Recipe: One Bowl Greek Yogurt Pumpkin Bread

 “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” and that’s how I would describe this photo of a One Bowl Greek Yogurt Pumpkin Bread. There may be slight imperfections on top but that crispy golden imperfect exterior adds an extra layer of flavour with every warm bite. It’s crispy on the outside and soft on the inside (perfect description of myself😁) PERFETTO! .

 One Bowl Greek Yogurt Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients

• 1 medium-size ripe banana, mashed (1/2 cup)

• 2 large eggs

• 1 cup pumpkin pure

• 1/3 cup plain greek yogurt

• 1/4 cup melted coconut oil

• 1/2 cup coconut palm sugar

• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup

• 1 tsp vanilla

• 1 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp ground ginger

• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

• 1/4 tsp sea salt

• 2 cups all purpose flour

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350° (176ºC), and lightly grease a 9 x 5 (23 x 13 cm) bread pan. Set aside.

2. Combine the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt, stirring with a whisk.

3. Place sugar and butter in a large bowl, and mix until well blended

4. Add the eggs, pumpkin, yogurt and vanilla.

5. Add flour mixture; mix until blended.

6. Spoon batter into two loaf pans coated with cooking spray.

7. Bake at 350° for 50-60 minutes until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Recipe: 5 Ingredient Almond Butter Cookies

Photo Description: Mary's hand holding 4 stacked Almond Butter Cookies between her index finger and thumb.

5 Ingredient Almond Butter Cookies

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes
Serves: 16-20 cookies
Author: Mary Mammoliti / Kitchen Confession

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup almond butter, room temperature

• 1 cup coconut palm sugar

• 1 large egg, room temperature

• 1 teaspoon baking powder

• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 350º with 2 oven racks closest to the centre. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. Combine all ingredients in a medium size bowl and stir to combine.

3. Use a medium size cookie scoop to scoop out the dough (1.5 tablespoon balls), placing 8 cookies on each sheet (4 rows of 2 that are staggered).

4. Bake for 9-10 minutes, until the edges are set and the centres are puffed. (The cookies will flatten and “crackle” as they cool) Cool for 10 minutes and enjoy! Cookies will keep in an airtight container for 1 week, or in the freezer for 1 year.

Recipe: Homemade Flakies

Raise your hand if the mention of a Flakie, Jos Louis, 1/2 Moon make you crave one instantly. 

I’m raising both hands ;)

Image Description: Mary’s hand holding a homemade Flakie with a bite taken out of it.

My gosh, how many Vachon Flakies did I eat as a kid? Is this even a number I want to remember? Too many to count and I bet I’m not alone here. 

I was feeling nostalgic yesterday and decided to recreate the Vachon Flakie, and boy was I happy I did! 

So•Friggin•Good

For those that aren’t familiar, a Flakie is made from puff pastry filled with a layer of apple raspberry jam and a vanilla frosting cream at the centre that made a delicious mess with every bite taken. 

What’s your favourite Vachon Cake? 

Did you eat your Flakie whole of did you pop the top off and eat separately?

If you had a choice which would you choose? Flakie, Jos Louis, Vanilla 1/2 Moon, or other.

Photo Description: A full square Homemade Flakie on top of a plate with two small jars of raspberry compote and a bowl of the vanilla cream filling int he background.

Homemade Flakies

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 40 minutes
Serves: 9
Author: Mary Mammoliti/Kitchen Confession

INGREDIENTS

THE PASTRY

• 2 - 12 inch square sheets puff pastry

• Granulated sugar to sprinkle overtop

• 1 egg + 1 tbsp water, (to make an egg wash)

THE RASPBERRY FILLING

• 2 cups fresh or frozen raspberries

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

• 2 tsp corn starch dissolved in 1/4 cup water

THE VANILLA CREAM FILLING

• 1 1/2 cups icing sugar

• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 3 tbsp whipping cream

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

INSTRUCTIONS

STEP 1: PREPARE THE PASTRY PART 1

1. Whisk the egg and water together, set aside

2. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper..

3. Lay out one of the sheet of puff pastry on the lined baking sheet and lightly brush it with the egg wash. Note: do not pour it all on top, you are not going to use all of the egg wash but will need more just before it goes into the oven.

