Coconut Cupcakes with Dark Chocolate Almond Icing

So my birthday is tomorrow and I really wanted to do something different for a birthday cake.  I love making cupcakes, they are super easy and look cute!  I decided to recreate one of my favorite candy bars, an almond joy.  I went with a coconut cupcake and dark chocolate almond icing, why...meh because it sounded good.  *grin*

The cupcakes are from Martha Stewart's Cupcake book.  This was a nice and fluffy cupcake that baked up nicely and was airy, not dense.  Perfect for summer.  I bet this would be smashing with a pineapple icing also.  Kinda Pina Cola type pairing. 

You can find the recipe on her blog here but here is a quick run down on how to do it. 

Cream 3/4 cup butter and 1 1/3 cup sugar.  Add in 2 eggs and 2 egg whites one at a time.  Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla.  Add 2 teaspoons baking powder.  Shred 1/2 cup packed sweetened coconut in food processor.  Mine was already shredded but I did it till it was smaller pieces.  Add to mixture.  Add 3/4 cup flour and 1/2 of the coconut milk (3/4c unsweetened coconut milk total).  Add remaining 1 cup flour and remaining coconut milk.  Spoon into cupcake tins and bake at 350 for about 20 minutes.  I got 24 cupcakes from this recipe. 

The icing I made up as I went.  I creamed 1/4 cup Crisco and 1/4 cup butter.  I added 1 cup of cocoa, 2 teaspoons vanilla and 1 teaspoon almond extract.  Then slowly added 1/3 cup of milk and 2 1/2-3 cups powdered sugar.  Because I wanted to make it extra almond/chocolaty I added 1/4 c of Dark Chocolate Almond Butter (found with the peanut butters)

It was yummy with and without so if you don't want to splurge on this you won't be missing out too much. 

To finish the cupcakes I sprinkled toasted coconut on top.  Let me say that it is like the grown up version of an almond joy.  Lite cupcake, rich icing, nut coconut.  All around yummy goodness!

Let's hope these bad boys make it till my birthday tomorrow!

Coconut Cupcakes from Martha Stewart

1 3/4c flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 c shredded sweetened coconut (shredded more in food processor)

1 1/4c unsalted butter

1 1/3c sugar

2 eggs plus 2 egg whites

3/4c UNsweetened coconut milk

1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time.  Add vanilla and salt.  Add baking powder and coconut.  Alternate adding flour and coconut milk.  Spoon into tins and bake at 350 for 20 min. 

Dark Chocolate Almond Icing

1/4c Crisco (shortening)

1/4c unsalted butter

2 tsp vanilla

1 tsp almond extract

1/3c milk

2 1/2-3c powdered sugar

1/4c dark chocolate almond butter (optional)

Cream shortening and butter.  Add extracts and milk.  Add almond butter.  Add powdered sugar. 

Top cupcakes with toasted coconut.  (To toast put a thin layer on a cookie sheet and place in 450 over.  Stir every 2 minutes till toasted)

Double Chocolate Butterscotch Chip Cookies

These are deadly, they should be illegal because they are so good!  These are not your grandmother's cookies.  They are rich, decadent and you will not want to share them.  Hide them...hide them well!

To start cream 1 stick of butter and 1 cup of sugar.  Add 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla and 1 teaspoon salt to the mix.  Beat in 2 eggs (one at a time).  Then add 6 tablespoons cocoa...yes six, yes I know it is a lot, just do it.  Then add 1 teaspoon baking soda and finally 1 1/2 cups flour.  Then fold in 1 cup butterscotch chips and 1/2 c mini chocolate chips.  Drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet at back at 325 for about 13 minutes.  Move them to a cooling rack and let them cool.  Now when no one is looking sneak a cookie.  Take a bite and die, then get back up and sneak another one.  By the time the cookies are cool there will be no more left so you need to go back to the beginning and start over again. 

Seriously these are so good.  They are a soft, chewy cookie that bursts with chocolate and butterscotch flavors.  Definitely not a boring cookie!

