Ittybit is ready for Halloween!

Spongebob

Hey lookie lookie its Spongebob Squarepants :-)

Pumpkin Roulade

I usually serve mine with sage ice cream and a merlot cranberry compote.

3 eggs
1 cup sugar
3/4 cups AP flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
2/3 cup pumpkin puree
2 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp nutmeg
pinch salt
1 tsp lemon juice

Sift together flour, baking powder, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and nutmeg. Whip eggs and sugar until ribbon stage. Mix in lemon juice and pumpkin. Slowly mix in flour mixture. Spread onto a parchment (spray with cooking sray) lined sheet pan. Bake 350 F until cake tester comes out clean. Set aside to cool.

Filling:
1 lb cream cheese, room temp
1/4 cup powdered sugar (more if you like a sweeter filling)
1/2 cup heavy cream

Whip all ingredients together untill creamy and fluffy. Dried cranberries (yummy) or nuts may be added to filling. Spread filling evenly onto cooled cake. Roll.

Hot Fudge Sauce

Great on ice cream.

1/4 cup cocoa
2/3 cup heavy cream
16 fl oz corn syrup
1 lb semisweet chocolate
2 1/2 oz butter
pinch salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix together cocoa, cream, corn syrup, butter and salt in a saucepot. Boil for 5 mins. Then remove from heat and add chocolate and vanilla. Stir until chocolate has melted.

This sauce can be reheated.

Frozen Lemon Parfait

These can also be made with with key lime juice and served on a graham cracker crust.

6 egg yolks

1 cup sugar

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (or key lime juice)

pinch salt

1 3/4 cups heavy cream

Whisk together yolks, sugar, lemon juice, and salt. Set bowl over a pot of simmering water. Whisk until mixture has thicked. Place over ice water bath to cool. Whip cream until soft peaks. Fold cream into lemon mixture. Pour into small molds or ramekens. Freeze.

I serve mine with berries and an orange reduction.

Daring Bakers

I have been following a group called the Daring Bakers. Each month a recipe is picked and they all make it and post about it on their food blogs. While i'm not a member (yet) I saw that the recipe for Sept was sticky buns or cinnamon rolls. Well of course I just couldn't help myself so I made both of them today. I took the photos with my phone so they didn't turn out so well but the sticky buns were great :-)

Cinnamon Buns and Sticky Buns

(from Peter Reinhart´s The Bread Baker´s Apprentice)

Yield: Makes 8 to 12 large or 12 to 16 smaller cinnamon or sticky buns

Dough:

6 1/2 tablespoons (3.25 ounces) granulated sugar

1 teaspoon salt

5 1/2 tablespoons (2.75 ounces) unsalted butter

1 large egg, slightly beaten

1 teaspoon grated zest of 1 lemon

3 1/2 cups (16 ounces) unbleached bread or all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons instant yeast*

1 1/8 to 1 1/4 cups whole milk or buttermilk

Cinnamon Sugar Filling:

6 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

For cinnamon buns:

1 recipe for white fondant glaze

For sticky buns:

1 recipe for caramel glaze

walnuts, pecans, or other nuts

raisins or other dried fruit, such as dried cranberries or dried cherries (optional)*

Instant yeast contains about 25% more living cells per spoonful than active dry yeast, regardless of the brand. Instant yeast is also called rapid-rise or fast-rising.

1. Cream together the sugar, salt, and shortening or butter on medium-high speed in an electric stand mixer with a paddle attachment (or use a large metal spoon and mixing bowl and do it by hand). Whip in the egg and lemon zest until smooth. Then add the flour, yeast, and milk. Mix on low speed (or stir by hand) until the dough forms a ball. Switch to the dough hook and increase the speed to medium, mixing for approximately 10 minutes (or knead by hand for 12 to 15 minutes), or until the dough is silky and supple, tacky but not sticky. You may have to add a little flour or water while mixing to achieve this texture. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

2. Ferment at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size.

3. Mist the counter with spray oil and transfer the dough to the counter. Make filling by combining the sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Proceed to fill and roll the dough as follows:(A) Roll out the dough with a rolling pin, lightly dusting the top with flour to keep it from sticking to the pin. Roll it into a rectangle about 2/3 inch thick and 14 inches wide by 12 inches long for larger buns, or 18 inches wide by 9 inches long for smaller buns. Don´t roll out the dough too thin or the finished buns will be tough and chewy rather than soft and plump. (B)Sprinkle the cinnamon sugar over the surface of the dough. (C) Roll the dough up into a cigar-shaped log, creating a cinnamon-sugar spiral as you roll. With the seam side down, cut the dough into 8 to 12 pieces each about 1 3/4 inches thick for larger buns, or 12 to 16 pieces each 1 1/4 inch thick for smaller buns.

4. For cinnamon buns, line 1 or more sheet pans with baking parchment. Place the buns approximately 1/2 inch apart so that they aren't touching but are close to one another.For sticky buns, coat the bottom of 1 or more baking dishes or baking pans with sides at least 1 1/2 inches high with a 1/4 inch layer of the caramel glaze. Sprinkle on the nuts and raisins (if you are using raisins or dried fruit.) You do not need a lot of nuts and raisins, only a sprinkling. Lay the pieces of dough on top of the caramel glaze, spacing them about 1/2 inch apart. Mist the dough with spray oil and cover loosely with plastic wrap or a food-grade plastic bag.

