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Cheddar Rosemary Rounds

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Hello again, friends! It’

s been a minute, I know—I had a super busy couple of weeks and had to take a blogging break. But I’m certain you’ll forgive me when you see the recipe I have for you today. I’m obsessed. These tasty, little, savory shortbread-like cookies came into my life when I had to make some snacks for a meeting, but I didn’t want to overload everyone with sugar. Of course I made something sweet too (I couldn’t resist), but I needed some savory to balance it out. Enter: buttery, cheesy, herby goodness. I’ve seen the light: I need to bake more savory stuff. And so do you.

Rosemary Cheddar Rounds

Like I said, these almost have the texture of a shortbread, but function more like a cracker or mini-biscuit. They’re absolutely bursting with extra-sharp cheddar flavor, which is cut and complimented by the piney flavor of fresh rosemary. These rounds couldn’t be easier to make, which is always a plus—the dough comes together with just a few whirs of the food processor, and there’s no rolling out or cutting as with shortbread or crackers. Just scoop out a ball, give it a quick roll between your palms, and press down with a fork. So deceptively easy for such big flavor.

Rosemary Cheddar Rounds

Adapted from The Back in the Day Bakery Cookbook
Makes 24 regular rounds or 48 mini rounds

  • 1½ cups all-purpose flour
  • ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper (or to taste)
  • 2 tablespoons minced fresh rosemary
  • 8 tablespoons (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cubed
  • 2 cups shredded extra-sharp cheddar cheese
  • Smoked paprika, for sprinkling (optional)
  1. Preheat oven to 325ºF. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Place cubed butter and cheese in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse a few times until a smooth paste is formed. Add flour, salt, cayenne pepper, and rosemary to food processor. Pulse several more times until dough comes together into a ball.
  3. Using a 1-oz. cookie scoop for regular rounds or a teaspoon for mini rounds, scoop out a piece of dough and roll it into a ball. Place on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, leaving about 2 inches between them. Use the tines of a fork to flatten each round slightly, creating a criss-cross pattern.
  4. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through the baking time for even heat. Remove the pan and sprinkle each round lightly with smoked paprika, if desired. Allow the rounds to cool on a wire rack. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Rosemary Cheddar Rounds

Rosemary Cheddar Rounds nutrition

Pretzel M&M, Butterscotch, and White Chocolate Cookies

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This year, I participated in the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap, which is…pretty much exactly what it sounds like. I was secretly matched with three bloggers, to whom I would send one dozen cookies each. In turn, I received three dozen cookies total from three different food bloggers. It was super fun! I loved the anticipation of seeing what kind of cookies would show up in the mailbox and who sent them. I also, of course, love baking cookies for any reason and was way excited to make these beauties to send out to three different destinations. My three matches were Alexandra from Sweet Betweens, Melissa from I Was Born to Cook, and Lauren from West Coast Girl, East Coast Life. I hope they enjoyed these cookies as much as I did!

I baked alllllmost exactly 36 cookies…and maybe a couple extra for us to sample. Quality control! I was inspired to make these when I saw holiday pretzel M&Ms at the store. I absolutely love pretzel M&Ms to begin with, but the fact that they were festive just called out to me. I used the browned butter base of my favorite chocolate chip cookies ever plus the M&Ms. On top of that, I played up the buttery, toffee flavor of the browned butter with some butterscotch chips, and threw in white chocolate chips for a pop of creamy vanilla…and more festive color. As you can imagine, these cookies are an explosion of flavor and texture. If you’re looking for a holiday cookie to swap—or save for yourself—these are sure to please.

The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap

Before we get to the recipe, I want to thank all of my blogger secret Santas! Receiving a package of cookies in the mail is always fun, and these three did not disappoint.

My first package was from Jennifer at Healthy Wifestyles. Her Italian Knot Cookies were absolutely delicious. And she sent a sweet card, too! Check out the recipe here. Thanks, Jennifer!

