MyBlogSpark.

Cranberry - Orange Muffins

So as it turns out, the very last thing I baked in 2010 ended up being one of my favorites.  I made these cranberry-orange muffins for breakfast on New Year's Eve and they were delicious.  I've been meaning to try them ever since we had a breakfast tailgate for a football game a couple of months ago and we had some muffins from a local bakery here in town.  I hate to brag, but I think mine were better.  This has convinced me once again that I need to make more recipes from The Pastry Queen cookbook.  Everything I've made out of it so far has been delicious. 

The recipe in the cookbook is for "Essence of Orange Muffins" but as suggested, I added fruit.  I used frozen cranberries (like pumpkin I tend to stock up around Thanksgiving when they go on sale).  You could substitute fresh or dried cranberries as well.  I also used an equal ratio of orange juice to milk instead of 2:1 as the recipe suggested and added a little cinnamon and ginger.  I also decided to skip the glaze and topped half with demerara or turbinado sugar and left half plain.  The extra sugar gives the tops a nice sweet crunch so I recommend adding it.  This is one baked good that its fine to use skim or 2% milk instead of whole milk without any issues as well.  I used skim milk and light sour cream with no problems. 

I baked these in a jumbo size muffin pan and the recipe yielded 12 muffins. 

Cranberry - Orange Muffins
Recipe adapted from The Pastry Queen cookbook

3/4 cup milk
3/4 cup orange juice
1/2 cup sour cream
2 eggs
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 cup sugar
Zest of 1 orange
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 T baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 cup fresh/frozen cranberries, roughly chopped
Demerara sugar (about a tsp per muffin)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray muffin tins with baking spray or line with paper liners.  In a medium bowl, combine milk, orange juice, sour cream, eggs, and butter and whisk until well combined.  In another mixing bowl, add sugar and orange zest.  Use your fingers to rub orange zest into the sugar until distributed and fragrant.  Add in flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger.  Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and stir just until incorporated.  Fold in the cranberries.

Spoon batter into prepared pans (I use an ice cream scoop to make it easier) and fill each muffin cup about 2/3 of the way full.  Sprinkle about one teaspoon of demerara sugar over the top of each muffin.  Bake about 20 - 25 minutes until the tops are golden brown and spring back lightly to the touch.  Cool in pans about 5 minutes and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.   

2010's Top 10

Happy New Year!  2010 was a pretty good year for me, although it sure went by quickly.  The year started and ended with lots of travelling, I think we went home to Iowa a half a dozen times this past year.  I also travelled to Texas a couple of times for my sister's wedding festivities, we went to St. Louis to celebrate our own 1st wedding anniversary, and spent a week at the beach in August with my college roommates.  We ended the year travelling for the holidays and a weekend in Chicago to celebrate my mom's birthday.  My husband started a new job this fall and I kept busy throughout the summer and fall with lots of baking jobs making hundreds of cupcakes and several birthday cakes.  

Of course the big news is that we found out we'll be having our first child in 2011, thank you all for sticking around even though it was tough to keep up with this blog when I could barely think about food for the few months.  These last few months have been busy with preparing the nursery, baby showers, and doctors appointments.  Now we're almost there and our daughter should be here mid-February! 

As we all recover from the sugar coma of the holidays, I'll be sharing some recipes from my baby shower, as well as some freezer meals as I try to stock up before the baby arrives.  For now though, I'll leave you with the most popular recipes from 2010.  Evidently the popularity of cupcakes isn't over yet!

S'mores Cupcakes

Margarita Cupcakes

Chocolate Cherry Coke Cupcakes

White Cheddar Chicken Pasta

Snickers Cupcakes

Lasagna Roll-ups

Italian Cream Cake

Triple Lemon Cupcakes

Dijon Chicken Club Sandwiches

Mudslide Cupcakes

Spiced Brown Sugar Christmas Cookies

I had to make another batch of Christmas cookies, and since it was my 4th batch of sugar cookies in as many weeks, I decided to go for something a little different this time around.  For the dough, I made a spiced brown sugar cookie dough.  They turned out to be sort of a cross between a gingerbread cookie and a sugar cookie.   They are prepared the same way as traditional roll and cut cookies, making them convenient to do in parts.  You can (and should by at least an hour or two) make the dough ahead of time and refrigerate.  Then when you are ready to bake them, roll out the dough, cut and bake.  This dough is a little bit more particular than my normal sugar cookie dough.  I had to let it sit on the counter about ten minutes before I was able to roll it out.  But don't let it sit out too long, if it becomes too warm, the dough will be sticky. 

