New years often mean new beginnings. We reflect on the previous year and make resolutions to become new, better versions of ourselves going forward.

It’s in the spirit of new beginnings that I’d like to announce that The Craving Chronicles will be turning over a new “leaf” on 2012: all vegetable recipes, all the time. I’m giving up sugar. No more cakes, cookies or chocolates. Just veggies.

Oh, don’t panic. I’m just kidding! Like I could ever give up sugar. Or chocolate? I mean, really. It’s like you don’t even know me.

(Don’t get me wrong. I love vegetables. But let’s be honest, none of you are coming here for vegetable recipes.)

I’m afraid this recipe is a bit late. I was hoping to share it with you earlier, but then I was striken with the plague. (I got better.) I suppose we’re all done with and over the holiday flavors and egg nog by now but I wanted to share this recipe with you anyway, before it gets lost in my archives, because it’s both easy and delicious.

The bread pudding tastes like a cross between french toast and a lightly spiced gingerbread. It’s fine alone, but paired with the eggnog sauce I wanted to lick all the creamy spiced goodness off my plate.

Gingerbread Bread Pudding with Eggnog Bourbon Sauce is packed with holiday flavors, making it an ideal sweet ending to your big family feast. It can also double as a holiday breakfast treat because it’s somewhat like french toast!

Gingerbread Bread Pudding

Serves 4-6

My favorite way to eat this was with warm bread pudding and chilled egg nog sauce, for that irresistible hot and cold combination. This bread pudding could also be made in individual ramekins for cuter presentation – just shorten the baking time appropriately.

Ingredients

10 slices thin-sliced cinnamon raisin bread
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons molasses
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
dash allspice
dash cloves
1 teaspoon ginger
1 large egg
2 egg yolks

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a 1 1/2 quart baking dish with butter or baking spray.

Lay cinnamon raison bread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake 10-15 minutes, watching carefully, until bread is lightly toasted. Remove from oven.

While bread cools, in a large bowl whisk together remaining ingredient, milk through egg yolks.

Slice toasted bread into roughly 1-inch cubes. Toss toasted bread cubes in milk mixture, making sure to coat all the bread. Dump soaked bread and any remaining liquid into prepared baking dish. Bake at 350°F for 20-25 minutes, or until set.

Serve warm topped with Bourbon Egg Nog Sauce.

Bourbon Egg Nog Sauce

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups Egg nog
2 egg yolks
1 to 2 Tablespoons bourbon
dash of cinnamon (optional)

Directions

In a medium saucepan, whisk eggnog and egg yolks combine. Cook over medium-low heat, whisking constantly until thickened, 5-10 minutes. Remove from heat. Whisk in bourbon and cinnamon to taste.

Serve warm, or chilled for a thicker sauce.

Lemon Raspberry Thumbprint Cookies
An annual favorite and almost always the first to disappear from the cookie tray.

Dark Chocolate Truffles
Make truffles with Bailey’s in them, then cover with snowy powdered sugar. Instant holiday hit.

“Thin Mint” Chocolate Peppermint Cookies
Super addictive, so make a lot. I think they’re better than the Girl Scout version.

Molasses Cookies
The photo really doesn’t do them justice, but until I can take a new one just know that these are some of my favorite cookies OF ALL TIME.

Fudgy Triple Chocolate Bliss Cookies
As much chocolate as I could legally cram into one cookie. These are to-die-for.

Holiday Peppermint “Oreos”
Very similar to those holiday cookies you find at that ultra-trendy grocery store that I live nowhere near. In other words, delicious.

And don’t forget to check out these favorites from other food bloggers!

Mint-Chocolate Bottom Shortbread Cookies – Back to the Cutting Board
Molasses Spice Cookies with Orange Sugar – Back to the Cutting Board
Rugelach – Flavia’s Flavors
Parmesan-Black Pepper Biscotti – Flavia’s Flavors
Snickerdoodles – Flavia’s Flavors

My family decided to do mini desserts for Thanksgiving this year. I highly recommend this approach to holiday desserts. Everyone is always so stuffed after dinner they can barely choke down a whole slice of pie, let alone two. But mini desserts? Somehow everyone managed to find room for two or four of those.

Especially these bite-sized cranberry caramel filled shortbreads topped with chocolate ganache. I’ll give you a minute to really take all that in.

