Well, here it is, my 300th post. I find it hard to believe that I have made 300 things for this blog(give or take a few for a restaurant review).
And when I say make something for this blog, I mean just that. Most people are surprised to learn that I make all my baked goods specifically for my blog. Even when I make dessert for friends coming over I think about what I already have on my blog and what I have put up recently. I try desperately to have variety. Sometimes it works out, and sometimes I have repeaters…but nonetheless, I try.
I recently read an article by Lisa(La Mia Cucina) over at Foodie View about comfort foods. Lisa a big fan of my croissant bread pudding and had asked to highlight it in her story, which she did. It got me thinking how bread pudding is my favorite dessert and yet, I only have 3 recipes for it on my blog. So I set out to make a bread pudding for my 300th post.
I have become obsessed with Ben and Jerry’s Oatmeal Cookie Chunk Ice Cream as of late. If you are not familiar with it, here is the description(which doesn’t do it justice): Sweet Cream Cinnamon Ice Cream with Chunks of Oatmeal Cookies & Fudge. I only allow myself one pint a month as I usually eat it in one sitting. I thought about making giant oatmeal cookie ice cream sandwiches with cinnamon ice cream(I still might do that…this Spring or Summer), but again the bread pudding was in the back of my mind.
So I made a loaf cake using the flavors of an oatmeal cookie. Even if you just bake the loaf you are good to go. I almost felt guilty letting that moist cake sit out over night all chopped up and spread out to get stale. But I had a mission. When I awoke the next day, the loaf was good and stale. I scattered the  pieced of loaf with raisins(I’m a golden girl) and soaked it in a cinnamon-nutmeg custard. Baked it in a bath and hoped that the outcome would be good. Because, you just never know. I come up with a lot of ideas…and often they flop. One good idea in theory that didn’t turn out in reality was my rice crispy treat fried ice cream, live and learn.
Flop this did not, and I found myself at the bottom of the bowl in no time. Of course, I drowned it in toffee sauce as I do most of my bread puddings. A necessary evil in my opinion.
So thanks to all of you who read this little blog of mine. I certainly didn’t think I would be lasting to 300 posts and now I can’t imagine not having this blog.

Oatmeal Raisin Bread Pudding

Oatmeal Bread

2 large eggs
12 TBSP unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup canola oil
½ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup packed light brown sugar
1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
1 cup old-fashion oats
1 ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼  tsp ground fresh nutmeg
¼ tsp salt

Preheat oven to 350F.
Whisk together eggs, oil, butter, buttermilk and sugars.
In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices.
Pour the liquid ingredients into the bowl of the dry ingredients and stir until everything is incorporated. Scrape batter into a greased and floured 9-x-5-inch loaf pan and bake for 40-50 minutes. You can check  to see if done by inserting a knife into the center and it comes out clean. Let rest for 5 minutes. Run knife around the sides of the loaf pan and remove loaf. Continue to cool on a rack.

Take the oatmeal loaf and cut it into 2-inch pieces. Lay them out over night uncovered to become stale.

Cinnamon Custard

2 ½ cups heavy cream
3 egg yolks
4 eggs
¾ cup granulated sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp fresh ground nutmeg

Whisk together all the ingredients until completely incorporated. Set aside until needed.

To make the bread pudding:

Preheat oven to 325F.
Butter a 8-x-8-inch pan. Place ½ of the bread pieces into the pan. Sprinkle ½ cup golden raisins over the bread. Pour ½ the custard mixture over the bread and press gently to allow the liquid to soak in. Scatter the remaining bread evenly. Followed by another ½ cup raisins and then the last of the custard. Again, press the bread down gently to allow the custard to absorb into the bread.
Place bread pudding into a pan that is large enough to hold both the pan and a water bath. Pour enough hat water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the pudding pan. Bake for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
Remove pan from oven(carefully) and remove from water bath. Serve warm and with toffee sauce.

Toffee Sauce

3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup unsalted butter
1/3 cup whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla extract

Stir brown sugar and butter in heavy medium saucepan over medium heat until melted and smooth, about 2 minutes. Add cream and vanilla and bring to a simmer. Simmer for about 5 minutes.

