Delicious Recall #3::Chocolate Italian Wedding Cupcakes

This is another item which has that wonderful trio of flavors that I find hard to resist.  There is one method in this recipe that I will be using more than once.  It is the toasting of the pecans with the coconut.  I always have issues when toasting coconut, having some pieces remain white while others burn.  I am not sure if it is the mixture of the nuts or the measurement that causes the toasting to be more even.

The cupcakes do offer a lot of texture to the bite with having both pecans and coconut in them.  Also, the frosting has an unusual tang to it since it is made with sour cream.  The tang goes well with the dark chocolate..

This particular recipe had some additional suggestions for preparation, so be sure to read the tips at the end. This recipe makes 2 dz cupcakes.

Chocolate Italian Wedding Cakes
adapted from Evil Shenanigans

Ingredients/Cake
1/2 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup butter
1.5 oz unsweetened chocolate (melted & cooled)
1 tsp vanilla
3 eggs (yolks separated from whites)
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder

1 2/3 cup flour
3 tbs dutch processed cocoa
2 tbs crushed cocoa nibs
1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/3 cup finely chopped pecans
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar (packed)

Ingredients/Frosting
1/2 cup sour cream
1/4 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup semi-sweet choc chips
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans
3 cups powdered sugar

For the cupcakes, grease the top edge of the cavities of two 1 dozen cupcake pans.  Line with paper liners and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together the butter and both sugars until smooth.  Then add the melted chocolate along with the egg yolks.  Stir until all is smooth. Set aside.

In another bowl, sift together the five dry ingredients listed after the eggs on the ingredient list. Using a wooden spoon, fold 1/3 of the sifted ingredients into the batter.  Then stir in 1/4 cup of buttermilk.
Repeat that process and add the last 1/3 of the flour mixture, stirring until no dry streaks remain.

Add the cocoa nibs, vanilla, coconut and pecans and mix until evenly distributed.

Pour the egg whites into a medium size bowl and beat with mixer until stiff peaks form.  Fold in 1/2 of the egg whites to the chocolate batter, mixing so no white streaks show.  Repeat that process.

Using a spoon or ice cream scoop, fill the cupcake cavities with the batter.  All 24 should be filled equally.  Also make sure that the batter is even so they will bake even. Bake for 12-15 minutes, rotating pans at the halfway mark.  Doneness is indicated by the cupcake springing back when lightly pressed in the center.  Cool cupcakes in pan for 5 minutes and then transfer to rack to finish cooling.

As the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the frosting.  The oven will be left on 350 for the frosting as well.  Mix the coconut and pecans together.  Then spread evenly on a baking sheet.  Place in oven and bake for 5 minutes.  Remove, stir and place pan back in oven for an additional 5 minutes.  The mixture should be a golden brown when done.  Let coconut mixuture cool to room temperature before using.  Take 1/3 cup of the  mixture and set aside.

Place chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl.  Slice butter into 1/4 inch thickness and place slices on top of the chocolate chips.  Microwave for 30 seconds and stir.  Then microwave at 15 second intervals, stirring after each internal until it is all melted and blended smoothly.  Let cool for 5 minutes before using. Transfer the mixture to a larger bowl.

Stir in the sour cream and vanilla until smooth.  Then sift 1 cup of powdered sugar into the chocolate frosting and stir.  Repeat with another cup of the powdered sugar.  There is now 1 cup of powdered sugar left, but you will gradually add and mix it into the frosting until you reach the desired consistency.  Keep in mind that the frosting will thicken upon standing, so gauge the amount of powdered sugar according to preference.  Stir in all but the 1/3 reserved mixture of coconut and pecans.

Put the frosting on the cupcakes, either with a knife or piping method.  Then sprinkle with the reserved coconut/pecan mixture. 

Tips and Notes:
1. since the frosting has coconut and nuts in it,  should you chose to pipe it make sure it is a large tip.
2. In addition to the 1/3 reserved coconut/nut mixture for sprinkling on top, I made another half batch because I found that pressing the cupcake upside down into the topping had better adhesion.
3. you can make this into a cake with two 8 inch round pans, just double the frosting amount.
4. For extra flavor, you can soak the cupcakes lightly with white rum.  2 or 3 tbs should be enough.
              **LAST YEAR: Tequila Sunrise Bars**
 

Lemongrass Bars

I still had some lemongrass left over from my last creation, so I decided to make these lemongrass bars.  The good thing about lemongrass is that it does last for about 10 days in the fridge.

This particular bar has a coconut shortbread base and a lemony topping.  The filling texture does resemble more like a key lime pie than a baked bar.  The usage of lemongrass does make these bars quite different from the standard.  It reduces the tartness of the lemon and adds hints of mint and ginger.

While I do like lemon bars, I am pretty picky.  I do not like them to be dry, nor do I like them to be too strong.  Some I have tasted have been pretty bitter.  These bars do not have those issues.  Also, the extra flavors do bump them up to more of a gourmet quality dessert.

Lemongrass Bars
adapted from Bon Appetit

Ingredients/Crust
1 cups sweetened coconut
1/2 cup plus 3 tbs butter (room temp)
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt

Ingredients/Filling
1/4 cup flour
1 1/4 cup sugar
3 finely chopped lemongrass stalks (outer layer removed, bottom 4 inches only)
3 eggs
5 tbs lemon juice
powdered sugar (for dusting)
pinch of salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare 9x13 inch pan by buttering the interior.

To create the crust, mix together powdered sugar, coconut, salt and flour.  With an electric mixer on medium, beat in the butter until the mixture clumps.  Pour into your prepared pan.  Place waxed paper over the dough and flatten it evenly into the bottom of the pan as well as about 1/2 an inch up the sides.  Bake for about 25 minutes.  Crust will be golden brown with darker edges.  Remove pan from the oven and place on cooling rack.

Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees.  Using a food processor, pulse together the lemongrass and the sugar.  The lemongrass should be finely ground with the sugar, which should take about about  a minute.  Add the lemon juice and process again for 30 seconds.  Put the eggs into the mixture and run the processor for about 10 seconds.  Lastly, pour in the flour and salt and pulse until smooth.

Pour the filling over the hot baked crust and place in oven.  Bake for about 22-23 minutes.  Remove and place on rack to cool completely.  Cut into pieces and dust with powdered sugar.
                                    **LAST YEAR: Austrian Apple Twists** 

German Carmelite Sister Cookies

These particular cookies get their name from 2 Carmelite sisters or nuns that were in hiding during the French revolution.  They actually made these cookies for money to support themselves.  In time, these women were called the "Macaroon sisters" and then later on the recipe was passed onto the Jewish community.

These particular cookies are a macaroon base, however, they have a twist that is reminiscent of the frosting on a German chocolate cake.  They have a chewy pecan filling and are dipped in German chocolate.  They are quite moist and remind me more of a candy than the typical dry macaroons that you often find at the store.  With the humid weather in Texas, I found them to be particularly tasty after refrigeration or even freezing.

If you are like me and love the icing on German chocolate cake, then you will enjoy these.  This recipe makes about 1 1/2 dz macaroons about 2 inches in width.

German Carmelite Sister Cookies
by flourtrader

Ingredients/Filling
2 tbs butter
1 tbs bourbon
1/4 cup corn syrup
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 egg
1/8 tsp vanilla extract

Ingredients/Cookies
1 1/2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3 egg whites
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 tsp cream of tartar

Ingredients/Topping
1 cup chopped German chocolate
4 tsp butter

To make the filling, melt butter in a small saucepan on medium heat.  Then stir in corn syrup and
sugar.  Cook the mixture, stirring constantly until the sugar has dissolved.  There will no longer be a grittiness at the bottom of the pan when scraped with a spoon.  Remove from heat and let cool for about 15 minutes or to lukewarm temperature.

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Fill a bowl with egg and beat it with a fork.  Stir in the vanilla extract and bourbon.  Then mix in the pecans and corn syrup mixture.

Line the bottom of a pie pan or 9 inch cake pan with parchment.  Pour pecan batter into pan and place in the oven to bake for 10-15 minutes.  Mixture is done when it has turned foamy on top, much like the top of a pecan pie.  The mixture should be able to be scooped up with a spoon and fairly solid. Set aside and let cool.

To make macaroon batter, turn the oven down to 325 degrees.  Line two baking pans with silpat liners.  Beat together egg whites until foamy.  Sprinkle in the cream of tartar and beat again until soft peaks form.  Continue to beat and add one tablespoon of sugar.  Continue with this process until all sugar has been incorporated into batter.  Beat until mixture is shiny and very stiff.

Then carefully fold the vanilla and coconut into the batter, making sure that the egg whites keep their consistency.

Pipe or spoon the coconut mixture into mounds on the silpat.  Then place about 1/2 tsp of pecan mixture on the center of each mound.  Pipe or spoon more of the coconut batter on top of the mound, smoothing to make sure that the pecan center is completely covered.

Bake macaroons for 18-22 minutes, keeping a careful eye out during the time beyond 18 minutes.  You want them to be golden brown but not over baked.  Remove pan and let cool for about 5 minutes, then transfer to rack to finish cooling.

For the topping, melt chocolate and butter together in a double boiler.  Lay out 2 sheets of wax paper.  Dip cooled cookies halfway into chocolate and then place on wax paper and let set.

Tips and Notes
1. I used parchment as well as a silpat and found that the silpat worked better.  If you have the patience for peeling these carefully off the parchment, it will work.
2. Make sure that your coconut mound is at least 1/2 inch high before adding the filling because the pecan mixture does sink.
3.  You will have some excess of the filling, but you can always top ice cream with it or double the macaroon cookie recipe.
                          **LAST YEAR: Alpine Easter Bread**

Balinese Double Six Sundaes

The island of Bali has become a very popular tourist place in the last 15 years, however, there has been quite a bit of struggle through the years. Yet, the beauty of Bali still remains.  So much so that tourists say that it is hard to believe that it has suffered through so many struggles.  Between the white as well as black sand beaches, rugged coastlines and volcanic hillsides it may as well be paradise on earth.  One of the beaches I came across was Double Six Beach.  In addition to that, this country does produce pineapples.  They are small, unlike the ones we are used to seeing but is very rich in juice.

Now that you have read the background to the title, on to the real reason you are here reading-the recipe.  The base of the dessert is 2 layers of shortbread crust with macadamia butter in the middle.  On top, there is a scoop of vanilla ice cream surrounded by broiled pineapple slices coated with brown sugar.  Then comes a coconut vodka caramel sauce and a topping of toasted coconut.

Before we get on with the details, I do have some fellow bloggers to thank for awards:

Heather Lynne at Hezzi D's Books and Cooks
She passed along the Versatile Blogger Award. This blogger does have her hand in making anything and everything, hitting the mark of deliciousness everytime.  Her search labels is the longest I have ever seen, which is an indicator that there is something there for everyone.  My picks from her blog were Pizza stuffed soft pretzels and Individual Pineapple upside down cakes.

Stephanie Carlson at Its Not Just About the Recipe
She was so kind and passed along two awards, The Versatile Blogger and The Sunshine Award. This blogger is involved in a lot of link parties and themes, so clearly she is enjoying her time in the blogging sphere!  With that enjoyment, I would say success is naturally a part of that.  With a fun, upbeat attitude and great food-people just are drawn to her blog. She shares not only her recipes but the recipes of others and is always extending an invite to a link party or bake along.

