Peanut Butter Cup Blondies

 

 

 

 

 

This weekend I was online searching for recipes that call for 10×15 baking pans, as my dear friend Carrie gave me one for my birthday this summer and I’ve yet to use it. And while I found several promising ideas for 10 x 15 baking (stay tuned for pumpkin roll, which will be coming soon), I also discovered this blondie recipe, baked in an 8 x 8.

This recipe yields a dense, chewy, peanut butter cookie-like blondie with ample candy pieces, so I recommend cutting them into small squares. You could add even more peanut butter cups or chocolate chips if you wish; next time, I think I’ll add toffee bits or salted peanuts for extra crunch.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 8 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 cup peanut butter
  • 1 egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 16 miniature peanut butter cups, cut into fourths
  • 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Line an 8 x 8 baking dish with foil and coat the foil with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, combine flour and baking powder; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, peanut butter, egg, and vanilla and mix well.

Add flour mixture and stir until just combined.

Add peanut butter cups and chocolate chips and mix well; you may need to use your hands to get everything fully incorporated.

Press dough into baking dish.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until top is fully set, edges are brown, and a cake tester comes out clean.

Cool in pan for about 30 minutes, then lift out and place on a wire rack to cool completely before cutting.

 

Pumpkin Bread

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkins claim a place of honor in fairy tales, folklore, and popular culture unparalleled by other vegetables. Cinderella traveled in style in her pumpkin coach. Jack Skellington, of Nightmare Before Christmas fame, was proclaimed the Pumpkin King. The Headless Horseman hurled a pumpkin in The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Harry Potter and his friends enjoyed pumpkin juice in the Hogwarts dining hall. Linus missed trick-or-treat fun on Halloween night waiting for the Great Pumpkin to appear—and all that came was a beagle.

These whimsical squashes are both cute and tasty, which is likely why we decorate, celebrate holidays, and cook and bake with them. This was my first experience baking pumpkin bread, and I adapted the recipe from another that I found online, substituting cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves for ginger. Next time, I plan to add chocolate chips to the batter for an extra hint of sweetness and perhaps some toasted pecans for crunch. Once they cool, I may even drizzle them with powdered sugar icing.

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/2 teaspoon cloves
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup packed brown sugar
  • 12 tablespoons butter, melted
  • 15 ounces canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
  • 3 eggs

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Grease and flour two 8 x 4 loaf pans; set aside.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves; mix well.

In another large bowl, combine sugar, brown sugar, butter, pumpkin, and eggs; mix well.

Add pumpkin mixture to flour mixture and stir until combined.

Divide batter evenly between the loaf pans; I used a measuring cup to scoop about three cups of batter into each pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. You may have to cover the loaves later in baking, after about 45 minutes, to prevent them from over-browning.

Cool completely in loaf pans.

Drizzle with powdered sugar icing if desired; combine two cups sifted powdered sugar with one teaspoon vanilla extract and one to two tablespoons of water until you reach a drizzly consistency, then pour over loaves.

 

Poppy Seed Roll – A Tribute to Grandma Zella

 

 

 

 

 

My grandmother, Gizella Bodnar Kozusko, passed away this week. She was 89 years old. I honor her today with poppy seed rolls, one of my favorite treats she used to bake.

Zella was born on New Year’s Day in 1923 in Budapest. At the urging of his enterprising brother, my great-grandfather Michael Bodnar brought his family to Duquesne, the mill town in Pittsburgh’s Monongahela Valley that was home to the world’s largest blast furnace. They used to dust the house twice a day, Zella told me, to clean away the soot. After high school Zella worked as a secretary at the steel mill; she met my grandpap, Andy Kozusko, at a dance at Kennywood Park. Andy, a handsome sailor in the US Navy, was so enamored with Zella that he paid his friends so they wouldn’t ask her to dance. Andy and Zella married in 1945 and borrowed ration coupons from neighbors to cater their reception. Her wedding dress and his Naval uniform are carefully wrapped in tissue paper in the cedar chest in my bedroom.

In my grandparents’ tidy home, I learned to make chicken soup with homemade noodles. I sat at the kitchen table with my grandpap, eating freshly-picked blackberries sprinkled with sugar. In the cellar on warm summer nights, I helped my grandma make fried zucchini. I listened to the strange language of the radio announcer during the Slovak music program on Sunday afternoons, twirling around in my grandpap’s arms to the polka. I set the table with my grandma’s good dishes, turned up my nose at pickled pigs’ feet, and ate cold ham on Easter and Christmas.

