Turtle cookies

Posted on August 24, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

Last night, the Hubs and I went to go see “The World’s End” with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. We are both pretty big fans of “Hot Fuzz” and “Shaun of the Dead”, {although undoubtedly he is a bigger fan than I} so this was a total no brainer. We decided to go to my favorite movie theatre in town because Terrapin Beer Co. was there hosting a beer tasting for opening night of the film.

We made sure to show up early so that we could see for ourselves what Terrapin Beer Co. had to offer. They are based out of Athens, Georgia and up until now, I had just barely heard of them. But by the time our theatre was being seated, we were huge fans. They had 4 very different types of beer for the tasting: Rye Pale Ale, which is their original, signature taste, the Hopsecutioner IPA, brewed with six different hops, the Tree Hugger, which is more of your amber ale, and my favorite, Pumpkin Fest, their seasonal and perfectly balanced pumpkin ale.

So we ordered our favorite brews, mine with a sweet, brown-sugared rim around the glass, and sat down at our table and lounge chairs….yes, lounge chairs, and happily waited for the movie to start. At one point, one of the ushers came in and announced they would be holding a trivia contest focusing on the Cornetto Trilogy. They had “The World’s End” posters and T-shirts to giveaway and so I told the Hubs I just had to have one. Thanks to his mad trivia skills, he was able to win me both. If you are at all a Simon Pegg fan or into SciFi or enjoy a little British humor, then you must go see “The World’s End”. It is totally worth it.

After the movie, my excitement for Terrapin Beer Co. got me thinking…

You have all heard of turtle brownies, right?

Ooey, gooey brownies filled with nuts and caramel?

Well I decided that to celebrate my new found love for Terrapin Beer Co., a batch or two of Turtle Cookies were in order.

Terrapin actually means turtle, so I thought these cookies were only fitting.

So I took my old fashioned recipe for the ordinary chocolate chip cookie and razzle, dazzled it up with chopped pecans, fleur de sel, and my homemade Salted Caramel Sauce.

Turtle Cookies

Ingredients

2 1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup {2 sticks} butter, softened
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1 1/4 cup chocolate chips
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
Salted Caramel Sauce
fleur de sel, for dusting

Instructions

Preheat oven to 375° and line your cookie sheet with a silapat or parchment paper.
In a small bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt.
In your stand mixer bowl, cream butter and sugar on medium speed.
Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well until incorporated.
Add vanilla extract and paste.
On low speed, gradually beat in your flour mixture, a little at a time.
Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in 1 cup of chocolate chips and your chopped pecans.
Drop rounded tablespoon dollops onto ungreased baking sheet.
Use the additional 1/4 cup of chocolate chips to sprinkle the tops of the cookie dough.
Bake for 9-11 minutes or until golden brown.
Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.
When cool, drizzle Salted Caramel Sauce and dust with fleur de sel.

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S’mores Coffeecake

Posted on August 17, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

It’s that time of year again.

The time of year where students all over the globe are picking out new backpacks, trying on new shoes, and getting back into the school routine. They begin wondering whose going to be in their class, what their new teacher will be, and most importantly, what are they going to wear on the first day of school.

I don’t have any children going off to school, but I can tell you what it’s like from the other side…

I am a teacher and I love the beginning of the school year. I too, get excited about new school clothes and finding the perfect lunch box. I love getting to see old friends and co-workers and making new ones. We spend an entire week learning new concepts and programs, planning curriculum, and setting up our classrooms before the children arrive.

We wonder what our new class will be like. Whether our new students will like us or not {because it does matter, even if we say it doesn’t}. And we hope everything will be perfect for the first day of school.

So to wrap up the end of summer and kick off the start of yet another school year, I made you coffeecake…

More importantly, S’mores Coffeecake.

I took your everyday coffeecake and added a layer of ooey gooey marshmallow and graham cracker streusel with a chocolatey S’mores syrup drizzle. I found the most amazing S’mores Pancake and Ice Cream syrup at World Market the other day and thought it would go perfect for my coffeecake. It totally did.

