Peanut Butter and Julie

Brown Sugar Pear and Cranberry Bars

I'll be the first to admit that I subscribe to waaaayyy too many magazines.  One might even say that I have issues.  Sorry, bad pun. 

It all started innocently enough.  I recall receiving a subscription to Seventeen for my 13th birthday, and I felt so grown-up.  I used to read it cover-to-cover, taking every quiz and begging my mom to let me order 12 cassette tapes that were advertised for "just 1 penny!"  C'mon, mom! It says that I would only need to buy 3 more tapes at regular club prices over the next two years.  Then I can cancel at any time.  Pleeeaaaaase?

After Seventeen came InStyle, Shape, Martha Stewart Living, and about a dozen other food-travel-fashion focused publications.  Some smart little intern up at Conde Nast had obviously figured out that I fall into their "sucker" customer base.  If they send me an initial subscription offer that is low enough, I simply won't refuse.  Only $1 an issue?  Well heck, sign me up!!

This year, I realized that going through my mountain of magazine subscriptions each month had started to become a chore.  I would speed-read through the June issue only to find the July issue waiting for me in the next day's mail.  It was time to make some tough decisions and give a few titles the axe. 

Gourmet was never my favorite of the food magazines---yes, I said it.  Over the past few years, I personally found  their content to be less and less approachable, and I would often go through entire issues without dog-earing a single recipe.  That being said, my Gourmet subscription was never in danger of being canceled.  When I heard that it would no longer be published after November, 2009, I was very surprised.  I hardly thought that a magazine with Gourmet's reputation and longevity would fall victim to the economy. Although yes, this will help with my magazine clutter, Gourmet's presence will definitely be missed.

I recently received the final issue of Gourmet magazine in the mail, one that I will keep in a special place rather than tossing it in the recycling bin after the must-try recipes have been removed.  When I first subscribed to Gourmet, I saved every single issue.  A few years later,  I decided that I only needed to save the October-December issues, as those were the ones to which I referred most often.  Finally, I stopped saving any magazines at all--except for Martha's, that is--because I just ran out of room.  Open a random cabinet in my kitchen and chances are pretty good that you will find a stack of Martha Stewart Living staring back at you.  I just can't bring myself to throw them away.  Perhaps I need an intervention.

This recipe was inspired by one that was included in the second-to-last (October '09) issue of Gourmet, and it's sort of a tribute to the groundbreaking publication.  The original recipe is for a Butterscotch Pear Pie, delicious sounding, yes, but practical for me, no.  A whole pie isn't something that Eric can easily take in to work, especially while balancing his coffee mug, Blackberry, lunch, and keys.  One of those items would not make it, and that would likely be the pie.  There's also the whole pie plate dilemma.  Every time that I give someone a pie, it takes the better part of a year to get my pie plate back.  So, instead of making the pie recipe, I used the filling recipe to create these pear pie bars with a pecan-studded brown sugar streusel topping.  I also decided to add some dried cranberries to the filling for a punch a tartness.  Cut into squares, this dessert is portable pear-fection!  Here are some extra tips for making these palate-pleasing pear bars:

• In order to facilitate the cutting process, it is best to chill the bars, covered, for at least 2 hours.  This helps to firm up the filling a bit.  Use a very sharp chef's knife to cut the bar into squares.
• The bars will last, tightly covered and chilled, for 2-3 days.  If you want to serve them warm, place them on a baking sheet, covered with foil, in a 350F degree oven for 10-15 minutes.  Crisp the streusel topping by removing the foil for the last few minutes.
• There are many variations that you can try with this recipe.  Use a mixture of tart and sweet apples instead of pears, or use a combination of apples and pears.  Instead of cranberries, use tart dried cherries or diced figs.  Use walnuts or hazelnuts in place of the pecans in the streusel topping.

Brown Sugar Pear and Cranberry Bars

Makes 12 bars

Ingredients:

For the crust

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup golden brown sugar, packed

1 egg

2 1/4 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

For the filling

3 tablespoons flour

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed

2 1/2 pounds firm, ripe Anjou or Bartlett pears, peeled and sliced 1/4-inch thick

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

For the streusel

1 cup flour

1/4 cup sugar

1/4 cup dark brown sugar, packed

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup chilled butter, cut into cubes

1 cup coarsely chopped pecans

Confectioner's sugar

Preheat the oven to 375F degrees.  Line a 9X13X2 inch baking pan with foil so that it hangs over the edges.  Spray the foil with nonstick baking spray.