I took this amazing sweet tart cranberry caramel, …

dolloped it into crunchy, salty chocolate shortbread shells, and then topped it all off with a rich, creamy, decadent dark chocolate ganache.

If your mouth isn’t crying for one of these right now, you should probably see a doctor ASAP.

I know it probably sounds like I think everything I make is the Best Thing Ever, but these mini tarts are now near the top of my favorites list. They’re so good, my family advised me to quit my day job and open a bakery. I highly recommend you make some of these for your next holiday gathering.

Mini Cranberry Caramel & Dark Chocolate Cookie Tarts

Printable Recipe
Makes 24 or more bite-sized tarts

I had some trouble figuring out the best way to get these tarts out of the pan. Baking spray in my first, slightly less non-stick pan yielded some stuck shells that broke when I tried to get them out. Generously buttering my other very non-stick pan the second time had the shells pop right out, but left them somewhat crumble-y around the top. Whatever you do, generously grease your pan. If you have a mini cheesecake pan with removable bottoms, that would probably work best.

Ingredients

3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus 3 tablespoons
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup dark cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
15 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 3/4-inch cubes, at room temperature

1/2 to 3/4 cup Cranberry Vanilla Bean Caramel

1/2 heaping cup bittersweet chocolate chips, such as Ghirardelli 60% Bittersweet Chips
3 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions

Prepare the Cranberry Vanilla Bean Caramel according to directions. Chill. Can be done up to a week ahead.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Generously butter or coat with baking spray one 24-cup mini muffin tin, two 12-cup mini muffin tins, or a mini cheesecake pan.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, add sugar, flour, cocoa powders, baking soda and salt. With the paddle attachment, mix on low speed (with a towel over the mixer to keep the dust down) until combined. With the mixer is running on low, add butter a few pieces at a time, waiting a moment after each addition. Once all butter is added, continue to beat until sandy mixture gathers into a ball of dough.

Dump the dough out onto a floured or parchment/wax paper covered counter. Using your hands, form dough into a roughly 5 x 7-inch block. Cut block in half. Working with one half at a time, roll out dough to between 1/6 and 1/8 inch thickness. Using a 2-inch round cookie / biscuit cutter (or one slightly larger than your muffin tin cups), cut out rounds of dough. Gently place each dough round into a cup in the prepared muffin tin(s), folding over dough and smoothing sides as needed to form a shell. Gather scraps, re-roll, and cut out more circles just once. Using a small fork, lightly prick the dough at the bottom of each shell to prevent it from puffing up too much.

Bake at 350ºF for 12 minutes. Remove from oven, cool 1 minute. While tart shells are still hot, use the bottom of a slender glass (I used a shot glass) or the handle of a wooden spoon to reshape the hollow space in the shells for maximum filling space. Cool to room temperature.

With the tart shells still in the pan, spoon about 1 teaspoon of previously prepared cranberry caramel into each cup. Chill until caramel firms up. (You can speed this up by popping the whole thing in the freezer for 15-30 minutes.)

While caramel chills, make ganache. Warm chocolate chips and heavy cream in a small saucepan over low heat, stirring frequently, until a smooth chocolate ganache forms. Remove from heat and cool for about 5 minutes.

Place a dollop of warm (not hot) ganache on top of each filled tart. Chill until ganache is firm. Tap pan upside-down to release tarts.

Refrigerate tarts until ready to serve. Can be assembled 1-2 days ahead and kept refrigerated. The tarts can be enjoyed straight out of the fridge, but are best when set out at room temperature for about an hour before serving.

I can’t stop making and eating caramel this fall. On cupcakes. With pudding. In my morning breakfast yogurt. With my fingers. (What?)

In the last recipe I mentioned that I made cranberry caramel, but I think it got a little outshined by the pumpkin pie pudding. So I decided to feature the caramel on it’s own because, you guys – this stuff is amazing. Life changing. Soul saving. Heavens open up and sing when you taste it. It’s that good.

I know it’s the day before Thanksgiving and you already have a million things to make between today and tomorrow, but if you find yourself with a spare hour or so, make this cranberry caramel. It’s sweet and tart. Flecked with vanilla bean. It has so many layers of flavor and it tastes great on almost anything. If it was legal, I would run off to Vegas and marry it. (Sorry, husband.)

