The Mystery Pie Is...

There's nothing more exciting than discovering a new dessert.

So when I found myself leafing through the book Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible: The New Classic Guide to Delicious Dishes with More Than 300 Recipes, I was delighted to come across a recipe for a pie that I'd never seen before, and furthermore, it prominently featured an ingredient, that while very well-known, is not strongly associated with pie or dessert. 

Thanks, P-Deeny!

And as it turns out, I have a very special person in my life who is just crazy about this ingredient. He always orders it as a side, and his speeches about what makes the ideal version of this dish can get quite involved and somewhat dramatic. 

So I told him to make the pie.

So he went to the grocery store, picked up some ingredients, and made the recipe that had so enchanted me...

Southern Grits Pie.

Basically a custard pie held together with grits, I personally was curious to hear what a grits lover would say about it. The final thoughts were:

"The finished product was very interesting. In the piece I had for breakfast, I could really see the texture working as a bar cookie, perhaps with a shortbread crust. The texture calls to mind a thick coconut pie, but the taste is different. Adding flavoring would be welcome--as it is with grits as a side. I am curious about how this pie might work with maple syrup added to the filling instead of sugar, or how it might taste with a sauce such as caramel or chocolate, or any fruit topping. But it was strong enough to stand alone--the first piece begged me to have another. A good dessert for someone who doesn't want way-out sweet."

A few more baking notes:

• I used Quaker Grits Quick 5 Minutes 
• The idea of whisking for 20 minutes was daunting, but I decided I'd just do it til they were done--less than 10 minutes. But at that point, the mixture was fairly solid so I stopped it there. Once the butter was in, it was easier to work with. But the mixture definitely wasn't pretty. The flour clumped when mixed in; I tried to use a whisk, but it was too thick. I had to mix quite a bit. It might be a good idea to sift the flour before mixing it in. 
• The baking was straightforward; I had to put foil around the edges to keep the crust for baking more rapidly than the filling. I baked mine for 38 minutes.

Southern Grits Pie (Printable recipe here)

Adapted from Paula Deen's Southern Cooking Bible: The New Classic Guide to Delicious Dishes with More Than 300 Recipes

Total time: 1 hour. Makes 8 servings.

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup quick-cook grits (not instant)
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
• 1/4 cup butermilk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 unbaked pie crust
• whipped cream, fruit, or whatever topping you'd like.

Procedure

Preheat the oven to 325.

In a small saucepan, bring 3/4 cup water to a boil. Slowly, whisk in the grits and salt. Cook for 20 minutes (see note, above), whisking constangly. Add the butter and cook for an extra minute. Set aside to let cool slightly.

In a small bowl, stir together the sugar, flour, eggs, buttermilk, and vanilla. Stir into the cooked grits. Pour the grits mixture into the unbaked pie crust and bake until set, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm or cold.

Sweet Treats: White Wine Cookies Recipe

I am not a wine expert. Occasionally a birthday cake or Twinkie expert, but for me, wine is something I enjoy without necessarily having a great deal of knowledge. In fact, if I may, let me share a funny anecdote which illustrates just how much the opposite of a wine expert I am.

One day, I was at a store picking out some wine. As usual, I was scanning the shelves for cool-looking labels and then doing a cross-examination of the bottle's price. If it has a cool label and is under $10, it's great in my book. Choosing one that fit my needs, I plucked it from the shelf, only to turn around and see some dude looking at me. He then said, "you just picked that because of the label, didn't you". Note that it wasn't so much a question as a statement. Yup--busted.

That tale is meant to amuse you, but also to lead into the fact that when I received some sample bottles from SkinnyGirl wine, I wasn't 100 percent sure how to feel about them. My sister wanted to open and try some, so we did. To me, it just tasted like wine. It didn't taste lower calorie or anything, although technically, it is.

But there was one thing I was sure of, and it was that if I was going to use it for baking, I'd definitely have to fatten it up. Really, there's some logic to this: after all, if you're depriving yourself of all those precious calories in the wine, you'll have to make it up some other way, right? So now, you can have your wine and eat your cookies too.

And after a quick google search on the subject, I knew exactly how I wanted to do this: by making Italian Wine Cookies. I found a great-looking recipe here, and was happy to discover I already had all of the ingredients on hand, except anise. I don't like anise that much (personal thing), so I used vanilla extract instead.

While it's possible that mixing with a stand mixer instead of by hand made the texture of my cookies a little different, I've got to tell you that taste-wise, they came out very well. This is an intriguing cookie--not extremely sweet, 

Ciambelline - Printable recipe here!

Adapted from Olive and Owl

Makes about 30

• 3 1/2 cups of flour 
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoon of anise
• 1/2 cup of olive oil
• 1/2 cup of white wine
•  a little extra wine and sugar for topping

Procedure

In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.

Then pour in the wine and oil and mix by hand or on low speed with an electric mixer until it becomes a dough. It will be a fairly stiff dough. Roll the dough out to about 1/2 inch thickness. Cut into strips about the thickness and length of your index finger, about 3 inches long and 1/2 wide. 

Wrap the strip of dough around your finger and crimp the ends shut.

Then place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes at 350 until golden and crisp. Note: these will be fairly hard--they are a dunking cookie.

