Pumpkin Donut Muffins

Hey chickadees,

Let's play a game. Touch your nose with your right hand if you remember the Mini Donut Muffins Beck and I made last year. Need a reminder?

Heck, even if you don't remember the Mini Donut Muffins and are too lazy to click through the link above, touch your nose anyway. Everyone can play this game.

Go on. Right hand to nose.

Very good.

Now, keeping your right hand where it is, touch your right ear with your left hand if you like pumpkin.

Now, extend your right arm out in front of you if you think the combination of Mini Donut Muffins plus pumpkin would be superb.

Yes. I know this particular move is a bit harder. Channel your inner pretzel. You can do it. Right arm out in front of you.

Very good.

Now wave your right arm up and down and make a noise like an elephant.

What?!

No, of course I wasn't trying to make you look like a fool! I was only trying to make you look like an elephant :-)  Please don't blame me--these Pumpkin Donut Muffins I made on my vacation make me do strange things.

Things like playing Twister on my parents' new multi-colored rug, eating oddly-flavored jelly beans, painting farm animals on tiny ceramic bowls, and measuring dry ingredients for baked goods very late at night after everyone else has gone to bed...

...and apparently making other people act like circus animals. I really have no idea where that whole elephant thing came from.  But really, these are bite-sized donuts, plus pumpkin, coated in butter and cinnamon and sugar. Does it get any better than that?

It's enough to make anyone go a little elephant.

Enjoy!
- Katie

Pumpkin Donut Muffins
Adapted from Blue Eyed Bakers
Makes 24 mini muffins


For Donuts:
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup milk


For Coating:
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cinnamon


1. Preheat oven 350 F.  Spray 24 mini muffin cups with cooking spray and set aside.


2. In a bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and spices together and set aside.


3. In a large bowl (or the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment) whisk together oil, brown sugar, egg, vanilla, pumpkin and milk until combined. Slowly add the dry ingredients into the mixture and stir until just combined, careful not to over mix.


4. Fill each muffin cup with the batter. Muffin wells will be pretty full but not overflowing. Bake for 10-12 minutes, until muffins spring back when gently pressed. Let muffins cool in pans for one minute, then tip on their sides so the bottoms don't steam. After a few minutes, transfer muffins to wire racks.


5. While the muffins are cooling, melt butter in one bowl and combine the sugar and cinnamon in another. When donuts are still hot (but not too hot to touch), dip tops in melted butter, then in cinnamon-sugar mixture. Serve immediately.


*Note: If you're not going to serve the muffins immediately, you can bake them up to a day in advance and store them in an airtight container. Do not coat them in the butter/cinnamon-sugar mixture until just before serving or they may get soggy. Or, use a pastry brush to brush on butter instead of dipping muffins in butter in order to use less butter. 

Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Muffins

Hey Readers!

It's October, which means Becky and I are in California for our little annual family reunion. And by "Becky and I," I mean "just me".  Becky got stuck in NY this year :-(

But distance can't keep this baking team apart. When Becky heard I was making the Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake for the Cali guests (which has disappeared in the time it has taken me to write this post!), she decided to participate from afar. Of course, Beck doesn't have a houseful of guests to bake for; her coffee cake needed to be portable so she could distribute it to friends in NY. Thus, Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Muffins were born.

To make muffins, simply mix up the coffee cake batter, divide it into 12-14 muffin cups, add a dollop of cream cheese and a dollop of jam, and bake for 20 minutes. Add icing if desired.

Easy-peasy raspberry cream cheesy muffins!

We miss you in Cali, Beck...though I think in your absence, I'm entitled to eat your slice of coffee cake :-)

-Katie

Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake Muffins
Makes 12-14 muffins


Coffee Cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar*
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter cut into small pieces and chilled
3/4 cup milk
4 ounces cream cheese
4 ounces raspberry jam

Note: To use a baking mix such as Bisquick, replace first five ingredients with 2 cups baking mix, adding a tablespoon of sugar.

*we've also used baking soda in a pinch

Powdered Sugar Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1-2 teaspoons milk

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 12-14 muffin wells with paper liners.

2. Place flour, baking powder, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt (or 2 cups baking mix plus 1 tbsp sugar) in a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter, two knives, or your fingers, cut in the butter until dough resembles course crumbs.

3. Add milk and stir until evenly moistened. Dough will be quite sticky.

4. Place dough in muffin cups. Dollop a heaping teaspoon of cream cheese on top of each muffin, then a heaping teaspoon of jam.

