Cooking should be fun. One of my favorite aspects of cooking is trying new recipes. Here are a few recipes from my kitchen for you to try. Experiment. Make them your own. That’s what fun in the kitchen is all about.
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Blueberry Cake
Cranberry Coffee Cake
Pumpkin Cake with Brown Butter Icing
Chocolate Chip Cookies
Ingredients
2 sticks unsalted butter
1 cup brown sugar
½ cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla |
½ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
2 cups all purpose flour
24 ounces chocolate chips |
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Combine the butter, brown sugar and sugar in a bowl. Beat the ingredients on high for two minutes. Combine the eggs, vanilla, baking soda and salt in a bowl and beat the ingredients on high for one minute. Combine the two mixtures, gradually adding in the flour and chocolate chips. The dough should be at room temperature before use. Place the mixture on greased cookie sheets and cook each batch at 325 degrees (no convection) for 6-8 minutes.
Blueberry Cake
Ingredients
1 cup softened unsalted butter
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla |
3 cups all purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 pint blueberries (rinsed and drained) |
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar, adding the eggs one at a time and beating until the mixture is light and fluffy. Add vanilla. Mix two cups of flour, salt and baking powder in a separate bowl. Add this mixture gradually to the butter mixture. Use the remaining one cup of flour to coat the blueberries. Fold the blueberries into the batter mixture. Grease a tube pan and coat it with granulated sugar. Place the mixture in the prepared tube pan. Bake at 325 degrees for 60-70 minutes.
Cranberry Coffee Cake
Ingredients
1 stick softened unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt |
2 cups all purpose flour
½ pint sour cream
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 7-ounce can whole cranberries
½ cup chopped walnuts |
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Cream the butter and sugar, adding the unbeaten eggs one at a time. Add the almond extract. Combine the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients, alternating with the sour cream until all the ingredients are combined. Grease and lightly flour a tube pan. Place half of the batter in the pan and top it with the cranberries and walnuts. Place the remaining batter in the pan and sprinkle the top with walnuts. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes. For presentation, top with a glaze of confectionary sugar, milk and almond extract.
Pumpkin Cake with Brown Butter Icing
Ingredients
Pumpkin Cake
1 stick unsalted butter
1-2/3 cups all purpose flour
¼ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon allspice
½ teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
1-½ cups sugar
2 eggs
1 cup pumpkin puree
½ cup warm milk (110 degrees) |
Brown Butter Icing
4 tablespoons butter
1 cup confectioner’s sugar (sifted)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk |
Preparation
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl, combine the flour, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, baking powder and baking soda. Cream the butter and sugar in a separate bowl, adding the eggs one at a time while mixing. Add the pumpkin puree and warm milk and mix. Combine the dry flour mixture and beat on low speed until all the ingredients are combined. The mixture may seem lumpy, but that’s okay. Place the mixture in greased tube pan. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 30 minutes, until the cake is firm in the center.
In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until it reaches a nutty brown color (about 10 minutes). Pour the butter into a bowl and add sugar, vanilla and milk. Stir the mixture until smooth and pour over the cooled cake. For added flavor and decoration, I sometimes add caramelized walnut or pecan halves.
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