Guest Blogger: Lynsey

So as I said a few days ago, it is just about finals week around here. I expect this quarter to be especially brutal. 4 finals, plus a paper. And then when all of that is said and done, we have 2 major end of the year Comp exams (essentially they test us in two different core areas to see if we are competent enough to move on to the next part of the program). This is all spread out over 3 weeks, which is a lot nicer sounding than it actually is.

Sometimes I talk to my friends and I have to remind them, this isn't like normal college (which is hard enough as it is). Psychology is a lot like med school. We may not be cutting into people's bodies, but we are playing with lives and sick people. So they expect us to really know our stuff inside and out. It ain't easy. And of course other areas of my life suffer because of it. I stop eating real food, and when I do I reach for the nearest cheesey thing. Nick forgets what his wife looks like, and I wish I didn't have a life and could run away to the nearest 5 star hotel. No, not to relax, but to study uninterrupted. And of course, the blog gets lonely.

I've decided that I may have to make a yearly celebration out of my hell month and invite guest bloggers to post. This way you all can have something to read by some really diversely talented bloggers. A call was put out far and wide on the internet this past week and I got lots of responses, so I have some very good reads for you that have been slowly trickling in. They will be dispersed with some of mine when I actually have 2 minutes to post something. Hope you enjoy them!

First up is an entry from Lynsey.

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Thank you for popping my guest blogging cherry :-D . After days of serious writers block, I’ve decided to simply give you a really good cookie recipe.

One of my favorite cookie recipes (and my husband’s) is “Melt In your Mouth PB Cookies” from a book called One Smart Cookie. This recipe is super duper easy, delicious, & gluten-free. Bestcookieever. Promise.

The good stuff:
1 1/2 cups reduced-calorie peanut butter or regular peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 large egg white

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a large bowl, mix peanut butter, sugar, brown sugar and egg white until completely blended.

Roll dough into 1"-1 1/2" balls and place about 2" apart on an ungreased cookie sheet. Press down on each cookie once or twice (crisscrossed) with the back of a fork.

Bake for 12-15 minutes, until pale golden and set around the edges.

Gently transfer to a wire rack to cool. If they are too crumbly to move, let cool for a minute or two on the cookie sheet first.

Makes 2 dozen cookies (or less depends on how big your balls are).

Variations – you can add some mini chocolate chips, white chocolate chips or smashed peanut butter cups (about ½ c or more depending on your liking); you can try to dip part of the baked cookie in chocolate and let that set.

Max Brenner

Since we are on a big dessert kick, I decided to write about one of my favorite places to get dessert at EVER. Max Brenner, which has locations all over the world, has by far, the best chocolate desserts I've ever eaten in my life. My first year of graduate school, a friend who got a job working as a barrista turned me on to the restaurant and I was hooked. Some of my friends and I would go once a week to get hot chocolate, chocolate martinis, crepes, fondu, ice cream sundaes, chocolate soup, truffles, molten lava cake, and anything else you think chocolate could come on. The food menu (which has some great items and some rather lack luster ones) has changed a lot over the years, but the 20 page dessert menu has generally stayed the same. But you're not really into for lunch or dinner are you? You just want the chocolate.

The restaurant plays up on that chocolate desire too. Everything is decorated in chocolate inspired colors. Warm rich tones of brown, red, and orange. Words like addiction, hug, and love are used in the custom made mugs and other decor. And the smell infects every inch of the restaurants. Everything is about a lifestyle. When you walk in, you really feel like you're being transported into a chocolate factory (or heaven).

Every dessert I've tried has been so rich and delicious, even that chocolate soup which seems really weird was very good. A lot of the options are offered in white, milk, or dark chocolate or a combination of two which makes everyone's taste buds happy. Some of them, if you don't have the appetite, will have to be split, like the peanut butter crepe, because they are that rich. Smores, waffles, cookies, milk shakes, have I made you want to go yet?


