Butter Spritz Cookies

The MUST-HAVE Christmas cookie in our family is butter cookies. My sisters and I grew up with them and they've become a tradition in the family. Thanks, Grandmom, for starting this great tradition!

I used to have the worst trouble with cookie presses. I've thrown at least 2 of them away, and one year got blisters on my hand from trying to make one work. So the last 2 years I've tried the drop and press method, and the roll and cut method. No matter how you do it, these cookies are amazing, and always no-fail. There's something about the almond extract that's just warming to the soul. These cookies melt in your mouth without tasting greasy or too buttery. They're just perfect. So if you're looking for the perfect recipe to use in your cookie press, give this one a try! You won't be disappointed :)

And if you're looking for a nice reliable, easy to use cookie press, go get the Wilton Pro Ultra II. Thanks to Nestie veniceforever for the recommendation!

BUTTER SPRITZ COOKIES

Source: my grandmom

1 cup (2 sticks) salted butter, softened

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1 egg

1 tsp almond extract

2 1/3 cups flour

Assorted decorations for cookies

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cream butter.

3. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.

4. Beat in egg and almond extract.

5. Gradually blend in flour.

6. Fill cookie press and press cookies directly onto ungreased cookie sheet.

7. Decorate cookies with your desired topping - my personal favorite is the colored sugar.

8. Bake 8-10 minutes or until edges are lightly golden.

9. Remove to wire rack to cool completely.

*This recipe yields 7 dozen cookies and is easily doubled for 14 dozen. It sounds like a lot - but I'm making 1 double batch and 1 regular batch this year.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

One of my husband's favorite cookies to eat at Christmastime is chocolate peanut butter chip cookies. I had a problem with recipes I've tried in the past - they just weren't what I like in a cookie. I really only enjoy chewy cookies. So I went on the hunt for a recipe to try and came across this one on allrecipes.com. When I search for recipes there, I always look for recipes with 4-5 stars and a lot of reviews. So far, this method hasn't done me wrong.

I read the reviews for this 5 star cookie and adapted it based on what I read. Basically my only adaptions were using half white and half light brown sugar. I've learned that the brown sugar imparts a certain chewiness to a cookie. I also didn't add the called-for amount of chips, just because I dont love a lot of chips in them, but for appearances sake, after I dropped each ball of dough on the cookie sheet, I pressed in a few peanut butter chips just to make them look prettier. Also, I added a few regular chocolate chips in.

The hubs ended up loving this recipe, and I did, too - crispy on the outside, chewy on the inside. It's definitely going to be added to the yearly Christmas cookie list :)

CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER CHIP COOKIES

Source: adapted from allrecipes.com

1 cup salted butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar

3/4 cup packed light brown sugar

2 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour

2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder (I used dutch-processed)

3/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup peanut butter chips

1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a medium bowl, add dry ingredients and whisk together.

3. In stand mixer, cream the butter and sugars.

4. Beat in the eggs and vanilla.

5. Add the dry ingredients to the creamed sugar mixture in 3 increments and stir until blended in.

6. Stir in peanut butter and chocolate chips.

7. Drop heaping teaspoons onto parchment lined baking sheet.

8. Bake 9-11 minutes or until set.

9. Remove from oven, let sit 1-2 minutes and remove to wire rack to cool completely.

Notes: I found that this recipe baked up nicely right after mixed, and right out of the fridge.

Hope you love it!

Heaven... I mean Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars

As far as chocolate chip cookies go, I love them, but I'm really picky. Well I found a few great recipes I really liked, but when I saw these chocolate chip cookie bars a/k/a Lunch Lady Bars, I thought to myself "I love the concept, and I love how easy they seem." So when I went to the store to grab some ingredients for dinner, I grabbed some chocolate chips. I had everything else on hand.

I didn't even have to break out my Kitchen Aid mixer for these (sadly I don't have enough counter space to keep mine out). But I love when I find great recipes that don't require the use of my Kitchen Aid. And seriously, when I took my first bite of these bars, I was in love. And considering how quick and easy they were to make, I'll definitely be reaching for this recipe whenever the craving for a chocolate chip cookie hits me!

CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE BARS

Source: Allrecipes as adapted by Sherri

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

3/4 tsp salt

1 cup oil

1 cup light brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

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1. In a bowl, mix together the flour, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the sugars with the oil.

