Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cake

Before I say anything, I must say this: this is one heckuva post.

Meaning, it's really long.  And yes, I'm going to talk a lot.

So I'm taking a week off.  Literally, I am going to Minnesota.  Wayyy up north, up there by Canada.  Where the mosquitoes the size of baseballs roam.

Anyway.

I made this glorious cake for my birthday.  No way am I going to let someone else bake my own cake.  THE GLORY IS ALLL MIIIINE!!!

And it is a glorious cake.

A thick, two-layer yellow butter cake...

Frosted with brown sugar frosting...

With a layer of cookie dough balls and frosting in the middle...

Topped with the best chocolate chip cookies ever...

And sprinkled with mini chips.

Translation: Fantastic frosted with awesome, filled with amazing, and topped with insanely great.

It is the Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cake.

Now, there have been several chocolate chip cookie dough cakes.  The one that initially inspired me was the Domestic Rebel's.  But what I ended up modifying was the one from Something Shiny, because it looked so delicious.

Now, you can follow whatever recipes you want, but here's why I chose the ones I did:

1. Cake - I got this recipe from Bakerella, and she is very rarely wrong.  Pretty much never, actually.

2. Frosting - This is the one recommended on Something Shiny.  However, see my note*.

3. Cookie dough - Again, I used the one recommended.  (These can be found at Fake Ginger.)

4. Cookies - I used the recipe that I posted about, from the Repressed Pastry Chef, because I'm so in love with these cookies and I just had to make them.

There, that's done.  And now, a few confessions:

1. This was my first time using butter flavor.  I hadn't even heard of it before, and, frankly, the idea of butter flavor still scares me.  Turns out it's a great way to make you think you're eating more butter than you actually are and send you running on a guilt trip.  Seriously, I think it might have the potential to be a weight-loss aid.

2. This was my first time using self-rising flour.  I know, I know, I'm a baker and I've never used it before.  I probably wouldn't have used it at all except I was sure which conversion from regular flour, salt, and baking powder (or is it soda?) to self-rising flour to use (there are many).

So there.  I've confessed.  And now it's time to drool.

Oh, and fyi, the cake all by itself is now my favorite cake ever. :D

Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cake

REQUIRES SOFTENED BUTTER

REQUIRES ROOM TEMPERATURE EGGS, MILK

REQUIRES CHILLING TIME

ORDER OF OPERATIONS:

1. Bake chocolate chip cookies.
2. Bake cake.
3. While cake is baking, make cookie dough.
4. While cookie dough chills, make frosting.

Chocolate Chip Cookies:

See recipe here.

NOTE: Make small cookies and medium cookies to decorate this cake.  Small cookies can be made with a teaspoon-size cookie scoop, while medium cookies can be made with the tablespoon-size.

1-2-3-4 Cake:

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened

2 cups sugar

4 eggs, room temperature

3 cups self-rising flour

1 cup milk, room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 teaspoon butter flavor

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Grease two 9-inch cake pans.
2. In a large bowl, cream butter until fluffy.  Add sugar and beat well.
3. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.
4. Add flour and milk, alternating and beginning and ending with the flour, and mixing well after each addition.
5. Add vanilla and butter flavor and combine.
6. Divide batter equally between the two prepared pans and bake 25-30 minutes.
7. Cool in pans 5-10 minutes before removing from pans and inverting on wire racks to finish cooling.

"Cookie Dough"**:

1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened

6 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons flour

7 oz. sweetened condensed milk***

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

1. In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar until fluffy.
2. Beat in flour, sweetened condensed milk, and vanilla, beating until smooth after each ingredient.
3. Stir in mini chips.
4. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour.

**You could probably use this recipe, as well.  I'm sure there's some slight, subtle difference, but whatever. (I actually recommend using the truffles one.)

***You might consider making a double batch of this since sweetened condensed milk comes in 14 oz. cans.  I had half a can lying around after this, and... you know my fondness for sweetened condensed milk.  NOT GOOD.