If you have yet to meet these ladies, you are missing out so stop in a say hi!


Balinese Double Six Sundaes
by Flourtrader
Ingredients/Base    -Makes 24 pieces about 2 inches by 2 inches
1 cup of macadamia butter
2 cups regular butter
1 cup sugar
4 cups and 2 tbs flour

Cream together butter and sugar until smooth.  Using a wooden spoon, stir in 1 cup of flour at a time, ending with the last cup and 2 tablespoons.  Making sure that no dry streaks remain after each interval.

Prepare one jelly roll pan or baking sheet (11.5 X 16.5 with 1 inch depth) by lining with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on the two smaller sides.

Separate the dough into two balls and place one on a square piece of paper and the other put back in the fridge.  Place another sheet of wax paper over the top of the dough and roll out close to the size of the baking sheet.  Uncover the dough and flip it into the prepared baking sheet.  Make sure all the bottom is covered with the dough evenly.  You may have to roll it out more or patch some areas.  Then place in fridge.  Roll out the other piece of dough in the same manner. Preheat the oven to 275 degrees.

Remove the dough pan from the fridge.  Then empty the cup of macadamia butter onto the dough and use a large spatula to smooth it out evenly, leaving about 1/4 inch border on all sides.  Then flip the other piece of dough on top.  Pat down dough, making sure it covers from edge to edge and that there are no air bubbles in between. Then, using a fork, poke several holes in the dough to insure that no bubbles are created when baking.

Place pan in oven and bake for 1 hr and 15 minutes.  Remove the pan and cut into squares and then place the pan back in the oven and turn the oven off.  Shortbread is done when oven and pan is completely cool. Then cover and place in fridge until ready to use.

Ingredients/Roasted Pineapple- Makes 28 pieces about 2 1/2 inches long
22 oz of pineapple spears
2/3 cup packed brown sugar

Line a baking sheet with a piece of foil.  Cut pineapple spears once horizontally and once vertically.  Lay all pieces on the baking sheet on with the long flat side facing up.  Then using a spoon, scoop out some brown sugar and place on each piece.  Use the backside of the spoon to smooth and flatten the sugar onto each piece.  Place pan of pineapple under a broiler on high heat for about 5 minutes.  Watch carefully, for it goes from done to burnt fast..  Brown sugar should bubble and turn amber in color when pineapple is done.

Ingredients/ Coconut Caramel- makes enough sauce for about 4 servings
2 tbs butter
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup coconut vodka
1 tsp vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in a saucepan and stir together, letting mixture come to a boil.  Once the sugar
dissolves, stop stirring and let boil for 1-2 minutes until mixture is thickened.  Then remove from heat and turn burner down to low.  Once burner has cooled down to low, place saucepan back on heat to keep warm.

Other Components
1 pint of ice cream (4-5 servings)
1/4 cup toasted coconut

Place shortbread square on plate, then a scoop of ice cream.  Lay pineapple pieces vertically around the scoop and drizzle caramel over the dessert and top with a sprinkle of toasted coconut.
                     **LAST YEAR: Romany Cream Cookies**

Florida Cottontails

When I think of cottontails, I usually think of a more central or northern rabbit.  However, there is a rabbit which inhabits some areas of Florida.  They are called marsh rabbits.  They look like most cottontails that you see in other areas, except they are a little more reddish instead of brown.

Since Florida is a large producer of lemons and these cakes do look like a big fluffy cottontail, that is how I came up for a name for these cakes.

The flavor idea came to me when I saw those pink Hostess cakes called "snowballs".  For those that are unfamiliar with the "snowballs" they are chocolate cakes shaped like a dome that are filled and coated with marshmallow fluff and then sprinkled with pink coconut. 

Instead of that combination, I thought that lemon,coconut and meringue would go well together.   These lemony cakes are filled, as well as topped, with meringue then have a final coating of sweet coconut.  Outside of their great taste, they have a bright lemon yellow color which conjures up the lazy days of summer and outdoor picnics.  However, be aware that these yellow gems do entice little kids into grabbing and eating them with their hands-so be sure to have plenty of napkins around when serving!

This recipe makes 8 cakes and requires 2 domed cupcake pans with 1/2 cup cavities that are 3.5 inches in diameter and 1.5 inches deep.

Florida Cottontails
by flourtrader

Ingredients/Cake
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 tbs lemon zest
2/3 cup of lemonade (I used Simply Lemonade brand)
1 tbs lemon juice
1/2 cup butter (room temperature)
1 tsp vegetable oil
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Ingredients/Filling and Frosting
3 egg whites, room temp
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
pinch salt
2 cups sweetened coconut
6 drops liquid or 1/4 tsp powdered yellow food coloring

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grease the top edges and interior of 8 cavities of your dome pans.  Then dust with flour.

Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder.  Then sprinkle in the zest and stir, distributing evenly.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar.  Once it becomes light and fluffy, add one egg and beat for 30 seconds.  Then add the additional egg and vegetable oil, beating again to blend.  Using a wooden spoon, fold in 1/3 of the sifted ingredients.  Then mix in 1/3 cup of lemonade and lemon juice.  Repeat this process and then add the final amount of the dry ingredients.

Using an ice cream scoop or a spoon, fill each cavity 2/3 full with cake batter.  Place in oven and bake 15-25 minutes or until tester comes out clean. Rotate baking pans halfway into the baking time.  Mine took a total of 18 minutes to fully bake.  Remove pans and let rest for 3-5 minutes, then invert cakes onto rack to finish cooling.  Flip cakes so dome is facing up.

