Nutter Butter Rice Krispie treats, KU cookies and dog treats

I don't often miss college. The fact that I get to come home after work and go to the gym, cook myself dinner, bake or finish the first season of Downton Abbey (seriously, watch it) instead of read some book a teacher assigned me is awesome. But I do miss the friends who are constantly around, especially on the newspaper staff. A lot of those friends have moved far away, and more still are doing that now. But on the flip side, catching up with those friends makes me unequivocally happy. This week, I've gotten to do it twice: with my friend Jodi, who's in Pittsburgh, and my friend Taylor, who's in Las Vegas. There's nothing that can really brighten up a day like talking on the phone for more than an hour with a friend you haven't seen in months but you can talk to like you saw yesterday. I hope I'm able to continue that kind of relationship with my friends as more move away.

I went to Lawrence a bit ago to watch the KU-Mizzou game with a bunch of friends. I haven't decided yet what I think about that rivalry ending, by the way. As a born-and-bred Jayhawk (I went to preschool on campus!), I've grown up hating Mizzou. I don't think that will go away, even when we don't play them anymore. But it is one hell of a rivalry, and I am a little sad it's ending for the sake of conference realignment. But I digress. To watch this game, I brought some basic chocolate chip cookies with red and blue M&Ms. Sweet and simple. Rock chalk!

Lois the puppy was soooo cute waiting for her treats. I love that she licks her lips. On the same trip to Lawrence, I was visiting my friends Joe and Brianne and wanted to bring their adorable dog a present, so I made her homemade dog treats. I actually had all the ingredients at home already — peanut butter, oats, honey, etc. — and was able to just whip them up, roll them out, cut them out and bake them. And, if you can't tell, Lois really, REALLY liked them. 

Sometimes, Rice Krispie treats are just the best choice. I recently joined Pinterest, despite resisting it for months. I'm not addicted, but it's definitely a good place to remember my bookmarks. These Nutter Butter Rice Krispies were one of the first things I pinned from one of my favorite bloggers, Cookies and Cups. And the best thing? They're super simple. And super tasty. Basically a peanut butter-y krispie treat. Mmmm.

Snowstorm baking: Thin Mint cupcakes, chocolate chip cookies, jelly roll cake

So on Tuesday, I made my TV debut. I went on Jayni's Kitchen, our local station's cooking show. Let me tell you, it's completely and totally weird to see yourself on TV. I hear myself talk, watch how much butter goes into frosting (I think it's better people don't know that sort of thing), see myself awkwardly bite into a cupcake I've just frosted. Weird. Even weirder is when it gets turned on in the newsroom and a bunch of my coworkers watch it. Eeek! All weirdness/embarrassment aside, it was pretty awesome. I got to be on TV and do something I really love. I got a call yesterday while at work from a source from a story I wrote who had just seen me on TV. Not a lot beats that for improving a day. I'm hoping to get a video of my segment to post here. We'll see.


I was in part of that massive snow storm that hit the midwest last week. What that meant was my little car was not getting out of the house for a few days. I actually had to have my boss drive me to work one day. You know what else that meant? I ran out of white sugar because I couldn't get to the grocery story. I had no idea that was even possible. But it was, and I wanted to bake. So I searched for a cookie recipe that used only brown sugar, and found this one. Seriously, I think I found a new favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe. SO GOOD. They stayed soft and awesome and so wonderful. Who knew the snowstorm could bring good?


Another snowy dessert were these Thin Mint cupcakes. Who doesn't love Girl Scout cookie season? I saw this recipe on Langes Fadchen, Faules Madchen, a blog I follow, and knew immediately I wanted to make them. So I went to my fellow reporter Mark, whose daughter was my cookie hookup. A box of Thin Mints later, these cupcakes were born. I got two votes in the newsroom of best cupcakes yet, and I get why. Thin Mint on bottom, Thin Mint on top, minty frosting, Thin Mint truffle in the middle of a chocolate cupcake. Thin Minty-goodness all around.


