A Joy of Baking

and all things from scratch
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    • Cranberry Crumb Bars

      Posted at 9:03 pm by A Joy
      Jan 9th

      Don’t the holidays just fly by!? We spent the weekend taking down Christmas decorations and holiday decor and it had me wishing that we could rewind a few weeks back and do it all again! And then I found this recipe, and that’s exactly what happened.  It’s snowy outside and the fire is on and I took these out of the oven and the feeling of the holidays came right back 🙂

      A good friend gave me  The Smitten Kitchen Cookbook: Recipes and Wisdom from an Obsessive Home CookThe Smitten Kitchen Cookbook when I first moved and it immediately went on the shelf in the kitchen. From apps to dinner to dessert, the book has it all! It came to be especially handy when I was cleaning out the fridge and found an entire bag of fresh cranberries. I was racking my brain trying to figure out what to do with them and then voila, Deb Perelman had an answer in her book.  These cranberry crumb bars have the mulling spices in them, which make them incredibly comforting and delicious.  And as always, her recipes are so simple and straightforward!

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      Cranberry Crumb Bars with Mulling Spices

      Crumb

      • 2 cups flour
      • 1 cup sugar
      • 1/2 tsp salt
      • 1 tsp baking powder
      • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
      • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
      • 1/8 tsp cloves
      • 1/8 allspice
      • 2 sticks butter, chilled and cut into tablespoons
      • 1 egg

      Filling

      • 1/2 tsp orange zest
      • 1 1/2 tbs orange juice
      • 3 cups fresh cranberries
      • 1/3 cups sugar
      • 1 tbs cornstarch

      Mix dry crumb ingredients before adding chilled butter and egg. Then with a pastry blender or fork, work the butter and egg until the mixture resembles coarse sand. Divide mixture in half, and pat half of it in the bottom of a greased 9×13 pan.

      In a food processor (I used a mini KitchenAid KFC3511OB 3.5-Cup Food Chopper – Onyx Black3.5 cup food processor and it fit perfectly!) pulse filling ingredients until berries are coarsely chopped, not pureed. Spread filling over base and then add remaining crumbs in an even layer.

      Bake at 375F for 30-35 minutes. Enjoy!

      Tagged baking, christmas, cranberry, crumb, dessert, holidays, kitchen, kitchenaid, Recipe
    • Banana Bread

      Posted at 8:25 pm by A Joy
      Dec 2nd

      Hello from the other side!! I am writing my first post as a *wife* and it’s surprisingly not about meat and potatoes. Over the past 3 months of married life, I have come to realize how much time is spent in the kitchen as a wife.  Time spent COOKING instead of in my previous life, where all my energy in the kitchen was devoted to baking. Despite the neglect to baking, I have managed to go through 40lbs of King Arthur Flour – All Purpose Unbleached, 5-Pounds (Pack of 2)King Arthur flour since we moved in. It might have something to do with our obsession with homemade pasta, but I will have to save that for another post.

      For now, I am going to teach you how to never through an overripe banana out again. I typically buy way too many bananas, secretly hoping that some will be left at the end of the week to bake with. But, as I mentioned before, food has been finding a way of simply disappearing in my house. Finally though, as I cleaned up the kitchen last night, I spotted three unwanted speckly bananas. And I got to work, before these went missing too 😉
      First, add 3 ripe bananas, 1/2 cup oil, 1 cup sugar and 2 eggs and mix until blended. It’s ok to see some banana chunks!  I insisted on this Creative Co-Op Ceramic Egg Holderceramic egg holder when we got our new place and it makes it so easy to grab an egg or two for baking!

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      Next, add flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt, vanilla and milk. Beat until incorporated, but not too much. You still with some streaks of flour through the batter. You do not want to overmix this or it will become very dense! I have used all sorts of mixers but I swear by the KitchenAid KSM150PSCU Artisan Series 5-Qt. Stand Mixer with Pouring Shield – Contour SilverKitchenAid mixer. The mixer effortlessly incorporates all of the ingredients for a nice evenly distributed batter.

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      Now all you have to do is pour batter into a loaf pan (another kitchen must have that my best friend got me for my wedding was Emile Henry Made In France Ruffled Loaf Pan, 9″x 5″, Flour Whitethis loaf pan) and bake in a preheated 350F degree oven for 45-55mins or until a toothpick comes out clean!

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      Enjoy!!

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      Below is the full recipe, all in one place 🙂

      Banana Bread

      • 3 ripe bananas
      • 1/2 cup oil
      • 2 eggs
      • 1 cup sugar
      • 2 cups all-purpose flour
      • 1 tsp baking soda
      • 1/2 tsp baking powder
      • 1/2 tsp salt
      • 1/2 tsp vanilla
      • 3 tbs milk

      Cook in a preheated 350F for 45-55 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean! Let cool 10 to 15 minutes before serving.  If you want to make this super indulgent, slice and serve with honey, melted butter or ice cream! You can even add chocolate chips or walnuts to the batter! I prefer this recipe as is, because sometimes simple is just the best 🙂 Enjoy!

      Tagged baking, banana, banana bread, dessert, kingarthurflour, kitchen, kitchenaid, Recipe
    • Recent Posts

      • Strawberry Ice Cream
      • Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Frosting
      • NY Style Crumb Cake
      • Cranberry Crumb Bars
      • Ricotta Cookies
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  • Recent Posts: A Joy of Baking

    Strawberry Ice Cream

    Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Frosting

    NY Style Crumb Cake

    Cranberry Crumb Bars

    Ricotta Cookies

    Banana Bread

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