Apple Crisp

Again, life is crazy busy and I have no pictures to share with you. I can tell you that every person who has had this dish enjoyed it and I have made it 3 times in the past 3 weeks! Usually I leave my apple peels on for added nutrition, but I eat so well already, I figured why not just peel them for the full apple crisp effect. Apple crisp is one of the healthiest fall desserts if you make it right. Plus, the main ingredient is apple, so you are getting a fruit serving (or two) in with each slice!

Ingredients

• 7 or so medium apples, peeled and thinly sliced (they don't all need to be perfect slices)
• 1/3 cup brown sugar, divided
• Cinnamon, apple pie spice, and nutmeg to taste
• 1/2 cup regular oats
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2-2 tbsp butter

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Spray a 9" x 9" square baking dish and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, toss apple slices, spices, and 2 tbsp brown sugar*. Pour into prepared dish.
3. In a small bowl, mix flour and oats together. Add remaining sugar and additional spices, if desired. Cut in butter until it resembles a coarse meal. To use as little butter as possible, start with 1 TBSP and add more if needed.
4. Bake for 30 minutes. Serve hot or cold.

I just found out that Jason likes his hot with ice cream but if there is no ice cream, he likes it cold...talk about high maintenance! ;)

*the apples are sweet already so you don't really need sugar in the base. If you want, you can omit the sugar (I have done this and it still tastes great) and either remove it all together or add it to the topping for an extra sweet crunch.

Delicious

So, I have been totally M.I.A again...I hate how the semesters take away from my precious blogging time.My goal is at least once per week for the next 13 weeks...yes that is right, 13 weeks until graduation (or 93 days, but who is counting). After that I'll have to come up with another excuse as to why I haven't been posting ;)

I made these cookies a few weeks ago and they are by far the BEST cookies I have ever eaten. Even better then the ooey-gooey cookies from those quaint little family-owned cookie shops that use recipes passed down from generations. The best part of this recipe is the tart cranberries with the crispy outside and chewy inside. The walnuts at just a touch of crunch to finish it off. Needless to say these did not last long.

Oatmeal-Cranberry Cookies
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/3 cup all purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup butter, softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 cups oats
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup crushed walnuts

Directions

1. Heat oven to 350F.
2. Mix flours, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl.
3. Beat butter and sugars until creamy. Add vanilla and eggs; mix well.
4. Slowly add the dry mixture to the butter mixture, beating on low. Beat until well mixed (and then place the beaters on high to get the rest off).
5. Add oats, cranberries, and walnuts and mix well with a rubber spatula or wooden spoon.
6. Drop dough onto a cookie sheet; leave about 2" apart.
7. Bake 8-10 minutes, until edges are golden.

Baking Biscotti for the Centennial Post

I can't believe it, but this is my 100th post. Prior to this I had thought I fell off the wagon when it came to posting, but now I realize that 100 posts in a little over a year isn't too shabby. Jason is at work tonight, so I will have to save the celebrating for our weekend camping :)

Lately on "Everybody Loves Raymond" Marie has been talking about biscotti. I have never made biscotti and I am not really sure why. It seems simple enough - bake the cookie twice instead of once - but for some reason the thought has never crossed my mind. With camping tomorrow and all of this talk about biscotti, I decided we could use a little treat for the trip and what better than a dessert that is already hard and doesn't need to be refrigerated? We are even bringing a french press with us to make coffee, so we can have our own little French cafe in the woods.

Chocolate Biscotti with Almonds
(adapted from multiple recipes)

Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter, soft at room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1 1/4 cup white flour
- 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder (unsweetened)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 cup slivered almonds