Prepare the crust:  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and brown sugar until light and fluffy, 2 minutes.  Mix in the egg until well combined.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt.  Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture, mixing on low speed until combined.  With lightly floured hands, press the dough into the baking pan, making a 1/2-inch border around the edges.  Bake the crust for 15-18 minutes, until golden brown.  Keep the oven on.

Prepare the filling:  In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and brown sugar.  Toss the pears and cranberries with the brown sugar mixture, lemon juice, and vanilla.  Let the mixture stand for 15 minutes until juices start to form.  Spread the pears in an even layer over the baked crust.

Prepare the streusel:  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, both sugars, the cinnamon, and the salt.  Add the cubed butter, rubbing together the ingredients with your fingers until the mixture is crumbly.  Mix in the pecans.  Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the pear filling, pressing lightly to adhere.

Cover the baking dish with foil and bake for 30 minutes.  Remove the foil and bake for 20-30 minutes longer, until the topping is browned and crisp.  Let the pan cool completely.  Cut the bars with a very sharp knife; dust with confectioner's sugar and serve.

Whole Wheat Pumpkin-Praline Cinnamon Rolls

I know that weekends are designed to include a good amount of relaxing, whether you're going to a leisurely brunch or planted on the couch watching the Patriots massacre whichever team they happen to be playing that week.  Speaking of the Patriots, have I ever mentioned that I once met Tom Brady?  I'm almost certain that I have, as I try to work the subject into as many conversations as possible (like now.)  It was the year after his first Super Bowl win and, ironically, I had no idea who he was.  I met him at a movie premiere after-party that I was attending with my brother, and the three of us chatted for maybe 5 minutes.  Nice guy.  Decent looking too. 

Julie to Jay (brother):  "Who was that again?"

Jay (incredulously) to Julie: "Uh, seriously? Tom Brady.  He's the new quarterback for the Patriots.  Where the heck have you been?  You're embarrassing."

Julie in the corner, bragging on her cellphone to her new husband, a life-long Patriots fan:  "You'll never guess who I just met....."

Today, of course, I'm a loyal Patriots supporter, especially since I've got a buddy on the team and all.  I'm so glad that he's found himself a nice, marginally attractive girl.  I was getting very concerned that he was hung up on me.    

So now that I've gotten completely off target, I'll go back to my original point (and I did have one.)  Despite the fact that you are supposed to kick back and be idle for at least part of the weekend, I'm just no good at it.  Trust me, I've tried, and I acknowledge the fact that my inability to sit still can become very annoying.  If I'm on the couch "watching" something, I'm also writing, reading, sorting, stacking.....you get the idea.  I'll also spend at least a few hours in the kitchen each day, either working on a new recipe or trying one for the stacks of magazines and cookbooks that I've dog-eared (at this rate, I'll need to live to at least 175 in order to attempt them all.)

During the fall and winter seasons, I tend to spend an above average amount of time in the kitchen.  There are just so many wonderful seasonal ingredients to experiment with, and there are oodles of baking-appropriate occasions.  I never get it all done, so my stack of ideas from one season generally carries over to the following year.  My Sunday strategy is to bake first, clean second (yes mom, I do clean on occasion.)  That way, not only can I get rid of that layer of flour that has inevitably coated my kitchen counter, but the house smells fantastic while I proceed with the drudgery.  It makes even housework seem a bit sweeter.

These surprisingly easy pumpkin cinnamon rolls did the trick yesterday afternoon.  Not only was there a buttery-yeasty smell of baking bread throughout the house, but a sweet brown sugar and spice one as well.  Who needs Yankee Candles?  I decided to use a combination of whole wheat and regular flours, so that the rolls would be a bit healthier and the texture would have a bit more "personality."  You can certainly use all regular flour if desired.  My BFF Tom Brady would love these--I just know it.  Here are my extra tips for preparing these sweet pumpkin treats:

• You can use fresh or canned pumpkin puree for this recipe; however, I have found that fresh puree can be a bit watery, so be sure to drain it first.
• If you don't own an electric mixer with a dough hook, then simply transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead it for 6-8 minutes, until it is smooth and elastic.
• Whenever I need to set dough aside in a warm place to rise, I place it in a warmed oven.  I turn the oven on for a few minutes prior to the rising process, and then I turn it off just before placing the bowl in the oven (don't forget to turn it off or you will have a mess!!!)
• You can replace the cinnamon, ginger, and cloves with 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice.
• Feel free to add dried cranberries, figs, apricots, or golden raisins to the filling mixture.  You can also top the rolls with a glaze.  I was going to do this, but I was out of confectioner's sugar....

