Galette des Rois (AKA King Cake)

I would like to say that I was born and raised in New Orleans, but really I was born in Gretna and I lived in Algiers (which is part of NO) until I was seven...Okay, I will continue to say born and raised.


I do have some memorable stories from those seven years. In those years, I managed to get second-degree burns on my hands twice, a black eye from a giant set of Mardi Gras beads, a probable case of hypothermia from the time my parents threw a crawfish boil and I got to hang out in my kiddie pool which was acting as a beer cooler, and a lot of great Halloween parties.


But the one thing that really reminds me of New Orleans is a painting that hangs on my wall at home. It is of three cats.


"Cats?" you say?...My Mom is a remarkable seamstress and she has made nearly every costume I have ever had. For Mardi Gras that year, I was probably two, my Mom made us a cat family...an anatomically correct cat family. And by cat, I mean LION! Not snuggly kitties, though I am sure lions can be snuggly as well. Anyways, from what I am told, which my parents were standing around in the crowd, I was on my Dad's back, a painter snapped a photo of us. A few months later, my Dad was wandering around the city and came across the painting. He was completely flabbergasted and he had to have to the painting. Because it was us.


The painter gave us the photo as well, which sits on the edge of the frame.


Another thing reminds me of NO...FOOOOOOD!


I love cajun food. And I love cooking cajun food. While making the King Cake, I made gumbo. Pictures included.

But yeah, King Cake! There are so many different ways to make King Cake, but my favorite way is with cinnamon. For me, the jelly and cream cheese fillings are too sweet. The most important thing is the sprinkles! They must be correct! Luckily, the lovely people at the grocery store bakery "loaned" me some purple and yellow. Don't be afraid to ask them for things...They will do it.


I suppose the baby/walnut are important as well, but I was not making this for a party.


King Cake
Makes 2 cakes
Adapted from Allrecipes.com


Pastry
1 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
2/3 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
5 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Filling 

1 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2/3 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup melted butter
*I found this not to be enough for two. I recommend doubling*

Frosting
1 cup confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon water

For pastry:
1. Scald milk, remove from heat and stir in 1/4 cup of butter. Allow mixture to cool to room temperature. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in the warm water with 1 tablespoon of the white sugar. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.

2. When yeast mixture is bubbling, add the cooled milk mixture. Whisk in the eggs. Stir in the remaining white sugar, salt and nutmeg. Beat the flour into the milk/egg mixture 1 cup at a time. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 to 10 minutes.

3. Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 2 hours. When risen, punch down and divide dough in half.

For filling:
4. Combine the brown sugar, ground cinnamon, chopped pecans, 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 cup raisins. Pour 1/2 cup melted butter over the cinnamon mixture and mix until crumbly.

To assemble:
5. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease 2 cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
6. Roll dough halves out into large rectangles (approximately 10x16 inches or so). 

Yes, my rolling pin is a Guinness pint glass. I AM POOR!

7. Sprinkle the filling evenly over the dough and roll up each half tightly like a jelly roll, beginning at the wide side. 

Bring the ends of each roll together to form 2 oval shaped rings. Place each ring on a prepared cookie sheet. With scissors make cuts 1/3 of the way through the rings at 1 inch intervals. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 45 minutes.

Eh, the area where the ends are attached looks a bit funny...But it all tastes good!

8. Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Push the doll into the bottom of the cake. Frost while warm with the confectioners' sugar blended with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water. 


Enjoy! Soooo delicious!

Whole Wheat Butterscotch Oatmeal APPLE Cookiess

O yes. I created a MASTERPIECE.

Seriously, sometimes my genius amazes me.

Tonight I wanted something sweet, but my cupboards were looking a little bare. I had this great recipe for whole wheat butterscotch oatmeal cookies...so I decided to tweak it and add some fruit! I had a few apples laying around so I peeled one, chopped it up, and decided to throw it into whatever recipe I made.

