Delicious Soft Pretzel Bites!

It could be some subconscious thing from when i lived in Germany, but i absolutely love soft pretzels. Never did i know it was so easy to make my own delicious ones. Some of the instructions might seem odd, but each step is essential for them to taste right.

WARNING! You cant eat just one!

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups warm water

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 Package active dry yeast

6 Tablespoons unsalted butter

2 1/2 tsp salt

4 1/2 cups flour

2 Spoonfuls of Baking Soda

1 egg beaten with 1 Tablespoons cold water

Sea Salt

Instructions:

• Mix water, brown sugar, yeast, and butter. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes
• Add salt and flour and mix for about 3 minutes
• If dough is too wet, add small amounts of flour until it is more sticky
• Remove dough from bowl and knead into a ball
• Coat a medium sized bowl in vegetable oil and turn the dough ball around in it. 
• Let dough ball sit in bowl for an hour to rise
• Boil water in a sauce pan and add baking soda.
• Roll out dough into long skinny rolls. Cut the dough in to pieces.
• drop dough pieces into the baking soda water for 10-15 seconds
• Put pretzel bites on a greased baking sheet not touching
• brush tops with the egg wash and season with the sea salt
• Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown
• ENJOY!!

Happy Dough Punching! 

Espresso Fudge Cupcakes with Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

I am a sucker for coffee flavored things and these cupcakes had the right amount of espresso flavor to satisfy my expectations in a magical fashion. I am not always a lover of frosting, but this chocolate cream cheese frosting was A-mazing and had such a rich flavor that i will definitely be using it again in the future. 

So much chocolate goodness! 

Cupcake Ingredients:

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 2 tsp espresso powder
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup butter (half a stick)
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/3 cup chocolate chips

-Pre-heat oven to 350º

-Mix flour, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt

-In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until fluffy

-Add in the vanilla and egg

-Slowly add the flour mixture and milk

-Stir in the chocolate chips

-Pour into cupcake liners in a cupcake pan and bake for 20 minutes

Frosting Ingredients:

• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 3 tsp cocoa
• Splash of milk

-Melt the cream cheese a bit and add the vanilla slowly

-Slowly add sugar, cocoa, and milk

-spread on cooled cakes and top with chocolate chips or espresso beans if your are feeling fancy

You are now ready to enjoy cupcakes, which i have been told are a fantastic remedy to all maladies.

Happy Dough Punching! 

Great Grandma's Cut-Out Cookies

Every Christmas as far back as i can remember, my family has always made these cookies. Even though my sister really dislikes them, i freaking love them and eat about half the batch within a few hours. My great-grandma made these cookies with very few ingredients, common to most depression era recipes. Plus they were perfect for my mom who was allergic to eggs when she was little. My favorite part of making these cookies was always decorating them and individually placing the sprinkles, adding even more fuel to my sister's opposition to the cookies.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup shortening
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 cup sour milk* or butter milk
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg



My Decorating Skillz

• 4 cups flour

Cream shortening and sugar together (it is handy to leave the shortening out for a bit before starting the recipe to let it soften)

Mix baking soda into the milk 

Add your milk and baking soda concoction to the shortening and sugar

Mix in nutmeg and as much flour as you can.

If you have added too much flour and your dough isn't sticking together, add a splash or two of milk. 

Roll out dough and cut with cookie cutters

DECORATE! 

Bake  for 12 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit 

Mom's (note the crime scene gingerbread men)

*Sour milk can be made from milk and 1 Tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice

Happy Dough Punching! 

Rocky Road Cupcakes With Marshmallow Fluff

A few months ago i made rocky road cupcakes with a marshmallow fluff icing and they were muy delicioso and easy. Cupcakes are sometimes the best thing to bring to a party when in a crunch for time.

These cupcakes, with the added in chocolate chips, mini marshmallows and almond slivers, give your regular milk chocolate cupcake batter more personality. 

Cake Ingredients:   350 degrees 

• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 cups cocoa powder
• 3/4 cup butter
• 1 1/3 cup sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp vanilla extract 
• 1/2 cup mini marshmallows
• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped or sliced almonds

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cocoa powder in a large bowl

Beat slightly melted butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and fluffy

Beat in eggs, vanilla, and milk until blended 

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry

Once the wet and dry ingredients are mixed, fold in the chocolate chips, marshmallows and almonds. 

Fill cupcake liners 3/4 of the way full and bake for 20 mins at 350 degrees.

Marshmallow Fluff Icing:

• 4 Sticks of butter
• 2 cups powdered sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• One jar of marshmallow fluff

In a mixing bowl, beat the butter until smooth, add in the powdered sugar a small amount at a time

Add in vanilla and marshmallow fluff until well blended. 

All that is left to do is enjoy your creation and get messy eating and sharing! 

Happy Dough Punching!! 

Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes

It is Christmas party time and I was on the verge of making my usual contribution, an apple pie, when i thought i should try something new! This is where caramel apple pie cupcakes came into play. Although somewhat wompy looking and a bit messy, these cupcakes are the perfect amount of sweet apple goodness.