Not necessary, but if you'd like, mix some more wine and a little confectioners' sugar to make a glaze; also not necessary but cute, why not top with sprinkles?

Yippee: Discover the Apee Cookie

Have you ever heard of an Apee, or AP? 

Although I respect the organizations, it has nothing to do with the grocery store A&P, or the Associated Press (AP). 

Nope: the Apee is a cookie I recently discovered. 

Curious, I hit the web, and the books. Here's what I discovered.

First, the The Oxford Encyclopedia of Food and Drink in America: 2-Volume Set, which notes: 

"A recipe for apees, a rolled cutout cookie made with caraway seeds, sometimes called "seed cakes," first appeared in Eliza Leslie's Seventy-Five Receipts for Pastry, Cakes, and Sweetmeats (1828). Another version, known as "apeas," was based on German Anis Platchen (anise cookies), and Philadelphia bakers commonly sold them on the streets. Apeas became associated with Ann Page, a popular baker who stamped her initials, A.P., on the cookies. Anise is still a common flavoring used in a variety of cookies, ranging from old recipes for apeas to simple cutout cookies and ethnic specialties like German Springerles..."

Encyclopedia of Food and Drink by John Mariani, describes it like this: "Apee. Also "apea" and, in the plural "eepies." A spiced butter cookie or form of gingerbread. Legend has it that the word derives from the name of Ann Page, a Philadelphia cook who carved her initials into the tops of the confection. This was first noted in print in J.F. Watson's Annals of Philadelphia (1830) to the effect that Ann Page, then still alive, "first made [the cookies] many years ago, under the common name of cakes.'" 

Oddly though, the recipe I found for Apees does not include caraway seeds or spices. Nor did it call for stamping the letters (although I guess it wouldn't if that was one person's signature move). Nor did it include standardized measurements.

"Apees (Ice Cream and Cakes) 1 pound of butter 1 1/2 pounds of flour 1 pound of sugar 1 gill of milk Cream the butter and sugar; sift in the flour, then the milk, and stir it to a dough; turn it out on the moulding-board, and work to a fine dough again. Roll into sheets, as thick as a dollar piece, cut into small cakes, lay them on tins, and bake in a cool oven." --- Mrs. Rorer's Philadelphia Cook Book, 1886

Nonetheless, I decided to give it a try. So I evolved the old recipe into this recipe. Here's another that looks like they probably hit the mark more accurately, though!

Not Necessarily Historically Acurate Apees

• 1 stick butter
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon milk

Cream the butter and sugar; sift in the flour and mix, bit by bit, until incorporated. Roll into sheets, and cut into small cakes (I just dropped rounded teaspoons-ful onto a baking sheet). Bake at 350 for about 10 minutes, or until crispy on the sides and bottom.

I made the cookies as drop cookies, but perhaps I should have done them as rolled or bar cookies. Who knows, dude. But either way, even though they weren't quite evenly crispy on the sides and middle, they still tasted good. Basic, but plenty buttery, they actually glistened with butter when taken out from the oven, and there may or may not have been the most tantalizing slight butter-sizzle as they were removed from heat. They became crisp as they cooled; when I garnished a nice bowl (not cup; bowl) of ice cream with a couple of these crispy cookies, I had absolutely no complaints. No complaints whatsoever. 

Either way, I think it's always fun to discover a "lost" recipe!

Pastry Pen Pals and Fudge-Filled Dessert Strips Recipe

I have a friend. A very special one. To prove how special he is, I'll show you something that he made me one day. Dear god were they good. The bottom part is a brownie, and the top part kind of tastes like the inside of a Cadbury Creme Egg. When I asked for the recipe, he said kindly but firmly, NO. 

Well, I never. But luckily, he has other good qualities. One of them is that he enjoys the life of a Cake Gumshoe, and when he visits Philadelphia, he's willing to go on long bakery jaunts with me.

And on a recent tour of the East Passyunk area of Philadelphia, we tried this cookie at Varallo Brothers Pasticceria. While it may slightly resemble a Fig Newton, I need to tell you that it was a million times better because it was filled with chocolate. 

And as a side note, we also got a cannoli. 

I should further mention that this was all after a slice of pizza from the weirdest pizza place in the world, La Rosa Pizza. Let's just say David Lynch would love this pizza place.

But I digress. Back to that cookie. That beautiful chocolate stuffed cookie. At the bakery they just said it was a "chocolate slice", but it seemed to resemble one called cuccidati (though it is traditionally filled with fig, and I don't think there was secret fig in this cookie...or was there?).

At any rate, it was a highly enjoyable experience.

So when my friend returned back home, we were delighted to play a little bit of pastry pen pal. I found a recipe (via the book Taste of Home Baking: 125 Bake-Sale Favorites!) for something called "Fudge Filled Dessert Strips", which sounded similar enough to call to mind that tasty chocolate slice. I sent him the recipe, and he made it and sent me pictures so I could share it with you, dear readers.

The cookies are reported as being "extremely dense and decadent", but surprisingly easy to make. The dough was rather easy to work with, he reports, and the finished product perfect with ice cream for dessert, or rather tasty for an indulgent breakfast.

