Um, hey internet! So I guess this is the part where I introduce myself? Probably? I’m Kai and I’ll be your guest blogger for today. I go to college in California and I bake quite a bit. (Like seriously, a lot. My housemates are really happy about it.) You can find my tumblr here: http://pointmenorth.tumblr.com/

The changing leaves and all the fall themed stuff that has been popping up on my dashboard lately made me think that it was about time I tried making something with pumpkin in it. After looking around on the internet for a while, I decided on pumpkin muffins. I used a recipe I found here, but I played around with it some. 

Muffin Ingredients

(Not pictured: The milk I almost forgot to add. Oops.)

• 2 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice 
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 heaping cup of canned pumpkin
• 3/4 cup of light sour cream
• 1/3 cup of milk (I used 2%)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I was using imitation vanilla, so I doubled it [but I tend to do that with vanilla anyway])
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1 whole large egg
• 1 egg white
• 1 cup chocolate chips (I used semi-sweet, but milk chocolate would probably be just as good, if not better)
• cooking spray (if you aren’t using muffin tin liners [which I did])
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon brown sugar

Preheat your oven to 375° Fahrenheit. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and pumpkin pie spice together in a bowl and mix well.

The original recipe says to use a whisk, but I just used a fork and made sure that everything was mixed together really well.Mix the teaspoon of granulated sugar with the brown sugar in a small bowl and set it aside for now.

In a separate bowl combine the pumpkin, sour cream, milk, oil, vanilla, egg, and egg white. (Fun fact, canned pumpkin smells like baby food. Weird.)

Mix, then stir in the chocolate chips. I ended up using a bit more than a cup’s worth in order to use up the rest of the bag.

Add to the dry ingredients and stir together.

Spoon into muffin tins. If you’re not using paper liners, make sure you spray the muffin wells with cooking spray beforehand. 

Remember that little bowl with brown sugar that you set aside? Grab that and sprinkle a spoonful of the mixture over each of the muffins. 

Then pop ‘em in the oven for about 25 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Take them out of the tins (carefully, burned fingers aren’t very much fun) and cool them on a wire rack.

Now, they were pretty tasty as they were, but I was in the mood to keep trying things out, so I decided to attempt to make some frosting for them. This is where things got a bit more experimental, since I didn’t really follow a base recipe. I just kind of started mixing stuff together (after consulting with my grandmother, who is a really good baker) in what seemed like the right amounts, and then adjusted the results to taste. 

Frosting Ingredients

• about 3/4 8 oz package of cream cheese
• a little less than 1 cup powdered sugar (I started with a 1/2 cup, then increased it when that didn’t seem sweet enough. You can add more or less as you desire.)
• 1/2 to 3/4 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Whip the cream cheese up a bit first. This is probably achieved most easily if you use an actual mixer, but it can be done by hand if you put a bit of time and elbow grease into it (also, let it soften up a bit first). Add the powdered sugar and vanilla and mix well. Again, a mixer would probably be useful, but isn’t totally necessary.

Wait until the muffins have cooled, then frost and enjoy!

Happy baking! - Kai

I’m finding making these updates helpful for encouraging me to actually make more posts. Yesterday I bought two round 8” cake pans and now finally have cake pans! We didn’t have any before for whatever odd reason. I haven’t decided what to make first with them, but I’ll make a post for whatever it is. (Assuming it doesn’t come out horribly disgusting. I’m not planning on making posts for horribly disgusting things. Seems reasonable to me.) 

x Cole. 

or super chocolately chocolate cookies. i’m still looking for name suggestions. it just doesn’t really do them justice to simply say they are chocolate chocolate chip cookies. the flavor is too intense and too mind-blowing for such a title. 

needless to say, i’m really happy with these. they are everything i want in a chocolate cookie. they have intense and strong chocolate flavor. they are gooey and chewy. they taste marvelous with a glass of milk. they are simple to make. they also freeze well which is one of my favorite things to have on hand.

before you start instructions: 

• take out two sticks (8oz) of unsalted butter to get a room temperature. 
• chop your chocolate

for this recipe you’ll use three ingredients for the chocolatey effect. two types of chocolate and one type of cocoa powder. since the cocoa powder goes with the other dry ingredients i’ll talk about that further on.

chocolates first!

in this recipe i use a combination of two 72% cacao bars which typically can be found in your grocery store by the candy and part of one bag of 60% cacao bittersweet chocolate which can you usually be found by the ordinary baking chocolates. i like ghiradelli brand best. there are a few reasons i use a combination of these two chocolates. first is because of cost. the higher percentage cacao bars typically cost much more. second is because whilst i want a very strong chocolate cookie, i don’t want it to be overpowering and through off the sweetness balance. you’ll need to chop up the chocolate bar. simply take your knife and work your way through on an angle. it won’t cut into even chunks, but likely be a bit flakey and that is just perfect. 