5. Bake for 20 minutes or until nicely browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool 15 minutes.

6. If icing is desired, whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla, and one teaspoon milk. Continue to add milk until glaze reaches drizzling consistency. Drizzle glaze over muffins.

Coldbuster Smoothie

Breaking news, bakers of the world! Come and see it for yourself - the world's largest, hottest, oven! What's this amazing new product called, you ask? Why...New York City, of course!

We're ROASTING out here.

Seriously. If we had a car, we'd be baking chocolate chip cookies galore. Alas, no car, no cookies. :-(

We've been trying to beat the heat by drinking our cool in the form of fabulous, freezing smoothies. But the recipe I want to share with you today is actually not inspired by this miraculous-yet-miserable heat wave. It's a celebration.

Meet Christie & Charles. Tomorrow, they'll have been married one month! Happy one-month-iversary!

Kate and I met Christie at school in 6th Grade Choir. Apart, we were three wee, shrimpy little things - one soprano, one second soprano, one alto. But put us together, and bam! - you've got beautiful three part harmony. (Yes, yes. Super cheesy. But Christie wouldn't mind, so I'm not apologizing. :-)

We've been friends ever since, and we've shared a lot in the past 17 years. From matching Halloween costumes (cutest Care Bears ever), to just a little bit of fame (at our school, Show Choir kids were popular), to our deep faith and passion for liturgical dance, you might say we're three cookies cut with the same cookie cutter. Hehe.

Lookin' awesome in our sequin Show Choir vests!

But back to the smoothie. You see, I blame Christie's mom for my addiction to these cool and semi-healthy treats. It was 1996, and Christie, Katie, and I had just finished a "gig" as Dancing Fairy Princesses, and by "gig", I mean we taught a bunch of little kids a dance at a birthday party while wearing fabulous purple lyrical dresses and crowns made out of that star garland stuff. We were totally cool.

Anyways, on the way back to Christie's house, her mom asked if we wanted to stop at Jamba Juice (which had just changed it's name from Juice Club). There are three things I remember about what happened next:

1. Christie's mom insisted I get the Coldbuster smoothie, to combat the sniffles I was apparently suffering from;
2. That smoothie was one of the most wonderful things I had ever tasted; and
3. On the walkway up to the house, the bottom of my cup just FELL OUT.

Kate adds this anecdote to her memory of that day: "Christie's mom made me and Christie split the rest of our smoothies with Becca, since hers was all over the sidewalk. That was totally not fair!"

But they did share their smoothies with me. Because that's what friends are for.

So this homemade Coldbuster is for you Christie, in celebration of our friendship, and in honor of this next exciting chapter in your life with Charles. May your life together be filled with happiness, health, and love! Cheers!

-Becky

Coldbuster Smoothie
Inspired by Jamba Juice
Makes approximately 24 ounces

2 generous scoops peach frozen yogurt or orange sherbet
1 large banana, sliced and frozen
1 cup frozen peaches
4 ice cubes
3/4 to 1 cup orange juice

1. Place all ingredients except orange juice in blender or food processor.
2. Pulse a few times to break up ice cubes and frozen fruit. (Note: You may wish to microwave the frozen peaches for about 15 seconds to thaw them just slightly.)
3. Turn blender on, then pour orange juice through hole in top of blender. Blend until smooth.
4. Pour into a glass, grab a straw, and enjoy!

Graham Cracker Banana Raisin Bread

Photo by Uncle Worm

There are many things you can always find in the corner of mine and Becky's kitchen counter: a lemon or two, a stack of Luna Bars (Peppermint for Beck, Oatmeal Raisin for me), miscellaneous chocolate, and probably a bottle cap from Music Man's last beer.

The one thing you'll never find?

Ripe bananas.

In fact, even yellow bananas are a rarity in this house. NYC supermarkets don't sell anything other than neon green ones, and Becky and I love bananas so much, we gobble them up as soon as any bit of yellow pokes through.

But our gobbling up the bananas means we never have any left to toss into super yummy banana recipes. It's a rough life here in the K&B abode.

So you can imagine my elation when while at home in Cali recently, I discovered not one, not two, but FIVE ripe bananas sitting in the fruit bowl!

I was so excited, I actually skipped to the pantry while my imagination went off on some kind of banana baking brainstorm extravaganza. Banana pancakes! Banana nut muffins! Peanut Butter Banana Biscotti! Oatmeal Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies!  

