JenOni

#baking

Valentine’s Day Heart Shaped Butter Cookie Recipe

ValentinesDay

BUTTER COOKIES

One of my past times is baking during the holiday. The recipe is easy with the right tools. A few helpful tips for the perfect cookie is to use parchment paper, a rolling pin, a quality cookie sheet, a quality cookie cutter, and a timer. My favorite brand of bakeware is Wilton. These cookies bake very quickly so you have to watch the time.

1 cup Land O Lakes® Butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 large Land O Lakes® Egg

2 tablespoons orange juice

1 tablespoon vanilla

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

ValentinesDay

The full recipe is here

Holiday Dessert : A Hummingbird Cake

Holiday Dessert

I baked this cake for the first time in the mid-2000s. My mom loved the cake and Thanksgiving was a perfect time to bake the cake again. The hummingbird cake is a three layer cake filled with bananas, pineapples, and spice with cream cheese frosting. This recipe was found on Southern Living.com. This recipe calls for toasted pecans, I toasted the pecans for the garnish only. The cake is absolutely delicious, moist, and every bite is filled with richness combined with the sweetness of the cream cheese frosting.

The recipe is found here https://www.southernliving.com/recipes/hummingbird-cake-recipe

holiday dessert

Cream Cheese Frosting

holiday dessert
holiday dessert

Toasted Pecans

holiday dessert
holiday dessert

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting for Holiday Dessert

Carrot Cake – Thanksgiving Dessert

Carrot Cake

For this carrot cake recipe, it was a real winner for Thanksgiving.  I found this recipe at AllRecipes.com.   This is one of my go-to sites for recipes.   A few tweaks to the recipes I omitted the coconut.  I love carrot cake however I am not a fan of extra ingredients like coconut and raisins.    The finale  of  the cream cheese frosting  which is absolutely delicious.

The recipe is as follows:

Ingredients

  • 2 cups white sugar
  • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 3/4 cup buttermilk
  • 2 cups grated carrots
  • 1 cup flaked coconut
  • 1 (15 ounces) can crushed pineapple, drained
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1 (8 ounces) package cream cheese
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 4 cups confectioners’ sugar

Click the link above for the rest of the recipe.   As you can see  I covered the remainder of my walnuts around the cake.   A baking confession:  After I poured the cake batter in my three cake pans I forgot to shake the pans to evenly spread the cake batter.  Once the baking time was over I realized that two of my three cake pans were uneven.   Frosting hides blunders and the walnuts was a nice added touch.     I hope you enjoy as much my family!!! This is now my go-to recipe for CARROT CAKE!

 

Carrot Cake

 

Holiday Cookie Baking Tradition in time for Christmas Day

*this post contains affiliate links, I will receive commission if you click and purchase*

Holiday Cookie Tradition

Every year cookie baking is our holiday tradition before Christmas day.   I have the kids pick out their favorite recipe and the baking begins.   Baking is therapeutic and I enjoy it during the holiday season.   This year I only baked three varieties that included our favorite chewy chocolate chip, vanishing oatmeal raisin and a new sugar cookie recipe.  Last year,   I started substituting sea salt in all of my cookie recipes.   We love the combination of extra salty and sweet.    This was a very easy recipe and no refrigeration is required.

I found that after rolling cookies in sugar to try and keep the cookies slightly round.  When I pressed down the dough the batch was flat.

 

I found the recipe on Pinterest, from AddAPinch.com:

Sugar Cookies

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 2¼ cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder

 

Recipe Credit here

 

 

 

 

 

Best Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies for Holiday Baking

Cookies Chewy Chocolate Chip

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Baking is my past time during the holidays.  I found the best chewy chocolate chip cookie recipe.  What is the perfect chewy chocolate chip cookie?  I love a homemade chewy cookie that remains chewy days after baking.    On Pinterest, there are hundreds of recipes for a “chewy” chocolate chip cookie and it varies depending on the combination of ingredients.  I found the perfect recipe that incorporates cornstarch(this was a first for me) and this was from GrandBabyCakes.   This year I added my sea salt in place of regular salt.

This was my first time using any of these recipes and this was clearly a great recipe and  KID APPROVED!  My kids could not stop eating.

The recipe begins below,  PERFECT CHOCOLATE CHIPS

Ingredients

    • 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
    • 2 teaspoons cornstarch
    • 3/4 teaspoon salt(I used sea salt)
    • 1 teaspoon baking powder
    • 1 teaspoon baking soda
    • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
    • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
    • 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar
    • 1 large egg plus 2 egg yolks at room temperature
    • 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
  • 2 cups chocolate chips

Instructions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, salt, baking powder, and baking soda and put aside.
  1. In the bowl of your mixer, add butter and both granulated and brown sugars and cream together for 3-4 minutes on high until light and fluffy…………

There are some really great tips on how to get a perfectly chewy cookie.  One tip includes under baking the cookie for a chewy cookie.  I wanted to stick as close as possible to the recipe, however, on my next batch, I am definitely going to remove from the oven a few minutes before the full baking time.

Tips*:  Refrigerate for 2 hours instead of 1 hour.  Watch time closely!

