snickerdoodles... what a fun word to say...

i have a confession to make... i, in all my years of baking, have never made snickerdoodles... i don't know why... it's not that i don't like cinnamon... i love it... sprinkled on pancakes, waffles, in my coffee, in hot cocoa, in cupcakes and in brownies, for heavens sake... cinnamon rolls!!!

so...what was holding me back from making snickerdoodles... i have no freakin' idea... just me being lame i guess :)

now i didn't go looking for a specific snickerdoodle recipe... i just used my favorite sugar cookie recipe, sprinkled some cinnamon into the cookie dough... then rolled the dough into a mix of cinnamon, light brown sugar and raw sugar...

the result... a delicious fragrant cinnamon cookie coated with a crunchy cinnamon sugar coating... perfect with tea... perfect with coffee... perfect when crumbled on top of vanilla bean ice cream... just perfect...

and as always... happy baking to you all :)

funky lookin homemade pretzels

hey everyone... it's saturday afternoon here... it's been a  pretty low key day here in the Perkins house... just lots of legos, action figures and some movies...the boys are busy watching the movie "real steel" which is super cute and at the heart of it is a touching story... not to mention it stars hugh jackman, that man candy gives me something to stare at... his muscles are quite drool worthy...

but anyways... i needed something to do... the laundry was done, the bedrooms were all straightened up, and dinner was in the crock pot... and the pages on pinterest were starting to blur... so... i looked through some of the recipes i had pinned... and found a simple pretzel recipe that had recieved rave reviews from the other readers... so... now i had something to do...

for the pretzels

ingredients:

1 cup of

1 pkg. yeast, or 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast

3 tbsp. light brown sugar, packed

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour, and more for kneading

2 tbsp. of softened unsalted butter

1 tsp. salt

1/3 cup baking soda

3 cups of warm water

directions:

1. warm the milk in a saucepan over medium heat until it reaches about 110, then add the milk into a bowl and add the yeast to the milk to soften and bloom...

2. add the brown sugar and 1 cup of the flour to the milk mixture, and stir with a wooden spoon (or you can use a standing mixer with a dough hook attachment... which is what i did)

3. then add the softened butter, mixing in well... then finally add the rest of the flour... the dough should be smooth and slightly tacky...

4. place the dough into a lightly greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm place until doubled in size (about 1 hour)

5. once the dough is doubled, punch down and knead on a floured surface... divide the dough into six equal pieces... roll and stretch each piece into a 30 inch rope... then shape it into a pretzel shape (try your best!!)

6. dissolve the baking soda in the warm water in a shallow dish, and gently dip each pretzel in the soda solution, sprinkle with salt, and then arrange on a baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden brown... then cool slightly, and enjoy...

mr. pretzel face :)

i kinda gave up on the classic pretzel shape... well, actually... it kicked my ass... i just couldn't get it to work for me... but i really don't care too much because they are delicious no matter what shape they are in... i'm serious, these pretzels were so good... a salty crust, and a sweet soft doughy center... the boys and i have been snacking on them since they were cool enough to eat...

well.. go and enjoy the rest of your weekend... and as akways...

happy baking everyone...

homemade lofthouse cookies and a birthday boy

hey everyone... happy hump day, and i hope everyone is enjoying their week so far... it's certainly been a busy stressful few weeks here...

firstly, my littlest guy had to get his tonsils and adenoids out... the little dude and i had to stay over night in the hospital, which i was happy to do because he was very grouchy and refusing his meds... and that didn't stop once we went home, oh no... it was 2 weeks of crankiness of which the likes i have never known... he wouldn't eat, wouldn't drink, wouldn't take any meds... bedtime was a disaster, up every few hours in agony crying and saying he had "boo boo's in my frooat"... my poor little man... but little by little he started to come back to his little rascally ways...

and on top of all that craziness... my hubby was getting ready to get underway again, he'll be away for another 2 months... so he'll be back in april... blaaahhh...

so...in other news, big news (well for me anyways), my little guy also just turned three... three... i still can't wrap my mind around that... honestly, it feels like he has been here forever... he just is the cutest, goofiest, little blue eyed dimpled hooligan... and i'm so blessed to have him as my son...

when i asked the little man what dessert he wanted for his birthday, he replied "cookies"... what type of cookies i asked... "blue cookies" he said very matter of factly... well... after two weeks of him being in misery, i was ready to give him anything he wanted, he needed a good cheering up... so... blue cookies it was...

so... i opted to make some homemade lofthouse style cookies... you know lofthouse cookies... those additively delicious soft and buttery, can't be good for you cookies... the ones that are boasted to stay fresh for almost a month... seriously, they'll last through the apocalypse along with twinkies...

so.. i baked up a batch and topped with baby blue buttercream...

and the birthday boy couldn't have been any happier :)

homemade lofthouse cookies (i cut the recipe in half)
ingredients:
6 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1 cup butter (2 sticks) at room temperature
2 cup granulated sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 1/2 cup sour cream

directions:
1. in the bowl of a stand mixer with the flat beater attached, cream the butter and granulated sugar at medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes... scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed
2. add the eggs, one at a time beating until each incorporated... then add the vanilla and sour cream and beat at low speed until combined
3. add the dry ingredients and beat at low speed until just combined, scraping down the bowl as needed... then divide the dough into two sections, and flatten into rectangles then wrap with plastic wrap... chill the dough in the refrigerator overnight or at least two hours until firm
4. preheat the oven to 425 degrees, and line 2 large baking sheets with silicon mats, or parchment paper or even spray them with nonstick cooking spray, set aside
5. on a floured surface, using a rolling pin, roll the dough out to 1/4-inch thickness... using a 2 1/2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out circles and transfer to a baking sheet... bake for 7 minutes, until pale golden... and then immediately transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool

happy birthday to my little benjamin scout... we love you so

and as always... happy baking everyone

just some cupcakes

hello... and happy monday to you all...

