Thanksgiving Classic… Pumpkin Pie!

HOWDY!!!!!!

OH MY GOSH I HAVE MISSED THIS SO MUCH!!! As some of you know, I’ve been training for the Nike Women’s Marathon in San Francisco in October, and between that, work, and having a (very small) social life, I have just been CONSUMED and not had the time to blog. Or bake much for that matter. 😦 Sad day. And while the race was almost a month ago (yes, I survived the marathon) I have still been in training for the Houston Marathon in January, hence the continued neglect. However, I have decided that the blog may no longer be neglected– it, too, is important, and necessary to my life! So with a VERY HAPPY HEART, I want to thank you for not getting annoyed with me for being absent (or at least not verbalizing it to me). BUT I AM BACK! I will try to post at least once a week… I can’t promise anything but I will do my best! Besides, it’s the holiday season, I HAVE TO BAKE! So here we go!

One of my best friends, Kelly, is having a Thanksgiving potluck at work tomorrow, and she signed up to bring pumpkin pie. Because I am SUCH a good friend (just kidding… but seriously haha) I promised her I’d make it for her! So when I got home from work today, I dusted of Stella the Mixer, and we got to work on the pie! And because I have to try everything I bake, I of course, made TWO pies so I could have one… I promise I shared with my family 🙂

So let’s get started friends!

You’ll need…

Pumpkin Pie Ingredients *Cinnamon not pictured

You’ll need to…

Preheat your oven to 350°. Unroll pie dough, and press into a 9-inch pie pan. Crimp the edges to make the pattern you like. Cover the pie dough completely (inside and the edges) with aluminum foil, and fill the pie pan with pie weights, uncooked rice, or uncooked beans***. Place in the freezer for at least 15 minutes. Remove from the freezer and bake for 10 minutes.

***Filling the pie pan with the weights/rice/beans keeps the crust from bubbling up when you bake it! And the reason you have to bake the crust before you put the filling in is to keep the crust crisp. If you don’t do this, the crust with come out mushy… yeah yuckers. So don’t skip this step! I promise you won’t regret it!

Remove foil, and bake the crust for about ten more minutes, or until the crust is beginning to color. In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl), beat the cream cheese until smooth.

Add in the pumpkin, and beat until completely combined. You don’t want lumps of cream cheese floating around in your batter, so scrape the bowl and make sure it’s completely incorporated!!! Es muy importante kiddos. (I really did learn something in spanish in high school…)

Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined. Add the eggs and yolks, half & half, and butter, and beat until combined.

Add the vanilla, and all of your spices, and mix until fully incorporated (the batter should look speckled).

Pour the batter into your baked pie crusts, and bake for 50 minutes, or until the pie is set. You can use a knife in the center if you are unsure.

Cool pie completely on a wire cooling rack before serving. If you try to cut it before it’s completely cool, it won’t set properly… or look as pretty! Patience is a virtue peeps.

OH MY GOSH. SO GOOD!!! I am so glad I made an extra for pie for myself, because this pie is FANTASTIC! Seriously… I love it so much. I am entrusted with the pumpkin pie every year at Thanksgiving, so if there is one thing I know, it is good pumpkin pie. And THIS fits the bill. Yep. I wish I could eat the whole thing and not get fat… I guess one slice will do! The crust is nice and flaky, the pie is yummy and well spiced… it really is just delish!

So now that you’ve learned how to make it, you should go do just that! Make it for your family, your friends, WHOEVER you’re spending Thanksgiving with… they will love you so much (more than they already do)!!!

Thanks so much for reading, and feel free to leave comments/questions/suggestions! I am off to run off the sugar high I’m currently on… (I might have had more than one slice, oopsies!)

Love,

Katie

……………………………….

Here’s the full recipe…

Pumpkin Pie

Ingredients:

1 piece pie dough

1 package (8 oz) cream cheese, room temperature

2 cups canned pumpkin

1 cup granulated sugar

¼ tsp salt

1 egg + 2 egg yolks, slightly beaten

1 cup half & half

¼ cup unsalted butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla

¾ tsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

¾ tsp nutmeg

You’ll need to…

1. Preheat your oven to 350°. Unroll pie dough, and press into a 9-inch pie pan. Crimp the edges to make the pattern you like.
2. Cover the pie dough completely (inside and the edges) with aluminum foil, and fill the pie pan with pie weights, uncooked rice, or uncooked beans. Place in the freezer for at least 15 minutes. Remove from the freezer and bake for 10 minutes. Remove foil, and bake the crust for ten more minutes, or until the crust is beginning to color.
3. In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl), beat the cream cheese until smooth.
4. Add in the pumpkin, and beat until combined.
5. Add the sugar and salt, and beat until combined.
6. Add the eggs and yolks, half & half, and butter, and beat until combined.
7. Add the vanilla, and all of your spices, and mix until fully incorporated (batter should look speckled).
8. Pour the batter into your baked pie crusts, and bake for 50 minutes, or until the pie is set.
9. Cool pie completely on a wire cooling rack before serving.

