Deceptively Healthy Dessert: Pumpkin Apple Spice Cake

Hello and welcome!

Today's Deceptively Healthy Dessert is a take off of my grandmother's classic Pumpkin Bread. (Don't tell my brother ;) )

The Recipe: (Makes one 1lb loaf cake)

• 1 cup pumpkin
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1 cup sugar
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 3/4 cups flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• Salt
• 2 tbsp cinnamon

The Process:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F
2. Mix the pumpkin, egg, applesauce, and vegetable oil in a bowl.
3. Add the sugar and honey and mix. 
4. Add the flour and mix.
5. Add the baking powder and cinnamon and mix. 
6. Pour into greased pan. 
7. Bake for about 1 hour. 
8. Allow to cool for about 30 minutes. 
9. Enjoy! 

The Calories:

Pumpkin- 80 calories

Egg- 70 calories

Applesauce- 50 calories

Sugar- 773 calories

Honey- 128 calories

Vegetable oil- 1927 calories

Flour- 796 calories

Baking Powder- 0 calories

Salt- 0 calories

Cinnamon- 38 calories

__________________________________

TOTAL: 3889 calories

What went right: 

          It tastes wonderful and is very rich and filling! 

What went wrong:

          Entirely too addictive ;) 

What I would do next time: 

          Add cinnamon whipped cream or cinnamon ice cream. It would definitely add to it. Kirby also suggested putting the cake in the fridge near the end, which made it taste completely different but very good! 

Overall, a great cake warm or cold! 

Raw, Vegan "Sushi"

Welcome!

For the sake of clarity, I am neither vegan, nor vegetarian. That being said, this recipe looked too good to not try!

The Recipe:  Raw, Vegan "Sushi"

• 1 cup Cashews (or just use some cashew butter)
• 1 tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 1 Zucchini
• 1/4 Cucumber
• 10 Baby Carrots
• 3 small slices Celery

The Process:

• Soak Cashews in water overnight (I soaked mine for a couple days because I didn't have time to make this for a while after)
• Use Magic Bullet to mix the cashews and rice vinegar into a dip-like paste (it tastes pretty good on crackers too ;D
• Clean the vegetables
• Cut the ends off the Zucchini and cut it in half. Slice as many thin pieces as you would like to eat. Chop the rest into thinner pieces. (If you don't like Zucchini, you may accomplish this with cucumber)
• Chop the carrots in half
• Chop the cucumber into thin pieces as well (You may elect to only use the seeds of the cucumber, given their differing texture from the rest of the vegetables. 
• Chop the celery into thin pieces as well
• Spread the cashew dip onto the Zucchini strips
• At one end, place a few of your thin strips of varied vegetables
• Roll the end with the veggies into the rest of the Zucchini, forming a "Sushi" roll
• Enjoy!

The Calories:

Cashews: 755 calories

Rice Vinegar: 25 calories

Zucchini: 31 calories

Cucumber: 45 calories

Carrots: 41 calories

Celery: Negative Calories 

______________________

TOTAL: 897 Calories

Before you freak out, the amount of the recipe that I used was about 1/6 the Cashews, 3/4 the zucchini, 1/2 the carrots, all the celery, and 1/4 the cucumber. So let's recalculate a little bit! 

Cashews: 126 calories

Rice Vinegar: 25 calories

Zucchini: 24 calories

Cucumber: 12 calories

Carrots: 21 calories

Celery: Negative Calories

_____________________

TOTAL: 208 calories

Now we get to divide by 13, since I made 13 rolls from what I did use. This makes each roll contain 16 calories. Doesn't that sound better to you?

What went right:

         They are super tasty, guilt free, and completely vegan. The only issue I have is with the cashew soaking, and even that isn't so big a deal...good things come to those who wait...especially since the cashew dip lasts for subsequent meals. 

What went wrong: 

         The cashew dip could use a little something so I'm probably going to be experimenting to see just what that is! 

