Tag Archives: Comfort Food

Breakfast Slab Pie

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I seriously cannot believe that we are making our way through November already. 2018 is almost over. We’ve already started getting ingredients for Thanksgiving, which I’m always excited for, but it definitely doesn’t feel like it’s going to be happening in a matter of weeks. From there, things REALLY get busy round here, what with the 12 Days of Christmas baking series–I started making my list of this year’s recipes earlier today and I’m already excited to get started on that, so stay tuned.

We still have brinner at least once a week in our house, but it’s been a while since I posted a new recipe for breakfast on the blog. I wanted to change that and so this past week, I decided to go ahead and make something new for our brinner.

Slab pie is one of those things that I really enjoy baking–more so than a lot of other things that I like. It makes a whole lot of pie for a crowd, with a comparatively low amount of labor. Up until now, I’ve only made sweet fruit dessert slab pies and although they’ve been fabulous I have been curious about what it would look like if I took it to the savory side.

The method for making the pie crust is my normal method of grating frozen butter into the dry ingredients. It might seem ‘extra’ to go to the effort of buying a box grater if you don’t already have one, but I will say it again and again until I’m blue in the face: frozen butter & a box grater will change your pie crust making life. It will also transform the way you make biscuits and scones. If you don’t know, now you know.

I think one of the best things about this recipe is how versatile the filling can be. I’ve provided a recipe below of what I used for our slab pie, but with breakfast foods in general, the possibilities are endless. It’s no different here. If you don’t like sausage as a protein, use ham. Or mushrooms. Or chorizo. If you don’t like green bell peppers, use red or yellow. If you don’t like spinach, use potatoes. Do what you heart (or tastebuds) tell you to do.

Be careful when you pour the beaten eggs on top; make sure it’s mixed into the filling well so that it doesn’t spill over too much into the crust. Use your fingers to try and make sure the crust is pinched together tight at the corners of the pie especially. Also, bake the slab pie on the lower rack of the oven to make sure you get the golden brown, flakey crust results that you see in the pictures–the closer it is to the heat, the faster it will cook on the bottom.

Have a good weekend, guys!

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Breakfast Slab Pie

Adapted from King Arthur Flour

Ingredients

Crust

  • 4 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 24 tablespoons (1 1/2 cups) cold unsalted butter, frozen
  • 3/4 cup cold water, plus more if needed

For Filling

  • 2 lbs of roll breakfast sausage (pork or turkey, doesn’t matter), browned and drained
  • 8 oz frozen spinach, thawed and drained thoroughly
  • 2 green bell peppers, diced
  • 1 large sweet onion, diced
  • 12 eggs, (plus one for the egg wash)
  • salt and pepper

Directions

For Crust: In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour with the salt and pepper. Use the large holes on a box grater to grate the cold butter directly into the dry ingredients. Stir together with a fork. Make a well in the center, then pour in the water. Stir together with a fork and spatula until it forms a craggy mass. Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead it two to three times, just until it comes together. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a 17 x 11 baking sheet and set aside.

Place the crumbled, browned sausage in a large bowl. In a large skillet, saute the onions, then the bell peppers until they are softened and translucent, about 7-10 minutes each. When finished, add to the bowl of sausage. Mix in the drained spinach. Stir together until evenly combined.

Divide the pie crust in two, making one portion slightly bigger than the other. On a floured surface, roll out the larger portion into a 17 x 11 rectangle. Use your rolling pin to help transfer it to the greased baking sheet, using your knuckles to press the crust into the corners; try to make sure there’s some overhang over the sides of the pan.

Spoon the sausage filling into the crust, smoothing over the top with a spatula. (You may have some leftover; place it in an egg scramble at a later use) Place in the refrigerator. Meanwhile, beat 12 the eggs together, then season generously with salt and pepper. Remove the filled pie from the refrigerator. Carefully pour the beaten egg mixture over the filling, using a fork to help it seep in evenly. Roll out the second piece of pie crust into a rectangle. Drape it over the filling, and crimp the edges to seal the pie.

Use a sharp knife to create 2 steam vents in the center (not too big though, or the eggs may leak out). Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl with some water, then use a pastry brush to brush it over the top crust.

Bake the pie on the lower rack of the oven until the crust is golden and the filling is set, 55-60 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool about 10 minutes before slicing into squares serve.

