Spencer, the Cake Tester

I baked two cakes, a chocolate olive oil cake and a lemon polenta cake, and asked Spencer to taste test. He preferred the lemon polenta cake. To be honest, I must agree with him, though the chocolate olive oil cake was still very good.

I will keep both recipes in my toolkit since they were fairly simple. Would love to hear what other peeps have been baking these days!

Quarantine Life

How is everyone holding up? We just finished week five of quarantine life. Maggie has been keeping busy at the condo.

She has been trying lots of new cookie recipes, including this one for buckwheat chocolate cookies from Bon Appetit.

She has also been reading books. Dear Girls is the last book we got from the library before it shut down because of COVID-19.

Every now and then she watches movies on Netflix. Shout out to Chris for adding us to your account!

She waters our plants.

And she takes afternoon naps with B.

Stay happy and healthy!

Zucchini Bread/Muffins (Version 3.0)

Hi pals! Did you have a good holiday? We were quite busy throughout but managed to sneak in some naps and TV shows/movies.

Tim had the itch to bake today. And we had a few zucchinis lying around. Below is a new recipe we tried with Tim. To see the Mins' zucchini bread or Bernie's rendition of zucchini chocolate chip muffins, check out our baking collection here.

Smitten Kitchen's Zucchini Bread

3 large eggs

1 cup (235 ml) olive, vegetable oil or melted butter

1 1/3 to 1 3/4 cups granulated or turbinado sugar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground or freshly grated nutmeg

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 teaspoon fine sea or table salt

2 cups grated, packed zucchini, not wrung out

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1 to 2 cups dried cranberries, raisins, and/or or chocolate chips

Heat your oven to 350 F. Generously grease/flour/coat with nonstick spray/line two loaf pans or 24 muffin cups.

Whisk eggs, oil/butter, sugar, and vanilla in the bottom of a large bowl. Sprinkle cinnamon, nutmeg, baking soda, baking powder, and salt over wet ingredients and whisk them in well. Stir in zucchini. Gently stir in flour, mixing only until flour disappears. Stir in any add-ins, from nuts to chocolate. 

Divide between prepared pans and bake for 55 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Muffins will bake far more quickly, approximately 20 to 25 minutes. You can let them cool for 10 minutes on a rack before inverting and removing cakes from pans, or just let them cool completely in pans. Store it wrapped in foil at room temperature for up to 5 days.

Source: Smitten Kitchen

Sunday Cookies

Tim and Bernie made chocolate chip cookies today!

What are you up to this Sunday?

Mmm...cake!

I have been perusing many baking blogs lately, and came across this Swedish Visiting Cake on Pastry Affair. Spencer was a big help.

He made sure I had all the ingredients ready...

...told me when the butter started to brown...

...mixed orange zest with sugar...

...sprinkle sliced almonds on top of the batter...

 ...kept an eye on the cake while it was baking...

...and waited for the cake to cool before slicing some up for his pals...

We didn't use any leavening agents so the cake was flat and chewy. We had a wedge with some black tea for an afternoon snack. The cake is supposed to get better with age so we can't wait to try it tomorrow, and even the next day.

Mmm...cake!

"No Bake" Baking

Snowman loves "no bake" baking. He helped me whip up three dozen of these bad boys for a charity event at work. They consist of only seven ingredients, and are healthy to boot. Plus, they taste awesome.

Granola Bar Bites

1 cup rolled oats

Pinch of salt

Pinch of ground cinnamon

Splash of vanilla

1/4 cup almond butter

1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup

1/4 cup dried berries

With a fork, stir together oats, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla in a medium bowl.

Stir in almond butter, honey, and dried berries.

Once the mixture is mixed well, use your hands to roll 12 one-inch balls.

If the mixture is too dry to roll into balls, add a bit more honey or almond butter.

Source: my name is yeh

These balls are foolproof, and didn't take long to make at all. Snowman and I saved a few for ourselves. We had them for breakfast the next day.

Pear and Ginger Muffins

The Mins woke up this morning wanting to bake something for breakfast. These muffins were adapted from a popular Nigella Lawson recipe.

Pear and Ginger Muffins

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup granulated white sugar

1/2 cup + 6 teaspoons light brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground ginger

2/3 cup sour cream

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon honey

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups pears, peeled and diced

Preheat oven to 400 F. Line 12 muffin cups.

In a large bowl, whisk flour, white sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, baking powder, and ground ginger.

In a medium bowl, whisk sour cream, oil, honey, and eggs. Fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients, mixing just until incorporated. Stir in pear.

Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Sprinkle each muffin with 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar. Bake for 20 minutes. Cool on rack.

Source: RecipieGirl.com

Though the photo with the Mins has eight muffins, the recipe does make a dozen. We cut down on white sugar by 1/4 cup, and didn't sprinkle brown sugar on each muffin before baking. We also used dark brown sugar instead of light brown sugar since that's all we had at home. We used two Bartlett pears, which worked out to be more than 1 1/2 cups. Even with all these adjustments, the muffins were excellent. We would try this recipe again, perhaps making a loaf instead.

