Lavender Honey Buckwheat Cookies

Once again it's one of my favorite seasons; lavender season! I love lavender so much, the sight of the elegant little purple flowers, the fragrance that heralds early summer, and of course, the delicate floral notes that add a little extra something special to baking when lavender buds are part of the mix. Of course, you don't want to go overboard and add too much lavender which can make you feel like you're eating a mouthful of potpourri, but in just the right amount in the right thing, lavender can really make your baking a little extra special; especially when using your own home-grown or home-foraged lavender. Last year I made some fantastic lavender cupcakes. This year one of my projects was these yummy little buckwheat cookies. A perfect couple of bites of sweetness balanced with the bitterness of the buckwheat and the floral lavender, a perfect combination. 

If going gluten or wheat free is something you're into, these cookies are a great option. In case you're wondering, buckwheat is actually not wheat, they're not even related. Buckwheat is the seed of a flowering plant that is related to rhubarb and sorrel. It has an unique flavor, somewhat bitter, but in a good way. I personally have no problem with wheat in any shape or form, but I still love these cookies. They use oat and buckwheat flours, softened butter, a little sugar and an egg. And of course, lavender. Because, tis the season!!

Lavender Honey Buckwheat Cookies
Adapted from Dishing Up The Dirt
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (60 grams) oat flour
• 1/3 cup (2 1/2 ounces) butter, softened
• 2 1/2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon dried lavender leaves
• 2 Tablespoons (42 grams) honey
• 1 egg
• 3/4 cup (90 grams) buckwheat flour
• pinch of kosher salt

Directions
Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, set aside. 

Beat the butter and sugar together for a couple of minutes, until creamy and light. Add the lavender and honey and beat until well combined. Add the egg and mix well.

Add the oats, flour, and salt to the butter mixture. Mix until it forms a cohesive mixture. Divide the dough into 10-12 equal size balls. Place on baking sheet and press down gently with your fingers, or the bottom of a glass. (The cookies will not spread a lot when you bake them, so flattened them to the thickness you would like the finished product to be.)

Bake the cookies for 15-20 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through baking. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Yields 12-14 small cookies, depending on how big you make them

Lavender Orange Scones

This past week I was feeling the itch to bake something special, but wasn't sure what that should be. I took stock of what I had in the fridge and pantry and found a lonely little orange as well as some dried lavender from last spring. With a quick recipe search I found a recipe for chocolate orange scones. Perfect. At first I was going to go with the classic chocolate orange combination, but then decided that since it's spring and I have some beautiful dried lavender that I would try that combination instead. I figured that the sweet and tart orange would pair well with the floral lavender and I was right. These two flavors compliment each other perfectly and make for a light and fragrant scone, perfect for a leiesurely spring breakfast. 

I've used citrus zest and juice in baked goods plenty of times in the past, but I've never put the actual flesh into a muffin or scone or cake so I wasn't quite sure how it would turn out. I should not have worried, these scones baked up perfectly with little pockets of sweetness due to the orange segments mixed throughout. If you have it, I think some chopped white chocolate would also be a wonderful addition to these lovely spring scones. 

Lavender Orange Scones
Adapted from Vanilla and Bean
Ingredients

• 1/2 stick (2 ounces) cold butter
• 1 Orange
• 2-3 tablespoons whole milk, half and half, or heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Extract
• 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon (70 grams) all purpose flour
• 1/2 cup (60 grams) whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup (30 grams) oat flour
• 1 tablespoon (8 grams) cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons (25 grams) brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2-1 teaspoon dried lavender
• Turbinado sugar, for sprinkling, optional

Directions
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Cut the cold butter into 1/4 inch cubes and place in the refrigerator while prepping the other ingredients.

Zest the orange, peel and chop the flesh into small pieces, taking care to reserve the juices. Place the flesh into a small bowl and add about 1 Tbs of all purpose flour. Stir to coat. Set aside. In a measuring cup mix the orange juice and zest, milk, honey, and vanilla extract. Set aside. 