WHAT was I going to make?!

Well, first things first. I grabbed me some Bisquick, whipped up some banana pancakes, and had me a nice breakfast. One banana down.

Next, I called up JW House - would they mind if I baked some Oatmeal Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies? Nope. They sure didn't. Two bananas down.

Two bananas left. Back to the pantry I skipped. And I saw THIS staring at me:

It's a recipe for Banana Raisin Bread on the side of a graham cracker crumbs box. It was obviously speaking directly to me, saying "choose me for your last two bananas! Choose me!"

So I did. I was slightly skeptical at first, because it feels a little weird to use ground-up crackers as an ingredient in bread, but I figured I love graham crackers and I love bananas, so what's not to love about putting them together with some sugar and oil and milk and raisins?

The bread baked up beautifully, with that magnificent crack down the middle that I'm always praying for in my quick breads. It's a sturdy bread, excellent for slicing and toasting, and even more tasty with butter and honey drizzled on top. Everyone in the house kept asking me when we could slice it.

This guy even showed up asking for some:

Do you think I could have just a little?

What if I sit pretty? Huh? Huh? Look how pretty I am!

So the next time you have some ripe bananas on your counter, grab some graham cracker crumbs and work a little graham cracker banana magic. Then please send some to me and Beck, since we seem to lack the self control to buy bananas and NOT eat them before they are ripe enough to bake with. Oh, and Boomerang The Dog would probably like some too. :-)

-Katie

Graham Cracker Banana Raisin Bread

From the side of the Honey Grahams graham cracker crumb box
Makes 1 loaf (about 16 slices)
 
1 2/3 c graham cracker crumbs
1 1/2 c flour
3/4 c sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 eggs
1/2 c milk
1/3 c vegetable oil
2 large bananas, mashed (about 1 c)
1 c seedless raisins

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.

2. Mix graham cracker crumbs, flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in large bowl; set aside.

3. Beat eggs, milk and oil in medium bowl with wire whisk until well blended. Stir in bananas.

4. Add to flour mixture; stir until just blended. Stir in raisins. Spoon into greased loaf pan.

5. Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Cool in pan on wire rack 10 minutes. Remove from pan; cool completely. Cut into 16 slices to serve.

Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Photo by Uncle Worm

There are only a handful of treats Becky and I make over and over again: Oatmeal lemon creme bars, Friend E's chocolate chip cookies, oatmeal carmelitas, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies (post coming soon!). These are the recipes we can make in our sleep, and that disappear immediately when we put them out for others.

This Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake is another of those recipes because it's easy to put together and even easier to gobble up. The first time I made this recipe was for me, Beck, and the Music Man on a lazy Saturday morning. The three of us devoured it all in about an hour.

The second time I made this coffee cake was on a girls' weekend with our best friends from college. The six of us gals finished off the whole thing in less than an hour.

The third time I made this coffee cake was just this past Friday while at home for a family reunion. Our twelve or so aunts, uncles, and cousins inhaled it in what seemed like minutes.

Are you starting to see a pattern?

At this point, Becky and I decided this recipe was too good to keep to ourselves; we had to put it here on the blog. So, we made the cake for a fourth time, a mere 24 hours after its previous appearance. We got the cake in the oven and then I ran out on an errand, leaving Beck with strict instructions to not let anyone dig in until she got some photos.

I couldn't have been gone much more than a hour, but when I came back, there was only one teeny tiny piece left for me. It's like magic, really, how fast this coffee cake disappears.

Besides the fact that it's an excuse to eat dessert for breakfast, I love this coffee cake because it's adaptable. Don't have raspberry jam? Use strawberry. Use blueberry. Use lemon curd. Have some fresh fruit on hand? Throw that in, too.

This cake is also free form, which I love, because it's pretty darn hard to mess up the presentation when you're not aiming for a specific shape or size. And even if the finished cake isn't pretty, it tastes so good that nobody seems to care if it's ugly - they'll gobble it up no matter what.

Photo by Uncle Worm

But, to quote good old LeVar Burton, you don't have to take my word for it:

"Yummm!!!" – Cousin Rick (that's three m's AND three !'s)

"The first one was perfect. The second one was even better." – Cousin Gae

"I didn’t have any because it was GONE!" – DaddyBob

"I got goosebumps (really!) during the first bite." – Uncle Worm

"I couldn't wait for you to make it the second day!" - Cousin Don

"Are you moving back here?" - Mama B

"Affentitten geil!" which translates literally to "Ape-[bleep] good!", or figuratively to "As good as it can get!" - Aunt Daggi from Germany

Guten appetit!

