Pull Apart Coffee Cake Two Ways: Cinnamon and Lemon

 

What do you get when you mix a cinnamon roll with a loaf of bread? Pull Apart Coffee Cake! Just imagine eating a cinnamon roll, but only the inner layer of it!Soft, buttery and oozing with that cinnamony goodness! Not to mention that decadent cream cheese frosting! Mmmmm, I can already smell those Cinnabon Cinnamon Rolls now. But today is not about the cinnamon roll, it's about Pull Apart Coffee Cake!

I woke up bright and early this morning to put this together. Finally finishing my Summer Quarter at UW, it finally gives me time to bust out the yeast and tackle bread once again. Bread in and of itself is kind of a temperamental thing to begin with. You need patience and even a little muscle power helps along in the process. However, this recipe is one of the easiest bread recipes I have made so don't feel intimidated.

This is my own adaption to the original recipe of a "Lemon Scented Pull Apart Coffee Cake". I wanted that cinnamon roll-esque flavor in the bread but I also wanted to try the lemon of the original recipe. Basically, I made a Half Cinnamon and Half Lemon Pull Apart Coffee Cake. Genius right? Who needs one flavor when you can have two!! If you want a whole loaf of either, just double the sugar filling of whatever you like.

Cinnamon and Lemon Pull-Apart Coffee Cake

From Flo Braker

Makes a 9″x5″ pan 

Sweet Yeast Dough
About 2 3/4 cups (12 1/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) granulated sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) instant yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup (2 1/2 fluid ounces) whole milk
2 ounces unsalted butter
1/4 cup (2 fluid ounces) water
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature

Lemon Sugar Filling
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoons finely grated lemon zest (1 1/2 lemons)
1/2 tablespoon finely grated orange zest

Cinnamon Sugar Filling
2 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp light brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted to be spread over the dough

Tangy Cream Cheese Icing
3 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/3 cup (1 1/4 ounces) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon whole milk
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Make the Sweet Yeast Dough
Mix two cups (nine ounces) flour, the sugar, yeast, and salt in a medium bowl with a rubber spatula. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan or in the microwave, combine the milk and the butter and heat until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat, add the water, and let rest a minute until just warm (120 to 130°F [49 to 54°C]). Stir in the vanilla extract.

Pour the milk mixture over the flour-yeast mixture and, using a rubber spatula, mix until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened. Attach the bowl to the mixer, and fit the mixer with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition just until incorporated. Stop the mixer, add 1/2 cup (2 1/4 ounces) of the remaining flour, and resume mixing on low speed until the dough is smooth, 30 to 45 seconds. Add 2 more tablespoons flour and mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth, soft, and slightly sticky, about 45 seconds.

Lightly flour a work surface and knead the dough gently until smooth and no longer sticky, about one minute. Add an additional 1-2 tablespoons of flour only if the dough is too sticky to work with. Place the dough in a large bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it rise in a warm place (about 70°F [21°C]) for 45-60 minutes or until doubled in size. An indentation made with your finger should keep its shape.

Meanwhile, make the lemon sugar and cinnamon sugar filling. Mix the sugar, lemon zest, and orange zest in one bowl and mix the sugar, brown sugar and cinnamon in another.

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease a 9″x5″ loaf pan.

Gently deflate the dough with your hand. Flour a work surface and roll the dough into a 20″ by 12″ rectangle. [I suggest using a ruler and getting this as accurate as possible, for a prettier loaf that will fit better in the pan. I also suggest making sure both sides are floured, so that the dough will be easy to lift up later.] Use a pastry brush to spread the melted butter evenly and liberally over the dough.

Use a pizza cutter to cut the dough crosswise in five strips, each about 12″ by 4″. With the dough sliced but still together, sprinkle the dough lengthwise with the all the sugar (half getting the lemon and half the cinnamon). Take each rectangle and top one over the other, making sure the lemon is over the lemon and the cinnamon is over the cinnamon. Continue to top with rectangles, so you have a stack of five 12″ by 4″ rectangles, all buttered and topped with lemon sugar for one half and cinnamon sugar for the other.

Slice this new stack crosswise, through all five layers, into 6 equal rectangles (each should be 4″ by 2″.) 3 should be all lemon and 3 should be all cinnamon. Carefully transfer these strips of dough into the loaf pan, cut edges up, side by side doing cinnamon, cinnamon, cinnamon, lemon, lemon, lemon. it might be a little roomy, but the bread will rise and expand after baking. Loosely cover the pan with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place (70 °F [21°C]) until puffy and almost doubled in size, 30 to 50 minutes. When you gently press the dough with your finger, the indentation should stay.