What I would do next time:

         I might try some different nuts as the dip, or else add some spices to the cashews. I also might try adding some leaves to it, like kale or lettuce. I might also try making the dip with beans, chickpeas, or maybe even tofu. 

Will I do this in college?: 

         Oh yeah. This is a wonderful treat I hope to be making for a long time! Even beyond college, they would make fantastic appetizers.

Overall, I greatly enjoyed this recipe and look forward to making (and eating) it again!

Deceptively Healthy Dessert: Gluten, Dairy, and Grain Free Chocolate Loaf Cake

Hello health food fans, vegans, and gluten free folks!

This recipe was suggested to me by my little brother, Kirby. I know, shocking, right?! Turns out he saw the picture of the original trending on buzzfeed. He didn't know what was in it and I changed the recipe anyway when the consistency wasn't what I wanted. Reading the recipe, I was a little skeptical, but it was better than I expected!

The Recipe: 

Cake:

• 1/2 cup plus 7 tsp pumpkin puree
• pinch of salt
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp applesauce
• 1 egg (***Dairy free by using 1/2 cup applesauce instead of egg)
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 6 tbsp honey
• 1/2 cup ground flaxseed
• 1/4 cup chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup almond milk
• 2 tbsp cashew butter (almond butter or peanut butter would work as well!)
• 1 1/2 tsp nutella

Glaze: 

• 2 tbsp almond milk
• 1 tsp cocoa powder
• 2 tsp powdered sugar

The Process: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Mix the salt, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa powder, and ground flaxseed in a small bowl. 
3. Whisk the pumpkin, almond milk, applesauce, egg, nutella, vanilla, and cashew butter in a larger bowl using a fork.
4. Add the dry to the wet bowl and mix. 
5. Grease a 1 lb loaf pan. 
6. Add batter to pan. 
7. Push chocolate chips into batter. 
8. Bake for 30 minutes. 
9. Mix glaze in a small bowl. 
10. Apply to cake while hot. 
11. Allow cake to cool. 
12. Enjoy! 

The Calories: 

Pumpkin: 53 calories

Applesauce: 2 calories

Cashew Butter: 150 calories

Egg: 70 calories (dairy free substitution has 30 calories)

Salt: 0 calories

Baking Powder: 0 calories

Baking Soda: 0 calories

Cocoa Powder: 98 calories

Vanilla Extract: 12 calories

Honey: 384 calories

Flaxseed: 365 calories

Chocolate Chips: 201 calories

Almond Milk: 10 calories

Nutella: 33 calories

Powdered Sugar: 20 calories

__________________________________________

TOTAL: 1398 calories

This genuinely surprised me! The cake was about 9 slices, which means each slice was only 155 calories of mostly healthy ingredients. The dairy free version contains 150 calories per slice, though applesauce is less protein than eggs. 

What went right:

          The cake tasted great and was gone in one night! Kirby ate three slices and my parents really liked it too. It was rich and moist with the bitterness of dark chocolate and nicely satisfying. It came out of the pan very easily and displayed well. 

What went wrong: 

          Once Kirby was told what was in the cake, he decided he was no longer a fan. We've decided he's no longer allowed to know what's in food. I think I'll make it again and tell him it's different (shhh! ;) )

What I would do next time: 

           While shopping for almond milk, I noted that there is such a thing as dark chocolate almond milk. That is something I definitely want to try, as well as adding more glaze so it covers the entire cake. I would also like to try using half as much cocoa powder and a square of melted baking chocolate (like in brownies). It would also be interesting to use almond butter or peanut butter instead of cashew butter; the consistency of using almond might make the taste more consistent. Additionally, adding pecans or walnuts on top would add some much needed texture. Finally, I would like to serve this with a frozen yogurt, sorbet, or ice cream. Something cold and fruity would go very well with this cake. 

Overall, an amazing and simple cake that I can't wait to play with!

Peanut Butter Nutella Cake

Happy Summer!!

