Baked Goods

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Real food for real teens: Cupcakes

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

These have purple frosing with a light dusting of purple sparkly sugar. What’s not to love?

Cupcakes really aren’t in my cooking vocabulary, unless you consider Black Bottom Cupcakes, which are in a class by themselves. My 16 year-old son can’t ever remember me making regular cupcakes. Unlike me, my mother used to make cupcakes every other year to send to school for my birthday. (On the off year Karen Baskin’s mother would send in the cupcakes since Karen and I shared a birthday.) However, Molly was assigned purple cupcakes for a club meeting tomorrow, where a rainbow of sugary cakes will be displayed and sold to eager highschoolers. Molly suggested that using a baking mix would be okay because she heard that mixes made exactly 12 which is what she would need. “Mix?” Not in my kitchen, and not a surprise that making them from scratch was a) quick, and b) really, really, surprisingly GOOD! I liked them better before we glopped on the purple butter-cream frosting. They were light in texture and chocolaty in flavor, with a delicate crust.

Chocolate Cupcakes (makes 12 medium or 10 larger)

  • 3 Tbs. butter, softened
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1-1/2 c. flour
  • 3 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/3 c. cocoa
  • 1/2 c. milk
  • 1 tsp. vanilla

Cream butter and sugar, then add egg and mix well. In a separate bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder and cocoa. Add half of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture, then add the milk and vanilla, then the rest of the dry ingredients. Mix until evenly blended. Fill greased or paper-lined muffin trays, and bake at  375 degrees for about 20 minutes, or until a toothpick tests clean. Frost, if you must, with a butter-cream frosting.

No recipe Butter Cream Frosting

  • 1/2 a stick or so of really soft butter
  • confectioner’s sugar
  • vanilla
  • milk

Cream together the butter with some sugar until it starts to get thick and creamy. Then thin with milk, just a trickle at a time, then add more sugar, and repeat until you have the quantity that you like. Whip it up really well until it’s very fluffy. At some point pour in a little vanilla. If you’re going to use food coloring then leave the frosting very thick before adding, since the liquid coloring will also thin the frosting.

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Donna’s Black Bottom Cupcakes

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

My daughter told me that I see the world with my stomach, and I think she has a point. I connect food with people and experiences. That’s the case with these unusual cupcakes. Whenever I eat these I think about my exceptional friend, Donna, who first made them for me and Doug, in her kitchen in Alaska.

Doug and I had been married for six months when we moved from Chicago to Colorado. Doug had lived there before and with his long connection to wilderness adventures he was anxious to show me the sites he had loved. Once in Ft. Collins, we quickly unpacked our boxes and then got on a plane to Alaska. This would be our last grand vacation before the arduous years of Doug’s PhD work. We chose Alaska, where I had lived and worked for two summers, so I could show Doug the places I had loved.

Donna and I had both graduated together on June 6, 1980, and the day after graduation we were both on a plane for Anchorage. I spent two summers living and working there and then returned to my familiar world in Chicago. Donna never left Alaska. She and her family had a home just outside of Denali Park, and that’s where Doug and I headed for our vacation. We stayed in their friend’s cabin down the road, and joined Donna’s family each night for dinner. It was there that she made us these cupcakes. After growing up eating all of my mother’s delicious baked goods, it was unusual for me to be surprised by a dessert, but after the first amazing taste I wondered why in the world no one had told me about these before! I’d never tasted a cupcake that used two different batters—one like a chocolate cake, and the other like chocolate chip cheesecake. I seem to remember that Donna whipped up two more batches of these during the week.

Now when I make these, I am transported to Donna’s kitchen, her drawer filled with large bags of baking supplies, the snow in the woods, and I remember what an exceptional person she is and what a wonderful friend she has been.

Black Bottom Cupcakes

For the chocolate batter:

Mix together:

  • 1-1/2 c. flour
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 c. cocoa
  • 1/2 tsp. salt

Mix together:

  • 3/4 c. water
  • 1/3 c. oil
  • 1 Tsp. vinegar
  • 1 tsp. vanilla

Add the liquid mixture to the dry, stir until blended. Using a 1/3 c. measure, spoon this batter into cupcake pans lined with paper cups.

