Chocolate Babka

Folks - this is really to die for!!! I made it for my friend Kara and it was so divine. Thanks to Smitten Kitchen for the recipe and picture!!

When shaping the babka, twist dough evenly throughout the length of the roll a full 5 to 6 turns. The babka can be prepared up to step 8 and frozen for up to a month before baking. When ready to bake, remove from freezer; let stand at room temperature for about 5 hours, and bake.

Makes 3 loaves (but I made two full-sized and three miniature ones)

1 1/2 cups warm milk, 110 degrees
2 (1/4 ounce each) packages active dry yeast
1 3/4 cups plus a pinch of sugar
3 whole large eggs, room temperature
2 large egg yolks, room temperature
6 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups (3 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1-inch pieces, room temperature, plus more for bowl and loaf pans
2 1/4 pounds semisweet chocolate, very finely chopped*
2 1/2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Streusel topping (below)

1. Pour warm milk into a small bowl. Sprinkle yeast and pinch of sugar over milk; let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.

2. In a bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup sugar, 2 eggs, and egg yolks. Add egg mixture to yeast mixture, and whisk to combine.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine flour and salt. Add egg mixture, and beat on low speed until almost all the flour is incorporated, about 30 seconds. Change to the dough hook. Add 2 sticks butter, and beat until flour mixture and butter are completely incorporated, and a smooth, soft dough that’s slightly sticky when squeezed is formed, about 10 minutes.

4. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface, and knead a few turns until smooth. Butter a large bowl. Place dough in bowl, and turn to coat. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Set aside in a warm place to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.

5. Place chocolate, remaining cup sugar, and cinnamon in a large bowl, and stir to combine. Using two knives or a pastry cutter, cut in remaining 1 1/2 sticks butter until well combined; set filling aside.

6. Generously butter three 9-by-5-by-2 3/4-inch loaf pans; line them with parchment paper. Beat remaining egg with 1 tablespoon cream; set egg wash aside. Punch back the dough, and transfer to a clean surface. Let rest 5 minutes. Cut into 3 equal pieces. Keep 2 pieces covered with plastic wrap while working with the remaining piece. On a generously floured surface, roll dough out into a 16-inch square; it should be 1/8 inch thick.

7. Brush edges with reserved egg wash. Crumble 1/3 of the reserved chocolate filling evenly over dough, leaving a 1/4-inch border. Refresh egg wash if needed. Roll dough up tightly like a jelly roll. Pinch ends together to seal. Twist 5 or 6 turns. Brush top of roll with egg wash. Carefully crumble 2 tablespoons filling over the left half of the roll, being careful not to let mixture slide off. Fold right half of the roll over onto the coated left half. Fold ends under, and pinch to seal. Twist roll 2 turns, and fit into prepared pan. Repeat with the remaining 2 pieces of dough and remaining filling.

8. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Brush the top of each loaf with egg wash. Crumble 1/3 of streusel topping over each loaf. Loosely cover each pan with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm place 20 to 30 minutes.

9. Bake loaves, rotating halfway through, until golden, about 55 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake until babkas are deep golden, 15 to 20 minutes more. Remove from oven, and transfer to wire racks until cool. Remove from pans; serve. Babkas freeze well for up to 1 month.

* After chopping the chocolate into moderately sized chunks, I used the food processor to pulse the rest of the chocolate in two batches to small bits. It saved a lot of time!

Streusel Topping

Makes 3 3/4 cups.

1 2/3 cups confectioners’ sugar
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature

In a large bowl, combine sugar, flour, and butter. Using a fork, stir until fully combined with clumps ranging in size from crumbs to 1 inch.

Breakfast casserole

1 can crescent rolls

1 lb bacon

8 oz cheddar cheese

1/2 C milk

8 eggs

1/2 tsp oregano

Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease 9x13-inch pan. Press crescent rolls in bottom (don't separate rolls). Cook the bacon; crumble then sprinkle over rolls followed by the cheese. Mix milk, eggs, oregano, salt & pepper to taste; pour over cheese. Bake 25-30 minutes.

