Tag Archive for Flour

Luscious Lemon Squares

Since it’s January, and my lemon tree is over loaded with lemons, it’s about time I share a lemony, delicious recipe with you.  Lemon squares are one of my Mom’s favorite desserts. She’s been asking me when we’re going baking these yummy little goodies.  I think it’s high time we gather some lemons and get to work.

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This is my favorite recipe for lemon squares from The Betty Crocker Ultimate Cookie Book.  I think I got this book from my Mom a few years ago.  Thanks Mom!

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Ingredients:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • ½ cup butter, softened
  • ¼ cup powdered sugar
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 2 eggs

Directions:

  • Pre-heat oven to 350°.
  • Mix flour, butter and powered sugar.
  • Press into ungreased square pan 8x8x2 or 9x9x2, building up a ½ edge to form a small crust.
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  • Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
  • Beat the remaining ingredients together on high-speed until light and fluffy.
  • Pour this mixture over the baked layer, and bake again for 25-30 minutes.
  • There should be almost no indentation remaining when lightly touched in the center.  A thin crust will form over the top of the bars.
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  • While the pan is still warm sprinkle the top with powdered sugar.

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  • Cool the pan completely, and then sprinkle with a second layer of powdered sugar.

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I cut the 8×8 size pan into small little squares, and remember the lemon flavor gets better with age.  If you can stand to let these little beauties sit around for a few days they taste better and better each day.  This batch was particularly yummy, and the lemony middle just melted in your mouth.  I have to admit they did not last long, and I made a second batch a few days later.

My next lemony adventure will most likely be a lemony sorbet, lemon poppy seed cake, or maybe a lemon-ricotta cheesecake.  Looking forward to trying the cheesecake this weekend.  Happy baking everyone.  What’s your favorite lemony recipe?

Have you ever Made Frosting with Flour?

I realized this week that I have neglected to post any recipes recently.  This is probably due to the party planning time, and actual parties in session over the past few weekends.  There is a recipe I have been meaning to share with everyone for a while now.  My Mom has a time-honored recipe for the best tasting frosting ever.

In our house this recipe is called “The Flour Frosting” recipe, and it goes something like this:

Ingredients:

  • 1 Cup Milk
  • 1/4 Cup Flour
  • 1/2 lb Margarine or Butter, softened
  • 1 Cup Sugar
  • 2 Tsp. Vanilla

Directions

  1. Mix the milk and flour together in a small saucepan on the stove. Cook on medium heat stirring constantly until thickened. Cool this mixture completely in the fridge.
  2. Beat the sugar and margarine together until creamy.  This is a critical step, the butter and sugar must be smooth and creamy in order for the frosting texture to be smooth and creamy.  There can be nothing grainy going on with the butter and sugar.  If this happens the frosting will look separated, and not taste very creamy.
  3. Add the cooled flour mixture to the butter and sugar, along with the vanilla.
  4. Beat until fluffy, and frost your cake!

This frosting is very creamy and extremely delicious, just a little warning.  It is not really the variety of frosting that you can do a lot of serious Wilton style decorating with.  But you will not be disappointed in the flavor and pure yummyness that this frosting delivers.

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These are my brothers’ birthday cakes from his last two birthdays, both covered with flour frosting.  This frosting is his favorite and he always requests it for his cakes.  It is one of my all time favorites too.

Yesterday I found a recipe similar to my Mom’s on the Tasty Kitchen.  This recipe is called, That’s the Best Frosting I’ve Ever Had.  This is quite similar to my Mom’s recipe, and goes into some additional detail on the mixing directions.

If you are making your someone special a delicious Valentine’s Day treat, try this recipe out.    If you have some cupcakes or a cake to bake this week, try this recipe out.  If you have some graham crackers lying around, and some of this frosting leftover you can put them together for a delicious treat.  You will not be disappointed.  Happy baking everyone.