Add the flours, corn starch, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and lavender into a large mixing bowl. Add the cold butter to the sifted ingredients and use a pastry cutter (or two forks) to cut in the butter into the pastry. The butter should be about pea size, evenly coated, and distributed in the flour.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Gently stir the mixture until the flour is just moistened. The dough will be shaggy and seem dry but avoid the temptation to add additional liquid. Add the chopped orange pieces. Fold in to incorporate, eventually using your hands to press and fold the dough together, just a few times. Squeeze a portion of the dough in your fist. It should loosely hold together. 

Dump the contents out of the bowl onto a flour dusted work surface and press the dough together forming a circle. You may need to work it a little bit with your hands to bring it all together. Work gently, but quickly to keep the dough as cold as possible. Use a bench scraper, or a knife, to cut the circle into 4 to 6 triangles. Transfer the cut scone to the prepared baking sheet. 

Place scones on the parchment lined sheet pan and rest in the fridge or freezer for 20 minutes, while the oven is preheating to 425F. 

Before baking, moisten the top of the scones with a little milk and sprinkle the raw sugar evenly over the top of each scone. Bake for 10 minutes at 425 degrees, then turn the oven down to 375 degrees, rotate the baking sheet, and bake for an additional 15 minutes until the scones are golden brown and cooked through. Remove from oven and carefully transfer scones to a cooling rack. 

Yields: 4-6 scones

Buttery Bran Muffins

Back to basics this morning with a simple yet delicious bran muffin. Nothing fancy, nothing weird.  Start with some wheat bran (obviously) and whole wheat flour for healthy whole grains. Add in some Greek yogurt and butter, a little sugar and an egg and you're basically there. I love experimenting with new grains so I used spelt flour for these muffins but regular old whole wheat would also work. If you have some raisins hanging around go ahead and add those in for a nice raisin bran muffin. I didn't have any in the pantry so I skipped it this time and they were still wonderfully delicious and flavorful. 

These muffins bake up tall and beautiful, just how I like my muffins! They are very light and tender, I couldn't at all tell that they were 100% whole wheat. The flax and coarse sugar on top is just the finishing touch to really make these humble muffins shine. 

Buttery Bran Muffins
Adapted from Serious Eats
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (27.5 grams) wheat bran
• 1/2 cup (4 ounces) boiling water
• 1/4 cup (2 ounces) plain whole milk Greek yogurt
• 1 egg, cold
• 1 1/4 cup (170 grams) spelt or whole wheat flour
• 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons (75 grams) sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/8 teaspoon Kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon baking soda
• pinch nutmeg
• 6 tablespoons (3 ounces) butter
• 1/2 cup (3 ounces) golden raisins, optional
• Flaxseed and turbinado sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

Directions
Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 350°F (177°C). In a large measuring cup, combine wheat bran and boiling water. Let stand 5 minutes, then stir in Greek yogurt and egg. Meanwhile, combine whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, cinnamon, baking powder, salt, baking soda, and butter in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is incorporated, then add bran mixture and continue only until the batter is well combined. With a flexible spatula, scrape the bowl and fold the batter once or twice to make sure it's well mixed from the bottom up, then fold in the raisins if using.

Divide the batter between 8 lightly greased muffin cups. This is enough to completely fill each cup with a little mountain of batter, but do not be alarmed; it will rise significantly but spread very little overall. If you like, sprinkle with flaxseed and turbinado sugar, and bake until puffed and firm, about 16-18 minutes. 

Yields: 8 muffins

Classic Pumpkin Scones

So, I know I posted a pumpkin scone recipe just a few weeks ago, but I couldn't resist posting another one. Since it's almost the end of November (which I consider the unofficial pumpkin-baked-good month) I had to share this recipe before the month is over. I've made quite a few different pumpkin scone recipes in the past which have all been good, but when I made this one last week I knew I had the winner! I think this is probably the best one of the bunch. It's a classic scone, buttery and tender, with the addition of a little pumpkin and scented with warming autumn spices. I was planning on adding some chocolate or nuts to the dough, but I realized when they were all cut and on the baking sheet that I had forgotten to add anything at all. But I needn't have feared, they turned out amazingly! Everything I wish for in a scone. Whether you keep theses scones plain, or add your favorite mix-ins, you won't be disappointed, I promise! 

