It's World Nutella Day!

Five years ago, Sara Rossi, of Ms. Adventures in Italy baked up the idea of World Nutella Day and since then countless recipes have been shared for using Nutella in recipes.  I absolutely loved the idea of celebrating this day with fellow Nutella addicts the world over and have faithfully celebrated. 

For my recipe this year, I wanted to make something that took me back to Gelatoria Mario's in Bologna, a regular stop for my cohort of International "crime", Holly, and I.  I'm sure that there were many fabulous things to try at Mario's, but on my first visit there on a warm August day in 1988, I ordered a frappe' of gianduja e coco (chocolate hazelnut and coconut milkshake) and I never ordered anything but that again.  I even brought Keith there 6 years later and made him order one, too. 

And because I wanted to kick off my day with Nutella, I decided to make these:

Coco Loco Nutella  Rolls
1 loaf frozen bread dough - thawed overnight in the frig (or make your own if you have time prefer)
About 1 cup Nutella (or more to your liking)
1/2 cup coconut
2 Tablespoons milk

Roll out the the dough on a well-floured surface into a 12x9 rectangle.  Spread with Nutella, but leave about an inch uncovered on one of the long sides. 

Sprinkle the coconut on top.

Roll up starting from the long side that has filling spread to the edge.  Pinch the dough to seal the seam.  Slice into 9 pieces.  Arrange on a GREASED baking sheet and cover. 

Let rise until almost double in size (about 45 minutes).

Preheat oven to 350 F.  Bake them for 15-20 minutes or until golden.  Mine were apparently having a little party in the oven while I was cleaning up...

While they cool, make the icing:
1/3 - 1/2 cup nutella and 2 Tablespoons milk mixed together.  Add more milk if needed for drizzling consistency.

Drizzle the rolls with the icing and serve warm.

Buon Appetito!



Want to join in the fun?  Check out Ms. Adventures In Italy, Bleeding Expresso, and World Nutella Day!

The 3rd, 4th, and 5th Day of Thanksgiving...and a recipe

Nutcrackers!  And things were going so well... I had given you two days in a row and now it's back to playing catch up on my catch up... alright, then, here we go...

On the 3rd day of Thanksgiving, the good Lord gave to me....

three willing helpers  (for the girl scout food drive)

two wannabe's

and a happy, healthy family.

On the 4th day of Thanksgiving, the good Lord gave to me....

 four extra pounds from eating these...

pumpkin cream cheese muffins...

On the fifth day of Thanksgiving, the good Lord gave to me....

five friends decorated for Halloweeeeennnn...4 extra pounds, 3 willing helpers, 2 wannabes and a happy healthy, family.

Okay, all caught up. 

For making you wait, here is the recipe for another one of my favorite fall desserts and a yearly must - make,

The Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins (makes lots and freezes well!)

Cream Cheese Filling:

12 oz. of cream cheese

1 egg

1/2 c. sugar

1/8 tspn salt

Mix and set aside.  Don't forget where you put it, and don't keep eating it while making the next step.

Pumpkin cake part:

Mix together:

3 c. sugar

3 1/2 c. flour

1 tspn salt

1 tspn nutmeg

1 tspn cinnamon

2 tspn baking soda

4 eggs

2/3 c. water

1 c. oil

2 c. canned pumpkin

1 c. chocolate chips (of course there is chocolate!)

Line 36 muffin cups (or a few more) with papers.  Put about 2 Tbls. pumpkin mixture in each cup and top with 1 tbls. cream cheese mixture.  Top with 2 Tbls. pumpkin mixture, filling each cup about 2/3 full.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.   YUM!

There's A Hole In This Cake

Over the past few months I've been feeling very much like Maria Portokalos - focusing on the hole in the cake, instead of like her husband, Gus, just embracing life.  Many of you know that I had a sad summer -   among other things....my Grams left us to go be with Jesus.  And now, well,  there is a big hole in the cake.  I haven't blogged because I thought that I should write about it, but honestly, I don't want to.  Not yet.  My personal cheerleader is gone.  So if you didn't know, now you do, and maybe someday we'll revisit it. 