A few days later, these yummy Cranberry Oatmeal Pistachio cookies arrived from Cassie at Bake Your Day! I loved that she included white chocolate chips for drizzling on top and a cute little tree cookie cutter. You can find the recipe here. Many thanks to Cassie!

And last but not least, Monique from Food Snob sent these babies: oatmeal chocolate chunk cookies. Um, yum! Simple and classic. The recipe is posted here. Thank you, Monique!

All of the cookies I received were lovely and wonderful, and it was so much fun to participate. Thanks again to all six of my cookie senders and recipients. I’ll definitely be signing up again next year. If you’re a food blogger too, put it on your list of resolutions for 2013! You can sign up to receive notifications about next year’s swap here.

Pretzel M&M, Butterscotch, and White Chocolate Cookies

Makes approximately 36 large cookies

  • 3½ cups all-purpose flour (17.5 oz.)
  • 2 teaspoons baking soda
  • 28 tablespoons unsalted butter (3½ sticks)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1½ cups packed dark brown sugar (10.5 oz.)
  • 2 teaspoon table salt
  • 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 3 cups pretzel M&Ms (holiday or regular)
  • 1 cup butterscotch chips
  • 1 cup white chocolate chips
  1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Whisk flour and baking soda together in medium bowl; set aside.
  2. Heat 20 tablespoons (2½ sticks) of butter in 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat until melted, about 2 minutes. Continue cooking, swirling pan constantly until butter is dark golden brown and has nutty aroma, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove skillet from heat and, using heatproof spatula, transfer browned butter to large heatproof bowl. Stir remaining 8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter into hot butter until completely melted.
  3. Add both sugars, salt, and vanilla to bowl with butter and whisk until fully incorporated. Add eggs and yolks and whisk until mixture is smooth with no sugar lumps remaining, about 30 seconds. Let mixture stand 3 minutes, then whisk for 30 seconds. Repeat process of resting and whisking 2 more times until mixture is thick, smooth, and shiny. Using rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined, about 1 minute. Stir in M&Ms, butterscotch chips, and white chocolate chips until just evenly distributed.
  4. Scoop dough onto cookie sheets using a medium cookie scoop.
  5. Bake cookies 1 tray at a time until cookies are golden brown and still puffy, and edges have begun to set but centers are still soft, 10 to 14 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack; cool cookies completely before serving.

Pumpkin Pecan Chocolate Chip Bars

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I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I’m not a big pumpkin fan. I don’t get excited when Starbucks brings back the pumpkin latte—in fact, I was just mad the mocha coconut Frappucino went into hibernation for the winter. I don’t run out to the store as soon as pumpkin season hits and stock up with 50 cans to last me until next fall. It’s rare that I even like something made with pumpkin. That’s why the pumpkin recipes on this blog are few and far between. But today, I saw the recipe that inspired this recipe on Bake at 350, and for some reason, it just sounded so good. Probably the chocolate.

But ohhh, the chocolate. These bars are full of gooey, chocolatey deliciousness. But that’s not all! I mixed it up. I added pecans. Whoa! I also did a number of things to up the health factor, like using white whole wheat flour, using just one egg white, reducing the amount of butter and adding applesauce, and reducing the amount of sugar. Still, decidedly not health food, so try not to eat the whole pan. But they’ve got lots of good-for-you stuff, and some just-plain-good-stuff, too: warm-fuzzies-inducing fall spices, toasty pecans, and of course, chocolate. They’re super soft with a nice contrast in texture from the pecans. Love that.

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Cinnamon-Sugar Doughnut Hole Muffins

I originally intended this post to be a savory dish to give you a break from all the sweetness around here lately. I was going to post a lovely spring pasta, but when I made it I forgot to add any vegetables whatsoever. So it was just like, pasta. I just forgot to put anything else in. When I took a bite, I instantly remembered and audibly groaned. Where is my brain lately?
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So that pasta will have to wait until another time. I’m pretty sure everyone likes the sweet stuff better anyway, right? Here’s another treat inspired by the Back in the Day Bakery cookbook, but per usual, I made some modifications to healthify it. The result was perfectly fluffy cake doughnuts in the form of mini-muffins, dipped in cinnamon-sugar and absolutely irresistible. I honestly didn’t think these would be anything special since they’re so simple, but dang, were they good. We couldn’t stop eating them!

