TWD: Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Our "TWD" Bake yesterday was "Classic Chocolate Chip Cookies" and I have to be honest, we love this recipe! (With or without nuts)

There is nothing fancy about them or the recipe, just a plain, classic, yummy cookie. As you already know we are encouraged not to share Dorie's recipe, but I can give you a few tips that makes these cookies different, even if you use your regular, favorite recipe... instead of creaming your butter and sugars together on medium mixer speed for the 2-3 minutes - whip butter and sugars together on high for 5-7 minutes until mixture is fluffy and light colored. Mix in eggs and vanilla, one at a time, keeping mixture light and airy. I promise, it makes all the difference in the world. Bake for only 8 minutes at 375. Take them out even if center still looks doughy.

ȚWD: Brioche Sticky Buns & Brioche Sandwich Buns

 TWD... Our "Tuesday's With Dorie" bake this week was " "Brioche Sticky Buns" found on page 31 of Dorie's "Baking With Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple"

These are some of our favorite Sticky buns, but I forgot that the recipe makes the amount for 2 Loaves of Bread and since we are recovering from our cruising high calorie intake I made sticky buns from first half and then made regular sandwich buns from the second half. I know they look a little dark, they are meant to be turned over so all the sweet sticky goodness runs back all over them… (I forgot to take the final photo before people started munching on them.)

As anyone that follows us knows, we are encouraged not to post Dorie's recipe, but I do highly recommend trying this recipe.

TWD: Clam Chowder Pie

 A little “TWD” Baking with Dorie… 

We made these very yummy and hearty “Clam Chowder Pies” featured on page 365 in Dorie Greenspan’s cookbook titled “Baking with Dorie - Sweet, Salty & Simple. WE made them as individual pies because there were some in our group that doesn’t care for sea food, so we made both clam and chicken. WE followed the same recipes with on;y the two following change, Clams/Chicken & Old Bay

Seasoning/Brown Butter Garlic Seasoning. The buttered oyster crackers on top was my favorite part. These pies were delicious and easy to make for both a planned party or a quick fancy dinner with unplanned guests. 

And of course as many know we are encouraged not to share the recipe, but I happen to know that you can sneak a peek on Dorie’s Instagram.

TWD… Trufflish Nuggets

 TWD... Oh My GOODNESS!!! Let me tell you about these little "Trufflish Nuggets" as Dorie calls them. They were our Tuesday's With Dorie bake this week and I was really hesitant to even try them. First, they are made solely using a food processor and we don't have one. I like to do everything by hand, but needed for this recipe. Second, Dorie's recipe calls for sliced almonds and my pantry in empty of almonds at the moment and being 1.5 hours away from a store that has them in a snow storm was bad news. Third, they reminded me a lot of a similar cookie from nine years ago and I was not sure if anyone at my house would eat

But the desire to bake with my group and the chef in me started brain-storming about all the ingredient substitutions I could use to make it all work... First, we decided on that our Pampered Chef food chopper would work. Second, peanuts would be a great replacement for almonds and then third, maybe if I added chopped cherries to the mix instead of the figs from 9 years ago. Then maybe they would taste like a "Big Cherry Mountain" candy bar... 

Mission Accomplished... These are so good!!!! tastes just like the candy bar and they are gluten free and lower calories. 

Since our group has promised not to share Dorie's recipe found in her Cookbook: "Baking with Dorie - Sweet, Salty Simple" on page 179, I thought I would share mine... (Sidenote: my recipe is half of Dorie's recipe, It made 18 tablespoon sized cookies)

1/2 cup chopped peanuts them. 

1/2 cup grated coconut

1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries 

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons semi-dark cocoa powder

2 egg whites (make sure its whites only)

I laid the cherries out on a paper towel to dry while I chopped my peanuts and coconut. Mixed those together in a medium mixing bowl, next chopped the cherries and added them to the bowl and stirred the three ingredients together. Next I added the sugar, the salt and cocoa powder, stirred until well blended. Last I added the 2 egg whites and mixed until everything looked wet and like paste. 

I used a over-full teaspoon to scoop dough onto cookie sheet covered in parchment paper and placed them about an inch apart. Baked at 350* for 25 minutes. Dorie's recipe says until cookie is firm, but soft and will peel off the parchment paper.

