Lime and coconut….

Sounds like a tropical party! Lime just adds the perfect amount of zest and fragrance to cookies, I LOVE it! I just never seem to have any limes in my house. However, last thursday I had two juicy limes in my house just begging to be used up. I made these Lime, Coconut, and White Chocolate oatmeal cookies and brought them for my last day on the Coronary Care Unit (CCU). They were gone by noon, it was crazy! Everyone highly approved…so you should make them too some time =)

Lime Coconut and White Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies (the recipe is copied into my little recipe binder and I have no idea where I originally got it…oops!)

1/2 C brown sugar
2/3 C white sugar
1/2 C unsalted butter – room temp
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
zest of 1-2 limes ( I just used 1…zesting is hard!)
couple drops of fresh lime juice
1/4 tsp salt (omit if using salted butter)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 C AP flour
1 1/4 C oats
~ 3/4 C coconut
~ 1 C white chocolate chunks

Preheat oven to 375 degrees farenheit.

Cream butter with the sugars. Then add the egg and vanilla. Finally, add lime zest and juice, mixing briefly.

In a seperate bowl, combine salt, baking powder, baking soda, and flour. Add this to the wet ingredients, mixing just until blended. Then add oats, chocolate, and coconut.

Bake for about 10-12 minutes. I made 36 cookies.

Peds love.

Argh, I have gotten so behind on the bake-sharing! Here are some of the latest yummies I have been stirring up. Picture to come later! I haven’t transferred yet! (Yes, I’m awful)

Oatmeal Banana Bread (Adapted from joythebaker.com)
- 1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp canola or walnut oil
- 2 tsp applesauce
- 2 large eggs, beaten
- 3 large bananas, ripe
- 1 cup uncooked old fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a loaf pan and set aside. In a large bowl, stir together dry ingredients including the oats and cinnamon.

In a smaller bowl, mash bananas with a potato masher or fork. Add oil, applesauce, and whole egg and mix thoroughly.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. Batter will be fairly thick. Add cranberries (or nuts, or chocolate chips, or what-have-yous).

Pour batter into pan and bake until top of loaf is firm to touch, ~45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes. Flip out and cool on a wire rack for another 10 minutes. I sliced it pretty thin and got about 15 slices. YUMMY! This lasted me breakfasty and snacky times for about a week and a half.

I have had a hankering to make these since the first time I laid eyes on this recipe. Finely chopped macadamia nuts. Coconut. Lime. WOW is all I have to say!! Unfortunately, I never seem to have limes in my house. We just don’t really use them. And so every time I’ve had time to bake…I’ve had to turn to other recipes and while longingly staring at these puppies…put the recipe aside. But the last time I went grocery shopping, they were having a sale on limes and I snatched some up right away. AT LONG LAST!!! and yum. They were definitely worth the wait. So amazing fragrant. And even though they’re butter thins…they have a light taste to them. I wish I took a picture of the lime and sugar being massaged together. That was my favourite part.

Coconut Butter Thins (adapted from barefootkitchenwitch.com)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch of ground coriander
2/3 cup sugar
Grated zest of 1 lime
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2/3 cup sweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup finely chopped macademia nuts (don’t be afraid to use salted nuts)

Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, salt and coriander.

If you want to get a little more flavor out of the lime zest, put the sugar and zest in the mixer bowl and, using your fingertips, work the zest into the sugar until the sugar is moist and the mixture fragrant.

Working with a stand mixer, preferably fitted with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the butter, sugar and zest on medium speed for about 3 minutes, or until smooth. Beat in the vanilla extract. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the flour mixture, mixing only until the dry ingredients disappear. Add the coconut and nuts and pulse to incorporate them. There will probably be some dry ingredients in the bottom of the bowl–don’t work them in with the mixer, just reach into the bowl and knead them in.

Transfer the soft, sticky dough to a gallon-size zipper-lock bag. Put the bag on a flat surface, leaving the top open, and roll the dough into a 9-x-10 1/2-inch rectangle that’s 1/4 inch thick. As you roll, turn the bag occasionally and lift the plastic from the dough so it doesn’t cause creases. When you get the right size and thickness, seal the bag, pressing out as much air as possible, and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours or for up to 2 days.

GETTING READY TO BAKE: Position the racks to divide the oven into thirds and preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or silicone mats.

