Happy Birthday Liam!

Guess what happened a year ago today? This little guy was born!!!

Almost 7 months old.

It's crazy that a year and one day ago he was just an idea, an event we knew was going to happen but couldn't fully comprehend. And then BAM! Though he was brand-new, it was immediately like Liam had always been a part of our family.

1 hour old.

We all know I'm biased, but just look at him! My little nephew is pretty much the greatest thing EVER!

He is so well-behaved (I would expect nothing less of Sister1 and Geoff's offspring), and active, and silly, and smiley, and so much fun! If you missed it (or want to take another look at the adorable pictures) here's his birthday post.

He doesn't quite talk yet (at least not in a language the rest of the world can understand), but look at him walking all by himself! 

Sister1 has been taking him on her runs, and it's really only a matter of time before he's running himself! (What sports will he play? Omg I am so excited to watch him grow up!!!) The only sad news is that I can't be there to see it all...luckily we live in an age of texted pictures and Instagram and Facebook so I can see him grow week by week. Happy Birthday Liam!!!

Weekend Report: Biking and Eating in Sonoma County

Well here I am, weekend reporting from the great state of Northern California, because I’m still at home! And I had a completely lovely completely cliche Sonoma County weekend.

Petaluma, though not much of a thrilling locale, happens to have some of the best bike-riding in the area. It’s definitely hilly, but beautiful, and with minimal cars. So Friday afternoon, in my post-Thanksgiving need-to-work-off-all-that-desert inspiration, I borrowed my dad’s hybrid bike and my mama’s biking shorts and biked out to Dillon Beach. The last 10 miles, from Tomales to Dillon, are pretty brutal in the hills department, but totally worth it.

(My mama met me with her car at the beach, so this was a 25-mile one-way experience.)

Saturday morning I did it again, this time riding one of my favorite Petaluma loops. I distinctly remember doing this ride for the first time on Thanksgiving day when I was in 7th grade. My mama led the way, and I rode my mountain bike. It was sooooo hard and I thought I was going to die.

Luckily I’m in better shape than 7th-grade-Mollie, so this ride was pleasant. I was feeling leisurely, so I paused to take some pictures along the way. Here's the 30-mile route, in case you're interested.

Saturday afternoon the weather was skirt-and-t-shirt beautiful, so we all drove to Napa and Yountville for lunch and dessert and Christmas card pictures (for Sister1’s little fam).

Lunch was at Gott’s, a delicious semi-fancy “diner.” As in, you sit outside, and it’s burger/diner-ish, but with all “artesianal and fresh” ingredients. (I told you this was a NorCal cliche weekend.) Mama and I split Mahi Mahi Fish Tacos and a Blue Cheese Burger and Onion Rings. Ummm hello yum.

After meandering around Oxbow Public Market (another local, artisen, and omg-it-all-looks-SO-good experience), we drove over to Yountville to a) take pictures,

Is my nephew the cutest thing ever? Yes.
Is my hair a scary shade of blonde? Yes....but don't worry I fixed it.

and b) go to Bouchon Bakery.

As we waited in line, Sister1 and I discussed what to order.
Me: What should I get?
Sister1: Everything.
Me: No but what do you like? What are your favorites?
Sister1: No Mollie. Everything. You should just get everything.

I didn’t quite take her advice, but definitely walked away with a Chocolate Almond Croissant, two eclairs (one regular, and one espresso), two cheese danishes, and a cup of coffee. (Don’t worry, not all of this was consumed at once.) But half a croissant and coffee may or may not have made my afternoon!

We also walked around the Domaine Chandon winery, just to see how pretty it all was. Grapevines in the fall are so colorful and pretty!

Sunday was spent fixing the aforementioned hair disaster (omg I thought I was going to die), so nothing too too exciting going on there. I'm still in CA for a few more days, and have epic plans...no just kidding. I'll probably go on a long beach walk, see a movie with my mama, and spend the rest of the time with Liam, who now knows/loves me!

Weekend Report: My New Nephew!!! (And My Trip Home)

I’m back from a week at home in California and guess what? We have a baby!!!

And by “we” I mean Sister1 and Geoff have a baby, and I have the proud title of Auntie Mollie. Words cannot express how EXCITED I am about this (even more excited than anticipated), but this is a blog so clearly I’m going to try! 