For the cheese filling:

Beat together:

  • 8 oz. cream cheese
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 c. sugar
  • 1/8 tsp. salt

Stir in:

  • 1 c. chocolate chips

Top the chocolate batter with a generous spoonful of the cheese mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 mins., or until the tops are just touched with a tiny bit of golden brown.

This is what they look like before baking.

Cautionary note: this is one recipe where you really must use paper liners.

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Hamantaschen Dough II — cookie dough

Rae Spooner and I, along with our kitchen sisters and teens, had our annual hamantaschen baking at temple this morning. We were assigned the task of making enough hamantaschen to feed the kids and parents at the Purim carnival, with no specific instructions as to the quantity needed. So Rae and I arrived at the temple kitchen with nine batches of dough pre-made and ready to do some production baking.  Lisa and Pat joined us, then Molly and little Helen, and then the teens in the baking class. We rolled, cut, filled, shaped and baked. We filled an industrial-sized tray with hamantaschen and every once in a while we’d wonder if we had enough. How many did we make? Finally I couldn’t stand it anymore. Something my mother passed down to me kicked in—my mother who would count each piece of gefilte fish as they plopped into the yuch, every matzo ball as it hit the soup, every cabbage roll… you get the idea. I had to know the numbers. So Rae and I transferred all of the hamantaschen to a new pan, taking turns counting off by tens, scribbling numbers on a pad. I even opened the oven to count how many were baking. Our grand total: 555 pieces, and a very good morning.

This dough is something like a sugar cookie, but easier to handle and not quite as sweet. These are filled with canned Solo Cake and Pastry Filling, but you can also use a thick jam dusted with a little flour.

Ingredients

  • 3 c. flour
  • 2½ tsp. baking powder
  • 1 c. butter
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 4 Tbs. orange juice

Directions

  1. In a medium bowl, combine flour and baking powder.
  2. Cream together butter and sugar.
  3. Add eggs, one at a time.
  4. Stir in half of the orange juice, then half of the flour; remainder of orange juice and remainder of flour.
  5. Refrigerate for a few hours or overnight.
  6. On a liberally floured board, roll out dough to about 1/8˝ thickness. Cut into approx. 2½” circles. Fill with jam or pie filling, form and bake at 350° for 10–12 minutes.

We made about a dozen sheets like this.

Dry Coffee promo

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

 

 

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Peanut Butter Cookies (with chocolate chips)

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

When I was 11 or 12 I had a brief friendship with a girl named Evelyn Henzlick. I have very pleasant if somewhat fuzzy memories of her. The one certain thing I remember is making peanut butter cookies for the first time, and writing down her mother’s recipe—the very first recipe I collected. Today I threw in some chocolate chips, although these are really good without. They are unusually flaky and light.

Please use real peanut butter, the kind with only peanut butter, with or without salt, as the only ingredient.

Peanut Butter Cookies (with chocolate chips) makes about 28 cookies

Cream together:

  • 1/2 c. butter
  • 1/2 c. peanut butter
  • 1/2 c. brown sugar
  • 1/2 c. sugar

Stir in:

  • 1 egg

Stir in:

  • 1 c. flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 3/4 c. mini chocolate chips

Drop by heaping tablespoon on lightly greased cookie sheet. Criss-cross with a fork. Bake at 375 degrees for about 12 minutes.

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Valentine cookies

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

These are plain sugar cookies with pretty icing and a variety of sprinkle-like toppings. Last year we discovered that with different sized heart cutters we could add depth to the cookies by cutting out little hearts from big ones, then sandwiching or stacking the shapes.

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Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

DSCN0352pumpkin muffin sm

During our blizzard the other day, while rummaging around in my pantry, I found an abandoned can of pumpkin. (Do you have this can on your shelf?) This was the pumpkin that I obligingly purchase every November just in case I decide to make a pumpkin pie. On year’s such as this when pumpkin doesn’t win the majority of votes, I’ll wait until spring and put it in a paper bag outside the front door for the letter carriers’ food drive, because aside for an occasional pie I have never had any use for a can of pumpkin. I’m not a fan of spiced quick breads or muffins, but when later in the day of the blizzard Steph posted her friend Sharon’s “Super Awesome Pumpkin Muffins” recipe on Facebook, I took it as a sign.

