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These cinnamon rolls! I made these for our Christmas morning breakfast, and they were so amazing, I think I ate 3 of them!! They are soft and gooey and full of warm gingerbread flavor. And the frosting!! You know I have a weakness for mascarpone, and this frosting did not disappoint!
Gingerbread Cinnamon Rolls
Dough:
1 1/4 cups warm water
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
1/4 cup powdered milk
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup shortening
1/2 cup mashed potato flakes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 Tablespoon instant yeast
3 to 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
Filling:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
3 to 4 Tablespoons butter, melted
Mascarpone Frosting:
2 Tablespoons butter, room temperature
1/2 cup (4 ounces) mascarpone cheese
1 cup powdered sugar
For the dough, in the bowl of a stand mixer (or by hand), combine all of the dough ingredients (starting with 3 cups of flour), and mix until a soft dough forms, adding the remaining 1/2 cup of flour if necessary. Knead the dough, either with the dough hook of your stand mixer, or by hand, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Place the dough in a greased bowl, and grease the top of the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 350F. For the filling, combine the brown sugar,granulated sugar, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves. Roll the dough into a large rectangle. Spread the melted butter over the dough. Sprinkle the filling mixture evenly over the buttered dough. Roll up the dough, starting at the widest edge, and pinch the seam to seal. Cut the dough into 12 rolls, using a knife or dental floss, and place in a greased 9x13 inch pan, and press down slightly on the top of the rolls.
Cover with plastic wrap and let rise for about 30 minutes. (At this point, you can cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. Remove the rolls from the fridge while you preheat the oven, then bake as usual). After the rolls have risen, remove the plastic wrap and bake the cinnamon rolls in the preheated oven for about 20 to 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool slightly before frosting.
For the frosting, combine the butter and mascarpone cheese until smooth. Stir in the powdered sugar, a little at a time until well blended and smooth. Spread the frosting over the warm cinnamon rolls. Makes 12 cinnamon rolls.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
I swear I was only going to make one batch of fudge for Christmas. Honest. But then I had leftover coconut milk from these Pani Popo, and I knew I had to do it. Coconut milk fudge. How could I not?! I used a basic marshmallow fudge recipe, and made a few minor tweaks and changes, and the result is kind of amazing. This fudge is super simple, but so just crazy delicious! Smooth, chocolatey, fudgy, and just coconutty enough to make you grab another piece!
Coconut Milk Marshmallow Fudge
2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup coconut milk
1/2 cup butter
12 large marshmallows
6 ounces (1 cup) milk chocolate chips
6 ounces (1 cup) semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon coffee extract
1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
Line a 9x9 inch square pan with foil, then grease the foil with cooking spray.
In a large saucepan, stir together the granulated sugar, coconut milk, and butter. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Once the mixture reaches a full boil, continue to boil for 2 minutes, still stirring constantly.
Remove saucepan from the heat and immediately stir in the marshmallows, milk chocolate chips, semi sweet chocolate chips, vanilla extract, coffee extract, and coconut extract. Continue to stir until the chocolate and marshmallows are completely melted and smooth.
Pour the the fudge into the prepared pan and chill until firm, about 4 hours. Using the foil as handles, lift the fudge out of the pan and place on a cutting board. Cut into squares. Makes 64 pieces.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
This original fudge recipe comes from David Lebovitz, and was exactly what I was looking for! His recipe called for peanuts, and since we all know I don't really go for peanuts, we switched to marshmallows and gave made a few changes to help it taste a little bit more hot chocolatey. I think it is a total win! My fudge turned out a bit taller than I expected, and I realized that it was because of the loads of marshmallows that I added. You can use fewer marshmallows, or leave them out all together, but I think they add a perfect touch to this decadent fudge!
Hot Chocolate Marshmallow Cream Fudge
2/3 cup evaporated milk
6 ounces (3/4 cup,1 1/2 sticks) butter, cubed
3 cups granulated sugar
1 Tablespoon dark cocoa powder
8 ounces milk chocolate chips
4 ounces semi sweet chocolate chips
7 ounce jar marshmallow cream
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups mini marshmallows
Line an 8 inch square baking pan with foil. Grease the foil with cooking spray.
In a 4 quart saucepan, stir together the evaporated milk, butter, sugar, and cocoa powder. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture reaches 234F using a candy or instant read thermometer.
Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the milk chocolate chips, semi sweet chocolate chips, marshmallow cream, and vanilla extract until completely melted and smooth. Let the fudge cool for about 5 minutes, then quickly stir in the mini marshmallows. Pour the fudge into the prepared pan and let cool completely. Cut into squares. Makes 64 pieces.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
A while ago, I made these Swig Sugar Cookies with Chocolate Coconut Sour Cream Frosting. For the cookie recipe, I linked to this Swig Sugar Cookies recipe. I've made these cookies several times because my family loves loves loves them. Since it is Christmas time I decided to make them again, but this time eggnog flavored! And since I made about 70 of them, I am donating most of them to a cookie drive for the new Airmen at the Air Force Base here. I am so excited about these cookies because the eggnog flavor is totally spot on. I let my Hungry Puppies taste test the dough and they said "Oh my goodness, Mom, it's eggnog!!!" These soft eggnog sugar cookies are topped with a sweet sour cream eggnog frosting.
Eggnog Swig Sugar Cookies
Eggnog Cookies:
1 cup butter, room temperature
3/4 cup canola oil
1 1/4 cup granulated sugar (plus extra for pressing cookies)
3/4 cup powdered sugar
2 Tablespoons eggnog
2 eggs
1 teaspoon rum extract
5 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Sour Cream Eggnog Frosting:
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream
6 to 7 cups powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon rum extract
3 to 4 Tablespoons eggnog
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Cream together the butter, oil, granulated sugar, and powdered sugar. Beat in the eggnog, eggs, and rum extract. Add the flour, nutmeg, salt, baking soda, and cream of tartar, and beat until blended.
Scoop the dough into tablespoon size balls, and place on the prepared baking sheet. Using a glass dipped in sugar, flatten the dough balls until they are flat, and the edges are cracked.
Bake the cookies in the preheated oven for 8 to 9 minutes. Remove cookies from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
For the frosting, cream together the butter and sour cream. Add the sugar and beat until well blended and very thick. Beat in the nutmeg, salt, rum extract, and 3 tablespoons of eggnog until smooth. Add the remaining eggnog if needed to reach your desired consistency. Spread the frosting on top of the cooled cookies. Makes 70 cookies.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
You don't see a whole lot of pumpkin cookies here because I am really not a fan of cakey cookies. We've had this conversation recently. If I want cake, I'll have cake. Not cookies. Since I made the pumpkin butter snickerdoodles, I've really been wanting to make these pumpkin cookies. So I totally went for it. And the result is delicious! And not cakey! I'm so happy with how they turned out, they will definitely be making the repeat list. The best part? You can make these cookies with one bowl and just a spoon!
Pumpkin Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
10 Tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup pumpkin butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup milk chocolate chips
1/4 cup mini semi sweet chocolate chips
In a large bowl, stir together the butter, brown sugar, pumpkin butter, and vanilla until smooth. Add the flour, baking soda, salt, pumpkin pie spice, and cinnamon and stir until combined. Stir in the chocolate chips.
Scoop the dough into tablespoon size balls and place on a wax paper lined tray, then cover with plastic wrap and chill for one hour, or freeze to bake later.
Preheat the oven to 350F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the chilled dough balls on the prepared baking sheet and bake for about 8 minutes, or until just golden brown at the edges. Let cool for several minutes on the pan. Transfer to a cooling rack to cool completely. Makes about 36 cookies.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
I have to say before we start, that this is my very first walnut recipe! Crazy, huh?! I really dislike walnuts, but I really love this bread. My maternal grandmother was Serbian and her parents came to the United States from what was then Yugoslavia (now Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia). My paternal grandmother was also Slovenian. I never knew my paternal grandmother, as she passed away before I was born, but I remember my maternal grandmother making this bread when I was a kid. As I stirred together the walnut mixture, it smelled just like my memories! It was wonderful. This is the first time I have made this traditional Serbian/Slovenian bread, and it definitely won't be the last. I hope that I can help to keep this traditional bread in my family. A sweet yeast dough filled with a sweet walnut filling, rolled up and baked! This is the recipe that my grandmother used. Note: After 40 minutes of baking, my bread was not quite done in the center, so if you need to, cover the top of the bread with foil and continue to bake until done in the center.
Potica
Dough:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
1 cup hot milk
2 pkg (2 1/4 teaspoons each) active dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105 - 115F)
2 eggs
4 1/2 cups unsifted all purpose flour
Filling:
3 eggs
4 cups (1 pound) walnuts, ground or finely chopped (it should look like coarse wet sand)
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/3 cup butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons butter, melted
Stir sugar, salt, and 1/4 cup butter into hot milk. Cool to lukewarm. (A drop sprinkled on wrist will not feel hot.) Sprinkle yeast over warm water (check temperature with thermometer) in large bowl. Stir to dissolve. Stir in lukewarm milk mixture.