You see, in this pastry pen pal relationship everyone wins, because he got to have a baking adventure and a delicious dessert, and I got a great recipe to post. But wait...where's my dessert? Well, ok, maybe not everyone wins. 

But you can be a winner by making a batch! Here's the recipe with some adaptations from the original.

Fudge-Filled Dessert Strips - Printable Recipe here!

Adapted from Taste of Home Baking: 125 Bake-Sale Favorites!

Makes about 3 dozen

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 cups (12 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips
• 1 can (14 ounces) sweetened condensed milk
• 2 cups chopped pecans (original recipe called for walnuts)
• confectioners' sugar, optional

In a large bowl, cream the butter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Gradually add flour and mix well. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth, about 3 minutes. Divide dough into fourths; cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours, or until easy to handle.

In a microwave-safe bowl, melt chocolate chips with milk; stir until smooth. Stir in the nuts. Cool to room temperature.

Roll out each portion of dough on to an ungreased baking sheet into an 11x6.5 inch rectangle. Spread 3/4 cup of the filling down the center of each rectangle. Fold long sides to the center; press to seal all the edges. Turn over so the seam sides are down.

Bake at 350 degrees for 27-32 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool completely. Cut into 1/2 inch slices. Dust with confectioners' sugar if desired. 

Greek Yogurt Cheesecake with a Chocolate Shortbread Crust

A few months ago, there was a good-looking recipe for Greek Yogurt Cheesecake with Pomegranate Syrup in Bon Appetit magazine.

But I was pretty sure I could make it better.

My first change was to ditch the graham cracker crust, and instead use mashed-up chocolate shortbread cookies. Then, I figured, why not go whole hog and add a layer of melted chocolate between the crust and cheesecake? So basically, the crust is a layer of these Million Dollar Shortbread Bars. Like for the bars, I used Walkers shortbread since I had a bunch of samples.

As for the pomegranate? Well, I'll tell you the truth. I didn't feel like going to the store for a pomegranate, plus, they're kind of expensive and messy. And would it really taste good with the chocolate? 

Basically, pomegranate amounted to "too hard". So I opted for toasted almonds on top, instead. And you know what? It tasted fantastic. Zingy and tangy thanks to the yogurt-cream cheese topping, it was mellowed by the dark, rich chocolatey crust, making for an unusual but quite nice flavor complement. Aforementioned crust, along with the toasty nuts on top, gave it a nice crunch. The only tough part was that the chocolate layer on top of the crust made cutting difficult, since the dessert must be chilled. So there may be a little hacking involved to ensure a prompt delivery of this dessert to your mouth.

I'm going to call this one a success. A little goes a long way with the powerful flavors of the dessert--a small slice will do. I think this makes it a perfect post dinner party dessert, for when people are fairly full but still want a decadent bite or four.

So while I really took some liberties with the recipe, I still thank Bon Appetit for planting the idea seedling in my mind for this delicious treat.

Greek Yogurt Cheesecake with Chocolate Shortbread Crust 

Crust

• 1 batch Million Dollar Shortbread Bars, prepared in a 9-inch springform pan and cooled

Filling

• 2 teaspoons powdered gelatin
• 1 1/2 pounds cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups plain whole-milk Greek yogurt
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Special Equipment

• A 9-inch-diameter springform pan

Preparation

1. Prepare crust. Let set until cool.
2. Once you're ready to make the filling, place gelatin and 1 1/2 tablespoon cold water in a heatproof bowl. Let stand until softened, 5-10 minutes.
3. Pulse cream cheese, yogurt, sugar, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt in a food processor, scraping down sides as needed, until completely smooth.
4. Pour water to a depth of 1/2-inch into a small skillet over medium heat. Place bowl with gelatin in skillet; stir until gelatin dissolves, about 2 minutes. Remove bowl from skillet.
5. With processor running, drizzle gelatin into cream cheese mixture; mix until well blended. Pour into prepared crust. Tap pan firmly on the counter to break up any big air bubbles. Smooth top. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and chill for at least 6 hours before serving. 
6. When ready to serve, toast almonds in 350 degree oven until fragrant. Let cool, and sprinkle on top of the cheesecake before serving.

Chocolate Chip Pistachio Cookies for Christmas

One of the most wonderful things about a recipe is all the places it can go.

Take, for instance, a recipe for two-tiered Chocolate Chip Pistachio Cookies that appeared in a women's magazine in the early 1980s. How could the recipe developer have known what a role this recipe would end up playing in the Spy family's lives?

After all, it was this recipe that struck the fancy of my mother (you know her as SpyMom) and intrigued her enough to bake a batch. And the whole family loved them. They were buttery and lightly crumbly but so soft and just ever so slightly chewy in the center, and the walnuts and pistachio and chocolate just worked so perfectly together. We all loved them so much, in fact, that the next year, she made them again. And the year after that. A tradition was born.

But somewhere along the line--was it when her children went to college, moved away, began having their own lives?--the cookies stopped being made. Every year someone (usually me) would lament the fact that they were missing from the festivities, but year after year, they did not make an appearance.

But this year, we brought the recipe out from hiberation. SpyMom found the handwritten recipe and told me that this was during her "penmanship phase", when she would stay up at night practicing perfect penmanship, trying to will her handwriting into something more perfect than it was. 

