Cappuccino Brownies – Way Back Wednesday

Welcome to the first Way Back Wednesday at Made by Mike. A new weekly feature where I spotlight a recipe and post from some time ago. I realized that I get new readers every day. Readers that may have missed all the fun we had way-back-when. To kick off the series I reintroduce you to the Cappuccino Brownie from Everyday Food magazine.  I originally wrote about this very special brownie back in August of 2010. Here’s the post:

My partner Greg has declared this, the best brownie ever. And who am I to disagree?

What I liked most about this recipe was the addition of several spices that really rounded out the flavor combination of the chocolate and espresso. These brownies really pack a kick. Don’t even get me started on the chewy fudge-like texture. Bake a batch today.

Cappuccino Brownies - Everyday Food, March 2004

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, plus more for pan
• 4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon instant espresso powder
• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 4 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Place rack in center of oven. Butter a 9-inch square baking pan, and line the bottom with parchment paper. Coat paper with butter, set aside.

In a large saucepan over very low heat, melt chocolate and butter together, stirring until completely melted. Let cool slightly. Whisk in sugar, espresso powder, vanilla and eggs.

in a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Add to the chocolate mixture, and stir until just combined. Don’t over mix. Fold in chocolate chips.

Pour into prepared pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out slightly wet, 30-35 minutes, Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.

glazed citrus doodles

The weather has turned a bit cold, wet and gray, as of late. But who am I to complain after such an amazingly mild winter? To counter the gray, I turned to these bright and cheerful cookies from the May issue of Everyday Food magazine.  It’s their riff on the cookie-favorite, snickerdoodle.  Here, they’ve swapped out the traditional cinnamon for the zest of lemons and oranges. And they’ve gilded-the-cookie with a tart and delicious citrus glaze.

While at the grocer on Sunday, picking up my citrus, I came across a pile of Meyer lemons. I’ve always wanted to incorporate these citrus jewels into a recipe, but have rarely seen them at the store. I decided this would finally be my opportunity.

The cookie batter comes together very quickly. Most of the prep time revolves around zesting the lemons and oranges. If you find ostrich egg-sized navel oranges, like I did, you’ll only need one. Seriously, they were huge. I ended up adding about another 1/2 cup of confectioner’s sugar to the glaze recipe to stiffen it up a bit. Start with amount listed in the recipe and add by a few tablespoons until you reach the consistency that you are looking for. Also, I baked my cookies for the full 15 minutes. Check yours at 12 minutes, you’ll just want them to brown a bit at the edges.

Glazed Citrus Doodles – adapted slightly from Everyday Food – May 2012

• 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon fine salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons grated orange zest
• 3 tablespoons orange juice (from 2 oranges)
• 4 teaspoons Meyer lemon zest
• 3 tablespoons Meyer lemon juice (from 2 Meyer lemons)
• 2 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups confectioner’s sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, sugar, 1 tablespoon of orange zest, and 2 teaspoons of Meyer lemon zest on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 minutes. Scrape down the bowl and add the eggs one at a time. Add the flour mixture and beat until combined. Do not over mix the dough.

Roll the dough into 1-inch balls. A 1 1/2 tablespoon ice cream scoop makes quick and perfect portioned work of this. Placed rolled balls of dough onto a parchment-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake until the edges are lightly golden, 12-15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer to cookie racks to cool completely.

For the glaze, whisk together 1 tablespoon orange zest, 2 teaspoons Meyer lemon zest, both citrus juices and confectioner’s sugar until smooth.  Add additional confectioner’s sugar by tablespoon until the glaze is a spreadable consistency. With a small spoon, spread glaze over each cooled cookie. Let set 1 hour.

*A special thank you to Greg for capturing the photo of me glazing the cookies. He was compensated in freshly baked cookies.

cherry, almond and white chocolate blondies

That, up there in the photo, is officially Greg’s new favorite blondie. And I can’t argue, it’s pretty darn tasty.

You’ve seen quite a few blondie variations here on my blog. There’s a good explanation.  They are a one bowl, easy to remember, recipe that revolves around the number one. As in: one stick of butter, one cup of brown sugar, one egg, one teaspoon vanilla extract, one pinch of salt, one cup flour, and one cup of mix-ins (sometimes, like here, more than a cup). It’s nearly infallible.

For the Cherry, Almond and White Chocolate Blondies, I swapped out the vanilla extract for almond extract.  There’s just something wonderful and delicious about the cherry-almond combination. It’s a classic. If you don’t feel like going out and buying almond extract, you can certainly use vanilla. Just make sure it’s the good pure vanilla stuff, not that imitation swill. Oh, the horror!

Cherry, Almond and White Chocolate Blondies - a made by mike original

• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted
  
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
  
• 1 pinch kosher salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sliced almonds, 1 tablespoon reserved for topping
• 1 cup white chocolate chips
• 4 tablespoons very good cherry preserves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray an 8 inch pan with cooking spray, line the pan with parchment paper leaving an overhang on two sides. Spray the paper with cooking spray. Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer beat brown sugar and melted butter until well combined, 5 minutes. Add egg, almond extract and salt and beat for 3 minutes more. Scrape down bowl, if needed. Add flour and beat until just combined. Mix in almonds and white chocolate chips.

Place the batter in the parchment lined pan and spread into an even layer. Drop individual tablespoons of preserves on top of the batter then swirl into the batter with a butter knife. Sprinkle remaining sliced almonds on top.

Bake for 20-25 minutes until just set and edges begin to brown. Do not over bake. You want them good and gooey.

Let cool on a wire rack, then cut into 16 pieces.

peanut butter and cinnamon cookies

Truth be told, and why shouldn’t it be, I’m not such a fan of peanut butter. Maybe it’s a texture thing, I don’t know. It’s crazy, because I love peanuts. I could polish off one of those huge jars of Planter’s Roasted Peanuts during a single episode of Raising Hope.  And that’s giving me plenty of time to chuckle my way though the show. An aside, anyone else think that Cloris Leachman isn’t acting?

