Sugar Cookies

I recently ordered a bunch of mini cookie cutters (because honestly how could I resist...).  Therefore sugar cookies were a must.  I love making sugar cookies and they are very easy.  I did do a lot of research on what recipes to use but ended up using a recipe from my Baking book by James Peterson.  I substituted the vanilla for almond extract because both Jordan and I LOVE cookies with almond extract.  But feel free to switch it back to vanilla extract.

Ingredients
2 1/4 cups (281.25g) of flour
3/4 tsp (4g) baking powder
1/2 (4g) tsp salt
1 cup plus 3 tbsp of cool butter
1 cup (200g) of sugar
1 tsp almond extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk

1. Whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt
2. Beat the butter with the sugar and vanilla until fluffy, then beat in the egg and yolk.
3. Sift the flour mixture over the butter mixture and combine just until well combined.
4. Wrap the dough, tightly, and cool in the fridge for at least  45 minutes.
5. Cut into cookies and bake in oven for about 12 minutes (325 degrees).

The dough can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for at least a week.  I assume that you can freeze this dough and store for longer, but I have not tried yet.  I only made half of my cookies the first time and I'm making the second half today, about a week later.

For the frosting I was curious because every time I have made royal icing in the past I have ended up throwing it away because I thought it tasted so disgusting.  This time I was bound and determined to make one though to put on my cookies.  The first batch I made was using an egg white and the icing turned out a little too liquid-y for decorating, so I started over and used a recipe using meringue powder.  To take care of the taste that I hate so much, I used lemon extract instead of vanilla.  This seemed to actually worked quite well and will be using this recipe again in the future.  Although, I am still a fan of butter in my frostings and always prefer buttercreams...

   

Canning Peaches!

A couple of weeks ago I ordered a box of peaches from a local farm (http://www.valicofffarms.com/) which is a great deal!!  On a Saturday the 20lb box of the peaches arrived and while I was planning on canning the peaches that day, they were not quite ripe and pealing them was going to be a hassle so I decided to wait.  However, since this past month I have been practically working every day and the next weekend I was going to be out of town I ended up having to wake up at 6am one day to can all the peaches. Not that fun.

I made two different things with my peaches.  First was to just can peach slices in a light syrup and second to make a peach pie/cobbler filling.  That way it makes a super easy dessert in the winter.  All I have to do is open the can, put it in some ramekins and put some oatmeal crumble on the top.  

First thing to do is to peal the peaches.  Most important part and what will make or break you is if the peaches are ripe or not.  You want to be able to easily press into the top and have your finger make a dent.  Get a big pot of water to boil and set up a bowl of ice water.  I did mine in sets of four.  I first made an X on the bottom of the peaches with a knife then let them sit in the boiling water for 30-45 seconds then put them in the ice water for a couple seconds.  The skin should easily peel off then (if they are actually ripe) and you should be able to just use your hands.  There were a couple of peaches that gave me some trouble, so I just threw them back into the hot water for another couple seconds and then it was much easier.

Once pealed I cut up the peaches into slices and then put a fruit saver on them to make them not brown (sold in the store next to the mason jars).  If you don't have it you can put lemon juice onto them.  Do NOT forget this step.  It will make a big difference.  After that I took out the peaches for the peach pie filling and made that first.

Here's the recipe for the Peaches in Syrup...

Cinnamon Chip Scones

All I can say is that this recipe is a keeper.  I feel as cinnamon chips are so underrated and not used near as much as they should be.  They are especially perfect for someone who isn't the biggest fan of chocolate chips (like my boyfriend Jordan).  

I had never made scones from scratch before (always used a box), but they were much easier than I had expected.  

Here is the recipe for homemade cinnamon chips (http://www.brighteyedbaker.com/2012/03/04/diy-cinnamon-chips/)

DIY Cinnamon Chips
Cook Time: 35 minutes about 1 1/2 cups
Cinnamon chips aren't an item that most people have in their pantries, but now you can make your own and have
them available at all times. These will add a delicious dose of cinnamon to any recipe.

Ingredients
2/3 cup granulated sugar
3 tablespoons cinnamon
2 tablespoons vegetable shortening
2 tablespoons light corn syrup

Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 200 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and spray paper with a nostick cooking spray. In a medium-size bowl, mix together the sugar, cinnamon vegetable
shortening, and corn syrup until totally combined and crumbly.
2. Spread the mixture out on the prepared baking sheet, flattening out with another sheet of
parchment paper or the back of a spatula into a rectangle about 1/4" thick.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 minutes, or until the mixture is hot and melted together. It
shouldn't be crisp. Let cool completely.
4. Use a pizza wheel to slice the cooled block into small square chips. I made 1/4" squares. Store
in an airtight container until ready to use. They should keep for a long period of time, just like
any other baking chips.

Cinnamon Chip Scones

Serves: 6

 

Ingredients

• 1½ cups all-purpose flour
• 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 2¼ teaspoons baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons butter, frozen
• 1 egg yolk
• ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons buttermilk (or milk and white vinegar, which I used, see note)
• ½ cup cinnamon chips

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, sift the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Cut the frozen butter into small chunks and use a pastry knife to cut into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles peas in sand.
4. In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolk and buttermilk (or milk and vinegar) rapidly, for about a minute. Add to the dry ingredients and stir just until combined. Fold in the cinnamon chips; do not overwork dough!
5. Place the dough on a flat-parchment covered surface and knead lightly a few times. Shape the dough into a round, 1-inch thick, and cut into 6 even triangles, pizza style.
6. Place the scones on the baking sheet, spaced apart, and bake in the preheated oven for 12-15 minutes. Make sure that a toothpick inserted into the center of one of the scones comes out clean at the end of the baking cycle.