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350F and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl cream butter and sugar until smooth. Add egg and vanilla. Beat well.
3. In a small bowl add the remaining ingredients and mix well with a whisk.
4. Add half of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Mix with a rubber spatula until smooth. Add the remaining ingredients and mix again until smooth. The dough will be sticky.
5. Split the dough in half and place it on the parchment paper. Form the dough into a log about 12 inches long. Press down so the dough is about 1 1/2 inches thick.
6. Repeat with the remaining dough. Leave at least 2 inches between the logs (I did not and mine started to touch while baking).
7. Bake for 25 minutes. I recommend checking them at 20 minutes first. They are done once the middle is firm and the tops are starting to crack.
8. Remove from over and place parchment paper with logs on a cooling rack. Cool for 10 minutes.
9. Line the baking sheet with a new piece of parchment paper. Slice the logs into 1 inch pieces with a serrated knife and place the cut side down onto the sheet (see photo). Repeat until all of the pieces are cut.
10. Bake for 7 minutes on each cut-side to harden up the biscotti.
11. Remove from the oven. Let cool and store in an air-tight container (after enjoying one, of course).

No Pudge Brownies (with Full Pudge Frosting)

Last Sunday Jason and I were relaxing on the couch watching our favorite show, Everybody Love's Raymond. Marie had just made a huge chocolate layer cake that looked delicious. Jason turned to me and said, "Yummmm. I wish I had some chocolate cake." For some reason I had an inkling to bake, so I replied with, "Okay, I'll make you some." After 15 minutes of Jason saying he didn't need any and then following up with something like, "but, if you want to..." he finally asked for the No Pudge Brownies I had made back in February for Valentine's Day.

Ingredients
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 3/4 cup flour
- 1/2 cup cocoa
- 2 egg whites
- 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 2/3 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt
- nonstick cooking spray


Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix all dry ingredients.
3. Add yogurt and mix well. The batter will be very thick.
4. Spray a pie pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread batter evenly.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove and cool.

While making the dessert I was trying to decide if I would make any frosting and if so, what kind. We didn't have much around the house, but when as I was about the throw out the egg yolks I thought about how they could be a cheap fix for frosting. Earlier in the day I had made some iced vanilla coffee and there has a cup left in the refrigerator. I decided a coffee-flavored frosting would be perfect for this brownie. Sure enough, the frosting turned out great and was delicious with the the brownie.

Ingredients:
- 1/4 cup white sugar
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 2 beaten egg yolks
- 1/2 cup chilled coffee
- 1 tbsp butter

Directions
1. In a microwave-safe dish combine the sugar and cornstarch. Stir in the water and then add the egg yolks.
2. Cook uncovered for 3-4 minutes; be sure to stop it every minute to stir well.
3. Once cooked remove from the microwave and add the butter. Beat with egg beaters on medium speed until thickened and creamy.

*You could also do this on the stovetop in about the same amount of time.

Yes, there is sugar and fat in this dessert, but I tried to minimize how much I used without minimizing the flavor. This is quite rich and I recommend eating it with a tall glass of ice cold skim milk :)

Berry Jell-O Cheesecake

Neufchatel cheese is JUST like cream cheese but with 1/3 less fat (and ultimately 1/3 less calories). I prefer this over low-fat/fat-free cream cheese because there are fewer ingredients. All of the modified-food-whatevers freak me out a bit and I'd rather go with something that has 5 ingredients instead of 22. I bought some neufchatel cheese a while back to make an herb spread (will post that recipe in the near future). It was on sale so I bought two thinking I'd use it up in no time.

Then life happened and the next thing I knew the cheese's best-by date was just around the corner. I was torn about what to make with it - while cheesecake would be good, I didn't want to go through the hassle of making a pie crust. I searched online and found a recipe that used jell-o and neufchatel cheese - it was settled. I found a quick and easy sugar-cookie recipe for the crust and then topped with the creamy, jell-o goodness. I turned out to be quite tasty and I would make it again. However, the jell-o part is not as creamy as cheesecake, so if you are looking for something heavy this is not the recipe for you. This dessert is light and sweet - pefect for a summer BBQ.

Berry-Jello Cheesecake
Dish: square baking dish - 9 to 12 servings

Cookie Crust
-1/3 cup and 2 TBSP all purpose flour
-1/8 tsp baking soda
-1/8 tsp baking powder
-3 TBSP butter, room temp
-2 TBSP sugar
-1/8 tsp vanilla

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375F.
2. Add dry ingredients into a small bowl
3. Beat butter, sugar, and vanilla in a medium bowl.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and beat well.
5. Press into a square baking dish (you may need a little more flour to do this).
6. Bake 8-10 minutes or until the edges are golden.


