what's in the middle? the white stuff

It was the early '90's and my friend was playing a  a parody song of NKOTB's 'You Got It (The Right Stuff)' by Weird Al Yankovich, but the song was about Oreo's. Now, I'm not a Weird Al fan normally, but I'm tickled by wacky humor and I love Oreo's even more, so this song just gets in my head every time I see those little cookies.

Who doesn't love Oreo's? Those crispy little black and white cookies just beg to be dunked in milk, broken up into ice cream or smashed into a delicious pie crust. But you can't beat a homemade version. Ever.

This recipe is courtesy of the Flour cookbook (I know, I feel like I'm on a bender with this book) and can be made two ways. Bake them for the full 20-25 minutes and you'll have a traditional, crunchy Oreo...or you can be a bit rebellious and under-bake them so that they have a softness to them. There's no wrong way to make them, the point is that you should make them. 

gluten-free brownies

Well I haven't done the ABC baking challenge this year for a couple of reasons: 1. I wasn't crazy about the recipes that were featured and 2. I kept forgetting to bake something in time for the posting. But that all changed when I saw this brownie recipe. 

I haven't really dabbled with gluten-free mostly because I'm grateful not to have to. Gluten-free recipes are becoming more popular because you probably know someone who is allergic to gluten, or you're just trying to be more health-conscious. Regardless, I was intrigued that this recipe was dairy and gluten free. No flour or butter?! This is craziness. Craziness that I needed to experience first-hand.

And you know what? I'd make these again. Now that's a huge compliment to these little babies. I'm pretty particular when it comes to homemade brownies and these were right up there. Not my absolute favorite recipe because, let's be honest, I'll always be partial to flour and butter but because the almond meal just can't be smooth like flour, so there's a slight nubby texture that takes a bit getting used to. The chocolate flavor is wonderfully intense and the chocolate chips add a lovely moist richness that brings these brownies to the fudge-y category. Which, as we all know, is not a bad category for a brownie to be in. 

I have a coworker who is allergic to gluten and is usually never able to have any of my baked goods because I practically trail flour as I walk by her. I was dying to give these to her so that I could get her opinion on how they fared with other gluten-free baked goods. She loved them and said they weren't dry and they reminded her of regular brownies, which excited her (and me) the most. Success!

Have you tried any recipes for gluten-free baked goods?

chocolate addition

I love pumpkin-flavored baked goods so much, that when I was organizing my recipes, I devoted an entire section to all things pumpkin. It's so convenient having them grouped together, so when I flipped to the pumpkin tab and came across these cookies, I knew I had to showcase them here.

These delicious, cake-like, cinnamon pumpkin chocolate chip cookies contain some of my favorite flavors. I don't know where this recipe originated, just that I had copied it from my mom's recipe box when I was a teenager.

These cookies make four dozen, so they'd be perfect for a bake sale or a Halloween party, and believe me they go fast. 

Kitchen Fixation: April

Ghirardelli chocolate is one of my favorite chocolate's to bake with. Many years ago I was in San Francisco and had the joy of getting a chocolate sundae at the Original Chocolate Manufactory and it was everything you want a sundae to be- delicious! I typically buy a jumbo-sized bag of their bittersweet chocolate chips from BJ's because I will use it, especially when I make these cookies. Or I'm constantly buying their chocolate baking bars for melting- like I did here and here. Do you have a favorite chocolate to bake with?


**I don't get any compensation or free bars of chocolate for talking about Ghirardelli, I just happen to really like their chocolate. 

chocolate high

I love making cookies. Categorically, they're typically easier than making say, a cake and sometimes a rich, dark chocolatey cookie is in order. And these cookies have all the elements to be one of my favorites. They're soft and "molten" in the center (sigh) but the edges are firmer so you can actually pick up the cookie without it falling apart. Then there's the crunch-factor with the chopped walnuts. These. Are. Divine.

Another wonderful thing about these cookies is they stay soft and moist for days (if they last that long).

Chunky Monkey Muffins

Chunky Monkey Muffins: healthier banana walnut chocolate chips muffins

Ok I know, another post about muffins but they're are so portable and easy to make (and eat) that I can’t help myself. Also, I was inspired. A co-worker of mine had a store-bought muffin that was banana walnut with a chocolate drizzle on top and I thought, “I can make that!”  So here it is, just healthified slightly.

There's avocado (as the butter/oil sub), some whole-wheat flour, banana's and walnuts (for some crunch and those wonderful omega's) to keep these muffins on the yummy, healthy side. Although the chocolate chips aren't necessary they do taste wonderful in here... but that's also how I feel about any chocolate added to a recipe.

this avocado green color isn't as noticeable once they're baked 

(recipe after the jump)

Salted Caramel Bars

Salted caramel sauce... bittersweet chocolate chips... pecans…all housed in an buttery oat crust. Are you drooling yet? There's no way you can you go wrong here.

Since these are bars, it goes without saying that they travel well. These also make a wonderful gift- just put them in a pretty box with a small jar of the salted caramel sauce and a note about how you should win “Gift Giver of the Year” for giving this away.

Maybe you’re in a time-crunch and don’t have time to make the homemade Salted Caramel Sauce. You could technically cheat and use a good-quality store bought sauce, but then you miss out on licking the spoon as the caramel is cooling. Or having some leftover sauce stashed away for a midnight spoon dip. 

reserve 1 1/2 cups of dough for topping

the toppings for the cooled crust

hot & bubbly, fresh out of the oven

The first time I made this recipe I thought it was just ok. The caramel, which should be the star ingredient, seemed like it absorbed into the crust. This time I used a different recipe for a Salted Caramel Sauce (rather than the one recommended with the original recipe) and adjusted the crust proportions. I also added more Salted Caramel Sauce to make it really stand out. I don't think you'll be disappointed. (recipe to follow)