5. Proof at room temperature for 75 to 90 minutes, or until the pieces have grown into one another and have nearly doubled in size. You may also retard the shaped buns in the refrigerator for up to 2 days, pulling the pans out of the refrigerator 3 to 4 hours before baking to allow the dough to proof.

6. Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) with the oven rack in the middle shelf for cinnamon buns but on the lowest shelf for sticky buns.

7. Bake the cinnamon buns for 20 to 30 minutes or the sticky buns 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. If you are baking sticky buns, remember that they are really upside down (regular cinnamon buns are baked right side up), so the heat has to penetrate through the pan and into the glaze to caramelize it. The tops will become the bottoms, so they may appear dark and done, but the real key is whether the underside is fully baked. It takes practice to know just when to pull the buns out of the oven.

8. For cinnamon buns, cool the buns in the pan for about 10 minutes and then streak white fondant glaze across the tops, while the buns are warm but not too hot. Remove the buns from the pans and place them on a cooling rack. Wait for at least 20 minutes before serving. For the sticky buns, cool the buns in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes and then remove them by flipping them over into another pan. Carefully scoop any run-off glaze back over the buns with a spatula. Wait at least 20 minutes before serving.

White fondant glaze for cinnamon buns
Cinnamon buns are usually topped with a thick white glaze called fondant. There are many ways to make fondant glaze, but here is a delicious and simple version, enlivened by the addition of citrus flavor, either lemon or orange. You can also substitute vanilla extract or rum extract, or simply make the glaze without any flavorings.

Sift 4 cups of powdered sugar into a bowl. Add 1 teaspoon of lemon or orange extract and 6 tablespoons to 1/2 cup of warm milk, briskly whisking until all the sugar is dissolved. Add the milk slowly and only as much as is needed to make a thick, smooth paste.

When the buns have cooled but are still warm, streak the glaze over them by dipping the tines of a fork or a whisk into the glaze and waving the fork or whisk over the tops. Or, form the streaks by dipping your fingers in the glaze and letting it drip off as you wave them over the tops of the buns. (Remember to wear latex gloves.)

Caramel glaze for sticky buns
Caramel glaze is essentially some combination of sugar and fat, cooked until it caramelizes. The trick is catching it just when the sugar melts and lightly caramelizes to a golden amber. Then it will cool to a soft, creamy caramel. If you wait too long and the glaze turns dark brown, it will cool to a hard, crack-your-teeth consistency. Most sticky bun glazes contain other ingredients to influence flavor and texture, such as corn syrup to keep the sugar from crystallizing and flavor extracts or oils, such as vanilla or lemon.

NOTE: you can substitute the corn syrup for any neutral flavor syrup, like cane syrup or gold syrup.

1. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 pound unsalted butter, at room temperature.

2. Cream together for 2 minutes on high speed with the paddle attachment. Add 1/2 cup corn syrup and 1 teaspoon lemon, orange or vanilla extract. Continue to cream for about 5 minutes, or until light and fluffy.

3. Use as much of this as you need to cover the bottom of the pan with a 1/4-inch layer. Refrigerate and save any excess for future use; it will keep for months in a sealed container.

Vanilla Ice Cream

This is my basic ice cream base to which i add many different flavorings.

8 oz egg yolks
12 oz sugar
2 pt milk
1 pt heavy cream
pinch salt
1 vanilla bean (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)

Combine milk and cream in a heavy bottomed saucepot. Scrape seeds out of vanilla bean. Add seeds and pod to cream mixture. Heat over medium heat until just barely at a simmer. Mix yolks, salt, and sugar. Add around a cup of the hot cream to the yolk mixture and mix well. Add yolk mix to the hot cream. Continue to cook until mixture has thickened slightly. Remove from heat. Strain mix in a very fine strainer. Chill mix. Turn in ice cream freezer.

For sage ice cream add 4 or 5 chopped fresh sage leaves to cream mixture before it is heated.

For caramilized banana ice cream : Take 6 oz brown sugar, 1 oz butter, 1 tsp cinnamon, and 2 bananas (sliced) and saute. Cook until the sugar has melted and bananas are cooked. Add 2 oz banana liqueur. Remove from heat and cool. Stir into ice cream after it has been turned.

Bailey's Ice Cream:
Take 3 cups Bailey's and cook until reduced to about 1 1/2 cups. Add to ice cream base.

Flourless Chocolate Cake

Shown in picture with caramelized banana ice cream and a banana chip.

24 oz semisweet chocolate

12 oz unsalted butter

1 cup toasted almond flour *

10 egg yolks

10 egg whites

11oz sugar

pinch salt

1 tsp vanilla extract

Melt chocolate and butter. Add Almond flour. Whip yolks with half of sugar and vanilla until ribbon stage. Add to chocolate mixture. Whip whites with salt and remaining sugar to soft peaks. Fold into chocolate mixture. Pour into baking pans...i used a muffin pan. Bake at 350 F about 15 mins.

*Almond flour is finely ground almonds. Process sliced almonds in a food processor. Then spread on sheet pan and bake until golden brown.

Best served warm.