It also did on my ice cream that night.

And my waffles the next morning.

The great thing about this coffeecake is that not only is it yummy delicious on the first day, but the syrup soaks into the cake and makes it even better the second day. That is not normally the case when we are talking about coffeecake.

Smores Coffeecake

Recipe by Carrie, adapted from Baking Illustrated

Ingredients

For the streusel:

3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 tablespoons baking spice or cinnamon
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
3 tablespoons butter, cold

For the cake:

4 large eggs
1 1/2 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons {1 1/2 sticks} butter, softened
Bag of mini-marshmallows
S'mores Pancake and Ice Cream syrup

Instructions

For the streusel:

Pour the flour, sugar, brown sugar, graham cracker crumbs, baking spice, pecans, and butter in a food processor and pulse 10 times, about 1-second per pulse to combine.
You should have pea sized bits and your streusel should look like wet sand.
Set aside and start on the cake.

For the cake:

Preheat oven to 350° F and adjust your oven rack to a lower position.
Grease or spray a tube pan or a bundt pan and set aside.
In your stand mixer, combine eggs, sour cream, butter, and vanilla.
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
At low speed, add your dry ingredients to your wet ingredients in your mixer.
Increase to medium speed and beat for about a minute.
Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula and mix again for 30 seconds.
Add 2 cups of the batter to the prepared pan.
Level out the batter with an offset spatula.
Sprinkle about half of your streusel over the top of your batter evenly.
Add an even layer of mini-marshmallows over the top of the streusel.
Drizzle S'mores Pancake and Ice Cream syrup evenly over the mini-marshmallows.
Pour another 2 cups of the batter over the streusel, spreading evenly, and then add the rest of your streusel.
Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool the cake in the pan for about 25 minutes.
Invert the cake using a rimmed baking sheet over the top of the cake.
The cake should now be upside down, with the streusel on the bottom.
Place the cake on a wire rack to cool.
Drizzle S'mores Pancake and Ice Cream syrup across the top of the cake.
Serve immediately.

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Baby Blackberry Cobblers

Posted on August 9, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

I love when my Mom comes to visit. She lives about 700 miles away, so when we get to see each other, we try and make the most out of our short visit. She just so happened to fly up this week to help me set up my classroom for the upcoming school year. But thanks to my awesome organizational skills{surprisingly not sarcasm this time}, it only took us one day to set everything up. Which meant that left us 6 whole days to eat, shop, talk, and of course, bake.

Now I have a slight obsession with blackberries, so I already had it in my head that we were going to make a blackberry post, but it was Momma that came up with the cobbler part. We used her ole southern biscuit recipe for the top crust, and I decided to doctor it up a bit with some baking spice. And then, because I don’t like to share all that much, we used baby cobbler cups, so that we could each have our own.

Baby Blackberry Cobblers

Ingredients

For the biscuit:

2 cups all purpose flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
4 heaping tablespoons granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking spice
1/2 cup butter shortening, cold
7/8 cup milk

For the blackberry filling:

12 oz. package fresh blackberries
1 cup granulated sugar
pinch of baking spice
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon almond extract

Instructions

For the blackberry filling:

In a medium size bowl, combine blackberries, sugar, baking spice, cornstarch, and almond extract.
Using a large spoon, gently mix together and then mix again every 15 minutes or so to ensure that all the ingredients have been combined.
The filling will need to marinate for about 45 minutes, so now you can get started on the biscuits.

For the biscuit crust:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and like a cookie sheet with foil.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and cream of tartar.
Using a pastry cutter, cut in your shortening until your flour mixture looks like wet sand and has pea-sized dough bits.
Add most of the milk and mix with a fork; if your dough is still very dry, add the rest of the milk.
Mix only until the ingredients come together; don't overwork your dough.
Pat out your dough on a well floured surface.
Roll out your dough to about a 1/2 inch thickness.
Using your baby-cobbler dish, flip it over and cut out your dough into a circle.
Make sure to use your fork to poke holes in the dough circle before assembly.