I will say, however, that I know that Grams would expect me to focus on the positive.  And so for now, I'll share this with you : My favorite fall cake, I mean BUNDT.

Harvest Cake (adapted from Gooseberry Patch, Flavors of Fall)

Mix together:

1 1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 t. cinnamon
2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/4 t. ground ginger
1 c. oil
1/2 t. vanilla extract
4 eggs

Add:
2 c. flour, 1/2 cup at a time
15 oz. pumpkin

Fold in:
2 apples, cored, peeled and chopped
1/2 c. chopped pecans (or walnuts, if you prefer)

Pour into a greased and floured BUNDT pan, bake 350 degrees for an hour and 10 minutes.  Cool 20 minutes and remove from pan to finish cooling on wire rack.

BUT WAIT!  your not done.. oh, no.  This is the best part:

The Frosting:

Blend the following together and spread on cooled cake.  Feel free to lick the bowl.

2 t. vanilla extract

1/2 butter, softened

8 oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened

3 1/2 c. powdered sugar

Moist and delicious and tastes like Autumn.  Grams would be proud. 

So, Embrace the bundt, hole and all!  I know I'm learning to.

The Winner Revealed - Finally...

So, which of the cookie recipes won the throwdown? I guess I've made you wait long enough...

Could it have been the recipe I 've been using for several years now which uses bread flour, an egg and egg yolk, 1 1/2 c. of brown sugar, and a batter that sits in the fridge for several hours before baking?....

Or could it have been the one that uses vanilla jello pudding?

Or maybe the eggless, nutless, dairyless one with chickpeas and oatmeal in it?

It could have even been the one with corn syrup and white vinegar in it, or the one with corn syrup and dark brown sugar.... the recipes were all so different!!

Before I tell you the winner - please meet the contestants:


#1 - My favorite recipe going into the throwdown - hello, beautiful...

#2 - from my friend Lisa - great for those with food allergies! And you truly would never know that there are chickpeas in these little morsels of deliciousness.

#3 - The Martha Stewart Recipe...

#4 - This recipe called for Vanilla Jello Pudding

# 5 This recipe includes both corn syrup and white vinegar!

#6 - The recipe on the back of the Trader Joe's Chocolate Chip Bag

If you remember, the Trader Joe Chocolate Chips won the chocolate chip contest and therefore were used in ALL 6 RECIPES. I know this comes as a surprise to some of my judges who didn't like particular cookies because of the "chips"! I had to laugh at that. But I guess depending on the ingredients, it may have effected the taste of the chips...

A HUGE THANK YOU to my 14 judges for indulging me by indulging in 6 different chocolate chip cookies in one sitting!!!

So - who won? Well, coming in 3rd Place: #5 (with # 4 right on it's heels) # 5 has 2 tbsp of corn syrup in addition to white, light and dark sugars, AND has 1 Tbsp of vinegar in it. The vinegar smell really disturbed me in the making of the dough. It didn't have that pleasant chocolate chip cookie dough smell to me. Obviously, that disappeared once the cookies were baked!

2nd Place goes to: #6 The recipe on the back of the Trader Joe's bag. Quite a few of the judges wrote that this one tasted most like a traditional "Toll House" cookie. Very true. The only difference between this recipe and the one on the back of the Nestle bag is that this one has 1 c. of brown sugar (Nestle- 3/4 c.) and 1/2 c. of white sugar (Nestle - 3/4)

And the GRAND PRIZE WINNER OF THE 2010 CHOCOLATE CHIP RECIPE THROWDOWN:

#1. I kid you not. The very recipe I've been using all along. I should have known....