Oh I had fun making Cinnamon Rolls

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Now I know everyone is busy this week setting goals for the new year, maybe trying to cut back on the sweet treats and what you are eating, but the next time you have a sweet tooth and need a great sweet treat, you need to try this recipe.

Over the holidays I created the cinnamon roll recipe from my Pioneer Woman cookbook.  Oh and what fun I had.  I’m  pretty sure this was the last treat I put together for my 2012 Christmas baking season.  First of all you need to understand the I am a bread-head.  I love anything breadalicious.  Bread, rolls, French bread, sweet breads. ,yum, yum.

I actually haven’t made anything along the lines of a bread recipe since October when we had a homemade pizza party.  So I gathered the ingredients, made the dough as directed, and voila here’s what it looked like after is had risen for about an hour.  Beautiful isn’t it?

1-photo-001Whenever I see a bowl full of poofy dough like this I just want to punch it down and smell the sweet bread flavors, and I did.

Next was rolling out the dough into a semi-rectangle, and adding the toppings.  butter, cinnamon, sugar, butter, cinnamon, sugar.  It was wonderful.

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Then came “The Roll”!!  Starting at one end and rolling as tightly as you can, but uniformly until you end up with your rectangle of dough looking like this…

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This recipe makes two long rectangles for the cinnamon rolls.  The first rectangle I rolled was a little bit loose, and I probably could have rolled slightly tighter.  By the second rectangle I had my system in order and it turned out great.

Then you cut the rolls, place them into your baking pans, and let them rest and rise again.  I used foil pans, since most of these were going to friends and family for a Christmas treat.

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Once they rested, they go into the oven for 20 minutes, frost and you are ready for some seriously sweet noshing.  But make sure you include a good cup of coffee with your treat.  Then it becomes spectacular.

I had so much fun rolling the dough and putting the rolls together.  The texture of this dough was fantastic, and made the assembly process all the easier.

My taste testers here at the house have proclaimed that this recipe must be a new Christmas tradition.  I agree.  I will add this to my annual Christmas baking arsenal for many years to come.

What’s your favorite baking recipe?

>> Photo credit for this post goes to my Travel Man…

Peach Crisp – A yummy summer treat.

 

Last week while Travel Man was home I made a Peach Crisp with fresh peaches of course.  This is a nice treat for my Travel Guy, as he really misses the home cooked meals when he is on the road.  I saw the recipe on my Facebook news, and it was a post from recipe.com.  This was a really delicious dessert.  A yummy summertime treat.  And just a little bit different because the crumbliness has graham crackers in it, and not so much oatmeal.  That made the crunchy crustiness extra yummy.

The Ingredients:

  • 1/4 c. sugar
  • 2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
  • 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 7 cups 1/2 inch fresh or frozen peach slices (8 peaches – about 3½ lbs.)
  • 2 Tbsp. honey
  • 2/3 c. coarsely crushed graham crackers (5 squares)
  • 2/3 c. packed brown sugar
  • 1/3 c. all-purpose flour
  • 2 Tbsp. oatmeal
  • 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
  • 1/3 c. butter

The Directions:

1) Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 

2) For the filling; in a bowl stir together sugar, the 2 Tbsp. flour, and 1 tsp. cinnamon.  Add peaches and toss to coat.  If you are using fresh peaches peel and slice the peaches first,  and then coat with this mixture. 

3) Spread the peaches in a 2-quart rectangular baking dish.  Drizzle honey over peaches and set aside.

4) For the topping; in a bowl stir together crushed graham crackers, brown sugar, 1/3 c. flour, oatmeal, and 1/4 tsp. cinnamon. 

5) Using a pastry blender, cut in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. 

6) Sprinkle topping evenly over the peach mixture.

7) Bake, uncovered, for 40 to 45 minutes or until topping is golden brown. 

8) Serve warm with you favorite vanilla ice cream on top.  Makes 8 servings.

Now go to the store or your favorite farmer’s market, get your peaches, and get your crisp on.  A nice summertime treat.  Enjoy!

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