Starting from Sharon’s recipe, I took out the nutmeg (in honor of my sister who hates nutmeg) and threw in a handful of chocolate chips and— very surprisingly—I love these! The oats and whole wheat flour are delicious, and the spices are just right. I think I’ll buy another can of pumpkin before next November!

Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Muffins (adapted from Sharon)
Makes 16 muffins.

Mix well:

  • 1-1/2 c. brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup canola oil
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 15-oz. can pumpkin

Add all at once and stir just until mixed:

  • 1-1/2 c. whole wheat flour
  • 1-1/2 c. quick oats
  • 4 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 tsp. salt
  • 4 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
  • 1/2 c. mini chocolate chips

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 mins.

Variation: Omit chocolate chips. Add 1/2 c. coconut, 1/2 c. pecans, 1/4 c. currants

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Banana Streusel Muffins

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

I’m not a fan of muffin papers and have good luck spraying the pans with a light coating of oil.

These muffins aren’t too sweet, and the topping adds just the right amount of balance. I usually add some amount of whole wheat flour to muffins because I like the added nutrition and also enjoy biting into something which is more substantial than fluffy white bread. However, if you prefer the muffins either lighter or grainier, you can either use all white flour or all whole wheat pastry flour.

Banana Streusel Muffins

For the batter:

  • 1/3 c. butter
  • 3/4 c. sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 3 very ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1 c. white flour
  • 1/2 c. whole wheat flour
  • 1 tsp. baking soda
  • 1 tsp. baking powder

For the topping, mix together the dry ingredients and cut in the butter until crumbly:

  • 1/3 c. brown sugar
  • 2 Tbs. flour
  • 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
  • 1 Tbs. butter

Cream butter and sugar, add egg and then bananas. Mix together the dry ingredients and stir all together. Spoon into greased muffin pan. Sprinkle on the topping. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes.

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Flaxseed Supper Biscuits

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

The turkey soup which we ate tonight, for the third time in five days, was calling out for a fresh bread product. I liked the idea of biscuits but wanted something a bit grittier than usual (I’m still on my winter grain frenzy), so I added some whole wheat flour and flaxseed meal to the usual recipe. The vote is still out on how we feel about this recipe. I might cut back on the flaxseed meal next time. They have a stronger flavor than the usual breakfast biscuits. See what you think.

Flaxseed Supper Biscuits (makes 6 large, 3″ biscuits)

  • 1-1/2 c. whole wheat flour
  • 1 c. flour
  • 1/2 c. flaxseed meal
  • 4 tsp. baking powder
  • 1-1/2 tsp. salt
  • 1/2 c. shortening
  • 2/3 c. milk

Mix together the dry ingredients and cut in the shortening. Stir in the milk, flatten out onto a floured board and cut. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 450 degrees for 15 minutes.

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A family tradition: Hand-dipped Spritz Cookies

For more tasty bakes, see my collection of family specialties:

You Can’t Have Dry Coffee: Papa’s Excuse to Have a Nosh And Nana’s Perfect Pastries

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B084WLZ1R7/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i0

It was hard to count these but we guess that we made around 300 cookies this year.

We get into a cookie-decorating frenzy each December, with the kids asking for more and more batches every year. They love to decorate these, love to eat them, and love to give them away as gifts, so this year we made around 300. The great thing about this recipe is that the cookies really do taste as good as they look. Who knows how many we’ll turn out next year?

You’ll need a cookie press to make these, and be sure to plan a little ahead so that the butter will be at room temperature.

White Spritz Cookies (makes approx. 8 dozen)

  • 1-1/2 c. butter, at room temperature
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp. almond extract
  • 3-1/2 c. flour

Cream butter, then cream in sugar and baking powder. Beat in egg and almond extract, then add the flour. Do not refrigerate this dough—it must remain at room temperature to work properly in the cookie press.

