Stacey Makes It

Recently, I decided to go on a diet, but I was going to let myself have a free day here and there.  This seems to have changed my outlook on what to make for events since I wanted to make things that only I cared about eating, and didn't care as much about my audience.  However, it appears that this recipe was a me-pleaser as well as a crowd-pleaser. Stacey's Super 4x Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients 1 1/4c granulated sugar, organic 1c brown sugar, organic 2.5 sticks of butter 1 oz 99% unsweetened chocolate (I used Scharffen-Berger) 2/3c unsweetened cocoa powder, organic (I used Dagoba) 2 eggs, organic 2 tsp vanilla bean paste 1/4c cornstarch 2 1/2c all purpose unbleached flour, organic 1 1/4 tsp baking powder 1 1/4 tsp baking soda 1 1/2 tsp salt 2/3-1c white chocolate chips (Guittard) 2/3-1c milk chocolate chips (Guittard) 2/3-1c semi-sweet chocolate chips (Guittard) Microwave the butter, unsweetened chocolate and cocoa powder in a heat safe bo...

I wanted to make something non-chocolate for the holidays. Yes, I know, there's white chocolate in there, but white chocolate isn't really  chocolate, right?  It has cocoa butter in it, but no chocolate solids, so I figure that's fine for someone not wanting chocolate. Stacey's Nutty Cookie Ingredients 1 c (2 sticks) unsalted butter, organic 1 c brown sugar, organic 1 c white sugar, organic 1/4 c peanut butter, organic 2 tbs sunflower seed butter (found this at Trader Joe's) 1 tbs Vanilla Bean Paste 2 c almond meal/flour 2 c unbleached white flour, organic 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp baking powder cookie sheet(s) Stacey's Nutty Lemon Filling Ingredients 6 oz Guittard white chocolate couverture (you could probably use white chocolate chips or any white chocolate block) 2 oz heavy cream, organic 1 tsp  Vanilla Bean Paste 1 oz freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 tsp citric acid, powdered First I made the filling since it needs to sit ...

Yes, I know, there's already another one . But I like this recipe better. I made these for my wedding. Stacey's Pumpkin Cupcake Ingredients 2 c unbleached flour, organic 1 tsp baking soda 1 tsp baking powder 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg 1/2 tsp ground ginger 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin, organic 1 c granulated sugar, organic 8 tbs unsalted butter, organic 2 eggs, organic 2 tsp vanilla bean paste 1/2 c milk, organic cupcake pan cupcake liners OXO Good Grips Large Cookie Scoop Stacey's Cream Cheese Frosting Ingredients 1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese, organic 1 1/4 sticks (10 tbs) unsalted butter, organic 2 tsp vanilla bean paste 1/4 tsp salt 2 c confectioners sugar Preheat oven to 350F.  I prefer to use a mixer for this recipe than to hand stir.  The pumpkin comes out all clumpy and it's murder on my arm to try and stir it by hand.  Since I made 4x this recipe for my wedding, I really needed the standing mixer. First ...

Okay, so I didn't expect this to come out so delicious.  I've made a version using low-fat milk, but a co-worker of mine is vegan and recently had dental surgery so I thought this would be a good time to make another entry. It's (almost) vegan because I forgot some vegans don't eat honey.  You can substitute all the sugar / honey for agave nectar or maple sugar or whatever other sugar you want to use. Stacey's (Almost) Vegan Rice Pudding Ingredients 1c coconut milk, organic 2c flax seed milk 2c water 1c short grain rice 2 tsp coconut oil, organic 1/4tsp salt 1/2 tsp cardamom 2 tsp vanilla 3 tbs granulated sugar, organic 3 tbs honey I used this rice if you were curious. Rinse the rice a couple times in a 4 qt stockpot.  Then pour in all the other ingredients.  Originally this recipe was for 1/2 cup of rice and had less liquids, but I ended up putting a whole cup of rice and had to re-adjust.  Here's what it looks like with too much rice, ha...

A good friend of mine came to stay with me for a little while and she brought me some vegan treats she wanted me to re-engineer. Stacey's Raw Vegan Coconut Macaroon Ingredients 1 1/4c organic shredded coconut 3/4c almond meal 1/2 tsp salt 1/2c organic maple syrup 1/4c coconut oil 2 tsp vanilla bean paste Mix the dry ingredients together.  Mix the wet ingredients together and microwave until the coconut oil is liquid.  Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and mix with a fork.  Using a stainless steel scoop (or you can use spoons and form them with your hands), make balls with the mixture. Put the balls on a tray covered in plastic wrap and allow them to dry overnight.  This way the coconut will absorb some of the moisture and be softer. Store macaroons in an airtight container. Yummy! :) Thanks, Vidya.

About once a month, I go with my fiancé to visit his parents.  They are fond of za'atar , so I thought I'd try and make something with the herb mix. I've also been playing with pizza dough a lot since it only requires one rising before use. Stacey's Roasted Garlic Za'atar Twists: Dough 2c bread flour, organic 1-2c unbleached all purpose flour, organic 2 1/4 tsp yeast 1c water 1/2c buttermilk 2 tbs honey 2 tbs olive oil, organic 1 1/2 tsp salt Filling 1/2c-1c roasted garlic, mashed, mixed with olive oil olive oil, organic 1/2c pine nuts Za'atar 1/2c-1c shredded mozzarella Equipment standing mixer rolling pin bread stone - mine is something like this for pizzas, but you can get rectangular / square ones too instead parchment paper cookie sheet Combine the dry ingredients (with only 1 cup of the all purpose flour) in a standing mixer (you can use a big bowl and a hand mixer, or just use your hands if you have the patience and enduranc...

I've been doing a lot of yeast experimenting lately on my waffle questing. In this recipe, I wanted to find out if I could use yeast as a leavener for a sweet cake (not quite like panettone, more like a regular cake and less like a sweet bread).  I have not found out the chemical reason for it yet, but yeast doesn't like having too much sugar and it under-rises.  I read this on another website, but there was no explanation for why.  If I had to guess non-scientifically?  I'd say that since yeast uses the sugar for food, which later makes it expel gas, perhaps having way too much food turns them into gluttons and then they kill themselves overindulging before they ever get to make enough gas.  All you food scientists out there, feel free to correct me and tell me I'm a moron.  :) At least then I'll get my answer. In any case, here was my experiment. Stacey's Chocolate Yeast Cupcake Experiment Ingredients: 1 3/4c unbleached all-purpose flour, organic 1/...