Double Chocolate Butterscotch Chip Cookies

1 stick unsalted butter (soft)

1c sugar

1 1/2tsp vanilla

1tsp salt

2 eggs

6tbsp cocoa

1tsp baking soda

1 1/2c flour

1c butterscotch chips

1/2c mini chocolate chips

Cream sugar and butter.  Add vanilla and salt.  Mix in 1 egg at a time.  Add cocoa and mix well.  Add flour.  Fold in chips and drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet.  Bake at 325 for 13 minutes.  Move to a cooling rack and eat entire batch. 

Honey Pecan Banana Bread

When my husband and I first married I could make one thing...banana bread.  No joke, my tuna was horrible, hot dogs were deadly and remind me to tell you about the time I accidentally par-cooked a frozen steak with the pilot light.  It is safe to say that cooking was not the reason Hubby married me.  Banana bread though I could rock!  I have played around with different types since I started making it and this is by far my favorite one.  I love the addition of honey and the delicate crunch of pecans.  This is amazing sliced up or heavenly as french toast.  *groan*  No matter how you eat it you will love it.

Start with a stick of room temperature butter (unsalted) and mix it with 2/3 cup of sugar.  Add 1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 teaspoon salt, 2 teaspoons cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon ginger.  Once this is mixed well add 1 egg and 2-3 tablespoons honey.  I add more because I love honey, if you don't care for it you could omit it but try it once with honey because it adds a wonderful subtle flavor.  Next add 2 medium bananas that are mashed up (I use a potato masher).  *Note, if you bananas are not ripe enough mash them and leave them on the counter for 20 minutes, they will turn mushier.  To all this add 1 teaspoon baking soda and 2 cups of flour.  Fold in 1 cup of roughly chopped pecans.  Bake in a 350 degree oven for 45-60 minutes  Just start checking after 45, mine usually takes about 54 minutes to cook but if it is more humid it may take a tad longer. 

Try to let this cool before slicing and if you are able to wait please email me and tell me how you did it because I am never able to wait.  As soon as my fingers can handle the heat I cut me off a hunk and slather it with honey butter.  The butter and honey melt and make this a true finger lickin' treat!

Honey Pecan Banana Bread

1/4c (1 stick) room temp. butter (unsalted)

2/3c sugar

1 tsp. salt

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. ginger

1 tsp vanilla

1 egg

2tbsp honey

2 medium bananas (mashed)

1 tsp. baking soda

2c flour

1c chopped pecans.

Cream butter and sugar.  Add cinnamon, ginger, salt and vanilla.  Add egg and honey.  Mix well.  Mash and mix in bananas.  Add baking soda and flour.  Fold in pecans.  Bake in 1 large or 3 small loaf pans in a 350 oven for 45-60 minutes.  Cool and enjoy!

Honey Butter

1/2 stick room temp butter (salted)

2 tbsp honey

Mix and slather on Honey Pecan Banana Bread.

Chocolate Almond Oatmeal Cookies

My grandmother makes these for everything...I mean everything.  My brothers request these for their Christmas gift from her.  Now because I can't leave good enough alone I had to tweak the recipe some.  I love the additions I have made. 

Start with 3 cups of old fashioned oatmeal.  You can use the quick oats but to me they are a little more mushy, the old fashioned seem to hold shape better.  6 tablespoons of cocoa, yes I know it is a lot but trust me this is what makes it Good with a capital G.  1 cup coconut, you can use unsweetened or sweetened, whatever floats your boat.  1 teaspoon vanilla, 1 teaspoon almond extract, 1 cup slivered almonds, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Mix all of this is a large bowl and set aside.  In a saucepan mix 2 cups sugar, 1/2 c shortening and 1/2 cup milk.  Mix and bring this to a rolling boil.  Then CAREFULLY pour the boiling mixture over the dry ingredients and stir.  Drop the mixture by spoonfuls onto wax paper.  Let these sit 2-3 hours, then place in an airtight container.  I can not tell you how long these will keep because they never make it more than a few days in our house.  But this recipe makes a ton of them, I make sure to give at least half of them away.  If not then my husband would eat all of them...and I mean all. 