Even better than the cupcake? The thank you card I got from Mark's kids for the cupcakes, diagram included. That, and the video of his son enjoying them. Seriously, cutest kid video ever.


I went home last weekend to see Grandma for the first time since she got out of the hospital. We watched Fantasia 2000, which has a scene with "Rhapsody in Blue" by George Gershwin. She started talking about how she remembered that song when she was young. I looked it up, and the song was released in 1924...my Grandma predates it by four years. Then we watched Fantasia, and she talked about how that came out while she was in college (1940). We also watched Bringing Up Baby with Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant and a leopard. I love going home to watch old movies with her. I also made a jelly roll cake while I was there, with a chocolate genoise cake from my Joy of Cooking and a Swiss meringue buttercream. Darn tasty, and the picture was taken on one of Cathie's tablescapes.


And a neat picture of Grandma. This was one of her favorite toys as a kid: Olive Oyl. You press the button on the bottom and she kind of collapses. It was one of my favorites at her house as a kid too. I like seeing the two together. Also, this weekend: cupcake crawl in Chicago!! Can't wait!

Homecoming, cookies and an alcoholic-ish cupcake

This weekend was my first homecoming where I wasn't a student. I'm not sure it counts as homecoming, really, when I still live here, but whatever. I never realized how many people came back for the game, but it's actually a fairly big deal for some. My friend Megan came back from Chicago, and downtown was just packed with people. Thing is, we completely suck at football this year, so there didn't seem to be a point to go to the game. We've been outscored something crazy so far, like in the last three games: 159 from the other teams, 24 from KU. Apparently by the fourth quarter, there was hardly anyone in the stands. That's why I didn't go to begin with :) Is it basketball season yet? Anyway, by the time I move away, I hope we've improved at least a teeny bit so that I can enjoy coming back to Lawrence and going to the game.


I've had a fairly low-key week, baking-wise. My name was in the paper a little while ago, and for once it wasn't for a story I wrote. Every week the sports guys pick six games, and then have some silly question they answer too. For the K-State game, the question was what was their favorite cookie. One said chocolate chip cookies made by me and sports copy editor Nikki. I felt famous :) So I had to make some! Nothing glamorous, but I can tell that I've gotten better even at things as simple as chocolate chip cookies.


Then, I was going through Foodgawker and found mudslide cupcakes. It's been a while since I've seen a recipe on it and wanted to make it immediately, but these fit the bill. I sort of suck at following recipes, though, so I deviated from this a bit. I made Martha Stewart's devil's food cupcakes instead of the chocolate ones in this recipe...mainly because I forgot to buy coffee. When they were finished, I poked holes in them and soaked them in Kahlua. Then Kelly helped me with the icing, which was almost a disaster. It's based off egg whites and cooking them over a bowl of simmering water...point is, it can be tricky. And hot. But it came out yummy. The brown icing was chocolate Kahlua and the white was Bailey's. The alcohol didn't really come through, in the end. But I think people still liked them :)


Then, for some reason, I was craving a classic. These aren't the prettiest cookies you'll ever see. But they're something I made with my mom when I was younger and they are unbelievable, if you like butterscotch. And they're pretty much solid sugar. Where can you go wrong? :) I have no idea where this recipe came from, but they're super easy (and no-bake!).

Butterscotch Cookies
1 pkg. butterscotch chips
1 c. small marshmallows
½ c. peanut butter
small can chow mein noodles

Melt butterscotch chips over low heat. Add peanut butter. Stir. Add marshmallows. Stir together (fast). Add noodles (don’t use entire can) and stir.

