Pomegranate and Orange Scones

I don't make scones often but when I do they are great with a nice glass of hot tea.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups all-purpose flour

¼ cup almond meal/flour

¼ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ cup granulated sugar (you can reduce to 3 tablespoons if you prefer)

2½ teaspoons baking powder

½ cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes

½ cup pomegranate seeds

1 egg

¾ cup heavy cream, cold

2 tablespoons orange juice

zest of one orange (~2 teaspoons)

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Topping:

1 tablespoon milk for brushing

Generous amount of turbinado sugar

DIRECTIONS

1.  Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2.  In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, almond meal, salt, sugar and baking powder. Using a pastry cutter, mix in the butter into the dry ingredients until pea-sized. Do not over mix as you want pockets of butter in your dough for a flaky scone. Mix in the pomegranate seeds

3.  In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg, heavy cream, orange juice, zest and vanilla extract.

4.  Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour the wet ingredients into it. Gently mix until a dough starts to form.

5.  Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and work it gently into a circle. Pat into an 8-inch circle, about 1-inch high. Use more flour if the dough is sticky to work with.

6.  Using a sharp knife, slice the dough into 8 equal triangles. Transfer each to the prepared sheet. Chill the triangles for 15 minutes in the freezer.

7.  Meanwhile, Heat oven to 400 degrees F.

8.  Brush triangles lightly with milk. Generously sprinkle turbinado sugar over the scones.

9.  Bake scones until golden brown, about 25-30 minutes.

10.  Remove from oven and let cool. Enjoy scones immediately, while warm.

Whipped Cream Frosting

I use this recipe to both cakes and cupcakes. It's ever sturdy and so yummy. It's not the best for piping but for simple work it's good.

Ingredients

1 (8 ounces) package reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon of extract flavor of choice
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
1/2 teaspoon orange/lemon zest
2 cups heavy cream

Directions

1. Chill bowl and beaters for 30 minutes before using.  Heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream) CAN'T be beaten into the peak stage with any presence of fat or grease in the bowl or on the beaters- it won't whip. This is why many recipes will specifically say "start with clean bowl and beaters".

2. The cream needs to be beat to stiff peaks FIRST & separately. I also would suggest adding 1 tsp of cream of tartar to the cream to help stabilize it. Place cream, cream of tartar in CLEAN bowl (I always use stainless steel one when whipping cream) and clean beaters into the fridge to chill. After it's chilled whip it to stiff peaks then place back in fridge while you do the other part.

3. Beat the cream cheese, extract, sugar (I used powdered sugar to again help with keeping it stiff) and I added orange zest, so its combined.

4. Then I added about 1/3 of the whipped cream to the cream cheese and gently folded it together, then I added the remaining whipped cream. Folding a smaller amount first lets things mix better and requires less folding/mixing in the end. The taste was great! Still the great tang from the cream cheese (although subdued a tad) but not overly sweet as cream cheese frosting can be.  

White Chocolate Naked Cake

This Saturday's wedding cake is a white chocolate cake with each layer filled with a white chocolate Italian buttercream and caramel, topped with fresh strawberries, blueberries, shaved dark chocolate and walnuts.

Granola Bars

These bars are sweet, tart, salty, crunchy, healthy, yummy, and easy to make… what else can you ask for in a snack.

INGREDIENTS 

1 cup chopped raw cashews

½ cup chopped raw almonds

½ cup dried tart cherries

½ cup puffed rice cereal

¼ cup pistachios

¼ cup raisins

⅛ teaspoon sea salt

1 tablespoon whole golden flaxseeds

¼ cup brown rice syrup

1 tablespoon almond butter

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 8X8 inch baking pan with plastic wrap.

2. Mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl.

3. In small bowl, stir together syrup and almond butter until combined and gently fold into nut mixture until complete incorporated.

4. Transfer bar mixture to prepared baking dish.

5. Using an extra sheet of plastic wrap, press down on the mixture to form it to the pan and ensuring there are no spaces in the mix.

6. Bake for 15 minutes; allow bars to cool completely in pan on a wire drying rack. Place in fridge or freezer for faster cooling.

7. Remove parchment paper with cooled bars from the pan and using a serrated knife, slice into 10 even bars. Remove parchment paper from bottom of each bar.

8. Wrap each bar individually with plastic wrap to store for snack time. Place wrapped bars in air-tight container and store on counter for up to 5 days or in fridge for up to 2 weeks.

White and Chocolate Cake with a Mixed Berry filling and Topping

This delicious creation is layers of chocolate cake. The recipe can be found here. A white chocolate whipped frosting and topped with  mixed berries.

Saturday Wedding Cake

Let's talk about the flavors for this four-tiered wedding cake. They're alternating tiers of:

Raspberry Cream 

rich white cake filled with a tart raspberry cream and a creamy vanilla buttercream.

and

Hawaii Five-O

Pineapple cake filled with banana crème, mango curd, & coconut cream.

Hazelnut Artisan Bread

This is bread goes well with coffee or tea. Just spread a bit of butter on it and enjoy. The original recipe for my artisan bread is here. Just add 1 teaspoon of allspice, 1/4 cup brown sugar and 1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts.

Winter Wonderland Cake Centerpieces for a Wedding

Some people wants something different and unique at their weddings. This couple instead of having a floral arrangement on the tables they requested cakes for each table that went with their Winter Wonderland theme. 