Many of the restaurants also have shops where you can buy some of the amazing chocolates and other kitch. I've always wanted to buy their liquid chocolate (which is used in many many of their desserts) but never got around to it. So many other things are sold in the online shop, but considering the liquid stuff is fresh and must be sold by a certain date, I could understand why it wouldn't be available online.

A great place for a date, a girls night out, or a birthday party, Max Brenner is a multi-occasion restaurant (although last I knew, the one in NYC did not take reservations unless you had a very large group, and the larger your group and the later you want dinner the longer you have to wait).




Um...yes...

Bouchon Bakery

Nothing thrills me more than a good quiche and a sweet treat after wards. When I worked in New York City, my office was very close to Columbus Circle at Central Park South. I liked to take solo-lunches and walk there, either window shopping at the shops or stroll through Central Park. The Columbus Circle shops definitely cater to a rich crowd with higher end designer stores (like Stuart Weitzman) and the cheapest places being J-Crew and Sephora. Even the restaurants were expensive. On my salary there was no way I could get a nice lunch for $30 a plate. But, there was one place I could afford (and routinely went to) that was never a disappointment, Bouchon Bakery.

The owner/creator/chef has several other restaurants (including one at Columbus Circle), but Bouchon Bakery is the only one I have ever gone to. I have gotten to go food (like some of the sandwiches, quiche, salads, and croissants) and had several sit down meals too. I absolutely love the quiche, which regardless of the kind, always had fluffy eggs that were buttery and a vinaigrette on the accompanying salad that was to die for. My two favorite sandwhiches are a toss up (depending on whether I want something sweet or something savory) between the cashew butter and jelly (apricot) and the roasted vegetable which has eggplant, zucchini, and red peppers with tons of cheese and comes on an AMAZING multi-grain bread.

And the cookies! Oh God. Between the award winning nutter butters and TKO (Thomas Keller Oreo with seasonal icing offerings), you'd already be set if not for the rest of the display case of goodies.

The one thing I was ever disappointed in was the bread they give with a sit down meal. Very small, all crust, and so crunchy. It's hard to chew, I could imagine someone with no teeth, or very bad teeth having a lot of issues. But it's such a small part of the meal considering how great everything else is. Just look at the pictures I took from their website. I think that says it all:



PS. The website does not do their selection of food justice you must go (in California, Nevada, or New York) to see for yourself! And bring the pup, there's lots of treats for him too!

Super Easy Berry Tart

Sometimes you need a quick recipe. Last minute dinner guest, you forgot to make something for that BBQ you're going to, or you promised you'd make something for the bake sale and just didn't get around to it. This berry tart that I made up when I was faced with one such situation should help you out in a pinch too!

Ingredients:

-one bag of frozen mixed berries (I really hate Dole's. The strawberries are not ripe and are very tart. The ones from Whole Foods or Trader Joe's are better)
- a regular frozen pie crust
- 1/4 cup of sugar
- 1/2 cup of flour
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- optional 2 tsp coconut extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line a pie baking dish with your frozen pie crust (don't press it down the sides).
3. In a bowl mix together the other ingredients. You may need more or less flour or sugar depending on how it looks. The sugar makes the tart sweet and juice, but the flour thickens the juices up so they don't run around everywhere. I pretty much eyeball it every time and use my hands to measure out, so it's really whatever you prefer.
4. Dump the mixture into the pie crust and fold up the sides around it leaving an opening on the top.
5. Timing for how long it cooks will depend on how frozen the berries still are when you bake it. If they're still hard as a rock, it could take 40 minutes or more, if they're softer then it make take only 25-30 minutes.
6. Eat alone or top with whipped cream (if cool) or vanilla ice cream (if still warm).

Chocolate Orange Sandwhich cookies

For Christmas we (I) were gifted with an amazing cookbook from Nick's sister, 1001 Cupcakes, Cookies, & Other Tempting Treats. After a quick flip through on Christmas I was so excited to get home and bake some things from it. With recipes like Banana Caramel cookies, Peanut butter Cupcakes, and goat cheese and scallion muffins I knew I could bake something different every week for 5 years, never repeat, and always be happy.

