Welcome to the Free Recipe of the Month!
Each month I feature a free recipe for visitors and regular subscribers. Once the month has passed, the recipe is retired into the BB Recipe Archives. So bake while the oven's hot! These recipes are only here and free for four short weeks.
Pumpkin Pie Tollhouse Cookies (and scroll below for Majestic Honey Cake!!!)
Massive blobs of spicy Tollhouse cookies! These are tender, crisp on the edges and a wee bit cakey in the center. If you want to have them all tender, crisp and chewy, omit the pumpkin puree and keep the pumpkin spices. Either way, this is a masterpiece. The cookie dough is best prepared a night before baking. Fridge time ‘cures’ this dough just so.
½ cup unsalted butter, melted
¼ cup white sugar
¾ cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup canned pumpkin (not pie filling)
¼ teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
¾ teaspoon baking soda
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
½ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
½ cup milk chocolate or cinnamon chips
Sugar, optional
In a mixer bowl, blend the butter, white sugar, brown sugar, egg yolk well. Then add in the pumpkin puree. Fold in the salt, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking soda and flour and blend well. Fold in the chocolate chips. Wrap up and refrigerate overnight.
Preheat oven to 365-375 F. Stack two baking sheets together and line the top one with parchment paper. Place ½ cup of sugar in a small bowl. Divide dough in six or seven portions and roll into balls. Roll, if desired, in the sugar (this makes a nice effect after baking). Place on prepared cookie sheet. Bake in upper third of oven, 14-17 minutes until edges are browned and middle of the tops are set and not wet looking.
Cool well.
Makes 6-7 cookies
Moist and Majestic Honey Cake
from my cookbook, A Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking, River Heart Press
Moist and Majestic New Year’s Honey Cake
I like a New Year's honey cake to be extra moist and sweet and as good on the day of baking as it is days later – in fact, even better as it ages. This one is queen of the realm - rich with honey, perfectly, vibrantly spiced. In a word, it’s majestic in taste and stature. I went through many variations and tasting sessions until I was satisfied with this definitive cake and each version was made with The Spice House spices! I also suggest you re-stock your baking spices every six months and September is one of the times I restock. This recipe is one of my most popular recipes from my cookbook The Tenth Anniversary Edition of a Treasury of Jewish Holiday Baking. One tester gave the ultimate compliment saying "This one is worth the price of the book". One last thing – the very best pan for this cake is a angel food cake pan from Fat Daddios
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon cloves
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1 cup oil
1 cup honey
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 cup warm coffee or strong tea
3/4 cup orange juice
1/4 cup rye or whisky *
1/2 cup slivered or sliced almonds, optional
If cake seems done but still seems a bit wobbly in center, lower the oven temperature and give it 10-20 more minutes. This is very important – give the cake the amount of baking it needs.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Line the bottom and sides of a 10 inch angel food cake pan lightly greased parchment paper, cut to fit. Stack two baking sheets together and line the top one with parchment paper. Place cake pan on that (this prevents the bottom from browning too quickly)
In a large bowl or large food processor, blend together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and allspice. Make a well in the centre, and add oil, honey, white sugar, brown sugars, eggs, vanilla, coffee, orange juice and rye or whisky. Blend well, making sure that no ingredients are stuck to the bottom. This is a thin batter.
Spoon batter into prepared pan and sprinkle top of cake (s) evenly with almonds. Place cake pan on baking sheet.
Bake until cake tests done, that is, it springs back when you gently touch the cake centre, 55-65 minutes.
Let cake stand fifteen minutes before removing from pan.
* If you prefer not to use the whisky, replace it with orange juice or coffee.
I often use a mixture of tea, coffee, coca cola and orange juice for all the liquid - I vary it each time 🙂
