Cranberry Orange Scones w/Orange Glaze

Some mornings I wake up craving scones, especially these Cranberry Orange Scones. I found the recipe on Smitten Kitchen a few years ago, but I added my own twist with fresh orange zest and a fresh orange glaze (isn't everything better with glaze?). I think these are quite possibly the best scones I've ever made. While I get the most requests for my Lemon Blueberry Scones, these are my personal favorite. I love the tart-sweet combination and using fresh orange zest and fresh orange juice really makes them extra special.

If you love scones, I also recommend these Fresh Strawberry and Meyer Lemon Scones and Cherry Lemon Scones.

Cranberry Orange Scones with Fresh Orange Glaze
Makes 8 scones

Scone Ingredients:

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon Baking Powder
3 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 tablespoon fresh orange zest
5 tablespoons unsalted butter (cold, cut into cubes)
1 cup heavy cream (cold)
3/4 cup dried cranberries chopped (I used Craisins)

Glaze Ingredients:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon fresh orange zest
A few tablespoons of fresh orange juice


Directions:

Preheat oven to 375. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and orange zest.

Sprinkle the cold cubed butter over the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter (or two knives), cut the butter into the flour until small crumbs are formed. You should still see some small chunks of butter. Using a pastry cutter makes this process really easy, or you can also use a food processor. Just be careful not to over process.

Pour in the heavy cream and, using a rubber spatula, fold the cream into the flour a few times. Sprinkle the dried cranberries over the mixture, then fold a few more times until just incorporated and a "shaggy" dough is formed. Careful not to overmix the dough, this makes the scones tough.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and gently form into a disk approx 3/4-1" thick.

Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, cut the disk into 8 triangles. I decided to make mine round this time using a biscuit cutter. I was able to cut six scones with the biscuit cutter, then I had to gently reshape the dough scraps to cut two more scones.

Place the scones onto the parchment lined baking sheet and lightly brush with heavy cream.

Place in the oven and bake for 12-15 minutes until lightly golden brown. I rotated my baking sheet halfway during the cooking process to ensure even browning.

When scones are a light golden brown, remove from oven and cool a few minutes before glazing. Remove from baking sheet & serve.

These scones can be stored at room temperature and are best eaten within 2 days. Note: Scones that are made with fresh fruit should be eaten the same day.

To make the glaze:

In a small bowl, combine the softened butter (the butter needs to be really soft), powdered sugar, orange zest and orange juice. Mix well with a whisk to combine. The glaze should be a thick pouring/drizzling consistency. If too runny, adjust by gradually adding a little more powdered sugar until you reach the desired consistency. If glaze is too thick, adjust by gradually adding more orange juice a little at a time until you reach the desired consistency.

Spicy Salsa Salmon

SPICY SALSA SALMON

 

Looking for a fresh and healthy dinner for you and your family?  That’s exactly how I would describe this latest recipe… Healthy and Fresh.   If you like fish and love salsa, like I do, this is a great way to combine the two for a quick and delicious meal.   The Salmon turned out moist and flakey and the salsa adds a tangy and spicy twist to your basic baked fish recipe.  It only took about one hour - from prep to finish.  And here’s the best part - if you like to plan dinners ahead for your family, you can actually make the recipe a day ahead, reheat just before serving and it tastes just as good. (tip listed below). 

Happy Cooking Everyone!

Ingredients

One pound of Salmon  (with skin on bottom)

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

2-3 Roma tomatoes, chopped

2 green onions, chopped

1 seeded & cropped Jalapeno pepper (optional)

1 garlic clove, minced

1 lemon

½ teaspoon salt

¼ crushed pepper

3 tablespoons olive oil

Small jelly roll pan 10 ½ x15 ½ x1

Aluminum foil

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

1.       Cover the jelly roll pan completely with foil. Spray with oil.

2.       Place Salmon in jelly roll pan, skin side down. Set aside.

3.       Make the salsa to go over salmon - chop cilantro, tomatoes and green onions and jalapeno (if using).  Add minced garlic. Stir. Place in small bowl.

4.       Add the juice of 1 lemon to chopped ingredients in bowl, being careful not to get any seeds. Add salt, pepper, and olive oil. Stir. 