This caramel is extremely versatile because i’s firm, yet soft and spoonable straight out of the fridge, making it a perfect topping for cold desserts (like pumpkin pie pudding). Warmed, it would be fantastic drizzled over pumpkin or pecan pie, or just plain vanilla ice cream.

Or if you come back next week I’ll give you another recipe you can use it for. One with chocolate.

That is, if you don’t eat it all with a spoon first.

Cranberry Vanilla Bean Caramel

Adapted from Annie’s Eats
Makes about 1 1/4 cups

A word of caution: Making caramel is tricky. Have patience and have all of your ingredients ready to go. Caramel also gets very, very hot. Much hotter than boiling water. It will spatter, so be careful. Wear long sleeves, use a deep pan or pot, and do not try to taste the hot caramel no matter how much you want to! David Lebovitz has some great tips for making caramel.

Ingredients

1/2 vanilla bean
1 1/3 cups heavy cream
3/4 cup sugar
3/4 cup fresh cranberries, chopped

Directions

Split vanilla bean, scrape seeds into cream. Chop cranberries. Set aside.

Cook sugar in a deep saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally with a spatula until sugar has melted. Once melted, STOP stirring. Continue to cook sugar until it is deep amber in color and smells caramelized. Remove from heat and immediately add cream. (Caution: Sugar will bubble violently, be careful!) Sugar will likely sieze and harden at this point. Place back over med-low heat and stir occasionally until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and let cool for 5 minutes.

Add chopped fresh cranberries. Return to low heat (do not boil) and cook, stirring frequently, until caramel darkens and tastes slightly tart from cranberries, about 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat, cool 5 minutes. Use as is with cranberries, or strain through a mesh sieve for a smooth caramel. Use immediately or store in a covered, heat-proof container in refrigerator. Keeps for several weeks.

I haven’t had much time to do fall baking this year which makes me sad, because fall flavors are my favorite. Thinking this might be my only chance to make anything with fall flavors before Thanksgiving, I reasoned that I should make something with ALL of the fall flavors. Pumpkin. Ginger. Cinnamon. Caramel. Cranberry. Apple. Cloves. Pecans. Pears. All of it.

Crazy, I know.

The good news is that I did manage to cram most of those flavors into one little glass. The bad news is that I had to leave a few of them out and that it took a few tries to get it right. If you think I’m some sort of sugary genius, you should know that my first attempt was a spectacularly gross failure. The gingersnaps and pumpkin pie pudding came together brilliantly, but the cranberry caramel was a mess. Literally. It was too sweet, too fruity and too runny, and when layered on top of the silky pumpkin pudding it turned the whole thing into a cracked, soggy, gelatinous blob that resembled organs (according to my husband). Ew.

Lucky for you I have stubborn Irish/Scottish genes and I don’t give up easily. As I was staring bleakly into the fridge at my Failure Caramel, my eye fell on a different jar full of golden, delicious caramel – the same vanilla bean caramel from my Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes. (Side note: that caramel lasts practically forever in the fridge.) It’s got a great, rich caramel flavor and more importantly it stays creamy even when cold – ideal for pairing with pudding. All it took was heating that caramel and steeping some fresh cranberries in it to create my new favorite thing ever – creamy, rich, slightly tart cranberry caramel. I couldn’t stop tasting it.

Even better, it didn’t even turn my pudding into an organ-like mess overnight. Served with a dollop of barely sweetened whipped cream and some cranberries tossed in sugar, this dessert is all of my most favorite fall flavors in one little glass. Heaven.

Pumpkin Pie Pudding with Crushed Gingersnaps
and Cranberry Caramel

Adapted from Martha Stewart
Makes roughly 4 6-ounce servings

I wanted this dessert to have layers of flavor, but honestly, the pumpkin pie pudding is good enough to stand on it own. To make the sugared cranberries, I tossed slightly damp cranberries in granulated sugar until coated.

NOTE: This is definitely a make ahead dessert. Plan to make this at least one day ahead of when you will be serving it.