Yum!! So tender and delicious! These scones did not turn out tough like some pumpkin scones do. I think it's key to work the butter evenly into the dough, not leaving the pieces too big so the butter just melts out. And also be very careful not to add too much liquid. I've made this mistake in the past and it leads to a tough finished product. You want just enough of the liquid to pull it all together, and not any more. I usually don't add all the liquid right away at the beginning, instead adding it a little bit at a time until all the dough is moistened and just sticks together. Stop at this point and start shaping. This will help that end product be a real winner! Some chocolate, walnuts, pecans, or cranberries would all be fabulous. Or just keep them plain and simple, and enjoy those warm and buttery spices.

Classic Pumpkin Scones
Adapted from Vanilla and Bean
Ingredients

• 1/2 stick butter
• 1 cup (120 grams) all purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon cardamom
• 1/8 teaspoon ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon allspice
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2-4 tablespoons half-and-half
• 1/4 cup (60 grams) pumpkin
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. Cut the cold butter into 1/4" cubes and place in the freezer while prepping the other ingredients.

Sift the flour, corn starch, brown sugar, spices, baking powder, baking soda, and salt into a large mixing bowl.

Add the cold butter to the sifted ingredients. Use a pastry cutter to cut in the butter into the pastry until evenly incorporated. The butter should be small, about pea sized, evenly coated, and distributed in the flour.

In a separate bowl, mix 2 tablespoons of the half and half, pumpkin puree and vanilla and pour into the flour mixture. Gently stir the mixture until the flour is just moistened. The dough will be shaggy and seem dry. Add more half and half very slowly as needed for the dough to just hold together. Do not add too much liquid or the scones will turn out flat and tough, you want to add just enough so that the dough barely holds together. 

Dump the contents out of the bowl onto a flour dusted work surface and shape into a circle approximately 3/4-1 inch thick, depending on your preference. Cut the circle into 4-6 wedges. Place scones on the parchment lined sheet pan, cover and place in the fridge for 20 minutes. (At this point, the scones can be held in the fridge overnight for a quick bake in the morning. Just make sure they are wrapped tightly).

Preheat oven to 425F while the scones are resting in the fridge.

Before baking, sprinkle the coarse sugar evenly over the top of each scone if desired, using a little water to help it stick if needed. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden. Enjoy warm or at room temperature. 

Pretty in Pink Chocolate Birthday Cake

It was my birthday yesterday!! Unfortunately, Lara had to work so we couldn't spend the entire day celebrating our birthday like we wanted to. :) This did mean however, that I had plenty of time to spend on my favorite project, birthday cake!! I baked the cake on Friday and froze the layers overnight. Yesterday morning I whipped up a batch of Swiss meringue buttercream to frost the cake with and then decorated it with macarons from my local (and totally amazing) macaron shop that is right down the street (I know, how lucky is that?), and flowers from the flower shop just a few more buildings over. The combination of gorgeous pink dahlias and the corresponding macarons is stunning. I was so pleased with how it all turned out, certainly my favorite cake that I've made to date!

I looked at what felt like a gazillion chocolate cake recipes before settling on one. I went with Rose Levy Beranbaum's All American Chocolate Butter Cake. From the start, this was the recipe I was leaning to, she did literally write the Bible on cake after all, but I had to research for a while before finally deciding. Although I have a chocolate cake recipe that I've made several other times before that I just love, that recipe uses oil as the fat and for this cake I really wanted to go with butter instead. There is just something about butter in a chocolate cake that makes me happy, and it tastes so good. I'm so glad I went this route.

The cake turned out absolutely delicious. It was not a super high-riser as cakes go, but it baked up very nicely without too much of a domed top making it easier for me to frost. I just made 2 layers, but I think adding a third layer next time would be amazing. It is a delicate and tender cake, dense yet moist, and did I mention, it's nice and buttery! So, so, so delicious. I will be making this one again!

For the frosting I went with a basic Swiss meringue buttercream because you can't really go wrong with that! Because I decided to decorate it with real flowers and macarons I left the frosting simple. I smoothed it out evenly all over the cake and left it at that. I wanted to decorations to really shine. 

