Day 121 - Root Beer Float Cake

Four out of five family members went to the Arizona Diamondbacks baseball game tonight.  They were playing the Florida Marlins.
It was fun, and of course, the weather here in sunny AZ was beautiful today, so they opened the retractable roof of the dome.  It was 92º outside and I was sitting there watching the game with... goosebumps!  We must have been sitting under an air conditioning vent because I was quite CHILLY!
Eventually, I did warm up - just in time for my husband to decide it was time to go.
"Let's go, so we can beat the crowd."
He does that a lot, I'm noticing.  He wants to eat before the big crowds get to whatever restaurant we're going to, leave before the big crowds leave wherever we are...
Good grief, we're only in our early - mid forties for cryin' out loud!  What the heck is he going to be like when we're in our 60's?
Are we going to be at Denny's eating right at 4 o'clock in the afternoon, just so we don't have to deal with anybody??!!
Oy vey!
I absolutely love growing old with this man, but seriously?  Is this just the beginning of what I have to look forward to when we're in our old age?
We'll be sitting home in our rockers because he doesn't want to deal with the crowds!

Root beer, root beer, root beer! 
Who DOESN"T like root beer floats?
I have never met him...or her, and I can't believe that a person who doesn't like them even exists.
If you don't like them, maybe you'll like this cake instead.
I was perusing my list of blogs one day and came across this recipe for Root Beer Float Cake on the Brown Eyed Baker.  I left a comment telling Michelle how much our family LOVES root beer floats and that I just had to try this. 
I bought the root beer a few days ago and hid it, but noticed someone had gotten into the stash and the bottles were slowly disappearing.  I don't usually buy soda, so I knew I needed to make this ASAP before it ALL disappeared.

Thank you, Michelle, for sharing this!
Root Beer Float Cake - One 10-inch bundt cake

2 cups root beer (do not use diet root beer)
1 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder (I used regular - store didn't have dark unsweetened)
½ cup (4 ounces) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces
1¼ cups granulated sugar
½ cup dark brown sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
1¼ teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs

For the Root Beer Fudge Frosting:
2 ounces dark chocolate, melted and cooled slightly
½ cup (4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt
¼ cup root beer
2/3 cup dark unsweetened cocoa powder (again, I used regular)
2½ cups powdered sugar

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fº.
Spray the inside of a 10-inch bundt pan with nonstick cooking spray, such as Wilton's Bake Easy or butter the pan and dust with flour, shaking out the excess flour; set aside.
In a medium saucepan, heat the root beer, cocoa powder and butter over medium heat until the butter is melted.

Add the sugars and whisk until dissolved. Remove from the heat and let cool.
In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda and salt together.
In a small bowl, whisk the eggs until just beaten, then whisk them into the cooled cocoa mixture until combined. Gently fold the flour mixture into the cocoa mixture.

The batter will be slightly lumpy.  This is okay. Do not over beat it, as it could cause the cake to be tough.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through the baking time, until a small sharp knife inserted into the cake comes out clean. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely. Gently loosen the sides of the cake from the pan and turn it out onto the rack.

To make the frosting, put all of the ingredients in a food processor. Pulse in short bursts until the frosting is shiny and satiny, scraping the sides of the food processor a couple of times. (If you don’t have a food processor, simply throw it all into the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl using a hand mixer and mix on medium-low until combined and satiny smooth.)
 Use a spatula to spread the fudge frosting over the cake in a thick layer. Let the frosting set before serving. Store leftovers wrapped well or in an airtight container at room temperature.
*Note: If you are using a dark, nonstick pan, heat the oven to 300º F.  (I used one)

(Recipe adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking)

When making the frosting, my food processor is a small one, and my hand mixer is being temperamental, so I just used my stand mixer with the paddle attachment and the frosting came out fine.

Since we were going to the baseball game, I didn't have time to personally frost it, so I gave that job to my eldest, and I think she did wonderfully considering she has never frosted a cake!  Way to go, girl!

This cake was absolutely delicious!  It was definitely a different flavor that I really, really liked.  The first taste is chocolaty, but then the after taste is definitely root beer.

It is so rich that you cannot eat it without the ice cream because it gives it a nice balance
I couldn't even finish my piece.  Ok, I ate most of it and only left a few bites.

