Dried Cherry Buttermilk Scones.

I debated between posting this recipe today or the dessert I made for Father's Day, but ultimately, this was the one I decided on since my dad specifically requests them every year.  I don't remember when I first made dried cherry scones, but my dad decided they were his favorite breakfast treat ever since.  Luckily the recipe is extremely easy and delicious!

I honestly don't remember where this recipe came from, it's printed out on a piece of computer paper in my trusty recipe binder with many grease stains dotting the words, but I've made it so many times, I almost don't need it anymore.  The vanilla extract is key here, it gives the scones a lovely aroma and enhances the cherry's sweetness and tartness at the same time, but I've also made them with almond extract as well.  Tough to mess these up :)

Dried Cherry Buttermilk Scones
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup (1/2 stick, or 4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and chilled
2/3 cup dried cherries, chopped
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup buttermilk

For the (optional) topping:
2 tablespoons milk or buttermilk
1/4 cup turbinado or demerara sugar

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, sift or whisk together the flour, baking powder and soda, salt and sugar.  Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter, a fork, or your fingers until you can see small pea-sized chunks of butter.  In a small bowl, whisk together the egg, vanilla and buttermilk, then pour into the dry ingredients.  Stir with a fork until almost completely mixed, then add in the dried cherries and mix until the dough just starts to come together.  Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and pat it into a circle, then cut 8-12 wedges, placing them on the baking sheet.

Brush the scones with milk, then sprinkle heavily with the turbinado or demerera sugar and bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes.  They should be golden brown on top and feel light inside, or a toothpick inserted in the center will come out clean.  Let cool slightly, then enjoy!

 

Happy Father's Day, Dad!

Chewy Chili Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies.

The beginning of this week started off much too cold for June and everyone agreed a nice dose of chocolate was in order.  I wanted to spice things up a bit, literally, so I devised a comforting chocolate oatmeal cookie and added chili powder and cinnamon to the dough.  I will admit it's not entirely noticeable but it does give the cookies a little extra "something."

If I made these again, I might add up to a tablespoon or more of chili powder - it really does go extremely well with the chocolate! 

 

Chewy Chili Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and line baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and chili, salt and oats, then set aside.

In a larger bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until light, then stir in the egg and vanilla extract.  Dump the dry ingredients into the creamed mixture and stir until a dough starts to come together, then add the chocolate chips.  Drop the dough by teaspoonfuls onto the baking sheets and bake for 8-12 minutes, depending on how large they are.  They should spread just slightly and cracked a bit on top but try not to overbake or they'll lose their chewiness.

Let cool completely on a wire rack before storing airtight up to 4 days.

Toasted Pistachio Cinnamon Swirl Cake.

I hate to admit it, but I bake much more often than I blog.  It was quite an effort to even get myself to bring the camera out for these photos on a rainy Sunday morning, but I'm glad I did!

Instead of the common walnut or pecan, I substituted beautifully green pistachios in this cake, which means a lovely hit of color when you cut into it.  Toasting them intensifies their unique flavor and kept them from becoming too soft as pistachios have a tendency to do in baked goods. 

I miss last week's heat wave already - I can't wait for "real" summer to happen!  This cold rainy stuff can take a hike as far as I'm concerned, but this cake put a smile on my face as soon as I tasted the comforting tender crumb combined with the brown sugar-cinnamon and toasted nuts.  Enjoy! :)

Toasted Pistachio Cinnamon Swirl Cake
Adapted from Cooking Light
1/3 cup toasted pistachios, coarsely chopped
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup canola or vegetable oil
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. and spray a 10-cup Bundt pan with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, combine the nuts, brown sugar, flour and cinnamon and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk or sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  In a large bowl mix the sugar and oil, then add the eggs one at a time.  Stir in the vanilla extract, then add in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk until a smooth batter forms.  Pour 1/3 of the batter into the bottom of the greased Bundt pan, then half of the nut mixture.  Pour another 1/3 of the batter, then the last half of the nut mixture and the last amount of batter on top.  The batter will be fairly liquidy so don't worry about spreading it to the edges of the pan or anything like that, it will spread and rise as it bakes.

Bake in the preheated oven for about 35-45 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.  Let it cool on a rack for 10 minutes before inverting the cake and cooling completely.  It will keep for up to 4 days stored in a cake keeper or airtight container.

Chocolate Filled Gluten Free Vanilla and Chocolate Cupcakes with Buttercream Frosting.

Today is my grandma's birthday and we're having a celebration later so what better to bring than cupcakes? 

Originally I planned on icing half of the cupcakes with vanilla buttercream and half with chocolate buttercream but while searching for chocolate frosting recipes, I came across one that looked more like a "custard" (there were no eggs in the recipe) and the idea dawned on me to fill the cupcakes!  I needed a filling for the mini cake I made for my grandma so I used a cooked frosting recipe I found to fill the cupcakes as well.

My grandmother is an amazing gardener - she has the greenest thumb of anyone I've ever met - so I tried to incorporate a flower theme, hence the strange piping on the cupcakes!  They were intended to look something like hydrangeas, only with smaller petals because I couldn't find my Wilton 1M tip.  Let's just say I've convinced myself to be happy with them anyway :D

If it helps, everything can be made in stages.  The filling can me made well ahead of time and indeed needs to chill before you use it.  I made the cupcakes first, froze them, buttercream second, filling third, but as long as everything is ready when you go to assemble, it doesn't matter what order you make them in.

Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Recipe, makes 24 standard-size cupcakes
Gluten Free Vanilla Cake Recipe, makes 18 standard-size cupcakes

Chocolate Filling
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup cocoa powder
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cocoa and cornstarch.  Add the boiling water and salt, then cook over high heat until it comes to a boil and thickens.  Cook for 1-2 minutes, then remove from the heat and add the butter and vanilla extract.  Pour into a bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 3 hours or up to 3 days.

Buttercream Frosting
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 lbs. confectioner's sugar
Pinch of kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter until it's smooth, then add the sugar gradually.  Beat in the salt and vanilla, then mix on high speed until everything is very creamy and spreadable.

To fill the cupcakes, cut out cones from the top of them and remove the triangular part of the cone.  Using about a teaspoon per cupcake, fill them and then replace the tops before icing with buttercream.

 

Happy birthday, Grandma :)