Jell-O Cheesecake Filling
- 2 0.3 oz packets of sugar-free, flavored jell-o
- 2 cups of hot water
- 16 oz. container of neufchatel cheese
- splash of vanilla
- fruit (if you'd like) - we used frozen berries

Directions:
1. Mix the jell-o with the hot water until well dissolved.
2. Carefully beat in the neufchatel cheese (this can get messy, so be careful!)
3. Add in a splash of vanilla and finish beating.
4. Mix in any fruit you'd like
5. Pour over cooled cookie crust.
6. Refrigerate for a few hours, or until set.
7. Enjoy!

No Pudge Brownies

I found this recipe online and can not remember where or from whom. Because of this, I am unable to give credit where credit is due - if this is your recipe, please let me know and I would be happy to cite you.

These brownies are perfect and I am not just saying this because there is no added fat in them! They are so easy to make and taste delicious. Needless to say they did not last long. For Valentine's Day I decided to make Jason a special treat. So, I baked this brownie in a square pan, cut it out into a heart shape and then frosted it with "some-pudge" frosting, peppermint, and chocolate chips. 

No Pudge Brownies

Makes 16 servings

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup sugar
  
• 3/4 cup flour
  
• 1/2 cup cocoa
  
• 2 egg whites
  
• 2 teaspoons cornstarch
  
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
  
• 2/3 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt
  
• nonstick cooking spray

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
   
2. Mix all dry ingredients.
   
3. Add yogurt and mix well. The batter will be very thick.
4. Spray an 8x8 pan with nonstick cooking spray. Spread batter evenly.
5. Bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove and cool. 
6. Cut into the desired shape. 
7. If making into a heart, frost with Neufchatel cheese* frosting. I then topped it with crushed peppermint and chocolate chips.

*Neufchatel cheese is a low-fat version of cream cheese that does not have tons of fillers and additives like most low-fat cream cheese. Use this in place of cream cheese in any cream cheese frosting recipe.

Love

Cupcakes...everything about them makes you smile. They are your own little cake, super sweet and, portion-controlled, so you will eat just the right amount. I made these cupcakes for my mom this weekend in light of the news that she was diagnosed with breast cancer. It is very difficult to be 3 1/2 hours south with a busy schedule when you hear news like this. However, we were planning to come home this weekend anyway, so I just did what I had to do to get here early. I also like bringing something home, and I thought that this occasion warranted something sweet and delicious that I knew my mom would love. They were a hit and I hope you enjoy them.

Cupcakes with Love (from Better Homes and Garden's "Busy Day Cake" recipe)

Ingredients:

• 1 1/3 cup flour
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1 egg

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350F.
2. In a large bowl, add the flour, sugar, and baking powder. Mix until evenly combined.
3. Add the remaining ingredients. Beat on low until completely incorporated. Then beat on medium for 3 minutes.
4. Line a cupcake/muffin pan with liners and fill each 1/2 full (this is important. I filled them 3/4 full, like with muffins, and they rose over the liners!).
5. Bake for 18-25 minutes, depending on how full the liners are. They are tun with the tops are firm and an inserted toothpick come out clean.
6. Let cool 1-2 hours before frosting.

Frosting and Heart Topping (an abbreviated version of Better Homes and Garden's "Butter Frosting" recipe)

Ingredients:

• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tbsp milk (more if needed for consistency)
• 1/2-1 tsp vanilla (start with 1/2 and add more for taste)
• 2 tbsp milk (more if needed for consistency)
• Strawberries

Directions:

1. In a medium bowl, blend butter until creamy.
2. Add powdered sugar 1 tbsp at a time while blending, for the first 8 tbsp (1/2 cup)
3. Add the milk slowly and blend well.
4. Add the remaining sugar and blend on high. Continue blending until it becomes thick. If it does not become thick, add more powdered sugar. If it is too thick, add more milk.
5. Once the desired consistency is reached, add the vanilla and blend well. Taste; add more if needed.
6. Refrigerate for about 1 hour, or until the frosting looks like traditional "canned" frosting.
7. Frost
8. For the strawberries, hold the paring knife just under the stem of the strawberry and cut around the top at an angle, so only the stem comes off. Slice the strawberry in half from the top to the bottom.
9. With the paring knife, modify the top of the strawberry to be shaped like a heart. I noticed that using your fingers a little to smooth the edges helps as well.
10. Place 1 heart on each cupcake and enjoy!

