Back at School

So, I'm back at school trying to come up with new recipes that the kids will like. I'm searching the web for inspiration and have a little blog crush on Joy the Baker. Her site is wonderful, colourful, evocative and a pleasure to surf. I'm not a writer (read: comma splice queen) and have no aspirations to be one, however the stuff on those pages makes me want to grab a whisk - oh to be so talented. Anyhow if you have any interesting recipes you think a 16/17 year old would like to make, please send me the link.

Key Lime Coconut Cupcakes

Another Friday night and I was watching the Food Network in Canada and the 'Cake Challenge' came on, WOW I was so impressed with the creativity of these home cooks. I immediately hit record on Tivo and showed the episode to my baking class. The students love watching everyday cooks hit it big on tv, they were so impressed they decided to make the Key Lime Cupcakes for their demo day Friday assignment. These cakes are very sweet, I recommend making them as mini cupcakes. The recipe is courtesy of Jamie Nondorf.



Ingredients


3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 heaping teaspoon grated key lime zest
1 1/2 tablespoons key lime juice (bottled or freshly squeezed)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 1/3 cups loosely packed sweetened coconut flakes (3.5 ounces)


For the Frosting:


5 ounces good quality white chocolate, chopped into small chucks
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
Pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon key lime juice (bottled or freshly squeezed)
1/4 cup sour cream
Finely grated key lime zest, for garnish


Directions


Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla extract, key lime zest and juice and mix well. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 5 parts total, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold the coconut into the cupcake batter.


Line a muffin pan with paper liners and fill each liner almost to the top with batter. A spring loaded 1/4 cup ice cream scoop works great for this and ensures the cupcakes are all the same size. Bake for 25 minutes or until the tops begin to brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Remove cupcakes from oven and allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes and then transfer cupcakes to a baking rack to cool completely.


While the cupcakes are cooling you can make the frosting. In a small heat proof bowl set over a pot of simmering water, carefully and slowly melt the white chocolate. Remove from heat and let cool until just slightly warm. Meanwhile, in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy. With the mixer on low, gradually add the powdered sugar until well combined. Add the salt, vanilla extract, key lime juice, and sour cream and mix until very smooth. Add the melted white chocolate and mix just until incorporated.

Oozing Chocolate Lava Cake

This chocolate lava cake recipe is without doubt irresistible. Its perfect liquid center literally melts in your mouth. Easy to make to boot. usually made in individual ramekins, but see the serving ideas below for other possibilities.

Preparation Time: 15 minutes Cooking Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients (4 people):
6 oz. Semi-Sweet Baking Chocolate (or use your favorite 70% dark chocolate bar)
6 oz. Butter (diced, room temperature)
3 Eggs
1/2 cup Granulated Sugar
1/3 cup Flour
Butter for Ramekins

How to Make It:

Preheat oven to 350°F

1. Melt chocolate on low flame in a bain-marie (double boiler). When melted, take of flame, and…2. Stir in diced butter, until it melts.

3. In another bowl, beat eggs and sugar, until it starts to whiten.

4. Stir in melted chocolate and then the flour.

5. Butter 4 individual ramekins, and pour in chocolate batter.

6. Cook for about 10 minutes.

7. Tip ramekins upside down onto dessert plates and serve.Voilà!

Tips:You can definitely prepare your chocolate lave cake recipe ahead of time, and then bake 10 minutes before serving. I always do it this way!

In terms of buttering the ramekins: butter the bottoms first, and then butter the sides, wiping from the bottom up to the top. It helps the chocolate to rise even more.

In terms of baking time… well, it depends on how runny you want it! I like it with a super-liquid-oozing center -- so do my guests! For this, you want the top to be cooked through, but the center to be liquid. You can check with a toothpick after 10 minutes of baking.

If you don't like liquid-center chocolate desserts, just cook for a little longer, and you will have an incredibly moist chocolate cake. So, either way, you can't go wrong!

