{twd} dulce de leche duos…an awesome cookie

Tasty tasty cookies and not a speck of chocolate. These cookies are awesome. It wasn’t until I actually started making them that I realized why Dorie Greenspan calls them Dulce de Leche Duos. Not only is the filling dulce de leche, but it’s also used in the cookie itself.

I was in Las Vegas last weekend and had the opportunity to meet up with the lovely Megan of My Baking Adventures. She, too, is awesome. And beautiful. It was fun {and way too short} and I look forward to seeing her again the next time I’m in town.

Many thanks to Jodie of Beansy Loves Cake for hosting and selecting Dulce de Leche Duos as this week’s Tuesdays with Dorie. If you would like the recipe, visit her blog or buy the book.

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{sms} apple pie with benefits

Apple pie with benefits? Yes. Usually the benefits would be ice cream. Vanilla is traditional, but cinnamon or Calvados ice creams would rock too.

In this case, the benefit is a sweet & creamy caramel sauce. Tart granny Smith apples play a nice counterpoint.

This week’s Sweet Melissa Sundays recipe–Double-Crusted Caramel Apple Pie was the bee’s knees. It was a cinch to throw together; it helped having pie crust in the freezer (I used something in my freezer! One down, a gazillion to go!).

The original recipe makes one 10 inch pie. I had 1/2 of Dorie Greenspan’s Good for Almost Anything Pie Crust which was not enough for the full size pie. It was just enough for one super-cute 4″ pie.

Short and sweet–I’m writing this on Friday as I walk out the door to head to Vegas for the weekend and on Sunday I’ll be heading back home. I just got back into the groove of baking and blogging and didn’t want to miss a beat.

Thanks to Susan of Baking with Susan for hosting this week. If you would like the recipe, visit her blog or buy the book.

{twd} a simple flan

Unlike last week, in which I made the Cocoa-Nana Bread but didn’t blog about it, this week I didn’t make the Milk Chocolate Mini Bundt Cakes. And I’m blogging about something completely different.

The Caramel-Topped Flan was a Tuesdays with Dorie selection way back in March 2008. If you haven’t made it, you need to make it ASAP. If you have made it, you need to make it again NOW. A very simple recipe with very simple ingredients. The right texture, flavor, and looks of a great flan. I made it for a margaritas and ceviche party I  attended and it was a big hit.  Steph at A Whisk and a Spoon hosted that week and you can find the recipe HERE or in the book.

I have nothing against Milk Chocolate Mini Bundt Cakes, I just didn’t have time to make them this week. They didn’t require a visit to the store–I had all the ingredients on hand. I attempted to make them twice, or at least to the point of removing the butter from the refrigerator to soften it and then a few hours later putting it back into the refrigerator.

When do we get the 30 hour days and the 8 day weeks??

{twd} two for the price of one

This week marks the second anniversary of Tuesdays with Dorie, the awesome blogger baking group that is baking it’s way through Dorie Greenspan’s Baking…From My Home to Yours. To celebrate the occasion Laurie, the founder of the group, let the bloggers decide which recipe to make and chose a second one  as another option.

I made the Tarte Tatin for the non-chocolate dessert option at my supposed-to-be-vegetarian Christmas Eve dinner. Darn, those parents! Anyway, the tarte was easy to make and used simple ingredients.  You caramelize apples in a pan and then cover the apples with puff pastry (what I used) or tart dough and bake it in the oven. Once done, you flip it and the apples are on top. And, YAY!, all my apples behaved.

I, of course, served it with homemade ice cream. I made the Vanilla Bean Ice Cream from Alice Medrich’s Pure Dessert. See the flecks! Love it.

I really liked the Tarte Tatin. It wasn’t too sweet and it was light and flaky. I’ll definitely make it again, maybe using different fruits.

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I made the Cocoa-Buttermilk Birthday Cake for Olivia’s first birthday party. Olivia is my best friend’s daughter. I made it for the sole purpose of destruction.  I made half the recipe and baked it in three 4-inch round pans. I froze two of the little cakes and split the third to make layers. The cake was a big success with Olivia. See the photo montage below.

Thank you so much to Laurie for starting Tuesdays with Dorie 2 years ago. It’s been so much fun and I’ve met and have become friends with so many new people since I joined. If you would like the recipes for both, please buy the book or visit Laurie’s blog.

{sms} butter toffee crunch

I have all these posts I need want to write before I leave on vacation. I was going to scale back my goals of writing 17 posts before I left, but my blogging friends via Twitter convinced me to do it. They told me to be short and sweet. This is one of those posts.

This week’s Sweet Melissa Sundays selection is Butter Toffee Crunch, a delicicious and almost too simple bark-style candy with layers of toffee caramel, chocolate, and sliced almonds. Thank you to Kaitlin of Kait’s Plate for hosting this week’s recipe. If you would like the recipe, visit her blog or buy the book.