Once cool, take a serrated edge knife and cut off 1/3 of the top of the dome on each cake.  Then scoop out 1 1/2 tbs of cake from the center of the bottom piece.

To create filling and frosting, fill a sauce pan with the water and sugar and place over medium heat.  Let come to a boil and cover.  Set timer for 3 minutes. During this time, prewarm your thermometer in a glass of warm water.  Once the timer goes off, uncover and place thermometer in syrup and let mixture heat up until it registers between 235-240 degrees.  Once it reaches that stage, remove pan from heat and place thermometer back in the glass of warm water.

With a large stand mixer,  beat the egg whites until foamy.  Sprinkle in the pinch of salt and beat for 30 seconds.  Continue to beat until soft peaks form.  While still running the mixer at high speed, pour in the syrup in a thin stream, letting it glide down the inside edge of the bowl.  Continue to beat the mixture for 10 minutes longer to let cool down.  Then beat in the vanilla extract.  Take 1 cup of the meringue out and place in another bowl, setting aside.  Add 3 drops or 1/8 tsp of the food coloring to the larger amount of the meringue in the stand mixer bowl and beat until it becomes an even color of yellow.  You can add additional food coloring should you want a deeper color.

Then fill a small food processor bowl with the coconut and the remaining food coloring and blend until coconut has turned a lemony yellow.  Set aside.

Take the white meringue and fill the hole in the bottom of the cakes.  Then put the top back on the cakes.  Then thickly cover each cake with the colored meringue.  Generously sprinkle the cakes with the coconut, covering all areas.  Press gently to maintain dome like shape and to get the coconut to adhere. Then they are ready to serve!

Tips and notes:
1. you can change up the extract flavoring in the meringue according to your tastes.
2. I used powdered food coloring.  My liquid food coloring may have been too old, but it gave the meringue an orange tinge, instead of yellow.
3. The meringue gets foamy if it sits, but you can beat it back into its silky consistency.  The silkier, the better you can work with it.
                         **LAST YEAR: Armenian Dinner Rolls**

Cypress Egg Cookies

I was looking at all the celebrations that people do for Easter Sunday.  The main thing is was the Easter Egg hunt with the kids.  I found that the largest Easter egg hunt was conducted in 2007 at Cypress Gardens in Winter Haven FL.  In attendance were nearly 10,000 kids on the hunt for about half a million eggs.  I am thinking of how crazy it would have been, but no doubt both the kids and parents have a wonderful memory of the event!

Now on to these cookies.  The cookies are a blend of ground almonds and almond paste.  The paste gives them a crispy edge but they are chewy inside.  This makes them a great palette for the filling which is a blend of melted Mounds Bars, coconut vodka and chocolate.

The cookies are great on their own, but the rich filling does enhance the overall taste..  They are pretty good size and it only takes one to squelch my craving for the sweet.  This recipe makes 36 sandwiched cookies, but it will vary depending on the size of the cutter and how thick you want the filling to be between the cookies.

Cypress Egg Cookies
by Flourtrader

Ingredients/Cookies
3 cups flour
1/4 cup ground almonds
8 oz almond paste
1/2 tsp almond extract
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup butter
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
various colored sugars for sprinkling (optional)

Ingredients/Filling
15 mini Mounds candy bars, chopped
1/2 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
2 tbs coconut flavored Vodka (if  not you can use 2 tbs heavy cream)

To make the cookies, line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a medium size bowl, beat together almond paste and sugar for 2 minutes on medium speed.  Place sugar,eggs and extract in with the mixture and beat for another 2 minutes.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, salt and ground almonds.  Fold the dry ingredients into the sugar/almond batter until no dry streaks remain.  Separate dough into two rounds.

Roll each piece of dough between 2 pieces of wax paper to a thickness of about 1/8 inch.  Place covered dough on baking sheets and put in freezer to chill for 20 minutes.   During this time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

One the dough has chilled, remove and cut into desired shapes.  My cutter was about 2/12 inches wide by 3 inches in height.  Place the cookies on the parchment lined baking sheets about 1/2 an inch apart. If you opted for the sugar sprinkling, proceed with that process now.

Place the cookie sheet in the oven and bake until done.  Edges will be a golden hue.  This should take about 12-15 minutes.  Remove from oven and let cool on pan for 1 minute then transfer to rack to finish cooling.  Continue with the process until all the dough has been baked.

Set up the double boiler, filling bottom cavity with water to start on the filling.  Fill the top cavity of the pan with the filling ingredients listed above.  Let the mixture cook down until the chocolate is melted and smooth with thin strands of coconut.  Remove from heat and let cool for 20 minutes.

With a knife, smooth about about 2 tsp of filling on the underside of a cookie leaving a little outer edge border. Then press another cookie over the top (underside goes on top of filling), forming a sandwich. Press down slightly to seal together.   Continue with this process until all cookies are sandwiched together.  Cookies can be served at room temperature or refrigerated.
                            **LAST YEAR: Pretzel Dogs** 

Boozy Coconut Almond Ice Cream

Well I am so glad it is Friday.  I am off early to San Marcos for the weekend.  My mom, sis and I will be spending some fun time shopping at the huge outlet malls.  I do need to get me some new clothes between losing weight, torn hems and bad zippers-it is fine time for it.

So let me wish all a great St Patricks day and for those that do not celebrate this day, have a wonderful weekend.  Enjoy some time with family, friends and good food.

Now in reference to good food, as you can see I have a recipe here for some delicious ice cream. The actual booze you put in it is personal preference.  I used creme de cacao, which a white chocolate liqueur.  The recipe below is the one as stated in the book and it suggests creme brulee liqueur.  I did not have any and it is another obscure one that is not found at every liquor store.