In my grandparents’ house, I learned to say “I love you” in Hungarian and Slovak.

Szeretlek, Grandma. I will miss you.

Poppy Seed Roll

Ingredients

  • 6-7 cups flour
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 packs active dry yeast (1/4 ounce each)
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 8 ounces sour cream
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 3 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 1/2 jars poppy seed filling (about 15 ounces)
  • 1 beaten egg and 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Preparation

Lightly grease a large bowl and set aside.

In a mixing bowl fitted with the paddle attachment, combine two cups flour with the sugar, yeast, and salt.

In a medium saucepan, combine sour cream, butter, and water. Heat to 120-130 degrees, then combine with flour mixture and beat for two minutes.

Add 1/2 cup flour and eggs and beat for two minutes.

Using a wooden spoon, stir in enough additional flour to make a soft dough, about two and a half to three cups.

Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 9-10 minutes, until smooth and elastic.

Place in the greased bowl; turn once to coat, and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.

Punch dough down and divide into four portions; roll portions into balls, then roll out into 10×10 rectangles.

Using a tablespoon from your flatware, scoop about two to two and a half heaping spoonfuls of filling onto the center of the dough.

Using a small offset spatula or butter knife, spread a thin layer of filling to within one inch of the edges.

Roll up into a log, carefully pinching the seams and edges closed.

Place into greased loaf pans and/or baking pans; I use two standard loaf pans and one 9×13 baking pan in which I bake two rolls.

Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about one hour; I preheat my oven during this time to help speed the process.

Brush each roll with egg wash, then prick with a fork to let steam escape during baking.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until lightly browned.

Cool before cutting and serving.

Peanut Butter Dog Treats

 

 

 

 

 

Millie is our dog.  We adopted her from a local animal shelter less than a month after we moved into our house four years ago.  I’ve never loved anything more than I love Millie.  And yes, Mike is fully aware of that.

Millie and I get along so well because we share an appreciation for meat, cheese, and carbs.  She is an effective beggar, so I admit that Mike and I give in, often sharing a strip of bacon, a bite of turkey, or a slice of cheese at the sight of her sweet, I’m-a-good-dog face.  Nothing rivals Millie’s love of carbs, though.  She likes to steal pizza crust off of plates and once snatched a loaf of challah from the counter, ate half, then left the other half shoved under the cushion on the living room chair.  She has eaten the top crust of an apple pie, an entire platter of rugelach cookies, and, most recently, the remainder of a peach cobbler.

Because I bake for the ones I love, I can’t leave Millie out.  These treats were adapted from larger recipe, which I cut in half to make a smaller batch; this yielded 15 treats.  I used a four-inch bone-shaped cookie cutter, but you could use any shape you like or roll the dough into balls and flatten them with the tines of a fork, the way you would for peanut butter cookies.

 Ingredients

  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1/2 cup rolled oats
  • 1/4 cup peanut butter
  • 5 ounces hot water (just below the 2/3 cup line on a glass measure)

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour and oats.

Add peanut butter and water and mix with a fork until combined, then knead together with your hands to form a very pliable dough.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and roll to 1/4 inch thickness.

Cut with a bone-shaped cutter and transfer to a cookie sheet using an offset spatula to prevent them from breaking.

Bake for 40 minutes; treats will be hard to the touch, like any store-bought treat.

Cool on a wire rack and store at room temperature for up to one week.

Treats can be kept in the fridge for up to three weeks or frozen for up to six months.

Meet Millie

Millie is a seven or eight year-old Rottweiler-Lab mix who enjoys napping, snuggling, barking ferociously at the mail man, and digging large holes in Mike’s garden beds.

Below, Millie snuggles with her Grandma Genny (my mom) on our sofa.

Apple Crisp

 

 

 

 

 

Leshanah tovah tikateiv veteichateim!  Or, for those who don’t speak Hebrew, may you be inscribed and sealed for a good year!

Today is Erev Rosh Hashannah, or Rosh Hashannah Eve, the night before the start of the Jewish New Year.  Rosh Hashannah kicks off the Days of Awe, which many people know as the High Holidays or High Holy days, culminating in Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.  While Yom Kippur requires a fast, Rosh Hoshannah focuses on celebration; sweet foods, including apples dipped in honey, are eaten in the hope of a sweet New Year—and apple crisp seemed an appropriate dessert for tonight’s dinner.

My apple pie features both Granny Smith and Rome apples, and I wanted to combine two different flavors in this crisp as well.  As Romes are not yet in season, I chose a Paula Red, which is similar to a Rome, to pair with the tart Granny Smith.

