Some More S’Mores…

June 11, 2018June 11, 2018 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

BBQ with friends was the perfect excuse to bake. S’Mores Bars is a go-to recipe for me, care of my sister. I’m pretty sure I’ve posted this before. It’s a kid and adult crowd pleaser. The adults loved it and I got quite a few “wow these are great”. Cutting them is a bit messy so it’s best they are cooled. If only I had gotten a picture eating one, but they were gone too quickly.

Recipe:

Ingredients:

10 Honey Maid Grahams, broken in half (20 squares) divided

3/4 cup butter or margarine

4 squares Baker’s Unsweetened Chocolate

2 Cups sugar

3 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup flour

2 1/2 cups- Jet Puffed miniature marshmallows

1 cup Baker’s semi-sweet Chocolate Chunks

(aluminum foil and cooking spray)

Directions:

Heat oven to 350

Line: 13×9 inch pan with foil; spray with cooking spray. Place 15 squares in pan, with sides overlapping slightly. Break remaining grahams into pieces.

Microwave: butter and chocolate squares in large microwavable bowl on high 2 min.; stir until chocolate is completely melted. Add sugar, eggs, and vanilla; mix well. Stir in flour. Pour over grahams in pan.

Bake : 30-32 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out with fudgy crumbs. (Do not overbake). Sprinkle with marshmallows and chocolate chunks. Bake 3-5 min. or until marshmallows begin to puff. Press reserve graham pieces gently into marshmallows. Cool. Use foil to lift brownies from pan before cuting to serve.

How to easily cut brownies:

For ease in cutting, dip knife in warm water and wipe dry between cuts.

Gingerbread House: 1st One Ever!

December 19, 2017December 19, 2017 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

We made a gingerbread house, a new holiday activity. Granted, we bought a kit with the pieces already made. Care of Trader Joe’s. I did have to make the icing, so that counts for something. Decorating left to Miss S. I was curious what it tasted like so broke off the top of the tree one night. Someone noticed.

And the finished product, prior to the tree piece going missing…

Baked French Toast. Mmmmmmm

January 5, 2015January 5, 2015 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

We had over some guests to visit Ms S today. We’ve done some brunch/lunches recently for our guests and decided to go sweet today. This was a hit, if you can’t tell by the pan. See that part left? Breakfast tomorrow, with a cup of joe. Ok, ok, so maybe that should be breakfast for Monday AND Tuesday.

Baking with Babe

December 3, 2014 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

I’m a baker. I love to make cookies and brownies. Nothing too complex. For me, the mixing and stirring is a stress reliever. I find it very calming. Too bad I can’t eat everything I bake. That is the problem. But I had a good excuse with these cookies. They are lactation cookies with lots of oatmeal. So I’m baking for a cause. Granted, after I made them I decided they were just oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

This was baby’s first cookie baking with mom. Much more of that to come. She better have a sweet tooth!

Saturday Morning: Baking, Muffins & Workouts

September 27, 2014 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

At this point, I’m really feeling baked goods. The mixes in the kitchen call my name…”Jill, make me!” We start Saturdays with a trip to Chelsea Piers then Blue Bottle. Real workout for him, light spin on the elliptical for me (more me being able to watch TV than really getting the heart rate up). Then blueberry muffins. My parents bring me a mix from Jordan’s in Maine every year. They never disappoint. May as well top it off with a solid pat of butter. Why not?

4 Layer Cake. Because I Had 2 Very Flat Layers.

February 16, 2014 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

My 2 layer cake became a 4 layer cake earlier this month because the layers came out so flat. I was so disappointed in my baking abilities (my mom blamed the mix), but determined to make this work. So I made a 4 layer half of a cake. With lots of chocolate cream cheese icing. Mark and I had 2 big pieces and I took the rest to work where it was devoured by our programming team.

We started this meal with burgers we cooked at home. Mark nailed these. Crisp on the outside with a little sear. It didn’t hurt that they were 80% beef, 20% bacon burgers.

Winter = Ginger Molasses Cookie Baking

February 9, 2014 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

It’s cold out there! This is the kind of weather that makes me want to bake, and bake I did. Mark’s not the biggest fan of these, but ginger molasses is right up my alley. I ate a few. A few yesterday and a few today. This is a snow picture from last week, and now it’s snowing again! I’m certainly getting full use out of all of my winter gear. Tons of hats, scarves and 2 pairs of boots….the Sorels and the North Face.

Cinnamon Bun @ Doughnut Plant

September 7, 2013 ~ Jill ~ 2 Comments

About once a year I opt for the cinnamon bun at Doughnut Plant. Yes, I don’t get a doughnut. Can you believe it? I think the cinnamon roll is more of a commitment in the carbohydrate area. That being said, it was great…not overbaked, huge raisins, and frosting.

Cup of Lavazza from Eataly and a table in the flatiron area. Perfect Sunday on a 3 day weekend (yes, this was last Sunday).

Brownies. Homemade Chewy Goodness.

June 17, 2013 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

I finally made a recipe from my Cooks Illustrated magazine. And of course it was brownies! They were trying to achieve the chewiness of the box mixes (Ghiradelli), which is a 28%/72% saturated to unsaturated fat ratio. Most homemade recipes are more like 64%/36% saturated to unsaturated fat. I meant to do a side by side but the box mix got made a few weeks ago (ooops!).

Two kinds of chocolate into the mix…

And then stirring and then baking…Yes, I even did the foil exactly like they said.

Done! I ate a good quarter of the pan. Alone, and with ice cream in a sundae form. I think they actually got better the next day. The larger chocolate pieces were nice in the bars. Very chewy. Though I will say my mom’s box ones are equally as good. I don’t know, I’m just a sucker for brownies!

Let’s Eat Cake

February 9, 2013 ~ Jill ~ Leave a comment

Sometimes what you want is a layer cake. Nothing fancy, but with the right amount of frosting. The Cake Doctor helped out last week with my yellow cake and chocolate cream cheese frosting. We each had a big piece during the Super Bowl and then I brought the rest to work. And it was a crowd pleaser.