Chocolate Chip-Apple-Cinnamon Bread

I wanna start off by saying that I am SO SORRY I haven't posted in so long!  My school started at the end of August and I've been super busy with my crazy schedule.  Buttt.... this recipe is totally worth the wait.  I made this a few weeks ago and I fell in love with the flavors of cinnamon, apples, and chocolate.  I know they sound kind of weird together, but I promise the flavor is really delicious.  I love the nutty flavor as well.  It's such a wonderful bread/cake to make in the fall, and goes great with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream when hot from the oven.  It also tastes divine the next day with a cup of coffee.  What I loved the most about this bread is that it has so many different flavors, textures, and ways to eat it!  My entire family gobbled it up within a day, and I will definitely make it again.  The next time I make it, I will experiment with walnuts, white chocolate chips, and maybe vanilla chips and/or cinnamon chips.  I also may try swirling the topping into the batter, or maybe even swirling in some - - - - wait for it...........Nutella! Yumm!

Yield: 1 loaf

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons white sugar

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 cup finely chopped nuts (I used almonds, but walnuts would be my first choice)

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 cup margarine, softened

1 cup white sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons buttermilk

1.5 cups chopped apples

1/2 cup chopped nuts

1/2 cup chocolate chips (i used semi-sweet, but dark or white would be great too)

Directions:

1.  To make the topping, in a small bowl mix the sugar, cinnamon and finely chopped nuts. Set aside. 2. In a medium bowl combine flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside. 3. In a separate large bowl cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and vanilla extract, and mix well. Gradually beat in flour mixture alternately with buttermilk. Stir in apples, nuts, and  chocolate chips. Pour into a greased 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. Sprinkle with topping. 4. Bake in a preheated 350 degree F (175 degree C) oven for 45 to 50 minutes. Cool for at least 15 minutes before serving.

Raspberry Almond Coffee Cake

I love coffee cake.  In my opinion, there's nothing better than waking up in the morning to a hot cup of coffee and some sweet coffee cake on the side.  This coffee cake is super moist, light, and has just the right amount of sweetness.  I love the combination of raspberries, vanilla, and almonds.  If you're a big almond fan, I recommend using half almond extract, half vanilla extract.  The almond extract really compliments the sliced almonds on top of the cake.  Another thing I love about this coffee cake is how pretty it looks!  There is a beautiful, pink, raspberry swirl running all through the cake, and the top is garnished with sliced almonds and sweet drizzle of icing.  There is so much delicious flavor going on in this cake.  You can serve it warm with vanilla ice cream and/or whipped cream, and/or you can serve it at room temperature.  In my opinion, I liked it best at room temperature the next day - or even the second or third day - because it gets moister over time.  I'm not sure how it tastes after the third day because it never lasted that long in my house.


Yield: an 8-inch round cake (about 8-10 servings)
***recipe doubles well in a 9-inch pan

Ingredients:

• 1 cup fresh raspberries
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (or half vanilla, half almond extract...your choice)
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup sliced almonds
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• 1/4 cup sifted confectioners' sugar
• 1 teaspoon milk
• 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray an 8 inch round cake pan with cooking spray.
2. Combine raspberries and brown sugar in a bowl. Set aside.
3. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Combine sour cream, butter or margarine, 1 teaspoon vanilla (or half a teaspoon almond, half vanilla...if using), and egg, and add to flour mixture. Stir just until moist. Spoon 2/3 of the batter into the prepared pan. Drain raspberry mixture, and spread it evenly over the batter. Spoon remaining batter over raspberry mixture (It's okay if the filling doesn't completely cover the top). Top with almonds.
4. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes on a wire rack.
5. Combine confectioners' sugar, milk, and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla. Stir well. Drizzle glaze over cake. Serve warm or at room temperature.

White Almond Sheet Cake

This is my new favorite cake ever.  It was the first sheet cake I've ever made as well. It tastes very similar to my Almond Butter Cake (found here) except this one is more moist and has more of a buttery-almond flavor as opposed to the lighter flavor with a touch of apricot.  I baked this sheet cake last night to take to school today for a party in civics, and I honestly had to force my parents to not eat any more pieces after I gave them some.  My mom says - hands down - that it's the best thing I've ever made.  I swear, they would have eaten the whole cake.  I don't blame them though...I had to force myself to only a couple slices because I wanted to have enough to take to school.  And it was totally worth the wait because they were soooo delicious today as well!  I can't decide if I like this cake better warm or cold; it's phenomenal either way.  What makes this cake so good is the flavor of almond extract.  I absolutely love almond extract, and I know it has a tendency to be overpowering in desserts, but it was the perfect amount for this recipe.  The sour cream also makes this cake super duper moist.  One thing I love about this cake is that it bakes up so quickly! And putting the frosting on it when it's warm makes the frosting seep into the cake and soak up all that yummy, sweet flavor. Do NOT skip the frosting!  It truly makes the cake.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 cup water
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
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• Frosting:
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/4 cup milk
• 4 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon almond extract
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
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• 3/4 cup sliced almonds (optional) 

Directions:

1. In a large saucepan, bring butter and water to a boil. Remove from the heat; stir in the flour, sugar, eggs, sour cream, almond extract, vanilla extract, baking soda and salt until smooth.
2. Pour into a greased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan. Bake at 375 degrees F for 20 to 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean and cake is golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes.
3. For frosting, in a large saucepan, combine butter and milk. Bring to a boil. Remove from the heat; stir in sugar, almond extract, and vanilla extract. Spread over warm cake.  Sprinkle with sliced almonds if desired.

