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A cross between a pretzel and bread – brilliant! This recipe and photo are from girl versus dough, a lovely food blog that focuses mostly on bread-like foods. This recipe should satisfy your craving for pretzels and bread at the same time, and if it doesn’t, just pop another one in your mouth – it’s just one pretzel, after all!
For a kid’s birthday party (or any birthday party!) try serving them on our 4 Tier Stacked Dessert Tower for an extra cool effect.
Pretzel Rolls
Courtesy of Smitten Kitchen, adapted from Bon Appetit, January 1994
2 3/4 cups bread flour
1 envelope quick-rising yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast, which increases the initial rising time to nearly an hour)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (about) hot water (125°F to 130°F)
Cornmeal
8 cups water
1/4 cup baking soda
2 tablespoons sugar
1 egg white, beaten to blend (glaze)
Coarse salt
Combine bread flour, one envelope (2 1/4 tsp) yeast, one teaspoon salt and one teaspoon sugar in food processor and blend. With machine running, gradually pour hot water through feed tube, adding enough water to form smooth elastic dough. Process one minute to knead. Grease medium bowl. Add dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then towel; let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 35 minutes (or, with active dry yeast, closer to an hour).
Flour baking sheet, or clear area of counter. Punch dough down and knead on lightly floured surface until smooth. Divide into 8 pieces. Form each dough piece into ball. Place dough balls on prepared surface, flattening each slightly. Using serrated knife, cut X in top center of each dough ball. Cover with towel and let dough balls rise until almost doubled in volume, about 20 minutes (in this time, I suggest prepping the water bath and preheating the oven so the rolls don’t rise too much… maybe this is common sense, but I have to remind myself sometimes).
Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease another baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal. Bring 8 cups water to boil in large saucepan. Add baking soda and 2 tablespoons sugar (water will foam up). Add 4 rolls and cook 30 seconds per side. Using slotted spoon, transfer rolls to prepared sheet, arranging X side up. Repeat with remaining rolls.
Brush rolls with egg white glaze. Sprinkle rolls generously with coarse salt. Bake rolls until brown, about 25 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool 10 minutes. Serve rolls warm or room temperature.
Who doesn’t love pizza? And if you are one of those people who doesn’t love it, there’s always a way to mix things up so that it’s perfect for you. Cheese-less, Sauce-less, you name it. This recipe is a twist on the classic sauce and cheese combo (not that there’s anything wrong with going traditional!) Creamy pesto and rich feta, topped with sweet caramelized onions and other veggies. Try serving it with these Smarty spatulas at your next party! Ingredients:
2 1/4 teaspoon yeast
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 cup warm water
2 1/2 cups flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon basil
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon salt
Pesto Mixture:
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons pesto (or sundried tomato pesto)
1 teaspoon dried basil leaves
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
Toppings:
Fresh spinach
Sliced Roma tomatoes or grape tomatoes, halved
Caramelized onions
Feta cheese
Instructions:
1. Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water.
2. Stir in flour, oil, and spices.
3. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in a warm place for approximately 30 minutes.
4. Spread dough in pizza pan and top with pesto mixture and bake at 425 for about 5 minutes.
5. Add toppings and bake for another 8-10 minutes.
This recipe and its gorgeous photo are courtesy of spoon fork bacon. What Jenny said is so true – everything tastes better when it’s mini. Try serving them in our Cupcake Tower Stand!
Makes 24
Ingredients:
spice cake:
2 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon ground allspice
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup light brown sugar
2 eggs
3 tablespoons molasses
¾ cup buttermilk
cream cheese frosting:
6 ounces cream cheese, softened
¼ cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
garnish:
1 cup candied ginger, chopped
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. In a mixing bowl, sifted together the flour, cinnamon, baking powder, allspice, nutmeg, and salt. Set aside.
