Chewy Almond Blondies

Yum- I think these are some of the best blondies I've ever made. They use a "Frangipane"- a mix of almond flour, butter, and sugar that's used to fill desserts, like almond croissants in France. The original recipe author was inspired by French almond croissants and came up with this recipe. I absolutely love the almond filling mixed with buttery blondie batter. My fam enjoyed these too. I need to make them again soon! Note: This recipe called for unsalted butter but I just used regular, salted butter. 

Chewy Almond Blondies  

adapted from An Edible Mosaic

Frangipane:

4 tablespoons butter, melted
6 tablespoons granulated white sugar
3/4 cup almond flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Blondies:

10 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup granulated white sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar lightly packed
1 large egg
1/2 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt

Topping:

6 tablespoons sliced almonds
1 tablespoon powdered sugar for garnish

1. For the Frangipane: Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor, and process until smooth.

2. For the Blondies: Preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8 by 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper so it hangs over all 4 sides. (I skipped this because we just eat them right out of the pan.) 

3. Heat the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar in a large microwave-safe bowl in the microwave, or in a double boiler on the stovetop. Once the butter is melted, stir until the sugar is fully dissolved and mixture is thick like caramel (this takes about 2 minutes). Stir in the egg, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Then stir in the flour and salt, being careful not to over-mix.

4. Spread the blondie batter evenly into the bottom of the prepared baking dish. Drizzle on the frangipane. Sprinkle on the sliced almonds. Bake until the outside is golden and the center is puffed, about 20 to 30 minutes. Be careful not to over-bake! Less time is better so you don't dry these out. 

5. Cool to room temperature, and then dust the top with powdered sugar, cut, and serve.

Storage: You can store these bar cookies in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days, in the fridge for up to 1 week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

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Original Chex Mix (Savory)

I usually make the sweet PB-Choc Chex Mix for my fam (muddy buddies), but they wanted to try this one again. I hadn't made it for a long time. I also don't have Muddy Buddies on my blog yet, I think, so next time we make that I'll have to put it up. It is easy to find online, too. 

Original Chex Mix   

adapted from Chex

3 cups Corn Chex™ cereal
3 cups Rice Chex™ cereal (I only use Rice Chex- 9 cups total)
3 cups Wheat Chex™ cereal
1 cup mixed nuts
1 cup bite-size pretzels OR cheese crackers
1 cup garlic-flavor bite-size bagel chips or regular-size bagel chips, broken into 1-inch pieces
6 tablespoons butter 
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder

Pre-heat oven to 250°. Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Place mixture into ungreased roasting pan and bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool in the pan. 

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Easy English Muffin Bread

I tried another recipe for No-Knead English bread and tried it. I liked it even better than my old recipe. There is more rising time, so the holes are bigger and more pronounced. It also makes two loaves- perfect if you want to freeze one or give it away. 

Easy English Muffin Bread  

adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

3 cups (726 g) warm water, about 100-110 degrees F
1 tablespoon instant or active dry yeast
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 tablespoon table salt
5 ¾ cups (817 g) all-purpose flour

1.  In a large bowl, add the water, yeast, and sugar. Let sit until the yeast is bubbly and foamy, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the salt and two cups of the flour. Mix with a dough hook, spoon, or spatula until combined. Add the remaining flour and mix until the dough comes together in a shaggy ball and no dry streaks remain. You may want to ditch the stirring utensil, grease or lightly flour your hands, and mix by hand until it comes together. The dough will be quite sticky; that is normal. (Mine was fine being mixed up with a rubber spatula.) 

2.  Cover the bowl and let rise until the dough has doubled (about an hour-it will be very puffy). Lightly grease two 8 1/2 X 4 1/2-Inch loaf pans with cooking spray. Using greased hands, lightly punch down the dough and divide into two equal pieces.

3.  Gather up one portion of dough in greased hands and quickly and lightly shape into a rough semblance of a loaf shape. (I just kind of poured my dough into the pans- it was very wet. It was fine.) Dump into one of the prepared pans. Repeat with the other half of dough. The loaves are meant to look a bit rough and rustic.

