Browned Butter Blondie Brownies

I love love love sweets, but honestly don't bake very often because otherwise I would be the one to eat whatever I bake! So, anytime I have a good excuse to bake, I get excited about the possibilities and want to try to bake something extra special! I was recently invited to a Christmas cookie exchange, so it was the perfect opportunity to try something new!

I have always loved blondie brownies but wanted to do something a little something extra, so I decided to brown the butter. Browning butter results in a really delicious nutty flavor that I thought would work really well with the toffee and chocolate chips. The browned butter really does add a extra special flavor and is definitely worth the extra effort.

2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 cups packed light-brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 cup toffee bits

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the butter until it turns golden brown—about 15 minutes, but watch carefully and continue to stir with a wooden spoon. Remove from heat and allow to cool. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine browned butter and both sugars. Stir with a wooden spoon until combined. Attach bowl to mixer and add eggs. Using the paddle attachment, beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy--about three minutes. Add vanilla and beat to combine. Add flour mixture and mix well. Stir in chocoloate chips and toffee. Mix thoroughly and pour into greased 9 by 13 aluminum pan. Spread with spatula to even out. Bake 30-35 minutes (test with with a tootpick--it should come out clean!). Cool pan on a wire rack and cut into squares.

Festive Pumpkin Bundt Cake with Cinnamon Cream Cheese Icing

I normally consider myself more of a cook than a baker and I usually don't dabble too much in creative cutesy food, but for some reason, I really wanted to make something cute for fall and this is what I came up with! Perfect for Halloween parties, Thanksgiving or just for fun! Cute and delicious--can't beat that!

Cake
1 butter yellow cake mix
1 package sugar free instant butterscotch pudding mix
4 eggs
1/4 vegetable oil
1/4 water
1 15 oz. can of pumpkin
1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Starting on a low (so you don't splatter yourself and your kitchen), mix ingredients until slightly incorporated before turning the mixer to medium high. Continue to beat the batter for three to five minutes. This will "activate" the instant pudding mix and also whip air into your batter leaving you with a moist and airy cake. Pour batter into a well greased fluted bundt pan. Bake for approximately 55 minutes. Remove cake from oven and test with a knife or tooth pick to ensure the cake is finished. Cool in the pan for approximately 20 minutes and then remove from pan and cool on a cooling rack.

Icing
4 oz. cream cheese, softened (1/2 block)
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
2 cups of powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon milk
Yellow and Red gel food coloring

While cake is cooling, in a large bowl, combine cream cheese, butter and powdered sugar until smooth. Again, start on low and work your way up to medium on the speed! Stir in vanilla and cinnamon. Add milk a little at a time until you get a consistency that will allow you to drizzle the icing over the cake and let it drip down the sides.

Leaves
1/2 roll marzipan (almond paste found in the baking aisle)
Green gel food coloring
Toothpicks for assembly

Unwrap the marzipan and gauge the pliability. It should be soft and moldable, but if it is like mine, it will be hard as a rock! So, what you'll want to do is heat it for about 30 seconds to get it a little softer. After it is soft enought to mold, knead the marzipan to get it so a smoother consistency and then add the food coloring to get the desired color of green you are looking for. Break off about 3/4 of the marzipan and begin to mold the stem. Next, proceed with molding the remaining marzipan into leaves. At any point during the molding process, you might need to pop the marzipan back in the microwave for 10-15 seconds to soften it back up. Set Leaves aside until you are ready to assemble.

After the cake has cooled completely, invert the cake onto a serving platter and slowly spoon the icing over the top of the cake, allowing the icing to drip down the side. Attach the stem with a toothpick by heating the stem in the microwave for 10-15 seconds. Push a tooth pick through one side of the bottom of the stem and out the other side. Using another toothpick, create a cross with the toothpicks by pushing the second through the other side. Secure the stem into the cake using the toothpicks. Place the leaves on the cake, resting them against the stem and the toothpicks.

Refrigerate until serving.

Serve and enjoy! Happy Fall!

Pumpkin Gooey Butter Cakes

Since I don't bake all that often and don't really experiment with desserts (there is science to baking that you don't really want to mess with...) I turned to an expert to find a a delicious and decadent dessert for Thanksgiving. Who better to go to than the wonderful Paula Deen?! This dessert by Paula Deen is soo delicious and it is sure to become a family favorite just as it has in our family.

Cake:
1 (18 1/4-ounce) package yellow cake mix
1 egg
8 tablespoons butter, melted

Filling:
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
8 tablespoons butter, melted
1 (16-ounce) box powdered sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine the cake mix, egg, and butter and mix well with an electric mixer. Pat the mixture into the bottom of a lightly greased 13 by 9-inch baking pan.

To make the filling: In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and pumpkin until smooth. Add the eggs, vanilla, and butter, and beat together. Next, add the powdered sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and mix well. Spread pumpkin mixture over cake batter and bake for 40 to 50 minutes. Make sure not to overbake as the center should be a little gooey.

Enjoy!