This ice cream is one that had me wanting more.  It is delicious by itself , but the idea of topping it with chocolate sauce has me thinking of a frozen Almond Joy-yum!  I definitely need to go back and transfer it into little cups for individual servings for a pot luck. It will be hard to part with it. The recipe makes about 1 quart.
 
Boozy Coconut Almond Ice Cream
adapted from Glorious Liqueurs

Ingredients
1/4 cup of Liqueur Brule (or your preferred liqueur)
2/3 cup of chopped and toasted almonds
approximately 2 cups of milk
6 egg yolks
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup of sugar
1 2/3 cups of flaked sweet coconut, divided

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line one baking sheet with parchment paper.  Spread one cup of coconut on baking sheet.  Toast coconut for a total of 5 minutes, but stir coconut ever 1 minute interval to keep from burning.  Remove pan and turn off oven.

Place a saucepan over medium heat and fill with milk and toasted coconut.  Stir and heat the mixture until it is scalding.  Remove and let cool for 30 minutes.  Then strain mixture through a sieve and discard the coconut.  Reserve only 1 cup of the remaining milk.  The recipe states that you may need to add some more milk to reach one cup, but I had to discard some.

Take the one cup of the cooled scalded milk and place it back in the saucepan.  Add sugar and cream.  Place it over medium heat and let come to a simmer and remove.  Set aside.

Whisk the egg yolks together in a large bowl until just blended.  Then whisk in 1/3 of the warm milk sugar mixture.  Then slowly pour it in with the rest of the simmered milk/sugar mixture.  Put saucepan back on low heat and whisk.

Continue to mix and whisk the mixture until it thickens and coats the back of a spoon.  It should be close to a pudding consistency.  Pour into a heat proof bowl and cover the surface of the custard to prevent a skin from forming.  Place in refrigerator to chill for about 4-5 hours, mixture should be cold before further use.

Remove custard from refrigerator and stir in the liqueur until blended.  Then fill your ice cream machine and follow manufacturers instructions.  Stir in the remaining coconut and the nuts during the last 5 minute interval.  Empty the ice cream into another container, cover and freeze to your desired consistency.  I like my ice cream pretty frozen, so the picture was taken after freezing overnight.
                        **LAST YEAR: Cajun Boudin**

Coconut Macaroon Brownies

I had contemplated doing a post of a bundt cake with a tunnel of coconut, but when I saw the title of this recipe-the bundt idea disappeared.  When I first read the instructions, I thought that the process with the macaroon topping would make it appear as an inside layer.  However, once I saw the how the top got toasty when baking-I was pleasantly surprised.  I would much rather have the toastiness on top than the chewy in the middle.  Also, one of the biggest things I noticed about the ingredient list was that it took a whopping 6 whole eggs and 6 egg whites.

The brownie base falls into the middle category of cakey and fudgey.  The top part is good enough to eat on its own, but is the perfect compliment to the brownie.  This recipe is one that I will repeat. Now my mind is toying with drizzling it with chocolate or including chopped almonds for the next batch. 

Also, I was recently given the Liebster Award from Diane at The Hidden Pantry and I wanted to thank her for passing it along. Her blog does have a lot to offer.  Not only does she have some great recipe posts (like a pineapple walnut cheese ball) she has some very helpful information and tips. There is one post in which she deciphers produce codes indicating which is organic,conventional or gmo and another one with advice on the best utensils to start building your kitchenware. But I will not ramble on, pop on over to Diane's blog to see for yourself at The Hidden Pantry.


Coconut Macaroon Brownies
adapted from The Dessert Bible

Ingredients/Brownie Base
1 cup flour
2 tbs cocoa powder
2 cups sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup or 2 sticks of butter
4 oz unsweetened chocolate
6 large eggs, room temp

Ingredients/Macaroon Layer
1/2 cup sugar
3 cups unsweetened or desiccated coconut
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt
6 large egg whites, room temp
3 tbs butter, melted and cooled
1/3 cup light corn syrup

Grease a 9X13 inch pan or line the pan with foil.

To make the brownie layer, prepare a double boiler with water and place over medium heat.  Put butter and chocolate in top pan to melt.  Stir mixture about every 3 minutes until it all is melted and smooth.  Remove pan and set aside.

in another bowl, whisk the eggs and vanilla together until completely blended.  Then pour in the chocolate mixture in three increments, whisking after each addition.  Stir in the salt.  Add the flour, cocoa powder and sugar and mix with a wooden spoon until batter is thick and smooth.

Pour batter into prepared pan and set aside.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

To make the topping, whisk the egg whites until a little froth forms.  Then combine the corn syrup, vanilla and butter into the egg whites. Mix in the salt and then the sugar.  Once all is combined fold in the coconut until evenly distributed.

Using a spoon, drop large scoops of macaroon mixture onto batter.  The scoop should be about 1 1/2 to 2 tablespoons and the mixture should be placed in 3 rows of 5 on top of the brownie batter.  Then take a knife and cut an "X" into each mound.  This will help each mound bake and bond together to cover the top of the brownie batter.

The recipe states bake in oven for about 40 minutes, however I left mine in for about 50 minutes. Getting the center cooked in such a large pan is tricky for me when it comes to bars.  Brownies are done when the center is firm to the touch.  Let brownies cool completely in pan placed on a rack.
              **LAST YEAR: Fresh Strawberry Cupcakes**

High Octane Mini Pies & A Shout out

There are certain foods that when ate just seem to taste good, but they do not keep you full for very long.  Perhaps it may be that scrumptious donut you had for breakfast or that chicken egg roll for lunch.  While you taste buds may be happy, you are looking for something to fill the void a few hours later.  The resolve to this situation is grains.  Whole grains do have some staying power so incorporating more of them in your diet can keep you from snacking in between meals.