If you want a more chocolaty cookie you can add 1/2 cup of chocolate chips to the dry mixture.  If you are not a fan of almonds you can either substitute them or remove them all together.  No matter how you mix it up, this is a good, easy cookie.

Chocolate Almond Oatmeal Cookies

3c old fashioned oatmeal

6tb cocoa

1c coconut

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp almond extract

1/2 tsp salt

1c slivered almonds

Mix and set aside.

2c sugar

1/2c shortening

1/2c milk

Bring to a boil and pour over dry ingredients.  Drop by spoonful onto wax paper and let harden for a few hours.  Eat, sigh, enjoy, repeat.

Rolled Buttercream Icing

*Edited to add a picture of a finished sugar cookie with rolled icing.  This is one of the plain ones I had left because all the cute ones got eaten.  As you can see the rolled buttercream icing (pink or green) is similar in shape as the cookie and about half the thickness.  How thick you roll it is competely up to you and how much icing you want on the finished cookie.

This is melt in your mouth goodness, forget the M&M's this is what I'm talking about!  I use this icing for my Rolled Sugar Cookies and let me tell you that these are always...I mean always a hit.  I have had people ask if you can use this like fondant on cakes and so far I have not been able to make it work because it is not as stiff as fondant and tears easily when trying to do larger projects but it is perfect for cookies!

So as I stated in my sugar cookie recipe that you want to apply this as soon as the cookies come out of the oven.  This way the icing adheres to the cookie and becomes part of it when it cools.  Just like fondant you can decorate this with royal icing or sprinkles (apply these a couple minutes after you have put the icing on the cookie).  So let's make some icing!

In your mixer you cream 1 cup of Crisco (shortening) and 1 cup of light corn syrup.  Then add 1 teaspoon vanilla and 1/2 teaspoon almond extract.  *Note about almond, it is very strong and a little goes a long way.  If you don't like almond you can replace it with nothing or you could experiment with other extracts.  Lemon is a great one to use for summer.  Once this is mixed slowly add 2lbs of powdered sugar.  Once you add it all your mixing will be begging you to stop.  This is when I turn it all out onto my counter and knead it the rest. Once it is all mixed you can break off sections to color with gel food coloring.  Remember start with a little, you can always add more but you can't always take it away.  That is it, simple, easy and yummy.  Now, just like the sugar cookies you roll this out between two pieces of parchment paper.  Once rolled cut out your shapes using the same cookie cuter that you used for the cookies.  Place parchment on a cookie sheet and chill for 5 minutes.  *It is easier to pick up the cut out icing when it is chilled.  Place cut out icing on fresh from the oven cookie.  Wait a couple minutes and add sprinkles or let cool and decorate with royal icing or leave as is.  How ever you serve em up they will go fast. 

Rolled Buttercream Icing

1c Crisco

1c Light Corn Syrup

1tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

2lb powdered sugar

Cream crisco and corn syrup.  Add vanilla and almond.  Slowly add powdered sugar.  Once almost mix, turn out onto counter and knead rest by hand.  Color icing with gel food coloring.  Roll between parchment paper and chill 5 minutes.  Apply icing to fresh from the over cookies.  Enjoy!

Rolled Sugar Cookies

These are one of my favorite cookies. They are tasty and easy to make but I warn you they can be time consuming but so worth it! I guess I should say they can be as time consuming as you let them. This is a rolled sugar cookie recipe so that means that the final product will be a cookie cut from a cookie cutter. I have never done these as a drop sugar cookie so I have no clue how those would turn out using this recipe.

