Cinnamon Buns

Quick Cinnamon Buns with Buttermilk Icing
(Americas Test Kitchen Recipe)

**Melted butter is used in the filling and the dough and to grease the pan. Melt 8 Tbsp of butter ahead of time to make it easier.
Just measure out of the full amount.**


1 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Filling:

• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed
• 1/4 C granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter melted and cooled

Dough:

• 2 1/2cups unbleached all-purpose flour (plus more for dusting work surface)
• 2 Tbsp granulated sugar
• 1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/4 cups low fat buttermilk
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

Glaze:

2 tablespoons cream cheese
2 tablespoons low fat buttermilk
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar


Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 425 degrees. Brush a 9-inch square cake pan with one tablespoon butter.

1. Filling: Combine the brown sugar,  granulated sugar, cinnamon, cloves and salt in a small bowl. Add one tablespoon melted butter and stir with a fork or fingers until the mixture resembles wet sand. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add 3 tablespoons of the melted butter and buttermilk to the dry ingredients and stir with a wooden spoon until the liquid is absorbed (the dough will be sticky and look shaggy), about 30 seconds. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead, lightly dusting more flour as necessary, until just smooth and no longer shaggy, about 30 seconds.
3. Lightly dust the surface again. Pat the dough into a small rectangle, then roll into a 12-inch x 9-inch rectangle, dusting more flour sparingly if necessary so the dough doesn't stick to the rolling pin. Brush the dough with 1 tablespoon of melted butter. Sprinkle the dough evenly with the brown sugar filling, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Using your hand, press the filling firmly into the dough. Starting at the long side, roll the dough, pressing lightly, to form a tight log. (If the dough sticks to the surface, use a sharp knife or dough scraper to release it.) Pinch the seam to seal. Roll the log seam-side down and, using a serrated knife, cut it evenly into 9 pieces. Turn the pieces over on their flat sides, and slightly flatten each piece with your hand to seal the open edges and keep the filling in place. Place the rolls in prepared pan and brush with remaining tablespoon of butter. Bake until the edges are golden brown, 20-25 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, make the glaze. In a medium bowl, whisk together the cream cheese and buttermilk until thick and smooth (the mixture will look like cottage cheese at first). Sift in confectioners' sugar and whisk until smooth glaze forms.
5. Let cool 5 minutes, slide buns onto a plate.
6. Drizzle the glaze evenly over the buns. 

My new fave: Apple Chips

I remember eating apple chips as a kid but I haven't seen them or eaten them in years.

Today I was looking up a recipe for cough syrup and stumbled on this recipe from Mama Earth Organics.

I made them and then ate the whole batch.  They were just so good.

For me, it was the right combination of crunchy, sweet and slightly sour.

If you like apple chips, try these.

They're easy and delicious.

Apple Chips

2 crisp apples (I used Fuji)
1 tsp cinnamon

Thinly slice apples lengthwise removing any hard core or seeds.
Layer on apple slices in a single layer a sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
Sprinkle apples with cinnamon.
Bake at 250 for 1 1/2 hours flipping ever half hour to dry them out.
Allow to cool and crisp up for a few minutes.
(Honestly next time I will quadruple this because it was just enough for me to have a snack.)

Apple Cake with Cream and Caramel Sauce

(Thanks for the photos Lau Merrick)

One of the most popular cakes on the Martha Stewart website is this delightfully easy and perfectly tasty Apple Cinnamon Cake.

I can't seem to stop making this cake.

I made it twice this week, shared it with a ton of people and everyone loved it.

My Gramma Dorothy is the queen of all things food. She loves to read about food, cook it and eat it.

She loves apple cake, so I made this one especially for her.

Though I'm sure Martha's recipe would have been great, I changed it a little.

The original recipe called for 3 cups of flour, 1 1/3 cups oil, 2 cups sugar... and that seemed a little intense to me.

I subbed in 1 1/2 cups spelt flour, 2/3 cup apple sauce in place of all the oil and reduced the sugar by 1/2 cup. It was lovely.

If you top the cake with a little maple-vanilla infused whipped cream and the caramel drizzle, I'm pretty sure it will blow your mind.

Apple Cake with Cream and Caramel Sauce

(adapted from Martastewart.com)

2/3 C oil

2/3 C applesauce

1 1/2 C all purpose flour

1 1/2 C spelt flour

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking soda

1tsp salt

1 1/2 C sugar

3 large eggs

3-4 Granny Smith apples, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces (about 3-4Cups)

1/2 C pecans or walnuts (optional)

1 tsp vanilla

Grease a large bundt pan and preheat oven to 350*.

Sift together flours, cinnamon, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

Beat together oil, applesauce, sugar and eggs until bright yellow.

Add dry ingredients to wet and stir just until combined.

Add apples and nuts, fold in.

Stir in vanilla.

Pour into bundt pan and cook 60-70 minutes or until cake tester comes out clean.

Cool the cake and then invert on a plate. Serve drizzled with sauce.

*I served this once with ice cream and once with Maple cream.

*For the maple cream I poured a medium container of heavy cream into a bowl. Mix until almost firm, add 2 Tbsp of Maple syrup and 1 tsp vanilla. Whisk again until firm.

Caramel Sauce

1 cup light-brown sugar

1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter

1/4 cup evaporated milk

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

Combine ingredients in a small saucepan over medium

The Cookie Jar

Here's what is in our cookie jar right now.