Homemade Oreo Cookie

Alright, this week I wanted to do something nice and simple. Since going to school I've realized that I'm a simple baker. If that makes sense. I love baking and making something taste so delicious that's all someone will think about while they're eating my creation. I'm not a decorator. I, in all honesty, HATE cake decorating. I've tried and tried, but I'd rather spend my time on the taste then the appearance. You can still make something look amazing with out all the hoopla. I'm still trying though. Just ask Todd. He knows when I'm trying to decorate a cake. Practice makes perfect right?!

Anyway....off my little rant...so since I didn't have much time this week (we're leaving for Denver on Friday), as I said before I wanted something simple. I don't think I've craved too much during this pregnancy, but a couple weeks ago I was walking through Walmart and saw a bag of Oreos. They looked so good. I knew Todd would want to get them if I mentioned it. But surprisingly enough he said we didn't need them. Shocking I know. Since then I've been wanting some with a glass of milk (and for those that know me know I can't stand milk). Mmm...sounds so good though. When I was trying to figure out what to bake this week it popped into my head Homemade Oreos. I've made them before and they're quite easy. All you need is a couple boxes of cake mixes, a few basic ingredients, and cream cheese. The best part, they're way better than store bought:)

The recipe says to bake them for 10-13 minutes. Usually depends on your oven and the size. Mine only cooked for 8 minutes. As the cookies cooled mine became a little hard. I thought I over cooked them, but when you bite into them they're just right. They soft, but give a little crunchiness so they're almost like the real oreos you buy. The recipe made a ton of cookies. Didn't really get to count them, but if you don't need tons I'd half it next time. It took forever. Part of that could have been due to the fact that I made them pretty small.

Homemade Oreo's

2 Devils Food Cake mixes

1 1/4 C Butter

4 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

Directions:Mix well. Roll into cherry sized balls. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 10-13 minutes. Cool on rack.

Cream Cheese Filling

(1) 8 oz pkg cream cheese

1/4 C butter*1 tsp vanilla

3 1/2 C Powdered Sugar.

Mix well and spread between cooled cookies.

Strawberry Shortcakes

This past week I decided to try making strawberry shortcakes. I LOVE strawberries and they're soooo good right now. I found this recipe on Good Eats N Sweets. If you want to see better pictures I'd check out her blog. I've never made shortcakes before, or at least that I can remember. The recipe was pretty simple. Having never made these, I'm not sure if my shortcakes came out correctly. I know the batter was like making biscuits and you're not suppose to work them too much. The cakes rose a little, but not much. There was still room to cut in half. I actually don't think I would have wanted them any bigger. There might have been way too much cake. The recipes tells you to pat the dough into a square, but I actually rolled it so that probably could have done something to not make them rise too much.

The strawberries were sooo nice and refreshing. My favorite part about strawberry shortcakes are that they are light and don't make you feel like you're eating a real heavey dessert. If you're in the mood for a spring/summer dessert I'd try these. Simple and sweet!

Strawberry Shortcakes
FOR THE SHORTCAKES
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons sugar plus 1 tablespoon for glazing
1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 cup cold heavy cream
2 tablespoons whole milk or heavy cream, for glazing

FOR THE STRAWBERRIES
1 dry quart fresh strawberries, rinsed, hulled, and sliced
3 tablespoons sugar (or more to your taste)

FOR THE WHIPPED CREAM
1 cup cold heavy cream
3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 tablespoon plus 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar

BEFORE YOU START
Position a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350° F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.

TO MAKE THE SHORTCAKES
In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, salt, 2 tablespoons of the sugar, and the zest. Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until it resembles a course meal. Little by little, stir in heavy cream until the dough starts to hold together (you may use a bit more cream if need be).
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Pat together to form a rectangle 5 inches wide by 7 1/2 inches long that is about 1 inch thick. Cut the long side of the dough into thirds, and the width in half to form six 2 1/2-inch squares. Place the shortcakes 3 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheet.
Brush the tops of the shortcakes with the milk or heavy cream and sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of sugar. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until light golden brown. Remove to a wire rack to cool to room temperature.
While the shortcakes are cooling, prepare the strawberries. In a medium bowl, combine the sliced strawberries with the sugar. Set aside for 20 to 30 minutes to macerate.