So last week I went on a cooking spree (part of which resulted in the Mini Chicken Pot Pies) and made Chocolate and Orange Sandwich Cookies from one of the recipes in the book. They looked amazing and everyone who tried them (which was a lot because I made them to share) said they were delicious. So I am sharing with you the recipe, with my tweeks of course.

Ingredients

For the cookies:
- 1 cup butter softened
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 3/4 cups flour
- 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa
- 3 1/2 oz. (100g) semisweet chocolate finely chopped (I chopped up chips, you definitely need to chop them up, though because in full chip form they are too big for the cookies)
- 2 tsp zested orange rind (I may have only used 1 1/2)

For the frosting:
- 1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
- 7 oz (200g) white chocolate (again I used chips)
- 1/2 tsp orange extract
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line baking tins with parchment paper (if you can don't use a baker's stone. I am without one baking sheet right now and using the stone made the edges of the cookie thin and crumbly).
2. Mix together butter, sugar, and orange zest in a bowl until light and fluffy. Then add the vanilla and egg yolk.
3. Sift flour and cocoa together before adding to the mix. (I personally think the sifting is really only important for the cocoa). Add chopped semi sweet chocolate.
4. Once mixed well, scoop out cookies with a tablespoon and roll into balls and place on cookie sheet. Then flatten the tops with the back of a spoon. If they stick, dip the spoon in water once in awhile.
5. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool completely before icing.



Before icing we had one extra and we got to split it. Soooo good.

6. Bring cream to a boil in a small saucepan then immediately remove from heat. Stir in the white chocolate until mixture is smooth. Then add vanilla and orange extracts. I also added food coloring because I wanted to let everyone know the cookies had orange in them, and it made them look ready for Halloween. I'd imagine you could make them red for Valentine's Day, green for Christmas, purple for Easter, and yellow for the summer.
7. The book didn't say this, but when mixture is completely cooled, whip up on high speed.

Before being whipped...not such a good looking frosting center.


And after...that's much much better!


8. Spread on cookies when everything is cooled (otherwise the icing will melt and go back to being liquid). Don't be stingy when spreading. It doesn't look like a lot of icing, but I actually had a little bit left over. Great on French Toast.
9. Keep in fridge if not being eaten. But why would you want to not eat them?

Finished product. Dangerous!!

Quickie dessert: Mini berry nut pastries!

This recipe is so super simple. On Sunday I made the Chicken Pot Pies and had some leftover pastry bread so I decided to take a cue from my friend, Katrina, and make something tiny and delicious with them.

Step 1. Take 1/12 of puff pastry shell and put some brown sugar, a walnut (this would also be good with pecans), and berries of your choice. Here I have one blackberry and one raspberry.



Step 2. Pinch down sides to close. If too big secure with a toothpick (just make sure you dip it in water first to prevent from burning).

Step 3. Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes until golden brown.



Step 4. Eat and be careful because the berries will burst with hot yummy juices.

2 Cupcake Places: East & West

Specialty cupcakes are definitely a huge trend right now (although some have been saying that it will be replaced by Whoopie pies soon). They're probably so popular because it reminds you of being a kid, having birthday parties at school, and being able to eat at least 5 with no stomach ache or extra pounds. I still love cupcakes and have seen so many amazing recipes lately, but sometimes it's just more fun to find a little shop and buy a ton of all different ones to try.

This past weekend Nick and I went to Napa for our anniversary. We spent Saturday walking around downtown, checking out the shops and visiting tasting rooms. In our travels we came across the most amazing idea for a store (and I can think of at least two of my friends who would find their heaven if they ever visited). Sift Cucakes, which serves the best cupcakes I have EVER tasted, has a small boutique clothing shop attached. Think Tori Burch meets BCBG, with amazing cupcakes. They have a few more locations (as per the website), and I'm so depressed none of them are near me. I have been to quite a few cupcake places, but Sift is by far the best. While there I tried a Samoa (yes, like the Girl Scout cookie). Vanilla with chocolate ganache in the center, caramel flavored frosting, with coconut on top. It sounds like it would be too sweet, but it wasn't. A perfect blends of all the flavors and had I not still had 3 hours of walking ahead of me, and more room in my stomach I would have bought more.