Sharing at the Fiesta Friday #249, co-hosted this week by Diann @ Of Goats and Greens and Jenny @ Apply To Face Blog.

 

Chewy Ginger Cookie Bars

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Y’all, do me a quick favor. Look to the right of your screen and locate the search bar.

Type in the word ‘ginger’. Hit the search button.

What do you see?

My guess would be that quite a few posts are going to pop up.

The reason for this is very simple: I love ginger. I have a very strong appreciation of it. I look for ways to throw it into dishes that may not have originally called for it. Whether you’re using it for a sweet or savory dish, both ground and fresh ginger are fantastic stuff to have around.

I’ve mentioned before that I make my own ginger syrup to help with my stomach issues. The only thing about making ginger syrup is that after you’ve made the syrup, you’re left with quite a bit of candied/crystallized ginger that’s been simmered in the sugar syrup.

Not that I’m complaining. Apart from being delicious to snack on it by itself, candied ginger is one of my favorite things to bake with. Today’s recipe features a double whammy of both ground and candied ginger.

Sometimes I want cookies, but also just don’t feel like making the dough, letting it rest & chill in the fridge, then rolling or scooping it out into individual portions. What I love about cookie bars is that they take the extra labor out of making actual cookies. There’s no chilling time required. You don’t have to portion the dough out individually. After the dough is made, it all gets pressed into one pan and baked off together. You can seriously make this in less than 10 minutes, and have it baked & finished in less than 1 hour. It couldn’t be easier.

This recipe started out from a basic sugar cookie bar that I altered. I swapped out some of the white sugar for brown sugar, then added molasses, ground ginger and candied ginger. Apart from the warm, spicy flavors of these bars, I  think that the texture is my favorite part.

They have a well balanced density, but it’s not so much that it’ll get stuck in your teeth. It’s like that perfect sweet spot that you get in the center of a drop cookie–except, here it’s in the whole thing. I ate mine still warm with whipped cream and caramel. To say that I enjoyed it would be an understatement.

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Chewy Ginger Cookie Bars

Recipe Courtesy of Food Network Magazine

Ingredients

  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/2 white granulated sugar
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup molasses
  • 3 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 cup crystallized ginger, finely minced
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 2 cup flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with foil, leaving a 2-inch overhang on two sides; coat the foil with cooking spray.

In a medium size bowl combine the flour, ground ginger and salt. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the sugars and molasses into the melted butter. Add the eggs, one at a time, stirring briskly. Add the vanilla.

Fold in the dry ingredients into the wet, stirring just until combined. Fold in the minced crystallized ginger. Spread the dough into the baking dish with an oiled spatula.

Bake until the edges are set but the center is soft, about 25-30 minutes. Allow to sit in pan for about 10 minutes, then use the foil to lift out of the baking dish and transfer onto a wire rack to cool completely. Cut into square bars.

Sharing at the Fiesta Friday #248, co-hosted this week by Judi @ cookingwithauntjuju.com and Alex @ Turks Who Eat.

Sweet Potato Pound Cake

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Last week was really hot in my area and I went on a mini-rant about how over it I was. I shared a recipe that was geared towards warmer weather.

This week, it’s a tad bit cooler, but still warm. But you know what? I’m gonna go ahead and share a recipe that is right up the alley of autumn anyway, because I just can’t wait any longer.

Maybe if I put out autumn foods more, it’ll attract more autumn weather to where we are–or not, but I can at least try. And even if it doesn’t bring the autumn vibes my way, I’m still sending good food vibes y’alls way no matter what the weather looks like in your part of the world.

That way, everyone wins.

I know at this time of year everyone loves to throw pumpkin into everything. Personally, I think pumpkin spice is overrated. And when it comes baking, I actually like to take a recipe that calls for pumpkin and swap it right out for sweet potato.

When they’re roasted & mashed, pumpkin, sweet potatoes, yams, and even butternut/kabocha squash take on a very similar consistency. The flavors are different, but they function the same way scientifically during the baking process.

So, what I did here is incorporate a roasted/mashed sweet potato into a pound cake recipe, then added a lot of the autumn spices that are usually given to pumpkin baked goods. The orange zest is there to give it a boost of freshness. If you prefer to use pumpkin, butternut or kabocha squash instead, that’s fine. I promise it won’t mess anything up.