After looking at a lot of different cakes I knew I wanted to decorate with real flowers. I think it is the best and most beautiful way to decorate a cake. Nothing I can ever do with frosting is going to come close to competing with God's beautiful creation, so why try and compete with that? I walked down the street to my local flower shop and just picked out what spoke to me. I couldn't pass up the gorgeous local dahlias, they were just stunning.

I then headed a few doors down to grab a few macarons to finish out the decorations. (FYI I love my local macaron shop, Le Bon Macaron, they have the absolute BEST macarons, and their shop is absolutely adorable. I highly recommend them to anyone!) I knew they would add a different element and more interest (plus more deliciousness) to the cake. I picked out three different flavors totally based on their colors, just wanted them to go with the flowers I had picked. In the end it all came together beautifully in the finished cake. So much fun to put together! I would really love another excuse to make cake again, soon...! 

Happy Birthday Lara!! I wouldn't choose anyone else to share a birthday with! Even though you had to work, I'm glad we still had plenty of time to celebrate (and eat cake!)!! 

All-American Chocolate Butter Cake
Adapted from The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Beranbaum
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup + 3 tablespoons (2.25 ounces) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 cup (8.25 ounces) boiling water
• 3 whole eggs (5.25 ounces)
• 2 1/4 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 2 1/4 cups + 2 tablespoons (8.25 ounces) all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups (10.5 ounces) sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, room temperature

Directions
Whisk together the boiling water and cocoa powder until smooth, and cool to room temperature. In another bowl, combine the eggs, ¼ of the cocoa mixture, and vanilla.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the remaining dry ingredients and mix on low speed with the paddle attachment to blend. Add the butter and the remaining cocoa mixture and mix on low speed until the ingredients are moistened. Increase to medium to medium-high speed and beat for 1 ½ minutes to aerate. Scrape down the sides and gradually add the egg mixture.

Pour into two prepared 9” cake pans (lined with parchment paper, buttered and floured) and bake at 350 degrees F for 25-35 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Cool on wire racks in the pans for 10 minutes then release onto wire racks. Store tightly wrapped with plastic wrap at room temperature for 2 days, 5 days refrigerated, or 2 months frozen.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream
From Style Sweet California
Ingredients

• 1/2 cup (125 grams) egg whites (from about 3 to 4 large eggs)
• 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 cups (3 sticks – 340 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature, cubed
• 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• ½ vanilla bean, seeds scraped out (optional)

Directions
Whisk together the sugar and egg whites:  In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, add the egg whites and granulated sugar.  Whisk them together briefly by hand, just until they are combined so that the egg whites don’t begin cooking by themselves.

Create a double-boiler:  Fill a sauce pan with a few inches of water and bring to a simmer.  Place the mixer bowl with the egg white mixture on top to create a double-boiler. The water should be kept at a simmer but should not touch the bottom of the bowl.  The double-boiler acts as indirect heat for the egg white mixture. 

Heat the egg white mixture:  Occasionally stirring, heat the egg white mixture until it reaches 155 to 160 degrees F on a candy thermometer.  The mixture should be very hot to the touch and the sugar should have dissolved. 

Make the meringue:  Once the egg white mixture is hot, carefully return the bowl to the stand mixer.  Fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the mixture on high speed for about 8 minutes.  When done, the meringue should hold shiny, medium-stiff peaks and be cooled to room temperature.  Stop the mixer and swap out the whisk for the paddle attachment.

Add the butter:  With the mixer on low, begin adding in the butter a couple tablespoons at a time.  Use the paddle attachment to mix it in.  The butter must be room temperature in order to incorporate properly with the meringue.

Add the vanilla:  Once the butter has been mixed in, add the vanilla bean seeds (if using) and the vanilla extract.

Mix until smooth:  Turn the mixer up to medium speed and mix until silky smooth.  This may take a few minutes, but centime to mix until light, creamy, and free from most air bubbles.

Note: Yields approximately 3 1/2 cups - enough to nicely frost an 8-inch double layer cake, but without any leftover for decorating with.