Brown Butter Snickerdoodles

It's been a very long time since my last post. Life just seems to get in the way and take over. Sometimes I feel like I'm standing on the corner, watching my life go by but not participating in it.

Too fast, too much- gotta slow down and take things easy, get priorities in order and do what I need but also what I love. And that is baking! The summer has been so hot here ( I know it's already October, but here you'd think it was the middle of July) that the thought of going into the kitchen and turning on the oven has been a complete no-no.

I have also returned to work after a wonderful sabbatical year and it has been much more difficult getting back into the groove than I had imagined. But that's another story altogether.

To keep my sanity and follow my thoughts of doing what I love, I am finally getting back to some baking. 

Snicker doodles are a basic old-fashioned type of cookies, that believe it or not, I had never tried. They sounded uninteresting and dry to me - just never caught my fancy. This was my opportunity to give them a try since I trust and respect and love just about every recipe that comes from Baked. If they make them, then they've got to be good. 

Browning the butter was easier than I had expected. The cookies came out great, with the amazing help of my granddaughter , Ronny. She did all the rolling in cinnamon and placing them on the cookie sheet. We had so much fun!

You can find the recipe here, at Baked Sunday Mornings. Give them a try, you won't be sorry!

in the oven

Ronny doing her thing

New Look

I'm playing around with some new looks for my blog. Bear with me while I try out new templates and arrangements. Feel free to make any comments- good , bad or indifferent- your input is valued!
In the meantime, a delicious Oriental Ramen Noodle Salad for hot summer days.
Sorry, no picture, but believe me, it's worth it.

Oriental Ramen Noodle Salad

Printable recipe

1 pkg. ramen noodles whatever flavor you want- break them up and put on a baking sheet and toast them for 5- 10 min. watch them so they don’t burn. You can do this in advance. I also toast the sunflower seeds and almonds with them

½ cup sunflower seeds

¾ cup sliced thin almonds

2-3 green onions

½ green pepper, ½ red pepper

½- 1 head of cabbage- chopped like cold slaw in thin slices

Dressing

½ cup sugar- I use a LOT less, more like ¼ cup

1/3 cup vinegar (I use regular, not wine, but I suppose you could, white would be better than red)

½ cup canola oil

seasoning pack from the noodles

Mix and shake all together.

Put cabbage in a serving bowl, add toasted noodles, nuts, seeds and veggies to slaw, add dressing and toss well.

Delish!

Here and There.....

It's been quite a while since my last post. I've been doing some traveling- the U.S. to visit family and organize American citizenship for my grandchildren. Everything went smoothly and they are now officially "Americans".

 

Visiting girlfriends in Arizona and New York ( no kids this time- just  on my own!!) was one of the best times I've had in a long while. Lots of good eats, shopping, girl talk and laughing. Definitely a recommended getaway! I walked the streets of New York endlessly. I can't ever seem to get enough of that city. So much to see, experience, EAT(!!!) and buy. And EAT- did I mention that?

 (do ya think I like sweets?)

Upon my return home, I had a few baking projects awaiting. Here are a few.

soccer cake for a birthday party

Strawberry Shortcake cookies for my granddaughter's 3rd birthday

dragon cookies for a knight in shining armor

My husband surprised me with a quick weekend getaway to Warsaw. I know that doesn't sound like the most amazing destination, but it is an amazing city with a fascinating history. Since the city was completely destroyed at the end of WWII, everything is new. The Old City has been reconstructed exactly as it was and the cobblestone streets have much to offer in the way of food, cafes and street performances. We had excellent weather ( as opposed to the forecast which predicted rain, lightening and thunder..???) and walked our feet of, as we do in every city we visit.

an amazing candy store in Warsaw- such beautiful colors and designs!

cutting the candy on the premises- she was cutting so fast I was afraid she might take a finger off!

the one remaining synagogue in Warsaw

the only remaining building from the Warsaw ghetto

photos of residents past

In the interim, there have been a few Friday night dinners at home with kids and grand-kids. Some good recipes ( to be posted in the near future- hopefully).

