Strawberries and Cream Scones

The other day, I had a revelation of sorts. I realized, that I really, really like scones! And more of these flaky, buttery things of goodness should be pumping out of my kitchen. They are the perfect weekend breakfast indulgence. Eat them fresh out of the oven, with a little butter, and it cannot be beat. Yup, life with fresh scones in it doesn't get much better in my world.

I had recently bought a basket of fresh strawberries (because they were on sale, cha-ching) and was dreaming/reading up recipes to use them in. Maybe muffins or a loaf? And then, whilst scrolling through archives of one of my favourite blogs I discovered "Strawberries and Cream Biscuits". (Biscuits, scones, are they the same? I don't know for sure but I do know they are both uhmazing.) Done and done! I could taste the buttery yumminess already.

And since when I made them, Valentines was only a week away so obviously they are heart shaped. Which is another fun thing about biscuits and scones. I love recipes in which you can cut things into shapes... because you can be simple and sophisticated with squares, rectangles or circles. Or you can get fancy and pull out the cookie cutter collection. Fancy dancey.

Strawberries and Cream Scones

Recipe slightly adapted from Smitten Kitchen

(I changed the name of the recipe mostly because I am a sucker for alliteration.)

Notes:

If you don't have a pastry cutter, cut in the flour with two knives. OR use your hands and crumble it with your fingers. OR freeze the butter, then grate it in with a cheese grater. 

If you don't have half and half cream, you can use whatever kind of milk you have on hand. The original recipe calls for heavy cream, I have only tried these with half and half, but I am sure they would still be yummy (and healthier) with milk, just not as rich tasting. 

You are the master of your kitchen, choose your own adventure.

Let's Make Scones! Or biscuits! Whatever!

You will need:

• 2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 6 tbsp (3 ounces) cold butter, cut into cubes
• 1 cup chopped, ripe strawberries
• 1 cup half and half cream, (and a little extra for brushing, optional)
• Turbinado sugar for sprinkling (optional)

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Toss in the cubed butter and cut in with a pastry cutter (or, see notes!)

When the butter resembles coarse crumbs, toss in the strawberries and coat them with the flour. The stir in the cream until the dough is combined. Do not over mix the dough at this point, because you don't want to fully blend in the butter. By not fully blending the butter into the flour mixture, your scones will bake up light and flaky! Which is totally what we are going for. No hockey pucks here.

Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. Gently roll out the dough, flouring the top as needed, to about 3/4" thick. Remember to not overwork the dough too much to keep the butter flaky. Cut out desired shapes, I choose hearts! Place on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. At this point you can bake them as is, or you can brush the tops with a little additional cream and sprinkle with turbinado sugar. I tried both, and both are good. The sugar gives an nice added sweet crunch which is always fun.

 Bake at 425F for about 12 minutes until lightly golden on the edges. Let cool on the pan for a few minutes or as long as you can take it, then slice in half, smear on the butter, watch it melt, take a bite, fall in love. You are welcome.

These are also an exceptionally tasty afternoon snack, British Style! With butter and jam, served with a cup of tea. Jolly Good!

Here's to hoping there shall be many more scones in my future. And yours as well.

Happy Belated Valentines Day!

<3 Lari 

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

When I was younger I thought carrot cake was gross. I also thought cream cheese was disgusting. WHO DID I THINK I WAS?!

Actually, a more correct statement would be when I was younger I thought any kind of cake other than chocolate cake was gross. I was born a chocoholic... and still am. Proudly.

My mother's birthday and mine are very close together and often times growing up, we would celebrate our birthdays with our extended family at the same time. To make us still feel unique and special, my dear Gran would bake two cakes, one for each of us! My mom's cake would be her favourite cake: carrot cake with cream cheese frosting. Mine was always Chocolate cake with chocolate frosting (and Gran did indeed make the best). 

So obviously when it came time to have cake, I went for chocolate! Because what can be better than chocolate?? (I have found in life that the answer to this question is not rhetorical, and the answer is most often: nothing can be better than chocolate.)

Perhaps I never gave carrot cake a fair chance from the get go. I am pleased to say that over the years, I have given carrot cake many more tries, and I have discovered am actually a big fan! My tastebuds have matured like my parents promised they would and now I make carrot cake and cream cheese frosting and I LOVE IT. It has found its way in to my recipe repertoire.

