Life Above the Clouds

Here's another great Pinterest find. These cookies only have four ingredients, and they are super easy to make. No eggs needed! If you use margerine instead of butter, does that mean they're vegan? Except for the cream cheese frosting, which would be such a shame to leave out because it can make anything taste amazing. I forgot the step to flatten the cookies with the bottom of a glass so they look a little funky, but they still tasted amazing! They almost melt in your mouth...no wonder they're called meltaways!

(Inspired by Landee See, Landee Do)

Chocolate chip cookies are always a classic favorite, and has there ever been a more famous recipe than this one from Nestle Toll House? Anyone remember that Friends episode?

Monica: Well, I mean what about friends of your grandmother’s? Wouldn’t they have the recipe?
Phoebe: Well, y’know I may have relatives in France who would know. My grandmother said she got the recipe from her grandmother, Nesele Tolouse.
Monica: What was her name?
Phoebe: Nesele Toulouse.
Monica: Nestle Toll House?!
Phoebe: Oh, you Americans always butcher the French language.

It's a little different than the Martha Stewart recipe I tried here. I can't really tell you which one I prefer so I guess you'll just have to try them both!

• 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels

1. Preheat oven to 375° F.
2. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. 
3. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate morsels.
4. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets or one lined with parchment paper.
5. Bake for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

(Inspired by Very Best Baking)

A friend of mine has a grapefruit tree in his backyard and gave me a load of them. What else could I make with grapefruits besides juice? Cookies! These were a little unusual, but a nice combination of tart and sweet. Nice and light and perfect for spring time. The original recipe is for cut-out cookies, but my dough was a little sticky so I just dropped the dough instead.

• Grated zest of 1 Ruby Red grapefruit, plus 1/4 cup freshly squeezed juice
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
• 3/4 cup cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 2 large egg yolks

1. In a small bowl, combine zest with 1 tablespoon sugar; set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk together both flours, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat butter and remaining sugar on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Add egg yolks, and beat until combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in reserved zest-sugar mixture. Add flour mixture in two batches, alternating with the juice, and beat to combine.
3. Turn out dough onto a piece of plastic wrap, and shape into a 1-inch-thick disk. Wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, about 30 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto baking sheets lined with parchment paper.
5. Bake, rotating sheet halfway through, until edges are golden, 18 to 20 minutes. Transfer sheet to a wire rack to cool 5 minutes. Transfer parchment paper and cookies to rack to cool completely.

(Inspired by Martha Stewart)

Happy National Eggs Benedict Day! Eggs Benedict is pretty good, and definitely a treat if I go out to a nice brunch. I try not to eat it too much because Hollandaise sauce isn't the most healthy. Poaching an egg is one of the lowest calorie ways to prepare eggs since there's no added fat. Try serving over toast with a little salt and pepper. If you want to go all out and make Eggs Benedict, try this recipe here.

• Fresh eggs 
• 1 to 2 teaspoons vinegar (rice vinegar works well) (optional)

1. First bring water in a saucepan to almost boiling. If the water is already boiling, lower the heat until it is no longer boiling. At this point, you can add one or two teaspoons of vinegar to the water, if you want. The vinegar will help the egg whites to congeal more easily. We use seasoned rice vinegar.
2. Working with the eggs one by one, crack an egg into a small cup, then place the cup near the surface of the hot water and gently drop the egg into the water. With a spoon, nudge the eggwhites closer to their yolks. This will help the egg whites hold together.
3. Lift eggs out of pan with a slotted spoon.

One trick to make the eggs stay somewhat contained is to take a ring from a mason jar and place it in the pan. Drop the egg over the mason jar ring and let it settle in the ring, then turn off the heat and cover. Or, you can use an egg poacher.

(Photos and recipe inspired by Simply Recipes)

In my continued Easter baking, I decided I wanted to make cupcakes because I had a bunch of Easter themed cupcake liners. My mom always buys them on sale and gives them to me. In my search for some spring timey desserts, I found these jam-filled cupcakes. They're relatively easy to make, and I find that cupcakes filled with anything are always impressive. The little hint of jam is such a sweet surprise!

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for pan
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled), plus more for pan
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs, room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons whole milk
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/4 cup seedless jam (I used blueberry)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin pan. Combine flour, baking powder, and 3/4 teaspoon salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat granulated sugar and 1/2 cup butter until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Beat in 1 teaspoon vanilla. With mixer on low, beat in flour mixture in two parts, alternating with 1/2 cup milk.
2. Divide batter among prepared muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cupcake comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Let cool in pan 5 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
3. Meanwhile, whisk together confectioners' sugar, cocoa, and 1/4 teaspoon salt. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat 1/2 cup butter until light and fluffy. With mixer on low, gradually add cocoa mixture, scraping down side of bowl as necessary. Gradually beat in 2 tablespoons milk and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla. Beat frosting until light and fluffy, about 30 seconds.
4. Using a paring knife or cupcake corer, cut a 1-inch-deep piece from the top of each cupcake (do not discard). Fill each hole with 1 teaspoon jam and replace cutout pieces. Frost cupcakes.

