PERFECT Frosting!

Hi everyone! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving! 

Personally, I had a great Thanksgiving. I spent the day with my family at my MeMa's house and ate a TON. And when I say a ton, I mean it! I have no shame though, Thanksgiving only comes once a year and it is my favorite holiday next to Christmas :). MeMa's food is too good to pass up, she makes the best food EVER. Her delicious Thanksgiving spread included: apple pie, pecan pie, pumpkin pie, pumpkin roll, stuffing, corn custard, flakey butter rolls, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes with marshmallows, brussels sprouts with cranberries, candied carrots, and of course, turkey! 

And, we had something extra: cake! I know what you're thinking, cake isn't usually on a Thanksgiving menu. But, every Thanksgiving we celebrate my cousin Joey's birthday as well! (Hi Joey!) 

This is the birthday cake I made for him!

Since my golf-loving cousin isn't much of a cake fan, I made a square cookie cake topped with a square chocolate cake just for the "dirt and grass" affect(recipes for these will eventually be posted). I had made the cookie cake and chocolate cake before, so I know that they are recipes I can trust. However, I have been searching for the perfect frosting recipe for what seems like an eternity! Most frosting recipes call for butter, a ton of powdered sugar, vanilla, and some milk or cream. Some recipes call for shortening instead of butter, and others require you to "cook" the frosting. I can't stand when frostings are greasy, heavy, or overly sweet. As I searched and searched for a perfect frosting recipe, I came across this one. This frosting is made with marshmallow cream and very little powdered sugar, so knew it wouldn't be overly sweet but still fluffy and flavorful. After testing it out, liked it but I still felt like it wasn't light and fluffy enough. I wanted to have the perfect frosting for Joey's cake, so I decided to tweak this recipe a little bit. All I did was replace half of the butter with shortening. This must have been the best decision I ever made. It is the BEST frosting I have ever whipped up and my search for the perfect frosting recipe has finally ended! Yay! It's a whole lot lighter than buttercream, and tastes soooooo much better! Plus there is hardly any work involved in making it. Just beat the butter and shortening together, beat in the marshmallow cream, and then beat in the powdered sugar and a little bit of vanilla extract. After beating everything together, you will get a fluffy cloud-like frosting that is perfectly sweet and smooth. It tastes similar to the frosting used on birthday cakes from an actually bakery, which is amazing in my book :). So the next time you need to frost something, use this recipe. I dare you to try to keep your fingers out of the frosting-filled mixing bowl!

In addition to this recipe, I want to make a shout out to all my friends and family that have read and supported my blog! Thank you so much everyone! I truly appreciate your love and support. You guys are the best! 

Enjoy! 

Love,

Teresa 

Ingredients*

1 7 oz. jar marshmallow cream(such as Fluff)

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 

1/2 cup vegetable shortening(such as Crisco), softened  

1 cup powdered(confectioners) sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla 

Pinch of salt 

*I doubled the recipe to fill and generously frost an 8"x8" double layer cake.

Using a stand mixer or hand-held mixer fitted with a whisk attachment(paddle works too), beat the butter and shortening together on high speed for 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed. Beat in marshmallow cream until completely incorporated. 

Switch the speed to low, and add in the powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt. Increase the speed to high and beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy. 

Recipe Adapted From: Marshmallow Buttercream Frosting Recipe

*Please do not take this recipe or photos from my blog and use them as your own. If you do wish to post my recipe on your blog, please ask for permission by emailing me. Thank you. 

Healthy Peanut Butter and Chocolate Oatmeal.

Hi everyone!

So, who loves peanut butter and chocolate?! I do! Who craves peanut butter and chocolate?! I do! This is the perfect recipe that allows you to get your choco-pb fix and have a healthy breakfast! Actually, this is barely even a recipe; you only need 3 ingredients!

All you will need is some peanut butter, chocolate chip oatmeal, and either water or milk. To make this wonderful, healthy breakfast, begin by making the oatmeal according to the packaged directions. After it has finished cooking, add in your peanut butter and swirl it through your bowl with a spoon. 

That's it! So easy, so quick, and sooooooooo delicious! I definitely look forward to eating this for breakfast! 

Enjoy!