4.  Cover the bread pans and let the loaves rise until the bread is 1/2 to 1-inch above the edge of the pan. Toward the end of rising time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. (I only covered the first half of rising time; they were sticking badly to the plastic wrap and I didn't want them to deflate.) 

5.  Bake the bread for 25 to 30 minutes until golden on top and baked through. Remove from the oven and turn the loaves onto a wire rack to cool completely.

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One-Bowl Nutella Brownies

These brownies were so delicious, with a perfect chewy texture, great flavor, and they were so easy to make, too. I topped them with a chopped bar of Ikea Milk Chocolate and some French sea salt.

One-Bowl Nutella Brownies 

adapted from An Edible Mosaic 

1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup granulated white sugar
2 large eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup Nutella divided into 1/2 cup + 1/4 cup
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons chocolate chunks for topping (optional)
1/2 teaspoon flaky sea salt for topping

1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Line an 8 by 8-inch baking pan with a piece of parchment paper so it hangs over all 4 sides OR just spray with cooking spray- what I did.

2. Melt together the butter and sugar in a large microwave-safe bowl or in a double boiler or a medium pan on the stove. Once the butter is melted, stir very well. Don’t stop when the sugar is dissolved, keep stirring until the mixture looks glossy and thick. Stir in the eggs, vanilla, and salt, and then 1/2 cup Nutella. Add the cocoa powder and flour, and stir just until combined.

3. Transfer the brownie batter to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly. Dollop the remaining 1/4 cup Nutella around the top and then swirl it a bit (don’t go overboard and swirl too much or it’ll just mix into the batter).

4. Bake until the brownies are set along the outside, but still look a touch gooey in the center, about 30 minutes, being careful not to over-bake. (If you want to do a toothpick test, the brownies should come out of the oven when they still have some moist crumbs on the toothpick.)

5. As soon as they’re out of the oven, sprinkle the chocolate chunks on top and sprinkle on the flaky salt. Let them cool before slicing and serving.

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Lemon-Glazed Pound Cake

Growing up, my mom had a Mrs. Fields Cookie book. I think it was this one. My mom, myself and my sister made a lot of the recipes in that book in the 90's. I loved that book! Later, in about 2000, I got my own book, but an updated version of it, with more recipes. It still included my old faves. One of the ones I used to make frequently was this Lemon Pound Cake. I loved this cake! I recently made it again twice; once, in mini bundts for the Fourth of July (no pics) and again, just in a big bundt for my fam to enjoy. It has the typical crusty pound cake crust and a refined crumb. The lemon flavor really shines through, too.

((Awkward- I just realized I posted this exact recipe back in 2009!! Oh well. So good, it needs repeating. Lol.))

Lemon-Glazed Pound Cake 

adapted from Mrs. Fields Best Ever Cookie Book, 1997 

Cake:

3 cups cake flour, sifted

2 cups granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

3 sticks (1.5 cups) salted butter, room temp

1/3 buttermilk, room temp

6 large eggs

2 teaspoons lemon extract

1 tablespoon grated lemon zest

Glaze: 

1/4 freshly squeezed lemon juice

1/4 cup granulated sugar

Topping:

powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a 3-quart bundt pan.

2. In a large bowl with an electric mixer on low speed, blend flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Add butter, buttermilk, and 3 eggs. Beat on low speed until dry ingredients are moistened. Increase speed to high and beat for 2 minutes. Scrape down sides of bowl.

3. Add lemon extract and lemon zest, and blend at medium speed. Add the remaining 3 eggs, one at a time, beating on high speed for 30 seconds after each addition. 

4. Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake for 50-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Check often at the end- do not overbake.

5. While pound cake is baking, prepare lemon glaze. In a small saucepan, heat lemon juice and sugar over low heat. Stir constantly until sugar dissolves.

6. When cake is done, remove from oven and leave cake in pan. With a toothpick, poke holes in the surface of the cake, and pour half the glaze over it. Cool in pan 15 minutes, then invert on a cooling rack or cake plate. Brush top of cake with remaining lemon glaze. Cool to room temperature, then dust with powdered sugar. 

