Grateful Prayer | Thankful Heart

Cafe Volcano Cookies

By Lorraine

Now here was a recipe that I could not imagine would actually result in a cookie. I read and re-read the recipe and thought I would just have to proceed and see what happened. I am happy to tell you the cookies are delicious! Quite unique in texture, very light and full of a wonderful roasted nutty flavor and a hint of coffee.

The original recipe does not include the addition of chocolate and the cookies are GREAT all by themselves. The chocolate just adds a little more flavor and visual appeal.

 Café Volcano Cookies

 from Baking: From My House to Yours
by Dorie Greenspan (Houghton Mifflin, 2006). Copyright 2006 by Dorie Greenspan.
Makes about 36 cookies

Light, bumpy, nutty and completely higgledy-piggledy-shaped, these cratered meringue nuggets are just the cookies to reach for with your last coffee of the afternoon or your last spoonful of ice cream at night. They are featherweight but packed with flavor, and I love the way they disappear in your mouth — quickly, so quickly and fizzily that if they didn’t have nuts, you’d think you were eating espresso Pop Rocks.

1 cup blanched almonds (whole, sliced or slivered), coarsely chopped
1 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
2 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder

    Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.
    Spread the chopped almonds and walnuts out on one of the baking sheets and toast the nuts in the oven. They will need 10 minutes or less to turn golden brown, so keep a close eye on them and stir them at least twice. When the nuts are toasted, remove them — with the liner — from the baking sheet and cool the sheet. Transfer the nuts to a plate, then reline the sheet and use it to bake the cookies.
    Put all the ingredients, including the nuts, in a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan. Set it over medium heat and stir constantly with a silicone or wooden spatula until the ingredients are just warm to the touch. Remove from the heat.
    Drop the batter by slightly rounded teaspoonfuls onto the baking sheets, leaving about an inch of space between the mounds.
    5. Bake the cookies for about 20 minutes, rotating the pans from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point. When properly baked, the cookies will be puffed, cratered, shiny and dry. Remove the cookies from the oven and let them remain on the sheets for 5 minutes before gently prying them from the liners and transferring them to racks to cool to room temperature.


    Storing: Kept in a cool, dry place at room temperature (they should never be refrigerated), the cookies will hold up for about 3 days. As with all meringues, humidity will make them go soggy and sticky.

    Croissant Bread Pudding

    By Lorraine

    Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa fame has been one of my favorite Food Network personalities for many years. Five years ago, my husband gave me a signed photograph of Ina as a birthday gift. I was excited to become part of a blog called Barefoot Bloggers that prepares one of her recipes twice a month.

    The recipe used for my first time participating is for Croissant Bread Pudding (which can be found in The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook on page 192). It was a pick by

    Peggy from Pantry Revisited

    I halved the recipe and substituted egg Challah bread for the croissants.

    Croissant Bread Pudding

    Ingredients nocoupons

    • 3 extra-large whole eggs
    • 8 extra-large egg yolks
    • 5 cups half-and-half
    • 1 1/2 cups sugar
    • 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
    • 6 croissants, preferably stale, sliced horizontally
    • 1 cup raisins

    Directions

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

    In a medium bowl, whisk together the whole eggs, egg yolks, half-and-half, sugar, and vanilla. Set the custard mixture aside. Slice the croissants in half horizontally. In a 10 by 15 by 2 1/2-inch oval baking dish, distribute the bottoms of the sliced croissants, then add the raisins, then the tops of the croissants (brown side up), being sure the raisins are between the layers of croissants or they will burn while baking. Pour the custard over the croissants and allow to soak for 10 minutes, pressing down gently.

    Place the pan in a larger one filled with 1-inch of hot water. Cover the larger pan with aluminum foil, tenting the foil so it doesn’t touch the pudding. Cut a few holes in the foil to allow steam to escape. Bake for 45 minutes. Uncover and bake for 40 to 45 more minutes or until the pudding puffs up and the custard is set. Remove from the oven and cool slightly. Serve warm or at room temperature.

    Thanksgiving Wishes & Sweet Potato Pie with Marshmallow Meringue

    By Lorraine

    Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise;
    give thanks to him and praise his name. Psalm 100:4

    Maybe a bit late for today’s dessert table but if you still have some sweet potatoes in the pantry, here is a yummy recipe!

