Merry Christmas to Me 2011

Merry belated Christmas! I was so caught up enjoying the day with my family that I have finally have the time to sit down and blog about it. Aside from the great presents (which I'll go into more detail later), I spent the day with my family. Although we usually never do anything extravagant, I always remember those days the best. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing my extended family and sharing the holidays with them but I truly enjoy Christmas and its significance with the company of my immediate family.

As I discussed in previous entries, this season has been about giving rather than recieving for me. I spent time and thought into each of the gifts I bought and it was touching to see that people did the same to me. I have some great people in my life, present or presentless, and I consider myself truly blessed. Here are the baking related things I got this year. I'm beginning to see a trend...especially with the cupcakes. I guess people just know me a little too well!

    

                      

For more information of the images above, please see the following websites:

For Baking: my house to yours
For babycakes
For 10,000 Cupcakes

I am excited to use the babycakes makers. Yes, I got two. Do I need both of them? Probably not. Am I going to keep both of them? Most definitely. Look out for my blog entries in the near future! Also, I am very excited to test some recipes in my new baking books. Dorie Greenspan, I think her cookbook speaks for itself. While I've never done Tuesdays with Dorie, I can now bake with Dorie whenever I want to! Lastly, I got 10,000 cupcakes which is a cute cupcake book that allows me to make a variety of cupcakes. You'll have to get a copy for yourself to understand why it's so cute! I'm leaving you with an element of surprise.

Seven Layer Bars

 

2011 is not over just yet which means I still have time to cross things off my 2011 To-Bake List. I recently accomplished one of those feats by making seven layer bars, which happens to be number one on my list. I have been wanting to make these bars forever but because I know it is so simple, I always push it aside to bake something else. During this time of the year, I have many engagements to attend so I end up baking up the wazoo. Unfortunately, I only have so much  time to dedicate for baking so I began thinking about simple, quick, yet satisfying baked goods. This is when I decided to give the seven layer bars a try because I knew it was simple, quick, and satisfying for the taste buds.

Seven layer bars is very descriptive to what this baked good is - layers of ingredients, seven to be exact. While this recipe does not looking amazing and enticing on paper, it is probably be one of the most delicious things I have ever eaten. Additionally, seven layer bars is a popular dessert around the holidays. The condensed milk gets browned in the oven and it adds another layer of flavor which makes these bars addicting, seriously addicting. Sometimes the best things are the simple things. Remember that this holiday season! Peace.

Peppermint Chocolate Chewies

I have truly enjoyed the holiday season this year. For the first time, I'm making the holidays to be less about me and more about the people I love and people in need. I have spent countless hours and dollars to make a difference and I have absolutely loved every minute and penny I donated.

 

While the holiday season is about giving, I had to do a little something for myself so I co-hosted my first cookie exchange which turned out to be a complete success. I have been to many cookie exchanges in my life where I usually make a cookie I have never made or have made a thousand times before. Being in a festive mood this year, I wanted to make a cookie that reflected the holidays. After blog browsing, I decided to make a variation of a recipe I found where Oreos are dipped in white chocolate and sprinkled with crushed peppermint candy. From this inspiration, I came up with the Chocolate Peppermint Chewies.

Chocolate Perppermint Chewies are a chewy chocolate cookie dipped in white chocolate and topped with crushed peppermint. The chocolate cookie base is relatively healthy without compromising the taste of a delectable cookie. Don't get me wrong, these are not "healthy" cookies because of the high sugar content but is healthier than most cookies found during this time of the year. The cookie looks like a complex cookie but is fairly simple to make. In the end, I had a festive holiday cookie that was popular amongst the cookie eaters. Baking adventure = success. If you want a festive holiday cookie, give this cookie recipe a try! Something to try next time: place a peppermint Hersheys kiss in the center...oh that would be good!

Chocolate Chip Cookie Torte

The name of this recipe makes it seem fancier than it really is. While it is entitled torte, it is essentially a chocolate chip cookie in the shape of cake. Don't get me wrong though, this cookie torte is more than just your standard chocolate chip cookie. Because of its shape, the cookie has the taste of a perfectly golden brown chocolate cookie that is crunchy on the outside and moist and chewy on the inside. That's my idea of perfect chocolate chip cookie!

The torte recipe is slightly different from most chocolate chip cookie recipes because instead of a 2:1 flour to butter ratio, it is 1:1. This means there is a higher proportion of butter in this recipe but that just means a tastier cookie! While the torte is elegant and tasty, it is super easy to make. The preparation of the dough took me no more than ten minutes because it just required mixing all the ingredients in a food processor. It seriously couldn't be any simpler! After mixing all the ingredients, I flatten the dough in a 8 inch round cake pan, threw it in the oven, and waited for my nose to tell me when the torte was ready.

This is a great homemade dessert to make on a weeknight. After a long day of work, the last thing we want to tackle is a homemade dessert for dinner. Now you have a go to recipe. Why is it good? The food processor does all the work, the butter doesn't need to be at room temperature (no advance preparation needed), and there's no need to shape the dough. Top a slice of torte with some vanilla ice cream and you have rewarded yourself with a delicious dessert after a long day of work!

Skinny Chocolate Cupcakes with Pumpkin

 

Yes, it’s that time of year again: pumpkin season! With the holidays right around the corner, we are bound to see pumpkin recipe after pumpkin recipe. That’s all fine and dandy for the pumpkin lovers out there but for people like myself, it gets a little boring. Lately, I’ve been intrigued by this orange ingredient (I don’t know why) and even contemplated making pumpkin spice muffins. As I was browsing for pumpkin recipe, I found one for chocolate cupcakes that substitutes pumpkin puree in place of oil and eggs from Gina's Skinny Recipes. The best part of the recipe is that I shouldn’t be able to taste the pumpkin. This was quite intriguing, especially to someone like me so I had to try it. So, if you are looking for a pumpkin flavored recipe, this is not the recipe to try! However, if you're like for a simple chocolate cupcake that is lighter in fat and calories without compromising flavor or texture, you are at the right place!

When I bought the pumpkin puree, I checked out the nutrition label to find pumpkin to be nutritional and healthy. It has no fat, few calories, and a significant amount of fiber. I was beginning to like pumpkin more by the second.

I was pleasantly surprised by the outcome of this recipe. The cupcakes were indeed moist, delicious, and chocolately. As much as I tried to taste the pumpkin, I could not. My family were even surprised about how well the cupcakes turned out. They were hesitant at first to try the cupcakes because they saw the can of pumpkin puree but were caught off guard by the fact it tasted like a chocolate cupcake. I made the cupcakes into with the mini cupcake tins instead of the standard size which made it okay for me to eat 2...or 3...or 4...

With the holiday season coming up, this is a great recipe to spare ya some holiday calories...and it's festive because of the addition of pumpkin. Of course, no one has to know that except for us! Check out the nutrition facts:

Servings: 24 • Serving Size: 1 cupcake • Old Points: 2 pts • Points+: 2 pts
Calories: 93.8 • Fat: 2.3 g • Protein: 1.1 g • Carb: 17.5 g • Fiber: 1.4 g • Sugar: 9.9
Sodium: 281.8
(from skinnytaste.com)