Bake the loaf until the top is golden brown, 30 to 35 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the cream cheese icing. Beat the cream cheese and powdered sugar in a medium bowl with a wooden spoon until smooth, then add the milk and lemon juice. Stir until creamy and smooth.

The recipe recommends you tilt and rotate the pan while tapping on a table to release the loaf. I just carefully ran a knife around it. Flip the loaf over onto a cooling rack, then flip onto another rack so that it’s right side up. Spread the top of the warm cake with the cream cheese icing, using a pastry brush to fill in all the cracks.

-Aaron John

Vanilla Dutch Baby

It's that time of year again, Mother's Day is just around the corner. Literally, it's tomorrow. ha. When I think of Mother's Day, the first food related event that comes to mind is Brunch. Whoever invented Brunch is a genius. It's not exactly, breakfast, not exactly lunch yet you can eat all the foods that are associated with those two. Another opportunity to pig out? I think so.

While you're contemplating what Brunch meal you'll be making for tomorrow, I've decided to test out a Brunch item, a Vanilla Dutch Baby. Essentially it's just a puffed pancake. Simple to make? Yes. Will  this make it on my brunch table? Not going to happen. ha. I saw this recipe as someone who made crepe batter, was lazy and thus, put all the batter in a pan and baked. For all I know, that's probably what it's supposed to taste like. But I do think you're better off just making crepes instead of making this recipe.

Tips
-I used a hand mixer instead of a blender. Just make sure you add the wet ingredients slowly and try to get the lumps of flour out in the beginning of mixing

Results
Taste: Not sweet, very eggy tasting with a slight hint of vanilla flavor.

Texture: Extremely doughy with no textural difference. Despite the edges being golden brown, it became doughy just like the center. It almost had an "uncooked" feeling when eaten.

Vanilla Dutch Baby
Recipe by Melissa d'Arabian

Ingredients
3 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk, heated 20 to 30 seconds in the microwave
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Pinch salt
1 pint fresh or frozen blueberries
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
2 tablespoons confectioners' sugar

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Place the butter in a large saute pan and place in the oven to melt.

Meanwhile, in a blender, combine the eggs, flour, hot milk, 1 tablespoon sugar, vanilla extract, and pinch of salt, and blend on medium-high speed until uniform. Cook's Note: If mixing by hand, combine the eggs with the milk until the mixture is light yellow and no longer stringy, about 1 minute. Add the flour, sugar, vanilla, and pinch of salt, and whisk vigorously to remove the lumps, about 30 seconds.

Carefully, remove the hot pan from the oven. The butter should be melted. Swirl the butter around the pan to coat completely, and then pour the remaining butter into the batter and whisk to blend. Pour the batter into the hot pan and return the pan to the oven. Cook the pancake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the pancake is puffed in the center, and golden brown along the edges.

While the Dutch baby bakes, in a small bowl combine the fresh blueberries, 1 teaspoon sugar, and lemon zest. Stir to coat, and set aside to marinate.

Using a spatula, remove the entire Dutch baby from the pan and place on a cooling rack for a few minutes to allow the steam to escape without condensing along the bottom and rendering the pancake soggy. Slice the pancake into wedges on a serving platter or cutting board and sprinkle with the confectioners' sugar through a sieve. Serve with the marinated blueberries.

-Aaron John

Red Velvet Cookies

What a crazy week! If you live in the Seattle area, you would have experienced this sort of freak "Snow Storm" that occurred this past Wednesday. Sure it was cold and below freezing but I certainly didn't expect it to snow as much as it did, if at all. I mean, it's almost March!  The weather was extremely strange. At first it was raining. After, the rain died down the sun came out, deceiving all of us Seattle-ites. Soon enough the clouds rolled back in, the temperature dropped even more and that ever so classic, snow that you only see during the Holiday season in December, came falling down.

You may think that it's a good thing that there was snow. I mean Snow days?? Oh yeah! Oh wait, but UW doesn't exactly give out Snow Days as if they were free samples at Costco. Nope, the snow has to turn the hills of Seattle into Mountain Passes for them to give them out. Oh did I mention I had midterms on Thursday and Friday as well? Snow + Midterms = Bad News.

I went to bed thinking there would be school despite the snow and boy was I right. As I woke up, I took a peak out my window and the sidewalks were full of snow and the streets were icy. I took a look at the UW website only to find out that they still opened their doors for classes to start as usual. Did I make it to school? Of course! Thankfully in one piece. ha.  Now that was an adventure. Well, that pretty much sums up my week, what about you? ha.

Tips
-Instead of the Icings, I made a basic Cream Cheese Frosting.

Results
Taste: Almost exactly like a Red Velvet Cupcake. A slightly chocolate-ly cookie paired with the tang of the cream cheese frosting

Texture: Cake like cookie with crispier edges and moist center. Topped with the creamy Cream Cheese Frosting.