Adapted from Paula Deen.

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Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Howdy!!

FALL!!! I love the fall… relief from the extreme heat, pretty foliage (not always in Texas, but I can dream), fantastic clothes, and the yummy fall flavors! Everyone has been tweeting and posting on facebook about their new boots, cooler temperatures, but mostly… their first pumpkin spice latte of the season! I am not a huge fan of coffee– if I’m going to indulge, I don’t like to waste it on something I don’t particularly care for, but i LOVE pumpkin, and all of the talk about it made me really want some pumpkin! So instead of having a pumpkin spice latte, I made my own treat– PUMPKIN SPICE MUFFINS!!! They are delicious, and great for breakfast, or even dessert (just add vanilla ice cream)!!! Seriously, they are SO FANTASTIC, I might have eaten 1 (or 3) within minutes of taking them out of the oven! They taste like fall, and they will make your house smell absolutely amazing! Trust me when I say, these things will go fast! My family and I have eaten almost a dozen… and I made them 2 hours ago. So let’s get to making them…

You’ll need…

Pumpkin Spice Ingredients

***I normally use unsalted butter, but all I had at home today was salted, so I used that and didn’t add salt. If you use unsalted butter, add 1 tsp salt!

You’ll need to…

Pre-heat your oven to 400°. Line two 12-cup muffin tins, and set aside. In a small bowl, mix your crumble ingredients together until well mixed, and set aside for later.

In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices until evenly distributed, and set aside.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, or a large bowl, beat together your sugar, butter, oil, eggs, pumpkin, and water until will mixed.

Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and mix until well combined.

Add your white chocolate chips and nuts, and mix until evenly distributed.

Fill your muffin tins evenly with the batter; each cup should be full. (If the cups are full, they overflow just a little when they’re baking, which is PERFECTION in a muffin!!!)

Top each muffin with about a half tablespoon of crumble. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven, and let cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

OMG. These are so fantastic!!! Whether you’re like me and don’t feel like getting your fall flavors in a coffee cup, or just want a new way to experience pumpkin deliciousness, you MUST TRY THESE!!! They are so yummy, so fantastic, so perfectly fall… I promise you will love them!!! And so will the people around you! They will not last long, but they’re so easy to make, it won’t take long to whip up more! And this recipe makes about 2 dozen, so you’ll have plenty to go around, which is good, because you’ll need them!!!

I hope you enjoyed learning how to make these, and I hope you go channel your fall flavor love and make these immediately!!! I have a long day of work ahead, so I’m off for some sleep, but I’ve never been more excited to wake up for breakfast 🙂

Love,

Katie

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Here’s the full recipe…

Pumpkin Spice Muffins

Ingredients:

Muffins:

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups granulated white sugar

¼ cup salted butter, melted

¼ cup vegetable oil

3 eggs

1 ½ cups pumpkin

½ cup water

1 ½ tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp pumpkin spice

½ tsp nutmeg

½ tsp cloves

1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans**

1 cup white chocolate chips

Crumble:

4 tbsp butter, melted

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

3 tbsp granulated white sugar

3 tbsp brown sugar

**I used half a cup of each because I love both!

You’ll need to…

1. Pre-heat your oven to 400°. Line two 12-cup muffin tins, and set aside. In a small bowl, mix your crumble ingredients together until well mixed, and set aside for later.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together your flour, baking powder, baking soda, and spices until evenly distributed, and set aside.
3. In the bowl of your stand mixer, or a large bowl, beat together your sugar, butter, oil, eggs, pumpkin, and water until will mixed.
4. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients, and mix until well combined.
5. Add your white chocolate chips and nuts, and mix until evenly distributed.
6. Fill your muffin tins evenly with the batter; each cup should be full. Top each muffin with about a half tablespoon of crumble.
7. Bake for 15-18 minutes, until tops are golden brown. Remove from the oven, and let cool in the muffin tin for 10 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Howdy y’all!!!

First, I would just like to sincerely apologize for disappearing for about two weeks!!! As most of you know, I’ve been training for a marathon with Team in Training (donate HERE if you want to help me raise $$$ for Leukemia & Lymphoma Society) and I have been so busy with that, and work, that I haven’t had much time to bake. So sad, I know. My poor stand mixer, the lovely Stella, has missed me. Poor thing. 😦 The race is in a 3 weeks (OMG!!!!!) so I will be back in full swing on here soon!

Yesterday, we had our long run for training, and I volunteered to bring breakfast for after the run! I brought the usual breakfast items- bananas, bagels, orange juice, etc., but I wanted to bring something that I made myself too, so, for the first time in a while, I busted out Stella and put her to use! As some of you may know, I have become unhealthily addicted to Pinterest and I found an amazing recipe for Blueberry Muffins on there (this is the link to the original recipe)!  So after reading over the recipe, and changing a few things to my personal liking, Stella and I made some DELICIOUS Blueberry Streusel Muffins! And they were a hit… the recipe was requested by everyone and our tummies were all very happy post-run! And my family was happy too… I had just enough left over for the three of them to have one too! So let’s get started on making these delicious breakfast babies…

You’ll need…

Blueberry Streusel Muffin Ingredients

You’ll need to…

Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with papers. In a small bowl, mix together your lemon zest and sugar, and set aside for later.

