Cardamom Dark Chocolate Tart with Raspberries

I found this recipe while I was browsing through food gawker and thought it looked so scrumptious!  I was going to make it exactly as I found it, but when I couldn't find culinary lavender (and I was a little afraid it would taste like soap), I decided to add raspberries instead.  The chocolate ganache is delicious (but, really, when your mixing chocolate and cream, can you really go wrong?).  I love the cardamom lemon flavor in the crust, but I thought it was a little tough.  I might try to do a more traditional pie crust next time and just add lemon and cardamom.  Regardless of the texture, it tasted really rich and yummy!

Ingredients

Pastry

2 cups + a little more flour
1 tsp ground cardamom
zest from 1 lemon
juice from 1 lemon
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp coarse salt
7 Tbsp butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
2 Tbsp cold water

Ganache

10 oz heavy whipping cream
12 oz dark chocolate, chopped
3 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp butter
coarse salt

Raspberries

Pastry

1. Using a stand mixture, mix together flour, cardamom, lemon zest, salt and sugar until combined.  Add in the butter and mix until mixture has the texture of small peas.
2. Add in the egg yolk and then slowly add the lemon juice and water, just until the dough begins to form when pressed between two fingers.
3. Form the pastry into a ball and refigerate for at least an hour.
4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  Press the pastry dough into ungreased pan (I used a nine inch spring-form pan, but a pie pan should work as well).  Prick the dough all over with a fork.  Place a sheet of parchment paper over the dough and fill with dry beans.
5. Bake for about 15 minutes until the edges begin to turn golden.  Remove the beans and parchment paper and bake for 10-15 minutes more, or until the crust is golden all over.  Allow to cool.

 Ganache

1. Combine the cream, honey and butter in a medium saucepan and bring to a simmer.
2. Remove from heat and add chocolate.  Whisk together until smooth.  
3. Immediately pour into prepared crust.  Sprinkle with the coarse salt.  Allow several hours for the chocolate to set.  Serve at room temperature with fresh raspberries on top.

Sugar Cookies

I can't take credit for the decor of these cookies, that was all the kids doing.  The great thing about sugar cookies is that they are so versatile and just so much fun!  They are also E's favorite flavor to eat.  I got this recipe from my sister who got it from a friend.  Who knows where it originated....  It is by far my favorite sugar cookie recipe.  It also works well egg free - which not all recipes do.  The recipe makes lots of cookies - I halved it and we still had plenty - but when I make them to give away at the holidays, it's nice to make the full batch.  The frosting recipe is yummy, but I didn't use it this time... sometimes store bought is just easier.

Ingredients

3/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup margarine
2 cups sugar
4 large unbeaten eggs (or egg replacer equivalent)
2 tsp vanilla
5 or 6 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp salt

1. Cream shortening, margarine and sugar until whipped looking.
2. Add eggs one at a time and vanilla and mix until fluffy.
3. Add baking powder, salt and flour - start with 5 cups and add more if it is too sticky.  You want the dough to be fairly firm when you are done.
4. Chill dough overnight (I don't always do it this long, just make sure to chill for a few hours at least).
5. Roll out and cut into shapes.  Put similarly sized cookies on each ungreased cookie sheet to ensure even cooking.
6. Bake at 375 degrees F for 9-10 minutes (don't let them get brown!).  Cool.
7. Either eat as they are or frost and enjoy!

Frosting

1/3 cup soft margarine
1/4 cup milk
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 tsp salt
1 lb (3 1/2 cups) powdered sugar
food coloring optional

Mix together and frost cookies!

I have to say, these are absolutely the BEST oatmeal raisin cookies I have ever made!  I usually make the recipe from the Betty Crocker cookbook, but I have never been happy with the texture of the final product.  I don't know what causes the difference, maybe it's the sour cream, but these are fabulous! Christian found this recipe for me, and I'm not sure where he got it.  I know it was from some food blog somewhere.... When I find out I'll add the link.

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg (or egg replacer equivalent)
6 Tbsp sour cream
2 tsp vanilla
1 cup raisins
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1 1/2 cups flour
1 cup chopped pecans

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Using a stand mixer, cream your butter and brown sugar.  Mix in the oil.  Add the egg and beat until fluffy.  Beat in the sour cream and vanilla, scraping the sides of bowl down, until well mixed.
3. Stir in the raisins and oats.  Add the dry ingredients and beat until fully incorporated.  Stir in the nuts.  Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.
4. Drop the dough by tablespoons (I use a mini scooper) onto ungreased cookie sheets.  Use a spatula to flatten your cookies slightly.
5. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until light brown.  Transfer to a rack to cool then enjoy!!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

I have all this lovely pumpkin puree that I made, and I want to make good use of it, so I made some yummy pumpkin chocolate chip cookies.  So good!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 egg (or egg replacer equivilant)
1 cup pumpkin puree
1 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup (or more) chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. Cream butter and sugar.  Add egg, pumpkin and vanilla - this mixture will look slightly curdled.
3. Add flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, nutmeg and cinnamon.  Mix until well blended.
4. Add chocolate chips and mix.
5. Place by rounded teaspoons on an ungreased baking sheet about 1-2 inches apart.  Bake for 15-20 minutes until they just begin to turn golden.  Let cool on cookie sheet for a few minutes then remove to a cooling rack.

