Monthly Archives: May 2017

breakfast, breakfast sweets, sweet breads and muffins, Uncategorized

Blueberry Cream Scones

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Blueberry cream scones by twocarolines.com

Given the many choices of morning pastries scones aren’t always my first choice, they often seem like a less yummy, more dry, wannabe muffin.  However, these Blueberry Cream Scones were just sweet enough, more moist because of the brush of butter and beautifully balanced with lemon zest and delicious fresh blueberry flavor.  Everyone I introduced them too ended up eating more than one and they were gone in a day!  You can use any berries you have on hand by the way so get your summer fruit supply in check and start baking!

2 cups All-Purpose Flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into pieces
1 cup fresh blueberries
2 large eggs, beaten
1/4 cup heavy cream (you can also use yogurt, but I prefer cream)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon grated lemon rind (zest), or 1/4 teaspoon lemon oil
1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
2 tablespoons melted butter for brushing on top (optional)
2 tablespoons demerara or raw sugar, for sprinkling on top

  1. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a baking sheet, or line with parchment.
  2. Whisk the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the butter and work it into the dry ingredients until the mixture is unevenly crumbly; use your fingers, a pastry blender, or an electric mixer. Gently mix the blueberries with the dry ingredients.
  3. Stir together the eggs, yogurt, vanilla extract, lemon zest or oil, and almond extract if using. Add to the dry ingredients and stir very gently, just until combined. The dough will be quite moist, like cookie dough.IMG_2491
  4. I decided to shape my dough into a rectangle on a floured surface then I cut out squares using my pastry cutter, but you could also use a large scoop and drop the dough onto the prepared sheet in scant 1/4-cupfuls, leaving about 2″ between each.
  5. Brush each ball or square of dough with melted butter (or you can use milk or cream), and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
  6. Bake the scones for 18-23 minutes, or until lightly browned and a cake tester or toothpick inserted into a scone comes out dry. Remove from the oven, and serve warm. To reheat, wrap loosely in aluminum foil, and bake in a preheated 350°F oven for about 8 to 10 minutes.
  7. Store scones, well wrapped, at room temperature for several days. Freeze

Recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour Fresh Blueberry Scones

breakfast sweets, Cookies, favorites, Uncategorized

Wheat Germ Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Two Carolines Wheat Germ Chocolate Chip Cookies 2

I realize that this is going to be a bold statement, so you might want to sit down. This is my ALL-TIME favorite cookie. I even posted this recipe twice on my old blog, because it went through quite a few iterations to reach Peak Cookie. It’s inspired by a favorite cookie from Specialty’s in SF that my friend and I used to get all the time during work breaks/after work/whenever we could. This recipe seems fairly close but is even better, if I do say so myself. I added a lot of healthy bits and bobs, so you could probably eat them for breakfast—not that I’ve ever done that*.

*Disclaimer: I may or may not have eaten these for breakfast.

  • 3/4 cup old fashioned whole rolled oats
  • 3/4 cup whole-wheat flour
  • 1/4 cup almond meal
  • 1/2 cup ground flax seeds
  • 1/2 cup raw wheat germ
  • 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
  • 1/2 cup pecans
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/3 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 1 large egg
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 cup chocolate chips
  • (Makes approximately 30 cookies)

Preheat oven to 400°. Grease cookie sheets or line with baking paper.

Mix oats, flour and almond meal, in a medium bowl. Add baking soda, salt, cinnamon and whisk until mixed in. Whisk in wheat germ and flax. Chop coconut and pecans very finely in small food processor (or old school with a good knife) and mix into the flour mixture.

Beat butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until fluffy. Add granulated sugar, brown sugar, honey, egg and vanilla; beat until smooth and creamy. Add the dry ingredients, beating on low speed until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Chill the dough in a refrigerator for at least 30 minutes. The dough should be semi-firm before proceeding with next step.

Use a cookie scoop to scoop out dough and arrange, at least 1 inch apart, onto the prepared baking sheets. Bake cookies, until firm around the edges and barely golden on top, about 9 minutes. Cool the cookies for 2 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool.

NOTE: I think the cookies actually taste the best the next day. Also, the dough can be prepared in advance and kept in the refrigerator, tightly covered for up to a week.

-CK 1.0

breakfast, breakfast sweets, Cake, coffee cake, Uncategorized

Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake

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Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake by twocarolines.com

The makings of a perfect weekend must include breakfast sweets, a fact well supported by our ever growing plethora of sweet breads, muffins and coffee cakes.  The one I make the most is our Apple Cake, which is awesome, and in the summer I like to use fruit and will often do a blueberry crumb cake which is also a treat.  But this weekend I wanted something substantial and classic, and this cake is the ultimate brunchy crunchy chewy cinnamony streusel and glaze topped champion of all great coffee cakes!  There’s so much that’s right about it – I really felt like I was staying at a fancy New York hotel or something with every bite- it’s simple, but has an elegant balanced delicious taste and the heavy crumb on top is the key to all breakfast cake successes.  -CK 2.0

For the Streusel:
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 cup light brown sugar (packed)
1 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt (Martha calls for an entire teaspoon, but I like it better with just a touch of the coarse salt then you get just that tingle of salty sweet, but you could also do 1/2 teaspoon of table salt)
3/4 cup cold butter cut into small pieces
1 1/2 cup coarsely chopped toasted walnuts (to toast – but on a cookie sheet in a 350 oven for about 7-9 minutes until lightly toasted and fragrant)

For the Cake:
1/2 cup butter
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt (or 1/2 table salt)
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup sour cream

For the Glaze:
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
3 tablespoons whole milk (I used 2 buttermilk and one whole milk)

 

  1. Make the Streusel top and middle layers: Mix together flour, 3/4 cup brown sugar, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and the salt.  Cut in butter with a pastry blender or rub in with your fingers until small to medium clumps form.  Mix in 1/2 cup nuts.  Refrigerate topping until ready to use.  Make the streusel center:  Mix together remaining 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 cup nuts, reserve for layering into the center of the batter.
  2. Make the Cake: Preheat oven to 350.  Butter a 9-inch tube pan with a removable bottom (you can use a springform pan also.  I used a 9×13 which is trickier to get the layer in the center to work out so I recommend a round pan).  Sift flour baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a medium bowl.
  3. With an electric mixer on medium beat the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition.  Beat in vanilla.  Add flour mixture in 3 batches alternating with 2 batches of the sour cream.  Beat until well combined.
  4. Transfer half of the batter to the prepared pan.  Sprinkle streusel evenly over batter.  Top with remaining batter; spread evenly with an offset spatula.  Sprinkle streusel topping evenly onto batter.
  5. Bake until cake is golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean, about 55 minutes.  Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool completely.  Remove cake from pan; transfer to a parchment lined work surface or serving platter.
  6. Make the Glaze: Mix together the confectioners sugar and milk.  drizzle over cake allowing glaze to drop down the sides.  Let sit a few minutes before serving.
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Cinnamon Coffee Cake by twocarolines.com

Recipe adapted from Cinnamon Streusel Coffee Cake – Martha Stewart Cakes Book