I rate everything that I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  This root beer float cake earned 3½ rolling pins. 

Root beer, ice cream, and cake.  Can it get any better?

Happy baking!

Day 120 - Apple Oatmeal Muffins

Summer's started here at our house and we're all taking it easy.
Alright, not all of us, and not that easy.
Mr. 365 is still working (wonderful man that he is) and today we moved him out of one office and into another one.
I hate moving.
Am I the only one that feels this way or do I have people that agree with me here?
I think it's because whenever we move, whether it's from house to house or office to office, he and I each have our own way of packing and transporting.
I admit, I may be a little too controlling concerned about things being mishandled or not packed correctly.
You have to understand moving and everthing it entails is one of those things I'm a little OCD about.
This comes from a woman who packs her grocery cart so that while I'm shopping everything fits "just so".  There is NO way I'll just "toss" things into the cart - that is like fingernails on a chalkboard,  makes me shudder.  Even when I put it on the belt to check out, everything has to fit like a puzzle. 
Haha - I should take a picture next time.

Adapted from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook Thirteenth Edition

Apple Oatmeal Muffins

1 1/2 cups flour
2 tablespoons sugar
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup milk
1 egg, well beaten
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 cup cooked oatmeal
1/2 cup apple, diced small


Preheat the oven to 400F.

Butter a 12-cup muffin pan.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon in a bowl.
In another bowl, stir the milk, egg, butter, and apples into the oatmeal.
Stir until well blended.
Combine the two mixtures and blend well.

Spoon batter into muffin cups until about two-thirds full.

Crumb Topping 

1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup dry oatmeal
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons butter

Combine sugar, oatmeal and flour in a small bowl.  Cut butter into mixture using two knives or a pastry cutter.  Mix until butter and dry ingredients look like coarse meal.   Place about 1-2 tablespoons of topping on each muffin.

Bake for 20 minutes.

I have to say that I'm pretty excited that these turned out the way they did.
I've had my fair share of mishaps with my "adapted recipes" and I have to admit I was nervous.
These have been added to my list of keepers.
I rate every thing I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  There was discussion on the home front tonight as to whether or not I should keep the rating system.  Seems that the family is having trouble rating things from one night to the next.  They did decide that I should keep it.

I almost forgot to give the rating - haha - these earned 3 rolling pins.  They were moist and were really good with the combination of oatmeal, apples and cinnamon.  The crumb topping made them even better, too.
Happy baking!

Day 119 - Brownies For the Adults

Ok, I have 12 minutes to get this post written before I turn into a pumpkin at the stroke of midnight.

Went shopping with my daughters today and really enjoyed spending the time with them, just became aggravated that I didn't find anything for me.  I guess I was in one of those moods where I wanted to find some new clothes, but didn't want to spend the money.
Can't get any new clothes THAT way!

Brownies for the adults are just that, brownies with a special something for all of us big kids.  I adapted this recipe from my Fannie Farmer Cookbook Thirteenth Edition.

Brownies For the Adults

2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
¼ cup butter
1 cup sugar
¼ cup Bailey's Irish Cream Liquor
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour

Haha - I just realized that I forgot to add the 1 teaspoon of vanilla.  Hmmmm...Whoops!

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
In a sauce pan over low heat, melt the chocolate with the butter, stirring to blend.

Remove from heat and stir in the Bailey's Irish Cream.
Stir in the sugar, egg, salt, flour (and this is where you would add the vanilla if you wanted).

Spray an 8 X 8-inch baking dish liberally with cooking spray.
Spread brownie batter in pan.

Bake for 30 minutes.
If desired, dust with confectioners' sugar.

You know, I was thinking these things were missing something and now I know it was the vanilla.  I can't imagine how they would have tasted had I not added the Bailey's!
They were ok.  I brought them to the neighbors to try and they received mixed reviews.  A couple people said they were good, one said they were "eh" , as I thought they were and one said they were "velvety".
This was after the poor guy didn't hear me say they were still hot from coming right out of the oven, shoved the whole thing into his mouth and burned his tongue.  Poor Ryan.
So, I don't know how he got velvety out of that, but I thought I'd relay it to you.
I rate things that I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  Since they received some different ratings and I now know that I missed an ingredient that I think would have made a difference in taste, I have to give these Adult Brownies 2 rolling pins.
I REALLY think they needed that vanilla.