Notes

If you want to substitute milk and white vinegar for buttermilk, add milk to 1 tablespoon of vinegar in a measuring glass to reach the 1 cup line, let sit for five minutes, and use the amount the recipe calls for.   

Also, I want to try this recipe sometime soon when I have the ingredients and see the difference....

Cinnamon Chip Cream Scones

Cook Time: 15 minutes

4 large or 8 small scones

These cream scones are bursting with fresh cinnamon chips for an amazing flavor. Make your own cinnamon chips to really get the full effect!

Ingredients

Scones
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup cinnamon chips
• 1/2 cup whipping cream
• 1/4 cup half-n-half, plus 1 tablespoon if needed
Topping:
• half-n-half, for brushing
• cinnamon sugar (about 1 part cinnamon to 4 parts sugar)
• coarse sugar

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Whisk in cinnamon chips.
2. In a separate bowl, beat whipping cream and half-n-half rapidly, until thickened. Pour into dry ingredients and fold in partially with a spatula. Use your hands to knead the ingredients together until just combined; be careful not to overwork the dough. If the dough seems too dry, add another tablespoon of half-n-half.
3. Place the dough on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Using another sheet of parchment paper on top to prevent sticking, flatten into a round about 3/4" thick. Slice, pizza-style, into 4 or 8 triangles, depending on how large you'd like your scones to be.
4. Separate the scones on the baking sheet and place the sheet in the freezer for 30 minutes. Toward the end of this time, preheat your oven to 375 F.
5. After removing the scones from the freezer, brush the tops and sides with half-n-half and sprinkle liberally with cinnamon sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a scone comes out clean. Allow scones to cool for about 5 minutes before brushing with more half-n-half and sprinkling with coarse sugar.

Earl Grey Cupcakes

I LOVE earl grey tea, so when I saw this recipe I knew I had to try it.  I wasn't quite sure how they would turn out, but I LOVED them!!  If anything they could use a little more earl grey taste, but that is up to you.  What I do want to try next time is instead of a vanilla buttercream on top, do a lavender buttercream.  Not a strong and overwhelming lavender but just enough to hint at the flavor and add a new dimension.  I actually just got some fresh lavender from my mom's garden, so I can't wait to try these cupcakes again :)

Recipe from Cupcakes from the Primrose Bakery by Martha Swift and Lisa Thomas

   

For the vanilla buttercream, I am still figuring out the perfect combination.  Usually I use a recipe along the lines of this...

For 12 cupcakes...

1 cup of butter

3 1/2 cups of confectioner's sugar

1 tsp of milk

1 tsp of vanilla

1/8 tsp of salt

1. Cream butter, sugar and salt until fully blended.

2. Add milk and vanilla and beat for 3-5 more minutes until smooth and creamy

While this recipe is pretty good, I usually add some more milk and a little less butter and really just experiment with it every time I use it to get the taste and consistency that I want. One day soon though I will perfect the recipe....soon.  And also if you have lavender (dried) I would mince some up and put about 1/2 teaspoon in at a time when you add the milk and vanilla until you get the taste that you like.

Blueberry Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

Went Blueberry picking this past week and I wanted to try out making a blueberry cupcake!  For the most part they turned out well.  Blueberries all sunk to the bottom despite the coating in flour (but to be fair they were wet and all the flour got mushy, so I'm willing to try again with dry blueberries this time) The cake wasn't my ideal consistency but nobody else seemed to have any problem with it and loved it, so I think it was just my personal preference.  The frosting was very sweet.  I only added 8 out of the 9 cups of sugar recommended, and next time I will only do 7 at most.  Also a tad more lemon :)

LEMON BLUEBERRY CUPCAKES (FROM THE CAKE BLOG http://thecakeblog.com/2013/05/lemon-blueberry-cupcakes.html )

a recipe by Carrie Sellman
{makes 24 cupcakes}

3 cups cake flour (I might add a couple more tablespoons of flour next time.  Also if you have no cake flour here is how you make some...http://joythebaker.com/2009/09/how-to-make-cake-flour/)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups sugar
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
zest of 1 lemon
1 1/2 cups whole milk (Might use a little less)
1 cup blueberries

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Line two muffin tins with cupcake wrappers.
2. Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soad and salt. Set aside.
3. Gently toss blueberries with a light coating of flour.  Set aside.
4. In the bowl of a stand mixer, beat butter and sugar on medium-high using the paddle attachment.  Beat until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
5. With the mixer on low, add eggs one at a time.  Mixing well after each egg.
6. Add one third of your dry ingredients and mix on low, just until combined.
7. Add one half of your milk.  Mix gently.
8. Add in remaining ingredients, alternating dry, wet, dry.  Do not over mix.
9. Fill cupcake liners 2/3 full with batter.  Top each cupcake with 3 to 4 blueberries.
10. Bake 17-19 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

For the Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting

16 oz cream cheese, softened
4 oz unsalted butter, room temperature
2 lbs confectioners sugar (about 9 cups)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 lemon, zest and juice

1. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and cream cheese until smooth.
2. Add vanilla, lemon zest and juice and mix until combined.
3. Gradually add confectioners sugar until completely combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix again.

*This is how Jordan enjoys his desserts...just as a reason to have whipped cream (real, of course)*