We are now adding this cookie to our recipe box under COOKIES.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Batter….

holidaybakingchocolatecookiesbatter

Before Baking

HolidayBakingCookiesBatter

PERFECT……..

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

I hope you enjoy with a cold glass of milk.

Cooking and Baking by Me: Classic Dinner Rolls

 

Classic Dinner Rolls

2 to 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 envelope Fleischmann’s® RapidRise Yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons butter OR margarine Directions

COMBINE 3/4 cup flour, undissolved yeast, sugar and salt in a large bowl. Heat milk, water, and butter until very warm (120º to 130ºF). Add to flour mixture. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed of electric mixer, scraping bowl occasionally. Add 1/4 cup flour; beat 2 minutes at high speed. Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes. Cover; let rest 10 minutes. *

DIVIDE dough into 12 equal pieces; shape into balls. Place in greased 8-inch round pan. Cover; let rise in warm, draft-free place until doubled in size, about 30 minutes.**
BAKE in preheated 375ºF oven for 20 minutes or until done. Remove from pan; brush with additional melted butter, if desired.  Serve warm.

*For rest period, it is not necessary for the dough to double in size

**For a higher roll, I suggest allowing the rolls to rise longer than 30 minutes(maybe 45-1hr) with a pan of boiled water underneath the pan. Do allow to over-rise.

Recipe: Classic Dinner Rolls

Vanishing Oatmeal Raisin Cookies Baking with Quaker Oats

OatmealRaisinCookies

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

This is my favorite time of the year and I love to bake these Oatmeal Raisin cookies. One of my traditions is to ask the kids their favorite cookie for me to bake. This year my daughter has asked for sugar cookies (in various shapes of choice) and my son wants the peanut butter blossoms. My favorite is the oatmeal raisin cookies that I have baked for at least the last 6+ years.

You can find the recipe on the lid of the oatmeal container, Enjoy!!!! I bake these every Christmas!

 

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 Cup(s) (1 stick) plus 6 tablespoons butter, softened
3/4 Cup(s) firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 Cup(s) granulated sugar
2 Eggs
1 Teaspoon(s) vanilla
1-1/2 Cup(s) all-purpose flour
1 Teaspoon(s) Baking Soda
1 Teaspoon(s) ground cinnamon
1/2 Teaspoon(s) salt (optional)
3 Cup(s) Quaker® Oats (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)
1 Cup(s) raisins(SunMaid Baking Raisins, if available)

PREPARATION:
Heat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, beat butter and sugars on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt; mix well. Add oats and raisins; mix well. Drop dough by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake 8 to 10 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheets; remove to wire rack. Cool completely. Store tightly covered.

 

Before Oats and Raisins

Serving Tips: Bar Cookies: Press dough onto bottom of ungreased 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until light golden brown. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. Cut into bars. Store tightly covered. 24 BARS. VARIATIONS: Stir in 1 cup chopped nuts. Substitute 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or candy-coated chocolate pieces for raisins; omit the cinnamon. Substitute 1 cup diced dried mixed fruit. HIGH ALTITUDE ADJUSTMENT: Increase flour to 1-3/4 cups and bake as directed.

 

 

Snickerdoodles – Holiday Baking with Butter and Cinnamon Sugar

Snickerdoodles


 SnickerdoodlesHolidayBaking

This was my first time baking Snickerdoodles.  My 10yo had them at a school event so she insisted I bake for our Christmas cookie list.   I never tried a Snickerdoodle so this new for me.   I scoured Pinterest for a recipe and found multiple recipes most required cream of tarter.   Finally, I found a recipe that did not have cream of tartar as an ingredient.   This led to me researching the need for cream of tartar and found it is leavening agent when combined with baking powder.   I would say a snickerdoodle is a butter cookie rolled in cinnamon sugar.  My 10 yo gave these two thumbs up!

Thanks to WannaComeWith for this simple recipe:

Ingredients:

2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon coarse salt

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1-1/2 cups sugar

2 large eggs

FOR COATING

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Here is the link for the rest of the http://wannacomewith.com/2013/03/snickerdoodles/recipe, Happy Baking!

snickerdoodlesholidaybaking

Cinnamon Sugar

snickerdoodlesholidaybaking

snickerdoodlesholidaybaking

 

SnickerdoodlesHolidayBaking

Red Velvet Cupcakes for Holiday Baking


RedVelvetCupcakes

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
RedVelvetCupcakesOven
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
1 pound cream cheese, softened
2 sticks butter, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
Chopped pecans and fresh raspberries or strawberries, for garnish
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 2 (12-cup) muffin pans with cupcake papers.
In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. In a large bowl gently beat together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla with a handheld electric mixer. Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.
Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins about 2/3 filled. Bake in oven for about 20 to 22 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through. Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness. Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.
For the Cream Cheese Frosting:
In a large mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, butter and vanilla together until smooth. Add the sugar and on low speed, beat until incorporated. Increase the speed to high and mix until very light and fluffy.
Garnish with chopped pecans and a fresh raspberry or strawberry
Cook’s Note: Frost the cupcakes with a butter knife or pipe it on with a big star tip.