New Apartment, New Cooking Toys, New Recipe: Gorgonzola-Rosemary Scones

Friends, Romans, Countrymen....

I'm baAAAAAAAAAAAaaaaaaaack!

After a number of months of seemingly endless holiday weeks at work and preparations for a life-changing move, my head is now suitably screwed on and I am ready to tickle your tastebuds again.

Yes, my new permanent location is in our nation's capital with Mr. Beta, in our *ahem* cozy 500-square-foot apartment. But it's all good.

Today, we're looking at a bit of a departure from my normal fare. You won't see a scrap of sugar (or its chemical cousins) in this here recipe. We're making things SAVORY. I needed to mix things up.

 Eh heh heh. Pun. Sorry. Moving forward.

Shortbread Sammies: So Easy Even a CaveMAN Can Do It

Friends, Romans, Countrymen....

Here's the list of things I should be doing more of:

1. pleasure baking 
2. taking pictures of said pleasure baking 
3. posting aforementioned pleasure baking and related pictures to my blog

Here's a list of things I should do less of: 

1. watch Law and Order: SVU reruns on Netflix 
2. drink Diet Coke (that New Year's resolution lasted about two hours) 

But Valentine's Day is coming. And I can't possibly abandon you fine folks for another holiday. So today I bring you a recipe so simple that you should e-mail it to your non-cooking partner (for the sake of simplicity, I am going to say the man in your life) and tell him to make these blasted things for Valentine's Day. 

Or make them for yourself for Singles Awareness Day, depending on who you are.

These are shortbread sandwiches, and they will be your Valentine...even if that special someone won't.

Lemon Ricotta Cookies: or, Why Citrus Belongs in Everything

Friends, Romans, Countrymen

Let me start by apologizing for my absence. Holiday season in the bakery has me pulling overtime and up at hours that don't even qualify as morning yet. So, sorry, but a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

I am sure, in my absence, you found yourself wondering what my favorite Italian cheese is. (Or at least this is what I imagine.) The answer to your burning question? Simple, versatile ricotta. It is one of a number of reasons I will never be able to suck it up and become a vegan.

I also imagine you wondering what my favorite fruit is. The answer to that question is, naturally, anything citrus. Tangerines, clementines, lemons, limes, grapefruit---I have even tried tangelos. The natural tangy sweetness of citrus makes me salivate. Pity my keyboard.

A Reasonable Indulgence: Cleaned Up Blueberry Cheesecake

Friends, Romans, Countrymen....

Let it never be said that I am not a good big sister.

My brother's birthday gift to me was a springform pan. For those who don't do what I do, that is a pan particularly designed to make delicate cakes, like cheesecake. With a traditional cake pan, you have to flip over the pan and pray the layer doesn't stick or break. The sides of a springform detach from the base, leaving the cake unscathed.

I knew he wanted a cheesecake. But since he's a juvenile diabetic, I had some reservations. I aim to please--so I found a recipe for a less-nutritionally-bankrupt version of the popular dessert. By forgoing the crust and lightening up the filling (fat-free cream cheese and yogurt rather than a lot more full-fat cream cheese), I assuaged my guilt and was back on the path to sister of the year.

Butterscotties Cookie Bars

Friends, Romans, countrymen....

Sorry for the long absence and lack of baked goodies. I've been unwell--recuperating from surgery and now from a cold that was a long time coming--so I haven't been terribly active. I mean, I've been baking: soda bread muffins, peppermint candy cookies, gingerdoodles. But I haven't had the energy to make a big production of it.

Anyhow, I come bearing recipe.

Sometimes I don't feel like shaping my cookies. Rolling them into balls, using a scooper...just don't want to. Enter the cookie bar.

Anything you put in a pan and ignore sounds lovely to me. It seriously cuts down on my involvement in the process, and sometimes we just need that. I decided to make these butterscotties. They're sort of a strange hybrid of blondies and butterscotch cookies, and so they intrigued me.

Without any further ado....

Butterscotties:
2 1/4 C. APF
1 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 C. butter, softened
1 1/4 C. light brown sugar
2 eggs
2 t. vanilla
1/2 C. butterscotch chips
1 1/2 C. chopped walnuts
1/2 C. chocolate chips (optional)



Preheat your oven to 350F.

Cream softened butter and brown sugar together in the bowl of a mixer. Meanwhile, sift the APF, baking powder and salt together and set aside.

Add the eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly between each addition.

Action shot! I used the good camera today.

Your butter/sugar mixture won't be as fluffy as it would be if you were using regular granulated sugar. But it will smell better. These puppies have a lovely caramel scent.

Next, add the vanilla and blend. Pour your sifted dry mixture in and mix until it's combined. I find it easiest to add it a little bit at a time to avoid flour kickback. That's just messy.

Take the bowl off of the stand mixer and get ready to use your muscles. Add the butterscotch chips and walnuts to the dough and stir them in until they're pretty well distributed. The dough will be thick, almost paste-like.

Chunky

I switched the ratio of butterscotch chips to walnuts in my dough. That is, I did 1/2 C. walnuts and 11/2 C. butterscotch chips. Why? Well, for two reasons: first, I didn't buy enough walnuts. Oops. Second, I wanted those chips out of the house so I didn't eat them.

It doesn't really matter. Do as you wish.

Grease a 13x9 pan. Drop the dough into the pan and spread it with a metal spatula. It's not as easy as it sounds...or at least it wasn't for me.

If you're using them, sprinkle the chocolate chips along the top of the butterscottie dough. The dough will rise up around them as it bakes. They're more of an accent than anything else. It appeases those who can't eat an un-chocolatey baked good.  I think the dough looks a wee bit like some vast alien planet. Made of cookies. Hey, it could happen.


Bake in the oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a fork inserted in the center comes out clean. Mine took about 32 minutes to bake.

Pull the pan out of the oven and let it rest on a cooling rack for a few minutes before cutting the giant cookie into little cookie bars.


I don't think I need to tell you what to do with it from there.


Gotta swish, jellyfish.

BB

From my vault: If On a Winter's Night Applesauce

Friends, Romans, Countrymen....

Judge me if you will, but I could listen to Christmas music year round. Now, to be fair, I only listen to a certain number of Christmas albums that I love more than any others, so it's not like I have Frosty the Snowman on repeat. (God, Buddha, Allah, Yoda and whoever else forbid.)

I mention this only to clarify the name I gave this applesauce. Its moniker is the name of Sting's album of winter/Christmas folk songs. The applesauce is heavily spiced, and as it cooks, the kitchen fills with the scent of the same spices used to make wassail, a ye olde Christmas grown-up beverage. It comes highly recommended by yours truly for Yuletide.

(I also happened to have the album on repeat while I was making the applesauce, but the previous sounded more elegant.)

Baker's Journal: Cakes are Kicking My Booty

Friends, Romans, Countrymen...

I haven't been neglecting you---all things cake/cupcakes have been consuming my life. Work has been hectic since the flavor schedule changed.

Last week, I was working on a post for you guys about how to make chocolate fudge cake. I baked and decorated the sucker as a birthday cake for Mom's friend. It was my first experience with fondant.

Apparently it worked.

Sorry, but I'm not going to be able to share the cake recipe at all. Why? Someone liked it so much she ordered a cake off of me. That means it has been used professionally and is going into the vault. Sorry, again!

I will, however, share what I learned in the process.