The other day I saw someone post some beautiful two bite brownies and I immediately had a craving. But when I used my regular brownie recipe they were not nearly as moist and delicious in a two bite form. This led me on a quest to make the perfect gooey chocolaty two bite brownies!

The key to making these dense and gooey was taking out any rising agents. I also added chocolate chips so you will get bits of melted chocolate. This brownie recipe is easy because it can be made in one bowl so you can cut down on the kitchen mess.

(see all that ooey gooey goodness????)

I made a couple different batches before I found the perfect one. I had to start handing them out to family just to get all these brownies out the house! I took some from each batch over to my grandma’s where she meticulously taste tested everything I brought her and added her comments. She turns 90 in a couple months, and she seems to enjoy being my taste tester, so I continue to take them over to her. I knew I was getting close when she had downed four of them before I had even left the house. When I pointed it out to her she was offended that I had been counting. Sorry Grandma.

PAN PREP

The first thing I do is prepare the pan. You will need a mini muffin/cupcake pan. When I started working on my recipe I was concerned that if I made the brownies too gooey I would never be able to get them out of the pan. This recipe, however, hardens the outside just enough to easily pop out of the pan and still have a gooey center. I grease the cups of the pan with vegetable shortening. I put a gob on paper towel and spread it into all the nooks of the muffin cup. I don’t want it spread to thin, so I make it so you can see the shortening.

I was having a huge craving for coffee flavoured things (I don’t know where it came from!), and I decided mini cupcakes would be a great way to settle that need. I love little desserts that you can just pop into your mouth! Of course the danger is that you can’t stop at one :p.

I love this recipe because the lack of butter means that I don’t have to get my mixer out, just my whisk. I was inspired by the way you get a hit of cinnamon flavour in cinnamon bun style desserts where the cinnamon is marbled throughout. In the same manner I created a coffee marbling effect so that you get a hit of strong coffee flavour rather than overall essence of it.

 have a number of recipes that use cookie dough that I need to add to the blog, so I thought I better start with the basics.

I love cookie dough! I make up a batch long ahead of time and keep it in my freezer so I can pull it out and add it to a bunch of different things. Chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, brownies, and cookie bars are all high on my list.

But why do you have to make a different recipe than your usual to be baked kind?

We all love to eat cookie dough straight from the bowl, but we all also know that some of the ingredients eaten raw may not be good for us. This cookie dough recipe substitutes applesauce as the combining agent for eggs, and heats the flour in case of any contaminants. I have also taken out all the rising agents, as no bake goods have no need to rise!

This recipe makes the syrup which can then be added to a latte, or just added to your morning coffee for all the delicious flavour. It should be enough for about two drinks (depending how sweet you like your latte)!

It took me a while to figure out what to title this one. At first I thought maybe the “dirty PSL” or the #GBPSL, but I wanted to elaborate the point that this pumpkin spice creation is perfect from September to December (and if you are like me it’s also good between January and August as well).

I originally sought to create just a really good pumpkin spice latte base. Wouldn’t you guess that the things I ended up adding to a traditional pumpkin spice base gave me all the feelings of holiday deliciousness and warmth. I didn’t realize that’s what I wanted until it happened, drinking my all-season PSL one morning I was so happy with the combination I decided I didn’t need store bought pumpkin spice ever again.

Ok, if you haven’t connected the dots yet the secret ingredients are molasses and ginger. Yes, these are the key ingredients in ginger bread, and yes, those are the flavours that take a this normal pumpkin spice to something with even more holiday warmth. I thought that adding molasses might add a darker richness (I had been experimenting adding it to my pumpkin tart at the time, and just extended the concept a little further). And then I thought, this would be good with a little bit of heat in it. Which is when I added the ginger. After I wrote down the recipe I realized that I had just subconsciously added gingerbread. But Voila, it’s delicious.

This past weekend my friend in passing mentioned she was having cheesecake for dessert and I had sudden cravings to acquire some of my own. I dreamed of cheesecake that was soft and creamy and that filled my chocolate cravings! This chocolate cheesecake recipe fills all of those needs and goes great with a glass of red wine.