Pumpkin-Praline Cinnamon Rolls

Makes about 28

Ingredients:

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

3/4 cups whole milk, warmed to about 110F degrees

2 cups pumpkin puree

6 ounces butter, melted

Zest of one orange

1/2 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon salt

5 cups whole wheat flour

2-3 cups flour

For the topping and filling

6 ounces butter, melted

2 cups golden brown sugar, divided

1 cup chopped pecans

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

In a small bowl, combine the yeast and water; stir to mix.  Let the mixture stand for 5 minutes or until foamy.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the pumpkin with the melted butter, orange zest, and sugar at medium speed.  Add the egg, spices, and salt, and mix to combine.  Add the yeast mixture, beating until thoroughly incorporated.

Gradually add the whole wheat flour, beating until smooth after each addition.  Add enough of the remaining flour to make a soft dough.

Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, adding flour by the tablespoon if the dough sticks to the sides of the bowl, until the dough is smooth and elastic.  Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, turning to coat.  Cover the bowl and let stand in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Spray two 10-inch round cake pans with nonstick baking spray.  Pour 1/4 cup of the melted butter into each of the pans.  Sprinkle each pan evenly with 1/2 cup of the brown sugar.  In a small bowl, combine the rest of the brown sugar, pecans, and cinnamon; stir to mix. 

When the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured clean work surface and divide it in half.  Roll one piece out to a 17 X 12-inch rectangle.  Brush the surface with 2 tablespoons of the remaining melted butter.  Sprinkle the surface with half of the pecan mixture, leaving a 1-inch border on the long side of the dough.  Roll up the dough jelly-roll style, starting at a long side and pressing the edge to seal.  Using a sharp knife, cut the roll into 1-inch sections.  Place the sections in one of the prepared baking pans and repeat the procedure with the remaining dough and topping.

Cover the baking pans and let the rolls rise in a warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.  Bake the rolls for 20-22 minutes, until lightly browned.  Let the rolls cool for 5 minutes and then invert the pans onto serving dished.  Serve warm. 

Sweet Potato Hazelnut Cupcakes with Gingersnap Buttercream

Ah, sweet potatoes!  How do I love thee?  Let me count the ways:

I love thee in a salad, or in a loaf of bread.

In sweet potato pancakes when they're served to me in bed.

Roasted in the oven, marshmallow topping golden brown.

Dear sweet potato pie--who could ever turn you down? 

You're hearty in a soup, so warming to my tummy.

I've never tried you in ice cream, but I'll bet it's super yummy.

I love thee--

Well, you get the picture.  I could go on, but I know you'd rather I stop.  Besides, rhyming is hard work, and my "quick" little blog post has suddenly taken a good chunk of time out of my afternoon.  I have a whole new respect for Dr. Seuss.

Yes folks, I love me some sweet potatoes.  I'll eat them in almost any format, except of course those that resemble cheesecake or come within 3 feet of a jar of mayonnaise.  Yuck.  I love the fact that sweet potatoes are a healthy food, heck, they're a bona fide Superfood, yet they almost taste a bit sinful.  Versatility is one of the sweet potato's assets--it's at home baked, sauteed, steamed, or pureed (sorry, I unintentionally rhymed again.)  My favorite way to enjoy these tasty tubers is peeled, cubed, and roasted in the oven until they  caramelize.  Mmmmmmm.......  Come to think of it, I might just make that tonight.  Pureed, sweet potatoes can serve as a good substitute for canned pumpkin puree in pretty much any recipe, less a little bit of sugar due to their natural sweetness.

These cupcakes were inspired by the cake that I made on last years Food Network: Ultimate Recipe Showdown, my Sweet Potato Layer Cake with Spiced Pecan Buttercream.  The cake itself is a bit time consuming, including what seems like 30 minutes of straight pecan-chopping.  This recipe still incorporates a similar moist sweet potato cake, but it uses hazelnuts instead of pecans, an homage to my favorite sweet potato pie recipe, which is topped with an indulgent hazelnut streusel.  This buttercream is the "quick" version, as opposed to the traditional buttercream that I used for the competition.  Using gingersnaps was another play on the sweet potato pie's gingersnap crust. 

