Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Banana Bread

For this month's Secret Recipe Club, I was assigned to Danielle's blog, Mostly Food and Crafts.  She is a stay at home mother to two lovely children.  And, from the looks of her blog, she is one amazing mother too. There are so many posts about recipes and crafts that she made, not by herself, but with her children.  I can only imagine how much fun they must have together and how much they are learning every day.  And, since Danielle herself is a fantastic cook and crafter, you know that they're learning from the best!  

While browsing through her blog, I came across some very yummy recipes that I wanted to try:  Toffee Squares (which I still intend to make this week), Rosemary Sriracha Chicken (oh yes!), and her Swirled Pumpkin and Chocolate Cheesecake (decadent and so pretty).  But, the recipe I decided to go with was her Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Banana Bread.  It seemed to combine all of my favorites - banana bread, pumpkin bread, and cinnamon bread, all in one.  Now how could I resist that?

The bread was super moist and flavorful.  And it was interesting because sometimes you would take a bite and taste more banana, and other times you would take a bite and taste more pumpkin.  Of course, all the bites were super delicious and that cinnamon swirl completed the trifecta.  I thoroughly enjoyed it!  

Cinnamon Swirl Pumpkin Banana Bread (adapted from Mostly Food and Crafts)

2 c. flour
3/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pumpkin pie spice (I increased this to 1 1/2 tsp.)
3/4 c. pumpkin puree
2 ripe bananas, mashed
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
1/3 c. plain Greek yogurt
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

For the swirl:
1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon (I increased this to 1 Tbsp.)

Combine the bananas and pumpkin and mix well.  Add in the brown sugar, butter, and yogurt, then beat in the eggs and vanilla.  Combine the dry ingredients and add to the wet ingredients, mixing till just combined.  Grease 4 mini loaf pans.  Fill each pan with 1/2 c. batter.  Sprinkle with 1 Tbsp. of the cinnamon-sugar mixture.  Top off with 1/2 c. of batter and spread evenly.  Sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar.  Bake at 350F for 40-45 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.

An InLinkz Link-up

Spiced Oatmeal Cranberry Apricot Cookies

I have to admit, when I started searching Cupcake Muffin's blog for this month's SRC, I was like a kid in a candy store.  Oohhh ooohhh look at all the yummy cookie recipes, I want that!  Wait, wait, look at all the delicious cake recipes, I want that!  What?  There's more sugary stuff over there too?  What they hey, I'll just take all of it.  Consequently, I didn't make just one recipe from Sara's blog, I actually tried three different ones over the course of the month.  But, one of those recipes was one that she made for her SRC before, so I chose not to showcase that one.  Instead, I bring you some amazing Spiced Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Cranberries and Apricots. 

I teach a group of teenage girls and I like to make their birthdays special by presenting them with an assortment of cookies.  Each month, I change things up and try new recipes and Sara's oatmeal cookie recipe looked like just the thing to make.  I didn't have any dried cherries, but I did have some dried cranberries, so I added those in instead.  I also didn't have any cardamom on hand, so I subbed in some ginger powder.

 

These cookies came out just like the ones in Sara's picture, all thick and chewy and full of orange and red bits of fruit that looked like jewels.  My mom saw them cooling on the counter and, after asking if it was alright to take one (she knows I gotta take pics first), promptly declared that they were really good!  I ate one myself and boy was she right.  Even better, these are totally healthy - just bursting with fiber, antioxidants, and vitamin C.  Okay, maybe you don't care about that.  In that case, they're bursting with flavor, fruitiness, and spiciness that can't be beat.

Sara, your cookies rock! My tastebuds thank you.

Spiced Oatmeal Cookies with Dried Cranberries and Apricots (adapted from Cupcake Muffin)

1-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 tsp. ginger powder
2 sticks softened butter
1-1/4 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup white sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2-3/4 cups quick oats (not instant oats)
6 ounces dried cranberries
3 ounces dried apricots, diced

1. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger powder and set aside.
2. Beat together the butter and sugars until smooth and creamy.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.  Add the vanilla and beat to incorporate.
3. Add the flour mixture and stir in with a rubber spatula until the flour is mixed in enough not to fly out of the mixer.  Then beat until just incorporated.  Add the oats and beat until just combined.  Stir in the cranberries and apricots with a rubber spatula.
4. Cover the bowl and chill at least 6 hours or overnight.
5. When ready to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line two baking sheets with foil or parchment.
6.  Scoop out about 1 tablespoon of dough per cookie, and gently roll into a ball with your palms.  Bake 10-12 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through, until the cookies just begin to brown.
 7.   Let cool on a cooling rack. 

