Peanut Butter and Jelly No Bake Cheescake

 I was provided with products from Nielsen Massey in order to facilitate the writing of this post.

Summertime has always been the time of year when most of us start looking for nostalgic flavors. There's just something about the warmer weather that makes us all want to recapture our more innocent days, right? I mean... now more so than ever before, for sure. I've definitely been dreaming of the days when I could freely run through my backyard soaking wet from the pool, when I made makeshift picnics on the grass with my dogs, and when I expertly choreographed elaborate production numbers to the soundtrack of The Little Mermaid. Oh, to have that much endless energy once more...

The bad thing about trying to make nostalgic treats in the summer time is having to turn on the oven. I know the last thing I want to do when I'm already cranking my AC to the max is to add flame to the fire by turning on my oven, even if I am hard core craving brownies or chocolate chip cookies. Thank goodness for who ever invented no-bake desserts. Many of them are familiar staples of backyard BBQ's this time of year; from the lowly fruit infused Jell-O ring to the elevated trifle.

When I think of no-bake desserts, there's only one thing that comes to mind: Cheesecake. A cold, sweet, creamy dessert that can be customized in a million different ways so that you never get bored of it? Yes please! So when my friends at Nielsen-Massey Vanillas challenged me to come up with a summertime no-bake dessert, I knew I had to go with a no-bake cheesecake. But not just any no-bake cheesecake! Mine would evoke the ultimate childhood memories of summer with the single greatest flavor combination of all time: PB&J.

The secret to getting this idea to work was to find a way to flavor the cheesecake without adding extra moisture, as that would completely ruin the texture and prevent it from setting up. That was why I decided powdered flavorings were the way to go; namely powdered peanut butter and pulverized freeze dried strawberries. I was so thrilled with how both of these ingredients really came through in the end result, and the addition of the Nielsen Massey Pure Vanilla Extract to the cheesecake base really helped those flavors shine. I did decide to add a layer of actual jelly/jam, but full disclosure if you want to attempt this recipe, that decision did interrupt the structural integrity of the cake a bit. If I was to do it again, I might opt to put the jelly on top instead, as the contrast of the sweet preserves with the tart strawberry powder and the slightly salty peanut butter is utter perfection. But it was totally worth the struggle to cut a clean slice when I saw that ooey gooey jelly oozing out from the center of the cake!

Be sure to let me know if you try making this cake on your own, and also feel free to let me know your favorite childhood flavor combos in the comments below!

PB&J No Bake Cheesecake

Crust: 

About 2 packets of Graham Crackers, crushed into course crumbs
3/4 a cup of melted unsalted butter
a pinch of salt

Filling:

3 8oz packages of cream cheese at room temperature
1 1/2 cups of powdered sugar
2 tablespoons Nielsen Massey Pure Vanilla Extract
2 cups of Greek Yogurt
1 1/2 cups of heavy whipping cream
1/2 cup powdered peanut butter

1/2 teaspoon of salt
4 oz of freeze dried strawberries, pulverized into a powder
(optional) about 10 oz of strawberry jam, store bought or home made 

To make the crust, put the graham crackers and salt into a small bowl. Melt the butter, then combine it with the graham cracker mixture. Quickly press the graham crackers into a non stick 10 inch spring form pan, making sure the bottom is very compact, but not too thick. Press any excess up the sides of the pan. Place the whole thing in the freezer.

To make the filling, add the cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla into a large bowl and beat with a hand mixer for about 5 minutes, or until smooth and a little fluffy. Add in the yogurt and continue to beat until everything is well incorporated. In a separate bowl, add the heavy whipping cream and whip until peaks begin to form. Split the whipped cream in half and add the peanut butter powder to one half and the strawberry powder to the other half. Whip both again to incorporate completely. Add half the cream cheese mixture to each bowl of whipped cream and fold gently to combine.

Remove the crust from the freezer. Add the peanut butter filling and smooth out the top. If doing the jelly in the middle, add it now in a even layer across the peanut butter filling. Add in the strawberry filling and smooth out the top. Cover the whole thing in plastic wrap, then leave to set in the fridge over night. 

NOTE: To get a clean slice, place the cheesecake into the freezer at least an hour before serving. Run a large knife under hot water, then use it to cut the cake. The crust is very delicate, so be prepared to scoop up crumbs. I think they look nice sprinkled on the top!

Learning to Pipe Buttercream Flowers in the Time of Quarantine

I was sent product free of charge from Nielsen-Massey Vanillas in order to facilitate the writing of this post.

Well, it's been a crazy few months since my last post. Back then, things were just starting to go into lock down mode. Now, we're all adjusting to our new normals, whether that is ordering takeout a few times a week to keep our friends in the hospitality industry afloat, buying meal kits from our favorite small businesses and, vendors, and farmers, or doing a hell of a lot more baking than any one person should probably be doing.

Speaking of baking, if you've been following my Instagram, you'll know I have fallen full force into the quarantine baker role. Bread, butter mochi, chocolate chip cookies. Just all the carbs. So much carbs. Thing is, as good as my baking skills have gotten, my presentation skills are still kind of lacking.