Pecan Pie Perfection

It's only been a few weeks, but fall is in full gear. Colin says it's perfect sweater weather. He helped me bake a classic pecan pie yesterday. 

Classic Pecan Pie

1 cup corn syrup

3 eggs

1 cup sugar

2 tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 1/2 cups pecans

1 9-inch unbaked or frozen deep dish pie crust

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Mix corn syrup, eggs, sugar, butter, and vanilla. Stir in pecans. Pour filling into pie crust.

Bake on hot baking sheet on centre rack of oven for 60 to 70 minutes. Cool completely on wire rack.

Source: Karo

We didn't have enough corn syrup so we topped up with honey. We also cut the sugar by half. Our pie took 75 minutes to bake and would pair nicely with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Bon appetit, Colin! Bon appetit!

Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

BC shared a classic chocolate chip cookie recipe with Maggie. I bought Maggie the best dark chocolate chips I could find at Bulk Barn. I also picked up some pecans and roasted them slightly.

 Maggie put a lot of effort into baking these cookies. They didn't spread out quite like we thought they would, but they still tasted delicious. The pecans gave the cookies a nice crunch but were not overpowering. The chocolate chips were worth every penny. They definitely brought the cookies up a few notches.

The cookies didn't last long. BC ate most of them in two sittings. Here's Maggie with the last two.

Also, thanks JW for these pretty flowers! We'll take good care of them!

Ode to Peaches

It's peach season here in Ontario and we're making the most of it!

 

 

Today, the Mins and I made a buttermilk peach cake using a recipe adapted from one of our favourites by Smitten Kitchen.

 

 

The cake turned out wonderfully! We used a 9 inch springform pan, 1/4 cup less sugar than called for, and homemade buttermilk.

 

 

A dollop of whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream would pair nicely with the cake. Check out the baker upstairs for the recipe.

Vanilla Coconut Muffins

We're using this Sunday to catch up on life - clean the condo, do laundry, go to the gym, and prep food. Q is always a helpful sidekick in the kitchen. Today we tried our hands at vanilla coconut muffins.

Vanilla Coconut Muffins

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup sugar

2 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)

2 large eggs

1 cup milk (regular or coconut)

1 tbsp vanilla extract

5 tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 350 F. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, and sugar. Stir in shredded coconut.

In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, and vanilla extract. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in egg mixture. Stir until the wet ingredients are almost fully combined. Stir melted butter until completely incorporated.

Divide batter into 12 prepared muffin cups. Bake for 25 to 28 minutes. Cool muffins completely on wire rack.

Source: Baking Bites

Q and I used 3/4 cup sugar, unsweetened shredded coconut, coconut milk, and oil instead of butter. The result was a dense muffin with a slight crumble. We look forward to eating these for breakfast over the next few days!

Bake Sale Treats

Spencer and I whipped up some treats for a charity bake sale at my office. They were insanely easy and a hit among my co-workers. Check out the great recipes below!

Green Tea Chocolate

http://www.justonecookbook.com/green-tea-chocolate

Nutella Truffles

http://eugeniekitchen.com/nutella-chocolate-truffle

Nutella Oatmeal Cookies

I bought a large jar of Nutella last week. I haven't had it in years so I thought I could incorporate it into some new baking experiments. The Mins found the jackpot of Nutella recipes at Kirbie's Cravings. It was hard to choose a recipe to start off with but since we had lots of oatmeal on hand, this one seemed like a logical choice. And the result was delish!

Nutella Oatmeal Cookies

1/2 cup Nutella

1 extra large egg

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup quick oats

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat mat. Add all ingredients into a large bowl and stir with a wooden spoon until everything is thoroughly mixed. Make small round balls, about 1 1/2 inch in diameter. You should have enough to form 10 cookies.

Place dough balls on baking sheet, about 2 inches apart. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cookies cool on the baking sheet until they are set and firm.

Source: Kirbie's Cravings

Hot Chocolate Mug Cake

I hope everyone is keeping warm this Family Day weekend! It's been extremely cold but it looks like the worse is over. Last night, it was 40 below zero with the wind chill. Tomorrow, it looks like it'll be back to normal temperatures for this time of year.

Snowman is a big fan of the winter (naturally). I asked for his help in making a winter appropriate mug cake. We opted for a hot chocolate one since we had mini marshmallows around. Make sure to use two regular sized mugs or one large latte mug for this recipe! Snowman is holding a 20 oz Corningware mug.

Hot Chocolate Mug Cake

4 tablespoons all purpose flour

4 tablespoons white granulated sugar

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 egg

2 1/2 tablespoons hot cocoa mix

3 1/2 tablespoons milk

Splash of vanilla extract

3 1/2 tablespoons oil
Mini marshmallows (optional)

Combine all ingredients except mini marshmallows in an oversized coffee mug. Whisk well with a fork until smooth. Microwave on high for 1 minute 30 seconds. Check to see if done by inserting knife and seeing if middle of cake is done. Even when fully cooked, the outside of the cake will look wet and slightly gooey. If it needs longer, cook for an additional 30 seconds. Add mini marshmallows on top and let cake cool slightly before eating.