In a small bowl, mix together your sugars, flour and butter until it is crumbly, and set aside for later.

In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of blueberries, 1 teaspoon of sugar, and your water, and simmer over medium-low heat. Stir constantly, and mash with a potato masher every 2 minutes. Simmer until the berries have broken down and the mixture is thick; about 5-6 minutes. Transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt, and set aside. In the bowl of your stand mixer, or a large bowl, beat together the remaining sugar and eggs until well combined. Slowly mix in butter and oil until well combined, then add your buttermilk and vanilla.

Add in your flour mixture and remaining cup of blueberries, and fold in with a spatula until combined (your batter will be a bit lumpy, but don’t worry—that is how it’s supposed to be!)

Using a cookie scoop, scoop your batter into your muffin tin (fill each cup full to the top.) Add about a teaspoon of the blueberry reduction to each filled muffin cup, and using a skewer or toothpick, gently swirl it into the batter.

Sprinkle streusel over each muffin, then sprinkle your lemon zest sugar on top.

Bake muffins for 16-18 minutes, or until the tops are a nice golden brown. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

OMG. YUMMERFEST. For real guys… these are absolutely HEAVENLY!!! They are sweet, a little bit tart, and oh so nice!!! These seriously went so fast, I’m sad I didn’t get to eat more… guess I’ll be making more this week!!! 🙂 But seriously, I will be. They are that good. And what a nice treat at the end of a 15 mile run… yes, my tummy was H-A-P-P-Y on Saturday morning!!!

 

Oh, and fun (scary) fact: I learned on Saturday morning, thanks to the women I ran with, that any pre-packaged blueberry muffins/baked goods do NOT use real blueberries, because there is not a large enough blueberry supply in the world. They use blue coloring and blueberry flavor… NOOOOO!!!! Just another reason to make these! Nothing tastes as good as fresh 🙂

 

I hope you all enjoyed learning how to make these DELICIOUS muffins!!! I seriously wish I could mail each of you one (or 5) of these, but sadly I can’t… so I really hope you try these out yourself! I promise you will be happy you made them, and so will anyone you share them with!

I’m off to bed… early run in the morning!

Love,

Katie

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Here’s the full recipe…

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Ingredients:

Sugar Topping:

1/3 cup sugar

2 tsp lemon zest

Streusel Topping:

3 tbsp white sugar

3 tbsp brown sugar

1/3 cup flour

5 tbsp butter, melted and cooled slightly

Muffins:

2 cups fresh blueberries, washed

1 1/8 cups plus 1 teaspoon granulated sugar

1 tbsp water

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp sea salt, fine

2 large eggs

4 tbsp (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly

¼ cup vegetable oil

1 cup buttermilk

2 tsp vanilla extract

You’ll need to…

1. Pre-heat your oven to 425 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with papers.
2. In a small bowl, mix together your lemon zest and sugar, and set aside for later.
3. In a small bowl, mix together your sugars, flour and butter until it is crumbly, and set aside for later.
4. In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of blueberries, 1 teaspoon of sugar, and your water, and simmer over medium-low heat. Stir constantly, and mash with a potato masher every 2 minutes. Simmer until the berries have broken down and the mixture is thick; about 5-6 minutes. Transfer to small bowl and cool to room temperature, 10 to 15 minutes.
5. In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt.
6. In the bowl of your stand mixer, or a large bowl, beat together the remaining sugar and eggs until well combined.
7. Slowly mix in butter and oil until well combined, then add your buttermilk and vanilla.
8. Add in your flour mixture and remaining cup of blueberries, and fold in with a spatula until combined (your batter will be a bit lumpy, but don’t worry—that is how it’s supposed to be!)
9. Using a cookie scoop, scoop your batter into your muffin tin (fill each cup full to the top.)
10. Add about a teaspoon of the blueberry reduction to each filled muffin cup, and using a skewer or toothpick, gently swirl it into the batter. Sprinkle streusel over each muffin, then sprinkle your lemon zest sugar on top.
11. Bake muffins for 16-18 minutes, or until the tops are a nice golden brown. Cool muffins in muffin tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.

Sugar & Spice Almonds and Cashews

Howdy!

So as most of you have noticed, it is FINALLY starting to get cooler! No more 100 degree days, nice cool mornings perfect for running, FOOTBALL SEASON is here… it is time for fall!!! So to kick off fall, we need a nice fall tasting treat! The other day, my family and I were trying to find a great tasting treat to make the house smell amazing, and so I decided to make some Sugar & Spice Almonds and Cashews!!! They are so yummy, so delicious, and they taste like fall! And the best part is, they are simple to make! So let’s get started!