To assemble your cobbler:

Fill your baby-cobbler dish all the way to the top with your blackberry filling.
Carefully lay your biscuit crust on top of the filling.
Brush the top of your biscuit with butter and sprinkle with sugar.
Place baby-cobblers on your cookie sheet to prevent dripping.
Bake for 20 minutes and let cool completely before serving.

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Salted Caramel Sauce

Posted on August 5, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

Ask anybody who knows me and they will tell you that I like to save money. If I can make it, bake it, or create it, I will do it just to save a few dollars.

Well that includes everything except sewing.

I bought a 1966 Singer at a thrift store a year ago and even went into town to the local sewing shop to sign up for the beginner’s class. The owner of the shop asked me if I could do a few simple beginner steps that everyone should know like threading your own machine, sewing a button, etc. You get the idea. I told her the closest I ever got to sewing something was 8th grade Home Ec. and even then I wasn’t that great. So she told me I would need a beginner’s to beginner’s class. Yeah. I would be the only one in the class. Nevertheless I said yes. She said she would call when she had an opening in her schedule.

She never called.

I never followed up.

I can’t sew.

Buuuuuut, I do try to save money and create with everything else in my life. Like this salted caramel sauce.

Why pay up to five or six dollars for a jar of caramel sauce when with just a few ingredients and 25 minutes, you have your own, better tasting, no preservatives, salted caramel sauce.

And why stop there? Drizzle it on top of your new-craze-one-ingredient ice cream everyone is talking about these days! I made one-ingredient banana ice cream the other day and just sprinkled cinnamon and drizzled my salted caramel sauce on top for more of a banana’s foster sorta feel.

Salted Caramel Sauce

Ingredients

1 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
5 tablespoons butter, sliced and at room temperature
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon fleur de sel
1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

Before you begin, measure out all your ingredients and have them ready to use. It is very easy to burn your caramel if you are not prepared.
On medium-high heat, combine sugar, water, and light corn syrup in a 2-3 quart saucepan. Whisk the sugar mixture continuously until it melts completely. It may clump at first, but that is perfectly normal.
Once melted completely, stop whisking and allow the sugar to bubble for several minutes. It will begin to take on a deep amber color. This is what you want. If you are new to making caramel, use a candy thermometer until it reaches 350 degrees.
Slowly and carefully add the butter and whisk until completely melted.
Remove your pan from the heat and slowly pour in your heavy cream while whisking continuously.
Still whisking, add your fleur de sel and vanilla until all the ingredients are incorporated and the caramel is smooth.
Allow the caramel to cool in the saucepan for about 10-15 minutes. This will allow it to thicken up a bit as well.
Carefully transfer your caramel to a glass jar and allow it to cool to room temperature.
Caramel can then be placed in the refrigerator and stored for up to 30 days, but we all know it won't last past the weekend. :)

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Dark Chocolate Espresso Cakes with Fluffy Peanut Butter Frosting

Posted on July 30, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

Last weekend a few friends and I headed up to New York City for a girl’s getaway. It was my first time in New York and it just so happened to be restaurant week. So we literally ate and drank our way through the city and picked up 2 Broadway shows along the way.

Our trip started out early Thursday morning. We checked in at our hotel, found a local eatery for an egg sandwich, and headed down Broadway for some shopping and sight seeing. We ate lunch at the amazing Craft Bar and thanks to restaurant week, I was able to have three delicious courses with a blueberry peach parfait to wrap things up. For dinner, we had reservations at The Lamb’s Club and to wind down the evening, we had drinks at The View courtesy of the Marriot Marquis. If you have never been to The View, it is honestly the coolest place to see a 360 degree roof-top view of the city. The restaurant actually spins, slowly, so that you get to check everything out while you are dining.