Ingredients

12 gingersnaps, crushed

1/4 cup firmly packed dark-brown sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/2 cup milk
1/4 cup half-and-half
2 large egg yolks
1/2 tablespoon molasses
pinch of salt
1/4 cup boiling water
1/4 cup Pumpkin Puree
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
pinch nutmeg
pinch cloves
pinch allspice
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Cranberry Caramel Ingredients

1/2 cup vanilla bean caramel sauce (below)
1/4 cup (heaping) fresh cranberries, roughly chopped

Whipped Cream Ingredients

1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 tablespoon powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla

Directions

DO AHEAD

Break gingersnaps into large pieces with your hands and place into food processor. Pulse until crushed into fine crumbs, pea-size or smaller. Divide evenly among 4 6-ounce or 7-ounce ramekins or glasses. Set aside.

Whisk together brown sugar and cornstarch in a saucepan. Over low heat, add milk, cream, egg yolks, molasses, and salt. Cook, whisking constantly, until mixture starts to thicken. Slowly pour in boiling water while whisking. Stir in pumpkin puree. Continue cooking while whisking until very thick. Remove from heat and cool for 10 minutes. (For the smoothest pudding, pour pudding through a fine mesh strainer at this point.) Spoon pudding over gingersnap crumbs in prepared ramekins / glasses. Cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight.

Make the vanilla bean caramel sauce (below) for the Cranberry Caramel and refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight.

TO SERVE

Once pudding is cool and set, and vanilla bean caramel has cooled, make the cranberry caramel. In a small saucepan over low heat, combine 1/2 cup vanilla bean caramel sauce and chopped fresh cranberries. Continue to cook over low heat (do not boil), stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes or until caramel darkens and you can taste the cranberry flavor in the caramel. (Careful – it’s hot!) Remove from heat and cool for 10 minutes. Strain caramel into a small bowl, pressing on cranberries to extract all flavor. Refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until cool but still stirrable. (If it gets too stiff, pop it in the microwave for 8-10 seconds on High until it’s stirrable but NOT hot.) Gently spoon cool Cranberry Caramel over chilled puddings. Can be served immediately or refrigerated overnight.

Just before serving, top with barely sweetened whipped cream (if desired): combine heavy cream, powdered sugar and vanilla in the bowl of a mixer and beat on high with whisk attachment until soft peaks form. Toss damp whole, fresh cranberries in granulated sugar for garnish.

Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce

Printable Recipe
Adapted from Annie’s Eats
Makes 2 1/2 cups

A word of caution: Making caramel is tricky. Have patience and have all of your ingredients ready to go. Caramel also gets very, very hot. Much hotter than boiling water. It will spatter, so be careful. Wear long sleeves, use a deep pan or pot, and do not try to taste the hot caramel no matter how much you want to! David Lebovitz has some great tips for making caramel.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

Directions

Measure heavy cream in a measuring cup. Scrape out vanilla bean seeds and add to cream. Set aside.

Spread sugar in an even layer on the bottom of a heavy, tall-sided sauce pan or pot. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring gently with a heat-proof spatula or whisk to promote even browning, until sugar melts. Once the sugar melts, stop stirring.

Watch carefully. When the caramel turns a rich amber color and smells like caramel, remove from heat and immediately whisk in cream. (Caution: Caramel will bubble violently!) If any sugar has hardened, return to low heat and whisk until smooth.

Cool to room temperature. To store or make ahead, transfer to an air-tight container and keep refrigerated. Caramel can be re-warmed in microwave or in a saucepan over low heat, if needed.

I was thinking about how often apples get overshadowed by pumpkin a few weeks ago when my husband asked me if I wanted to attend a dinner party with some of his coworkers. “Hrmmm. Maybe…”, I said. “They asked us to bring some kind of food to share”, he said. That was all I needed to hear. Not one to pass up an opportunity, I agreed, “I’ll go… but only if I can bring dessert.” I had visions of apples and caramel and cupcakes swirling in my head.

It took me a while to decide on an approach for these cupcakes. Did I want apple cupcakes with caramel frosting? Caramel cupcakes with apple frosting? Would there be enough apple flavor? I was imagining cupcakes that tasted like apple pie (but without the yucky crust) so they really needed to taste like apples.

Ultimately, I decided the best way to pack that punch of apple flavor into a cupcake was to use apple pie filling. Cinnamon cupcakes would compliment the apple filling without overwhelming it, and caramel frosting would be the icing on the cake (ha ha).