this recipe calls for 13oz of chocolate. what i’ll do is first chop the bars which will get you somewhere around 7oz and then just pour in the 60% chips until i have enough. if you don’t have a scale, feel free to estimate it and consider getting a scale cause they are handy!

next get the rest of your ingredients ready! you don’t have to measure everything out before hand, but i really prefer doing things that way. it makes everything quick and simple as i’m blending things together. (it is also handy for pictures.)

in the first photo is the spread of all the ingredients. the second photo features the ingredients that went into the large blue bowl of dry ingredients in that first. in the large bowl is 1 and 1/2 cups of all purpose flour, 3/4 cups of hershey’s cocoa: special dark (this will help to make the cookies super chocolatey! really, it makes a difference!), 3/4 teaspoon of baking soda, and a bit of salt. simply whisk them together and set aside.

back to that first photo there is the dry ingredients (check!), the chocolate (check!), sugars (1 cup sugar, and 2/3 cups of light brown sugar check!), 2 sticks of unsalted butter, 2 eggs, and vanilla extract. 

okay here are the non-ingredient preparing instructions.

1. preheat your oven to 375 degrees. 
2. using your stand mixer with paddle attachment (or i guess hand mixer with hand mixer blades) beat the butter on a medium speed for about a minute until smooth. 
3. add the sugars! and beat for another two minutres or so until nicely bended. 
4. beat in about two teaspoons of vanilla. one time i accidentally beat in about four teaspoons and it still tasted fine. go with what you like. 
5. add one egg at a time, eating for about a minute after each. 
6. reduce your speed to LOOOOOOOW. 
7. add the dry ingredients in batches. i use a 1/3 cup measure and just add one at a time slowly for minimal dry-ingredients-poofed-back-into-my-face factor. stop mixing once the dry stuff is just incorporated. 
8. add your chocolate!

so now you just need to put your cookies on baking sheets with parchment paper. the dough is really sticky, so i what i like to do is put the mixer bowl in the fridge for a few minutes as i get y parchment paper all set up and good to go. if you have a cookie scoop i highly suggest using it. sadly i don’t have mine yet, so i just had to deal with my hands. personally i like giant cookies so mine are about 3 hefty tablespoons of dough per cookie. if you go with that, i suggest being really conservative with your number of cookies per cookie tray. 

bake one tray at time. bake the cookies for 10-12 minutes, turning half way through. give them a moment to settle out of the over on the cookie tray before moving to a cooling rack. if you are interested in freezing these cookies for later use, they’ll stay good for up to 2 months, all you need to do is take the cookies as they are lined up on a cookie tray, freeze, and then put in a plastic bag. personally since this dough is so sticky, i suggest wrapping them up in plastic wrap individually and then putting in one large freezer bag. you won’t have to defrost them, just add a minute two baking time. 

HOOORAY

so kale and i are apparently not very good at remembering about this food blog of ours. i feel like a part of it is the whole factor of not knowing each other in real life. if we knew each other in real life we could have posts that start off with one of us going “OMG [other person’s name] I’VE GOT THIS REALLY GOOOOOOD RECIPE! LET’S MAKE IT AND SHARE IT WITH TUMMMMMMMMBLR!” (please imagine that being said in either a WWE-announcer type voice or an oprah type voice) and then involve good and potentially silly pictures involving queers and food. sadly we don’t know each other in real life plus allentown and new jersey are both kinda close but not close close but SOMEDAY it’ll happen. 

but but but in the meantime posts are coming.

i’m working on it, babes. i’m working on it. 

tomorrow/friday i have to make around 5 or 6 batches of cookies and i’m REALLY, INCREDIBLY proud of one of the cookie recipes, so i’ll be sure to share it. in the next week i hope to make posts for

• super chocolately chocolate cookies (i’ve been considering on other names for these such as super sinfully chocolate and cacao your face off. i don’t know. i’m up to suggestions but super chocolately chocolate cookies just doesn’t do it justice.)
• molasses spice cookies
• peanut butter chocolate chip cookies
• dark and white chocolate chunk cookies with ginger

This recipe is PERFECT for hot summer nights where you don’t really feel like eating anything warm.  It’s also good for entertaining people because it’s a beautiful, colorful, and delicious salsa that’s sure to impress all of your guests. The best part about fresh salsa is that it’s super easy to make and still tastes awesome regardless of if you “mess up” or not…I would argue that salsa is almost impossible to mess up. For example, I just kind of made this salsa up on a whim and it turned out great!

Here’s what you’ll need:

1 mango, diced

1 small-ish tomato, diced

1/3 cup of diced cucumber (in slightly smaller chunks than the tomato and mango)

1/4-1/3 cup of finely diced red onion (you can play with the amount depending on how much onion flavor you want)

1 jalepeño, very finely diced

~1-2 cloves of garlic, minced

Fresh lime juice, to taste

finely chopped cilantro, to taste

salt & pepper, to taste

Making your salsa:

Chop everything up and combine it in a bowl, adding the lime juice, cilantro, and salt & pepper last. The salt & pepper are really important ingredients, as the salt draws out the juices of the cucumber, tomatoes, and mango and really makes this recipe delicious, so don’t forget to add those! Serve with tortilla chips.