Friday morning we were able to pick up tickets to Rock of Ages for later that night. After breakfast, we paid our respects to Ground Zero and the Freedom Tower.

Standing there, among the thousands of names of people who lost their lives on 9/11 is quite humbling and emotional to say the least. My heart goes out to all of you who lost someone on that tragic day and for the ones who are continuing to fight.

The rest of the day included adventures in Chinatown, Chianti in Little Italy, lunch at Mercer Kitchen in SoHo, drinks at Samovar {Russian Vodka Room} and finally, Rock of Ages. I also got to stop by the infamous Junior’s for a slice of Red Velvet Cake. Yeah.

Saturday began with brunch at Sarabeth’s. Yes. THE Sarabeth’s. I have a huge secret crush on Sarabeth’s. I have her jams and her jellies. Her preserves. I even have her cookbook. This was by far my favorite place to eat. I had almond crusted french toast and fried potatoes. So delicious!

After brunch, we did a bit more sightseeing, taking in St. Patrick’s cathedral and stopping for drinks at Rockefeller Center. We ate at Carmine’s for dinner before our next Broadway show, Kinky Boots. We had great seats and even got to meet several cast members afterwards. I was in total awe of the cast, the set, and the costumes. I highly recommend it. After the show, we took the Subway back to the hotel for a few hours of sleep before our early flight back home the next day.

So to celebrate my first trip to the big city, I made you fancy Dark Chocolate Espresso Cakes with Fluffy Peanut Butter Frosting.

These cakes are the perfect little treat for any occasion, but I think the espresso and dark chocolate give it more of a New York City feel. Don’t ya think?

Dark Chocolate Espresso Cakes with Fluffy Peanut Butter Frosting

Ingredients

Dark Chocolate Espresso Cakes:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup cocoa, fill with hot water to the 1/2 cup line
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon espresso powder
8 tablespoons {1 stick} unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup sour cream
1 large egg plus 2 large egg yolks
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup dark chocolate morsels

Fluffy Peanut Butter Frosting:

8 tablespoons {1 stick} unsalted butter, softened
1 cup marshmallow fluff
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 1/2 cups confectioner sugar
splash of milk

Instructions

For the cakes:

Adjust your oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Line a standard 12 cup muffin tin with baking cups.
In your bowl of a standing mixer, cream butter and sugar.
Add egg and egg yolks, one at a time until incorporated.
Beat in vanilla and sour cream.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula and mix again for 30 seconds.
Measure out 1/4 cup cocoa and then add hot water to the 1/2 cup line; stir until it becomes a thin paste.
Add cocoa mixture to your wet ingredients and mix well.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, espresso powder and salt.
Add the dry ingredients to your wet ingredients, a little at a time, until smooth and no flour pockets remain.
With a rubber spatula, stir in the dark chocolate morsels.
Divide the batter evenly among the cups of the prepared tin.
Bake for about 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool completely on a wire rack before frosting.

For the frosting:

In your stand mixer bowl, combine butter, peanut butter, and marshmallow fluff.
On low speed, slowly whip in your confectioner sugar one cup at a time until smooth.
Add a splash of milk as needed to make your frosting creamy and fluffy.
Spread 2 -3 generous tablespoons of the frosting on top of each cooled cupcake.

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Buncha Crunch Rice Crispy Treats

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

When we visited the WWOHP last, the Hubs picked up a treat for me from HoneyDukes as we were leaving. It was an extremely large {it took me several days to eat it} rice crispy treat with a thick layer of chocolate on top. It was definitely delicious, but oh so rich. I could only handle a little at a time.

Since then, I have been thinking a lot about that treat. So when the Hubs asked me to recreate it last week, I was totally into it, but I also wanted to put the ole BNP spin on it.

Whenever we go to the movies lately I almost always buy either a popcorn and M&M’s or my go-to, Buncha Crunch. And we have been seeing a lot of movies lately, which means Buncha Crunch is on my brain, in my mouth, and around the house. So I thought, why not combine my love for Buncha Crunch with my long lost treat from the WWOHP.