Enjoy the holiday, and be safe. 

A HUGE THANK  YOUand BIG HUGS to ALL

the men and woman who have so bravely given their time, and especially those who have given their lives and those who have been wounded while serving the United States of America in our military.  I also want to thank them and their families for all sacrifices they have made and continue to make on a daily basis.  All of it is very much appreciated and does not go unnoticed!  Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Happy baking!

Day 118 - Salted Nutella Banana Muffins

Again, the second night in a row with nothing to say.
Wow.
This is unusual for me.
I got nothing for you. 
Well, I'm not going to try to make stuff up just to fill up space.  If you want something to read, you could peruse some other posts.
Actually, maybe I should do that, too.  I haven't reread my posts at all, so it might be a good thing that I do that to prevent you from hearing me talk about things twice.
That is unless, it's something real important, like...sex, drugs and rock and roll.
Kidding.
Ok, now I've got something to say.  I just previewed my post and they changed the background on me.  What the heck?
Blogger's been a little crazy lately.  I apologize for any problems you all may have viewing anything or leaving any comments.  I don't know what's up.
Just remember,
I love you.
And that's all that matters.

Onto the muffins...
Adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook

Salted Nutella Banana Muffins - makes 12 muffins

1¾ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
1 egg, beaten
½ cup milk
¼ cup canola oil
¾ cup mashed banana = approx. 2 medium bananas
12 teaspoons Nutella
coarse sea salt for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Butter a 12 cup muffin tin - do not use paper cups.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder and salt.
In another medium bowl, combine egg, milk. oil, and mashed banana.
Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture and stir until just moistened (batter will be slightly lumpy).
Scoop one tablespoon of batter into each muffin cup.
Place one teaspoon of Nutella into the center of the batter in each cup.

Cover the Nutella with another rounded tablespoon of batter.  Each muffin cup should be about 2/3 full.

Sprinkle each muffin top with a small amount of sea salt.

Bake for about 20 minutes, until the tops are golden brown and a cake stick or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.




Upon removal from oven, with off-set spatula, scrape along sides of cups to dislodge muffins.

Remove them from the cups and allow them to continue cooling on their sides, or you can always serve them warm.

OH BABY! 

What's better than bananas, chocolate and salt!  These really hit the spot, especially for a woman who's PMS-ing.


I am. 

I'm not gonna lie or try to hide it.

I didn't use up all of the batter - only had a small amount left.  I've filled the cups with all of the batter in the past and they ended up morphing into each other.

I didn't want morphed muffins this time.

I rate everything I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the "bee's knees".

Do bees even have knees? 

These muffins earned 3½ rolling pins.  They had a wonderful banana taste and the Nutella...mmmmmmm, the Nutella, and the salt...
I have to say that I'll be making these again.  They've been added to the list.
I think you may like them, too.
Even is you're not PMS-ing.
Happy baking!

Day 117 - Stuffed Chicken Breasts

No words of wisdom tonight.
We've been busy with school ending yesterday and various graduation/promotion celebrations.
Oh, and tonight, we HAD to watch the Boston Bruins hockey team play the Tampa Bay Lightning in game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals.  Very exciting game and very tense if you were a fan for each team.

Fortunately, for all Bruins Fans, they won.  Woo Hoo!
We (my husband and I) used to be avid Bruins fans and would watch more of those games than we would the Red Sox.  Then we had a son.
Baseball became slightly way more important.
So, of course, if the Bruins are in the playoffs, you can bet we'll be watching them.
I'm think I'm going to have to plan my baking around the Stanley Cup Playoffs next week.

Adapted from The New Doubleday Cookbook.
Stuffed Chicken Breasts

2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts, halved and pounded flat
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 cup chopped, fresh mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped broccoli
1/2 cup onion, minced
3/4 cup shredded cheddar/ Monterey Jack cheese
4 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup sifted flour

Preheat oven to 350ºF.
In a medium skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter.  Add mushrooms, broccoli and onion.

Saute over medium-high heat until softened, about 5-7 minutes.
Remove from heat and allow time to cool.
Sprinkle each chicken breast with salt and pepper.

In a mixing bowl, pour contents of skillet and mix with cheese; place approximately 2 tablespoons on each chicken breast.