That is one of the reasons I still love visiting bakeries, like my neighbors, Life's Sweet Inc. Ever since this dessert wonderland opened last year, I've been obsessed with everything Melissa, the owner, makes. Every time I walk in the door, I am immediately hypnotized by all the delicious sweets on display in her pastry case. Better yet, if you stick around her shop for any length of time, you are bound to see one of her gorgeously decorated cakes making it's way out the door. Every single time, I marvel at how beautiful and precise her buttercream piping skills are.

Sadly, it's businesses like Melissa's that have been hit the hardest during the COVID-19 crisis. Small, independent, neighborhood restaurants, bakeries, and specialty shops all over the country have been forced into making horrible decisions about whether to remain open for carry out/delivery and place their staff at risk while fighting with greedy delivery platforms, or closing up completely and putting all their faith in the unstable and confusing government loan programs. But through everything, Melissa has stayed flexible and positive by keeping her bakery and cafe going through an ingenious pickup window system. I have made it a point to try and visit places like her shop at least once a week, because I am now so addicted to her ever changing lineup of sweets and perfectly prepared breakfast and lunch fair that I cannot imagine my neighborhood without her. I will single handedly keep her in business, if that's what it takes!

My buddies over at Nielsen-Massey Vanillas recently released a new instructional video over on their Better Your Bake page about how to pipe buttercream roses and hydrangeas. Well, since I have been wanting to step up my decorating skills, this was a perfect opportunity to start learning, especially since I have never ever tried piping before! But, I wanted to see just how close I could get to professional quality flower piping using the instructional video alone, so I roped Melissa into helping me. I ordered some of her impossibly moist mini cupcakes and had her put her signature piping on top of half of them, and I would try my best to replicate her work. How did I do? Well, before you scroll all the way down, take a close look at the next picture and see if you can determine which of us piped which cupcake:

Not bad for a beginner, hu? In case you couldn't tell, that's mine on the right and Mel;issa's on the left. Preparing the two toned piping was much easier to do than I thought it would be, and I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. Now, after I started practicing my piping, I realized that I was using tips that were a bit smaller than Melissa's, but I think I still achieved the same effect. Now, as for the roses... well, it's gonna be pretty obvious who the beginner piper was here!

Yeah, I didn't quite master the height and definition of Melissa's work, but at least after a few tries, I did manage to get something that vaguely looked like a rose! Oh, and by a few tries, I mean two batches of buttercream worth of tries!

Rose attempt number 1

Rose attempt number 2

In the end, the piping was a bit easier than I expected it to be, but it's definitely something that is going to take lots of practice to master. There is a lot of muscle memory and nuance involved, and getting the buttercream to just the right consistency and temperature is crucial (that's why I used Nielsen-Massey's tried and true buttercream recipe to give myself the best chance at success).

So, what do you think of how my beginner's piping compared to that of a professional? And let me know in the comments below what skills you have been learning while you've been stuck at home! Stay safe, everybody! And don't forget to support local small businesses and independent restaurants in any way you can!

Stress Baking: Giant Japanese Style Pancake in an Instant Pot with Nielsen-Massey Vanillas

I was sent product free of charge by Nielsen-Massey for us in the writing of this blog post.

So... stress baking. I talked about it in my last post, but whooooo boy, have things taken a turn since then. Currently, I am still going into my day job daily, which is not ideal, but at least it helps to keep my mind from wandering into darker places. However, last weekend, I was able to put some of my nervous energy to good use in the form of some good old fashioned recipe experimentation.

A while ago, I took a stab at Japanese style souffle pancakes, which I made on my stove top with the help of a ring mold. While they looked lovely for pictures and tasted just a good, they ended up being a little more labor intensive than I would like, so I set out to see if there was another method I could use that would simplify matters some. After some research, I discovered a lot of people were making giant souffle pancakes in their instant pots! "Well, I've got one of those," I thought, "Let's give it a shot!'

As in my original recipe, for the most part I used a pretty standard pancake batter, but I did a few significant things to give my pancake a lovely, fluffy texture and a really good flavor. Firstly, I used cake flour, which is basically more finely milled all purpose flour (think the difference between granulated sugar and powdered sugar). This ensures the batter remains light weight. Secondly, unlike a lot of instant pot pancake recipes I saw in which the batter was pored directly into the bottom of the insert, I decided to use a spring form pan propped up on the trivet insert. This allowed me to put a little water into the bottom of the insert, which injected lots of moisture into the pancake, and also ensured the bottom of the pancake didn't burn. Lastly, I separated my yolks and whites and whipped the whites to soft peaks as if I was making an actual souffle. As part of their "Better Your Bakes" campaign, my friends at Nielsen-Massey Vanillas have produced a really good video on how to do this properly: https://nielsenmassey.com/betteryourbake/ I also used their Ugandan Vanilla Extract, which has a really unique creamy, almost chocolaty flavor to it that takes this pancake to the next level.