Sister2 and I went for a long run at Mt. Tam on Monday, October 1, while we waited for baby-time. 

The timing worked out perfectly – we texted Mama when we finished running (What’s the status?”), drove straight to the hospital, and arrived just as baby Liam was being delivered. Sister2 and I did our best to wipe off the worst of the Indian summer dust and sweat in the bathroom, then headed up to the maternity floor. Mama met us at the door and led us into Sister1's room. We'd just started to make ourselves comfortable when a blue scrub-covered wide-eyed Geoff (aka my brother-in-law) walked in. 

Geoff! Hi! Do we have a baby?

"Yeah. Yeah, we have a baby," he confirmed in a voice tinged with surprise and a smattering of terror. 

Can we see him?

"I think so. Umm, ok, follow me. This way."

We followed him around the corner to the nursery, just as two nurses were pushing in a plastic bucket on a cart with a baby inside. 

Are you supposed to be here? they asked. Is this your baby?

"Yes! I think so? That's my baby!"

We watched new dad and Liam thought the window of the nursery, oohing and awing and marveling over his size -- at 9 lbs 7 oz, Liam looked like he could eat the other babies! But when we rolled him back to Sister1's room, normal perspective was returned and he looked like the tiny thing he really was.

Mama left to go find Sister1, while Geoff, Sister2, and I waited, watching over swaddled Liam in his cart ("No one holds him until Jeannie can!" was the fatherly decree). But once Sister1 was back, we were good to go. So there we were at the hospital, smelling like winners and holding our brand-new nephew!

We spent that day, and the next, and part of the next hanging out with our newest addition at the hospital and it was wonderful. Liam seriously gets cuter by the day! (Can I just say that pregnancy/birth/babies are NO JOKE. I have learned so many crazy things over the past week!)

On Wednesday afternoon, we gave the new parents some space and headed up to Tahoe. Another reason for this trip home is that Sister2 is about to move to Thailand for at least five months, so we needed some hang-out time. 

The lake in October is very hit-or-miss…the trail running was guaranteed to be awesome, but dipping was definitely not warm. However, I’m not one to back down from a Mama-extended challenge, so that crazy lady and I dipped every day. Oh hello 60 degrees water!!!

Too too soon it was time for me to head back to DC, but it’s ok because I’ll be back home for more Liam time at Thanksgiving!

Also, just wanted to share this picture from the San Francisco Airport. LOVE NorCal! 

Cake of the Week: Slutty Brownies

Editor's Note: This is a guest post from the the kitchen of Sister1.

Have you heard of Slutty Brownies? [No! Do tell!] Or perhaps the longer but more PG title: Double Fudge Cookies and Cream Chocolate Chip Brownies? Whatever you want to call them they are pretty amazing.

After seeing a recipe for these bars on multiple blogs I decided that I had to try them. They are a lot of work if you decide to make the brownies and cookie dough from scratch, but I enjoy some baking “work” and these bars are definitely worth it. Just make sure you have somewhere to bring them, or a friend, spouse, or office to give them to...trust me, you don't want to be home alone with these!

According to Geoff [brother-in-law] as he took his first Slutty Brownie bite, “The first word that comes to mind is confusing.” He couldn't tell what part he liked better -- just brownie and cookie, or everything all together at once. For me, the real magic happened when I got everything in one bite. Oreo cookie flavor is just so delicious! [I wish I were there to taste and offer an opinion! Overnight mail next time? Yes please?]

I won't be making these often because they are so dangerous (in the best way possible), but I'm glad I tried them! 

I made the brownie batter and cookie dough from scratch but you could also use mixes for both.

Slutty Brownies aka Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie n’ Oreo Fudge Brownie Bar

Original recipe from Kevin and Amanda. 

Printable recipe. 

Chocolate Chip Cookie Ingredients:

• 1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 3/4 cup light brown sugar
• 2 large eggs
• 1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups (12 ounces) milk chocolate chips

Brownie Ingredients: 

(OR you can use a family-sized brownie mix prepared according to the box instructions.)

• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
• 2 ¼ cups sugar
• 4 large eggs
• 1 ¼ cups Double-Dutch Dark Cocoa or Dutch-process cocoa
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon espresso powder
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 cups chocolate chips (I didn’t use these)

And:

• 1 pkg Double Stuffed Oreos

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a 9x13 baking dish with wax paper and spray it with non-stick cooking spray.
2. For the Chocolate Chip Cookie Layer: Cream the butter and both sugars in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed for 3-5 minutes. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well to thoroughly combine. 
3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda and salt, then slowly incorporate into the mixer until the flour is just combined. Stir in chocolate chips. 
4. For the Brownie Layer (from KAF): In a medium-sized microwave-safe bowl, or in a saucepan set over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Or simply combine the butter and sugar, and heat, stirring, until the butter is melted. Continue to heat (or microwave) briefly, just until the mixture is hot (about 110°F to 120°F), but not bubbling; it'll become shiny looking as you stir it. Heating the mixture to this point will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yield a shiny top crust on your brownies.
5. While the sugar heats a second time, crack the 4 eggs into a bowl, and beat them with the cocoa, salt, baking powder, espresso powder, and vanilla till smooth.
6. Add the hot butter/sugar mixture, stirring until smooth.
7. Add the flour, again stirring until smooth. 
8. Assembly: Spread the cookie dough in the bottom of your prepared pan.
9. Top the cookie dough with a layer of Oreos. 
10. Pour the brownie batter over the cookie dough and Oreos. 
11. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking for an additional 15-25 minutes. 
12. Let cool completely before cutting — brownies may still be gooey in the middle when still warm, but will set up perfectly once cooled. 

Note: To half this recipe for an 8×8 brownie mix, simply half the chocolate chip cookie dough ingredients.

Printable recipe. 

Cake of the Week: Pumpkin Streusel Pancakes

My home is kind of a scary place when it comes to food…and by that I mean there is a lot of it, most things involve buttercream, and I don’t have to do anything except appreciate and lick the frosting off my fingers.

If I lived there full time, this would probably become an issue (and by that I mean I’d have to buy bigger pants). But since I only go home once in a blue moon, it’s instead a perfectly acceptable vacation from reality and venture into the realm of all-desserts-all–the-time. 

The tour guide on this sugar vacation is, of course, Sister1. She bakes and I eat. And then I let her and her husband mock me for my whipped cream consumption. Trust me, it’s a win-win. 

One morning over Thanksgiving break, she decided to make us pancakes (us = me, Sister2, my dad and mama, and Geoff - the aforementioned husband). But not just any pancakes – Pumpkin Streusel Pancakes. 

They were absolutely insane. Because not only are they pumpkin pancakes (yum), but they have a cinnamon streusel cooked into them (double yum), and then, because we are intensely awesome eaters, we slathered them with cream cheese spice frosting, syrup, and whipped cream (quadruple yum to the max!!!).

Sister2’s recipe is based on this one from Two Peas & Their Pod, but with some modifications (noted below in pink).

Pumpkin Cinnamon Streusel Pancakes

Yield: Serves 4

Ingredients:

For the cinnamon streusel:

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into chunks

To make the pancakes: 

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 cup milk (Sister2 used buttermilk)
• 1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not pumpkin pie filling)
• 1 large egg (Sister2 used flax egg substitute)
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

1. First, make the cinnamon streusel. In a medium bowl, combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and butter. Mix together with your hands or a fork, until you have a crumbly mixture. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flours, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves. Set aside. 
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together milk, egg, pumpkin, canola oil, and vanilla extract. Add wet ingredients to the flour mixture and whisk until combined.
4. Heat a griddle or pan to medium low. Coat with cooking spray. Drop 1/3 cup of batter onto heated skillet. Add 2 tablespoons of the cinnamon streusel. Cook on the first side until bubbles begin to form, about 2-3 minutes. Carefully flip pancake over and cover very generously with cinnamon streusel. Cook for another 2-3 minutes or until golden brown. Continue this process to make the rest of the pancakes.
5. Serve pancakes warm with maple syrup and butter. (As previously mentioned, we did it up and used frosting and whipped cream…be prepared for the ensuing sugar coma…it’s worth it.)

Raspberry Cupcakes

This is a guest post by Sister1.

Rain in June! Come on! It’s the time of year for bbqs, baseball games and swimming...not sitting inside watching Mad Men episodes one after the other while baking way more than two people could possibly need. Thank goodness for mamas who complain when their dessert supply gets low!

