Assorted Scones

I actually don't have the recipes for the scones with me since I'm at Dave's, and I can't remember where I got them from. For all the supervisors, as presents of thanks for their (patience and) help and appreciation through my transition, I made batches of scones and put them in decorative christmas tins. I had a lot of leftovers, so I left them for my girls coming in to do teardown on Friday (since I really appreciate them doing it without my help, lol).

Alltogether I made cranberry white chocolate scones, pumpkin spice scones, and walnut chocolate fudge scones. I'll post the recipes after the holidays when I'm back home. I never got a picture of my walnut chocolate ones though (bad memory). They looked pretty damn yummy though.

Cranberry White Chocolate Scones.

Pumpkin Spice Scones.

Holiday Baking Part 4 - Last Batches of Cookies

Assorted Last Batches

My camera was determined to not get a clear picture of these. On the left, what I like to call peanut butter nipples (but are actually called peanut butter blossoms), and the ginger molasses cookies I made a few months back (so I won't repost that recipe). I remember making the blossoms years ago and them being these big round balls with the kisses. This year, for whatever reason they kept flattening out before the kiss even went on. I thought it was the butter vs. shortening issue, but using either/or yielded the same results. Bah. If you have any idea why, please pity me and let me know.


Peanut Butter Blossoms

Ingredients:

48 chocolate Kisses
1/2 cup shortening
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
1 egg
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
Granulated sugar

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375°F. Remove wrappers from chocolates.

2. Beat shortening and peanut butter in large bowl until well blended. Add 1/3 cup granulated sugar and brown sugar; beat until fluffy. Add egg, milk and vanilla; beat well. Stir together flour, baking soda and salt; gradually beat into peanut butter mixture.

3. Shape dough into 1-inch balls. Roll in granulated sugar; place on ungreased cookie sheet.

4. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Immediately press a chocolate into center of each cookie; cookie will crack around edges. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely.

About 4 dozen cookies.

Holiday Baking Part 3 - Assorted Mini-Cookies

Mini-Cookies

Each of these are about 1.5-2 inches in diameter and easily consumed in (one) two bites. Starting from the left: mocha pinwheels, reverse mocha pinwheels, chocolate mint wraparounds.









Chocolate Mint Wraparounds By The Canadian Living Test Kitchen
Servings: 60

Ingredients:

2 oz (60 g) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2/3 cup (150 mL) butter, softened
1 cup (250 mL) granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp (2 mL) peppermint extract or vanilla
2 cups (500 mL) all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp (2 mL) each baking soda and salt
2 tbsp (25 mL) imitation chocolate sprinkles
Green paste food colouring
1 egg white, beaten

Preparation:

Line 2 rimless baking sheets with parchment paper or grease; set aside.
In bowl over saucepan of hot (not boiling) water, melt bittersweet chocolate; let cool to room temperature.

In large bowl, beat butter with sugar until fluffy; beat in egg and peppermint. In separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and sa< stir into butter mixture in 2 additions, using hands when stiff. Scrape half into separate bowl; stir in melted chocolate. Stir sprinkles into remaining dough and tint green (will be paler when baked).

Between waxed paper, roll out half of the chocolate dough to 12- x 4-inch (30 x 10 cm) rectangle; brush with egg white. Shape half of the green dough into 12-inch (30 cm) log. Place log lengthwise on centre of rectangle. Bring chocolate dough over log to meet; press edges together and roll log to reshape if necessary. Repeat with remaining dough. Wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour. (Make-ahead: Freeze in airtight container for up to 3 weeks.)

Cut roll into 1/4-inch (5 mm) thick slices. Arrange, 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart, on prepared pans; freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake in top and bottom thirds of 350°F (180°C) oven, rotating and switching pans halfway through, until firm to the touch and bottom is light gold, about 12 minutes. Transfer to racks; let cool. (Make-ahead: Layer between waxed paper in airtight container and store for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 1 month.)