TO MAKE THE WHIPPED CREAM
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whip attachment, beat the heavy cream and vanilla on medium speed. In a slow steady stream, add the sugar and beat until the mixture forms medium-stiff peaks.
The whipped cream is best used when just made, but can be refrigerated in an airtight container overnight and beaten again before serving.

TO COMPLETE THE SHORTCAKES
Fork split each shortcake in half horizontally. Place one half on each of six plates. Spoon 2 tablespoons of berries on each with a large dollop of whipped cream. Spoon more berries on top. Place each of the remaining halves on top of the berries. Garnish with more cream and berries, if desired. Add a sprig of mint for garnish, if you’d like.

(sorry about the pictures. They're not the greatest. I couldn't get the camera to focus and then the sun was going down which didn't help with the lighting. Maybe working on my photography skills will be my next project!)

Apple Pie and Cinnamon Ice Cream

For my first recipe on here I decided to make an Apple Pie. I wanted to just do something basic. I figured when you're trying to get back into the habit of something you go back to the basics and work your way up. I went ahead and also made some cinnamon ice cream. I've been wanting to make cinnamon ice cream for forever so I thought this would be the perfect time.

The apple pie I made was from Martha Stewart. It was made with lime juice, something I've never done before. It added a nice little flavor. Everything else were your basic ingredients. Apples, flour, sugar, butter, cinnamon. I learned that I need to practice my pie dough skills. The dough turned out fine, it was just the rolling out and then forming it all together. But practice makes perfect, so I'm guess I'll be making more pies in the future!

Cinnamon Ice Cream is FABULOUS!!! I love cinnamon. LOVE IT. I added just a little more cinnamon then the recipe called for and I'm glad. I don't think it was too overpowering. Just right. Mmm...so good. I could probably eat the whole batch, but luckily we have neighbors who helped us eat both the pie and ice cream.

I had so much fun making this pie. It's funny when you've stopped doing something for awhile, and then when you restart, things just start coming back. While I was tossing the apples, with everything, I kept remembering things my chef told me to do and different terms. I started laughing cause I really didn't think I'd start remembering things like that. Today was a refreshing start. I seriously love baking. There's just a neat aspect of taking all these different ingredients and creating something so delicious with it!

Apple Pie:

Crust:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 sticks cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
• 1/3 cup plus 2 teaspoons ice water

Filling:

• 3 1/2 pounds (about 8 medium) heirloom apples, such as Arkansas Black, Caville Blanc, Carpentin, Jonathan, Knobbed Russet or Northern Spy.*
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling out dough
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped
• 1 tablespoon cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons sanding sugar

Crust:

Pulse flour, salt, and sugar in a food processor until combined. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 seconds. With the machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream until the mixture just begins to hold together.

Shape dough into two disks, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate for 1 hour or up to two days.

Pie:

On a lightly floured surface, roll 1 disk of dough to 1/8 inch thickness. Fit into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim edges, leaving a 1-inch overhang. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes. Roll remaining disk of dough into a 12-inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet, and freeze until cold and firm, about 15 minutes.

Peel and core apples, then cut them into 1/2 to 1-inch chunks and place them in a medium bowl. Add flour, sugar, lemon juice, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla seeds, and toss.

Place apple mixture in prepared pie dish, and dot with butter. Center dough round over apples, and tuck overhang under edge of bottom dough. Using your fingers, gently pinch dough along edge to seal. Using a paring knife, cut eight 2 1/2-inch vents in dough to let steam escape. Freeze pie until firm, about two hours.

Preheat oven to 425° F. Mix yolk and heavy cream in a small bowl, and brush over dough. Sprinkle with sanding sugar. Place dish on rimmed baking sheet, and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 375° F, and bake until crust is golden brown and juices are bubbling, 50-60 minutes. Transfer pie to a wire wrack to cool completely.

Cinnamon Ice Cream:

• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 1/2 cups half-and-half cream
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

In a saucepan over medium-low heat, stir together the sugar and half-and-half. When the mixture begins to simmer, remove from heat, and whisk half of the mixture into the eggs. Whisk quickly so that the eggs do not scramble. Pour the egg mixture back into the saucepan, and stir in the heavy cream. Continue cooking over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture is thick enough to coat the back of a metal spoon. Remove from heat, and whisk in vanilla and cinnamon. Set aside to cool.

Pour cooled mixture into an ice cream maker, and freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions.

(Sorry no pictures of the ice cream. Pictures didn't turn out too great!)