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Jun 10 2013

Pull-Apart Bread

Posted by HowSweetEats in Baking, Step-by-Step Recipes

Pull-apart breads have been blowing up Pinterest for a few years now, and all I’ve gotta say is that I love it. Which truly is saying a lot because, if I’m being honest, Pinterest kinda stresses me out these days. There are just so many things! I browse Pinterest for all of seven minutes and instantly want to plan another wedding, buy a new wardrobe, put jewels on my nails, paint my TV stand robin’s egg blue, travel to Mykonos and design a killer party for a 3-year old kiddo that I don’t even have. And I’d like to do it all next week. It’s like complete sensory overload.

In the world of pull-apart breads, this cinnamon sugar version from TK member Fanny is a classic. A few years ago I made one filled with cheese (which was ah-mazing), but knowing the value in a good gooey, sugar-coated cinnamon bread is the key to all life’s problems. Right?

Here’s what you need: some flour and sugar, vegetable oil, whole milk, baking soda and powder, active dry yeast (don’t be scared!), salt, cinnamon, and of course, butter.

First, heat the milk, oil and sugar together, stirring until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is slightly warm, but not hot. Remove it from the heat.

Stir in the flour and the yeast. At this point I was afraid that my pot was a bit too hot, so I transferred the mixture to a different pot and it worked perfectly. All in the name of saving cinnamon bread.

Cover the dough with a towel and let it rise for about an hour.

After an hour, stir in the remaining flour, baking soda, powder and salt. If the dough is super sticky, you can add a little extra flour if needed. I probably added in a tablespoon or two.

Roll the dough into a large rectangle on a floured surface and cover the entire thing in melted butter…

Then cover it in sugar and cinnamon. This is getting good.

Using a pizza cutter or a large knife, slice the rectangle into six equal strips. Or, uh, five strips. I’m not very skilled at equally cutting dough into perfect strips, so I accidentally ended up with five. Still worked, so if you have that issue, don’t fear.

After slicing the strips lengthwise, pile them on top of each other (carefully!) and cut the dough again in six places, creating six stacks. Cute little dough stacks!

Stuff the cute dough stacks in a buttered 9×5 loaf pan, then cover with the towel and let it rise for another hour or so.

It should look puffy and pretty!

Stick it in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. If the top gets too brown while baking, tent it with aluminum foil. A few minutes before the bread is finished, whisk together the powdered sugar and milk to create the glaze.

Remove the bread from the oven and let cool for just a few minutes, then gently remove the loaf from the pan and immediately cover in icing.

The sugary goodness sinks in to all the cracks and crevices since the bread it still warm.

I’d tell you to wait a few minutes before serving so you don’t burn your mouth, but that’s basically impossible. Just look at it! You’ll want to dig in instantly and I don’t blame you.

Thanks to Fanny for sharing this! Go check out her blog Oh Sweet Day! for more sweetness.

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Jessica Merchant is a personal trainer turned food writer and blogger. Her blog, How Sweet Eats, is where she proclaims her love for all things sweet, all things bacon, and everything else in between. She works her magic in her Pittsburgh kitchen, which she shares with her husband of 2 years.

Dec 2 2013

Pumpkin Butter

Posted by georgiapellegrini in Holidays, Step-by-Step Recipes

With gift season quickly approaching, Marie has provided this incredibly easy recipe for Pumpkin Butter that is sure to stand out in the sea of jarred food gifts. It should be illegal how simple this is!

For each jar you plan to pack, you will need: pumpkin puree, brown sugar, apple juice, vanilla extract, cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, allspice, and lemon juice.

In a saucepan, pour in the pumpkin, brown sugar, apple juice …

Vanilla extract …

Cinnamon …

Ground ginger …

And allspice.

Stir to combine ingredients. Allow mixture to come to a boil, reduce heat to low, then simmer for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. I recommend keeping a close eye on your butter to ensure it doesn’t burn. Remove from the heat.

Stir in the lemon juice, allow to cool, then transfer to a jar. Now you have a lovely, versatile pumpkin butter to share (or not, no judgement here!). Visit Marie’s beautiful site Citron Limette for other holiday treat ideas, as well as hundreds of other creative recipes.