More than happy to see Nikki of Crazy Delicious chose this simple Almost Fudge Gateau. Very similar to that of a flourless chocolate cake, it’s dense and chocolaty. I must say that I do prefer the Chocolate Intensity cake that I made as a Daring Baker, that to me was almost fudge cake.
Now, don’t get me wrong this is a tasty cake…and one my husband will eat…what are the odds? But the main reason why I love this cake is because it is so simple. Simple is what I need right now. Life got hectic the last two weeks and the idea of making something multi-step did not sit well with me. If you have an hour you have a cake…and can eat it too.
Well, that is all you get. I said life was hectic. To see the other versions of this cake, check out the Tuesday’s With Dorie blog.

Almost-Fudge GĢteau

5 large eggs
9 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 cup of sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into chunks
2 tablespoons coffee or water
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
Pinch of salt
For the Glaze (optional)
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
½ cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons light corn syrup

Getting Ready:

Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter a 9-inch springform pan, line the bottom with parchment paper, butter the paper, dust the inside of the pan with flour and tap out the excess.  Place the pan on a baking sheet lined with parchment or a silicone mat.

Separate the eggs, putting the whites in a mixer bowl or other large bowl and the yolks in a small bowl.

Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and add the chocolate, sugar butter and coffee.  Stir occasionally until the chocolate and butter are melted; the sugar may still be grainy, and that’s fine.  Transfer the bowl to the counter and let the mixture sit for 3 minutes.

Using a rubber spatula, stir in the yolks one by one, then fold in the flour.

Working with the whisk attachment of the mixer or a hand mixer, beat the egg whites with the pinch of salt until they hold firm, but glossy peaks.  Using the spatula, stir about one quarter of the beaten whites into the batter, then gently fold in the rest.  Scrape the butter into the pan and jiggle the pan from side to side a couple of times to even the batter.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes, or until the cake has risen evenly (it might rise around the edges and you’ll think it’s done, but give it a few minutes more, and the center will puff too) and the top has firmed (it will probably be cracked) and doesn’t shimmy when tapped; a thin knife inserted into the center should come out just slightly streaked with chocolate.  Transfer the pan to a cooling rack and let the cake rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

Run a blunt knife gently around the edges of the cake and remove the sides of the pan.  Carefully turn the cake over onto a rack and remove the pan bottom and the parchment paper.  Invert the cake onto another rack and cool to room temperature right side up.  As the cake cools, it may sink.

To Make the Optional Glaze:

First, turn the cooled cake over onto another rack so you’ll be glazing the flat bottom, and place the rack over a baking sheet lined with parchment or wax paper to catch any drips.

Put the chocolate in a small heatproof bowl.

Melt the chocolate over a pan of simmering water or in a microwave oven ¢â¬â€œ the chocolate should be just melted and only warm, not hot.  Meanwhile, bring the cream to a boil in a small sauce pan.  Pour the hot cream over the chocolate and stir very gently with a rubber spatula until the mixture is smooth and shiny.  Stir in the corn syrup.

Pour the glaze over the cake and smooth the top with a long metal icing spatula.  Don’t worry if the glaze drips unevenly down the sides of the cake ¢â¬â€œ it will just add to its charms.  Allow the glaze to set at room temperature or, if you’re impatient, slip the cake into the refrigerator for about 20 minutes.  If the glaze dulls in the fridge, just give it a little gentle heat from a hairdryer.

