By Amber, on April 30th, 2012 Some people might think that it is a bit extreme to make your own burger buns, but I tell you what. The taste that homemade buns bring to an ordinary burger or sandwich makes it worth the little amount of time that is needed to make them. You may be intimidated to make homemade buns because you don’t think you have the proper pan, or maybe you think it calls for special ingredients that you do not have. Let me put your fears to rest, this recipe calls for no special pan or ingredients which means that anyone can make these homemade buns anytime. I made these buns in a mini version to go along with the french dip sliders that I made not to long ago but they can be made in any size that fits your needs. I don’t really have much else to say about these buns because they speak for themselves. I just urge you to get off your buns and get into the kitchen soon to mix up a batch of these.
 www.sugaredwhisk.com Beautiful Burger Buns
Ingredients
For the buns
3/4 to 1 (6-8 ounces) cup lukewarm water *
2 tablespoons butter
1 large egg
3 1/2 cups (14 3/4 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
1/4 cup (1 3/4 ounces) sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon instant yeast
for the topping
3 tablespoons melted butter
*For best results (a smooth, slightly soft dough), use the smaller amount of water in summer (or in a humid environment), the greater amount in winter (or in a dry climate); and something in between the rest of the time.
Directions
To make the dough - Mix and knead all of the dough ingredients — by hand, mixer, or bread machine — to make a soft, smooth dough. Cover the dough, and let it rise until it’s nearly doubled in bulk, approximatel 1 to 2 hours.
To shape the buns - Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 8 pieces. Shape each piece into a round ball; flatten to about 3″ across. To make smaller (slider) buns divide the dough into 12 to 13, 2 ounce pieces and press into 1 1/2 to 2 inch disks. Place the buns on a lightly greased or parchment-lined baking sheet, cover, and let rise for about an hour, until noticeably puffy. Gently brush the buns with about half of the melted butter.
To bake the buns - Bake the buns in a preheated 375°F oven for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden. Remove them from the oven, and brush with the remaining melted butter. This will give the buns a satiny, buttery crust.
~Yields 8 large or 12 small burger buns
Recipe as seen on King Arthur Flour.
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By Amber, on April 27th, 2012 I always thought that it would be pretty awesome to make my own donuts at home. I have had a mini donut pan sitting on a shelf for about 5 years now just begging to be used. I decided that it was finally time, I was going to get that pan out give it a good washing and put it to work! Making baked donuts at home is not hard at all, the only special tool that is needed is a donut pan. Luckily enough donut pans are pretty inexpensive, you can pick one up at your local BB&B for about $10. Acquiring the donut pan might just be the hardest part of this whole recipe.
I was pretty nervous that my donuts were not going to rise up and look so pretty but I was completely wrong. As long as the pan was not overfilled the doughnuts came out in perfect little rings. The original recipe called for spooning the batter into the pan but I found that to be a little to tedious and knew there was a much easier way. Instead I chose to fill a pastry bag with my batter and pipe it into the molds of the pan. One quick swipe around the circle and there was a perfect amount of batter in the pan ready to be baked into a beautiful little donut.
Cake Donuts are one of the items on my kitchen bucket list, so now I can mark that off ! I am slowly working on the list, it feels so good to cross items off.
 www.sugaredwhisk.com Chocolate Glazed Chocolate Chip Donuts
Ingredients
for the donuts
2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
3/4 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
2 eggs lightly beaten, at room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
for the chocolate glaze
1/3 cup milk chocolate chips
2/3 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
4 tablespoons softened unsalted butter
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
To make the donuts: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Sift the cake flour, sugar, baking powder and kosher salt into a large bowl, add the mini chocolate chips and mix well. Add in the buttermilk, lightly beaten eggs, melted butter and vanilla extract. Gently fold the ingredients together using a rubber spatula, being extremly careful not to over mix the batter.
