Lemon & Pineapple Sage Chess Pie

The history of the chess pie is debatable. Many contribute its origin to England, but those who have lived in the south their entire lives know it is as southern as peach pie.

To describe the many variations of chess pie that I have tasted, I would sum up the experience as a pecan pie without the pecans, and in their place, a little bit of cream. Just like a pecan pie, chess pie is one of the easiest pies you can make. Almost impossible to muck up.

A flaky tender crust sits at the base of the custard-like filling. And because the filling is so neutral, you can flavor the pie with almost anything.

Chess pie is sometimes referred to as buttermilk pie or vinegar pie.

For my summer version, I went with lemons and fresh pineapple sage from the garden. The custard is made using fresh lemon juice and lemon zest. I add in pineapple sage by seeping cream with it and using it throughout the recipe.

This recipe comes from my mom’s favorite community cookbook and gets an update. Here is another recipe that I did the same thing with.

I always make my own pie crust because the taste is so much better than store-bought. A ratio of half butter and half lard is my preference for fat. You are your own baker, so use any recipe for a crust that you like or even use a premade one!

Lemon Chess Pie

Ingredients

For Pie Crust:
2 1/2 Cups of Flour
1 Teaspoon of Salt
1 Tablespoon of Sugar
1/2 Cup of Cold Unsalted Butter, cut into cubes
1/2 Cup of Cold Lard
4 to 8 Tablespoons of Ice Water
For Pie:
4 Large Eggs
2 Cups of Sugar
1 Tablespoon of Yellow Corn Meal
1 Tablespoon of Flour
3 Teaspoons of Grated Lemon Zest
3/4 Cup of Heavy Cream
1/4 Cup of Melter Butter
1/4 Cup of Lemon Juice
1/2 Cup of Pineapple Sage

Instructions

First make the pie crust.
In a mixing bowl, combine the dry ingredients for the crust.
Using a pastry cutter, cut in the butter and lard. You want the crumbs to resemble various sized beans.
Once the crumbs are at the desired size, pour in 4 tablespoons of the ice water.
Gently begin to press the dough together to form a ball. If more water is needed ad it.
Once you have a ball of pie dough formed, divide it into two.
Wrap each ball in plastic wrap and allow them to rest for at least one hour in the fridge.
Save the second ball of dough for another use.
After the pie dough has chilled and rested, begin making your pie.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Roll out one of the balls of dough, on a well floured surface, to a 12 inch circle. This is for a 9 inch pie pan.
Place the pie crust into the pie pan, then form edges to your desired design.
Poke holes in the bottom of the crust, then weight it down with parchment paper and pie weights.
Bake the crust for approximately 15 minutes.
Once baked removed the crust from oven, remove the pie weights, and set aside.
Make the pie filling.
Steep the pineapple sage in the heavy cream by placing the two in a small sauce pan over medium-low heat. Steep for approximately 10 minutes, and do not allow the cream to come to a boil.
Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a mixing bowl, combine your sugar, flour, and cornmeal.
Stir the eggs into the dry mixture, one at time. Mixing each until well combined.
Whisk in the melted butter, lemon juice, lemon zest, and 1/4 cup of the steeped cream.
Pour filling mixture into the pie crust, and bake for 1 hour.
If your pie crust starts to brown, cover with foil.
To finish the pie, whisk the remaining steeped cream until a medium stiffness whipped cream is formed.
Spread whipped cream over the top of the cooled pie and garnish with chopped pineapple sage.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/06/26/lemon-pineapple-sage-chess-pie/

This recipe is copyrighted

Key Lime Pie Poke Cake

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

As you probably guessed, Key Lime Pie (and key limes) come from the Keys. Many southerners consider the Florida line to be the official end of the south, but it is south of the Mason-Dixon so it counts.

When key lime pie is done right (i.e. made with key limes) it can be magical. Refreshing yet sweet, and creamy and cool.

All of the traditional Savannah restaurants offer some version of key lime pie on their dessert menu. When I speak of traditional Savannah restaurants I am referring to the ones that have been around forever, like the Olde Pink House or Garibaldi’s.

Since summer has officially begun in Savannah, it felt natural to make a southern dessert that is inspired by the season. Note: it is not officially summer, but when you live this deep in the south, the heat makes it feel like summer arrives early.

And to be completely honest, I did not feel like making a pie crust so baking a version of the dessert without a pie crust was my approach for this one. What is just as good a pie crust? Cake!

The base flavors/components for key lime pie recipes are always the same, key limes, graham cracker, and meringue. This recipe includes all of the essential components. A graham cracker cake, key lime pudding, toasted meringue, and a graham cracker crumb.

As for a poke cake, the concept is simple. Bake a one-layer cake in a cake pan and once it is cool poke holes into and pour something delicious over the cake. I finish my version off with a slathering of meringue and a blow torch.