Instead of having a normal frosting, these cupcakes taste great with a caramel sauce drizzled on top. My puppy, Lucy, agrees with this statement and couldn't get her nose quite close enough to satisfy her sniffer as shown below. 

Cupcake:
1 cup flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 cup oil
2 cups peeled, diced apples

Mix flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg together. In a separate bowl, beat your egg and add in the sugar and oil. Add in your apples and mix well. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until you stick it with a toothpick and it comes out clean.

Caramel Sauce Topping :
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla

Melt butter, sugar, and cream in a saucepan over medium heat. Let the mixture come to a boil and then reduce it to a simmer. Make sure you stir it for 5 minutes and then remove it from the heat. After removed from heat, add the vanilla and stir. Drizzle over cupcakes once they have cooled.

Happy Dough Punching!! 

Cinnamon Sugar Baked Doughnuts

Go out and buy a doughnut pan. Immediately. The pan i got from a specialty baking junk store was surprisingly only ten dollars. Once you have your awesome new doughnut pan, this easy recipe from Lovin' From the Oven, will make you friends. Perhaps you are thinking,"Friends by baked dough sharing? Ridiculous!", dough not knock it until you try it....

Anyway, I brought these to my neighbor Nate, who proceeded to make un-intelligible sounds of scarfing and sugary delight. 

I also attended a book club where the doughnuts were scarfed and enjoyed nearly as equally. I was then asked to join. So see, my friend making theory is getting stronger. 

Proceed to drool:

Drenched in cinnamon sugar! 

Doughnut tower! 

Yummy sparkly sugary doughnuts!

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1 egg
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1 tablespoon canola(vegetable) oil
2 teaspoon lemon juice
2 1/2 tablespoon maple syrup
                                                       
Cinnamon Sugar Topping:
3 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoon butter (melted)
                                                       

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees
• In a large bowl whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• In a separate bowl lightly beat the egg, add in yogurt, oil, lemon juice and maple syrup. Mix together.
• Make a hole in the middle of your dry ingredients, pour the wet ingredients. Mix together gently.
• Divide your batter into greased doughnut pan.
• Bake your doughnuts for 10 minutes or until golden brown.
• While the doughnuts are baking, melt your butter for your topping and mix sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl. 
• After the doughnuts are done, place them on a surface like a cutting board to cool.
• Brush melted butter over donuts and then dip both sides into cinnamon sugar.
• Commence enjoyment of the doughnuts!

Happy Dough Punching!

Home-made Samoas

SAMOAS!

These cookies are not for the feint of heart, nor for those wanting a break N bake cookie. These cookies are easy, but have many steps. However, if you have a good hour or so to devote to fun dough punching, do it! They are so worth it!

There are four different steps involved in this recipe, luckily none of the steps overlap intensely.

Cookie Base: 3-4 dozen at 350F
1 Cup of butter softened (2 sticks)
1/2 Cup Sugar
2 Cups all purpose flour
1/4 Teaspoon baking powder
1/4 Teaspoon salt
1/2 Teaspoon vanilla extract
1 to 2 Tablespoons milk

Melt butter in microwave and mix in sugar in a large bowl. Add flour, baking powder, and salt. Next add the vanilla. Add milk based on how sticky the dough is ( you want the dough to stick together without being slimy/sticky). Add extra flour if your dough is too sticky.

Throw some flour on your rolling pin and parchment paper, grab a blob of dough, and roll it out.
Cut out circles in the dough with either a cookie cutter or a knife.  I just used a knife to cut out the circles as well as cutting the donut hole in the middle. Re-roll the dough as many times as you need and keep making more dough circles.

Bake cookies for 10 minutes or until golden brown at edges. Set cookies aside to cool.

Eating a few caramels along
 the way is permitted

Caramel Topping: 
3 Cups of shredded coconut
1 Bag of chewy caramels (12-14 oz)
1/4 Teaspoon of salt
3 Tablespoons Milk
8 oz dark or semisweet chocolate chips

Turn down the temperature on the oven to 300F. Spread the coconut on a cookie sheet and toast in the oven. The coconut will get crispy quickly so make sure you stir and pay attention. When the coconut starts to turn golden brown, remove from oven to cool.

Crispy coconut

While your coconut is cooling, unwrap and melt the caramel in the microwave in a large bowl while stirring occasionally. Pour the toasted coconut into the caramel, mix together and spread on top of the cookies.

Let your caramel covered cookies set for a few minutes while you melt your chocolate in the microwave. To keep from scorching the chocolate, melt in 30 second intervals while stirring throughout.
Dip the bottoms of each cookie in the chocolate and place on clean parchment paper to set.

Using the remaining chocolate, drizzle (or fling like i did) over top of the cookies.

Cookies dipped and drying!

No longer do those adorable little girls with vests and badges have a monopoly over samoas. Knowledge is power and now you have it, my friends!