Category Archives: Baking

Baked Apple & Almond Oatmeal

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Hello 2013!

This is my first post for 2013, and to start the year off I thought I would share our mornings with you. They are very simple, easy going and luckily not usually rushed.  Mornings I will miss and dream of when I start working days again, which right now has no set date yet.  It never occurred to me we had a morning ritual until I came across a post on apartment therapy that got me thinking about it. I realized I was taking for granted this nice, comforting and enjoyable time of the day when we know automatically what happens next.

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A typical morning for us starts around 6:30am.  Somedays 6am (or earlier), which thankfully means play time with dad.  Some days 7am, but not usually later.  First stop is getting Calla changed and freshened up.  Then she’ll help me feed Cliff and let him out.  We’ll start coffee and in my somewhat sleepy state, stare at the fridge for breakfast ideas.  Continue reading →

Marbled Zucchini Bread

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Sometimes I like to experiment with baking.

Sometimes I’ll come up with something incredible, and sometimes it’s a flop.

I took this recipe for Zucchini Bread and tried to make it healthier, but with the addition of cocoa.

I went a little too far, made too many substitutions and lets just say it didn’t end in my favor.  I changed the oil for yogurt, and the white sugar for brown sugar and applesauce.

Too many substitutions and not enough knowledge and experience on my part for what I may need to add in addition, or change completely.  The bread was interesting to look at, not photographically pleasing and did not rise even a little. The texture was all wrong, kind of spongy and wasn’t very sweet.

After a few bites and some time contemplating the bread.  I decided I needed to find out what happened. So in order to compare the two, I made a second batch of bread, but from the original recipe, a Martha Stewart one.

This one rose up so perfectly. It was moist with a crispy sugar top, but this time might have been a little too sweet.

All in all, neither were totally perfect, but both were still good, in their own way.  A little note for next time would be to start with smaller substitutions so the components aren’t altered completely.  Reduce the sugar, but don’t eliminate it. Maybe even add a few more swirls in the mixture to get more of a marbled effect.

Marble Chocolate & Zucchini Bread     

1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour (minus 2 tbsp for marble)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
2 large eggs
1 cup sugar (less if you prefer)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup finely grated zucchini (1 to 2 medium)
2 tbsp Cocoa Powder

Preheat oven to 375F. Lightly grease a loaf pan and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, oil and vanilla. Stir in the zucchini. Add the flour mixture, and stir to combine; but not overmix.  Divide batter into two bowls, as equally as possible.  Add reserved flour to one bowl and cocoa to the other.  Stir to combine.  Spoon regular batter into prepared loaf pan in three seperate parts, then spoon the chocolate batter into empty spots.  Pull a knife through batter mixing two batters together gently.

Bake, rotating the pan halfway through, until  bread is firm to touch, golden and a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, 45-50 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Remove for pan and let cool completely. Serve warm or at room temperature.

From Martha Stewart Baking Handbook

A Cherry Crumble with Rhubarb

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Summertime is long gone.  The days of warm sunny weather, no jackets, toques or wishing I had a car starter.  Even the days of Calla staying still long enough for me to go a little camera happy and snack a couple (or 50) photos of her playing with food.  In particular cherries were a delight, it’s a wonder how I forgot about these photos.

Totally fascinated with the stem and intrigued by the taste, she’d always get covered in red cherry juice.  She loves them even more as a little snack frozen. One of the best fruits to eat, cherries are high in antioxidants, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, calcium, Vitamin A, C, K and folate.

Super easy to carry around for a snack, but be sure to brings wipes or napkins since they can make a bit of a mess.  They’re also great mixed with oatmeal, yogurt, or mixed in with a fruit salad. No teeth yet?, just steam them for a few minutes them blend together with some water, milk, and mix with banana, couscous or chicken.

As your little one gets bigger though and their teeth come in, they acquire new tastes and you get to bridge the gap between purees to small bites to bigger bites. Try this recipe out on your little one. If you’re not interested in the tartness of the rhubarb you can add more cherries or opt for strawberries instead. I love to add a few extras so the flax meal, hemp hearts and almonds give it a little extra nutritional boost.  Serve as a breakfast with plain yogurt, a snack or a tasty treat with a little vanilla ice cream.

Cherry Crumble with Rhubarb
(adapted from Two Peas and their pod)

3 cups cherries, pitted
2 cups rhubarb, chopped
1 tbsp corn starch
1 cup old fashioned rolled oats
2 tbsp whole wheat flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp flax meal
1/2 cup slivered almonds
2 tbsp hemp hearts
1/2 cup quinoa flakes

Preheat oven to 375. Grease an 8×8 inch baking dish with butter and set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine cherries, rhubarb and corn starch. Stir until well coated and set aside.
In a seperate bowl, combine rolled oats, quinoa flakes, flax meal, flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Stir well. Mix butter into oat mixture, rubbing together with your fingers, until crumbly.  Mix in half the almonds and hemp hearts and stir. Drizzle with honey and stir.
Pour cherry mixture into baking dish, cover with oat mixture. Then sprinkle remaining almonds and hemp hearts on top. Bake 30-35 minutes or until fruit is soft and crisp is bubbly. Serve warm with greek yogurt or vanilla ice cream.

