urbanfoodie

Gluten-Free Coconut Sugar Cookies

Over the weekend we got a little bit of snow (ahem, 17 inches in 24 hours and the collapse of the Metrodome) here in the Twin Cities. Lots of folks were abuzz on Twitter and Facebook about plans to camp in and bake through the storm. These cookies were baked on Friday evening before the snow started falling, and I had them ready when Snowmageddon was in full force on Saturday. And yes, I took a photo of the cookies out on the fresh snow. I adapted this recipe to accommodate for some of the textural differences with the Namaste Perfect Blend gluten-free flour mix, which swaps out 1:1 with all-purpose flour. I added an extra egg to help it bind better, and the shredded coconut was added for some chewy textural contrast to the crumbly cookie, plus additional subtle flavor. Lemon zest counteracts what I often find is a borderline cloying quality of sugar cookies. Even when the cookies get harder, they are great when briefly dipped in some tea.

Ingredients

• 2 3/4 cups flour 
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 c. unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 c. butter, softened
• 1-1/4 cups white sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• zest of 1 lemon (optional)
• Turbinado sugar (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. In a small bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and shredded coconut. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla. Gradually blend in the dry ingredients. For best results, chill the dough for at least 20-30 min. before working into balls.
3. Roll rounded teaspoonfuls of dough into balls and roll in the turbinado sugar. Place onto ungreased cookie sheets.
4. Bake 12-15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until golden. Let stand on cookie sheet two minutes before removing to cool on wire racks.

humblecuisine:

Super Easy Chocolate Ganache Recipe

Here are a few tips (as well as a tutorial and interesting history) by Joy of Baking:

• • To make a glaze or coating: use one part cream to three parts chocolate.
  • To make a truffle filling: use one part cream to two parts chocolate.
  • To make a light filling: use one part cream to one part chocolate.
  • Refrigerated ganache can be whipped for fillings and frostings or formed into truffles.
  • When warm, ganache can be poured over whatever you like to make a smooth, shiny glaze.
  • When chilled it can be spread like regular frosting.
  • If covering a cake with ganache that is to be refrigerated, make sure the cake is cold before frosting. This will ensure that the ganache does not dull when stored in the refrigerator.

(via Wasabimon!)

a must know for any baker. so easy, yet so impressive to others!

Sick of Soup Remedy #2: Souped Up Oatmeal Muffins

After using up a mere 2 cups of the tired curried butternut squash and black bean soup in pancakes, I still had another 4 cups or so left. A couple of cups went into the freezer. The baking impulse was strong, and I tried to think of savory baked goods…hmm, muffins? I was a Magnolia cupcake fan in my brief stint as a New Yorker, and I go to their cookbook (a gift from a past roommate) quite a bit for basic cake recipes. It was my first time using their Oatmeal Muffin recipe, so I thought it was worth a shot.

The muffins turned out…interesting. Their texture was very wet, and they did not rise that much. I think my omissions might have screwed with the whole chemistry of baking. No matter.  They were very flavorful and more than edible, albeit an interesting texture. This made more than the indicated 12 muffins, so I froze the rest. Not exactly a slam dunk, but it was an interesting experiment nonetheless. (After re-reading this, I noticed that I used the word “interesting” three times…needless to say, my enthusiasm for this particular batch is tempered. But I definitely encourage others to play with the basic idea).

Souped Up Oatmeal Muffins, modified from the “Oatmeal Muffins” recipe in the Magnolia Bakery Cookbook by Jennifer Appel and Allysa Torrey

• 2 c. rolled oats (not quick cook)
• 1.5 c. soup (originally milk)
• 1.5 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/2 c. (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
• (Omitted from original recipe b/c these are savory muffins and already a bit sweet from the soup: 1/4 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. vanilla, 1/2 c. firmly packed lt brown sugar)

In a medium size bowl, mix oats and soup/milk and set aside for 10 min. In a large bowl, mix dry ingredients, making a well in center. Stir in liquid ingredients and oatmeal until just combined, which may be lumpy.

Fill muffin cups three quarters full. Bake for 16-18 min (maybe longer) at 350 until lightly golden or a cake tester comes out w/ moist crumbs attached. The cookbook says, “Don’t overbake.” But I couldn’t figure out if the muffins were too wet, so they ended up a little overcooked.

Big girls make their own birthday cupcakes. Made from the Magnolia Bakery Cookbook: Devil’s Food cake recipe (with addition of 1 tsp. cayenne pepper) and cream cheese frosting.

raspberry lemonade cupcakes

my, my. it’s been way too long since i last baked cupcakes. inspired by my love of lemon desserts and the 2 for $5 sale on berries at the market near me, i set out to make cupcakes for a gathering tomorrow night. i suppose i could’ve used the recipe from bon appetit, but i wanted to stay true to my standby, the Magnolia Bakery cookbook. i attempted to adapt the lemon layer cake recipe by adding about 1/2 c. of raspberry puree and then adding 1/4 c. more flour to compensate for the added liquid.

i’ve made these cupcakes before, and this was not what they were supposed to be like. the cake turned out dense and floury tasting for my liking. fail. 

so….how can i learn from this? i have some hypotheses as to culprit:

- the extra flour killed it

- perhaps i overworked the batter, thus making the gluten content too high

- some other third variable? please leave me a comment if you have thoughts.

the icing was taken from the bon appetit recipe, but i think i also failed that too. spooning it on the cupcakes was a total mess. not like their pretty pictures. oh well, i’m still going to feed these to my friends and colleagues. they are much less harsh critics than i.

ADDENDUM: one of my roommates just ate them and enthusiastically approved (she said they were “creamy” tasting and the light icing paired well w/ the cake), so who knows?

Red velvet cupcakes w/ cream cheese frosting, blueberries, and raspberries. Modified from Epicurious recipe. These and dark chocolate/vanilla buttercream cupcakes made for my friend’s wedding reception.