One more jaunt before the end of my sabbatical ( sigh, sigh... it has been so awesome). We are off to Vienna and Germany for 12 days at the end of June. Looking forward to seeing a close friend in Frankfurt, traveling by car and seeing the sites.

That's it for now- just a quick catch up before I get back in to the swing of things.

Enjoy!

Last Days of Passover

 

 Another eight days of matzoh is coming to an end. Although some feel that this holiday  is very limiting as far as baking goes, I actually look upon it as a challenge. I enjoy making cakes and sweets that are good enough not to be identified as "Passover versions". They need to be good enough to make and eat all year long. A  flour less chocolate cake (recipe and pics to come at another time) that is more like fudge than cake, and these Passover Coconut Macaroon Twix Bars from Kitchen Tested. These were a big hit, absolutely delicious and can be adapted for all year round.

One of my most reliable sources for amazing recipes is Smitten Kitchen. I don't think I've ever had a failure with anything of Deb's. This chocolate-hazelnut macaroon torte is a perfect example. Deb does not like using matzoh meal in any of her creations, so this has a multiple layer of large macaroons using ground hazelnuts (I didn't have enough hazelnuts so I used some ground almonds as well- worked just fine). I tasted some crumbs of the layers and it's just yummy! Mine didn't come out quite as pretty as hers, but I am happy with the result.

 

 Off for a month long trip to the U.S. with probably not much baking if any.  Happy Spring!

Malted Milk Sandwich Cookies

These cookies almost didn't make it to the blog. I thought I was being so efficient, making them in advance, being ready to photograph and post on time. They went over so big that I sent whatever was leftover from Friday night dinner, home with my daughter. Suddenly realizing I hadn't photographed even one cookie, I quickly called her and asked if any were left. Yes! Save a few , I asked, and I'll come over tomorrow morning to take a few shots before they disappear into my granddaughter's stomach!

And so it was. These cookies really were delicious, easy to make and have a beautiful warm, deep flavor. The recipe calls for a vanilla filling, which I'm sure is perfect with it, and I will try it next time. This time, I took a short cut and used some the leftover butter cream from a previous recipe, that I had frozen. I defrosted the butter cream and re-whipped to fluff it back up -worked just wonderfully. It's definitely worth freezing frosting if you have leftover- you never know when it may come in handy.

 You can find the recipe here- give them a try!

Honey Banana Poppy Seed Bread(?) Loaf(?) Cake(?)

Saturday morning, March 2nd- an amazingly gorgeous day! The sun is shining, not a cloud in the sky. Warm enough to walk outside with short sleeves, but still with that pleasant coolness in the air. A perfect day for what ever you want to do! I just returned from a long walk feeling energized and refreshed.Unfortunately, I didn't take my camera with me to show you how beautiful a day it is but you can probably imagine. Every time I get lazy about taking my walk ( I try to comply at least 3 times a week), I need to think about how good I feel after. It is definitely worth it.

  

This week , Baked Sunday Mornings is making this lovely, refreshing honey banana poppy seed loaf. As usual, I changed the pan it was baked it. Instead of making a loaf, I used this mini bundt pan that has been sitting in the cupboard, crying out to be used more often. The recipe is ridiculously easy and for those of you who either don't have a mixer or hate taking it out, this one is for you. All done by hand, comes together in a few minutes and poof! , you have something to serve guests or munch on by yourself! I had some leftover mixture and made a few muffins as well. Sprinkled with a little powdered sugar, they are are a perfect individual portion for afternoon tea, breakfast, midnight snack.........whenever!

You can get the recipe here.

Hope your Saturday is as lovely as mine!    

Vanilla Bean and Chocolate Budino

Budino- never heard the word before. Looked it up ( even though it said what it was  in Baked Explorations) and it is basically the Italian word for pudding or custard.

Surprisingly easy to make, the rich, velvety texture bears no resemblance whatsoever to store bought stuff. 