Pumpkin Chocolate Loaf

INGREDIENTS

205 mL .......... all-purpose flour
2 mL .............. baking soda
2 mL .............. ground cinnamon
1 mL .............. ground nutmeg
1 mL .............. ground ginger
1 mL .............. ground cloves
60 mL ............ margarine
125 mL ........... white sugar
1 .....................egg
80 mL ......... solid pack pumpkin puree
80 mL.......... semi-sweet chocolate chips

GLAZE

60 mL ........ confectioners' sugar
5-7 mL ........ milk
1 mL ......... ground nutmeg
1 mL ......... ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl mix together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground ginger, and ground cloves.
2. In a separate bowl cream together the sugar and butter or margarine. Add egg and beat until smooth.
3. Alternately add the creamed ingredients and pumpkin to the dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate chips. Spoon into greased 9x5 inch loaf pan.
4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F(175 degrees C) oven for 45 to 50 minutes.
5. To make the glaze: In a small bowl, combine confectioners sugar, 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg. Add milk, and mix until smooth. Drizzle over warm cake.

Apple Lemon Muffins -makes 6

INGREDIENTS:

250 mL.......... all-purpose flour
10 mL ............baking powder
pinch ............ salt
60 mL ............sugar
1 egg, ......... ...lightly beaten
60 mL ............butter
2 mL ............. lemon juice
125 mL ...........milk
1/2 large .........Granny Smith apple - peeled, grated
15 mL ............. sugar
2 mL ..............ground cinnamon

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C). Grease 6 muffin cups.

2. In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together the 1/2 cup sugar, eggs, butter, lemon juice, and milk. Mix the creamed ingredients into the flour mixture until evenly moist. Fold in the apples. Spoon into the prepared muffin cups.

3. Mix the 1 tablespoon sugar and cinnamon, and sprinkle over the tops of the muffin batter.

4. Bake 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Cool 1 to 2 minutes before turning out onto wire racks to cool completely.

Pumpkin Scones

2 cups all-purpose flour

7 tablespoons sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

6 tablespoons cold butter

1/2 cup canned pumpkin

3 tablespoons half-and-half

1 large egg

TO MAKE THE SCONES:.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet or line with parchment paper.

Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and spices in a large bowl. Using a pastry knife, fork, or food processor, cut butter into the dry ingredients until mixture is crumbly and no chunks of butter are obvious. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, whisk together pumpkin, half and half, and egg. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Form the dough into a ball.

Pat out dough onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a 1-inch thick rectangle (about 9 inches long and 3 inches wide). Use a large knife or a pizza cutter to slice the dough twice through the width, making three equal portions. Cut those three slices diagonally so that you have 6 triangular slices of dough.

Place on prepared baking sheet.
Bake for 14–16 minutes. Scones should begin to turn light brown. Place on wire rack to cool.

*adapted from recipezaar.com

Cape Cod Cranberry Scones -makes 16

This recipe is great to keep on hand in the freezer. Just complete to step 4, place on a cookie sheet and stick them into the freezer instead of the oven - freeze until hard ( 2-3 hrs) and then store in a freezer bag. Bake frozen for 15-20 minutes and they are incredibly flakey.

2 1/2 cups........All purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp...........Baking powder
1/2 tsp..............Baking soda
3/4 cup.............Butter or margarine
1 cup.................Cranberries -- chopped
2 tsp..................Grated orange peel
2/3 cup.............Sugar
1/2 cup.............Buttermilk or sour milk


1. Preheat oven to 400F.

2. In mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder and baking soda; cut in butter with pastry blended or two knives.

3. Stir in cranberries, orange peel and sugar; stir in buttermilk just until ingredients are moistened.

4. Working on floured surface, shape dough into two 8-inch circles, 1/2-inch thick. Cut each circle into eight wedges and place on ungreased cookie sheet.

5. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, until lightly browned.

Scones

Are they different from biscuits? After researching from a variety of sources I believe the biggest difference is the sweetness, scones contain sugar whereas biscuits typically do not. I am fond of using Wikipedia as a reference in this blog as it is written primarily by the public, that being said the following is from Wikipedia.