Key Lime Pie Poke Cake

Ingredients

For the Cake:
8 Tablespoons of Unsalted Butter, room temperature
1/2 Cup of Granulated Sugar
2 Eggs
1 1/2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
1/2 Teaspoon of Baking Soda
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
1/2 Cup of Whole Milk
12 Graham Crackers, processed into crumbs
For the Pudding:
4 Limes or 12 Key Limes
2 Cups of Whole Milk
1/2 Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream
2/3 Cup of Granulated Sugar
4 Eggs Yolks
4 Tablespoons of Cornstarch
4 Tablespoons of Unsalted Butter
1/4 Teaspoon of Salt
For the Meringue:
4 Egg Whites
1/2 Teaspoon of Cream of Tartar
1/2 Cup of Water
1 Cup of Sugar

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Prepare a square baking pan by greasing it and coating in flour. Set aside.
Cream together the sugar and butter to start making the cake batter. Once combined, cream for approximately 4 minutes on medium speed or until butter is light and fluffy.
In a mixing bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In another mixing bowl, whisk together the remaining wet ingredients.
With the mixer on medium, pour in 1/3 of your dry ingredients, followed by 1/3 of your wet ingredients, and continue until all of the ingredients are fully combined and well mixed.
Pour the cake batter into the prepare cake pan. Bake, on the middle rack, for 30-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Allow the cake to cool while you prepare the pudding.
First zest half of your limes, then set the zest to the side.
In a small bowl, combine the milk for the pudding, the heavy cream, and the juice from all of the limes. Set aside.
In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt, and limes zest. Whisk together. Next add in the egg yolks and whisk to combine.
Slowly whisk in the milk mixture and stir until smooth.
Place the saucepan over medium heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick. This should take approximatley 10 minutes. The mixture will coat the back of a wooden spoon.
Remove the pudding from the heat and whisk in the butter until it is melted and combined.
Allow the pudding to cool while you prepare the meringue.
In a small sauce pan, combine the sugar and water. Stir to dissolve sugar. Turn the stove to medium-high heat.
Cook the sugar until it reaches 240 degrees Fahrenheit.
While the sugar is cooking, combine the egg whites and cream of tartar into the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk on medium speed until soft peaks form.
With the mixer on low, carefully and very slowly pour the cooked sugar down the side of the mixing bowl.
Once the sugar syrup is fully poured in, increase the mixer speed to medium and whisk until stiff peaks form.
Assemble the cake by poking holes into the cake with the handle of a wooden spoon.
Pour over the lime pudding, spreading until the pudding fills all of the holes.
Finish by gently spreading the meringue over the top of the cake. You can toast the meringue with a torch.
Optional: Top each slice with a sprinkle of graham cracker crumbs.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/05/26/key-lime-pie-poke-cake/

This recipe is copyrighted

Recipes

Bananas Foster Monkey Bread

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

Travel is the best way to draw inspiration in life. For me traveling means exploring the food of the city I am visiting. I spend hours of research mapping out my food journey to ensure I eat only the best the city has to offer. Oftentimes the result is overindulgence over a short period of hours.

Two weekends ago I found myself in New Orleans. One of my favorite southern cities of all time. I am lucky to have family in Louisiana which gives me more than enough legitimate reasons to explore the land of endless sugar cane fields. If you have never visited, I strongly urge you to add NOLA to your short list of destinations. Wrought with history and culture, the French influenced city has no shortage of things to see and do. Live music in every bar, towering historical buildings, and more voodoo shops that you can stand. I have been many times yet I have never seen the same thing twice.

Louisiana a state that is know for the origin of Cajun cuisine which is heavily influenced by Creole cooking with French technique. Technically, Cajun food did not start in Louisiana, but through immigrants who eventually settled in the state. And yes, there is a large difference in the Cajun and Creole, which I plan on breaching in a later post.

For now I would like to spend a little bit of time focusing on the Creole and French side of the state. The city folk, those in New Orleans, cook Creole food, unlike the country folk who cook Cajun. Since I spent time in the city, everything I ate could be considered Cajun—even the non-Cajun food—and here is why:

If you have ever visited New Orleans it is easy to see that the town is a culmination cultures created through the settlement of immigrants, which is still occurring today. There are more restaurants that a visitor could reasonably conquer, all of which are a different—even if only slightly. Restauranteurs present patrons with their interpretation of local food, adding in their own influences and ideas. This is a practice that has been occurring in NOLA since before my time. The food of our ancestors is not the food of our towns as we now know them.

A world-wide known dessert is the perfect example of the evolution of the food in NOLA. Bananas foster was created in New Orleans at famous New Orleans restaurant Brennan’s by Chef Paul Blange. Today you can still visit Brennan’s and try the food that has been nominated for multiple James Beard Awards. The recipe was created in 1951 and even published by the New York Times in 1957. The concept is simple: smother ripe bananas in butter, sugar, and liquor then set it aflame.

Although widely considered a traditional southern dish, by no means it is so in the literal sense of the word. The recipe was not contemplated until the mid 20th century. When comparing so many dishes that are said to be traditionally southern, bananas fosters is much younger than say hoppin’ john, which can be dated back to the 19th century.

This dish epitomizes both Southern and Louisiana cuisine, ever progressing into new fare that features a nod to the past. So why not draw inspiration from a City and State that has drawn culinary inspiration from it’s inhabitants, landscape, and visitors, and create something totally new from already known and loved recipe (also my husband begged me to make monkey bread, so the idea was streamline).

Many recipes call for canned biscuit dough. I believe that fresh is best, so my recipe makes the dough from scratch.