The person I love most in life, occasionally eats peanut butter by the spoonful. My lovely sister sits down to a daily lunch centered around a classic pb&j sandwich. Not me. And don’t even get me started on my dislike of the famed Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup.

All that said, I was intrigued by this recipe for Peanut Butter and Cinnamon Cookies. And I’m very glad that I gave it a try.  The combination of peanut butter and cinnamon may sound strange, but the cinnamon really took the edge off the peanut butter for me. The two contrasting flavors make for a very subtle peanut butter cookie. I really couldn’t be more pleased. I think that even the peanut butter fanatics among us will approve.  Give them a try. They would be great for a holiday cookie exchange.

Peanut Butter & Cinnamon Cookies – adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cookies App.

•  1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon plus 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Mix flour, 1 tablespoon of cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.

With a mixer, beat butter, 1/2 cup sugar, the brown sugar, peanut butter, egg and vanilla on medium speed until well blended. Gradually beat in the dry ingredients on low-speed until well mixed. Refrigerate dough for 2 hours or until firm.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix remaining 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl. Using a 1.5″ ice cream scoop, shape dough into balls. Roll in cinnamon-sugar mixture to coat. Place about 3 inches apart on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Gently flatten each ball with a fork, pressing a crisscross pattern on the tops of the cookies.

Bake until lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool on baking sheet for 1 minute, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

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pumpkin and chocolate chip squares

I’ve been going through cans of pure pumpkin puree like it’s water. I’ve made these cupcakes more times than I care to count. They are amazing, you should make them. Your friends and family will be very happy campers. Even if they don’t particularly care for camping. I can relate.

Today, I cracked open another can and made these terrific Pumpkin & Chocolate-Chip Squares. They are a breeze to make. Everything was mixed and spread in the baking pan in less than 15 minutes.  The longest chunk of time was the baking process, 35-40 minutes.  That gave me plenty of time to clean up the kitchen.  A few weeks ago I really “Cammed the kitchen” (Modern Family reference). I’ve pledged to never let that happen again. We’re still finding mounds of flying frosting scattered around the kitchen.

These fall-flavored squares are very moist. They may have needed a few more moments in the oven, but they were still a great treat. I shared them at a meeting and they were received quite well. You can find the recipe over here at Martha’s place. It’s also available on the Martha Stewart Cookies app. A great place for finding amazing cookie recipes. Enjoy.

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wordless wednesday – morning hike

remembering

10 years ago I was at work when I heard of the terrible tragedies. I was working a half day, because I was supposed to pick my dad up at the airport that afternoon for his fall visit. Needless to say, his flight didn’t leave Tampa that day.

The emotional toll of that day solidified plans that Greg and I would move our relationship forward from a long distance relationship to sharing a home together. It was a reminder that life is so short and unpredictable. Two months after that September day, Greg and I began our life together as a family.

The photograph is from the 5th year anniversary of September 11th in 2006 at Goodyear Metropark in Akron.

sweet cherry granita – everyday food challenge

Hot days. So hot. Several of which, we enjoyed with a broken air conditioner at home. PS&BTW, I’m a rather big wimp when it comes to summer and the blazing hot temps. Greg and I like to keep the abode at a nice chilly temperature. Guests normally wrap in blankets and sweaters while we sport shorts and t-shirts. I think you could hang sides of beef to cure in our living room.

While going back through recipes that I’ve made over the last couple of months, I came across this recipe for Sweet Cherry Granita from Everyday Food magazine. It doesn’t get any easier than four ingredients. One of which is optional. If you aren’t serving it to kids, I wouldn’t pass on the splash of Amaretto just before serving. There’s just something about the perfect combination of cherry and almond flavors. Also, to save time, I used frozen cherries. They’re already pitted and it gets the final product done just a tad faster.

If you’re suffering through the 90 degree heat, chill out with one of these tasty frozen treats.

Sweet Cherry Granita – Everyday Food, June 2011

• 2 pounds cherries, stemmed and pitted, or 3 bags (12 ounces each) frozen cherries, thawed
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 3/4 cup Amaretto (almond-flavored liqueur), optional

In a blender, puree cherries, sugar and lemon juice until sugar is dissolved and the mixture is smooth. Pour into an 8-inch square baking dish. Freeze 6 hours, scraping with a fork every hour (mixture should be icy and fluffy).

To serve, pour 1 tablespoon of Amaretto into a small bowl or glass. top with a 1/2 cup of granita. Serve immediately.

 

 

garlic and rosemary infused olive oil

 

This morning I made a very simple garlic and rosemary infused olive oil for slathering on the crust of a very special pizza that I’ll be making tonight for dinner. It’s a pizza with roasted peppers, italian sausage and fresh mozzarella topped with an arugula salad drizzled with red wine vinegar, a little more of the flavorful olive oil and some shaved pecorino cheese. The pizza is a creation that Greg dreamed up for me to make, based on another dish that we enjoy. I can’t imagine that it won’t be absolutely delicious. Check back later in the week for details.  For now, here’s a recipe for punching up the flavor of olive oil.

Garlic & Rosemary Infused Olive Oil

• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves peeled and smashed fresh garlic
• 1 sprig fresh rosemary

Heat the olive oil in a small sauce pan over medium heat.  Add the garlic and rosemary. Simmer for 3 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Turn off heat, remove the garlic and rosemary, strain olive oil into a glass jar.

 

wordless wednesday – old montreal edition

Click here to view more photographs from our visit to Old Montreal.  Next Wednesday, photographs from Montreal’s Jardin Boutanique.

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