3. Using a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugar, about 4 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
4. With the mixer running, add one egg at a time followed by the molasses and buttermilk and mix until just combined.
5. Whisk the dry mixture into the wet mixture and stir until no lumps remain.
6. Line a mini muffin tin with mini cupcake liners and fill each liner 2/3 way up with batter.
7. Bake the cupcakes for 20 to 25 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean when removed from the center.
8. Allow to cool completely before frosting.
9. For the frosting: Using a hand mixer or a stand mixer, cream together the cream cheese and butter. Add the powdered sugar, ½ cup at a time until fully incorporated. Scraped down the sides of the bowl and stir in the vanilla.
10. To assemble: Spread a layer of frosting onto each cupcake. Pour the candied ginger into a shallow baking dish and dip each frosted cupcake, shaking off any access. Serve.
Yet another fabulous recipe courtesy of Kitchen Tested, also the origin of the Rainbow Layer Birthday Cake that we posted back in October. There’s nothing like a bright, colorful dessert to cheer up a gloomy post-holidays Monday. Show them off on this classy cake stand and watch them disappear!
Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted margarine, room temperature
1/4 cup confectioner sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3 tsp peppermint extract
2 drops green food coloring
1 drop blue food coloring
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
Chocolate Filling
2 Tbsp unsalted margarine, room temperature
2 oz semi sweet chocolate
Directions:
1. I creamed the margarine, both sugars and salt on medium speed using a paddle attachment until light and fluffy.
2. I added the peppermint extract and the food coloring and beat until incorporated. At this point, you can play with the color until it’s exactly what you want. I added the flour and beat on low until just combined. If you are not happy with the color, you can flatten out the dough, smear a few drops of food coloring and knead until the color is incorporated.
3. Using a teaspoon, I scooped the deliciously green dough and rolled the cookies as round and smooth as possible since any lines show up after they cook. I placed the balls around 1 inch apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. This step took some time since the dough makes around 60 little cookies and each one has to be rolled in your hand. It was totally worth it!
4. I baked the cookies at 350 degrees F for 8-10 minutes, until the bottoms were slightly golden. I let the cookies cool for a few minutes then transferred to a wire rack to cool completely.
5. When the cookies were cool, I make the filling. In a microwave safe bowl, I added the chocolate and margarine then placed in the microwave for 30 seconds. I stirred the mixture then put the bowl back in to the microwave for another 30 seconds. That’s it! Creamy and silky chocolate in 1 minute. I set the chocolate aside for 10 minutes to cool slightly.
6. Once the cookies and chocolate were ready, I spread a small amount chocolate on the bottom of a cookie using an offset spatula. I placed a second cookie on top of the chocolate to create a sandwich. I cooled the cookies on a wire rack until the chocolate was set.
The cookies were more than I could have asked for! Theses adorable little peppermint pillows melted in my mouth and the chocolate center added the creaminess this cookie deserves. You can certainly eat the cookies on their own and they are still incredible but the chocolate and peppermint are a match made in heaven! If you like York Peppermint Patties, this recipe is truly the cookie version and you have to try it for yourself!
These cookies will stay fresh for up to 1 week in an airtight container! So great that you can make them ahead of time. Just watch out because they are so cute and small and you might just want to keep them all for yourself. I highly recommend hiding the cookies until you are ready to serve them.
Quick Note: if you aren’t a fan of peppermint, you can use another flavor of extract in your cookies. You can even change the colors or do multi-colored cookies.
I used the lovely homemade Italian bread that I had made a few hours prior for my garlic bread, but any old store-bought baguette or loaf will do. In my opinion, garlic bread isn’t that easy to make! It’s not as simple as garlic, butter and bread – too much garlic and the taste is overwhelming, too little and its bland. Same with the oregano – not too much, not too little. As for butter – there’s no such thing as too much butter, right?:)
♥,
Frieda
Ingredients:
1 loaf Italian bread
6 tablespoons butter, softened
3 tablespoons crushed garlic
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 teaspoon dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400° F.
1. Slice bread 2 inches thick; being careful not to cut all the way through the loaf.
2. Mix together butter, garlic, olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper.
3. Spread the butter mixture on the bread slices, brushing the top of the loaf with the mixture as well.
4. Wrap the loaf in foil and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until butter has melted and bread is slightly crispy.