Red Velvet Black and White Cookies
Recipe via Rachael Ray

Ingredients
Cookie:
1-1/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature (5 tbsp for the cookie, 3 tbsp for the frosting)
 3/4 cup granulated sugar
 1 large egg
1 tablespoon red food coloring
 1-1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
 1/2 cup buttermilk

Icing:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
2 tablespoons corn syrup
4 ounces semisweet chocolate

Downsize it:
Make mini cookies using 2-tablespoon scoops of batter

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt.

Using a mixer, beat 5 tablespoons butter with the granulated sugar until fluffy, 3 minutes. Beat in the egg, food coloring and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk until smooth.

Place 1/4-cup scoops of batter 2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheet; spread out. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out dry, 12 to 15 minutes. Let the cookies sit for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool.

In a bowl, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, remaining 1/2 teaspoon vanilla, 1 tablespoon corn syrup and 2 tablespoons hot water until smooth. In another bowl, combine the chocolate, remaining 3 tablespoons butter and 1 tablespoon corn syrup; microwave until melted, about 1 minute.

Coat the cookies with the vanilla, then the chocolate icing. Refrigerate until set, about 20 minutes.

-Aaron John

Pumpkin Cupcakes With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting And A Giveaway!

So the past two days have been SNOW DAYS here in Seattle! That makes my Thanksgiving break extended by 2 days! Yay! Speaking of Thanksgiving, Thanksgiving is here! Well, it's tomorrow but still...Thanksgiving is here!! I don't know about you but it has come just at the right time. I'm fully prepared to stuff my face with delicious food and be around family. I live for the holidays because it's one of the only times out of the year where the whole family gets together. There's just something about it that makes you all happy inside. Anywho, so it's Thanksgiving so it only seems logical to have a Thanks-giveaway! So if you haven't checked out CSN Stores after my multiple posts about CSN Stores, get to it!! Get coffee tables, a lamp, heck even get yourself a huge fountain! Whatever makes you happy. I'll talk about this later.

In honor of Thanksgiving, why not make something pumpkin related. This was my first time working with pumpkin and it was well...Interesting? ha. It was fun working with a new ingredient because I was able to increase my "Ingredient Use Count". You can read on for the end results of these cupcakes late on as well.

Now, back to what you've all been waiting for, the Thanks-Giveaway. CSN Stores is giving you the chance to win a $45 Gift Certificate for any of their online stores! I repeat, $45 Gift Certificate!! Here's how to enter:

You must be a follower of "AJ's Cooking Secrets" through the Google Friend Connect located on the left side bar of my blog to enter this giveaway. If you are not a follower, your entry and/or entries will not be counted.

You have THREE chances to enter!!

1. Leave a comment stating what you would like to buy from CSN Stores with the $45 Gift Certificate, along with your email.

2. Become a fan/liker of my Facebook Fan Page : AJ's Cooking Secrets and leave a comment below stating that you have become a fan/liker. If you are already a fan/liker of my FB Fan Page, leave a comment stating that you are.

3. Follow me on Twitter @aaronjohn04 and leave a comment below stating that you have become a follower. If you are already a follower of my twitter page, leave a comment stating that you are.

Important Guidelines:

-Must be a follower of this blog, "AJ's Cooking Secrets", through Google Friend Connect located on the left side bar for your entry/entries to count. Anyone who "enters" without being a follower of this blog will not be entered into the drawing.

-The Giveaway will last until Wednesday, December 1st, 2010 at 11:59 PM PST. The winner will be drawn using Random.org. The winner will then be announced in a blog post, on my facebook page and emailed that they are the winner. From there, the winner will be contacted by CSN Stores where you will receive a Gift Certificate Code.

Tips
-It's a fairly straightforward recipe so don't over mix the batter and don't over bake your cupcakes. Stick a toothpick into the cupcake and if there's a tiny bit of crumbs that stick, it's ready to take out. Some people say to take them out when a toothpick is clean but you have to remember that the cupcakes will somewhat continue to cook because of the heat that is retained in the pan and the cupcake itself.

Results
Taste: The cupcake itself was very reminiscent of a carrot cake in terms of the flavor of the spices but with the slight flavor of pumpkin instead of carrots. I personally felt it was missing an a "lil' somethin' somethin'". The Maple Cream Cheese frosting didn't taste like Maple. Maybe because I used a tablespoon of maple syrup instead? But it was missing that Maple flavor. 

Texture: Definitely a moist cupcake because of the use of the pumpkin and the oil. The frosting was smooth and creamy.


