WALNUT AND CHOCOLATE CAKE BAR

Look at this thing-y. I say thing-y, because what do you call something like this? It’s like a deconstructed cake turned all inside out and cut into mouth-popping squares. Go ahead come in closer—see  how it’s stuffed with chunks of pound cake and laced with the best walnuts from Diamond California® Nuts (I know, shameless plug), then topped with some raspberries—it’s seriously begging for a face stuffing.

I’m on a roll this week with sweet treats.Yay to that, because all this baking means the pregnancy is finally finding some steady ground. And yes, this is my second pregnancy, but it’s nothing like the first one. Forget food cravings, this one has been pixelated with an abundance of food aversions on par with a vegan-combo-gluten-free eater.

Okay, so I’m being melodramatic again. But no messing around here, it seriously sucked for this omnivore! Thankfully, I’m finally coming out from the haze and pretty much eating everything in sight. Talk about a 360. I don’t know who’s more bummed, my stretch pants or Matt, who hasn’t had a full meal for two weeks.

The only break he gets is during dessert. So when it came to this Walnut and Chocolate Cake Bar, I didn’t even offer him any (but, psst. .. the man has no taste for sweets). Lucky for me and you!

Agreed? Okay then, let’s do this. Keep this chilled until ready to eat. And don’t worry about the bit of melty chocolate on your hands if you run warm, that’s what the belly or the back of a shirt is good for –okay, or napkin . . . I guess.

WALNUT AND CHOCOLATE CAKE BAR

YIELD: Yields one 8x8 pan

Ingredients:

• 11 oz. dark chocolate
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons corn syrup
• 3 cups  (6oz) cubed store-bought pound cake
• 1 cup (4oz) Diamond of California chopped walnuts
• 1 cup raspberry (4oz) raspberry
• 2 tablespoons of Diamond of California silvered almonds
• 1/4 cup (1 1/4 oz) white chocolate. melted

Directions:

Preparation: Line 8x8 pan with a plastic wrap or foil sling. leaving a 1 inch overhang on each side.

1. Place chocolate, butter and corn syrup in a heat proof bowl over a pan of simmering water. Once melted remove bowl from heat and set aside 1/3 cup of mixture.
2. Add cubed pound cake and walnuts into chocolate mixture and fold to combine. Spread mixture into plastic or foiled lined pan. Pour the remaining 1/3 cup of mixture on top and using an offset spatula, spread to an even finish.
3. Sprinkle raspberry and almonds on top. To finish, drizzle with melted white chocolate. Transfer fully assembled pan to refrigerator and chill until set. Once set, grab hold of plastic wrap or foil overhang and remove from pan and slice to serve
4. Keep bars chilled until ready to serve. Bars will keep for 3-4 day in a tightly covered container.

**NOTE: You can use store bought or homemade pound cake. Whatever you decide to go with, freeze it first so that it doesn't break up while your mixing it into the chocolate.**

http://www.bakersroyale.com/walnut-and-chocolate-cake-bar/

POMEGRANATE & GRAPEFRUIT SORBET TERRINE

We are having a bit of cold snap here and I love it. The green leaves are finally being coaxed into their fall time blush.  And I say blush because here in Southern California we rarely see the deep saturated changes of back east. But I don’t care, a little goes a long way—I’m easy to please. And the slight change in foliage is all the trigger I need to set me deep into my mode of nesting.

With nesting are traditions that I look forward to every year. Like having ice cream while wearing a scarf and coat (rather than being hot and sweaty). If you remember last year I made this ice cream cake. This year I partnered up with Dreyer’s to create a sorbet terrine using their Outshine Fruit Bars.

To keep it seasonal, I used pomegranate and grapefruit. A perfect pairing if you ask me—I love citrus with pomegranate. And the best part of this sorbet cake—it’s a five minute recipe. I’m pretty sure you are going to love this as much as I do. I, along with my little guy, have been hitting this as dessert for last few nights before bed—better than ice cream or cake, especially since he doesn’t like those two things. But offer my little guy a popsicle and he is quiet while licking down to the stick. And this fell right in line with that, the only exception—other than the bowl and spoon— it was mess free.

POMEGRANATE AND GRAPEFRUIT SORBET TERRINE

YIELD: Serves 8-10

Ingredients:

• 5 Dreyer's Outshine Pomegranate Fruit Bars 
• 5 Dreyer's Outshine Grapefruit Fruit Bars
• 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds

Directions:

Preparation: Line a 7 x 3 inch loaf pan with plastic wrap sling with a 2 inch over hang.

1. Break both the pomegranate and grapefruit bars into pieces. Press pieces into plastic lined loaf pan, stopping every once in a while to sprinkle pomegranate seeds throughout. Place in freezer until set.
2. To remove, run hot water along sides of pan for 3-5 seconds. Then using the plastic wrap handles remove sorbet cake from pan. Slice and serve.

http://www.bakersroyale.com/pomegranate-grapefruit-sorbet-cake/

CHERRIES AND CREAM QUICK BREAD

I’m all about dressing up simple desserts. And a quick glaze with some maraschino cherries can turn any dessert into a show-stopper. I love this quick bread for its flavor and texture.

