New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

Is your mouth watering? If not then what's wrong with you? lol You should be begging me for a cookie! But don't you worry, they'll be no begging cause like always the recipe will be below!

I though my Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies Recipe were good but I found an even better chocolate chip cookie recipe! If your thinking of making this New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe than you better have the patience. For this recipe you have to wait 24 hours and up to 72 hours.

I love these cookies cause they are crispy around the edges and soft, chewy and buttery in the middle. I used a big ice cream scoop to make big cookies. One cookie was a enough to satisfy me. I used 60% cocoa and semi-sweet chocolate chip.

Just look at all that goodness! These cookies are so good that I'm planning on making them again.

Follow the instructions of this recipe and your cookies will come out delicious!

New York Times Chocolate Chip Cookies

Source: New York Times and Carnaldish.com

Yield: 1 1/2 dozen 5-inch cookies.

Ingredients: 

2 cups minus 2 tbsp (8 1/2oz.) cake flour

1⅔ (8 1/2oz.) bread flour

1¼ tsp baking soda

1½ tsp baking powder

1½ tsp coarse salt

2½ (1 1/4cups) unsalted butter

1¼ cups (10oz.) light brown sugar

1 cup plus 2 tbsp (8oz.) granulated sugar

2 large eggs

2 tsp natural vanilla extract

1¼ pounds bittersweet chocolate discs or fèves, at least 60 percent cacao content (see note)

sea salt

Instructions:

Sift flours, baking soda, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Set aside.

Using a mixer fitted with paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars together until very light, about 5 minutes.

Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Stir in the vanilla.

Reduce speed to low, add dry ingredients and mix until just combined, 5 to 10 seconds.

Drop chocolate pieces in and incorporate them without breaking them.

Press plastic wrap against dough and refrigerate for 24 to 36 hours. Dough may be used in batches, and can be refrigerated for up to 72 hours.

When ready to bake, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a nonstick baking mat. Set aside.

Scoop 6 3 1/2-ounce mounds of dough (the size of generous golf balls) onto baking sheet, making sure to turn horizontally any chocolate pieces that are poking up; it will make for a more attractive cookie.

Sprinkle lightly with sea salt and bake until golden brown but still soft, 18 to 20 minutes.

Transfer sheet to a wire rack for 10 minutes, then slip cookies onto another rack to cool a bit more.

Repeat with remaining dough, or reserve dough, refrigerated, for baking remaining batches the next day.

Eat warm, with a big napkin.

Notes: 

Make sure you bake these on the center rack of your oven.

Disks are sold at Jacques Torres Chocolate; Valrhona fèves, oval-shaped chocolate pieces, are at Whole Foods.

Lemon Sugar Crusted Blueberry Muffins

I'm a Blueberry lover so when I came upon a blog that had this Lemon Sugar Crusted Blueberry Muffins, I knew I had to make them. OMG I love this recipe! I have to say this was a so what hard recipe for me to follow but in the end I think I did a great job! I was super excited when they were done and I could finally eat one. I had like 3 yesterday and 1 this morning. Yeah I think I'm going to turn into a blueberry by tonight! By far (I'm not just saying this, I actually mean it!) the best Blueberry Muffin Recipe I've made!

This recipe has just enough blueberries for the top and the inside of this muffin. You use half the blueberries for a jam that goes on top of each muffin and to top that off you add the lemon crusted sugar, which makes for a very tasty crunchy top. Need I say more? 

 It's important not to over mix this batter, lumps are your friends! By not over mixing this will help make a very moist muffin. Using a rubber spatula you can gently fold the wet and dry ingredients together. 

Look at how moist this muffin is!

Best recipe by far!

Lemon Sugar Crusted Blueberry Muffins

 Source: modified from Cook's Illustrated, Carnaldish.com

Ingredients:

Lemon-Sugar Topping
⅓ cup sugar (2 1/3 ounces)
1½ teaspoons finely grated zest from 1 lemon
 
Muffins
2 cups fresh blueberries (about 10 ounces), picked over
1 1/8 cups sugar (8 ounces) plus 1 teaspoon
2½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour (12 1/2 ounces)
2½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp table salt
2 large eggs
1½ teaspoons finely grated zest from 1 lemon
1 tbsp fresh squeezed lemon juice
4 tbsp (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk (see note below)
1½ tsp vanilla extract

Instructions:

 

For the topping:

Stir together sugar and lemon zest in small bowl until combined; set aside.

 

For the muffins:

Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 425 degrees. Spray standard muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray. Bring 1 cup blueberries, 1 teaspoon sugar and ½ teaspoon of lemon zest to simmer in small saucepan over medium heat. Cook, mashing berries with spoon several times and stirring frequently, until berries have broken down and mixture is thickened and reduced to ¼ cup, about 6 minutes. Transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes. Soak 1 teaspoon of lemon zest into 1 tablespoon of lemon juice while the berries cool to room temperature, about 10 minutes.

Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt together in large bowl. Whisk remaining 1 1/8 cups sugar and eggs together in medium bowl until thick and homogeneous, about 45 seconds. Slowly whisk in butter and oil until combined. Strain the 1 teaspoon of lemon zest of most it's moisture and add to the mixture -- discard the lemon juice. Whisk in buttermilk and vanilla until combined. Using rubber spatula, fold egg mixture and remaining cup blueberries into flour mixture until just moistened. (Batter will be very lumpy with few spots of dry flour; do not overmix.)

Use ice cream scoop or large spoon to divide batter equally among prepared muffin cups (batter should completely fill cups and mound slightly). Spoon 1 teaspoon of cooked berry mixture into center of each mound of batter. Using chopstick or skewer, gently swirl berry filling into batter using figure-eight motion. Sprinkle lemon sugar evenly over muffins.

Bake until muffin tops are golden and just firm, 15 to 19 minutes, rotating muffin tin from front to back halfway through baking time. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool 5 minutes before serving.

Note: If buttermilk is unavailable, substitute ¾ cup plain whole-milk or low-fat yogurt thinned with ¼ cup milk (buttermilk has the better taste though). Store leftover muffins in an air-tight container for up to 2 days.

Angel Food Cake with Vanilla Strawberries

This has been my second time baking an Angel Food Cake, and what I can say that it's still a bit hard for me to bake. But I pulled through! I think I did a pretty good job, cause I thought when I took this cake out the oven it was ruin! But as I let it rest and removed it from the tube pan, I was relieved that it came out good!

Angel Food Cake is a super light and delicious cake. One slice just wouldn't be enough. You would have to have another. The strawberries is a must-have for this recipe. If you prefer, you can add whip cream to each slice of this cake.

If your not so sure about making this cake, do your research first. So you can at least achieve a great cake. 

Good Luck!

Angel Food Cake with Vanilla Strawberries

 Source Alton Brown 
Printer Friendly

Ingredients

1 3/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup cake flour, sifted

12 large egg whites, at room temperature

1/3 cup warm water

1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or 1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar

1 pint fresh strawberries

2 to 4 teaspoons granulated sugar (depending on how sweet your berries are)

1/2 scraped vanilla bean

Directions

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In the bowl of a food processor, fitted with the blade attachment, grind sugar for about 2 minutes. This will help create a super fine sugar that will be better absorbed into the egg whites.

Place half of the sugar in a small bowl.

In a large bowl, sift together the remaining sugar, salt, and cake flour.  Set aside.

In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, fitted with a whisk attachment, beat together the egg whites, water, extract, and cream of tartar medium speed.  If you’re worried that the cream of tartar is too chunky… don’t worry, it’ll smooth itself out.  Beat on medium high, gradually adding the sugar from the small bowl, until medium (not stiff) peaks form.  The meringue will hold a trail of the beaters through it, be glossy, and won’t be overly foamy.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and sift in one quarter of the flour and sugar mixture.  Fold with a spatula.  Try to avoid stirring the mixture too much.  Instead, sweep the egg whites from the bottom of the bowl to the top, incorporating the flour.  Add flour mixture in three more batches.  Fold until thoroughly combine, but don’t overmix or deflate the egg whites.

Spoon battering into an ungreased tube pan.  Ungreased in is important, as it will help the cake rise. 

The tube pan will be full.

Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a skewer inserted in the cake comes out clean.  Remove cake from the oven and carefully invert upside down, propped up on a bottle.  This cake cools upside down.  Let rest for at least an hour before trying to remove from the pan.

Slice strawberries and mix with sugar and vanilla bean.  Let rest in the fridge to create juices while the cake cools.

As the cake cools, it will begin to pull away from the sides of the pan.  To remove from the pan, tap the pan with a butter knife, or carefully run a butter knife around the edges between the cake and the pan.

Serve with berries and cream.

Cake will last, well wrapped at room temperature, for up to 3 days.

Blog Award & Nominations!

I was awarded the Liebster Blog Award from Brown Sugar's Blog!

Really happy and excited to be nominated for this blog award! So glad that there's people out that who appreciate blogs that are just starting out, who don't have many followers. 

I have nominated five blogs that also will be receiving this Award!

(Liebster means “Favorite, Beloved, Dearest”)

My 5 Nominations:

Sweet Twist Of Fate

Galexi Cupcakes

L'atelier Vi

Lemon-Sugar

Lulu's Sweet Secrets

Rules:

1) Show Thanks to the Blogger who awarded you by linking back to her/his blog.

2) Pick 5 Blogs with less than 200 followers and let them know about your nomination by leaving a comment on their blog.

3) Post the award on your blog!

That's it!

Thank you for this award Brown Sugar!

Please check out these blogs! ^_^

Soft Pretzel Bites

I've had this recipe for a while now and I've been dying to give it a try. This isn't my first time making Pretzels so I knew this recipe was gonna be really good. These remind me of the soft pretzel at the movie theaters that comes with a cheese sauce. This also included a cheese sauce but I didn't have any cheese in the fridge, which was a bummer cause I love dipping these babies in cheese. But it's also good alone. I actually love dipping it in mustard too. 

