Dessert

Cinnamon Bread

March 19, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

I had been looking for some breakfast ideas for the weekend and thought cinnamon bread would be an easy treat to make. It turned out really good, very soft with a delicious brown sugar cinnamon flavor. I was surprised at how well it turned out because I totally messed up the recipe I was trying to follow. The recipe said to cream the butter and sugar, so I figured “sugar” meant both brown and white. Not so, because the brown sugar was supposed to be added to the cinnamon as a layer. Oops. I cut down on the sugar a lot for the cinnamon layer so I wouldn’t have a sugar coma from one slice. I liked how it turned out so I will keep the mistake as part of the recipe. I noticed that this bread was darker, and that was probably due to the brown sugar in the batter. This bread makes a great breakfast and goes well with a cup of black tea.

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Mint Syrup

February 28, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

I decided to try making mint syrup because I thought it would be nice with a Grasshopper sundae. Grasshoppers are made with vanilla ice cream, mint syrup (or creme de menthe), and hot fudge. The process is similar to making a mint syrup for cocktails except that the water and sugar is reduced longer to make it thick. I look forward to having this with some homemade hot fudge!

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Flourless Chocolate Torte with Raspberry Sauce

February 14, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

Happy Valentine’s Day! In my opinion, chocolate and raspberries are a flavor combination that can’t be beat.B I don’t do a lot of baking so this was a very new thing for me to try.B Making a dessert that is “flourless” means only one thing: more room for chocolate and butter! As you can guess, this torte is very rich and dense. I was happy with how it came out though I wish it were a tiny bit more moist. Take it out of the refrigerator up to an hour before eating so that it softens a bit.

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Hot Fudge Sauce

February 6, 2011 by The Partial Ingredients

I am a big fan of baker’s unsweetened and semi-sweetened baking chocolate. They have great recipes written on the inside of their boxes and I think I have tried all of them at one point. My favorite of those recipes was the fondue sauce and this hot fudge is pretty similar to that recipe. The fudge is more syrupy and less rich (since there’s no heavy cream in it) than the fondue. The fudge thickens on the ice cream and can be easily reheated on the stove.

Hot Fudge Sauce
(Makes 2 1/2 Cups)
Printable Version

Ingredients:

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3 tablespoons butter, unsalted
2/3 cup water
1/3-1/2 cup sugar (or more to taste)
7 tablespoons light corn syrup
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon vanilla extract or rum

Directions:

Melt the chocolate and butter very slowly in the microwave, stirring frequently until combined.
Heat the water to boiling in a saucepan.
Stir the melted butter and chocolate mixture into the boiling water.
Add the sugar, corn syrup and salt on low heat and mix until smooth.
Turn the heat up and stir until mixture starts to boil. Turn the heat down so that it is just bubbling. Cook for nine minutes.
Remove from heat and cool for 15 minutes. Stir in the vanilla or rum and serve.

Mint Chocolate Meringue Cookies

December 23, 2010 by The Partial Ingredients

These cookies require this weird baking process where they cook overnight in an oven that has been turned off. I’m not sure why this is but it works since the cookies turned out really well. The insides are a little gooey with a nice, light texture. They look so pretty on a plate too!

Mint Chocolate Meringue Cookies
(Makes 2 dozen)
Printable Version

Ingredients:

2 egg whites
2/3 c. sugar
1/4 tsp mint extract
pinch salt
2 drops green food coloring
11 oz. semisweet chocolate chips

Directions:

In a bowl, whip the eggs until they are stiff.
Slowly add the sugar, salt, mint, and coloring while whipping.
Fold in the chips. Place dough with a tablespoon onto ungreased cookie sheets.
Preheat the oven to 400F and leave on for 15 minutes, then turn off. Put the cookies in the oven and let sit over night.

Raspberry Chocolate Chip Cookies

December 21, 2010 by The Partial Ingredients

These cookies are based on the traditional Toll House chocolate chip recipe but with raspberries added to the batter. The original recipe calls for 3/4 cup white sugar but I like to use only 1/2 cup. These cookies always come out so delicious and soft. Even though it’s a really simple recipe it’s probably one of my favorites.

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Gingersnap Cookies

December 20, 2010 by The Partial Ingredients

I love gingersnaps but they are often a very crunchy, hard cookie. I like a soft gingersnap so I decided to try them myself. They turned out much softer than I had anticipated which was great. I like a lot of ginger flavor so I was pretty liberal with the powder. For a little variety you can throw in a teaspoon orange zest or a drop of orange extract to change things up. This is a very soft and savory cookie recipe for the holidays!

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Pumpkin Pie

November 20, 2010 by The Partial Ingredients

You just can’t get any more classic than a pumpkin pie at Thanksgiving. I had never made pumpkin pie before but I was very happy with the results. The pie was so flavorful and the texture was nice and smooth. The crust was good and a little bit flaky. The recipe wasn’t too difficult to follow either. I topped the slice with a little fresh whipped cream.

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