Raspberry Custard Bars

Posted on June 23, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Last weekend I participated in the Warrior Dash – a 3.3 mile mud run with about 14 obstacles throughout, ranging form scaling walls to diving into a mud pool.  This was a dirty good time, and despite the fact that I really do not like running, I never stopped.  I made my way through and finished in the top 20% overall and top 8% of women.  So “Go me,” I do believe I deserve a cookie or two after that!

 

I ran with one of my best childhood friends, Jason.  I spend time with Jason and his family about twice a year or so, and it just so happens that last summer I was visiting them and it was my intent to bring the Raspberry Custard Bars that I have included below.  Unfortunately, at that time they didn’t come out quite right and I ended up throwing them all away.  I decided to try again this summer, and yet again something went wrong.  I decided that it was one of the most confusing, poorly worded recipes I had ever seen (shame on you, Better Homes & Gardens!) and I rewrote it in plain English.  When I followed my own interpretation of the recipe (which is, of course, what I include below) it was easy to make and a refreshing summertime snack.

Raspberry Custard Bars
Adapted from: Better Homes and Gardens

1 c unsalted butter, cut into 1” chunks
¼ c packed brown sugar
½ t kosher salt
2 c all-purpose flour
Softened butter/margarine
¾ c raspberry jam/preserves
2 c (about 1 pint) fresh raspberries
4 oz cream cheese, room temperature
4 oz goat cheese (or another 4 oz cream cheese), room temperature
½ c sugar
1 T all-purpose flour
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2 T lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
2 T lemon juice
½ t vanilla extract
Powdered sugar

  • Preheat oven to 350.  Line a 9×13” baking pan with aluminum foil, leaving extra to overhang the edges for easy removal.
  • Using your mixer, beat butter at high speed until it begins to soften, about 30 seconds.
  • Add brown sugar and salt, beating on low speed to incorporate.  Add 2 cups flour, again beating on low speed to incorporate.  Increase speed and mix until all ingredients form an even dough.     This is a shortbread, so don’t be afraid of over mixing, it should be really well combined.
  • Break dough into chunks and press into the pan to form an even layer.  Bake for 20 minutes or until the dough is set.  Cool for 5 minutes.
  • Brush exposed sides of foil with softened butter to prevent filling from sticking.
  • Spread raspberry preserves/jam over crust.  Sprinkle with fresh raspberries.
  • In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and goat cheese (if using) for about 30 seconds on high speed.  Mix in sugar and 1 Tablespoon of flour until combined.  Continue, adding egg, egg yolk, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla, beating until smooth.
  • Pour custard batter over berries, tilting pan back and forth to distribute evenly.  Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes or until set.
  • Transfer to a wire rack and cool for 1 hour.  Then, move to refrigerator to continue cooling for 2 more hours.  Top may crack during cooling.
  • Remove from pan using foil overhang, cut, and dust with powdered sugar.

Serves: 24
Calories: 209

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Blueberry Peach Galette

Posted on June 15, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Last weekend my best friend from college and her two young daughters (ages 4 and 6) hopped on the train and took a day trip from Philadelphia to New York City to visit me.  The older one had been here before, but this was the first time to the big city for the 4-year old.  We spent the better part of the day in the Central Park Zoo, where we enjoyed the polar bear, penguins, and sea lion feeding (my personal favorite).

During our time at the zoo, the girls impressed me with how they are growing up.  The older one can read well above her grade level and was using a map to direct us where to go next.  And to think, some adults can’t navigate!  The younger one is full of confidence and energy (at least until she tires herself out).

By the end of the day, after many subway delays and walking around the park, we were all exhausted.  When I announced, “I am pooped,” the girls looked at me like I was crazy.  This was clearly not a term they were familiar with and they immediately thought of…well, you know.  So, I guess you could say I taught them a new word.  (Actually they also learned the word “crowded” … lots of people on the subway platform.)  See, you can have fun and learn something too!

When I made this next recipe, I also learned a new word – macerate.  Macerate is the official word for when you sprinkle sugar over fruit to pull out the sweet juices.  (The dictionary definition is “to soften or decompose food by the action of a solvent.” That sounds nasty so we will ignore it.) The practice certainly isn’t new to me, but the word was!

