SUZIE SWEET TOOTH

Cakes, Treats, and Everything Sweet

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    • Rich Chocolate Pudding

      Rich Chocolate Pudding

      When I was growing up, my Mother used to put me in charge of making the pudding. I’m not really sure how it happened, that I became the “Jello de Master”, but I loved doing it.   I remember feeling so grown up making that Jello brand pudding. It was a treat that we shared as a family. Many a Saturday or Sunday night we would all sit around and watch “Family TV” and eat warm pudding. Always warm, never cold.  Something about watching “The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau” and giant squids paired perfectly while tucking into warm chocolate pudding.  :-)

      It seemed so magical watching  the transformation of this mysterious brown powder that came in such a tiny box.  Who knew that brown powder and milk would eventually yield into something so chocolatey, warm, and luscious. Times have changed, and I still like to make pudding from time to time but now I like it HOMEMADE. It doesn’t take much more effort to pull together items from the cupboard and fridge to create a really good pudding. I alway keep 60 % cacao baking bars in my cupboard for such an occasion as well as a number of things. This recipe is from a tried and true website online that you can find a multitude of sins from, be it chocolate pudding or apple pie. The website is www.epicurious.com

      Ingredients:

      1 C Sugar

      1/4 C cornstarch

      pinch of salt

      8 0z. Ghirardelli (60 % cacao) bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped

      2   2/3 C whole milk

      2 large egg yolks

      2 Tbsp. butter

      1 tsp. vanilla

      Directions:

      In a heavy saucepan; whisk together the sugar, cornstarch and pinch of salt. Stir in the chopped chocolate. Set aside with the burn off for now.

      In a medium bowl whisk together the milk and the egg yolks until smooth and combined.

      Place the saucepan with the chocolate mixture, and with the heat on medium, gradually whisk the milk/egg mixture into the chocolate mixture. Whisking constantly; heat the mixture over medium heat until the pudding comes to a boil. Still whisking; Let the pudding boil for one minute. Take off the heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla. Pour the pudding into four 8 oz. serving cups. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface to avoid a skin from forming. Let the pudding cool enough so it is still warm, but not hot enough to burn your tongue. Enjoy!

       

      Suzie

    • Blueberry Cherry Granola

       

      MOTHERS CAN BE QUITE PREDICTABLE CAN’T THEY….

      It comes as no surprise to me that my Mother asked if I was going to make anything “healthy” for my blog.

      I knew this was coming. I just didn’t expect it so [gulp] soon.

      My Mother likes to eat pretty healthy. No scratch that.

      She eats very healthy.

      I swear I am her daughter.

      We do share the same DNA, yes.

      It’s not that I don’t understand these things. I am a Nurse after all. :-)

      I do try to incorporate more healthy choices in my diet.

      I SWEAR MOM, IT’S TRUE!!

      I know right now, my Mother is at home laughing hysterically as she reads this.

      I was thinking about my Mom and Dad especially when I formulated this healthy recipe.

      My Dad just recently recovered from heart surgery and is doing great  :-) so more than ever they are trying to make healthy choices a daily part of their lives.

      So Mom and Dad, this is for you. I know, who’d of thunk it?

      Blueberry Cherry Granola

      Ingredients:

      4 Cups Rolled oats (also known as old fashioned)

      3/4 C sliced almonds

      1/3 C sunflower seeds (roasted, unsalted or raw is fine too)

      1/3 C vegetable oil

      3/4 C honey

      1/4 C hot water

      1/4 C dark brown sugar

      1 tsp. cinnamon

      1 tsp. vanilla bean paste (or 1 tsp. vanilla is fine)

      1/2 tsp. salt

      1/2 C  dried tart cherries; chopped fine

      1/2 C dried blueberries

       

      Directions:

      Preheat the oven to 300 °

      Prepare a 1/2 sheet pan or rimmed cookie sheet with a piece of parchment paper or a silicone silpat if you have one.

      In a medium mixing bowl, combine the oats, nuts and seeds. Set aside.

      In a 4 Cup glass measuring cup, place the oil, honey, water, dk. brown sugar,cinnamon, vanilla, and salt. Microwave on high for one minute.

      Pour the hot mixture over the oat mixture and stir to combine thoroughly. Spread the granola out on a 1/2 sheet pan or a rimmed cookie sheet and bake at 300 ° for 30 minutes. Remove the granola from the oven and right on the same pan, stir in the dried berries.

      Bake for an additional 45 minutes. Cool completely and enjoy over your favorite yogurt [it’s amazing with Greek yogurt] or with milk.

