Happy Single's Awareness Day

A.K.A: Happy Valentine's Day. Hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's day! I was planning on getting this up sooner, but I got called into work and that put me behind a little, but didn't stop me. So in honor of Valentine's Day I made white chocolate cupcakes with white chocolate filling topped with strawberry cream cheese frosting, chocolate ganche, and a chocolate covered strawberry. whew. These cupcakes had a lot of steps, obviously, and were pretty time consuming. I thought they were really good, but the cupcakes themselves didn't have a distinct white chocolate flavor and I really got my hopes up for that. So next time, I'm sure I will be doubling the white chocolate. Here's what you need for the cupcakes

Flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, white bakers chocolate (I used chocolate chips and I think they would have a stronger flavor with bakers chocolate), water, vanilla, butter, sugar, eggs, and buttermilk. In a medium-size bowl, combine flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

 In a small saucepan, melt together white bakers chocolate and water

 Once melted, turn off heat and stir in vanilla; set aside

In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugar about 2 minutes. Add in eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition

Alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Mixing the batter until well combined

Pour in the white chocolate mixture, gently folding in. I added white chocolate chips to the batter, DON'T do this. The chocolate chips sunk to the bottom, burned, and stuck to the cupcake liners. I had a feeling this was going to happen, but I did it anyways

Scoop batter into muffin tins, filling each one about 2/3 way full. Bake about 15 minutes and cool on wire rack

While cupcakes are cooling, prepare the white chocolate filling. You will need butter, white bakers chocolate, powdered sugar, and heavy cream. (Once again I used white chocolate chips and probably should have used white bakers chocolate like the recipe called for, but I was too lazy to go to the store)

Melt butter and white chocolate together in a saucepan

Turn off the heat and whisk in powdered sugar

Set aside. Whip heavy cream in mixing bowl until soft peaks form, using electric mixer at high speed

Slowly mix in the white chocolate mixture, beating at low speed. Set aside and prepare the rest of the cupcake. Now prepare the strawberry frosting. I made this ahead of time and forgot to take pictures, sorry! I'll just post the recipe at the bottom. Now for the chocolate covered strawberries, I cut them in half and dipped them in white bark chocolate. Let harden on wax paper

Lastly, the chocolate ganache

All you need is semi-sweet bakers chocolate and heavy cream. Chop bakers chocolate up in a bowl; set that aside and put heavy cream in a pot. Bring that just to a boil and pour over the chopped chocolate. Whisk together until chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Set that aside until ready to decorate the cupcakes. Don't let cool to long because it will harden up. Now fill the cupcakes

 Put the top back on the cupcake, covering the filling

Pipe on the frosting

 Dip in the somewhat cooled ganache

Top with a chocolate covered strawberry

Happy Valentine's Day to me :)

This is seriously Valentine's day stuffed into one delicious bite

Valentine's Day Cupcakes


White Chocolate Cupcakes:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 (1 oz) squares white chocolate (this is what the recipe calls for, but I would at least use 8 squares)
1/2 cup hot water
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3 eggs
1 cup buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Stir together the flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
In small saucepan, melt white chocolate and hot water over low heat. Stir until smooth, and allow to cool to room temperature; add vanilla. Set Aside. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in flour mixture alternately with buttermilk (beginning and ending with dry mixture). Mix in white chocolate mixture. Pour into cupcake lined muffin tins, filling about 2/3 way full. Bake 15 minutes. Cool in pan 2 minutes, then take out of pan and set on a wire rack/foil/wax paper until cooled completely.

White Chocolate Filling:
6 (1 oz) squares baking chocolate, coarsely chopped
6 tablespoons butter, cut into pieces
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1/3 cup heavy cream

Melt white chocolate and butter in small saucepan over low heat until smooth. Remove from heat and stir in powdered sugar. Cool slightly. Whip heavy cream in mixing bowl until soft peaks form, using electric mixer at high speed. Gradually add white chocolate mixture, beating at low speed. Cut a well in each cupcake, fill with white chocolate filling and cover with the flat top cupcake, hiding the filling. Prepare frosting.


Strawberry Cream Cheese Frosting:
8 oz. cream cheese, soft
1 stick butter, soft
1 tsp. vanilla
3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
3/4 cup fresh strawberries, rinsed, capped, and mashed to make ½ cup, drained well

Combine the cream cheese and butter until fluffy. Add the vanilla, sugar, and drained strawberries.  Blend the frosting until the sugar has been incorporated.  Then raise the speed to medium and mix the frosting another minute or until the frosting lightens and is well combined. Frost filled cupcakes.

Chocolate Ganache:
6 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup heavy cream

Place the chocolate into a medium bowl. Heat the cream in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil, watching very carefully because if it boils for a few seconds, it will boil out of the pot. When the cream has come to a boil, pour over the chopped chocolate, and whisk until smooth. Allow the ganache to cool slightly before pouring over the cupcakes. (This is not that sweet so you might want to add powdered sugar, but then you will need to add more cream to thin out.) Dip cupcakes in finished and cooled ganache. Top with white chocolate bark covered strawberry. Let ganache harden before serving. Keep cupcakes stored in fridge.