While the recipe calls for dried sour cherries, don’t worry if you can’t find any. This recipe is highly adaptable, so use any dried fruit to your preference—to stay seasonal, use dried cranberries. Of course, I also went and added mini chocolate chips and ½ cup of silvered almonds—see what I mean about it being highly adaptable?

Now, who’s ready for the holidays? I have dessert down, Christmas meal down, now I’m just counting down the days—because to be a total cliché—it’s the most wonderful time of the year!

The adapted recipe is below (with the add-ins), but hit the link here to Clabber Girl’s site for the full recipe. Quick note: If you decide to use the add-ins, fold them into the batter at the end

CHERRIES AND CREAM QUICK BREAD

YIELD: Makes one 9x5x3-inch pan

Ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 teaspoons Clabber Girl Baking Powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 8-oz. pkg. cream cheese, softened
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons light olive oil
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 1 cup dried sour cherries
• ½ cup mini chocolate chips
• ¼ cup silvered almonds

Glaze:

• 1 cup confectioner sugar
• 2 tablespoon milk
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• ¼ cup chocolate chips, melted

Directions:

Click here for the remainder of the recipe.

http://www.bakersroyale.com/cherries-and-cream-quick-bread/

CRANBERRY-ALMOND RUM BALLS

These Cranberry-Almond Rum Balls are a variation on the classic rum balls that just so happens to be more healthy. Although I didn’t set out to do that, a few tweaks made it so–and I think better tasting. For this healthier version skip the traditional crumbed cookies and use crushed marcona almonds and swap out the corn syrup for honey.

This is a recipe I developed around McCormick’s Go4Gourmet challenge. The idea was to create a recipe with the 3 ingredients sent to me. When my box came it included: (1) marcona almonds (2) Saigon Cinnamon (3) sea salt.

I have to say, my first thought went to making a candy bark, but I did a massive bark run last year with these: Rocky Road Bark, Nutter Butter Bark, 2 ingredient Cookies & Cream Oreo Bark, Samoas Bark, Mint Chocolate Chip Bark—of course there are a few more, but these are my favorites. So to keep things fresh, I decided to go for something new.

A la rum balls. And these are so easy. Throw everything in a blender and pulse, scoop, roll, chill and dip in chocolate. See what I mean by easy.

CRANBERRY-ALMOND RUM BALLS

YIELD: Approximately 14 1in. balls

Ingredients:

• 4 oz. (1 cup) Marcona Almonds
• 5 oz. (1 cup) dried cranberries
• 1 oz candied ginger
• 1 oz. (5 tablespoons) sweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 teaspoon McCormick Saigon Cinnamon
• 1/4 cup honey
• 5 tablespoons dark rum

Glaze

• 6 oz. chocolate, melted
• 1 tablespoon McCormich Sea Salt

Directions:

Preparation: Line bake sheet with parchment paper.

1. Place almonds, dried cranberries, candied ginger, coconut and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse until finely crumbed. Add honey and rum and pulse to blend. Roll one heaping tablespoon into a ball and place on parchment lined bake sheet. Transfer to refrigerator and chill for about 45 minutes or overnight. Remove from refrigerator and dip in melted chocolate and sprinkle with seas salt. 

http://www.bakersroyale.com/cranberry-almond-rum-balls/

OOEY GOOEY BLACKBERRY BUTTER BARS

I think you are going to love this riff on the classic ooey gooey bar recipe. If you are a regular reader than you know the classic is something I find too sweet. If you’re a newer reader, then join me and let’s play with our food.

To start, I added coconut milk to the recipe and then mixed in some blackberries with lime for a hint of fruitness with every sweet bite. Have I convinced you?

Yes? Great! Because this is another recipe I’m sharing in which I’ve paired up with Driscoll for their Made with Love campaign. See, it’s always a great time to make something for those you love. It doesn’t have to be from scratch – nope – the idea is make it, share it and spread the love.

I know it’s the holidays and we are all strapped for time, but this is an easy and forgiving recipe. Your reward–being happy for doing good—and that’s for no other reason than you want to.

Unless your heart is battery operated, who can turn that down? And because I know this recipe may not be for everyone, here’s a link to Driscoll’s recipe box, with a plethora of ideas. Now let’s all go and do good with some Made with Love baked goods.

OOEY GOOEY BLACKBERRY BUTTER BARS

YIELD: Makes one 8x8 pan

Ingredients:

• 1 box of yellow cake mix
• 4 tablespoons of sweetened shredded coconut
• 2 ounces butter, melted
• 1 egg
• 1 tablespoon lime zest
• 10 oz. blackberries
• 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
• 2 ounces of coconut milk (full fat)
• 2 eggs
• 1 pound powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

Preparation: Line pan with enough parchment to create a 1 inch over hang on each side. Heat oven to 350 degrees F.