Pumpkin Fantail Cinnamon Rolls

I'm a longtime follower of Barbara's blog, Barbara Bakes, so it was one sweet surprise to be assigned to her for this month's Secret Recipe Club.  I gave a lot of thought to what I'd choose from her blog, starting out with about a dozen recipes, then halving the list to six, then three.  It came down to the Pumpkin Fantail Cinnamon Rolls, the Chocolate Fudge Butterfinger Cookies, and her lovely Snickerdoodle Bread. 

Though it was hard to choose, I decided on the Pumpkin Fantail Cinnamon Rolls.  After all, I love baking yeast breads, I love pumpkin, and there is nothing more decadent than a cinnamon roll.  Plus, I just had to try that gorgeous fantail look.

If you've ever made pull-apart bread before, these will be a snap to make.  The only difference is that you put the pieces into muffin cups so, instead of one big loaf, you have a little mini one that can fit in the palm of your hand.  So fun!

I did make a couple changes to the recipe by adding some spices to the dough as well as using brown sugar instead of white.  I also used water instead of milk, but that was because I didn't have any milk in the house at the time.  Still, the rolls came out fantastic.  They were soft, they were fluffy, they were deliciously caramelized on the outside.  Then, as the icing on the cake, or the bread, I should say, you top them off with a sweet cream cheese icing.  Finally, with a roll in your hand (or maybe one in each hand), you pull off one cinnamony-sugary piece after another and put it into your mouth, savoring every bite.  Although they do take some time and effort to make, they are so worth it.  Mmmm, irresistible!

Thanks Barbara for one super recipe! 

Pumpkin Fantail Cinnamon Rolls (adapted from Barbara Bakes)

1 c. whole wheat pastry flour (I used all-purpose)
2 3/4 c. bread flour
1/4 c. sugar (I used 1/2 c. brown sugar)
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. milk, warm (105F - 110F) (I used water)
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
3/4 c. canned pumpkin puree
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. nutmeg 
1 large egg

Cinnamon Sugar Filling:
1/2 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened

Cream Cheese Icing:
3 oz. cream cheese, room temeprature
1 c. powdered sugar
1-2 Tbsp. milk (I omitted this)
1/4 tsp. pumpkin pie spice 

Combine the yeast with the warm milk and a pinch of sugar and let sit until foamy, about 5 min.  Stir in the sugar, melted butter, pumpkin puree, vanilla, salt, spices, and the egg and mix to combine.  Mix in the all-purpose flour.  Add in the bread flour, 1/2 cup at a time, and mix until the dough no longer sticks to the bottom of the bowl.  Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 min.  

Put the dough into a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a dishwtowel, and let sit in a warm place until doubled in size, about 1 hour (I put mine into the fridge to rise for about 4 hours).  

While the dough is rising, make the cinnamon-sugar filling.  Grease 12 muffin cups with butter.  

After the dough has risen, punch it down.  Divide it in half and roll into a 12" square.  Spread half the butter evenly over the dough, then sprinkle with half the cinnamon-sugar filling.  Press the cinnamon-sugar into the butter.  


Cut dough in to six strips, each 2 inches wide with a pizza cutter. Stack strips, buttered sides up, and cut crosswise into six 2 inch pieces with bench scraper.

Carefully place each piece, cut edges up, in a muffin cup. Separate outer layers of each roll to fan outward. Make more rolls with remaining dough in same manner.

Loosely cover muffin pan with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled, 30 to 60 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F

Bake 18 to 22 minutes until rolls are golden brown. Cover the top with foil if rolls are browning too quickly. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool in the pan for 10 minutes. While bread is cooling, make the icing.

For the icing: In a mixing bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add the pumpkin pie spice and beat until incorporated. Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add the milk slowly, a little at a time until the icing is the desired consistency.

Drizzle icing over warm rolls or serve in bowls for dipping. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Cream Cheese Swirled Snickerdoodle Blondies

My office was having a pre-Christmas cookie exchange and I was thrilled.  I've never been part of a cookie exchange before and was definitely looking forward to trying everyone's treats.  They were talking about peppermint truffles and these super decadent caramel chocolate bars.  I just knew that I had to up my game too if I wanted my treats to be on  par with theirs.  So, I came up with an idea to combine two awesome recipes and make something that is truly "ultimate."  I decided to make Cream Cheese Swirled Snickerdoodle Blondies.  I'd never tried it before, but there's got to be a first time for everything.  Besides, you really can't go wrong with snickerdoodles and cream cheese.

 

The recipe is truly decadent.  Think of it - all that brown sugar and butter plus four eggs and an entire POUND of cream cheese.  But, well, 'tis the season.  

Just the smell of this alone while baking was enough to make my mouth water in anticipation.  Not to mention looking in the oven and seeing that golden brown top all puffed and sweet.  Even after taking them out of the oven, I still had to wait for them to chill long enough to set so that I could cut them (yes, I was very patient).  Finally, it was time to taste.  The blondies were out of this world good.  All that cinnamony-sugary flavor with the fluffy blondie and the creamy cheesecake - match made in heaven.  I have a feeling my co-workers are going to swoon over this one just like I did. 