TWD: World Peace Cookies

TWD: (Tuesday's with Dorie)---- 

We were challenged to start the new year off with "World Peace Cookies" and as everyone knows according to my eight year old granddaughters… any world peace achievement must include m&m's.

We were not big fans of these cookies, but it could have been the bakers. I had lots of help today... Lol! Anyway we found the cookies dry and very chocolatey. 

In keeping with the TWD tradition, we have agreed to not publish the recipe but will tell you that you can find the recipe in both of Dorie's cookbooks titled “Baking With Dorie” &  "Dorie's Cookies"

"Tuesday's with Dorie" - Pears, Nuts and Rye, Oh My!

We were having family over the evening I tried this recipe and since my batter seemed extra liquidy, I decided to make them as individual desserts. I didn’t have any fresh pears, so I used bottled and left them as a whole half of pear. These cakes turned out to be a lot better tasting than they look and/or I thought they were going to be. I loved how easy they were to make and put together. We served ours with a scoop of homemade ice cream right in the center. They made a wonderful quick and yummy dessert.

This recipe is titled “Pears, Nuts and Rye, Oh My” and it comes to us from Dorie Greenspan’s new cookbook “Dorie’s Anytime Cakes”. You can check out other fans and fun recipes at  "Tuesday's with Dori".

TWD - Whole Wheat and Flax Daily Bread

WE ARE SO EXCITED FOR ANOTHER YEAR OF BAKING WITH DORIE…. 

I was so excited when we kicked off the new year with a Bread recipe. We started with “Whole Wheat and Flax Daily Bread” featured on page 15 in “Baking With Dorie”. This is such a yummy loaf of bread to make, I love how easily the dough comes together. 

Out of respect for Dorie and our baking group I won’t share the recipe here but I will share that I added a cup of my leftover fermented Teff flour that I have been playing with since I made my Injera Bread a couple of weeks ago. 

And I can honestly say that this batch of dough worked up beautifully, the rise was perfect and then…. Somewhere between my second rise and baking, it all fell flat! Overproof? Not sure, baked to fast and fell? Maybe. We ended up with a beautiful crumb and two flat loaves of bread. 

BUT IT STILL TASTED AMAZING….. ❤️ we will make this one again.

 

TWD: Devil's Food Party Cake

 

TWD: This week was an amazing bake… our recipe challenge was Dorie’s “Devil’s Food Party Cake” found on page 89 in her cookbook titled “Baking With Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple”

I was excited to try this recipe, because my husband loves homemade chocolate cake and our Anniversary is coming up this weekend. Plus the photo in the book makes it look really delicious… 

AND IT WAS!!!!!

Couple of interesting things I learned along the way was the importance of time…

First thing: In Dorie’s instructions, she shares with everyone that we needed to beat the butter, sugar & salt together on medium for 4 minutes and then drizzle the oil along the sides of the mixing bowl, mixing until you have a light and creamy mixture, about 3 minutes. In my baking mind, I was like no way, I have never beat sugar and butter for that long, 7 minutes? Why? And then I watched the magic happen…(see first photo) I finished the recipe just like it reads…

Second Awha: when making frosting, I have always used extra cold milk, Dorie’s recipe calls for milk at room temperature to be drizzled in on low speed until blended, then beat to complete. OH MY HEAVENLY FROSTING, as most of you know, I am not a frosting fan, but I can honestly say… “I WILL NEVER MAKE CHOCOLATE FROSTING FOR MY LAYER CAKES ANY OTHER WAY ANGAIN”

Sad news is that like the other challenge recipes, we have been asked not to share the exact recipes on social media, but I know they are out there... EVERYONE NEEDS TO TRY THIS ONE!!!  

 

 

TWD: “Tender Biscuits”

 January 14…. TWD: “Tuesday’s With Dorie”

I have missed baking with the group that bakes with and from Dorie Greenspan’s cookbooks, so I decided to catch back up with everyone this year. 

Today, they were baking “Tender Biscuits” found on page 42 in Dorie’s newest cookbook titled “Baking With Dorie: Sweet, Salty, & Simple”. 