You’ll need…

Ingredients

1 egg white

1 tbsp water

1/3 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup white granulated sugar

1 tsp sea salt, fine

¼ tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground nutmeg

1 lb nuts (I use a mix of almonds and cashews, but you can use whatever you prefer)

You’ll need to…

Preheat your oven to 300°.  Mix all of your dry ingredients in a medium bowl, and set aside for later. In a large bowl, beat together the egg white and water until frothy.

Add the nuts, and mix until all are well coated with the egg/water mixture. **This is what makes the sugar mixture stick to them, so it’s important they all get coated well!

Add the dry ingredients, and mix until all the nuts are evenly coated with the sugar and spice mix.

Place on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper or a silicone baking mat (I used a Silpat Baking Mat, and it worked PERFECTLY!) and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven, and let cool. Separate nuts while cooling to prevent them from sticking together.

OMG. Spiced just right, so sweet, so delicious!!! They seriously taste like fall.. maybe that’s why they disappeared so fast! Seriously, they last for less than a day! I took some to work, and I think they were gone in 5 minutes! So give them a try… they’re super easy to make, and taste absolutely amazing! And a great way to welcome fall 🙂

I hope you enjoyed learning how to make these, now go make them yourself! You won’t regret it, I promise!

Feel free to leave comments/questions/suggestions!

Love,

Katie

…………………………………..

Here’s the full recipe…

Sugar and Spice Almonds & Cashews

Ingredients

1 egg white

1 tbsp water

1/3 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup white granulated sugar

1 tsp sea salt, fine

¼ tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp ground cinnamon

½ tsp ground nutmeg

1 lb nuts (I use a mix of almonds and cashews, but you can use whatever you prefer)

You’ll need to…

1. Preheat your oven to 300°.  Mix all of your dry ingredients in a medium bowl, and set aside for later.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the egg white and water until frothy.
3. Add the nuts, and mix until all are well coated with the egg/water mixture.
4. Add the dry ingredients, and mix until all the nuts are evenly coated.
5. Place on a baking sheet covered in parchment paper or a silicone baking mat (I used a Silpat Baking Mat, and it worked PERFECTLY!) and bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes.
6. Remove from the oven, and let cool. Separate nuts while cooling to prevent them from sticking together.

Heath Bar Rice Krispy Treats

Howdy!

So this lovely Labor Day weekend, I was out shopping with my good friend Kelly. She wanted some wall art for her apartment, having little luck, when my blood sugar got low, and I wanted something sweet! Now during the week, I probably would have gone for some fruit, a granola bar, etc, but it’s the weekend. And not just a regular weekend, a HOLIDAY weekend… time for sweet treat! As we were checking out at Homegoods, I noticed that on their table of random items at the checkout, there were Rice Krispy Treats… it was perfectly clear what I would be making. So we finished checking out, headed to the grocery store to get the ingredients (and we got free marshmallows, woohoo!) and headed home to make the tasty treats! But not your average Rice Kripsy Treats… I made them with HEATH BAR!!! I did also make regulat ones (I can’t resist a classic), and both were ever so tasty! So let’s get to making them…

You’ll need…

Heath Bar Rice Krispy Treat Ingredients

You’ll need to…

In a large bowl, measure out your rice krispies, and set aside. In a large sauce pan, melt your butter on low heat, stirring constantly to ensure the butter doesn’t burn. Once the butter is melted, add your marshmallows and melt completely, stirring constantly.

Once your marshmallows are melted, pour over your rice krispies and mix well until fully incorporated. Pour in ¾ of the bag of Heath Bar pieces, and mix until well incorporated.

Press the mixture into a greased 9×9 pan (or a 13×9, depending on how thick you like your Rice Krispy Treats.) I put a piece of parchment paper on top of the treats, and pressed it into the pan. That kept my hands and the treats clean and mess free!

Top with the remaining Heath Bar Pieces. Melt the chocolate chips in a small bowl in the microwave, and drizzle on top of your treats.

Let cool for about 30 minutes before serving!

The pictures turned out a bit blurry (my next big investment is going to be a nice digital slr camera, bear with me til then…) but these are SO DELISH!!! I also made regular plain rice krispie treats, also delish!!! But I’ve been dying to make something with Heath Bar, and this was the perfect opportunity to take a classic, and put a tasty and new twist on it! And if you’re looking to make regular rice krispy treats, you can use this same recipe, just don’t ass the Heath Bar Pieces. I topped my regular ones with chocolate, because I live in a house full of chocolate lovers, but you don’t have to do that for the regular ones either!

I hope you enjoyed my tutorial on these tasty treats, and I hope you make them for everyone you know! I promise they will be a hit! I made them on Saturday afternoon, and they were gone by Sunday!

I’m off to enjoy the end of my holiday weekend, but y’all enjoy, and have a great rest of your Labor Day!