If you draw any inspiration from this post or recipe, I hope you take the idea of bananas foster and add it into a something to create a brand new dessert…or savory dish. I would love to hear about what you come up with!

Bananas Foster Monkey Bread

The baked bread cooling in the pan

Ingredients

For the Dough:
⅔ Cup of Warm Whole Milk, no higher than 110°F
1 Tablespoon of Sugar
1 0.25 Ounce Package Dry Yeast
3¼ Cups of Flour, divided
¼ Cup of Butter, melted
2 Large Eggs
1 Teaspoon of Salt
For the coating:
1 Cup of Light Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon of Cinnamon
For the Bananas Foster:
4 Very Ripe Bananas, peeled and sliced
4 Tablespoons of Butter
1 Cup of Firmly Packed Light Brown Sugar
½ Cup of Heavy Whipping Cream, room temperature
3 Tablespoons of Bourbon
Pinch of Salt
4 ripe bananas, sliced

Instructions

Start by making the dough.
In the bowl of a stand mixer, pour in the milk then sprinkle over the yeast and sugar. Let sit for at least 10 minutes until the yeast is bubbly.
With the dough hook attached, turn the speed to low. Pour in 1 cup of flour, mixing until combine. Next the melted butter, and finish 1 cup of flour.
Mix in the eggs, then finish with the remaining flour and salt.
Once dough is fully combined turn the speed to medium and kneed for 3-5 minutes. A soft dough should form and pull away from the sides of the bowl.
Coat a large bowl with cooking spray. Place the dough in the bowl, coat with spray, and allow to rise, covered, in a draft free place for one hour or until double in size.
In a small bowl, combine the topping sugar and cinnamon. Mix until combined then set aside for later.
Prepare your bananas fosters. In a medium sauce pan, over medium-high heat, add brown sugar and butter. Cook for approximately 3-5 minutes until mixture is an amber color.
Remove from the heat and stir in the cream, salt, and bananas. Stir to fully coat bananas. Set aside and allow to cool.
Prepare a bundt pan by coating it in cooking spray.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once dough has doubled, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Gently shape dough into a ball.
Pinch off one inch pieces, roll them into a ball, then dunk them into the cinnamon sugar mixture.
Start assembling by placing a small amount of bananas fosters mix into the bottom of the pan.
Create a layer of dough balls in the bottom of the pan, then coat in your bananas fosters. Continuing layering dough and sauce until the pan is full.
Bake until golden brown, 35-40 minutes.
Let cool in the pan for at least 10 minutes before turning it out.
Eat!

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/04/19/bananas-foster-monkey-bread/

This recipe is copyrighted

Restaurant Reviews

My Favorite Cake Pop Shop in Savannah: Sweet Whimsy

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

HAVE YOU ever had famous cake pops? I have and I am never going back.

Unfortunately for me, I did not discover the professional (and television worthy) cake pops of Sweet Whimsy Shop until this year. I assure you, I have eaten my weight in cake balls to make up for lost time.

As a licensed cottage bakery, Sweet Whimsy Shop has been providing the Savannah area with unique and artful cake pops for some time and eventually made a star studded appearance on The Late Late Show. Impressively, Sweet Whimsy’s TV debut happened only three short years after opening shop doors.

Owner and master creator Becca Aronowitz quit her full time job as a middle school teacher in 2012 to begin her journey as a bakery owner. Her background in art has served her well.

“I’ve always loved creating, in any form, and I think I identify more as an artist or maker, than a baker specifically. I began taking after school art classes as a 7 year old. I have degrees in art education, and I was an art teacher for several years,” she explains.

The result is a bakery that focuses on ensuring each resulting product is a work of art. As far as cake pop art goes, she’s Andy Warhol.

Aronowitz takes the time to hand sculpt each and every cake popsicle before decorating them by hand. The attentive attention to detail is what sets her art on a stick aside from all other cake pop makers around the lowcountry. Each finished contoured, compact cake is worthy of the Louvre.

To create the luscious lollipops, Aronowitz mixes the perfect ratio of tender, moist cake with homemade frosting.

“I’ve always been committed to using scratch-baked cake & frosting for my cake pops. Many cake pop makers use boxed mixes and canned frosting, but I believe my creations should taste as good as they look, and if you’re going to make something as labor-intensive as a cake pop, shouldn’t it be worth consuming?” Aronowitz elaborates.

Using the correct amount of cake and frosting is extremely important. Too little frosting and the cake pop will be dry, crumbly, and difficult to shape; too much frosting and the resulting goodies will be overly sweet and taste only of icing.

Sweet Whimsy Shop has it down to a science. Every single lolli has a tender, slightly moist center that reveals itself upon chomping down on the crunchy outer shell of the treat. The cake itself melts in your mouth, allowing the flavoring of the pop to flood your palate.

After the cake and frosting is mixed, Aronowitz portions out each ball of cake. Then the cake ball is individually hand sculpted before being dipped into a chocolate shell.

I ask Aronowitz how she comes up with each inspired design, and she tells me, “Most of my ideas and designs are created in response to client requests. Sometimes a client will present a photo of a cake pop design she’d like reproduced. If that’s the case, and it’s not one of my designs, I try to customize it to avoid copying and I credit the original creator whenever they can be identified. Sometimes the client has a theme or general vision, and I try to create a cake pop collection that will coordinate with the theme, or realize the vision.”