Love, 

Teresa 

Ingredients:

1 packet chocolate chip oatmeal(or you may use plain oatmeal and add in chocolate chips)

2/3 cup water or milk(for cooking the oatmeal) 

1 1/2 tsp. peanut butter

Prepare chocolate chip oatmeal according to packaged directions. 

Add peanut butter into the warm oatmeal and swirl it in. Be careful not to stir it too much,  the chocolate chips will melt.

Skinny-licious Cranberry Orange Scones!

HaPpY FrIdAy!!!

Today I will be sharing with you the second"Teresa Original" recipe! Yay! And wait for it........it's a SKINNY RECIPE! I think these are perfect for this time of year; they embody some great fall/winter flavors and they won't completely interfere with healthy eating. I don't know about you, but I'm trying to save the sweets until Thanksgiving. You just enjoy things more when you don't always have them! These scones have little sugar and I cut out half of the butter. Most scones have one or more sticks of butter in the recipe- Yikes!  But I promise, cutting out the fat definitely does not sacrifice any flavor or texture. In my opinion, I actually like these better than some full fat scones I've had. I hate nothing more than biting into a scone to find out that it's hard, dry, and crumbly. Definitely not worth the calories. In this recipe, I replaced half of the butter with full-fat cream cheese. I have not tested this recipe with low-fat cream cheese, so I do not know if using that will allow for the same soft texture. I also added in some fat-free ricotta which made these scones light and moist, not brick-like. After all, ricotta is what makes my gnocchi so light and fluffy ;). 

Don't these look delish?!

See those bright little gems inside them? They're cranberries! And if you look close enough, you can see tiny orange flecks from orange zest! I love the combination of orange and cranberry; it's so refreshing and sweet. The sweet orange zest is the perfect compliment to the tart cranberries. Along with having a great flavor and awesome texture, these scones are very easy to make! First you begin by combining your dry ingredients in your a large bowl: flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and the cranberries. Next, you grate your butter into the flour mixture. In order to grate the butter easily, I suggest sticking it in the freezer while you measure your dry ingredients. 

It's Mount Saint BUTTER! :D

After grating in your butter, add in your cream cheese. Now here's the fun part: combine the flour, butter, and cream cheese mixtures with your hands! Rub the flour, butter and cream cheese mixture together with your fingertips, just until everything is combined and the mixture is crumbly. In another bowl, whisk together your egg, ricotta, and orange zest. Add the wet ingredients to the dry, and again combine both mixtures together with your hands(fun, right?!). Once everything is well blended, form the dough into a ball and place it on a cookie sheet lined with a silicon mat or parchment paper. Gently pat the ball down so it forms a circle, about 3/4 in. high. Stick it in the oven, and viola! You've made your scones! However, when they came out of the oven, I thought they looked a bit bare; they needed an accessory. That is when the Cinnamon Vanilla Glaze comes into play! The cinnamon works great with the cranberry and orange. Just whisk it all up and drizzle it on your gorgeous scones! 

Enjoy! 

Love, 

Teresa 

Ingredients:

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour 

1/3 cup sugar 

1 tsp. baking powder 

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. salt 

1/4 cup unsalted butter 

4 tbsp.  full-fat cream cheese 

3/4 cup fresh cranberries 

1/2 cup fat-free ricotta 

1 egg, preferably room temperature 

1 tsp orange zest 

1/2 cup powdered sugar 

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1/2 tsp. vanilla 

2 tsp. milk(any kind will be fine) 

Yields: 8 scones 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicon baking mat. Put your butter in the freezer. 

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, sugar, and cranberries. Remove butter from the freezer and grate it into the bowl. Add in your cream cheese. 

Using your fingertips, rub the butter, cream cheese, and flour mixture together until it looks crumbly and there are no big clumps of butter and cream cheese. 

In a separate, small bowl, whisk together the egg, ricotta, and orange zest. Add this mixture into the butter/flour mixture. Combine both mixtures with your hands just until they are completely blended. 

Form the dough into a ball, and place it on the baking sheet. Gently flatten the ball into a circle that's about 3/4 inches high. Cut the circle into 8 triangles, but don't separate them. Bake the scones for 15-18 minutes or until the top is slightly golden and and a toothpick inserted in them comes out cleans. Once removed from the oven, separate the triangles and transfer them to a cooling rack. 