3. Add vanilla and eggs one at a time, mixing well.

4. Gradually add dry ingredients.

5. Stir in 3/4 cup of the chocolate chips.

6. Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper or aluminum foil (if you use foil, spray with non-stick spray).

7. Spread the dough into the pan, then sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips on top.

8. Bake in preheated 350 degree oven for 15-25 minutes until light golden brown. [Note, mine took 30 minutes]

Grandma's Cheesecake Tartlets

Today is Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day, MOM! And to all of the other mothers out there who maybe happen to read my piddly blog.

Yesterday my mom decided to have all of her girls over for dinner at her house. Better her than me, because having people over generally causes me anxiety! So I had to offer to bring dessert. Mom wanted crock pot cake, and my younger sister wanted cheesecake. Yes, both of my sisters are also moms so I wanted to oblige my sister's request also.

I didn't feel like cooking a whole cheesecake (umm, I never have, yet, and didn't want to buy 5 packages of cream cheese!). So I called up grandmom who I knew had a recipe for cheesecake tartlets which she used to make at family functions all the time.

So if you're ever looking for something really really simple to please the cheesecake lovers out there, definitely give this a shot!

CHEESECAKE TARTLETS
Source: my grandmom, Joan (where she got it from, I have no idea)

2 packages cream cheese (I used one regular, and one 1/3 less fat)
3/4 cup sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla (which I just realized while typing this that I totally forgot!)
Nilla wafer cookies
foil cupcake wrappers
cheesecake topping of your choice (the drug of choice in my family is canned cherry pie filling)

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1. Combine first 4 ingredients and beat well.
2. Line a cupcake tin with 12 cupcake wrappers (keep the white wrapper inside each foil wrapper).
3. Place 1 Nilla wafer in the center of each cupcake wrapper.
4. Using a 1/4 cup measuring cup, pour about 1/4 cup of the cheesecake batter into each cupcake wrapper, covering the Nilla wafer.
5. Bake in pre-heated oven at 350 degrees for 15-18 minutes or until set. (mine took exactly 18 minutes).
6. Let cool, then store in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
7. Before serving, top with your choice of topping.

Yield: I got 22 tartlets by measuring about 1/4 cup into each cupcake wrapper

What's that you say? You don't like toppings on your cheesecake? Well, neither do I. I much prefer my cheesecake unalduterated. The good news is they're just as good with no topping! It's the only way I eat them :)

Dinner and Dessert with Dana

My friend, Dana, and I try to get together about once a month to cook each other dinner then try baking a new recipe. It was my turn to host so I decided to make some chicken parmesan because I finally found some panko bread crumbs in my grocery store. For dessert we decided to make these chocolate chip cookies. After I saw these in bakingblonde's blog, I knew immediately I had to try them and I wasted no time forwarding the recipe and pictures to Dana. It was then agreed that this would in fact be our next new recipe we would try. I think it was especially fun for Dana because she regularly bakes chocolate chip cookies for her husband and is always testing out new recipes.

CHICKEN PARMESAN for TWO
Source: Me

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts marinated in italian dressing (4 oz. each)

panko breadcrumbs

jarred marinara sauce

fat free and part skim mozzarella (I like to mix both because the fat free cheese doesn't melt well)

1. Bread italian marinated chicken breasts in panko breading.

2. Lightly spray pan with EVOO. Cook chicken on both sides to lightly brown.

3. Add marinara to bottom of 8x8 inch baking dish. Lay chicken breasts in baking dish. Spoon marinara over chicken. Sprinkle cheese on chicken. Bake at 350 for about a half hour or until chicken is done.

Serve with whole wheat pasta and a nice healthy salad.

For my salad, I just mixed romaine and spinach, lightly sprayed with EVOO and a few splashes of red wine vinegar, season with italian seasoning, salt and fresh cracked pepper. So yummy and much healthier than dousing with dressings.

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COPY CAT LEVAIN BAKERY THROWDOWN COOKIES
Source: bakingblonde

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla (I used 2 tsp)
3 1/4 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon Kosher salt (I used regular table salt)
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups good quality semisweet chocolate chips
1 cup walnuts (I omitted)
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1. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Mix flour, salt, and baking powder and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.