The one draw back to doing things this way is that even though the batter is very easy to put together, it does take a bit of time to cook. My suggestion is to get everything put together first thing in the morning, then wash the dishes, make some coffee, take a shower, etc., and when you're done, your delicious giant pancake will be ready for you! I also experimented with making this pancake ahead of time and refrigerating it, and while that does make the pancake a bit more dense, it's still pretty delicious and it reheats very well. In fact, on the second day, I actually took the second pancake and heated it in a skillet with a little butter, which gave it an awesome crunchy top!

Let me know in the comments below how you're taking care of yourself through this crazy time in our collective lives. Are you stress baking too? If so, share with me and Nielsen-Massey by posting a picture of your baking creations to social media with the hashtag #BetterYourBake Hope you and yours are all keeping safe and healthy!

Giant Japanese Style Instant Pot Pancake

1 large egg, yolk and white separated
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 tablespoon Nielsen Massey pure Vanilla Extract
1 cup cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder

In a medium sized bowl, add sugar, salt, and vanilla extract to the yolk and whisk to combine, then add the milk and stir until a uniform pale yellow color has been achieved. Slowly add in the flour and baking powder until the mixture is smooth and mostly free of lumps.

In a separate bowl, whip the egg white using a whisk or a hand mixer until stiff peaks have formed. Slowly add the yolk batter into the whipped whites a little at a time and fold gently to incorporate until everything is combined.

Use butter or cooking spray to line the inside of a small spring form pan. Place the trivet into the bottom of the Instant Pot insert and add 1/2 cup of water, or just enough to cover the bottom of the insert. Pour the batter into the spring form pan and place on the trivet. Set the instant pot to cook at low pressure for 45 minutes and close the valve. Once the time is up, briefly vent, remove the spring form pan, unmold the pancake onto a plate, and serve with butter, syrup, fresh berries, powdered sugar, or anything you like.

Optional: for a crunchy top, heat about 1/2 a tablespoon of butter in a skillet, then brown each side of the pancake in the pan for about a minute on each side.

Jam and Almond Cream Stuffed Vanilla Brioche with Nielsen- Massey Vanillas

I was sent product free of charge by Nielsen-Massey Vanillas in order to facilitate the writing of this post. All opinions are my own.

Last year, I learned to make my own pasta. This year's culinary goal? Bread. Because I need to be able to produce carbs on demand. So when Nielsen-Massey recently challenged me to come up with a great recipe in honor of a Galentine's celebration of self care for me and my single besties, I figured there was no time like the present to start learning.

Like many people, I have a healthy obsession with the Great British Bake Off, which is probably what put the idea of learning to bake bread into my mind. Who hasn't fantasized about getting a Hollywood Handshake, am I right? The thing is that the show is so gentile and lovely and everyone is so nice to each other, that I think I have been begun associating baking with everything good and warm and fuzzy. Now if only there could be a show that made me feel that way about vegetables!

As I set out on my first bread making adventure, I kept thinking about the episode of Bake Off where the contestants had to make Chelsea Buns, which are traditionally a sort of sticky bun filled with currants and spices. I liked the concept of making more of a pastry-like bread than just a regular old loaf (because I always have to make things more difficult than they have to be). I also loved the idea of being able to pull off chunks of the bread, making it easily sharable. After all, I wanted to be able to share the carby love with all of my fellow single ladies.

I decided to do a brioche style bread because... well, because brioche is freaking delicious, but also because I wanted to lean slightly sweet. In an ode to Chelsea buns, I decided to do a filling with red currant jam and some almond paste, but instead of doing a swirl, I decided to do little round buns that one could pull off a larger loaf. Much to my delight, this recipe worked so perfectly that I called my mother in total elation, shouting, "I made bread!" while covering my phone in sugar glaze and crumbs in the process. The buns come away easily and are sturdy, yet fluffy and soft as a pillow, with the perfect little surprise pocket of filling in the center of each one. If snuggling into a fuzzy blanket with a good cup of tea, a good Netflix series, and this whole loaf of bread in front of me isn't self care, I don't know what is.

The beauty of this recipe is that it can literally be customized to any flavor combination. Peanut butter and grape jelly? Sure! Orange marmalade and pistachio? Why not! I can imagine a thousand different filling that would work equally as well as the one I used, and the subtle vanilla flavor of the bread itself would work well with any of them. And seeing as how a layperson like me was able to make this so easily, I'm gonna go ahead and say this recipe is super beginner friendly! The main thing to remember is this: you have to take care of that yeast. Keep it warm and cozy. No cold eggs, no cold milk, no cold butter. And if your kitchen isn't over 70 degrees, I suggest heating your oven to its lowest setting, turning it off, and putting your dough in there to proof.

Let me know in the comments below what you think! Have you every baked bread from scratch? What flavors would you fill yours with?

