Black and blue birthday

No,no. I didn't beat up my husband and made him black and blue on his birthday. Since my husband doesn't care much for cake, I offered to let him pick the pie of the month. He picked blackberry and blueberry. Happy Birthday to Dave!

Instead of lattice style I wanted to try a hole cut out and then did slits to make a sunshine design. It was fun!

I used the same Barefoot Contessa Perfect Pie Crust Recipe.
The pie filling I used All Recipes Again: Blackberry and Blueberry Pie
Comments:
The new thing I tried this time was to protect the crust edges, instead of cutting strips of foil and arching it around the crust, I did something else. I read to make two large sheets of foil and make a + and lay it on the counter. Place the pie in the center and then wrap the edges of the pie from the outside. It was a lot easier and they didn't fall off!

As you can see, it leaked. I was nervous that if I undercooked and under-filled it, it would be runny and/or sunk in the center. Anxiety has its price with baking. The pie was wonderful (though I still think my strawberry rhubarb is still the best so far!).

Now Bake That!

Bebop-A-Reebop Rhubarb Pie

My husband tells this joke (he says his grandpa said it): Do you think the rain will spoil the rhubarb? Not if it comes in cans. I don't get why that's funny. Then I googled it and found out its just a movie line. Um, still don't get it.

I love rhubarb crisp. Surprisingly, I had never had rhubarb pie. I was adamant that I needed to make one while it was in season. It makes me think of Garrison Keilor's Prairie Home Companion's bebop a reebop rhubarb pie. (I'm a Minnesota Native).

Recipe was from the All Recipes website: 
Rhubarb and Strawberry Pie

I also used Barefoot Contessa's Perfect Pie Crust recipe.

Comments: 
I didn't feel comfortable with the lattice, my dough kept ripping. I cheated. I just laid layers on top of each other. It's not as pretty, but honestly it didn't matter to anyone but myself.

The trick to using All Recipes is to read the comments. I mean read as many as you can. Thanks to these comments, I let the filling sit on my counter for two hours. Then I baked the pie for 10 minutes longer than the recipe requires. You will not be sorry because:

THE PIE WAS AMAZING!

I'm not kidding. My family ate all of it within 3 days. A record.

Better than a candy bar!

I've been making a version of these cookies for years. It started off so innocent, just adding some chocolate chips to the recipe I used from inside the lid of the Quaker Oats box. Then it evolved and evolved into something I claim as all mine. Someone once called these cookies better than a candy bar. This person might have been just being extra nice or rationalizing why he had more than one in 5 minutes, but I'll take it! 

This version pictured below had no chocolate chips in them but butterscotch instead. I swap depending on my audience.

Betsy's Oatmeal Cookies
1c butter, softened
1c brown sugar
1/2 c white sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/3c flour
1 tsp baking soda
3 c oatmeal
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp cardamom
1/4 tsp ginger
1/2 c butterscotch or chocolate chips
1/2 c toffee bits
1/2 c golden raisins
1/2 c cinnamon chips

Preheat oven 350 degrees
1. cream butter and sugars
2. mix in eggs and vanilla
3. add flour, soda and spices
4. stir in oats, chips and raisins
5. drop onto parchment paper lined cookie sheet (no parchment paper? go ungreased)
6. bake 10-12 minutes at 350 degrees



Comments: If the cookies turn out too thin for your taste, put the dough in the fridge for 30 minutes and try again. Still too thin? Lower your oven temperature. Still too thin? Add a little flour. I mean A LITTLE. After that, you are on your own.

Now Bake That!

Lemon on the run

I screwed up. Remember my New Year's resolution? To make one pie a month? I missed March. I can give excuses like I spent my March making cake pops, etc. Every time I feel guilty about missing March's pie I think of the following:

We went to Destin, Florida for spring break. Sometimes pie making takes a back seat. 

On to April.
One of my favorite pies is lemon meringue so I thought I would give it a go.
I used a web recipe: Ultimate Lemon Meringue Pie

My pie looks awesome. However, it was a perfect example of a trip to lemon meringue pie hell. First it was weepy (the meringue was wet). The other issue was the filling was runny. Super runny. It was like lemon soup! 

Our solution was to freeze it, but I felt frustrated since it took up so much time. The good news was my crust was improving! 

Now Bake That! 
(and then comment with tips to help me...)



 

Be a cake pop head hunter!

My last two posts I talk about making cake pops for my kid's birthday parties. My oldest asked for a Lego birthday party. After more web surfing I was inspired by Living Locurto who made Lego head cake pops with marshmallows. To get that lump-on-the-top-of-the-head look, she used pieces of marshmallow. However, I wanted to still use cake. Another blogger got me on the right track: The Frilly Apron. 

Here are the happy Lego head cake pops:

I also made him a Lego brick cookie cake.

