10 Easy Kitchen Extracts to Make at Home. There is no need to buy vanilla extract, or most baking extracts for that matter, because a lot of them can be made at home. It may sound complicated and unnecessary to do this, but I can assure you it is much easier than you think. Most of the time making extracts entails steeping the flavoring ingredients in a liquor or sugar. Over time the liquid or sugar is infused with desired flavor and scent of the nut or bean that has been used. Sure, there are still unusual extracts at that I buy from the store. I haven’t figured out how to make King Arthur Flour’s Fiore de Sicilia, a creamsicle scented extract, for example, but I when I have I’ll let you know!
10 Easy Homemade Kitchen Extracts 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. These Raspberry Jam Bars are perfect for a back-to-school snack! Yogurt Cake Recipe. Pop-Tarts. Yeah. I went to culinary school. I trained in classic French technique. I can temper chocolate, laminate dough, pipe rows of perfect macarons, and make breads with my own wild-caught yeast. But my highest achievement? Homemade Pop-Tarts. So understand me. I have no illusions of grandeur here. Tart Dough 10 ounces all purpose flour (see note below for my gluten free flour blend) 1 tsp kosher salt 8 ounces cold butter, cubed (use shortening for vegan) 6 ounces corn syrup 1 batch of the Pop-Tart filling of your choice (jam will not work!)
Icing 12 ounces powdered sugar 2 egg whites (use corn syrup for vegan) 1/2 tsp salt 2 tsp vanilla 1 batch of homemade rainbow sprinkles, or store bought Making the Tart Dough If you would like to make these gluten free, use 8 ounce rice flour, 1 ounce kinako, and 1 ounce buckwheat flour. Cut the butter into the flour, along with the salt, until reduced to pea sized lumps. Rolling out the dough Okay, listen up. Making the Pop-Tarts Preheat the oven to 350° Stella. Rainbow Sprinkles. I know how this looks. I know having a recipe for homemade sprinkles essentially brands me as some kinda baking weirdo, culinary elitist, or just someone with too much time on her hands. But it’s not like that. I’m not crazy. Really. I like grocery store sprinkles just fine, or maybe some from fancy flours if I need something . . .fancy.
Yet, sometimes you just want to say, “I made this 100% from scratch!” If you’d like to make an egg-white free/vegan version, click here. For the prettiest (and easiest!) 8 ounces powdered sugar 1/2 tsp kosher salt 1 egg white 1 tsp vanilla, or other extract assorted food colorings as many piping bags as you have colors, fitted with small or multi-opening tips With a hand or stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, mix the first four ingredients until a semi-thick paste forms.
Divide the paste into as many portions as you have colors, tinting each batch with the color of your choice. Store in an airtight container, indefinitely. « Back to the Recipe Box yay! Peanut butter pretzel bites « Two Tiny Kitchens. Salty and sweet. Crunchy and melt-in-your-mouth. Peanut butter and chocolate.
Dangerous and delicious (you know what I mean). One little bite, so much to experience. Why did I wait so long to give these a try?? A perfect treat to share with a large group of people that you love a whole lot, or to share with yourself on a self-indulgent sweats and sofa sorta day. Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites recipe courtesy Foodaphilia.com Calorie estimate: 4,000 – 5,000 for complete recipe (depending upon dipping chocolate and pretzels used, etc.) Yield 60 – 80 pretzel bites Ingredients 1 cup creamy peanut butter 2 tbsp softened butter 1/2 cup powdered sugar (maybe more) 3/4 cup brown sugar (maybe more) Pretzels 1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips Directions Combine peanut butter and softened butter in a large bowl with a fork or whisk, or in a stand mixer. Use a teaspoon measure to scoop the filling.
All Natural Red Velvet Cake. This cake ended up being a science experiment. I wanted to make a red velvet cake without any red food coloring. Though I can handle a little food coloring here and there, the idea of putting in such large amounts into a homemade cake . . . well, I just couldn’t do it. I mean, why would I want to eat a cake that is red for no reason, other than the fact that someone calls it red? In my research, and the research of my sister (who actually inspired my making this cake after she had made an attempt at something similar), we discovered a number of people in the blogosphere that get quite uppity about what a red velvet cake is and isn’t. So I started there. My first attempt was brownish purplish. I spent the next few days reading other blogs and websites. Amy directed me over to bittersweetblog, where the writer painstakingly experimented with the pH levels in the cake, and how it affects color. The goal was to keep the pH as acidic as possible, with no additions of anything alkaline. 1. 2.
