Cookie Carnival: Lemon Ricotta Cookies

This is my first post for the Cookie Carnival, hosted every month by Kate over at The Clean Plate Club. This month we were allowed to vote for which cookies we wanted to make. The winning recipe was Lemon Ricotta Cookies. I didn't vote for these, but when I found out they were the winner I knew Josh would be excited. He's crazy about lemon desserts. This particular recipe comes from FoodNetwork.com. Reading the reviews, I noticed everyone said these were a cake-like cookie. I'm not a fan of cake-like cookies........ UNLESS!! Unless they're smashed together with fluffy, creamy frosting in the middle... You see where I'm going with this?? Whoopie pies, people, WHOOPIE PIES!!?! My dad is crazy about whoopie pies. He's always asking me to make them. So this week for wing night, I made a dessert that satisfies the two most important men in my life!
These lemon ricotta cookies whoopie pies are fabulous! The cookie is definitely cake-like. It's moist and the lemon flavor is excellent. The frosting in the middle is a cooked flour frosting (my 2nd favorite frosting after SMBC). It's creamy and fluffy and lemony and PERFECT! These whoopie pies will satisfy any lemon lover!

Lemon Ricotta Cookies w/ Lemon Glaze (I omitted the glaze and sandwiched the cookies with Cooked Lemon Frosting, recipe below)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
2 eggs
1 (15-ounce) container whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

Glaze:
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 lemon, zested

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
In the large bowl combine the butter and the sugar. Using an electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs, 1 at a time, beating until incorporated. Add the ricotta cheese, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Beat to combine. Stir in the dry ingredients.
Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Spoon the dough (about 2 tablespoons for each cookie) onto the baking sheets. Bake for 15 minutes, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from the oven and let the cookies rest on the baking sheet for 20 minutes.

Glaze:
Combine the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and lemon zest in a small bowl and stir until smooth. Spoon about 1/2-teaspoon onto each cookie and use the back of the spoon to gently spread. Let the glaze harden for about 2 hours. Pack the cookies into a decorative container.


Cooked Lemon Frosting
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups milk
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, soft but cool
Zest of 1 large lemon
2 teaspoons lemon juice

Whisk together sugar, flour, milk, and cream in a saucepan. Boil over medium heat until mixture becomes extremely thick like glue, about 15-20 minutes. Whisk frequently to prevent burning.

When mixture has thickened, pour it into the bowl of an electric mixer. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium-high speed until mixture cools to room temperature, about 15 minutes (test it by touching it with the back of your hand or wrist). Add the soft but cool butter a few tablespoons at a time. When all the butter has been added, increase speed to high. The frosting will look too soft at first, but it will thicken after about 3-5 minutes on high speed. Stir in lemon zest and lemon juice.

WHAT A DAY!

Usually I don't like to make posts about things in my life that don't pertain to baking or food. I don't want to clog up my blog with entries about what happened this week on Nurse Jackie or about conversations Josh and I have about how the only thing certain is uncertainty. Usually, my life is pretty blasé. However, today is an unsual day. (I say "is" because the only thing I'm superstitious about is not tearing off the date on my page-a-day calendar until I've fallen asleep and woken up the next day. Today is today until it's tomorrow.)

Let's go back to this morning. I left for work in a hurry and forgot to grab my Oikos Greek yogurt (with honey on the bottom, yum). When I got to work, not only did I have no breakfast, the air conditioner was broken! It's Virginia! It's hot. It's humid. It's NOT cupcake-friendly weather. So we sold our cupcakes BOGO all day because customers had to wait while their cupcakes were being frosted-to-order. One positive thing so far, I got off work early which gave me plenty of time to come home and bake for "wing night." Back to the not-so-positives, on my way home, I got stuck at the drawbridge. As if that isn't bad enough already, when I went to turn my car back on, THE BATTERY WAS FREAKIN DEAD AS A DOORNAIL! I was sitting in the middle of the highway in my mom's tiny Cabrio (she was getting my car inspected for me, thanks momma!) waiting desperately for someone to stop and help. A very nice man driving a huge F-350 stopped, but he couldn't jump me because he couldn't turn his monster of a truck around on the highway. Finally, almost 10 minutes later, while cars are ZOOMING past me at 50+ mph, a guy from the department of transportation pulled up and pushed my dead car across the bridge so I could pull off of the highway. Then the nice man with the F-350 turned his truck around and gave me a jump. Both the VDOT guy and the F-350 guy were so nice! Thank goodness for both of them! So finally, I got back on the road and got home safely. Then, I went to use the bathroom and ALMOST dropped my phone in the toilet. That would've seriously been the straw that broke the camel's back...

