poppies & honey bees

I was immediately inspired to recreate these poppies from the latest issue of Martha Stewart's Living magazine, May 2011. Luckily one of my best friends called in a special order for a floral designer, which I feel these poppies are perfect for her and even more perfect to welcome Spring!!!

Since I was already baking and decorating, these honey bees and hives were just begging to be made. Especially when you want to send someone a special treat.....

I know what you're probably thinking....."Those look like bumble bees".....Work with me people. These were just too darn cute NOT to make them a combo......

thin & crispy chocolate chip cookies...sandwiched with buttercream

So I decided to make these again because I'm seeing my friend who turned me onto this combo tomorrow AND because "the thin" is my new chocolate chip cookie love.




This time around I used a smaller scoop, which yielded 90 cookies. Yes, 90!!! And then I sandwiched them with an incredibly sweet vanilla buttercream filling.




I won't bother you by reposting the recipe, but in case you're lost, just follow the "recipe" link.....


What you'll need:


- this recipe
- 1 1/4 inch diameter cookie scoop ***for scooping cookies***
-  vanilla buttercream ***see recipe below***




Vanilla Buttercream Filling
Thanks again, MS, for providing me with this recipe. Makes almost enough to fill 2 1/2 dozen sandwich cookies




INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract


Beat butter with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until creamy, about 2 minutes. Reduce speed to medium, and beat in confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, scraping down side of bowl as necessary, until pale and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Add vanilla, and beat until smooth. Filling can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 3 days; return to room temperature and stir until smooth before using.


Sandwich cookies with heaping teaspoons (or more) of vanilla buttercream filling. Place in the refrigerator to firm up. Sandwich cookies can be stored in the refrigerator in an airtight container.

a bun(ny) in the oven

Hippity-hoppity Easter IS on it's way as well as a baby CROMLETTE. My close friend Sarah and her husband Chris, of CROM Martial Training, are expecting their first child together this summer. I had to miss the baby shower today but I wanted to be there in spirit, so I sent these colorful bunny cookies in honor of their bun(ny) in the oven.

Sarah, Chris and Jube.....I can hardly wait to meet the newest addition to the Romulo clan!!!

thin & crispy chocolate chip cookies

So I actually thought I was just a chewy-on-the-inside chocolate chip cookie lover.......I am not!
I have a new found love for the thin and crispy!!! 


Thanks to Tom Colicchio's, 'wichcraft, in West Chelsea's Tunnel, where I've eaten many of these delicious sandwich cookies. I usually go for their peanut butter or oatmeal sandwich cookie until my beautiful friend, Sarah, proclaimed how much she loved the chocolate chip cookie ones. And she was right....The chocolate chip sandwich cookies are da bomb!!! 


I haven't decided what I'm gonna "sandwich" these babies with, but when I do.....That will be another post. 


The Thin and Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookie
This is Alton Brown's recipe


It was an absolutely gorgeous day (and still is as I type) that I was crazy enough to turn on my oven and bake cookies. It was also an ice cream sandwich kind of day.......


INGREDIENTS
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg
2 ounces milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 sticks unsalted butter @ room temp
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips ***I substituted mini chips here***

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda in a mixing bowl. Combine the egg, milk, and vanilla and bring to room temperature in another bowl.

Cream the butter in the mixer's work bowl, starting on low speed to soften the butter. Add the sugars. Increase the speed, and cream the mixture until light and fluffy. Reduce the speed and add the egg mixture slowly. Increase the speed and mix until well combined.

Slowly add the flour mixture, scraping the sides of the bowl until thoroughly combined. Stir in the chocolate chips. Scoop onto parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet. ***AB uses a large cookie scoop here. I used a much smaller one, 1 1/2 inch diameter*** Bake for 13 to 15 minutes, checking the cookies after 5 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet for more even browning. ***I definitely baked mine for 13 minutes, rotating halfway through baking***

Remove the cookies from the pans immediately. Once cooled, store in an airtight container.

a harley-davidson inspired birthday

HARLEY-DAVIDSON inspired birthday cookies......

olive bites

So..........I watch and read A LOT of food porn. Many (myself included) are thankful that I do because I come across some REALLY tasty recipes. This time was no exception. I usually post about sweet things, but today I'm gonna highlight something savory. After all, these are wrapped in some sort of "dough".