Congratulations to the Emory graduating class of 2014 :)

It's bittersweet to have already finished a year of school. With so many wonderful experiences with friends and challenging courses behind me, I decided the only thing my last day in Turman Hall needed was a cake! Having won a jar of Nutella because my Italian group did such a great job on our video, I was starting to become addicted to the smooth mixture of chocolate and hazelnut. It was time to finish it once and for all!

The Recipe: Peanut Butter Nutella Cake

• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup hot water
• 1/2 cup cocoa powder
• 3 tbsp peanut butter
• 5 tbsp butter
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 jar Nutella (1/2 jar in cake, 1/2 jar to frost)
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

The Process:  

1. In a large bowl, whisk all ingredients (be sure to leave 1/2 the jar of Nutella for frosting!!) 
2. Assess your mixture: if it's too dry, add a little milk and re-mix. If it's too wet, add a little flour and re-mix. Continue until it is about as fluid as pancake mix. 
3. I ended up putting the batter in the fridge for about an hour because my floormates wanted to go to lunch and I'm not okay with leaving cakes in the oven without supervision, but cake batters are not typically refrigerated before baking so if you don't have time, don't worry about it! 
4. Pour into springform cake pan (or pan of your choice). 
5. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 40 minutes, watching carefully as this is dependent on your oven. 
6. Allow to cool for at least 1 hour before frosting (use your best judgement, the Nutella will very easily break your warm cake). 
7. Frost with Nutella (be careful!!! potentially apply it to the cake before spreading with an icing bag to avoid cake destruction)
8. Send pictures to friends trapped in airports and other states ;) 
9. Enjoy and share! 
   
   
   

The Calories: 

Sugar- 1546 calories

Flour- 910 calories

Baking Soda- 0 calories

Baking Powder- 0 calories

Eggs- 140 calories

Salt- 0 calories

Vanilla extract- 24 calories 

Milk- 103 calories

Water- 0 calories

Cocoa- 98 calories

Peanut Butter- 188 calories

Butter- 510 calories

Vegetable Oil- 964 calories

Nutella- 1425 calories

Chocolate chips- 359 calories

________________________________________

TOTAL:  6267 calories

Yes, it's a dense cake. But it was cut into at least 12 pieces, making each piece about 522 calories. Oops... :) 

But really, this was a great cake. More than worth it. In fact. while it was baking, three separate maintenance guys came in the kitchen and asked if I was making something. I told them I had a cake in the oven. They asked if I made it. (Duh....) I said yes. They asked if it was from a box. (I could rant for hours about box cakes.) I said no. And then there were some comments I found somewhat sexist regarding some man being very happy with me someday because of my desserts. (I only bake and cook for my family and friends...you know, people who care about me before there's chocolate involved? And of course for myself!) 

What went right: 

          The cake was FANTASTIC. Potentially one of the best cakes I have ever made. 

What went wrong: 

           I completely forgot that my friend Emma doesn't like peanut butter or nutella, so was unable to share it with her :( Also the smell was overwhelmingly seductive while I was trying to pack my room. 

What I would do next time: 

          Nothing in terms of the cake itself. It might be nice to add some chocolate dipped strawberries on top or do it in two layers with raspberry in the middle. Something to add some citrus. 

Overall, it was a great cake and eating it was my prize for creating such a thing of beauty! 

As noted by my friend Jordan, the cake is quite photogenic: 

Chicken Tofu Teriyaki Fried Rice

Hello and welcome!

Today's recipe was one of my dinners while on Spring Break in Atlanta :)   

The Recipe: 

• Rice
• Rice vinegar
• Tofu
• Chicken (pre-baked)
• Vegetable Oil

The Process:

1. Boil enough water to fill an inch and a half of a small pot. 
2. Cook about 1/2 cup jasmine rice in the pot. 
3. When the rice is about halfway done, add a couple tablespoons of rice vinegar. 
4. Saute chicken and tofu in a pan on medium heat. 
5. Add rice to the pan and continue to heat. 
6. Add teriyaki sauce to the pan and continue to heat and mix. 
7. After about 2 minutes from the time the rice was added to the pan, it should be done. Be sure everything is cooked to desired amounts. 
8. Enjoy!