here are some cupcakes i baked up... not much back story into why i baked them up, other then the fact that i have not baked cupcakes in awhile... i went with my favorite vanilla cake recipe... and made a simple vanilla bean frosting... but i decided to top them two different ways... one with honey and toffee crunch pieces... and the other half with homemade hot fudge (post to come)...

here are some good looking pictures... try not to drool...

as always... happy baking everyone :)

dirty chocolate cake

the boys wanted cookies... i wanted something a little more exotic and challenging... the hubs asked for chocolate cake... why does this guy always get his way... i need to start reasserting my dominance as head of the house :) just kidding...

i'm just being too nice lately since he's leaving and will be suffering for 2 months without my home cooking and fatty desserts...

so here it is... a double chocolate cake... not a bad treat to be hanging about on the kitchen counter... i keep sneaking little slivers of cake every time i walk by, and then it's followed by cursing myself for having no willpower...

now... this cake was easy to make, requires minimal cleanup... it had a bit of a drier crumb, my hubs said it would be the perfect recipe for ice cream cake, and i think he's right...

one bowl chocolate cake
ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup milk
1/3 cup cooking oil
1 tsp vanilla
1 egg

directions:
1. preheat oven to 350 and grease and flour your cake pan ( i made two 6 inch rounds)
2. in a large mixing bowl stir together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking soda, baking powder, and salt
3. add milk, oil, and vanilla... beat with electric mixer on low speed just until combined
4. beat on medium speed for 2 minutes... add egg... beat 2 minutes more
5. spread into prepared pans
6. bake 20-25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near center comes out clean... cool cake in a pan on a wire rack for 10 minutes before removing...

top of my head chocolate ganache frosting
ingredients (amounts unknown since i kinda threw it together)
1 cup chopped dark chocolate, melted and cooled
4 tbsp. butter, softened
heavy cream (as needed for consistency)
confectioners sugar (as needed for sweetness)
1-2 tsp. kahlua

directions:
1. melt chocolate over a double boiler, set aside to cool
2. beat butter in mixer, until smooth... then add melted chocolate and kahlua
3. start adding in the confectioners sugar and heavy cream until you reach your desired consistency and sweetness...

have a wonderful weekend everybody... and as always... happy baking :)

super big delicious chocolate cinnamon rolls

 i swoon for cinnamon rolls... i mean, don't we all... i am however not a fan of the long process of making them... but the moment they are cool enough to smear with frosting, all that annoyance just fades away...

a couple of months ago when my hubby was underway, i made some of these... the result... my constant bragging about how good they were... i think i was trying to make him jealous... he was sailing about the Caribbean at the time, and i had been wiping snotty noses... so i kept rubbing it in that he missed out on them...

but being the good wifey that i am, i decided to bake a batch for him before he gets underway again... he's leaving in 2 weeks (whaaaaaaa....)

and once again... these were no disappointment...they are big, fluffy, almost cake like... and bursting with warm and melty chocolate chips and buttery cinnamon... then topped with sweet vanilla cream cheese frosting (which is almost not even necessary)

chocolate chip cinnamon rolls:
ingredients:
1cup whole milk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup sugar
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 large egg
2 ¼ teaspoons rapid-rise yeast
1 teaspoon kosher salt

filling ingredients:
¾ cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
½ stick unsalted butter
½ cup mini chocolate chips
directions:
1. melt the butter and milk together in measuring cup in the microwave... add it to the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and add the flour, sugar, cinnamon, egg, yeast, and salt... mix it well for three minutes... then add half of the flour and mix it just until the flour is combined... then add the rest of the flour and mix well...
2. switch the paddle attachment out for the dough hook and knead the dough with the mixer for about four minutes, or until it is smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl... tacky not sticky...
3. place the dough in large bowl that has been lightly oiled and cover it with a kitchen towel... and let it rise in a warm place to rise for about two hours, until doubled...
4. meanwhile, make the filling by melting the butter in a small bowl and stirring in the cinnamon and sugar...
5. once the dough has doubled in volume roll it out to a rectangle that is about 14×12... then spread the butter mixture over it, leaving a ½-inch border all the way around... then evenly sprinkle in the chocolate chips... roll up the dough lengthwise and cut it into ½-inch wide slices... place the rolls into a large baking dish, or two smaller dishes and cover them with a kitchen towel again... again allow them to rise for at least one hour... then, cover the dish with plastic wrap and keep it in the fridge overnight....
6. the next morning, preheat the oven to 375F and bake the rolls for about twenty minutes, or until they are golden brown on top... let cool enough to frost...

 topped with a dollop of cream cheese frosting...

look at that... oh man... pretty amazing huh :)

until nest time... and happy baking everyone

hey everyone :)

hey everybody... i just wanted to let you all know tht i am also now the proud owner of a food blog called "before dessert"... a place where i will share my love of cooking... i hope it is something you enjoy as much as i do...

so come on over and check it out...