Source: Kirbie's Cravings

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins

Happy New Year, friends! We hope everyone had a fun time ringing in 2015.

Bernie found this recipe for me on Sunday. He knew I was searching for something to make that's portable to eat for breakfast. These muffins turned out better than I expected. The zucchini makes them extra moist.

Zucchini Chocolate Chip Muffins 

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup white sugar

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/4 cup milk

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup shredded zucchini

1/2 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line 12 muffin cups.

Combine flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Mix egg, oil, milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract in another bowl. Stir into dry ingredients until just moistened. Fold in zucchini and chocolate chips. Fill muffin cups 2/3 full.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes.

Source: Allrecipes.com

Muffins by Maggie (and Colin!)

Maggie was reunited with her cousin, Colin, this past weekend. And great news - he's here to stay! Maggie wanted to show Colin her super duper baking skills. She also wanted to show him how to wear a muffin liner like a fancy hat.

The Best Chocolate Chip Muffins

1/2 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 12 cup muffin tray with paper liners.

In a large mixing bowl beat the butter, sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon until fluffy. Beat in eggs, then stir in the milk. Mix in the flour just until combined, then the chocolate chips. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Bake the muffins for approximately 30 minutes.

Source: Cinnamon-Spice & Everything Nice

Baking Momofuku Corn Cookies

We were on a baking hiatus and are back in full force! We look forward to sharing a whole bunch of recipes we have lined up for the rest of the year.

Today, the Quatchis were itching to try the corn cookies from Momofuku Milk Bar. The recipe is not as complex as the cornflake-chocolate-chip-marshmallow cookie or the chocolate-chocolate cookie, but it involves a very unique ingredient - freeze-dried corn powder. We tried hunting down said corn powder at a grocery store with no such luck. We ultimately opted to buy a bottle of it from the Milk Bar itself.

We made a double batch, and kept half the dough to bake later on in the week. The dough really spreads out in the oven, so be sure to leave lots of space in between the cookies.

Special shout out to Sarah who bought us these charming measuring cups! We used them for this recipe. Thanks again for the thoughtful gift!

Classic Corn Muffins

My family and I had southern BBQ last week. Ever since, I've been craving homemade corn bread. If you're counting calories, this recipe isn't for you. If you're looking for classic corn bread, in muffin form, that's sweet and crumbly, read on!

Corn Muffins

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1 cup medium cornmeal

2 tablespoons baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 1/2 cups whole milk

1/2 pound unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 extra-large eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line 12 muffin cups with paper liners.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, combine the milk, melted butter, and eggs. With the mixer on the lowest speed, pour the wet ingredients into the dry ones and stir until they are just blended. Spoon the batter into the paper liners, filling each one to the top.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the tops are crisp and a toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly and remove from the pan.

Source: Ina Garten on the Food Network

Q opted to use less sugar than the recipe called for, and ended up making 15 large muffins instead of the usual dozen. The muffins tasted great right out of the oven. Serve them warm if you can!

Coconut Snowballs

Even though we Torontonians are ready to say goodbye to this cold weather, Q's buddy, the Snowman, is gonna miss his favourite season. To cheer up the Snowman, Q and I baked snowballs. Coconut snowballs!

Coconut Snowballs 

1 3/4 cups unsweetened shredded coconut, divided

2 teaspoons melted coconut oil

3 tablespoons maple syrup

2 tablespoons unsweetened coconut milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon sea salt

Place 1 cup of shredded coconut in a food processor along with the coconut oil. Process on high speed, scraping down the sides periodically, until it reaches a paste-like consistency.

Add the maple syrup, coconut milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt and process until well combined. Add 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons of shredded coconut and pulse until just combined.

Shape the mixture into 12 (1-inch) balls and coat with the remaining shredded coconut. Refrigerate for at least an hour and up to 5 days. Bring to room temperature before eating.

Source: The Kitchn

There were a lot of firsts with this recipe - first time using a food processor, first time baking with coconut, and first time using coconut oil. It was also my first time baking something gluten-free, nut-free, and vegan. I am using the term "baking" loosely. As you can see from above, no baking required!

It's 11:18 PM...

We planned on going to bed early, but we were wide awake! What to do...what to do...

The Mins had an idea - make a simple dessert! After a quick Google search, we came across an easy peasy brownie recipe. It involved few ingredients, one mug, and 75 seconds in the microwave.

 The photo doesn't do it justice but the brownie turned out great. We'll be keeping this recipe in our roster for when we need a chocolate fix. Now to bed we go!

For 30 other mug recipes, check out No. 2 Pencil.