Brown Sugar Frosting:

3 sticks unsalted butter, softened

3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed

3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt*

3 tablespoons milk

2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla

1. In a large bowl, beat butter and brown sugar.
2. Mix in powdered sugar until smooth.
3. Add salt*, milk, and vanilla.  Mix until smooth.

*When I made this frosting, I found it to be incredibly salty.  I strongly suggest reducing or even completely omitting the salt from this recipe.  Salty caramel - good, salty frosting - baaaad.  You have no idea.

Assembly:

bag of mini chocolate chips

1. Form chilled cookie dough into balls with cookie scoop and place on a baking sheet/very large plate lined with wax paper.
2. Place 1/6 frosting in small bowl.  Add 1/2 cookie dough balls and gently toss until cookie dough balls are covered.  Add additional 1/6 frosting and remaining dough balls and gently toss to coat.
3. Spread dough-ball/frosting mixture on top of one cake with a rubber spatula.  Place other cake on top.
4. Seal-coat cake with frosting.
5. Chill 30 minutes in refrigerator or until set.
6. Frost with remaining frosting.
7. Place small cookies around the edge of the top of the cake.  Place medium cookies around the bottom of the sides.
8. Sprinkle remaining space on cake with mini semisweet chocolate chips.
9. Cover to store.

Take a deep breath.  It's a lot of instructions, and a lot of ingredients, and a lot of work, but it's totally worth it.

My advice: eat it in very small doses.  This cake has the potential to be quite lethal.

Now, breaking it down, thoroughly and slowly:

Cookies:

Make these cookies!  Try not to eat too many!

Cake:

Cream butter and sugar...

Add eggs...

Alternate adding flour...

...and milk...

Add flavorings and mix.  WORD OF WARNING: Butter flavor smells awful.  Your cake won't, but the flavor itself is not a pleasant odor.  Jussayin'.

Divide evenly between prepared pans...

...and bake 30 minutes at 350 degrees F.  Cool 5-10 minutes and invert onto wire racks to cool.  This is seriously the best cake I've ever made.  It came out totally level, which has pretty much never happened before.  Best cake EVAR.

Dough:
Make as directed, OR use my cookie dough truffles recipe.  I actually think it tasted better than the recipe I just gave you above.  Know why?  The dough balls had salt in them.  It's not really cookie dough without that salty taste, you know?  So it's not like I have anything against salt, it's just that salt in frosting is bad.  So let the dough chill for an hour...

Then form it into balls.

Frosting:
Cream butter...

...with light brown sugar...

Add powdered sugar and salt (IF YOU DARE)...

Add vanilla...

...and mix until smooth.

Assembly:
Stir those dough balls in with the frosting.

Spread the dough mixture thing on top of the first cake and smooth it down flat... (YUM!)

Seal coat your cake and let it chill for half an hour.  COVER YOUR FROSTING!  And do NOT refrigerate it!  Guess who did that and winded up with a bunch of hard, crusty frosting?

Frost the rest of your cake...

And decorate it.  Ohhhhh yes.

Don't bother trying to stick the medium cookies in the exact middle of the sides.  They're too heavy, so they just slide down anyway.

Have yourself a slice and bite into bliss.

Have a dough-licious day!
-JJ

Happy 4th in advance!

Coffee Shop Banana Streusel Muffins

These are awesome muffins.

First, there's banana in them.  Which makes you feel better about what you're eating because if it has fruit in it, it must be healthy, right???

Second, they're muffins.  And muffins are just amazing.  I'm not going to go into the muffin vs. cupcake rant again, don't worry.

Third, there's streusel on the top.  And I am entirely new to streusel.  I've never made it before, and I have never eaten homemade streusel before.  Coffee cakes from Jewel do NOT count.  Ever.

And here is what I have to say on streusel: it is crunchy.

