Kris's cream cheese cupcakes

From the Penzey's catalog

Makes 2 dozen

8 oz cream cheese
1 egg
1/3 c sugar
1 t baking soda
1/8 t kosher salt
6 oz chocolate chips

1 1/2 c flour
1 c sugar
1/4 c cocoa powder
1/2 t kosher salt
1 c water
1/3 c canola oil
1 1/2 t apple cider vinegar
1 t vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. In a medium bowl, beat together the cream cheese, egg, sugar, and salt. Fold in the chocolate chips and set aside. In another bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt. Add the water, oil, vinegar, and vanilla. Beat until well-blended. Fill muffin cups lined with cupcake papers 1/3 full with chocolate batter. Top each one with 1 t of the cream cheese mixture. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes.

Per cupcake: 150 calories, 2g protein, 20g carbs, 7g fat

Key Lime Pie

crust:
1 1/4 c gingersnap crumbs
2 T sugar
1/3 c butter,melted

filling:
5 large eggs yolks
1/2 c key lime juice, freshly squeezed
1/3 c sugar
1/8 t salt
2 T lime peel coarsely grated
2 1/2 c heavy cream
1 small lime,sliced,optional

Prepare crust:
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
In 9" pie plate combine gingersnap crumbs and 2 T. sugar; stir in butter until blended.
Press mixture firmly and evenly over bottom and sides of pie plate; bake 10 minutes until browned. Cool completely on wire rack.

Prepare filling:
In top of double boiler using wire whisk, beat egg yolks, lime juice, 1/3 cup sugar and salt until well blended. Set over simmering water; cook about 5 minutes, stirring constantly until mixture is thick enough to coat back of metal spoon. Remove from heat; stir in grated lime peel.

Refrigerate mixture about 45 minutes until cool. Meanwhile, in large bowl with electric mixer at medium speed, beat cream until soft peaks form. Set 1 cup whipped cream asidefor garnish; fold cooled lime mixture into remaining cream. Spoon filling into prepared crust; refrigerate at least 2 hours until set.

To serve:
Spoon remaining whipped cream decoratively over top of pie; sprinkle cream with remaining 1 T lime peel. Garnish with limeslices, if desired.

Serves: 8

Carrot Cupcakes with White Chocolate Cream Cheese Frosting

from Allrecipes.com

makes 12 regular-sized cupcakes.

2 oz white chocolate
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/2 c unsalted butter, softened
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t orange extract
4 c confectioner's sugar

2 T heavy cream
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 c + 2 t white sugar
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 c vegetable oil
1 t vanilla extract
2 c shredded carrots
1/2 c crushed pineapple
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 1/4 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground nutmeg
1/4 t ground ginger
1 c chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350F and put muffin cups into a muffin pan.

In a small saucepan, melt white chocolate over a low heat. Stir until the melted chocolate is smooth, and then let it cool to room temperature.

In a bowl, beat together the cream cheese and butter till it's smooth. Mix in the melted white chocolate, one teasspoon of vanilla, and orange extract. Gradually beat in the confectioner's sugar until the mixture is fluffy. Mix in the heavy cream.

Beat together the eggs, white sugar and brown sugar in a bowl, and mix in the oil and the other teaspoon of vanilla. Fold in the carrots and the pineapple. In another bowl, mix the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Mix the flour mixture into the carrot mixture until it's moist. Fold in HALF of the nuts and then spoon the mix into the muffin cups.

Bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Allow the muffins to cool completely on a cooling rack, before topping with the icing and a sprinkle of the remaining nuts.

mascarpone tart with fresh strawberries and port glaze

from Epicurious.com

For tart shell:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
Rounded 1/4 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 large egg yolk
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons cold water

For filling:
1 1/2 pounds strawberries (about 1 1/2 quarts), trimmed and halved lengthwise
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup ruby Port
1 pound mascarpone (about 2 cups)
1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon zest
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

To make tart shell:
Blend together flour, sugar, salt, and butter in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps. Beat together yolk, vanilla, lemon juice, and water with a fork, then drizzle over flour mixture and stir with fork (or pulse) until mixture comes together.

Gently knead with floured hands on a lightly floured surface until a dough forms, then gently knead 4 or 5 times. Press into a 5-inch disk. Place in center of tart pan and cover with plastic wrap. Using your fingers and bottom of a flat-bottomed measuring cup, spread and push dough to evenly cover bottom and side of pan. Prick bottom of tart shell all over with a fork and freeze until firm, about 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle.

Line tart shell with foil and fill with pie weights. Bake until side is set and edge is pale golden, about 20 minutes. Carefully remove foil and weights and continue to bake until shell is deep golden all over, about 20 minutes more. Cool in pan, about 45 minutes.

Make filling while tart shell cools:
Stir together strawberries and granulated sugar in a bowl and let stand, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes. Strain in a sieve set over a small saucepan, reserving berries. Add Port to liquid in saucepan and boil until reduced to about 1/4 cup, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl to cool slightly.

Meanwhile, whisk together mascarpone, confectioners sugar, lemon juice, zest, vanilla, and a pinch of salt until stiff.