Cream Cheese Swirled Snickerdoodle Blondies 
(created by Sweet as Sugar Cookies)

Blondies (by Dozen Flours)
2 2/3 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. butter, at room temperature
2 eggs
1 Tbsp. vanilla

2 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

Cream cheese swirl (by Brandy's Baking)

16 oz. cream cheese
1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
2 Tbsp. flour

Cream the butter with the brown sugar.  Beat in the eggs and vanilla.  Mix in the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Beat the cream cheese with the sugar.  Add in the eggs and vanilla and mix well.  Stir in the flour until combined.

Grease a 9x13 pan.  Spread about 3/4 of the blondie batter into the pan.  Pour the cream cheese mixture on top.  Dollop the remaining blondie batter on top of the cream cheese layer and use a butter knife to swirl together.  Combine the 2 Tbsp. sugar with the cinnamon and sprinkle evenly over the blondies.  Bake at 350F for 45-50 min. until a toothpick comes out clean.  After removing from the oven, let cool for about 10 min., then you can chill them in the fridge for 15 min. so that you can begin cutting them. 

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

For this month's Secret Recipe Club, I was assigned to Noelle's blog, "An Opera Singer in the Kitchen."  Like her, I also love to sing and cook, so it was like finding a kindred spirit.  But, she doesn't just sing as a hobby, she actually performs.  How cool is that!

Her vocal talent is equally matched with her skills in the kitchen and I thoroughly enjoyed perusing through her recipes.  But, the one thing I kept focusing on was PUMPKIN!  I have a love affair with it and so I couldn't stop oohing and aahing over the choices on her blog - Fluffy Pumpkin Biscuits, Pumpkin Spice Cake, and Pumpkin Scones.  But, I knew I was done for when I saw her Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls.  Usually, I only make cinnamon rolls during Christmastime, but I was perfectly willing to make an exception for these.

 

What I love is that Noelle's recipe uses less butter than others I've seen (which means less fat and calories).  As I say, a little less guilt goes a long way.  But, I promise that you will NOT miss it at all.  Oh no, these rolls are every bit as delicious and decadent as any other.  Plus, you've got that lovely spice, the pretty orange color, super fluffy, soft bread, and a cream cheese icing which is truly the icing on the cake.  Plain cinnamon rolls move over.  Make way for pumpkin!

 

Thanks Noelle for making all my pumpkin-y dreams come true.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls with Cream Cheese Icing
(adapted from An Opera Singer in the Kitchen)

1/4 c. warm water, not hot, about 110 degrees)
1 pkg. (2 1/4 tsp.) active dry yeast
1/3 c. warm milk (I used Greek yogurt)
1 egg
3/4 c. pumpkin puree, either fresh or canned
1 Tbsp. melted butter
3 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (I used 1 tsp.)
1/4 tsp. ground ginger (I used 1/2 tsp.)
1/4 tsp. ground cardamom (I used 1/2 tsp.)

Filling:
3 Tbsp. buttery spread, softened
1/4 c. sugar
2/3 c. brown sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. cloves
1 1/4 c. pecans (I left these out due to allergies)

Cream Cheese Frosting:
4 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. powdered sugar
1 Tbsp. milk (I used Greek yogurt)

In a large bowl, stir yeast into water to soften. Let rest for 5 minutes before stirring. Add milk, pumpkin, butter, egg, brown sugar, and spices.  Stir in 2 cups of the flour and beat vigorously for 2 minutes.

Gradually add remaining flour, a little at a time, until you have a dough stiff enough to knead. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, elastic dough.

Put dough into an oiled bowl. Turn once to coat entire ball of dough with oil. Cover with a towel and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour.

Combine the white sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, ginger, nutmeg and cloves in a small bowl, set aside. Transfer the risen dough to a lightly greased work surface, and pat or roll it into a 16" x 12" rectangle. Spread softened butter over dough and then sprinkle with the sugar mixture.  

Roll the dough into a log the long way; it'll stretch to about 20" long as you roll. Using a piece of dental floss, cut the log into 1" slices.  Place slices in a greased 9x13 inch baking pan (or in two 8 or 9 inch round cake or pie pans). Cover with a towel and let rise until almost doubled, about 45 minutes. 

Bake in a preheated 375°F oven. Bake the rolls till they're brown around the edges and beginning to turn golden brown across the center, about 20-30 minutes.

While rolls bake, prepare the cream cheese frosting.  Beat the cream cheese, vanilla, and milk until well combined.  Add the powdered sugar, 1/2 cup at a time, until well mixed and desired consistency is reached.