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There’s so much to say about Georgia, we don’t know where to start. Leaving Wall Street for the French Culinary Institute, followed by a stint at the Gramercy Tavern and La Chassagnette in France, her passion for food and food traditions are evident and inspiring. Visit her site at Georgia Pellegrini, where you’ll find more recipes, photos, learn all about her wonderful books Girl Hunter and Food Heroes, and enjoy her latest adventures.

Nov 18 2013

Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Scones

Posted by Erica Lea in Baking, Step-by-Step Recipes

Everything about these scones just screams fall. What could be cozier than a steamy cup of tea shared with your sister, accompanied by a pumpkin scone filled with warm, cinnamony goodness and a maple glaze.

Just as I finished photographing these lovely Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Scones (brought to us by the amazing Erin), my sister and her little girls stopped outside our door on an ATV. It was a chilly day, so of course I invited them in for a spot of tea, even though my house was a mess from baking. I put a kettle of water on to boil and we settled in for a chat. We agreed that these were some of the best scones we’d ever tasted—so soft and tender.

Let me show you how to make them:

Here’s everything you’ll need: flour (I used spelt and all-purpose), baking powder, baking soda, salt, butter, egg, maple syrup, pumpkin puree, buttermilk (I used a combination of sour cream and cream), cinnamon, powdered sugar and milk (I used cream).

Begin by prepping your butter: cut it into small cubes. Now it’s ready for cutting into the flour.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat your oven.

Whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Cut the butter into the dry ingredients using a pastry cutter, two knives, a fork, your fingers … you get the picture.

You want the butter to be in little pea-sized pieces. Like this.

Place the white of your egg into a medium bowl. Save the yolk for later.

Add the maple syrup …

Pumpkin puree …

And buttermilk. Stir.

Add this mixture to the flour/butter mixture.

Stir just until the dough pulls together.

Like this.

Scrape the dough onto a flour surface and pat into a 20×8-inch rectangle (I made a half recipe, so mine was 10×4).

Mix together the melted butter, maple syrup and cinnamon.

Pour about half of this mixture over the dough …

And brush with a pastry brush evenly across the dough.

Roll up the dough lengthwise like you would cinnamon rolls.

Isn’t that pretty?

Flatten the dough slightly by patting it into a rectangle that stands about 1-1/2 inches high.

Cut the log into triangles.

Now to make the egg/cinnamon wash, add the egg yolk to the remaining filling.

Brush over the tops of the scones.

Bake in your preheated oven until nice and golden.

Meanwhile, whisk together the icing ingredients: powdered sugar, maple syrup and cream or milk if needed.

Once the scones have cooled slightly, drizzle them with the maple glaze.

Admire how pretty your fresh-baked scones are and serve with butter and a warm cup of tea.

Notes:
1. The pumpkin flavor is definitely not overpowering in these scones. In fact, I could barely taste it. But I suspect that the puree had something to do with how soft and tender these scones were.
2. I thought perhaps the dough could have used a little more sweetener. Next time I might add a tablespoon or two of evaporated cane juice.

Many thanks to Erin for sharing this brilliant recipe with us! Make sure to check out her blog, Naturally Ella, where she shares recipes with a seasonal, healthy focus. This Chocolate Cake with a Peanut Butter Glaze looks particularly scrumptious.

Printable Recipe

Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Scones

by Erin on November 3, 2011 in Breads, Quick Breads

See post on Erin’s site!

5.00 Mitt(s) 3 Rating(s) 3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5

Description

A delicious fall scone that’s full of pumpkin and cinnamon!

Ingredients

3 cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
2 Tablespoons Baking Powder
½ teaspoons Baking Soda
1 teaspoon Salt
14 Tablespoons Butter, Divided
2 Egg Whites
4 Tablespoons Maple Syrup, Divided
¾ cups Pumpkin Puree
¼ cups Buttermilk
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
2 Egg Yolks
½ cups Powdered Sugar
2 Tablespoons Milk

Preparation Instructions

Preheat oven to 425ºF and cover a sheet tray in parchment paper (or a reusable Silpat mat).

In a large bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients. Cut in 12 tablespoons of butter (using pastry blender, two knives, or my favorite—your hands) until butter is in little pea size pieces. In a smaller bowl, whisk together egg white, 2 tablespoons of maple syrup, pumpkin, and buttermilk. Stir into dry ingredients until dough pulls together.