For my set of cake pops, I asked that she make anything she felt like making. Aronowitz designed and delivered the cutest set of avocado, llama, taco, and cactus cake pops. The avocados are the newest addition to Sweet Whimsey’s portfolio.

Past designs have included anything from a thanksgiving turkey to taxi cab. I even found cake designed to look like a margarita glass on her website.
Inside each of my personal pops were the shop’s signature flavors, Yummy Vanilla Cake and Decadent Chocolate. Aronowitz told me that the vanilla and chocolate are the most popular flavors. The chocolate was my personal favorite.

Customers have the choice for a mix-in of sprinkles or candy into their design. Kiddie Party Mix is a vanilla cake with rainbow sprinkles layered in and the Chocolate Rainbow Explosion features chocolate cake with rainbow sprinkles.

Reese’s peanut butter cups fill the Vanilla Reese’s and the Double Chocolate Peanut Butter includes chocolate with peanut butter and mini chocolate chips. My next order will definitely test out one of the Reese’s inspired creations.

I ask Aronowitz if Sweet Whimsy offers any other special flavors. “I also offer seasonal flavors, like Green Velvet for St. Patrick’s Day. During September, October, and November, I offer Pumpkin Spice. It’s made with real pumpkin and spices like cinnamon and nutmeg, and it’s so good! Cozy Gingerbread was introduced this winter, after a test-taste vote during one of my pop-ups in November. I can also do custom flavors, like the Blonde Velvet I made for a friend’s wedding. It’s a red velvet recipe but made without the dye; I like it better that way!”

Sweet Whimsy Shop is constantly designing and creating, like any true committed artist. The success of the cottage shop has pushed Aronowitz to expand to other mediums.

“Cake pops are still the majority of what I make, but I am slowly expanding to include other small, very cute treats. The focus will always be on edible art that is whimsical, created with precision, and great-tasting. I have figured out how to do that very well with cake pops, but the vision extends further,” she says.
To be expected, just as much detail and finesse into all of her new treats and flavors.

If you take a peek at her instagram, @sweetwhimseyshop, you will find chocolate covered Oreos (with decorations of course), rice crispy pops, and many other brilliantly designed and decorated confections.

Original article is here.

Recipes

Strawberry Cheesecake Rice Crispy Treats

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

Last week I posted a new recipe for homemade Cheesecake Marshmallows, and I wanted to share the recipe of how I used the mallows because the flavor is so unique.

The recipe for the cheesecake flavored marshmallows can be found here.

I created this recipe some time ago. I started with strawberry Rice Krispie treats that I created for my nieces and nephews. To make simple strawberry flavored Rice Krispie treats, all you have to do is use plain marshmallows in lieu of these cheesecake flavored ones.
The natural progression for strawberry cheesecake Rice Krispie treats came when I decided to attempt to make my very own homemade marshmallows.

Like most recipes, it is simple to make your own flavor or version by switching out some of the ingredients. You can create or use any flavor marshmallow you like, and the same goes for the freeze dried fruit. Make banana flavored Rice Krispie treats by using freeze dried bananas. Or even thrown in some vanilla wafers to make banana pudding Rice Krispie treats. Maybe that will be my next recipe to post.

The good news is that this recipe is extremely simple, so any level of cook can make it. It is also a really great recipe to make with your kids. I hope it inspires you to come up with your very own uniquely flavored Rice Krispie treats.

Strawberry Cheesecake Rice Crispy Treats

A stack of pink rice crispy treats

Ingredients

6 Cups of Rice Crispy Cereal
2 Tablespoons of Butter
10 Ounces of Cheesecake Flavored Marshmallows
1/2 Ounce of Freeze Dried Strawberries

Instructions

Prepare a 9x9 baking pan, or size of your choosing by spraying it with cooking spray. Set aside.
Pulverize the freeze dried strawberries with a food processor. Once strawberries are a fine powder, place the powder in a large mixing bowl.
Pour the cereal into the same mixing bowl, and mix together the strawberry powder and cereal. Set aside.
In a small sauce pan, heat butter and marshmallows over medium heat. Stir with a rubber spatula until the butter and marshmallows are fully melted and combined.
Pour marshmallow mixture over the cereal mixture and mix until fully combined.
Pour the finished mixture into your prepared baking pan, spreading until even on top.
Allow the treats to set up for at least one hour before slicing and serving.,

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/04/03/strawberry-cheesecake-rice-crispy-treats/

This recipe is copyrighted

Recipes

Cheesecake Marshmallows

Featuredby Lindy Moody1 Comment

Marshmallows are one of those things that I have always wanted to make at home. But when it is so easy to just buy a bag of pre-made marshmallows at the store, why take the time to do it yourself? Have you ever tried a homemade marshmallow? There is no comparison! Making them yourself is totally worth it.

The homemade version is fluffier, lighter, gooier, and even more so of all of the things that everyone loves about a marshmallow. And after making my very first batch (successfully might I add), I concluded that it is not very hard at all. The only troublesome part is dealing with the extra sticky freshly made mallows.

The second benefit to making them at home is that you can flavor your confection with almost anything. I found a bottle of cheesecake extract on Amazon and it arrived in two short days. Click here for the extract.