 

[Editor’s Note: Sister1 lives 5 minutes from my parents, so she is the official dessert supplier for the family. I only wish I could teleport home to eat some of her cupcakes on a regular basis!]

While on a post-yoga shopping trip yesterday, I picked up blueberries, raspberries and strawberries. I wanted to make something delicious and summery, hoping to influence the weather gods to change their weekend forecast. Unfortunately their predictions were correct (Rain! Cold! It’s June!) but I decided to make something bright and friuty anyways to cheer myself up.

These cupcakes were so delicious and light. I especially loved the buttercream - because it wasn’t too sugary and had an almost whipped creamy texture. They were so good that when I delivered them to the Mama she instantly ate two in a row!

Raspberry Cupcakes

(Adapted slightly from Martha Stewart’s Blueberries and Cream Cupcakes)

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups cake flour (not self rising), sifted

4 large eggs, room temperature

1 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 1/4 cups milk, room temperature

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 pints fresh raspberries

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

1 3/4 cups sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line standard paper liners. Whisk together both flours, baking powder, and salt.

2. With an electric mixer on medium-high speed, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Beat in vanilla.

3. Reduce speed to low. Add flour mixture in three batches, alternating with two additions of milk, and beating until combined after each. Fold in raspberries by hand.

4. Divide batter evenly among lined cups, filling each 3/4 full. Bake, rotating tins halfway through, until pale golden, about 25 minutes. Transfer tins to wire racks to cool completely before removing cupcakes. Cupcakes can be stored up to 3 days at room temperature in airtight containers.

Fluffy Vanilla Bean Buttercream

1 ½ cups unsalted butter, room temperature

7 cups powdered sugar

3 vanilla beans, insides scrapped out

1/3 cup milk

Beat butter and vanilla bean until smooth and creamy. Add powdered sugar and milk and whip until fluffy and smooth. Depending on how you like your frosting, add more powdered sugar or milk.

Enjoy!

Cake of the Week: Dulce de Leche Filled Chocolate Cupcakes

Due to the fact that Sister1 and I both have 9-6 (ish) jobs, and do many other things, and live on opposite coasts with a 3-hour time difference, we don’t talk on the phone very much. But we have developed quite the text-messaging relationship. When something delicious is concocted on either end, it’s phone-out and picture time! The caption is usually a simple name, i.e. Dulce de Leche Filled Chocolate Cupcakes! 

In a way this is gloating…my response is usually something along the lines of, GAH I hate you, why don’t you live next door so you can feed me right now?!?! But I do the same thing right back at her…so there’s that. My other (less emotional) response is Write a blog post! Because she talks about writing a guest series for me, but I can’t get her to commit! Let’s all show Sister1 some love for this recipe (and for her previous Chai Tea Latte Cupcakes), and get her to be a regular Eat Run Read contributor.

BY SISTER1:

A few weeks ago I saw a recipe for Dulce de Leche cupcakes and all I could think about after was that I had to buy dulce de leche. I was in Williams-Sonoma a few weeks ago ogling their chocolate dulce de leche (which sounded delicious), but I needed the regular kind so put off making these cupcakes. Another two weeks went by and I still had dulce de leche on my mind. I just so happened to wander into Sur la Table and there it was!!!

I know how crazy this sounds. I know that you can make dulce de leche at home. But I just didn’t want to do that. I wanted the cute jar with the burlap wrapper at the top! Done.

With my dulce de leche in hand, I went home to examine the recipe that inspired this idea in the first place. Upon second look, I decided it didn’t sound all that great…so I decided to wait and let the jar of dulce de leche sit in my cabinet and on my mind.

There were St. Patrick’s Day recipes all over the internet and the Pot of Gold Cupcake from Beantown Baker looked amazing! Aha! There was my inspiration and here is my adaptation…with my favorite vegan chocolate cake of course! I have already made these twice this weekend and have decided that it is probably the best cupcake that I have ever made!

Now that I have officially gone into a self-induced sugar coma, I’m seriously considering doing BluePrintCleanse’s 3 day Cleanse and live off of green juice and cashew milk…we’ll see…more from me on that later! [Editor’s note: that sounds gross…but intriguing…I’m interested to hear how it goes!]

