Month: November 2020

Great British Bake Off Fantasy League – Week 10 Finale

/ Ivan Strong Moore / Leave a comment

This. Is. It! The grand finale of this season of Great British Bake Off has happened. Who will take home the cake stand? Who will spend a minute with their head in the freezer? Have the bakers figured out how to make a crescent shape? We’ll find out! Plus! Heather is going to share a super easy recipe for anyone looking for a fun baked good that starts with a store bought ingredient you may not expect!

Cake Mix Snickerdoodles

1 box yellow cake mix

2 medium eggs

1/4 cup oil

3 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tbsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Thoroughly combine the cake mix with the eggs and oil. If you only have large eggs on hand, use 1 whole egg and 1 egg yolk. Batter will form a soft dough that is firm enough to be handled. Roll into golf-ball size for regular cookies (12 per cookie sheet), double the amount of dough for jumbo cookies (8 per cookie sheet). Roll balls of dough in cinnamon and sugar until well coated. Space evenly on cookie sheet and flatten with the bottom of a wide glass into rounds, about 1/3 inch thick. Bake for 8 minutes until cookies have risen and are crinkly and bottoms are golden brown. When cooled, store in airtight container with a piece of bread on a napkin of paper towel to maintain soft texture.

Great British Bake Off Fantasy League – Week 9

/ Ivan Strong Moore / Leave a comment

Tragedy strikes as one of our host’s team is unexpectedly taken out of the competition! Who will make the finale? Join us as we recap the penultimate episode! Plus, Heather shares her EPIC Peanut Butter Fudge recipe!

Peanut Butter Fudge

1 stick unsalted better

1 12oz can evaporated milk

1 cup brown sugar

4 cups white sugar

1 tsp salt

2 tsp vanilla

1 7oz can marshmallow creme

1 16oz jar creamy peanut butter

Grease a 9×13 pan. Melt butter over medium heat in large saucepan, stir in milk and sugars. Bring to a boil stirring frequently. When mixture reaches a rolling boil reduce heat to low and boil without stirring for 7 minutes. While mixture is boiling, prepare other ingredients because at the end of the 7 minutes you will have to move quickly. When the time is up, remove from heat and immediately stir in vanilla and salt. Next add marshmallow creme and whisk until thoroughly combined. Continuing to move quickly, whisk in the jar of peanut butter until completely incorporated. Transfer immediately to 9×13 pan. Allow to cool completely before cutting into squares. Cover in plastic wrap or in ziplock bags or airtight containers to preserve soft texture. Fudge can be stored at room temperature for multiple weeks or frozen for multiple months.

Alternate flavors:

Chocolate Fudge – substitute peanut butter with 1 1/2 bags chocolate chips of choice, about 3 cups. Increase salt to 1 1/2 tsp. All other instructions/ingredients remain the same

Nutella Fudge – substitute peanut butter with 1 jar of Nutella hazelnut spread. Increase salt to 1 1/2 tsp. All other instructions/ingredients remain the same

White Chocolate Peppermint – substitute peanut butter with 1 1/2 bags white chocolate chips, about 3 cups. Increase salt to 1 1/2 tsp and substitute vanilla with 1 tbsp peppermint extract. Top with crushed candy cane while fudge is still warm. All other instructions/ingredients remain the same

Great British Bake Off Fantasy League – Week 8

/ Ivan Strong Moore / Leave a comment

What a day for Team Ivan while Team Heather was left to sweat it out as golden boy Peter struggled in the tent for once! Meanwhile, the bakers were challenged with one of the weirdest Technical Challenges ever and made some truly stunning Showstoppers. Plus, Heather helps you use up all that leftover Halloween candy in Candy Bar Cookie Bars!

Candy Bar Cookie Bars

2 sticks – unsalted butter, softened

2 cups – brown sugar

2 – eggs

2 tsp – vanilla extract

1 tsp – baking soda

2 tsp – water

1 1/2 tsp – salt

3 cups – all purpose flour

2 cups – chopped mini candy bars (Snickers, Milky Way, Twix, Reese Cups, etc)

Beat butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time, add vanilla. Dissolve baking soda in the water and combine into butter mixture. Mix in flour and salt until just combined, stir in chopped candy bars of your choice/combination. Spread batter evenly in a greased 9×13 pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 18-20 minutes until edges are firm and brown and center is lightly golden brown. Allow to cool completely before cutting.

Great British Bake Off Fantasy League – Week 7

/ Ivan Strong Moore / Leave a comment

Let’s go back in time to the 1980’s…sort of. It’s “80’s Week” on GBBO and that means lots of random references even we didn’t get as well as some questionably 80’s baking challenges! Heather has some growing disdain for Dave and everyone is sweating their ganache off! Plus, Heather shares a very calming Lavender Lemon Shortbread cookie recipe!

Lavender Lemon Shortbread Cookie

2 sticks – unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup – brown sugar

2 1/4 cups – all purpose flour

1 tsp – salt

1 tsp – finely chopped French lavender

2 tsp – lemon zest

2 tsp – lemon juice

Beat butter and sugar together until fluffy. Mix in salt, lavender, and lemon zest and juice. Combine in flour until it forms a soft dough. Divide into two halves, roll each half into roughly a 6 inch roll. Slice until 12 cookies, each about 1/2 inch thick. Spread evenly on a cookie sheet and poke two rows of holes with a fork in the center. Bake at 325 for 17-18 minutes until golden brown on the edges. Store in an airtight container. Recipe can be doubled for 4 dozen cookies.

Great British Bake Off Fantasy League – Week 6

/ Ivan Strong Moore / Leave a comment

We had to take a week off after this heartbreaker! But we are back and ready to talk about the emotional “Japanese Week.” Get ready for us to be confused by matcha and irate at the disdain people had for pickles! Plus, Heather shares a quick tip for making your bakes vegan with her Apple Bread recipe!

Vegan Apple Bread

2 cups – brown sugar

3/4 – cup oil

Substitute for 3 eggs – 3 tbsp flax meal and 3/4 cup water

3 tsp – vanilla extract

3 – medium apples, peeled cored and diced

2 cups – all purpose flour

1 cup – whole wheat flour

1 1/2 tsp – salt

1 tsp – baking soda

2 tsp – cinnamon

1/4 tsp – nutmeg

1/4 tsp – ground cloves

Beat flax meal and water together for 2 minutes. Combine in oil, sugar and vanilla. Mix in apples. Whisk together dry ingredients in separate bowl, add to the wet mixture and stir until just combined. Bake in 9×13 pan at 350 for 40-50 minutes until middle is springy to the touch.