Roll up each chicken breast and secure with toothpicks.
Dredge the four chicken rolls in flour and melt remaining butter in a large skillet; brown on all sides over medium-high heat for approximately 5-8 minutes.

Place the rolls in a greased 9 X 13 baking dish.

Bake for 20 minutes.
Remove toothpicks and serve.

It looks good, but I don't know if you'll want to duplicate this recipe as is.
I was in a hurry tonight preparing this and missed a step in the written recipe.  I saw as I was typing this in tonight that after placing the rolls in the baking dish I was supposed to add 1/2 cup chicken broth, cover, and bake.
Hmmm...that didn't happen.
Funny, because I saw the 1/2 cup of chicken broth in the list of ingredients, but could not for the life of me find it in the directions.  I was in such a hurry to get to a graduation party with my daughter and put this into the oven for my husband, and other two children that I just didn't see it.
I tasted it when I returned home and wasn't nuts about it.  The broccoli overpowered the mushrooms and onion, and there really wasn't evidence of much cheese.  I really sealed the rolls pretty well to ensure that the stuffing wouldn't escape during baking, so that wasn't the problem.
I really think it might have been because I skipped the "broth and cover step".
My husband said the chicken was too thick, although I tried to pound it thin enough without having it fall apart.
My son said it was too dry and needed some sauce.  I agree.  I think that would have been a nice addition.
We collectively decided that that these stuffed chicken breasts earned 2 rolling pins.  I rate everything I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  These definitely could have been better.

Day 116 - Jam or Marmalade Bars?

I would much rather have strawberry jam bars as I think the rest of the family would, but that is not the direction I took.
Remember back on day 73 when I made Orange Marmalade Soufflé with Grand Marnier (I STILL love to say that - it sounds SO cool on the tongue!)?
Yes, I still have that orange marmalade in the fridge and noone's touched it and I certainly haven't because I just don't like the stuff.
Yeah, so why would I make something that nobody will probably eat?  Because I don't want to waste the marmalade. 
I know.
I hear you chuckling.
Yes,... you.
I'll be wasting BOTH the marmalade AND the bars this way.
Oh well, we'll see.

The recipe said to use an 8-inch square pan.  I own a 9-inch square pan or an 8-inch round pan.  I chose the round knowing the 9 would be too big and didn't want to burn my creation. 
I certainly wouldn't want to waste it by BURNING it!  ;-) (I need to add smiley face icons - on my to do list...)

This is from my Fannie Farmer Cookbook, Thirteenth Edition, p.632; author, Marion Cunningham; publisher, Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 0-394-56788-9.

Jam or Marmalade Bars - 16 bars, wedges, or pretty designs

½ cup shortening
½ cup sugar
½ teaspoon vanilla
½ teaspoon almond extract
1 egg
1½ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cinnamon
¼ teaspoon cloves
½ teaspoon salt
jam or marmalade (did not specify an amount in the recipe)

Preheat oven to 400ºF.
Grease an 8-inch square pan.
Cream the shortening with the sugar, vanilla and almond extract.

Stir in the egg and blend well.

Mix together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, cloves and salt, add to the first mixture, and combine thoroughly.

Spread half the dough in the pan.

Cover with a layer of jam or marmalade.

Pat the remaining dough on top and bake for 25 minutes.

Cool, then cut into bars 4 X 1 inches.

Or is you're using an 8-inch ROUND pan, cut into wedges however big or small you want.
'Cause they're your bars.

Or you can just cut them into pretty designs without regard to being pushed into making bars OR wedges.

Live a little.
Cut things differently.

Go outside your box.

...

ok, I'll stop.

If you have questions about pan sizes and substituting, check out this page at the Joy of Baking.  It was helpful and I know I'll need to consult this info. again during the course of the year.

Everything that I make is rated on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best and these orange marmalade bars earned 2½ rolling pins.
I knew I was going to have a problem putting the top layer of dough on the marmalade.
It really was a no-brainer that when I attempt to push the dough out from the center of the pan to the edges that the marmalade is going to move to the edges with it.
Yeah.
Before I placed the ball of dough on the top I flattened it as best I could like a pizza.  I placed that on the marmalade, but it wasn't big enough and still had to push it to the edges with a rubber spatula.  Consequently, there was more marmalade on the outer edges than there was in  between the layers.  It could have been the reason for it being dry, too.  Just guessing.
At first bite, they were very dry, but then the more I chewed, they became a little addicting.  And there really wasn't an overwhelming orange marmalade taste.
Go figure.
Know why?
It was all, ok, well almost all of it, pushed to the outer edges where it became crunchy and chewy which, I have to admit, was rather good.
Ultimately, I thought they were just kind of eh, or as we used to say in my high school French class, "Comme ci, comme ça" - could be better, but could be worse.

