Sugar cookies filled with chocolate cookie dough.... Come again?

I don't know what to say about the title of this post. Sugar cookies, cookie dough, really.... I have no comments.
I simply drool looking at the pictures!

Inspired by a cook book by Lindsay Landis called "Cookie Dough lover's cookbook", I baked my sugar cookies and filled them with an amazing raw chocolate cookie dough.

Last time I made something from this lovely book was for a Daring Bakers challenge in July 2013, when I made two different candies: chocolate chunk cookie dough fudge and peanut butter cookie dough cups!

Baked sugar cookies with raw chocolate cookie dough filling

Filling: chocolate cookie dough
slightly adapted

115gr butter
60gr white sugar
100gr brown sugar
2 tbsp milk
vanilla extract
110gr all purpose flour
60gr cocoa powder
1/2 tsp salt

* Beat butter and sugar until fluffy.
* Mix in vanilla and milk.
* Stir in gently flour, cocoa and salt.
* Ready!

I baked sugar cookies using my trusted recipe. When they were totally cool, I took 1 teaspoon of dough, rolled it into a ball and placed it on a cookie, baked side down. Then I placed one cookie on top and pressed.
It is that easy!

They are so good!

Louise

Whole wheat muffins with fruit!

I have a recipe for muffins, that I use all the time, especially when I want a quick breakfast (in the car while driving to work....) with low sugar.
The good thing about this recipe is that you can add any kind of fruit you like, fresh, dried, even nuts!

Low sugar whole wheat muffins

165gr whole wheat self rising flour
3 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp brown sugar
2 eggs
60gr butter
150gr milk
225gr grated fresh fruit
100gr dried fruit

Just mix everything together.
Bake in a preheated oven 190o C for about 20 minutes.

The ones in the picture have grated nectarine.
A combination that I love is with grated pear and raisins.

Also if you add synthetic sweetener instead of sugar, you can have muffins suitable for South Beach Phase II.

Did I mention they are super fast to make? And super tasty?


Louise

Daring Bakers - September 2013!

What a great challenge this month!

I was delighted to see that we had to bake a Tres Leches Cake! I see this kind of cake all over the internet and I was intrigued to make it and taste it! Plus, I didn't take part in the August challenge and I really missed it!

The chalenge was chosen by Inma from La Galletica. Inma gave us information and some options. I searched it a bit on Pinterest and found more variations.
I was between a vanilla and a chocolate tres leches cake, but I thought that the taste of the milks "syrup" would show best with a vanilla cake. Right, wrong? I guess I will have to make a chocolate one at some point, just to compare.

The recipe I used was easy and fast to prepare, i.e. you don't have to separate the eggs. I also used only the  whipped cream for topping, no fruit.

Classic tres leches cake with Salted whipped cream
recipe adapted from here

cake:
165gr all purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
115gr butter
220gr sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract

milk "syrup":
150 ml sweetened condensed milk
150 ml evaporated milk
100 ml heavy cream

salted whipped cream:
200 ml heavy cream
60 gr confectioner's sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt

* Preheat the oven to 180oC.
* Mix flour, baking powder and salt.
* Mix butter and sugar and beat until fluffy.
* Add eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each one.
* Add in vanilla.
* Add the flour mixture and beat until just combined.
This cake is thin. Think "sheet cake thin". So when your batter is ready, choose a pan at the appropriate size and line it with parchment paper.
* Pour batter in and smooth it.
* Bake for 30 min. untill a tester skewer comes out clean.

* 10 min. before the cake is out of the oven, prepare the milk syrup:
* Put the milks and cream in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and boil for about 5 min. stirring constantly.
* Take the cake out of the oven, remove the parchment paper genlty by turning it upside down and then put it back in the pan and prick it all over with a fork (Be careful!).
* Pour the milks over the cake.
* Let it cool very well and then put it in the fridge overnight.

* For the whipped cream, beat all the ingredients until stiff peaks form.
* Spread the whipped cream over the cake and serve.

A few notes please:
- We tasted the cake before it was cooled.... Warm, sweet cake smelling delicious... There was no way we could wait!
- The rest of the cake did go into the fridge and it was amazing the next day! Cold and moist... OMG!
- I decided to make a salted whipped cream, because the cake is very sweet and I wanted some balance, which, I am happy to admit, I achieved. Just don't overdo it with salt. Go slowly and taste along the way to see where you are OK with the saltiness.
- The cake never made it to the afternoon...
- I am imagining a layer cake with thes leches cake layers and vanilla or maple whipped cream in between!
- My sister is crazy about this cake!