Since then, her handwriting has reverted back to its old, slighly messier, but in my opinion, more charming form.

But how wonderful to encounter this little slice of the past, complete with doodlings (mine? My little sister's?) and speckled with baking debris from years past. 

I baked the cookies while my parents were out, and when they returned, my mother shrieked. "What?" I cried out, thinking that perhaps she'd seen a mouse. But no. "They're just like I used to make!" she said. And I may be getting a bit flowery here, but I think that she and my dad both had a little moment, thinking sweet memories. And that made me extremely happy, in turn. 

How's that for season's sweetings?

Chocolate Chip Pistachio Cookies

Makes about 24

• 3 1/4 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 2 tablespoons milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 package (3 3/4 ounces) instant pistachio pudding (NOT sugar-free)
• 6 ounces (half a bag) semisweet chocolate chips, plus 20-30 chips for garnish
• confectioners' sugar, for dusting

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 375 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper, or lightly grease them.
2. In a large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, using an electric mixer, cream the butter and sugar until smooth, 2-3 minutes on medium speed. Add the eggs, milk, and vanilla; blend until creamy. Add the flour mixture in 3-4 increments, mixing until a stiff dough forms. Remove 1/4 of the dough to a separate bowl; add the walnuts.
4. To the remaining dough, add the pudding mix and stir until completely combined. Fold in the 6 ounces of chocolate chips.
5. By rounded teaspoonfuls, form the green dough into balls, and place 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared sheets. Using the back of a teaspoon or a floured drinking glass bottom, gently flatten the tops of these dough rounds. 
6. Grab the small bowl of walnutty dough. Form the dough into marble-sized pieces, and place a ball of this dough on the top of each pistachio dough mound. Sort of like a two-part snowman. 
7. Place a single chocolate chip on top of each of the cookies, pressing gently to make sure it will stay in place.
8. Bake in your preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, or until set. It's going to be hard to see if they have become golden on the bottom, so mainly just look for a matte finish and an ever so slight golden color around the bottom edge. Remove from the oven and let cool on the rack for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely. If desired, dust with confectioners' sugar.

The Story of Chiffon Cake

CakeSpy Note: Serious thanks to Sandy's Chatter and writer Joe Hart for sharing their stories and research with me!

If there was ever a cake to have a rags to riches, Lana Turner-type Hollywood discovery, it was chiffon cake, a light cake with a delicate crumb that physically resembles angel food cake, but with a far richer flavor. But even before being famously debuted and promoted as the “first new cake in 100 years” on its grand release to the public in 1948, the tale of the chiffon cake was unfolding glamorously in Hollywood . . . 

It all started with Harry Baker, who went to Hollywood in 1923, needing a fresh start. Exactly why isn't quite known, but some suspect it's because he was outed as homosexual in his hometown (sadly, not as OK then as it is today). He found work as an insurance salesman, but moonlighted as a caterer; it was during this time that he began to experiment with cake recipes. To describe Harry Baker as a “hobby cook” is an understatement--this cake was more like his Moby Dick. He later revealed that he tested over 400 recipes, seeking what he hoped would be a moister, more substantial version of the then-popular angel food cake. Was the recipe that finally worked a fluke, or a stroke of masterful baking? Perhaps a bit of both.

What finally ended up working, in 1927, is seemingly quite simple: he used vegetable oil (sometimes referred to as "salad oil") instead of solid shortening or butter in his recipe. The cake employs egg whites for lift, and the resulting cake is tantalizingly light, like angel food, but with a far richer flavor. Later, he would tell a Minneapolis Tribune reporter that the addition of the vegetable oil was "a sixth sense, something cosmic."

He approached the nearby Brown Derby restaurant (famous as the place where the Cobb Salad was invented) with this cake, and they agreed to sell it—it was the first (and for a time) the only dessert they offered.

As the Derby gained fame, so did the chiffon cake, and requests began to pour in from the likes of Barbara Stanwyck.

By the 1930s, he was having to turn away orders. (Wisely, Baker kept his methods and ingredients a secret; it was this mystery that made it a highly sought-out sweet treat for the elite.) He remained a one-man operation, mixing each cake to order; at the height of production, Baker was producing 42 cakes in an 18-hour day, which yielded him the equivalent of nearly $1,000 in today’s money.

How was it done, people (especially copycats) wanted to know? For two decades, Harry Baker wouldn't tell. Finally, in 1947, he approached General Mills, the food manufacturing giant, to see if they might have an interest in acquiring the recipe. (Even they had been unable to figure out the secret.) They eventually paid up with what is still an undisclosed price for the recipe. They unveiled it to the public a year later, making a huge to-do about it, calling it "The first new cake in 100 years" in a big article in Better Homes and Gardens. The first published recipe was for Orange Chiffon Cake, ;and it rose to stardom as quick as you can say "Lana Turner."

Later, an ad for Sperry Drifted Snow flour called it “The baking sensation of the century!," touting its richness yet simplicity to make--so easy that you could even "have your husband bake one."

This version of Harry Baker's famous cake, inspired by a Brown Derby recipe, is said to have been favored by a fat gossip columnist who considered the grapefruit cake acceptable diet food! It's a study in pleasant contrasts: light yet rich, sweet yet tart, simple yet layered in flavor.