Pumpkin Cupcakes With Maple Cream Cheese Frosting (Makes 10 cupcakes)
Recipe by Ina Garten

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup canned pumpkin purée (8 ounces), not pie filling
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1/2 cup vegetable oil
Maple Frosting (recipe follows)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped Heath bars, for serving (2 1.4-ounce bars)

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Brush or spray the top of 10 muffin tins with vegetable oil and line them with 10 paper liners.

Into a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg. In a larger bowl, whisk together the eggs, pumpkin purée, granulated sugar, brown sugar, and vegetable oil. Add the flour mixture and stir until combined.

Divide the batter among the prepared tins (I use a level 2 1/4-inch ice cream scoop) and bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool completely.

Spread the cupcakes with the Maple Frosting and sprinkle with the chopped toffee bits.

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
6 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/4 teaspoon Boyajian Natural Maple Flavor
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the cream cheese and butter on low speed until smooth. Stir in the maple flavoring and vanilla extract. With the mixer still on low, slowly add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth.

-Aaron John

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Coconut Cupcakes

These last couple of weeks, I've been bombarded with a plethora of school work! (Don't you just love my sophisticated language? ha). From readings, to assignments, to labs and post labs and now midterms, I have been super busy. I've been SOOOO determined to do extremely well in my full load of classes though so hopefully it will be worth it. Also, I have narrowed my major down to two choices! Either Biochemistry/Pharmacy or Pre-Nursing. I guess we'll find out what I choose by the end of the year! :)

Back to this week's post for Coconut Cupcakes. If you have a facebook account, you may have noticed, in the last couple of weeks, that your friends may be posting a status that says 'I like it on the ___(Fill In The Blank)___". In addition, you may have noticed that only females were posting this. I'm about to de-mystify what this means! So what was this about? Breast Cancer Awareness Month..Duhhhh! lol. How this status relates to Breast Cancer Awareness, I have no clue, but the message does have us ask "Why the status?" and thus, it brings awareness. To bring awareness to Breast Cancer, I made Coconut Cupcakes with a Pink Buttercream. I only felt it would be right to do something for Breast Cancer Awareness since it is this month. Plus, since it is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, you definitely have to have something Pink inspired. ha. How will you honor Breast Cancer Awareness?

Also, if you still haven't entered my giveaway for a $55 Gift Certificate for CSN Stores, just check out my post for "Love Potion #31 Cookies". You can enter until October 20th.

Results

Taste: The cake had a distinct almond-vanilla flavor which brings out the flavor of the coconut. I wasn't able to test out the cream cheese frosting however...

Texture: Not exactly a soft and fluffy cake. More dense than a regular cupcake but not as dense as a pound cake. The coconut that was mixed into the batter gave a nice textural difference to the cake. 

Tips
-I did not fill the cupcake liners to the top as the recipe says. If you do, your cupcakes will rise too much and bake onto the cupcake pan. I filled mine with about 3 tbsp of batter so about 2/3 to 3/4 of the way up.

-Other people have variations of this recipe. I even saw some using toasted coconut instead! :)

Coconut Cupcakes (Makes 24 Cupcakes)

Recipe by Ina Garten

Ingredients

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

2 cups sugar

5 extra-large eggs at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk

14 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut

For the frosting:

1 pound cream cheese at room temperature

3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract

1 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold in 7 ounces of coconut.

Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each liner to the top with batter. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely.

Meanwhile, make the frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth.

Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining coconut.

-Aaron John

My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure

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Red Velvet Cupcakes And A Day That Only Comes Once A Year!!

Okay, guess what today is? No, I'm not talking about the 4th of July or Canada Day. This day only comes once a year...It usually involves cakes and candles...Sometimes there are balloons and streamers...Got it yet? Nope? Well, what if I tell you that it is one person's special day that comes once a year? Now? Well, I'll just tell you!! Today, July 1st, is my birthday!! :D I'm turning, what I think is a weird number, 19 years old! The last year in the teen years. Boy do I feel old.....JKJK But really, I can't believe I'm already 19 years old. It seems like it was yesterday when I was sitting in my living room watching my top 3 Disney movies of all time: "The Lion King", "Aladdin" and "Mulan". Then there is Toy Story. Sadly to say, I haven't seen the third movie yet but every time I hear the song from Toy Story, "You've Got a Friend In Me", I think about my childhood.

Anyway, so I'm turning 19 years old, but what's special about 19 years old? when you turn 16, you can get your license. When you're 17, you get to see Rated R movies. When you're 18, you're legal. When you're 20, you're out of the teen years. When you're 21, you are at the legal age to drink and what not. BUT, what is special about 19? I guess I'll find out this year. Today will be filled with hanging out with some of my good friends from High School, watching a movie, eating at the Cheesecake Factory and whatever I may want to do. I'm prepared to do anything. Well....maybe not everything.....