Love,

Katie

………………………………………

Here’s the full recipe…

Heath Bar Rice Krispy Treats

Ingredients:

4 tbsp butter

4 ½ cups mini marshmallows

6 cups rice krispies

¼ cup milk chocolate chips

1 bag Heath Bar pieces

You’ll need to…

1. In a large bowl, measure out your rice krispies, and set aside.
2. In a large sauce pan, melt your butter on low heat, stirring constantly to ensure the butter doesn’t burn.
3. Once the butter is melted, add your marshmallows and melt, stirring constantly.
4. Once your marshmallows are melted, pour over your rice krispies and mix well until fully incorporated. Pour in ¾ of the bag of Heath Bar pieces, and mix until well incorporated.
5. Press the mixture into a greased 9×9 pan (or a 13×9, depending on how thick you like your Rice Krispy Treats.)
6. Top with the remaining Heath Bar Pieces.
7. Melt the chocolate chips in a small bowl in the microwave, and drizzle on top of your treats. Let cool approximately 30 minutes before serving.

Snickerdoodle Cake

Howdy!

It has been a bit since I’ve posted, and for that, I sincerely apologize! I have been busy training for my marathon (I am still in need of DONATIONS, help me out, you know you want to!), working and all that jazz! But don’t worry, I’m here to bring you another recipe! This one might look familiar because I’ve made it in cupcakes, BUT for the cake, I changed it up a bit! I filled the cake with a yummy Cinnamon Cream Cheese, and frosted it with a Cinnamon Buttercream. The reason for the butter cream is simple… 1. I love buttercream, and 2. It is much better for decorating, and I wanted to make something beautiful for my friends! Afterall, it WAS our three-girl celebration weekend BIRTHDAY CAKE! So no more stalling, let’s get to it…

Cake:

You’ll need…

Snickerdoodle Cake Ingredients

You’ll need to…

Pre-heat your oven to 350° F. In a small bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt and set aside. In a small saucepan on very low heat, stir the whipping cream and butter together until the butter is melted. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs and sugar together until thick (a few minutes) and then add the vanilla. Add the flour mixture to the eggs and sugar mixture and mix until they are blended. Then add the butter and milk mixture and mix until well blended.

Pour the batter into two 9-inch cake rounds, and bake for 15-18 minutes. Use a toothpick to check; if it comes out clean, it is done! Let cool for 10 minutes in the cake pan, then move to a wire cooling rack to cool completely. Level your cakes (you want the top to be flat so they sit properly on top of each other.)

Filling:

You’ll need…

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Frosting (Lemon extract not pictured.... sorry!)

You’ll need to…

Cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth. Add the vanilla and cinnamon and mix until well blended.

Add powdered sugar slowly until you reach the consistency you like. (I always add a half cup at a time, until I reach the perfect taste and consistency… you can always add more, but you can’t take any out so slow is best!)

Frosting:

You’ll need…

Buttercream Frosting Ingredients (Cinnamon not pictured... so sorry!)

You’ll need to…

In a large bowl, beat the butter until smooth. Slowly add powdered sugar to the butter. (I add it in 1 cup at a time to keep from being covered in sugar, and to make sure I don’t add too much… you want to get the perfect consistency for you!)

Add in the salt, cinnamon, and vanilla, and mix until well incorporated. Slowly add in your whipping cream. (I also add this in slowly, 1 tbsp at a time, so that I get the right consistency… you may use more or less than 2 tbsp, depending on the consistency you like.)

On the top of your bottom cake, pipe a ring of buttercream around the outside of the cake. Then, inside the ring of buttercream, cover the cake with your cream cheese filling. (I realize this sounds weird/confusing, but I hope the picture helps a bit!)

Place your second cake on top of the bottom cake, and the frost the cake with the buttercream frosting.

Refrigerate for 2 hours, then decorate. I used a wilton Star (1m ) tip, and made flowers over the cake, but you can do whatever you like!

Happy Birthday to ME!

Happy Birthday to ALL OF US 🙂

This was our yummy birthday treat, and we definitely enjoyed it! It was a great way to end our dinner, and a great way to begin our girls night out on the town! This cake is so yummy, it will definitely satisfy your sweet tooth! No lie, I was craving sweets the week after our celebration, and I might have eaten two pieces because it was just that good (or because I have no self control when it comes to my sweet tooth… you decide.) I hope you go make this cake… I promise, you will not be disappointed! I know my friends and I were VERY happy with this creation!

I’m off for a nice night of relaxation before an amazing day of AGGIE FOOTBALL tomorrow, WHOOP!

Have a great night, see you next post! And as always, feel free to leave comments/suggestions/questions!

Love,

Katie

……………………………….