If you like crunchy on top of a deliciously soft muffin, that sort of contrast-thing going on, then eat these the day you make them.

If you're like me, and think it's weird to be taking bites of crunch and then suddenly you're eating more soft and it's freaking out your tongue and your mouth just goes, "whaaa???" - well, if you're like that, WAIT ONE DAY.

Or maybe twelve hours, I dunno.  But cover them and wait!  The moisture from the muffins will be trapped inside the container, and it will soften the otherwise super-crunchy streusel, and then it will be deliciously soft all over.  And the streusel will still retain some crunch, and it will be perfect.

Uh-huh, trust me, I know everything.

Anyway, when I saw these on In Katrina's Kitchen, I just had to make them.  Anything good enough for a coffee shop is good enough for me.

Speaking of coffee shops... (bear with me, I'll post the recipe in half a mo!)

My friend and I constantly argue about our favorite chain coffee shops.  Of course, local shops are the best, hands down.  But where we live, there are two huge competitors: Starbucks and Caribou Coffee.

When we were arguing, I'd only been to Caribou once or twice, and I'd been to Starbucks loads of times, so of course I stuck up for the shop where I discovered cake pops.

But then I tried Caribou's hot chocolate.  It is to Starbucks' hot chocolate as a bowl of homemade butter pecan ice cream is to a McDonald's vanilla soft serve cone.  As in not even close.

So, my decision is this: go to Starbucks for food, go to Caribou for beverages.

And now, without any more ado (because I've done a lot of ado today), the recipe:

Coffee Shop Banana Streusel Muffins

REQUIRES SOFTENED BUTTER

Muffins:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick butter, softened

3/4 cup brown sugar

2 eggs, beaten/forked

4 ripe bananas, mashed

Streusel

5 tablespoons butter, melted

2/3 cup flour

2/3 cup powdered sugar

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

optional: pinch of salt

Muffins:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Lightly grease muffin pans with shortening or cooking spray, or line with muffin cups.  (use a 6 standard cup and a 12 standard cup)
2. In a large bowl, whip mashed bananas 3-5 minutes or until light and fluffy.
3. In another large bowl, cream butter and brown sugar.  Add eggs, beating after each addition.  Mix in whipped bananas.
4. In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt with a fork.
5. Gradually add dry ingredients to the wet.
6. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pans.

Streusel:

1. Melt butter in a microwave-safe bowl.  Transfer to a medium bowl.
2. In a separate bowl, combine flour, powdered sugar, cinnamon (and optional salt) with a fork.
3. Add to butter.
4. Crumble WITH YOUR FINGERS until mixture is moist and crumbly.

Assembly:

1. Drop streusel on top of muffin batter.
2. Bake 15-18 minutes.  Let cool 5 minutes before removing from pans.  Store in an airtight container.  Makes 12-15 standard muffins.

Breaking it down:

Mash those bananas!

I think this is a potato masher, but I've never used it on potatoes.  Only bananas.

Whip up those bananas, and then beat butter and brown sugar.

Add eggs, beat well, and add banana puree.

Mix together, and combine with dry ingredients.

Pour batter into muffin pans.

Melt butter...

Combine powdered sugar, cinnamon, and flour....

Crumble with your fingers, and drop crumb topping on top of the muffin batter.

NOM.  Lol, I kind of got carried away with the streusel pictures.

Bake 15-18 minutes.  I made a double batch and ended up with 30, although I should have ended up with 24... It all depends on how whipped your bananas become.

Remove from pans and enjoy!  And of course I eat my muffins with a fork.  But more about me and my weird fork obsession later.

Enjoy them while they last! (It won't be long ;D)
-JJ

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

My new favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe.  Forget the NY Times recipe, this is the best ever.

And of course I am head-over-heels in debt to the Repressed Pastry Chef.  I found this recipe at her site.