Calories:

Rice- 75 calories

Rice Vinegar- 0 calories

Chicken- 100

Teriyaki- 20 calories

Vegetable Oil- 120 calories

Tofu- 100 calories

____________________________________

TOTAL: 415 calories

For under 500 calories, I got an entire pan of delicious protein and rice! 

What went right: 

         It was quite delicious and light, but also satisfying. 

What went wrong: 

         I didn't have any vegetables to add this time, but it worked out anyway. 

What I would do next time: 

          Combine the vegetable and chicken recipes. 

Would I do this again in college?: 

          For sure. I love fried rice and it's really easy to make. I can see it becoming a staple of my diet next year when Emmy and I have our own kitchen :) 

Overall, a great meal with a short cook time, perfect for college life! 

Vegetarian Tofu Fried Rice

Hello and welcome vegetable and tofu fans! 

Today's recipe was a bit of improv cooking by me and my lovely Mew Sigma Sister and future Clifton Hall apartment-mate, Emmy <3 

The Recipe: 

• Rice
• Rice vinegar
• Tofu
• Broccoli
• Peas
• Carrots
• Red Onions
• Vegetable Oil

The Process:

1. Boil enough water to fill about half of a small pot. 
2. Cook about 1 cup jasmine rice in the pot. 
3. When the rice is about halfway done, add a couple tablespoons of rice vinegar. 
4. Saute all vegetables and tofu in a pan on medium heat. 
5. Add rice to the pan and continue to heat. 
6. Add teriyaki sauce to the pan and continue to heat and mix. 
7. After about 5 minutes from the time the rice was added to the pan, it should be done. Be sure everything is cooked to desired amounts. 
8. Share with a friend :) 

Calories:

Rice- 150 calories

Rice Vinegar- 0 calories

Broccoli- 14 calories

Peas- 67 calories

Carrots- 14 calories

Onion- 23 calories

Teriyaki- 20 calories

Vegetable Oil- 120 calories

Tofu- 160 calories

____________________________________

TOTAL: 568 calories

This means Emmy and I each ate 284 calories for a very filling and healthy dinner! 

What went right: 

         It was quite delicious and light, but also satisfying. 

What went wrong: 

         I'm relatively certain actual fried rice also has garlic in the recipe and steams the peas and carrots. Something to work on for authenticity's sake! 

What I would do next time: 

          Try using different meats, garlic, and cook the vegetables differently. 

Would I do this again in college?: 

          Definitely. I'm a little addicted to asian food, and have tried this again a few times since and it turned out equally great and better :) 

Overall, a great meal with a short cook time, perfect for college life! 

Chocolate Raspberry Cupcakes

Hello Cupcake Lovers!!

This recipe is one of three adaptations of the Chocolate Buttercream M&M Cupcakes from New Years Eve, made on New Years Day for a dinner party with some of our close family friends, Jana, Andy, Alexander, and Larissa! 

If you have any fun cupcake-related experiences, please share them in the comments at the bottom of the page, or send me an email or google+ comment! 

The Recipe: Chocolate Hazelnut Banana Cupcakes (Total Recipe makes 12 cupcakes and 6 mini cupcakes, but only 6 became this flavor and the others had additions to their filling and frosting). 