Frost warm rolls with the cream cheese frosting and serve immediately  

Notes:

1. I doubled the amount of spices in the dough and would probably triple them next time.  
2. The original recipe calls for all-purpose flour and whole wheat white flour.  I just used all-purpose flour since that's what I had. 
3. I made half the recipe and got 9 rolls. 

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Here we go - Week #5 of the Twelve Weeks of Christmas Treats and I decided to make a batch of Pumpkin Snickerdoodles.

I still remember the first time I ever ate a snickerdoodle.  I was probably about 8 or so and someone had kindly made us a batch.  I took one bite and thought it was the most delicious cookie ever.  You can bet I went and grabbed a second cookie after that, and maybe a third. 

Years later, I fell in love with pumpkin.  Once that happened, I just had to have the pumpkin version of everything - scones, breads, cookies, cake - you name it, I'll take it.  In my opinion, a little pumpkin makes everything twice as good (okay, maybe not everything, but certainly in most cases).

So, when I saw that there was a pumpkin version of snickerdoodles, I just knew that I had to make them.  And boy was I glad I did.  They have all the goodness of the classic snickerdoodle - the chewy cakiness and the sweet spiciness - and, in addition, they also have that added punch of pumpkin, which like I said makes everything better.  Put it all together and you've got a cookie that is tailor-made for autumn and for your pumpkin-loving tastebuds.

 

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles (adapted from Annie's Eats)

 3¾ cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup light brown sugar
¾ cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract

For the coating:
½ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
½ tsp. ground ginger
Dash of allspice

In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg.  Whisk to blend and set aside.  In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugars on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes.  Blend in the pumpkin puree.  Beat in the egg and vanilla until incorporated.  With the mixer on low speed add in the dry ingredients and mix just until incorporated.  Cover and chill the dough for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350˚ F.  Line baking sheets with silicone baking mats or parchment paper.  Combine the sugar and spices for the coating in a bowl and mix to blend.  Scoop the dough (about 2½ tablespoons) and roll into a ball.  Coat the dough ball in the sugar-spice mixture and place on the prepared baking sheet.  Repeat with the remaining dough to fill the sheets, spacing the dough balls 2-3 inches apart.  

Bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, or until just set and baked through.  Let cool on the baking sheets about 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Repeat with the remaining dough.  

Note:  The flavor in the cookies deepens with time, so they're even tastier the next day.  

Spiced Cranberry Sweet Rolls

This past weekend, my mother asked me to make her favorite rolls - Tyler Florence's Parker House Rolls. I was more than happy to oblige, so I made up a batch of the dough and put it in the fridge to rise overnight. Then, seeing as how it was after midnight, I began getting ready for bed.


While I was doing so, however, I kept thinking about making a new type of bread, one that would be sweetened with honey, spiced with cinnamon, and bursting with cranberries. I knew that I wouldn't be able to sleep until I tried my idea out, so back to the kitchen I went, even though it was now past 1am. I began mixing up the dough, throwing in a little of this and that as I went along - honey, dark brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger powder, and the dried cranberries. I had absolutely no idea if the bread would be any good, but I had high hopes that it would.


The next morning, I began playing with the dough even more as I decided how I wanted to shape it in the muffin cups. With some of the dough, I simply rolled it into small balls and put three into each cup. With the rest of the dough, I rolled it into a rectangle, sprinkled it with some brown sugar, cut it so that it looked like mini cinnamon buns, and then put three of those into the rest of the cups. Finally, before baking it, I brushed them with an egg wash and sprinkled them with cinnamon-sugar.


After baking them, I eagerly bit into one and they were awesome! I loved how the juicy cranberries matched so well with the cinnamon and how the fluffy bread was sweetened just to my liking. If you really wanted to get fancy, or if you have an extra sweet tooth, you could also top these with a powdered sugar glaze or even an orange powdered sugar glaze. I may try making them that way too one day, but for now, I like them just the way they are. Having these for breakfast made my day!

Spiced Cranberry Sweet Rolls (created by Sweet as Sugar Cookies)

1 Tbsp. yeast
1 c. + 3 Tbsp. warm water (105F - 110F)
5 Tbsp. honey
4 Tbsp. brown sugar
7 Tbsp. butter, melted
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ginger powder
3/4 tsp. salt
3-4 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. dried cranberries (or more if desired)

1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
3 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

Combine the yeast with the warm water and a pinch of sugar and let sit until foamy. Add in the honey, brown sugar, and butter and stir to combine. Add in the cinnamon, ginger powder, salt, and 2 cups of flour. Mix well. Gradually add more flour until the dough no longer sticks to the bottom of the bowl. Knead the cranberries into the dough and continue kneading the dough (adding in flour as necessary) for 5-6 min. until it is smooth and elastic (bounces back when you push your fingertip into it). Put into a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a dishtowel, and let sit in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size. Alternately, you can put it into the fridge to rise overnight.