So yeah, that easy. They get pretty hot and you have to form the cookies pretty quickly, so that's always a little interesting. Pop them in the fridge when you're done, and you've got a tasty cookie. Edit: I asked my mom where she got the recipe for these cookies. Turns out they're from her high school Spanish teacher in good ol' Claflin, Kansas (you don't know where that is...look it up)! Thought that was pretty cool. :)

That's all I've made this week, so nothing too out there. I've been lacking inspiration lately for what I want to make, so we'll see if this next week brings anything interesting. A last note, I wrote a story this week that I really enjoyed. It was about the restoration of a historic church in town. I did multimedia to go with it too, and it ended up on the front page. It's definitely one I will use as a clip at some point! And it's always nice when sources call and e-mail after the story runs to tell you it was good. That's what happened here. Yippee!

An apple a day means fall

I've been in a bit of a baking slump lately. Granted, a slump for me is still baking once in a week or so, but it's less than normal. I think I've just been busy with other things, like working, writing stories and just hanging out with friends. All valid reasons, I think, for less baking. That, and I think I've lacked inspiration lately. The weather here has been strange, but hey, that's Kansas. I'm a huge fan of fall weather, but it only cooled down a couple days ago. Between the extended summer and the fact that I didn't go back to school for the first time in 17 years this August, I've been a little thrown off. Not that I mind — I'm super happy to not have homework. I'm just shocked at how late in September it is already, and that I haven't had a test in who-knows-what political science class. I actually sealed the post-grad deal last week when I went to pick up my diplomas (four months after I earned them). I got those, plus my distinction cords, plus my honors medal, plus my Phi Beta Kappa key. I didn't get any of them at the ceremonies, because I skipped them. So now that all of that stuff is sitting on my bedroom floor, it's easier to realize that college is actually done.


Not having homework means that I get to plan stuff in my free time, time that doesn't revolve around reading or calls from The Kansan. One of my days off I went to Aunt Betty's house and started fall baking (before the weather changed, but hey, I was being proactive!). Fall baking means apples to me. I'm not much of a pumpkin gal, but tart apples in an apple pie? Mmmmm. First, though, we made apple cider doughnuts. I've been craving these since I saw them in last October's Food Network Magazine, but since we knocked out doughnuts earlier this month, I thought we should try these. They're super heavy, but light inside. Rolled in cinnamon sugar and with a delicate apple flavor, they were heavenly. I managed to burn myself with hot oil while frying them. Always fun. Frankly, I hate cooking with oil. It's so temperamental. Boo.


Then we did the Martha Stewart apple pie. We did a nice Joy of Cooking double crust, complete with obscene amounts of butter, which, of course, makes it that much tastier. Then the apple filling and covering with a second crust, with apple cutouts. I'm getting slightly better at making crust, but that managed to injure me too. I cut myself on the food processor's blade, so let's just say it wasn't my day. The pie, though, was excellent, especially with some yummy cheddar cheese.


In between oil heating for doughnuts and pie crust chilling, I also made some cashews. I found a recipe for ginger cayenne cashews in my latest Martha Stewart Living. Last time I tried making flavored cashews, I burnt them pretty close to a char. We watched these much closer, and they turned out excellent. They had a really unique flavor, and the cayenne wasn't overpowering. They were a great snack.


Then a few days later I went to my friend Sarah's house to help with her baking. I admire her because she eats WAY healthier than me and does things like run 30 miles in one day (!). She bakes, but it's generally vegan, and always tastes excellent. After eating broccoli pad thai, we made carrot-raisin cookies. It always fascinates me when baking vegan, because I'm so used to putting butter and eggs in just about everything I bake. Apparently flax seed acts similarly to an egg and as a binding agent. Anyway, these cookies were super yummy and made a gazillion!


She also had me help ice a bunch of mini cupcakes, half chocolate chip agave, half key lime coconut. All vegan. I'd never tried agave before, but they were a much richer sweet. I didn't actually help bake the cupcakes, but did mix and pipe the icing. I think they turned out pretty :)

So now I'm getting baking bug again. I'm trying to decide what I will make for my own birthday, which is this Saturday. I might make another ice cream cake, or cupcakes, or nothing. I guess I get to decide, right? I can't wait!