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Meyer Lemon Loaf

I’ve been traveling for work for the past couple weeks. The thing about traveling is that it inspires a domino effect of bad eating habits. First, in the days leading up to your trip, you don’t want to go grocery shopping and are stuck eating the weirdo hodgepodge at the back of the freezer—or, eating out for every meal. Then, on the trip you eat out for every meal. Then, when you get home, if you can’t go grocery shopping immediately, you have the option of eating the remnants of the weirdo freezer hodgepodge—orrrr eating out for every meal.
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Let’s just say, it hasn’t been a great couple of weeks as far as home cooking goes. Today, I at least got back in the kitchen—though it wasn’t exactly for a wholesome, healthy meal. But gosh, was it good. And after some tweaking, a totally reasonable indulgence. As you know if you’ve been reading the ol’ blog for a while, until last summer, I lived in Savannah, Georgia. I couldn’t be happier with my decision to move, but there is one thing that makes me wistfully recall those Southern days of yore: Back in the Day Bakery. I now realize that I should have eaten there as often as possible while I had the chance (and maybe taken up marathon running to counteract it).

Thankfully, Back in the Day recently came out with a cookbook. And it’s a seriously awesome cookbook. You should all buy it. I want to make everything in it forever. For my first recipe from the book, I could’ve made any number of the delicious sweet treats (and savories) that I sampled when I visited the bakery, but I wanted to try something new—and the recipe for “Lovely Lemon Loaf” caught my eye. As I’ve mentioned before, I haven’t been a huge fan of lemon-anything in the past. It takes a really good lemon-something to make me like it, but I trusted in Back in the Day Bakery. And it didn’t disappoint. This is really good.
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Of course I made a few changes to healthify it a bit and due to the fact that I have no groceries, but the essence remains: a moist, fluffy, light, lemony cake. It’s beautiful in its simplicity. I’m an all-chocolate-all-the-time kinda gal, but I gotta say that if you put a chocolate cupcake in front of me right now, I would reach for another slice of this lemon loaf.

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Best Banana Muffins

Banana muffins: the muffin of forgotten bananas. Nobody buys bananas with the sole intention of letting their peels become black just so they can make banana muffins or banana bread. But no longer. Next time I buy bananas, I fully intend to forget to eat even a single one just so I can make these muffins. The wait will be agonizing. Days will tick by like milliseconds. Green-tinted ends will give way to delicate brown freckles, then to larger brown patches, and finally to shiny, near-black perfection. Perfect, not to eat out-of-peel, but to provide the flavor base for these intensely flavorful, delicately moist, perfectly spiced little morsels of ultimate banana-ness.
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That may be the most dramatic paragraph I’ve ever written about food. But: accurate. And worth it. These muffins are the best banana muffins I have ever tasted, and certainly the best I’ve ever made in my own kitchen. I don’t mean to oversell this recipe, of course. After all, you probably have a favorite banana bread or muffin recipe. But please, next time you have a lonely, sad, forgotten bunch of bananas lying around…make these.

I made mini-muffins because I only had enough bananas for half a batch, and I wanted to extend the life of my muffins. Unfortunately that didn’t work out as I’d hoped—they were gone in two days. They’re perfectly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, and—the real standout—cardamom. But what’s really the star of these muffins is the intense banana flavor. I don’t count banana among my favorite flavors, but I definitely hadn’t experienced banana flavor like this before. The bananas are microwaved to release their juice (who knew?), and then the liquid is cooked down and reduced by half before being added into the batter.
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Sour cream makes the crumb light and moist, and a mix of brown sugar and vanilla bean sugar create a delicate sweetness with a little somethin’ extra that you can’t put your finger on at first. And on top of that, I added chopped pecans into the batter for a nice textural contrast and that toasty pecan flavor. I easily made three varieties with simple toppings (or lack thereof): plain, sprinkled with just a few chocolate chips, and my favorite, topped with a single pecan half. Let’s make some muffins.