<---- From their Facebook...Doesn't that look amazing?!


One of the other places I've been, back East, that I really like is Flour and Sun Bakery, in Pleasantville, New York. I visited a couple of years ago to celebrate my birthday with a friend who's birthday is only a few days apart from mine. We each picked out several different kinds to try and some to take home. The menu rotates and just to give you an idea of what's on the menu today, Rocky Road, Chocolate Rocky Road, Loop-d-Loop (looks like a Hostess cake, so you can probably guess what that would taste like), Gingersnap, and Pistachio. I've also tried the banana peanut butter one, and that was amazing.

Here's a look at their Smores one. Soooo good.

Mini Pavlovas ie. A Little Piece of Heaven

After my freshman year of college I was lucky enough to do a summer abroad for school and lived in London with some of my family there. We spent a lot of time doing all these different things I had never done before, and they cooked some of the most amazing food. A different meal every night and all things I had never tried before. It was a really great experience.

My cousin, William, figured out that I have a HUUUUGE sweet-tooth (it really didn't take him that long) and so a staple in the house became Pavlovas, a meringue dessert made with whipped cream and berries. I loved it so much I ate it for breakfast, and when we ran out of berries I used yogurt. My mouth is watering right now thinking about it...

Here's the recipe I use for Mini Pavolovas, straight from Barefoot Contessa with a few of my changes:

Meringue

You will need:
* 6 extra - large egg whites, at room temperature
* 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
* 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar, divided
* 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Using a small glass and a pencil, draw 6 (3 1/2-inch) circles on each piece of paper. Turn the paper face-down on the baking sheets.

2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, and cream of tartar on medium speed until frothy. Add 1 cup of the sugar and raise the speed to high until the egg whites form very stiff peaks. Whisk in the vanilla. Carefully fold the remaining 1/2 cup of sugar into the meringue. With a large star - shaped pastry tip, pipe a disc of meringue inside each circle. Pipe another layer around the edge to form the sides of the shells.
(I do not have a piping bag and have tried to do it the cheap way with a plastic bag and snip the tip off and I'm too much of a slob so I just scoop a bit on the cookie sheet and smooth it over with my spoon.)

3. Bake for 2 hours, or until the meringues are dry and crisp but not browned. Turn off the heat and allow the meringues to sit in the oven for 4 hours or overnight.

Whipped Cream

You will need:

* cold heavy cream
* powedered sugar (generally 1/4-1/3 of a cup)
* pure vanilla extract (generally 1-2 teaspoons)

1. Whip the cream in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (you can also use a hand mixer). When it starts to thicken, add the powdered sugar and vanilla to taste and continue to beat until firm. Don't overbeat!

2. If the meringue is not done put the bowl back in the fridge and make sure to beat again when you take it out to serve.

Berries

You will need:
* Fresh Strawberries
* Fresh Raspberries
* Sugar

1. Remove tops and slice up strawberries into a bowl. Leave raspberries whole.

2. Add a sprinkling of sugar on top. Then put the bowl in the fridge and let sit in there for at least 30 minutes (the longer it sits, the sweeter the fruit and the more syrup you'll get).

To assemble:

1. Get a plate and put the meringue in the middle.
2. Scoop a dollop of whipped cream on top.
3. Spoon berries on top.
4. Eat!

Cranberry Apple Pear Crumble

A couple of months ago, when we had some guests for the weekend, I came up with a nice dessert for the four of us. Quick, easy, very customizable, and of course delicious! Seems like it would make an even better dessert now that the nights are getting chilly here. And I think this would also make a really good pie filling.

Serves: 4

What you need:

For the insides:
-2 chopped apples (I used one Gala and one Red Delicious)
-1 chopped pear
-1/4 cup dried cranberries
-1/4 cup of sugar
-1/4 to 1/3 cup of flour (Adding more flour will make the juices thicker, so this depends on how thick you like you filling to be.)
-1 1/2 teaspoons of vanilla
-1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

For the crumble:
-4 tbsp softened butter
-2 tbsp white sugar
-2 tbsp brown sugar
-4 tbsp flour
-1 teaspoon cinnamon

1. Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.

