Easy Dulce de Leche
Dulce de Leche is a no fuss no frills dessert that I love when craving for something sweet without having to do all the other steps when making other desserts. Except for having a lot of patience of course.
Holiday Baking: Blondies
Are you in the midst of holiday baking yet? I just cooked up and decorated a second batch of Christmas sugar cookies that I’ll be sending to my brother and his family. Another sugary goodness you could bake up this year are snickerdoodles and/or what I have right now which is called Blondies.
According to my Better Homes & Garden BCA PINK Cookbook (Thanks Mom), Blondies are moist bars that are light-colored brownies. Instead of chocolate, you’ll be using brown sugar which gives it that butterscotch flavor.
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups packed brown sugar
2/3 cup butter
2 eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 chopped pecans/almonds/cashews (take your pick)
Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a baking pan.
In a medium sauce pan, heat and stir brown sugar and butter until the latter melts and mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
Stir in the eggs, one at a time.
Stir in vanilla, then the flour, baking powder and baking soda.
Spread the batter into the greased pan.
Sprinkle the chopped pecans on top. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes or test with a toothpick. It’s done when the toothpick comes out clean.
Cool slightly in a wire rack. Cut into bars while it’s still warm.
I have to tell you, these are just so easy to make. I actually made this at 9pm. My husband and I were sneaking 2 bars each at 10pm because we both know that once the kids see these Blondies the next day we’d never be able to have any.
YUP, Blondies at 10pm. We like to live in the wild side. These are great with a glass of milk by the way.
2 Kinds Of Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
When I stumbled upon The Pioneer Woman’s chocolate chip cookie sweet rolls last month, I think I died for 5 minutes then went to heaven. Yeah, just 5 minutes coz I willed myself to wake up and live so I could make my own chocolate chip sweet rolls. I’m exaggerating of course. But I knew that in order for me to live a long life, I just couldn’t make it on regular days coz I had a feeling I’d probably eat a whole pan of these bad boys. I can’t do Insanity workout 3 times a day. A special occasion is a MUST to make these scrumptious dessert.
Fortunately, my sister-in-law and I finally found the perfect day to have the dinner I promised her as a Thank You for when she found us a washer replacement when our old one died when we were moving. The dinner was also a Thank You for my brother-in-law who helped the Hubs carry the loveseat recliner and the washer & dryer into the new house + picking the Hubs up to get our car back which was parked in Budget’s parking lot due to moving truck nuances (long story). With all that planned, I decided to make chocolate chip rolls and cinnamon rolls as well for our dessert. Hey, go big or go home, right?
For the 2 kinds of rolls, I used the recipe for cinnamon rolls, then just added the chocolate chips on the second batch. I also used 1 kind of icing for both.
INGREDIENTS:
# 1 quart Whole Milk
# 1 cup Vegetable Oil
# 1 cup Sugar
# 2 packages Active Dry Yeast
# 8 cups (Plus 1 Cup Extra, Separated) All-purpose Flour
# 1 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
# 1 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
# 1 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt
# Plenty Of Melted Butter
# 2 cups Sugar
# Generous Sprinkling Of Cinnamon
Icing
# 1 package 8 Ounce Cream Cheese
# 3 cups Powdered Sugar
# 1 stick Butter, Softened
# 1 cup Whole Milk
# 2-½ teaspoons Vanilla Extract
# ¾ teaspoons Salt
A part of my excitement when I was “studying” (I did a lot of times) TPW’s recipe was being able to use my huge Pampered Chef Classic Batter Bowl/huge measuring cup. I was so giddy when I took it out of the box to pour 1 quart of whole milk in it.
In a pot, mix together milk, canola oil and sugar. Scald, meaning heat the whole thing until it’s just about to boil. Turn it off then let cool for 45 minutes or an hour. After cooling, sprinkle active dry yeast. Let it sit for a minute.
Add 8 cups of flour.
Mix together, cover then let it set for an hour.
This is how it looks like after an hour.
After an hour of rising, add the last cup of flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
Stir and mix everything together. That’s how it looks. After stirring, cover the pot and store in the fridge overnight. According to TPW, the dough could last in the fridge for a day or two. If it starts to flow out of the pot just punch it in the middle.
I was hoping that when I woke up in the morning to check on the dough that it was splurging out of the pan so I could punch it down in the middle ala Julia Child. But alas, it only rose to the very top. Darn.
Anyhooo, once you’re ready to make the rolls, sprinkle flour in the counter space. Depending on how long your space is, cut the dough either in half or 4. I had to do the latter. Not enough space to work on. Roll the dough into a wide rectangle.
Melt 4 sticks of butter in the microwave. Yes, 4 sticks coz you need a lot for the dough and the pans.
Pour some of the butter onto the dough. Be generous in spreading the butter all over.
Sprinkle sugar on top. Be generous too.
The sprinkle powdered cinnamon on top. YES, be generous on that as well. Notice the natural ray of lights coming from my kitchen window? I didn’t have time to follow it to take better pictures so I apologize to the photobloggers out there, heh.
Start rolling from the opposite end, towards you. Make it tight and don’t worry about the filling oozing out of the dough. Just keep rolling tight.
Do the same thing with the remaining dough but add chocolate chips after sprinkling the cinnamon. This time though I decided to go light on the cinnamon.
I used 2 rectangular baking pans. Pour melted butter on each. Cut the rolls about 3/4 to 1 inch then lay them on the pan. Here are the cinnamon rolls.
And here are the cinnamon & chocolate chips rolls.
Cover each pan with a clean kitchen towel. Let the rolls sit to rise for 20-30 minutes. Gotta cover them fully. I’m just showing you what’s underneath the towel so you know that I’m really making these.