Thank you Inma! I really enjoyed this challenge!

Louise

How to organize crayons, markers and other drawing utensils!

Ioanna has a lot of crayons, markers, coloured pencils, water colours, brushes, ..... I could go on!

I had to have them stored and organized some how, because I couldn't see them all over the place any more.

Using simple things, like an old shoe box, some toilet paper rolls and glue, I made this box.

Cute, right?


Louise

Daifukumochi!

I can't remember when or where I first saw or heard of this little dessert. Mochi, Daifukumochi or just Daifuku.

I just remember that I have always wanted to taste them, touch them, see what they are! After all, I was always curious of whether there are sweets in the Japanese cuisine.

My cousin's husband works abroad and guess what... He brought me some!
A little box, as if from a jewelry store, with little pastel colored daifuku in various flavours. Perfect!

Very tasty! And the texture is strange, but good strange!

The yellow one is mango and the pink ones are berries.


Louise

Kiwi jam!

We were given many kiwis a few days ago. I mean, a lot!
So naturally a kiwi jam was in order. I used my KENWOOD Bread maker. No fuss!

I weighed the kiwis, peeled and chopped. I added the same amount of sugar and a bit more, about 1 tsp of butter and nothing else.
No water, because the kiwis were very juicy. Pressed the button and voila! 1 hour later we had our jam!

Apart from the taste, which was great, what I loved was the colour!!! I don't think the pictures do it justice.


Louise

3rd birthday!

My little one turned 3!
We had a small party out in the garden and of course we ate cake!

This year I wanted to make a chocolate cake filled with something. Well, there was a bottle of maple syrup in the fridge waiting for me... So it was settled!

Chocolate cake with maple whipped cream filling and maple buttercream frosting
recipe adapted from Sweetapolita

for the chocolate cake
230gr butter
600gr brown sugar
15ml vanilla extract
4 eggs
290gr all purpose flour
120gr cocoa powder
8gr baking powder
15gr salt
360ml warm buttermilk
120ml warm filtered coffee
90ml full fat mayonnaise
200gr dark chocolate chopped
2tsp baking soda
20ml vinegar

for the maple filling
60ml cold water
15gr unflavoured gelatin
840ml creme fraiche full fat
150gr icing sugar
4tbsp maple syrup or more or less (depending on your taste)
1/2tsp salt
15gr instant vanilla pudding

for the maple buttercream
250gr butter
500gr icing sugar + more for desired consistency
3tbsp maple syrup

* Preheat the oven to 180oC. Butter 5 round pans (diameter about 20cm) and line the bottom with parchment paper. Butter the paper as well and dust with flour.
* Beat butter, brown sugar and vanilla for 5 min. Then add the eggs, one at a time, incorporating them fully before adding the next one.
* Sift flour, cocoa, baking powder in a bowl and add the salt.
* Combine coffee and buttermilk. Add the dry and the wet ingredients to the butter alternating them.
* Add mayo and whisk until just incorporated. Add the chocolate next.
* Combine vinegar and baking soda and quickly add it to the batter. Mix until just combined.
* Divide the batter evenly into the pans (I weigh them) and bake for 25min.
* Let the pans cool on a wire rack for 20min, than invert the cakes, remove the parchment paper and let them cool completely. They can be made the day before.

* In a bowl place the cold water and the gelatin. Let it sit until the gelatin is very soft.
* Bring 200ml of the cream to a simmer, not boil, then stir in the gelatin and make sure it melts well. Refrigerate stirring, until it is cool but not set.
* Chill every tool you will use. Bowl, beaters, spatula. Beat the cream, icing sugar, salt, instant vanilla pudding and maple syrup until it is thick. Gradually add the gelatin mixture and continue beating. It should be thick enough to pipe.
* Chill it.

* For the buttercream beat everything together and adjust for consistency. Thin with maple syrup, thicken with icing sugar. I used gel food colour, which does not affect the consistency.

Assemble the cake and the filling and chill it.
Then crumb coat and chill again.
Frost with buttercream and chill.
Remove from the fridge 30min before you cut it and let it sit on the counter.

I had a left over cake layer, which I crumbled on top.

(Excuse the pics, I was rushing to get the cake out to our hungry guests!)

The cake is so moist, I couldn't believe it! The left over cake layer I had was sitting on a plate uncovered and it was so moist and tasty the next day! This is a recipe I will keep for chocolate layer cakes.

Also I loved the pairing of tastes. Chocolate and maple do match!

It was a success! Our guests took left over cake with them.


Happy Birthday to my sweetie!

Louise