Friday, October 25, 2013

Pumpkin Cheesecake Bars: Baked Sunday Mornings


Just a little bit of pumpkin cheesecake heaven here. 
Creamy deliciousness!
Recipe here.

You have to try these!



Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cupcakes


Not really sure what urged me to make these...hmmm...
I suppose the devil made me do it!



They were very good, the cake turned out a little too moist...kinda reminded me of a huge cake ball with a strawberry on top.  The original recipe used a chocolate cake instead of strawberry...I just thought strawberry would be good so I went with it!  I filled them with something that I normally don't use... that whipped frosting in the can.  
It was actually good.

Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Cakes
Recipe from Recipe.com 

Servings: 12
Yield: Makes 12 cupcakes
Prep Time: 50 mins

ingredients

1/2   cup   butter
1    cup   sugar
1/3   cup   unsweetened cocoa powder
1      egg
1    teaspoon   vanilla
1    cup   all-purpose flour
1/2   teaspoon   baking powder
1/4   teaspoon   baking soda
1/8   teaspoon   salt
3/4   cup   milk
1/4   cup   strawberry jam
1    recipe  Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache
12      medium strawberries
3    ounces   bittersweet and/or milk chocolate curls

Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache
1    cup   whipping cream
10    ounces   bittersweet chocolate, chopped
3    tablespoons   butter

directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour or line with paper bake cups twelve 2-1/2-inch muffin cups; set aside.
In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Remove from heat. Let cool for 5 minutes. Stir in sugar and cocoa powder until combined. Add egg and vanilla. Using a wooden spoon, beat lightly just until combined.
In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Alternately add flour mixture and milk to chocolate mixture, beating by hand after each addition. Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each two-thirds full.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the centers comes out clean. Cool in muffin cups on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Using a knife, loosen the edges; carefully remove cupcakes. Cool completely on a wire rack.
If cupcakes don't have paper liners, trim a thin slice from top of each cupcake so they will sit flat. Turn bottom side up. Place cupcakes 2 inches apart on wire rack set over waxed paper. (For cupcakes in liners, peel liners down but do not remove.) Spread 1 teaspoon of the strawberry jam over each cupcake.
Prepare Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache. (below) Spoon ganache over cupcakes, making sure to coat all sides. Place a strawberry on top of each cake. Drizzle each strawberry lightly with ganache, letting the strawberry show through. Top cupcakes with chocolate curls. Makes 12 cupcakes.
Bittersweet Chocolate Ganache
In a medium saucepan, bring the whipping cream just to boiling over medium-high heat. Remove from heat. Add the bittersweet chocolate, chopped (do not stir). Let stand for 5 minutes. Stir until smooth. Whisk in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking until ganache is smooth.


Make Ahead Tip
To Bake Ahead: Prepare as directed through step 4. Place cooled cupcakes in an airtight container; cover. Store at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 1 month. Thaw cupcakes, if frozen. Continue as directed in step 5.

The cake recipe I used...

Southern Strawberry Cake



Sunday, October 6, 2013

Crusty Apple Hand Pies: ABC



Apple is one of my very most favorite flavor of pie.  And one with a good crust is even better!  The recipe for this pie was for a full size free form kinda pie sans the pie pan.  We were hosting our annual pig roast so I decided to make the recipe into individual hand pies.  


The result was lovely!  A nice cinnamon spiced apple filling,  I just wish there was a little more in each one.


 Butter and cream cheese were cut into the flour making the 
most beautiful crust... 


Flaky and tender


and good to the last bite!

A beautiful step by step tutorial for this pie here.
See what the other bakers did here.

Next up for the ABC bakers are Cinnamon-Swirl Pumpkin Rolls.