These warm bites of savory goodness are courtesy of Claire Robinson's 5 Ingredient Fix show on The Food Network. After reading some of the reviews, I tweaked the recipe slightly and used my own chef techniques. Even though the original recipe calls for only 5 ingredients, it doesn't hurt by adding in a couple more. 
***See my notes within the recipe***


Olive Bites
makes 15 - 20 bites


1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, plus extra for dusting
***I added a heavy pinch of freshly cracked black pepper and Hungarian smoked paprika, but add whatever spices that will float your boat***
5 tablespoons unsalted butter ***cold and cut into 1/2 inch cubes***
1/3 cup grated Cheddar ***I didn't have Cheddar, but I did have Emmentaler which tasted absolutely delicious!***
1/4 cup grated Parmesan
20 olives stuffed with pimientos - drained and dried on paper towels
***if needed, 1 - 2 teaspoons heavy cream or water***


In a mixing bowl, combine the flour (and spices if using) and butter until the mixture resemble bread crumbs. ***I rubbed the flour with the butter using my fingertips, but you can use a fork or pastry blender*** Mix in the Cheddar and Parmesan or whatever combo of cheeses you're using. ***If the mixture seems dry, sprinkle in 1 -2 teaspoons of heavy cream or water*** Form it into a small disk and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. 


Unwrap the dough, take a small piece and cover an olive, making sure the pastry surrounds the olive and there are no gaps. ***I did my own thing here and rolled out the dough between a sheet of parchment paper and my recently-used plastic wrap. I rolled it pretty thin, but thick enough so that I completely covered my olive. My olives were also on the larger side and I was only able to get 15 bites*** Flour your hands and roll the olive-encased pastry into a ball; put it on an ungreased baking sheet.  ***I lined my sheet with parchment paper for faster and easy clean-up*** Repeat the process with the remaining pastry and olives. Chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour. (Can be made a day ahead and held in refrigerator.)


Preheat the oven to 425˚ F. Put the baking sheet on the middle rack of the oven and bake until the pastries are light golden, about 10 minutes. ***I baked mine for 13 minutes*** Remove the bites from the oven and serve warm.

better bran muffins

Bran muffins are NOT my usual go to breakfast item when I'm staring into a pastry case. My first picks seem to be an almond or chocolate croissant or even a multi-grain bagel if I'm thinking about being healthy.


So I'm a food person and I also attract others who LOVE food and I LOVE THAT! Since Spring has sprung (well, kinda), my girlfriends and I are trying to head down a more healthier track and get our bodies ready for swimsuit season. Don't get me wrong, we eat healthy, but we also like to indulge in a not-so-friendly treat.  


These bran muffins do have their fare share of brown sugar in them, but they also have a substantial amount of bran and whole wheat in them that you'll feel like you're getting a healthy start to your morning.


Better Bran Muffins
This recipe comes from one of my favorite food mags Cook's Illustrated.
These are "better" bran muffins! Moist and full of flavor. Not your dry and tasteless bran muffins that are wrapped in plastic and can be found at the local deli around the corner.  


INGREDIENTS
1 cup raisins (or dried cranberries, cherries or blueberries)
1 teaspoon water
2 1/4 cups (5 ounces) All-Bran Original cereal ***this cereal looks like "twigs"***
1 1/4 cups (6 1/4 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup (2 1/2 ounces) whole wheat flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
2/3 cup (4 2/3 ounces) packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons mild molasses (or light)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 tablespoons unsalted butter (3/4 stick), melted and cooled
1 3/4 cup whole-milk yogurt ***you can substitute non or low fat yogurt here, but the muffins will be less flavorful***


INSTRUCTIONS
Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400˚. Spray a standard-sized muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray. ***I used my new "tulip" paper liners, but you can use just ordinary paper liners. I also think you might be able to squeeze 18 muffins out of this recipe if your muffin cups seem small. My tulip liners stood way above the muffin cup which held the batter in. Be careful not to overfill your cups or you might have a big mess*** Combine raisins and water in a small microwave-safe bowl, cover with plastic wrap, poke several steam vents in plastic with a paring knife, and microwave on high power for 30 seconds. Let stand, covered, until raisins are softened and plump, about 5 minutes. Transfer raisins to paper towel-lined plate to cool.


Process half of the bran cereal in a food processor until finely ground, about 1 minute. Whisk flours, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl to combine; set aside. Whisk egg and yolk together in a medium bowl until well-combined and light colored, about 20 seconds. Add sugar, molasses, and vanilla; whisk until mixture is thick, about 30 seconds. Add melted butter and whisk to combine; and yogurt and whisk to combine. Stir in processed cereal and unprocessed cereal; let mixture sit until cereal is evenly moistened (there will still be some small lumps), about 5 minutes.


Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and gently mix with a rubber spatula until batter is combined and evenly moistened. Do not overmix. Gently fold raisins into batter. Using 1/3-cup measure or ice cream scoop, divide evenly among muffin cups, dropping batter to form mounds. Do not level or flatten surfaces of mounds. 


Bake until muffins are dark golden brown and toothpick inserted into center comes out with a few crumbs attached, 16 to 20 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking. ***Most ovens are funky, so I baked mine for 25 minutes***  Cool muffins in pan for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack and cool for 10 minutes before serving.




***I didn't love the raisins in these muffins. I've said it before, they are not my faves.....Next time I'm gonna try dried cherries of even blueberries***

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