So not only did I put my beloved Buncha Crunch in the everyday, average rice crispy treat, but I also put them on top…Oh yeah, and I drizzled chocolate and peanut butter on top of that. Because.

Buncha Cruncha Treats

Recipe by Carrie

Ingredients

3 tablespoons butter
1 package {10 oz.} marshmallows
6 cups rice crispy cereal
1 cup Buncha Crunch candy, plus more for topping
chocolate drizzle
peanut butter drizzle

Instructions

Line a 9x13 inch pan with parchment or grease thoroughly with baking spray to prevent sticking.
In a large saucepan, melt your butter on medium heat.
Add your marshmallows and stir until they are completely melted.
Add your rice crispy cereal, 2 cups at a time, and mix well.
Take your rice crispy mix off of the heat, and stir in your Buncha Crunch. Keep in mind that the longer you stir, the more they will melt. I mixed it as quickly as possible before pouring it in the pan.
Pour your rice crispy mix into prepared pan and using a spatula, press firmly until it is level.
Top with additional Buncha Crunch, and let cool.
To make the chocolate and/or peanut butter drizzle, you will need Candy Melts. You can pick them up at any craft store.
Melt the candy according to the package directions.
Using a disposable piping bag or ziploc bag, pour melts into the bag and snip the end.
Drizzle the rice crispy treats with the chocolate/peanut butter both vertically and horizontally.

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Peachy Crumb Cake

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

I love me some peaches…Being so deep in the South, we have the best peaches all around us. My most favorite type of peach comes from Georgia. They are so juicy and sweet and I absolutely love to bake with them during the summertime. The Hubs is not the biggest fan of peaches, but he will eat them if they are hidden away in a cake. Soooo…

Might I introduce you to Peachy Crumb Cake. {It kinda sounds like a name…doesn’t it?}

Now technically it is a cake, however it is loaded with everything that screams breakfast food, so if you wanted to eat it, like say around 9am or so, then I would think it would be deemed perfectly acceptable. In fact, I made this cake in the morning and had myself a big piece, so yeah, it is totally breakfast worthy.

The secret to this cake is to use ripe, juicy peaches. I would scour the farmer’s markets or local fruit stands to find them. I was lucky and found mine at Trader Joe’s. If they’re firm, just let them sit out for 24-48 hours. You should be able to smell them and they should feel a bit squishy.

Peachy Crumb Cake

Recipe by Carrie

Ingredients

For peach filling:

5 ripened peaches, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons sugar

For the cake:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
10 tablespoons {1 1/4 stick} butter, softened
3/4 cup whole milk
1 large egg, room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the topping:

1/2 cup pecans, chopped fine
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
3 tablespoons butter, melted

Instructions

For the peach filling:

In a medium saucepan on medium low heat, add your chopped peaches and sugar.
Let peaches simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until they have almost broken down. Your filling should be thick with small chunks of peaches.
Set aside and let them cool to room temperature.

For the cake:

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees, making sure your oven rack is in the middle position.
Lightly grease the bottom and sides of a 10-inch springform pan.
In your stand mixer bowl, combine butter and sugar and mix until light and fluffy.
Add egg and vanilla to your butter mixture.
In a separate mixing bowl, whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Starting with your flour mix first, take turns pouring your flour and milk a little at a time, and ending with the flour mix.
Make sure to scrap the sides and bottom of bowl and mix until combined.

For the topping:

In a small bowl, use a fork to combine pecans, brown sugar, and melt butter.

Putting it all together:

Using a rubber spatula, scrape half of the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
Add your peach filling, making sure to spread it evenly and carefully over the batter.
Add the rest of your batter and smooth the top again.
Sprinkle your brown sugar pecan mixture with a spoon or your hands until it is evenly distributed.
Bake until the center is firm and a tooth pick comes out clean, about 50 minutes.
Transfer the cake to a wire rack and let cool completely before serving.