Easiest Chocolate Cake 

(Previously posted about in the Vegan Mocha Cupcakes and used in the Chocolate Layer Cake with Pecan Pie Custard and Maple Buttercream.)

Makes 1 dozen cupcakes

From Organic and Chic

1 1/8 cups organic all-purpose flour

1 cups organic cane sugar

1/2 cup organic unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 tablespoon organic vanilla extract

1/3 cup organic canola oil

1 teaspoons organic white vinegar

1 cups cold water

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line one cupcake pans with paper liners and set aside.  

In a large mixing bowl, sift the dry ingredients together.  Set aside. (I use my kitchenaid mixer bowl)

2. Whisk together the oil, water, vanilla extract and vinegar.  (I like to use a large liquid measuring cup so I can just pour it into the mixing bowl)

3. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients on low speed being careful not to overmix.  The mixture will be quite wet, but that’s ok.  

4. Pour the batter until the cups are two thirds full and place in the oven for 22 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cup comes out clean.  

5. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes then place on a wire rack until completely cool.

6. Once the cupcakes are cool, core them however works best for you. I use a knife and cut around in a circle. I also don’t replace the top because I like to eat those to make sure the cupcakes are good! 

7. Fill with dulce de leche and then top with a generous amount of buttercream.

Swiss Meringue Buttercream 

(From  Beantown Baker, from The Well Decorated Cake, via epicurious.)

Makes enough to frost 24 cupcakes with a little leftover (This was enough to generously frost 12 cupcakes with some left over)

4 oz egg whites (3-4 large egg whites or about 1/2 cups)

1 cup granulated sugar

1 lb unsalted butter, room temperature

2 tsp lemon extract, almond extract, orange extract, or vanilla extract

1. Lightly whisk egg whites and sugar together over simmering water until egg-white mixture is hot to touch or a candy thermometer reads 140°F (60°C).

2. Pour hot whites into a room-temperature bowl and whip with a wire whip until double in volume on MEDIUM-HIGH speed. When the mixer stops, the meringue should not move around in the bowl. 

3. Meanwhile cut up butter into 2-inch pieces. (The butter should be slightly moist on the outside but cold inside.)

4. On your mixer, remove the whip and attach the paddle. Add half the butter into the bowl immediately and pulsate the mixer several times until the meringue has covered the butter completely. To pulsate the mixer, turn it on and off in a jerky motion. This forces the butter on the top to the bottom of the bowl. Add the rest of the butter and pulsate mixer several times. Slowly increase the mixer's speed, starting with the lowest speed and increase the speed every 10 seconds until you reach a MEDIUM-HIGH speed.

5. Continue beating until the mixture begins to look light and fluffy. Stop the mixer and scrape the bowl. Reduce speed to LOW. Add flavoring and continue to beat on LOW speed for 45 seconds. Then beat on MEDIUM-HIGH speed for an additional 45 to 60 seconds.

Cake of the Week: Wedding Food

First things first, Happy National Human Trafficking Awareness Day! (Bet you didn’t know it was a holiday, did you?) Get more info here.

 

I haven’t baked in 2011! A year without baking? Pish-posh, as if I would ever do something as silly as that! I’ve just been busy with getting back to DC, and skiing, and making pizza, and all that other ridiculousness that I do.

So instead of a new cake, let’s flash back to Sister1’s wedding. The food was absolutely amazing. Sister1 and Geoff did all the desserts themselves, and had the rest catered. Yummm!

There was a make-your-own taco bar, and these fantastic chicken meatballs – in Curry, Pomegranate, and some other flavor I can’t remember…

There was pita and hummus and tapenade, and an amazingly gi-freaking-normous baked brie with caramelized onions and garlic.

And then, of course, the desserts!

A tower of cupcakes (click the names to get the recipes):

Chai Tea Latte Cupcakes

Double Chocolate

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Mocha and Vanilla (Mocha is on the bottom, Vanilla isn't pictured!)

Macaroons, Snicker Doodles, Lemon Burst, and Chocolate Chunk Cookies. (All recipes here.)

And of course – the Pumpkin Whoopie Pies!

The guests took cupcake boxes home with them (or 2 or 3 or 4) as a wedding favor. 

Oh man, extreme deliciousness!