Pumpkin Spice Cupcakes

So I've been feeling like seasonal cooking lately.  I am not a big fan of pumpkin pie, but that doesn't mean that I can't enjoy other pumpkin yummies!  I was inspired to make these when Jacen told me out of the blue that he wanted pumpkin muffins.  Keep in mind that he has never had pumpkin muffins in his life, so I'm not sure where he got the idea, but I was game for trying, even if it was a bit random.

For the pumpkin puree in the recipe, canned puree should work, but I made some fresh - I had always wanted to try it, and it was easy and I think tasted so much better!  If you want to make your own puree, take a pumpkin, cut off the top then cut it into quarters.  Cut out the seeds (like you would a butternut squash) and place on a baking sheet.  Stick it in a 350 degree oven for around 45 minutes, or until it is tender.  At this point the skin will peel right off.  Stick the pieces in a food processor and blend until smooth.  You can keep it in your fridge for about a week or so, and in your freezer for much longer (several months at least).  Easy and, oh, so good!

I get this recipe from this site.  She calls them muffins, but I think they are sweet enough (especially with the frosting) to be called cupcakes.

Ingredients:
1 cup flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp salt
4 Tbsp butter, cut into pieces
1 heaping cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup evaporated milk
1 egg (or egg replacer equivalent)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup golden raisins (I soak mine in boiling water for 5 minutes to plump them up)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Prepare your pan with cupcake liners.
2. Mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt in stand mixer.  Cut in butter and blend until fully incorporated.  
3. In a separate bowl mix together pumpkin, evaporated milk, egg (or egg replacer) and vanilla.  Pour into the flour mixture.  Add raisins and fold together gently until combined.
4. Pour into cupcake pan - fill each cup about 1/2 full.  Bake for 25 minutes.  Allow to cool for 15 minutes and then remove and frost.

Frosting:
1/4 cup softened butter
1 oz cream cheese
1/2 lbs powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

1. Whip together ingredients until well blended.  I actually added a little more vanilla than called for and it was good.

Apple Pie Filling

Eilenora really wanted to go apple picking this year.  Apple picking is not like berry picking - picking that many apples means that you have to find something to do with them, so I decided to try to make canned apple pie filling.  Then we went to go picking the apples and found out that Butler's Orchard was already done with apples - so we bought some instead.  Next year we will pick them!

Never having canned anything before, I was expecting a much more grueling process than what we actually had to do.  And it was fun!  I got this recipe from Mormon Cooking - a cookbook I got for my wedding and haven't actually used much.  I should use it more, because this turned out really well.  Some of the cans I will use for pies, but I wanted to try it right away.  So I put it over vanilla ice cream.  It worked great as an ice cream topper. 


4 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup cornstarch
2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp salt
10 cups water
3 Tbsp lemon juice
2 or 3 drops of yellow food coloring
6 lbs apples, peeled, cored and sliced

1. Blend the first five ingredients together, then stir in water.  Cook and stir until thinkened.
2. Add lemon juice and food coloring.  Fold apples into cooked mixture.  Heat thoroughly.
3. Pack into sterilized hot quart jars (I used pint jars) leaving 1 inch of head space.  Put into hot water bath and process for 20 minutes.  One quart makes a 9 inch pie.  (Okay, so I deviated from this part quite a bit.  If you wash your jars in the dishwasher, and then use the heater in the dishwasher to dry them, the jars will come out clean and hot.  Add the hot apple mixture to the hot jars and put the lids on.  Then turn the jars upside down to cool.  The heat from the jar and apple mixture will seal the jar.  I got this tip from my sister, Tammy.  It seemed to work really well! - Then you don't have to use the hot water bath to process the jars.)

Halloween Decorated Cupcakes!

Yesterday I went to a "Craft 'til you Crash" night at church, and I signed up for the cupcake decorating class.  It was totally fun!  So, this isn't really a recipe, but I am going to talk about how to decorate like this.  I thought the chocolate work would be difficult, but it was really easy.  Both the cat and the tree are made out of chocolate. 

1. First, decide what you want to make and draw a picture of it - a simple outline is all you need.
2. Put your chocolate in a ziploc sandwich bag and microwave it in short bursts until it is all melted.  If you heat it too much, your bag will melt, so keep an eye on it!
3. Place your picture under a piece of wax paper.  Snip the corner of your plastic bag (make sure it is a small hole) and "draw" your picture on the wax paper using the chocolate.
4. If you want to put dusting sugar on it (like the cat above) make sure to put it on before the chocolate hardens.  Place your chocolate in the freezer to get them extra hard before putting on the cupcakes!

The rest of this decorating is just frosting, bone shaped candies and dusting sugar.  It was so fun!  I'm going to be trying more fun decorating soon.