I found this more appealing description online:
“When it comes to fruit, maceration refers to two different but related processes. In one, you soak the fruit in liquid and allow it to absorb the flavor. In the other, you simply sprinkle cut fruit with sugar, which draws out some of the moisture and lets the fruit soak in its own juices. Both processes give the fruit extra flavor; soaking it in a different liquid lets you add various flavors, while sprinkling it with sugar and allowing it to soak in its own juices makes it sweeter.”

So, the kiddos learned the words “crowded,” and “I’m pooped,” and I learned “macerate.”  See, you’re never too old to learn.

The recipe below is for a Blueberry Peach Galette.  As I explained in an older galette recipe, these are supposed to be rustic so don’t worry about having a perfect crust.  That is secretly why I like them so much, because I have yet to master a beautiful crust.  You could interchange any of your favorite berries in this recipe, but I think the peach and blueberries go well together.  As a cheat you could use a store-bought crust, but considering the fact that a ripped, uneven, imperfect crust is just fine for this type of recipe, consider it a perfect way to practice for when you do want a lovely crust sometime down the road.

Blueberry Peach Galette

1 ¾ c all purpose flour
¼ t salt
¾ c (1 ½ sticks) chilled unsalted butter, cut into ½ -inch cubes
2 T (or more) ice water
3 c sliced peaches
½ c blueberries
1 egg white or milk
¼ c raw (turbinado) sugar
¼ c white sugar

  • Add ¼ cup white sugar to peaches and blueberries in a small bowl. Allow to macerate (mix and do good things with the sugar) for about an hour.
  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • Sift flour and salt into a medium bowl.  Add butter and combine with a pastry cutter (or two knives) until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 2 tablespoons ice water and blend just until dough begins to clump together, adding more ice water by teaspoonfuls if dough is dry.
  • Form dough into ball and flatten into disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for 1 hour.  (This can be done up to 2 days ahead. Keep dough chilled. Soften slightly at room temperature before rolling out.)
  • Roll out dough between sheets of parchment paper to 1/8-inch-thick round, 14 inches in diameter. Remove top sheet of parchment. Using bottom sheet as aid, transfer dough on parchment to large baking sheet. Chill 15 minutes.
  • Pour the fruit into the center of the pie dough, leaving enough room around the edges to roll up around the sides.  Carefully fold the dough around the edges and brush with egg whites or milk. Sprinkle with raw sugar.
  • Bake on center rack for 40 minutes or until golden brown. Cool to room temperature before serving.

Serves: 10
Calories: 250

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Grapefruit Pound Cake

Posted on June 13, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Grapefruit Pound Cake (2)Sometimes I bake something with no intention whatsoever of blogging it.  It seems simple and not so special and just something I made for the heck of it.  Fortunately, this has happened enough times that I now photograph most things I bake even if I wasn’t going to blog them, because after the fact I might change my mind. Continue reading →

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Lemon Blueberry Triple Layer Cake

Posted on June 8, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Last weekend family and friends gathered to celebrate my dad’s retirement.  After 40 years of working (albeit one day per week  for those of you who know him, haha), he is now on Easy Street.

The opportunity to feed a group other than my coworkers (or me, myself, and I) was there, so I decided to bake a cake for our family to enjoy.  The recipe below has been adapted from one I found online –  the jam and icing weren’t originally enough.  You can make the jam ahead of time, and I recommend doing so in order to save time once you are ready to bake the cake itself.

Lemon Blueberry Triple Layer Cake
Adapted from Lick the Bowl Good

Blueberry Jam (can be made up to 5 days in advance):
4 ½ c blueberries, fresh or frozen
1 c + 2 T sugar
3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 ¼ t grated lemon zest

  • Puree the blueberries with any juices that have exuded in a blender. Pass the puree through a coarse strainer to remove the skins.
  • In a medium saucepan, combine the blueberry puree with the sugar, lemon juice, and zest.  Bring to a gentle boil over a medium heat, stirring often until the preserves have thickened and are reduced to 1 ½ cups.
  • To check the proper thickness of the jam, place a small amount in the freezer until cold. Drag your finger through it, and if a path is made through the jam then it is ready.  Cool before using.