- Katie

Raspberry Cream Cheese Coffee Cake

Adapted from Chickens in the Road

Coffee Cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar*
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter cut into small pieces and chilled
3/4 cup milk
4 ounces cream cheese
4 ounces raspberry jam

Note: To use a baking mix such as Bisquick, replace first five ingredients with 2 cups baking mix, adding a tablespoon of sugar.

*we've also used baking soda in a pinch

Powdered Sugar Glaze:

1/2 cup powdered sugar, sifted

1/4 teaspoon vanilla

1-2 teaspoons milk

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle generously with flour.

2. Place flour, baking powder, sugar, cream of tartar, and salt (or 2 cups baking mix plus 1 tbsp sugar) in a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until dough resembles course crumbs.

3. Add milk and stir until evenly moistened. Dough will be quite sticky.

4. Place dough on floured cookie sheet. Sprinkle generously with flour and pat or roll into a rectangle approximately 16" x 6".

5. Spread cream cheese down the center, then top with jam.

6. Using a sharp knife, make cuts from center of dough (where cream cheese and jam are) outward, about an inch and a half apart, all along both long sides of the dough.

7. Fold strips of dough up over the top of the jam. Pinch ends to seal.

8. Brush extra flour off parchment. Bake for 25 minutes or until nicely browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool 15 minutes.

9. While coffee cake cools, whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla, and one teaspoon milk. Continue to add milk until glaze reaches drizzling consistency.

10. Drizzle glaze over coffee cake in criss cross pattern. Slice cake along center of filling, then crosswise to cut into squares. Serve warm or at room temperature.

11. Store leftover coffee cake in the fridge (if there are any leftovers, which there won't be!)

Mini Donut Muffins

 

There are many reasons I chose to make these mini donut muffins:

1) They are cute.
2) They involve the holy trinity of melted butter, cinnamon, and sugar.
3) They eliminate the need to choose between baking muffins and making donuts, and as everyone close to me knows, decision making is not one of my stronger suits.

The reason I will make these again though, is not on that list, because I didn't know it before I made the muffins.  That reason is that besides being cute, holy, and a perfect example of a good compromise, these little babies are darn tasty.

To prove my point, let's look at a math problem:

Katie made a batch of mini donut muffins.  She used four mini muffin pans that each yielded 12 muffins.  When the muffins were cool (okay, maybe while they were still warm), Katie ate 10 muffins, her sister Becky ate 12 muffins, and Becky's boyfriend the Music Man ate 3 muffins (because he had already eaten 2 actual donuts).  Katie then took the remaining muffins to work, where Friend E ate 10 muffins, Friend S ate 5 muffins, and also shared a tip on the best way to eat them.* How many muffins were left for Katie's other co-workers?

 

 

Are you having flashbacks to fourth grade math class yet?

Fortunately, my fourth grade math teacher, Mrs. Bilanin, was good at her job, and therefore I know that the answer is 8 muffins.  Mrs. Bilanin also had a very cute son a few years older than us and we all had huge crushes on him, but that's neither here nor there.  Though I do wonder what he's up to these days...

 

...(pardon this short break while I innocently Google/Facebook stalk Mrs. Bilanin's son)...

 

Yep.  Still as cute as ever. 

 

 

But back to the muffins.

My point with that little math problem is that while the three main characters - me, Beck, and Friend E - may not be known for our powers of self-restraint, we also don't indulge in just any old thing.  These mini donut muffins were GOOD.  They really did taste like little tiny cake donuts.

Do you think it would it be too forward of me to send a basket of these with my phone number to Mrs. Bilanin's son?  :-)

 

*Tip on How to Eat Mini Donut Muffins from Friend S: To get the most cinnamon-sugar goodness, eat the muffins upside down! 

Mini Donut Muffins

adapted from CHOW via Framed

Makes 48 mini muffins

Coating:

1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Muffins:
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick), melted
3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for coating muffin tins
2 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup whole milk, at room temperature
2 tablespoons buttermilk, at room temperature (sour cream or plain Greek yogurt may be substituted for the buttermilk)
10 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 1/4 sticks), at room temperature
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 large eggs, at room temperature


1. Combine sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside.

2. Heat the oven to 375°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Lightly brush a mini muffin tin
with some of the melted butter, then coat with flour, tapping out any excess; set aside. Reserve
remaining melted butter for applying the cinnamon-sugar coating.