Grease muffin tins. After the dough has risen, divide it into 12-16 equal pieces.

Variations:

1. Roll each piece into a 2 x 4 inch long rectangle. Sprinkle with some brown sugar and roll up from the short side. Slice into three equal pieces (like mini cinnamon rolls) and put the pieces side by side in the muffin cup.
2. Divide each piece into three little balls and put the pieces into the muffin cup.

Cover with a piece of greased plastic wrap and a dishtowel and let rise in the muffin tins for 30 min., or until doubled in size. Before baking, brush each roll with the egg wash and sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar. Bake at 375F for 25 min. or until the tops of the rolls turn golden brown.

Caramel Apple Cookie Cups

I'll admit that I'm not crazy about caramel apples in general. All that super sticky caramel makes me worry that my fillings are going to pop out, and I would NOT like that to happen.


But, that doesn't mean that I don't still like the flavor of a caramel apple. This got me to thinking about creating a Caramel Apple Cookie Cup, especially when I saw some dried apples at the grocery store. I'm sure all food bloggers are the same way - you see some sort of foodstuff at the store and instead of thinking, "I want to eat some of that," you think, "What can I make with that?" Isn't that true?


Anyway, back to the cookie cups. I added the chopped apples to a lightly cinnamon spiced cookie base and filled them with a caramel buttercream. And, because you can never have too much caramel, I drizzled them with a little more. The warm flavors came together so wonderfully. One bite and you'll be in autumn-y ecstasy. And, I promise that when you eat these, your fillings (if you have any) will stay put.


Caramel Apple Cookie Cups (created by Sweet as Sugar Cookies)

1 c. unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 c. light brown sugar, packed
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg
2 tsp. cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
dash allspice
1 tsp. baking soda
2 1/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. chopped dried apples

Caramel Buttercream Frosting:

8 Tbsp. butter
2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. caramel ice cream topping

For the cookie cups:

Cream the butter and brown sugar. Add the vanilla and egg and beat well. Combine the dry ingredients and add, mixing well. Stir in the chopped dried apples.

Grease mini muffin tins. Fill each muffin cup about 3/4 full with the dough. Bake at 350F for 10-12 min. until a toothpick comes out clean. While still warm, make a well in the center of each cup with a small spoon or your finger. Chill the tins in the fridge for at least 30-60 min. before removing the cookies.

For the buttercream frosting:

Cream the butter with the powdered sugar until light and fluffy. Stir in the caramel ice cream topping. You can add more caramel if you want a stronger flavor.

For the assembly:

After the cookie cups have chilled, remove them from the tins. Fill them with the frosting and drizzle with more caramel, if desired.

Makes approximately 40 cookie cups

Snickerdoodle Biscoff Cookie Cups

They say that when it rains, it pours. From my experience, it's definitely true. For example, it seems that when I have one idea, the idea then multiplies into many more ideas. Like when I made the Poppy Chow and then all of a sudden decided to start Muddy Budd-ifying everything under the sun. Which, by the way, I'm not through with that line of thought just yet. I promise there is more to come with that one.


At present, there were the Orange Cheesecake Cookie Cups. After making them, I got an idea to make all sorts of different cookie cups with various fillings. Hence, I have a new line of thought that I fully intend to follow until I've exhausted all my ideas.


The first one up is these Snickerdoodle Cookie Cups that I filled with Biscoff Cream Cheese Frosting then drizzled with melted white chocolate. The combo of cinnamon, Biscoff, and white chocolate has seriously become one of my fave flavor combos and I love putting them together in new treats. These cookie cups were awesome! I loved every bite and the mini size is perfect for when you want just a little something sweet but don't want to overindulge. I made a lot of other different cookie cups too and can't wait to share them with you this week.


Snickerdoodle Biscoff Cookie Cups (created by Lisa of Sweet as Sugar Cookies)

Snickerdoodle Cups (adapted from Allrecipes)

1 c. unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 c. sugar
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. cinnamon

Biscoff Cream Cheese Frosting (Sweet as Sugar Cookies)

4 oz. cream cheese, softened
4 Tbsp. creamy Biscoff spread
1/2 c. powdered sugar

melted white chocolate (for drizzling)

For the cookie cups: Cream the butter with the sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and beat well. Blend in the flour, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Form the dough into 1 Tbsp. balls and roll in the cinnamon-sugar. Place balls of dough in greased mini muffin tins and bake at 350F for about 13-15 min. until a toothpick comes out clean. While still warm, make a little dent in the center of each cup with a small spoon or your finger (you may have to scoop out a little of each cookie - eat the scraps and enjoy). Chill the tins in the fridge for at least 30 min. before removing the cookies.

For the frosting: Beat the cream cheese with the Biscoff spread until combined. Beat in the powdered sugar until fluffy.

