a what?

"a snickerdoodle"

"what's that?"

"basically a sugar cookie covered in cinnamon sugar"

i haven't the slightest idea where these came from or how they ended up with that name. but an old co-worker first suggested them years ago and i just got around to making them. (yes, my to-do list is insanely long and growing!)

don't be like me.

they're the perfect cookie with your afternoon tea...or your morning cup of coffee...or before the morning cup of coffee, after the morning cup of coffee, before lunch, after lunch, afternoon snack, before dinner...i basically ate them all day long!

snickerdoodles
adapted from Martha Stewart

2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, room temperature
1 3/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
2 large eggs, room temperature

1. sift together flour, cream of tartar, baking soda and salt. set aside. cream together butter and 1 1/2 cups of sugar using electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment. beat on medium speed until light and fluffy (about 2 minutes). scrape down the sides and add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. add the dry ingredients and beat to combine. chill the dough for an hour.
2. after the hour is up, preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack set in the middle. line baking sheets with silicone baking mat or parchment paper.
3. combine 1/4 cup sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. form balls of dough using 1.5 teaspoons of dough. roll each dough ball in the cinnamon sugar and place about 2 inches apart on the baking sheet.
4. bake for about 10 minutes until the cookies are set in the center and begin to crack. (they will not brown.) transfer cookies to wire rack after 5 minutes to finish cooling.

long time no sweet!

let's catch up...

the temperature has dropped considerably...the boots have made an appearance. scarves are slowly starting to show up...and the jackets are patiently waiting! fall always makes me think of back to school and buying new supplies. nothing said back-to-school quite like brand new pens and fresh 3-ring notebooks!

so to kick off the season, i started with a classic...my gfs and i love the crumbly topping so much that i usually double the recipe for it!

apple crisp

from allrecipes.com

the best part of waking up...

...besides the folgers in your cup would be one of these beauties!

of the recipes i've tried for cinnamon rolls, i like this one best (so far) because it doesn't call for an artery-clogging amount of butter that makes me just want to immediately run to the treadmill. the dough is remarkably easy to work with and really allows the brown sugar and cinnamon to sing. and it does taste just like the cinnamon rolls from cinnabon!

instead of waking up at some gawd-awful hour, i made the dough at night and stuck them in the freezer right before the second rising. just defrost at room temperature for about 15 minutes while the oven is preheating and add a few minutes to the baking time.

now THIS is the way to start a morning...=)

cinnamon rolls
adapted from allrecipes

1 cup warm milk, about 110 degrees F
2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast / active dry yeast
2 eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
4 1/2 cups white flour

3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
2 1/4 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/4 cup butter, melted

3-4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 1/4 cup confectioners sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
a pinch of salt

1. dissolve the yeast in the milk in the mixing bowl of a stand mixer. in a separate medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, butter and sugar. add the egg mixture to the milk in the bowl and stir to combine. whisk together the flour and salt in a separate large bowl.
2. gradually add the flour mixture to the milk mixture, kneading with the dough hook as you add. continue to knead (either with the dough hook or by hand) until all the flour is incorporated and the dough is smooth.
3. proof the dough for 1 hour in a warm place covered with a moist towel.
4. roll the dough into a 16" x 21" rectangle on a lightly floured surface. spread the softened butter over the dough and sprinkle with the sugar/cinnamon mixture. roll up the dough and pinch to close the ends.
5. cut into 12 pieces and place rolls in a lightly greased baking pan. cover and let rise until almost doubled, about 30 minutes.
6. preheat oven to 400 degrees.
7. bake rolls until golden brown, about 15 minutes.
8. beat together the cream cheese, butter, confectioner's sugar, vanilla and salt to make frosting.
9. spread frosting on warm rolls before serving.

meet my eleanor...

speed + nice cars + action = a movie that the hubby would love
(yes, he loves the fast and furious franchise...yes, all of them!)
if you've never seen gone in 60 seconds less than 8 times (consider yourself lucky), but then you've probably never heard of eleanor. eleanor is a 1967 shelby gt that is nicolas cage's achilles heel in the movie. he is enamored with the car even though she trips him up...

...much like this cake does to me. (s i g h)...coconut cake.
the first time i made this cake, i dropped it on the floor after i had just finished icing it. the second time i made this cake, i didn't bother to level off the crown and the icing would not cooperate. and yet, this is the cake i want when i'm craving coconut cake and nothing else will suffice.the frosting tastes just like a soft marshmallow and it's really cool to watch the egg whites turn into this glossy, gorgeous mess as the hot sugar heats up the egg whites and changes them...like magic! (and in spite of having dropped the cake on the ground, the frosting is actually quite resilient! God bless them southern cooks...)

miss essie brazil's three-layer coconut cake

a pain in the bundt

it's been awhile since i've made a bundt cake...and now i remember why. while pretty, cleaning the pan is a pain in the bundt!! (i know...hardy har har...)

yet another dorie recipe... =)

she adds ground walnuts to the recipe which i thought was really interesting. i didn't notice them flavor-wise but definitely noticed the difference in texture. it made for a slightly heavier, "meatier" mouth feel.

i got a little overzealous and accidentally poured more than half of the batter with the chocolate. so instead of a pretty marble cake, i ended up with a chocolate cake with speckles of white. oh well...all's well that tastes well!
mocha-walnut marbled bundt cake
from baking from my home to yours by dorie greenspan

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup finely ground walnuts
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup coffee, hot or cold
1 teaspoon finely ground instant coffee or espresso powder
1 3/4 cup sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup whole milk, room temperature

1. center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. butter and flour a 9- to 10-inch (12 cup) bundt pan.
2. whisk together the flour, ground walnuts, baking powder and salt.
3. set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. put 2 tablespoons of butter into the bowl along with the chocolate, coffee and instant coffee (or espresso) powder. heat the mixture, stirring often, until the butter and chocolate are melted and everything is smooth and creamy. remove the bowl from heat.
4. working with a stand mixer, beat the remaining 2 sticks of butter and sugar at medium speed until combined (about 3 minutes - this will not be light and fluffy.). beat in the eggs one by one beating after each addition. add in the vanilla extract. reduce the mixer speed to low and add in the dry ingredients with the milk alternating, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients.
5. scrape a little less than half of the batter into the bowl with the melted chocolate and using a spatula, stir to blend thoroughly.
6. alternate spoonfuls of light and dark batter into the ban and swirl with a table knife to marble them.
7. bake for 65 to 70 minutes or until a cake tester comes out clean. transfer the bundt cake to a rack and cool for 10 minutes. unmold the cake and cool completely on the rack.