Pull Apart Stuffed Vanilla Brioche

1/2 tablespoon of instant yeast
1/2 tablespoon of salt
1/4 cup sugar
3-4 cups bread flour
1 cup warmed whole milk
2 large room temperature eggs
1/4 cup melted butter
1 tablespoon Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Extract or Vanilla Bean Paste
Any flavor or jelly, jam, or marmalade
7 ounce tube of almond paste (or homemade)

For Egg Wash:

1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Extract
1/2 teaspoon sugar

For the Glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Extract
milk until desired consistency

Combine 1 cup of the flour with the yeast, salt, and sugar and whisk together using the paddle attachment of a stand mixer. Add in the milk, eggs, butter, and vanilla extract and continue to whisk with the paddle attachment until the mixture is completely smooth (remember to scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure everything has been incorporated). Start adding in the remaining flour 1/3 a cup at a time. About half way through, you will need to switch out the paddle attachment for a dough hook. Keep adding flour until the dough is no longer sticky.

Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and kneed it until everything is the same smooth texture and the dough springs back when poked. Put into a large bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and put someplace warm for proof for about 2 hours.

Once the dough has doubled in size, punch down the risen dough and divide it into palm sized rounds. Flatten each round and spread a teaspoon of jelly and a teaspoon of almond paste onto the center of the dough, leaving the edges clean. Fold the edges over the filing and pinch them together to seal the dough, then shape into a ball and place into a non stick bunt pan. You should be able to get at least 2 layers of buns. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and set aside somewhere warm to proof for about 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 350 degree. Combine the egg yolk, vanilla, and sugar in a small bowl and whisk together. Using a pastry brush, apply the egg wash to the top of the proofed buns. Bake the bread for 40-45 minutes, or until the tops of the buns are lightly golden brown. Let cool.

Mix the powdered sugar, vanilla, and milk in a small bowl. After the bread is completely cool, remove it from the pan and place on a plate. Drizzle the glaze over the top and serve.

One Dough, Three Cookies: Christmas Thumb Print Cookies with Nielsen-Massey

I was sent products from of charge by Nielsen Massey in order to accommodate the writing of this post. All opinions are my own.

So your boyfriend's best friend's girlfriend suddenly decided to throw a last minute Christmas party. And your office manager suddenly decided everyone should do a pot luck lunch before the holiday. And your kid suddenly remembered the band is holding a holiday bake sale in order to raise funds to get the dents hammered out of the tubas. Not to fear! I'm here to help.

Of course everyone thinks of cookies around the holidays, and everyone has their favorite flavor combos that remind them of their childhoods. The easiest way to please everyone without endlessly sorting through Pinterest for recipe ideas is to find one basic cookie recipe and riff on that.

I, personally, have a great affinity for thumbprint cookies, mostly because they are so versatile that they can be re-invented to accommodate almost any flavor combo. To prove this, I decided to use Nielsen-Massey's Holiday Flavor Bundle as inspiration and create three different thumbprint cookies from the same basic recipe.

First, I made the easy decision to pair the almond extract with cherry preserves. Cherry and almond are such a classic combo, and the bright red center and the creamy white cookie just look so darn festive. Top these cookies with some slivered almonds and watch them disappear (in my own personal testing session at my office, these were the first to go).

Secondly, I decided to be a little adventurous with the vanilla while still keeping within the realm of winter flavor. Nielsen-Massey's vanillas are, after all, top notch and deserve to be featured rather than used as an after thought. For this version, I finely ground some winter spices (cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and cardamon) and mixed those into the cookie dough along with the vanilla extract. I filled these cookies with a sweet orange marmalade and topped them with a drizzle of melted white chocolate. This version of the cookie might have been my favorite, if only because it reminded me of the orange spice tea my mom used to give me when I was a kid.

Lastly, I decided the pair the peppermint extract with chocolate, because what else is a more quintessentially holiday flavor combo? I altered the base cookie recipe slightly by replacing a 1/2 cup of the flour with cocoa powder and I baked the cookies without any filling. While they baked, I made a quick ganache from dark chocolate, cream, butter, and some more peppermint extract. Once the cookies were cooled, I filled them with the ganach and topped them with crushed candy cane bits.

Tell me what cookie flavor combos you'd like to try in the comments below!

Thumbprint Cookie Base


3/4 cup softened unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1 tsp flavoring (such as vanilla extract, peppermint extract, etc.)
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and sugar with a hand mixer, then add the egg and extract/flavoring. Add the baking powder and salt. Continue mixing, adding in the flour 1/4 cup at a time until it is all incorporated and the dough has formed. If the dough it a sandy texture, use your hands to finish mixing it until it is one thick mass.

Scoop the cookie dough into 1 inch balls and place them onto a greased baking sheet or a silicon mat. Make an indent with your thumb to create a well in the middle of the cookie. If using a jam-like filling, drop it into the well now. Bake the cookies for about 15 minutes, or until the bottom edges start to go golden brown. Let the cookies cool on a rack for about 15 minutes, then if not already filled, top the cookies with whatever filling you are using.

Makes about 2 dozen.

Peach Bourbon Brown Butter Cake with Nielsen-Massey Vanillas

I was sent products from Nielsen-Massey Vanillas in order to facilitate the writing of this post. All opinions are my own.

It's odd that some people think of baking as a winter time activity. I mean, I get it; no one wants to unnecessarily warm up their house in the middle of a heat wave by having the oven on.  But it's a real shame, because there's so many flavors that are only available during the summer that work so well in baked goods, not to mention we can all use a little stress relief at all times of the year.