      Happy healthy heart Dad! ♥ (of course, you too Mom!)

      Printable recipe:

      https://docs.google.com/document/d/17S2UANxzakM5a9TZtC8XUKT5XXvF_92CVlu9RB-BkMI/edit?hl=en_US&authkey=CO_QiIIO

      Suzie

    • Blueberry-Lemon Pancakes

      PANCAKES AND SUNDAY MORNINGS….

      Is there a better combination? I think not.

      Sunday is my favorite day of the week. There are so many good things about Sundays. Sleeping in late,  reading the Sunday paper with a good cup of Joe, Sunday morning jazz, and last but not least…fluffy lemon blueberry pancakes.

      This recipe is adapted from a recent issue put out by Fine Cooking Magazine titled: “Breakfast”. The recipe in the specialty magazine is for buttermilk pancakes and I tweak it to make it my own by adding  few ingredients. Their specialty magazines are popular can be found on news stands and online at www.finecooking.com  Fine Cooking is one of my all time favorite cooking magazines if not my favorite.

      I love the classic combination of lemon and blueberry and this is a great way to celebrate those flavors in a pancake. We are coming into blueberry season, so now is the time to enjoy ripe blueberries and  most importantly, enjoy your Sunday mornings!

       

      Lemon Blueberry  Pancakes (adapted from Fine Cooking buttermilk pancake recipe) For plain pancakes just omit the lemon zest and blueberries. Note: if you have a large posse you can easily double this recipe  :-) and also the pancakes freeze well for quick morning grab/nuke/eat in the car sans syrup because yes you are the best Mom!

      Yield: about twelve 4-5 inch pancakes

      Ingredients:

      3 T unsalted butter; more for serving

      9 oz (2 cups) all purpose flour

      1/4 cup granulated sugar

      2   1/2 tsp. baking powder

      1/2 tsp. baking soda

      1/2 tsp. kosher salt

      2 cups buttermilk (room temp)   * [TIP: If you don’t have buttermilk; simply take 2 cups of milk and add 2 measured Tablespoons of either lemon juice or white vinegar to the milk and let it sit for 10 minutes and it will thicken slightly and “sour” just like buttermilk].

      1 tsp. vanilla extract (Note: The magazine recipe does not call for vanilla; but I always add vanilla to my pancakes- I think they just taste better)

      2 large eggs

      zest from one large lemon

      1  to 1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries, rinsed well and drained.  (Note: if it’s not blueberry season, by all means use frozen– rinse the berries and let them strain in a mesh strainer to remove as much water as possible.)

      Vegetable oil, for the griddle/skillet

      Pure maple syrup, for serving

      blueberry preserves, for serving

      Directions:

      Heat the oven to 200 degrees. Melt the butter in a small bowl in the microwave and set aside to cool slightly.

      In a large bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Whisk gently until the dry ingredients are ALMOST incorporated; STOP before the batter is evenly moistened. Add the cooled melted butter and mix until the batter is evenly moistened (THERE WILL BE LUMPS.  Now, walk away. YES I know there are lumps, just back up and resist the overwhelming urge to beat out the lumps…I swear it will be okay. This is going to ensure fluffy pancakes  :-) Let the batter rest for 10 minutes.  Resting the batter also helps any gluten that has formed a chance to relax which also gives a more fluffy and tender pancake.  ;-)

      Heat a griddle or a large skillet over medium heat until a few drops of water briefly dance on the surface before evaporating. Lightly oil the pan/griddle. Working in batches, pour about 1/3 cup of the batter onto the pan/griddle for each pancake, now drop as many blueberries as you like onto the pancake immediately after pouring the pancake, poke them down in slightly with your finger. I like to do one pancake at a time in a skillet, but if you have a large griddle you can do more than one; simply leave about an inch in between pancakes. When you see bubbles rise to the surface and the edges look dry carefully flip them over and cook until the cake is nicely browned about a minute more. TIP: You can find “pancake” spatulas at places like bed bath and beyond; they are round shaped large spatulas. So cool as it makes flipping fun and less stress. Okay a word about pancaking:  There is something weird about making pancakes; I swear the FIRST PANCAKE IS ALWAYS BAD. It’s either too dark, not dark enough etc.  Just chalk it up to pancake karma and  know that you usually have to sacrifice the first pancake to the PANCAKE GODS. I know, you figured this out too, huh?