I was apprehensive while putting these cupcakes together. I’m not going to lie – they’re pretty labor intensive and not exactly easy. I had doubts about whether they would be worth all the effort, whether they would taste as good as I imagined they would.

In the end, they didn’t.

They tasted approximately a million times better than I had imagined.

I was hoping for good cupcakes, but these were amazing. Fantastic. They got rave reviews at the party, but I thought maybe everyone was just being nice. Until I tasted one myself. I believe I uttered the phrase, “OMG. These are my new favorite cupcakes ever… and they’re not even chocolate!” So yeah. They’re that good. Totally worth every minute they took to create. You won’t find cupcakes like this in a box at the grocery store!

Caramel Apple Pie Cupcakes

Printable Recipe (Includes all sub-recipes)
Makes about 24 cupcakes

There are several steps to complete before assembling the cupcakes, but some can be done a day ahead to speed things up. The caramel and apple filling can both be made 1 day ahead and refrigerated. Let them come to room temperature (or gently warm caramel) before using. You won’t need the whole batch of caramel, so feel free to half it if you don’t want a bunch leftover. Any leftover pie filling or caramel sauce makes a fantastic breakfast/snack mixed with Greek yogurt, or a delicious topping for ice cream!

Ingredients

2 cups Apple Filling (below)
1 cup Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce (below)
24 Cinnamon Cupcakes (below)
1 batch of Caramel Swiss Buttercream Frosting (below)

Directions

Working with completely cooled, use a small paring knife to cut out a cone shaped wedge from the center of each cupcake. (Like when cutting the lid off of a jack-o-lantern.) Save the “lids”. If needed, scrape out a little bit of cake from each hole to make more room for filling – just don’t go too far or your cupcakes will fall apart. Fill each hole not quite to the top with Apple Filling (about 1/2 tablespoon). Replace “lids”, trimming off the bottoms of the “lids” if necessary.

Pipe frosting on cupcakes. Drizzle with caramel sauce.

Serve same day as assembled, or freeze for long term storage.

Apple Filling

Printable Recipe
Makes about 2 cups

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1.5 pounds (approx.) Honey Crisp apples (about 4 medium), peeled, cored, and finely diced
1 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon water

Directions

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add apples, sugars, lemon juice and cinnamon. Cook until apples are tender and release their juices – about 10 minutes. In a small bowl or glass, combine cornstarch and water. Add to apples and stir, cooking until thickened. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature. (Cover and refrigerate overnight if making ahead.)

Vanilla Bean Caramel Sauce

Printable Recipe
Adapted from Annie’s Eats
Makes 2 1/2 cups

A word of caution: Making caramel is tricky. Have patience and have all of your ingredients ready to go. Caramel also gets very, very hot. Much hotter than boiling water. It will spatter, so be careful. Wear long sleeves, use a deep pan or pot, and do not try to taste the hot caramel no matter how much you want to! David Lebovitz has some great tips for making caramel.

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups sugar
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

Directions

Measure heavy cream in a measuring cup. Scrape out vanilla bean seeds and add to cream. Set aside.

Spread sugar in an even layer on the bottom of a heavy, tall-sided sauce pan or pot. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring gently with a heat-proof spatula or whisk to promote even browning, until sugar melts. Once the sugar comes to a boil, stop stirring.

Watch carefully. When the caramel turns a rich amber color and smells like caramel, remove from heat and immediately whisk in cream. (Caution: Caramel will bubble violently!) If any sugar has hardened, return to low heat and whisk until smooth.

Cool to room temperature. To store or make ahead, transfer to an air-tight container and keep refrigerated. Caramel can be re-warmed in microwave or in a saucepan over low heat, if needed.

Cinnamon Cupcakes

Printable Recipe
Adapted from Annie’s Eats
Makes about 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

1 cup milk
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake liners.

Heat milk and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until butter melts. Remove from heat. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt.

Using a stand mixer with a whisk attachment, beat eggs and sugar until thick ribbons form, about 5 minutes. Add flour mixture and beat on low just until incorporated. Add milk mixture and vanilla, and beat until blended.

Divide evenly among baking tins. Bake at 350°F for 16-18 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pans for 5 minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.

