to try: marshmallow recipes

I think these could make great Christmas gifts...I'm going to have some free time (ha, "free time") this week and after classes, so I'm earmarking some recipes:

• Pumpkin Spice Marshmallows
• Chocolate Marshmallows
• Strawberry Marshmallows
• Basic Vanilla Marshmallows

on the topic of pumpkins

Oh, this stuff is SO. GOOD.  We don't have any Trader Joe's in my area (so sad!), but my sister is going to college in Boston so every time we've visited her I load up while I have the chance.  I love fall!

 

I've been trying to find pumpkins to make some toasted pumpkin seeds, but I can't find any at the local grocery store!  I'll make a trip out to an orchard or something at some point before Thanksgiving, but I was hoping I wouldn't have to make a special trip out...sucks!

 

On my fall to-try recipe list:

• Pepita Granola from smitten kitchen
• Mom's Apple Cake from smitten kitchen
• Caramel Apples from 101 Cookbooks
• Pumpkin Spice Scones from Pinch My Salt
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chips from the Post Punk Kitchen
• Pumpkin Raisin Bread Pudding from Culinary Concoctions by Peabody
• Sweet Potato and Sausage Soup from smitten kitchen
• Roasted Autumn Vegetable Chowder from Pinch My Salt

recent deliciousness!

 

These were just so good I couldn't resist blogging about them!  Sometime in August, I made Cheddar Scallion Biscuits with Garlic Butter, blogged about at Cheap Cooking.  The garlic butter was definitely an excellent addition, as the biscuits were pretty mild in flavor.  I think next time I make them I might try adding in some bacon.

I have ALWAYS dreamed about making tiramisu.  Back before I was in college, I was an absolutely hopeless baker.  I loved it so much, but even mixes wouldn't come out for me.  It was actually pretty sad, thinking back on it, how many times I attempted to bake a cake or pretty much anything and how often it failed.

I tried making tiramisu exactly once.  I was so disappointed!  The filling was horribly lumpy, not sweet at all, and the ladyfinger cookies were nothing but a soggy mush.  Not to mention I felt pretty bad that my dad had bought me the (expensive) mascarpone cheese and I had clearly butchered the recipe.

When I saw a bag of real Italian ladyfingers at the local Italian deli, I decided to try again...and I have to say I was quite the opposite of disappointed!  I used Pioneer Woman's Tiramisu recipe, and I CAN make Tiramisu, I can!

 

Mmmmm, look at that. :D

And of course, I have to post my go-to recipes for yellow cake and chocolate frosting (a birthday cake classic!).  Culinary Concoctions by Peabody's Yellow Cake and Fudgy Chocolate Frosting are my standards.  I refuse to try another recipe most of the time because these are just so perfect!  This cake is moist, flavorful, and has the perfect crumb.  And the frosting is super easy to make, spreads well, and is delicious!

For this cake, I actually (gasp!) used another recipe - the Magnolia Vanilla Cupcake recipe - substituting the self-rising flour (didn't have any), and baking it in a cake pan.  The yellow cake recipe I use is a little too crumby to decorate that way I wanted to for this cake, so I tried the Magnolia recipe instead....wow!  My roommate is the cake decorator in the house (she's great!) and she was very impressed by how flat the cake baked, and how evenly the layers cut.  I have to say, I much prefer the taste of Peabody's yellow cake to this vanilla cake, but opinions on that have varied, I've found.

And last, but absolutely-certainly not least, we have....Fudgy Brownies from John Scharffenberger.  Oh. My. God.  You must make these!  The recipe takes a whole lot of chocolate, so quality really matters here.  I used half Ghiradelli's Baking Bar chocolate, half Lindt chocolate.  Holy moly. The whole key to this recipe, other than quality of chocolate, is to really mix the batter until it's glossy and pulls away from the bowl.  That's what creates the perfectly crackled/chewy crust on the brownie.  So good!