Apple π Cookies

March 14 (3/14), or more commonly known in nerdy circles as “Pi Day”, is an occasion to bake and, shortly thereafter, devour all types of pie in honor of the mathematical entity disguised as a Greek letter, π=3.14159265359…. To be honest, I rarely partake in the preparation for this time old tradition, opting instead to volunteer my expertise as a taste tester. However, this year I was persuaded to join in on the baking fun by one of my friends whose dedication to Pi day is going 3 years strong. In the past, she has celebrated the mathematical extravaganza by making Pi shaped chocolates and I can say from personal experience, she does an excellent job! This time around we were inspired by an Apple Pie Cookie recipe on OH, Bite It! With the discovery of a π shaped cookie cutter, we set to work transforming this recipe for the occasion!

Check out our recipe below! We have changed little from the original on OH, Bite It! but I am posting it here to spread the mathematical excitement! 🙂

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Ingredients (makes 6 π-shaped cookies)

• 1 box frozen Pillsbury pie crust (2 sheets per box)
• 1 can apple pie filling
• 1 c caramel sauce
• 1 egg
• 2 Tbsp cinnamon
• 2 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• flour for sprinkling

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Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F
2. Lay out a sheet of pie crust, sprinkle it with some flour and slightly roll it out to increase its surface area.



3. Pour caramel sauce onto the crust, just enough to evenly spread it around creating a thin layer of caramel.
4. Coarsely chop the apple pie filling into small pieces.
5. Top the caramel layer with a layer of the chopped apple pie filling, making sure not to add too much pie filling.



6. Roll out the second sheet of pie crust to the same size as the first sheet, and slice it into strips
7. Create a lattice crust (like on a pie) for the top of the pie filling. Lightly spread some of the egg wash over the lattice crust. Sprinkle cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg.



8. Dip the cookie cutter into some egg wash and cut out your pie cookies.



9. Place the cookies onto a baking sheet and bake for approximately 20-25 minutes, until they’re golden and firm.
10. Let cool, top with some vanilla ice cream, and enjoy! 😀

But wait, what’s better than π? -π! We were able to make a whole cake worth of apple pie with all the negative space between the cookies! Om nom nom…

Banana Bread

Bananas are hands down my favorite fruit. Especially when they are overripe because then they are prime candidates for my all-time favorite bread: banana bread! 😀 Today I arrived back at my apartment to a bowl of 6 overripe bananas. And I really do mean, overripe. Let’s just say they were far beyond the point of recognition. So what better opportunity to flex my banana bread muscles than tonight? With so many bananas, I experimented with chocolate chip banana bread as well as chocolate chip banana bread cupcakes.

See my banana bread recipe below! This recipe will make one 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf of banana bread or about 12 banana bread cupcakes. Adapted from a combination of the Food Network’s banana bread recipe and a banana bread cupcake recipe from Eat, Live, Run.

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Ingredients

• 1 c white sugar
• 8 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2 large eggs
• 3 ripe bananas
• 1 Tbsp milk (I use unsweetened almond milk and it also turns out perfect!)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
• 2 c all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 c chocolate chips (optional, but highly suggested!)

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Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter or grease a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan. Alternatively, you can also make banana bread cupcakes. To do this, prepare a cupcake pan with either cupcake liners or by buttering/greasing the pan.
2. Cream the sugar and butter in a large mixing bowl. To do this, cut the room temperature sticks of butter into smaller cubes. Then slowly mix in the sugar until the entire mixture is light and fluffy. It can be done by hand or with the help of an electric mixer.



3. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. The result is clearly what heaven is made of: eggs, butter, and sugar!
4. In a small bowl, mash the bananas with a fork. Mix in the milk, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla extract.



5. In another bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
6. Add the banana mixture to the creamed mixture and stir until combined. Then add the dry ingredients, mixing until the flour disappears.
7. Optional (but highly suggested): add in 1 c semi-sweet chocolate chips. If adding chocolate chips, be sure to flour them first before adding to the batter by rolling them in a bowl with a little bit of flour. This will help prevent the chocolate chips from sinking to the bottom of the bread during the baking process.



8. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. If making banana bread, bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If making banana bread cupcakes, fill cupcake tins about 3/4th of the way full and bake for about 25 minutes, until slightly golden brown on the edges.