It really is a few moments in heaven as the rich, but not too sweet custard slides down your throat, and you get the slight hint of the bourbon /vanilla from the white pudding ( love seeing those specks of vanilla!) and the creamy softness of the milk chocolate.

You can eat it with or without the whipped cream- just looks pretty I think.

Grab the recipe here and enjoy!

Speculaas (better known as Biscoff cookies)

Today, I am the rogue baker. According to the recipe schedule for Baked Sunday Mornings, I should be making these. Alas, no one home to eat them, besides the fact that I am missing so many of the ingredients and was nowhere near the mood to go out and get them (like when else will I use a bottle of whiskey?!)

Since I joined this group of bakers after they had completed many of the recipes in the book Baked Explorations, I decided to go back and make one of recipes I've had my eye on for a while (one they'd already done). 

This cookie, called speculaas or speculoos depending on where you look, has it's origins in Holland or Belgium and is a type of shortbread flavored with warm, delicious spices. I first encountered  them years ago when flying and remember them being served as a snack after take off. They are made by the Biscoff Company, come individually wrapped, ( although now you can get them in a bulk type package- easier to eat the whole pack!!!) and as far as I'm concerned , one of the best tasting cookies I've ever had. The newest rage is this spread they've come out with- undoubtedly the most incredible, addicting, amazing thing in this world. The possibilities for using it are endless ( I'll have a few recipes coming up in future posts), but frankly, I'm happy licking it off the spoon while hiding in my closet so no one can see me devouring half a jar.

OK, back to the cookies. These are the "Baked" version of speculaas. They say it was the closest they could come to the original and I agree. Mine turned out a bit crispier than the original, but crispy is fine with me. There was a bit stronger presence of ginger, whereas the original seemed to have more of a stronger cinnamon taste. Doesn't really matter, because they are scrumptious. Great with a cup of coffee, tea or a nice cold glass of milk. Yum! Dipping them in the milk and having the milk taste like the cookies in the end! Trust me, try it.

One thing I loved about this cookie is how easy it is to make. No mixer required!  You can find the recipe here.

Chocolate Ginger Molasses Cookie

Ginger snap cookies have always been one of my favorites. Here, the combination of chocolate and ginger is a pleasant variation. They have that spicy nip of the ginger with the not overwhelming influence of the chocolate. The cookies actually come out looking more chocolatey than they really are. The consistency of the cookie is just right, not too soft and not too crunchy.

They are a great base for decorated cookies , which I so love to do. I used the opportunity to do some Valentine shapes and a few simple designs with the icing. While I enjoy the process of the decorating, I prefer to eat them plain.

 These are easy to make and you can cut them in  any shape to suit your purpose.
Here's the link for the recipe.

Jerusalem Culinary Tour #3 Old City

Directly outside Jaffa Gate- what a welcome in to the Old City! A "must" to begin the journey inside the walled city!

The main street inside Jaffa Gate, this is the "tourist" market, where you can find typical souvenirs and religious items for Judaism, Christianity and Islam.

In Hebrew "Termos" , in English, lupini beans ( don't worry if you've never heard of them before, I certainly hadn't!) Mainly found in Mediterranean countries, they a legume with a thick skin. They are sold here, cooked, salted and served in little bags for an "eating as you walk" type of thing. From my research I found they are native to Italy and their consumption most likely started with the Romans and eventually became a staple of the Mediterranean diet.

warm fava beans, also eaten by the bag while touring through the Old City

The temptations are endless!

One of the many sweets you can find in numerous shops

"Burma"- a roll of kadayif filled with pistachios and soaked in sugar/rose water syrup

"atayef"- a pancake type of dough, rolled over a filling of walnuts and cinnamon, then fried

"basbousa"-semolina cake drenched in a syrup of sugar and rose water

a variety of cookies

This was, unfortunately, the last in the series of culinary tours. I enjoyed every minute and learned so much. Now, it's time for me to branch out on my own and visit other marketplaces in Israel, each with it's own flavors, scents and interesting stories!