Caramel Swirled Golden Oreo Cheesecake Bars

Today is national cream cheese brownie day, but I just decided to make cream cheese bars. That's close enough, right? It's a cream cheese I (Casey) have a new obsession with Golden Oreo's. If you have never had them, you should go buy them asap.. and make these cheesecake bars :) I loved these! There is something about cheesecake in bar form that is just amazing. It has the delicious texture and taste of a cheesecake without all the hassle of a cheesecake, even though baking is never a hassle to me! AND, I don't feel as guilty eating it.. Here's what you need for the cheesecake bars

Golden oreo's, butter, cream cheese, sugar, milk, egg, vanilla, and caramel sauce. Place some oreo's in a food processor

pulse until all oreo's are crumbly and completely ground up, then melt the butter and pour over the crushed oreo's

stir together and pour into an 8x8 inch baking pan. Press down evenly in the pan

In a medium-size mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese about 2 minutes and add the sugar

beat until fluffy and combined. Add the vanilla, egg, and milk

beat together until well combined, then add in the chopped oreos

fold in and pour over the prepared oreo crust

spread out evenly and pour the caramel over the cheesecake

Using a toothpick, swirl the caramel into the cheesecake

bake

cool on a wire wrack and chill before cutting

here's the chunky pieces of oreo

and the gooey caramel

I could seriously eat the whole pan of these. SO good!

Caramel Swirled Golden Oreo Cheesecake Bars
crust:
18 golden Oreo's
4 Tbs. unsalted butter, melted

filling:

• 8 ounces cream cheese, soft
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 8 golden Oreo's, cubed
• caramel ice cream topping

Put the 18 oreo's in a food processor. Crush  until completely crumbly. Add the melted butter and stir until well combined. Pour into an 8X8 square baking dish, press down evenly with a spatuala; set aside. In a medium-size bowl beat the cream cheese for about 2 minutes. Add the sugar and beat until well combined. Mix in milk, egg, and vanilla. Fold in the 8 cubed oreo's. Pour over the prepared crust evenly.  Next, drizzle the desired amount of caramel over the unbaked cheesecake bars. Using a toothpick, swirl the caramel into the cheesecake. Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack until the cheesecake bars get to room temp. Cover and chill. Slice and eat!

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Pizza Day!

I (Casey) decided to make a "healthy" version of pizza! So.. I made a whole wheat crust. It was good, but I perfer just a regular white crust. If you're feeling healthy, here's what you need for the wheat crust

water, yeast, honey, wheat flour, and olive oil. In a small bowl, combine water, yeast, and honey

set that mixture aside. Put 2 cups of the flour in a food processor. Place the lid on the processor and turn on. Slowly pour the yeast mixture into the top of the food processor while running

excuse all of the background junk.. I was too lazy to move it. Let that run about 30 seconds and you should get this

add the remaining flour to the dough (i used all purpose for the remaining flour) and pulse until just combined. Pour some olive oil in a bowl, and roll your dough ball in the oil until completely covered, adding more oil if needed

cover with a damp towel and place in a warm area (I put mine in my oven that was turned off). Let the crust rise for an hour, or until it gets to about this size

press the air out of the dough and split into two. Roll each crust out, forming thicker edges as the crust

I couldn't make up my mind, so I made two different kinds of pizzas. Now, the toppings are up to you, but first I made a sausage, onion, & pepper pizza with marinara sauce. This is what I used for this pizza

mozzarella cheese, cheddar cheese, marinara sauce, italian sausage, and bell peppers. Place the crust on a pizza stone or cookie sheet and start preparing your pizza. Spread some marinara sauce on your crust

then sprinkle with a generous amount of both cheeses

now the peppers, onions, & sausage

bake until desired doneness.. is that gramatically correct? Anyways, here's the finished pizza

and my slice :)

now for the other pizza. I made this one a pesto, sundried tomato, & basil pizza. Here's what you'll need for this one

mozzarella cheese, pesto, sundried tomatoes, and basil. Place the other pizza dough on a cookie sheet and spread pesto around the crust

sprinkle the mozzarella cheese evenly over the pesto (I also added some shredded parmesan cheese)

then the sundried tomatoes and basil

the finished pesto pizza

and my other slice

These were both super yummy and I couldn't decide which one I liked better. I thought the pesto pizza would be even better with some sliced and grilled chicken on top.

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
3/4 cup warm water
2 1/4 tsp. yeast
2 tsp. honey
2 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
*desired toppings

In a small bowl, stir together the first 3 ingredients; let sit for about 5 minutes. Place 2 cups of flour in the food processor. Turn on and slowly pour in the yeast mixture. Let run about 25-30 seconds. Now add the remaining flour and pulse just until combined. Pour olive oil in a bowl and roll dough ball in the oil until completely covered. Cover with a thin, damp towel. Let sit in a warm place for an hour. Punch down the dough and split into two. Roll each ball out until desired thickness, leaving the outsides thicker for the crust. Place each pizza dough on a cookie sheet or pizza stone. Cover with desired toppings and bake at 500 degress for 10-15 minutes. Cool, slice, and eat!