One final change that I made was to downplay the amount of spices in the recipe, although their presence is still detectable.  One particularly intimidating judge on URS scarred me for life when he described the flavor of the spices in my cake as "off-putting" and "vulgar."  Oh no you did-n't.  Hey, buddy.  That's my work of art you're knocking.  Whatev.  But then again, I did take his advice on this recipe.....just in case he was right.  Boy, did I pick a heck of a month to eliminate sweets from my diet.  Here are a few extra tips for preparing these festive fall cupcakes:

• The cupcakes can be baked up to one day in advance prior to decorating, or they can be tightly sealed in zip-top bags and frozen for up to 2 weeks.  Defrost them completely prior to decorating.
• The buttercream can be prepared up to one week in advance and refrigerated, tightly covered.  The hazelnuts will keep for up to one week, sealed in a zip-top bag.
• To make the sweet potato puree, prick the unbaked sweet potatoes several times with a fork and then place on a foil-lined baking sheet.  Bake at 400F degrees for about 1 hour, until very soft; let cool.  Transfer the insides to a food processor and puree until smooth.
• If you don't want to make the spiced hazelnuts, you can always just add toasted chopped hazelnuts to the batter.  You can also substitute toasted walnuts or pecans.
• If you don't have gingersnaps, mix graham cracker crumbs with a bit of spices (ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, etc.) into the buttercream instead.

Sweet Potato Hazelnut Cupcakes with Gingersnap Buttercream

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients:

For the spiced hazelnuts

2 cups blanched hazelnuts, coarsely chopped

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

4 tablespoons butter, melted

1 tablespoon brandy

For the cupcakes

1 cup sugar

1 cup golden brown sugar, packed

4 large eggs

1 cup safflower oil

2 cups sweet potato puree (from 2 large baked sweet potatoes)

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

2 tablespoons brandy (optional)

2 1/2 cups flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 teaspoon kosher salt

For the buttercream (makes quite a bit!)

1 pound butter, room temperature

6 cups confectioner's sugar

1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract or brandy

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

3-5 tablespoons heavy cream

2/3 cup finely crushed gingersnaps

Prepare the candied hazelnuts: Preheat the oven to 350F degrees.  Spread the hazelnuts in a single layer on a baking sheet and toast until lightly browner, about 8 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt, and melted butter in a medium bowl, stirring to blend.  Add the toasted hazelnuts to the mixture, mix thoroughly to coat, and spread them evenly back on the baking sheet.  Bake the hazelnuts for 6 minutes longer, then drizzle them with the brandy.  Return the baking sheet to the oven once more and bake for 6 more minutes, stirring once.  Cool completely. 

Prepare the cupcakes:  Keep the oven at 350F degrees.  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat both sugars with the eggs at medium speed.  Add the oil and beat for 3 minutes.  Mix in the sweet potato puree, vanilla, and brandy, beating until well combined.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing until combined.  Stir in 1 1/2 cups of the chopped hazelnuts.

Line two 12-cup cupcake tins with paper liners.  Fill each liner just over halfway full with the batter.  Bake the cupcakes until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges clean, 18-22 minutes.  Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

Prepare the buttercream:  In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the butter and confectioner's sugar on low speed until combined.  Increase the speed to medium and beat until light and fluffy.  Add the vanilla or brandy and the salt and beat to combine.  Add enough of the heavy cream to reach your desired consistency, beating on medium speed for 1 minute longer.  Beat in the gingersnap crumbs until thoroughly incorporated.

Pipe or spread the buttercream onto the cupcakes.  Sprinkle the buttercream with additional crushed gingersnaps or the remaining chopped hazelnuts. 

Maple-Blueberry Crumbcake

Last week was one helluva crazy-busy week for yours truly.  I over-committed on work obligations, which resulted in me staying up for 36 hours straight just trying to get everything accomplished.  FYI, after The Late Show, The Late Late Show, and the So Late That It's Early Show, there is absolutely nothing on T.V.....unless you're a big fan of Snuggie info-mercials, that is. 

I used to be able to pull an all-nighter with very few side effects; however, those days are apparently behind me, and I likely won't be attempting one again in the near future.  It took the remainder of the week and the weekend for me to fully recover.  In fact, I'm still a wee bit tired (stifles yawn.)  My workouts suffered, my aptly-named "no-fun" diet suffered (ice cream with sprinkles at 3 a.m.!), and my to-do list was pretty much ignored.