Mint Chocolate Cookies

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Who doesn’t love Mint Chocolate?  Anyone..anyone at all?… didn’t think so.

It’s a total weakness for me.  You may have caught on with these Mint Chocolate Brownies, or with this Mint Chocolate Mousse.  If you ever catch me with Ice Cream, its most definitely Mint Chocolate Chip (something that’s also on my list of food to make).  And I’m a huge fan of After Eight mints at Christmas and will usually buy a box for the house, and ahem, a box for myself, but ssh don’t tell Scotty that.

These cookies are to die for, and are a very appropriate addition to my Mint Chocolate addiction. They taste like Christmas to me, but I will happily make them, and eat them, any time of year.

I dare you to resist the temptation to eat the batter, if you do well you have some serious willpower.  Go ahead and enjoy them warm and gooey out of the oven, fresh off the cookie sheet.  If you can let a few go, I also dare you to pop a couple in the freezer to cool down.  Crazy idea I know, Scotty’s the only person I know that actually chooses to put fresh out of the oven cookies in the freezer, but with these ones, it actually works.  They get minty cool yet still soft and chewy in the middle.

These make for great christmas gifts, cookie exchanges or simply fill your own cookie jar. Enjoy :)

Mint Chocolate Cookies  (Adapted from Foodess)

1 cup butter, softened
1 3/4 cups sugar
2 Eggs
2 tsp Peppermint Extract
2 cups All Purpose Flour
1 Cup Cocoa
1 tsp Baking Soda
1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 tsp Salt
1 Cup Chocolate Chips, or Mint Chocolate Chips

Preheat oven to 350F and line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar until well blended.  Beat in eggs one at a time and add peppermint extract.

In a separate bowl, mix together flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Gradually add to wet mixture until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips.

Form dough into approximately 1 inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheets and flatten slightly with the back of a spoon.

Bake cookies until edges begin firm but center still appears soft (there will resemble cracks on the tops), about 9 minutes. Cool on baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in an airtight container on the counter, in the fridge or even the freezer.
Note:  I rolled half the batter in Cocoa Powder (you’ll see in the top photos) however I didn’t find it made any difference to the taste.

Calla turns 1

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Last week Calla turned one. I had envisioned her first party to be something magical.  Decorations everywhere, a cute theme with matching food to nibble on, and a spectacular cake to smash and eat.

Time got the best of me, as it usually does, and the party went on in a smaller, simpler scale.  A delicious carrot cake with cream cheese frosting for the guests, and an individual Carrot Frosted Cupcake for Calla to smash and taste.

Heirloom tomato & Boccocini salad, Quinoa Black Bean and Corn Salad, Greek Layer Dip, Spinach and Bacon Dip, Pasta Salad, some veggies, candies and Chocolates, and a few Pizzas ordered last minute, was the menu.

It was a warm September evening, friends and family mingled on the deck, and a few kids played amongst us. Calla, unaware the celebration was in her honor, had fun chasing the other kids, checking out the new toys and didn’t mind one bit as everyone watched her attack her cake inquisitively and lick the creamy sweet icing.

Over this last year, the phrase ‘this too shall pass’, has never rung so true. From laying, rolling, crawling and walking. To squealing, giggling, gibbering, laughing and talking. And of course, cuddling, playing, hiding and hugging.  The moments pass too quickly. Change comes and more excitement is welcomed. Each day is fun.  There is frustration, there are tears, some confusion, and doubt.  But there is also pride in being a mom, joy in playing with Calla, gratitude in having a healthy little girl, and love. So much love.

The only thing I know about this next year is that it will bring more of the above, in greater amounts. I know there will be some hard days, and some incredible days.  I don’t really know what to expect, but I can’t wait for it.

To Calla, the cutest, happiness little girl I know.  I’m so proud to be your mom and so grateful to have you in my life. I love you! xoxo Mom

I went back and forth deciding what kind of cake to make for Calla.  Healthy, no sugar, no fat, no excitement?  Well a first birthday is a pretty special occasion, one that happens only once, and so we decided a little sugar would be fun.  So we went with an incredibly moist carrot cake.

Carrot Cake  (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Makes 2 – 9inch cakes

2 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 cups sugar
1 1/4 cups canola oil
4 large eggs
3 cups finely grated carrots

Preheat oven to 350F

Grease two 9-inch round cake pans with butter, then lightly flour them.
In a medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. In a large bowl, whisk sugar and oil until blended. One at a time, whisk in the eggs. Then combine flour mixture to wet mixture. Stir in carrots.

Divide batter between two cake pans, as evenly as possible.

Bake for about 40 minutes, or until a cake tester (or toothpick) inserted into center comes out clean. Let cool in pans for 15 minutes, then turn out onto cooling racks. Let cool completely before frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting
2 pkgs cream cheese, softened
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 1/2 – 3 cups powdered sugar
pinch of salt

With an electric mixer, blend together cream cheese and butter until combined and smooth.  Mix in vanilla and salt.  Gradually add powdered sugar one cup at a time, and beat on high until light and fluffy.  For a sweeter icing, add more sugar if desired.