They went with the same flavors for each table. My Tuxedo cake with is layers of white & dark chocolate cakes filled with layers of white-chocolate truffle & rich fudge filling.

Brown Sugar Cubes

I'm sharing this little gem with you because if you've never tried brown sugar in a hot drink you should. I find that theses cubes are the best way for me. Hot drinks tend to go so well with sweet treats after dinner.  

I first started using these sugar cubes when we lived in Japan. They were sold in the local international market. These sugar cubes are delicious. They have a depth of flavor that enhances tea or  any hot drink with a touch of delicate molassesy, caramelized sugar sweetness. A little different from a straight white sugar cube. They dissolve very quickly and I also love the the fact that each sugar cube is a different size.

Elegant Weekend Wedding Cake

Details and flavor is what this wedding cake is all about. 

What you have here is alternating layers of:

Signature White Wedding Cake  

Fluffy Vanilla cake with a light Strawberry Cream filling and Fresh Strawberry Slices.

Chocolate Mocha Cake

  A coffee lover’s favorite!  Chocolate cake infused with Espresso & layered with Mocha Buttercream filling.

In doing my prep for this cake, it starts on a Monday of doing all of the sugar flowers that will be needed.

I bake the cake on Wednesday and refrigerate it until Friday when all of the elements come together to complete it.

Mary Elizabeth's Challah Bread

Challah is a special Jewish braided bread eaten on Sabbath and Jewish holidays.  A surprisingly sweet, yet light, challah that makes any night special. Feel free to knead some raisins into the dough if you like, or top with sesame seeds even.

Allowing the dough the hour to sit and rise is so important.

I always try to get each rope the same size so as to have my bread look better in appearance and it bakes more evenly. You see a perfect braid pattern below.

Ingredients

2 cups water

1/2 cup margarine

7 cups bread flour, divided

1/4 cup white sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons ofactive dry yeast

1 tablespoon salt

4 eggs

1 egg, beaten

1 tablespoon sesame seeds or 3 of raisins (optional) 

Directions

1.  In a small saucepan, combine water and margarine in a small saucepan. Heat until margarine is melted and very warm, but not boiling.

2.  In a large bowl, mix together 3 cups flour, white sugar, brown sugar, yeast and salt. Add water and margarine mixture; beat well. Add 4 eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.

3.  Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.

4.  Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into six equal pieces and form into long 'ropes'. Braid the pieces together to form two large loaves. Place the loaves on two lightly greased cookie sheets, cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.

5.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

6.  Brush the risen loaves with the beaten egg and sprinkle with poppy seeds. Bake in preheated oven for 45 minutes, until loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

Homemade Dog Treats

Let's try something different. How about we make treats for our dogs.  Most dogs will gobble up any dog treat set out in front of them. The problem is that many treats purchased in stores are harmful to your dog's health. They can contain harmful additives and substitutes that harm your dog's digestive tract. But dogs aren't picky eaters, and they're motivated by taste more than health. That leaves it to a dog's owner to make sure the food they eat is safe for consumption.

A few  of my favorite things to use when baking for my dog are peanut butter, mashed bananas and homemade apple sauce.

Ingredients

1 cup whole wheat flour
½ cup creamy peanut butter
¼ cup unsweetened apple sauce or mashed banana
¼ cup vegetable, chicken or beef stock
bone shaped cookie cutter

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350°.

2. Combine flour, peanut butter and apple sauce in a large mixing bowl. Add stock and stir until well-combined. The dough will be thick. Once combined use your hands to press the dough into a ball. Place dough ball on a flat service (with a sprinkle of flour if needed) and roll out evenly with a rolling pin. Dough should be about ¼ inch thick. Use a cookie cutter to cut the dough into desired shape and place on ungreased baking sheet.

3.  Bake for 18 minutes or until golden brown. Store in an airtight container.

Mocha Frangelico Infusion Anniversary Cake

I 

I love dealing with a small cake with nice details. This Mocha Frangelico Infusion  Roasted hazelnut cake filled with creamy mocha buttercream and frosted with Frangelico buttercream, is one of them. 

Look at the details on such a small cake.

When the look and taste both come together you have magic.

Rustic Wedding Cake

Saturday's cake is a Rustic cake for a Rustic themed wedding.

Top Tier:

​Lemon Kiss ~ Swirls of almond and lemon cakes filled with raspberry puree & lemon cheesecake.

​Middle Tier:

​Margarita ~ Rich margarita cake filled with lime cheesecake.

​Bottom Tier:

​Mocha Toffee Crunch ~ Chocolate mocha cake filled with mocha fudge & toffee bits.

Mini Lemon Tarts in a Graham Cracker Crust

These mini tarts are really simple to make and depending on how many spices you add to the crust they'll be bursting with flavor. 

The first thing is to make your lemon curd for the filling. You can find my lemon curd recipe here

This is another very simple recipe that  you can whip up and store in your fridge and use it for pies, cake or cupcake fillings.  Next let's make your crust.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups finely ground graham cracker crumbs

1/3 cup white sugar

6 tablespoons butter, melted

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

*note during the Fall and Winter months I like to add a little of allspice, nutmeg or ginger even to spice it up*

Directions

1. Mix graham cracker crumbs, sugar, melted butter or margarine, and cinnamon until well blended . Press mixture into an 8 or 9 inch pie plate.

2. Bake at 375 degrees  for 7 minutes. Cool. If recipe calls for unbaked pie shell, just chill for about 1 hour.

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