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup oats
  • 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 5 1/3 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 4 medium apples, sliced

Preparation

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Grease an 8×8 baking dish.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and butter; mix well, using your hands if necessary to distribute the butter.

Place sliced apples in baking dish and cover with flour mixture.

Bake for 30 minutes, until top is golden brown and apples are tender.

Peanut Butter Molasses Cookies

 

 

 

 

 

Mary Janes were among my favorite penny candy, along with Bit O’ Honey and Tootsie Rolls.  The corner store in my neighborhood, which closed in my early teens, had shelves of penny candy and small paper bags that eager children could fill to their heart’s delight.

These cookies are modeled on the Mary Jane, featuring peanut butter, molasses, and dark brown sugar.  While you could certainly use light brown sugar, dark brown sugar has a higher quantity of molasses in it and will yield a richer flavor; you could also use crunchy, rather than smooth, peanut butter for another dimension of texture.

Ingredients

  • 2 2/3 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 3/4 cups dark brown sugar
  • 12 tablespoons butter
  • 1/4 cup shortening
  • 2/3 cup peanut butter
  • 1/4 cup molasses (not blackstrap)
  • 2 eggs
  • About 1 cup unsalted peanuts, coarsely chopped

Preparation

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt; set aside.

In a mixing bowl, cream together dark brown sugar, butter, shortening, peanut butter, and molasses until very well combined and fluffy, about two minutes.

Add eggs and beat well, about two minutes.

Add one-half of the flour mixture and beat until combined.

Add the remaining flour mixture and beat until combined.

Cover and chill dough at least one hour or until firm and easy to handle.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

Line several baking sheets with foil and spray very lightly with cooking spray. (Note: I do not re-spray sheets after they have baked, as I find that there is enough residual spray left on the sheets so the cookies do not stick.)

Using a one-inch cookie scoop, scoop very generous portions of dough and roll into balls; dip one-half of each ball in chopped peanuts, pressing lightly to embed the nuts in the dough.

Place on the baking sheet about two inches apart and bake for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven; cool cookies on the baking sheet on a wire rack for two to three minutes, then remove cookies and cool completely on another rack.

Biscuits

 

 

 

 

 

My love of carbohydrates cannot possibly be dimmed no matter how many articles I read about the evils of white flour.  I understand that whole grains are better for the body, and I eat them often.  I’ve spent my life having peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on wheat bread.   But now and then, you simply have to have a grilled cheese on white, a crusty dinner roll, or a biscuit.

On many a Sunday during my childhood, after 9 o’clock mass, my mother would make biscuits for my brother Andy and me.  Usually she made “drop” biscuits, which didn’t require any rolling or cutting, and we slathered them with butter and jelly or butter and honey (my toppings of choice) while she drizzled hers with syrup.  At diners, Mike has ordered many a biscuit covered in sausage gravy, a food which I have never actually eaten but he tells me is quite good.  Whatever you wish to put on these, I hope you enjoy them.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup shortening
  • 3/4 cup milk

Preparation

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Line a baking sheet with foil.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt and mix well.

Using a pastry blender, cut in shortening until mixture resembles very coarse crumbs.

Make a well in the center; add milk and mix with a fork until combined.

Turn mixture out onto a lightly dusted counter top and knead very gently, 10 to 12 times, until the dough is smooth. Do not over-knead your dough or the biscuits will be tough.

Pat down or lightly roll to 1/2 inch thickness.

Cut dough with a biscuit cutter (or round cookie cutter or a glass) and place about two inches apart on the baking sheet.

Bake for 10-14 minutes, until tops are golden brown.

Serve warm.

Snickerdoodles

 

 

 

 

 

Snickerdoodle is an awesome word.  No one can say for certain from where it came; some food historians believe that these cinnamon-sugar treats originated in Germany and are derived from the word schneckennudeln, which is a cinnamon sweet roll, while others maintain that they came from New England, where some enterprising baker made up the word because it sounded fun.

Regardless of their origin, snickerdoodles are easy to make.  Essentially a soft sugar cookie rolled in cinnamon and sugar before baking, these bakery staples will fill your kitchen with the warm, comforting aroma of cinnamon.  As I prefer soft cookies, I recommend baking these for 10-11 minutes only, until they are just golden brown at the edges; any longer and you’ll have more of a crunchy, snap-like cookie.

Ingredients

For the dough:

  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cups flour

For the cinnamon-sugar coating:

  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon

Preparation

In a mixing bowl, cream together butter, sugar, baking soda, and cream of tartar.