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Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Scones

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

Sunday marked the Hubster’s 38th birthday. In years past, we have packed up the car and spent his birthday week with family at the beach, however this year we decided to stay back and relax at home. To make his birth week extra special, I came up with a theme for each day leading up to his official birthday. On Monday, the hubs got a few of his favorite king size candy bars with a handmade card that read “You are my king.” Tuesday left him following clues all around the house leading him to a few little geeky gifts. And on Wednesday, I woke up in the wee hours of the morning to make him breakfast in bed…specifically, these decadent Chocolate Chocolate Chip Scones with homemade caramel sauce.

During the school year, I am always up and out the door by 6:45 and the Hubster is left to fend for himself for breakfast. So when summertime rolls around, I like to take the time every now and then to make him something extra special to make up for all the months of breakfast drive-thrus and microwavable biscuits.

If you’ve got a spare 30 minutes, then you have these rich, delectable chocolate scones. I had already planned to make them, however this recipe is so simple, that I already had everything to make them in my kitchen, so no need for a grocery trip. Bonus.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Scones

Yield: 8 scones

Recipe by Carrie

Ingredients

3 cups flour
1/4 cup cocoa
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking spice
2 tablespoons castor sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
3/4 cup whole milk
10 tablespoons {1 1/4 sticks} butter, chilled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 cup mini-chocolate chips
1 large egg, beaten well for egg wash
Caramel sauce, homemade or store bought {optional}

Instructions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees and line baking sheet with silapat or parchment paper.
In a small bowl, beat 2 eggs and milk; set aside.
In your stand mixing bowl, sift flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking spice, sugar, and salt.
Using your paddle attachment, add butter and mix on medium speed until the mixture looks like the consistency of wet sand; You should only have pea-sized bits of butter.
Using a spatula, fold in the mini-chocolate chips.
On low speed, add your egg-milk mix to your dough mixture until dough just comes together.
Turn out dough onto your well-floured work surface.
Knead your dough just a few times to prevent it from sticking to the surface; do not overwork.
Flour your rolling pin and roll out your dough into a 3/4-inch round.
Using a knife, or better yet, a pizza cutter, slice your dough into 8 slices.
Brush the tops of your slices with the egg wash, making sure not to let it drip down the sides.{This can prevent the dough from rising properly.}
Sprinkle the tops of your scones with sanding sugar.
Place scones in the oven and reduce the temperature to 400 degrees.
Bake for 15-20 minutes and let cool for 10 minutes.
Drizzle with caramel sauce right before serving.
May be served warm and can be stored in an airtight container for 2-3 days.

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Summery Blue Moon Milkshake

Posted on July 11, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

It has been raining for over 14 days here…

14 days…

It is my summer vacation and it has been raining for 1/4 of it. Normally, I love the rain. It is the perfect environment for snuggling with a pup, reading a book, napping with the hubs, or taking on a Harry Potter movie marathon. But now I am over it. OVER IT I SAY.

So I decided to do something about it.

Last week, the hubs was in the mood for a burger, so we took a trip to Red Robin. While he was drooling over which burger to order, I was ogling the drink menu. To be honest, I didn’t make it past the first page. Right there in front of me in glossy card-stock, was a photo of two of my favorite beverages together, intermingled in a tall glass, topped with whipped cream and an orange slice.

I am talking about a beer milkshake here, people. Belgian-style Blue Moon Ale paired with a citrus inspired-vanilla milkshake.

I know what you are thinking….but stop right there.

This milkshake was absolutely delightful and refreshing and I just knew I had to recreate it at home to cure my rainy day blues.

Thanks to the ad, I already knew that the Red Robin milkshake not only had Blue Moon and vanilla ice cream, but orange liquor as well. So I decided to play up on the orange flavor and add Triple Sec to mine. I also decided to add a little orange juice and orange extract to take some of the bitter taste away from the Blue Moon. And to top off my milkshake, I whipped up a batch of orange flavored whip cream and added an orange slice. {Because every frothy alcoholic milkshake needs a fruit slice.} Am I right? Or am I right?