And finally, you actually get to see what is in your food. Instead of pumping yourself with processed store-bought stuff.In a few short days, I will post my recipe on how I used these little clouds of cheesecake heaven. Until then, just eat them by the handful.

Cheesecake Marshmallows

Up close of the marshmallows after being sliced

Ingredients

1 Cup of Light Karo Syrup
0.625 Fluid Ounces of Cheesecake Extract
3 (1/4-ounce) Envelopes of Unflavored Gelatin
1 Cup of Water
1 1/2 Cups of Sugar
1/4 Teaspoon of Salt
Approximately 1/2 Cup of Powdered Sugar

Instructions

Prepare a 9x9 (or something similar) baking pan by coating it in cooking spray then powdered sugar. Be sure to shake out any excess sugar. Set aside.
In your stand mixer, pour in 1/2 cup of water then sprinkle over the gelatin. Allow the gelatin to bloom while you prepare the rest of the recipe. Be sure to attach your whisk beater.
In a small saucepan combine the karo syrup, sugar, salt, and 1/2 cup of water.
Heat over medium heat, cooking until the candy reaches 240 degrees Fahrenheit or soft ball stage.
Once at the desired temperature, remove the mixture from the heat and allow the bubbles to dissipate.
With your stand mixer on low, slowly pour the candy mixture into the bowl.
Once the mixture is full incorporated, turn the speed up to medium. Whisk the mixture for approximately 10 minutes or until the mixture folds back onto itself in a thick ribbon.
After the mixture is at the desired texture, beat in your cheesecake extract.
Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Smooth the top of the mixture with wet hands.
Allow the marshmallows to set for at least 4 hours before slicing.
After slicing, coat eat marshmallow in powdered sugar to subdue their stickiness.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/03/27/cheesecake-marshmallows/

This recipe is copyrighted

Recipes

Spicy Kitchen Sink Cookies

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

The concept of a kitchen sink cookie is simple: you put everything in but the kitchen sink. It is one of those recipes that works with almost anything and everything you have in your baking pantry. This means it is a great recipe to keep in your pocket when a baking emergency comes up, i.e an impromptu party or impromptu house guests.

For my version of kitchen sink cookies I use a combination that I find is well balanced, salty, sweet, and spicy. For salt I throw in pretzels and kettle cooked chips, kettle cooked so they retain their crunchiness. The sweet comes from butterscotch and chocolate chips. Finally, the spicy from some chipotle roasted peanuts.

If you do not have spicy peanuts you can throw red pepper into the cookie mix, roast your own peanuts in a spice mixture, or simply use plain peanuts.

The cookie base for the recipe is heavy in brown sugar and butter, which results a gooier more buttery cookie. In my book, the ultimate cookie is one that is cooked on the outside and still gooey on the center. The trick to a perfect texture is twofold, chilling the butter before baking and under baking the cookie. I take the cookies out of the oven when the edges just start to brown then I let them cool on the cookie sheet.

Chilling your cookie dough before baking it prevents the butter from spreading too much during baking. If the butter spreads too much the finished cookies will be thin and not thick and tender.

This recipe would also be delicious as a chocolate chip cookie using only chocolate chips as the add-in. And of course, I recommend a large glass of ice cold milk to accompany your fresh out of the oven warm cookies.

This cookie may be the strangest, most delicious, and well balanced cookie I have ever eaten.

For more tips on cookie making, see this post.

Spicy Kitchen Sink Cookies

A stack of baked cookies next to a glass of milk

Ingredients

2 Sticks of Butter, softened
1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup of Sugar
2 1/2 Cups of All Purpose Flour
1 Tablespoon of Vanilla Extract
2 Large Eggs
1 Egg Yolk
1/2 Teaspoon of Baking Powder
1/4 Teaspoon of Salt
1/2 Cup of Chocolate Chips
1/2 Cup of Butterscotch Chips
1 Cup of Kettle Cooked Chips
1/2 Cup of Pretzels, crushed
1/2 Cup of Spicy Peanuts

Instructions

With your stand mixer on medium speed, cream together your sugars and softened butter. Mix until well combined.
Next add in the eggs and egg yolk. Pour in eggs one at a time, mixing until well combined.
Add in the vanilla extract, mixing until well combined.
In a bowl combine the flour, salt, and baking powder.
Pour the flour mixture into mixing bowl a little at a time. Continue to mix cookie dough until fully combined.
Once cookie mixture is fully mixed, add in the chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, pretzels, chips, and peanuts.
Mix the cookie dough over low speed until the add-ins are broken up and well distributed. This should take no more than 1 minute.
Cover the cookie mixture well and place in the fridge to chill for 30 minutes. This will prevent too much spreading.
While the cookie dough chills, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fairenhiet.
Prepare each cookie sheet with a layer of parchment paper.
Bake the cookies for 10 minutes, or until lightly golden on the edges. If you are baking more than one cookie sheet at a time, it will take approximately 15 minutes for the cookies to bake.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/02/12/spicy-kitchen-sink-cookies/

This recipe is copyrighted

Recipes

Chai Milk Cake

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

Being able to bake a cake is the cornerstone of becoming a good baker–especially an at-home baker. But if you are anything like me (I have been baking since my teenage years), you may feel as though you have baked every type of cake there is. After enough time you start pulling away from baking the same old cakes, and bake new and exiting things. At least until a new and exciting cake idea comes along.