1. Place the dry cake mix, shredded coconut,  butter, 1 egg and lemon zest in a bowl and mix until well blended. Press mixture into parchment-lined 8x8-inch pan. Sprinkle blackberries on top. Set aside.
2. Place the cream cheese, coconut milk, remaining 2 eggs, sugar, vanilla and mix until well blended. Pour cream cheese mixture on top of blackberries and spread mixture all the way to the edges. Bake for at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes, or until the edges are a light golden brown, and the center slightly jiggles when pan is tapped.
3. Cool completely in pan. Turn out onto a cutting board and cut into 1-inch-squares. For nice clean edges place pan in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes or until firm, cut while cold, and transfer to mini-cupcake liners to serve.

http://www.bakersroyale.com/ooey-gooey-blackberry-butter-bars/

BLACKBERRY & ALMOND COFFEE CAKE

Grab a plate so you can catch the crumbly almond streusel, because trust me—you won’t want to miss any part of this cake. What can you expect under the streusel? How about a tender cake crumb with a sweet ribbon of blackberry jam, running its way through every bite?

See what I mean about not wanting to miss a bite? Now that you know why, let’s talk about another reason why this could be one of your holiday morning heroics. Seriously, it’s easy to make—and the best part—you can make this the night before and serve it to a large crowd in the morning.

That’s exactly what I plan on doing with my extended family. This is one of three recipes that I developed for Driscoll’s Made with Love campaign that I will be doing just that—making and sharing sweet treats with love for my friends and family.

Want to join me? Who doesn’t want to spread good cheer through good eating?

BLACKBERRY AND ALMOND COFFEE CAKE

YIELD: Makes 1 10in. cake

Ingredients:

Cake

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• ½ cup almond flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup of granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Blackberry Filling

• 1 1/2 cup blackberries
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch

Topping

• 1 cup silvered almonds, chopped
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/3 cup brown sugar
• 3 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 4 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Directions:

To make filling:

1. Combine blackberries, water, sugar and cornstarch. Cook and stir over medium heat until mixture is thickened and bubbly, about 5 to 7 minutes. Set filling aside to cool.

To make streusel topping:

1. Place almonds, flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Drizzle melted butter on top of mixture and using a fork, toss to combine until large chunks form with a few pea size pieces. Set aside topping.

To make cake:

Preparation: Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly cover a 10 inch tube pan with bake spray and dust with flour.

1. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt; set aside.
2. Using the flat beater attachment of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs in one at time and mixing until well incorporated before adding the next.
3. Add in sour cream and mix until well combined. With the mixer on low, add in flour mixture and mix until just combined. Do not overmix. Batter may appear lumpy.
4. Pour and spread half the batter into the prepared pan. Pour blackberry filling on top and layer with remaining batter. Sprinkle the streusel on top.
5. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40- 55 minutes. Start checking for doneness after 40 minutes. To do so, insert cake tester into center of cake. Cake is ready when cake tester is free of crumbs.

http://www.bakersroyale.com/blackberry-almond-coffee-cake/

CRANBERRY-ZUCHINNI MUFFINS

There is a lot going on this cranberry muffin, but you won’t even notice that, because you’ll be too busy eating one after another. And as if cranberry, zucchini and carrot weren’t enough in this recipe—I went and added some coconut. I couldn’t help myself, I had about 1/2 cup of coconut sitting around, so I threw it in–aside from that, coconut is a great way to balance any tartness that cranberries may have.

And to keep the theme of healthy going I used whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose flour. I’m sure I could have taken this recipe a step further and halved the 1 cup of oil with applesauce or Greek yogurt, but I didn’t.

In fact, if you are wondering if I’m going healthy—um, no–there’s too much sweet-fatty badness to embrace. This just so happens to be a recipe pumped with veggies and fruit. It’s also a highly adaptable recipe  from one of my favorite cookbooks, The Sono Baking Company Cookbook, so have fun and be adventurous if you want to swap out the aforementioned oil for applesauce or Greek Yogurt, beets for the zucchini and any other berries for the cranberries. And if you do, please come back and share with the rest of us, what you’ve done.

So along with all that I’ve mentioned, here’s another reason you are going to want to bookmark this recipe—this is a one bowl batter that can be whipped up with a whisk and wooden spoon—no mixer required!

CRANBERRY, ZUCHINNI & CARROT MUFFINS

The muffins can be made into a breakfast cake by using a bundt pan or loaf pan. Prepare the recipe as directed and bake until tester comes out clean when inserted into center of cake.

YIELD: Makes 12 muffins

Ingredients:

• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 1 cup canola oil
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3/4 cup finely grated carrot (about 2 medium)
• 3/4 cup finely grated zuchinni (about 1 medium)
• 1 cup whole fresh or frozen cranberries
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 cups of whole wheat flour

Directions:

Preparation: Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Line muffin pan with paper or spray and cover wells with non-stick baking spray.

1. Place sugar, canolia oil, eggs and vanilla extract in a bowl and whisk until well blended. Add in carrot, zucchini, cranberries and whisk to blend.  Next add in salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking soda and whisk to blend. Lastly, add flour and fold until blended (do not over mix).
2. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Bake at 375 degrees F until tops are golden brown and tester inserted in the center is comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Use an offset spatula to remove muffins from pan. Serve warm or at room temperature.  

http://www.bakersroyale.com/cranberry-zuchinni-and-carrot-muffins/