 
What I did:

• If you read my posts in March, you would learn that the favored cake pop method was using a cake pop pan instead of the crushed cake style. That brought a problem for me. Lego heads aren't round! I decided to make a sheet cake and do a biscuit style cutting method to make cylinders. I went through my kitchen, brainstorming different household items to be my cake cutter. No luck. Then I went to Bed Bath and Beyond. AAAAAA! (angels singing). I found a solution! Even better? My solution was less than 5 bucks! I used a cupcake plunger that you use with cupcakes for filling. 
• I used smarties candy for the bumps on the cake pop heads.
• Instead of using decorating icing in a tube, I purchased a bottle of black food coloring and I painted on the little faces with a paint brush.
• Like my golf ball cake pops, I used Barefoot Contessa's birthday sheet cake recipe for the cake pops.
• The bumps on the cookie cake was actually cake. I used the parts of the sheet cake that were pretty thin and made the "bumps" on the brick.

What not to do: 
Don't try to make your own yellow candy coating by using food coloring in almond bark. It turns it into frosting. Darn chemistry. I ended up buying Wilton candy melts at a craft store in duck yellow.

Comments:

The kids loved the cake pops, though one wouldn't eat one because he claimed he wasn't a "cannibalist". Um, okay.


Now Bake That!

 

Cake pops that are fore fun!

I mentioned in my last blog that both of my boys wanted cake pops at their birthday. My youngest had his party at a glow in the dark, indoor mini golf course. I did some serious web surfing and was inspired by 1finecookie. She made the cake pops for Father's Day and they had bacon filling. 

1. Cake
This was a party for 6 year olds so I made Barefoot Contessa's birthday sheet cake as the innards instead: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/birthday-sheet-cake-recipe/index.html

2. Decoration
I didn't have the time to use golf molds, so I used an idea from another blog Candy's Cake Pops and used white sprinkles. Then I melted Air Head candies and molded the golf tees. I made green colored rice krispie treats as the "grass" and put a cake pop in their with his candles so we had something to hold his number 6 birthday cake candle.

The kids LOVED them! So did the party organizers at the indoor mini golf place and I gave each of our party helpers one to take with them. What surprised me was how much the kids loved the rice krispie treats. I say if you can't buy or make your own cake, this would be an great alternative!

Now Bake That!
 

Cake Pop Challenge

I rarely bake cupcakes. Not that I don't like them, I do. I go to Jilly's Cupcake Bar during my birthday every year to get a gigantic gourmet cupcake. http://jillyscupcakebar.com/ 

I also read a friend's blog on cupcakes and get all inspired. http://www.cupcakeproject.com/

Then I had a cake pop and I was intrigued. Maybe it's because I'm from Minnesota where their State Fair is known for having everything on a stick. I mean EVERYTHING. So someone puts a ball of cake on a stick? Sign me up.

For some reason I hadn't gotten around to making them. When I went to a friend's baby shower and received two cake pops to bring home as a party favor, my kids had them. They begged me for cake pops on their birthday. I felt motivated.

Now I just had to figure out how to make them. I felt a test run was necessary.

After some research, I tried two methods/recipes.

1. Mashed up cake balls

To do the the mash-up method I used a recipe was from my local grocery store magazine, Everybody Cooks. Go to page 23. http://www.dierbergs.com/flipbooks/EBC/Spring2012/index.html. 

How it works is you bake a cake. Then break up the cake into chunks or crumbs. Then mix in a can of frosting and roll into balls. Then it goes in the freezer before you poke it with sticks and dip with melted almond bark. 

This method is MESSY. If I didn't squish the balls enough, they sometimes fell apart when I dipped them. However, the benefit is you can really shape them any way you want.

2. Cake Pop Pan

The pan looks like taking two candy molds and then placing them on top of each other and secure them with a pin.

The cake pop pan is by Nordic Ware, which you can get from their website. Personally I found mine at Target, but are at a variety of other stores that have them.

http://www.nordicware.com/store/products/detail/nordic-ware-cake-pop-kit/700EFD84-2673-11E1-B8E4-005056A42C5A

It takes a little practice in figuring out just how much cake batter you can put in there without having it overflow too much through the air vents in the pan. I did giggle though since the cake cooked outside of the pan looked like *something else*. 

This method was less messy, but not really a time saver. After you take the cakes out they have seams that make it look like I was trying to make tiny planet Saturns. I used a paring knife to trim them and they were fine.

Cake pop tips in general:

• Freeze the cake pops before dipping.
• Melt a small amount of almond bark and dip your sticks in them before poking them in the cake pops. This keeps the cake pops from falling of the sticks while dipping.
• Freeze the cake pops again before dipping. Freeze for at least 20 minutes otherwise it takes forever for the coating to harden up.
• I had problems using household items to place the cake pops in to dry. My cake pops would fall over when I walked by. My plan is to buy a cake pop stand or make one for my next round.

Taste test results:

After making the cake pops, I sent some to my husband's work for a taste test and tested them at home. The consensus was that the mash up method was too sweet and the cake pop pan were better. They were fluffy on the inside and crunchy sweetness on the outside.

Now Bake That!