Monday, October 1, 2012

CHOCOLATE CHIP CRUMB MUFFINS

 CHOCOLATE CHIP CRUMB MUFFINS

I had the opportunity to bake for 7 days in an industrial size kitchen at the summer camp I have been teaching theatre at for the past 10 years! It was SO much fun! I had to bake for over 120 people for three meals a day! So it was time to bust out the recipes that I have been collecting from my favorite bloggers over the past year! These muffins were a HUGE success! People went on and on about them, loved the crumb topping and kept asking me for the recipe! I was able to multiple my recipe by 8 with no problems with the science what-so-ever!


LOOK HOW LOVELY THEY ARE!


Chocolate Chip Crumb Muffins
(makes about 16 muffins)
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips mixed with 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar
3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 Tablespoons cold unsalted butter, diced
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (you can chop them if you would like, but I like the whole chunky chocolate chips)
Sift together the all-purpose flour, cinnamon, baking soda and kosher salt.
Set aside.
In a mixer (with the paddle attachment) mix together the sugar, brown sugar, canola oil, eggs and vanilla extract on medium speed for about 3 minutes.
Slowly add the dry ingredients into the bowl on low speed and mix until almost combined. Then fold the ingredients together with a spatula.
Add in the sour cream. You’ll need to fold, stir, fold, stir, etc. Stir gently, but make sure the sour cream is completely mixed into the batter and not over mixed.
Mix the chocolate chips with 1 Tablespoon of all-purpose flour and gently fold the chocolate chips into the batter.
Line a muffin pan with muffin liners.
Scoop the batter into each muffin liner. Set the muffin pan aside while you work on the crumb topping.
In a small bowl, mix together the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Add the diced butter and cut it into the other ingredients with a fork. Add the remaining chocolate chips to the crumb topping and mix them in. Sprinkle the crumb topping onto the muffins.
Bake at 375 degrees F for 23 minutes.

And there you have it!  
THE PERFECT CHOCOLATE CHIP CRUMB MUFFIN

YUM!

Monday, September 24, 2012

Mini M&M Cookie Cupcakes

Mini M&M Cookie Cupcakes 

THESE ARE SO PRETTY!

I started with the basic chocolate chip cookie recipe from Nestle Toll-House
The recipe makes 48 mini cupcakes
I set the temperature for my oven to 350 degrees 
and baked them in a mini cupcake pan for 10 minutes
Be sure to generously spray the pans with a non-stick spray
The only changes I made to the recipe were adding 1 teaspoon of Cinnamon 
and I used 1 cup of chocolate chips and 1 cup of Mini M&M'S

For the Buttercream frosting:
2 sticks of butter (softened)
2-3 Tbsp. of Milk
4 Cups of Powdered Sugar
1 Tsp. of Vanilla
1/4 Tsp. of Salt (which I did not use because I used salted butter)

Cream together butter
Slowly add in other ingredients
use milk to keep your frosting smooth

Pipe frosting on cupcakes and top with additional Mini M&M's

THE COLORFUL DOUGH (in my new Kitchen Aid Mixer)

I used a cookie scoop to put even amounts of dough into the sprayed cupcake pans

When these are done it is common for the center to sink! Never fear the icing will cover this up!

Let them completely cool before pipping the frosting onto the cupcakes

Decorate with more Mini M&M's

 
The PERFECT Mini M&M Cookie Cupcake
HAVE A GREAT DAY!




Baking with Melissa hosts Baking Parties and Cooking Parties in Los Angeles and the surrounding areas! Find Baking with Melissa on Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook!

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Away for the summer!

Hello Blogger Friends!


I am teaching theatre for the summer in New Hampshire so I am away from the kitchen until the fall!!!!
Enjoy these photos from 
Seussical The Musical!!!







Saturday, May 26, 2012

In N Out Burger Pizza!! Fun for kids!

If you live in California, you have most likely made your way over to the In N Out Burger joint! 
If you have never been there, you MUST experience it at least once in your lifetime! 
The menu is so simple and everything is so fresh and delicious!
And their french fries....
mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
Today, we are making another "kid friendly" pizza... paying tribute to the In N Out Burger!


Ingredients

 ½ pound Ground Beef
4 whole Pickles, Sliced (or Hamburger Dills)
 5 whole Roma Tomatoes, Sliced
      1 whole Medium Red Onion, Sliced
 1 block (8 Oz. Block) Cheddar Cheese, Grated
 1 block (8 Oz. Block) Jack Cheese (Spice It Up With Pepper Jack!)
·         1 whole Small Head Of Romaine Lettuce
1 bottle (16 Oz. Bottle) Thousand Island Dressing (Wish Bone Or Your Favorite Kind)
·         1 whole Pizza Dough (approximately 16 Inches Round)

Directions:

Cook the beef and drain the grease
Slice the pickles, tomatoes, and onion
Grate the cheeses
Wash and chop romaine lettuce
Put as much Thousand Island dressing on the dough as you would like


Sprinkle on the beef, then layer the toppings on top of the beef: pickle, tomatoes, onion


 Sprinkle enough jack cheese to cover toppings, but allowing them to still be seen. Sprinkle on some cheddar to fill in the gaps and only allow some of the toppings to be seen


Bake at 400ºF for 10- 15 minutes or until cheese is nice and bubbly!