Mocha Pinwheels


1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup butter
2 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 (1-ounce) square unsweetened baking chocolate, melted, cooled
1 teaspoon instant espresso powder
Water

Combine sugar, butter, egg and vanilla in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until creamy. In a second bowl add flour, baking powder, and salt. Reduce speed to low for butter mixture; add flour mixture. Beat, scraping bowl often, until well mixed. Divide dough in half, in separate bowls.

Combine water and espresso powder in small bowl until dissolved, add to melted chocolate. Add to one half of dough; beat until well mixed. Divide each half into 3 parts, then roll out each part into a 5x5 square. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours.

Roll out each square of dough between two sheets of lightly floured waxed paper to 12x7-inch rectangle. Place white dough on top of chocolate dough (or vice versa); gently press doughs together. Roll up, jelly-roll fashion, starting with 12-inch side. Wrap in plastic food wrap. Refrigerate until firm (at least 2 hours).

Heat oven to 350°F. Cut rolls with sharp knife into 1/4-inch slices. Place 1 inch apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 7 to 9 minutes or until set. Remove from cookie sheets; cool completely.

Makes 10 dozen cookies.

Holiday Baking Part 2 - Sugar Cookies

Sugar Cookies

Every year I always bake sugar cookies. This year I spotted a few versions of the same recipe. Whenever I make mine, I dip them in a white light glaze made of icing sugar and milk, then color the leftover and drizzle it over the stars (as shown). I really liked the way the snowflake looked with the balls on it, so I'll likely do that again next year. At the top is a stained glass cookie - same sugar cookie recipe, but you cut out the middle and put crushed hard candy (in my case, Jolly Ranchers) in the center and bake it using parchment paper. It was a horrible disaster, so no I won't be doing those again.

I also made them low sugar by only adding 1/3 of a cup of sugar instead of a full cup. Everyone seems to find them just sweet enough with the glaze that they don't even notice.

Vanilla Sugar Cookies By The Canadian Living Test Kitchen
Servings: 36

Ingredients:

3/4 cup (175 mL) butter, softened

1 cup (250 mL) granulated sugar

1 tsp vanilla (I free-pour personally)

1 egg

2-1/2 cups (625 mL) all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp (2 mL) baking powder

Pinch salt

Preparation:

Line rimless baking sheets with parchment paper or grease; set aside. In large bowl, beat butter with sugar until fluffy; set aside. Beat in egg and vanilla.

In separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt, add to butter mixture in 3 additions, stirring after each. Divide in half; flatten and wrap each in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour. (Make-ahead: Refrigerate for up to 24 hours.)

On lightly floured surface, roll out each half of dough to 1/4-inch (5 mm) thickness. Using a cookie cutter, cut out shapes. Place, 1 inch (2.5 cm) apart, on prepared pans. Bake in top and bottom thirds of 350°F (180°C) oven, rotating and switching pans halfway through, until light golden on bottoms and edges, about 10 minutes. Let cool on pans on racks for 1 minute. Transfer to racks; let cool completely. (Make-ahead: Store in airtight container for up to 1 week or freeze for up to 1 month).

Holiday Baking Part 1 - Biscotti

Biscotti

So I made two batches this year - ginger almond dipped in white chocolate, and cranberry pecan (xmas tradition). I actually made two full batches because of my ingenious idea of giving each of my employees a tin full of home-baked goods. My biscotti rations are now suitably lacking. I'll post the original and explain my alterations here.

For ginger almond: I only added 1 tbs. ground ginger, then melted 6 oz. of white chocolate in a double boiler method to dip the pieces in.


For cranberry almond: omitted the almonds; instead added 2/3 cup of toasted pecans, and 1 cup of dried cranberries.



Biscotti (courtesy of Anna Olson)

Yield: 48


Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole almond
5 egg
1 egg yolk
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp orange zest
1/2 tsp cinnamon
dash of salt
1 egg, with 2 tbsp cold water for egg wash


Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly toast almonds on a baking sheet for 10 minutes. Allow to cool.