    Sweet Potato Pie with Marshmallow Meringue Topping
    AllRecipies.com

    Ingredients:
    Graham Cracker Crust:
    1 1/2 cups crushed graham crackers
    1/3 cup white sugar
    5 tablespoons butter, melted
    1/8 teaspoon salt
    Sweet Potato Pie Filling:
    1 1/2 cups canned sweet potatoes, drained
    and mashed
    1 cup packed brown sugar
    1 cup whipping cream
    3 large eggs
    1 teaspoon vanilla extract
    3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
    1/4 teaspoon ground mace
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    Meringue Topping:
    2 cups miniature marshmallows
    1 tablespoon milk
    2 egg whites
    1/4 cup white sugar
    1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
    1/4 teaspoon salt
    Directions:
    1.Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
    2.Mix the graham cracker crumbs together with 1/3 cup white sugar, butter, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a mixing bowl. Spread evenly over the bottom and sides of a 9 inch pie pan. (I used a deep dish pan)
    3.Bake the graham cracker crust in preheated oven until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Remove from oven, and cool on a rack.
    4.Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
    5.To make the sweet potato filling, place the mashed sweet potatoes in a mixing bowl. Whisk in the brown sugar, whipping cream, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon, mace, and salt until smooth and evenly blended. Pour the sweet potato mixture into the baked graham cracker crust.
    6.Bake the pie in preheated oven until the center is set, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool on a rack.
    7.To make the marshmallow meringue, place the marshmallows and milk in a pan; cook over low heat, folding mixture gently until marshmallows are half melted. Remove pan from the heat. Continue folding until marshmallows melt completely, and the mixture becomes smooth and fluffy.
    8.Place the egg whites in a separate mixing bowl, and beat until soft peaks form. Gradually add 1/4 cup white sugar, and continue beating until stiff peaks form. Beat in vanilla and salt. Gently fold the egg whites into the marshmallow mixture, and spread over the top of the pie.

    9. Return the pie to the oven and cook until the meringue is toasted, 5 to 10 minutes.

    (sorry about the numbering ~ blogger is being obstinate)

    TWD ~ Sugar-Topped Molasses Spice Cookies

    By Lorraine

    This is just my forth time baking with the Dorie bakers and sadly, this time, I didn’t achieve the results I was hoping for. Mine were missing the beautiful cracks and crevices that were present in the cookbook photo. They were tasty enough , slightly crisp outside, chewy inside, but were flatter than I would prefer. Dorie said the dough would be smooth and soft but I think my dough needed a bit more flour. I will give this recipe another try as I want them to come out just like the ones Dorie and other bakers made.



    Remember the comparison posted about here? I suppose it has more to do with familiarity but my family still prefers our old recipe. Plus, they were easier to make.

    Please visit the other Dorie bakers to see how splendid their cookies turned out. Our host for this recipe is Pamela of Cookies with Boys. Visit her for the recipe and to see how wonderful hers baked up!

    Cake Mix Lemon Cookies

    By Lorraine

    Cake Mix Lemon Ricotta Drop Cookies

    Ingredients
    ¼ cup (1/2 stick) melted butter
    1 cup ricotta (not non-fat)
    1 large egg
    1 teaspoon lemon extract
    Zest of 1 lemon
    1 (18.25 ounce) package lemon cake mix
    Canned or homemade lemon frosting (optional), whipped well

    Instructions

    1. Preheat oven to 350 Degrees. Position rack in the middle of the oven and line cookie sheets with parchment paper. Parchment can be reused one time.

    2. In a stand mixer beat together butter and ricotta until fluffy. Add egg, lemon extract, and lemon zest and beat until combined and fluffy. Add the cake mix and beat until combined.

    3. With a mini or standard size cookie scoop drop dough onto parchment two inches apart. Dunk scoop into a glass of hot water and shake well after every few scoops when the dough gets difficult to release.

    4. Bake a sheet at a time for 10 to 12 minutes or until lightly browned on the bottom. I used a mini cookie scoop; it might take a minute or two longer for standard sized cookies.