There.

There's your French lesson for the day.
The next time someone asks you how you're doing, say, "Comme ci, comme ça" (pronounced "come-see comme-saah"), and see how impressed they'll be!
Either that or they'll look at you like you have two heads and will wonder what the heck you said.
Cuisson Heureux!

Day 115 - Barbecued Spare Ribs & a Purpose

I'm having bittersweet day today.   The baby boy is having his 8th grade promotion ceremony tonight.

I know, he's 14 years old, but he'll ALWAYS be a baby to me!

It reminds me of the book, 'I'll Love You Forever', by Robert Munsch.  I absolutely adore that book!
 I've often said to my son that when he's a grown man I still want him to sit in my lap - even though I know he'll probably crush me.

And it's not even like he's graduating high school and going off to college at the end of the summer, it's only 8th grade!

But still it saddens me because I know with our oldest, her four years of high school FLEW so much faster than I ever thought they would.
Our middle child, our daughter, is now an official high school senior and I have no idea when that happened.
I think what really gets me is that my work here is almost done. 
I know I still have A LOT left to do, and I'll never stop being a mother, but I'll miss the dependency; my oldest standing at the door when she hears me pull into the garage, doing their laundry, proofreading reports, making their lunches, shuttling them to practices and games.
They're not going to NEED me as much and that hurts.
I know my purpose in raising these little people was so that they could be responsible, self-sufficient, competent, caring, compassionate, loving, etc., etc. adults., and I'm so happy that we're almost there.
I couldn't be more proud of those three kids and I love them far more than I ever imagined I would.

(I have SO many thoughts going through my head right now about how I want to write the rest of this, but it isn't coming to fruition, so I'll end it here to prevent excess sappiness and unintelligible grammar.
I also think the hormones may be playing a supporting role in this as well.)

It's a question of purpose, my purpose, after the kids have left the nest.
I think I'm afraid that when this purpose ends, I won't be able to define the next one or who I'm supposed to be.
WHAT DO I WANT TO BE WHEN I GROW UP?
I still haven't figured that out and don't know if I ever will, but until then,
I am a MOMMY.  The hardest and by far the most rewarding thing I could ever possibly do.
And with every ounce of my being, I am going to continue to be the best mommy to those three kids I can possible be.
Because they need me.
In some ways, they will always need me.
And I love that.
Because that's why I'm here.

How do barbecued spare ribs with some Southern Potato Salad from The Food Network and some corn on the cob for dinner sound?  Oh, and some fresh tomatoes from the garden.
Mmmmhhhmmmmm....that's what I thought.

This comes from my New Doubleday Cookbook, p. 251; authors, Jean Anderson and Elaine Hanna; publisher, Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 0-385-19577-X.

Favorite Barbecued Spareribs - 6 servings

5 lbs. spareribs

Sauce
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup soy sauce
¼ cup cider vinegar
¼ cup chili sauce
½ cup ketchup
2 teaspoons prepared mild yellow mustard
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1/8 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Line a cookie sheet with heavy duty foil and spray with cooking spray.
Place ribs on sheet and bake, uncovered, for 3/4 of an hour.

Drain off all drippings.
Mix sauce ingredients in a blender and pour over ribs.

Bake uncovered for 1¼ - 1½ hours longer, turning and basting every 20 minutes until tender and richly browned..
(Note:  For even better flavor, marinate the ribs in the sauce in turned-off oven 3-4 hours after first 3/4 hour of baking and drain off drippings; then bake for 1½ hours longer as directed.)
I doubled the batch, for what reason, I have no idea, but I'm glad I did because now we have leftovers for tomorrow.