Whole Wheat Butterscotch Oatmeal APPLE Cookies
Adapted from Heavenly Homemakers

Ingredients:
-3/4 cup melted butter
-1 1/4 cup brown sugar
-1 egg
-1 tsp baking powder
-1 tsp vanilla extract
-1/4 tsp baking soda
-1 cup rolled oats
-1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (I use king arthurs)
-1/2 cup butterscotch chips
-about 1 cup chopped apple (I used a gala apple) (make sure you peel it before you chop it!)
-Cinnamon sugar mix (optional for sprinkling on before they bake!) (you know, ~1/4 cup sugar to 1tbsp cinnamon!)

Baking Steps:
1) Stir together melted butter and brown sugar in a large mixing bowl
2) Add egg, baking powder, vanilla extract and baking soda
3) Mix in flour, oats and butterscotch chips
4) Add apple!
5) Place tsp sized balls on cookie sheet and sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar mixture, just a pinch on top of each cookie
6) Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees (basically until golden brown...oven times may vary)

Mmm, look at the butterscotch chips and apple chunks!

Ancho Chile Nutella Truffles

Nutella with a kick? Heck yeah!

As a girl who has spent her life living between New Orleans and Houston, I cannot express how much I love spicy food.

Add a small Nutella obsession...and well, these truffles are perfect.

Ancho Chile Nutella Truffles
Makes about 2 dozen


2 4-oz. 70% cocoa dark chocolate bars, broken into pieces (but keep bars separated)
1 13 oz. jar of Nutella
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 teaspoon ancho chile pepper

1. Combine one bar of chocolate, Nutella, butter and ancho chile into either a microwave safe bowl or a double broiler. Melt chocolate and mix.

2. Move mixture into another bowl and mix until the chocolate has cooled and is easy to mold. This does take a bit of time. You do not need to continuously mix it but do not let it sit for too long. Cover with saran wrap and refrigerate for an hour.

3. Once the chocolate is firm enough to handle, roll into 25 walnut sized balls. If the chocolate starts to get warm, stick back into the refrigerator. Once you have used all the chocolate, place the balls into the freezer for about half an hour.

4. While the chocolate is in the freezer, melt the other chocolate bar. If you are using a larger pan or bowl to melt the chocolate, transfer into a small bowl so that the chocolate will be deeper. Toothpick one of the frozen balls and drip into the melted chocolate, twirling the toothpick so that the ball will be completely covered. Let excess chocolate drop off. Sprinkle paprika, cinnamon, or chile pepper on top. Let the chocolate harden before transferring the truffle onto a parchment lined tray.

5. Once you have created all the truffles, let the truffles sit in room temperature for about 15 minutes and then place in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies

So, these cookies remind me of the Pilsbury cookies that you slice and they have holiday shapes in the middle. Do they still make those?

They are very simple to make but for some reason I ran into some issues while combining the red and "white" layers. It just kept stretching while I was adding the sprinkles!

Also, I have no finished product photos...because they disappeared very quickly.

Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies

Adapted from The Shine Project

2 1/2 cups APF

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 egg

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon peppermint extract (Feel free to add a little more - I found this not to be enough)

3 tablespoons milk

Red food coloring (I used Wilton's "Christmas Red")

Powdered sugar, for rolling out dough

SPRINKLES!

1. Sift together the flour, salt and baking powder and set aside.

2. Cream butter and sugar together in another large bowl. Add egg, vanilla, milk, and peppermint extract, and beat until incorporated. Gradually add the dry mixture, beating until combined. Remove half of the mixture from the bowl. Add red food coloring, beating until fully combined. You may have to knead the colored dough a bit to get it mixed thoroughly. On a sheet of waxed paper, roll out dough to form a large rectangle, about 1/4-inch thick. Repeat this step with the other half of uncolored dough with no food coloring.

3. Now very carefully, slide the red dough on top of the white dough and slide the parchment paper out. Trim edges if uneven and patch if necessary. Roll dough into a log, creating a swirl effect.

4. Place a generous amount of sprinkes in a shallow dish and roll the cookie dough log firmly over the sprinkles until they stick and its covered. Wrap tightly with saran wrap and place the dough back in the refrigerator and let chill for 2 hours.