For icing, I used royal icing again, you can find the recipe here.  If you are going to color your royal icing, I recommend using gel food colorings.  I especially like the Americolor brand if you can find them; they come in convenient squeeze bottles which is more convenient than the Wilton jars.  Around here, I can find Wilton at several different places but can only get the Americolor at Hobby Lobby or online.  If you try to use the normal liquid food colorings, it will change the consistency of your icing or you wont be able to add enough to get saturated colors.  If you are having trouble finding meringue powder, check out a craft store like Michaels or Hobby Lobby - again, I can only find the Wilton brand.  You may also be able to find it at large grocery stores, sometimes in the baking aisle and sometimes it's in a craft section if you are at a store like Walmart or Meijer. 

This is my first attempt at marbling with royal icing so I'll tell you what I did and recommend that you google a tutorial -- Bridget from Bake at 350 has tips and so does Marian of Sweetopia.  To do the peppermint candies, I outlined and flooded my cookies like normal, doing about a dozen cookies at a time.  I then used the red outline consistency icing in a piping bag with a Wilton tip #3 to pipe a swirl onto the center of the candy.  I gently tapped the cookies to let the swirl settle into the flood icing.  Then used a toothpick to drag through the swirl to create the marble effect. 

Spiced Brown Sugar Cookies
Recipe slightly adapted from Bake at 350

3 cups all purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
1 1/2  tsp vanilla extract

Combine flour, baking powder, and spices in a large bowl and whisk to combine.  In a mixing bowl, cream sugar, brown sugar and butter on medium speed until light and fluffy, about three minutes.  Add egg and vanilla and beat until well incorporated.  Slowly add flour mixture, mixing on low speed.  The dough will be very stiff.  Lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap and turn dough out on to plastic.  Form into a disk and wrap tightly.  Chill approximately one hour. 

Remove dough from refrigerator and let stand five to ten minutes at room temperature.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpats.  Generously flour work area and rolling pin.  Roll dough to about 1/4" thick and cut into desired shapes.  Transfer to prepared pans and bake about 9-12 minutes.  Cookies shouldn't really brown but will firm up.  Remove from the oven, let stand about one minute on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  When completely cool, frost as desired.

See other examples here:
Thanksgiving cookies
Christmas Cookies
Gingerbread Snowflakes 
More Christmas Cookies

Rasberry Pochettes

These are a simple little treat with an indulgent cream cheese crust filled with jam.  You can use whatever flavor you have on hand, I thought the raspberry would be pretty and it's one of my favorite flavors of jam.  That and my husband won't use it for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches so we weren't out of it when I went to make these.  Use jelly or preserves for these, it doesn't matter.  I prefer preserves so that's what I used here.

I used a flower cookie cutter to cut these out because I liked the rounded edges and added decoration.  You can use any shape you like or a simple 3" round cookie cutter.  One thing to note, with the flower cookie cutter, you'll have more leakage because the edges won't line up quite as perfectly as a round cut-out would.  I recommend baking these on parchment paper so you don't end up with a sticky mess of burnt jelly to clean up when you are done. 

Raspberry Pochettes
Recipe adapted from Melissa D'Arabian via Food Network

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 tsp salt
Approximately 1/2 cup raspberry jam
1 egg white
Sanding sugar

Combine butter and cream cheese in a mixing bowl and beat until light and fluffy, about three minutes.  Slowly add the flour and salt, beating on low speed until just combined.  Lay out a large sheet of plastic wrap and turn the dough out onto the plastic.  Form into a disk, wrap tightly and refrigerate at least one hour. 

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.  Generously flour your work surface and a rolling pin.  Roll out the dough to about 1/8" thick.  Cut out rounds or shapes as desired.  Add about a half a teaspoon of jam to one side of each cookie.  Brush the edges lightly with water.  Fold the dough over and press to seal.  Crimp the edges with a fork.  Re-roll scraps and continue with remaining dough. 

Beat egg white with approximately one tablespoon of water, brush over cookies and sprinkle cookies with sanding sugar.  Bake until golden, about 18 - 20 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely and serve. 

Peanut Butter Fudge

If candy-making intimidates you, this is the perfect recipe for you to try.  You don't even need your stove, no thermometers are involved, you barely need a pan.  This fudge can be made completely in the microwave and only takes about five minutes.  It's a perfect recipe to round out your holiday baking when you are short on time. 