I absolutely LOVE going to restaurants and gettin' me a real good slab of ribs with lots o' barbecue sauce!
These were as good and even better than some I've eaten in those establishments. 
My husband was thrilled, too!
I was pleasantly surprised at how these turned out.  The meat was very tender, but not quite at the point of falling off the bone in some spots and the sauce.
The SAUCE!
You know how sometimes when you're eating something barbecued and you get that sauce that sticks to the front of your teeth that you can't quite get off?
It was that good and sticky.
It was all-over-the-fingers-good, too.  EVERYBODY needed a paper towel.

Everything I bake is rated on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being you shouldn't go to your grave without at least giving this a try.  These lip smacking ribs earn 4 rolling pins!

Yee Ha!
Happy baking, y'all!

Day 114 - PB & Fluff Brownies

We received our order of Marshmallow Fluff yesterday.
Woo Hoo!
12 TUBS of the stuff!
My son's excited because he knows there won't be a shortage for quite some time.

So, between being inspired by our old favorite, the Fluffernutter, and my middle daughter' request for something chocolate, I decided to combine (hopefully) the two.
I'm not making any promises, but here goes...

PB & Fluff Brownies

½ cup creamy peanut butter
6 tablespoons butter
1½ cups Marshmallow Fluff
2 oz. (2 1-oz squares) unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1/8 teaspoon salt
½ cup flour
1 teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 300ºF.
Butter and flour an 8-inch square baking dish.
Combine 2 tablespoons butter and peanut butter in a small saucepan.  Heat contents over low heat and stir until well combined and butter is completely melted.
Place marshmallow fluff in a mixing bowl.  Add butter/peanut butter mixture and mix until completely incorporated; set aside.

In a saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate and remaining 4 tablespoons of butter.  Mix well.
Remove from heat and stir in the sugar, egg, salt, flour and vanilla; pour half of the brownie mixture into the baking dish.  Spread so that the whole bottom of the dish is completely covered.

The white stuff around the edges is the butter/flour spray I used.

Place approximately 9 dollops of peanut butter/fluff mixture on top of brownie layer.  Spreading gently, cover entire layer of chocolate.
Again, using dollops, place the remaining brownie mixture on top of the pb/fluff.  Spread gently so that the batter touches all edges of the pan.
Run a knife through the brownies to somewhat combine layers.

Place baking dish in oven and bake for 50 minutes.

These once again proved to me that I am better at this point following recipes instead of creating them.
Don't get me wrong, these were still good, but didn't bake  and resemble that picture I had in my head.
You know, the perfect picture that I was going to submit to Tastespotting.
No, not today.
So here's the story.  I baked these for 35 minutes at 300, took them out of the oven and let them cool completely (about 1/2 hour).  Seeing that they were extremely mushy (probably due to the amount of butter and relatively low baking temperature - those are my guesses and I'm stickin' to it), I decided to bake them again at 300 for another 15 minutes.
I didn't want them to get burnt, so 15 minutes was my time limit.
Almost success.
These were VERY rich and reminded me more of fudge than a brownie.  They were a little caky on the top, but waaaaayyyyyyyyyy moist on the bottom.
The taste of peanut butter was definitely present, but as with the     I think the marshmallow fluff was just completely SUCKED into the brownie batter because I couldn't see it as a separate layer.  But then again, oh yeah, I ran a knife through the final product to "kind of mix them" together.
Ah well, my job here is not done.
Whoops, I almost left without rating these.
I rate everything that I bake on a scale of 1-4 with a 4 being the best.  Based on a variety of input from the peanut gallery, these brownies earned 3 brownies.
No, not brownies, haha, rolling pins!  They earned 3 rolling pins!
Happy baking!

Day 113 - Boston Cream Pie

I've ALWAYS wanted to make a Boston Cream Pie.  Maybe it's my New England upbringing and love for all things Boston or maybe it's just because it's always really yummy whenever I have a slice in a restaurant.
I found this recipe in my New Doubleday Cookbook, pp. 802, 801, 823; authors, Jean Anderson and Elaine Hanna; publisher, Doubleday, a division of Random House, Inc.; ISBN 0-385-19577-X.

Boston Cream Pie - a 2-layer (9") cake  (16 servings)

2 (9") layers Basic Three-Egg Butter Cake
1 recipe Basic Vanilla Cream Filling
1 recipe Chocolate Glaze

Basic Three Egg Butter Cake
2 cups sifted cake flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla
½ cup butter, softened to room temperature
1 cup sugar
3 eggs, separated

Preheat oven to 375ºF.
Sift flour with baking , and salt and set aside; combine milk and vanilla.
Cream butter until light, add sugar gradually, continuing to cream until fluffy.

