Pumpkin Squares

Okay, so this is yum, yum, yummy! You'll never want plain old pumpkin pie, again. There are many pumpkin square dessert recipes, but this particular recipe was given to me by my college internship teacher (Thank you, Mrs. Steele!) One day, coming into work (student teaching, 2nd grade class, Florida) I had this wonderful little treat waiting for me on my desk. I inhaled it, she asked if I wanted the recipe, and the rest is history.

Notice removed cup -- save this
 for the topping!!

You'll need:


Crust

• 1 box of yellow cake (remove 1 cup)
• 1 egg
• 1/2 c. melted unsalted butter

Filling

• 1 large can of pumpkin puree (30 oz) OR 2 small cans of pumpkin puree (15 oz. each) 

(**NOTE: DO NOT GET PUMPKIN PIE MIX...I've almost made that mistake.)

• 3/4 c. sugar
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 c. milk

Topping

• 1 c. cake mix (that you removed, remember?!?)
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 3 tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1/2 c. chopped nuts (I prefer walnuts. But any, or none, would do!)

Directions:

1. For the crust: grease 9x13 pan. Mix the yellow cake mix (except for the 1 cup you set aside), the egg, and butter. Mix together and press onto the bottom and sides of the pan.
2. For the filling: mix pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, spices, 3 eggs, and milk. Pour over cake mix in the pan.
3. For the topping: mix the 1 cup of cake mix, sugar, butter, and nuts. Sprinkle on top of filling.
4. Bake at 400 F for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 F and bake for 40 minutes.

And there you have it! Easy as pie...pumpkin pie! I don't know if that's easy, never made it. Enjoy :)

<3 Katie

Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

Hope everyone had a great holiday! 

It's sleeting outside which is making me lazy...but not lazy enough to not post some yum yum recipes!

Alton Brown's Chewy Chocolate Chip Recipe

I found a few cookie recipes on various sites but after reading several reviews and comments I asked myself...What Would Alton Brown Do? I stumbled across his recipe for "The Chewy", which included the Good Eats video clip explaining how to make it. Good thing I read the comments because it was noted that the recipe printed on the Food Network website is WRONG, and to follow the mentioned recipe in the Good Eats episode. Lesson to all: read the comments.

Yields: 2 dozen 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Inactive Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 30 minutes

This is your best friend.

You'll need:

• parchment paper
• 2 sticks unsalted butter
• 2 1/4 c. bread flour
• 1 tsp. kosher salt
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 c. sugar
• 1 1/4 c. brown sugar 
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tbsp. milk
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
• 12 oz chocolate chips (yes, that's one bag -- side note: I prefer the chunky chips)

Directions:

This is a paddle attachment.
 It's meant to work with thick batters (cake, cookie...) 

1. Melt the butter in a saucepan over low heat. Set aside to cool slightly.
2. Sift together the flour, salt and baking soda into it's own bowl and put aside. Pour the butter into your stand mixer's work bowl. Add the sugar and brown sugar and beat with the paddle attachment on medium speed for 2 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together the whole egg, the egg yolk, milk and vanilla extract in small bowl. Reduce the mixer speed and slowly add the egg mixture. Mix until thoroughly combined, about 30 seconds.
4. Gradually integrate the dry ingredients, stopping a couple of times to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Once the flour is worked in, drop the speed to "stir" and add the chocolate chips. Chill the dough for 1 hour.
5. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and place racks in the top third and bottom third of the oven.
6. Scoop the dough into 1 1/2-ounce portions (I eyeballed it) onto parchment-lined half sheet pans, 6 cookies per sheet. Bake 2 sheets at a time for 15 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through (I didn't actually do this...if you think you need to, go for it.) Remove from the oven, slide the parchment with the cookies onto a cooling rack and wait at least 5 minutes before devouring.

And enjoy! My theory is: if you can read, you can cook. But baking comes with a little more practice and intuition...make sure when baking, you keep an eye on your treats and get a feel for how your kitchen appliances work. I'd take the cookies out as soon as you see a hint of golden edges...waiting for them to brown, you'll regret it. Happy baking! Next up, pumpkin squares.

<3 Katie

Santa IS real...really yummy!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas is, by far, my favorite holiday...the tree, the lights, music, presents, food...yum. Love it.

In this post, I'll be sharing a cute and healthy appetizer idea and a few of the gifts that Santa brought me this year :) I also made chocolate chip cookies and a pumpkin squares dessert for tonight and will be posting the recipes for those later. 

So this is definitely the cutest and easiest way to be festive. I have to credit Pinterest for the idea, but, of course, mine turned out cuter. You'll need:

• strawberries
• Cool Whip 
• Black or brown sprinkles OR Black decorating gel (can be found in the baking aisle)
• Knife 
• Toothpick
• Cutting board (if you care about your counters)

Just by looking at the picture, I'm sure you can figure out how to do this. Wash the strawberries, cut off the leaves so they can stand up straight, and cut off the tips for the little hats. Don't worry about keeping the same tip for the same strawberry...that's crazy. Put a dollop of cool whip on the strawberry, add the hat, and another smaller dollop for the hat's poofy ball. I used a toothpick to make Santa's buttons...just dip it into the cool whip and give Santa a couple pokes ;) On Pinterest, the woman used sprinkles for the eyes but I found some black decorating gel that seemed like a better, more controlled option. And voila! Cuteness.

And here are some of the goodies Santa my family and friends have given me!

I've run across this book on a couple different websites and I was always curious what was in it. Now, I know! Maybe I'll Julia Child-style this book...maybe. Regardless, I'm excited to get crafting!! Thanks, brother!

4000 piece puzzle (52 in x 38 in) -- I will be attempting this, though I can't promise I'll ever do it again.  

GIFT CARDS! Money is always nice but knowing I can only selfishly spend it at a store I love, makes me a happy girl. Anthropologie, Francesca's and Birchbox :)

And, of course, peppermints and chocolate <3

So, I'm excited to share the recipes with you, but it's Christmas! I must get cute, go out, and be merry with mi familia. I will post tomorrow, for those of you who would like a little post-Christmas, pre-New Year's treat.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

<3 Katie