Cake:
2 sticks (1 c) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 c sugar
2 t grated lemon zest
1½ t lemon extract
7 egg whites, room temperature
3 c cake flour
4 t baking powder
½ t salt
1¼ c milk

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottom and sides of three 8 inch round cake pans. Line the bottom of each pan with a round of parchment or waxed paper and butter the paper.
  • In a mixer, cream together the butter, sugar, lemon zest and lemon extract until light and fluffy. Gradually add the egg whites 2 or 3 at a time, beating well between additions and stopping occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
  • In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. In 2 or 3 alternating additions, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, beat the dry ingredients and milk into the butter mixture. Beat on medium-high speed for about 1 minute.
  • Scoop 1 cup of the batter into a small bowl. Divide the remaining equally among the 3 prepared pans, smoothing the tops with a spatula. Add 2 ½ T of the lemon blueberry jam to the reserved batter and blend well. Drizzle heaping teaspoons of this blueberry mixture over the batter in the pans. Use a skewer or knife to swirl the blueberry mixture into designs on top of and into the cake batter.
  • Bake for about 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean and the cake pulls away from the sides of the pan. Cool for 10 minutes and turn out onto a wire rack, peeling off the paper and leaving to cool completely.

Lemon Buttercream
1 ½  c sugar
¼ c + 2 T water
3 eggs
4 ½  sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
+/- 2 c blueberries for decorating, if desired

  • In a small saucepan, combine the sugar and water over medium heat.  Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Continue to boil without stirring, occasionally washing down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush until the syrup reaches the soft-ball stage, 238 degrees F on a candy thermometer. Immediately remove from the heat.
  • With an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the eggs briefly. Slowly add the hot syrup in a thin stream, pouring it down the sides of the bowl, carefully avoiding the beaters or the syrup may splatter. When all of the syrup has been added, raise the speed to medium-high and beat until the mixture is very fluffy and cooled to room temperature. This can take 15-20 minutes.
  • Reduce the speed to medium-low and gradually add the softened butter 2 to 3 tablespoons at a time, beating well between additions. (The frosting may appear to break, but it will come back together like whipped butter.)
  • Beat in the lemon juice.

To assemble the cake, place a layer on a cake stand or platter. If the top is uneven or rounded, even it out with a knife.  With a piping bag, create a “wall” of icing around the top edge and spread half of the blueberry jam within that icing border. Place a second cake on top of the first and repeat with icing and jam. Finally place the third cake layer on top and frost the top and sides with the lemon buttercream icing. Decorate with fresh blueberries and serve.

Makes one 8 inch triple layered cake.

Lemon-Blueberry2w

Serves: 8
calories: too many to fathom, just forget about it

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Homemade Snickers Bars

Posted on May 23, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

I have a relatively quick and easy recipe for you today – Homemade Snickers Bars.  While it may look like a lot of steps, each is quite painless and fast.  In fact, every layer except the nougat layer is melted in the microwave (if you want) and the hardneing process in the fridge between each layer is about 5 minutes.  You can have these done in under 30 minutes.

These are best eaten cool, because once they warm up the chocolate starts melting and peeling off, so store them in the fridge.

Homemade Snickers Bars

 Bottom layer:
1 c milk chocolate chips
¼ c butterscotch chips
¼ c. creamy peanut butter

  • Line a 9×13” pan with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.  Melt together all ingredients in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted.
  • Spread into a 9×13 pan and refrigerate to harden.

Nougat layer:
¼  c butter
1 c sugar
¼ c evaporated milk
1 ½ c marshmallow fluff
¼ c creamy peanut butter
1 t vanilla
1 ½ c salted peanuts, chopped

  • Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat.  Add sugar and milk, stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar.  Bring to a boil and stir for 3 minutes; mixture will start to follow your spoon.
  • Remove from stove and stir in marshmallow fluff, peanut butter and vanilla.  Mix until smooth.  Spread over first layer and immediately sprinkle peanuts over top.
  • Again, refrigerate to harden.

Caramel layer:
1 (14 oz.) bag caramels
¼ c evaporated milk

  • Unwrap and melt the caramels with the cream in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted. Carefully spread over nut and nougat layer and refrigerate to harden.

Top Layer:
1 c milk chocolate chips
¼ c butterscotch chips
¼ c peanut butter

  • Melt together all ingredients in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until melted.
  • Spread onto caramel layer and refrigerate to harden.  Cut into small bars. Keep refrigerated.