You've seen the title of this post, so you know what I'm going to say next: peaches. Baked goods with peaches are absolutely fantastic. In general, I find that stone fruits are some of my favorite things to bake with, because their flavors are so complex and vivid when the fruits are fresh, but even more so when cooked. And you can't exactly cook with fresh peaches in the dead of winter, so making a delicious summertime treat is really your only option if you don't want to use frozen or canned fruits.

Recently my friends at Nielsen-Massey Vanillas released two limited edition vanilla extracts and asked if I'd like to try one of them out. I opted for the Indonesian Vanilla because it was purported to have woody, smokey notes, and that it worked well in high heat/slow bake recipes. The woody/smokey notes immediately made me think of grilling peaches, which was just the thing to compliment the recipe I had in mind.

What did I have in mind you ask? Again... it's right there in the title of the post, so you pretty much know already. Basically, I wanted to try making a take on the Midwest favorite; Gooey Butter Cake. I'd never had this finger-licking treat before I moved to Chicago, but now I've been well educated on this bake sale classic, and it is well loved for a reason. The reason, of course, is BUTTER. But even classics can stand to be improved a little.

The only thing  that has always bothered me about gooey butter caked was that typically, a boxed yellow cake mix is used to make the crust. Why not make it from scratch? It's just as easy as using the box, and you can have more control over the quality of the ingredients. 

I also decided to use brown butter in all elements of this cake to give it a nuttier, more toasty flavor, that I thought would really compliment the Indonesian vanilla. This step by step guide from Nielsen-Massey Vanillas's Better Your Bake series perfectly demonstrates how to achieve brown butter without burning it, which is something I used to struggle with. 

Lastly, I decided that I wanted to top my cake with a richly flavored, slightly tart peach puree in order to off-set the sometimes cloying sweetness of the cake and filing. The addition of some good bourbon and roasted cinnamon is absolutely gilding the lily with even more deliciousness, pushing this cake into a more adult-centric flavor profile. If I wanted to sound pretentious, I might call it "elevated nostalgia."

Peach Bourbon Brown Butter Cake

For the Crust:

1/2 cup (8 tablespoons or 1 stick) of butter, melted and browned

1 cup sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 tablespoon Nielsen Massey Vanilla Extract

2 large eggs

3 cups cake flour

a pinch of salt

For the Filing: 

1 package of softened cream cheese (8 oz)

1/2 cup (8 tablespoons or 1 stick) of butter, melted and browned

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons Nielsen Massey Vanilla Extract

1 cup sugar

a pinch of salt

For the topping:

1/2 cup (8 tablespoons or 1 stick) of butter, melted and browned

4 large peaches, pitted and cut into slices

1/2 cup good bourbon

1 tablespoon Nielsen Massey Vanilla Extract

1 teaspoon roasted cinnamon

a pinch of salt

sugar to taste

4 sheets of gelatin, bloomed in warm water

Pre-heat oven to 375. 

First, make the crust: In a large bowl, combine the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla, eggs, and brown butter. Mix until it forms a dough (you may need to kneed it with your hands. If it's too dry and not coming together, add a tiny bit of milk or water until it becomes a cohesive dough). Press the dough into a non stick or greased 9x13 pan, forming an even base and bringing the dough up half way on the sides of the pan.

Next, make the filling: In a medium bowl, add the cream cheese, butter, eggs, vanilla, sugar, and salt, and mix with a hand mixer until everything is combined and smooth. Pour the filling over the crust and smooth out the top. Bake for about an hour, or until the edges of the crust are just starting to brown and the filing is set but still slightly jiggly. Set aside to cool.

For the topping: Add the peaches to the butter in a medium sauce pan over medium high heat and cook until the peaches have become extremely soft and rendered out most of the juice, about 15 minutes. Add in the bourbon, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt and let cook an additional 10 minutes. Take the mixture off the heat and using an immersion blender, puree the peaches completely. Taste the mixture and add sugar as needed (it's best to keep the puree a little on the tart side). Put the mixture back on the heat and add the gelatin sheets, then stir until they have completely dissolved. Pour the puree mixture over the top of the cooled cake and make sure to smooth it out into an even layer. Refrigerate for a few hours or over night to set the topping, cut into squares, and serve.

Springtime Passion Fruit Panna Cotta with Nielsen Massey Vanillas

I've always heard that panna cotta is the lazy chef's fancy dessert. You'll see this thick, creamy, molded custard dessert on menus quite often, mostly because it requires very little cooking or baby sitting. Just heat, mix, and leave it in the fridge. Lazy or not, I love it. I am an unrepentant dairy addict, so if you offer me something creamy, most likely I'm gonna be ok with it.

This year, I have promised myself to be more adventurous when cooking at home and try things I've never done before, so I decided it was time to give the panna cotta a go. Now, the secret to making a perfect panna cotta is having a perfect base recipe to layer flavors on top of. That's one of the reasons this dessert is one of my favorites; it's versatility. It can be fruity, it can be chocolaty, it can be floral, it can be boozy, or any combination one could dream of.