And because you have waited so long, here is the recipe:

Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter

2 1/4 c. bread flour

1 tspn salt

1 tspn baking soda

1/4 c. sugar

1 1/4 c. light brown sugar

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 Tbsp milk

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 bag Trader Joe's chocolate chip cookies (or any of your other favorites, if say the nearest Trader Joe's is 600 miles away... :)

Directions:

Melt butter in the microwave. While that's going on sift together the flour, salt and baking soda. Set those dry ingredients aside.

Pour the melted butter in a mixing bowl with the white and brown sugars. Mix til creamy. Add the egg, yolk, milk and vanilla. Mix til they are well combined. Slowly add the flour mixture and then the chips. (at this point I often also throw-in my favorite add-ins - toasted pecans or almonds, and coconut) ( I did NOT do that for this throwdown, though. Had to stay traditional).

Now, stick the batter in the frig for at least 2 hours. When you are ready to bake them, preheat the oven to 375. Scoop dough onto parchment -lined baking sheets. Bake for about 14 minutes or until golden brown.

Eat one or two, then cool the rest completely and store in an airtight container. That is, if there are any left...

Bake them. Enjoy them. Don't let me know you have any in your house. I have been eating chocolate chip cookies for a week and I really need to detox now.... although I do have a few cupcake recipes I may need to Throwdown...

Meet The Contestants

The contestants have gathered in my kitchen and are ready for judging. Now if I could just coordinate my judges' schedules, we could get on with this "Throwdown"!





Nestle, Hershey, Trader Joe's, Ghirardelli, Essensia. Semi-sweet, every one.

May the best chip win!

Sweet Tart

One thing that I know for sure is that Keith will not make a cranberry bog for me in our backyard. It is good to know some things for sure. Creates some stability.

However, I really like things with cranberries in them. Thankfully, cranberry bogs are plentiful in our state, and therefore so are cranberries at this time of year. Yesterday I made a Cranberry bread that turned out just right, so I thought I'd share the recipe with you here. The aroma as it bakes will have you dancing around your kitchen AND the best part is that it makes two loaves - one for you, and one for everyone else! ;)

Cranberry Bread

4 oz. butter, softened
2 extra large eggs
1 T. orange zest
1 1/2 c. fresh orange juice
4 c. flour
2 c. white sugar, plus more to dust on top of each loaf before baking
3 tspn. baking powder
1 tspn. baking soda
2 tspn. salt
12 oz. of fresh cranberries (about 4-5 cups)
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350. Grease 2 8" loaf pans and set aside. In bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside. Beat together butter, eggs, and zest. Add the juice and and stir well (will look a little curdled - ignore that). Add flour mixture and beat til just incorporated. Fold in cranberries and walnuts and then divide batter between two pans. Dust the tops with sugar ( I actually made up some cinnamon sugar and put that on top) - about 2 tspns per loaf ( I like a thick, sweet crust on top). Bake for about 50 minutes depending on your oven and loaf pans. Let cool 10 minutes and remove to a rack to cool completely.

Moist, sweet, tart, delicious. Just in time to take to Mom's for breakfast on Thanksgiving morning!

Enjoy!

Back Up Plan

Should you find yourself on the evening of your husband's birthday with say, a coconut custard pie that never set and you're just a few short minutes from gift giving and Happy Birthday singing, I've discovered an impromptu back up plan....








Five Minute Chocolate Mug Cake:
(thanks to my friend that forwarded this recipe to me in an email! :)


4 T flour
4 T sugar
2 T cocoa
1 egg
3 T milk
3 T oil (don't accidentally add OLIVE oil... not as tasty in cake... wasn't a good day all around..)
3 T chocolate chips
splash vanilla extract (yes, that IS a measurement in my kitchen)

1 Large Coffee Mug - microwavable


Mix dry ingredients in mug, add egg and mix thoroughly. Add milk and oil, mix, add vanilla extract and chips, mix again. Pop it in the microwave for 3 minutes at 1000 watts ( I just did it on my microwave's normal setting and assumed it was that) (If you know how to determine the watts on your microwave, more power to ya -get it, power, ....hello? Right. Back to the recipe.)