(Inspired by Martha Stewart)

For Christmas, my mom gave me a cookie press. I'm kind of surprised it's taken me this long to try it. Since I knew I wanted to bake a lot for Easter, I figured it was the perfect time to bust it out. There are a lot of different recipes out there, so I tried two, this one from Martha Stewart and a shortbread recipe. This one tasted better, so I figured I'd share it with you. Besides, when has Martha ever been wrong? I threw some blue food coloring in there, but you can also use colored sugar or even frosting.

• 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 large egg yolks
• 3 3/4 cups sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add egg yolks, flour, salt, and vanilla. Mix thoroughly.
2. Fill a cookie press either by spooning the dough into the container or by making cylinder-shaped piece of dough to fit in the tube. Turn out cookies 1 to 2 inches apart onto an ungreased baking sheet. 
3. Bake until the cookies are lightly browned, 7 to 10 minutes. To ensure even baking, rotate sheet halfway through the baking process. Transfer to a wire rack, and let cool.

(Inspired by Martha Stewart)

I bought some crescent rolls on sale and wanted to make something special. I also had some ground beef and cabbage in the fridge, and you can pretty much wrap anything in a crescent roll, right? Actually, someone already tried this combo and I found the recipe on the Pillsbury website. It was kind of tough to wrap up all the filling, but after I while, I got the hang of it...sort of.

Here's another great article from Popsugar on how to cut back on butter when you're baking. Not to brag, actually yes I'm bragging, but I got a lot of compliments on my reduced fat oatmeal-chocolate chip cookies. I was so relieved that they actually turned out OK, and I'm so glad everyone enjoyed them! Who would have thought that just adding milk in lieu of butter would have been a success. Besides milk, here are some other ways to replace butter.

• Applesauce: Often used to replace oil in recipes, applesauce can also be used as butter alternative, and works best in cake-like recipes (like this Vegan Banana Apple Chunk Bread). Replace half the amount of butter in your recipe with applesauce; if the recipe calls for one cup of butter, use half a cup of butter and half a cup of applesauce. If you don't mind a denser, more moist bread, replace all the butter with applesauce to cut even more calories and fat.

• Avocado: Substitute half the amount of butter in a baking recipe with mashed avocado (it works well with cookies); use the same method as you would when using applesauce. Using avocado not only lowers the calorie content but also creates a softer, chewier baked good, and is perfect if you want to omit the dairy.

• Earth Balance: Replace all of the butter with Earth Balance to reduce saturated fat and cholesterol. Using Smart Balance rather than Earth Balance will also save some calories, but note that Original Smart Balance contains whey, so it's not vegan.

• Canola oil: In certain recipes, replacing butter with oil works well, especially if the recipe calls for melted butter. Fiddle with your favorite recipes to figure out when canola works instead of butter; when baking chocolate chip cookies, I've had success substituting half a cup of canola oil for half a cup of unsalted butter. Although slightly higher in calories, canola is much lower in saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium.

• Greek yogurt: Replace half the amount of butter in your cookie recipes with half the amount of full-fat plain Greek yogurt. For example, if the recipe calls for one cup of butter, use half a cup of butter and one quarter cup of yogurt. You'll reduce the calories and the saturated fat. Play around with using more yogurt and less butter to see if you still like the taste and consistency. Here are more ways to use Greek yogurt in baking recipes.

• Prune purée: Often used to help little ones stay regular, prune purée also makes a low-calorie and low-fat alternative to butter. Whatever amount of butter the recipe calls for, replace it completely with store-bought baby food prune puree (unless you have time to make your own; just purée prunes in the food processor). This option works well in recipes that involve chocolate and cinnamon.

(Inspired by Popsugar)

Saturday was National Banana Bread! I'm not usually one for banana bread, but my mom has been raving about this recipe she got from a woman at her bank. Surprise surprise, I didn't have enough bananas for the recipe (6), and I was too lazy to go to the store, so I ended up making a recipe from Food Network that only called for 3. 

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1 tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two 12-cup muffin pans with paper liners...the recipe actually makes 17 muffins.

Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk and cinnamon. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Add dry ingredients, mixing just until flour disappears.

Fill each cup about 2/3 and bake 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Set aside to cool on a rack for 15 minutes.

(Inspired by Food Network)