Have your cake and eat it too!

Buttermilk Berry Cake
(adapted from 101cookbooks.com)
Serves 12

Ingredients
2 1/2 cups whole wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 cup fine-grain sugar (or brown sugar)
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled a bit
zest of 2 lemons
1 cup of dried cranberries (more if you like)*
3 tablespoons large grain raw sugar (use regular if that is all you have)
1 teaspoon large grain salt (use regular if that is all you have)

*the original recipe calls for raspberries, but I didn’t have any on hand, so I used dried cranberries. You can use any berry fruit you have. I noticed some cranberries burnt a little on top, so if you use dried fruit, you may want to mix them in after step 5…be sure not to over mix!

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F degrees, racks in the middle.
   
2. Grease and flour (or line bottom with parchment paper) a 9” square baking dish. You could also use a pie or tart pan.
   
3. Combine the flour, baking powder, and sugar and salt in a large bowl.
   
4. In a separate smaller bowl whisk together the eggs and the buttermilk, whisk in the melted butter, and the lemon zest.
   
5. Pour the buttermilk mixture over the flour mixture and stir until just combined - try not to over mix.
   
6. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, pushing out toward the edges. Now drop the berries across top. You can smush them a bit between your fingers before letting them fall to the cake - no so perfect looking and the juices meld with the sugar.
   
7. Sprinkle with the large grain sugar and then the salt.
   
8. Bake for about 20-25 minutes or until cake is set (or a toothpick in the center comes out clean), and a touch golden on top.

*Be sure to store in an air-tight container. I just stored it on the counter in the pan with tin foil on top and the cake was dried out in 3 days. Instead of throwing it away, we just warm it up in the microwave for about 20 seconds and that seemed to make it a little softer. The other day I had it warmed up with ice cream, and the creamy ice cream offset the dryness quite a bit.

Whole Wheat Pear and Walnut Coffee Cake

Whole Wheat Pear and Walnut Coffee Cake

(adapted from eatingwell.com)

This is a delicous, healthy alternative to orginial coffee cake. I made this for my friend Perky (mentioned in the last post) when he came for brunch before leaving for PA. It turned out to be a hit and he took about half with him for the road!

Ingredients

- 2 1/4 cups whole-wheat pastry flour

- 1/3 cup natural homemade or no-sugar added applesauce

- 1 tablespoon butter, softened

- 1 tablespoon canola oil

- 3/4 cup sugar

-1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

- 3/4 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

- 1/4 cup chopped walnuts

- 1 large egg

- 1/2 cup nonfat plain yogurt

-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

- 2 small, firm, ripe pears, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces

- 1/2 cup dried cranberries or golden raisins

Directions

1. Combine 1/4 cup flour, fruit applesauce, butter and oil in a food processor and process until smooth. Spread in a shallow pan, cover and freeze until firm but not stiff, about 45 minutes.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch square baking pan with cooking spray
3. Whisk remaining 2 cups flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a large bowl.
4. Cut the chilled fruit-puree mixture into small pieces and work into dry ingredients with your fingers or a pastry blender until crumbly.
5. Measure out 1 cup and mix with walnuts.
6. Whisk egg, yogurt and vanilla in a small bowl until smooth.
7. Stir the egg mixture into remaining dry ingredients with a rubber spatula until just moistened. Fold in pears and cranberries (or raisins).
8. Spread the batter into prepared pan.
9. Sprinkle the walnut mixture evenly over batter and press gently to help crumbs adhere.
10. Bake the cake until top is golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean 50 to 60 minutes.
11. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove pan sides and cool for 20 minutes more. Serve warm