All posts in category Uncategorized

Top 12 of 2012

Wow! I can’t believe that my blog is old enough to even have a Top 12 of 2012 post! Well okay, since my blog only a year old, it is more like a Top 12 of my entire blog…period.

So, here are your favorites of 2012:

12. Blueberry Swirl Streusel Muffins Big, fat bakery style muffins, filled with blueberries, swirled with homemade jam and topped with streusel. Perfection. For now at least…

11. Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I had to make these because I kept seeing them all over Pinterest as the best chocolate chip cookies. It seemed like a challenge to me. The secret ingredient is cornstarch which makes them extra puffy and chewy. Giant chunks of gooey Callebaut semi-sweet chocolate didn’t hurt either. Are they the best? I almost never say that…there are just too many recipes to try. But, I will say they are pretty darn good. And, I like to consider myself a chocolate chip cookie connoisseur.

10. Lemonade Sugar Cookies

These chewy cookies taste just like a tall glass of lemonade. They are the perfect ending to a backyard BBQ.

9. Banana Bars with Cream Cheese Frosting

If you are anything like me, you always have a bunch of brown, borderline “time to throw in the garbage” looking bananas around. Are you tired of banana bread too? Wait until you try these. And the frosting. Oh my gosh, don’t get me started……

8. Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Who needs a birthday cake when you can pop this baby in the oven and about a half hour later pull out a moist chocolate cake that has made its own hot fudge sauce. Scoop out a giant hunk and make sure to scrape all the chocolate goo from the bottom. All you need now, is a giant scoop of good ice cream. Hagen Daz vanilla bean please…

7. Chocolate Dreams

Don’t you just love the glossy, cracked coat these cookies get on the outside, just like you get on a perfect brownie? But, it’s not just about the looks. When you bite into the cookie, the bold chocolate flavor is almost shocking in its richness and then the gooeyness….oh my goodness!! If you love chocolate, you have just met your ideal cookie.

6. Vanilla Whoopie Pies

What’s not to love? Cake-like vanilla cookies filled with creamy marshmallow filling? Squeeze the two cookies together so the frosting peeks out enough to roll them in sprinkles. In this house, if there is an opportunity to use sprinkles, we take it. These are my husband’s favorites. He has declared me the whoopie pie queen. In 2013, I see some new flavors in my future.

5. Cookies and Cream Popsicles

My kids went nuts for these popsicles. We are all a bit obsessed with Oreos. Oreos in a sweet ice cream base, frozen onto a stick? Pretty much the perfect summer treat.

4. Hot Pretzels with Sweet Mustard and Cheese Sauce

Early this fall, a bunch of bloggers threw a baseball themed baby shower for our friend Jessica from The Jey of Cooking. When I think of baseball food, besides hot dogs, I think of hot pretzels. And as good as these pretzels are by themselves, they are even better dipped in sweet mustard or cheddar cheese sauce.

3. Mini Rainbow Vanilla Bean Donuts

I made these baked vanilla bean donuts from Sprinkle Bakes a few times and they were delicious. But then, I’m not sure what came over me because suddenly I envisioned them in rainbow. I was probably just inspired with how amazing everything on Heather’s blog is. While these took a bit of time, they really aren’t hard. I love how they turned out. While I promised to get another mini donut pan or two, I still haven’t. Which is probably why I haven’t made any more donuts. Add it to the list…

2. Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

My father in law likes coffee cake more than just about anyone I know. Since the 5 of us were using his house as a base for trick or treating, I thought it was only fair that I bring him a treat. The cake is moist and buttery, with a cheesecake like swirl in the middle, some texture from the streusel and sweetness from the powdered sugar glaze. I mean, really, how could you go wrong with this combination?

1. Downtown Bakery and Creamery’s Cinnamon Donut Muffins

These muffins caught my eye while watching the Best Thing I Ever Ate. Candace Nelson, the owner of Sprinkles, declared these cinnamon donut muffins as her favorite snack. I figured if Candace would rather snack on these than her delicious cupcakes, then must be pretty fabulous. I couldn’t believe it when I saw that Downtown Bakery and Creamy shares the recipe on their website. I must say, Candace has great taste. The muffins bake up tall with a crust on the outside and they are fluffy and tender on the inside. While they are still hot, you brush them all over with melted butter and roll them in cinnamon sugar. Does breakfast get much better than that?

Thank you so much for reading! The fact that there are so many amazing food blogs to read and that you have taken the time to stop by mine wows me. I love that I have found so many delicious new recipes and conquered some of my baking fears through my blog. I hope you have too. I can’t wait to see what goodness 2013 brings….

Wishing you and yours the happiest of new years,

Kim, Justin, Jack, Sammie, Alex and Walter (the pug)

19 Comments

by Just Baked on January 1, 2013 • Permalink

Posted in Uncategorized

Posted by Just Baked on January 1, 2013

http://justbakedbyme.wordpress.com/2013/01/01/top-12-of-2012/

Strawberry Soda Ice Cream

This month for What’s Baking, the theme “Something that reminds you of your favorite place” was chosen by Joanna at Newlywed and Newly Cooking. I couldn’t really think of a particular favorite place, but really, anywhere I am with my family is a favorite place. This summer I went strawberry picking at Stade Farm with my daughter, my son, some of their friends and their moms. It was a perfect day. It wasn’t too hot, we filled our baskets with strawberries, and the kids (and moms) had a blast. We love to eat strawberries, but no matter how quickly we eat them, they always go bad. So, I made some strawberry frozen yogurt that night. The next day they were looking like they were already starting to turn. I quickly washed them, cut all the leaves off- which took forever because they were tiny little berries, and I froze them to use another day.