Put the plastic bag on a cutting board and slit it open. Turn the dough out onto the board (discard the bag), and, using a ruler as a guide and a sharp knife, cut it into 32 squares, each roughly 1 1/2 inches on a side. Transfer the squares to the baking sheets, leaving about 2 inches between them, and carefully prick each one twice with a fork, gently pushing the tines through the cookies to the sheet.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and fromt to back at the midway point. The shortbreads will be very pale–they shouldn’t take on much color. Transfer the cookies to a rack and cool to room temperature.

Orders: Cupcake, po, prn, STAT!*

*(For the non-medically oriented people, po = by mouth and prn = as needed)

So I decided to enter in this little cupcake challenge thing-a-ma-bobber. It is my first one ever. And one of my first times majorly tinkering/creating a new recipe.

The theme is bananas. I for one, QUITE enjoy bananas. One of my favorite things is a peanut butter, nutella, and banana panini. DELICIOUSNESS, let me tell you!

But I decided that chocolate and bananas, peanut butter and bananas, all pretty over-done. I decided to branch out. While dozing off from a nephrology lecture, I started brainstorming cupcake combinations (kidneys = black box. I’ll need to fix that one day and actually learn their function…). One of the girls in my class suggested COCONUT and bananas! All so tropical! I approve!

So here they are. Pina colada cupcakes, with a banana pastry cream filling. There’s also banana in the cupcake itself (I used it in place of some eggs). I brought them as a treat to my shift in the Pediatric Emergency department today, and they were a big hit! One of the nurses loved them so much that he wrote my name on the whiteboard as *CHIEF MEDICAL STUDENT* (stars and all!). It was so cute. Especially since I’m the only medical student on today. And I’m certainly chief of nothing…not even myself. But I had a great day in peds emerg today…I did some suturing, some reduction of a subluxed elbow…I actually enjoyed working on a saturday! Cupcakes and medicine…ahhh…what could be better?

One little note…I’m ashamed to admit I used a box mix. I was a little short on time, in between all the shifts, so I cheated. If I make these again, I’ll be sure to actually find a vanilla cake recipe to make from scratch.

Pina Colada Cupcakes
(recipe adapted from Betty Crocker iPod application)
1 box Betty Crocker® SuperMoist® white cake mix
1 can (8 oz) crushed pineapple in juice, undrained
3/4 cup water
1/3 cup vegetable oil(I used 1 tbsp oil, 1/4 cup applesauce)
3 eggs (I used 1 egg and 1 whole mashed banana)
2 teaspoons rum extract (I used 1 teaspoon of rum and 1 teaspoon of malibu. crunkcakes!)

Combine all the ingredients and bake for ~18 minutes.

Banana Pastry Cream
(recipe adapted from allrecipes.com)
* 2 cups milk
* 1/4 cup white sugar
* 2 egg yolks
* 1 egg
* 1/4 cup cornstarch
* 1/3 cup white sugar
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1 frozen banana (melted in the microwave)
1. In a heavy saucepan, stir together the milk and 1/4 cup of sugar. Bring to a boil over medium heat.
2. Heat up frozen banana in the microwave until it’s a nice mushy consistency. In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, egg, and banana. Stir together the remaining sugar and cornstarch; then stir them into the egg until smooth. When the milk comes to a boil, drizzle it into the bowl in a thin stream while mixing so that you do not cook the eggs. Return the mixture to the saucepan, and slowly bring to a boil, stirring constantly so the eggs don’ t curdle or scorch on the bottom.
3. When the mixture comes to a boil and thickens, remove from the heat. Stir in the butter and vanilla, mixing until the butter is completely blended in. Pour into a heat-proof container and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate until chilled before using.

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 package cream cheese
1/4 cup margarine/butter
whipping cream
vanilla extract
icing sugar

I am very haphazard in making my frosting. I usually just beat the cream cheese and margarine together, and then add in a dash of whipping cream and vanilla extract…pretty much however much I feel like. Usually about a cap-ful of vanilla extract. Then I beat it some more, and start to add the icing sugar to taste. Some people like super-sweet frosting…I like mine with a mostly cream cheese taste and just sweetened enough.

Assembly:
Cut the tops off the cupcake in a cone, and then cut off the tip of the cone and fill with banana pastry cream. Replace the top of the cupcake back on. Frost. Sprinkle generously with coconut. ENJOY!!!

