(and while you're at it, spend some time checking out her blog - everything this woman does looks and tastes amazing - I'm perpetually in awe)

But that's not why I'm writing - I came to post a link to a recipe which is the first of its kind in my house - a recipe that was eaten and enjoyed (ok, enjoyed is pushing it), a recipe that was consumed with little complaint by all five human members of my family. A gigantic feat.

Ricotta Meatballs, adapted from SheKnows.com

• 1 pound ground beef (use the best fatty stuff you can find - 85% is good) (you can also experiment with 1/2 beef, 1/2 turkey, pork or any combo of the three)


• 1 large egg


• 2 cups ricotta cheese (whole milk or skim)


• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese (we used 1/2 Parm, 1/2 Locatelli because that's what we had around)


• Salt and pepper to taste


• 1 tablespoon flour (note: I JUST noticed that the original recipe called for this, I spaced on adding it when I made and they turned out just fine - add if you want/if you remember)
  
  
• Optional: 1 pinch of fennel seeds (rub together in your hands to break them up a bit before adding)

Mix together meat, egg, ricotta, Parmesan, one teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, fennel and flour (if using/if you remember) in a large bowl until well combined. I think this is where using your hands works best. Shape meat mixture into one-inch balls - I think this is easiest to do with a cookie or ice cream scoop - it's less messy and all the balls are the same size.

The original recipe then says to fry them in a pan with some oil until they're almost completely cooked through, then add some sauce (homemade or jarred - my favorite is Rao's, I stock up when it's on sale) and simmer until they're no longer pink in the middle, about another 30 minutes.

I decided to bake them on a cookie sheet in a preheated 350 degree oven for approx 20-30 minutes, a la my friend Jenny. It gets a little messy so best to stick them on a piece of parchment or foil. Once they're done, you can serve them as is, stick them in a little simmering sauce or put in a plate/tray in a single layer and freeze. Once they're solid, take off the tray and put in a freezer bag for later. We never got to the freezing part - all 36+ meatballs were consumed over the next couple days.

This would be a perfect place for me to post some instagram photos of the whole family enjoying (consuming) the meatballs, but I was so stunned it was happening that I completely forgot to take any. Will be making again soon and will try to remember to take some photos. I promise.

Thank you to all who entered our #CookbookConf ticket giveaway! Pleased to announce that our two winners are @debbieharry and @saraschneider

— Bruce Shaw (@BruceShaw) February 5, 2013

Yeah! I entered the Cookbook Conference ticket giveaway on whim and now I (with Leo in tow) get to go! Better yet, my friend Debbie is coming too! Looks like a lot of fun - off to decide what planels to attend. Looking forward to being a grown up for a couple of days - will report back.

I bought two pairs - superhero and stripes. There's no way Leo will be able to get these guys off! 

Super cute, and even with shipping charges from the UK, totally worth the splurge, I think. 

So, this post has nothing to do with baking (I should mention that as a dare to myself I decided to give up sugar for a while? No Sara Bakes Cakes for a while, I'm afraid), but I wanted to share my favorite workout app, Nike Training Club. It comes with a zillion workouts, you can choose your goal (get lean, get strong, get toned, etc,) workout length, experience (I chose beginner) and it plays along with your music. Best part? It's FREE! Definitely worth checking out if you like the idea of working out in the privacy of your own home.

I've been thinking a lot lately about what direction this blog should take - I'm not baking cakes for hire anymore, but am having fun experiementing with new recipes, both savory and sweet, enjoying with my kiddies (7.5 months flew by) and playing around on Instagram. Maybe a combo of those things, as well as posts about cakes I made that I never got around to writing about.

I guess it's still a work in progress. Stay tuned!

For a cookie base, I used my friend Debbie's Best Homemade Chocolate Chip Cookies in the Entire World recipe. Seriously, if you're new-ish to baking, make these first. They are easy (no time spent bringing butter to room temp) and really are a-mazing.

I've used this base to make these and these, but after spending a weekend with my son making multiple batches of the original RK treat inspired me to make these.