To make the glaze, whisk the powdered sugar, vanilla, milk, and cinnamon together in a small bowl. Drizzle the glaze on the scones with a spoon or fork. 

Recipe From: Sweet Dreams and Sprinkles

*Please do not take this recipe or photos from my blog and use them as your own. If you do wish to post my recipe on your blog, please ask for permission by emailing me. Thank you. 

Brown Butter Oatmeal Raisin Bars.

Happy Hump Day everybody! 

I think you will really enjoy today's recipe, even if you don't particularly like oatmeal raisin cookies (I don't know how that could be though, oatmeal raisin cookies are my fave!). They are the perfect way to celebrate the middle of the week! Or any day, in fact! These bars are a "Teresa Original"; it is the first recipe I've ever developed myself for a baked good! I was a bit weary at first about developing my own recipe, but I am (extremely)pleasantly surprised at the results! Now, I know what you may be thinking. Brown Butter?! How can I possibly make brown butter?! Trust me, it's not as hard as it may seem. However, it does take a little bit of patience. You must let the butter sit for a little bit after you are done whisking it. As soon as you see the little brown specks, remove the brown butter from the stove burner immediately. Brown butter can turn black within the matter of seconds! But still, don't be afraid to make it. These Oatmeal Raisin Bars would not be the same without brown butter. It gives the bars a wonderful deep and warm flavor! Brown butter not only makes the bars smell and taste amazing, but your kitchen smells absolutely divine as well! I wish I could just bottle it up the scent or make it into a scented candle. And yes, it is that amazing! 

Despite taking some extra time to make the brown butter, these bars actually come together pretty quickly! While your butter is browning on the stove, you can put your other ingredients together. The ingredient list is fairly simple: flour, light brown sugar, baking soda, vanilla, an egg, oats, salt, cinnamon, and vanilla. As your butter is doing its magic, you can combine your brown sugar, egg and vanilla in a large bowl. In a small bowl, you can whisk together your dry ingredients: flour, baking soda, salt, oats, cinnamon, and raisins. Add in your finished brown butter into the bowl with the sugar and egg mixture and give it a good whisk. Next, stir your dry ingredients your wet ingredients. DO NOT OVER MIX.  Just as soon as you don't see any more clumps of dry flour in the batter, STOP MIXING.  Overworking the batter will make hard bars, and we certainly don't want that. Now here comes the really hard part: waiting for them to cool. You must let them cool completely, though; they will be difficult to cut and much too gooey inside if you do not. Once they have been cooled and cut, you have the option of drizzling on a sweet glaze. The glaze is supper easy to make, you only need powdered sugar and some milk. Personally, I think the glaze is a necessity ;). I hope you like these moist, chewy, and flavorful Brown Butter Oatmeal Cookie Bars! 

Enjoy! 

Love, 

Teresa 

Ingredients

1/2 cup unsalted butter 

1 cup light brown sugar 

1 egg, room temperature 

1 tsp. vanilla extract 

3/4 cup flour 

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats 

3/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. cinnamon  

1/4 tsp. salt. 

2/3 cup raisins 

1/2 cup powdered sugar 

2-3 tbsp. milk(any kind will work)

Yields: 16 bars

Preheat oven to 350 and line a 8"x8" square baking pan with parchment paper, allowing some to hang over the sides of the pan. 

Brown the butter. Follow these instructions. While your butter is browning, combine the brown sugar, egg, and vanilla in a large bowl. In a separate, small bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, cinnamon, salt, baking soda, and raisins. 

Once the butter has finished browning, add it into the sugar/egg mixture and whisk to completely combine. Add in your dry ingredients, stirring JUST until combined. 

Transfer the batter into the baking pan. You may have to press down to fully spread the batter evenly throughout the pan. Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Cool  the bars in the pan on a wire rack until they are completely cool. Cut the bars into squares. 

To make the glaze, whisk together powdered sugar and milk until it is smooth and glossy. Drizzle on the cooled bars. 

Recipe From: Sweet Dreams and Sprinkles

*Please do not take this recipe or photos from my blog and use them as your own. If you do wish to post my recipe on your blog, please ask for permission by emailing me. Thank you.