I'd like to end this dreadful post on a positive note. I won Iron Cupcake:Earth last month, and one of the prizes is the book Hello, Cupcake! It came in the mail today, and I already have a copy of it. SO... I'm giving this one away! I haven't thought of what kind of contest I'm going to have. If you have any ideas or suggestions that would be nice. Otherwise, scroll down to where it says "Post A Comment" and tell me how sorry you are that my day sucked so bad! ;P

Whole Wheat Banana Nut Muffins

The scenario:
2 bananas sitting on the table, rapidly turning brown
My all-purpose flour container, almost empty
My bag of whole wheat flour, FULL
What to do?
Whole wheat banana nut muffins! Mmm, I should've known the subtle sweetness of whole wheat flour would go perfectly with the taste of overripe bananas. Add to that a tangy zing of dried cranberries and a delicate crunch from toasted walnuts... It's the perfect muffin! It's not too sweet, so you don't feel guilty about eating it for breakfast. My only complaint was that the banana flavor was mild. But I think that let the flavor of the whole wheat flour shine through. So, I guess I have no real complaints after all!
The original recipe is from Betty Crocker: Baking for Today. It uses all-purpose flour, but I substituted whole wheat flour for most of the AP flour. The original also adds a streusel topping. You can do that if you want a sweeter muffin, but I omitted it.

Whole Wheat Banana Nut Muffins (adapted from Betty Crocker: Baking for Today)
12 muffins (or about 10-11 if you fill the cups to the top)

1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 egg
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup mashed bananas (about 2 medium)
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup toasted walnuts, chopped
Streusel topping, optional (recipe below)

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners or use nonstick spray.
2. Make streusel topping; set aside.
3. In large bowl, beat milk, oil, egg, and mashed bananas with fork or wire whisk. Stir in flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt all at once just until flour is moistened (batter will be lumpy). Fold in cranberries and walnuts. Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Sprinkle each with about 1 tablespoon streusel topping, if using.
4. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown (Mine didn't take near that long! I think they were done at about 17-18 minutes. Check them with a toothpick.). If baked in greased pan, let stand about 5 minutes in pan, then remove from pan to wire rack; if baked in paper baking cups, immediately remove from pan to wire rack. Serve warm if desired.

Streusel Topping
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons firm butter or margarine

In medium bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Cut in butter, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until crumbly.

Baked Rice Pudding

Q: What do you do with all the leftover white rice you get with your Chinese takeout?

A: Make rice pudding, duh!

I've loved rice pudding ever since I was a kid. My dad used to buy the Kozy Shack brand in the big container. Momma would divide it up into those little Tupperware cups with the plastic lids. Then, when it was time for dessert she'd take them out of the fridge, sprinkle them with cinnamon, and mmmmm it was so good! Until this day, I can't understand how some people don't like it! I guess it's a love it or hate it thing. Josh doesn't like it. He says it's a texture thing. I don't understand that either, but to each his own. That means more rice pudding for me, IF I can fight the spoon away from my dad! ;D

This recipe comes from Better Homes and Gardens: New Baking Book. I love this book, and I recommend it to any home baker. Along with lots of pictures and informative tid-bits, the book has a wide variety of recipes, including low-fat, foreign specialties, and my favorite, old-fashioned desserts, which is the chapter where the rice pudding recipe was hiding. The recipe would be perfect without any tweaking, but of course I can't always go by the recipe word-for-word. I added a little extra vanilla and just a pinch of lemon zest. I also plumped my raisins in dark rum for a minute or two. The end result is fabulous! My family prefers it cold, so after it cooled I divided it up into containers, just like mom used to. It's perfectly creamy with just the right amount of vanilla and cinnamon. And the lemon zest really brightens it up and keeps it from feeling so heavy without actually tasting lemony. This recipe is definitely going into my binder as a keeper!
Did I mention this only took minutes to make?! It's one of the easiest desserts I've made in a long time, AND I got to mark another thing off my Top 100 list!