 Grapefruit Chiffon Cake

Makes one 10-inch tube cake (12 servings)

For the cake:

• 2 1/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
• 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 7 large eggs, separated, plus 2 additional egg whites (7 yolks and 9 whites)
• 3/4 cup freshly squeezed grapefruit juice (from 3 large grapefruits)
• 2 tablespoons grapefruit zest
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• Pinch of salt
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar

For the filling:

• 2 cups heavy cream, chilled
• 2 tablespoons light rum (optional)
• 2 teaspoons grapefruit zest
• 1/4 cup sugar
• Pinch of salt

Procedure

1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Have ready an ungreased 10-inch tube pan, 4 inches deep, with a removable bottom.
2. To make the cake, in a large bowl sift the flour, 3/4 cup of the sugar, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the oil, egg yolks, grapefruit juice and zest, and vanilla until lightly frothy. Add this mixture to the flour mixture, whisking until the batter is smooth.
4. In the clean, dry bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until they are foamy. Add the cream of tartar, and on medium-high speed, beat the whites until they hold stiff peaks. Add the remaining 3/4 cup sugar a little at a time, and on medium speed, beat the whites until they hold stiff, glossy peaks.
5. Stir one third of the whites into the egg yolk mixture to lighten it; fold in the rest of the remaining whites gently but thoroughly.
6. Spoon the batter into the tube pan, and bake the cake for 50-60 minutes, or until a tester inserted into the center comes out clean.
7. Run a long, thin knife around the outer and inner edges of the pan. Invert the pan onto a rack and let the cake cool completely in the pan, upside down on the rack. Using a serrated knife, cut the cake in half horizontally.
8. To make the filling, chill a large bowl in the refrigerator. Using an electric mixer, beat together the cream, rum, grapefruit zest, sugar, and the pinch of salt until the mixture holds firm peaks. Cover the cream tightly and keep it chilled until you're ready to frost the cake.
9. To assemble the cake, transfer the bottom (wider) layer of the cake to a platter and spread about half of the frosting on it. Set the remaining cake half on top, and top it with the remaining cream. If desired, garnish with additional grapefruit zest or thin slices of grapefruit.
10. Serve immediately after assembling. This cake is best served the same day; store, loosely covered, in the refrigerator.

Funfetti Brownie Popcorn

Today, a highly magical phrase popped into my mind. That phrase was "brownie popcorn". 

Now, it's not like it came to me out of nowhere. As it happened, I had just returned from an extended trip, and I was surveying the contents of my cabinets and freezer to see if there was something, anything, that I could make into dessert. Among the "orphan" ingredients were several bags of microwave popcorn I found above the fridge; nearby, in the freezer, I found a well wrapped parcel of brownies. I didn't think much of it until the aforementioned highly magical phrase entered my mind.

Popcorn was also on my brain because I'd recently received these adorable popcorn buckets from Personalized Creations (this was part of a blogger program and I received a gift card to pay for them).

I wondered: could I--might I--combine them to make a sweet and salty dessert? And if so, how?

Well, I would certainly need something to make them stick together. Something more interesting than butter all by itself.

Naturally, my eyes gravitated right away to something else I had on hand: a can of Funfetti pink frosting! Complete with sprinkles! Well, that simply had to be it, since everyone knows that the most vital part of Funfetti is "FUN". Yes, I said that. I love Funfetti!

And so, dear readers, I made this thing happen. First, I made a bag of popcorn.

Then, I set a saucepan over low heat and gently melted the frosting. When it began to warm, I added two 3x3-inch brownies, which I had cut into 1/2 inch cubes.

Once melty (the pink of the frosting sort of went away), I stirred the brownie-frosting slurry together with the popcorn, making sure to get it all nice and coated.

And then I added the sprinkles (natch).

And then I spooned it all into my sweet little popcorn caddy. As you can tell, since it is personalized, this dessert was mine, all mine.

As you can see, the others remained empty (although they are cute).

And while you may be wondering if it was awful or awesome based on the unusual roster of ingredients, I am happy to say that as desperation desserts go, this one definitely hit the spot. Nice and rich and chocolatey and gooey sweet from the frosting and brownies...but then with a salty crunch from the popcorn. In fact, I had little problem polishing off this delightful treat, and since the brownies were so evenly distributed, it didn't feel at ALL like eating two brownies, frosting, and a bag of popcorn all in one sitting. Nope, not at all.

Make it yourself! Here's how.

Funfetti Brownie Popcorn!

• 1 bag Microwave popcorn, popped (lightly salted works best)
• 2 brownies, cut into 1/2 inch cubes (mine were about 3x3 inches each)
• 1/2 can Funfetti frosting with sprinkles (approx 8 ounces = half container)

Procedure

1. Place your popped corn in a large bowl. Set to the side.
2. In a saucepan over low heat, melt the frosting. Once it's beginning to get melty, stir in the brownie pieces. Stir gently to ensure even coverage. If the brownies melt into the frosting a bit, that's ok. Don't stir in the sprinkles with the frosting; reserve those.
3. Using a rubber spatula, spoon the brownie mixture on top of the popcorn, stirring to ensure even coverage. Add the sprinkles last. Serve still lightly warm. If someone sees you eating it, asks you what's in it, and makes a face when you tell them, tell them not to judge you.