You should know that I originally intended to give this cake a glaze. If you’ve been following this blog for a while, then you know that I usually do. But by the time the cake was done cooling and I had gotten out all of the ingredients for a glaze, I hesitated, looked at it for a long moment and thought, “You know what? Nah. It’s fine.”

Apart from the flavor, the sweet potato keeps the cake itself really moist. The spices complement the sweet potato and give your taste buds a hug. They don’t need any help from a sweet icing and I’m glad that I followed my instincts and didn’t try to give them any.

This is autumn in one delicious bite. Or several, depending on how much of it you eat. And I think you’ll eat plenty.

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Sweet Potato Pound Cake

Recipe Adapted from Land O Lakes

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 1 cup brown sugar (light or dark, doesn’t matter)
  • 1/4 cup white sugar
  • 4 large eggs
  • 1 cup mashed sweet potatoes
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon fresh orange zest
  • 1/4 cup milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour a 12 cup Bundt pan (or two 9 inch cake pans) and set aside.

In a medium size bowl combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together. Stir with a fork until combined, then set aside.

In a glass measuring cup combine the milk with the vanilla extract and set aside.

In the bowl of a standing mixer (or using a handheld one) use the paddle attachment to cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing just until the yellow disappears. Use a spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl as you go to ensure even mixing.

Add the mashed potatoes and orange zest, mixing just until combined.

Continue to mix at a low speed as you add the flour mixture and the milk mixture. (Start and end with the flour.)

Spoon the batter into the cake pan(s). Bake for 45-50 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan on a wire rack for about 20 minutes, then turn the cake out of the pan and allow to cool completely.

Sharing at this week’s Fiesta Friday #246, co-hosted this week, by Mollie @ The Frugal Hausfrau and Mila @ Milkandbun.

Hoisin Pork Lettuce Wraps

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Y’all, can I half-way complain about something? Just for a few minutes. I promise I’ll make this quick.

I’m in my third year of living on the West coast now. I’m well aware by now that the weather here is much warmer, for much longer than it was in the Mitten at this time of year. I know that we don’t get to really see the seasons ‘change’. I know that corn mazes, apple orchards, and sweater weather aren’t really a ‘thing’ outchea.

I miss all of the above, but I’m still fine with going without all of that. There’s just one thing that is really starting to bug me.

I am so sick of the heat.

Seriously. I’m not just over it, I’m overBOARD it. I kinda expect those summer temperatures to carry into September, but by the time October rolls around, I’m kinda ready for them to move along on their way. And they haven’t. They haven’t gone ANYWHERE. Like I said, I’m not exactly expecting sweater weather but I’d at least be able to walk home without getting sweaty.

AND ANOTHER THING. This weather is really putting a damper on my autumn appetite.

Y’all get autumn appetites too, right?

Much like in the summer, I have a massive appetite for things like charcoal BBQ, lots of fruit and whipped cream and lemonade. But as we roll into October, my summer appetite starts to fade and my autumn appetite starts to rev its engine.

And suddenly, all I want is comfort, stick-to-your-ribs food: stew, chili, pot roast, cornbread, apple cider, cinnamon sugary stuff. All of the things that warm you up from the inside out and make you want to take a nap.

But guess what? I’m not really in the mood for food that warms me up on the inside when I’m already too hot from the weather outside. That’s my half-complaint. It’s autumn and I’m not in the mood for autumn food because it still feels like the dead of summer where I’m at. ‘Kay, that’s it. Now onto the food.

Since it’s still too hot outside for autumn food where I’m at, I figured that I could just make something that catered more to the summer weather. Lettuce wraps are right up there so far as I’m concerned. They’re light, they’re refreshing, they’re lower in carbs than tacos. (I don’t really care about that last part, but whatever, they’re still yummy and summery).

Hoisin sauce is like an Asian style ketchup–except in my opinion, it’s much tastier. Hoisin, soy sauce, minced ginger and chili sauce forms the base of the sauce that the pork in this dish is braised in. All together it makes for a sauce that’s salty-sweet, and given a punch of spiciness from the ginger and garlic. Make sure you get lettuce that’s going to hold it’s shape when you place the meat and toppings inside–Boston Bibb or butter works best. I drizzled Sriracha on top of mine to make it extra spicy. It may not be summer anymore, but if you’ve got summer weather where you’re at, maybe you’d like to try this yourself.