Everyone’s Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookie… Joel, our friends, my parents, grandparents, co-workers, neighbors, brother-in-law, opera friends….these are all the people who claim these to be their all-time favorite chocolate chip cookies. That’s not something to be taken lightly. These cookies have been hastily featured on here before, but they most certainly did NOT receive the full respect and attention they deserve. Now, I know I’ve definitely made my fair share of chocolate chip cookies through the years, but just bare with me while I share just one more (for now!) - the BFCCCCs (Big, Fat, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies).
I’ve honestly never made these for anyone who didn’t immediately say they were the best they’ve ever had, and I’ve made these a floppity-gillion times. That’s big. I realize the cookies in my pictures are not exactly “big and fat”- I prefer my cookies on the smaller side, so I always use a standard cookie scoop instead of the heaping 1/4 cup-size scoop it calls for. You see that? Recipe source: allrecipes.com. Japanese Cheesecake. There are cakes which look absolutely stunning and gorgeous on the outside, but when it comes to the taste, it disappoints, and you just wished that it tasted as good as it looks. I've had a lot of those experiences, and in fact, I think I've made a few of cakes like that myself! What I love about a good Japanese cheesecake is that while in appearance it resembles a humble (and perhaps, plain or boring?)
Sponge cake, but the minute you put it into your mouth, you want to close your eyes and go 'hmmmmmmmmmmmmm'. We all go through phases, don't we?! Well, about a month ago, I was in a cheesecake phase. And I made cheesecakes almost on a daily basis (I don't know where I got the energy from after work!). Right out of the oven...hmmmmm. Japanese Cheesecake Preheat the oven to 180°C. Wrap the cream cheese in clear wrap and microwave until it becomes soft to the touch. In a large bowl, melt the butter over a double boiler. In another bowl, combine the egg yolks and 20g of sugar.
Fudge Drops. Good Eats 'n Sweet Treats: Sweet Bliss. I first saw these Cranberry Bliss Bars at Starbucks (they are seasonal so if you haven't seen them lately, that's why). They immediately caught my attention. They were calling my name but alas... I have a hard time bringing myself to buy such over-priced baked goods. So, I asked around at work to see if anyone had tried them to see if they were worth trying to make on my own. One of my co-workers raved about them, so I knew I had to find a good copycat recipe. I found a few different recipes online but ultimately, this one sounded the best. I made a few changes to the recipe.
I love these bars! * Update (Dec. 2008): I finally got my hands on one of these at Starbucks and I have to say that while these look just like the Starbucks version, they don't taste a whole lot like them. Cranberry Bliss Barsfrom RecipeZaar.com Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer until smooth.
Pour batter into a well-greased 9x13-inch baking pan and spread evenly. Copycat 3 Musketeers Bars Recipe. Lemon Curd and White Chocolate Lemon Scones. What do you do when your sister sends you a big box of Arizona Lemons? No, not lemonade, but that is a good answer. The first thing that came into my mind was "Lemon Curd". Ahh light and tart lemon curd. It's like putting a lemon meringue pie in a jar. Making your own lemon curd is so easy. I love lemon curd spread on toast, scones, mixed with vanilla yogurt for a fruit dip, spread between layers of cake. Just six ingredients. unsalted butter, sugar, eggs and egg yolks, fresh lemon juice and grated lemon zest. I'm sorry this picture is a little dark.
Add the eggs and egg yolks. Beat for about 1 minute until the mixture is creamy and smooth. Mix in the lemon juice. Pour the mixture into a medium sized heavy saucepan. See how the mixture looks curdled. It doesn't take long for the mixture to start to look creamy. It's looking better! Suddenly it's thick. Wipe your finger across the back of a spoon and if it leaves a path, it is finished. Stir in the lemon zest. My mouth is watering. Oops! Fried Ice Cream. I'm sure you are thinking about Cinco de Mayo this very minute. You should be because it's in two days. We look for any excuse to celebrate. We look for any excuse to celebrate with food. This year I thought I'd share a recipe for deep fried ice cream. This is definitely one of those desserts that I don't make very often. This would be considered one of my "BIGS". You will need a good quality Vanilla ice cream, corn flakes, flaked coconut and cinnamon.