Add egg and vanilla and beat well.

Add flour and beat well, until a soft dough forms.

Cover and chill dough for one hour; remove dough while oven is pre-heating to soften just slightly.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine sugar and cinnamon for coating.

Using a one-inch cookie scoop, scoop out dough and roll into balls, then roll in cinnamon-sugar mix.

Place on cookie sheet about two inches apart; bake for 10-11 minutes until edges are just golden brown.

Cool for 2-3 minutes on cookie sheets, then remove to a wire rack to cool completely.

 

Peach Cobbler

 

 

 

 

 

A few weeks back, I whipped up a peach cobbler from the peck of peaches Mike brought home from his new job as a jack of all trades at a local family farm and orchard.  I meant to post this at the time, then things got super-busy for us, as I also accepted a new job, which I am starting tomorrow.  In any case, both peaches and cobbler make me think of the South, so this recipe presented a good opportunity for me to talk about where Mike grew up, in St. Mary’s County, Maryland…or as I like to say, “oh way down south in Dixie.”

About 40 minutes south of Washington, DC, as far south as you can go on the Western Shore of the Chesapeake Bay, St. Mary’s County is beautiful, mostly flat with the gentlest of rolling hills, surrounded by water from the Bay to its east and the wide, graceful Potomac River to the west.  Most people don’t think of Maryland as the South, but St. Mary’s County is very Southern, in manners, in cuisine, and in culture.  Everyone says hello.  Stuffed ham, barbecue, and pie are gastronomic requirements.  Farms abound, growing soybeans and corn and politically incorrect tobacco.

During the Civil War, when Maryland reluctantly sided with the Union, the residents of St. Mary’s County were disinclined to acquiesce, pledging allegiance to the Confederacy and earning the nickname “Little Dixie.”  The Union was not amused.  Intent on giving the rowdy locals their comeuppance, Union troops commandeered Point Lookout, at the southernmost tip of the county, to serve as a camp for Confederate prisoners of war.  Those under arrest could gaze across the Potomac at Virginia; many died trying to swim back home.

I imagine that wives on both sides of the Mason-Dixon line made desserts not unlike this one, and suspect that the bakers of St. Mary’s County would enjoy it as much as Mike did – they may even add a bit of vanilla ice cream on the side of a warm cobbler.

Ingredients

For the peaches:

  • 3 1/2 cups sliced peaches
  • 1/4 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the batter:

  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2/3 cup milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare the peach topping by combining sliced peaches, brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla extract in a medium bowl; mix well and set aside.

In another medium bowl, stir together flour, brown sugar, white sugar, baking powder, and salt; add milk and egg and mix well.

Pour melted butter into the bottom of a 9×13 baking pan.

Pour batter evenly over top of the melted butter – do not mix together.

Spoon peaches evenly over top of the batter – do not mix together.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the top is golden brown.

Serve warm or cool.

Fudge-Frosted Brownies

 

 

 

 

 

Brownies invite creativity.  They can be cake-like or fudgy, with or without nuts, blended with cream cheese or peanut butter, sprinkled with marshmallows or candy bits, or my personal favorite, topped with vanilla ice cream and served warm.

This recipe produces a cake-like brownie ideal for frosting; it utilizes a cooking method for preparation, in which sugar, cocoa powder, and butter are melted together and then combined with other ingredients.  To facilitate the mixing process, I recommend measuring out all of your ingredients and placing them next to your stove, like a television chef, so that you can have easy access to everything as you mix.

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/4 cups sugar
  • 12 tablespoons butter
  • 1/2 cup cocoa powder

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Grease a 9x13x2 baking pan.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and baking soda; set aside.

Measure out milk; set aside.

Crack eggs into a bowl; set aside.

Measure out vanilla; set aside.

In a large saucepan, combine sugar, butter, and cocoa powder.  Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until butter melts and mixture becomes incorporated.

Remove from heat; add eggs and vanilla and stir until smooth.

Add flour mixture and milk alternatively in three batches, mixing well after each.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 30 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean.

Cool completely in pan; invert onto a cutting board or platter and frost with Fudge Frosting (see below).

Cut as desired; store in an airtight container.

Fudge Frosting

Ingredients

  • 2 1/3 cups powdered sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 4 tablespoons butter, softened
  • 1/6 cup boiling water (just under 2 oz. in a glass measuring cup)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preparation

Combine powdered sugar and cocoa powder.

Add butter, boiling water, and vanilla.

Beat on low speed until ingredients are just combined, then increase speed to medium and beat for 1 minute.