Lightly grease a doughnut pan. Carefully place the batter into a pastry bag, or a ziptop baggie, and cut off 1/4″ of the end of the bag. Pipe the batter in the doughnut pan . Bake the doughnuts at 400 degrees F for 6 minutes*. Once the doughnuts are done baking, let them cool in the pan for a few minutes before removing to a cooling rack. Rinse the warm pan under cold water to cool it down and then dry with dishcloth. Lightly grease the pan and repeat directions above until all the batter has been baked.
*Note: My mini donut pan holds 12 donuts that are approximately 2″ in diameter. If you pan is larger be sure to adjust baking time accordingly.
To make the chocolate glaze: Put the milk, chocolate chips, semi sweet chocolate chips, butter and corn syrup in a microwavable bowl. Microwave the mixture, stopping to whisk every 30 seconds, until the chocolate is completely melted. Set the chocolate glaze aside for 10 minutes to slightly cool.
Put a cooling rack on top of a baking sheet, or a piece of wax or parchment paper. Working with the donuts, one at a time, turn the donut upside down and dip it into the chocolate. Place the doughnut, chocolate side up, onto the cooling rack so the chocolate can set. Decorate with sprinkles, nuts, coconut, or other toppings as desired.
~ yields approximately 40 mini (2″ diameter) donuts.
Recipe slightly adapted from Gingerbread Bagels
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By Amber, on April 26th, 2012 As soon as I saw this recipe I knew that I needed to make it as soon as I possibly could. My all time favorite burger is to be paired with one of my favorite dipping sauces. There was no doubt in my mind that this recipe would blow the typical burger out of the park. My thoughts were right, these burgers were spot on. Now if you don’t like mushrooms nor do you like “dipping” your foods then you might as well not even try this recipe because it would just be a plain ole burger to you. But if you enjoy the finer side of life and love a good mushroom swiss burger and find it quite fun to dip your foods that I definitely recommend you give these bad boys a try soon. Note: These can be made as regular sized burgers or fun little sliders. Whichever makes your skirt fly higher.
In the original recipe, for the Au Jus, a product called ”Better than boullion” was used for the beef flavor. I did not have any at home so I just choose to use beef broth. I was stupid and added additional salt into the liquid, I should have known better since broth is typically a very salty product. I usually buy low sodium chicken broth, do they even make low sodium beef broth? I suppose I should check into that. Anyway, all I am trying to say here is watch it on the addition of any salt unless you like dipping your food in salt.
Do you have a hard time finding slider buns in your grocery stores, or maybe just feel the urge to try to make your own burger buns. Check back in a few days because I have a recipe coming up for the most delicious burger buns ever! The recipe is super easy and requires no special ingredients or pans. It is a must try!
 www.sugaredwhisk.com French Dip Burgers
Ingredients
for the burgers
2lbs ground beef
salt and pepper (to taste)
4 slices Swiss cheese (each slice cut into 4 squares)
1 package fresh sliced mushrooms
1 tablespoon garlic (minced)
2 tablespoons butter
12 slider buns
butter (for spreading)
for the Au Jus
1 can beef broth
1 stalk celery
1/2 small onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 pinch thyme
1 small bay leaf
black pepper, to taste
Directions
1 – In a saucepan combine broth, celery, onion, garlic, thyme, bay leaf and pepper. Simmer until vegetables are tender (about 30 minutes). Strain; discarding vegetables and placing Au Jus into small bowls for serving.
2 – Shape ground beef into 12 patties (approximately 2 3/4 ounces each) and season on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat a large skillet to medium high heat. Add the burger patties and cook, turning once, until fully cooked. During the last few minutes of cooking top each patty with 2 pieces of the sliced Swiss cheese squares.
3 - While burgers are cooking melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium high heat. Add garlic and mushrooms and sauté for 15-20 minutes or until the mushrooms are tender.