When I started to build my panna cotta recipe, I knew immediately that I wanted to flavor the base with Nielsen Massey Vanilla Bean Paste. This stuff is a staple in my baking cabinet, mostly because it adds the touch of those little vanilla speckles that always make a dessert feel more elevated. They even recently released a new version of the Vanilla Bean Paste, made with Tahitian vanilla, which carries fruity and floral notes (as opposed to the Madagascar Vanilla Bean Paste, which is more rich and creamy in flavor).

Since my vanilla of choice was a little more on the fruity side, I chose to make my first ever panna cotta a passion fruit panna cotta. Instead of making my own passion fruit curd, I opted for one I already knew was great, but maybe next time I'll be brave enough to try making one from scratch!

I was almost shaking when I un-molded my little rounds of creamy goodness for the first time, but they turned out PERFECTLY! Fruity, floral, just a touch of sourness, and a silky smooth texture that makes you never want to stop eating them. Don't like passion fruit? You can literally use this base recipe with any kind of flavor! Fruit jams, infused syrups, spice blends... the possibilities are literally endless!



Passion Fruit Panna Cotta

2 cups heavy cream
1 cup half and half
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 cup passion fruit curd
2 tablespoons Nielsen Massey Tahitian Vanilla Bean Paste
1 envelope un-flavored gelatin
2 tablespoons any sweet white wine (can also use white grape juice)

Add two tablespoons of white wine to a small sauce pan and sprinkle gelatin over the surface of the liquid. Leave to bloom.

Add heavy cream, half and half, and sugar to a medium sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a soft boil, then take off the heat. Add in the passion fruit curd and the vanilla bean paste and whisk slowly to combine.

Heat wine and gelatin mixture over a medium heat. Remove immediately once gelatin is completely dissolved. Very slowly, pour the gelatin mixture into the cream mixture while whisking. Once everything is combined, pour into small ramekins (should fill about 4-8, depending on size). Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least an hour (over night is best).

To un-mold, unwrap the ramekins and run a thin knife blade along the edge. Dip them into a bowl of hot water for a few seconds, then invert them onto a plate. Garnish with fresh berries and serve.

Peppermint and Almond Christmas Poke Cake with Nielsen Massey

I received free product from Nielsen Massey in order to facilitate the writing of this post.

Christmas time and baking are pretty synonymous. Who thinks of Christmas time and doesn't conjure up memories of delicately iced sugar cookies, warm gingerbread, or boozy fruit cake? Sometimes on wintery weekends, I start feeling the impulse to just get up a bake. It keeps my hands busy, it keeps me warm, and it gives me something to do while binging Great British Baking Show for hours on end. Well, one of these impulses over took me this past weekend, and it resulted in something I'm actually pretty proud of.

I had a vision, you see. It was of a cake my mom made once, long ago. A sort of yellow sheet cake with icicle-like drips of red and green running through the slices. I don't remember how old I was when she made it, nor do I remember how many times she made it. But the memory of those magically colored squares of cake popped into my head and I decided I wanted to make a Christmas Poke Cake of my own.

Now, because I can't do anything the easy way, I realized I was going to have to improvise a little. Nearly every recipe I found for poke cakes called for boxed cake mix for some reason. Does no one make their own cake mix anymore? I don't know about you, but I like begin able to control the salt levels and types of flour I'm using for my baking recipes. I also didn't want to make a sheet cake because... well... I don't really know why I didn't want to make a sheet cake. So I decided to make it a bundt cake instead. Because bundt cakes are prettier. And more festive. Lastly, I decided not to use pre-flavored gelatin. This was mostly down to the fact that red and green gelatin look great, but don't exactly make a very Christmas-y flavor combo (but if lime and cherry are your idea of Christmas flavors, I'm not judging).

For my Christmas Poke Cake, I wanted to highlight a trio of the best flavorings on earth: Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract, Pure Almond Extract and Pure Peppermint Extract from Nielsen-Massey Vanillas. I've been working with Nielsen-Massey Vanilla's extracts for many years now and it would be a horror to open my cabinet and not find them. It's so great that a family owned company from right here is Illinois has become world renowned for producing such excellent products (seriously, you can even spot their bottles on the contestant's stations in Great British Baking Show!). Obviously, these three extracts in particular play an important role in Christmas baking, which is why they have bundled them all together for super convenient baking supply shopping. The Nielsen-Massey Vanillas Holiday Flavors Bundle is available exclusively on Amazon in 2 oz and 4 oz options.

I started off by using the basic pound cake recipe from Nielsen-Massey Vanilla's website. The only modification I made was to not use the almond extract in the batter. I baked the cake in a bundt cake pan, then let it cool. Once the cake was at room temperature, I used a wooden skewer to create holes down the center and sides of the cake. For the first syrup, I brought 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar,and 1 packet of gelatin to a simmer. Once everything was dissolved, I removed the mixed from the heat and added a few drops of red food coloring and 2 teaspoons of the Peppermint extract. I did the same for the second syrup, except with green food coloring and 1 tablespoon of the almond extract.

