Baking powder – Fervent Foodie

Salted Caramel Brownies

October 20, 2011 16 Comments

Let me get you a napkin for that bit of drool you’ve got trailing down from your lower lip…

These lovely salted caramel brownies are courtesy of a recipe I tagged a few months back in Cooking Light. I’ve been dying to make them but I had no good reason to… and honestly I was trying to avoid having an entire batch of delicious brownies sitting on my kitchen counter BEGGING me to eat them. Seriously. I have control when it comes to a lot of things in life. Chocolate is not one of those things.

Then Jess posted a call-to-action on her blog Stylish, Stealthy & Healthy to join this little thing called the Blogger Sweet Swap.

Eureka! This was the perfect excuse to make the brownies!! Just think of the Sweet Swap as an arranged penpal relationship… with benefits. Sweet benefits.

Without further ado, let’s get to it!

Combine the following in a big ole bowl:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder

Then combine these guys in a little bowl:

6 tbsp melted butter
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

Pour the wets into the dries and stir to combine the thickest brownie batter you’ve ever laid eyes on.

The recipe calls for baking these guys in a 9 inch square metal pan coated with cooking spray for 19 minutes at 350 degrees until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. I baked mine in an 8 inch glass dish for 20 minutes, then 5 more minutes, then 5 MORE minutes.. then got impatient and took them out. Seriously, every time I bake brownies the darn toothpick NEVER comes out clean. Anyone else have this issue??

After the brownies cool completely, it’s time to make the caramel deliciousness. Melt 1/4 cup butter in a small pot, then whisk in:

1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1.5 tbsp evaporated fat-free milk

Cook for two minutes, then remove from heat and whisk in:

1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract

Spread the yum sauce over the brownies:

Once everything cooled off completely I decided to extract the brownies from the pan….

Oh dear…

It looks like a Brownie Massacre.

Then I cut the hunks o’ brownie into tiny little brownie babies. Why did I think brownies would be a good idea again??

Next up is the chocolately drizzle. The following go into a microwave safe bowl:

2 tbsp evaporated fat-free milk
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped

Microwave on HIGH for 45 seconds or until melted, stirring after 20 seconds. I scraped the chocolate into a ziplock baggie, snipped the corner off with scissors, and drizzled it over the brownie squares.

Disaster.

Then I sprinkled the tops with a bit o’ sea salt, picked the prettiest 12 of the bunch, and tucked them neatly into metal tray:

They kind of look like the photo… kind of.

So Molly @ Hungry Hungry Runner, I PROMISE these were edible and pretty and neatly packed when I shipped them. Whatever happens after this point is on the hands of the USPS.

I bet you’re wondering what I did with all those leftover brownies, huh? All I can say is these brownies are seriously delicious. More like fudge than brownies (probably due to my aforementioned brownie baking incompetencies). ABSOLUTELY delicious and seriously sweet. I stuck a few in the freezer for this weekend too 🙂

Ingredients List (makes ~20 brownies)

3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
6 tbsp butter, melted
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
3 1/2 tbsp evaporated fat-free milk, divided
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 ounce bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/8 tsp coarse sea salt

Curious to see how they arrived??? Check out Molly’s post for her recap!

Curious to see what sweets I got?

Then click here for the pumpkin chocolate chip muffin recipe!!

Recipes

My first attempt at Biscotti

February 9, 2011 8 Comments

I don’t recall when I made the life transition from thinking of biscotti as a dry and dull unappetizing biscuit to thinking of biscotti as one of life’s true pleasures that should be savored as frequently as possible.

Thank god for maturing palates.

Biscotti now holds a special special place in my heart, and I would eat it every day if it didn’t hurt my teeth so much.

A while back, I decided to try and make biscotti on my own via this recipe for Cranberry Pistachio Biscotti. I headed to the local grocery store to buy up the necessary goods, and much to my dismay I found pistachios to be outrageously expensive. $10 a bag?!? Come ON! Then I noticed that the pistachios with the shells still on them were nearly half the price, so of course I scooped them up.

How hard could it be to crack a few shells?

About 45 minutes into my shell husking I was beginning to seriously doubt my frugal decision. …

Seriously…

How many freaking pistachios does it take to get 3/4 of a cup???

When I finally had my 3/4 cup pistachios and my fingers were aching from all the husking, I mixed the following together in a bowl:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup and 2 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/8 teaspoon orange extract

Then I beat in 1 egg and combined the following in another bowl:

3/4 cup and 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder

I slowly incorporated the dries into the wets, and then mixed in:

1/2 cup craisins
3/4 pistachios (painstakingly deshelled by hand)

Looks like christmas!

Can’t wait to eat you!

Once combined, I rolled the dough out into a log on parchment paper:

Kind of surprising how perfect this looked, given that I couldn’t feel my fingers at this point.

I baked the biscotolog in a 300 degree oven for 35 minutes. Then I removed it from the oven and covered it with a dish towel to cool for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, I reduced the oven heat to 275.

I transferred the biscotolog to a cutting board and cut into 18 slices:

PERFECTION!

Then popped the biscottis onto the cookie sheet again and put them back into the 275 degree oven for 8 minutes.

Once the biscotti was completely cooled,I drizzled the tops with some melted Bakers Chocolate

YES!

Overall, I really loved this biscotti. I think some of my friends and fam were a little thrown off by the orange extract though. I’m excited to play around with this recipe. I’m thinking almond and craisins next time!

Really any nut that doesn’t require deshelling would be superb….

Recipes

Pumpkin Cookies

October 11, 2010 10 Comments

I LOVE all things pumpkin. A few years back, I found this recipe for Iced Pumpkin Cookies, and it has been one of my go-to cookie recipes ever since (I do make a few Mary-tweaks). Feast your eyes, my friends.

Feast. Your. Eyes.

Oh yes.

First up, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Then combine the dry ingredients in a medium size bowl:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt

Next, combine the following in a large bowl until creamy:

1/2 cup butter, softened
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar

Suga butta:

Then add:

1 small can pumpkin puree (or ONE HEAPING cup)
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Once combined, add in the dry ingredients in thirds and mix:

Pumpkin batter:

I use a small cookie scooper to drop the cookies onto an ungreased cookie sheet. I don’t flatten mine like the original recipe states. I like them a lil poofy.

Cook for precisely 15 minutes, immediately remove from the cookie sheet, and pop into the freezer for a couple minutes.

Yes, the freezer:

I’m not entirely sure why I do this, and it is probably an unnecessary step… but regardless I always do it and I think it helps the cookies to stop cooking sooner (which equals super moist and delicious cookies).

Once the cookies are cool, it’s time for icing! You can also make the cookies a day ahead and ice the next day. Just don’t store them in an airtight container (or you’ll end up with mushy business).

For the icing, mix the following in bowl:

2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
3 tablespoons milk
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Sprinkling of cinnamon

Nom nom nom!

Take a sandwich size plastic bag and place it in a small drinking glass. Pour the icing into the cup:

Mess free!

Snip a small corner off of the baggie and you’ll get oober professional results 🙂

Fancy pants:

Once I ice the cookies, I pop them into the freezer AGAIN:

Ok yes, probably unnecessary. But this helps the icing to set up. At least I think it does.

VOILAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Eat me now.

Since these cookies are super moist and delicious, you do NOT want to store them in an airtight container. I like to keep mine in the fridge and eat them cold.

MMMMMM HMMMMMMMMMMMM GOOOOOODDDDDDD.

This recipe makes 4 dozen pumpkin cookies.

What’s your favorite pumpkin recipe?