Don't get me wrong, if I have a choice between carrot cake and chocolate cake, I gotta go for the chocolate. But now I totally appreciate a good carrot version: soft and tender with thin threads of bright orange ribboning through, warmly spiced and topped with a pure white, silky cream cheese frosting... I get it now.

Like many things in life, there are about a bajillion different variations for carrot cake... This recipe is what I would think of as a simple, classic version: no fancy frills or add ins. However it is easy to make it your own by adding in some fanciness. I would try folding chopped pecans into the batter before baking, or spiking to the frosting with maple syrup. But here is the basic, and mini is cuter so they are in cupcake form!

Carrot Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Recipe slightly adapted from Martha

For the cupcakes:

• 1 pound of carrots, peeled and grated
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup buttermilk
• 2 cups sugar
• 1 1/2 cups vegetable or canola oil
• seeds from 1 vanilla bean pod (If you don't have a a vanilla bean pod, use 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract)
• 3 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp ground cloves

Whisk together the first 6 ingredients until combined. Sift over the remaining ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Divide the batter evenly among paper lined cupcake tins, filling each about 3/4 full. Bake at 325 for about 23-28 minutes. (*If you are using mini muffins tins, I find that the baking time is about 15 minutes)

Transfer tins to wire racks to cool for 10 minutes, then turn out cupcakes to cool completely before frosting.

Alternatively, I find these cupcakes unfrosted make a delicious mid afternoon snack with a tea or coffee :)

For the frosting:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• 2 oz butter
• 4 cups sifted powdered sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla

Beat the cream cheese and the butter until soft. Gradually add the powdered sugar and beat until fluffy. Mix in the vanilla.

Transfer the mixture to a piping bag fitted with a star tip.

Swirl the cream cheese frosting onto each cupcake and share with all your friends.

This totally counts as a serving of vegetables. And the frosting is a serving of dairy. Like a solid meal, right? Does this count??

Happy Baking!

<3Lari

Pumpkin Pecan Cake

This cake was invented for a friend of mine who was having a birthday! I asked her what her dream birthday cake would be, and she said she loves pumpkin spice, and cream cheese frosting, and nuts. Good choice, my friend, good choice indeed. My friends have such great taste.
This is what I invented for her: A moist pumpkin spice cake, frosted with a maple cream cheese frosting and garnished with toasted pecans. For a little extra somethin' special, I adorned the top of her cake with a heart made from maple candied pecans (one of my favourite treats!).

With some help from her roommate, I snuck over to her house to surprise her with a (very belated) birthday cake! She promptly stopped her vacuuming and invited me to partake in a slice. And if I do say so myself... This cake was darn delicious.

It would be totally charming in cupcake form too, I think. A perfect cake for Autumn or winter weather! 

Pumpkin Spice Cake

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart's cupcake recipe

You will need:

• 2 cups cake flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 1/4 cups brown sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup butter milk
• 3/4 cup canned pumpkin puree, or homemade if you have some kickin

Grease and flour two 8" round cake pans and set aside. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt and spices.

In the bowl of a standing mixer, cream the butter and brown sugar until fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time until each is incorporated, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with the buttermilk. Lastly, fold in the pumpkin puree. 

Divide the batter evenly between the two prepared cake pans and bake in a 350 oven for anywhere between 25-35 minutes. Oven times may vary! Depending on how crazy your oven is. Regardless, your cake is done when:

a) you poke it gently and it kind of spongily springs back in response or...

b)when you insert a skewer or a toothpick, and it comes out clean , not all battery.

Try not to over bake it, because over baking is the number one crime in the kitchen. However if you find that your cake is a little dry, don't beat yourself up... that's what frosting is for! On that note...

Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

You will need:

• 1 cup (8 ounce package) cream cheese
• 1/4 cup (2 ounces) butter
• 4 cups sifted icing sugar
• 1/2 tsp vanilla 
• 1/4 tsp maple extract
• 1 tbsp maple syrup

Cream the cream cheese and the butter together. On low speed, gradually add in the icing sugar a bit at a time, scraping down the bowl as needed. Mix in the extracts and the maple syrup, then beat the frosting on a medium high speed until fluffy and delicious. :)

Candied Pecans

Pecan halves

Maple syrup

pinch of salt

I don't really give measurements, because I find that they are not required. Just use as many pecans as you want, and make sure they are evenly covered with a thin layer of syrup. The only real way to mess this up is to forget them in the oven.