World's Best Caramel Pecan Pie

1 (14 0z) bag caramels (Kraft brand preferred)
1/4 Cup water
1/4 unsalted butter
3/4 Cup granulated sugar
3 eggs, beaten
1/8 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped, toasted pecans (reserve 12 pecan halves for decoration)
1 deep dish 9- or 10-inch unbaked pie shell
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Unwrap exactly 36 caramels; save rest for another use.
In a heavy medium-sized saucepan, melt 36 caramels, water and butter together over medium-low heat, stirring often until smooth. Remove from heat. In a separate bowl, mix sugar, eggs, salt and vanilla and stir until well combined. Pour egg mixture into caramel mixture, stirring quickly and constantly so eggs don't scramble until well blended. Stir in chopped nuts and pour into prepared pie shell. If you have saved 12 pecan halves, place them decoratively around the perimeter.
Bake for 45-50 minutes until a knife tip comes out clean when inserted near the center. Remove from oven and cool on a rack. It is best served just slightly warm, or at room temperature.

Black Bean Soup

We love this black bean soup from Martha - a little spicy - but oh so delicious

Ingredients

Makes 8 cups

• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 slice ham, 1/2 inch thick
• 1 medium red onion (5 ounces), diced
• 1 jalapeno chile, seeded if less heat is desired, and finely chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 3 cans black beans (15 ounces each), drained and rinsed
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup lightly packed cilantro leaves, for garnish
• Lime wedges (optional), for serving
• Plain yogurt (optional), for garnish

Directions

1. In a large pot over medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon oil and cook ham until brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove, and let cool. When cool, cut into 1/2-inch cubes; set aside.
2. Reduce heat to medium, and add 1 tablespoon oil. Stir in onion and cook until lightly browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add jalapeno, garlic, cumin, and oregano; cook until fragrant, and garlic is tender, 1 to 2 minutes.
3. Add beans and enough water to cover (about 4 cups). Bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper, and cook for 10 minutes.
4. Using an immersion blender, or working in batches in a standing blender, puree until thick and smooth. If necessary, add water to achieve desired consistency. Stir in ham. Serve garnished with yogurt, cilantro and lime wedges.

Chicken Salad

1 bag shredded cabbage
2 chicken breasts cubed and cooked
1/4 Cup green onions
1/2 Cup sugared almonds
1 pkg Top Ramen Noodles, chicken flavor
1 TBS butter

Toast the Ramen noodles with the butter and flavor packet.

Dressing:

1/2 Cup oil
2 TBS sugar
4 TBS vinegar
salt and pepper

This was a recipe we had an Arcadia Stake Women's Conference - really terrific.

Homemade Kettle Corn

1 TBS vegetable oil
1/4 Cup popcorn
2 TBS white sugar
kosher salt to taste
melted butter

In your saucepan, heat the oil and popcorn kernels over medium-high heat, shaking the pan to keep the kernels from burning. When the kernels are about to start popping, they will become slightly lighter in color, and most importantly they will start to smell like popcorn. At this point, sprinkle the sugar over the kernels and cover. With the lid on, continue to cook the popcorn by gently shaking the pan over the heat. When the popping has slowed (don't keep cooking until the very last kernel has popped - you will end up burning the sugar) remove the pan from heat and empty the popcorn into a large bowl. Toss with salt immediately (when the sugar on the popcorn is still hot and sticky, the salt will adhere to the kernels better) and sprinkle with melted butter if you like. Enjoy while still warm.

Apple Dips

This is the time of year for apple dips. Here are four fantastic ones!!!

Apple Dip
Equal amounts of the following 5 ingredients:
white sugar
brown sugar
butter
Karo Syrup
Sweetened condensed milk

Combine in sauce pan and cook until soft ball stage. (You could eliminate the white sugar and double the brown sugar - that is what is used in Caramel Bugles).

Apple Dip

1 10 oz. tub of soft cream cheese or 1 8 oz. block softened

1/2 C brown sugar

1/4 C white sugar

1 tsp vanilla

2/3 pkg of a 8 oz. bag of SKOR English Toffee Bits

6-9 Granny Smith Apples cut into wedges for dipping

Mix together with a spoon until smooth – cream cheese, sugars and vanilla. Fold in toffee bits just before serving so they don’t get soggy. (soggy is yummy too!) I cut the apples just before serving to prevent them turning brown.

Apple Caramel Dip

1 pkg (8oz) cream cheese
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 container caramel (usually found in the produce section)
1 pkg skor bits
Granny Smith apples, sliced

1. Beat the cream cheese with brown sugar until smooth. Spread thinly onto large serving plate.

2. Heat the caramel slightly (about 15 second in microwave) to make spreadable. Spread on top of cream cheese.

3. Sprinkle the package of Skor bits all over the top. Serve with sliced Granny Smith apples for dipping.

yummy pumpkin dip

1 package of cream cheese

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup pumpkin pie filling

1 tsp vanilla

mix until creamy and smooth. enjoy!