Attempting to Bake/Cook with Lolo #3: Pumpkin Roll (The Ever Requested, Most Famous Dessert)!

People have asked me for many, many years to make my pumpkin roll for their holiday party.
Now, when I say "mine," I don't mean I made the recipe. I mean I found it online, brought it to a function, and people raved about it.
It may have gone to my head.
I thought I'd share with you the recipe in step-by-step instructions!
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Pumpkin Roll
Adapted from AllRecipes.com

• 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
• 1 c. white sugar
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 & 1/2 - 2 tsp. cinnamon*
• 1/2 tsp. ground ginger*
• 1/2 tsp. ground clove*
• 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg*
• 1 c. pumpkin puree
• 3 eggs, room temperature
• 1 tsp. lemon juice

*in place of these spices, you can use 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice, if you prefer

Step 1: Add flour, sugar, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, ground ginger and salt in a large bowl and set aside.

Step 2: Add pumpkin to the dry mixture.

Step 3: Add eggs to the bowl.

Step 4: Add lemon juice to the mixture.

Step 5: Stir all of the ingredients together until it is smooth.

Step 6: Using a jelly roll pan is key for this recipe. I have never used anything else, so I cannot attest to how it will turn out in a different sized pan. Cut a piece of parchment paper that fits the length of the pan plus a little over the sides. Use non-stock spray to coat the pan and lay the parchment over the pan. I know this sounds weird, but trust me, it helps the paper stay in place for when you're pouring the mix on top of it.

Step 7: Pour the cake mix into the pan and spread it evenly. Drop it onto the counter a couple of tims for good, even measure.

Step 8: Bake for 15 minutes at 375 degrees. DO NOT OVER BAKE the cake!!!

Step 9: While the cake is in its last few minutes of baking, get a clean dish towel (I have one specifically for making rolls) and get it wet. Ring out all of the water until it is just damp. Lay this damp towel out on a clean, unobstructed area.

Step 10: Sprinkle the damp towel with powdered sugar, enough to cover most of the surface of it. This year, I decided to use a fine-mesh strainer and shake it onto the towel because every year prior, it has always been clumped when I free-handed it. It worked amazingly!

Step 11: As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, flip it over onto the damp paper towel. Be aware that powdered sugar is going to get everywhere on every surface of your kitchen, the floor, your person, your clothes, etc. This is the nature of the pumpkin roll! Remove the parchment paper and throw it away.

Step 12: While the cake is still hot, starting at one end veeeery slowly and tightly, wrap the damp towel and roll it up lengthwise with the cake inside. Tuck the excess towel on the bottom of the roll and...

Step 13: ...place the rolled up cake seam side down in the towel on a wire cooling rack. Let it sit until completely cooled, about an hour.

Step 14: Ahead of time or when you're ready to frost, make the frosting for the roll. The ingredients are:

• 1 block (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened
• 1/4 c. butter (half of a stick), softened
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Cream the butter and cream cheese first, then add the powdered sugar, then add the vanilla. Spread the frosting all over the cake from end to end and re-roll it up lengthwise. Store in the fridge in plastic wrap or foil.

There you have it, simple as pie! Well, simple as pumpkin roll. ;)

Attempting to Bake/Cook with Lolo #2 - Apple Cinnamon Streusel Galette!

I got a pretty positive response with my last baking post, and I have been doing a lot of that lately, so I figured I'd share another winning recipe with y'all today! Josh and I were so amazed at how good this recipe turned out that it was gone in about 3 days. We ate it both with coffee for breakfast and with ice cream for dessert. Enjoy, folks!
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Apple Cinnamon Streusel Galette
(recipe from Two Peas & Their Pod)

Crust Ingredients:

• 1 & 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup coarse cornmeal
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 cup COLD butter, cut into small pieces (you can also use a cheese grater to cut it, a tip I read online)
• 1/3 cup buttermilk (we used regular fat buttermilk, I do not know if you can use low fat)
• 4 small or 2 large Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly

Cinnamon Streusel Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup brown sugar (recipe says light, we only had dark and it was fine)
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• A dash of ground nutmeg (optional, but I always pair this with cinnamon)
• A dash of ground clove (optional, but I always pair this with cinnamon)
• A dash of ground ginger (optional, but I always pair this with cinnamon)
• 4  tablespoons COLD butter

Egg Wash Ingredients:

• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar (we did not have this, so instead, we used Trader Joe's cinnamon sugar grinder...BEST DECISION EVER)

Step 1: Combine flour, sugar, cornmeal and salt in a food processor and pulse 2-3 times.

Step 2: Add COLD butter and pulse 5-10 times until mixture resembles coarse meal (bigger pieces of sand).