Remove from oven and sprinkle lettuce on the top


The kids in my cooking class LOVED making this recipe!!! 
IN N OUT BURGER PIZZA 
It tastes just like the burger!
Here are a few other "Kid Friendly" pizza's
Salad Pizza
and 
Banana Split Brownie Pizza


ENJOY

Sunday, May 20, 2012

SALAD PIZZA! Another "Kid Friendly" Pizza Recipe

Hello Everyone! Thanks for stopping by! In case you missed my last "kid friendly" pizza post Banana Split Brownie Pizza be sure to check it out!

Today's recipe is called SALAD PIZZA! And boy is this good and as simple as it gets! 



Ingredients 

1 ready made pizza crust (or you can make your own)
·          4 ounces mixed salad greens
·         10 ounces cooked, boneless chicken breast halves, diced
·         1/4 cup Caesar salad dressing        
      1/2 cup of Shredded mozzarella or cheddar cheese
      1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
      Garlic Powder
      Onion Powder  
      
     Directions
1.      Spread the mozzarella cheese evenly over the pizza shell, add onion and garlic powder (as much or as little as you prefer) and place in the oven until the cheese is melted (follow directions on the package for cook time; should be about 8-10 mins.).
2.   In a large bowl; toss the greens with the salad dressing, chicken and Parmesan Cheese.
3.      Place the salad on top of the cooked pizza crust. Add more Parmesan Cheese.
4.   Slice and serve.


The entire process was complete in less than 45 minutes! 
The kids had a GREAT time and LOVED the pizza! 

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Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Banana Split Brownie Pizza! Fun for Kids!

THIS IS AN EASY AND FUN RECIPE TO MAKE WITH YOUR KIDS!!!

Banana Split Brownie Pizza or in other words CRAZY CHOCOLATE BROWNIE HEAVEN guaranteed to have everyone bouncing off the walls in no time! 

This is a fun idea for a kids birthday party or sleep over night!

First you want to start off with your favorite brownie recipe or a box mix 
(bake them in a cookie sheet or thin baking pan for about 15 minutes)


Let the brownies cool completely while you want make this amazing cream cheese frosting 
(cream together 1 stick of butter, 1 8oz package of cream cheese and 1 tsp of vanilla then 
slowly add  2 cups of powdered sugar) or you can use already made frosting and
then frost your brownie pizza


Then you want to slice up two bananas and 1 cup of strawberries
and place them on top of the frosting 


Next sprinkle mini chocolate chips all over the pizza


Optional but HIGHLY suggested: Place Mini Oreo Cookies around the pizza


Next you MUST drizzle Hershey's Chocolate Syrup all over the entire pizza


Then CUT into HUGE slices

SERVE AND ENJOY!

If you can handle it, serve with chocolate ice cream too, but it is perfect without it!

Mmmmm.....this is good for grown up people too...especially when you are having a really bad day.

NOTE: The photos shown were taken from two different kids baking classes today so you might notice the difference in pans in a few of the photos!

SHOWING OFF THEIR BROWNIE PIZZA! HOW CUTE ARE THEY?


Monday, May 7, 2012

MORE Cookie Cupcakes!!!!


Ahhhh....Cookie Cupcakes! I have been on a Mini Cookie Cupcake with Buttercream Frosting roll lately! I never get bored with them! Not only are the easy to make, but they LOOK SOOOO CUTE and people just LOVE to eat them! Here are some photos of my recent Cookie Cupcake Extravaganza!

HOW CUTE ARE THESE!?
Mmmmmm....Cookie Cupcakes! 

 You can watch my "How to" Frosting Video on Youtube HERE
You can find the recipe for these Cookie Cupcakes HERE

BELOW ARE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE CUPCAKES WITH REESE'S PEANUT BUTTER CUPS AND CHOCOLATE BUTTERCREAM FROSTING 
CUPCAKES WITHOUT FROSTING

WITH FROSTING AROUND THE EDGES

THESE WERE BAKED WITHOUT THE REESE'S IN THE CENTER

SO MUCH FUN TO MAKE!
The texture of the cookie is perfect baked like this...nice crispy outside with chewy cookie on the inside! The frosting takes it over the top.
Mmmmm....

Baking with Melissa hosts Baking Parties and Cooking Parties in Los Angeles and the surrounding areas! Find Baking with Melissa on Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, and Facebook!

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

DOUBLE COOKIES AND CREAM BARS


I found this recipe and fell over with excitement! I mean COME ON! Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough with Oreo's and Hershey's Kisses! What will they come up with next?

DOUBLE COOKIES AND CREAM BARS
recipe from: Picky Palate

  • 1 stick unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup mini chocolate chips
  • 12 Oreo Cookies, broken up 
  • 25 Cookies and Cream Hershey’s Kisses                                                                                  
NOTE: You have choices here! You can use any of these items to make this work! 
Cookies N Cream Kisses

Old Fashioned Cream Drops (I USED THESE)

Cookies N Cream Miniatures

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. and line an 8×8 inch baking pan with foil sprayed with cooking spray.

Place butter and sugars into a large bowl, stir to combine, at least 2 minutes.
Add egg and vanilla, mixing to combine.
Add flour, baking soda, salt.
Add chocolate chips and Oreo cookie pieces, stirring to combine.
Press 1/3 of the dough into the bottom of prepared baking pan. Top with 5 rows of Hershey’s Kisses 5 per row (or as many as you can fit in like I did). Note: I used the Old Fashioned Cream Drops instead of the Kisses. Top with remaining dough and gently press. 

Bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool for 30 minutes, cut into squares and serve.  Makes 12-16 bars

Optional: I crushed up more Oreo Cookies and put them on top. I mean...why not!?  These bars are already a bazillion calories each!  May as well make it count!



Look at all of the layers of chocolate goodness!





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You may also like my recipe for OREO STUFFED BROWNIES