Peanut Butter Fudge
Recipe via Erin's Food Files from Alton Brown

1 cup of butter
1 cup peanut butter
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 lb powdered sugar

Prepare a pan by covering it in wax paper and spraying with nonstick cooking spray, leaving at least one inch overhang of wax paper around all edges.  You can use an 8x11" baking sheet with a one inch rim or an 8x8" square pan if you want thicker fudge. 

In a microwave safe bowl, combine butter and peanut butter.  Microwave on high two minutes, stir and microwave two additional minutes.  Stir in vanilla and powdered sugar.  Mix with a wooden spoon until well combined and smooth.  Pour into prepared pan, smooth, and cover with another sheet of wax paper pressed directly against the surface of the fudge.  Refrigerate at least two hours and cut into one inch squares.

Rocky Road Fudge

Fudge is a classic Christmas dessert but not one I have a ton of experience with.  I've made a couple of different types in the past and found it to be much easier than I expected and this recipe ended up being very easy as well.  The most time consuming part is chopping up the chocolate.  

If you haven't finished your Christmas baking yet, here are some other candy recipes you may be interested in.

Brown Sugar Chocolate Fudge

Peppermint Bark

Buckeyes

Oreo Truffles

Peanut Brittle 

And check back tomorrow for Peanut Butter Fudge!

Rocky Road Fudge

Recipe slightly adapted from Dinner and Dessert

18 oz semi-sweet chocolate, roughly chopped

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/8 tsp salt

14 oz (1 can) sweetened, condensed milk

1 T vanilla extract

1 cup mini marshmallows

1 cup salted peanuts, roughly chopped

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Line an 8x11 inch baking sheet with aluminum foil leaving at least 1" overlap on all sides.  You want to use a baking sheet that has at least a 1" high rim.  Spray foil with nonstick spray.

Set up a double boiler with a couple inches of water over medium heat.  In a heat proof boil or double boiler, toss chopped chocolate with baking soda and salt until well distributed.  Stir in sweetened condensed milk and vanilla.  Set bowl over simmering water, making sure that bowl doesnt touch the water.  Stir continuously with a rubber spatula until chocolate is almost fully melted.  It will likely take about 2-4 minutes to melt, remove bowl from heat when there are just a few remaining pieces and stir until smooth. 

Stir in marshmallows, peanuts, and chocolate chips.  Mixture will be quite thick.  Quickly transfer mixture to prepared pan and smooth into an even layer.  Refrigerate until set, at least two hours.  Use foil overhang to remove fudge from pan, peel off foil and chop into approximately 1" square pieces. 

Butterscotch Pumpkin Blondies

Do you still have an extra can or two of pumpkin in your pantry from Thanksgiving?  Or maybe you're like me and you buy a dozen cans as soon as it hits the shelves so that you don't run out.  I'm down to three cans and thinking I should pick up a few more because I really don't accept that I can only use pumpkin in the fall.  Especially when I can make things like these blondies.  These are so rich and delicious and they are easy to make as well. 

The original recipe called for chocolate chips but I think the butterscotch is a better combination.  You could use white chocolate if you prefer as well. 

Butterscotch Pumpkin Blondies
Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 large egg
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 cup butterscotch chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line a 9x13 pan with foil and spray with baking spray. 

In a medium bowl, combine flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, ginger, soda, and salt and whisk together and set aside.  In a second mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about two minutes.  Beat in egg, vanilla and pumpkin.  Mixture may appear slightly curdled at this point but its okay.  Add dry ingredients and mix on low speed until just incorporated.  Stir in butterscotch chips. 

Spread batter in prepared pan and smooth out the top with a rubber spatula.  Bake about 35-40 minutes until edges begin to pull away from side of pan and toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean.  Cool completely in the pan.  Invert out of pan onto wire rack, peel off foil, cut into squares and transfer to a serving plate.

Note: As per FTC requirements, the butter in this dish was provided by Real Butter, as part of a Tastemaker promotion sponsored by Real Butter for holiday baking.  I received a gift package of butter and holiday baking supplies.  However, the opinions above are strictly mine and are not affected by this promotion.

Sugar Cookies for Christmas

Frosted sugar cookies are a staple on almost everyone's Christmas baking list.  I've made them lots of different ways over the years but my favorite recipe is this one.  These cookies bake up without changing shape so its easy to see the details from the cookie cutter.  They stay fresh for quite a while and don't turn rock hard as long as you keep them in an airtight container.  The almond and vanilla extracts give them great flavor without being too sweet. 