4. Lay the second sheet of puff pastry on top and chill in the freezer for 10-15 minutes. This will allow for an easy and evenly cut into squares later.

STEP 2: PREPARE THE RASPBERRY FILLING

1. If using fresh raspberries, gently rinse and add them to a medium stock pot. Add the sugar and slowly simmer together stirring every so often for about 10 minutes.

2. In a operate bowl add the cornstarch and water together and stir to dissolve. Pour the mixture in with the raspberries and sugar, stir and cook for an additional minute. Cool completely to room temperature until the pastry is ready to be assembled.

STEP 3: PREPARE THE PASTRY PART 2

1. Remove the pastry sheets from the freezer and using a sharp knife, trim the edges square if there was any uneven overlap, then cut the pastry into 9 squares (I’ve also cut them into 16 squares for a mini versions.)

2. Spread the squares apart on the parchment lined baking sheet to allow a gap between each square.

3. Lightly brush the tops with the egg wash and sprinkle granulated sugar over the tops of each square. You can use as little or as much as you like here but the sweet spot is a iight sprinkle overtop)

4. Bake for 15-20 minutes at 400 degrees F until the tops are golden brown. (If you are using a convection oven 15-17 minutes will be your perfect cooking time) Cool on a wire rack.

STEP 4: PREPARE THE VANILLA CREAM FILLING

1. Add icing sugar, butter, whipping cream, and vanilla to the bowl of a stand mixer and beat all ingredients together until light and fluffy. This step can also be done with a hand held mixer.

STEP 5: ASSEMBLE THE FLAKIES

1. With a serrated knife, cut each of the baked pastries in half horizontally.

2. Spread a heaping tablespoon of vanilla cream on the bottom half of the pastry and a rounded tablespoon of the raspberry compote on top of the vanilla cream and use the back of the tablespoon to spread it out, bring the two halves together to form a sandwich and take a giant bite! Enjoy :)

3. Store in an airtight container.

Recipe: Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe

I haven’t herd of Neiman Marcus Cookies until I stumbled across a recipe online and boy am I happy I did! Let me start by saying this recipes is not a KC original recipe and I haven’t the slightest idea as to where it originated, but this recipe developer was a genius! 

This cookie is decadent with a crunch factor yet soft and chewy with loads of texture, and the semi sweet chocolate takes the whole experience to the next level of cookie perfection! 

This buttery sweet cookie extravaganza is the perfect Friday Treat. Heck add it to Saturday’s breakfast table, take it to go while running errands. No judgment here. Eat it all day every day. Don’t worry about running out of cookies because this recipe makes 4 dozen cookies! 

Whoot! Whoot! (Cue Marching Band) 

I don’t think I’ve been this excited since I discovered you could sip your coffee through a Tim Tam

Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe

PREP TIME: 15 minutes

COOK TIME: 10 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 25 minutes

SERVINGS: 4 dozen 

INGREDIENTS

2 cups unsalted butter

2 cups granulated sugar

4 large eggs, beaten

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

4 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)

2 teaspoons baking powder

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

5 cups old-fashioned rolled oats

24 ounces bittersweet chocolate chips (such as Ghirardelli 60% cacao)

8 ounces Hershey's chocolate bars, broken into chunks

3 cups very roughly chopped walnuts, pecans, or a combination

DIRECTIONS

1. In a large bowl, beat together the butter and sugar with an electric mixer until lightened in color and texture, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.

2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir together with a wooden spoon. Add the oats and stir to combine. Then stir in the chocolate chips, Hershey's bars, and nuts.

3. To bake, preheat the oven to 375°F. Using your hands or a couple of spoons, form the batter into loose, golf-ball-sized mounds. Place two inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for six to nine minutes, until tops are just golden and cookies are still soft. On the off chance there are any cookies left once they're cool enough to handle, cool them completely on racks before storing in an airtight container for up to a couple of days.

TIP: To freeze dough balls, place in the freezer on parchment-lined baking sheets until solid, then bag by the dozen, save for up to a month. Add one to two minutes to the cooking time when baking from frozen.