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Hoisin Pork Lettuce Wraps

Recipe Adapted from Better Homes & Gardens

Ingredients

  • 4-5 lbs of boneless pork shoulder, cut into chunks
  • Pepper, Onion powder and garlic powder
  • 1 cup low sodium soy sauce
  • 1 cup hoisin sauce
  • 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup minced fresh ginger
  • 3/4 cup sweet chili sauce
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh garlic
  • 1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice
  • 2 cups low sodium chicken broth
  • 1 large yellow sweet onion, cut into chunks.
  • Matchstick carrots
  • Sesame seeds
  • Butter or romaine lettuce leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Season the meat all over liberally with the pepper, onion powder and garlic powder.

Heat about 1-2 tablespoons of oil in the bottom of a Dutch oven or heavy bottom pot over high heat. Sear the meat until browned, about 3-5 minutes per side. Remove to a plate.

Add the onion to the pot and stir to coat the onion in the browned bits. Allow to saute until the onions are softened and translucent. Add the garlic and allow to saute for an additional 2-3 minutes, until fragrant.

Add the soy sauce, hoisin, brown sugar, fresh ginger, chili sauce, five spice and chicken broth to the pot. Bring to a boil, the reduce heat to a low simmer. Taste and adjust for seasoning. Add the pork back to the pot and stir to combine.

Cover tightly with lid or alumnum foil. Bake in the oven until the pork is softened and easily pulled with a fork, 1 1/2-2 hours. Serve the pork with the lettuce leaves, shredded carrots and sesame seeds.

Sharing at this week’s Fiesta Friday #245, co-hosted by Liz @ spadesspatulasandspoons.com and Deb @ Pantry Portfolio.

Honey Sugar Cookies

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I’m sure I’ve said this before, but I’ll go ahead and say it again: I have a mild obsession with sugar cookies.

I use the term ‘mild’ rather loosely. The reality is, I adore them. I think they’re the best dessert that there is. I could eat them every day (I don’t, but I could). I’ve shared more than a few recipes for them on the blog already. I do have my favorites, but there’s honestly something about each one that makes them different and delicious in their own way.

Take it from someone well practiced in eating them: all sugar cookies aren’t created equal. They don’t all come out the same way. Part of this comes down to personal preference. Part of it comes down to the ingredients. Some people are on Team Crispy Sugar Cookies. Others (like me) are on Team Soft Sugar Cookies. Some prefer them unfrosted/un-iced and others won’t take them any other way.

While I do like a good hardened glaze, I will say that I’ve found that a truly good sugar cookie won’t need it. It just won’t. The cookie texture itself will be soft enough to where it doesn’t need the moisture from frosting or glaze. The flavor of vanilla, almond or citrus will be strong enough to not need the added sugar in a frosting or glaze to make it sweet enough to taste like something besides flour.

(And you would be surprised at how often that happens. Like I said: they ain’t all created equal.)

Typically I only try new sugar cookies recipes if there’s something about them that appeals to me. I was flipping through Food Network Magazine one day and I saw this one. It appealed to me, not just because the cookies were pretty, but because they included an ingredient that I had never used in a cookie dough before: honey.

I’ve used honey before in gingerbread. It functions as both a sweetener and a way to keep the final product moist. Because I liked the results with gingerbread, I thought it would be worthwhile to see how it would affect sugar cookies, which are typically sweetened with just…sugar. These do have sugar too, but they also have about 1/4 cup of honey.

Because it’s autumn, I decided to use a pumpkin cookie cutter for these. They hold their shape very well so just about any cookie cutter you wanted to use will work great.

I really, really liked how they turned out. The honey gives them a special sweetness and flavor–you can definitely tell the difference between this and regular sugar cookies. They’re soft and slightly chewy. They’re delicious. Have a good weekend, everyone.

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Honey Sugar Cookies

Recipe Courtesy of Food Network Magazine

Ingredients

  • 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar, plus more for sprinkling
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 large egg
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions

In the bowl of a standing mixer or using a handheld one, beat together the butter and sugar until creamy and fluffy. Add the honey and egg, mixing just until combined and yellow disappears. Add the vanilla.

In a small bowl combine the flour with baking powder and the salt, stirring together with a fork. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in 1 cup increments, mixing just until combined.

Form the dough into a disk, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour, preferably overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Roll dough out on a clean and floured surface to about 1/4 inch thick. Dip your cookie cutter into powdered sugar, then tap to remove excess and transfer to cookie sheets. Repeat until you’ve used up all of the dough.*

Freeze cut out cookies for 10-20 minutes.