I didn’t want to make an entire cheesecake because I was just making it for me and maybe my parents. The pandemic has us sharing less and needing smaller portions. This recipe is enough to make two four-inch mini cheesecakes or would likely fit in one six-inch or eight-inch springform pan.

I ended up baking the cheesecakes in a water bath so that the middle wouldn’t sink, and it worked perfectly. I also specify using Philadelphia brand cream cheese. This isn’t an ad, it’s because Philadelphia tastes significantly better and I have not yet found a comparison. If you’re wondering whether it’s worth paying the extra for Philly cream cheese the answer is yes, I refuse to use any other kind.

My spring form pans in a water bath and in the oven.

Shortbreads are definitely one of those classic holiday favourites. They are easy to make and require fewer ingredients than other styles of cookies. In this version, I have added orange zest to add a lighter flavour and drizzled them with chocolate for added visual interest.

I ended up trying a couple of different gingerbread cake recipes this year from other bakers and every time I did the results were the same; very dry. For me, a moist cake is the most important factor. I don’t think you should have to eat a cake with ice cream just to up the moist factor or cover the layers in simple syrup. A good cake comes out of the oven moist and mouthwatering without any additions. This gingerbread cake is just that, super moist and no need to pair it or cover it with anything (although who doesn’t love a little bourbon glaze).

I really wanted to make a bundt cake this holiday season, but all of my bundt pan are very pumpkin designed (aka. fall looking) and I really wanted a pan that screamed Christmas. Some fancier bundt pans can get really pricy, and I definitely splurged on this Nordic ware star style pan (bought from amazon). But I couldn’t resist, and really it’s a life long investment right? While this recipe fits in a bundt pan, it will also fit in any 8 x 8″ square pan or 8″ round pan.

I was super happy with my mulled wine with a red wine base but this came into my head one day and I had to try it. If you can believe it I actually like this better than my red wine version! I know, it’s crazy, since I am a huge red wine drinker, but this was super delicious!

This month I have been working at the liquor store which involves a lot of people asking what to mix with certain things. One day I had a woman ask what she should mix with hot apple cider. The first thing that popped into my head was to mix it with a white wine and make a mulled cider/wine. As soon as I suggested it I thought, “OMG, why am I not doing that?” So here it is and it ticked off all the boxes of a warm holiday drink. In this mulled wine, apples and cinnamon come together to create all the apple spice you need. Pair it with some ginger cookies and a holiday movie and you are all set!

I created this recipe because I wanted to make a fruity layer cake similar to an apple spice cake, but one that felt less fall inspired and more holiday themed. Pears are a really good fruit to use during November and December when we are ready to move away from apples and pumpkin and turn towards holiday flavours like gingerbread. Luckily pears are available all year round and this cake also works as a delicious cake any time of the year. For this cake shown above I paired the fresh pear layers with my Fluffy Brown Sugar Frosting. This gives the cake an even richer holiday feel.

I created the final cake design for an Instagram cake decorating collaboration. The theme was cute Christmas, so I tried out some cute Christmas fondant figures. I was particularly proud of the penguin. 🙂

Ingredient and Preparation Tips

How to create your own pastry flour:

I have used pastry flour (aka. cake flour) in this recipe which helps create a lighter cake. Luckily you don’t actually have to go out and buy a separate bag of flour. To make pastry flour all you need is all-purpose flour and cornstarch. For every 1 cup of all-purpose flour, remove two tablespoons and replace with two tablespoons of cornstarch. Whisk them together and you have your own pastry flour.

Preparing your pears:

This recipe requires you to mash up your pears almost like you are making an applesauce. To do this peel and cube your pears. I found this easier to do when the pear is still firm because they are easier to handle. After you have cut them into cubes place them in microwaveable bowl and microwave for six to seven minutes, or until the pears are soft. Using a potato masher or a fork, mash the pears into smaller pieces. I recommend not mashing them up too small because having some small pieces adds flavour and texture to your cake.

You can see in the picture of the cake slice below that there are still visible chucks of pear in the cake. You can also see how the pear adds moisture to this cake. Soo delicious!

This recipe makes three 6″ layers as represented in the pictures on this page, or two 8″ layers.