Here’s the full recipe…

Snickerdoodle Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Filling & Cinnamon Buttercream Frosting

Ingredients:

Cake:

2 cups all purpose flour

1 ½ tsp baking powder

2 ½ tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp salt

1 cup whipping cream

½  cup butter

4 large eggs

2 cups sugar

1 tsp vanilla

 

Filling:

4 oz cream cheese

¼ cup butter

1 ½ cups powdered sugar

½ tsp vanilla

½ tsp lemon extract

1 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

Frosting:

2 cup butter

7 cups powdered sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tbsp ground cinnamon

4 tsp vanilla

4 tbsp whipping cream

You’ll need to…

Cake…

1. Pre-heat your oven to 350° F.
2. In a small bowl, sift together flour, cinnamon, baking powder, and salt and set aside.
3. In a small saucepan on very low heat, stir the whipping cream and butter together until the butter is melted. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, beat eggs and sugar together until thick (a few minutes) and then add the vanilla.
5. Add the flour mixture to the eggs and sugar mixture and mix until they are blended. Then add the butter and milk mixture and mix until well blended.
6. Pour the batter into two 9-inch cake rounds, and bake for 15-18 minutes. Use a toothpick to check; if it comes out clean, it is done!
7. Let cool for 10 minutes in the cake pan, then move to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.

Filling…

1. Cream the butter and cream cheese until smooth.
2. Add the vanilla and cinnamon and mix until well blended.
3. Add powdered sugar slowly until you reach the consistency you like. (I always add a half cup at a time, until I reach the perfect taste and consistency… you can always add more, but you can’t take any out so slow is best!)

Frosting…

1. In a large bowl, beat the butter until smooth.
2. Slowly add powdered sugar to the butter. (I add it in 1 cup at a time to keep from being covered in sugar, and to make sure I don’t add too much… you want to get the perfect consistency for you!)
3. Add in the salt, cinnamon, and vanilla, and mix until well incorporated.
4. Slowly add in your whipping cream. (I also add this in slowly, 1 tbsp at a time, so that I get the right consistency… you may use more or less than 2 tbsp, depending on the consistency you like.)
5. On the top of your bottom cake, pipe a ring of buttercream around the outside of the cake. Then, inside the ring of buttercream, cover the cake with your cream cheese filling.
6. Place the top cake on top of the bottom cake, and frost your cake completely with buttercream.
7. Refrigerate for 2 hours, then decorate.

Filled Breakfast Croissants

Howdy y’all!

So to continue with the treats from last weekend, I decided to bring you a breakfast sweet! Now, we are all working women, so when the weekend hits, NOTHING is better than sleeping in and relaxing. So instead of getting up early to make a big breakfast for my girlfriends, I decided to sleep in a little, and make a smaller, but OH SO TASTY breakfast– croissants! But instead of just plain croissants, I decided to mix it up, and fill them with some of my favorite things– chocolate, nutella, and raspberry cream cheese! And boy, were they yummy! Now I didn’t make the pastry dough from scratch this time because I didn’t have a lot of time (a girls gotta sleep) but I will post my recipe for home made pastry dough soon! So let’s get started…

You’ll need… (Sorry, I forgot to take a picture this time!)

1. 2 packages Pillsbury Croissants (i got the larger, flakier crust kind, and they worked wonderfully!)
2. 1 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips
3. 1 cup Nutella
4. 3/4 pint raspberries
5. 4 oz (1/2 package) Cream Cheese
6. 1/4 cup sugar

You’ll need to…

Pre-heat your oven to 375°. In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together your cream cheese and sugar, until smooth. In a small bowl, mash your raspberries with a fork.

Add to the cream cheese mixture, and mix until well blended.

Open and un-roll your croissant dough. Add a heaping spoonful of each filling (chocolate chips, nutella, and raspberry cream cheese) to each croissant, and roll up. (Pinch the sides of each to keep the fillings from coming out.) I made 4 croissants with each filling, and 4 plain.

Raspberry Cream Cheese Filling

Nutella Filled Croissant

Chocolate Chip Filled Croissant

Place on a cookie sheet, and bake for 11-13 minutes.  Let cool for 10 minutes before removing from the tray. In a small bowl, melt your remaining chocolate chips in the microwave. Drizzle over your chocolate filled croissants.

In a small bowl, heat your remaining nutella in the microwave for about 20 seconds. Drizzle over your nutella filled croissants.

Place on a plate, and serve!

Breakfast is served!

These are a DELICIOUS breakfast treat!!! And my favorite thing about these is that you don’t have to wait for them to cool if you don’t want to… they taste the best when they are warm! And if you don’t have time to make pastry dough, the Pillsbury croissants work fantastically! They are quick to make, delicious to eat, and they will go quickly!

I hope you enjoyed seeing these babies being made, and go make them yourself! It will be a 30 minutes well spent, I promise!

Feel free to leave comments/questions/suggestions!

