With Sprinkles on Top

Halloween is almost here! My favorite candy when I was a kid was candy corn – though I used to call it “corny candy”. Close enough, right? I would always bite off the white tip, believing wholeheartedly that it tasted better than the orange and yellow parts. I still carry some of these weird and irrational eating beliefs with me today — I firmly believe that holiday M&Ms taste creamier than the regular ones; that Easter Reese’s peanut butter eggs have a different chocolate-to-peanut butter ratio and therefore taste better; and that Cadbury Mini Eggs are laced with some sort of highly addictive and illegal substance. Mmm… mini eggs. Mmmm.

Even those these candy corn cookies aren’t aesthetically perfect (my fault!), they were really easy to make!

Sparkling Candy Corn Cookies
Recipe source: Land O’ Lakes
Print Recipe

1 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 egg
2 Tablespoons orange juice
2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoons baking soda
Orange and yellow food colorings
1/2 cup sugar

1. Line the bottom of a 9×5″ loaf pan with waxed paper or plastic food wrap. Set aside.
2. Combine butter and 1 cup sugar in large bowl; beat at medium speed until creamy. Add egg, orange juice, orange zest, and salt. Continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; add flour and baking soda. Beat until well mixed.
3. Divide dough into thirds. Press one-third of white dough evenly onto bottom of prepared pan. Place another one-third of dough back into same bowl. Add orange food coloring; mix until color is well-blended. Press orange dough evenly over white dough in pan. Place remaining one-third of dough into another medium bowl. Add yellow food coloring; mix until color is well-blended. Press yellow dough evenly over orange dough in pan. Cover with plastic food wrap; refrigerate until firm (at least 2 hours or overnight).
4. Place 1/2 cup sugar in large bowl, set aside.
5. Heat oven to 375F.
6. Invert loaf pan to remove dough. Peel off waxed paper. Place layered dough onto cutting surface. Cut loaf crosswise into 1/4-inch slices using sharp knife, trimming edges to make even, if necessary. Cut each slice into 6 wedges. Place 1-inch apart on parchment-lined cookie sheets. Bake for 7-10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are lightly browned.
7. Cool 1 minute; remove from cookie sheets and immediately place warm cookies in bowl with sugar; roll in sugar to coat. Place cookies on wire cooling rack.

Makes about 15 dozen miniature cookies; store in loosely covered container.

Here’s another creation by my friend Meg! We had lots of fun frosting almost 200 mini cupcakes for her birthday party! These were my favorite – I’m a sucker for anything involving dark chocolate!

Dark Chocolate Mini Cupcakes
Recipe adapted from epicurious.com
Print Recipe

Cupcakes:
2 cups walnuts, toasted, cooled
1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
2 tablespoons honey
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
6 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/4 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Frosting:
4 1/2 ounces high-quality dark chocolate, chopped
6 ounces (3/4 of 8-ounce package) cream cheese, room temperature
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon mint extract
1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line two 12-cup mini-muffin pans.
2. Using on/off turns, blend first 4 ingredients in processor until walnuts are finely chopped.
3. Whisk flour and baking powder in small bowl. Stir chocolate and butter in heavy small saucepan over low heat until melted and smooth. Cool slightly.
4. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, eggs, and vanilla in large bowl until very thick, about 4 minutes. Gradually beat in cooled chocolate mixture. Stir in walnut mixture.
5. Spoon 1 1/2 tablespoons batter into each prepared muffin cup. Bake cupcakes until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Cool in pan on rack.

Frosting:
1. Stir dark chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of barely simmering water until melted and smooth. Cool slightly. Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese, butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt in medium bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in melted dark chocolate and mint extract. Let cool until thickened to spreadable consistency.
2. Spread frosting over cupcakes.
*If the frosting is too runny or thin, just add more powdered sugar.