I had to laugh at this year’s kickoff recipe because “tender” is not the word I would ever use to describe my biscuits… lol BUT!!! My hubby makes the best biscuits ever and almost every Sunday I wake up too amazing Biscuits & Gravy at my bedside. 💝

TWD…. “Mulled-Butter Apple Pie”

 TWD::::: Our second bake with my “Tuesday’s with Dorie” group this month was “Mulled-Butter Apple Pie”. We actually made this pie last Saturday, so that we could include it in our Thanksgiving desserts. 

As delicious as this recipe sounded, I found it to be a little lacking in flavor and texture. I think though it could have been me, the baker, I only had two apples and one pie crust left, so I think that rich boldness that would have come from a deep dish style pie would have been better. 

If you would like to try this pie, you can find the recipe on page 245 in Dorie Greenspan’s new cookbook entitled “Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple”

TWD: Peacan-Cranberry Loaf

This week our “Tuesday’s with Dorie” recipe was “Pecan - Cranberry Loaf” found on page 73 in her most recent cookbook entitled “Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple”. I have really spending time this year with this group and have enjoyed many recipes, I always seem to learn something new from every recipe and for this I am GRATEFUL! 😁

Since, out of respect to Dorie, we have been asked not to share the exact recipe, I thought I would share a couple of tips that I learned from this very yummy, “have to make again” loaf of sweet style bread. world.

… my First thought was the recipe called for 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander, was not sure how I felt about that being in the flavor profile. So I made two loaves, one loaf without and the other loaf I used fresh ground coriander and I was like… “Why haven’t I thought to try this before” it made all the difference in the

… the other tip I learned from this recipe was before adding the orange zest into the mix, Dorie recommended rubbing the orange zest into the white sugar with my hands before adding it to the mix. This also made a huge difference. It brightened the orange flavor and gave it more umph without the bitter back-taste that sometimes comes with baked orange zest. 

… The other thing for me and this recipe was it called for chopped fresh or frozen whole cranberries, which I didn’t have and because I live so far from town, I used fresh Blackberries that I had on Hand. 

I totally and completely fell in love with this recipe… I am pretty sure it might be served alongside my fruitcake at Christmas this year.

 

TWD: The Everything Cake

 Our Tuesday's With Dorie this week was her recipe for "The Everything Cake" found on page 129 in her new cookbook "Baking with Dorie: Sweet & Salty & Simple". 

Since we are encouraged not to post the recipe I will share that this is a very simple traditional sponge style cake, but instead of using 6 whole eggs, her recipe only calls for 3 whole eggs and no cream of tarter. 

Even though Dorie lists several different combinations of flavors and mix-ins, I  loved the look of her cake that she has pictured, so I also made mine with what I think may have been Mandrian oranges. I used both the zest and the slices in my cake and then used zest and juice in my glaze. 

I really loved the texture and simpleness of this cake. ❤️  

Iced Honey-Apple Scones with Spelt

 TWD.... this week our "Tuesday's With Dorie" baking group enjoyed baking some very yummy "Iced Honey-Apple Scones with Spelt" from Dorie's new cookbook entitled "Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple. 

I can honestly say that even though we have agreed to not share the recipe here on Facebook, I would encourage everyone to find and try this recipe.... we really enjoyed these tasty little treats with our hot chocolate and fireplace the other night. 

I loved the soft nutty flavor that the spelt flour gave these scones. It was a very welcome touch to a very cakey style scone. We will definitely make these again, maybe with raisins or dried cranberries next time.

TWD: Chocolate Babka

Okay.... So it’s time for our holiday baking with the “Tuesday’s With Dorie” group that I bake with and several years ago I tried my hand at the “Chocolate Babka” that everyone was raving about. Traditionally it is filled, rolled into a loaf and covered with a very yummy streusel topping, but here at the pantry, my little helping hands mistakenly added the streusel in the middle before we rolled it and they wanted to make it star shaped like another recipe the girls were looking at, so we drizzled vanilla glaze over the top of ours. Another side note: our loaf is filled with homemade chocolate cream cheese filling made with fresh ground cacao nibs that my friend gave us, instead of the unsweetened cocoa powder that the recipe calls for. Loved how easy and pretty my loaves turned out. 

The recipe can be found in Dorie Greenspan’s “Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty and Simple”. On page 35. 