Crisp Rice and Marshmallow Cookies
adapted from Debbie Koenig

1 1/2 c. (195 g) AP flour
1/2 t. baking soda
3/4 t. salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut in 1/2 inch pieces
3/4 c. (170 g) tightly packed light brown sugar (or dark brown if that's what you have)
1/2 c. (100 g) granulated sugar
2 t. vanilla extract
1 large egg, lightly beaten
1 1/2 c. rice cereal (I hippied out and used "Organic Brown Rice Crisps" from Whole Foods, but any brand will do)
1 c. mini marshmallows

Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl, set aside.

Using a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, combine sugars together, then add butter. Cream together on low speed until it is smooth and lump free (can take up to 5 minutes). Scrape down sides of bowl and paddle as necessary.

Add the vanilla and egg and beat on low speed for 15-30 seconds, or until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and paddle again.

On low speed, add the flour mixture all at once. Mix just until incorporated. Scrape down sides of bowl again. Add cereal and marshmallows, mix on low until combined (marshmallows will get a little smooshed up, but that's fine).

Cover bowl and refrigerate for 1 hour (not too much longer than that or the cereal will get soggy).

Preheat oven to 350. Line cookie sheets with parchment, using a cookie scoop or two tablespoons, scoop dough two inches apart. Bake for 11 - 13 minutes, or until edges are set and cookies start to get light golden brown (they'll look slightly underdone). Remove from oven, rest on sheets for 5 minutes, then slide cookies and parchment off pans and onto a countertop to cool.

The marshmallows will be a little sticky on the parchment, so use an offset spatula or spatula to take the cookies off the paper.

Enjoy!

Last week I made these - Brown Butter, Brown Sugar Cookies. Simple, without the addition of chips, pretzels, or any salty/sweet combo I've been playing around with lately, but just as delicious.

Brown Butter, Brown Sugar Cookies

adapted from The America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book

for rolling:
1/4 c. (1 3/4 oz) granulated sugar
1/4 c. (1 3/4 oz) light brown sugar

1 3/4 c. (12 1/4 oz) light brown sugar
2 c. + 2 T (10 2/3 oz) AP flour
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. baking powder
14 T (1 3/4 sticks) unsalted butter
1 large egg
1 large egg yolk
1 T vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 or 3 large baking sheets with parchment. With your hands, mix together 1/4 c. brown and white sugar in a shallow dish or bowl.  In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, baking soda and baking powder.

Brown 10 T of the butter in a skillet. (This site provides a great how-to). Pour the butter into a large bowl and add the remaining 4 T of butter, stir until melted. Let sit for 15 minutes or until it comes to room temp.

Add the 1 3/4 c. brown sugar and stir until combined. Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla and mix until fully incorporated. Stir in the flour mixture until it just comes together (I ended up using my favorite mixing utensil, my hands, to mix everything together).

Using a cookie scoop, or tablespoons, scoop out balls of dough and rool in the sugar mixture to coat evenly. Place on a cookie sheet about 2 inches apart.

Baking the cookies in a preheated oven until the edges are set and are just beginning to brown, about 12 to 14 minutes. The cookies will look slightly raw between the cracks, don't worry - they'll continue cooking a bit once they're out of the oven.

Let rest on the cookie sheets for about 5 minutes, then slide the cookies and parchment paper off the pan onto the counter. Use a spatula or offset spatula to remove.

Makes about 2 1/2 dozen, depending on the size of your cookie scoop. Eat in abundance or share with your friends - you made them, it's your choice! :)

Next up - Crisp Rice/Marshmallow cookies. They're too much!

In a word: wow. Recipe to follow as soon as I come down from my sugar high.

I served this on top of brown rice, with some plain yogurt on top. And since we were on a cheating theme, I made some Cheater's Naan, which Dinner a Love Story (another favorite blog, check it out if you aren't already a fan) wrote about in the fall.

Without further ado:

Cheater’s Chana Masala
From Parents Need to Eat Too

Serves 4
Cooking time: 25 minutes (15 minutes active)

Traditional chana masala—a spiced chickpea stew you’ll find on the menu of almost any Indian restaurant—is a complicated affair, with an ingredient list as long as your arm. We’re not going there. Remember my mantra: New parents don’t have time for authenticity! Instead, I’ve simplified things to make this a quick and easy dish based almost exclusively on pantry items. It still tastes warm and comforting, but you’ll have dinner on the table in no time.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 medium onion, finely chopped
One 1-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated, or 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 teaspoons ground coriander
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon cayenne
Two 15- to 16-ounce cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
3⁄4 cup water
One 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, drained (SBC note: I didn't spaced on draining the tomatoes and it still turned out great)
Salt
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon garam masala
Juice of 1⁄2 lemon (about 11⁄2 tablespoons)

Cooked brown rice, plain yogurt, and prepared chutney, optional, for serving

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium-low heat. When it shimmers, add the onion, fresh ginger, if using, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent but not browned, about 5 minutes.