Add eggs and 2 1/2 cups flour; beat at high speed with electric mixer 2 minutes. With wooden spoon, gradually beat in remaining 2 cups flour; knead with hand until the dough is stiff enough to leave side of bowl. Place dough in lightly greased large bowl.
Turn the dough over to bring up greased side. Cover with a towel. let rise in warm place (85F), free from drafts, until double in bulk - about 1 hour. Make filling: In medium bowl, beat eggs, slightly. Add nuts, brown sugar, 1/3 cup butter, the cinnamon and vanilla.
Stir filling to blend well. Shape dough: Punch down dough. On lightly floured surface, turn out dough, cover with bowl, allow to rest for 10 minutes. Roll out to a rectangle 30 inches long and 20 inches wide. Spread with filling to 1 inch from edge.
Starting from the wide side, roll up tightly as for a jelly roll. Seal by pinching edges to dough with fingers. With palms of hands, roll back and forth so that roll is even all over. On large greased cookie sheet, form roll into a large coil, seam side down.
Let rise in warm place (85F), covered with towel, free from drafts, until double in bulk - 1 hour. Preheat oven to 350F. Brush with 2 tablespoons butter. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until golden. Cool on wire rack. Slice crosswise 1/4" thick. Makes 4-pound loaf.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
I was trying to decide what kind of pumpkin pie to do this year, but wasn't having any great ideas. I didn't want to do something crazy complicated and elaborate because I had so many other things going on and I needed something a bit more simple. I didn't want to just do a plain old ordinary pumpkin pie though either, because plain and ordinary aren't really in my repertoire. I then had an epiphany. I could use caramel flavored condensed milk and do a super simple caramel pumpkin pie. Brilliant. Easy. Done. I found the caramel flavored condensed milk at Walmart, but if you can't find any, just substitute regular sweetened condensed milk. Note: I made my pie in a deep dish pie plate and this recipe filled it to the tippy top. If you are using a shallow pie plate, just cut the recipe in half. Recipe adapted from here.
Caramel Pumpkin Pie
1 9-inch pie crust, unbaked
2 cans (15 ounces each) pumpkin puree
2 cans (14 ounces each) caramel flavor sweetened condensed milk
4 eggs
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon ginger
3/4 teaspoon salt
Preheat the oven to 425F. Fit the pie crust into a 9 inch deep dish pie plate. Crimp the edges.
Whisk together the pumpkin puree, caramel condensed milk, eggs, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, and salt until smooth and well blended. Pour into the prepared crust.
Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350F and continue baking the pie for an additional 40 to 50 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove the pie from the oven and let cool completely. Serve at room temperature, or chill and serve cold. Top with whipped cream. Makes 8 to 12 servings.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
I have really been craving orange and chocolate together for a while now, and one of the things I've been wanting to make is orange brownies. Since I just can't stop there, I decided to add fresh cranberries and white chocolate chips as well. I frequently see recipes for cranberry orange blondies all over the place, but brownies not so much. I had to fix that. Which is where these brownies come in. I started with this brownie recipe from Guittard, and added a bit more orange zest, fresh cranberries, and white chocolate chips. I almost threw in some pistachios, but didn't this time. You can if you want, I think they would be delicious! You do want to chill these brownies before cutting as the fudge factor is astronomical, and the chilling will help them to cut more easily. I totally can't get over the fresh cranberries in these brownies! These brownies are so rich and fudgy with a hint of orange and wonderful bursts of cranberry throughout!
Orange Fresh Cranberry Brownies
1 pound (about 2 1/2 cups) semi sweet chocolate chips
4 Tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter
1/4 cup water
4 eggs
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
zest of one orange
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup all purpose flour
2 cups fresh cranberries
3/4 cup white chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 325F. Lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
Place the chocolate chips, butter, and water in a microwave safe bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring after each, until the chocolate is melted and smooth (mine took about 1 minute). Set aside.
In a large bowl, beat together the eggs, sugar, orange zest, salt, and vanilla, until thick and pale yellow, about 2 to 3 minutes. With the mixer on low, beat in the melted chocolate until blended. Add the flour and beat until just combined. Fold in the cranberries and white chocolate chips.
Spread the batter into the prepared baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a crust has formed on the top of the brownies and the edges have pulled away from the pan. Let the brownies cool to room temperature, then refrigerate overnight (or until cold) before cutting. Makes 24 bars.
Enjoy! -Cardamommy
