Fudge

This is one of my Favorite recipe to make, it is almost always a big hit.

Here is what you will need

3 cups sugar
3/4 cup margarine
2/3 cup evaporated milk
12-oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips
7-oz. jar Marshmallow Fluff
1 cup chopped nuts (optional, I did not put nuts in this batch)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract



Line 9X13 pan with wax paper,butter well. I tape mine down so it doesn't slip when you pour in the fudge.



Combine sugar, margarine and milk in heavy 2-1/2 quart saucepan



Bring to full rolling boil, stirring constantly. Continue boiling 5 minutes over medium heat, stirring.




Remove from heat, stir in chocolate, and marshmallow fluff until smooth. Add nuts & vanilla stir till blended.






Pour into greased 13 x 9-inch baking pan. Let cool and cut into 1-inch squares.

Pizza Dough

This is one of Alan's favorite things I make. I got the recipe from one of my favorite sites OurBestBites.com They have some of the best recipes, this is one of my favs.

Pizza Dough (this can also be used to make breadstick, which was best bites original intent)

Pizza Dough

1 1/2 c. warm (105-115 degrees) water
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 Tbsp. yeast
1/2 tsp. salt
3-4 1/2 c. flour


In a large bowl (the bowl of your mixer, if you have one), combine water, sugar, and yeast. Let stand for 10 minutes or until yeast is bubbly.


Add salt and stir. Add 1 1/2 c. flour and mix well. Gradually add more flour (usually between 3-4 cups, depending on your elevation and your humidity) until dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and it barely sticks to your finger.



Spray a glass or metal bowl with cooking spray and place dough in the bowl.


Cover and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.


Remove from bowl and place on a lightly-floured surface. Roll out your pizza dough in a circle or rectangle depending on your pan.


Cover pan and allow dough to rise for another 15 minutes. Preheat your oven to 350.

Bake just the crust brushed with olive oil for 7-10 minutes. Remove crust cover with all of your goodies and place back in a 400 degree oven for 15-20 minutes. Enjoy!

Brownies

I had never made homemade Brownies before. I have always used the box mix. Yesterday I decided to try a recipe I found online, I liked it Alan did also. The only thing I am going to change next time is adding a touch more sugar, they were not as sweet as I like them. Here is the recipe:


Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter
2 squares unsweetened chocolate
1 cup sugar
2 eggs, well beaten
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
3/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup chopped walnuts



Directions:
Melt butter and chocolate together in a large saucepan. Remove from heat and stir in remaining ingredients.


Pour into a greased 8 inch square pan. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool and cut into squares.

Banana Bread

As of this moment my house is filling with the wonderful scent of baking banana bread. I found this recipe here

Banana Bread

INGREDIENTS
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt (Again, I used salted butter so I did not add this to my recipe)
1/2 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 eggs, beaten
2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas (I used 3 large bananas, use what you have on hand, the more bananas the more bananay it will taste)


DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.
Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ok, I am going to give away my secret, I use the recipe on the back of the Chocolate Chips for my cookies. They are the best I have found. Here is the recipe from the Nestlé Toll House web site, with my own comments added in:

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened (If I use salted butter, I almost NEVER add more to my recipe, I omit it when it is called for)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups (12-oz. pkg.) of Semi Sweet chips (I use the Dillons or Walmart brand most often)
1 cup chopped nuts (only if Alan begs me, I am not a fan of nuts in cookies)

PREHEAT oven to 375° F.

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto ungreased baking sheets. I use a SilPat for all my baking to help brown the bottoms evenly and help them not stick.

BAKE for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. I have found that even for the same batch of cookies it will not be the same bake time, so I always check it around 9 minutes and adjust as needed, for chewy cookies you want them just brown on the edges and still pale in the middle, they will be puffy and then fall after cooling) Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Yum, Baked Doughnuts!

I tried this recipe this morning, Alan just happened to show up in the Fire Truck right as I was taking them out of the oven, so they have the Garden City Fire Fighters stamp of approval!

Baked Doughnuts Recipe

Don't over bake these, if anything, under bake them a bit - they will continue baking outside the oven for a few minutes. You want an interior that is moist and tender - not dry. Also, be sure to cut big enough holes in the center of your doughnuts - too small and they will bake entirely shut. Remember they rise, and they rise even more when they are baking.

1 1/3 cups warm milk, 95 to 105 degrees (divided)
1 packet active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
2 tablespoons butter
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
5 cups all-purpose flour
A pinch or two of nutmeg, freshly grated

Topping
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted1 1/2 cups sugar1 tablespoon cinnamon

Place 1/3 cup of the warm milk in the bowl of an electric mixer. Stir in the yeast and set aside for five minutes or so. Be sure your milk isn't too hot or it will kill the yeast. Stir the butter and sugar into the remaining cup of warm milk and add it to the yeast mixture. With a fork, stir in the eggs, flour, and nutmeg - just until the flour is incorporated. With the dough hook attachment of your mixer beat the dough for a few minutes at medium speed. This is where you are going to need to make adjustments - if your dough is overly sticky, add flour a few tablespoons at a time. Too dry? Add more milk a bit at a time. You want the dough to pull away from the sides of the mixing bowl and eventually become supple and smooth. Turn it out onto a floured counter-top, knead a few times (the dough should be barely sticky), and shape into a ball.
Transfer the dough to a buttered (or oiled) bowl, cover, put in a warm place (I turn on the oven at this point and set the bowl on top), and let rise for an hour or until the dough has roughly doubled in size.
Punch down the dough and roll it out 1/2-inch thick on your floured countertop. Most people don't have a doughnut cutter, instead I use a 2-3 inch cookie cutter to stamp out circles and the top of a pop bottle to cut out the centers. Transfer the circles to a parchment-lined baking sheet and stamp out the smaller inner circles. If you cut the inner holes out any earlier, they become distorted when you attempt to move them. Cover with a clean cloth and let rise for another 45 minutes.
Bake in a 375 degree oven until the bottoms are just golden, 8 to 10 minutes - start checking around 8.

While the doughnuts are baking, place the butter in a medium bowl. Place the sugar and cinnamon in a separate bowl.

Remove the doughnuts from the oven and let cool for just a minute or two. Dip each one in the melted butter and a quick toss in the sugar bowl. Eat immediately if not sooner.
Makes 1 1/2 - 2 dozen medium doughnuts.

(I got this recipe here and made a few of my own modifications)

My name is Heather and I have a Baking Problem!

I have always liked baking, but since I have become a Stay at Home Mom my like has gotten out of control! Almost on a daily basis I will bake something, it maybe an old favorite or a new recipe. I have decided to start a blog to share all of the yummy recipes.

A little about me, my name is Heather and I am married to my best friend Alan. We have 2 wonderful children Preston who is almost 2 and Gracie who is 7 months. Alan is a Firefighter and also works as a TSA screener at the airport. I am a stay at home mom and a full time student. I love baking, cake decorating, candy making, and any other crafty thing I can get my hands on. I don't like cleaning but do it because I like the way I feel when my house is clean.

Any way that is me, I hope you enjoy the blog.