Boozy Whipped Coffee

Boozy Whipped Coffee

Saturday 25 April 2020

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Today officially marks day 50 of quarantine. We've made TikTok dance routines, painted bird houses, played way too much scrabble, and finally, we bit the bullet and participated in the latest quarantine trend: whipped coffee. 

This coffee took all of 5 minutes to make so I wanted to link out the recipe below. We added Bailey's but that part is, of course, optional.

To get started you will need instant coffee, sugar and hot water (close to boiling) - 2 tbsp of each!

Using a hand whisk, electric hand mixer, or a stand mixer, whip the mixture for around 5 minutes or until the mixture is stiff (think whipped cream) and has reached a pale caramel color. Be patient with this step because at first, it may seem like it will never come together but it will magically pull through.  

Set up a glass with ice and pour a shot of Bailey's in it! Then also add some milk! After the coffee has reached the perfect whipped consistency, scoop 1-2 tablespoons on top of your icey Bailey's-milk mixture.  The coffee mixture will be strong but remember it will be diluted with the milk! Use less milk for a strong flavor and more milk for a light flavor. Feel free to add sugar as needed and serve.

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Berry Apple Pie

Berry Apple Pie

Thursday 16 April 2020

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I feel like this is becoming a baking blog (LOL - what else can I do during quarantine!?), but I wanted to share a super easy strawberry, apple and raspberry pie recipe with you. This was my first time ever making pie and it was a breeze - I will definitely make it again for my family! The best thing about this is that you can mix up the fruits dependent on what you have in the house. Next time I'd love to make this with peaches. When it comes time to serve, it taste great with a scoop of ice cream or a bit of whipped cream. Happy baking!

Ingredients:

Pie Crust 
2 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup butter (2 sticks), very cold
1 pinch salt
1/2 cup ice cold water

Raspberry-Strawberry-Apple Filling 
2 apples
1 quart strawberries, hulled and quartered
1 basket raspberries
1/4 cup cornstarch/flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 lemon, juiced

For the crust: add the flour, sugar, and salt to a food processor and mix to combine. Then add the cold butter in pieces (cut each stick into about 5 slices), and pulse until the mixture is crumbly with pea-sized lumps. Drizzle the ice cold water in slowly as the processor is running -- stop when the dough starts to come together in a ball. You may only need 1/3 cup of water, add more as needed.

Turn the dough out onto a surface and gently push it together into 2 flattened discs. Cover each disc with plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze until ready to use.

Slice your apples. Add the sliced apples, strawberries, raspberries, lemon juice, sugar, and cornstarch to a medium bowl and mix gently to combine. **You can use cornstarch or flour or a combination to thicken the filling. I like using 90% cornstarch and 10% flour to make 1/4 cup.**

Preheat the oven to 375.

Roll out the two discs of your pie crust separately on a floured surface until about 1/4 inch thick. (But seriously, REALLY flour your counter! Pie dough is sticky business.) Transfer the first rolled out piece to your pie pan.

Fill the crust with your fruit filling and any juice. If your fruit happened to be extra ripe and very juicy, add a little extra flour to the filling, or just leave some of the juice out. Also you can always reserve the juice, boil it down in a small saucepan, and then add it to the filling so it is less liquid-y and more concentrated.

Now using a knife or a pizza cutter, slice your second rolled-out disc of crust into long strips, and lay them across your pie in a lattice pattern. Trim the excess edge crust and crimp it along the outside with your fingers, a fork, or a spoon.

Brush the top of your pie with a pastry brush dipped in egg white, then bake it for around 40-50 minutes (the top should be golden brown and the fruit should be bubbling).

Whip up some heavy whipping cream and a touch of vanilla and put a dollop on top and serve! 

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Mother's Day Cards

Mother's Day Cards

Saturday 11 April 2020

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Now, more than ever, small businesses need our support. Since we're all staying indoors for the coming month, I decided to order my Mother's Day card off Etsy well in advance this year.

Head over to my Mother's Day Etsy Favorites page to check out 25 of my favorite Mother's Day cards. All are from sellers either in Canada or the US (where most of my readers are located!), so shipping should be a breeze if you shop local.

Together, let’s #standwithsmall.

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Milk Bar Crack Pie

Milk Bar Crack Pie

Monday 6 April 2020

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Everyone seems to be baking during quarantine - myself included! There's a Milk Bar really close to my apartment in Williamsburg, but since it's closed down due to COVID, here I am trying to recreate this delicious treat at home. This rich, salty-sweet pie recipe has an irresistible oat cookie crust - and it turned out pretty similar to the real deal. Check out the recipe below; stay safe and happy baking!

Ingredients:

Oat Cookie Crust  
9 tablespoons (1 stick plus 1 tablespoon) unsalted butter room temperature,
5 1/2 tablespoons (packed) golden brown sugar,
2 tablespoons sugar
1 large egg
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons old-fashioned oats
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon (generous) salt

Filling  
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk powder (or milk!)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butte rmelted, cooled slightly
6 1/2 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
4 large egg yolks
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Powdered sugar (for dusting)

Recipe Prep:

Oat Cookie Crust
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Line 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan with parchment paper; coat with nonstick spray.
Combine 6 tablespoons butter, 4 tablespoons brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons sugar in medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat mixture until light and fluffy, occasionally scraping down sides of bowl, about 2 minutes. Add egg; beat until pale and fluffy. Add oats, flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt and beat until well blended, about 1 minute. Turn oat mixture out onto prepared baking pan; press out evenly to edges of pan. Bake until light golden on top, 17 to 18 minutes.

Transfer baking pan to rack and cool cookie completely.  Using hands, crumble oat cookie into large bowl; add 3 tablespoons butter and 1 1/2 tablespoons brown sugar. Rub in with fingertips until mixture is moist enough to stick together. Transfer cookie crust mixture to 9-inch-diameter glass pie dish. Using fingers, press mixture evenly onto bottom and up sides of pie dish. Place pie dish with crust on rimmed baking sheet.

Filling  

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Whisk both sugars, milk powder, and salt in medium bowl to blend. Add melted butter and whisk until blended. Add cream, then egg yolks and vanilla and whisk until well blended. Pour filling into crust. 

Bake pie 30 minutes (filling may begin to bubble). Reduce oven temperature to 325°F. Continue to bake pie until filling is brown in spots and set around edges but center still moves slightly when pie dish is gently shaken, about 20 minutes longer. Cool pie 2 hours in pie dish on rack. Chill uncovered overnight.  

**Can be made 2 days ahead. Cover; keep chilled. Sift powdered sugar lightly over top of pie. Cut pie into wedges and serve cold.

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