So, what goes better with birthdays than cake?! What is better than cake than CUPCAKES!! That's what I made today, just for my birthday. So how did I decide on Red Velvet for my birthday? Well, I have yet to find a great vanilla cake recipe (which is my favorite), but I wasn't craving chocolate cake either. Thus, I have made Red Velvet Cupcakes. I think it's really a combination of a vanilla cake and a chocolate cake. It has a slight hint of both chocolate and vanilla without them overpowering one another. Plus, I have found that there has been a craze over Red Velvet Cupcakes for some reason. So here goes. I made my Red Velvet Cupcakes, piped them on with cream cheese frosting, sprinkled them with red sugar and topped it with a birthday candle. Does this scream "Birthday" or what...Maybe it screams 4th of July because of the blue candle...but NO! It's my birthday. haha.

I actually won't be posting the recipe for my Red Velvet Cupcakes. Sorry!! I'll explain. I actually want to open a Cupcake Shop and so will my Cupcake Shop be successful if my recipes for them are posted on the web? I think not. You see, if my cupcake recipes are posted on the web, why would anyone want to go to my shop if they can make it at home? I have already perfected my Red Velvet Cupcake recipe and I can't find it in me to post it. Don't be sad though!! I have decided that I will meet you guys half way. I'll find recipes that are close to mine but are not the same. Sounds good? kk. Here's a similar recipe!

Red Velvet Cupcakes
Ingredients
Cupcakes:
10 ounce cake flour (about 2 1/2 cups)
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1 1/2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 tablespoons red food coloring (about 1 ounce)

Frosting:
5 tablespoons butter, softened
4 teaspoons buttermilk
1 (8-ounce) block cream cheese, softened
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar (about 1 pound)
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions
Preheat oven to 350°.

To prepare the cupcakes, place 24-30 (depending on how big you want your cupcakes to be) paper muffin cup liners in muffin cups; coat with cooking spray.

Weigh or lightly spoon cake flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine cake flour, unsweetened cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl; stir with a whisk. Place granulated sugar and unsalted butter in a large bowl; beat with a mixer at medium speed until well blended (about 3 minutes). Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour mixture and 1 1/4 cups buttermilk alternately to sugar mixture, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Add white vinegar, 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla, and food coloring; beat well.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups. Bake at 350° for 20 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes on wire rack; remove from pan. Cool completely on wire racks.

To prepare frosting, beat 5 tablespoons butter, 4 teaspoons buttermilk, and cream cheese with a mixer at high speed until fluffy. Gradually add powdered sugar; beat until smooth. Add 1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla; beat well. Spread frosting evenly over cupcakes.


-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze

Lately, I've been craving Blueberry Scones. I haven't had one in a very long time. The first ever Blueberry Scone I had came from Starbucks and it was beyond good. It had a crunchy layer of sugar on the top, was buttery on the inside and the blueberries were tart and sweet. Just describing them makes me want to go buy one right now. But instead, I have a funny story to tell you that my friend told me about. My friend was at "By George", which is a cafe/food place underneath UW's Odegaard library, waiting in line to order. A girl in front of her ordered a muffin and when the cashier returned with the girl's order, she gave her a scone. Okay, who gets a muffin confused with a scone?! They look totally different! Anyway, since it's finals week here at UW, I thought Blueberry Scones would be a good "brain food" to eat before my FINAL EXAM. That's right, I only have ONE Final Exam and I took FOUR classes this quarter. I'm so happy about that. So, I searched high and low for a Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze recipe and ended up with one by Tyler Florence. His Blueberry Scones got rave reviews so I said "Why not?". Tyler Florence is a really great chef so I trust that he can make great food.

I did exactly what the recipe said. I cut the butter into the flour mixture and added the heavy cream. I noticed that the dough was very strange. It was extremely dry and thick so I had to add even more heavy cream. Then, I added the fresh blueberries (which I froze to try and reduce crushing them) and things got even worse. It was almost impossible to mix in the blueberries into the dough. Every which way, the blueberries were getting crushed even though they were frozen! The skins of the blueberries were peeling off and created a huge mess. I wasn't able to fully mix in the blueberries and to top it all off, now I had to pat it down so I can cut scones. I think you get the picture now, right? Patting them down led to more smashing. At this point, I was completely over and annoyed by this recipe and so I just cut out these scones, brushed them with heavy cream and sprinkled them with sugar. When they came out of the oven, they looked like deformed rectangles. Some weren't even cooked so I had to take out the ones that were cooked and put the rest back into the oven. At this point, I was so done with the recipe that I didn't want to waste more ingredients on these scones by making the glaze. Nothing could save them now. When I ate one, it wasn't that great. It was so doughy and dense. It wasn't fluffy and flakey like I hoped. Maybe I'll try it again but I don't want to put myself through this misery. Here's the recipe if you actually want to try out these scones. Because of this horrible recipe, I will make Blueberry Coffee Cake Muffins tomorrow so look out for that.

