lemon cookies

seriously...try them...delicious!

lemon ricotta cookies with lemon glaze

2 1/2 c. flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 stick butter, softened

2 c. sugar

2 eggs

1 (15 oz) whole milk ricotta cheese

3 tbl lemon juice

1 lemon, zested

preheat oven to 375*...

in a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt. set aside.

in the large bowl, combine the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. add the eggs 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice and lemon zest. beat to combine. stir in the dry ingredients.

line baking sheets with parchment paper. spoon the dough (about 2 tbl for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. bake for 13 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. remove from oven and let the cookies rest on baking sheet for 20 minutes. then glaze...

(my tip...keep the dough in the fridge when you aren't using it. also, make sure each cookie sheet is cold before you fill with more cookies)

glaze:

3 c. powdered sugar

6 tbl lemon juice

2 lemon, zested

combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice and zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. spoon and spread onto each glaze. before storing, let the glaze harden for about 2 hours...

-enjoy

pumpkin pie

paul got me these fall cut-outs...i love them. anything with an oakleaf or an acorn i am a softy...then i found a really good pumpkin pie recipe i thought i would share. it is really easy too...enjoy!

-ash

spiced pumpkin pie

basic pie crust, rolled into pie pan, and partially baked

1/2 c. light brown sugar, firmly packed

2 large eggs

1 tsp ground cinnamon

3/4 tsp ground ginger

1/2 tsp salt

1/8 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1 c. pumpkin*

1 1/2 c. heavy cream

in a large bowl, whisk together the brown sugar and eggs until well blended. add cinnamon, ginger, salt, cloves, and nutmeg and mix well. add the pumpkin puree and cream and whisk until smooth. pour into partially baked pie shell. bake the pie until the filling is slightly risen and firm in the middle (35-45 minutes). transfer to a wire rack and let cool. serve with whipped cream.

*if you want to cook your pumpkin, preheat oven to 300*. take the stem off and slice in half. take the seeds out and coat the meat with veggie oil. turn onto a foil lined cookie sheet with the skin on the outside and bake for 45 minutes. let cool and scoop out the pumpkin from the skin. puree and freeze in 1 cup increments. last for a year...

challah (jewish bread)

here is the recipe. it is great for rolls, braided bread, french bread, sweet rolls etc...

1 tbl yeast

1 1/4 c. warm water (between 115*-125*)

1 tsp salt

1/4 c. sugar

1/4 c. oil

2 eggs (slightly beaten)

5-5 1/2 c. flour

1 egg yolk beaten with 1 tbl water (brushing the top)

1 tbl sesame seeds (to sprinkle on top, optional)

dissolve yeast in water, add salt, sugar, oil and eggs. gradually beat in 4 1/2 c. flour. turn dough out onto a floured surface and kneed until soft and smooth (10-20 minutes). cover and let rise until double in size (1 1/2 hours). divide and shape dough into desired shapes. cover and let rise again (about 1 hour). using a soft brush, spread egg/water mixture evenly over the tops. bake in oven (350*) for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.

-ash

homemade samoas

paul finds recipes he wants me to make for him. some of them are so easy, and others are a little more time consuming...(he looks at me like, you can bake, just bake them, not that hard!) he is pretty funny. since it is march...aka...girl scout cookie month...he found the samoa cookie recipe. i had to adjust the recipe because the first time i made them the recipe said to fold the coconut into the caramel, i don't know why because the real ones have the coconut sprinkled on top (i didn't take pictures of the last batch because they were horrid looking). this batch turned out much better. they were a little time consuming, but worth it. they are really good. paul said "a great replacement". i am putting the recipe in this post and adding my changes. enjoy!

-ash

cookies-

1 c. softened butter, 1/2 c. sugar, 2 c. flour, 1/4 tsp baking powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 2 tbl milk (you might not need it)

preheat oven to 350*. in a large mixing bowl cream together butter and sugar. mix in flour, baking powder and salt at low speed. add vanilla and milk. adding the milk as needed to make the dough come together without being sticky. the dough should come together into a soft, not-too-sticky ball. add in a bit of extra flour if your dough is sticky. roll the dough out between pieces of wax paper to about 1/4 inch thickness. use a cookie cutter to cut out the circles. bake cookies for 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are lightly brown and cookies are set. cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

topping-

3 c. shredded coconut, toasted (preheat oven to 300* and spread coconut evenly on a baking sheet. toast for 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes until coconut is golden. cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. set aside) 12 oz great-quality chewy caramels, 1/4 tsp salt, 5 tbl evaporated milk (for every 12 ounces of caramels, use 5 tbl of evaporated milk), dark or semisweet chocolate.

caramel-put unwrapped caramels and milk in a microwave safe bowl. cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. when smooth, dip the tops of each cookie into the caramel. let some drip off and set onto a baking sheet, sprinkle with coconut.

while topping sets, melt chocolate in a small bowl. dip the bottom into the chocolate. let chocolate set. take a piper and make the stripes on the top of each cookie. store in a cool place.

boston cream pie

paul and i have started a little something new...the first and third tuesday of each month, we have to try new dinner and dessert recipes. now those who know me, know i don't try anything at all new. i kind of freak out about new foods. i panic a little. so i made dinner and then wanted to try this boston cream pie. i had wanted to make it before, but i wanted to make the whole thing from scratch! apparently i don't have time for that. (by the way, i love going to www.kraftfoods.com. this is where i got this one. also they send a free food magazine with great pictures and easy/fast recipes every three months or so. and it is FREE!) so i got this recipe (really easy, really easy). paul loved it. i made two (i can't seem to make smaller portions yet) so mom and dad got one too. go onto the site and look around and let me know what you think. so far trying out new recipes has been a hit. send some good recipes my way to help us branch out. (remember the magazine is free!)

-ash

molten chocolate cakes

i love baking! i got this recipe from a friend of mine. i made it for a bridal shower and it was a hit. easy to make too. here is the recipe for you! let me know what you think...

-ash

MOLTEN CHOCOLATE CAKES-

6 oz semisweet chocolate, coarsley chopped. (also can use 1 c. of semisweet chocolate chips)

1 1/2 c unsalted butter

3 large eggs

4 large egg yolks

1 1/2 c powdered sugar

1/2 c flour

whipping cream

butter 8 6 oz ramekins with 2 tbl butter and sprinkle with 2 tbl sugar, shaking off excess. in a medium saucepan, melt the chocolate with the butter. do not boil! cool slightly. whisk the eggs and egg yolks in medium bowl. whisk in the powdered sugar, melted chocolate and flour. pour into prepared ramekins, dividing equally. place ramekins on baking sheet (can be made several hours ahead. just cover and chill until ready to bake). preheat oven to 450* bake cakes for 10-12 minutes, until edges are cooked but center is soft. remove from oven, while still warm run a small knife around cakes to loosen, turn out onto serving platters, place topside up. serve with icecream of choice, fruit and powdered sugar. serves 8. *you can also make these in a muffin tin to make 12. if you do this decrease the cooking time to 8-9 minutes.

i like to puree raspberries (without adding sugar) and cool. you can also make hot fudge if you don't like fruit. (to make hot fudge, melt 1 stick of butter, 1 can of sweetened condensed milk, 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips. do not boil!) also a nice serving of whipping cream! these are so fun to make. i loved them. they are even good cold. i hope you all like it...enjoy!