Homer Simpson would be proud (3 of 8 goals met)

When it starts getting to the end of my work week, I start to get excited. And unable to sleep. So I do things like stay up late to fix my bedside table that's been broken. Or write stories that or due. Or write blog post entries for posting later :) Tonight is my Friday after a very long week. We're just getting into the swing of sports at work, which means lots of posting of game stuff that I'm not totally used to yet. I'll get better at it, but the first few nights are pretty tough. Speaking of sports, though, how about those Jayhawks? Granted, I slept through the whole Georgia Tech game, because that's the middle of the night for me. But it's quite the turnaround from losing 6-3 the week before. Who knows where this season will lead. Plus, sports means fall, which is my favorite season. For one, my birthday is in fall. But I've also discovered a new favorite time of day — driving to and from work. It's dark out, the weather is great and it's perfect for rolling down the windows and turning the music up. It's cathartic and clears my mind, and it's frankly a perfect few minutes. Too bad pretty soon it will be freezing out!


I felt like more cupcakes this week, and for some reason snickerdoodle was at the top of my list. I was flipping through my Martha Stewart Cupcake book and it just popped out at me. I don't even like snickerdoodles that much, but anything is better in cupcake form I think. Plus, I had a new piping tip for icing, so I wanted to try that out. A cinnamony cake, a quick buttercream and then cinnamon sugar on top. Voila! A tasty rainy day cupcake (and we've had plenty of rainy days lately!).


Here's where we get to the Homer Simpson part. I also went to my Aunt Betty's house last week for another baking extravaganza. One thing I made I can't talk about yet, other than saying I joined something called Daring Baker. It's a monthly challenge that a bunch of bloggers do together, but you have to wait till a certain day to reveal it. So that date hasn't come yet. The other thing we made was doughnuts, another of my baking goals. All you die-hard (or even just normal) Simpsons fans know Homer loves his doughnuts, and now I know why. They take a while because it's like normal bread dough with all the rising and such, but believe me, that day I needed some dough to knead to take my anger out on. Anyway, when I was in NYC, I bought a doughnut cutter (of all things, right?). So we made the doughnuts, frying them in a cast-iron pan and everything, then adding a chocolate glaze. Lemme tell you, I will never look at doughnuts the same way again. They were SO good. And I'm not even that much of a doughnut person! Pretty damn tasty though.


Last, I decided to do a repeat of a dessert I made in June. They were cookie dough cupcakes, and every bit as yummy as you can imagine. Kelly helped me make them, and even piped some of the frosting (this is significant because she generally complains that I only let her measure. So there, she frosted!). I just tasted them, and it really is like eating a completely rich chocolate chip cookie, because it's a chocolate chip cookie cupcake filled with eggless cookie dough and topped with a cookie dough-flavored icing. A friend at work said it was in his top 3 cupcakes ever, and he's eaten a lot of different cupcakes. I will take that as a compliment :)

So now I'm off to accomplish other things before my Friday. Can't wait for a couple days off to relax...and take care of everything I haven't had time to before now. Ciao!

Cinnamon Toast Crunch cupcakes: A new leg in the cereal cupcake marathon, plus some yummy cookies

I know it's been a while since I've written. But it's summer, right? I'm allowed to take time off. At least that's what I tell myself. Anyway, with the trip to Chicago and work, my schedule got all off last week. So I blog now! Just because I haven't written doesn't mean I haven't been baking though, of course. You knew that though.

My plan was to have a bunch of cupcakes in Chicago and talk about those places, but the trip got cut short unexpectedly, so instead I made my own desserts. I did have one cupcake at Sweet Mandy B's bakery in Lincoln Park. It was a creamsicle cupcake, and definitely tasty. It was pretty fun to eat it in the bakery, t00, which was painted all in pastel colors and very dollhouse-ish. It's not a bakery that focuses on cupcakes, so not that many were available. Not bad for an orange cupcake though.