A few weeks ago I read about the idea of a milk cake and was thrilled – I found a cake I have never made before.

The concept is simple. Much like a tres leches cake, you bake a dense cake then soak it in flavored milk. The result is half custard, half super moist cake. The milk mixture for the soak is similar to that of a tres leches, but you take the time to flavor the cream by heating it up and steeping it.

Like many of my recipes, you can steep the milk with anything. Any tea, honey, cinnamon, vanilla–the list is endless.

Within the last year I have started to like chai tea. The spicy flavors of chai tea steeped in the milk soak would be the perfect balance to a sweet and sticky cake. I carried the flavor of the chai tea into the topping for the cake.

Again, this cake would pair well with many toppings, whipped cream, caramel, and most fruits. I chose to make a fig, apricot, golden raisin compote to keep with the theme of warm winter flavors.

After testing the recipe out, I served it at a quaint little dinner party last weekend. I normally find fault in my own baked goods but could not find much fault in this cake. The cake did not last through the weekend.

Fininshed cake about to be topped with compote

Chai Milk Cake

Milk being poured over the finished cake

Ingredients

For the Compote:
2 Cups of Water
1 1/2 Tablespoons of Honey
1 Chai Tea Bag
1/2 Cup of Dried Apricots, quartered
1/2 Cup of Dried Figs, quartered
1/2 Cup of Golden Raisins
1/2 Vanilla Bean
2 Tablespoons of Whiskey
For the Cake:
2 Sticks of Butter, softened
1 Cup of Sugar
3 Large Eggs
1 1/2 Cups of All Purpose Flour
1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
1/2 of a Vanilla Bean
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
2 Teaspoons of Baking Powder
1/2 Cup of Whole Milk
For the Soak:
1 - 12 Ounce Can of Sweetened Condensed Milk
1 - 15 Ounce Can of Evaporated Milk
1 Cup of Heavy Cream
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract
5 Chai Tea Bags

Instructions

In a small saucepan, combine the water, honey, and 1 chai tea bag. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
Next stir in the raisins, figs, apricots, whiskey, and the scrapings from the inside of the vanilla bean.
Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook the mixture for 5 minutes before removing the tea bag.
Cook the mixture for an additional 10 minutes, or until the liquid turns to a light syrup.
Set the mixture aside to cool before serving.
For the cake, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease an 8-inch round cake pan and set aside for later.
In your stand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. This takes about 5 minutes.
Slowly add in the eggs, one at a time, until fully combined and the mixture is fluffy.
Combine all of your dry ingredients, then slowly sift in one-half of the dry mixture into the butter mixture. Mix until combined.
Next add in the milk, vanilla extract, and the scraped inside of the vanilla pod. Mix until combined.
Finally, add the remaining one-half of the dry mixture, mixing until fully combined.
Pour the cake batter into your prepared cake pan and bake on the middle rack for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Once your cake is baked, remove it from the oven and let it cool.
While the cake cools, prepare your chai milk soak mixture.
In a small saucepan, combine all of the ingredients for your milk soak.
Over medium heat, bring the mixture close to a simmer, then turn off the heat. Allow the tea to steep uncovered for 10 minutes.
After they have steeped, remove the tea bags from milk mixture.
Turn out your cake onto its serving tray. Gently pour your milk mixture onto the cake.
The soak will not fully absorb initially, so spoon any extra soak back onto the cake before serving.
Serve the cake with the compote. The cake will last one day.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/02/04/chai-milk-cake/

This recipe is copyrighted

Recipes

Lemon & Cream Cheese Babka

Featuredby Lindy MoodyLeave a Comment

I will be the first to admit that I am not a professional baker. I have baked for many, many years, but am in no way at the level of professional. I have just as many bad days in the kitchen as good ones.

This is especially true when it comes to yeast. Yeast is my kryptonite.
Anytime I go into the kitchen with plans to bake yeast risen bread, I am fully prepared to have the bake come out wrong. The silver lining is that you can always learn by messing up.

This past weekend may have been my worst weekend in the kitchen to date. I decided to challenge myself by attempting a Babka. A Babka is a traditional Jewish sweet yeast risen bread that is swirled with chocolate or cinnamon. The bread dough itself is basically a brioche dough. Technically speaking, it is medium of the difficulty of yeast breads.

Three days and four attempts is what it took to get this recipe right. I threw out two doughs and one finished loaf before the fourth and final loaf came out soft and pillow-like. So you do not make the same mistakes, I wanted to share what I learned from my experience. What else is a blog good for?

As for the filling, (per usual) I did not want to take the traditional route. My husband’s grandmother gave me a some homegrown lemons. Her lemon tree yielded for the first time this winter. Lemon is the perfect pick-me-up during the cold months when we lack sun and fresh ingredients. I juiced and zested them, combined them with softened cream cheese, then rolled the mixture up into the dough. My poor husband had to go to the store to get me more cream cheese after I threw out my third attempt.

The finished loaf is delightfully sweet, with a hint of tang. I think a glob of raspberry jelly would adorn a slice of fresh baked lemon cream cheese babka perfectly.