Now, a thing about the ingredients.  I'm usually not a big fan of Crisco, but for cookies, I'll make an exception.  And cake flour?  I don't usually use it, but I had a ton left over from some strawberry shortcake that I made (pre-Lemonade Soul! :O that's a looong time ago - but the flour's still good!).

Anyway, make these.  You won't be sorry.  You'll be the opposite of sorry, actually.  Like, ecstatic.  I bet you can add nuts if you like, but to me, that just detracts from the simplicity of the good old-fashioned chocolate chip cookie.  But that's just my opinion.

Best Chocolate Chip Cookies Ever

REQUIRES SOFTENED BUTTER

1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened

1/4 cup butter flavor Crisco

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

1/3 cup sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

3/4 cup cake flour

1 cup flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In large bowl, beat butter and Crisco.  Add brown sugar, sugar, and salt and beat well.
3. Beat in vanilla and egg.
4. In a separate bowl, combine cake flour, flour, and baking soda with a fork.  Add to wet ingredients and mix well.
5. Stir in chocolate chips.
6. Drop by tablespoon-sized cookie scoop onto parchment paper and bake 11-12 minutes.
7. Remove from oven and cool 2 minutes before removing cookies to a wire rack to finish cooling.  Makes about 30 cookies.

Breaking it down:

Beat butter and Crisco...

Add sugars and salt...

Add egg and vanilla...

Add flours and baking soda.  You don't actually have to combine them in a separate bowl, I just stuck that up there because it generally makes for a more even cookie.  Do whatever you want.

Add chocolate chips...

And try not to eat all the cookie dough just yet!  (Doesn't it look gorgeous?)

Drop by tablespoon-sized cookie scoop onto parchment paper lined baking sheets, 12 to a sheet...

...and bake 11 minutes at 350 degrees F.

Let cool 2 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.  Or to cool until you can't help yourself and take a bite of the delicious, warm, chocolatey cookie.  Oh, yum.

Enjoy yourself!  You will, I swear!
-JJ

S'More Pops

So.  I got this idea from Love from the Oven, except that of course I had to go and change it up a little.  I love all her ideas for these pops, so I decided to combine a bunch of them.

This is perfect for summer (which it is right now :D) and giving away to friends, teachers, etc.  They're sorta messy to eat though - graham cracker crumbs everywhere! :P

This recipe is just for 12 pops.  Feel free to double, triple, whatever the recipe.  Make as many as you'd like!

S'More Pops

REQUIRES CHILLING TIME

16 full sheets graham crackers

12 marshmallows

1 bag chocolate chips

pizza cutter

12 lollipop sticks

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Break 12 graham cracker sheets in half and lay 12 halves out on a wax-lined baking sheet.  Save remaining 4 full sheets for later.
3. Cut each marshmallow in half with the pizza cutter and place 2 on top of each graham cracker-half.
4. Bake 2-3 minutes.  Immediately squish remaining 12 halves on top of melted marshmallows and stick lollipop sticks into the side of each s'more.
5. Chill in refrigerator for 1 hour.
6. Crush remaining 4 graham cracker sheets, not too finely.
7. Melt chocolate chips in saucepan or double boiler.
8. Tear off excess marshmallow from pops.
9. Dip each pop into melted chocolate and then dip into crushed graham crackers.  Lay on wax paper.  Repeat with each pop.
10. Chill 1 hour.  Makes 12 pops.

Breaking it down:

Place half-marshmallows on half-graham cracker sheets...

Bake 2-3 minutes at 425 degrees F. and stick halves on top and lollipops in the side.  Trim off the excess marshmallow.

Crush graham crackers...

And place in a small bowl for easier dipping.

I dipped each marshmallow only halfway in, so that you can see the graham cracker beneath the chocolate.  It's more artsy that way, and less dense, if you're interested in that kind of thing.  Hard-core chocoholics, ignore what I just said.

Take a bite (over a napkin so you don't spill too much!) and enjoy the yum of a chilled reverse s'more!

Happy summer!
-JJ