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Pumpkin Cornbread

Remember the lentil chili I posted a while ago? I made this cornbread to go with it. It was a match made in heaven. Hearty cornbread with pumpkin spice and the subtle sweetness of molasses and brown sugar, perfect for soaking up soup or eating with a little butter or honey. It’s super easy, too—easy to make while something else is cookin’, and no mixer required. Plus, at only 100 calories a slice, it’s a perfect accompaniment to your meal.

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Sunday Sweets: Chocolate Chip Pretzel Cookies

I actually made these a while ago to send to my sister, but for some reason, I didn’t post them. I have no idea why, because these might be some of the best cookies I’ve ever made. Or had. I love sweet and salty combos, and these cookies epitomize that in the best way.
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These amazing cookies are actually just my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe, plus crushed pretzels. The cookie base is just the perfect match for the pretzels—soft, chewy, rich and buttery, with just the right balance of sweet and salty. They were just screaming for pretzels to be added, so of course, I abided. And the result was glorious.

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Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies

Sometimes you just want some brownies. Fast. Is there a better reason for whipping up a batch of brownies at midnight than “just because?” (Ok, there probably is. But I rarely have one.) The other night, I was hankerin’ for some dessert, but didn’t have a whole lot to work with. I looked up a simple, light peanut butter chocolate chip blonde brownie recipe, but being the PB-and-chocolate lover that I am, I was highly disappointed to see that it contained barely any peanut butter and even less chocolate. Lame! I mean, I know it’s a “light” recipe, but if you’re going to eat brownies, you might as well indulge a little, right? It’s never going to be health food. So I improvised.

What resulted was a quick, yummy recipe that satisfied my craving. These brownies are primarily peanut buttery rather than chocolatey, so don’t expect the super rich fudgy taste and texture. The texture is more like that of a blonde brownie—more cakey. There’s just a hint of cocoa in the brownie itself, and pockets of chocolate throughout in the form of chocolate chips. As with any cakey brownie, the key to deliciousness is to not overbake or they’ll quickly turn dry.
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These brownies are unassuming at first, but soon you’ll realize that you can’t stop eating them. Bake at your own risk!

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Golden Snitch Butterbeer Cake Pops

Happy Harry Potter week, everyone! Since the premiere of the last movie (*tear*) is this Friday, I thought I’d make something special to commemorate the occasion. Since my butterbeer cupcakes were such a hit and I still get comments/emails/tweets daily telling me how much you all enjoyed the recipe, I wanted to revisit the recipe and remix it a little.
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I have my tickets for the midnight premiere and I fully expect that you all do too, and I hope you’ll bring some of these super-cute Golden Snitch Butterbeer Cake Pops with you to share with your friends while you wait! What’s a better iconic Harry Potter shape for cake pops than the Golden Snitch? And it perfectly suits the gold-colored butterbeer cake and butterscotch taste.
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These are a bit more labor-intensive than the cupcakes, but if you’re looking for something fun and super-portable to make and take with you to the premiere, you should definitely give it a try. Everyone at the theater will be jealous.

These cake pops are made with the very same butterbeer cake recipe from the butterbeer cupcakes—except instead of cupcakes, you’ll be baking it in a 13×9” pan. Then, crumble it up, mix it with the frosting, and form the mixture into little Snitch-size balls. Stick a lollipop stick in ‘em, dunk ‘em in yellow candy coating, and apply a coat of gold dust. And of course, you can’t forget the wings—I simply cut them out of gum paste using a cardstock template and an X-Acto knife. It’s a bit of work, but totally worth it when you bite into the payoff. Let’s make them!

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