Gigi’s Cupcakes are new to Madison, but have other locations around the country. I kept seeing a sign saying “Gigi’s Cupcakes Coming Soon!” at one of the malls here in Madison. Naturally, I was intrigued. A few weeks ago I stopped in and bought 4 cupcakes. I think any cupcakery laughs all the way to the bank — charging $3.50 for a cupcake. But consumers still buy them and I’m included! I tried the white midnight magic, Scarlett’s red velvet, wedding cake, and Texas milk chocolate. I enjoyed them, but with many other treats, I found them to be too sweet, too overwhelming. But I’m guessing that’s just me – as I’m the type that likes 70% dark chocolate… the more bitter the better!

If you have a Gigi’s Cupcakes near you, stop by and give them a try.

(also… photo bitch-n-moan: Nikon… why must you pull GREEN all the time?!)

Something miraculous happened a few days ago. I ate a piece of pumpkin bread – and I kinda liked it. Has hell frozen over? Maybe I’m starting to like pumpkin! To celebrate my maybe-possibly-could-be-who-knows venture into pumpkin-based foods, here’s a easy recipe for pumpkin cookies!

Pumpkin Sandwich Cookies
Recipe source: Land O’ Lakes
Print Recipe

Cookies:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1/4 cup milk
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla

Filling:
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 Tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 cups powdered sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350F, line cookie sheets with parchment paper.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.
3. Combine brown sugar and 1/2 cup butter in large bowl; beat at medium speed until creamy. Add pumpkin, milk, egg, and 1 teaspoon vanilla; beat until well-mixed. Reduce speed to low; add flour mixture and beat until well-mixed.
4. Drop batter by level Tablespoonfuls onto cookie sheets. Bake for 9-10 minutes or until set and edges are slightly brown. Cool 2 minutes on cookie sheets; remove to write cooling rack.
5. Combine all filling ingredients except powdered sugar in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until smooth. Gradually add 4 cups powdered sugar, beating well after each addition.
6. Spread 2 teaspoons (more or less if you like!) of the filling onto the bottom side of one cookie. Top with another cookie. Sprinkle filled cookies with powdered sugar.

Makes about 2-3 dozen sandwich cookies.

I was in Chicago a few weeks ago to visit my dear friend Meg. Meg, like me, loves to bake. Truth be known, she’s a far better baker than I am — you know, the type that doesn’t follow a recipe and does everything using her intuition. I’m not at that stage yet! She made these little beauties for her 27th birthday party and they were delicious.

White Chocolate Cupcakes
Recipe adapted from epicurious.com
Print Recipe

8 ounces high-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Perugina), chopped
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
1 cup sugar
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk (do not use low-fat)
3 large egg whites

Frosting:
4 1/2 ounces high-quality white chocolate (such as Lindt or Perugina), chopped
6 ounces (3/4 of 8-ounce package) cream cheese, room temperature
6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
3-4 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
Zest from 1-2 oranges
1/2 cup orange liquor (or more to taste!)

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Line three 6-cup muffin pans with paper liners.
2. Place white chocolate in metal bowl set over pan of barely simmering water. Stir until melted and smooth.
3. Whisk flour, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat sugar, butter, and vanilla in large bowl until blended. Add hot white chocolate to sugar mixture; stir to combine. Add flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with coconut milk in 2 additions, beating batter just to combine between additions.
4. Using clean dry beaters, beat egg whites in medium bowl until soft peaks form. Gently fold egg white mixture into batter in 3 additions.
5. Divide batter among muffin cups (about 1/4 cup each). Bake until tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Cool completely. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Store in airtight container at room temperature.)

Frosting:
1. Stir white chocolate in metal bowl set over saucepan of barely simmering water until melted and smooth. Cool slightly. Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese, butter, sugar, vanilla, and salt in medium bowl until fluffy. Gradually beat in melted white chocolate, orange zest, and orange liquor. Let cool until thickened to spreadable consistency.
2. Spread frosting over cupcakes.
*If the frosting is too runny or thin, just add more powdered sugar.