Sticky Toffee Pudding with Dates

I used the same recipe again. I don't usually make things twice so quickly, but I was short on time and  needed something that could be served immediately. And making this is so easy and quick, and it was a dessert we could serve warm with tea. I didn't take time for photos - I snapped a few pictures before the last pieces were scooped off the pan.

Since it tasted like an arabic dessert, I added 3/4 cup pitted medjool dates this time. It came out great! I also reduced the brown sugar in the sauce to 3/4 cup, and made sure it came to a full boil (read that from another recipe). I also added 1/4 cup maple syrup. I don't think it changed the texture too much, but it did taste better.

Most importantly, I gradually beat in the flour. Last time I incorporated the flour into the batter in probably about 4 portions, beating it quickly. I'm sensitive to that raw flour taste so maybe that's why it came out better. I took more time to beat in the flour in about 8 smaller portions.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

I found this recipe from snooping on Zignat's pinterest. I wish Haagen-Dazs still sold this because it was incredibly good.

I've never made Sticky Toffee Pudding before, but it was very easy and my kind of baking. Anything with heavy cream, butter, and brown sugar can win me over. I liked the caramel, but next time I may research some ways to make it more flavorful, maybe by adding maple syrup.

In the last minute of baking, you add the caramel and bubble it with the broiler. Most of it flooded to the edges of the pan, which turned out to be the more tasty part.

When it starts cooling, the caramel seeps into the dessert. After tasting a piece of the middle, I decided to add alittle more caramel to the center and broil it again for a minute, so that it can taste like the edges.

I made the whipped cream, but it tastes much better with vanilla ice cream when the sticky toffee pudding is warm (picture at top). I wanted to try this cold, but it didnt last that long. My parents liked this. My mom said it tastes like basbousa and the pecans on top taste like baklava.  

Chocolate Mousse Raspberry Cheesecake

I hadn't made something pretty in a while.

I just tried Cheesecake Factory's Chocolate Raspberry Truffle cheesecake and I'd say this is a pretty good replica! I didn't make the chocolate ganache though. Homemade mousse and raspberry sauce is decadent enough!

I have good recipes for chocolate cheesecake but I wanted to stick to my rule of always making something new. I made Taste of Home's Fabulous Fudge Cheesecake. I knew it looked familiar, and when digging out my cluttered recipe binder, I found it's the same exact recipe as my Hershey's Fudge Truffle Cheesecake. Oh well, not new, but not broken. Still the perfect chocolate cheesecake, as long as you don't over bake.

Though they annoy me, I made the Neelys' chocolate mousse. It was smooth and kept it's shape nice, even when sitting out of the fridge for a couple of hours. The only thing I did different is to strain the egg yolks before adding the chocolate. Next time I would use higher quality chocolate. I used Nestle semi-sweet chocolate chips. The flavor needs improvement so use the best chocolate you can find. I would try Lindt milk chocolate or maybe Godiva. I topped the mousse dollops with chocolate covered pomegranates. 

Knock you Naked Dark Chocolate Brownies

We tried making these for you Farheen, but failed to remember that unlike other brownies, they need to completely cool before you can eat them.

When they came out of the oven we thought they were still under baked because after cooling for 10 minutes, they were still gooey, so we put it back in the oven. When they came out again, they were still runny, and I couldn't cut a piece without it squishing all over the place, so we just left them at home.

When they were cooled, we could see they were baked. It was just that gooey caramel and the chocolate chips that were hot and messy.

So this recipe needs to cool before you can handle and serve them.

This time we tried it with a box of chocolate fudge cake from duncan hines, but the chocolate flavor tasted a bit like oreos. I would go with a different box next time. The german chocolate is wonderful but just wanted to try it slightly different.

I had said that the next time we try it, I wanted to add salt to the caramel. Of course I forgot and the salt didn't make it in.    

My dad is still out of town with our camera so I took these pictures with my phone. They came out horrible! I don't have a smartphone.

Anyways, thank you for the fun night Farheen!



Knock You Naked Dark Chocolate Caramel Brownies

Ingredients
1 box (18.5 Ounce) Dark Chocolate or Chocolate Fudge Cake Mix (I Used Duncan Hines)
1 cup Finely Chopped Pecans
1/3 cup Evaporated Milk
1/2 cup Evaporated Milk (additional)
1/2 cup Butter, Melted
60 whole Caramels, Unwrapped
1/3 cup Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
1/4 cup Powdered Sugar

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together cake mix, chopped pecans, 1/3 cup evaporated milk, and melted butter. Stir together until totally combined. Mixture will be very thick.

Press half the mixture into a well-greased 9 x 9 inch square baking pan. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and set aside.

In a double boiler (or a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of boiling water) melt caramels with additional 1/2 cup evaporated milk. When melted and combined, pour over brownie base. Sprinkle chocolate chips as evenly as you can over the caramel.