If I tinker with this recipe again, I’d probably choose a slightly drier vanilla cake recipe. With the box mix normally being pretty spongy to begin with, then adding all these moist ingredients (like applesauce and banana), they were a little hard to cut into to make the cones. I’d probably take out some of the water in the box mix. Or maybe even all of it. But practice makes perfect!

Hoorah! P=MD!

We had an exam on IV therapy this thursday, based on a 111 page manual we were supposed to read. They gave us said manual at the beginning of the summer because a large percentage of last year’s class failed it, and were given the manual at the start of the week. You think I’d learn, and try to start reading it in the summer. But no, I started reading it on monday night. So many people fail it, that they schedule a rewrite the next day…into our jam-packed schedule!

We were told that if we got an email by 6 PM on thursday, we’d have to rewrite the exam on friday. So counting down to about 5:45…I realized no email = no test = 2 hour lunch break! No studying tonight! Freedom!!

Whatever should I do with my free evening? Start reading the Basic Life Support manual? Start studying up for my pediatrics rotation? Start reading the radiology textbook?

…who are we kidding? I baked. And I baked lots.

Unfortunately, my dad’s away in Ireland and took the camera with him…and I couldn’t find any other photographing apparatus. So no pictures this time. But delicious recipes do follow!

Pecan Pie Cupcakes (from Bake or Break, originally from Recipezaar)
These cupcakes were ridiculously easy to make. I almost felt guilty getting compliments on them, because they took so little time. And are so freaking delicious. SO GOOD!!! And requires no frosting. Makes 12 regular sized cupcakes.
Ingredients
* 1 cup chopped pecans
* 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
* 1 cup packed brown sugar
* 2/3 cup butter, melted
* 2 eggs

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Combine all ingredients and mix well.
3. Spray a miniature muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray.
4. Fill each 3/4 full.
5. Bake in preheated oven for approx. 18 minutes.

Cranberry Coconut Squares (recipe from Edmonton Journal…last christmas)

This is one of my mom’s FAVORITE things in the whole wide world! I made it at Christmas and she insisted I make TWO more batches the same week!! (We brought them to a few christmas parties, so thankfully we didn’t consume them all). My mom is pretty picky with my baking…she doesn’t really like cupcakes, but she loves it when I make these. Try it. Trust me.

Pastry:
2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cut cold butter cut in cubes

Filling:
4 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 cup whole cranberries
1 cup shredded sweetened coconut

1. Preheat oven to 325 F. Butter 9 x 13 baking dish.
2. Pulse flour, sugar, salt and butter in food processor. Whirl until crumbly.
3. Pat into baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes.

Lemon Mixture:
1. Meanwhile, whirl eggs, sugar and lemon juice in food processor. Add flour and baking powder. Whirl just until smooth.
2. Scatter cranberries over warm pastry. Sprinkle with coconut. Pour lemon mixture over top. It will spread to fill pan during baking.
3. Bake in centre of oven until middle is set (55 minutes). Cool and cut into squares. Store in airtight container up to four days or freeze.

Gluten-Free Peanut Butter Cookies (from Joy the Baker)

I have two lovely friends in my medical class who were recently diagnosed with Celiac’s. For those of you who aren’t familiar with it, basically people with Celiac’s cannot eat gluten, which is found in a lot of wheats and tons of other products! (Stuff like soy sauce, artificial vanilla extract, etc!) So…Celiac = not such a fun time with the majority of baked things I make. So I was determined to make them a treat too this time! I love love this recipe. SO easy, SO delicious, and it helped to brighten at least 2 wonderful people’s days.

- makes about two dozen cookies
Ingredients:
1 cup all-natural chunky or smooth peanut butter (I used smooth)
1 cup sugar (1/2 cup brown sugar and 1/2 cup granulated sugar)
1 egg
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tsp pure vanilla extract (I added this)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a baking sheet with butter and set aside. In a mixer combine peanut butter and sugars until well combined, about 2 minutes. Add egg and baking soda and mix for another 2 minutes. Roll into walnut sized balls and create a cris-cross pattern with a fork. If you’d like, add a few chocolate pieces to the top of the cookies. Bake for 10 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool on a baking sheet for two minutes, then transfer to… your mouth.

I also made puffed wheat squares and irish coffee cupcakes, but I wasn’t as satisfied with those two recipes. I shan’t post them until I have time to try them again and tinker around with the ingredients.