      *TIP: If your family is not standing over your shoulder grabbing pancakes :-)  I like to hold the pancakes in a warm oven at 200 degrees while I finish the rest. I take a cake pan and line it with a large piece of tinfoil that is big enough to hang over the sides of the cake pan, and after each pancake I take off the skillet, I reach in the oven carefully and plop it in the pan and loosely cover the cakes with the tinfoil while I commence pancaking.

      Serve with hot butter and maple syrup.  Or if you want to try my version; I like to take a dollop of blueberry preserves and fold up the pancake like a taco and eat it this way.

      Printable recipe:

      https://docs.google.com/document/d/108eaSST4wTv9j1BCtc8mtsVI_rj6qMiIDoXgScWbqrM/edit?hl=en_US&authkey=CO_Rr_4M

      Happy pancaking!

      Suzie

    • Banana Cupcakes With Dulce De Leche Filling, Cream-cheese Frosting

      I ask you, how good are you at banana management?….

      You know,… those bananas you bought at the store last Saturday?…the day before you made your weekly Sunday night resolution to start eating healthy, by perhaps eating a banana every day? Somehow it’s now Friday and you have 6 dark brown bananas. YEAH, YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE…  :-)

      It’s okay, because now, the week is done, diet be damned.. and more importantly you have that itch. That itch that is calling you….TO BAKE. Trust  me, I get it; mine is like a constant psoriasis.

      And you’re not talkin no ho hum banana bread, no you are dreaming big my friend. You have officially fallen off the diet wagon. OMG; look out! what to bake. You ponder, you cruise the internet perhaps. Stop looking at all that food porn!

      Here it is. Wait for it…wait for it…

      We are talkin’

      Banana cupcakes with dulce de leche filling and cream cheese frosting

      OooHh yeah…bum bup…buka buka cha kow…bum bup..cue the music..OooOh YeahH. (I hope we are both thinking of the same song) ;-)

      Here we go…

      Banana Cake (recipe by yours truly) Yields 24 cupcakes

      Ingredients:

      1 1/2 Cup mashed bananas (probably 4-5 unless they are huge)

      3 C cake flour (I like cake flour because it yields a more tender crumb)but if you don’t have cake flour- don’t stress, you can use all purpose. This is therapy, right?

      1 1/2 tsp. baking soda

      1/4 tsp. kosher salt

      3/4 tsp. Saigon cinnamon (or whatever you have on hand) I’ll try not to go all OCD on you.

      3/4 C room temperature butter

      2 C sugar

      3 eggs (room temp)

      1 1/2 tsp. vanilla bean paste (or 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla will do) sorry for my OCD tendencies..

      1 1/2 C room temp buttermilk

      1 [13.4 oz] can of dulce de leche [Look for Nestle la Lechera]you can find it in the hispanic aisle or in a hispanic grocery for sure doll]

      1 Recipe: for cream cheese frosting below

      Directions:

      Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 2 standard size muffin/cupcake tins with paper liners. No need to spray.

      Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment until light & fluffy; or if you don’t have a stand mixer you can do it with a hand mixer on medium.

      Add the eggs one at a time and stop after each one; scraping down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Continue to mix at medium speed until incorporated. Don’t beat the hell out of it, just get it together. Add the vanilla paste/or vanilla- combine. Add the mashed bananas, combine for say 15 seconds.

      In a separate bowl whisk with a fork all the dry ingredients.

      Starting with the dry ingredients add about 1/3 of it to the batter and mix on med speed, then add about 1/3 of the buttermilk, mix, and continue in this alternating pattern until you end with the dry ingredients.

      Fill the cupcake liners until almost to the top; should yield about 24.

      Bake in a preheated 350 over for 20-25 mins. until they are light golden brown, and a toothpick comes out almost clean when inserted but has a few moist crumbs. Check them at the 20 min. interval.  Everybody’s oven is different, so watch them closely they have a tendency to get a wee bit dark at the end and if they get too dark, loosely cover the pans with tinfoil tented so it doesn’t touch the cakes.

      Take them out; cool on a wire rack. Once they are cooled completely, now it’s time for some minor surgery. You will only feel slight pressure… :-)Using an apple corer; go down about 1/2 way, and  you are going to remove a

      portion of the cake to create a small hole so you can pipe in the filling. *

      * I use a piping bag  and a large plain tip to pipe in the dulce de leche, but if you don’t have one you can use a large ziplock bag and simply cut off one of the corners to fill in the holes.

      Frost the cupcakes with the cream cheese frosting.