What I learned throwing out three batches of babka dough:

Batch one and two:

Always check your yeast. Yeast will last in the fridge, but of course not forever. Instead of wasting your time making an entire batch of dough to only realize that it will not rise, take the first 5 minutes and make sure the yeast you are using is alive. It is simple, always bloom your yeast in warm water or milk (depending on the recipe). If it sits for 5-10 minutes and it is not bubbly…your yeast is bad. If it is bubbly…it is living!
Make sure your ingredients are not cold. If you know you are baking with yeast, set out your eggs, flour (if you store it in the fridge), etc in advance to ensure it is they are room temperature. Cold items will slow down the growth of your yeast. Just like a warm environment will speed up the yeast’s growth.

Batch three:

Kneed your dough for longer that you think. Let me explain: Written recipes have various times for kneading dough with a stand mixer. Truly you can only tell when a dough is ready by touch or sight. Just because a recipe says knead for 5 minutes, does not mean that dough will be ready to rise after 5 minutes of kneading. It is easiest to tell when a dough is ready by kneading it by hand. If that is not you (me either), then you must look at your dough to see if it has been kneaded enough. If the recipe says the dough should “pull away from the bowl and form a soft smooth dough”, then make sure it does just that. Otherwise your finished bread will be more like cake than bread.
It often takes longer than the recipe says to let your dough double during a rise. Each home and each region is different. For example, I live in the deep south where it is humid. So during the summer it may take less time for my dough to rise. Right now it is dead of winter, and it took a bit longer for my dough to rise to double. My house was very cold. The moral of the story–watch your dough and only move on to the next step when the dough has actually doubled. Do not simply let it sit for the time designated in the recipe.
This is babka specific. Some methods call for slicing your rolled up dough down the middle then twisting it. Next, you stuff it into your bread pan to allow it to rise. The finished loaf has exposed filling on the top. The slicing method works great for certain fillings, but not all fillings. Cinnamon sugar or chocolate are ideal, cream cheese is not ideal to cook exposed to the heat of your oven. For my version I used a different method, I did not slice the dough. I rolled it up then twisted it together before placing it in the loaf pan. This way the filling stayed inside of the bread without being directly exposed to the heat of the oven. Consider the method of babka rolling you want to use based upon the type of filling you stick in your babka. Literally you can stuff anything inside a babka, sweet or savory.

Lemon & Cream Cheese Babka

Sliced loaf of babka being presented by the baker on a wood serving board

Ingredients

For the dough:
3 Cups of All Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup of Granulated Sugar
1/2 Cup of Warm Milk, between 100-110 degrees Fahrenheit
2 Eggs
1/2 Tablespoon of Yeast
Zest from 1 Lemon
1 Stick of Butter, softened
1/2 Tablespoon of Salt
For the filling:
1 Eight Ounce Block of Cream Cheese, softened
1 Lemon
1/4 Cup of Powdered Sugar
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla Extract

Instructions

In a small bowl bloom your yeast: Pour in warm milk then sprinkle your yeast over the top. Do not stir. Allow the yeast to bloom for approximately 5 minutes, or until small bubbles form.
While you yeast blooms, prepare your stand mixer. In the mixing bowl, with a dough hook attached, combine your flour and sugar.
After you yeast has bloomed, pour it into the flour mixture. Turn you stand mixer on low and allow it to begin mixing.
Next add in your eggs and vanilla. Mix until it all comes together. If the mixtures looks too dry and crumbly add in more milk.
Turn you mixer up to medium and add in your butter one tablespoon at a time. Let each piece of butter fully incorporate before adding the next. When you are ready to add in the last piece of butter, pour in your salt as well.
Knead the dough on medium speed for approximately 10 minutes, or until a smooth elastic dough that pulls away from the side of the bowl forms.
Place the finished dough in a bowl that is coated in cooking spray, then spray cooking spray over the top of the dough. Tightly cover the bowl with plastic wrap.
Allow the dough to rise, in a draft free place, for approximately 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours, or until doubled in size.
While you dough rises, create your filling.
In a small bowl, zest and juice your lemon.
Next, whisk in the remaining ingredients to the lemon filling until the mixture is smooth and fully combined. Set aside, covered, until ready to use.
Once the dough has doubled, gently turn it out onto a heavily floured surface.
With a floured rolling pin, roll the dough out to create a 16x12 inch rectangle.
Spread your lemon cream cheese filling onto the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch space around the outside of the dough.
Starting at the short side, roll up your dough like you would a jelly roll. Press the ends into the roll to seal.
Fold your roll in half, then twist the halves around itself at least four times.
Place the loaf into a greased bread pan. Loosely cover with plastic wrap and allow it to rise to double. At least 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 hours.
Once doubled, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fairenhiet.
Bake the bread for 30 minutes on the middle rack. After 30 minutes, bake it for an additional 30 minutes covered in aluminum foil to avoid over browning.
A thermometer in the middle should read 190 degrees. If after an hour of baking the middle is not done, cook the loaf for an additional 10 minutes.
Let bread cool before slicing.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/01/25/lemon-cream-cheese-babka/

This recipe is copyrighted

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Recipes

Salted Caramel Filled Kouign Amann

January 9, 2019June 4, 2019by Lindy Moody3 Comments

My latest Connect Savannah food feature on The Topiary Cake Design (I will post the article this week) reminded me just how much I love to bake. So this week I told myself I would get back into the kitchen and practice what I love.