3. In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking powder, salt, nutmeg, and baking soda. In a small
bowl, whisk together milk and buttermilk. Set both aside.

4. Beat butter and sugar on medium-high speed until light in color and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Beat in eggs one at a time until combined.  Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

5. With the mixer set on low speed, beat in a quarter of the reserved dry ingredients. Then beat in a
third of the reserved milk mixture. Continue to alternate until all of the remaining ingredients
are incorporated, finishing with the dry ingredients. Do not overmix.

6. Fill the prepared muffin tin wells to just below the rim with batter. Bake until muffins are lightly
golden and firm to the touch, about 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Remove muffins from the tin and transfer to a wire rack set over a baking sheet. Repeat buttering and
flouring of muffin tins until all batter is used.

7. To coat the muffins, dip tops of muffins in melted butter, then in cinnamon-sugar. Roll slightly to generously cover entire top. Serve warm or at room temperature.

8. For jelly doughnuts, allow the muffins to cool and use a small pastry tip to make a hole in the bottom of each. Fill the pastry bag with your favorite jam, jelly, or citrus curd and squeeze some into the muffins.

Caramel Sticky Buns

These buns are not light.  They do not involve strawberries or blueberries or raspberries or cherries, or any other fruit, for that matter.  They require you to heat your oven to 400 degrees.  If you eat half the pan, I guarantee you will not look better in your swimsuit than you did before.

In short, there is nothing summery about these rolls.

But Beck and I figured that if they were good enough for the King Arthur Flour people to post in the middle of June, they were good enough for us.

These were very simple to whip up, though the cleanup was a bit involved, what with the pastry mat, several measuring spoons and cups, and a sugary baking pan and sheet.  But in the end, I'd say it was definitely worth it.

Although he will deny ever uttering the words, Music Man described these as having a "nice, soft, delicate texture."  Who knew he was such a food critic?

Caramel Sticky Buns
Adapted from Baking Banter
Makes 12 buns

Topping

• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup butter
• 1/4 cup dark corn syrup or maple syrup
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts, optional

Dough

• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups lukewarm buttermilk*
• 4 tablespoons melted butter
• *Substitute 1/4 cup buttermilk powder + 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water, if desired.

Filling

• 1/2 cup brown sugar

1) Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease a 9" x 2" round cake pan.

2) To make the topping: Combine the melted butter and brown sugar, stirring to combine.

3) Stir in the syrup.

4) Pour the topping into the prepared pan, spreading it to the edges. Sprinkle the nuts (if you're using them) atop the topping. Set the pan aside.

5) To make the dough: Stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Note: If you're using buttermilk powder in place of buttermilk, add it here.

6) Pour the lukewarm buttermilk (or lukewarm water, if you're using buttermilk powder) and melted butter into the bowl with the dry ingredients

7) Stir to combine. The dough will look very shaggy.

8) Transfer the dough to a floured surface, and knead very briefly, just to smooth it out a bit.

9) Roll the dough into a 9" x 12" rectangle.

10) Brush the dough with water, and sprinkle with brown sugar, leaving a bare edge on one of the longer sides.

11) Roll the dough into a log, starting with the longer edge that's covered with filling. Pinch the seam closed as well as you can; it'll be a bit messy, with filling spilling out. That's OK.

12) Using dental floss or a serrated knife, cut the log into 12 slices.

13) Lay the slices in the prepared pan, atop the topping.

14) Place the cake pan on a baking sheet (to catch any sugar that bubbles over), and bake for 23 to 25 minutes, until they're golden brown.

15) Remove from the oven, and immediately invert the pan onto a serving plate. Let it sit for about 15 seconds, then remove the pan, scraping out any nuts or syrup that's stuck in the pan, and spreading it back onto the buns.

16) Serve warm (but not hot!).

Weeknight Crepes

Monday was a Mack Truck Day.  We had performed twice on Sunday and I was getting over a cold; I felt like I'd been hit by a big ol' truck.

On any other Mack Truck Day I would have just had cereal for dinner...but I'd eaten the last of it that morning.  It was time for Weeknight Crepes.