Blueberry Scones with Lemon Glaze (Makes 8 scones)
Ingredients
Blueberry Scones:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, cut in chunks
1 cup heavy cream, plus more for brushing the scones
1 cup fresh blueberries
Lemon Glaze:
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 lemon, zest finely grated
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Sift together the dry ingredients; the flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Using 2 forks or a pastry blender, cut in the butter to coat the pieces with the flour. The mixture should look like coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center and pour in the heavy cream. Fold everything together just to incorporate; do not overwork the dough. Fold the blueberries into the batter. Take care not to mash or bruise the blueberries because their strong color will bleed into the dough.

Press the dough out on a lightly floured surface into a rectangle about 12 by 3 by 1 1/4 inches. Cut the rectangle in 1/2 then cut the pieces in 1/2 again, giving you 4 (3-inch) squares. Cut the squares in 1/2 on a diagonal to give you the classic triangle shape. Place the scones on an ungreased cookie sheet and brush the tops with a little heavy cream. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes until beautiful and brown. Let the scones cool a bit before you apply the glaze.

Technically you should make this simple lemon glaze in a double boiler (i.e. over a pot of simmering water with a heatproof bowl set on top) but it's even simpler to zap it in the microwave. Mix the lemon juice and confectioners' sugar together in a microwave-safe bowl. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Add the lemon zest and butter. Nuke it for 30 seconds on high. Whisk the glaze to smooth out any lumps, then drizzle the glaze over the top of the scones. Let it set a minute before serving.



-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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"Strawberry Shortcake" Cookies

I have a love for many things strawberry. From the simple chocolate dipped strawberry, strawberry jams, strawberry ice cream and so forth. Then, there's my love for the Strawberry Kellogg's Special K Bars. These are my favorite to eat, especially during my two hour breaks in between classes at UW. They are a great snack to have and have a great sweetness. They taste similar to "Cap'n Crunch Berries". If you haven't tried them, you should!! Well, one day during my two hour break, I got an inspiration. I wanted to make a strawberry cookie that had the same intense strawberry sweetness that the Special K Bar had. Shouldn't be too hard right? I mean, I said to myself "I can probably just add strawberry extract to my chocolate chip cookie recipe and it would be done".

Well, I started to read the ingredients in the Special K Bar to see what the strawberry looking pieces were because if I was going to make a cookie like these bars, it should have some strawberry pieces right? However, these "strawberry pieces" in the Bars were actually CRANBERRIES! o__O What a revelation. A strawberry bar that doesn't have strawberries?! Say Whaaaaa?! It made my life a little easier though because I made "White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies" before. So, I would just have to add strawberry extract to this cookie. I did exactly that. In this case, I used imitation strawberry extract. I don't usually do or recommend this. If anything, get the pure stuff. However, after going to four different stores, they either had the imitation extract or none at all. Anywho, I used about 2 tsp. of the imitation strawberry extract and mixed it into the "White Chocolate Cranberry Cookies". Then I scooped and baked them. After coming out of the oven and cooled, I drizzled them with a simple icing made out of powdered sugar and milk. These cookies were delicious!! The cookies had the strawberry sweetness, the cranberries gave a tartness and the chocolate gave a vanilla creaminess. I gave them the name "'Strawberry Shortcake' Cookies" because the white chocolate chips really gave the creamy, vanilla factor that whip cream gives strawberry shortcakes. This has become one of my favorites!! :D Here was my simple icing recipe.

Vanilla Icing (Good for a batch of 8 cookies)
Ingredients
1/4 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon milk
A Splash of vanilla

Directions
Place all ingredients in a bowl and mix until smooth. Once finished, check to see if the icing is able to be drizzled easily. If not, add more milk. If too thin, add more powdered sugar. Once at desired thickness, drizzle lightly over the cookies.

-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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Pasencia Cookies

Let's be a little cultural for this post. Pasencia Cookies are filipino cookies that resemble "Nilla Wafers". I think I have had these Pasencia Cookies once before but that might have been a long time ago. So, while surfing the web, I randomly came across this recipe. Since it did look like a "Nilla Wafer" in their photo, I wondered if it would be the same, or even better than those famous "Nilla Wafers". I personally don't like "Nilla Wafers". I mean, there is nothing wrong with the flavor of them. However, whenever I buy a brand new bag and open it up, the cookies always seem to be stale. They aren't as "crispy" as I would like them to be. For instance, when you buy a package of Oreos, the cookies are always "crispy". Then over time, they become stale and have a "soggy-ness" to them. That "soggy-ness" is the same texture I find in a brand new bag of "Nilla Wafers". Does that happen to you? What do you think about "Nilla Wafers"? Leave a comment and tell me :)

Anyways, back to this Pasencia Cookie recipe. This recipe is fairly simple. The only hard part may be the whipping of the egg whites, especially if you're doing that by hand. Thank God for electric mixers! After that, it's pretty simple. Overall, the cookies did not taste like "Nilla Wafers". They tasted more along the lines of a roasted marshmallow with a chewy, sugar-y bite to them. Is it something you will crave? Don't think so. But, for it's simplicity, it has a good amount of flavor. Here's the recipe!