Preheat oven to 350.  Start with 2 cups (4 sticks) of room temperature unsalted butter. I know there is great debate about salted vs. unsalted. I use unsalted in all my baking, it is easier to add salt then to try to make something taste less salty. Cream the butter and add 2 cups granulated sugar. Beat until light and fluffy. To this add 2-3 teaspoons vanilla, 1 teaspoon almond extract and 1 teaspoon salt. The beat in 2 eggs one at a time. Add 3 teaspoons of baking powder. Once this is all mixed slowly add 5-6 cups of flour. The amount of flour you use will depend on a lot of things unrelated to cooking. The weather, the time of year, the humidity. I find I use more flour in the summer/humid months than in the winter/drier months. Also rainy days require more flour than sunny days. You want your dough to be not sticky but not dry. I think of it like play-dough that has been left to sit for a couple hours. Kinda crumbly until you work it then it forms a nice ball. Make sense? Once your mixed is about 95% mixed turn it out onto your counter and knead the rest by hand. I think I do this more to save my stand mixer but it also gives me a good feel for the dough. Once mixed divide dough and wrap. Pat dough into a flat disc. Refrigerate at least 1 hour. (Hey, it gives you time to clean up the kitchen!) Once the dough is chilled roll dough out between two pieces of parchment paper. I told you this stuff was amazing, remember this post. Tool Tip Tuesday: Parchment Paper. By rolling your dough between parchment paper you are ensure that the first cookie and last cookie taste the same. Why? Because you are not adding any additional flour to the mix. Okay, once your dough is rolled out (about 1/4 inch thick) use your desired cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Place cookies on a parchment lined baking sheet a chill in the freezer for 10 minutes, yes the freeze, don't argue with me, trust me. The reason you chill in the freezer is cut out cookies will spread and loose their shape if at room temperature. So that means the cute little duck you cut out will come out looking like a creature from the black lagoon. By chilling the dough it holds it shape better allowing that duck to remain and cute duck. Bake these babies for 8-10 minutes. It really depends on the size/shape of the cookie. You want the edges to just start to turn golden. These cookies are best when not over cooked. Once the cookies are removed from the over let cool or if you want an easy way to ice them apply a rolled buttercream to the top of the hot cookie. I'll post this sugar coma induced treat tomorrow so check back! These cookies will keep for about week (if they last that long) or can be frozen for three months. Also the uncooked dough can be frozen for three months. This means you could make your dough in June, bake the cookies in September and hand them out a Christmas. WooHoo! Happy Baking!

Recipe: Rolled Sugar Cookies

2c unsalted butter (room temp.)

2c granulated sugar

2tsp vanilla

1tsp almond extract

1tsp salt

2 eggs

3tsp baking powder

5-6c flour

Mix butter and sugar.  Add vanilla, almond and salt.  Add eggs one at a time.  Add baking powder.  Add flour little at a time.  Mix 95% and turn out onto counter.  Knead dough together.  Divide and wrap.  Pat into discs and chill 1 hour.  Roll dough between 2 pieces parchment paper.  Cut cookies and place on a parchment lined cookie sheet.  Chill cookies 10 minutes in freezer.  Bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.

Apple Crunsp

We are having issues with our computers right now so picutres will be added when the computer stops having a mind of its own.

I love this, I think this is my favorite that I make.  I could eat it for breakfast, lunch and dinner and never tired of it.  Not to mention it is easy, easy, e-a-s-y.

You need:

7-8 apples, I use a mixture of granny smiths and some soft flesh kind

1/4 cup sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup molasses

1/2 cup flour
1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup old fashioned oats (not quick cook)

1/2 cup pecans

1 stick of butter

Peel, core and slice your apples.  Mix in white sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, salt, and molasses.  Mix till every apple has some yummy goodness on it.  Melt 1/3 of the stick of butter in a cast iron skillet.  Once melted add apples and let simmer.

You can chop the pecans but I don't care about uniform size, I think it adds to the dish if they are different.  So I do a little kitchen therapy here.  Place pecans in baggie, grab rolling pin, think of something bothering you, wack the pecans.  Sigh, now don't you feel better!

Put flour, brown sugar, oats, pecans and remaining 2/3 stick of butter (cut into pieces) into the same bowl the apples were in.  Use a pastry cutter and cut butter into mixture.  You want the butter to be about the size of small peas when you are done.  Turn the burner off and sprinkle topping over the apples.  Place the entire skillet in a 350 oven and bake for 40-45 minutes.  I like my apples softer so I lean towards 45 minutes.  

You can top this with vanilla ice cream but I prefer a drizzle of heavy cream.  It is warm, gooey, crispy, crunchy...it's Apple Crunspy!