by Kathy Douglas | Oct 19, 2021 | Breakfast
Tasty flavors are paired together in a chocolate bottom pumpkin muffin. To add a zing of orange, we added orange-floral Fiori di Sicilia cream cheese center. Perfect for any fall breakfast or brunch!
This recipe has three batters and uses a scale to measure in grams for accuracy.
Make the filling
INGREDIENTS
227g cream cheese, at room temperature
50g granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon Fiori di Sicilian extract or orange extract
1 egg white
INSTRUCTIONS
In a bowl, beat all ingredients until smooth and thoroughly combined.
Refrigerate to chill and keep cold.
Make the chocolate batter
INGREDIENTS
29g Dutch processed cocoa
120 g flour
133g light brown sugar, packed
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon espresso powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
85g milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
57g unsalted butter, melted slightly cooled
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, flour, sugar, baking powder, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large measuring cup whisk together the eggs, milk, and vanilla. Add the wet ingredients, along with the melted butter, to the dry ingredients, stirring to combine; set aside.
Make the pumpkin batter
INGREDIENTS
134g flour
80g brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
171 g pumpkin purée
1 large egg plus one egg yolk
4 1/2 tablespoons grape seed oil
3 tablespoons dark corn syrup or golden cane syrup
56g whole milk
Softened butter for the pan
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, brown sugar, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside. In a large measuring cup or small bowl whisk together the pumpkin, eggs, oil, syrup and milk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, stirring to combine.
Preheat oven to 400°F. Using the softened butter, lightly grease 8 large silicone baking cups set on a baking sheet or a 12-cup muffin pan. Depending on which size cups you use, scoop 2-4 tablespoons of chocolate batter into each of the muffin cups, followed by 1 rounded tablespoon of the filling in the center. Next, cover the filling with 2-4 tablespoons of the pumpkin batter. You may only use half of the center filling. Set aside the rest for another use.
Place in the oven and bake for 18 to 25 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted toward the edge, not in the filling, comes out crumb-free. Cool for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan or cups and cool completely.
by Kathy Douglas | Oct 11, 2021 | Holiday, Side Dishes
Purple bell peppers, disguised as a witch’s cauldron, make for a fun Halloween dinner! Filled with cheese, rice, and sautéed veggies, they are topped with tiny cherry tomatoes and goat cheese curds for a bubbling finish. Add a Wilton tree branch treat stick as the perfect stirring branch to complete the Halloween vibe.
INGREDIENTS
6 large purple peppers
1 cup diced red onion
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1 cup chopped tomato, seeds removed
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
½ teaspoon garlic powder
6 ounces crumbled goat cheese, 1 ounce of the larger crumbles removed and set aside.
3 tablespoons sour cream
1 cup cooked rice
10-12 very small cherry tomatoes
6 Wilton treat sticks, plastic tree branches
INSTRUCTIONS
Heat the oven to 375˚F. Slice off the tops of the peppers, discard the seeds, stem, and membranes. Set the peppers aside and finely chop the remaining top. You should have about ¾ cup of chopped pepper tops after you have removed all the tops from the six. Finely dice the onion to make 1 cup. Heat the oil over medium heat in a sauté pan and add the peppers, onions and half the salt.
Sauté until most of the moisture is gone from the mixture, then add the tomato and the rest of the salt. Cook until most all the tomato water has cooked away, then add the smoked paprika, garlic powder, 5-ounces of the goat cheese, sour cream, and the rice. Stir until well combined. Fill the peppers, leaving 3/8-1/2” space at the top, place on a baking tray then in the oven to bake for 20 minutes.
After 20 minutes, remove from the oven and top with the cherry tomatoes, pressing them halfway into the mixture in the pepper. Place back in the oven for 5 more minutes.
Remove from the oven and set the oven temperature to broil. Arrange the remaining 1-ounce of larger goat cheese crumbles in and around the tomatoes. Place under the broiler and watch carefully to just slightly melt and just brown the top of the cheese. This should be 5 minutes or less. Remove from the oven. Let rest 5 minutes and add the decorative treat sticks to each pepper-cauldron and serve.
by Kathy Douglas | Oct 5, 2021 | Desserts, Holiday
The flavors of chocolate and pumpkin taste delicious together. And, we love the Halloween vibe of our dark Chocolate Brownie cups filled with Pumpkin Mousse and topped with a cute little Williams Sonoma marshmallow pumpkin.
You will need a brownie bowl pan and mini pumpkin marshmallows to make this dessert. Both are available at Williams Sonoma. If your brownie pan didn’t come with a recipe, here is a simple one below.
Basic Brownie Bowl Recipe
Makes 6 bowls using special equipment – 6-well pan, Brownie Ice Cream Bowl
INGREDIENTS
Softened butter for brownie pan
2/3 cup Dutch processed cocoa
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour
1 tablespoon expresso powder
1/2 cup grape seed oil
2 tablespoons water
3 large eggs
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly grease the wells of a brownie bowl pan using softened butter.