Pasencia Cookies
Ingredients
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
2 large egg whites
1/2 tsp lemon juice (or 1/4 tsp. cream of tartar)
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
2 tbsp granulated sugar

Directions
Preheat Oven to 275ºF

Prepare a half-sheet pan or cookie sheet lined with parchment paper or silicone.

Sift together 1/2 cup of powdered sugar and flour. Set aside until needed.

In a clean bowl, whip the egg whites until frothy. Add the lemon juice, vanilla extract, and granulated sugar. Whip the egg whites to stiff peaks. Using a wide rubber spatula, fold in the sifted flour and confectioner's sugar. Continue folding until the flour and sugar are thoroughly absorbed and the meringue is smooth and glossy. When tilting the bowl, the meringue should
move sluggishly.

Deposit the batter into a pastry bag fitted with a round pastry tip (about 1/4- to 1/2-inch opening). With the pastry tip perpendicular to the sheet pan, pipe 3/4-inch rounds spaced about 1 inch apart.

Bake for 22 to 26 minutes, or until the edges of the cookies turn light brown. Let the cookies cool for at least 15 minutes before removing from the sheet pan. The cookies will be fragile while warm but will crisp as they cool.

-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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Mexican Wedding Cookies

Mexican Wedding Cookies have many different names. Some call it a "Russian Tea Cakes", others a "Butterball". A Mexican Wedding Cookie is simple to make and is a mixture of sugar, butter, flour and nuts. This is my first time making Mexican Wedding Cookies and I have no idea how this will turn out. This recipe comes from Paula Deen. Just by looking at the ingredients, I hope this cookie doesn't end up tasting like Butter Pecan Ice Cream. That's the one flavor I absolutely hate. That and rainbow ice cream. They are absolutely gross! Anyway, I made the dough which was fairly simple since it didn't require much ingredients. After the dough was made, you can either make the cookies in crescents or balls. I decided to make them into crescents. I baked and let them cool just a bit. I tried one by itself without powdered sugar and they weren't sweet at all. They definitely needed that coating of powdered sugar. Overall, these cookies were pretty good. They didn't taste like Butter Pecan Ice Cream. In texture, these cookies were very "sandy" which I kind of liked because it's a new texture than a chewy chocolate chip cookie. These were buttery, nutty from the pecans, and slightly sweet from the powdered sugar. Here's the recipe.

Mexican Wedding Cookies
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, plus more for coating baked cookies
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting hands
1 cup pecans, chopped into very small pieces

Directions
Preheat the oven to 275 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar at low speed until it is smooth. Beat in the vanilla. At low speed gradually add the flour. Mix in the pecans with a spatula. With floured hands, take out about 1 tablespoon of dough and shape into a crescent. Continue to dust hands with flour as you make more cookies. Place onto prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 40 minutes. When cool enough to handle but still warm, roll in additional confectioners' sugar. Cool on wire racks.


-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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Profiteroles with Vanilla and Mocha Pastry Cream

Profiteroles with pastry cream, a.k.a. "cream puffs", are a classic treat. I remember having "cream puffs" a long time ago. However, the only "cream puffs" I've had came from the frozen food section of Costco. While it was a great treat on a hot summer day, I asked myself, "Is this really what a "cream puff" is? Is this what it's suppose to taste like?". On a mission to discover what was better, I decided to make "cream puffs" of my own. However, there are many "cream puff" recipes out there. So, which one do I choose? Do I choose one that's simple or hard to make? Do I choose one where I like the end picture? Well, after searching, I ended up with this recipe from another blog called "Annie's Eats". I decided on this recipe because compared to other recipes, these not only looked good, but they seemed more flavorful than the other recipes that I have seen. The process to make these is actually time consuming. From making the pastry cream, to making the dough, baking up the dough, filling them up and dipping them in chocolate, it took a long time. However, these cream puffs were DELICIOUS and worth the effort!!! So much better than the store bought ones. The dough was slightly sweet, the vanilla pastry cream tasted similar to vanilla ice cream and the mocha pastry cream tasted similar to coffee ice cream. With all of that, topped with powdered sugar for the mocha filled ones and chocolate topped for the vanilla filled ones, how can you go wrong? Definitely use this recipe to impress others! In addition, I did tweak the pastry cream recipe so that it was easier to make and more flavorful than what the recipe has. That will be my secret :) For the mocha pastry cream, I simply added chocolate and espresso powder. Here's the untweaked recipe.