Sprinkle the tops of the cookies with a little bit more sugar. Bake in the oven on the middle rack until just golden brown, about 18-20 minutes. Allow to sit on the pan for about 60 seconds before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

(Note: no one oven is the same, & different baking sheets bake cookies differently. Keeping this in mind, I will ALWAYS test bake one cookie before baking entire sheets of the whole batch, just to get a good idea of how long they should be in the oven and if I need to adjust the way I’ve cut, rolled them out, etc. I highly recommend that you do the same.)

Sharing at this week’s Fiesta Friday #244, co-hosted this week by Judi @ cookingwithauntjuju.com and Debanita @ Canvassed Recipes.

French Vanilla Trifle Cake

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Yesterday, I turned 29.

I am now in the last year of my twenties, and it feels odd. I’m not sure how old I feel exactly, but it isn’t one year shy of 30. But regardless of how I feel, this is where I’m at. My birthday usually passes without much celebration or fanfare and I’m fine with that. There is however, one celebratory act that since I learned to cook/bake, does happen every year without fail.

I bake myself a cake.

*Could* I just buy some cake from a bakery or a store? Sure. *Could* I ask a relative or friend to bake one for me? Of course.

But see, here’s the thing: nowhere I could buy it from and nobody I could ask (with the exception of my grandma) could bake me a better cake than the one that EYE would bake. I’m not even bragging. Those are just facts.

So, I do it myself. And I must say, I don’t disappoint.

These are some of the cakes I’ve made for my birthdays over the past few years on the blog: there’s this one. And this one. This one was *especially* good. And I still fantasize about this one.

I’m just good at birthday cakes. And this year was no exception.

The very first cake that I fell in love with as a kid was a plain old vanilla cake. When it’s done well, there’s just nothing like it in the world. I had a lot of options for this year, but ultimately I decided to just go with that: a really, really good grown up vanilla layer cake.

How do you guys think I did?

The cake itself is flavored with both vanilla AND almond extract. The almond may seem like a surprise addition, but trust me: that’s what’s going to give it that little extra ‘something’ that would make you swear it was made in a bakery and not your own kitchen.

To make the cake more ‘grown up’ and to cut down on the sweetness of the vanilla buttercream, I decided to include a tart fruit filling. I had a jar of ligonberry preserves from IKEA that I was itching to try and as ligonberries remind me of a very sweet cranberry, I thought they would pair very well with strawberries. I was right.

This cake was so good. It was a delicious birthday present to myself & I guarantee that it will make a delicious present to anyone you decide to make it for–yourself included.

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French Vanilla Trifle Cake

Recipe Adapted from Southern Living

Ingredients

For Cake

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoons almond extract
  • 3 cups cake flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup buttermilk

For Filling

  • 1/2 cup ligonberry preserves (You can find them at IKEA. You can use strawberry or raspberry preserves as well.)
  • 2 quarts fresh strawberries, diced

For Buttercream Frosting

  • 1 1/2 cups butter, softened
  • 48 oz. powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 to 5 tablespoons milk

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease and flour four 2 inch cake pans and set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the flour with the baking powder, and salt. Stir with a fork and set aside. In a small bowl combine the buttermilk with the vanilla extract and set aside.

Using the paddle attachment of a standing mixer (or a handheld one) cream together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, beating just until blended after each addition. Alternate between adding the dry ingredients to the butter mixture with the wet ingredients. Start and end with the flour mixture, and make sure you use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides of the bowl to ensure even mixing.

Divide evenly between the two cake pans on the middle rack of the oven for 32 to 36 minutes. (Cake is done at an inner temp of 190-195 degrees Fahrenheit). Cool in pans on wire rack for 10 minutes. Remove from pans and to wire rack and cool completely (about 1 hour).

For Buttercream Frosting: Beat together the butter, vanilla and salt until creamy. Gradually add the powdered sugar, alternating with the milk 1 tablespoon at a time, beating at a low speed until blended and smooth after each addition until it reaches your desired consistency.