Going around the blog world last week, I saw a variety of treats dedicated to that of Valentine’s Day. Gorgeous creations, mostly heart shaped with a touching story attached of tales of love and dedication. That got me thinking about my most memorable Valentine’s Day.
I will be the first to admit that it is not a favorite holiday of mine. In fact, I spent most of my single years boycotting it and celebrating Arizona Statehood Day instead…which happens to fall on February 14th. For although I love all Valentine decorations, I am not a fan of what poor men have to put up with. First they have to find a card that encompasses all that he feels about us and if he doesn’t, the woman feels disappointed. The woman…she just has to get a card. The man is suppose to buy you roses, chocolates and diamonds. Usually feeling pressure to put the diamonds in either the roses or the chocolate.  The woman gives him a coupon book for a free massage and other “activities” that you probably already do with your loved one. Then he has to take you out to eat and pay for that. Yeah, that seems fair.
Enough of my rant. When I went to college my mother had a tad bit of empty nest syndrome and so whenever she could she would send a care package. The best care packages she sent were for Valentine’s Day. For she would go and buy 14 items and then individually wrap each them. I would open a numbered gift everyday up until Valentine’s Day. Cute, eh? One of my packages was a bag of Valentine Peanut M&M’s.
One night(that would be V-day), when  drinking was amazingly NOT involved, a fellow dorm mate decided to dare me to stick two of those peanut M&M’s up my nose. I of course, declined. Then they offered $10 to do it as long as they could take a Polariod of it.
Ten Bucks?
Now we are talking.
So up I stuffed the Peanut M&M’s into my nose, no problem. Even asked them to take two Polaroid pictures so that I could have one also. They gave me my $10 and I was happy. Happy that was until I had to remove them. Which remove they did not want to do. So stupid me thought the best way to try and remove them was to blow my nose as hard as I could.
THUD.
That was the sound of me hitting the ground from passing out.
When I awoke, my poor Japanese exchange student of a roommate was standing over me. The M&M’s were out. For my roommate had gone and dug them out, to this day I don’t know how, and it is best that I do not know. But in true polite fashion my roommate saved them for me “just in case you want eat.”
Looking back, not so worth the ten bucks. I promptly took the extra Polaroid and wrote on it, “Lifestyles of the Poor and Obscure” and sent it to my parents. I sent it in hopes that they would send money so that their daughter would stop having to stuff candy up her nose to earn money.
It worked.
Hope you had a lovely day with your loved ones.

Chocolate-Hazelnut Meringue Tart

Crust:

1/3 cup ground hazelnuts(hazelnut flour)
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
½ cup powdered sugar
1 TBSP Frangelico
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup all-purpose flour

Ganache:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 TBSP unsalted butter
¼ tsp salt
1 tsp Frangelico
1 tsp vanilla extract
7 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, finely chopped

Meringue:

4 large egg whites, at room temperature
¾ cup sugar

To make the crust:
Preheat oven to 350F.
Butter one large rectangular tart pan or four 4 3/8-inch tart pans.
Using a mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar in a large bowl at medium-high speed until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in the Frangelico and salt. Gradually add the flour and ground hazelnuts and combine on low speed until incorporated. Form the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and press into prepared pan/s, making sure the dough comes to the top edge of the pan/s. Bake 15 minutes. Remove from oven and cool for 30 minutes.

To make the ganache:
In a heavy bottomed saucepan, combine the cream, butter, salt, Frangelico and vanilla extract. Bring to a gentle boil over medium heat. Remove pan from heat. Put chopped chocolate in a large bowl and pour the hot cream over it. Let stand for 5 minutes, then whisk until smooth. Spoon ganache into tart. Refrigerate tarts at least 30  minutes.

To make the meringue:
Set a large, perfectly clean metal bowl over  a pot of simmering water. Pour in the egg whites and sugar. Heat the egg whites and sugar while whisking constantly until the sugar melts and there are no visible grains in the meringue. Remove the meringue from over the simmering water and whip it with a  mixer fitted with a whisk attachment on low speed for 5 minutes, increase the speed to high and beat 5 minutes longer, until the meringue is stiff and shiny.

Position rack in the center of the oven and preheat the broiler. Pile or pipe meringue onto the tart, making sure to seal each tart by spreading/piping the meringue to the edge of the pan.
Broil tart/s until the meringue turns golden brown. You may also just use a kitchen torch..which is what I did.
Tart/s should be served the day they are assembled.

Source: Adapted from The Pastry Queen by Rebecca Rather with Alison Oresman, 2004

Wow!
People really wanted to fry some dough. Helen and I were blown away by the response that our little doughnut event got!
What was even greater is that so many people had never made them before. They dragged out the oil and braved making doughnuts. So glad we could help you push the limits.
The variety was outstanding. Yeast, baked, cake, filled, fried, heart shaped…you name it, we got it. And now we pass the goodness on to you.
If your blog name fell alphabetically between M and Z then you are on my post. If your blog name fell alphabetically between A and L, then you are on Helen’s post. We did see a couple people link to us but we never got an email. If this is you or we some how missed you, PLEASE let us know and we will add you.
You have so many doughnuts to chose from…so without further ado…here are all the wonderful doughy creations!

