Mini Jam Pockets

It's winter. How do I know? Well I sleep in socks, I wear a scarf outside every day and I have about 3 hours of sunlight during which to take photos of food. I can see my breath form little clouds as I stand at the bus stop late at night. I go in to stores just for a few-minute respite from the cold on my way to places. It's winter.

Vote for me?

So unbeknownst to me - in fact while I was sleeping - my dear friend Rachel nominated me for an award... at the Joy of Kosher website. So - if you feel like clicking your mouse, follow the link below and scroll alllll the way down to find me among the losers and vote! Or, you know, vote for someone else. I'll never know. 

If I win, I get... eternal satisfaction. And isn't that what matters?

 

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

I love snickerdoodles. And if you read this blog, you should know that by now. After all, I've made snickerdoodle pie, snickerdoodle blondies, and of course the main event. And I also love pumpkin - as the muffins, pie bars, cheesecakes and cupcakes can attest to. So a recipe that combines the two? Sign me up!

Cinnamon Bun Cookies

I love cinnamon buns. Love them warm out of the oven, covered in sticky icing, the soft, pillowy outside and the gooey inside with bits of cinnamon and sugar ending up all over your fingers. Seriously, cinnamon buns are delicious, but they're a lot of work. Next best thing? Cinnamon bun cookies!

Cookie Dough-Filled Brownie Cups

Special occasions call for special desserts. So when my cousin Esther got engaged a couple weeks ago, I set out to create something special.... and certainly indulgent. And what is more indulgent than a giant brownie stuffed with cookie dough? Nothing, that's what.

Chocolate Orange Mousse Tart

There are some pairings that are totally natural: peanut butter and jelly, macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes and gravy. For me, I'm pretty partial to chocolate and orange. There's something about the bright citrus taste that pares well with the rich, dark, flavor of chocolate - which is why I was more than happy when we whipped up these chocolate orange tartlets in pastry school.

"Jammers" - Giant Streusel Jam Cookies

Sometimes I'll see a recipe in a magazine and it will inspire me to create a certain dish. Sometimes I'll flip through a cookbook looking for inspiration. Often I come across recipes on other food blogs that I either follow or modify for my needs. But for this recipe, all I needed was one photo to convince me to make them. I spotted one image of these cookies, and I was sold.

Triple Chocolate Cream Scones

Before last week, I had never made scones before. In fact, I'm not even sure I'd even eaten a scone. In my mind, scones were a dry, stale pastry that people with no imagination ate along side their latte at Starbucks. Now don't ask me where that mental image came from, I haven't the slightest clue. But either way: scones! Light, fluffy, rich, delicious scones. And if that weren't enough, I threw in three types of chocolate as well.

Challah and Whole Wheat Lean Bread

I promised a few weeks ago that I would share some recipes for the breads that I learned in the first unit of pastry school. I've been a bit delinquent, but here are two:

1. Challah, on Cookkosher.com

 

2. Whole Wheat Lean Bread on The Nosh Pit at the Jewish Week

Follow the links for recipes and more, by yours truly. Happy baking!

Lime Macarons with Strawberry Curd Filling

French macarons are a terrifying dessert. You didn't think dessert could be terrifying, did you? Well they are. I just spent a week on them in pastry school, and I'm still not sure I mastered them. I mean, I'm quite sure I didn't. Have I scared you yet? OK well relax, you really can make them, if you follow the instructions to a T and don't mind the occasional imperfection. Better yet - if you eat the occasional imperfection. So you too can tackle lime macarons with strawberry curd filling! (P.S. read to the end of the post for a cute bonus!)

Pecan Tartlets

Y'all are lucky I'm in pastry school. See, until now, you've gotten recipes chock full of things I love, like chocolate, coconut, raspberry and... chocolate. Since I rarely bake things I don't like, you haven't seen really any nuts (except ground), mangoes, coffee or marshmallows. But when you go to pastry school, you don't get a whole lot of say in what you make, so despite my distaste for them, we made pecan pies last week.