Combine all of the ingredients and toss about on a lined baking sheet. Bake at 350 for about ten minutes until your house smells yummy, and the syrup has candied itself onto the pecans as if by magic!

Try not to eat them all before they make it onto the cake... this is easier said than done.

Long live the Pumpkin Spice.
<3 Lari

Candied Citrus Peel

This Christmas I have been experimenting! With candy making. I love baking (duh) and have been doing it my whole life. However, the whole candy making thing is very foreign, slightly terrifying, and extensively exciting to me. I find it rather mysterious... if that is not weird  And something that I would like to get better at. So far my candy making adventures have come in the form of marshmallows, and chocolate truffles (coming soon)... and today's treat: Candied Citrus Peel!

There was a recipe for Christmas cookies (also coming soon) that I have been eager to make, and as part of the ingredient list it calls for candied lemon peel, and candied orange peel. Yes, you can indeed trot off to the store and buy some pre-maid... but where is the fun, I ask? I have always wanted to try making my own anyways, so it seemed like an appropriate time. 

You can use this recipe for any type of citrus fruit. I have tried it with lemon and orange so far, but I think it would be really interesting to try lime and/or grapefruit... Keep in mind that you should not mix the fruits, because the resulting flavour would be wack (but this is an assumption). Making candied peel is an excellent use for something that you would otherwise throw away! I am a fan of the idea of not letting anything go to waste.

Candied Citrus Peel
Recipe inspired by and adapted from Food Coma and Smitten Kitchen

You will need:

• citrus fruit of your choosing (I found it easy to use about 3 at a time)
• 1 1/2 cups water (plus more for blanching)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar

There is a reason why we do not eat the peels normally. They are gross and bitter! But by blanching the peels three times in boiling water, changing the water each time, the bitterness will happily boil away.

So, fill a small pot with water and bring to a boil. Whilst waiting for the water to boil, you can prep the peels for blanching. The easiest way to do this I found was to cut a small piece off of the top and bottom of the fruit. Then, cut long strips from the top to the bottom. Be careful to only cut the peel and not too far into the fruit, otherwise resulting in frustration when you try and separate the two. Not that I know what that feels like...

Peel away the peel from the flesh of the fruit.

Once the water has boiled, place the peel slices in the water and blanch for about 3 minutes. Drain and rinse, then repeat this process but with fresh boiling water. TIP! If you can, have two pots going at a time so you dont waste time waiting for the water to boil. It's Christmas. We are busy. We do not have time to watch water boil. Once the fruit has been blanched three times, it is time for the candy-ing part!

In a small saucepan over medium high heat, boil together equal parts water and sugar to make a simple syrup. I found for working with three fruits at a time, 1 1/2 cups of each worked well.

When the Sugar has completely dissolved and the syrup is bubbling and boiling, add the peels. Lower the heat, cover the pot, and leave the peels to simmer for about 1 hour. Stir the peels every so often.

After an hour, use a slotted spoon to remove the peels from the syrup and leave to cool on a wire rack.

At this stage, there are a few options for the future of your peels. As I was just going to use them inside cookie batter, I left them as is and kept them in an airtight container in my fridge. You could go the Food Coma route and roll them in sugar, or you could go the Smitten Kitchen route and dip them in dark chocolate (Oh yes, I think that is what will happen with the leftovers).

I think a cute little package of chocolate dipped homemade candied peel would make a darling gift for friends and neighbors this Christmas!

Happy Candying!

<3 Lari

Dark Chocolate Candy Cane Cake

Chocolate and Mint. Arguably one of the best combinations of all time. And when it is in the form of a chocolate cake with a dark chocolate frosting spiked with peppermint and garnished with crushed candy canes... it is no exception! I first made this cake for somebody else, but I, along with the rest of my family, was slightly jealous that we did not get to indulge in the cake eating experience. So, at our next family dinner my mother requested demanded that I make one for us! It is now going to be a holiday staple around my house... it is simply divine. We served it with some festive peppermint ice cream alongside... ohhh baby! I just love the holidays!