Turn out remaining brownie dough on work surface. Use your hands to press it into a large square a little smaller than the pan. Use a spatula to remove it from the surface, then set it on top of the caramel and chocolate chips.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from pan and allow to cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for several hours. When ready to serve, generously sift powdered sugar over the surface of the brownies. Cut into either nine or twelve helpings, and carefully remove from the pan.

Pear Crunch Pie

I don't know why Maryam likes The Chew. That show is so awkward. Clinton shared this pie and Maryam began to nag.

We tried it. We won't be trying it again. 

The pear filling was really tasty and I added even more delicious pears on top, but I didn't like the crust at all. 

I know the crust is supposed to be crunchy, but I didn't like it because it didn't taste like sugary-crunch goodness. It just tasted like you did something wrong, like you don't know how to make a crust. Sandy, gritty, ate it on the beach crust. 

The plain pears on top combined with whipped cream just doesn't go together. Something's missing. Maybe I can use the pear filling for a cake one day.

I know its not that great when I ignore it in the fridge for two days. That's the last time we try something Maryam wants.

Pear Crunch Pie
Adapted from: Clinton Kelly

Crust
1 stick of butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup sweetened coconut

Directions
Combine all ingredients and bake at 350°F on cookie sheet until golden brown (about 40-45 minutes).  Check frequently to prevent edges from burning.  Allow to cool then press into a pie plate, covering the bottom and sides evenly.  Crust should be crumbly when complete.

Pear filling
1/2 light brown sugar
1/3 cup flour
hearty pinch of salt
3/4 cup pear juice (not pear nectar)
3/4 cup whole milk
2 Eggs
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butters
Canned pears

Directions
Combine the first 5 ingredients in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil.  In large bowl, beat 2 eggs.  Add heated mixture to eggs, little by little to temper the eggs. Once eggs are tempered, transfer mixture back to saucepan.  Add 2 tablespoons of butter and ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract and return to a boil (approximately 1 minute). Pour warm mixture into prepared pie shell and chill in the refrigerator.

Whipped Cream
8 ounces heavy cream
2 teaspoons confectioners’ sugar
dash of vanilla extract

Directions
Before serving, whip heavy cream with a teaspoon of confectioner's sugar until medium stiff peaks form. Whip in the vanilla extract. Dollop onto sliced pie when ready to serve. Top with 6 pear slices and dust with cinnamon.

Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

I made Zignat's wonderful toffee cookie recipe, with a few changes according to what I had in the pantry at the time. I kept over baking each batch until finally getting the last few cookies right. They taste much better alittle under done when cooled. 

Toffee Chocolate Chip Cookies

2 1/4 cups of all-purpose flour
3/4 cup oats
1 tsp of baking soda
1/2 tsp of salt
1/2 cup of butter (1 stick)
1/2 cup margarine (apparently this is important if you want them to be more chewy than crisp)
3/4 cups of sugar 
3/4 cups packed dark brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 c. Heath toffee bits
3/4 cups of semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 cups Hershey's milk chocolate bar, cut into chunks
1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Directions

Preheat oven to 375. Combine first four ingredients into small bowl and set aside.

Combine both sugars, butter, margarine, and vanilla in another bowl until blended. Add in eggs and beat well. Add in flour mixture alittle at a time until it's all combined. Add in last four ingredients until just combined. Drop dough onto the cookie sheets and bake 8-10 minutes until the cookies are lightly brown.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls

Fun fact: these candies are also known as buckeyes. But I wanted them to look like truffles. They came out soft and melt-in-your-mouth good.

I was going to go with this recipe at first but then decided with Cook's Country because I like how they shared their trial and error story, which is more detailed in my cookbook than on their website.

I liked their idea of adding white chocolate to the peanut butter because it does firm up nicely. Whenever I make chocolate covered strawberries, white chocolate sets up faster and harder than semi-sweet. So with that in mind, I combined one ounce of white chocolate chips to one cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips and one teapsoon of shortening over a double broiler for coating the candies.

Keep your eye on melting chocolate, stirring occasionally. Take it off the heat as soon as most of it is melted and stir until smooth. Let it cool for at least ten minutes and becomes eaiser to coat the candies. 

I halved the recipe and got 40 candies (1 1/4 inch in size).

Congrats Geoffrey Zakarian! #NextIronChef

Chocolate Peanut Butter Balls
Adapted from: Cook's Country

Directions
2 1

Directions

Preheat ove

Eggnog Cake

I waited nearly a year to make this cake. I found it after eggnog already left the shelves so I saved the recipe away to my favorites tab, and never forgot it. I guess it's hard to live up to a year's worth of wait or this cake just sucks.

It's edible but that's pretty much it. I could slightly taste the eggnog, but overall the texture wasn't fluffy or soft or dense or airy or anything unique. To be fair, I kept it chilled and never tried it at room temperature.

It's worse when the eggnog filling and eggnog frosting recipes I (tried for the first time) paired with this cake also sucked. Okay, the filling wasn't so bad. It was a creative attempt to replace milk with eggnog for instant pudding. But I wanted eggnog filling. And ended up with instant pudding. You know? Just not quite right. No depth of flavor.