3. Beat the butter and sugars until thoroughly blended. Mix in eggs, and vanilla. Add dry ingredients. The dough will be stiff and thick. Finish mixing by hand if needed until just combined. Gently fold in chips and nuts if using.

4. Use a 1/4 measuring cup to scoop out dough balls. Place dough onto one of two parchment paper-lined cookie sheets. You can make smaller dough balls but be sure to adjust baking times as needed to prevent browning.

5. Bake 15-25 minutes (depending on the size of your cookies and your oven) or until cookies are pale brown and outer edges start to harden yet centers are still soft and puffy. I baked my cookies for 22 minutes exactly.

6. Cool cookies on cookie sheets for 10 minutes. Transfer to cooling rack until cooled completly. Serve or store in airtight container.

These cookies were amazingly soft, fluffy and puffy. Of course, that's the type of cookie I like. Dana said she felt it had too much flour in this recipe and would reduce the amount of flour next time she tried this recipe. The only downfall to these cookies is that you really can only eat one at a time! Well, I guess that would be a downfall for some, and an upside for others!

Enjoy!

The Most Perfect BROWNIES

Recently I've been on the quest for the perfect brownie. Today someone posted the link to this very unique blog - all (or so I've seen) of her recipes are done by video! So you honestly can't mess anything up! And considering I've messed up a few too many brownie recipes lately, I figured trying one more before giving up altogether couldn't hurt. I'm so glad I didn't give up! This is the recipe I've been searching for all along (to my WC sis, you know I LOVE Aunt J's brownies, as similarly pictured below, but this are a bit cakier and a tad sweeter and I think more along Jim's lines of a really great brownie). So after rewinding this woman's video enough times to catch the ingredients and measurements, here you go!

FUDGE BROWNIES

Source: Kathy Maister's startcooking.com

14 Tbsp butter, melted

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/4 cup sugar

3 eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup flour

pinch of salt

Optional: nuts, chocolate chips, etc. (I used 1/4 cups walnuts, 1/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips)

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See Source link for Kathy Meister's video directions!

Monkey Bread

Yesterday I got an email from my mom asking me to make monkey bread. Neither of us had ever had it in our lives, but my mom recently attended a party where it was served and was gone within minutes. My poor mom wanted more! I couldn't deny the chance to bake something so of course I was going to make it for her. For some reason I felt that it would be okay to bake in a loaf pan, and I think it would've been fine if I hadn't stuffed 4 layers of sugar coated cut biscuits into it, but in the end I think it turned out pretty decent. Mom's on her way over tonight :)

All of the recipes I searched for were very similar, but since I used Pillsbury biscuits I'll link you to the Pillsbury recipe.

I love my WC sis :)

For my 1 year anniversary my WC sis, Lindsey (Luluk1102), sent me brownies made with a family recipe and she even sent the recipe on a pretty index card with her kitchen stamp on it - so cute! But I was sooooo bored this weekend, and needed to go get an onion for my salsa (below) so I figured I'd give these fabulous brownies a shot so I picked up a few things from the grocery store to make them. I love these brownies, and I love my WC sis - thanks Linds!

Visit Lindsey's blog for the recipe!

3 Bananas

I had 3 very ripe bananas. What better to make than a batch of moist banana muffins? Nothing I could think of! So banana muffins it was. I'm sure I found this recipe somewhere on the internet several years ago, because back then, that's how I found all of my recipes. But that was before the days of blogging so I have no idea where it's source is. But anyway, here's my recipe, which is for a standard banana bread, but I halved it based on the amount of mashed banana I had and got 8 perfect sized muffins out of it. For integrity's sake, I'll post the banana bread recipe in it's whole form.

BANANA BANANA BREAD

2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup butter

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs, beaten

2 1/3 cups mashed banana

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1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Stir together dry ingredients.

3. Cream together butter and sugar.

4. Stir in eggs and bananas.

5. Stir wet mixture into dry mixture just to moisten.

6. Pour into 2 8x4 inch loaf pans

7. Bake 60-65 minutes until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.

Note: As muffins, they took 20 minutes to bake.

Holiday: Chocolate Chip Cookies

Over the years I've tried every single chocolate chip recipe I've seen that anybody said was the best. Thank you, again, Katie, for sharing this America's Test Kitchen recipe! Everybody loved them!!