Also… there is an awesome group of photo instructions explaining how to make the Star Shape can be found at the following link: Star Shaped Brioche

"Tuesday's with Dorie" - Buttermilk Scones

Today, I got a chance to spend some extra time in the kitchen, so I decided to make up the "Tuesday's with Dori" recipe that I missed at the first of the month. The Buttermilk Scones were really good and I would highly recommend them. The recipe is actually an old Julia Child's recipe... And all you have to do is google it.

"TBHD" - Plum Upside Down Cake

Today for our "Tuesday’s With Dorie” challenge we are making "Crumb-Topped Ricotta Coffee Cake” found on page 79 in Dorie Greenspan’s new cookbook entitled Baking With Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple. 

The fruit I chose to use in this recipe was plums. They were very tasty and reminded me a lot of the "Rhubarb Upside Down Cake that we made for "Tuesday's With Dorie" back in May of 2015. My cake baked up a little dark on the bottom, I think because I used a clear glass baking dish. I think next time I am going to try baking it in a dutch oven or cast iron skillet like for a BBQ.

if you would like to check out any of my other recipes, visit my pantry blog at www.thepantrylife.blogspot.com

TWD…. Mokonut’s Rye-Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies

This week our challenge was to make “Mokonut’s Rye-Cranberry Chocolate Chunk Cookies

 

The story behind these very yummy cookies that Dorie shared with us was that People come from all around the world to eat at MoKonut’s, which is a small little restaurant in Paris. It is always full and everyone comes for the same dessert which is one of MoKo Hirayama’s cookies. The story is that she only makes a few varieties, but the all share the same chubbiness, texture and uncommon flavor profiles. 

This recipe had me at first hesitation, rye and bittersweet chocolate was not a flavor combination that I would have contemplate for a cookie and living so far away from the nearest grocery store I was a little limited on my ingredients. So as most of you that have followed along with me and this baking group knows that I can’t share the exact recipe with you, but I can tell you that I replaced the rye flour with Spelt flour and the bittersweet chocolate with white chocolate chips. 

I can honestly tell you that I was sweetly surprised at how wonderfully delicious they are and when eaten warm they were the highlight of my day. I was debating if I should add the whole 1/3 cup of poppy seeds or not and I am so glad I did… you can find the recipe and the rest of the story behind these cookies on page 163 in Dorie Greenspan’s new cook book entitled “Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty & Simple”

TWD..... Apple Pandowdy

It’s Tuesday.... and So excited.... this week our “Baking with Dorie” recipe was Apple Pandowdy. 

This recipe was amazingly simple ( 5 ingredients) and very tasty, not too sweet and was a wonderful finishing fall complement to our meatloaf & mashed potato dinner. Not to heavy and yet warm and comforting. As you can see, there is no cinnamon in this recipe and as tempted as I was to add it, (because you can’t have baking apples without cinnamon... 🤔) I am really glad I didn’t. I think it would have taken away from the nice and fresh, clean, crisp flavor of the apples. We served ours with whipped cream and Carmel drizzle. 

The little girls choose “Whale” shaped pie dough toppers, they were pretending they were fat baked turkeys.... lol.

You can find the recipe in Dorie Greenspan’s new cookbook entitled “Baking with Dorie: Sweet, Salty and Simple”

TWD..... English Muffins

I woke up early this morning really excited to be baking again with the “Tuesday’s with Dorie” Group and we are currently baking out of her new cookbook entitled “Baking With Dorie, Sweet, Salty and Simple” by Dorie Greenspan.

Our recipes this month will be England Muffins & Apple Pandowdy. I started with English Muffins. I have only made them one other time and I baked them. I discovered today that Traditional English Muffins are never baked, they are fried. And then best if toasted before eating....

Here is how our day went::::::::

   

 

TWD: Date- Nut Pinwheels

        This month we made Date-Nut Pinwheels. These were very tasty, I used both dried figs and dates when I followed the recipe. I was kind of in a hurry, so I split the batch of dough in half and tried to make a few before the dough was chilled and they didn't work very well.  the cookies that I made later in the day after the dough had chilled worked better and held their spiral shaping. BUT... These were very yummy, even my husband like these. WE WILL MAKE THEM AGAIN!

        And since we have an agreement not to post the recipe, I will let you all know that this recipe can be found on page 248 in Dorie Greenspan's New Cookbook entitled: "Dorie's Cookies"