Whisk together eggs, egg yolk, sugar and vanilla until sugar dissolves. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, zest, cinnamon and salt (no need to sift). Add to egg mixture and stir in. Stir in almonds.

Divide dough in half and roll each into a log shape on a lightly floured surface. Logs should be about 15 inches long. Place each cookie log on a greased or parchment-lined baking sheet and press down with the heel of your hand to flatten. Brush tops of the biscotti dough with egg wash and bake for 25 minutes, rotating pan in the oven halfway through baking. Remove from heat and allow to cool for 15 minutes.

Reduce oven temperature to 325 F. Biscotti is easiest to slice while warm. Using a chef’s knife, slice biscotti on an angle into 1/2- inch slices. Place face down on an ungreased baking sheet. Return cookies to oven for 20 minutes, or until they just start to colour a bit on the edges. They will feel soft when they come out of the oven, but will harden as they cool.

Starbucks Ginger Molasses Cookies

I can honestly say I prefer my cookies looking 'less than perfect'. I've had this recipe kicking around in my binder for well over a year, ever since I first tried a ginger molasses cookie at Starbucks. I know it's a fancy way to say gingerbread, but it must work because normally I hate gingerbread, but these are the exception. It'll definitely be a repeater, and next time I might even try adding cloves and/or allspice. I know it doesn't look like it makes a lot, but they are LARGE cookies. The guys (and girls) at work loved them, and they're my willing test subjects. :)

















Ingredients:

2-1/4 cups flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
3/4 cup (1-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup dark brown sugar
1 extra-large egg
1/4 cup regular unsulphured molasses (blackstrap is too strong for
this cookie)
Granulated sugar (for coating cookie dough before baking)
Non-stick vegetable spray (optional, for coating the scoop)

Preparation:

Heat oven to 375 degrees with the rack in the center. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper, silicone pan liners or aluminum foil (if using foil, grease foil with 1 Tbs. butter or solid vegetable shortening). Set aside. Sift flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and ginger into a medium bowl. Set aside.

Cream the butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl with mixer on high speed until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. With mixer on medium speed, beat in the egg and molasses, then increase the speed to high and beat about 1 minute longer, until the mixture no longer looks curdled. Scrape the sides with a rubber spatula several times while mixing.

Mix in the flour mixture on low speed. The batter will be rather stiff. Place some granulated sugar on a small plate or saucer. Use a 1/4-cup ice cream scoop or a measuring cup to form 1/4-cup portions of dough. (Spray the cup or scoop with the optional non-stick vegetable spray to make it easier to release the dough.) Transfer the dough to your hands and roll each portion into a rough ball, then roll each ball into the sugar. Place six sugared balls on each baking sheet, spacing them evenly, because they will spread during baking. Dampen your fingers with water and press down lightly on each cookie to flatten it a little and dampen the top. Refrigerate one filled baking sheet while the other bakes. Bake for 12 minutes, or until the cookies have spread and are firm to the touch. Rotate the sheet 180 degrees halfway through the baking time. Remove from the oven and let the cookies cool on the baking sheet.

Note: This dough can be frozen for slice-and- bake cookies. Just roll into a log 2-1/2 inches thick. Wrap in plastic wrap and then in foil. Can be stored in the freezer up to 6 months.

Makes 1 dozen large cookies.

Per cookie: 290 calories, 3g protein, 42g carbohydrates, 1g fiber, 12g fat (7g saturated), 275mg sodium.

20-minute lentil soup

I honestly had taken a picture of this soup, but they all came out blurry. Bah! I make this soup like (seriously) ALL time time. It's fast, it's easy. It's beyond delicious. I pretty much don't even need the recipe book anymore since I know it by heart. I choose to omit the spinach though -- I don't like leafy greens in my soups as a general rule. Also nabbed from the Canadian Living Soups, Stews, and Slow-Cooker meals issue.