I did want to add my notes because I messed up an entire batch by not chilling the dough enough. The trick I found that worked best for me was to go all the way up to the forming dough ball part, and twist to get 2 halves, as instructed. But then what I did was I put each dough ball onto some parchment paper and stuck them in the fridge for about an hour. It helped the dough chill quickly enough for me to not have to wait too long to bake them and resulted in a PERFECT cookie. I even made a batch with NO chocolate chips because my friend Jess and I really just love the dough sans chips. They were also a hit!

Holiday: Cream Puffs

Thank you, Katie, for inspiring me to give these a shot! They were a hit! And SO easy!

Basic Cream Puff Dough

1/2 cup butter
1 cup water
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs





1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a large pot, bring water and butter to a rolling boil.
3. Stir in flor and salt until the mixture forms into a ball.
4. Transfer the dough to a large mixing bowl.
5. Using stand mixer, beat in the eggs one at a time, mixing well.
6. Pipe onto prepared baking sheet in Tbsp size.
7. Bake for 20-25 minutes in preheated oven until golden brown. Centers should be dry.
8. When shells are cool, pipe the cream into the shells.
9. Dust with powdered sugar.

(Note: Pipe cream into shells before serving. We piped the night before and the next day they were not as good as when we first piped them that night. And piping takes no time at all so it's really no big deal. Lesson learned!)

For the cream, we used this Williams-Sonoma recipe.

Holiday: Chewy Coconut Cookies

My friend Dana and I wanted to try something new this year. We came across this recipe. We both agree that it was an easy, likable recipe and we would both make them again. I'm linking you directly to the allrecipes recipe so you can view the comments left by others who tried the recipe (can I say "recipe" one more time?). We followed the recipe exactly, but would definitely add some toasted coconut for a little extra coconut flavor. Enjoy!

Holiday: Butter Cookies

My FAVORITE holiday cookie by far is the butter cookie. I'm loyal to my grandmother's recipe and I have no idea where it originates from. I just know that when grandmom came over to visit on Christmas Eve that she said, "Are those my cookies?" And so, without further adieu, here is the recipe!

1 cup (2 sticks) butter

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg

1 tsp almond extract

2 1/3 cups flour

DIRECTIONS

1. Cream butter.

2. Gradually add sugar and beat until light and fluffy.

3. Beat in eggs and almond extract.

4. Gradually blend in flour.

COOKIE PRESS DIRECTIONS

Fill press with dough. Form desired shapes on ungreased cookie sheet (Note: this will not work on parchment paper or on a silicone baking mat - cookies must be pressed directly onto the cookie sheet). Decorate cookies to your liking with sprinkles (my fave is colored sugar). Bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes. Remove immediately to wire rack to cool.

ROLLED DIRECTIONS

Chill dough. Roll dough thin (this dough does not spread or puff). Use desired small scale cookie cutter (I just used a small round measuring cup I had). Transfer cut dough shapes to cookie sheet and decorate. Bake in pre-heated 350 degree oven for 8-12 minutes - depending on how thick you rolled the dough out.

(Note: I've also used a small cookie scoop and jus flattened with my fingers, decorated and baked. This is helpful if you don't like to roll out dough.)

I hope that someone else is able to get as much joy out of this recipe that my family does :)

Peanut Butter Cookies

My husband loves all things peanut butter. So I decided to make a treat for him. But since we're trying to eat healthier, I decided to halve the recipe and make a small batch. But here's the recipe for the full batch.

1 cup sugar

1 stick butter, at room temperature

1 egg

1 cup smooth peanut butter

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 cups flour

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. Cream together the sugar and the butter.

4. Beat in egg.

5. Mix in peanut butter and vanilla until smooth and creamy.

6. Stir in dry ingredients until well combined.

7. Drop balls onto cookie sheet and flatten with fork (I dipped the fork in flour before each press).

8. Bake 12-15 minutes.

Chocolate cures all....

Sometimes I just get a chocolate craving like none other. The only way to make it go away is to EAT some CHOCOLATE!

I came across this recipe in Cara's blog [http://carascravings.blogspot.com/2007/05/choco-gasm.html]

I'm pretty sure this recipe originated from another WC Nestie/Blogger, so if it's you, let me know and I'll credit you! Anyway, I knew immediately I had to try it.