5. Preheat oven to 375° F

6. Slice the dough into 1/2-inch slices and place on a parchment lined sheet tray about 1-inch apart. Bake for 10-15 minutes. 

Holiday Cinnamon Cookies

Ok, so the only reason I can call these "holiday" cookies is because I added some green, red, silver and white sparkly sprinkles :-)

I couldn't help myself.

Holiday Cinnamon Cookies
Adapted from Food.com

Ingredients:
-1 cup sugar
-1/2 cup butter
-1  egg
-1 tsp. vanilla
-1 1/2 cups flour
-1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
-1 tsp. baking powder
-1/4 tsp. salt
-cinnamon and sugar (to roll cookies in)
-fun sprinkles (to roll cookies in)

Baking Steps:
1. In a large mixing bowl, cream together butter and sugar; beat in vanilla and egg
2. Add flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt, mix together.
3. Cover and refrigerate until hard enough to roll into balls (I waited like 30 minutes, the original recipe says 2 hours...so not necessary for those of you who are as impatient as I am)
4. In a small bowl, combine cinnamon and sugar to taste, and add some fun sprinkles.
5. Form dough into small balls and roll around in the sugar/cinnamon/sprinkle combination
6. Place on a cookie sheet (lined with parchment or not, your call)
7. Bake for 10 minutes at 350 F until the edges are slightly browned

~Jen

Linzer Cookies

Linzer cookies may be my most favorite cookies.

Linzer Cookies
Adapted from Southern Living


1 1/4 cup butter, softened
1 cup butter sugar
2 1/2 cups APF
1/2 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted (we use almonds)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1/4 cup of your favorite jam (my Mom is a fan of jalapeno...?)
Powdered sugar

1. 1. Preheat over to 325°F.

1. 2. Beat butter at medium speed with an electric mixer; gradually add 1 cup powdered sugar, beating until light and fluffy.
2. 3. Combine flour and next 5 ingredients; gradually add to butter mixture, beating just until blended.

1. 4. Divide dough into 2 equal portions. Cover and chill 1 hour.
2. 5. Roll each portion to a 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; cut with a 3-inch cutter, your choice of shape. Cut centers out of half of cookies with a 1 1/2-inch cutter, shape of your choice. Place all on lightly greased baking sheets.

1. 6. Bake at for 15 minutes; cool on wire racks. Spread solid cookies with jam; sprinkle remaining smaller shapes with powdered sugar. Top each solid cookie with a hollow cookie.

Yum!

Swedish Cream Wafers

So, my Mom has this old leather bound journal that holds recipes she has collected for nearly forty years. She worked as a chef on schooners in her late teens and twenties and then went on to work on an island that was owned by an old money, Maine family, and a lot of the recipes came from these two adventures in her life.

I sat down with it the other day and gave it a good read through. Not only is it filled with recipes but it has some poetry, a few drawings, and lists of groceries. Groceries? Okay, these are not your everyday groceries. These lists were made for the schooners that would go on month plus long excursions. Then on the next page would be a break down of what would be made for every meal.

I do not know how she did it. A ten pound meatloaf? Souffle on a boat? She be crazy.

However, this recipe has been passed down my family for decades. They are melt in your mouth goodness.

Are they super sweet? Yes, but they are bite sized so it is okay.

That is my logic, at least.

Swedish Cream Wafers
Makes a lot


Wafer
1 cup butter
1/3 cup 35% cream
2 cups APF, sifted

Cream
1/4 cup soft butter
3/4 cup confectioners suger, sifted
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon vanilla
red and green food coloring (or whatever color you want)


1. Combine wafer ingredients and chill overnight (I do this before I go to bed so that I can finish in the morning). 


2. Preheat oven to 325〫F.

3. Roll out dough (1/8 inch thick) and cut with 1 1/2 inch round cutter.

4. Place on wax papered pan and sprinkle with sugar. Prick top with fork. Bake for 7 minutes. Let cool.

5. Combine cream filling ingredients. Split in two so that you can add the coloring.

6. On one wafer, spread on cream, however much you would like, and then place another wafer on top.

It is that simple.