Caramel Swiss Buttercream Frosting

Printable Recipe
Adapted from Flour Child
Makes enough to generously frost 24 cupcakes

It’s very important that your caramel be no warmer than room temperature when you add it to the frosting, or your frosting will melt.

Ingredients

6 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
Pinch of coarse salt
3 sticks unsalted butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup Vanilla Bean Caramel sauce (above), cooled
1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

Place a saucepan with about 2 inches of water over medium-low heat and bring to a simmer. Combine egg whites, sugar and salt in the metal bowl of a stand mixer. Place bowl over pan of simmering water and whisk constantly until mixture an instant-read thermometer reads 160°F. (Sugar will be dissolved and mixture will start to resemble marshmallow fluff.)

Remove bowl from heat and attach to stand mixer. Beat with the whisk attachment until stiff meringue peaks form and the outside of the bowl no longer feels warm, about 10 minutes. Switch to paddle attachment. On low speed, add one cube of butter at a time, waiting until incorporated before adding the next. Once all butter is added, on low speed slowly pour in caramel. Add vanilla and continue beating until smooth. (If frosting curdles, just keep beating! If frosting is soupy, place mixer bowl in fridge for 10-15 minutes and beat until smooth. Repeat if necessary.)

I’ve never tried homemade cream puffs (sometimes called profiteroles) before, and in fact I was a little intimidated by them. The pate a choux pastry used to make the puffs just looked so delicate I thought there was no way I could make it without screwing something up. However, while paging through one of my Christmas gifts – Ready for Dessert by David Lebovitz – I came across a pate a choux recipe that looked, dare I say it, easy. Just combine a handful of ingredients in a pot and stir. Really? That’s it?

Turns out, that is it. It really is just that easy.

Since New Year’s Eve was just around the corner, I figured what better occasion for cream puffs. And not just any cream puffs. They had to be champagne cream puffs, of course.

Look, if you can make pastry cream and you can stir things in a pot, you can make these cream puffs. And you definitely should, because holy deliciousness, Batman. I could not stop eating them. Literally. I had to send half of them to a friend’s house because I had eaten 3 before I even finished assembling them. I love that David Lebovitz’s pate a choux has flavor, something a lot of pre-made puffs lack. The champagne pastry cream was smooth and slightly sweet with a subtle aftertaste of champage that was just perfect. Combine the two, dip them in chocolate ganache, and stuff them in your face for any fancy occasion.

I know it’s only January, but I’m pretty sure these will be the best things I will eat in all of 2011. I just can’t imagine they’ll ever be topped!

Champagne Cream Puffs

Makes about 45 cream puffs

It you would prefer to make half as many puffs, halve the recipes for the pastry cream and chocolate glaze and freeze the other half the of the pate a choux puffs for later. You can also skip the chocolate glaze in favor of a dusting with powdered sugar.

These cream puffs are best served within a few hours of assembly, but if necessary hold up fairly well when chilled in the refrigerator overnight.

Ingredients
1 batch of Champagne Pastry Cream, below
1 batch of Pate a Choux Puffs, below
1 batch of Chocolate Glaze, below
* 1 metal decorating tip with a wide opening, such as Wilton 1M, 2A, or 230

Directions
Prepare the pastry cream first. Chill for at least 2 hours or up to overnight.

Pate a choux puffs can be prepared several hours before serving, or prepared ahead of time and stored in the freezer. If using immediately, let the puffs sit at room temperature. If frozen, thaw puffs at room temperature, then rewarm in a 350°F oven until warm and crisped.

Prepare the chocolate glaze an hour or so before assembly to allow time to firm up.

When ready to assemble the puffs, cut a small X in the side of each puff about halfway between the top and bottom. (You can do this in the same place you poked to release steam.) Fill a pastry bag fitted with wide-opening decorating tip with the champagne pastry cream. Insert tip into the X in the side of each puff and gently fill with pastry cream.

Once filled, dip the top of each cream puff in the chocolate ganache and set on a rack to firm up.

Serve within a few hours, or if necessary refrigerate overnight.

Champagne Pastry Cream

Adapted from Sprinkle Bakes

Resist the temptation to replace part of the heavy cream with milk. The acidity of the champagne will curdle the milk.