5.       Pour salsa evenly over the salmon.

6.       Cover salmon with a large piece of foil, sealing the jelly roll pan.

7.       Bake for 20-25 minutes.

8.       Serve with rice. 

9.       Tip for making the day ahead:

        You can bake this dish the night before as directed above - cool, cover with plastic wrap and    place in the refrigerator. The day you are serving it, remove the plastic wrap and just heat it up in the oven (350 degrees for 5-8 minutes) or Microwave (2 minutes). Chop up one Roma tomato, add a quick squeeze of lemon to the tomato, and sprinkle with a little salt and pepper to taste (mini fresh salsa).  Top the Salsa Salmon with this mixture and serve. Poof!  Delicious dinner in 10 minutes!

Chocolate on Chocolate Banana Bread

I'm sorry, I've been slacking. I haven't posted a banana recipe in a while (haha), but I'm here today to correct that with this Chocolate Chocolate Banana Bread. Chocolate and banana is a great combination, but double the chocolate is even better! This banana bread recipe definitely delivers the chocolate flavor and the subtle hint of banana is a nice compliment. This bread is moist and delicious and goes great with an ice cold glass of milk or a nice, hot cup of coffee.

Yum....

Chocolate Chocolate Banana Bread
Makes 1 loaf, serves 10-12
Adapted from The Sisters Cafe

Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 very ripe bananas mashed (should make about 1 1/4 cup)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat oven to 350f

Spray the bottom of a 9" loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray.

In small bowl, combine the flour, cocoa powder and baking soda with a whisk or fork.

In another small bowl, mash your bananas.

In a large bowl, using an electric hand mixer on medium speed, combine the sugar, eggs and oil. Beat until combined.

Add the banana and vanilla extract and beat on low speed just until combined. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed just until combined. Tip: Mixing just until combined will help to ensure your bread doesn't turn out dense. Over-mixing makes dense bread.

Fold in the chocolate chips. I prefer mini-chocolate chips in this recipe but you can use regular size if you prefer larger chunks of chocolate.

 

Pour into the prepared loaf pan and bake for approx 60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Tip: I tented my loaf with foil towards the end of the baking time to make sure the top didn't get too brown before it was done.

Remove from oven. Allow to cool in pan for 15 minutes. Loosen the loaf from the pan by running a butter knife along the sides. Invert, remove from pan and cool on wire rack (or enjoy while it's still warm). Tip: Slice with a serrated knife for cleaner slices.

Store leftovers tightly wrapped for 2-3 days.

Mini Blueberry Pies

Since starting this Blog, my family has grown accustomed to me being in the kitchen and baking something new and different almost every night. It's funny how much they look forward to it. My son, Nick, will pop his head out of his room, take a deep whiff, venture into the kitchen and ask "what's tonight's masterpiece, Mom?". Really, those are his exact words. On the nights when I'm tired from work and don't feel like baking, I hate to see their disappointed faces when there's nothing baked so most of the time I'll muster the energy to get up and bake. Sometimes I'll have to come up with something on the fly based on the ingredients I have in my fridge and pantry. Last night I had a couple of packages of refrigerated pie dough and some blueberries that needed to be used up so I made these adorable mini blueberry pies.

How cute are these?

One of my favorite short cuts is using refrigerated pie crust even though I have made pie dough from scratch. I admit that I like the taste of homemade better, but when you're in a rush, sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do and the ready-made dough is a great option. I've used it many times and get compliments on the taste so don't feel guilty using it.

Adorable Mini Blueberry Pies
Makes about 24 mini pies

Crust Ingredients:

2 boxes of your favorite brand ready made pie crust (2 crusts in each box)

Filling Ingredients:
2 cups of blueberries, washed and dried
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon zest
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon flour, mixed with a little water to form a slurry
1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Egg wash: 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water
A mixture of granulated sugar and cinnamon for sprinkling

Make the Blueberry Filling:

In a medium size saucepan, combine the blueberries, lemon zest, lemon juice, water and sugar. Stir to combine.

Cook and stir over medium heat for a few minutes until the berries break down. Gradually pour in the flour slurry while stirring to prevent lumps from forming. Continue to cook and stir for a few minutes more until the mixture is thickened. Remove from heat then stir in butter and vanilla extract stirring until butter is melted.