This recipe can also be a great topping for grilled chicken or fish, or even on tacos. I also imagine it would be delicious when thrown into a food processor and turned into a gazpacho, another super easy and refreshing summer food!

Photo credit to TK, 7/26/2011

Tips for choosing a ripe, sweet mango:

A lot of people think that the color of a mango is the best indicator of ripeness, but this is actually not true.  The best way to make sure you choose a good mango is by testing the firmness of the fruit. First, the mango should feel heavy for its size, indicating that the flesh is really juicy.  Squeeze the mango gently, and if it is slightly soft to the touch, it is ripe. Mangos will often have a fruity smell at the ends where the stem was.  If you don’t plan to eat the mango for a few days, you can choose one that’s a little firmer. Unripe mangos should be stored at room temperature, as they will not ripen if stored in the fridge.

Note: This is my first recipe (Finally!) so if something’s unclear or you have any questions, send a message to my ask box!

-Kale

there is a very special spot in my heart for these bars. simply, tasty, and interesting, they are a really good recipe to add to your rotation. this past sunday i took two recipe’s worth to my church picnic. they were the only dessert totally gone by the end and several people asked me (despite not putting my name down as having brought them) for the recipe. often when people ask for the recipe i express a willingness to share while requesting they send me an email about it. a good percentage of the time they forget and move on. an hour later i came home to three emails for the recipe. 

it comes from another baking/food blog. this version lines up almost completely to the original, but i also have done a peanut butter x chocolate chip adaptation which i’ll explain at the end. 

beforehand: several ingredients need to be room temperature, so first put out 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter, 10 ounces of cream cheese (i use light and recommend you don’t use fat free - it is revolting), and 1 egg. you will need an 8x8 baking pan, aluminum foil, and a mixer. 

1. set oven to 325 F. take your pan, line with aluminium foil sling style, and give a good covering with nonstick spray. set aside.

2. melt 5 tablespoons of unsalted butter and combine with 1 1/2 cups of graham cracker crumbs. if you use honeymaid, one of the wrapped packages (within a box of three) will work perfectly. once thoroughly mixed- all of the crumbs should be buttery, dump into pan and using your hands press firmly into the pan. put the pan in the preheating oven for 7 minutes and remove to a rack. leave oven on.

3. using your mixer (if you are using a stand mixer, you’ll want the paddle attachment) beat the 5 tablespoons of softened unsalted butter with 1/3 cup light brown sugar, 3 tablespoons granulated sugar, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract. add 3/4 cups all purpose flour - in 1/4c batches waiting until the flour is just incorporated before adding more. mix in 1 cup chopped chocolate or chocolate chips. (i like it best with milk chocolate chips, but whatever works for you. the above picture shows mini chips which i actually recommend you DON’T use.) you might need to use your hands to press the dough together. it won’t be the usual cookie dough consistency- that is okay. 

if you only have one mixer bowl- remove the cookie dough and place in fridge. clean and thoroughly dry your mixer bowl and paddle attachment for the next step.

4. with a clean mixer bowl and paddle attachment beat the 10 ounces of room temperature cream cheese with 1/4 cup sugar until smooth. i strongly suggest pausing to scrap the bowl so that all the cream cheese is mixed. on a low speed, add the room temperature egg and some vanilla extracted until just incorporated. 

5. assmembly. this is the part that takes the most care and time, so i’ve added more pictures. 

first, pour the cream cheese mixture on top of the graham cracker crust. smooth out with the back of a spoon. 

next is the cookie dough layer. take about two teaspoon’s worth of dough at at time, roll into a small ball, and flatten a bit with your fingers. using that method, cover most of the cream cheese layer. i find it simplest to start by arranging them in an X and then filling in the gaps. small and flat dough pieces will both bake and cut well. 

6. scoot the pan into the oven and bake for 30 minutes, turning the pan at the 15 minute mark. when it is finished the contents of the pan shouldn’t jiggle at all. remove to a rack and cool to room temperature. serve either at room temperature or cool, but they cut most easily at room temperature. 

…

peanut butter x chocolate chip:

simply add a bit of peanut butter (preferrably not natural pb) to the unsalted butter when mixing the cookie dough. i used 2 tablespoons of peanut butter with 4 tablespoons of butter. then use a mix of chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. 

x cole. 

since i posted anything so as a form of encouragement/pressure i am letting you know that shortly i’ll do a post for the cookie dough cheesecake bars i’ve been making and some other tbd recipe. 

sadly, i’ve been really wanting my (all time favorite recipe) potato leek kielbasa soup, but, y’know, it is summer. hm. 

x cole.