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the cocoa, sugars, salt, flour, and espresso powder.
Mix well the oil, and eggs, add to the dry ingredients mixing until combined. Scoop 2/3 cup of the mixture into each of the wells of the pan. Tap the pan on the counter to remove excess air.
Bake the brownie bowls for 25 to 30 minutes, testing for doneness. Remove the brownies from the oven, cool them in the pan for 5 minutes, then turn them out of the pan on a rack to cool for 1 hour. Store on the counter, covered, until ready to finish.
Pumpkin mousse
INGREDIENTS
½ cup sugar
7-½ ounces (½ can) canned pumpkin
¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
1½ cups heavy cream
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
6 marshmallow pumpkins
INSTRUCTIONS
In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, pumpkin and spices. Stir continuously with wooden spoon over medium-low heat for about 5 minutes, just until the sugar melts.
Transfer to a bowl and set the bowl over ice to cool.
Using an electric mixer, whip the cream with the salt and vanilla until soft peaks form.
Very gently stir into the cooled pumpkin mixture, mixing until the white streaks just disappear. Place the mousse in a large piping bag fitted with an open tip. Fill the brownie wells with the mousse and chill until set. Just before serving, top each mousse filled brownie with a marshmallow pumpkin.
by Kathy Douglas | Sep 28, 2021 | Desserts
Seasonal fall fruit makes the best desserts! Yummy fresh baby figs and almonds are combined in these upside-down mini-cakes that are topped with a delicious orange caramel sauce. It’s a delicious way to start fall. For accuracy, this recipe is in grams and requires a kitchen scale.
INGREDIENTS
For the topping
113g unsalted butter; more for the pan
2 small oranges, juiced and zested
264g granulated sugar
Pinch salt
12 very small fresh figs, sliced in half
43g sliced almonds, toasted
For the cakes
57 g sliced almonds, toasted
180 g. unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. kosher salt
113 g. unsalted butter, softened
132 g. granulated sugar
1 tsp. almond extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
227 g. sour cream, at room temperature
INSTRUCTIONS
Make the topping
Butter 6 mini round springform pans. Line the bottoms with parchment and butter the parchment.
Using a rasp grater, finely grate 1 tablespoon zest from 2 oranges, set aside. Halve the oranges and squeeze to yield 1/3 cup juice.
To make a caramel sauce, combine 113g butter, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan and whisk over medium heat, until the sugar melts and the mixture darkens. Carefully add the orange juice, it will bubble and splatter. Whisk until combined and no lumps remain. Remove from the heat. Let the caramel sit to cool slightly.
Decoratively arrange, cut side down, four of the mini fig halves on the bottom parchment for each cake. Crush the almonds and sprinkle between the figs. Using half of the caramel sauce, evenly pour over the figs and almonds in the six cakes. Set the other half of the caramel aside.
Make the cake
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 325°F.
Add the toasted almonds to a food processor. Pulse until finely ground. Add to a medium bowl and combine with the flour, baking powder, and salt.
In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the orange zest and the almond extract, and mix until combined. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
With the mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour in 3 additions and the sour cream in 2 additions, beginning and ending with the flour. Beat until just combined after each addition.
Evenly scoop the batter into the prepared cake pans without disturbing the topping. Smooth the surface. Tap the pans firmly against the counter once or twice to remove any air bubbles.
Bake 25 minutes or until a tester inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Cool the cakes on a rack for 10 minutes then run a knife around the edge of each cake torelease them from side of the pan. Remove the springform ring on each cake. Invert the cake onto rack. Remove the bottom and parchment, and rearrange any fig or nuts that have stuck to the parchment. Cool completely.
When serving, reheat the remaining caramel sauce. Brush lightly over the top of the cakes and serve with any extra caramel sauce on the side.
by Kathy Douglas | Sep 20, 2021 | Desserts
The combination of apples and cinnamon baking together is one of Fall’s greatest fragrance. Perfect to get you in the mood for fall or as a way to stay warm on a crisp fall day. We think it’s best served with a side of vanilla ice cream or gelato.
For the Apples
INGREDIENTS
3 fuji apples – peeled, cored, and sliced
3 granny smith green apples – peeled, cored, and sliced
2 tablespoons sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
INSTRUCTIONS
Toss apples, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl until coated. Pour into a 9-inch square baking dish.
For the Crumble
INGREDIENTS
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup old-fashioned oats
½ cup flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
½ cup cold butter cut into tablespoons
Vanilla Ice Cream or Gelato
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix brown sugar, oats, flour, and 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a separate bowl. Use a pastry cutter, cut the cold butter into the oat mixture until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs; spread evenly over the apples to the edges of the baking dish.
Place in the preheated oven and bake until golden brown and sides are bubbling, about 40 minutes. Let cool slightly and serve in bowls with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or gelato.
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