Serves: about 32
Calories: about 190

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Strawberry Mousse

Posted on May 11, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Finally!  I know that summer is on its way when berries are plentiful at the supermarket and their prices are reasonable.  I am looking forward to many delicious recipes using some of my favorite berries.  Earlier this week I made a blueberry coffee cake that was, unfortunately, unworthy of a blog post.  But, last night I prepared a Strawberry Mousse that is not only yummy, but healthy (ok, healthier than most desserts…good enough)!

I hope that you, too, enjoy the fruits of the season all summer long.  You can be sure I’ll be sharing many fruit-based recipes this summer!

Strawberry Mousse

1 c finely chopped fresh strawberries
½ c sugar, divided
5 T water, divided
¾ t unflavored gelatin
dash of salt
2 large egg whites
¼ t vanilla extract
½ c heavy cream

  • Combine chopped strawberries and 1 T sugar in a food processor or blender and toss gently.  Let stand for 10 minutes and then process until smooth.
  • In the bowl of an electric mixer, pour in 2 T of water and sprinkle with gelatin.  Let stand for 5 minutes.
  • After 5 minutes, add egg whites to the gelatin mixture and beat with a whisk attachment until foamy.  Gradually add 1 T sugar, beating on high speed until soft peaks form.
  • On the stovetop, combine 6 T sugar, 3 T water, and a dash of salt in a small saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring just until the sugar has dissolved.  Without stirring, allow temperature to rise until a candy thermometer registers 240 degrees.
  • Remove from heat and gradually pour the hot sugar syrup into the egg white mixture, beating until stiff peaks form.  Beat in vanilla.
  • In a separate small bowl, beat cream with a whisk attachment at high speed until stiff peaks form.
  • Fold the egg white mixture into the whipped cream until combined.  Then fold in the strawberry mixture.
  • Spoon ½ c of the mixture into 6 dessert glasses and chill at least 2 hours or until set.

Strawberry-Mousse-(1)

Serves: 6
Calories: 150

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Cheesy Jalapeño Dip for Cinco de Mayo

Posted on May 4, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Since I still haven’t finished my Peanut Butter Icebox Pie from earlier this week, I decided to make something less sweet for Cinco de Mayo.

Today, I bring to you a Cheesy Jalapeño Dip, great for tortilla chips, veggies, pita, or anything else that you deem dippable.

My parents are in town for the weekend so I will keep this blog short and sweet.  We will be spending time at City Island in the Bronx where we will enjoy a lobster tail dinner on the water, and then Coney Island in Brooklyn where we will “enjoy” Nathan’s Hot Dogs!  Two places that are worlds apart but both in New York City; what a great place to live!

Enjoy the Cinco de Mayo (or Derby Day, whichever you prefer) weekend!  ¡Buen provecho!

Cheesy Jalapeño Dip

  • Servings: 6
  • Difficulty: easy
  • Print

Ingredients
16 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1 c mayonnaise
8 pieces of bacon, cooked and chopped up
6 jalapeños, seeded and minced (or a 4 oz can diced jalapeños, drained)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 t cumin
1 1/2 c cheddar cheese, shredded
1 c panko breadcrumbs
1 c grated Parmesan cheese
4 T unsalted butter, melted

Instructions

  • preheat oven to 375 degrees
  • combine cream cheese, mayonnaise, bacon, jalapeños, garlic, cumin, and cheddar cheese in an electric mixer.  Spoon into a casserole dish or 9×13 baking dish.
  • In a separate bowl, combine panko breadcrumbs, Parmesan cheese, and melted butter, tossing until the mixture is evenly moistened.  Sprinkle evenly over the cream cheese mixture.
  • Bake for 25-30 minutes until the top is golden brown and bubbling.  Serve warm with tortilla chips, pita, veggies, etc.