Way back in September when it was still iced-coffee and flip-flops weather, the holidays started here in NY – from a retail perspective, anyways. And that meant Costco started carrying their enormous tubs of peppermint bark. And without fail, every time we passed the baked goods section, Daniel would try to convince me that we needed to have a 2 lb tub of peppermint bark in our pantry because: “It’s the perfect after-dinner snack.” “It’s perfect for when you wake up because it’s so minty and fresh.” “You can bring it for lunch if you’re in a rush.” Needless to say, we did not get the bark.
However, on the last night of Hanukkah, I did surprise him with homemade bark – partially because I felt so bad that I had deprived him for four months, but mostly because it is so so SO easy to make! Once I had made it, I placed it up in a little tin, and wrapped it in homemade wrapping paper (read: newspaper) with a pretty little bow made out of magazine strips. I’ll tell you more about that later!
So, this is the basic idea. Buy some mints. Crush them.
Melt semi-sweet chocolate. Mix in crushed mint. Spread it. Melt white chocolate. Repeat.
Refrigerate. Break apart. Voila!
Yield: 1 and 1/2 pounds
Ingredients:
10 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
10 oz white chocolate chips
30 peppermint candies (starlets)
Directions:
1. Lightly grease baking sheet. Line with parchment paper.
2. Crush peppermint candies in a durable bag (I used 3 ziplocs and a hammer). Try to keep 1/3 of the candies large, and 2/3 of the candies on the smaller side.
3. Carefully microwave semi-sweet chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl for approximately one minute, stirring frequently. Once melted, stir in half of the “smaller” candies. Spread on baking sheet. Place in refrigerator.
4. Meanwhile, carefully microwave white chocolate chips in a microwave-safe bowl for approximately one minute, stirring frequently. Once melted, stir in the remainder of of the “smaller” candies.
5. Remove baking sheet from refrigerator and spread white chocolate chip mixture over semi-sweet chocolate layer.
6. Press the remaining “large” candies into the top layer.
7. Let stand or refrigerate approximately one hour, or until completely hardened.
8. Break into pieces, store in an airtight container and share with someone you love 
♥, Frieda
I personally think it is easier to whip up a batch of dough, let it rise, shape it, let it rise some more and slide it in the oven than it is to get dressed, put on tights, boots, my coat and gloves and drive to the grocery store for a mediocre day-old loaf of bread. Add the aroma of baking bread to my home and I’m sold.
This bread has 5 ingredients. That’s it! Granted, baking bread can be daunting, especially when we’re so used to buying “perfect bread” at the store, with it’s annoyingly perfect ends and bottom and perfectly chewy middle. But no matter how perfect store-bought bread is, it is still just that – store-bought. There is nothing like homemade bread. Even if it fails to turn that golden brown color (see below), and even if your oven takes FOREVER to preheat so you just stick the bread in once the oven is really hot and hope it turns out okay (I would never do something like that!). Despite all of these difficulties, baking your own bread comes with the reward of fresh, piping hot awesomeness that you made yourself. And that was all the motivation I needed.
To add even more of a rustic feel to your presentation, serve the bread on these bamboo plates.
♥, Frieda
Recipe Source: AllRecipes
Makes: 3 Loaves
Ingredients:
3 cups warm water
1 teaspoon white sugar
1 tablespoon active dry yeast
1 tablespoon table salt
7 cups all-purpose flour
Directions:
1. Add sugar and yeast to a large bowl. Add warm water and let proof.
2. Add 4 cups of the flour to the yeast mixture and knead until smooth. Cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
3. Sprinkle in salt and flour, and knead until smooth.
4. Lightly coat a large bowl with oil or cooking spray (can be the same bowl that was used for mixing, as long as it has been cleaned), cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours.