Almond Joy Cookies

   

These are now my daddy's favorite cookies.  Almond Joy is definitely one my my top 3 candy favorites (Whoppers and Reese Cups being the other 2), so I decided to make a cookie that tastes like it.  These cookies are most delicious straight from the oven...or even better - the cookie dough.  Oh my goodness people, this cookie dough is absolutely AMAZING.   I think the dough is a little better than the actual cookie. And the cookies are incredible. I gave my parents a spoonful of the dough, and my dad seriously dropped onto is knees and "Mmmmmed" because he loved it so much. I honestly ate more dough than I did cookies.  My parents and I finished off nearly an entire batch in one night.  Try dunking a warm cookie in milk...yummm. 

Yield: about 20 cookies

Ingredients

• 1 cups flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 sticks unsalted butter, softened
• 6 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp almond extract
• 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
• 1 cup chocolate chips
• 3/4 cup finely chopped almonds

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees
2. In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt
3. In a medium bowl with an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugars. Beat in the eggs, vanilla extract and almond extract. Mix on low speed until blended.
4. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix just until blended. Do not overmix. Add the coconut, chocolate chips and almonds and stir until just incorporated.
5. Drop the dough by rounded tablespoons on ungreased cookie sheets 2 inches apart. Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until set.

Almond Sandies

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• Have you ever had Pecan Sandies? They're a buttery, shortbread-like cookie, and they're one of my favorites.  However, we never have pecans in our house...but we always have almonds.  So I decided to create an almond sandie.  And they turned out soooo tasty!  They seriously blew my mind and didn't last a day in my house!   My family could not stop eating them. They truly [melt-in-your-mouth].  The glaze is not something that's normally on pecan sandies, but I think it adds so much and makes the cookie taste much better, because pecan sandies aren't typically a very sweet cookie...and I like my cookies sweet. The glaze makes these much more unique than any other cookie.  I love the little crunch from the nuts, too.  And the almond in the center makes these so pretty and the perfect gift or dessert to bring to a party.  I can't wait to make these during the holiday season!
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• Yield: about 4 dozen
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• Ingredients:
• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1 eggs
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 dash of cinnamon
• 1 cup chopped almonds + some whole ones

1 1/4 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
2. In a large bowl, cream together the margarine, vegetable oil, 1/4 cup white sugar, brown sugar and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Beat in the egg, then stir in the vanilla. Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt; stir into the creamed mixture. Mix in the almonds.   Freeze the dough for 30 minutes.
3. Roll dough into 1 inch balls. Place the cookies 2 inches apart onto parchment paper place a whole almond into the center of each one, gently pressing the cookie down slightly (these don't spread out much while cooking).
4. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are golden. Remove from paper to cool on wire racks. 
5.  Combine the glaze ingredients together.  Dip cooled cookies completely into glaze and let sit a few minutes to set.

Brown Butter Cookies

These are officially my #1 favorite cookies ever.  I made them a few days ago and brought them to school for some of my friends, and everyone wanted the recipe.  One of my friends declared them "the best thing she's ever tasted."  Another one of my friends asked if I could be her personal chef once she had the first bite.  Even my history teacher said they was amazing. I fell in love with these after I simply tasted the cookie dough, and fell even deeper in love after I had them melty and warm straight from the oven.  Both my parents said they were the best cookies they've ever had.  My mom even asked if I can make the batter into a cake for her birthday.  The thing that makes these so delicious is browning the butter; it gives them a [toasty] flavor that is way better than normal sugar cookies. And toasting the nuts brings out the flavor even more.  These are so rich and highly addictive.  They're like butter toffee perfection.  I do not recommend chilling the cookie dough; they turn out best right after making the dough.

Yield: about 20 large cookies

Ingredients:

• 1 cup butter
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1 eggs
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1.5 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup chopped almonds (or other nuts of your liking)
• 1 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
• 3 tablespoons hot water

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. While the oven is preheating, place the chopped nuts on an ungreased cookie sheet and place in the oven for about 10 minutes, or until very lightly toasted.  Remove pan from oven and put toasted nuts in a small bowl and set aside.  Place cookie sheet aside to cool while preparing cookie dough.
3. Heat butter over medium heat for 5 minutes or so, until it turns nut brown in color. The foaming and bubbling is part of the browning process, but watch it carefully so that you don't burn the butter. Remove from heat, and cool slightly. Reserve 1/4 cup of the butter for the frosting.
4. Pour remaining browned butter into a large mixing bowl. Beat browned butter with brown sugar until the butter is no longer hot. Mix in eggs, 1 teaspoons vanilla, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Beat thoroughly. Mix in flour and toasted pecans. Drop tablespoons of dough onto ungreased baking sheets.
5. Bake for 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until light brown around the edges. Cool.
6. In a medium bowl, mix the reserved 1/4 cup browned butter with 1 teaspoons vanilla, confectioners' sugar, and hot water. Beat until smooth, and use to frost cooled cookies.