To assemble: Level the tops of each cake. Line the edges of a cake platter with strips of parchment paper to keep the platter clean while you assemble the cake. Place one cake layer on the platter. Pipe a border of frosting around the edges of the cake. Spread the layer with about 2/3 cup of buttercream. Top with first the sliced strawberries, then spread the preserves on top of that with the spatula. Top with the remaining cake layer. Spread entire cake with just enough frosting over the top and sides to make a crumb coat. (It should be thin).  Refrigerate cake for one hour until the crumb coat is firm. Finish spreading the remainder of the frosting on the cake. Refrigerate for an additional hour, just to let buttercream firm up. Remove the parchment strips from the platter before serving.

Linking to this week’s Fiesta Friday #243, co-hosted this week by Catherine @ Kunstkitchen’s Blog and Becky @ Bubbly Bee.

Vanilla Wafers

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Filed under Cookies, Snacks

This week’s episode of the Cooking is My Sport show is entitled “But Jess…Is It Really Worth It, Though?”

Thank you for tuning in. It’s going to be a good one.

Over the past few years on the blog, I’ve shared recipes for things that many of us could, theoretically buy from elsewhere rather than make ourselves. It is easier and more convenient go to our local grocery store and buy something with little to no trouble.

I could buy quite a few of the things that I post here–if not from a grocery store, then from a bakery or something. And though even EYE I am not going to go to the trouble of making something like, puff pastry, for the most part, I really do cook or bake most of what we eat. Why do I do this?

Because I believe it’s worth it. I really do.

If you ask, “But Jess, is it REALLY worth it, though?” to bake Christmas cookies rather than just buying some in a store, I’m going to say yes. It’s worth it.

Ask “But Jess, is it REALLY worth it, though?” to bake your own cake from scratch, then go to the trouble of making your own buttercream and skip the store bought cake with that greasy, lardy crap, I’m going to say yes. It’s worth it.

Come to me with, “But Jess, is it REALLY worth it, though?” to make biscuits from scratch when they’re available at the local chicken joint, I am DEFINITELY gonna say, yes. It’s worth it.

(My biscuits are better than any others that you can buy anywhere else anyway. Including Popeyes. Yeah, I said it.)

I shared the recipe for my grandma’s banana pudding on the blog years ago. It’s one of the best things I’ve ever made–but up until recently I had always made it with store-bought vanilla wafers. I’ll be honest and admit that is the way that she makes it, and it tastes fantastic. But recently, I decided to see what it would be like if I went the extra mile and made the pudding with vanilla wafers that I made by myself. Any guesses on how it went? Anyone?

OHMYGODGAMECHANGER.

From the beginning, I had two major concerns for the recipe as a whole: the short, crisp texture of store-bought wafers and the intense vanilla flavor. If I wasn’t going to get a comparable or superior result to the store-bought version, it just wouldn’t be worth it in the long run to make them. I’m pleased to report that this recipe delivers on both. They are crisp, but the butter keeps them from being too crunchy or crumbly. They’re not too sweet, and that vanilla flavor is spot on. Even if I had no intention of making banana pudding at all, I still would’ve considered this time well spent–it’s that tasty a cookie.

Go ahead and ask me: “But Jess…is it REALLY worth it, though?”

Yes. It’s worth it.

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Vanilla Wafers

Recipe Adapted from Williams Sonoma

Ingredients

  • 1 Cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar, plus more for sprinkling
  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 2 egg yolks
  • 1 Tbs. vanilla extract
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

In a small bowl, combine the flour with the salt, stir together with a fork and set aside. In the bowl of a standing mixer (or using a hand-held one) cream together the butter and the sugar until light and fluffy.

Add the egg yolks, one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl as you mix. Stir in the vanilla extract.

Stir the flour into the butter mixture, just until blended. (If it’s a little dry, you can add a few tablespoons of milk, one at a time, just until it holds together.

Form the dough into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper. Sprinkle a rolling pin and clean work surface (like a pastry mat, wax paper) with powdered sugar.

Divide the dough into 4 equal portions. Keep the other 3 in the fridge while you roll out the 1 portion to about 1/4 inch thick. Use a small (1 1/2 inch), round cookie cutter to cut out rounds. Place the rounds on the sheet pans.

Refrigerate the cookies on the pans for about 20 minutes. Sprinkle each one with white sugar, then bake the cookies, 1 sheet at a time, until the edges and bottoms are golden, 12 to 15 minutes. Let the cookies cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer them to wire racks and let cool completely.

(Sharing at this week’s Fiesta Friday #242, co-hosted this week by Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook and Jen @ Apply To Face Blog.)