How to Make Weeknight Crepes in 20 Easy Steps:

(Please accept my apology now for the inferior quality of these photos.  I think my camera was also hit by a big 'ol truck on Monday, and I was in no state to fiddle with the settings or lighting.)

 

Step 1: Go to your bookshelf.  Decide whether to use the 40th anniversary or 50th anniversary edition of your trusty Betty Crocker red binder cookbook.  Ignore the crepes cookbook three books to the right.

Step 2: Place cookbook on table ironing board.  Flip through index to find crepe recipe.  Under Desserts? No. Under Breads? Must be.  But where?  Think how much easier this would be if you could search a cookbook like you can baking blogs.  Finally find crepe recipe under Pancakes, French Toast, and Waffles and flip to page 60.  Get distracted by the yummy waffle picture on page 61.

Step 3: Tape recipe to your cupboard.  Consider taking down recipes from last five or so things you baked.  Then decide that can wait.  You have crepes to make, afterall.

Step 4: Notice this candy bar you bought the other day simply because you had never seen a Reese's candy bar before.  Decide it's time to try it. The crepes can wait a few more minutes, right?

Step 5: Measure out your dry ingredients - flour, baking soda, sugar, salt.  If you're making crepes for one, quarter the recipe, as I did here.

Step 6: Measure out and add your wet ingredients - milk, melted butter, vanilla...

 Step 7: ...Notice that because you're quartering the recipe, you now have to divide an egg in half.  Most annoying thing ever.

Step 8: Get over it.  Crack one egg into a measuring cup and whip until pourable.

Step 9: Go to wash your eggy hands.  Narrowly avoid dumping an entire bottle of dish soap everywhere because somebody didn't screw the cap on all the way.  Remember that it was probably you.

Step 10: Pour 1/2 your egg into the batter and stir to combine.

Step 11: Have another piece of that Reese's bar.  Go ahead.  No one's gonna know you ate your dessert before your "dinner."

 Step 12: Heat a skillet over medium heat.  Grab that leftover 1/2 or 1/3 or 1/4 stick of butter that's been sittin' in your fridge waiting for its destiny.  Rub it all over the medium-hot skillet.

Step 13: When your butter is nice and bubbly like this...

...pour about 1/4 cup of batter into pan and quickly swirl pan to spread batter evenly.  Think how gosh darn ugly your crepe looks.  Then decide it's okay - it's your first one.  Take comfort knowing that your second one will look more like this:

Much better.

Step 14: When crepe begins to look dry on top and brown on underside (edges will start to curl), gently flip crepe and cook until other side is lightly browned as well:

Mmmmm.....

Step 15: Choose your fillings.  Building a pyramid is entirely optional but highly recommended.  Mayonnaise is not actually recommended as a filling, but highly recommended when in need of a sixth member of your spreadable fillings pyramid.

Step 16: Grab a banana from the fridge.  Admit it looks disgusting.  But have faith that since you put it in the fridge at its perfect ripeness, it is still perfect inside.

See?

Step 17: Grab a crepe.  Notice that it's no longer hot because you spent too much time building spreadable filling pyramids.  Decide it doesn't matter.  Spread on your spreadable filling and top with fruit.

Step 18: Roll crepe up and top with whipped cream - and don't use any of that homemade stuff either.  It's a weeknight - the canned stuff just does fine.

Step 19: Eat your Weeknight Crepe, right there at the counter.

Step 20: Banish that Resse's bar back to the corner.  It's got nothin' on the Weeknight Crepes.


Weeknight Crepes
adapted from the Betty Crocker Cookbook
Makes 12 crepes (or 3 if you quarter the recipe)

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 cups milk
2 tbsp butter or stick margarine, melted
1/2 tsp vanilla
2 large eggs
Butter, stick margarine, or shortening
Spreadable fillings such as peanut butter, jam, Nutella
Sliced fruit, berries, chocolate chips, etc.
Whipped cream

1.  Mix flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in medium bowl.  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Whisk until smooth.

2.  Lightly butter 6- to 8-inch skillet.  Heat over medium heat until bubbly.

3.  For each crepe, pour scant 1/4 cup batter into skillet.  Immediately rotate skillet until thin layer of batter covers bottom.  Cook until light brown.  Run wide spatula around edge to loosen; turn and cook other side until light brown.  Repeat with remaining batter, buttering skillet as needed.

4.  Spread your spreadable filling on a crepe and add fruit; roll up.  Top with whipped cream.