Step 3: With food processor running, pour the buttermilk in through the chute SLOWLY, until dough forms a ball. Remove the dough ball, add any extra stray pieces and wrap ball in plastic wrap

Step 4: Put in fridge for at least 45 minutes before rolling out.

Step 5: After this time is up, move the rack to the center of your oven and preheat it to 350 degrees F.

Step 6: Take dough out of fridge. Roll out on parchment paper or floured surface, starting out in the center of the dough ball, and roll to a 14-15 inch circle. Put this dough on baking sheet.

Step 7: Core, peel, and slice apples (we used all Granny Smith because we love them best in baked dishes because they cut the sweetness). If your apples turn brown, you can add some lemon juice to them and it will perk them right back up, plus add a nice flavor (in my opinion!).

Step 8: Add apple slices in the center of your dough in a spoke pattern, making sure to leave a 2 inch border between the end of the dough and the apples!

Step 9: Using your fingers, combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg/clove/ginger (if desired), and butter until streusel clumps form. Sprinkle these clumps over the top of your apples, dabbing areas that look like they need more topping.

Step 10: Fold the crust over the apples, crimping edges where necessary, but do so lightly as to not cause cracks and tears.

Step 11: Brush the outer crust with beaten egg. Sprinkle crust with turbinado sugar or Trader Joe's cinnamon sugar grinder.

Step 12: Place in center rack and bake for 45-50 minutes, or until the apples are tender/crust is golden brown. Transfer baking sheet to a wire rack to cool. Cut into slices and serve warm or at room temperature.

Voila! Now you have made a wonderful, delicious galette! It doesn't look as pretty as the one from the recipe, but it tastes great! I really loved the crust on this thing, and I am not a crust person. I think the difference was the addition of the cornmeal that took it above and beyond. This is so good and it will go quick! Like I mentioned, it goes great for breakfast, as well as dessert. :)

Attempting to Cook/Bake with Lolo #1 - Spiced Apple Cake with Orange Glaze!

Ahoy, mateys! Today on the blog, I decided to do something a bit different to see how it feels. While I was making one of our new favorite fall desserts the other day, I figured I'd just take some photos as I went along and try to make a post out of them! If you all like it, I could put other recipes together, too! Let me know if you like this, and please enjoy! :)
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Spiced Apple Cake with Orange Glaze 
(recipe from White Lights on Wednesday)

Cake ingredients:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¾ cup sugar
• ½ cup unsalted butter, softened
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup buttermilk *
• 1 cup apple butter

Glaze ingredients: 

• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 2 tablespoons orange juice
• 1 tablespoon orange zest

Most of the dry ingredients/the spice line up! Step 1: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. [my oven is a mess or else I'd take a picture of it].

Step 2: Combine flour, salt, baking powder, and spices to a medium-sized bowl, stir together, and set aside

Step 3: In a large bowl, combine sugar and butter and cream until smooth. [I used a hand mixer the first time I made this and my KitchenAid the second time. I think I prefer the hand mixer].

Step 4: Add eggs to butter/sugar mixture and mix until it is combined. [As Julie has mentioned, I read somewhere, too, that butter and eggs should be at room temperature before using for baking, and though the recipe doesn't say to do this, I always do it anyway].

Step 5: At this point, you want to add the flour mixture and buttermilk. Starting and ending on the flour mixture, add one then the other and alternate until it is all added, and BE SURE to JUST COMBINE after each addition! [I also forgot to do this once or twice, which might be why it had a different texture the second go-around]

Step 6: When you're done adding the above ingredients, stir in the apple butter. I don't recall the brand we used, but it is delicious stuff. Unfortunately, it's just shy of 1 full cup, but it doesn't seem to make a heck of a lot of different. It comes in a glass container and it pretty expensive, but worth it for this recipe.

Step 7: Bake for 55 minutes after pouring batter into a 9" x 5" loaf pan (bake for 30-35 minutes if you are using a smaller pan!). Poke a toothpick into the center of the cake to see if it is ready (it will come out clear if it is). [Be careful not to overfill your pan! The first time we made it is overflowed (!!!) and got onto the bottom of the oven and caused a nasty, smelly mess. You could always add a baking sheet on the rack under my loaf pan just in case (right???).] 

Step 8: While the cake is baking, make your glaze! Combine powdered sugar, orange zest and orange juice until smooth. Set aside, and right when your cake comes out of the oven, pour the glaze of the top of your cake and spread evenly! It will create a nice and sweet but not too crunch or cloying topping to your already delicious cake. Cool for 10 minutes and enjoy! It is good cold with some coffee for breakfast or warm by itself or with ice cream for dessert!

And there you have it, simple, right? Like I mentioned, we love this recipe! We hope you like it, too!