Servings: 4

Ingredients:

1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil
4 green onions, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 potato, peeled and chopped
1 tbsp (15 mL) tomato paste
2 tsp (10 mL) mild curry paste
2-1/2 cups (625 mL) each vegetable stock and water
1 cup (250 mL) dried red lentils
2 cups (500 mL) packed fresh baby spinach

Preparation:

In large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat; fry chopped green onions, carrots and potato, stirring occasionally, until onions are softened, about 4 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and curry paste.

Add stock, water and lentils; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until lentils are tender, about 12 minutes. Stir in spinach.


Per serving: calories 283, protein 15g, total fat 5g, carbohydrates 46g, fibre 9g, sodium 750 mg.

% RDI: calcium 9%; iron 46%; vitamin A 164%; vitamin C 20%; folate 140%.

Curried cauliflower soup

I used to make this soup a lot more often, but then I ironically started feeling kind of gross after eating it. Too much curry methinks. O_o I still like to make it on occasion though because it's super yummy, super easy, and super low carb and diet friendly.

I modify it however by omitting the orange juice (sounds weird to me) and instead add additional vegetable stock. I also omit the red pepper puree (because I'm lazy).




Ingredients:

For the Curried Cauliflower Soup:
1 heads of cauliflower, trimmed into florets
1 x onion, chopped
2 tbsp of olive oil
Salt and pepper
2 cups of orange juice
1 cup of chicken stock
1 tbsp of curry powder

For the Red Pepper Puree:
1 x red pepper, seeds and stem removed and cut into 8 pieces
1/2 cup of tomato juice
2 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper

Directions:

For the Curried Cauliflower Soup:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Toss cauliflower and onion with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and place in a roasting pan. Roast for 30 minutes, until well caramelized. Put into a large soup pot and add orange juice, stock, curry powder and check for seasoning. Bring to a boil, turn the heat down and simmer for 15 minutes.
Puree with an immersion blender, or in small batches in a blender.
Reheat just prior to serving. Garnish with Red Pepper Puree.

For the Red Pepper Puree:
Simmer all of the ingredients together until peppers are soft.
Puree in a blender until smooth.
Drizzle into the hot soup.

Yields: 4 servings

barley lentil soup

I've been making this soup since last fall when I picked up Canadian Living's soups, stews, and casseroles edition. It's uber yummy, highly nutritious, and freakishly easy to make. Sometimes I add or omit vegetables. This time I made a half batch and added only 1 medium carrot, but also added about 1/2 of a large potato to make it a little starchier (believe it or not). I find diving 1/2 batch into two servings and having it with a teabiscuit or some veg w/ dip totally fills me up at lunchtime.


Ingredients:
1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large carrot, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 tsp (5 mL) dried thyme
1/4 tsp (1 mL) each salt and pepper
4 cups (1 L) vegetable stock
1 cup (250 mL) brown or green lentils
1/4 cup (50 mL) pot barley
1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped fresh parsley

Topping:1/4 cup (50 mL) low-fat plain yogurt 1 tbsp (15 mL) minced fresh parsley

Preparation:
In large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat; fry onion, garlic, carrot, celery, thyme, salt and pepper until softened, about 5 minutes.
Add stock, 2 cups (500 mL) water, lentils and barley; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until barley and lentils are tender, about 40 minutes. (Make-ahead: Let cool for 30 minutes; refrigerate, uncovered, until cold. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days; reheat.) Stir in chopped parsley.
Topping: Top each serving with yogurt; sprinkle with parsley.

Servings: 4 to 6
Nutritional Info (per each of 6 servings): calories - 193; protein - 10 g; total fat - 3 g; sat. fat - trace, carb - 32 g; fibre - 5 g; cholesterol - 1 mg; sodium - 544 mg.

Blogging

Okay, so I created my blog, I have made my first post. Now I'm going to make some soup. :P