Don't be alarmed when the cake looks as if it is going to rise up out of the mug and take off like the gingerbread man. Instead, grab the kids and stand around laughing like crazy at it. Takes your mind off the time spent on the coconut custard pie that never set.


Allow to cool a little and tip out onto a plate if you want. Or just let your loved one eat it right out of the mug. Top with the real whipped cream that you can't use on your coconut custard pie that never set. It's really good! Even if you do accidentally use olive oil....




The birthday boy was thoroughly impressed. But he also reminded me that I still owe him a coconut custard pie.... hmmm.... I think Sara Lee's are on sale this week at the market...if so, I'm all SET! Sorry, I couldn't help it. Please stop by again sometime. I'll try not to be so corny.

National Cookie Month!

My friend, Lori, informed me via her blog , that October is National Cookie Month! She has posted a few yummy cookie recipes, and I told her that I would play along on my blog, too. That was back on October 3rd, I think... Well, better late than never to get started!

Here are some of my favorite cookies to make (and eat!) in October: Pumkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Walnut Icing. I make an exception for these as there is no chocolate in them (although mini chips might be yummy, hmmmm...) because they are THAT good anyway! Thankfully, the majority of these went to a Fall Harvest Party we attended on Saturday night cause I really need to stop eating like I'm still on the Cruise...

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Walnut Frosting

2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup) softened,

2/3 c. firmly packed brown sugar

1/3 c. sugar

1 c. (8 oz.) canned pumpkin (NOT pumpkin pie filling)

1 egg

1 tspn. vanilla

2 c. all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tspn. pumpkin pie spice

1 tspn. baking powder

1 tspn. baking soda

1/4 tspn. salt

Frosting:

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 c. unsalted butter, softened

3 oz. cream cheese, softened

1 tspn. vanilla

1/4 tspn. pumpkin pie spice

Walnut pieces

Heat ove to 350F. Combine butter, brown sugar, and sugar in a large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often til creamy. Add pumpkin, egg and vanilla. Continue beating until well mixed. Add flour, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder and soda, and salt. Beat until well mixed.

Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls 2 inches apart onto ungreased cookie sheets. (I use a melon baller) Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until set. Cool Completely.

Combine all frosting ingredients except walnut pieces in medium bowl Beat at low speed until smooth. Frost cooled cookies and garnish with walnuts.

Makes about 5 dozen cookies depending on how much batter you eat....

Enjoy!

How Can This Be..

My 100th Post?

Perhaps I should do something special in honor of the occasion. Fireworks? Too over the top (and how would I get them on my computer without blowing it up?) A Giveaway? Too assuming (assuming people would leave a comment, that is) A special song? Too repetitive (see post# 99)


Perhaps I should mention to you that today is my little sister's 30th Birthday. If you have been reading my blog for longer than a month, you may recall that I was doing her "30.lbs by 30" challenge with her - only I was shooting for 10 by the time she turned 30. I was doing really well, having lost 9. something lbs. And then we went to Disney World in June.. and had the dining plan...and then I went to the beach for the 3 weeks, with last week being Keith's vacation week there. And I had my ice cream maker with me... All this is my great big excuse for why now, on the day that the challenge ends, I only lost about 2 lbs. Truly unfortunate. But we won't dwell on that today because this is supposed to be a celebratory post.

Perhaps in honor of my 100th post, and the fact that I lost almost 2 lbs. in the past 5 months (dispicable) , and it is my little sister's birthday, I should share a recipe with you that was part of my demise. I even have photos.

Have you ever had Strawberry Pretzel Salad? It used to be one of my favorite dishes growing up. My mom even made me a batch to bring back to college my freshman year after a break, and I did not even share it with my 3 roommates (maybe one of the reasons we don't keep in touch..hmmm) I had not eaten it for a very long time and decided that I HAD to have it on Memorial Day - at the beach house. So I made it. And I loved it. And I did share it. But I'm not sharing THAT recipe with you today, oh no. I came across something even more beautiful in my blog reading travels....