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Scotcheroos

This version of Scotcheroos was so good. It's from Mel's Kitchen Cafe. They has some extra things that really bring them up a level. I do have another, older recipe on this blog for these, but this recipe is so much better. I usually don't make things with corn syrup, but these are worth it! You can use part honey.

Scotcheroos 

adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe

¼ cup (57 g) salted butter
1 ¼ cups (425 g) light corn syrup
½ cup (106 g) granulated sugar
½ cup (106 g) packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups (320 g) peanut butter (see note)
8 cups (227 g) crisp rice cereal (like rice krispies)
1 cup (170 g) chocolate chips (milk or semisweet)
1 cup (170 g) butterscotch chips

1.  Lightly grease a 9X13-inch pan with butter or cooking spray or line with foil/parchment and grease the foil/parchment. Set aside.

2.  In a large saucepan or pot, add the butter, corn syrup, granulated sugar and brown sugar. Cook on low heat until the butter is melted. Bring to a simmer and immediately remove from the heat.
Stir in the peanut butter and vanilla until well-combined. Add the cereal and stir gently (so the cereal doesn't get crushed) until evenly coated with the peanut butter mixture.

3.  Press the mixture lightly into the prepared pan. Don't press down too much or the scotcheroos will be too firm.

4.  Add the chocolate chips and butterscotch chips to a microwave-safe bowl and cook for 1-minute increments at 50% power until melted. Stir until well-combined. (I just melted on the stove.) Spread the melted chocolate mixture evenly across the bars. Let the chocolate cool and set before cutting into bars and serving.

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Swedish Carrot Cake

We took a trip to Stockholm, Sweden back in March for Spring Break. I absolutely loved Sweden. It has so much to offer. One thing I really loved was how much they enjoy dessert there, and make time for it every day with their Fika, or coffee break. In every restaurant we went to, there was always a dessert table laid out with so many delicious things that one could choose for either dessert or Fika. I saw this carrot cake everywhere. It took me awhile to try it, since I don't love carrot cake. But I did try it, and I absolutely loved Swedish Carrot cake! It's so good- a nice thick slice with cream cheese frosting. Don't use pre-shredded carrots for this; you want the moistness from carrots you shred yourself.

Swedish Carrot Cake  

adapted from True North Kitchen

Note: Makes an 8x8 inch pan. I doubled this and put in a large 9x13 pan

For the Carrot Cake:

¼ cup unsalted butter
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
½ cup packed light brown sugar
¼ cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
½ cup canola oil or vegetable oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ cups packed grated carrots about 8 ounces

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup powdered sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla extract

*vanilla bean paste, optional, about 1/2 tsp

1.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour an 8 inch square cake pan. set aside. Place the butter in a medium saucepan or skillet (preferably not nonstick or cast iron so that you can more easily see the color change) and heat over medium low heat, swirling the pan frequently. Once the butter has melted, continue to cook over medium low swirling the pan frequently until the butter has a nutty aroma and is golden brown in color. Don’t walk away from the stove! Brown butter can go from perfect to burnt in a matter of seconds. Transfer brown butter to a bowl to cool.

2.  Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom in a medium bowl. Whisk together and set aside.

3.  Combine eggs, brown sugar and granulated sugar in a large bowl and whisk until fully combined and no lumps of sugar remain. Slowly whisk in oil followed by cooled brown butter and vanilla extract. Keep whisking until the mixture is emulsified and cohesive.

4.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir with rubber spatula until just a few streaks of flour remain. Fold in carrots until the batter is just combined. Using a rubber spatula, transfer cake batter to prepared pan. Bake for 25-40 minutes or until a tester poked into the center of the cake comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs attached. (Start testing at the lower time.) Set cake aside to cool.

5.  Meanwhile, make the frosting: Combine butter and cream cheese in work bowl of a stand mixer. Beat with the paddle attachment on medium until fully combined, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as necessary. Reduce speed to low and add powdered sugar, vanilla (and optional vanilla beans paste) and a pinch of salt. Return the speed to medium and beat until the frosting is completely smooth, about 1-2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl once or twice, as necessary. 

6.  Once cake has cooled completely, spread evenly frosting on top. Serve or cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

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