I was home alone, my husband was working nights, and went to the grocery store specifically for the ingredients - the fabulous thing is that now that I have them, there's plenty to go around for at least another impromptu batch!

And so here is this most fabulous recipe!!

2 1/4 cups confectioner's sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp espresso powder

1 cup cocoa powder (I used regular ol' Hershey's)

3 large egg whites

2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Whisk together the sugar, salt, espresso powder and cocoa.

2. In a medium sized mixing bowl, stir together the egg whites and the vanilla (I used my KA mixer on STIR).

3. Add the dry ingredients to the egg whites and mix at low speed for 2 minutes (I stopped halfway thru to scrape the sides of the bowl). The batter will seem dry at first, but will become shiny and smooth as it mixes. The dough is not your typical cookie dough, but actually resembles store-bought cake frosting.

4. Cover and refrigerate the batter for 3 hours. This process can be sped up by placing in the freezer for 1 hour, and then in the fridge for 1 hour.

5. Preheat oven to 350. Grease or line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Drop dough in ping-pong sized balls onto baking sheet a few inches apart. I used my mechanical cookie scoop thingee - if you don't have one, make sure you grease whatever spoon you use.

6. Bake for 12 minutes, reversing pans halfway thru.

7. Remove from oven and let cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

8. Enjoy the rich, decadent goodness.

About 100 calories and 2 g fat each

Yield: varies - I got about 12 cookies out of the batter.

First try... not too bad!

So a few weeks ago my husband and I traveled to Newport, RI. While we were there we stayed at the Hyatt on Goat Island. Our first night there we had a not so great dinner in the hotel restaurant, but I insisted on having dessert anyway. We opted on sharing the Boston Cream Cake. Oh my God, if this wasn't the most fabulous cake ever... a perfect sponge cake, cream filling, topped with chocolate ganache and creme anglaise. We had another piece the following night. We immediately knew I had to try to recreate this cake when we got home.

And so this weekend I attempted the cake. I found some recipes online for each component of the cake.

We both decided, although the cake was still delicious, we need a "spongier" cake. Also, I don't think I'll be using real vanilla beans again. They're expensive! Ok, anyway, here are the recipes I did use.


SPONGE CAKE
Source: http://www.joyofbaking.com/

6 large eggs
2/3 cup plus 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 cup plus 4 Tbsp all-purpose flour
4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Butter and line 2-8 inch round cake pans and line with parchment paper.
3. In electric mixer fitted with paddle attachment, beat the eggs and sugar on high speed for about 5 minutes, or until they are thick, fluffy and light colored (when you slowly raise the beaters the batter will fall back into the bowl in a slow ribbon). At this point, beat in the vanilla extract. Sift 1/2 of the flour over the batter and gently fold through with a rubber spatula or whisk. Sift the remaining flour over the batter and fold in. Whisk about 1/2 of the batter into the melted buter (to lighten it) and then gently fold the butter mixture back into the rest of the batter.
4. Pour immediately into the prepared pans and bake for 25 minutes or until springy to the touch.
5. Remove from oven and place on a wire rack to cool. Run a spatula or sharp knife around the inside of the pan and then invert the cake onto a wire rack. Remove parchment paper.
6. With a serrated knife slice the cakes horizontally.
7. Assemble with pastry cream between layers.


PASTRY CREAM
Source: http://www.williamssonoma.com/

9 egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
Large pinch of salt
4 Tbsp cornstarch
1 vanilla bean
2 1/2 cups milk

1. Whisk together the egg yolks, sugar and salt. Then whisk in the cornstarch. Set aside.
2. Using a small, sharp knife, cut the vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds.
3. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan over med-high heat, combine the vanilla bean, seeds and milk. Cook until bubbles appear around the edges. Remove from heat and slowly pour the milk mixture into the egg mixture, whisking constantly.
4. Return mixture to the saucepan and set over med-low heat. Cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is as thick as mayonnaise, 5-7 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and strain the pastry cream into a clean bowl, discarding the vanilla bean.
6. Cover with plastic wrap directly on the surface of the pastry cream. Let cool completely, then refrigerate until ready to use.