Peach Hand Pies

Over the 2 1/2 years I've been blogging, baking and mistaking, I haven't shied away from sharing some fairly total disasters with you. I've dropped cakes, I've left out key ingredients, I've made inedible yeast doughs, seven disastrous attempts at caramel, and I even ended up with ice cream all over the walls, couch, floor and counter one night. But sometimes, sometimes I just have to pat myself on the back for creating a dessert so addictively delicious, which such...limited resources. So seriously, these peach hand pies were incredible, as is the fact that I managed to whip them up in my current kitchen. 

Chocolate Almond Biscotti

Well here it is - the first full post - recipe and all - from pastry school. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about sharing some bread recipes, but we've moved on to cookies and well...how could I resist. These are chocolate almond biscotti, and while I never thought I was a big biscotti fan, these are exceptionally tasty.

Marbled Coconut Bread and adapting

There are still a whole bunch of delicious recipes I have to share with you from my pre-move days, but I wanted to tell you about this one first. A simple, homey and uncomplicated cake, this marbled coconut bread is the first thing I have baked in my newly adopted kitchen, a place that is, well...not without restrictions.

This Week in Pastry School

I'm back...and I have more photos of delicious breads! This week we moved in to complex breads, with starters and sponges and poolishes. What this means, is that a portion of the dough is prepared a day, a few days or even a week in advance, and left to rest and develop flavors, before being used in a recipe. The most common of these is a sourdough starter, but there are in fact many types.

First up - Multigrain bread! This bread is filled with wonderfully healthy things like oats, flax and sunflower seeds. This recipe was made with what's called "pate fermente" or old dough, which is just how it sounds - a piece of dough left for 24 hours.

Next up is a fougasse - a traditional French flatbread, similar to focaccia, cut to resemble a leaf shape. It is brushed with a light coat of olive oil and sprinkled with sea salt, and is crispy and chewy and delicious. 

This here is a white sourdough loaf, The sourdough is a starter made of flour and water that is left to develop for at least a week before use, for extra complex flavors.

This beauty is a crown made of rye sourdough rolls, filled with sunflower seeds and topped with some decorative oats, flax and sunflower seeds. We made two sourdoughs, one with white bread flour, used in recipes like the loaf above, and one with rye flour, used here.

These are more rye sourdough rolls, that are a little denser and richer, and filled with the oat-flax-sunflower seed mix instead of just straight sunflower seeds. It should be noted that no rye breads or rolls are actually 100% rye flour, but really a mix of rye and bread flours. All rye would be inedible. 

This is a loaf of whole wheat sourdough, shaped in to a cylinder shape. In case you were wondering, a slice of this, fresh out of the oven, with a touch of butter on it, is basically heaven. Also, lunch.

Not pictured: rosemary bread - which I actually have a loaf of in my freezer but have yet to try,  olive bread - which I did not eat because I hate olives and pita bread - which I devoured too quickly to photograph. Yep, I've been busy!

I promise, I will share some bread recipes soon - just wanted to share these delicious photos first.

Chocolate Muffins - Three Ways

I made a batch of chocolate muffins a few weeks ago. Or...did I make three? Well, I mixed up one big bowl, divided it in to three, and went to town. Each third of the dough got its own fun mix-in. Can you guess what they were?


First up - crystallized ginger! Ginger and chocolate are a fun combination, the spice of the ginger playing well with the richness of the chocolate. I find people either love or hate ginger, so make sure you know which you're dealing with when making these muffins.

This (Last) Week in Pastry School

So I've been super busy in the kitchen the past couple weeks, but I've yet to share any of that with you. 
So without further ado, here are the things I've been churning out of the oven recently. 

 

Pan de Mie - a French sandwich bread

Lean whole wheat loaf

Rye rolls with caraway seeds

 Challah

Whole wheat Pullman rolls

French baguettes

 "Epi"s

So, I've been busy - and that's just one week! I'm not intentionally leaving out recipes, but everything I have is in grams - and since the majority of my audience is American, I don't know how much help that would be. If there is a specific recipe you want, let me know!

Be back soon with more delicious food (and recipes!)

No-Bake Treats

I know what you're thinking right now. Yes, I have the powers of mind reading. But I am using them for good. Because I know that right now you're thinking: "I'm hot." There's a pretty good chance, that wherever you are in the world, the temperatures are high, and the prospect of turning on the oven is not an exciting one. To that end, here are nine recipes that have no (or little) oven use to keep you just a little bit cooler this season. 