9. Set aside to cool for about 15 minutes. Remove bread or cupcakes from pan and enjoy! 😀


(as you can see, I think I may have gone overboard on this recipe… :P)

Tiramisu

Tiramisu has always been one of those elusive desserts. A dessert that I could enjoy from afar but whose perceived difficulty kept me from attempting to make it myself. Thanks to a close Italian friend, for the past three years I have been graced with homemade tiramisu at least once a year. She visited me this past weekend and was sweet enough to share her secret recipe with me! We had a blast making it together and an even better time devouring our creation. To my surprise, tiramisu was actually extremely easy and quick to make. The entire cake was done in less than 30 minutes (minus overnight refrigeration). Try out my friend’s family recipe below and amaze your friends and family with your dessert prowess. But whatever you do, don’t let anyone know how quick and easy it really is to make! 🙂

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Ingredients

• 4 egg yolks
• 2 egg whites
• 1/2 c white sugar
• 24 savoiardi (lady fingers)
• 1 lb 1 oz package of mascarpone cheese
• 1 1/2 c strong expresso, cooled
• 1/2 c bittersweet chocolate shavings, for garnish

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Directions

1. In a small bowl, beat egg whites with electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Note: this can also be done by hand with a fork, but an electric mixer or an egg beater will *greatly* speed up the process. Be careful not to overbeat!



2. In a large bowl, with an electric mixer or whisk beat egg yolks and sugar together until they become pale and creamy.



3. Fold in mascarpone cheese into the egg yolk and sugar mixture.
4. Next, fold in egg whites.



5. In a baking dish deep and long enough to hold two layers of savoiardi (I used a 12 inch diameter glass pie dish), spread about 1/3 of the mascarpone mixture evenly along the bottom.
6. Place the cooled expresso in a shallow bowl. One by one, quickly roll (no more than 5 seconds) each savoiardi in the coffee so that they soak up some of the expresso. Place the soaked savoiardi on top of the mascarpone layer, breaking in half if necessary to fit. Do this for 12 of the savoiardi.



7. Spread another 1/3 of the mascarpone mixture over the savoiardi layer. Arrange another layer of soaked savoiardi and top with the remaining mascarpone mixture.



8. Refrigerate overnight.
9. Garnish top with bittersweet chocolate and enjoy. Buon appetito!


*Note* Due to the use of raw eggs, tiramisu should always be refrigerated and consumed within 4 days.

** Raw Egg Warning **
I suggest caution in consuming raw and lightly cooked eggs due to the slight risk of salmonella or other food-borne illness. To reduce this risk, use only fresh, properly refrigerated, clean grade A or AA eggs with intact shells, and avoid contact between the yolks or whites and the shell.

Chocolate Coconut Cream Cake

My first experiment in the ways of coconut cakes. Made it for my father’s birthday and the whole family kept begging for more! Turned out soft, moist, and with the right amount of sweetness to make it a great pairing for any cup of tea. Adapted from an AllRecipes.com chocolate coconut cake recipe.

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Ingredients

Cake

• 3/4 c unsalted butter, softened
• 1 1/2 c white sugar
• 2 c all-purpose flour
• 2 tsps baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 6 egg whites
• 3/4 c milk
• 2 tsps coconut extract

Filling

• 1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1/4 c heavy whipping cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 3/4 c sweetened flaked coconut

Frosting

• 1/2 c heavy whipping cream
• 8 oz semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 1 c sweetened flaked coconut
• 3-4 drops food coloring

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Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
2. Butter the sides of two 9-inch cake pans and line the bottoms of the pans with 9-inch parchment paper.



3. Beat unsalted butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
4. Stir flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl; set aside.
5. Whisk egg whites, milk, and coconut extract in a separate bowl.
6. Thoroughly mix about 1/3 of the flour mixture into the creamed butter and sugar; stir in half the egg white-milk mixture. Repeat twice more, ending with final 1/3 of flour mixture; stir to make a smooth batter.



7. Pour batter into prepared cake pans and smooth tops with a spatula.



8. Bake in the preheated oven until lightly browned and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean, 25 to 30 minutes.
9. Cool cakes in pans on racks for about 5 minutes before turning out onto racks to cool completely.
10. Peel parchment paper from cakes.



11. Stir sweetened condensed milk, 1/4 cup heavy cream, and vanilla extract together in a bowl; stir in 3/4 cup flaked coconut. Refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.
12. Bring 1/2 cup heavy cream to a simmer over low heat; gradually stir in chocolate until thoroughly melted and the mixture is thick and smooth. Allow to cool to lukewarm.



13. Place a cake layer onto a serving platter; top with the condensed milk-coconut mixture. Place second cake layer over the coconut filling. Spread warm chocolate mixture evenly over top and sides of cake with a thin spatula.
14. Toss 1 cup flaked coconut in a bowl with food coloring until coconut is evenly colored; sprinkle coconut over chocolate topping to serve.