    5. Let sit on the cookie sheet for a couple of minutes and move to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

    6. Once cool, whip frosting until fluffy and pipe a dollop on top of each cookie.

    Recipe by Laura Flowers

    Sweet Potato Biscuits

    By Lorraine

    The recipe uses canned sweet potatoes for convenience but says fresh ones can be used if desired.


    The obvious choice for me was to toss a few sweet potatoes into the (toaster) oven. I could have stopped right there, as a fresh baked sweet potato with a little butter, salt, pepper and a sprinkling of brown sugar is as delicious a treat as any (in my humble opinion).

    I know they are ready when the sugars caramelize and begin to ooze out the cuts in the skin.


    I mashed about a cup and continued on with the recipe.

    Since I had it in the pantry, I grated just a little (optional) fresh nutmeg into the dry ingredients.

    Then gently combined the ingredients, rolled and cut into circles.

    The recipe should yield 18 biscuits… I had far fewer.
    The result ~ wonderfully delicious!
    Even without the butter and orange marmalade, they are tender and favorable. I like the color and texture as well. They did rise well and have a nice rounded top.
    I prefer muffins but would definitely make these biscuits again for an occasional change. Although the biscuits were light and flaky, I think next time I might moisten the mashed sweet potato a bit and see if that does anything to increase the yield.

    Sweet Potato Biscuits

    by Dorie Greenspan
    Estimated Cost: $2.50 for a dozen (using fresh sweet potato)Soft and creamy-textured, with flaky layers, these biscuits satisfy like cake.
    Using canned sweet potatoes makes them easy to prepare at a moment’s notice. I use canned sweet potatoes packed in light syrup — I just drain the potatoes and mash them with a fork. If you’ve got leftover cooked sweet potatoes or yams, give them a good mashing, measure out 3/4 to 1 cup and you’re good to go.

    Makes about 18 biscuits

    2 cups all-purpose flour
    2 tablespoons (packed) light brown sugar
    1 tablespoon baking powder
    1 teaspoon salt
    3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
    2 15-ounce cans sweet potatoes in light syrup, drained and mashed
    Pinch of ground cinnamon or freshly grated nutmeg (optional)

    GETTING READY: Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
    Get out a sharp 2- to 2 1/4-inch-diameter biscuit cutter, and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silicone mat.

    Whisk the flour, baking powder, salt and spice, if you’re using it, together in a bowl. Add the brown sugar and stir to incorporate it, making sure there are no lumps. Drop in the butter and, using your fingers, toss to coat it with flour. Quickly, working with your fingertips (my favorite method) or a pastry blender, cut and rub the butter into the dry ingredients until the mixture is pebbly. You’ll have pea-size pieces, pieces the size of oatmeal flakes and pieces the size of everything in between — and that’s just right.

    Add the sweet potatoes to the bowl, grab a fork, and toss and gently turn the ingredients until you’ve got a nice soft dough. Now reach into the bowl with your hands and give the dough a quick, gentle kneading — 3 or 4 turns should be just enough to bring everything together.

    Lightly dust a work surface with flour and turn out the dough. Dust the top of the dough very lightly with flour and pat the dough out with your hands or roll it with a pin until it is about 1/2 inch high. Don’t worry if the dough isn’t completely even — a quick, light touch is more important than accuracy.
    Use the biscuit cutter to cut out as many biscuits as you can. Try to cut the biscuits close to one another so you get the most you can out of this first round. By hand or with a small spatula, transfer the biscuits to the baking sheet. Gather together the scraps, working them as little as possible, pat out to a 1/2-inch thickness and cut as many additional biscuits as you can; transfer these to the sheet.

    (The biscuits can be made to this point and frozen on the baking sheet, then wrapped airtight and kept for up to 2 months. Bake without defrosting — just add a couple more minutes to the oven time.)

    Bake the biscuits for 14 to 18 minutes, or until they are puffed and golden brown. Transfer them to a cooling rack — cooled a bit, they’re more sweet potatoey. Give them 10 to 15 minutes on the rack before popping them into a basket and serving.

    SERVING: Unlike most biscuits, these are best served after they’ve had a little time to cool. They are as good at brunch (they’re great with salty ham and bacon) as they are at tea (try them with a light cheese spread and/or marmalade). Or have them with butter or jam, fruit butter or fruit compote.