Assemble tart:
Spread mascarpone mixture evenly in cooled tart shell, then top with strawberries. Drizzle Port glaze all over tart.

two-bite brownies

about 72 mini-cupcakes

vegetable-oil cooking spray

4 sticks unsalted butter, cut into pieces

8 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped

1 3/4 c all-purpose flour

1/2 c unsweetened cocoa powder (preferably Dutch-process)

1/2 t salt

3 3/4 c granulated sugar

8 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line mini-cupcake tins with liners. Spray liners with cooking spray. If not using liners, mix 1 T cocoa powder with 1/2 c flour, spray tins with cooking spray and dust cups thoroughly with the cocoa-flour mixture.

Melt butter and chocolate in a 4-qt heavy pot over moderately low heat, stirring until smooth. Whisk together flour, cocoa and salt. Remove pan from heat and whisk in granulated sugar. Add eggs, 1 at a time, whisking after each addition until incorporated, and stir in flour mixture until blended.

Spoon batter into muffin liners, filling cups to top, and bake in middle of the oven 25-30 minutes, or until a tester comes out with crumbs adhering. Cool 5 minutes in tins and turn out onto racks. Repeat with remaining batter.

lemon-almond buttermilk loaf

from Epicurious.com

2 1/4 c all-purpose flour

1/2 t salt

1/2 t baking soda

2 c sugar

3/4 c unsalted butter, room temperature

3 large eggs

1/4 t almond extract

3/4 c buttermilk

3/4 c ground almonds

1 T grated lemon peel

5 T fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a 9x5x2 1/2" metal loaf pan. Sift flour, salt, and baking soda into medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat 1 1/2 c sugar and butter in large bowl until well-blended. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in almond extract.

Add dry ingredients to egg mixture alternately with buttermilk in 3 additions each, beating until well blended after each addition. Add ground almonds and lemon peel and beat 1 minute. Transfer batter to prepared pan.

Bake cake until deep golden brown and cracked on top and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 1 hour 25 minutes. Cool cake in pan on rack 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, stir remaining 1/2 c sugar and 5 T lemon juice in small bowl until sugar dissolves. Place rack on baking sheet. Turn cake out onto rack, top side up. using skewer or toothpick, poke holes 1 to 2 inches apart all over cake. Brush top and sides of cake with all of lemon glaze, allowing some glaze to soak into cake before brushing with more. Cook cake completely.

cinnamon-almond snaps

These are strangely addictive, especially with tea or coffee. Excellent for the holidays. I have no idea where we found this recipe, but we didn't create it ourselves.

makes about twelve dozen small cookies

3 c all purpose flour
2 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t baking powder
1 c unsalted butter, room temperature
3/4 c sugar
3/4 c light brown sugar
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t salt
1 3/4 c blanched sliced or slivered almonds

Sift first four ingredients into medium bowl. Beat butter in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in both sugars. Add egg and egg yolk; beat to blend. Beat in vanilla and salt.

Add flour mixture and beat until dough comes together in moist clumps. Add almonds and knead gently in bowl wiht hands until blended.

David dough into 4 equal portions. Roll each into 10" long log, about 1 1/4 - 1 1/2" in diameter. Wrap dough in 2 layers of plastic and place in freezer until frozen, at least 4 hours. (Can be prepared 1 month ahead. Keep frozen.)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Working with one log at a time, remove plastic and cut crosswise into 1/4"-thick-rounds. Place rounds on ungreased baking sheet, spacing 1" apart. Bake until light golden brown, about 12 minutes. Transfer cookies ot rack and cool completely. Store airtight at room temperature.

chocolate rum cake

1 pkg Duncan Heinz Devils Food Cake mix
1 small pkg chocolate instant pudding mix
1 c sour cream
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/4 to 1/2 c cold coffee
1/4 to 1/2 c dark rum
4 eggs
2 c chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Combine all ingredients except chocolate chips. Mix until blended. Beat at medium speed for one min, scrape sides of bowl and beat one more minute. Fold in chips. Pour into greased Bundt or tube pan. Bake 40-60 minutes or until cake springs back when touched. Cool in pan on rack for 30 minutes. Turn onto platter and glaze with:

1/2 c butter or margarine
1/4 c water
1 c sugar
1/2 c dark rum

Melt butter in pan. Stir in water and sugar. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in rum. Poke small holes in the cake with a toothpick. Pour glaze onto cake.

It is better to let the cake sit overnight for the chocolate chips to harden.

ginger peach cobbler

adapted from Diner Desserts, by Tish Boyle

3 pounds ripe peaches
1/2 c granulated sugar
2 T all purpose flour
1 t peeled and grated fresh ginger
1/2 t cinnamon
1 T fresh lemon juice
1 T heavy cream

1 1/4 c all purpose flour
1/4 c granulated sugar
1 t baking pwder
1/4 t ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 T chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2" cubes
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 c plus 1 T heavy cream
1 T finely chopped crystallized ginger

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Butter the bottom and sides of a 9x13" glass baking dish.