I just happen to find New Simply Cinnamon Corn Flakes. You can, of course, use regular corn flakes. You will need to make 5 scoops of ice cream from a quart size container. Drop the scoops of ice cream onto a baking sheet lined with waxed paper. Let me tell you what you don't have time for...PICTURES. The ice cream melts too fast. Put the corn flakes in a plastic bag. Pound the corn flakes with a rolling pin or crush the corn flakes anyway you'd like...just crush them. Put the crushed corn flakes into a shallow bowl.
Add 1 cup coconut. 2 eggs. Thousand Dollar Bars. Overnight Blueberry French Toast with Blueberry Syrup. This is a recipe that I found in my newspaper in December of 2004. It came from a woman who runs the Mountain Hollow Inn, a bed and breakfast located in the Salt Lake Valley. It is a family favorite. I tend to always make it in the Spring time. I happen to make it this year for Easter breakfast. Overnight Blueberry French Toast with Blueberry Syrup French Toast: 12 slices bread, cut into cubes (french or Texas toast work well)1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, cut in cubes1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)12 large eggs1/3 cup maple syrup2 cups milk (I use 1 cup milk and 1 cup cream) Syrup: 1 cup sugar1 cup water2 Tablespoons cornstarch1 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)1 Tablespoon butterArrange 1/2 of the bread cubes in a greased 9 x 13 pan.Sprinkle cream cheese cubes and blueberries evenly over the bread cubes.Top with remaining bread cubes.
Sauce: Cook water, sugar, and cornstarch until thickened. A food blog.: donut muffins. Alice: "Do you want to bake something and come meet us at the park? "Me: "Sure. I can probably have something ready within a half hour. "Alice: "What would be good on this cold and blustery day? "Me: "Warm muffins. "Alice: "Oh, yes. Something muffiny would be great. "Me: "Pumpkin? I am quite sure that the idea of a muffin that doubles as a donut is an idea that appeals to almost everybody. And so we sat on the steps of Piccolo Park, happily enjoying our donut muffins while trying to keep our sugar-loving kids from eating the entire batch. Donut Muffins: adapted from Orangette Ingredients: For muffins:3 cups unbleached all-purpose flour2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder1/2 teaspoon baking soda1/2 teaspoon salt3/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk1 teaspoon white or apple cider vinegar1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar2 large eggsFor topping:4 tablespoons unsalted butter1 1/2-2 cups powdered sugar.
Peanut Butter filled Chocolate Cookies. So I was perusing the internet for some baking inspiration for something to take along to a church group meeting. I came across these. Definately caught my interest! I think in Australia, we aren't that big on peanut butter and chocolate, but I have definately developed a taste for it! Whenever I can find Hersheys peanut butter cups I find myself fighting the urge to buy them by the boxful, because they're so hard to find around here! So yeah.... these bickies looked absolutely mouthwatering to me, and I ceased my searching and started baking! But I got it all done! I found the recipe here, but adapted it ever so slightly. Cookie dough1 1/2 cups plain flour1/2 cup dutch cocoa powder1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda125g butter, softened1/2 cup white sugar1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar1/4 cup smooth peanut butter1 egg1 tbsp milk1 tsp vanilla extract Filling3/4 cup pure icing sugar, sifted1/2 cup smooth peanut butterwhite sugar for sprinkling Method ...is easy as!
Preheat your oven to 180C. Ok! Banana Souffle for Holiday Food Fest | Tasty Eats At Home. Liz at Hoosier Homemade is hosting Fall Desserts this week for Holiday Food Fest. Be sure to check out her blog and link up your favorite fall dessert! She’s giving away a Pampered Chef Pie & Tart Cookbook and a cool candle. My submission for Holiday Food Fest this week are these banana souffles. While they aren’t typical “holiday” desserts, they are so rich in flavor, so comforting, that they would surely be a delightful end to any special dinner throughout the holiday season. They also take very little time to prepare, so they’re a doable dessert to throw together at the last minute. The best part is – they are much lower in calories and fat (and are of course, gluten-free!) Than most desserts, since they only use egg whites, and rely a great deal on the natural sweetness of the bananas. Stay tuned, for next week, I will be hosting Fall Dishes for Holiday Food Fest!
Banana Souffle 2 ripe bananas 3 T water 1/3 c plus 1 T sugar 1/2 t cornstarch pinch of cinnamon 4 egg whites pinch of salt.