Baked Rice Pudding (from Better Homes and Gardens: New Baking Book)
8 servings

4 beaten eggs
2 cups milk, half-and-half, or light cream
1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups cooked rice, cooled (leftover rice works well)
1/2 to 3/4 cup raisins (I plumped my raisins by simmering them in 2 tablespoons of dark rum for 1 minute. Drain them and let them cool.)
Pinch of lemon zest (about half of a small lemon) (my own addition)
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1. In ungreased 2-quart casserole combine eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Beat until combined but not foamy. Stir in cooked rice and raisins (and lemon zest, if using). Place casserole in a 13x9x2-inch baking dish on an oven rack. Pour boiling water into baking dish around the casserole to a depth of 1 inch.
2. Bake in a 325 degree F oven for 30 minutes. Stir well; sprinkle with nutmeg and cinnamon. Bake for 20-30 minutes more or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve warm or cold. To serve cold, cover and chill pudding for up to 3 days.

Nutrition Facts per serving (8): 184 cal., 4 g total fat (2 g sat. fat), 111 mg chol., 130 mg sodium, 31 g carbo., 0 g fiber, 6 g pro.

GUESS WHO TOTALLY WON IRON CUPCAKE THIS MONTH!!

ME! Yes, me, Cassie Jean Baker! See.... http://www.ironcupcakemilwaukee.com/2009/07/ice011summer-berries-we-have-winner.html

Wooooo hooooo!!!! Go Cassie! Go Cassie! I never would've had a chance if Sandy (the mastermind behind the whole Iron Cupcake challenge) hadn't changed the voting rules recently. For every vote you get, your name goes into a drawing. That way everyone has a chance to win, not just the popular blogs that get all the votes. Thanks to everyone who voted for my "Not-So-Blue-Berry" Cupcakes! And thanks to Sandy for hosting the best baking contest on the internet AND all over the world! I can't wait to get started on this month's challenge, herbs! My basil plant is gonna hate me by the end of this month! Muahahaha! :D

PS: I must be having some incredible luck this month! Just last week I found out I won the contest at warmolives.blogspot.com for the cookbook "Cooking with All Things Trader Joe's!" There's a brand new Trader Joe's right across the street from Just Cupcakes (the new cupcakery I work at). So I'm excited to do some grocery shopping and cook up something great from the cookbook as soon as it arrives!

Fresh Blackberry Kuchen

I've been waiting since the beginning of June for the tiny green buds on my blackberry bush to turn into plump, juicy blackberries! Finally, last week, the blackberry bush delivered! I picked handfuls and handfuls of the gorgeous berries. I maneuvered my way around spider webs, stink bugs, and bird poop to find the best looking berries on the thorn-laden stems. My hard work paid off when I baked my thoroughly cleaned blackberries into this yummy kuchen (pronounced "koo-ken")!

This is my impression of you right now: "What the heck is kuchen?" Was that an accurate impression? And here's my impression of Wikipedia: "Kuchen, the German word for cake, is used in other languages as the name for several different types of sweet desserts... The term itself may cover as many distinct desserts as its English counterpart cake." It goes on to list several types of kuchen, including this description which is closest to the kuchen I made today: "A pie-like pastry, with a thick, "cakey" crust and a sweet custard based filling." And lastly, here's my impression of someone who just likes to argue: "Nuh uh! Kuchen is a German yeasted coffee cake!"

No matter what you think a kuchen is (okay now THAT sounds naughty), believe me when I say that this one is really yummy! The recipe I used is from Better Homes and Gardens: New Baking Book. It's a dense cake on the bottom with a sweet/tart, lemony yogurt custard on top. Oh yeah, there's also loads of BLACKBERRIES! I absolutely LOVE the flavor of blackberries and lemon together. I also love the flavor of yogurt with honey. So I replaced some of the sugar in both the cake and the custard recipe with a bit of honey. The end result is a fabulously refreshing dessert that is totally perfect for summertime! If you have any kind of fresh berries sitting in your fridge dying to be eaten before they get wrinkly and mushy, you MUST make this kuchen! ;D

Fresh Raspberry Kuchen (from Better Homes and Gardens: New Baking Book)
Makes 1 9-inch cake (up to 12 servings)

2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries (I used blackberries)
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar*
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 egg whites (save yolks for filling)
1 teaspoon vanilla

FILLING
1 1/2 cups plain low-fat or fat-free yogurt (I only had 1 cup and it worked fine)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar*
2 egg yolks
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon zest (about 1/2 a lemon)
1 teaspoon vanilla