Which brings me to the name of this pie.  High octane is a factor that can increase the horsepower of your car.  Now considering the first paragraph here, I decided that a high octane pie must have some whole grain in it.  The mini pie contains oatmeal, so it does give you some fuel to keep going.

Outside of oats, I have included some chocolate chips, coconut and macadamia nuts.  The combo is does make for a tasty pie and you get a myriad of texture in one bite.   This pie is delicious at any temperature, but I have to say it is very rich when served warm.  If that is not enough, you can always top it with whipped cream or serve a small piece with ice cream on the side!

Speaking of sides,  I have a side note here to give a special shout out to some very nice blogger friends who gave me some awards recently.  One is Becky over at Baking and Cooking.  She has been blogging since April of 2010 and does have some power in the kitchen.  She is also not lacking in versatility either! The other is Sudha at Wit wok and wisdom. Sudha has been blogging since February of 2010.  As you go through her blog, you notice that she does temper the sinfully sweet posts by following them with a very healthy dish.  We all need a little more balance to our diet!  If you do not know of either of these bloggers, today it is a great time to get to know them, so pop on over.  I am sure you will be inspired and find something that suits your taste! 
Now on to this recipe....

High Octane Mini Pies
by flourtrader

Ingredients
six 4 inch mini pies shells par baked (plain pie pastry recipe can be found here )
3/4 cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips
1 cup of coconut
1 cup of chopped salted macadamia nuts
2 eggs
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup butter (softened)
3/4 cup quick oatmeal
1 cup milk

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.  In a medium size bowl, cream together the butter and both sugars.  Then beat in the eggs for about 30 seconds.  Then add the corn syrup and milk, beating for another 30 seconds.

Then using a wooden spoon, fold in the oatmeal, coconut, choc chips and nuts until evenly distributed.   Then pour the filling into each pie crust, making sure each is filled evenly.  The filling should be just below the lip of each pie crust.

Place mini pies on cookie sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until top outer edges of filling are browned. A knife should come out clean when inserted into the center of one of the pies.  Let cool completely before removing from pies from each pan.

Coconut Apple Walnut Bread

I recently attended a charity event that went awry.  What was intended for the needy did not pan out completely.  Somehow 1/3 of it got twisted to be for friends and neighbors :(

Anyhow with that being said, it was time to go to the kitchen and get out of that negative funk by diverting my attention to making something delicious!  I did get to open my jar of coconut oil and use a little bit of brandy for this loaf, so needless to say I had the light on inside my oven awaiting the final product.  I was not disappointed, so I will not delay anymore.  The recipe is below.

Coconut Apple Walnut Bread
adapted from Free Coconut Recipes Website 

Ingredients
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (I used a mix of chips and shreds)
1/2 cup chopped raisins
2 eggs
1/4 cup brandy
1/2 cup coconut oil
1 cup unpeeled minced apples
1 cup sugar
1 3/4 cup of whole wheat pastry flour (I used all purpose)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Grease and flour a 9X5 bread loaf pan.  Then preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Sift together the baking powder, baking soda, salt and flour.  Set aside.  Beat the coconut oil until fluffy and then add the sugar.  Beat for an additional minute.  Add one egg and mix in at medium speed for 30 seconds.  Repeat the process with the next egg.

Using a wooden spoon, stir in the brandy until evenly distributed.  Mix in the minced apple.  Add the dry ingredients and fold into the batter, making sure no dry streaks remain.  Then mix in the coconut, raisins and walnuts.

Once all the ingredients are blended, spoon batter into the prepared loaf pan and smooth the top until all is even.  Place in oven and bake until tester comes out clean, which is about 50-60 minutes.
                     
Cool loaf in pan for about 10 minutes and then run a knife around the inside edge to loosen the bread.  Invert onto a rack to finish cooling.  To serve, slice evenly with a serrated edge knife.  I ate the bread plain and slightly warmed up for breakfast.  Others may prefer it toasted and spread with cream cheese.
                     **LAST YEAR: Chive Parmesan Scones**                  

Sinbad's Basra Treats

The story of Sinbad indicates that the sailors home base was the city of Basra, which is known for its high quality of dates grown there.

This candy has a chewy base layer made up of macadamias, coconut flavoring and chopped dates.  The top is laden with white chocolate and a chocolate dipped macadamia for decoration. They are quite rich and tasty.

After making these, I have been toying around with the idea of making them into balls instead of using the cups.  The chewy layer is quite sticky so they may be better for serving prepared in balls instead of of in cups, but I am wondering about the extra sweetness added by coating them with more white chocolate. The recipe below makes 3 dozen candies.

Sinbad's Basra Treats
by flourtrader

Ingredients
1/2 cup finely chopped macadamia nuts plus 36 whole nuts for decoration
1 cup ground vanilla wafers
3/4 cup plus 2 tbs of sweetened condensed milk
1 cup white chocolate chips
2 tbs shortening
1 cup chopped dates
1 tsp coconut extract

Line mini muffin tins with liners.  I used paper, but next time I will definitely use the sturdier foil cups.

In a small bowl, stir together the sweetened condensed milk and the coconut extract. Then take out a larger bowl and whisk together the ground nuts and vanilla wafer crumbs.  Pour the coconut/sweetened milk mixture into the bowl of nuts and wafer crumbs.  Stir until no dry streaks remain.  Blend in the chopped dates, making sure all is evenly distributed. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and place in fridge to chill for about 30 minutes.