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Peanut Butter Icebox Pie

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Peanut Butter Icebox Pie (2)First, a brief complaint.  I hate when recipes call for “chocolate wafer” cookies.  There are two kinds of chocolate wafer cookies and the recipe never says which, so I have to read through the recipe and try to deduce which it is talking about.  This drives me mad.  Several times I have just tossed a recipe because I couldn’t be bothered figuring out which type of chocolate wafer cookie they wanted.  For today’s recipe I was able to figure it out, and it’s the Nabisco (round chocolate disc) version.  Goya Maria cookies work equally well. Continue reading →

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Snickerdoodle Cupcakes

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

Remember when a few weeks ago I said that I made two lemon meringue pies in order to taste test two recipes and see which one won?  Well, I did it again.  I had three Snickerdoodle Cupcake recipes sitting around and had been procrastinating for at least a year.  So yesterday I finally sifted through the recipes and made a game plan.  Fortunately, two of them were pretty much identical for the cake, so I only made two different cupcakes.  I did, however, make three frostings.  It was easier than I thought it would be, and now I get to throw away the two “loser” recipes (Yeah, I’m talking to you Martha Stewart!).  Seriously, I love to throw things out.  It is a weird quirk of mine.

The winning recipe has a great cinnamon cake and the icing is a cinnamon vanilla bean buttercream.  I think they’ll be a hit!

Snickerdoodle Cupcakes
with Cinnamon Vanilla Bean Buttercream

for the cake:
3 c cake flour
1 T ground cinnamon
1 t baking powder
¾ t baking soda
½  t salt
1 ½ c (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 c granulated sugar
4 large eggs, room temperature
1 t vanilla extract
1 ¼ cups buttermilk
extra cinnamon sugar for dusting

  • Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
  • Sift together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  • With mixer, combine the butter and sugar until fluffy, about 2-3 minutes on medium speed. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.
  •  Alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk beginning and ending with the flour mixture.
  • Fill each cupcake liner two-thirds full. Sprinkle some of the cinnamon sugar topping over the batter.
  • Bake cupcakes for 20 minutes, or until the top springs back after lightly pressed.  Allow cupcakes to cool in pan for 5 minutes then remove cupcakes and cool completely on wire rack before frosting.

for the frosting:
4 c powdered sugar
1 ½ c (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ½ t vanilla extract
1 vanilla bean, seeds scraped
Pinch of salt
¼ t cinnamon
extra cinnamon sugar for dusting

  • In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
  • Add vanilla extract, vanilla beans, salt, and cinnamon and beat until combined. Add confectioner’s sugar, a half cup at a time, beating until smooth and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
  • Frost and dust with cinnamon sugar as desired.
 
Snickerdoodle cupcakes - PIN
serves: 24
calories: 400

 

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Chocolate Peanut Butter Easter Eggs

Posted on April 6, 2012 by Sweet Jumbles

This is, unfortunately, probably a very unoriginal post.  So far this week I’ve seen at least 3 other blogs post Chocolate Peanut Butter Easter Eggs.  But I had decided to make these before I saw those posts and my heart was set on them, so I’m not changing my plans.  These Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs are very easy to make and are a sure crowd pleaser (unless you are my mother who can’t stand the combination…weird-o).

Be warned, the recipe below makes 36 medium/large-sized eggs.  I realized part way thorough that I should have cut everything in half.  Then again, you can never have too many so maybe not.  The recipe below calls for a semi sweet chocolate coating, but if you prefer a dark chocolate that would work equally well.

Hope you all have a joyous Easter!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Eggs
source: Whimsical Princess

4 c powdered sugar
1 ½ c creamy peanut butter
¼ c butter, room temperature
2-4 T milk
3 c semi sweet chocolate chips (or more, as needed)
1 T shortening

  • In an electric mixer, combine the powdered sugar, peanut butter, and butter.  Once combined, add the milk one tablespoon at a time until doughy, much like play-doh.
  • Form the dough into ovals or egg shapes.  Place on a cookie sheet and freeze for about an hour.
  • In a double boiler or in the microwave, melt chocolate chips and shortening.  If using a microwave, heat at 30 second intervals, stirring at each break.
  • Dip each egg in melted chocolate and place on waxed paper until hardened.  You can refrigerate to speed up the hardening process.  (You can use a skewer to dip the egg in the chocolate.  Slide skewer off immediately and cover hole before it hardens.)  If you need additional chocolate (which I did), for each additional cup of chocolate chips add 1 teaspoon of shortening and melt as described above.
  • Optionally, trim excess chocolate at base with a warm knife and/or decorate with royal icing or melted chocolate/candy pieces.

serves: 36 (medium-large eggs)
calories: 255

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