Thankfully, this week offers much more flexibility for my schedule, so hopefully I will be able to get back on track.  Monday started out with some good momentum: yoga and meetings in the morning and catching up on recipe ideas in the afternoon, so I have high hopes for the rest of the week.  I was even able to jump back on the no-fun diet train, eschewing bread, sugar, and most dairy for fruits, veggies, and whole grains.  This feat, however, was by no means a cake walk.  Pun intended.

Because I bake so often, I have almost become immune to the enticing aromas of buttery cookies, deep chocolate brownies, or whatever recipe I happen to be creating at the time.  Usually, I suffer little or no temptation when a freshly baked loaf of banana bread cools on the counter or when a few bits of cookie dough cling to the mixing bowl.  That being said, every once in a while I create a recipe that really tests my will power.  This Maple-Blueberry Crumbcake is one such recipe.  Maybe it was the enticing combination of blueberries and maple that reminded me of Sunday morning pancakes.  Maybe it was that generous layer of buttery cinnamon-streusel (everything is better with streusel.)  I don't know.  But when this cake was baking, the aroma all but lifted me from my chair and carried me back into the kitchen--it was that good.  Then of course I had to up the ante by adding a sweet maple glaze on top.  For the record, I did not cheat.....but I sure wanted to.  Knife and fork were in hand, ready to dive in, but I resisted and wrapped it up for Eric to take into work.  Back to my carrots...  Here are a few extra tips for making this crowd-pleasing cake:

• I have made this recipe with both fresh blueberries and the frozen variety.  Both worked very well, so if blueberries are not in season, don't splurge on the fresh ones.
• If you don't have maple extract on hand, you can substitute almond extract, or you can also use only vanilla.
• For a variation on this recipe, try mixing sliced almonds or chopped pecans into the streusel or the batter itself.  Substitute raspberries for the blueberries, or use a mixture of the two.  Mix some orange zest into the cake batter.
• This cake is best served the day that it is made, but it will keep well for 3-4 days, tightly wrapped at room temperature.

Maple Blueberry Crumbcake

Serves 12-16

Ingredients:

1 cup butter, melted

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1 cup well-shaken buttermilk

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 teaspoon maple extract

2 3/4 cups flour

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

For the streusel

2 cups flour

2/3 cup brown sugar, packed

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, melted

For the glaze

2 cups confectioner's sugar

3-4 tablespoons pure maple syrup

Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Line a 9X13 inch baking pan with aluminum foil so that it hangs over the edges by 1-inch.  Spray the foil with nonstick baking spray.

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the melted butter and sugar together on medium speed.  Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.  Mix in the buttermilk and both extracts.

In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt.  Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing to combine.  Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top.  Sprinkle the blueberries evenly over the top of the batter.

Prepare the streusel:  In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.  Stir in the melted butter, breaking the mixture into small clumps.  Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the blueberries, pressing lightly to adhere.

Bake the crumbcake for 40-50 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center emerges clean.  Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.  Remove the cake from the pan by lifting with the ends of the foil.

To make the glaze, whisk together the confectioner's sugar with enough maple syrup to reach a drizzling consistency.  Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake and allow to set for 15 minutes.  Cut the cake into squares and serve.

Two Tricked Out (Rice Krispies) Treats

Ooooh!  Sooooo close.

O.K.  So the bad news is that I did not bring home the massive Build a Better Burger first place trophy and the even more massive $50,000 check.  I came in second (I'd like to think that it was a close second, but I'll never know.) 

The good news is that I came home with a smaller, but oh-so-adorable custom sculpted burger trophy, a $500 prize, many new friends, and wonderful memories. I also get to try again next year!!!  Yaaaaaaaaaay!!  After I take a slider-sized burger break, you can bet your buns that I will be coming up with ideas for next year.    

So, I'm going to politely disagree with Ricky Bobby's "If you're not first, you're last" motto.  Cheesy and cliched as it may sound, I think that all of the finalists felt like winners.  We were treated like rock stars, and we spent a long weekend being wined and dined and wined again in Napa Valley.  Kinda hard to not have a good time, don'tcha think?

