I'm Baaaccckk!

Hello friends! It has been a long time since I posted, but I am back. More good stuff to follow. I promise.

Cinnamon Almonds

I love cinnamon. And almonds. Have you ever tried those warm cinnamon almonds at the fair? They're so toasty and delicious, and the smell is intoxicating. Here is a recipe for you DIY'ers ;-)

1 egg white
1 tsp water
1 tsp vanilla
4 cups whole almonds
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon

Beat egg white, water, and vanilla in large glass bowl till frothy. Stir in almonds. Mix sugars, salt, and cinnamon and sprinkle over. Stir till well coated. Pour onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake at 250 for 60-90 minutes, stirring occasionally. Make sure you stir this mixture, so it won't burn.

Hoarding Pantry Goodies

We all have some pantry goodies for baking. You know those baking supplies you buy because they're on sale and you tell yourself you need the 3 bags of Guittard Semi Sweet Chips, currants, Irish butter, Nielsen Massey Vanilla Extract, a new springform pan, Peanut Butter anything, Nutella, marzipan. I should stop now. What are your favorites?

Cinnamon Sugar Puffs

I love these things! They are so delicious- if you love cinnamon. This recipe is from David Lebovitz and my go to recipe.

For the puffs:
Softened unsalted butter, for greasing the pan
2 tablespoons butter, melted
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup flour

For the sugar coating:

2/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 tablespoons butter, melted.

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Liberally grease a nonstick popover pan, or a muffin pan with 1/2-cup indentations, with softened butter.

2. For the puffs, put the 2 tablespoons melted butter, eggs, milk, salt and sugar in a blender and whiz for a few seconds.

3. Add the flour and whiz for 5 to 8 seconds, just until smooth.

4. Divide the batter among 9 greased molds, filling each 1/2 to 2/3 full.

5. Bake for 35 minutes, until the puffs are deep brown.

6. Remove from the oven, wait a few minutes until cool enough to handle, then remove the puffs from the pans. You may need a small knife to help pry them out.

7. Mix the sugar and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Thoroughly brush each puff all over with melted butter, then dredge in sugar and cinnamon mixture to coat completely. Let cool on a baking rack. Makes 9 puffs.

Camping Favorites

Ah, the great outdoors! Fresh air, sunshine and camping!! The first time I ever camped was in the 6th grade with the 5th and 6th grade girls, accompanied by my teachers Mr. Lawson, Mrs. Smith, and Mandy Lawson (Mr. Lawson's sister). We went to Shenandoah National Park, Lurray VA. It was the best! Growing up in Northern Virginia was a treat, however it wasn't the countryside which we city kids craved once in a while.

I remember the long 2 hour drive (yes, 2 hours is very long for a kid to be in a cramped car with 4 other people and tons of camping gear. But when we arrived at our campsite, it was on! God Bless the grownups for setting up the tents and all the gear. There were 35 kids, 3 adults, 7 tents, and all the good, bad for you food a 12 year old can handle! Boxes of girl scout cookies, chips, burgers, hot dogs, and salad. Yes, salad. I think our parents snuck that into the supplies. Oh, I forgot to mention one night Mr. Lawson made spaghetti with meat sauce. How on earth he managed that, I'll never know. He was pretty awesome :)

It was the first time I'd seen a snake. Yuck. All of the girls had gone hiking, including our small group of 5 with Mandy Lawson as our chaperone. We had missed the path we were supposed to take and all of a sudden we were lost! We were without water, but it was ok because we had some soda cans that we filled from the mountain spring. I will never forget the taste of that water. Or the memories!

Daring Bakers October Challenge: Doughnuts

Well, my first DB challenge is in the bag. The October 2010 Daring Bakers challenge was hosted by Lori of Butter Me Up. Lori chose to challenge DBers to make doughnuts. She used several sources for her recipes including Alton Brown, Nancy Silverton, Kate Neumann and Epicurious.



I had fun with this challenge, since I've always wanted to make doughnuts from scratch. I coated some with powdered sugar and some in cinnamon sugar(my personal fave).

I think they turned out pretty good, my hubby thought they were a bit heavy. I remember the first time I fried dough, it was biscuit dough from a tube. Yes, I know it might be frowned upon. So this time, I wanted to get it right. Stan would be proud :)

Hope you hang in there wih me. Ready for my next challenge.

Natalie K

My Dads' Favorites

This blog is for my dad Stan, who was a big influence in my life. He taught me how to be self-sufficient, honest, caring and loving. He also taught me how to cook, which is one of my favorite things.

It started with one of the best Christmas presents I ever got. The year was 1970, and I got an easy bake oven. That was the start of it, or as my mom would say, the end of it. Growing up in a home where Persian food was supreme, baking took a back seat. Don't get me wrong, I love Persian food and have made my fair share of it, but baking was something my mom didn't do too much of.

So, that's where my dad Stan comes in. He was a great father, teacher, confidant, and a helluva cook!

He made me who I am in the kitchen today. His ideas, recipes, and general tips were my foundation for cooking and baking.

I hope you'll hang in here with me as I post some of my favorite recipes and the stories behind them.

Natalie K.