Cake Mix Biscotti Recipe

I have a strange fascination with "doctored" cake mix creations. I love the idea that you can break the rules, so to speak, by using the mix in a way different than its simple intended purpose. In particular I love the recipes that have a finished product that is not cake at all, but cookies or pancakes or bars--it feels like the sweetest sort of kitchen science. So when I was leafing through a book called Complete Cake Mix Magic: 300 Easy Desserts Good as Homemade, I gravitated right toward the cake mix biscotti recipe. 

While the recipe in the book is for a hazelnut biscotti, I decided to go all holiday on this business and bake up some peppermint chip cake mix biscotti instead. Of course, this decision was also fueled by the fact that I had a bag of Andes brand Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips (I haven't seen them in many stores so there's the amazon link) which I thought would be festive and cute to use. 

I also used a smaller box of cake mix than suggested in the recipe, so I scaled the rest of the ingredients down. The resulting biscotti weren't completely beautifully shaped, but gosh, were they tasty. Nice and buttery, like a condensed yellow cake with a crunchy crust, the smattering of mint chips gave the cookies a very nice, rich yet refreshing creamy mint finish on the tongue. Not such a bad thing.

Cake Mix Biscotti

Makes about 18

• 1 package (9 ounces) Jiffy yellow cake mix
• 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 egg
• 1/2 stick butter, melted
• 1/2 to 3/4 cup Andes peppermint chips

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, flour, egg, and butter. Beat on low speed for 1 minute or until well blended. Fold in the peppermint chips until incorporated. Divide the dough in half.
3. On a prepared baking sheet, shape the dough into a 10 by 3 inch rectangle that is 1/2 inch deep. Or you can make two shorter logs of dough, but make sure they have plenty of space as they will spread. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes.
4. Using a sharp knife, cut each rectangle into 1/2 inch slices. Place slices on their side on baking sheets. Bake, one tray at a time, for 10 minutes. Turk slices over and bake for 5 to 10 minutes longer or until crisp and golden. Cool for 1 minute on baking sheets, then remove to wire racks and cool completely.

Glad Cookie Exchange and Baking Ideas

Aren't you GLAD that cookies exist? After all, they make the world better in so many ways. From day-to-day treats to holiday extravaganzas, they have the power to make moments even sweeter.

So I was mega-excited to be chosen to host a GLAD "Cookies for Kids' Cancer" cookie exchange. Having been chosen, they provided a stipend for my baking ingredients and sent me a care package of GLAD containers for the giveaway...

as well as some stickers, promo items, and this snazzy apron:

You can find out more about the program at www.cookiesforkidscancer.org--it's a very sweet way to promote a great cause. You too can get in on the fun by exchanging a virtual cookie with a friend at www.glad.com/Glad-Cookie-Exchange. GLAD will donate up to $1.00 to Cookies for Kids' Cancer for each cookie sold, exchanged or given this November and December 2012 – up to $100,000!

So, in case you haven't gotten it yet--good cause. But having established that...let's move on to the good good better than good COOKIES. OH, the delicious things which were baked! It was a great way to share some sweetness with friends.

Now, because my crew wasn't completely comfortable with the sale method, we did ours as an exchange. There were about 10 types of cookies total. Everyone got a container, and set forth to filling it with each other's cookies--how sweet, right?

Everyone was told to bring 24 of their cookie, and since there were 10 batches, that means that a total of 240 cookies were exchanged (well, some were consumed right away. I will be honest.) I was honored that many of the guests hit me up for recipe suggestions, and was fascinated to see what people decided on.

In looking at the things people brought, which ranged from classic to creative, I wondered if we could define the hows and whys into several ideas for those who may host their own cookie exchanges this year: things that might act as great tips when deciding what to make! I decided to make this the focus of my post, along with some of my favorite recipes shared during the evening! 

IDEA #1: GO CLASSIC ALL THE WAY. 

Snowballs. Or Russian Teacakes. Mexican Wedding Cakes. Whatever you want to call them. While their name can vary, what does not is the fact that they are highly tasty and a traditional holiday favorite! This makes them a vital part of any cookie exchange! Of course, I did hear (adorable!) that sometimes these cookies are called Moldy Mice. Which makes this all the more appropriate:

This recipe is just about as simple and as classic as you can get. YUM.

Snowball Recipe

Ingredients

• 2 cups sifted flour
• 1/4 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup confectioners sugar
• 1-1/2 cups chopped walnuts
• 1-lb. confectioners sugar to roll cookies in

Directions

1. Sift flour, baking powder, and salt. Mix butter with sugar until very light and fluffy. Mix in flour mixture. Stir in walnuts. Refrigerate until easy to handle.
2. Make balls in the palm of your hand by tablespoons. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet, and bake in a 350 degree F. oven until golden brown, being careful bottoms do not burn.
3. Place confectioners sugar in a large bowl. Take cookies from oven and gently put into bowl. Carefully, they are hot, toss cookies in sugar until they are coated.