Good to make for parties or for these lazy days you just wanna lay back and watch a movie at home. If you love soft pretzel you will not be disappointed with this recipe, so give it a try!

Homemade Soft Pretzel Bites with Cheese Sauce


Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
Vegetable oil
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
2 tbsp butter, melted
Pretzel or Kosher salt

Directions:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix together the water, yeast, sugar, and salt on low speed for 10 seconds.  Switch to the dough hook and add the flour and butter.  Mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl and transfer it to a well-oiled bowl. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an wide 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Slice each rope into 1-inch pieces.  Place a lightly damp towel over the pretzel pieces to prevent them from drying out while you roll and cut the other pieces.

Using a slotted spoon lower a handful of the pretzel pieces into the boiling water and boil them for 30 seconds, flipping them around in the water with the spoon a couple of times. Remove the pretzel pieces from the water using the spoon, drain as best you can, and place them on the baking sheets. Brush the top of each pretzel with the melted butter and sprinkle with the pretzel/Kosher salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 10 – 12 minutes. Brush with remaining melted butter before serving. Serve warm.


Cheese Sauce:

Ingredients:

2 tbsp unsalted butter
2 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 cup milk
8 oz extra sharp cheddar cheese, shredded (not package pre-shredded cheese – shred your own)
Kosher salt

Instructions:

In a small saucepan set over medium heat, melt the butter.  Whisk in the flour and cook for 30 seconds, whisking constantly.

Slowly whisk in the milk until no lumps of flour remain.  Stirring constantly, bring the milk to a simmer over medium-low heat until it thickens, about 3-5 minutes.  Remove the pan from the stove and stir in the shredded cheese until all of the cheese has melted.  Add a pinch of salt, if needed.  Serve warm.  Leftovers can be reheated in the microwave on medium power at 30 second intervals.

Source: pretzels adapted from Alton Brown; cheese sauce is a Smells Like Home original

Deep-Dark Double Chocolate Fudge Brownies

Tis the season to eat chocolate!

Well that's stupid we should always eat chocolate all year round! Don't you agree? 

Okay what you see here is all oh so gooey and oh so good. These brownies are the most darkest, richest, moist recipe you will ever bake. I baked them in a 9" x 9" inch pan. They came out pretty thick. So next time I'm gonna try a 9" x 13", so they will come out a bit thinner. So they can come out more like bars and less like cake. Not that there's nothing wrong with some cake! ^_^

This is by far the gooiest, darkest Chocolate Brownie Recipe I have ever made. Instead of milk chocolate I use bitter and semisweet chocolate cause I like to balance out the favors. This was a super fast recipe to prepare. I was surprise by how fast it all came together. I was in and out the kitchen in no time. The coffee is there to enhance the favors of the chocolate, so if your not a fan of coffee it's no big deal. You can bake them without the coffee and just substitute with 2 teaspoons of water. But I have to say you have got to try it with coffee. It makes a big differences.

Now the kitchen smells like chocolate and my belly is doing a happy dance. Bake these!

Deep-Dark Double Chocolate Fudge Brownies

Ingredients

• ⅔ cup Double-Dutch Dark Cocoa, or regular cocoa powder
• 1½ cups granulated sugar
• ½ cup confectioners’ sugar
• ¾ tsp salt
• 1 cup All-Purpose Flour
• 1 tbsp espresso powder
• 1 cup milk chocolate chips
• ½ cup bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chips
• 3 large eggs
• ½ cup vegetable oil
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tbsp water or brewed coffee (cooled)

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugars, salt, flour, espresso powder, and chips. Add the eggs, oil, vanilla extract and water or cooled coffee, mixing just until smooth. Spoon the mixture into a lightly greased 8 x 8", 9 x 9", or 9 x 13" square pan, smoothing the top. I used a 9 x 13" baking sheet fully lined with parchment paper for easy cleanup.

Bake the brownies in a preheated 350°F oven for about 25 minutes (for the 9 x 13" pan), 35 minutes (for the 9" pan), or 45 minutes (for the 8" pan). To see if the brownies are done, remove the pan from the oven, and stick the tip of a sharp knife into the center of the brownies. Wriggle it around just enough to see what’s going on. Is the batter under the crust still shiny, wet, and smooth? Continue to bake the brownies, checking frequently. Is it ultra-moist, but not shiny, and “crumby” looking? Take them out, they’re done.

Place the pan of brownies on a cooling rack, and allow them to cool for 1 hour before slicing. 

Source: adapted from King Arthur Flour, Carnaldish.com

Grandma's Cherry Cheesecake

My closest friends gave me there late Grandmothers Cherry Cheesecake Recipe. They knew how much I love to bake and how close we are that they trusted me to keep this recipe sacred. I'm very proud to have this recipe passed down to me. So happy to finally have a cheesecake recipe I can make for my family and friends. This is such a creamy cake and I just love the added cherries on the top.

This is just one recipe I will not be able to share, but there's lots of other great Cheesecake Recipes out there!