After the dough is chilled, roll the mixture into 36 one inch balls and place each in lined mini muffin cavities.  You might have to do this in dozen batches if you have only one pan.  If so, just place dough back in fridge until the others have set so you can use the same pan again. Fill a small bowl with warm water.  Dip a soup spoon into the warm water and let the water drip off.  Using the back of the spoon, flatten the balls of candy into the paper cups.  The candy should touch all sides of the liners and be smooth on top.

Then set up your double boiler and fill the top pan with white chocolate chips and shortening.  Place over heat and stir until all chocolate and shortening is melted and smooth.  I had a problem with this because I do not have a double boiler and the steam caused the chocolate to quickly seize up.  Anyhow, spoon about a teaspoon of chocolate onto the date candy layer.  Then dip half of a whole macadamia nut into the chocolate and place on the center of each candy. Repeat this process until all candies are coated in chocolate and decorated.   Place pan in fridge for about 20-30 minutes or until chocolate has set.
                               **LAST YEAR: Apple Butter Cinnamon Rolls**

Coconut Custard Bars & Holiday Blogging Status

I have been craving some coconut pie recently and I did not want to make a large one.  In reviewing some recipes, I came across this one for these bars.

The bottom is a shortbread crust and the middle is a smooth custard with rum and coconut.  It is all topped with chopped cashew nuts.   In reviewing several recipes, they do use coconut milk in the custard, which is the accepted standard.  For those of you looking for a blast of coconut, note that these bars have only a subtle flavor of coconut.

They are a tasty stack of layers.  The sweet buttery pastry crust is a nice base for the silky custard.  The custard has notes of rum and a bit of chew from the coconut.  Also, regarding flavor and texture, the cashew crunch on top does so much more for the custard than the standard coconut topping that you get with a pie.

Also, please note that I will be on holiday from 11/22 thru 11/29.  I have someone that will be releasing posts that I have in edit mode.  However, since I will be unavailable to comment or answer any questions, my comments will be closed at noon CST on 11/22 and opened back up at noon CST on 11/29.  I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.

Coconut Custard Bars

adapted from The Good Cookie Cookbook

Ingredients/Crust
1/3 cup sugar
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
2 tsp cold water
1/2 cup or 1 stick of butter, cut into cubes
1 1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 inch square baking pan and line bottom and 2 sides with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on each side.

Sift together flour and salt.  Then whisk in sugar.  Using a pastry cutter, blend in butter cubes until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.   Make a well in the center of  the dough and set aside.

In a small bowl, beat together water, egg yolk and vanilla extract until completely blended.  Pour into dough and mix with a wooden spoon until dough forms a smooth clump and no dry streaks remain.

Press dough into bottom of pan, making sure it reaches all corners and has an even thickness.  Place in oven and bake 20-25 minutes or until it has a golden hue.  Remove and let cool completely in pan before filling.

Ingredients/Filling & Topping
1 tbs vanilla extract
2 tbs dark rum
1 egg yolk
2 eggs
1 cup coconut milk
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbs flour
pinch of salt
1 cup of sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup toasted cashew nuts, chopped (salted or unsalted, your preference)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle the shredded coconut of the cooled pastry crust.

Then place the eggs, egg yolk and sugar in a medium sized bowl.  Using a wire whisk, blend the ingredients until smooth.  Then add 1/4 cup of the coconut milk and blend with the wire wisk.  Continue adding the coconut milk in 1/4 cup increments and whisking after each addition until no more milk remains.  Then stir in the flour, vanilla extract, rum and salt.

Holding a sieve over the pan with the crust and coconut, pour the filling into the sieve. Move the sieve around so the filling falls in more than one area of the crust.  You do not want all the coconut to float to the outer edges, so moving it keeps this from happening. The filling should cover the whole top of the crust.  Lastly, sprinkle the cashews evenly over the top.

Bake for 25-40 minutes or until the filling is set.  Mine took about 35 minutes.  Remove pan and let cool completely.  Then slide a knife between the bars and the pan on the sides without parchment.  Lift bars out of pan and place on platter.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 3 hours before cutting and serving.  Bars should be refrigerated for storing.
                                              **LAST YEAR: Whole Grain Mustard Rolls**

Midnight Tropic Cupcakes

I know, taking a picture of a single cupcake is getting old, but I do have some photo changes in the works that I am excited to bring you later on in the month, but until then the single cupcake will have to do.

This is a double cocoa cupcake with a coconut cream filling.  The cupcake is moist and rich while the filling is much like a coconut cream pie.  I topped it all off with a light whipped cream icing.

To be honest, I was contemplating leaving the filling out because the cake part was so delicious by itself, almost like a chocolate brownie.  However, I do like coconut cream pie, so I went ahead with the filling.  If you like those two flavors, I am sure you will enjoy these cupcakes. This recipe makes two dozen cupcakes.

Midnight Tropic Cupcakes
 by flourtrader

Ingredients/Cream Filling
2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 stick or 4 tbs butter
1 tbs cornstarch
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup buttermilk
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp coconut extract
1 1/2 tsp milk

Ingredients/Cupcakes
3 eggs, room temperature
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 2/3 cups water
1 cup butter
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened natural cocoa
1/2 cup dutch processed cocoa
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

Ingredients/Whipped Cream Icing
1 eight oz package of cream cheese
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp coconut extract
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups heavy whipping cream

The coconut cream filling will need to chill at least 6 hours before using, so you might want to make it the night before. The first thing you will need to do is check your coconut.  The brand I got had strands up to 2 1/2 inches long.  Since the coconut is a part of the filling, you do not want the strands that long.  Take 1/4 cup of the coconut and place in blender or small food processor and pulse about 10 times.  Then empty into a bowl.  Continue with this method until all coconut has been processed into smaller strands. Set bowl of coconut aside.