Royal icing is necessary if you want cookies that you can decorate in layers and it dries hard so you can stack the finished cookies without ruining them.  Royal icing requires a little practice but it's pretty quick and easy once you get the hang of it.  The recipe below will give you the right consistency to outline your cookies.  I generally use a piping bag and a Wilton tip #2 or #3 to outline my cookies.

Once you've outlined the cookies, thin the icing by adding a little bit of water (a teaspoon or less) at a time until it reaches the consistency of a thick syrup.  In my opinion, the easiest way to fill in the cookies is to fill a squeeze bottle with the thinned icing and flood the cookies, using a toothpick to pop any air bubbles and spread icing out to the outline.  You'll want to let the outlines dry for about an hour minimum before you fill them in.  Then let the thinned icing dry overnight before stacking the cookies and packaging.

Sugar Cookies
Recipe slightly adapted from Annie's Eats

1 cup butter, at room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1 tsp almond extract
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for rolling out cookies

Cream butter in a large mixing bowl on medium high speed, about two minutes.  Add powdered sugar and beat until well incorporated. Add in egg, almond and vanilla extracts, and salt and mix until well incorporated.  Add in flour and beat on low speed just until mixed.  Transfer dough to a large sheet of plastic wrap, form into a disc and wrap well.  Refrigerate dough for at least one hour. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line cookie sheets with parchment paper or silpats.  Flour counter to roll out cookies.  Also flour rolling pin.  Roll to approximately 1/4" thick and cut with cookie cutters as desired. Transfer cookies to prepared pans and bake about 8 - 10 minutes.  Cookies should not brown.  Gather scraps and re-roll.  If dough becomes sticky, return to refrigerator briefly before rolling.  Recipe yields about 4 dozen cookies depending on size of cookie cutters. 

Royal Icing
Recipe from Bake at 350

4 T meringue powder
Scant 1/2 cup water
1 lb powdered sugar, sifted
1 tsp corn syrup
1/4 tsp almond extract

Combine water and meringue powder in mixing bowl.  You can make royal icing without a stand mixer but its a lot easier with one, your arm will get tired with a hand mixer!  Beat until slightly foamy.  Add powdered sugar, corn syrup and extract, beat on low speed until combined.  Increase speed to medium high and beat about five minutes until stiff peaks form and icing is glossy.  Divide icing into small containers to color.  Add gel coloring as desired and press a piece of plastic wrap directly against the surface of the icing and cover with a lid. 

To do the shimmery snowflakes, I added sanding sugar over the thinned icing after letting the cookies stand about five minutes.  For the Christmas trees, I let the flood icing dry completely before piping on the swirl lines with the original outline icing.  If you leave the outline icing in the piping bag, make sure you cover it with a damp towel to keep it from drying out.

This recipe should be enough for the above cookie recipe unless you need to use lots of colors/layers of icing. 

See other examples here:
Thanksgiving cookies
Christmas Cookies
Gingerbread Snowflakes

Classic Apple Pie

Apple pie intimidates a lot of people.  Despite looking relatively simple and ordinary, it can be tricky to get the filling to have the right consistency.  You want the filling to be thick but not dry, if its too liquidy the crust will be soggy.  You want to be able to see the apple slices; tender but not mushy.  You want the crust to be flaky and tender, not dense and dry.  I'm by no means an expert on apple pie, but here are a few tips that have worked for me. 

Apples: Get a mix of apples, that way you are likely to have some of the best characteristics of each variety.  I like granny smith, pink lady, and honeycrisp.  Try to cut them all into slices of uniform thickness so they cook at the same rate.  Sprinkle the lemon juice on the sliced apples right away, if its going to take you a while to slice them, sprinkle some on the cut slices as you go.

Thickening agent: I use cornstarch rather than flour, you can use either but I prefer cornstarch as I think it works better. 

Filling: Mix your filling together and let it sit for a bit while you prepare the crust.  The sugars will draw some of the juices out of the apples and allow the cornstarch to work it's magic.  It's going to look like you have too much filling but you really want to pile it up high because the apples are going to shrink when you bake your pie and you don't want to have a hollow crust.  I always like to use a deep dish pie plate for apple pie.  Also make sure you put a cookie sheet under your pie pan when you put it in the oven.  There will almost always be a spot where the filling leaks out and bubbles over, it's much easier to clean up a cookie sheet than a sugary burned apple syrup off the bottom of your oven.