I am not going to sugar coat it–I have been slacking in the blog/baking/cooking department. The holidays drained me, especially considering how much of an introvert I tend to be. I truly have no excuse considering my Christmas decorations and house have been cleaned since the day after Christmas. Truly, I have just been lazy.

Going back into the kitchen needed to start with a bang. I have been baking since I was young, so an intermediate pastry recipe would be a great challenge.

For those who do not know the difference in pastries verses regular baked goods let me explain. Unlike cakes, breads, or other common baked goods, making a pastry refers to a very specific type of dough or baked item that is created using a sweet dough. For example, when you make a pie crust for a pie, you are making a pastry. Other common pastries include croissants, eclairs, macarons, profiteroles, tart shells, and Kouign Amann. The dough for making a pastry is commonly made with flour, fat, sugar, and water, which you can see is very different than the dough for making a bread. The tricky part in making a proper pastry comes with the type of pastry for which you opt—for example croissants require a process called lamination. Lamination is the folding in of cold butter to create layers. It takes many hours and proper technique to succeed.

You may be asking, what the heck is a Kougin Amann? By far it is one of the most delicious pastries put on this earth. Originating in France, the time consuming bite sized croissant and brioche cross is made with a ton of butter, which is to be expected with a French pastry. The end result of folding cold butter into your dough (laminating), then slicing it, coating it in coarse sugar, and smashing it into muffin tins creates a sweet crunchy flaky palm sized treat. The best part, the technique of using a muffin pan leaves a large hole in the center of the pastry, perfect for filling your Kougin Amann with anything you desire.

My selection was salted caramel. The butter used to create the layers of your Kougin Amann bring saltiness to the pastry, so why not complement the overall flavor of the baked good by amplifying its qualities with a salty-sweet filling.

I will warn you, this recipe is not for a beginner. It takes patience and love to get through the process. I do not want to discourage anyone from trying the recipe, I truly hope you are inspired, even beginners, to try this recipe out. The only way to learn is to try. I could probably fill a dumpster with the amount of baked goods I have thrown out due to trying. You have to start somewhere.

Salted Caramel Filled Kouign Amann

a tray of finished pastries

Ingredients

For the Salted Caramel:
1 Cup of Granulated Sugar
½ Cup of Heavy Cream, room temperature
2 Tablespoons of Unsalted Butter
1 Teaspoon of Salt
1/4 Cup of Water
For the Pastry:
2½ Tablespoons of Dry Yeast
1⅓ Cups of Warm Water, do not exceed 105°F
4 Cups of All Purpose Flour
2 Teaspoons of Salt
1¾ Cups Of Salted Butter, cold
1 Cups of Granulated Sugar

Instructions

First make your salted caramel.
In a small saucepan, combine your sugar and water then stir to combine.
Heat mixture over medium heat, do not stir anymore. Cook it until the mixture has turned a deep amber, approximately 10 minutes.
Once cooked, turn of the heat of the stove and whisk in your butter, cream, and salt. Stir until the mixture is smooth and fully combined, then remove it from the stove.
Set the caramel aside, covered, to cool while you make your pastry.
In your stand mixer, combine your yeast and warm water. Allow yeast to bloom for approximately five minutes.
Attach your dough hook, then add in your flour and salt. Mix on low until combined and a dough begins to form.
Turn the stand mixer speed to medium, and mix for five minutes or until dough shapes into a smooth elastic ball.
Tightly cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise for twenty minutes.
While the dough rises, prepare your butter block.
Shape your butter into one mound, then shape and flatten the butter until it is a rectangle approximately 10x8 inches.
Cover your butter in plastic wrap and place it back in the fridge to cool until you are ready to use it.
Turn you risen dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
Roll out your dough into a 16x10 rectangle. Place your butter block in the center of your dough.
Fold the exposed edges over your butter as to completely enclose your block of butter. Next, roll the dough into a 18x8 rectangle.
Fold your dough by thirds, like a letter, to start creating layers.
Plastic wrap your dough, then place it in the fridge to allow the butter to get cold again. Let the dough rest for 1 hour.
After the hour, place your dough back onto your floured surface and roll out into an 18x8 rectangle. Fold the dough again like a letter. Place the dough back in the fridge to let it rest for an 1 hour.
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and prepare a 12 cup muffin pan by coating it in butter. Set aside the pan aside.
Roll your chilled dough to a 17x13 rectangle, then slice off 1/2 inch from each end of the rectangle.
Generously coat both sides of your dough with your 1 cup of granulated sugar. This will create the crunchy outside.
Slice dough into equal 4x4 inch squares.
Place each square into the center of each muffin cup.
Fill each cup with approximately 1 tablespoon of your cooled salted caramel. Fold in the four corners of each square to meet in the center.
Loosely cover the muffin pan and allow the dough to rise for another 20 minutes.
Bake your dough for 25-30 minutes on the center rack.
Once golden brown, remove from the oven to allow them to cool.

https://epicuropedia.com/2019/01/09/salted-caramel-filled-kouign-amann/

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