The frosting was a disaster. I admit that was my fault. It was a good consistency after adding 1/4 cup eggnog like you're supposed to, but then it lost it's thickness - because I added too much. I doubled it. Couldn't help it. I like eggnog.

So, I kept whipping it, hoping it would thicken. But the butter started to curdle so I had to stop. I tried adding a teaspoon of cornstarch. Still didn't thicken up. I was already starting to taste the flour flavor so I couldn't add more. I added 1/2 cup more powdered sugar. Still didn't thicken up. And it was becoming too sweet. The only thing I could think of was turn it into whipped cream so I folded in 1/2 cup of cool whip. Not my best but at least it was fluffy enough to put on that cake.

One of those cakes I'd just like to throw in the garbage but my dad would get mad at me if I did.

Eggnog Cake

Adapted from: Cook's Country

Cake

1/2 cup butter, softened

 1-1/4 cups sugar

 3 eggs

 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

 1/2 teaspoon rum extract

 2 cups all-purpose flour

 2 teaspoons baking powder

 1 teaspoon salt

 1 cup eggnog

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° F.  In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add extracts. Combine the flour, baking powder and salt; gradually add to creamed mixture alternately with eggnog, beating well after each addition. Pour into two 9-in. round baking pans coated with cooking spray.

Bake for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing to wire racks to cool completely.

Eggnog filling

1 (3.4 ounce) package instant vanilla pudding mix

 2 cups eggnog

 1/2 teaspoon rum flavored extract

Directions

Mix together the vanilla pudding mix, 2 cups eggnog, and 1/2 teaspoon rum flavored extract in a medium bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.

Eggnog frosting

8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), at room temperature

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup Best Eggnog

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Pinch ground cinnamon

Pinch fine salt

Directions

Place the butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer and scrape down the beater and sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Turn the mixer to medium low, gradually add the powdered sugar, and beat until combined, about 2 minutes.

Add the remaining ingredients and beat until the frosting is very airy and thoroughly mixed, about 2 minutes. Use immediately.

Eggnog French Toast

I didn't have to go to work this morning so I made eggnog french toast. I've been looking up recipes using eggnog, mostly cakes, but came across this one and thought it was brilliant.

I used Promised Land Eggnog, and still can't decide if its mild or strong. Probably in between, but not strong enough to taste in the french toast. I remember from last year that Borden's eggnog was mild in flavor too. Oak Farm's eggnog was stronger, which I used in a cheesecake recipe and the flavor stood out, so I'd like to try this again sometime with Oak Farm's eggnog.

I think fresh nutmeg would be nice too, because I didn't taste it either. Still a good breakfast though, and I enjoyed cooking on the griddle this time - so much easier.

Eggnog French Toast

4 eggs
1 cup eggnog
1 teaspoon vanilla flavoring
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2.5 tablespoons butter
10 slices of white bread (not toasted, not stale)

Directions
Preheat your pan on the stove to medium heat or to 350 degrees if using a griddle. Whisk the first four ingredients into a 8x8 dish. Cut 1/4 tablespoon butter and place into one corner of your pan. If it melts and sizzles slightly, without smoking or burning it is at the right temperature. Coat one corner of your pan with the butter. Dip a slice of bread into the egg mixture and flip to coat both sides. Place on top of the melted butter inside the pan. Repeat with all slices. Cook for about 6-8 minutes on the first side and about 3-4 minutes on the second side, until they look golden brown. After every two slices I dip, I sprinkle more nutmeg into the egg mixture, to be sure each slice gets a good amount.

Optional topping ideas: fresh fruit (raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, bananas, or oranges) maple syrup, a light dusting of powdered sugar, or whipped cream. Of course, drink with eggnog.

Pumpkin White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies

I've been missing in action this November! Hmm, what have I been doing? Too much shopping, I think!

I really didn't feel like baking these but Maryam kept nagging for them because they're from Closet Cooking and he makes good stuff.

You don't taste the pumpkin too much, its a very suttle flavor - my sister in law didn't know it had pumpkin in it.

I didn't think these were sweet enough so next time I would put more brown sugar. These would be better if I just made them into Zignat's cookie by adding toffee and semisweet chocolate. I'm glad it has oatmeal in it though to make it taste more like cookies. And of course white chocolate and macadamia nuts are great together. Chop the nuts small because macadamias are crunchy.

Pumpkin White Chocolate Macadamia Nut Cookies
Adapted from: Closet Cooking

1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup white chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped

Directions
Cream the butter and sugar in a bowl. Beat in the egg and vanilla extract. Mix the flour, baking soda and salt in another bowl. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet. Mix in the rolled oats, white chocolate and macadamia nuts. Place the dough onto a cookie sheet one table spoon at a time.
Bake in a 350F preheated oven for 8-10 minutes.