When I got home, I decided to make a cookie recipe I've been itching to try for a while now. I'm a huge fan of sesame seeds (sesame seed bagels are the only way to go! unless there's asiago too). I found a recipe for sesame cookies from Atlantic Kitchen while browsing and thought they looked really tasty. They called for white and black sesame seeds, though, and I hadn't found black sesame seeds until a recent trip to Dean and Deluca. On a side note, if I were a millionaire, I'd probably buy everything in that store. A-MAZ-ing. Anyway, armed with two colors of sesame seeds, I made these cookies. It called for three kinds of sugar: white, brown and vanilla. I didn't have a vanilla bean handy to make the vanilla sugar and didn't feel like waiting, so vanilla extract it was. The only way I can describe the flavor is that it tastes like fall. People at work were a little reluctant to try them, but ended up liking them. They're nice and chewy inside but the sesame seeds gave some crunch. Definitely on my list of things to make again.

That day I also got a request for plain old chocolate chip cookies. I don't make plain things very often, so when I make them I always get the yummy surprise of how tasty chocolate chip cookie dough is. Mmmmm. I think my baking instincts have gotten better, because I took them out and they were perfect. Also a huge hit at work.

I made a couple other things too, but nothing super yummy that I haven't made before. But then I decided to make devil's food cupcakes for Kelly's birthday. She's a big Toy Story fan, so I made ones with her favorite dino on top. The cake has sour cream, which seems kind of weird, but it cuts the sweet just a touch and makes for a really tasty cupcake.

Then I created my own cupcakes. Kelly came over to help. My friend Taylor suggested I try more cereal cupcakes after making Fruity Pebbles ones, so these were Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I decided to make my favorite yellow cake recipe from Smitten Kitchen, as usual. I've had a hard time figuring out how much batter to put in cupcakes without them overflowing, because the cake rises a lot. This time I put two cookie scoops, and they turned out perfectly! Add some crushed cereal, a cinnamon icing and some cereal on top, and we have Cinnamon Toast Crunch cupcakes. Wait until right before eating them to put the garnish of the cereal, though, because they get soggy sitting there. These were a hit too :)

Cinnamon Toast Crunch cupcakes

For the cake (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)

This is half of her recipe, because otherwise you end up with a gazillion cupcakes. Mine made about 20.

2 cups plus 1 tablespoon cake flour (not self-rising)
1 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup buttermilk, well-shaken
1 handful Cinnamon Toast Crunch, crushed into chunks

Preheat oven to 350°F. Put cupcake liners into tin.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. In a large mixing bowl, beat butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until pale and fluffy, then beat in vanilla. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl after each addition. At low speed, beat in buttermilk until just combined (mixture will look curdled). Add flour mixture in three batches, mixing until each addition is just incorporated. Fold in crushed cereal. Put into prepared tins (like I said, I did two cookie scoops, which is like half full).

Bake until golden brown, which is generally a little longer than 15 minutes. Just watch it.

For the frosting (Adapted from Martha Stewart's Cupcake Book):
3 sticks butter, softened
4 cups sifted powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
Ground cinnamon, to taste

Beat butter until light and creamy. Add powdered sugar about 1 cup at a time. After adding each batch, increase speed and beat heavily for about 10 seconds (this makes the frosting lighter). After all sugar is added, add vanilla and cinnamon to taste.

Frost cupcakes, top with cereal. Yum!

Also, last night my team won at trivia. It was fun! I've been going on Sunday nights when I don't work, but we haven't won yet. This time we did, and that means money. Woo hoo! My claim to fame: knowing that "Saludos Amigos" is the 1942 Disney film that's only 42 minutes long but still considered a featured animated film. If you know me well, it probably doesn't surprise you that I possess that knowledge :). And, on a final note, here's what Kansas looked like after a storm last week. Oh, Kansas summer.