IDEA #2: TAKE A CLASSIC, GIVE IT A TWIST

Here's an idea: take a crowd pleaser, such as chocolate chip cookies...but add something unexpected! These cookies have two twists. First, one that is visual: the chips are tricked out! Second, instead of using vanilla extract, my friend Jill had the idea to use peppermint instead! This definitely gave the cookies a highly unexpected flavor. It's funny because on the first bite everyone was like "there's something wrong with these chocolate chip cookies!" but as it turned out it was just unexpected, that minty burst of flavor. But upon bite two, it started to taste pretty good. And then, suddenly, the cookies were gone!

Chocolate Chip Cookies, Ever so slightly adapted from the recipe in Baked: New Frontiers in Baking

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
• 2 cups semisweet chocolate chips or swirled holiday morsels such as these

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk the flour, salt, and baking soda together; set aside.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugars together until smooth and creamy. Scrape down bowl and add eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated. Mixture will look light and fluffy. Add peppermint extract and beat for 5 seconds.
3. Add the flour mixture, bit by bit, mixing after each addition.
4. Using a spatula or wooden spoon, fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Cover the bowl tightly and put in the fridge for several hours (Baked suggests 6; I did 2 and they were still delicious).
6. Preheat the oven to 375 F degrees.
7. If you want big cookies, use an ice cream scoop to scoop out 2-tablespoon sized balls. If you want smaller ones, use two teaspoons (one to scoop the dough and one to release it). Use your hands to shape into perfect balls and erase any imperfections. Place on prepared baking sheets, leaving at least 1 inch between cookies. Bake for 10-12 minutes for smaller cookies, 12-14 minutes for larger cookies. Make sure to rotate pans at the halfway mark to ensure even baking. They're done when the edges are golden and the tops are just starting to lose their shine.
8. Remove pan from oven and cool on wire rack. They are great warm, but you could also let them cool, if you're so inclined.
9. These babies can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Doubt they'll last that long though.

IDEA #3: HIT UP MOM FOR IDEAS

Some of us are lucky enough to have moms that are really good bakers. Such as my mom, SpyMom! It's from her that this recipe was donated. While she couldn't physically make the event, she donated this recipe and I believe they'd probably ship quite well in a GLAD container...

Snowy Snickerdoodles

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup butter
• 1 large egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• cinnamon sugar

Procedure

1. In a mixer bowl, cream together sugar and butter; beat in egg and vanilla
2. Combine flour, cinnamon, baking powder and salt
3. Add to butter mixture
4. Blend well
5. Cover and refrigerate 2 hours or till firm enough to roll into balls
6. Shape dough into small balls about 3/4-inch in diameter
7. Roll in cinnamon sugar to coat
8. Set cookies 1-inch apart on lightly greased cookie sheets
9. Bake at 350° for 10 minutes or till the edges are lightly browned.
10. Cool slightly on pans, then remove to racks to cool completely.

IDEA #4: SEEK THE ADVICE OF AN EXPERT

It's never an idea to trust the expertise of a cookie expert. And luckily with Anna Ginsberg of Cookie Madness's new book, The Daily Cookie: 365 Tempting Treats for the Sweetest Year of Your Life, every day is a cookie opportunity. When one of the guests hit me up for ideas for what to bake, I said, why not pick a significant date to you from this book, which has a cookie for every day of the year, with fun facts about why each cookie is appropriate for the day? Well, said friend chose December 13, a date in the future which happens to be her birthday, as well as National Cocoa Day, and baked up some Chocolate Rum Crinkle Cookies from the book. Since she didn't use rum, I guess we'll call them "Chocolate YUM Crinkle Cookies".

Chocolate Yum Crinkle Cookies, adapted from The Daily Cookie: 365 Tempting Treats for the Sweetest Year of Your Life - makes 24 cookies

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup dutch processed cocoa powder
• 4 large eggs
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon rum extract (we just used more vanilla instead of this)
• 3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3.5 ounces dark chocolate, finely chopped
• 1 cup (more or less) confectioners' sugar

Procedure

1. Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, and cocoa together in a small bowl; set aside.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or in a large mixing bowl using a handheld electric mixer, beat the eggs on medium-high speed for about 2 minutes or until light. Reduce speed to medium and gradually add the granulated sugar. Using the lowest speed of the mixer or with a mixing spoon, stir in the oil and extract(s). Add the flour mixture and stir until incorporated. Remove from the stand mixer (if using) and stir in the chocolate. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 40 minutes, or until firm enough to handle.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and place a rack in the upper third of the oven. Line two baking sheets with nonstick foil or parchment paper.
4. Pour or sift the confectioners' sugar onto a plate. Scoop up heaping tablespoons of cold dough and shape into 1.5 inch balls. Roll the balls in the sugar to coat generously. Arrange the balls 2 1/2 inches apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake one sheet at a time for 10 minutes or until just until they appear puffy and "set". Immediately transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

IDEA #5: GO COLORFUL

Why not deck the halls with holly jolly color? After all, people "eat" with their eyes first, and this brightly colored cookie is bound to make people smile. It was the recipe that I contributed to Go Bold With Butter recently, so I will let you click over there for the recipe, but basically it's an adaptation of this simple butter cookie. Yum. These are guaranteed to draw people's eyes to the cookie plate, and they will keep beautifully in airtight containers!

Click here for the recipe.