Ingredients
1/4 cup cornstarch
1 cup heavy cream, divided
1 cup champagne or prosecco
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
2 whole large eggs
4 large egg yolks
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions
In a large bowl, whisk together cornstarch and 1/2 cup of heavy cream. Set aside.

In a saucepan, combine remaining 1/2 cup of heavy cream, champagne or prosecco, and sugar. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar, then remove from heat.

Beat the eggs and egg yolks into the cornstarch mixture. While whisking constantly, slowly pour about 1/4 cup of the hot heavy cream mixture into the cornstarch mixture to temper the eggs. Return the rest of the heavy cream mixture to heat and return to a boil. Pour the cornstarch mixture into the pot, whisking constantly until the pastry cream reaches a pudding-like consistency. Remove from heat. Stir in butter and vanilla extract.

Pour pastry through a fine mesh sieve into a large bowl to remove any lumps. Cover and chill for at least 2 hours.

Pate A Choux Puffs

Adapted from Ready for Dessert by David Lebovitz
Makes about 45 small puffs

Ingredients
1 cup water
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 large eggs

Directions
Preheat oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or Silpat mats.

Bring water, butter, sugar and salt to a boil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally. As soon as the butter has melted and the mixture boils, using a spatula, stir in the flour all at once until a thick paste forms and pulls away from the sides of the pan. Remove from heat. Cool for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Briskly beat the eggs in one at a time with a spatula, making sure each egg is fully incorporated before adding the next, until dough is smooth and shiny.

Fill a large zip-top food storage bag (or pastry bag) with the dough. Snip 1/2 inch off the bag tip and pipe small mounds of dough about as wide as a quarter and 1 inch high (about 1 inch apart) on the prepared baking sheets. You should get 20-24 (5 or 6 rows of 4) per baking sheet.

Bake one sheet at a time at 425°F for 15 minutes, then lower oven temperature to 375°F. Continue baking for another 10-15 minutes, or until puffs are golden brown on top and sides. Turn off oven and let puffs sit in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove from oven and poke each puff on the side with a paring knife to release steam. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Use puffs the same day they are baked, or freeze them in a zip-top freezer bag for up to a month.

Chocolate Glaze

Ingredients
4 tablespoons heavy cream
2 tablespoons milk
4 ounces bittersweet (dark) chocolate, finely chopped
1/2 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

Directions
Combine heavy cream, milk and chopped chocolate in a bowl and microwave on high for 30 seconds. Stir well. Continue microwaving in 10 second intervals, stirring in between, until chocolate is melted and mixture is smooth. Stir in confectioners’ sugar. Set aside to rest until spreadable but not runny. (You can pop it in the fridge for a little bit to speed this part up.)

If you have a Trader Joe’s nearby, or know someone who does, you’ve probably heard of Peppermint Jo-Jos – the Oreo-like cookies that have a peppermint cream filling. I found some knock-offs at my grocery store a few weeks ago and promptly devoured the whole bag. When I went back to buy more, I discovered they were out of stock. The horror!

So I did the only thing I could do and made my own. They’re not exactly the same, but boy are they close! Oreos are the only cookie I like crisp (instead of chewy) and I have to say the cookie dough is perfect. It was easy to work with and so tasty I couldn’t stop eating the scraps while I was making them. The finished cookies are like crisp, tender chocolate shortbread and I could eat about a million of them. Once filled with peppermint cream, these cookies are irresistible!

Holiday Peppermint “Oreos”

Adapted from Tracey’s Culinary Adventures
Makes about 20 2-inch sandwich cookies

I opted for the quick and lazy method of using Hershey kisses and cream because I really hate breaking up candy canes. The traditional white chocolate + cream + candy cane combo (like what Tracey used) works just as well if you prefer that. The peppermint extract is optional, but really adds to the flavor in the filling.

Cookie Ingredients

3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus 3 tablespoons
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup dark cocoa powder plus 1 tablespoon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
15 tablespoons (7 1/2 oz) unsalted butter, cut into 3/4-inch cubes, at room temperature

Filling Ingredients

1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons heavy cream
48 “Candy Cane” Hershey’s kisses, unwrapped
peppermint extract, to taste (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment or Silpat mats.