CHOCOLATE GANACHE
Source: http://www.joyofbaking.com/

8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, cut into small pieces
3/4 cup heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp unsalted butter

1. Place the chopped chocolate in a medium sized stainless steel bowl. Set aside.
2. Heat the cream and butter in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring just to a boil.
3. Immediately pour the cream over the chocolate. Allow to stand for 5 minutes.
4. Stir with a whisk until smooth.
5. To cover cake, pour the ganache into the center of the cake. Working quickly, spread with a spatula, using big strokes to push the ganache over the sides of the cake to create an even coating of ganache. Cover any bare spots with leftover ganache.

*Note: If covering a cake that is to be refrigerated, make sure the cake is cold before covering with the ganache to ensure that the ganache does not dull when stored in the refrigerator.


CREME ANGLAISE
Source: http://www.joyofbaking.com/

2 cups light cream or half & half (12-18% buttefat)
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise (or 2 tsp vanilla extract)
1/3 cup granulated sugar
5 large egg yolks

1. Have a fine medium sized strainer and bowl ready near the stove.
2. In a stainless steel bowl stir together, using a wooden spoon, the sugar and egg yolks until well blended (do not let this mixture sit too long or a film will develop on the yolks).
3. In a small saucepan heat the cream and vanilla bean (if using) just to the boiling point. Remove from heat and whisk a few tablespoons of the cream into the yolk mixture. Then gradually add the remaining cream, whisking constantly.
4. Pour this mixture into a medium sized saucepan and over medium heat, gently heat the mixture to just below the boiling point (170-175 degrees). You will notice that steam will begin to appear and the mixture will be slightly thicker than heavy cream. Do not boil or the eggs will curdle. Check to see if it is the right consistency by holding a wooden spoon sideways that is covered with the custard and run your finger along the back of the spoon. If the streak remains without the cream running down through the streak, it is ready.
5. Immediately remove from the heat and pour through the strainer, scraping up any thickened cream that settled on the bottom of the pan. Remove the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into the sauce. Stir until the seeds separate (If you are using vanilla extract instead of the vanilla bean, add it to the cream now).

Can be refrigerated covered with plastic wrap for a couple of days.

*Note: If sauce was overheated and curdling occurs, pour instantly into a blender and process until smooth before straining. If necessary, add a little heavy cream to the mixture before blending.

I HATE PUMPKIN!

Ok, seriously, I really despise pumpkin flavored food items. BUT... I came across this recipe in a magazine a few years ago. It's a low-fat chocolate chip pumpkin bread. I just liked to bake and figured I would just take it into work for everyone else to enjoy since it was "pumpkin season", but of course, I have to taste everything before I share it with others, so I did, and fell in love with this bread. I have no idea what magazine I ripped this recipe out of, however the article says ...

"While Sarah Brinkley's Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread sounded deliciously intriguing, it was the vanilla pudding that really caught our eye. Sarah says this recipe for pumpkin bread is a family favorite.

"Sarah inherited the recipe from a friend but knew she wanted to give it her own twist when she saw the ingredients. 'It had egg yolks and lots of oil,' she says. Her first step was to reduce the amount of oil and substitute egg whites for whole eggs. Then she turned a trick she learned from a banana bread recipe in Cooking Light that used sour cream to make a light, moist loaf. 'I was out of sour cream, so on a whim I used vanilla pudding.'"

Blah blah blah, etc., etc.

Needless to say, I believe Sarah is a genius. This bread is SO moist and, so, without further adieu, here it is!

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CHOCOLATE CHIP PUMPKIN BREAD

no mixer required

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2 cups sugar

2 cups canned pumpkin

1/2 cup canola oil (I'm sure vegetable oil would be fine)

1/2 cup fat-free vanilla pudding (I used Hunt's Snack Pack Fat-Free Vanilla Pudding)

4 large egg whites

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (I used Hershey's Milk Chocolate Chips)

Cooking spray

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1. Preheat oven to 350

2. Combine first 5 ingredients in large bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, level with a knife. Combine flour, cinnamon, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Add flour mixture to pumpkin mixture, stirring just until moist. Stir in chocolate chips.

3. Spoon batter into 2 (8 x 4 inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350 for 1 hour 15 minutes (mine took 1 hour 25 minutes) or until a wooden pick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes in pans on wire rack, and remove from pans. Cool completely on wire rack.

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Yield: 32 servings

Calories: 152

Fat: 5g

Protein: 2g

Carb: 26.5g

Fiber: 1.1g