The Cake: 

• 1 cup flour
• 7/8 cup sugar
• 3/8 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2.5 tbsp shortening (aka Crisco)
• 1.5 mashed bananas
• 1.5 eggs
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

The Filling/Icing: 

• 1 stick butter, softened
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• Raspberry Preserves

The Process:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (176.6 degrees C). 
2. Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 
3. Cut shortening into small pieces to make it easier to mix with dry ingredients. 
4. Mash banana into another, smaller bowl. (Don't tell the kids there's banana in their cupcakes!!)
5. Add one egg to the bowl with the banana. 
6. Break other egg into a small cup or bowl and whisk so that it becomes relatively homogeneous. Pour half of this into the bowl with the banana.
7. Mix oil, milk, and vanilla extract into bowl with banana. 
8. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and beat. 
9. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners (or butter and flour the sides of the pan). 
10. Fill cupcake liners about halfway with batter. 
11. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a skewer (or toothpick) can poke the center and come out with some moist crumbs. You will be able to see the cupcakes rise and smell when they are done. Use the pictures as a guide as each oven is different. 
12. Allow to cool with paper towel covering. 
13. Blend ingredients for icing. 
14. Use cupcake corer to remove the center of each cupcake. Fill each cupcake with 1 tsp raspberry preserves and replace its center.
15. Fill an icing press with raspberry icing.          
16. Press into desired pattern. 
17. Sprinkle red sugar on top. 
18. Enjoy! :) 

The Calories:

Flour:  455 calories

Sugar: 665 calories

Cocoa: 70 calories

Baking Powder: 0 calories

Baking Soda: 0 calories

Salt: 0 calories

Shortening: 260 calories

Banana: 150 calories

Egg: 115 calories

Oil: 482 calories

Milk: 30 calories

Vanilla: 12 calories

Raspberry Preserves: 67 calories

____________________________________

TOTAL: 2274 calories 

Granted, this recipe was for about 12.5 cupcakes. So each cupcake really only had about 182 calories :) 

What went right: 
          They were very delicious and looked prettier than the first batch. 

What went wrong:
          This batch was less moist than the last batch. Not sure why, but might have been a minute or two over cooked, comparatively.

What I would do next time:

         Technically, this batch was basically the same as the M&M batch, and the changes were made in the other cupcakes you see below (coming soon! ;) ) 

Would I do this in college: 

          Totally! In fact, I'm working on reducing this recipe for single serving cupcakes without waste so that I can easily make a quick cupcake for a friend's birthday without having to make an entire batch. One of my least favorite things about baking is that the amounts can be so arbitrary because they depend on your specific baking equipment. One of my goals for this page is to be able to have a mix for every common number of cupcakes desired. Recipes can always be doubled, but the hard part is reducing and keeping the consistency of the original. Keep watching for single serving cupcakes :) 

Overall, a wonderful party treat and a great time in the kitchen. It took much longer than I planned to make all three different types of cupcakes, but they turned out fantastic so I don't even care. Everyone enjoyed and I had a blast baking them and honing my icing skills. 

Having a cupcake for 182 calories is actually quite good! A plain bagel has 260-280 calories, and a scone or muffin can have 350-430 calories. However, it's not particularly healthy, so if you'd like to ensure you wake up with your toned body in tact, be sure you've done any of the below before you indulge...

1. Run 1.5 miles
2. Walk 2 miles
3. Dance for 40 minutes
4. Rearrange furniture for 30 minutes
5. Play darts for 70 minutes
6. Play badminton for 40 minutes

Any of the above will burn about 200 calories, making your cupcake guilt-free ;)                                                            

Chocolate Chocolate Bacon Cupcakes

Hello friends!! 

                                                  

This recipe is one of three adaptations of the Chocolate Buttercream M&M Cupcakes from New Years Eve, made on New Years Day for a dinner party with some of our close family friends, Jana, Andy, Alexander, and Larissa! 

If you have any fun cupcake-related experiences, please share them in the comments at the bottom of the page, or send me an email or google+ comment! 

The Recipe: Chocolate Chocolate Bacon Cupcakes (Total Recipe makes 12 cupcakes and 6 mini cupcakes, but only 3 full and the 6 minis became this flavor and the others had additions to their filling and frosting). 