Strawberry Pretzel Salad Ice Cream

(adopted from heatherbailey.typepad.com)

Just typing it makes me want to run and get my ice cream maker back out of the pantry.


Here she is:


You'll need to run out and get one of these if you don't have one already. Mine has a 1.5 Qt. capacity.

Okay, first you'll need to crush up about 1 1/2 cups of salted pretzels and throw 'em in a pan with 1/4 c. melted butter and 1/4 c. sugar. Bake for 10 minutes at 350.




Then let them cool, and break them all up again.

While they are in the oven begin making your vanilla ice cream base. I whisked 2 c. heavy cream, 3/4 c. of sugar, 1 T. vanilla extract, 1 c. of whole milk and a pinch of salt and poured it in my ice cream maker and started her up.







After about 20 minutes, when the cream is at soft serve consistancy, it's time to add the mix-ins.

In addition to the crushed up pretzels, you'll need to combine 5 oz. of strawberries (partial frozen - cut into small pieces) with 1 T. of sugar. And you'll need 4 oz. of softened cream cheese, mixed with 1/2 c. sugar. FIRST add the pretzels and the strawberries, then turn off the machine and fold in the cream cheese.


(Now, please keep in mind that if I wasn't at the beach house when I made this, I think all of these ingredients would have been artfully displayed in matching bowls - perhaps)


Don't let your doubtful husband try to sneak a taste before the right time, or add any boogies, for that matter.




Now pop it in the freezer and let it harden overnite - if you can wait that long.



Wait for it.....

Ta Da! Okay so I didn't make it look all beautiful. We were at the beach, and I really didn't even want to stop to take the picture before inhaling all of the deliciousness in that bowl. But if you did want to make it more beautiful, you could throw, I mean, place a few strawberries and pretzel sticks around the sides.

Even the doubtful husband ate his in seconds flat, and then suggested that it would be best if we finish the rest right then and there.

Very Celebratory.

Perhaps next time I may try chocolate-coverd pretzels to just "kick it up a notch". Or maybe put homemade chocolate shell on top. Because I can't really have dessert without chocolate.

Perhaps I better go out running now. Perhaps. I do have 8. something lbs. that I have to loose by August 21st now. And okay, I don't run, but I do need to get reaquianted with my trainer, Bob...

Perhaps I'll just go make this ice cream and celebrate my sister's birthday.

Happy Birthday, Annie!!

A Hint and Some Recipes

While I'm away, I thought I'd share two of the delicious recipes from the brunch several weeks ago. Both very delicious, very wonderful Brunch menu items. (sorry I don't have a picture of the Blueberry Croissant Puff - we must have eaten it too fast or something....)







Asparagus Tomato Quiche (compliments of Christie Marino)
10" pie shell
4 large eggs
3 TBL Flour
1 tsp Paprika
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp dry mustard
1 1/2 C Half-n-half
2 C grated swiss cheese
10 Asparagus spears, washed and trimmed(I used a few more)
1 large tomato, cut into 1/4" slices

Preheat oven 375. In a med. bowl, beat eggs with flour, paprika, salt and
mustard. Add half-n-half slowly, beating well. Stir in cheese. Saving 6
aspargus spears for the top, chop rest into 1" lengths and lay on bottom of pie
shell. Pour in liquid. Bake 20 minutes. Remove from oven, and quickly arrange
tomato and aspargus on the top of the quiche in a wagon wheel pattern. Bake
another 20-30 minutes until firm when a toothpick inserted comes out clean.
Serves 4-6.