Fill a saucepan with the buttermilk, cream, sugar, butter and salt and place over medium heat.  As the mixture comes to a simmer, stir periodically until all the sugar has dissolved.  Take out a small bowl and whisk together the cornstarch, milk and both extracts.  Once mixed, pour into cream/sugar mixture and stir constantly.  The mixture should thicken in about 2 minutes.

Remove from heat and pour through a sieve into a  shallow heat proof bowl.  Push out any cornstarch lumps through the sieve with a spoon. Then stir in the coconut.  Let cool for 15 minutes, stir and then cover the surface of the filling with plastic wrap and place in fridge to cool for 6 hours or overnight.

To make the cupcakes, preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Grease the top edges of 24 muffin cavities and then line with cupcake papers.

Measure out both types of cocoa into a small bowl. Bring the water to a boil and whisk into the cocoa.  Cool the cocoa mixture to room temperature.  To speed up the process, I placed the bowl in the fridge on a trivet and checked the temperature every 15 minutes.  The cocoa cooled off in about 30 minutes.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda and salt.  Set aside.  Using an electric mixer, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy.  Then add extract and beat for 30 seconds. Lastly, beat in the eggs, one at a time until completely blended.

Fold 1/3 of the flour mixture into the butter/sugar batter.  Then fold in 1/2 of the cooled cocoa mixture.  Repeat process, ending with the flour mixture.

Pour batter into prepared muffin cavities, making sure that each cavity is 3/4 full.  Bake cupcakes for about 15-20 minutes or until tester indicates done.  Let cupcakes cool in cavities for about 3 minutes, then remove and place on rack to finish cooling.

After the cupcakes and the filling have cooled, core the center out of the cupcake using a corer or a pairing knife.  Then take a ziplock bag and snip off the corner.  Put filling into bag and then pipe filling into the center of the cupcakes.

Once they are filled, you will need to make the icing.  Fill a bowl with all the ingredients except the whipping cream.  Using an electric mixer, beat until smooth. Slowly add the whipping cream, beating constantly until stiff peaks form.  Frost cupcakes as desired.

                                              **LAST YEAR:Brookies**

Oasis Tropical Mini Loaves

There are a lot of recipes out there that state "best recipe" or the "ultimate recipe".  Usually when I see that, I think that to the person that created or made the recipe believes that.  It is not that a poll of the world's opinion deemed it as such.

There are a lot of people in this world. As a food blogger, I am aware that most likely there are people out there that don't like my recipes.  However, I do not ponder on that, we can't please everyone.  I am pondering on the fact there are some people out there that do like them-but I would never go as far to say any of my recipes are the best or the ultimate.

Now this particular recipe is from a bed and breakfast.  The cookbook states that at the bed and breakfast this is their most requested recipe. "Most requested" is far more believable than the "best", so I decided to try it.

  One odd thing was that it called for 3 1/2 eggs.  In scaling down recipes, my method for 1/2 an egg is to crack the egg into a bowl and whisk lightly.  Then measure out 2 tablespoons for use in the recipe because one egg usually measures 1/4 cup.  The recipe also suggest using applesauce for a low fat version, but I used the canola oil. 

Other than that, I was very well pleased with the flavor and happy to bring you this recipe.  The batter, when baked, transforms into a moist, sweet bread flavored with cinnamon.  If that was not enough, then consider that it is loaded with mango, papaya, pineapple, macadamia nuts and apricots. The dried fruits are specialty ingredients, but after tasting these little loaves, I felt that those ingredients were well worth the trip to obtain and the expense.

If you do decide to make these, you may want to try your own variation of fruits since the batter is such a good base to start with.

One important point about this recipe is that the batter cannot sit, it has to go right into the oven.  This is because the ingredients start reacting with each other as soon as they are mixed. Doubling the recipe is not a good idea, if you do not have enough pans to bake all at once.  This recipe makes 5 loaves that are 6X3X2.  I used 6 loaf pans (steel rod connected) measuring 5X3X1 1/2 and had some batter leftover to make 2 jumbo muffins.

Oasis Tropical Mini Loaves
courtesy of Recipes from American Country Inns

Ingredients
1/2 cup chopped dried apricots or raisins
1/4 cup chopped dried papaya
1/4 cup chopped dried ginger (or any dried fruit, I used dried pineapple)
1/4 cup chopped dried mango
1/4 cup shredded coconut (I skipped this ingredient)
3/8 cup or 1/4 cup plus 2 tbs of chopped macadamia nuts
1 cup cubed mango
1/4 cup crushed pineapple
1 1/4 cups canola oil (or applesauce for low fat)
3 1/2 eggs (room temp-see comments above concerning 1/2 an egg measurement)
1 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 tbs baking powder
2 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 1/2 cups flour

Prepare the loaf pans by greasing inside the cavity and line the bottoms with parchment paper.  Grease the face up side of the parchment paper.  Then dust all insides of the pans with flour.  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, whisk together the oil, eggs and vanilla.  Then stir in the cubed mango and crushed pineapple. Set aside.

Take another bowl and sift the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder and cinnamon together.  Then add the dried fruits, coconut and chopped nuts.  Make sure that all these add ins are evenly mixed in.

Pour the dry mixture into the wet and stir just until no more dry streaks remain.  Fill each loaf pan equally with batter and place all inside the oven to bake at one time.  The loaves are done when the top is golden brown and a tester comes out clean.  Baking time should be about 30-45 minutes.  My batch took about 33 minutes.

Remove from oven and place pan(s) on rack to cool for about 5 minutes.  Then invert onto rack and take off parchment paper.  Flip loaves back over to finish cooling.  Loaves can be frozen up to one month.