Place kisses and heavy cream in a large, heat proof bowl and microwave on High at 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until kisses are melted and mixture is smooth. Set aside to cool. (You can pop it in the fridge to speed the cooling up.)

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, mix sugar, flour, cocoa powders, baking soda and salt on low speed until combined. With the mixer is running on low, add butter a few pieces at a time. Once it’s all added, continue to beat until sandy mixture gathers into a ball of dough.

Dump the dough out onto a floured or parchment/wax paper covered counter. Using your hands, form dough into a roughly 5 x 7-inch block. Cut block in half. Working with one half at a time, roll out dough to 1/8″ thickness. Using a 2-inch round cookie cutter, cut out cookie rounds and place them 1 inch apart on a prepared baking sheet. Gather scraps, re-roll, and cut out more cookies just once.

Bake 12-14 minutes, rotating cookies sheets top to bottom and front to back about halfway through. Cool on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

To fill the cookies, the peppermint cream filling should be thickened and spreadable, but not runny. Fill a pastry bag or plastic sandwich bag with the peppermint cream, and cut the tip off to create a small hole. Pipe the filling in spirals onto one upsidedown cookie. Top with another cookie and smoosh gently until filling reaches the edges. Eat immediately or store in an airtight container.

A lot of bar recipes use a base that’s cookie-like, but not quite a shortbread. My craving was specifically for shortbread, so I adapted a Dorie Greenspan shortbread cookie recipe to make the base. It’s perfect, if I may say so myself! The base is buttery and melt-in-your-mouth tender, without crumbling to pieces when you pick it up. It’s also very flavorful, thanks to the cinnamon and pecans. The tart cranberry sauce on top compliments the shortbread perfectly so that the end result is something like a lemon bar, but with cranberries. In other words, delicious.

Cranberry Pecan Shortbread Bars

Adapted from Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan
Makes 16 small squares or 9 large squares

I used a combination of the two leftover cranberry sauces I had in my fridge for this recipe. Your own homemade cranberry sauce should work for this recipe too, as long as it’s not too watery. This may work with canned cranberry sauce, but I haven’t tried that yet.

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 cup pecans, finely ground
1 stick (8 tablespoons) butter, diced and chilled
1 large egg yolk, slightly beaten

1 1/2 cups homemade whole-berry cranberry sauce
cornstarch (optional)

Directions

Preheat to oven to 350°F. Line an 8×8 pan with foil, leaving about 2 inches of overhang on opposite ends. Lightly grease with baking spray or butter.

In a food processor, pulse flour, sugar, powdered sugar, salt, cinnamon and pecans. Add diced butter and pulse until a coarse meal forms. Add egg yolk and continue pulsing until large clumps form, but stop before dough forms a ball. Press dough into prepared pan. Prick all over with a fork.

Bake 15-20 minutes at 350°F or until the edges are just barely browned. Cool 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat cranberry sauce on stove. If sauce is watery, add 1/4 teaspoon of cornstarch at a time until no longer runny.

When shortbread has cooled, top with warm cranberry sauce. Cover and chill until set.

Cut into 16 small or 9 large squares. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Me too.

Did you stuff yourself full of rolls, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing and pie yesterday?

Me too.

We have so much in common! Maybe you’re also looking for a way to use up some Thanksgiving leftovers that’s on the light side and that does not feature 3 or more carb-filled sides? This Thanksgiving Leftovers Salad should just about hit the spot.

Thanksgiving Leftovers Salad

Vinaigrette adapted from Cooking Light
Makes 1 serving

This recipes makes enough vinaigrette for several salads. Store any leftovers in the fridge. Still want more carbs? Serve with warmed leftover rolls, or try rolling leftover stuffing into small balls and baking until crisp to serve on the side.

Vinaigrette Ingredients

1/2 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce, homemade or canned
3 tablespoons orange juice, fresh or refrigerated
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
pinch of salt

Salad Ingredients

Mixed Greens
Leftover Turkey, shredded
Softened mild cheese, such as goat cheese or brie, crumbled
Pecans, chopped

Directions

Measure vinaigrette ingredients into a small bowl and whisk vigorously until combined. Adjust liquid by adding more orange juice or oil, if needed.

Pile a healthy serving of greens on a plate. Top with shredded turkey, cheese and chopped pecans. Drizzle with cranberry vinaigrette and serve.