Love,

Katie

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Here’s the full recipe…

Filled Breakfast Croissants

You’ll need…

2 packages Pillsbury Croissants

1 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips

1 cup Nutella

3/4 pint raspberries

4 oz (1/2 package) Cream Cheese

1/4 cup sugar

You’ll need to…

1. Pre-heat your oven to 375°. In the bowl of your stand mixer, cream together your cream cheese and sugar, until smooth.
2. In a small bowl, mash your raspberries with a fork. Add to the cream cheese mixture, and mix until well blended.
3. Open and un-roll your croissant dough. Add a heaping spoonful of each filling (chocolate chips, nutella, and raspberry cream cheese) to each croissant, and roll up. (Pinch the sides of each to keep the fillings from coming out.) I made 4 croissants with each filling, and 4 plain.
4. Place on a cookie sheet, and bake for 11-13 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, then move to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. In a small bowl, melt your remaining chocolate chips in the microwave. Drizzle over your chocolate filled croissants.
6. In a small bowl, heat your remaining nutella in the microwave for about 20 seconds. Drizzle over your nutella filled croissants.
7. Place on a plate, and serve!

Help me raise $$$, get baked goods!!!

Howdy Y’all!

So some of you may know this, but me and one of my good friends, Marissa, are training together for a MARATHON with Team in Training, and raising money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society!!! Training has been going GREAT, but I really need YOUR help to raise the funds! My fund raising goal is $3200.00, and I would REALLY appreciate any donation you can give! Your donation is tax deductible, and it will go 100% towards Leukemia and Lymphoma research, as well as patient assistance programs funded by the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society!

If you can donate in any way, $1, $25, $100… ANY AMOUNT would be fantastic and appreciated more than you know!!! This is My Fundraising Page, just click to go to the website, and you can make your donation there!

GIVE THESE (Ok, they don't have to be benjamin's, just an example hehe)

And to show my appreciation, with any donation, I will happily bake you whatever you so choose! You can pick from one of the recipes I have posted on here, or request whatever you would like– there is no baked good I won’t make! (If you don’t live in Houston, we can try and figure something out!)

GET THESE (Or any other baked good of your choice!)

So PRETTY PRETTY PLEASE with Nutella, sugar, whipped cream, and all that jazz on top, HELP ME raise money for an amazing cause, and satisfy your sweet tooth all at the same time! I promise it is worth it!

Again, this is the link to My Fundraising Page, donate– you won’t regret it, and I will never forget your generosity… and neither will the people whose lives your are saving!!!

Feel free to leave a comment, email me at gundy.katie@gmail.com, or call/text me with your baked good order and the best way for me to contact you!

Love,

Katie

If you’re still reading, click here now –> http://pages.teamintraining.org/txg/nikesf11/kgundy

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

Howdy Y’all!

So as promised, I’m here to bring you yet another recipe from this weekend! So one of my favorite sweet treats is the classic chocolate chip cookie… the classic favorite cookie with such a familiar yet complex flavor! So while I made this fantastic cookie for my friends this weekend as well, I really wanted to find a way to re-create this amazing cookie! And alas, the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffle is born! I realize that people have made their own version of these before, but I think mine will give them a run for their money! So let’s get to it…

You’ll need…

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffle Ingredients

You’ll need to…

In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl), beat together your butter and sugars, until it is light and fluffy; about 2-3 minutes. Add your vanilla and whipping cream, and beat for 1-2 more minutes.

Add your flour mixture, and mix until well blended. Then add the chocolate chips, and mix SLOWLY until evenly distributed. The mini chocolate chips are best for this recipe because these treats are bite sized! You can use regular ones if it’s all you have, but I would break the piggy bank and spend the $3.50 for the mini sized chocolate chips… it’s worth it!

Form the dough into 1-inch balls, and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the fridge for 1 hour to harden. You might want to put them in the freezer to speed up the process… DON’T! The dough will expand after you coat them in chocolate, and it might cause the chocolate to break! So grab a diet coke (or coke, beer, water, whatever…) and take a break for 45 minutes to watch Dance Moms (or Jersey Shore, Toddlers & Tiaras, any guilty pleasure show…) while they harden up in the fridge!

Once the dough is almost ready, melt both your white and chocolate bark in separate double boilers, stirring constantly while melting.

Melted chocolates... yep I almost ate them straight out of the bowl!

Remove the dough from the fridge, and quickly drop the dough one at a time into the chocolate. Make sure the ball is covered completely, then remove and repeat until all dough balls are covered in white or chocolate bark. Once finished, decorate with extra chocolate chips, or drizzle with extra melted chocolate.

***The chocolate chips won’t stick if the chocolate hardens, so put those on your truffles right after removing from the chocolate.

Place on a pretty plate but simple plate (as not to detract from the perfect-ness of your treats), and serve to your best friends and family… or yourself!

YUMMERS!!! The great thing about this recipe is that it tastes just as yummy as the cookie dough I would normally bake, but it’s a lot safer to eat because there is no egg! Aaaaaaaand, NO BAKING! You know, I’m just saving energy, being green and all that business! Seriously, these babies are sinfully delicious, and terribly addicting! They are a great twist on a classic!

**Store in the fridge! Take them out approximately 20 minutes before eating!

I hope you all enjoyed reading about this fantastic little bite (or two) sized treat! Feel free to leave any comments/questions/suggestions!