5. Grease 2 cookie sheets or line with parchment paper, and sprinkle with corn meal.
6. Punch down dough and divide into three equal portions. Form into whichever shapes you’d like (I did two baguettes and one round loaf). Sprinkle with flour. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
7. Sprinkle water on loaves, and continue to sprinkle with water every 3 minutes for the first 15 minutes of baking.
8. Let bake in oven for 30 minutes, or until bread sounds hollow when tapped.
Stay tuned for Italian Bread Part II: Garlic and Herb Bread, Revisited
I made this chocolate peanut butter ice cream pie with my friend’s kids when they came over during the holiday weekend, and it was so perfect! We ate it after a heavy holiday meal, and even though you’d think that a warm dessert is what you’d want when you’re all bundled up indoors on a freezing, windy December night, a frozen dessert can be surprisingly refreshing.
I’m sure the pie would look fabulous if you serve it on these festive dessert plates!
Servings: 8
Ingredients:
1 large graham cracker crust (I used the Keebler Ready Crust with 2 Extra Servings)
2 pints vanilla ice cream, softened
1/3 cup chocolate syrup (such as Hershey’s)
1/3 cup molasses
1/3 cup creamy peanut butter
1 package of graham crackers OR 1.5 cups graham cracker crumbs
Directions:
1. Spread ice cream in crust and freeze until firm.
2. Meanwhile combine chocolate syrup, molasses and peanut butter in a small bowl (I used my large measuring cup because of it’s easy-pour spout).
3. Pour chocolate mixture over pie, spreading evenly.
4. Create a shape (Christmas tree, snowman, menorah, etc.) using the whole graham crackers on top of the pie, or sprinkle crushed graham cracker crumbs over pie.
5. Freeze at least 3 hours or until firm.
♥, Frieda
Photo Credit: The Sweets Life
This recipe belongs to The Sweets Life, a fabulous blog that I highly recommend! This recipe for pizza puffs elevates pizza to a whole new level. Pizza is a great party food, but it can be somewhat difficult to eat when you’re eating standing up, wearing a cocktail dress and heels. Pizza puffs are the perfect solution – adorable, not-so-messy,and incredibly addictive.
Only four more days to the long weekend! Happy holidays, everyone!
♥, Frieda
Ingredients:
-1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
-1 1/2 tsp baking powder
-1 1/2 cups skim milk
-2 eggs, lightly beaten
-2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
-1 cup pepperoni, cut into small pieces
-1 cup mushrooms, chopped into small pieces
-1 cup black olives, diced
-1 tsp dried oregano
-1 tsp dried basil
-1 tsp garlic powder
-1 cup pizza sauce
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 375F. Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin pan.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour and baking powder. Add milk and egg, stirring tom combine. Mix in mozzarella, pepperoni, mushrooms, olives, and herbs. Allow mixture to stand for 10 minutes.
3. Pour the batter into the prepared pan (you will make two batches). Bake until puffed and golden, 20-25 minutes. Remove pizza puffs from pan and place in a serving container. Bake a second batch of puffs with the remaining batter.
4. Serve pizza puffs warm with heated pizza sauce for dipping.
I LOVE these cookies! I think it’s because traditionally, cookies are really sweet. And don’t get me wrong, I’m the biggest fan of sweet desserts. But sometimes, you want a dessert with a little more…flavor. And that is exactly what these gingersnaps have. Sweet but not too sweet, sharp without being overwhelming, all while still maintaining their true cookie identity. What’s not to love?
I made these just because I wanted to, on a Friday afternoon after work when the weekend had just begun and I felt like I had all the time in the world. But you can make them anytime, because they are easy and versatile and the ingredients are most likely already hanging out in your pantry, begging you to make something fabulous out of them!
♥, Frieda
Jacked-Up Gingersnaps
Yield: 36 cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup light brown sugar
3/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup molasses
1 large egg
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 cup white sugar (for sprinkling)
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the brown sugar, oil, molasses, and egg.
3. Combine the dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, salt, cloves, cinnamon, and ginger; stir into the wet ingredients.
4. Roll dough into small balls (about the size of a quarter).
5. Dust white sugar on tops of balls.
6. Place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets, or on cookie sheets lined with parchment paper.
5. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
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