Doughnuts

Marija from Belgrade, Serbia made our first batch of doughnuts. Her blog is Palachinka.

Pumpkin Donuts with Powdered Sugar Glaze and Spiced Sugar Donut Holes

Mary of Shazam in the Kitchen made us these beautiful pumpkin doughnuts. Since they are pumpkin, and pumpkin is a vegetable…they have to be healthy…right?

Estonian curd cheese doughnuts aka kohupiimapont…¡ikud

Pille of Nami-Nami makes us an Estonian treat that she says is the comofort food of all Estonian kids. I can see how. She also said that it is best not to tell you how many calories are in these….my favorite kind!

Red Grapefruit Curd Filled Donuts

I was happy to see the vegan bloggers getting in on this one. Dayna of Vegan Visitor made these gorgeous Red Grapefruit Curd Filled Donuts. She was all about making donuts as she too is not into conforming to the January=diet mode.

Zeppoli

Ann from Redacted Recipes made Zeppoli(Italian doughnuts). Even better is she used a recipe from one of my favorite cookbooks, Dessert By The Yard.

World’s Easiest Donuts

Ryley or That’s My Cake…and Dog! shows us that doughnuts don’t need to be hard with her World’s Easiest Doughnuts. Easy sounds good to me.

Italian Donuts

Chris from Mele Cotte tempts us with Italian Doughnuts…that were filled with Nutella(swoon)!

Yeasted Baked Doughnuts

Susan from Wild Yeast broke out the yeast for us with her Yeasted Baked Doughnuts. They are baked…so you can eat twice as many.

Mmm…donuts

Kelly is a member of the Daring Bakers…but has no blog. She uses the Official Daring Baker Non-Blogging Member Blog which the group provides for non-bloggers. I think it is great that she participated.

Cider and spice doughnut drops

Janie of the Rustic Kitchen makes some of my all time favorites… cider and spice doughnut drops. These are great because you don’t even need a doughnut cutter!

Beignets Souffles

Judy of Judy’s Gross Eats(I always laugh at that name…since there is nothing gross about her eats) made these glorious Beignets Souffles(they just sound so fancy!)

Cashewnut Doughnut

Vineela from Vineela’s Cuisine made these adorable heart shaped cashew nut doughtnuts. Cashews in doughnuts…now that is a great idea.

Just Doughnuts

Aparna from My Diverse Kitchen offers up a variety of toppings for her doughnuts. Her coffee glaze would go over really well in these parts.

Spiced Potato Doughnuts

Danielle of Sweet and Savory Eats shows us how a potato can be just more than a french fry! I think I like her Spiced Potato Doughnuts over french fries any day.

Baked Sour Cream Doughnuts

Sarah of What Smells So Good? took on a doughnut war(so to speak) to see if she could make a healthier doughnut. And she did with her Baked Sour Cream Doughnuts…which were a good 130 calories less than Krispy Kreme.

Sweet Potato Doughnuts

Lore from Natural Cuisine shows that sweet potatoes are more than just something to have as a side…with her Sweet Potoato Doughnuts. Now that is the way to eat your vegetables.

 Valentine Donuts

Jennifer of Oye Cookie! went above the call of duty and ventured to Sur la Table just to buy heart shaped cutters. The result? Cute heart shaped rose water glazed doughnuts. Fantastic.

Chocolate Cake Doughnuts

 Laurie of Quirky Cupcake(you might know her from Cupcake Hero) departed from cupcakes to bring us these lovely star shaped Chocolate cake doughnuts.

Orange Drop Doughnuts

Mrs. L(my Adopt a Blogger!) of Pages, Pucks and Pantry stepped up and tried her hand at doughnuts….so glad she did. What we got were these yummy Orange Drop doughnuts…that again…don’t have to have a cutter.

Banana Stuffed Doughnuts

Deborah from The “Humble” Housewife was inspired by her fruit bowl to make these Banana stuffed Doughnuts. They are inspiring indeed!

Julie of The Persnickety Palate made doughnuts that would have my mother beating down her door. Gorgeous cream filled, chocolate glazed Long Johns whose yeasted dougnut recipe I am dying to try because hers looks fantastic.!