The Cake: 

• 1 cup flour
• 7/8 cup sugar
• 3/8 cup cocoa powder
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2.5 tbsp shortening (aka Crisco)
• 1.5 mashed bananas
• 1.5 eggs
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1 strip bacon, crisp and roasted

The Filling/Icing: 

• 3 stick butter, softened
• 1.5 cups powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

The Process:

1. Broil a strip of bacon on high until it is crispy. 
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (176.6 degrees C). 
3. Sift together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. 
4. Cut shortening into small pieces to make it easier to mix with dry ingredients. 
5. Mash banana into another, smaller bowl. (Don't tell the kids there's banana in their cupcakes!!)
6. Add one egg to the bowl with the banana. 
7. Break other egg into a small cup or bowl and whisk so that it becomes relatively homogeneous. Pour half of this into the bowl with the banana.
8. Mix oil, milk, and vanilla extract into bowl with banana. 
9. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and beat. 
10. Mix in crumbled strip of bacon.
11. Line cupcake pan with cupcake liners (or butter and flour the sides of the pan). 
12. Fill cupcake liners about halfway with batter. 
13. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until a skewer (or toothpick) can poke the center and come out with some moist crumbs. You will be able to see the cupcakes rise and smell when they are done. Use the pictures as a guide as each oven is different. 
14. Allow to cool with paper towel covering. 
15. Blend ingredients for filling/icing.       
16. Use cupcake corer to remove the center of each cupcake. Fill each cupcake and replace its center.
17. Fill an icing press with remaining icing.          
18. Press into desired pattern. 
19. Enjoy! :) 

The Calories:

Flour:  455 calories

Sugar: 665 calories

Cocoa: 70 calories

Baking Powder: 0 calories

Baking Soda: 0 calories

Salt: 0 calories

Shortening: 260 calories

Banana: 150 calories

Egg: 115 calories

Oil: 482 calories

Milk: 30 calories

Vanilla: 12 calories

1 strip of Bacon: 50 calories

____________________________________

TOTAL: 2324 calories 

Granted, this recipe was for about 12.5 cupcakes. So each cupcake really only had about 186 calories :) 

What went right: 

          They were very delicious and looked prettier than the first batch. 

What went wrong:

          This batch was less moist than the last batch. Not sure why, but might have been a minute or two over cooked, comparatively.

What I would do next time:

         Technically, this batch was basically the same as the M&M batch, and the changes were made in the other cupcakes you see below (coming soon! ;) ) 

Would I do this in college: 

          Totally! In fact, I'm working on reducing this recipe for single serving cupcakes without waste so that I can easily make a quick cupcake for a friend's birthday without having to make an entire batch. One of my least favorite things about baking is that the amounts can be so arbitrary because they depend on your specific baking equipment. One of my goals for this page is to be able to have a mix for every common number of cupcakes desired. Recipes can always be doubled, but the hard part is reducing and keeping the consistency of the original. Keep watching for single serving cupcakes :)

Overall, a wonderful party treat and a great time in the kitchen. It took much longer than I planned to make all three different types of cupcakes, but they turned out fantastic so I don't even care. Everyone enjoyed and I had a blast baking them and honing my icing skills. 

Having a cupcake for 182 calories is actually quite good! A plain bagel has 260-280 calories, and a scone or muffin can have 350-430 calories. However, it's not particularly healthy, so if you'd like to ensure you wake up with your toned body in tact, be sure you've done any of the below before you indulge...

1. Run 1.5 miles
2. Walk 2 miles
3. Dance for 40 minutes
4. Rearrange furniture for 30 minutes
5. Play darts for 70 minutes
6. Play badminton for 40 minutes

Any of the above will burn about 200 calories, making your cupcake guilt-free ;)

Limoncello Cookies

Hello and welcome to dessert of Lemon Christmas...Limoncello Cookies! 

Lemon Christmas started as the story of stuffed grape leaves (Domathes) passed down through the generations of my neighborhood, as told by my Aunt Connie. To my total elation, it became a five hour cooking spree with my Aunt Connie, culminating in a dinner of Domathes with Lemon Sauce, Lemon Risotto, Lemon Chicken, Lemon Roasted Broccoli, and Limoncello Cookies! 