The frozen:
These two treats have the added bonus of not only requiring no oven, but being deliciously cooling as well. Plus, neither require an ice cream machine, so get to it right away!
1. Strawberry Sorbet

2. Lemon Ice Cream

Peach Strawberry Pie and Missing Things

Forgive me for I have sinned. It has been 10 days since I last baked. Outside of school, that is. But moving halfway around the world, starting school and a job and everything else that comes along with that is a touch time consuming. Luckily I made bread this week in class, which was great! I'm adjusting well, but often tiny little things that I never expected missing pop up. But more on that later, because lucky for you I still have pre-move baked goods to share, like peach-strawberry pie! Yes, you heard right.

Peanut Butter Rice Krispie-Topped Brownies

So I've moved halfway around the world, started pastry school...and baked nothing. We are supposed to begin the actual baking portion of the course today, with bread, so that should be interesting. And even though I haven't baked anything in the past week, as promised I am here to deliver on what I stand behind as the most delicious dessert of 2011 (still in competition with this key lime tart, but as they are so different I shall allow them to remain on a pedestal together). I present to you: Peanut Butter Rice Krispie-Topped Brownies. OK, so I'm not good at naming. 

Red Velvet Whoopie Pies...and a new Life Chapter

Hello, hello. Two things are going on in this post today. First, a recipe for red velvet whoopie pies, for my friend's birthday, and an announcement about a new chapter in my life. Two very exciting things - so stick around!


If you haven't heard of them, whoopie pies are two soft, cakey cookies sandwiched together with frosting. So really, all that is good in the world. And this red velvet version, with cream cheese frosting, makes it so easy to scarf down two or three without skipping a beat. 

Cherry Blueberry Pie

I love pie. And it's not just that I love eating pie - which I do. I love making pie. I love crafting pie, baking pie, smelling pie and presenting pie to people who ooh and aah over the golden brown crust, the bubbly filling and the perfect lattice. It's true. I'm in it for the glory. 

Cookie Dough Peanut Butter Cup Cheesecake Bars

Remember the Lime Strawberry Cheesecake I shared a few weeks ago. I teased then that it was not the only cheesecake I made for the holiday of Shavuot. And indeed it was not, because sharing the spotlight was this jam-packed, sinfully delicious slab of cheesecake. That's right: cookie dough, peanut butter cup cheesecake bars.

Chocolate-Filled Peanut Butter Cookies

One of my favorite cookie recipes on this site are the chocolate peanut butter surprise cookies - a rich, chewy chocolate cookie surrounding a hidden center of creamy peanut butter. A few weeks ago, the idea hit me: why not try them in reverse?

Carrot Ginger Cupcakes with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting

While I'm not sure I'm quite sold on the cupcake 'craze' right now (I'm much happier knowing pie is the next big thing) I can appreciate the many conveniences of mini cakes. Firstly, the higher frosting to cake ratio. No-brainer. Second, the portability. Third, the ability to eat 3 of them and pretend it is still a snack. 

Lime Strawberry Swirl Cheesecake

Last week was the Jewish holiday of Shavuot. Shavuot means a lot of things to a lot of people, but I'm going to inch out in to heresy here and say that to me, Shavuot means cheesecake. Cheesecake, cheesecake, cheesecake. Seriously, I started thinking about cheesecake in March. And I made them* in June.

Black and White Cookies

There are a few baked goods that have an iconic, New York status. Cheesecake is one. Another? Black and white cookies. More cake than cookie, this is one confection that brings back childhood memories for me.

Guest Post at Dulce Dough

Hi All - 


The vacation is almost over, but before it ends I can direct you to my guest post with Jill, over at Dulce Dough, who is taking a vacation of her own. So head over and check out my recipe for Oatmeal Raisin Muffins!

Key Lime Tart

Ah, vacation. Hope you're not too jealous of my fabulous tan and my oodles of free time. To make it up to you, I'm sharing one of the best desserts I've made in a long time. We're talking about a top contender for best treat of 2011. And it's so easy.

Guest Post - Rhubarb Cake

So, while I am enjoying my vacation I'm putting others to work for me. I asked the lovely Jill over at Dulce Dough to guest post here, and she graciously agreed. In fact, since she's going on vacation later this month, I"ll be able to return the favor soon! So read on, and visit her site for more delicious recipes! I'll be back later this week with a previously created dessert - this is one you won't want to miss, I promise.