Pipe the frosting into the cookie cups. Drizzle with the melted white chocolate. Keep in the fridge until ready to serve.

Makes approximately 44 cookie cups

Cinnabon Cinnamon Cake

It was a Sunday afternoon. Since I had the next day off, I had planned to do some baking and already knew exactly which recipes I was going to make. Then, I saw THIS cake on Shugary Sweets. And then, to semi-quote a part from the book, Eclipse (p. 176):

"It's like . . . gravity moves. When you see [this cake], suddenly it's not the earth holding you here anymore. [This cake] does. And nothing matters more than [this cake]."


Okay, maybe not really, but all those other recipes did fly out of my head. Plus, I had every single one of the ingredients to make it. If that's not a sign, I don't know what is.

The only issue I ran into was with regards to the cinnamon-sugar-butter filling in this cake. The recipe has you whip the butter with the sugar and cinnamon until it's light and fluffy. Then, you dollop it on and swirl it in. Whip it up - fine. Dollop it on - done. Swirl it in - "Houston, we have a problem." Usually, when I have to swirl something in, the thing that I'm swirling is the consistency of say, a cake batter. But, this was thick, more like a cake frosting. I grabbed my butterknife and just started to push and mix it into the cake batter a little here and there, breaking it up as I went along. I had no idea if I was doing it right, but I'd soon find out after it was baked.


Turns out, it all worked out in the end. As the cake bakes, that buttery-sugary filling melts up, becomes gooey-er, and turns an ordinary cake into something totally extraordinary. As for the glaze on top, well, it's the icing on the cake, so to speak. It was truly delicious. I still intend to make those other recipes, but I'm very glad I bumped this one up in line. It was worth it.


Cinnabon Cinnamon Cake (from Shugary Sweets and Lady with the Red Rocker)

3 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1 1/2 Tbsp. baking powder
1 1/2 c. milk (I used skim milk)
2 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 c. butter, melted (I used margarine)

1 c. butter, softened
1 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. flour (I totally forgot to add this in)
2 Tbsp. cinnamon

2 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c. milk (I used 5-6 Tbsp. skim milk)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

For the cake, preheat oven to 350F. Grease two 8" round cake pans, lining the bottom with parchment paper.

Blend the flour, sugar, salt, baking powder, milk, eggs, vanilla, and 1/4 cup melted butter. Divide the batter evenly between the cake pans.

Beat the 1 cup butter with brown sugar, 2 Tbsp. flour, and cinnamon. Continue to beat until fully blended and fluffy (about 3 min.). Using a tablespoon, drop butter mixture onto cake batter. Use a knife to swirl.

Bake cakes for about 25-30 min. (my oven needed 40-45 min.). Remove from oven and cool in pans 10 min. Turn cakes out onto serving plates.

For icing, whisk the powdered sugar with 1/4 cup milk (or more as needed for desired consistency) and vanilla. Drizzle over warmed cakes.

No-Rise Cinnamon Rolls - SRC

It turns out that Allison, from the blog, Alli N' Son was orphaned during this month's Secret Recipe Club. So, I volunteered with another blogger to step in and make something from her blog as well and it worked out great.

See, my family loves homemade cinnamon rolls. Don't get me wrong, I love them too. But, what I don't love is having to get up at 6am to start the process. Then, while the dough rises, I try to go back to sleep. But, because dough rises so fast in my warm kitchen, I only end up closing my eyes for 20 min. before I have to get back to work on it again. Meanwhile, my family is in sweet dreamland.


So, when I saw this recipe for NO-RISE Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls on Allison's site, you can bet I jumped on it. The only thing I wondered was, can it really be done? I was about to find out.

The dough is more like a biscuit dough since there's no yeast in it. I did run into a few mishaps trying to roll it out and then roll it up since it kept sticking to my surface no matter how much I floured it. But, I soldiered on and soon I had some mini cinnamon rolls all ready to go in the oven. I'll admit, a few burst open while baking (my fault), but the rest came out beautifully.


To my surprise, I actually liked the combo of chocolate and cinnamon in these rolls. The filling kind of reminded me of chocolate syrup (which is always a good thing) and the rolls were soft and melt in your mouth good. Will these replace my go-to cinnamon roll recipe? Probably not. But, if my family wants cinnamon rolls for breakfast and I want to sleep? You can bet I'm gonna make these.

Allison gets double the love today because Andrea from the blog, Adventures in All Things Food, also stepped up and volunteered to help out. She made an amazing looking Pineapple Fried Rice. You're gonna want to reach into your computer screen and pull the plate out when you see it. Yum!

