Streusel Coffee Cake

It seemed appropriate to have a really, really special coffee cake to start the day of college graduation.  I found this recipe and tweaked it a bit.  The promise was something akin to a Starbucks offering. I don’t know about taste, but Starbucks baked goods are in a class by themselves in presentation.  I was sold!

What I love about this recipe is it doesn’t take any unusual ingredients.  If you have the following on hand, you are 2 hours or so from coffee cake bliss!

All purpose flour–4 1/2 cups

Granulated sugar–approx. 2 1/3 cups

Brown Sugar–1 1/3 cups

Butter–1 cup (2 sticks)

Cinnamon–2 tablespoons

Greek Yogurt, plain (can use regular)–3/4 cup

Milk–1 1/4 cup

Eggs-3 large

Chocolate chips–white/dark chocolate, 1/3 cup each

vanilla & salt & baking powder & cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Prepare a 9 x 13 pan with baking spray.

Mix together for streusel topping:

2/3 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup flour

1/2 tablespoon cinnamon

4 tablespoons butter, melted

Mix together for filling:

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon unsweetened cocoa powder

For Cake:

Beat 3/4 cup butter until creamy in mixer.

Combine

1 teaspoon salt, 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, 1/3 cup brown sugar.  Beat into butter.  Add 2 teaspoons vanilla.

Now–beat in 3 eggs, ONE at a time. 

Whisk in a bowl:

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

3 3/4 cups flour

Whisk in a measuring cup:

3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt

1 1/4 cups milk

Okay, here’s the part that is a bit more work…you want to add about a third of the flour, BEAT, a third of the milk/yogurt, BEAT until you have added it all. 

I like to throw a towel over the mixer when adding flour so it doesn’t “fly” everywhere. 

When the batter looks like this

you are ready to assemble your cake

Put half the batter into your prepared pan

Sprinkle with filling and half of your chocolate chips–I did a black/white version–half with dark chocolate/half with white chocolate

Spread remaining batter onto filling/chips;swirl batter slightly with a knife to incorporate filling

Sprinkle with topping

Sprinkle remaining chips on top

Bake a full 60 minutes.  Check with a toothpick into the middle to make sure it’s done.

Let cool on wire rack for 20 minutes.

Cut and serve from pan.

Celebrate!

~A

This post is linked to Real Food Wednesday:

http://kellythekitchenkop.com/2012/05/real-food-wednesday-592012.html

 

Thanks to Baker Chick for the inspiration: http://www.the-baker-chick.com/2012/02/cinnamon-streusal-coffee-cake.html

Mushroom Madness

Along with our oven seared broccoli, mushrooms were on the menu.  CI, again, has the magic method for achieving flavorful, tender mushrooms.  This is our dumb-ed down version.

Slice mushrooms.

Heat one tablespoon oil in a heavy skillet on medium heat.

Add mushrooms and cook until mushrooms release moisture, approximately 5 minutes.

Turn heat to medium high and cook an additional 8 minutes, until moisture evaporates.

Add 1 tablespoon butter and cook until dark brown, an additional 8 minutes.

Salt/pepper to taste. Serve.

Since  our oven was hot from the broccoli, I threw some grape tomatoes in the oven on a non-stick pizza pan and cooked them until shriveled.

A colorful addition to our veggie trio.

~A

This post is linked to http://www.foodrenegade.com/fight-back-friday-april-27th

Broccoli–Oven Seared Sensation

Do you have broccoli haters in  your life?  Want to “wow” them with a new treatment that actually makes them long for you to prepare broccoli?  All you need to accomplish this great feat is: a blazing hot oven, smidgeon of salt, sugar and an even smaller smidgeon of pepper.  Are you intrigued?  I hope so.  Broccoli is on the super food list; finding a great way to present it to your dubious eaters is a task worth pursuing.  Don’t you agree?

Roasted Broccoli

One large bunch of broccoli

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon coarse black pepper

Oven prep:  put rack at lowest position; place a large rimmed baking sheet on the rack; turn oven to 500 degrees.  Yes, preheat to 500 degrees.

Cut broccoli stems off tops ( separate the tree tops from the trunks)

Peel the stems to remove tough outer sheaf.

Slice into 1/2 inch widths.

Place broccoli pieces into a large bowl. Mix oil with sugar and salt and a dash of pepper and drizzle over broccoli.

Toss with spatula to coat with oil.

Remove HOT pan from oven and quickly dump broccoli onto pan, spreading out the pieces.  It will SIZZLE!

Return to oven and bake for 9 minutes, until broccoli is nicely browned.

Serve to your broccoli haters….they will be amazed at the sweet, mellow flavor of this much maligned vegetable.

WOW!

This recipe is just one of the reasons I renewed my subscription to Cook’s Illustrated.

~A

This recipe is linked to Fight Back Friday @ http://www.foodrenegade.com/fight-back-friday-april-20th/

Salmon Cakes II

We decided to have salmon cakes for lunch the other day.  I had mentioned that adding some Panko to the outside might be a nice addition; so that’s what these pictures demonstrate.  Make the cakes as the linked recipe directs then before cooking, pat on some Panko on each side.

Squish the crumbs into the patties.

Carefully place patties into the heavy skillet when the oil is just starting to smoke slightly.

Cook until nicely browned on both sides. Definitely an upgrade.

~A

Vegan Whole Grain Seeded Bread

If you live in the Pacific Northwest,  you have certainly heard of the story of Dave’s Killer Bread.  Son of a baker, Dave came into his legacy late in life after a rather storied past.  He has ingeniously used that story,  together with terrific baking skills, to market a wonderful line of vegan friendly, whole foods bread.  “WOW”. That is what most people say when they eat his bread.  It’s also terrifically expensive.  I am going on a baking journey to find his secrets and have ‘Dave’s bread on demand’.   I have scoured the internet for ideas and have only found one “genuine” Dave’s recipe–for his “Sin Dawgs” i.e. cinnamon bread roll.  Some help, but only the barest.

UPDATE:  Here’s the complete recipe link!

Here is my first attempt…no recipe, just pictures of my first two loaves.

I started with my favorite, “tried and true” Laurel’s Kitchen Bread Book Oatmeal Bread recipe.  Using the steel cut oats from his ingredient list, I added 2 tablespoons of each of the seeds listed.  I let the seed/oat mixture sit overnight.  My whole grain recipe calls for two risings and then shaping for another rise.

I cut the dough in half

I rolled out each piece until the dough mounds were about 3/8  inch thick

Using a dough scraper

I rolled the dough into a tight loaf, tucking in the ends

Gently I lifted the dough into the  8 x 5 loaf pans and set them in a warm location (in this case, the oven stove top)

Covered it the pans with a damp cotton towel

Then it was a waiting game…until the dough has doubled in size

Baked at 350 degrees in just 35 minutes I had these loaves to admire!

Although we were pleased with the bread, I have some work to do on the recipe.

More to come!

~A