Preheat oven to 375°
The risen cinnamon rolls. The chocolate chip cinnamon rolls were like that too but I don’t think you still need to see them so I didn’t take a picture.
Bake the rolls in the oven for 15-18 minutes or until golden brown.
While the rolls are baking, make the glaze. Combine the powdered sugar, butter, cream cheese, vanilla, salt, and milk. Take out the butter and cream cheese ahead of time so they’ll soften. Mix everything together until in pourable consistency. It would be thick but pourable.
The Cinnamon Rolls. My husband told me not to put too much in the pan but I only heard his voice and not his words while working on these in the kitchen. I just assumed he was just admiring how beautiful his wife was in the kitchen so I brushed him off. Coz you know, I already know that. I found out what he was actually telling me when I started whining how the rolls looked stacked in the pan and he said he told me not to put too much. Darn.
The Cinnamon Chocolate Chip Rolls looked better. Nahhh, scratch that. They’re SEXY!!
Divide the icing in half to pour on each pan of rolls. Be generous with the icing.
And I mean really generous. TPW mentioned the words drowning and positively swimming in the icing.
Have a roll, or 2, or 2 of each kind. Pour some more icing if you have some left.
I’m quite impressed that I made homemade cinnamon rolls. I dealt with yeast and went through a process of dough-rising. Having said that, I have a few notes the next time I’ll make these.
- I hate to admit this because I’m a chocoholic but chocolate chips on cinnamon rolls are overwhelming. It is soooooooooo good that it’s deadly. Yah know, one of those things. If I do this again with chocolate, I’ll probably just add a few morsels. But that would be a while. I might use apples next time instead.
- Like my husband said which I did not hear at first, don’t put too much in a pan.
This was our dinner by the way. Fried Rice, Lumpias/Egg Rolls, Beef & Broccoli Stir-Fry (minus tofu and green beans), Shrimp & Green peppers Stir-Fry (minus the chili garlic sauce) and the cinnamon rolls.
Busy-Day Cake
The name of the cake says it all, no? I discovered this classic, fast, and easy cake from the Better Homes & Garden BCA Pink Cookbook that I received from my mother-in-law. It’s so perfect for those days when you’re craving something sweet but you don’t necessarily want to spend hours preparing a dessert using complicated ingredients and then spending time decorating and doing all that fancy stuff. With the exception of whipped cream, any kitchen should have all the ingredients on hand. But since you’ve just read this recipe here, then I suggest you grab a tub of either cool whip or a can of whipped cream the next time you’re in a grocery store.
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
whipped cream
Preheat the oven to 350°. Grease a round cake pan (8 x 1 1/2 inch). Set the pan aside.
Combine flour, sugar, baking powder in a medium bowl. Add milk, butter, egg, and vanilla. Beat with a mixer on low speed until combined. Beat on medium speed for 1 minute. Spread into the round pan.
Bake for 30 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes or so.
Cookbook said to cool for about 30 minutes but that’s too long in my opinion, hehe.
Cut in triangle slices, and serve warm with whipped topping on top. Add berries too if you want. If I’m being honest, it’s perfect for those PMS days, 
Ina Garten’s Coconut Macaroons
As mentioned in the chocolate cupcakes with buttercream coconut cupcakes recipe, I’ve finally made the coconut macaroons. I learned how to make it from watching an episode of Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa on Food Network. My first attempt on making macaroons years ago certainly baffles me how I completely messed that one up after seeing how easy it actually is.
Apple Crisp W/ Vanilla Ice Cream
The apples from the grocery stores really looked delicious the other day so I bought a bag and decided to make an apple crisp out of them. I haven’t made in a while so I figured yesterday was as good as any. What I like about apple crisp is that it’s not as tedious as making an apple pie. Peeling, coring and slicing the apple are the only steps that take a while but other than that it’s all easy after that.
Red Velvet Cake W/ Cream Cheese Frosting
I made red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting last weekend. It was YUMMY YUMMY YUMMY. I don’t know how else to describe it but Yummy, heh. It’s not pretty, actually the round cakes were uneven but I only made it for us so It didn’t matter. It was still delicious.
An Easy Way To Make Donut Holes
The family loves donuts. And when the family loves something, I have to learn how to make ‘em instead of buying boxes from Krispy Kreme or at the grocery stores. I haven’t really dedicated myself in learning how to make the donuts like how the latter stores make it. As a matter of fact, I just accidentally came upon the easiest way to make donuts one day. Mini Donuts or Donut Holes (however you call it) to be exact. When I told the husband and son not to grab another box of donuts a couple of weeks ago because I planned on making some their “really???” reactions were priceless. Talk about a challenge.
Oven-Steamed Flan
Besides Tiramisu, and Chocolate Volcano Cake, my other ultimate favorite dessert is Flan. Yes, I’m just piling on the sugar and calories in my thighs and you know where else hah. I don’t make any of them that often. Only when I’m really craving each of them. And of course I don’t make it all at the same time. Can you imagine though if there’s Tiramisu, Chocolate Volcano cake, and flan in front of you? It’s like heaven but you’ll definitely regret it once you’re in bed for the night. So I suggest, make your favorite dessert, one at a time, in separate occasions.
I made Flan this time around and yes, it feels like heaven 
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White Chocolate Chips Brownies
I love dark chocolate but I also LOVE! white chocolate. When I saw a white chocolate brownies recipe from one of my Cookie cookbook, I knew I had to make it. I actually made this last year for the holidays using white chocolate chips with multicolor stripes. It was good but because I mixed it too much, the brownies ended up not as soft as it should be. I’ve learned my lesson. This time around, these brownies were soft and oh so pretty too .
I changed the recipe a bit because it called for raisins. I really didn’t feel like eating raisins in my brownies so I added white chocolate chips instead.