No-Rise Chocolate Cinnamon Rolls (from Alli N' Son)

Chocolate-Cinnamon Filling:
1/3 c. melted butter
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. granulated sugar
1 Tbsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder

Dough:
2 c. flour
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
1 1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. melted butter
1 c. buttermilk (I used 1 Tbsp. vinegar + milk to make 1 cup)
1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips (I left these out)

Glaze:
1/2 c. powdered sugar
3 Tbsp. buttermilk (I used plain milk)

For the filling: In a small bowl, combine the melted butter, sugars, cinnamon, and cocoa powder. Set aside.

For the dough:

Preheat oven to 400F. Spray an 8" pan with non-stick spray.

Combine the flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the melted butter and buttermilk to form a soft dough.

Turn the dough out onto a well-floured countertop and knead 8-10 times, adding flour if necessary (I had to add in about 1/4-1/2 cup more of flour). Using a floured rolling pin, roll the dough into a rectangle about 1/3" thick and 12 inches long.

Evenly spread the cinnamon-chocolate mixture on the dough and sprinkle with the chocolate chips, if using. Starting with the long end, roll the dough up.

Cut into 12 even slices (I used dental floss to cut them). Place cut side down on prepared pan. Bake for 20-25 min., until golden brown. Allow to cool slightly, then turn out onto a plate.

While the rolls are cooling, combine the powdered sugar, milk, and cream cheese in a small bowl. Mix until smooth. Drizzle over warm cinnamon rolls.

White Chocolate Biscoff Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cups

I saw this recipe for Crispy Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups on the blog, Iowa Girl Eats. Total swoon! But, I was in the mood to experiment again, so I decided to change things up a little. Okay, I decided to change things up a lot.

First of all, it was time to do the Biscoff-peanut butter switch. Then, I thought, Biscoff really matches better with white chocolate than dark, so I went with that. Finally, going with the whole sweet-spicy nature of the Biscoff spread, I decided to use cinnamon toast crunch cereal instead of rice krispies. As you can probably imagine, these were shaping up quite well and that was only in my imagination so far.


Turns out that they were everything I could ever have imagined and more. One taste and the flavors just melted together perfectly. I loved them! I shared them with some other people at my church and they were raving about them and begging for more. Too bad I only made six of them for starters. I'll definitely have to make more of these next time, a LOT more.

White Chocolate Biscoff Cinnamon Toast Crunch Cups (heavily adapted from Iowa Girl Eats and created by Lisa of Sweet as Sugar Cookies)

1 1/4 c. Biscoff spread
1/4 c. butter, room temperature
1 c. powdered sugar
1 1/2 c. cinnamon toast crunch cereal, slightly crushed
1 3/4 c. white chocolate chips

Slightly crush the cereal so that it is in smaller bits, but not crumbs. Melt the white chocolate in the microwave or over a double boiler. Grease mini muffin cups with non-stick spray and add about half a tablespoon of melted white chocolate to each cup. Set aside.

In a large bowl, cream together the Biscoff and butter until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar, then mix until combined. Pour in the cereal and mix again until combined.

Roll the Biscoff-cereal mixture into small 1-inch balls. Press a ball onto the white chocolate in each cup and use your fingers to spread it out so that it fills the cup. Chill before eating.

Two Yummy Treats

Woo-hoo. It's Week 7 of the 12 Weeks of Christmas Cookies. This time, I bring you two treats - Chai Spiced Zucchini Bread and Cinnamon Banana Bread. Both of them would make wonderful Christmas breakfasts.

The Chai Spiced Zucchini Bread was so moist, not to mention flavorful with all the spices added into it and you don't even taste the zucchini at all.

Chai Spiced Zucchini Bread (from Del Sisters Kitchen)

3 1/2 c. flour
1 c. sugar
1 c. brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger powder
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. cardamom
1 1/2 tsp. orange zest
2 c. grated zucchini
3 eggs
3/4 c. oil
2 tsp. vanilla
1/3 c. hot water

Combine the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and stir to mix. Divide into two large greased bread pans and bake at 350F for 60 min. or till center is clean when tested. Remove and cool.



As for the Cinnamon Banana Bread, it's also nice and healthy since it's made with oats, bananas, and hardly any butter/oil at all. That means you won't feel guilty from eating all the molten cinnamon chips that are also added into it. The bread comes out a little dense, but full of delicious cinnamony banana-y flavor that is sure to please.



Cinnamon Banana Bread (from the Beantown Baker)

1 1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (I'd double this next time)
1 c. uncooked old fashioned oats
1/2 c. cinnamon chips
1 Tbsp. canola oil (I used melted butter)
2 eggs, beaten
3 large bananas, ripe (1 cup)
cinnamon-sugar (for sprinkling)

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease and flour a loaf pan. Stir together the first 8 ingredients. Mash the bananas then add the oil and eggs and mix thoroughly. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix well. Pour the batter into the pan and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Bake until top of loaf is firm to touch, 45-50 min. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 min. Flip out and cool on a wire rack for another 10 min.