    STORING: You can keep the biscuits in a plastic bag overnight and give them a quick warm-up in the oven the next day, but you won’t recapture their freshly made flakiness.

    Pumpkin Shape Spritz Cookies

    By Lorraine



    Recipe that came with the Pampered Chef cookie press:

    Classic Spritz Cookies

    Ingredients:
    1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter or margarine, softened (do not substitute vegetable oil spread)
    1 cup sugar
    1 egg
    1 teaspoon vanilla
    3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (14 ounces)
    Colored sugar or sprinkles (optional)
    Directions:
    1. Preheat oven to 375°F. In Classic Batter Bowl, beat butter on medium speed of electric mixer until creamy. Add sugar, egg and vanilla; beat well. Add flour, 1 cup at a time; mix well. Dough will be soft; do not refrigerate.
    2. Fill Cookie Press, fitted with disk of your choice, with dough using Medium Scoop. Press dough onto flat Baking Stone 1 inch apart. Decorate cookies with colored sugar or sprinkles, if desired.
    3. Bake 10-12 minutes or until firm but not brown. Cool 2 minutes on flat Baking Stone; remove to Stackable Cooling Rack. Repeat with remaining dough.
    Yield: 6-7 dozen cookies. Nutrients per serving: (2 cookies): Calories 120, Total Fat 7 g, Sodium 70 mg, Fiber 0 g
    Variation: Chocolate Spritz Cookies: Decrease flour to 3 cups. Increase sugar to 1 1/4 cups. Add 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder to flour mixture. Proceed as recipe directs.

    Taste of Autumn ~ Spiced Pear Cake

    By Lorraine

    Spiced Pear Cake
    Topping:
    1/4 cup butter
    1 tbsp brown sugar
    3/4 tsp cinnamon
    2 ripe Bartlett pears, peeled & sliced thin
    Cake:
    3 cups flour
    1 tsp baking soda
    2 tsp baking powder
    1 rounded tsp ginger*
    1 rounded tsp cinnamon*
    1/2 tsp allspice*
    1/2 tsp nutmeg*
    *or substitute 3 tsp pumpkin pie spice
    1/2 tsp salt
    1/2 cup butter
    1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
    2 large eggs
    2/3 cup molasses
    1/3 cup applesauce
    1 peeled & thinly diced Bartlett pear
    Lightly butter or use cooking spray to grease your 9 inch cheesecake pan. If yours has a dimpled bottom like mine, you can add one or two pieces of parchment paper to the bottom to avoid a dimpled pear top. Make thin slices with your 1/4 cup of cold butter, and layer on the bottom of your pan. Sprinkle with a mixture of 1 tbsp brown sugar and 3/4 tsp cinnamon.
    Layer with thin slices from 2 Bartlett pears.

    For the cake:
    Mix flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices in bowl. In second bowl, mix 1/2 cup softened butter, brown sugar, eggs, applesauce, and molasses in that order. Mix flour mixture into moist egg & sugar mixture with hand mixer until blended. Once blended, add diced pear and gently fold in with spatula. Pour cake mixture over layered pears in cheesecake pan.
    Bake at 350° in regular oven or at 325° in convection oven for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, until toothpick inserted comes out clean. Allow to cool for 30 minutes. Carefully remove from pan and turn upside down onto cake plate.
    Note: Place a pan on the oven rack under the cake to catch the butter drips. I baked this recipe before it was updated and ended up having to run the exhaust fan while baking and cleaning the oven afterward. You might also try baking in a non-springform pan.
    This recipe was found on an absolutely amazing blog whose author overflows with creativity! Centsational Girl will inspire you with every post!

    In a Baking Mood

    By Lorraine

    I tried two new recipes today, a hearty, dense bread and
    a fun breakfast muffin.
    ~~~
    I have been looking for a bread with some added texture and bite by the addition of seeds/grains. This recipe caught my eye because of the wild rice (which I love). I think this recipe has potential and plan to make it again but with a slight modification. Instead of baking in a loaf pan I will shape the dough and bake on a baking sheet so it can rise a bit more.

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