To make filling: blanch peaches by plunging them into boiling water for 30 seconds. Remove them to a bowl of ice water, and, using your hands, slip off the skins. Cut into 1/4" thick slices off the pit, and put slices into a large bowl. In a small bowl, stir together well the sugar, flour, fresh ginger, cinnamon, lemon juice, and cream. Pour the mixture over the peach slices and toss to coat. Transfer the fruit to the prepared baking dish.

To make biscuits: put the flour, sugar, baking powder, ground ginger, and salt in a food processor and pulse until combined. Add the butter pieces and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir the vanilla into 1/2 c of the cream and add to the flour mixture. Pulse just until the dough starts to hold together. Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured piece of waxed paper and shape it into a disk. Roll the dough out 1/4" thick. Using a 2" round biscuit cutter, cut out as many biscuits as possible. Gather up the scraps, roll and repeat until you have 12 biscuits.

Arrange the biscuits on top of the fruit filling, spacing them evenly (they will not spread much if at all). Brush the biscuits with the remaining 1 T cream and sprinkle with the crystallized ginger.

Bake for 40 minutes, or until the fruit is bubbling and the biscuits are golden brown. Serve warm.

Lavender, Orange, and Almond Cake

Source: adapted from Crazy Water, Pickled Lemons by Diane Henry
Serves: 8-10

for cake:
4 teaspoons dried lavender
250g/9oz (1 1/4 cups) sugar
225g/8oz (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
juice from 2 large oranges
finely-grated zest from 2 large oranges
1 teaspoon almond extract
4 eggs
1 scant teaspoon salt
200g/7oz (1 2/3 cups) flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 cup ground almonds

for topping:
1/2 cup flaked almonds
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon dried lavender (optional)

Put the lavender and some of the sugar in a clean coffee grinder (or a food processor) and grind to a powder. Combine this with the rest of the sugar. Cream the lavender sugar and butter together until light and fluffy, then add the orange juice, zest, almond extract and the eggs. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt, and beat into the wet mixture, along with the ground almonds.

Pour the batter into a 9-inch greased and lined springform pan. Sprinkle the flaked almonds evenly over the top, and sift the powdered sugar over them. Bake in a preheated oven at 350F/180C for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool the cake, unmold and sprinkle with the remaining teaspoon of dried lavender.

chocolate rum cake

1 package Duncan Hines Devil's Food Cake mix
1 small package chocolate instant pudding mix
1 c sour cream
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/4-1/2 c cold coffee
1/4-1/2 c dark rum
4 eggs
2 c chocolate chips
1/2 c butter
1/4 c water
1 c sugar
1/2 c dark rum

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine cake mix, pudding mix, sour cream, oil, cold coffee, dark rum, and eggs. Mix until blended. Beat at medium speed for one minute. Scrape sides of the bowl and beat one more minute. Fold in chips. Pour into greased Bundt pan or tube pan. Bake 40-60 minutes or until cake springs back when touched. Cool in pan on rack for 30 minutes, turn onto platter.

While cake is baking, melt butter in pan. Stir in water and sugar. Boil for 5 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in rum. Poke small holes in the cake with a toothpick. Pour glaze onto cake. It is best to make this a day ahead of time, so that the chocolate chips harden.

tequila lemon/lime mousse

3 lemons or limes
3 eggs, separated
1/2 c castor sugar
4 t gelatin
3 T tequila
2/3 c cream

Zest the lemons, then juice them.

Put a few inches of water in a saucepan, place over medium heat. In a large bowl over the saucepan, whisk together egg yolks, sugar, and lemon rind until smooth.

In another large-sized bowl, put tequila and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Leave to soften about 5 minutes. Place over a saucepan and stir until gelatin is completely dissolved. Allow to cool slightly, then stir in the lemon juice.

Stir the gelatin-lemon juice mixture into the egg mixture until fully incorporated. Whip the cream and fold in. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then fold into the other ingredients. Transfer to serving bowls. Allow to set in the fridge for a few hours.

We actually like this with lime just as well as with lemon. Use decent tequila if you can, but nothing too aged.

Honey Cake with Stout

not our recipe, but I've lost the source...

3 1/2 c all-purpose flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t kosher salt
1 t cinnamon
1/2 t cardamom
1/8 t cloves
1/8 t nutmeg
3 eggs
1/2 c sugar
2 T mild vegetable oil
1 c dark honey
1 1/4 c dry stout
1 t powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Coat an angel-food pan with cooking spray and dust the inside with flour.

Sift the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, and nutmeg together into a medium bowl. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat the eggs and sugar together on high speed until pale yellow and lightly thickened. Add the oil and honey and beat on medium speed until smooth. Beat in a third of the dry mixture, then half the stout, then another third of the dry mixture, then the remaining stout, then the remaining dry mixture, mixing thoroughly after each addition. Stop mixing periodically to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Life the pan an inch off the counter and rop it; repeat twice (to release any large air bubbles). Bake on the middle shelf of the oven until a cake tester comes out clean, 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack before removing from the pan. Dust the top with powdered sugar before serving. Serve plain, or perhaps with some strawberries or other fresh fruit. Will keep for several days, and the flavor and texture actually improves overnight.