IDEA #6: CHOOSE HANUKKAH SWEETNESS

While I do not personally celebrate Hanukkah, through the years and experiencing some of the customs through friends who do, I have truly come to appreciate a lot of the delicious sweets from those "eight crazy nights". Though mandelbrot, which is somewhat like biscotti, is delicious any time of year, Cake Gumshoe Melissa reports that her (not super-traditional) family always enjoys them especially during this time of year. I think you will, too!

Cinnamon sugar Mandelbrot

Makes 30-40; recipe adapted from theshiksa.com

• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 eggs
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (you can sub chopped nuts, candied fruits, etc.)
• Ground cinnamon and granulated sugar for dusting

Procedure

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set to the side.
2. Mix together oil and sugar until combined, then add eggs one at a time. After the eggs are combined, add the vanilla.
3. Add the dry ingredients slowly to the sugar/egg mixture.
4. Once the dough is smooth and sticky, fold in the chocolate chips.
5. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and place it in the refrigerator for at least two hours, or overnight.
6. When ready to proceed, oil your hands and form 4 long rows with the dough onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet. Each strip of dough should be 3-4 inches wide. Leave space for spreading as these will spread during baking.
7. Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Meanwhile, in a flat shallow dish, combine ¾ cup of sugar with enough cinnamon to turn the mixture light brown. 
8. Take the mandel bread out of the oven (they are not finished yet). Reduce oven temperature to 250 degrees F. Slice the mandel bread into slices, like biscotti. Maybe like an inch thick.
9. Roll each cookie into the cinnamon sugar mixture. Put the pieces back on the cookie sheet on their sides.
10. Bake for another 15 minutes; if you like them softer, you might want to take them out at 12 minutes or so, as the longer they bake, the crispier they will be. Let cool completely on a wire rack; Store in an airtight container.

IDEA #7: POP OUT OF THE MOLD

Want to delight and impress your cookie exchange guests? I have three (is a hyphenated word like 2 words or one and a half?) words for you: HOLIDAY POP-TARTS. Yes indeed, these holiday-hued babies are bound to make your offering the most memorable. 

Homemade Holiday Pop Tarts

Makes 6-8 tarts, maybe even more, depending on size; adapted from wonderful, wonderfulCulinary Concoctions by Peabody

For the crust

• 1 1/2 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened and cut into cubes
• 3 tablespoons cold water

For the filling

Jam, about 1 heaping teaspoonful per pastry (your choice of flavor; I used blueberry)

For the icing

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted
• heavy cream, to thin (you could use milk...but I like cream)
• food coloring, if desired
• colored sprinkles or mint chips for garnish

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper; set to the side.
2. Combine flour and salt in a large bowl. Add butter and blend with a fork, pastry cutter, or your impeccably clean hands. Blend until the mixture is fairly coarse. Add the water, bit by bit, gently mixing the dough after each addition, until the dough is cohesive enough to form a ball.
3. Place dough on a lightly floured surface and roll into a rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. Cut out rectangles approximately the size of index cards (3x5 inches), or smaller if you prefer a more modest portion (I didn't). Make sure you have an even number of cutouts. I think that mine might have been a little thicker than 1/8 an inch, but I ended up with 12 rectangles (for 6 pastries).
4. On half of the rectangles, place a small spoonful of the jam of your choice in the center. You don't want it to be too thick or the top crust will mound on top of it.
5. Place the remaining rectangles of dough on top of the ones with jam. Crimp all four edges by hand or with a fork to ensure that your filling won't ooze out. I also poked the top of each with a fork, to vent them.
6. Place the tarts on your prepared baking sheet, and bake for 7 to 8 minutes, or until light golden on the edges. Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.
7. While the tarts cool, prepare your icing; make sure it is fairly thin but not so thin that it will just drip off. If desired, tint with food coloring. Once the pop tarts are cool, drizzle it on top. Garnish with sprinkles or holiday-hued treats.

IDEA #8: JUST BE HONEST, YOU'RE LAZY

Not a baker? Nobody's going to be fooled if you show up with fancy-looking treats and try to pass them off as your own (well, unless perhaps you use this handy guide). Sure, you *could* get a slice and bake tube cookie, but yeah, that's just too hard. But you know what? Don't sweat it. Just head to the store and pick up SOMETHING so you're not empty handed! Because as much as we love homemade cookies that came from the result of love and hard baking labor, we mostly want to gather together. So go ahead and buy some Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes--we won't judge you. Too harshly. Just be sure to give a really big donation to the cause after, please!

Store-Bought Snack Cakes

1. Go to the closest grocery store (not a co-op or Whole Foods please, they won't have the kind of treats we're talking about here).
2. Go to the snack cake aisle, where you'll find Twinkies and stuff.
3. Buy the most holiday-tricked out ones you can find. In the picture, you'll see Little Debbie Christmas Tree Cakes.
4. Return home.
5. Unwrap, put in a GLAD container. Go to the cookie exchange, and hold your head up high. Give a big donation to the GLAD cause after!

I have partnered with The Glad Products Company through DailyBuzz to help promote their Food Storage products. I have been compensated for my time commitment to work with this product. However, my opinions are entirely my own and I have not been paid to publish positive comments. Thank you GLAD!