Spoon mixture into a glass bowl and allow mixture to cool completely before assembling pies.

Tip - filling can be made the day before and refrigerated until ready to use!

To assemble the pies:

In a small bowl or ramekin, beat 1 egg with 1 tablespoon of water.

In another small bowl or ramekin, combine 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar with 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
Tip: Use sugar in the raw instead of more texture if you prefer

For the bottom crusts -

Bring one package of crusts to room temperature per the instructions on the package.

Working with the crust one at a time, roll out slightly to about 1/8" thickness.

Cut into your desired shape using a cookie cutter. The cookie cutter I used had scalloped edges and was about 3 1/4" wide. You should get a total of 24 bottoms using one box of pie crust (12 per crust).

Place the bottoms onto prepared cookie/baking sheets lined with silpat or parchment paper. I used 2 baking sheets fitting 12 pies on each sheet.

Brush the edges with egg wash and place approx 1 teaspoon of the cooled blueberry mixture in the center. The filling should be thick enough to make into a mound.

For the top crusts, use the same process as above, but  CUT THE SHAPES OUT FIRST then slightly roll each top out so that it is slightly bigger in size than the bottom, this helps to cover the filling better. If you roll the dough out first, then cut the tops, they will be the same size as the bottom and won't fit on top of the bottoms as well.

Gently place the tops on each pie and seal the edges with your finger tips. Crimp using a fork to create a stronger seal.

Lightly brush the tops of each pie with egg wash. Then sprinkle with a little of the cinnamon-sugar mixture. Cut a few small slits in the top of each pie.

Bake at 375 for approx 15 minutes or until crust is golden brown. Remove from baking sheets and place on a cooling rack.

Leftovers should be stored lightly covered at room temperature for up to 2 days. I don't like to tightly cover my pies because it can make the crust soggy.

Roasted Strawberry and Dark Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream (No Ice Cream Machine Needed)

July is National Ice Cream Month! For those living in areas experiencing record breaking heat, I have a recipe that will help cool you off....Roasted Strawberry and Dark Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream! I'm really excited to be able to share this recipe with you. First because it's strawberry season and the strawberries right now are beautiful....

And second, it's not often you find a recipe for Ice Cream on a baking blog but I used roasted strawberries so I guess that counts! Roasting the stawberries helps to deepen their flavor and give them a chewy texture which is perfect for Ice Cream. Best of all, this recipe doesn't require an Ice Cream Machine! I found this technique on Kevin & Amanda's Blog and I had to try it out incorporating my own flavor combinations. My family absolutely loved it although my husband said he would have preferred the chocolate chunks to be smaller. If you prefer chips to chunks, just cut your chocolate more finely.

Roasted Strawberry and Dark Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream
Makes about 4 cups of ice cream

*Plan ahead, this recipe needs to freeze for at least 6 hours*

Ingredients
1 14 oz can Sweetened Condensed Milk
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 pints strawberries
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
Pinch of salt
1 cup chocolate chunks (or cut into smaller pieces if you like)


Directions

Roast the strawberries

Preheat oven to 300 degrees farenheit

Wash, dry, hull and quarter the strawberries. Place in a pile on rimmed baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of sugar and a pinch of salt. Toss to coat.

Place the strawberries in a single layer and roast for 25 minutes. Turn the oven off and prop open the door slightly with a wooden spoon. Allow the strawberries to cool slowly for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature before using them in the ice cream.

Make ice cream base

Pour the cold heavy whipping cream into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or use your electric hand mixer). Beat until stiff peaks form. Tip: Chill your bowl and whisk attachment to help the cream whip faster.

Pour the sweetened condensed milk into a large bowl. Gently fold in the roasted strawberries and chocolate chunks.

Gently fold in the whipped cream until incorporated.

Scoop the mixture into an air tight, freezer safe container. Tightly cover and freeze for 6 hours or overnight.

And voila! You have homemade ice cream without using an ice cream machine. The ice cream will be hard after it's frozen, I put it in the microwave for a few seconds just to soften it up a little to make it easier to scoop out. Don't go too long otherwise you will have the consistency of mousse (which is still good!).

Enjoy!!