Scoop out onto a floured surface and carefully pat dough into a rough 20×8 rectangle. Melt the remaining 2 tablespoons butter and combine with 1 tablespoon maple syrup, and cinnamon. Brush about half onto the rectangle. Starting with the end closest to you, roll the dough (like you would a cinnamon roll).

Once you have a round log, carefully shape into a rectangle log that stands about 1 1/2″ high and that has a width of about 3″. Cut log in half and divide each half into six triangles.

Whisk together any remaining filling mixture with egg yolks. This gives you a nice golden color on the scones. Place on the baking tray, brush with the butter/egg mixture.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the scone has a harder outer shell and has browned. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before icing.

To make icing, combine powdered sugar and remaining 1 tablespoon of maple syrup. Add milk if it’s too thick or powdered sugar if it’s too thin. You want to reach a thick yet pourable consistency. Drizzle glaze over the scones.

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Newly-married Erica Kastner shares her wonderful recipes and amazing food photography on her blog, Buttered Side Up. She also writes about crafts and posts more of her beautiful photography in her personal blog, Simple Days. There really isn’t much that this amazing young wife and mother can’t do, and we’re thrilled she does some of it here.

Oct 13 2011

Pumpkin Coffee Cake

Posted by HowSweetEats in Baking, Step-by-Step Recipes

It seems that I wait all year for pumpkin. Come May, I am already craving pumpkin cookies, pumpkin roll, and pumpkin pie, and can hardly imagine waiting another four or five months to get in on that goodness. And with the recent pumpkin shortages that have been happening around the country, I sort of bought every can at my store. Like, every single can. My downstairs pantry now has a dedicated pumpkin shelf and I couldn’t be happier. And hungrier.

I’ve had Heather’s recipe saved for Pumpkin Coffee Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze since last autumn, so you know exactly what came first on my to-make list. If I’m being honest, it’s the brown sugar glaze that sold me. I have a weird thing for brown sugar and for glazes, so I knew it would be a winner. I could practically taste it through through the screen. And it’s easy too!

You need a can of pumpkin puree, a box of yellow cake mix, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda, vanilla extract, heavy cream, flour, granulated sugar, brown sugar, butter, eggs and water. Heather’s recipe called for walnuts, and as I much as I love them, I’m a firm believer in nutless baked goods. Feel free to add them if you wish!

Begin by adding the pumpkin, eggs, vanilla extract, water and pumpkin pie spice together in a bowl.

Mix it up until it looks pumpkin-y … or, you know, sort of like baby food.

Add in the cake mix and baking soda, and mix with a spoon until combined and minimal lumps remain. It’s okay if you have a few small lumps left.

Pour batter into a 9×13 greased baking dish.

In a small bowl, mix together half of the brown sugar, flour and melted butter. If you are using walnuts, this is where they would go. Pecans would add a nice touch too.

Crumble the brown sugar mixture over the pumpkin cake batter with your fingers.

It should look like this. Absolutely devour-able.

The cake heads into a 350ºF oven and bakes for about 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

While the cake is baking, combine heavy cream, brown sugar, granulated sugar and vanilla extract in a small saucepan.

Mix to combine and bring it to a simmer, then remove from heat and continuously stir until all of the sugar has dissolved. Set it aside until ready to use.

It will become all glazy and be nearly impossible to stay away from. I wanted to pour it in a mug and drink it.

Once the cake comes out of the oven, poke holes all over the top with a toothpick. Or in my case, a fondue sticker thingy. You can also use a fork.

Drizzle glaze over cake evenly…

Then let cool for about 20-30 minutes, or until just slightly warm. It tastes best warm, trust me.

Serve yourself (and um, your guests?) a big square slice …

And go to town. Oh man. This cake is unreal.

You won’t believe how delicious it is, and it fits the bill for breakfast and dessert. The crunchy, gooey top is my favorite part and I can’t imagine a better treat for fall.

Thanks so much to Heather for the fabulous recipe! Be sure to check out her blog, Heather’s Dish, where she serves up delectable food with a side of humor and love.

Printable Recipe