Press the dough through the cookie press onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 mins. Cool completely. Dip a portion of each cookie in melted chocolate then sprinkle on a topping. Lay cookie on parchment paper to dry. The cookies will keep well for a couple of weeks, sealed in an airtight container.

Chocolate Spritz Cookies (makes approx. 8 dozen)

  • 1-1/2 c. butter, at room temperature
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tsp. almond extract
  • 3-1/4 c. flour

Cream butter, then cream in sugar, baking powder and cocoa. Beat in egg and almond extract, then add the flour. Continue as with White Spritz.

Swirled Spritz Cookies

Fill the cookie press with half white and half chocolate dough.

Dark chocolate for dipping (for 1-2 batches of cookies)

  • 1 lb. dark chocolate chips (use 60% dark if possible)
  • 2 Tbs. Crisco

Melt chocolate and Crisco in a double boiler until smooth.

White chocolate for dipping (for 1-2 batches of cookies)

  • 1 lb. white chocolate chips

Melt chocolate in a double boiler, stirring occasionally until smooth.

Topping ideas

  • Ground pecans or almonds
  • Extremely finely ground coffee
  • Sprinkles
  • Toasted coconut
  • Grated chocolate

So everyone can help, we put a tray of baked cookies in the middle of the table, with multiple bowls filled with all of the chocolate and toppings. Parchment paper is placed at both ends of the table where the finished cookies are placed to dry.

 

Either dip the cookie or use a spoon to drizzle on the chocolate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have a strict “may not lick your fingers” policy, but every so often a boy can’t help himself—and then he’s sent to wash up before the next cookie gets decorated!

These honestly taste as good as they look.

 

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Chanukah Cookies (poppyseed sugar cookies)

Every family has their go-to cookbook. I know friends who head right for Joy of Cooking and others who have a well-worn copy of Better Homes and Garden. In our family it is the 1946 edition of Mrs. Simon Kander’s Settlement Cookbook. This classic volume is the source of many of my family’s Jewish staples. As well as its collection of recipes it can also tell you about invalid cooking, how to make soap, and how to set a proper table; all the while adhering to its cover aphorism: “The way to a man’s heart.”

This cookie recipe is adapted from the sugar cookie recipe in The Settlement Cookbook. My mother added a good measure of poppy seeds and rolled them just as thin as possible, making a cookie so crispy and delicate that it’s easy to munch them by the handful. The poppy seeds give them a subtle flavor, very rich and not too sweet. Mom made these every year for Chanukah, although the only thing that says “Chanukah” about them is that she used Chanukah cookie cutters.

This week I made a double batch of the dough and used a variety of shapes so that I could take some to a holiday lunch party, others to a piano recital, and the rest to a Shabbat Oneg at temple. None of these events fell during Chanukah this year, but I did take my mother some of the Jewish stars, since they were once her favorite.

My copy of the Settlement cookbook was beginning to loose it’s cover so Doug got me a “new” copy of it on eBay. I gave the old copy to Joe (Joe, who is 12, wants to be a chef when he grows up), and in that copy are a lot of hand-written notes. I couldn’t remember how much poppy seed to add to the recipe so I called Joe on his cell phone and asked him where I could find his cookbook. “It’s in my underwear drawer, Mom, to keep it pristine.”

Cookies for Joe's piano recital.

Poppy Seed Cookies (adapted from The Settlement Cookbook)

  • 1/2 c. butter
  • 1 c. sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 c. milk
  • 2 tsp. baking powder
  • 1/4 tsp. vanilla
  • 2 c. flour
  • 1/4 c. poppy seeds

Cream the butter and sugar, then add the egg. Mix the baking powder with the flour. Add half of the milk to the creamed butter mixture, then half of the flour. Add the rest of the milk and vanilla, then the rest of the flour and the poppy seeds. Mix just until blended. Do not over mix or the dough will not be as flakey. Chill the dough for at least an hour in the refrigerator. Roll out very thin on a floured board. Bake on a greased cookie sheet, 375 degrees for 6-8 minutes. Keep a careful eye on the cookies while they are baking, remove them promptly when they begin to brown.