Thanks to Uncle Dick for the Limoncello Cookie request, and thanks to in sock monkey slippers for the wonderful recipe!                                                     

The Recipe: Limoncello Cookies

·         1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

·         1/4 teaspoon sea salt

·         1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature

·         1/2 cup granulated sugar

·         1 large egg, at room temperature

·         2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract or paste

·         1/2 Tablespoon grated lemon zest (about 1 lemon)

·         1 1/2 cup powdered sugar

·         5 Tbs Limoncello

·         1 Tbs lemon juice

·         2 washed and sliced lemons (to make Candied Lemon Slice Garnish)

·         2 cups granulated sugar

·         2 cups water

·         2 to 3 large lemons, for 24 slices

The Process: Dough

1. Put salt and flour in a medium bowl.
2.  In another bowl, mix the butter and sugar until fluffy and creamy (about 2 minutes). 
3. Add the egg and mix until combined.
4.  Next, add vanilla and lemon zest to the bowl with butter, sugar, and egg.
5. Slowly mix in the flour/salt combo. Don't overmix! 
6. Pour the dough onto a large sheet of plastic wrap and tightly cover. Refrigerate overnight. 

   Candied Lemon Wheels (prepare the night before!!!): 

1. Wash and cut slices of lemon to about 1/8 inch (the smaller the better!!) and remove all seeds. 
2. Bring water and sugar to boil in a pot. Add a little lemon juice from the ends of the lemons. 
3. Fill pot completely with lemon slices and boil on medium-high for about 30 minutes. (Wait until they appear to be candy coated and somewhat orange. You'll find that the more slices you put in at once, the more they become saturated and the faster they will cook. )
4. Allow to dry overnight on parchment paper. 

 

Baking and Decorating:

1. PREHEAT THE OVEN TO 350 degrees F (176.6 degrees Celsius)
2. Allow dough to loosen. 
3. HEAVILY flour a sterile surface, your hands, and a rolling pin. 
4. Roll out the dough to approximately 1/3 inch thick. 
5. With a 2 inch diameter round cookie cutter, cut dough and place on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. 
6. Bake for 13 to 15 minutes until the edges start to golden. Repeat with the remaining dough.
7.  Once baked, transfer the cookies to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before icing.

Icing: 

1. In a medium bowl, combine the powdered sugar, Limoncello, and lemon juice. Stir until fluid but thick. 
2. Ice with a pastry brush. 
3.  Decorate with a candied lemon wheel.  Allow the icing to set for at least 10 to 30 minutes.

Calories:

Flour- 569 calories

Sea salt- 0 calories

Lemon juice- 0 calories

Powdered sugar- 700 calories

Limoncello- 30 calories

Granulated sugar- 1950 calories

Lemons- 45 calories

Butter- 815 calories

Egg- 72 calories

Vanilla Extract- 12 calories 

_____________________________________

TOTAL: 4193 calories

This recipe made about 40 cookies, so each cookie plus the lemon wheel had 104 calories. More comments on the lemon wheel below...

What went right:

            The cookies themselves were absolutely delicious!!! In my personal opinion, the icing was better when combined with the cookies and fully dried, but everyone else seemed to like it on its own as well. And as you can see, they are gorgeous on a plate ;) 

What went wrong:

            The lemon slices are ridiculously difficult to eat, so we ended up taking them off the cookies and tossing most of them. Additionally, the calories really should be edited because much of the granulated sugar was still in the sugar bath and tossed by the end of the lemon candying process. 

What I would do next time:

            As discussed in light of the candied lemon slice issue, we decided the cookies would look just as good if the lemon slice decoration only covered a portion of the cookie, as shown to the right. 

Would I do this in college:

             There are a few things keeping me from doing this in college. Namely being under 21. Also not having a lot of time. I would gladly make the batter, however! The plain cookies are just as good as the iced cookies, and would have a much lower calorie count as well. 

Overall, a great cookie and a delicious end to a perfect meal!!