2. Mix the ingredients for all the insides together in a large bowl then split them up amongst 4 ramekins.

3. Mix the ingredients for the crumble together and top evenly among the ramekins.

4. Place the four ramekins on a cookie baking sheet (for easier clean up and transporting in and out of the oven). Bake until the crumble starts to brown.

5. Optional, top with one scoop of ice cream! (We did heath bar crunch.)

Dessert or Side Dish? I can't decide.

I got this really great recipe off of Delish for an Orange-Cranberry sauce. It's supposed to be a side dish, but as I was searching for one more dessert for my Thanksgiving dinner it dawned on me this would be really great served warm on top of vanilla ice cream. So what do you think?

You Need:
* 2 bag(s) (12-ounce) cranberries (6 cups)
* 1 tablespoon(s) grated orange zest
* 1 cup(s) fresh orange juice
* 1 1/4 cup(s) granulated sugar
* 1/4 cup(s) grenadine syrup
* 2 tablespoon(s) red-wine vinegar

1. In a large saucepan, combine all ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low; simmer 6 minutes, until cranberries are soft and liquid has reduced to a thick syrup.
2. Pour into a serving bowl. Let cool to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate (or serve fresh and hot for dessert).

Quite Possibly the Best Dessert You've Ever Had

Seriously, I'm not lying. I received the cookbook Sticky Chewy Messy Gooey Desserts as an engagement present and when looking through for a dessert one evening I actually laughed with sarcasm when the author claimed it was her favorite dessert of all time and would be mine too. Set with that challenge, I made the dessert and have since converted many other people to its deliciousness. I am no longer allowed to make anything else for work functions, and every major event at our home must have it. You will love this dessert too if you make it, but you may not want to share!

Here is the recipe from that book with a few notes/changes that I have made.

Ingredients:

1 pound (4 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3 and ¾ cups all purpose flour
1 cup almond flour or very finely ground almonds
1 and ½ cup blackberry preserves (I also just use whatever it takes to
cover the dish you're cooking it in)
½ cup chopped almonds

**last time I made it I put that much sugar in it, but it was too sweet. Not sure if it was the jam or there really was just too much sugar. So you may want to put 3/4 cup of each instead, or taste to your liking.

Directions:

If you don’t have almond flour on hand, you can make it like I did by grinding up 1 cup of almonds in your food processor until they are finely ground. It’s going to be combined with the flour so texture-wise, you want to get it as finely ground as possible.

Combine the butter and sugars in a large bowl. Using an electric mixture set at medium low speed, beat it until creamy. Add the vanilla and salt and beat until combined.

Combine almond flour (or ground almonds) with the flour. Mix well. Combine the dry mixture into the butter mixture on low speed, until a smooth, soft dough forms. Spray a 9 by 13 inch baking pan with nonstick cooking spray and press 1/3 of the dough evenly into the pan to form a bottom crust. Wrap the remaining dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until very cold and firm, at least 30 minutes. (Mine rarely makes it to 30 minutes. You can also put yours in the freezer, but make sure to thaw it properly in the fridge before baking.)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

Bake the bottom crust until it is firm and just beginning to turn pale brown around the edges, about 20 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and spread the preserves evenly over the crust. Crumble the remaining shortbread dough over the jam to form a pebbly, crumbled topping. Sprinkle with the chopped almonds.

Return pan to the oven and continue baking until topping is firm and crisp and lightly golden in color, about 30 to 35 minutes. Let cool to room temperature.

Use a sharp knife to cut bars evenly into 15 large squares. Do not try to cut when it is cold. Remove the bars from the pan with a metal spatula and if desired, cut in half on the diagonal to form 30 smaller triangular bars. Dust with confectioners’ sugar and serve.

The bars will keep, covered tightly, for about 1 week at room temperature, or in the freezer for up to one month.