Blueberry Croissant Puff (compliments of Anne Marie Solomon)

3 lg croissants, cut up
1 1/2 c. fresh or frozen blueberries
8 oz cream cheese - can use low fat
2/3 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 c. milk

Place croissant pieces evenly in 10 (1/2 c) ramekins. Sprinkle with blueberries.
Beat cream cheese, sugar, eggs, and vanilla in med bowl with electric mixer until well blended.
Gradually add milk, beating until smooth. Pour evenly over croissant pieces. Let stand for 20 minutes.
Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until set in centers and golden brown. Serve warm sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Alternative: Make puff in one baking dish. Mix cream cheese batter as directed; pour into 9" square baking dish. Let stand 20 minutes. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until set in center and golden brown.



Where Are We? Hint: We will have the opportunity to sample foods from countries around the world. Hmmm... Last Hint tomorrow.

Your Going To Make It After All...

Yes, I took a picture of Mary. I mean, come on, they actually have a statue of her, I had to.

And I had to go here, too. We were so close, and they have an American Girl store.

I skipped the rollercoasters, however. And aside from the American Girl souvenior for Emmy, I only bought two pairs of cute summer shoes (a post for another day). And a shirt. All from The Rack (Nordstrom "outlet" -choke). And we ate lunch at Johnny Rockets - my mom and I were being very good and split a cheeseburger. And Diana got a hamburger. And then they got gas.

Sorry, I couldn't resist. Thanks for putting up with me.

If you are still here, I'll give you the recipe for the yumdiddlicious granola we ate with yogurt and berries every morning for breakfast. Homemade by Diana.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

HOMEMADE GRANOLA

1/2 c. honey

1/2 c. chunky peanut butter

1 tspn. vanilla

1/4 tspn cinnamon

Heat these over low heat and then mix together with:

3 c. rolled oats

1/2 c. wheat germ

1/2 c. slivered almonds

1/2 c. chopped pecans

1/2 c. chopped walnuts

1/2 c. sunflower seeds (raw, unsalted)

(Diana also added pumpkin seeds and flax, but I dont' know how much so you can use your best judgment)

Pour mixture onto a cookie sheet, spread to a uniform thickness and let bake at 300 degrees for 20 minutes.

Take out of oven, stir on cookie sheet and let cool. When cooled add:

1 c. golden raisins

1 c. dried cranberries

and mix thoroughly. Store in air tight containers. It makes approx. 8 cups.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm making it this morning for Annie and I to enjoy before we embark on our Lancaster Weekend today.

Oh, I like everything about that last sentence. So, I guess I'll stop there. Well, here.

The Famous Stuffed Artichoke

I have been questioned about the Easter tradition in my family of eating stuffed artichokes as a first course. I have to tell you that you haven't really tasted an artichoke until you've had them this way, and having them at our Easter dinner means that Spring has really arrived.

And there is a certain finesse in which they are eaten, as Noah will demonstrate to you now...

And the reason we shred all the creamy flesh off the underside of each leaf is to get a taste of the treasure which is uncovered when the tenderest of leaves in the center have been finished:

The stuffing... it's heavenly. Which makes Easter a perfect time to eat it.

Perhaps I can post the recipe for you, but I'll have to check with the creator of the recipe first - My Dad.

I did promise the recipe for this though:

My Baked Triple Veggie Cheese Dip. So, here it is:

1 can asparagus spears (1 lb. 3 oz) drained and chopped

1 pkg. frozen chopped spinach, thawed and drained

1 can (8.5 oz.) artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

1 container (8 oz.) Philadelphia Chive & Onion Cream Cheese Spread

1/2 c. Mayonnaise

1 1/2 c. grated parmesan cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 375. Mix all ingredients except 1/4c. of the cheese. Spoon into 2 qt. baking dish and sprinkle with reserved cheese. Bake 35 minutes or until lightly browned. Easy Peasy. Yum!

And this is another sign that Spring is here. I LOVE tulips. And this is the first picture I've taken with my new camera that I'm actually happy with. (this being because my photography skills are minimal, and my ability to read directions -nonexistant)