---

Hello, I’m Jill from Dulce Dough. When Amy asked me if I would be willing to do a guest post at Baking and
Mistaking I was honored and excited. I knew exactly the recipe that I wanted to share. In fact, right before I
received Amy’s email I had been out in my garden pulling rhubarb to make one of my favorite recipes—my
grandma’s rhubarb cake.

Homemade Apple Chips

Are you ready for a recipe with one ingredient? Yes, one. I promise. One. And no special tools. No fancy techniques. But really: deliciousness.

Fruity Pillow Cookies

A cookie inside a cookie? Yes please! I didn't say no before, and I certainly wouldn't say no now. Plus these are delightfully colorful, and oh-so fruity. The last time I made cookies with "pillow" in the title was quite an adventure, so I figure these would be the same.

Tropical Loaf Cake

Do you like pina coladas? And getting caught in the rain? While I'm more likely to answer yes to the second question than the first, I can certainly get behind this tropical loaf cake made with fresh pineapple and fragrant toasted coconut. Sorry, I'm missing the rum. 

Pink Lemonade Bars

I didn't wear a jacket to work yesterday. I planted my vegetable garden. My bedroom window has been open for a week. Ladies and Gentleman...I think it's spring. And what tastes more like spring than a big glass of lemonade? A big glass of pink lemonade. 

Whole Wheat Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

Is there such a thing as a grown-up cookie? If there is, these cookies certainly qualify. With the extra flavor of whole wheat flour, a toned-down sweetness and the 'adult' taste of semi-sweet chocolate, these cookies would be perfectly at home at an elegant dinner or cocktail party - events I am obviously never invited to. 

Lemon Strawberry Chiffon Layer Cake

It's over. Passover has come and gone, and I am more than happy to return to cakes, cakes and more cakes. So while I haven't managed to whip up any confections since the holiday ended...yesterday, I do have several things I've been counting down the days until I could share with you. Like this towering layer cake...a delicate chiffon cake filled with lemon curd and covered in a lemon-strawberry buttercream.

Flourless Hazelnut Cake with Chocolate Ganache

Here's one more Passover recipe if you're still hungry for cake! This airy hazelnut cake is totally flour-free, dairy-free, gluten-free. I filled and topped it with a chocolate ganache, which made it completely decadent.This is one dessert you'll be happy to serve year round.

There is nothing that really screams“Passover” about this dessert – no matza meal or potato starch, or even any coconut. There's only four ingredients in the cake, yet it produces a dish that would be at home on any table, especially a gluten-free one. And it can even garner the most precious compliment of all: “this doesn’t even taste like a Passover dessert.”

I chose to slice the cake in half and fill it with a rich chocolate ganache, a perfect pairing for the airy, light cake. It would also work nicely with a simple whipped cream filling, or even just a little dollop on top of every piece.

Recipe:
6 eggs, separated
8 ounces ground hazelnuts
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder

2 cups chocolate ganache (recipe below)

Beat the egg yolks and sugar together until pale yellow. Add in the hazelnuts and baking powder and mix until incorporated.
Beat the egg whites until stiff peaks form. Stir 1/3 of the egg whites in to the hazelnut mixture, then gently fold the remaining egg whites in until completely combined.
Pour the mixture in to a greased 9-inch springform pan* and bake on 325 for 50 to 60 minutes, until the top springs back when lightly pressed.
Let cool completely, slice in half, and fill with half the chocolate ganache mixture. Top with remaining mixture.

Chocolate ganache:
10 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chips or finely chopped
1 cup cream or milk**

Place the chocolate in a glass or metal bowl.
Heat the cream or milk until just boiling. Pour it over the chocolate, and let sit for five minutes. Whisk the mixture gently until it becomes a smooth, silky frosting (this may take several minutes). Let cool to room temperature before using on cake.

*I realize many people will not have a springform pan, for Passover or at all. You can bake it in a regular 9-inch pan, but it may be difficult to remove which means you won’t be able to slice it in half. If you bake it in a different size pan, make sure to adjust the baking time accordingly.