Love,

Katie

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Here’s the full recipe…

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles

Ingredients:

½ cup butter, room temperature

¼ cup sugar

¾ cup packed brown sugar

2 tbsp whipping cream

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 1/3 cups + 1 tbsp all-purpose flour

½ tsp sea salt, fine

1 ¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate chips, mini size

½ package white chocolate bark

½ package chocolate bark

You’ll need to…

1. In the bowl of your stand mixer (or a large bowl), beat together your butter and sugars, until it is light and fluffy; about 2-3 minutes.
2. Add your vanilla and whipping cream, and beat for 1-2 more minutes.
3. Add your flour mixture, and mix until well blended. Then add the chocolate chips, and mix SLOWLY until evenly distributed.
4. Form dough into 1-inch balls, and place on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Place in the fridge for 1 hour to harden.
5. Once the dough is almost ready, melt both your white and chocolate bark in separate double boilers, stirring constantly while melting.
6. Remove the dough from the fridge, and quickly drop the dough one at a time into the chocolate. Make sure the ball is covered completely, then remove and repeat until all dough balls are covered in white or chocolate bark. Once finished, decorate with extra chocolate chips, or drizzle with extra melted chocolate.

S’mores Bites

Howdy Y’all!

So as I told you in my last post, this weekend was a birthday celebration with some GREAT friends! It was seriously a blast, and much needed after a long week.

Here’s a sneak peek at some of the treats from this weekend…

Dessert Bar

But anyways, I know they all happen to LOVE sweets, mainly chocolate and nutella, I figured what better way to treat everyone than to bake some great treats! So last Thursday and Friday were a bake fest in my kitchen… I don’t know if the great smells will ever leave the kitchen, and I’m A-OK with that! So the first thing I want to show you from this little party is possibly the easiest recipe I made, S’more’s Bites! I have recently fallen in love with this little website called Pinterest, and I have seen this recipe floating around, so I decided I needed to try it out! But of course, I always have to make them my own, so I changed the recipe a bit… still simple, and I think you’ll like my version!

And don’t let simplicity of the recipe make you skeptical on it’s taste… I assure you, it is delish! And if you don’t want to take my word for it, there are none left, so I think that’s a pretty good indication! So let’s get to it…

You’ll need…

S'more's Bites Ingredients

***Not pictured- salt

You’ll need to…

Pre-heat your oven to 350°. Crush graham crackers until fine. In the bowl of your mixer, mix graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, butter and salt.

Spoon approximately 1 tablespoon of the graham cracker mixture into each cup of a mini muffin tin, and press them into tin so they form shallow cups.

Bake for 5 minutes. While baking, cut each marshmallow in half with kitchen scissors. Remove the tray from the oven, and fill each cup with mini chocolate chips. Place a marshmallow on top of each cup, cut side down.

Bake for 2-3 more minutes, until the marshmallows look soft and fluffy. Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then move them to a wire rack with parchment paper on it to cool completely.

In a small bowl, melt your remaining chocolate chips in the microwave, heating for 20-30 seconds at a time, stirring will in between. (It is SO important to heat for small amounts of time and stir in between, so that your chocolate does not burn. If you heat it for too long without stirring, it will not melt properly, and will not look or taste good! )Drizzle the melted chocolate on top of the marshmallows.

OMG. YUMMY! For real, they are a one bite s’more, and they are ever so tasty! They are so gooey and chocolatey on the inside, it definitely tastes like a summer campfire s’more! I might have eaten a few before the girls even got here, but can you blame me? Once you try them, I know you’ll understand! And I know I’ve said this before, but these truly are the EASIEST recipe I’ve posted, so go try them yourself!

I hope you enjoyed seeing how these delicious bites are made, and I hope you enjoy making and eating these as much as I did! Now this is just one of the many treats I made this weekend, so be expecting the rest of the recipes this week! I had WAY too many of these, among all the other treats this weekend, so I am off to go for a run! Have a great night!

Love,

Katie

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Here’s the full recipe…

S’mores Cups

Ingredients

1 cup graham cracker crumbs, finely crushed

¼ cup confectioners sugar

6 tbsp butter, melted

1 pinch salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips, mini size

12 large marshmallows

You’ll need to…

1. Pre-heat your oven to 350°. Crush graham crackers until fine.
2. In the bowl of your mixer, mix graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar, and butter.
3. Spoon approximately 1 tablespoon into each cup of a mini muffin tin, and press them into tin so they form shallow cups.
4. Bake for 5 minutes. While baking, cut each marshmallow in half with kitchen scissors.
5. Remove the tray from the oven, and fill each cup with mini chocolate chips. Place a marshmallow on top of each cup, cut side down.
6. Bake for 2-3 more minutes, until the marshmallows look soft and fluffy.
7. Let cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then move to a wire rack with parchment paper on it to cool completely.
8. In a small bowl, melt your remaining chocolate chips in the microwave, heating for 20-30 seconds at a time, stirring will in between.
9. Drizzle the melted chocolate on top of the marshmallows.