The pronunciation of the word across the United Kingdom varies. According to one academic study, nearly two thirds of the British population and 99% of the Scottish population pronounce it as /skɒn/, to rhyme with "con" and "John." The rest pronounce it/skəʊn/, to rhyme with "cone" and "Joan." British dictionaries usually show the "con" form as the preferred pronunciation, while recognizing that the "cone" form also exists.^[1]

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, scone derives perhaps from the Middle Dutchschoonbrood (fine white bread), from schoon (pure, clean) and brood (bread). The word is attested in the Scots language long before it was in more general use in the English language. The first mention of the word was by a Scottish poet in 1513. The original scone was round and flat, usually the size of a small plate. It was made with unleavened oats and baked on a griddle (orgirdle, in the Scots language), then cut into triangle-like quadrants for serving. Today, many would call the large round cake a bannock, and call the quadrants scones. In Scotland, the words are often used interchangeably.

Quickbreads

Wikipedia states "A quick bread is a type of bread which is leavened with chemical leaveners such as baking powder, sodium bicarbonate, or cream of tartar. Unlike yeast breads which often take hours to rise and can vary greatly based on external factors such as temperature, breads made with chemical leaveners are relatively uniform, reliable, and quick. Quick breads commonly found in the United States include banana bread, beer bread, cornbread, biscuits,muffins, pancakes, scones, and soda bread.
Almost all quick breads have only five basic ingredients: flour, baking powder (and/or baking soda), eggs, fat (butter, margarine, shortening, or oil), and milk (or another liquid). Everything beyond these basic ingredients is for variation in flavor and texture.[1] The type of bread produced is variable based predominantly on the major flavoring, the method of mixing, and the ratio of liquid in the batter.
There are three basic methods for making quick breads; the quick-bread method, the creaming method, and the biscuit method. These three methods combine the rise of the chemical leavener with advantageous lift from other ingredients.
The quick-bread method also known as the "Blending Method" calls for measurement of dry and wet ingredients separately, then quickly mixing the two. Often wet ingredients will include beaten eggs which have trapped air for added rise. Usually mixing is done using a tool with a wide head such as a spoon or spatula to prevent the dough from becoming over beaten and deflating the egg's lift.
The creaming method is frequently used for cake batters. The butter and sugar are creamed, or beaten together, until smooth and fluffy. Eggs and liquid flavoring mixed in, and finally dry and liquid ingredients are added in. The creaming method combines rise gained from air pockets in the creamed butter with the rise from the chemical leaveners. Gentle folding of the final ingredients is important to prevent destroying these pockets.
The biscuit method is a technique which is used for biscuits, scones, and pie crusts. This method cuts chilled fat (whether lard, butter, or shortening) into dry ingredients using a food processor, pastry blender, or fork. The layering from these process gives rise and adds flakiness as the folds of fat melt during baking.
Aside from mixing methods, quick breads also vary widely in the consistency of their dough or batter. There are three main types of quick bread batter: pour batter, drop batter, and stiff dough. Pour batters have a dry:liquid ratio of 1:1 and is the most moist type of quick bread batter. Drop batters have a dry:liquid ratio of 3:1. Stiff dough, being the stiffest, has a ratio of about 7:1."

Baking Powder Biscuits

One of the first recipes we try whether in grade 8 or grade 12 -is the biscuit. Part of the quickbread family, biscuits are easy and cheap to make. Once you have the technique down you can modify the recipe by adding cheese, herbs, spices or change it up and use cinnamon and sugar. 

Baking Powder Biscuits

2 Cups (500 mL) flour 
4 tsp (20 mL) baking powder 
½ tsp (2 mL) salt
¼ C (60 mL) margarine -I use butter at home
¾ C (185 mL) buttermilk* 

1. pre-heat oven to 475F
2. sift together dry ingredients.
3. cut shortening in with a pastry blender
4. add liquid, stir using a fork
5. knead gently 3-4 times
6. roll out dough ½ thick on a floured board.
7. using a glass (or cutter) cut into biscuits
8. bake for 12 minutes

To make buttermilk add 15 mL vinegar or lemon juice to pre-measured milk.

Welcome to my first ever blog, I'm excited by the newness of all this. What is Baking: The Basics? good question, if you have the answer, because I don't please email me and we'll create our own definition. I am very new to this so please bear with me as I learn how to post. Have faith eventually the site should be interesting.

Why did I start this blog? To share my recipes. I teach home economics in high school and my favorite class (actually 4 of them) is baking. This blog is to share simple basic recipes and explore new ones. Most of them have been tested by 16 year olds so they are essentially goof-proof. Enjoy!