Add the coriander, cumin, cayenne, and ground ginger (if not using fresh) and cook for 1 minute.

Add the chickpeas, water, diced tomatoes , and salt to taste and raise heat to medium. Simmer uncovered (if it spatters too much, cover it partially - SBC note: I used a splatter guard, like this one) until the sauce has thickened, 5 to 10 minutes.

Remove from heat, then stir in the chopped cilantro, garam masala, lemon juice, and salt to taste.

Serve over brown rice and top with a spoonful of yogurt and chutney, if desired.

MAKE BABY FOOD: Leave out the cayenne if you’re nervous about spicy foods, and if you’re wary of the acidity in citrus add the lemon juice after reserving baby’s portion. This’ll puree nicely (make sure to include some of the liquid), or you can serve it as finger food—just smash the chickpeas with a fork, to prevent a choking hazard. SBC note: My 8 and 5 yr olds wouldn't touch it, but I have high hopes for baby #3, and will definitely be making this again for him/her to sample.

I mentioned this before, but Debbie is sending anyone who pre-orders the book before tomorrow (that's Tuesday, Feb 21) a free digital starter kit!

from this...

to this!

The key to these brownies is using the best cocoa powder you can find/afford. Regular Hershey's cocoa will work, but won't give you the fudgy richness something like a Valhrona or Callebaut cocoa will. Note: if you're interested in buying Valhrona cocoa in bulk - this place has consistently had the best prices I can find. If you know of a cheaper place, please let me know!

Valrhona Chocolate Chip Brownies
(adapted from King Arthur Flour Company)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare 9x13" pan. Note: You can either butter the whole pan or cut a piece of parchment that's approx 9x18 and use it to line the bottom of the pan, with equal amounts of parchment going up each of the shorter sides, then butter the long sides. This creates a sling that will make it a lot easier to take the whole mess of brownies out when they're cooled.

1 c. unsalted butter
2 1/4 c. (460g) sugar
1 1/4 c. (120g) Dutch-process cocoa (I always use Valrhona cocoa)
1 t. salt
1 t. baking powder
1 T. vanilla
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 1/2 c. (6 1/4 oz) AP flour
2 c. (12 oz bag) chocolate chips (I use chips from Trader Joe's - only 11 oz, but close enough)

In a medium sauce pan over low heat, melt the butter, then add the sugar and stir to combine. Return the mixture to the heat, briefly, just till it starts bubbling; it will become shiny looking as you stir it. (note from original recipe: Heating the butter and sugar a second time will dissolve more of the sugar, which will yeild a shiny top crust on your brownies - who knew? She probably did)

While the butter is melting, whisk together cocoa, salt and baking powder in a large bowl. Add the sugar/butter mixture and then vanilla. Stir until combined and allow mixture to cool for about 5 minutes. Add eggs and quickly stir until smooth (if you wait too long, the eggs will start cooking on top - gross). Add the flour, stir and finally, the chocolate chips.

Pour batter into the prepared pan, using a rubber spatula or metal offset spatula to smooth it out.

Bake brownies for 28 to 30 minutes, until a cake tester instered into the center comes out dry. The edges of brownies will also come in from the sides of the pan - that's how I usually guage for doneness. With something like this, a little underdone is always better than a little overdone!

Let the brownies cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes. At this point, you can use a spatula to free up the long edges of the pan and gently pull out the whole sheet using the parchment sides. Place on a cutting board or other large flat object and cool in either the fridge or freezer until you're ready to cut them. (I like the crunch that the chips provide, but if you can't wait for that, by all means dig in whenever you'd like it!)

Flip the brownies over, peel off the parchment and flip again so you can cut into squares (or whatever shape you like) - I find a serrated knife works best.

Enjoy! And please post any questions in the comments. I'm quickly realizing that actually typing out a recipe so it makes sense is harder than actually making the recipe!