Now you have to work kind of quickly with this next step. I used plastic pipettes to inject the syrups into the guide holes I'd created with the wooden skewer, making sure the syrup got at least halfway down into the cake. I did one half of the cake with the peppermint syrup and one half with the almond. Once all the holes had been injected, I carefully spooned what was left of the syrup over the top of the cake, making sure the whole top and sides were coated. This will create not only a wash of color around the edges of each slice, but will help to seal the moisture inside your cake and keep it from drying out.

Once I was ready to serve my masterpiece, I covered the whole thing in a dusting of powdered sugar and sliced away! So what are your favorite holiday baking projects? Head on over to my Instagram page and look for the post with the picture of my cake, tell me your must have holiday goodies, and you will have a chance to win a Nielsen-Massey Vanillas Holiday Flavor Bundle of your own! And for more great baking ideas, make sure to follow the hashtag #NiesenMasseyInspires across social media.

Tea Party: Earl Grey Cream Puffs and Fruity Tea Spritzers with Nielsen Massey and Waterloo

Some of the products mentioned in this post were sent to me as PR. Free products do not and will not ever influence my opinions.

Anyone who has been around me for any length of time has probably heard me expound upon my love of all things Earl Grey. The magical combination of bergamot and black tea is one of my favorite flavor pairings in the universe. I even have Earl Grey scented candles, for when I want my house to smell as though I just brewed a fresh cuppa, but I don't want to ingest the caffeine. In fact, I'm a pretty big fan of most tea flavored things; I adore the grassy notes of matcha and the roasted depth of hōjicha, when I want to unwind I always turn to chamomile, and there is pretty much always a hibiscus fruit tea of some kind chilling in my fridge

So a few weeks ago when some friends and I were casually chatting about an afternoon get together, I decided to turn our gab session into a miniature tea party. Since I was expecting a mixed crowd, I knew I had to come up with a versatile drink that would please a variety of palates. I thought back to late last year when I discovered one of my favorite mixers, Waterloo Sparkling Waters. Since then, they've added a mango flavor to their existing line, making for 8 amazing options in all. I decided to make a black tea simple syrup (I boiled 2 bags of black tea in 1 cup of water and 1 cup of sugar for about 10 minutes), which I put into a squeeze bottle. Then I set up a little station with a bottle of chilled vodka, some ice, and a variety of the Waterloo flavors (I thought the mango, lemon, and coconut flavors worked especially well) so that everyone could make their own fruity tea spritzers!

For snacks, I knew I wanted to highlight my favorite tea of all time, Republic of Tea's Earl Greyer Vanilla (AKA the Downton Abbey Estate Blend). Since I am addicted to The Great British Baking Show, I had the idea of making some Earl Grey cream puffs with a craquelin top in honor of the newest season. As I plotted out exactly how to make the perfect Earl Grey pastry cream, I reached for a bottle of Nielsen-Massey Mexican Vanilla extract. I went with this particular vanilla because of it's warm baking spice notes, which I thought would really bring out the bergamot in the tea. And oh man... let me tell you how good this pastry cream was! I seriously had to stop myself from eating it all with a spoon before I could pipe it into the cream puffs! Mary, Paul, and Pru would all be proud of me.

So what do you think? Will you turn your next get together into an impromptu tea party? Let me know your favorite tea treats in the comments below!



Earl Grey Cream Puffs

Pastry cream

2 cups whole milk
2/3 cup of sugar
1/4 cup loose leaf Earl Grey tea
1 large egg plus 2 egg yolks
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon Nielsen-Massey Mexican Vanilla extract
1 cup heavy whipping cream

Craquelin Crumble Topping

5 tablespoons butter cut into small pices
1/2 cup sugar
3/4 cup of flour
1 teaspoon Nielsen-Massey Mexican Vanilla extract
1/4 cup of loose leaf Earl Grey tea, ground very fine

Choux Dough 

16 tablespoons butter
2 cups water
1 and 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups flour
6 large eggs

For the pastry cream: Add milk, half the sugar (1/3 cup), and Earl Grey Tea to a medium sauce pan and heat over medium low until milk is steaming and infused with the tea. While the milk steeps, add an egg, egg yolks, the rest of the sugar (1/3 cup), and cornstarch to a medium bowl and mix until well combined. Once the milk has steeped (about 10 minutes), strain out tea leaves with a fine mesh strainer. Very slowly, add warm milk to the egg mixture, whisking constantly to make sure the eggs don't scramble. Once all the milk has been incorporated into the eggs, add vanilla and transfer back into saucepan. Heat over medium until the mixture begins to thicken, then remove from the heat, add in butter, and whisk until fully incorporated. Let cool.

In a large bowl, whip the heavy cream until stiff. Carefully fold in the thickened milk and egg mixture until no more streaks of white remain. Use a hand mixer to fluffy up the cream, then refrigerate over night in an air tight container.

For the topping: Add sugar, flour, vanilla extract, and ground tea leaves to a medium bowl and mix. Add in butter and use your hands to mash it into the mixture. It should form into a loose, sandy-like texture. Spread the mixture as thinly as possibly onto a sheet pan lined with parchment paper, making sure to break up any large chunks. Refrigerate until ready to use.