When I made the Milky Way ice cream last week, I saw this recipe for strawberry soda ice cream, another prize winner. I had the frozen strawberries, but I didn’t have any Big Red soda (or pop, whatever you like to call it). In fact, I’ve never even heard of it. I was able to find a big 2 liter bottle at Jewel. When I got home, I just had to try this crazy looking red cream soda. I thought it tasted a bit like bubble gum, so I don’t think I would drink it straight up, but my son loved it. This is a really easy ice cream to make, if your kids aren’t picky like mine. You just mash the berries and whisk all the ingredients in a bowl. But, because my kids don’t like fruit in their ice cream, nor seeds, I blended the mixture and ran it through a sieve. Once you make the base, you just let the machine do the rest. One taste of the sweet, pretty pink strawberry ice cream brought me right back to the perfect day we had at Stade Farm. Don’t you just love how food can do that?

Strawberry soda ice cream

1 14oz can sweetened condensed milk

1 1/2 cups half and half

3/4 cup red cream soda (Big Red) or regular cream soda

1/2 cup whipping cream

1 cup frozen strawberries, thawed and mashed

Whisk the condensed milk, half and half, red cream soda, whipping cream and mashed strawberries in a medium bowl.

I poured this mixture into my blender and ran it through a fine strainer.

Churn in an ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Transfer to an airtight container and freeze until firm, at least 2 hours. I find it best to freeze ice cream containing condensed milk overnight to really get firm enough to hold its shape.

Source: Food Network July/August 2012

7 Comments

by Just Baked on August 29, 2012 • Permalink

Posted in Fruit, ice cream, Uncategorized

Tagged big red, dessert, freeze, frozen, ice cream, kids, soda, strawberry, summer

Posted by Just Baked on August 29, 2012

http://justbakedbyme.wordpress.com/2012/08/29/strawberry-soda-ice-cream/

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Happy birthday to me! Ugh, another year closer to 40. That’s okay, because it was a good one. My husband got up early with the baby so I could sleep in a bit. When I woke up, Justin made me my favorite ATK buttermilk pancakes and bacon. The kids colored me birthday cards, with Sammie’s all covered in pretty Disney princess stickers. My husband had to coach a volleyball game tonight, so we are going to celebrate tomorrow with dinner and a movie. My sisters in law are awesome and are taking the kids for the night, so we can sleep in Saturday. So, today I spent the day with the kids and I had to get some grading done before date night.

I didn’t have a lot of time to make a layer cake or cupcakes. So, I decided to make a cake that makes its own sauce, this hot fudge pudding cake. It’s kind of crazy in that you make the batter, put a thick (and I mean thick) cover of cocoa powder mixed with sugar over it, and then pour boiling water over that. But, it’s an America’s Test Kitchen recipe, so I don’t question, I just do it. So, you put your cake covered in boiling water in the oven and bake it. It magically transforms, as all that liquid goes to the bottom and a cratered, cake forms on top. When you scoop out the chocolate cake, there is a thick layer of hot fudge sauce underneath. Make sure you get all that goo, as that is the best part. Then, of course, you must add a scoop of ice cream to the warm cake. Mmm..ice cream and cake, with my kids, at 3 in the afternoon, completely spoiling our dinner. Now, that’s a happy birthday!

Hot Fudge Pudding Cake

Yield: 8×8 cake

1 cup sugar, divided

1/2 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder, divided

1 cup all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup milk

4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1 large egg yolk

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup boiling water

Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream for serving

Adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Preheat the oven to 350F. Spray an 8×8 metal or glass pan with cooking spray. Whisk 1/2 cup of sugar with 1/4 cup of cocoa in a small bowl.

Whisk flour, remaining 1/2 cup of sugar, remaining 1/4 cup of cocoa, baking powder and salt in a large bowl.

Whisk milk, melted butter, egg yolk, and vanilla in a medium bowl until smooth.

Stir the milk mixture into the flour mixture, just until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. The batter will be stiff.

Using a rubber spatula, scrape batter into the prepared pan and spread into the corners. Sprinkle the reserved cocoa mixture over the top. Gently pour the boiling water over the cocoa. Don’t stir.

Bake until the top of the cake looks cracked, sauce is bubbling, and a toothpick inserted into a cakey area comes out with moist crumbs attached, ~ 25 minutes. Do not overcook, or the cake will be dry and lose its fudge sauce. So, err on the side of under. Cool on a rack for at least 10 minutes. To serve, scoop warm cake into individual bowls and top with ice cream or whipped cream.

Store leftovers, covered in plastic, in the fridge. Reheat individual servings in the microwave.

Source: Cook’s Country February/March 2007