Add egg yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
Add dry ingredients alternately with milk, beginning and ending with the dry and adding about 1/3 of total at a time; beat just until smooth.

Beat egg whites until soft peaks form and gently fold into batter.
Spoon into two greased and floured 9" layer cake pans and bake 25-30 minutes until cakes shrink slightly from sides of pans and are springy to the touch; cool upright in pans on wire racks for 5-7 minutes; then invert on wire racks.
Turn right side up and cool completely.

Basic Vanilla Cream Filling
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/3 cup sugar
¾ cup milk
1 egg yolk lightly beaten with ¼ cup of milk
1 teaspoon vanilla

Blend cornstarch, sugar and milk in a small saucepan and heat, stirring constantly, over moderate heat until mixture boils and is thick; boil and stir ½ minute longer.
Off heat, beat a little hot mixture into egg yolk, return all to pan gradually, beating constantly.  Mix in vanilla and cool to room temperature, beating now and then.

Chocolate Glaze

2 (1-ounce) squares unsweetened chocolate
1 teaspoon butter
1 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
3 tablespoons warm water

Melt chocolate and butter in the top of a double broiler over simmering water; stir to blend well.

Set top of double broiler on a damp cloth, add ½ cup confectioners' sugar and 1 tablespoon water; beat until smooth.

Add remaining sugar and water and beat until glossy.



Assembling the Cake

Sandwich cake layers together with filling, spread glaze on top, and let stand until glaze hardens.  Store in refrigerator.

This was really good and my husband really loved it.  I rate everything that I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best.  This Boston Cream Pie recipe earned 3½ rolling pins.
I have to admit that I did become really upset when I placed the top layer on top of the filling and it all started leaking out the side.
I was SO upset that it didn't turn out perfectly as I think everything I make should.
Ok, I'm realistic and I know there are some things that will flop. but the Boston Cream Pie?
C'mon!
I realize it was baker's error impatience and that I should have sliced the top of the bottom layer off to make it even.  Both cakes were a little domed in the middle, so naturally and with gravity playing its' part, the filling would tend to run out the sides.
Oh well.
It was still edible and pretty good for the first time.
I just learned what to do to make it better the next time I make it.
Happy baking!

Day 112 - Chicken Noodle Casserole

What a wonderful weekend!
I say that because I was finally able to be productive and get some housework done!
Ok, I was really only able to do laundry, but the mounds just kept growing during the week because I hadn't had any energy to do much of anything.
Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to get through the day without taking a nap.
I've done that every day this week!
Being sick stinks!
Everyone, stay HEALTHY!!

This is adapted from my New Doubleday Cookbook.

Chicken Noodle Casserole - serves 4

¼ cup butter
¼ cup sifted flour
½ teaspoon McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Chicken seasoning
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules dissolved in 1 cup boiling water
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly grated pepper
2 cups bite-size pieces cooked chicken
8 oz. thin noodles, cooked according to package directions until al dente, and drained

Topping

3 potato hamburger buns sliced into small cubes and tossed with 3 tablespoons melted butter
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 350ºF.
Melt butter in a large saucepan over moderate heat and blend in flour and poultry seasoning.

Slowly stir in broth and milk, add salt and pepper, and heat, stirring until mixture thickens.

Off heat, mix in all remaining ingredients except topping.

Bake, uncovered, for 30 minutes.

Oh. My. Goodness!
Yes, this is one of those recipes that IS a keeper!!
The whole family absolutely loved this dish tonight, and unanimously decided that it earned 4 rolling pins! 
I rate everything that I bake on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best of the best.
The sauce was so delicious and I think it was largely in part due to the fact that I used the Montreal Chicken seasoning.  That seasoning is great when we grill chicken, so I knew it would give this dish that extra boost I was looking for.  Also, instead of using the 1 teaspoon of granules I used 2 for even additional flavor.
This was SO yummy!!!!!
The only thing I think I'd change, is to double the amount of sauce.  The noodles weren't dry, I just like things really saucy.
Saucy.  I like that.
I'm so glad this was better than those Nutella sour cream cookies I made yesterday.
What a relief!
Happy baking!