The winner and reigning burger queen is the energetic and lovely Suzanne Banfield, who wowed the judges with her Roman Patty Melts.  She how surprised she is in the picture?Suzanne was cooking right next to me, and she was composed and cool as a cucumber.  Her burgers, which you can view on her Today Show segment here, looked and smelled absolutely fantastic.  Unfortunately, due to my "no eating while competing" policy, I only had the chance to taste one of the other burgers (Patterson Watkins' delectable pork sliders on homemade biscuits), but I know that Suzanne's burgers were well-deserving of the title.  Congratulations again!!

For someone who spent an entire day surrounded by sizzling gourmet burgers composed of the finest ingredients that Napa Valley has to offer, I sure was starving by Saturday night.  Ironically, whenever I'm concentrating on cooking or competing, I am typically so focused, not to mention a bit nervous, so that last thing that I want to do is eat.  After the excitement of the day's events wore down a bit, I was grateful that I had decided to make a dinner reservation for my mom and myself at a nearby restaurant called Market.

My mom was my "date" to the competition (tough gig, but someone had to do it), so I wanted to have a nice dinner for just us girls.  Market came highly recommended, and after dining there, I can certainly see why.  When we were greeted at the front door, and I gave the gentleman my last name, he said "Oh, Julie!"  I looked to see if I was still wearing my name tag from that afternoon.  I wasn't--he had memorized it from the reservation book.  That pretty much set the tone for the whole experience.  Friendly, attentive service; fresh and perfectly cooked food; and of course a good bottle of wine.  I can't wait to go back.

When we got up to leave the restaurant, the manager handed us a little Chinese take-out box with "a little something extra" inside.  RICE KRISPIE TREATS!!!  Oh, I had forgotten how much I like, nay, loooovvveee Rice Krispie Treats.  I'm talking eat-the-whole-batch-right-out-of-the-saucepan kind of love. 

So now I am on a Rice Krispie Treats kick.  I wanted to play around with the recipe a bit and see what I could come up with.  The first recipe is a variation on my favorite blondie recipe--rich and buttery.  The second was inspired by an ice cream truck classic, the vanilla-orange creamsicle.  Here are a few extra tips for these tricked out treats:

• Be sure to allow the brown butter to cool before adding the marshmallows.  If the mixture is overheated, the marshmallow mixture might cause the treats to become too hard when they cool.
• Whole Grain RIce Krispies are a new product that I recently found at the grocery store.  They are slightly sweetened with honey, and their size is bigger than regular Rice Krispies.  Feel free to substitute plain or cocoa varieties in either recipe.
• If you can't find Heath toffee pieces, then buy regular Heath or toffee bars and crush them.  You can do this by placing them in a plastic bag and rolling over them several times with a rolling pin.
• These treats are best eaten the day they are prepared, but they will keep, tightly wrapped, for 2 or 3 days.

Brown Butter Toffee Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients:

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

8 ounces marshmallows

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 1/4 cups toffee bits (such as Heath)

5 cups Rice Krispies

6 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Spray a 9-inch square pan with nonstick baking spray.  In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat.  Continue to cook the butter, swirling occasionally, until the foam subsides and the color turns deep golden brown.  The aroma should be rich and nutty.  Remove the saucepan from the heat and let cool 5 minutes.

Add the marshmallows, salt, and cinnamon to the saucepan, and heat over low heat, stirring constantly, until the marshmallows have melted.  Stir in 1 cup of the toffee bits and the Rice Krispies.  Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, pressing with the back of a spatula to form a flat surface.  Let cool to room temperature.

Melt the chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring at 20 second intervals, until melted and smooth.  Invert the Rice Krispie treats onto a piece of foil or parchment paper and spread the melted chocolate evenly over the top.  Sprinkle with the remaining toffee bits and allow to set.  Cut the treats into squares and serve.

Creamsicle Rice Krispie Treats

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

Zest of one orange

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

8 ounces marshmallows

1/4 teaspoon salt

5 cups Whole Grain Rice Krispies

6 ounces good-quality white chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon heavy cream

Spray a 9-inch square pan with nonstick baking spray. Melt the butter in a large saucepan set over low heat.  Stir in the orange zest, vanilla, marshmallows, and salt, stirring until the marshmallows are melted.  Stir in the Rice Krispies and transfer the mixture to the prepared pan, pressing with the back of a spatula to form a flat surface.  Let cool to room temperature.

Melt the chocolate and cream in a microwave-safe bowl, stirring at 20 second intervals, until melted and smooth.  Invert the Rice Krispie treats onto a piece of foil or parchment paper and spread the melted chocolate evenly over the top. 

Allow the chocolate to set and then cut the treats into squares.