4 - Split the slider buns in half and butter the cut side of each half. Place face down in a fry pan over medium heat and cook until browned on the bottom. Place each hamburger patty onto a slider bun, top with sautéed mushrooms, and place on the top half of the bun. Serve with Au Jus.
~ yields 12 slider sized burgers
Recipe adapted from Blog Chef
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By Amber, on April 24th, 2012 I have had this recipe tagged to make for several years now. Every time I thought about making it I changed my mind and decided not too. Why I changed my mind so many times I will never know, this recipe was not difficult nor was it to time involved. Now that I have made this recipe it will probably be something that I make quite often. This torte is like a normal peanut butter pie on steroids. Chocolate cookie crust, check! Creamy fluffy peanut butter mousse, check! Silky smooth ganache studded with crunchy peanuts, check! What is not to love about this decadent concoction? If you like nice thick sturdy crust go ahead and add a few more oreos and some more melted butter, but if you are content with a crust just thick enough to get the job done then the amounts given in this recipe are just perfect.
If you want to please the peanut butter lover in your house, I suggest you give this dessert a try soon. You definitely won’t be disappointed.
 www.sugaredwhisk.com Peanut Butter Torte
Ingredients
1 1/4 cup finely chopped salted peanuts (for the filling, crunch, and topping)
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon instant espresso powder (or finely ground instant coffee)
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (or finely chopped semi sweet chocolate)
24 Oreo cookies, finely crumbed or ground in a food processor or blender
½ stick (4 tablespoons) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
Small pinch of salt
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/4 cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted
12 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 1/2 cup salted peanut butter – crunchy or smooth (not natural variety)
2 tablespoons whole milk
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate finely chopped
Directions
Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-inch Springform pan and place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.
To make the crunch; toss 1/2 cup of the chopped peanuts, the sugar, espresso powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and mini chocolate chips together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Put the Oreo crumbs, melted butter and salt in another small bowl and stir with a fork just until crumbs are moistened. Press the crumbs evenly over the bottom and up the sides of the spring form pan (they should go up about 2 inches on the sides). Freeze the crust for 10 minutes.
Bake the crust for 10 minutes, then transfer it to a rack and let it cool completely before filling.
Working with a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, whip 2 cups of the cream until it holds medium peaks. Beat in 1/4 cup of the confectioners’ sugar and whip until the cream holds medium-firm peaks. Scrape the cream into a bowl and refrigerate until needed.
Wipe out (do not wash) the bowl, fit the stand mixer with the paddle attachment if you have one, or continue with the hand mixer, and beat the cream cheese with the remaining 1 cup confectioners’ sugar on medium speed until the cream cheese is satiny smooth. Beat in the peanut butter, ¼ cup of the chopped peanuts and the milk.
Using a large rubber spatula, gently stir in about one quarter of the whipped cream, just to lighten the mousse. Still working with the spatula, stir in the crunchy peanut mixture, then gingerly fold in the remaining whipped cream. Scrape the mousse into the crust, mounding and smoothing the top.
Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight; cover with plastic wrap as soon as the mousse firms.
To finish the torte: put the chopped chocolate in a heatproof bowl and set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. Leave the bowl over the water just until the chocolate softens and starts to melt, about 3 minutes; remove the bowl from the saucepan.
Bring the remaining ½ cup cream to a full boil. Pour the cream over the chocolate and , working with a rubber spatula, very gently stir together until the ganache is completely blended and glossy.
Pour the ganache over the torte, smoothing it with a metal icing spatula. Scatter the remaining 1/2 cup peanuts over the top and chill to set the topping, about 20 minutes.
When the ganache is firm, remove the sides of the springform pan; its easiest to warm the pan with a hairdryer, then remove the sides, but you can also wrap a kitchen kitchen towel dampened with hot water around the pan and leave it there for 10 seconds. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
~Yields 6-8 servings
Recipe as seen in Baking: From My Home to Yours, Dorie Greenspan pg. 282-283
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