Apple Crumble Loaf

Now that autumn is here, apples are on sale all the time and you know what that means - it's time to bake some apple-y goodies. I've had this Apple Crumble Loaf from Sweet Twist of Blogging bookmarked for practically forever and now was definitely the time to make it.

This bread was different from other apple ones I've made before because it not only has streusel on top, but it also has a layer of it running through the middle. Plus, it also has the apples in layers rather than mixed throughout the loaf itself.

I did run into one problem while making these. The recipe says to use melted butter when making the streusel. Against my better judgment, I did so and ended up with streusel goop, not at all the "crumbly" texture I was going for. Now is it just me or does this happen to you too?


I didn't want to waste it after I'd made it, but I also still really wanted that crumbly look, at least on the top of my loaves. So, I made another half batch of the streusel using chilled butter, and voila! I think this is more what it was supposed to be like.


Now you put it all together - batter, apples, streusel, more batter, more apples, and more streusel. We're talking six layers of goodness here.


Into the oven they went and baked up beautifully.


Well, okay, there was one casualty. I may have put a little too much batter into one of the pans and it overflowed. No worries though, since I had put all the pans onto a cookie sheet. This just meant that I got to eat the scraps which is always a good thing.


Now, slice these up and look how pretty it is.


And it tastes as good as it looks too.


Apple Crumble Loaf (Sweet Twist of Blogging)

Streusel:
1/2 c. flour
1/2 c. rolled oats
1/2 c. packed light brown sugar
1/2 c. butter (softened, not melted)
2 tsp. cinnamon

Apples:
2 medium apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2" pieces (I used Fuji apples)
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. sugar

Cake:
2 c. all-purpose flour
1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. cinnamon (I'd double this next time)
1/2 tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1/2 c. butter, melted and cooled
1/2 c. skim milk

Heat oven to 350F. Grease a 9x5x3" loaf pan or three mini loaf pans.

For the streusel: Put all dry ingredients into a medium bowl. Cut in the butter until the mixture is crumbly.

Toss the apples with the cinnamon and sugar.

For the cake: Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and stir together. Beat the eggs and whisk in the butter and milk. Add to the flour mixture and fold just till ingredients are moistened. Spoon half into prepared pan; spread to cover bottom. Sprinkle with half the apples, then top with half the streusel. Add remaining batter on top of the streusel and spread to cover. Sprinkle with the remaining apples, then the rest of the streusel. (Note: If you're doing this in mini loaf pans, use about 6 Tbsp. of batter + 1/3 c. apples + 1/4 c. streusel for each layer.)

Bake for 1 hour, or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 min. Run a knife around the sides; invert the loaf onto a rack and then revert side up. Let cool completely.

Ultimate Cinnamon Bread

Have you ever made something so good that you just had to give it away because it was too dangerous to keep in the house? Well, that's how I'd describe this Cinnamon Bread that I found on the blog, Closet Cooking. It is the absolute epitome of cinnamon breads and I don't think I'll ever try any other recipe because THIS IS IT!!!


It uses a whopping TWO tablespoons of cinnamon. That sounds like a lot, but believe me, this is not the time to get timid and skimp on it. To use anything less would defeat the purpose of making this bread.

Just imagine it - a dense, tightly crumbed cake . . .


with ribbons of ooey gooey cinnamon sugar filling running through . . .


and a crackly cinnamon sugar crust to top the whole thing off.


Is your mouth watering yet?

One bite and I was in cinnamon heaven. I'd eat (or inhale) all three mini loaves if I could, without hesitation. But, I'm trying to be "healthy," so I kept one loaf and found good homes for the other two loaves as fast as I could. I'll leave it to the lucky recipients to exercise self-control as they see fit. But, one look at this bread and I think all their will power will fade in an instant . . .


Cinnamon Bread (from Closet Cooking and A Year from Oak Cottage)

4 Tbsp. softened butter
1 c. granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp. lemon extract (I left this out)
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
2 c. flour
1 c. buttermilk (or you can use 1 Tbsp. vinegar + 15 Tbsp. milk)

Filling and Topping:
1 c. light brown sugar
2 Tbsp. cinnamon

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, salt, and vanilla. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and baking powder. Add alternately to the creamed mixture along with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture.

Combine the brown sugar and cinnamon together until well mixed. Spoon 1/3 of the batter into a greased 9x5 loaf pan or three mini loaf pans. Sprinkle with 1/3 of the cinnamon mixture. Repeat the layers twice more, ending with cinnamon on top.

Bake at 350F for 1 hour (large loaf) or 40-50 min. (mini loaves) or until it tests done when a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Let rest in the pan 10 minutes before removing from the pan to cool completely.

Note: If making mini loaves like I did, use the batter in 1/3 cup increments and top each layer with 2 Tbsp. of the sugar-cinnamon mixture.