Twix Bars

I admit it, I'm addicted to Pinterest! I love the fact that I'm able to pin anything and everything thing that I like and or would like to try. I came across this recipe for homemade twix bars about 2 months ago, and I knew that I had to try them. Only thing is I just needed the right time to make them. Lucky for me the right time just happened to be when I needed something for my What's Baking submission this month.

Mellisa from iwasborntocook.blogspot.com pick this month's theme as "YOUR FAVORITE SNOWY DAY TREAT". Last weekend we had a snow storm which dumped about 8 inches of snow on the ground. As you can see from the picture above, I wasn't going anywhere in this weather, which gave me the perfect opportunity to try this recipe. Thanks Melissa for hosting this month and I can't wait to see everyone submission for February, as I'll be hosting!

This recipe does take a while from start to finish, but it was so worth it! I even ended up make a second batch because they were just that good. My family and I loved them so much that they disappeared within a matter of a few days.

I hope that you all enjoy them as much as we did. Like always happy baking.

Recipe source: King Arthur Flour

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Shortbread layer

1 cup salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups of Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

Caramel layer

2 cups caramel, cut into small chunks
3 tablespoons heavy cream

Chocolate layer

3 cups chopped milk chocolate or dark chocolate, melted
1 tablespoon vegetable shortening (optional)

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat your oven to 300°F. Spray a 9" x 13" pan lightly with cooking spray, and line with parchment paper, and set aside.
FOR THE COOKIE LAYER:

In a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla.

Add the flour.

The mixture may seem dry, but will come together as you continue to beat at medium speed.

Once combined take the dough and press it evenly into the pan.

Prick the crust all over with a fork. The holes will allow steam to escape and the crust will bake evenly with fewer bubbles.

Bake the crust until it's lightly golden brown on top and the edges are deeper golden brown, about 35 to 45 minutes.

Remove from the oven and immediately run a knife around the edges to loosen the crust.

Set it aside to cool completely.

FOR THE CARAMEL LAYER:

Melt the caramel and cream over low heat in a small saucepan.

Pour the caramel over the cooled crust and put it in your freezer while you prep the chocolate layer as it makes it easier to cut the into bars once it's harden up.

FOR THE CHOCOLATE LAYER:

Melt the milk chocolate slowly in a double boiler.

If it seems very thick, add a tablespoon of shortening to thin it.

Once melted take off the heat and set aside while you cut the cookie/carmel layer.

After the caramel layer has chilled firm, cut down the length of the pan, splitting the bars into two long, narrow bars.

Then cut each long strip into "fingers".

Dip the chilled bars into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to set for several hours.

Pour yourself a tall glass of milk and enjoy!

Mini Carrot Cakes

One of my husband's favorite cakes is carrot cake. So when I bake him any type of sweet, I tend to find myself going to a carrot cake or his second favorite, apple cake. He would much rather have a piece of cake over something as sweet as a brownie or ice cream.

Seeing as my husband was on call this during Chinese New Years my in-laws came up and did all the cooking. Since wanted to do all the cooking I decided that I would bake something for dessert. The down side was because they were doing all the cooking, I was in a time crunch and couldn't spend an hour to baking the cake so I decided that I would use this recipe and just bake mini cakes. I have to say that the mini carrot cakes were a huge hit. Not only were the cute, but they also were the perfect size.


WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

6oz Unsalted butter
1 egg at room temperature
1 Tablespoon of water
2 Cups of grated carrots http://tipnut.com/recipes-canning/
1/2 Cup of flour
1 Teaspoon of baking soda
1 Teaspoon of Baking powder
2 Tablespoon of cinnamon
1 Teaspoon of pumpkin spice
1/2 Teaspoon of salt
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease muffin tin and set aside

In stand mixed, cream the butter, vanilla, and sugar until light and fluffy.

Beat in the egg and water.

Add in carrots, once combined, add in flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and salt.

Once combined, spoon in the mixture to prepared muffin tin.

Fill to top....as the carrot cakes do not lift a lot.

Bake until the tops spring back when touched lightly for about 35 minutes.

Let stand for 10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Once cool frost with your favorite cream cheese frosting.

Low- fat Mocha Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins

I don't know about you, but I can not start the day without a cup of coffee. Unfortunately some morning I have to skip that fresh brewed cup of coffee, because I spent an extra 30 minutes trying to get my 3 year old out the door in the morning. You parents know what I'm talking about =)So sometimes our morning start with a grab and go. Well this this grab and go muffin, not only do I get that coffee flavor, but I also get a healthy start to the morning.

We are very big on breakfast,and because of that I'm always looking for something to make on Sundays for the following work week. It has to be easy and something that we can eat on the move. Therefore each week it's either a new twist on pancakes, french toast, croissants, and of course this week's breakfast is MUFFINS!

I have to say that this is such a great recipe and I know it's going to be one that I turn to for years to come. These muffins are so good that half the batch was gone the same day I baked them. I hope you all enjoy it as much as we have.

Recipe: Adapted from Cooking Light Jan 2012 issue

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

2/3 Cup of 1% milk
4oz of melted butter
1/4 Cup of black coffee
2 Teaspoons of vanilla
1 Egg
2 1/4 Cups of AP flour
2/3 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips
2 Teaspoons of baking powder
1 Teaspoon of baking soda
1/4 Teaspoon of salt

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the first five ingredients in stand mixer.

Add sugar and then spoon in Flour into wet mixture until combined.

Add baking powder, baking soda, and salt and beat until combined.

Fold in chocolate chips until just combined.

Spoon batter into greased muffin pan and bake at 400 degrees for about 18-20 minutes, until done.

Remove muffins from pan and let cool on wire rack.

Calories 160, Fat 5.9g Protein 3.6g, Carbs 28g, Fiber 1g,