Dark Chocolate Candy Cane Cake

Chocolate Cake:

• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 2/3 cup butter
• 1 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 1/4 cup flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/3 cup buttermilk

1) Stir together the cocoa powder and the boiling water, set aside.

2)Cream together the butter and sugar. Add in the vanilla, then the eggs.

3) In a separate bowl, sift together the dry ingredients. Alternate adding the dry ingredients to the butter mixture with the buttermilk, mixing until just combined after each addition. Blend in the cocoa powder/water mixture.

4)Pour the batter into two greased and floured 9" round cake pans. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean. Cool the cakes inside their pans for at least ten minutes, then let them cool completely before frosting.

When I bake cake, I usually bake it a few days of even weeks in advance. Once your cake is baked and cooled completely, you can wrap up the individual layers and pop it in the freezer. It can chill out there for up to 3 months! So that when it is time for cake, all you have to do is pull it out of the freezer and decorate it. By the time your guests have arrived and it's dessert time, your cake will be ready to be devoured, and you will have minimal "last-minute-cake" stress. :)

Dark Chocolate Peppermint Frosting:

• 2 2/3 cup icing sugar
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 6 tbsp butter
• 5 tbsp milk
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1/4 tsp peppermint extract

Cream the butter, add the cocoa powder, milk and vanilla and peppermint. Gradually add the icing sugar until it is the consistency you dream of.

Assembly time!

Place one cake layer on a fancy platter which you are going to present your masterpiece on. Cover the top with about one third of the frosting. Place the other cake layer on top, and coat the top and the sides of the cake with the remaining frosting in an even layer. Use your knife or spatula to make pretty little swirls of frosting on the top of the cake.

For the sides of my cake, I took peppermint flavoured candy canes and crushed them using a rolling pin. Then I took the crushed candy in my hands and gracefully slap it on the sides of the cake, pressing gently to adhere it. Those little bits of candy cane that don't stick to the sides and just fall onto the platter need not go to waste! Just sweep them off the plate and continue adhering them to the rest of your cake.

TADAA! A chocolatey-minty-masterpiece :)

PS I decided last minute to decorate the top of my cake with two little candy canes making a cute little heart. Awe.

<3 Lari

Tarte Tatin

Is this really happening? Am I really making another post after nearly two months? It's a miracle! Tomorrow morning I have my art history exam for school and I should most likely be studying right now. But guys, I have priorities! Pie Priorities, to be exact. And I miss talking about food. So I'm back.

So school is stressful. Yup that is a well known fact. A little too well known by me for my liking. I love the work that I do in school but sometimes (a lot of the time) I MISS BAKING!


There is not a lot of time for baking when you are a student unfortunately. But a miracle happened the other day AND I HAD TIME TO BAKE!

I also had a large bag of apples from our neighbor's backyard that needed to be dealt with. Little late on the fall baking... whateva.

I also have been dying to try my hand at making a classic Tarte Tatin.

SO TADAA!

Tarte Tatin (pronounced tart tatahn... with my sad attempt at a french accent) is a classic French dessert, that if I am correct, was invented by two sisters with the last name of Tatin. The making of this tart caused a lot of confusion in my house as to how exactly to pronounce the title. My advice is to just pretend you are an elegant french lady (or man when applicable) and say it quickly with confidence. (Note, this advice is applicable to nearly all life situations.)
The tart itself is similar to an apple pie, but you bake it upside-down, which is just whimsical!
The journey begins with a cast iron pan on the stove with lots of butter and sugar and arranged apple slices, we then take the party to the oven to slowly cook the apples, then we add a layer of puff pastry to the top, bake until it is, well, puffed, then out of the oven and FLOP it over (gracefully, please) onto a platter so the pastry is on the bottom and your apples are prettily displayed on top! How romantic, sigh. BON APPETITE!

Tarte Tatin

Recipe is from my dear Martha and her amazing Pies and Tarts book

• 1/2 box of store bought frozen puff pastry, thawed
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3-4 pounds your neighbours apples (If your neighbours do not have apples to give you, you should use store bought and promptly find new neighbours)
• Cast iron pan, 10 inches in diameter

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the thawed puff pastry dough to about a 10 inch square. Using your pan as a guide, cut out a 10 inch circle. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet and chill until firm, or about 30 minutes.