For the choux puffs: Melt together butter, salt, and water in a medium sauce pan. Once the mixture is at a simmer, take off heat and add in the flour. Add pan back to the heat and mix vigorously with a spatula or wooden spoon until a homogeneous dough forms. Press the dough against the sides of the pan to make sure that all of the flour cooks evenly, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let the dough cool about 5 minutes. Begin adding eggs one at a time, mixing thoroughly between each one. Once all the eggs have been mixed into the dough, transfer to an air tight container and refrigerate over night.

Assembling the Cream Puffs: Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Scoop and form the cooled choux dough into balls about 2 inches across. Dip the top of the balls into the crumble topping, then place them dough side down on the parchment paper. Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the oven down to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or until the puffs start to turn golden brown. Let the puffs cool to room temperature.

Load pastry cream into a piping bag with a medium round metal tip. Puncture the bottom of each puff with a knife, then pipe pastry cream into the center.

Makes about 3 dozen puffs.

Summer Ice Cream Favorites and Fluffy Japanese-style Pancakes

It's no secret that my sweet tooth is my worst enemy. Back before Christmas, I gave the whole Keto lifestyle a try, and it was absolute torture. Now, I hear you saying that giving up sugar and carbs just before Christmas is a stupid idea. And you'd be right. But I wanted to test drive the lifestyle and see if it was something I could easily fall into after all the holiday excess.  Needless to say, I never did find my footing. I went running back to sugar like it was a boyfriend I had broken up with for all the wrong reasons, and now we're talking about getting engaged.

My number one weakness is ice cream, especially during the summer months. I will take all comers, from cookies and cream to strawberry cheesecake to mint chocolate chip. So when Hudsonville (a Michigan-based ice cream company I have loved for years) offered to send me some of their best selling flavors, I had no choice but to say yes.

The Mackinac Island Fudge was a new one for me, and I was an instant fan. It has ribbons of the rich buttery fudge that is the signature treat of Mackinac Island in Michigan. To my mind, this was the perfect ice cream to build a sundae with, because it already had the classic flavor profiles we all know and love, but with more interesting textures. It's not quite chocolate syrup, not quite chocolate flakes, but somewhere perfectly in between.

I was honestly surprised how much I liked the The Traverse City Cherry Fudge. I've never been a big fan of cherry ice creams, as they often have an overly artificial flavor to them and can lean extremely sweet. This one, however, had an amaretto ice cream base, which gave the diced cherry pieces a more sophisticated air. The chocolate wasn't heavy handed either, but was perfectly proportioned so as to make it a co-star and not the main attraction.

Lastly was the classic French Vanilla. As much as I love the flavor of a true, rich vanilla ice cream on it's own, I knew I wanted to find a special use for this one. Since I've always got brunch on the mind, I flashed back to the greasy spoon diners of my youth, who used to serve waffles and pancakes topped with a scoop an vanilla ice cream. I had also been wanting to try my hand had making some souffle pancakes, made internet famous by any number of Japanese cafes, where the locals and tourists wait for hours, just to try their fluffy texture.

Going through my cabinets, I zeroed in on one of  the new Nielsen Massey Organic Extracts. This new line features some of their classic extracts (peppermint, orange, lemon, and almond) with all the flavor and high quality of their other extracts, but now formulated with all organic ingredients. Since I am constantly experimenting with my Nielsen-Massey products, I wanted to give one of these new extracts a trial run. The orange one suddenly jumped out at me and the word, "Creamsicle," floated into place in my brain, like a long awaited block on a Tetras board. Creamsicle Souffle Pancakes. I needed to make them a reality right away.

Creamsicle Souffle Pancakes

4 egg whites
1/2 tsp cream of tartar
2 egg yolks
6 tbsp cake flour (sifted)
1 tbsp of melted butter
1 tbsp Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Bean paste
1 tbsp Nielsen Massey Organic Orange extract
2 tbsp sugar
1 1/2 tbsp melted Hudsonville French Vanilla Ice Cream

Toppings;
Hudsonville French Vanilla Ice Cream
Candied Orange Peel
Orange Blossom Honey

Place all of the egg whites into a medium metal or glass bowl (do not use a plastic bowl!) and set in the fridge to chill until just before ready to use.

In a large bowl, add the egg yolks, vanilla bean paste, orange extract, butter, and melted ice cream. Sift the cake flour into the bowl and stir to combine until the mixture is smooth and free of lumps.

Add sugar and cream of tartar to your chilled egg whites, then use a hand mixer to whip until they reach the stiff peak stage. Add one third of the egg whites to the egg yolk mixture and carefully fold until most of the swirls are gone. Add in the second third and repeat. Add in the last of the egg whites and repeat until completely combined.

Place a non stick skillet over medium heat. To achieve perfectly round, higher pancakes, you can use ring molds sprayed with cooking spray. For a more rustic shape, simply spoon the batter in small globs into the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes, then carefully flip the pancakes (they will appear uncooked on top, but this is ok). Cook for another minute, or until both sides are evenly browned.

Plate and serve immediately. Should yield 4-5 pancakes.






Products were supplied to me by the companies mentioned in order to facilitate the writing of this post, but all opinions are my own.