      Cream cheese frosting:

      1 pound cream cheese [cold]

      1/2 stick butter

      5 Cups powdered sugar

      1 tsp. vanilla

      Directions:

      In a stand mixer bowl using the paddle attachment; whip [on high speed] the cream cheese and butter until very pliable. Stopping to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add a cup of the sugar at a time and beat on med high speed until you have added all of the sugar. Add the vanilla and beat again until combined. Frost the cupcakes and store them in the fridge.

      Happy Baking! Buka Buka ka chow…

      Suzie

    • Baking Tip: Room Temperature Eggs

      People ask me all the time, what are some good tips for creating a great cake or baked good..  :-)  In actuality, all you really need is a proven recipe and make sure to follow the directions. You will notice a lot of recipes, especially cake recipes; call for room temperature eggs. What should you do if you forgot to take the eggs out ahead of time and you don’t want to wait forever?  Here’s the solution:  Take a large measuring cup or bowl and put your [unbroken] eggs in the cup and gently fill it up with hot tap water; high enough to  the cover the eggs by an inch or so. Let the eggs sit in the water for about 10 -15 minutes and after the first few minutes, change the water again to refresh it with hot water. The eggs will come closer to room temperature so that they are not shocking cold. The reason why you want room temperature eggs is that it helps ensure the emulsion in the recipe and this helps the cake or baked good rise better.

                                                                                   

      The two major ingredients in cakes- which are fat and water  (including the water content in the eggs) are by nature “unmixable”. When I say liquid this also means the liquid in the recipe such as milk etc.  As my son would say,… ” Uh, Hello Captain Obvious!”   :-) A uniform mixture of two “unmixable” substances is an emulsion.  Having too cold an ingredient makes it much hard for the ingredients to emulsify. So….try to plan ahead a little and take out the eggs ahead of time and you’ll be fine, and if you forget because you are multi tasking, now you have a solution.

      Happy Baking!

      Suzie

    • Easy “Boozy Fudge” Rum Fudge

      Those who know me- know that I love anything with rum in it. It is hands down my favorite spirit. A couple of years ago I went on a cruise with my sister and one of the stops was Jamaica. A rum lovers paradise. I got inspired after returning home to make this fudge and it has since been a workplace favorite. When everyone at work is grumpy and stressed, I like to bring this in.  It is ridiculously easy and definitely for adults only. If you don’t have rum, you could substitute Kahlua; although I have always made it with rum. I’m a rum girl.  Single girls– bring this to a party where there are lots of men and you might just snag the man of your dreams. Make it a point to tell them you made it. They will think you are a goddess… and quite frankly,  you are!

      Ingredients:

      1 pound quality semisweet chocolate chopped fine (please do not use chocolate chips- I beg of you!) [I like Guittard]

      1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk [yes, buy the no name cheap kind]

      4 Tablespoons Myers Dark Rum [or any other quality dark rum] (or you can substitute Kahlua if you like)

      pinch of kosher salt

      1 tsp. vanilla

      Directions:

      * Prepare an 8 inch square pan with a “sling” by using wax paper or parchment paper. You want the sling to hang over the edge of the pan by about 2 inches. Lighlty grease (butter/baking spray) the 2 sides of the pan that the sling is not touching.  This will make it easy for you to remove the fudge later.

      1) Assemble  a double boiler by finding a metal or glass bowl that fits over your bottom pot in order so the bowl does not touch the water. You only need about a good inch of water in the bottom pot.

      2) In your bowl that is sitting over the bottom pot place in this order: Put in the chocolate first, then dump in the condensed milk, and then the chosen booze, vanilla and salt.

      3) Over medium low heat with a heat resistant spatula stir this wonderful mass of ingredients constantly at a zen like pace until it fully melts. Do not let the water below the pot boil; you don’t need to let the water get that hot as you are looking for a slow melting. If the water starts to boil, just turn down the heat.  You don’t want to burn the chocolate which is always a reason why you are using the double boiler method with chocolate- because chocolate is like tempermental old ladies; you just need to take your time and go slow. :-)

      4) Once it is melted pull it off the heat and pour it into your prepared pan. Smooth it out so it is level. Let the fudge sit out overnight or several hours.

      5) The next morning; you can lift out the whole “sling” and then peel off the wax paper and cut it into small squares. It’s rich, so cut small squares.

      Flavor tip: This actually gets better with age. It’s best the second day. But if you can’t wait; it’s still divine.

      When I make this to bring to work; I’m usually cutting these little devils at 6:30 Am in the morning still in my jammies, and I can tell you there is nothing like a good cup of coffee and a tiny bit of fudge to get you going!

      Cheers!