As your pastry is chilin' coat your pan GENEROUSLY with the butter. Seriously, use it all. It looks like a lot, and it is a lot. But what were you expecting? It's a dessert. Now sprinkle the sugar all over the bottom in an even layer. Peel, core and quarter (or thickly slice) your apples. Arrange the apple slices in pretty, overlapping circles in the pan. Keep in mind that we are flipping this whole thing over once it is done, so make that bottom layer beautiful!

Place the pan on the stove over medium high heat and cook it (Without stirring!) until the juices are a deep golden colour and it is happily bubbling away. This takes about 18-20 minutes. This stage is to turn your sugar and butter into a delicious caramel type of sauce.

Now, pop the whole pan straight into a 425F preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, and place your chilled pastry overtop of the apples. return the pan to the oven and bake for an additional 23-28 minutes to brown the pastry.

Take the pan out of the oven and invert the tart onto a large serving platter or plate and have a "tadaa!" moment. My "tadaa" moment was rather anti-climactic, I won't lie, as a few of my apples stuck to the bottom of the pan. Do not fear! Do not get mad. Do not let it ruin your Tarte Tatin experience. Just calmly and gently remove them with a fork or spatula and place them on the tart as if nobody saw.

Serve right away while the tart is still warm so your vanilla ice cream can melt into the apple-y goodness.

Happy French Baking!

<3 Lari

Granola Bars

It is important to have things to look forward to in life. I find that more and more, these things that I look forward to are most often related to what I am going to eat. I am hoping that it is not because the rest of my life is not exciting enough... but because eating delicious food is LIKE THE BEST THING EVER. It may seem quite simple, but I actually get really excited about granola bars. Like a lot! Like small children get excited about candy, bikes, swingsets and petting zoos. Oh wait... I also get very excited about all of these things... but granola bars are right up there!

Naturally, with my profound love for the simple yet oh so satisfying granola bar, I have always wanted to try my hand at making my own. I saw a recipe for homemade granola bars from one of my favorite food blogs: Spoon Fork Bacon and knew I had to try! 
The result: delectably crunchy-chewy granola goodness that makes me even MORE excited for snack time! How can you not get excited when the words "snack time" are mentioned?!
Call me crazy, whateva. I'm the one with the granola bars.

Granola Bars

This recipe is super adaptable and you can add in or take away ingredients to make them the way you like. In this granola bar scenario, the star players are Almonds and Cranberries.

Recipe adapted from here

*NOTE* Along with making my own little changes here and there, I halved the original recipe. This made the putting-it-in-the-pan part a tad awkward, but it still worked out. I am giving the quantities for half the recipe, as this is what I have tried. But obviously you could easily double it, and fill the pan!

• 1 1/2 cups oats
• 1/4 cup wheat germ
• 1 tbsp flax seeds
• 1 1/2 tsp chia seeds (optional)
• 1/3 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 coconut oil, sunflower oil or olive oil
• 1-2 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp brown sugar

Mix Ins! (This is the (fun) part where you can choose the star of your granola show. You can put in whatever you like or have on hand, as long as it totals to be 1 cup. Here is what I did:)

• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped almonds

Okay! Let's make granola bars. Start by preheating your oven to 350 (325 for hot ovens) and line a rimmed baking tray device with parchment. Lightly grease the parchment so your granola does not stick.
In a bowl, combine the oats, wheat germ, flax and chia seeds if using.
In a small saucepan, stir to combine the syrup, oil, honey and brown sugar over medium low heat, just until everything comes together and the sugar dissolves. Add a small pinch of salt.
To the bowl with the oats, add the syrup along with your mix-ins.
Stir!
Pour out your mixture into your prepared pan, spreading it out to your desired thickness. 
Because I was making a small batch, my granola did not spread to all the edges of the pan. This is okay, just firmly pack the granola together in the best bar shape you can make :)
Pop it in the oven and bake for 30-40 minutes, or until it is toasty golden brown on the top.
Let the granola bars cool before you cut into them, as they need time to set. Once cooled, cut into bars and enjoy!

PS a crumbled up granola bar on top of fresh fruit and yogurt is an excellent, excellent idea.

<3 Lari