Crust: Use cold butter, really, really cold butter.  You can freeze it and grate it with a cheese grater or your food processor.  If you don't want to do that, cut it into small pieces and then return it to the refrigerator/freezer.  You want the pieces of butter to remain when you roll out the dough, its those streaks of butter that lead to an extra flaky crust.

I'm not sure of the source of this recipe for the filling, the crust is from Martha Stewart Baking.  If you don't have a food processor, you can mix the pie crust by hand or in a stand mixer as well, I just think the food processor is the easiest.  And if the crust intimidates you, pick up a package of the refrigerated pie dough, all you have to do is unroll it and it's pretty good.

Apple Pie

Crust:
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 cup unsalted butter, cold
4 T ice water plus more if needed
1 egg white

Filling:
Approximately 3 pounds apples, peeled, cored and sliced into uniform thickness
1 1/2 T lemon juice
1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
1-2 T cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
2 T unsalted butter

Grate or cut cold butter into small pieces and freeze for about 15 minutes.  In bowl of a food processor, combine flour and salt.  Pulse a couple of times to combine.  Add the butter pieces and pulse about 10-12 times until the mixture becomes coarse crumbs.  Sprinkle the ice water over the mixture and process about 20 seconds, the dough will clump up and begin to hold together.  If the dough appears too dry, add more water, one teaspoon at a time and pulse briefly until the dough sticks together when you pinch it between your fingers.  Lay out 2 large sheets of plastic wrap and dump 1/2 of dough out onto each sheet.  Press into a disk, wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least an hour.  (You can do this a day or two in advance if you prefer.)

To make the filling, toss sliced apples with lemon juice and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl.  Sprinkle about half of the cornstarch over apples.  Add spices and stir gently to combine.  After the mixture sits for a while, if it looks like there is too much liquid, add remaining cornstarch to thicken. 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

Generously flour rolling surface and rolling pin.  Roll pie crust to about 1/4" thick.  Remember that it needs to be about an inch wider than the diameter of your pie plate plus twice the depth.  Spray pie pan with baking spray.  Carefully move rolled out crust to pie plate.  Fill pie with prepared filling, mounding high above the pie plate.  Dot with remaining butter.  Carefully roll out top crust and center over top of filling.  Press and crimp edges to seal as desired.  Carefully slice 3-4 slits in the top of the pie to allow steam to escape.  Mix egg white with one tablespoon of water and brush pie crust.   

Bake pie for about 50-60 minutes until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbling.  If the edges begin to look too brown before the pie is ready, cover with foil and continue baking.  Let stand about two hours to set before serving.  Whipped cream or vanilla ice cream both make excellent toppings.

Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Dressing

Wow... it has been a busy couple of weeks.  In the past 2 weeks we've travelled to my  parents for Thanksgiving weekend, had two baby showers, 2 prenatal classes, one of my college roommate's was in town to visit, a Christmas party, and our everyday jobs.  That didn't leave a lot of time for blogging.  So I have a stack of recipes to share with you and just need to find some time to post them.  Now if only I could find some time to get my holiday baking started and Christmas shopping done, I might actually catch up a little bit but the next couple of weeks are looking like they will be just as busy. 

Going back to my Thanksgiving recap, I want to share a recipe for wild rice dressing.  My mom isn't really a fan of bread so traditional stuffing recipes don't really appeal to her.  When I saw this recipe in Cooking Light for a wild rice dressing, I thought it would be a great addition to our normal Thanksgiving menu.  I made a few modifications for our own tastes to come up with the recipe below.  I think it turned out great and the leftovers were good as well.

Wild Rice and Butternut Squash Dressing
Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, November 2010

1 cup uncooked wild rice
1 cup basmati rice
2 cups low sodium chicken stock
2 cups water
1/2 tsp salt
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed
1 T olive oil
1 cup dried cranberries
5-6 green onions, chopped
2 T fresh sage, minced
2 T flat leaf parsley, minced
1 T fresh thyme, stripped from stems
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large saucepan, combine rice, stock, water and 1/4 tsp salt and bring to a boil.  Cover, reduce heat and simmer about 40 minutes until rice is tender.  Transfer cooked rice to a 9x13 or similar baking dish coated with cooking spray, do not drain. 

While the rice is cooking, toss butternut squash with olive oil and sprinkle with remaining 1/4 tsp salt, spread in a single layer on a baking sheet.  Roast for approximately 20-25 minutes until tender.  Add to rice in baking dish.

Add cranberries, onions, herbs, and spices to mixture, adding additional salt and pepper as desired.  Stir everything together, cover with foil and bake about 15 minutes until everything is heated through.