This was the perfect remedy for my rainy summer blues. It is like bright, shiny summertime in a cup. It totally makes me forget about the soggy atmosphere outside my window.

Summery Blue Moon Milkshake

Recipe by Carrie

Ingredients

1 cup Blue Moon Ale or any other orange flavored beer
1/2 cup orange juice
1 1/2 shots Triple Sec
1 teaspoon orange extract
6-8 scoops vanilla ice cream
For the orange whipped cream:
1/2 cup heavy cream
4 tablespoons confectioners sugar
1 teaspoon orange extract

Instructions

In a 72 oz. blender pitcher, combine Blue Moon beer, orange juice, Triple Sec, orange extract, and ice cream. Blend until desired consistency.
Add additional scoops of ice cream depending on how you like your milkshake thickness. This recipe call for 6-8, which is of light-medium consistency.
For the orange whipped cream: Combine heavy cream, sugar, and orange extract in your stand mixer bowl. Using your whisk attachment, whisk the cream mixture on medium-high until stiff peaks form.

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Chocolate Cherry Macadamia Nut Cookies

Posted on July 5, 2013 by Carrie Hoke

I hope everyone had a wonderful Independence Day! The hubs and I decided to stay home this year, as neither one of us are particularly fond of crowds. Plus, if we really wanted to see some fireworks, then all we had to do was walk outside our front door. It’s that simple thanks to our small town life!

Ok…I don’t typically vent, but this has become a major pet peeve of mine.

So I took the kiddos to our local theme park last Monday for some roller coaster fun. They are old enough to walk around by themselves, so while they were riding rides, I hung out near the pool reading my latest in my long list of must-reads. At one point, I walked up to the concession stand and bought myself a bottled water and fruit cup. Ok…so here comes my pet peeve. The fruit cup was the size of Mt. Everest! No lie. It was big. HUGE. For $3.99, I had enough strawberries, cantaloupe, and honey dew melon for not just a snack, but also for my breakfast and snack the next day. Not to mention, the size of the “bite-size” fruit pieces had to be cut into 2-3 smaller pieces before I could even put them in my mouth.

Is it not possible to pay $1.99 for a snack size portion of fruit with bite size pieces? Why is it that we Americans have to have the super-size of everything? Or the need to buy the “extra-value” meal? Almost every time the Hubster and I go out to eat, I am asking for a to-go box. Sometimes I remember to eat the leftovers and sometimes I totally forget…thus wasting food aaaand money. I would rather pay a smaller price for a smaller plate. Truth.

WHEW. Alright, I am done ranting. I feel loads better. Now onto cookies.

These cookies are the perfect summer snack. They are crunchy and chewy and who doesn’t love chocolate and cherries together. I was in a total chocolate craze when I came up with the idea. And AND these cookies literally took 15 minutes to put together.

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I made sure to coarsely chop the cherries and macadamia nuts beforehand to give the cookies some crunch-a-riety.

Yeah. I totally made that word up, but I love it and I’m usin’ it.

I love the idea of tart cherries paired with chocolate.

It gives it a nice contrast from the traditional sweet velvety goodness of the chocolate cookie.

Chocolate Cherry Macadamia Nut Cookies

Yield: 2 1/2-3 dozen

Recipe by Carrie

Ingredients

3/4 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup cocoa
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup macadamia nuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup tart cherries, coarsely chopped

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line your cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silapat.
In your stand mixing bowl, combine butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
Add one egg at a time to the mixture until well combined.
Add vanilla to your butter mixture.
In a medium bowl, combine flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt.
Slowly add your flour mixture to your butter mixture, a little at a time until combined.
Fold in your macadamia nuts and tart cherries.
Drop tablespoon sized cookie drops onto your baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
Let cookies cool on a wire rack for several minutes.

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