Cream Puffs
Ingredients:
For the pastry cream:
2 cups half-and-half
½ cup sugar
Pinch salt
5 large egg yolks
3 tbsp. cornstarch
4 tbsp. cold unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
1½ tsp. vanilla extract
For the pâte à choux:
2 large eggs plus 1 large egg white
5 tbsp. unsalted butter, cut into 10 pieces
2 tbsp. whole milk
6 tbsp. water
1½ tsp. sugar
¼ tsp. salt
½ cup (2½ oz.) all-purpose flour
For the chocolate glaze:
3 tbsp. half-and-half
2 oz. semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 cup (4 oz.) confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Directions:
To make the pastry cream, heat the half-and-half, 6 tablespoons of the sugar, and the salt in a saucepan over medium-high heat until simmering, stirring occasionally to dissolve the sugar. Meanwhile, combine the egg yolks and remaining 2 tablespoons sugar in a medium bowl and whisk until the sugar has begun to dissolve and the mixture is creamy, about 15 seconds. Whisk in the cornstarch until combined and the mixture is pale yellow and thick, about 30 seconds.
When the half-and-half mixture has reached a simmer, slowly add it to the egg yolk mixture to temper, whisking constantly. Return the mixture to the saucepan, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula. Return the mixture to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until a few bubbles burst on the surface and the mixture is thickened and glossy, about 30 seconds. Off the heat, whisk in the butter and vanilla. Strain the pastry cream through a fine mesh sieve set over a medium bowl. Press plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming and refrigerate until cold and set, at least 3 hours and up to 2 days.

To make the pâte à choux, whisk the eggs and egg white in a liquid measuring cup. You should have ½ cup (discard the excess). Set aside. Combine the butter, milk, water, sugar and salt in a small saucepan. Heat over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring once or twice. When it reaches a full boil and the butter is fully melted, remove from the heat and stir in the flour until incorporated and the mixture clears the sides of the pan. Return the saucepan to low heat and cook, stirring constantly, using a smearing motion, until the mixture is slightly shiny, looks like wet sand and tiny beads of fat appear on the bottom of the pan (the mixture should register 175-180˚ F on an instant-read thermometer.

Immediately transfer the mixture to a food processor and process with the feed tube open to cool slightly, 10 seconds. With the machine running, gradually add the reserved eggs in a steady stream. When they have been added, scrape down the sides of the bowl, then process 30 seconds more until a smooth, thick, sticky paste forms.

Place an oven rack in the middle position and preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a ½-inch plain tip with the pâte à choux. Pipe the paste into 1½-inch mounds on the prepared baking sheet, spacing them about 1 to 1¼ inches apart (you should be able to fit 24 mounds on the baking sheet). Use the back of a teaspoon dipped in water to even out the shape and smooth the surface of the piped mounds.

Bake for 15 minutes (do not open the oven door during baking). Reduce the oven temperature to 375˚ F and continue to bake until golden brown and fairly firm, 8-10 minutes longer. Remove the baking sheet from the oven. Use a paring knife, cut a ¾-inch slit into the side of each puff to release steam; return the puffs to the oven, turn the oven off, and prop open the oven door with the handle of a wooden spoon. Dry the puffs in the turned-off oven until the centers are just moist (not wet) and the puffs are crisp, about 45 minutes. Use a sharp paring knife to poke a hole through the bottom or side to check the interior. Transfer the puffs to a wire rack to cool completely. (At this point the puffs can be stored at room temperature for up to 24 hours or frozen for up to 1 month in an airtight plastic bag. Before serving, crisp in the oven at 300˚ F – 5-8 minutes for room temperature puffs, 8-10 minutes for frozen puffs.)

To fill the puffs, use the tip of a paring knife to make a small cut perpendicular to the first, creating an X in the side of each puff. Fill a pastry bag fitted with a ¼-inch plain tip with the pastry cream. Pipe some of the pastry cream through the X into the side of each puff until it starts to ooze back out. Repeat to fill all the puffs.

To make the glaze, place the half-and-half and chocolate in a medium microwave-safe bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and microwave for 20 seconds at a time, until the mixture just begins to steam. Whisk together thoroughly, add the confectioners’ sugar, and whisk until completely smooth. Dip the tops of the filled cream puffs in the chocolate glaze and transfer to a wire rack until the glaze has set completely. Serve within several hours.


-Aaron John
My Food Outings: AJ's Food Adventure
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