*(In both the cake and the filling I removed 1 tablespoon of sugar and replaced it with 1 tablespoon of honey)
1. If using frozen berries, thaw at room temperature 15 minutes; drain.
2. In food processor bowl or medium mixing bowl combine 1 cup flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and the baking powder. Add butter, egg whites, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Cover and process, or stir by hand, until mixed well. (Mixture will be like soft cookie dough.) Spread onto the bottom of an ungreased 9-inch springform pan; sprinkle with berries.
3. For filling, place yogurt in a large mixing bowl, sprinkle with the 2 tablespoons flour. Add 1/2 cup sugar, egg yolks, whole egg, lemon zest, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix until smooth; pour over berries in springform pan.
4. Bake in a 350 degree F oven about 55 minutes or until center appears set (slightly wobbly) when shaken gently. Cool in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes; remove side of pan. Cover; chill in refrigerator for 4 to 24 hours.
5. To serve, remove pan bottom. Transfer to a platter. If desired, garnish with lemon leaves.

Nutrition facts per serving (12): 187 cal., 6 g total fat (1 g sat. fat), 55 mg chol., 111 mg sodium, 30 g carbo., 1 g fiber, 4 g pro.

HTEAC Does Business: "Over the Hill!" 40th Birthday Cake

I'm gonna start a new grouping of posts for my paid orders. I'm calling it HTEAC Does Business (sticking with the theme from my HTEAC Does Dinner section). One of our loyal wing nighters asked me to do her boyfriend John's 40th birthday cake. She wanted to do the "Over the Hill" theme with lots of black frosting. Thank goodness he likes chocolate because it is SO awful trying to make black vanilla buttercream. She told me he loves Reese's and asked me to do a cake and cupcakes using chocolate and peanut butter as the main flavors. For the cake, I used a peanut butter cake recipe from a book I recently got, Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott, and I added some mini chocolate chips to the batter. For the frosting, I used regular decorator's buttercream for the colors. And for the black frosting I made chocolate peanut butter frosting. I hate decorating cakes, and if I didn't have help from my mom (who took a gazillion Wilton classes back in the day and can decorate character cakes in her sleep) this cake would've looked terrible. We teamed up and did a pretty awesome job, considering my mom hasn't done a cake in over 10 years and I absolutely loathe cake decorating.

And if you suck at making flowers like I do, try this method. Use a small star tip (I think I used #18) and make a swirl from the inside out. It looks sorta like a flower!

Now let me talk a little more about this cake recipe. It uses the mixing method of coating the flour with fat before adding the wet ingredients. This prevents the flour from absorbing the wet ingredients and thus prevents the development of gluten. Meaning, you can stop worrying so much about over-mixing your cake batter. At first, this method always made me nervous because it's pounded into our heads that we should never over-mix the batter after the flour is added. But after a bit of practice, I actually prefer this mixing method. This particular recipe is mixed for over 2 1/2 minutes and the cake comes out perfectly soft and moist! It's like a cake miracle! :D

PS: If you only wanna make 6 or 7 cupcakes, make 1/4 of the recipe. (It works, I tried it!)

James McNair's Peanut Cake (from Southern Cakes by Nancie McDermott)
Makes 2 9-inch round layers; or about 28 cupcakes [1/4 recipe in green makes about 7 cupcakes]
4 eggs (1 egg)
1 cup milk (1/4 cup)
1/4 cup peanut oil or vegetable oil (1 Tbsp)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract (1/2 tsp)
3 cups all-purpose flour (3/4 cup)
1 tablespoon baking powder (3/4 tsp)
1/2 teaspoon salt (omit)
2 cups sugar (1/2 cup)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened (2 Tbsp)
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter (not "natural" peanut butter) (2 Tbsp)
3/4 cup semi-sweet mini chocolate chips (my own addition) (1/4 cup)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare baking pans. Set aside.
In a medium bowl, combine eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla and whisk to blend well. Set aside.
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl of a mixer, and stir with a fork to mix well. Add the sugar and use the mixer at low speed or a fork to mix these dry ingredients together well, about 30 seconds. Add the butter and peanut butter and beat at medium speed until the mixture resembles coarse bread crumbs, about 45 seconds. Add about 1 1/4 cups of the milk mixture and beat at medium speed for 1 1/2 minutes, and then stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the remaining milk mixture, beat for 30 seconds, stop and scrape down the sides of the bowl, and beat again until creamy smooth, about 30 seconds more. (Fold in the chocolate chips, if using.)
Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and smooth the surface with a rubber spatula. Bake for 25-30 minutes (or 15-17 minutes for cupcakes), until the cake springs back when touched gently in the center and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean.
Cool the cakes in the pans on wire racks or folded kitchen towel for 5 to 10 minutes. Then turn out the cakes onto the racks to cool completely.