Vanilla & Cinnamon Marshmallows

I begged my friend, Andy, to throw a "Winter Warmer" just so I could have an excuse to make these marshmallows.  They're perfect for dunking in hot chocolate, toasting over a flame, or even just eating by themselves.

 
Vanilla & Cinnamon Marshmallows (adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
Makes about 96 1-inch cubed marshmallows

About 1 cup confectioners sugar
3 1/2 envelopes (2 tablespoons plus 2 1/2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin
1 cup cold water, divided
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large egg whites, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vanilla
Ground cinnamon

Oil bottom and sides of a 13- by 9- by 2-inch rectangular metal baking pan and dust bottom and sides with some confectioners’ sugar.

 
In bowl of a standing electric mixer or in a large bowl sprinkle gelatin over 1/2 cup cold cold water, and let stand to soften.  (It's not written in the SK recipe, but see how the top layer of gelatin powder doesn't get wet?  Don't leave it like that; stir it around a little so that it's all combined, which I failed to do with this batch, although if you forget, it's not the end of the world.)

 
In a 3-quart heavy saucepan cook granulated sugar, corn syrup, second 1/2 cup of cold water, and salt over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until sugar is dissolved. Increase heat to moderate and boil mixture, without stirring, until a candy or digital thermometer registers 240°F, about 12 minutes. Remove pan from heat and pour sugar mixture over gelatin mixture, stirring until gelatin is dissolved.  (At this point it's going to smell really bad, and you're going to wonder if the marshmallows will even be edible.  They will be, trust me.)

 
With standing mixer beat mixture on high speed until white, thick, and nearly tripled in volume, about six minutes.

 
In separate medium bowl with cleaned beaters beat egg whites until they just hold stiff peaks. Beat whites and vanilla into sugar mixture until just combined.

 
Pour mixture into baking pan. Sift 1/4 cup confectioners sugar evenly over top.

 
Chill marshmallow, uncovered, until firm, at least three hours, and up to one day.

 
Run a thin knife around edges of pan and invert pan onto a large cutting board. Lifting up one corner of inverted pan, with fingers loosen marshmallow and ease onto cutting board. With a large knife cut marshmallow into roughly one-inch cubes. (An oiled pizza cutter works well here too.)

 
Sift remaining confectioners’ sugar back into your now-empty baking pan, and roll the marshmallows through it, on all six sides, before shaking off the excess and packing them away.  (I found it was easiest to do this in batches rather than all at once.)

 
Marshmallows keep in an airtight container at cool room temperature 1 week.

This is where the recipe from Smitten Kitchen stops.  I tasted the marshmallows at this point, and they were perfect in texture--springy and fluffy just like she promised.  The taste was just a little too...one dimensional for me, though.  Vanilla in its other definition.  It was too late to add any wet ingredients like another flavor extract, but then I thought, what if I just toss it with some cinnamon?  Cinnamon and sugar are such a great flavor combination already (think cinnamon toast or snickerdoodles), it couldn't hurt to try.  So I plopped a few marshmallows in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag and sprinkled in a few dashes of ground cinnamon.  A few shakes later, the cinnamon was pretty evenly distributed.

 
It came down to the taste test:  would it be enough?  Too strong?  It turned out perfect!  The cinnamon added just enough spicy heat to give the marshmallows some depth while still remaining light and airy.  Unfortunately I didn't measure out how much cinnamon I tossed in there; it was literally just a couple of shakes.  I'd say start off with a little, shake, and taste.  If you want, you can always add more, but it's pretty hard to remove the cinnamon if you add too much.

Next:  Passion Fruit Marshmallows
Previously:  Homemade Bagels
Four years ago:  Toasted Coconut Ice Cream with Sesame Brittle and Crystallized Ginger

Homemade Bagels

So remember that time I decided to make croissants from scratch using what was probably the most complicated recipe ever?  And remember how it took almost three days to make?  Well this is pretty much the exact opposite of that.

One morning I was craving a bagel with cream cheese, but it was too cold, and I was too lazy to go out to the store to buy some.  So I decided to look up some bagel recipes to see how easy it would be to make them at home.  Really easy, it turns out.  (Yes, you read that right:  I was too lazy to go to the store but not lazy enough to make my own bagels.  Go figure.)  In fact, you can almost whip these up in about 2 hours if you really wanted.  I'd suggest letting them rise slowly (overnight) in the refrigerator, though, for better flavor and texture (see note at the bottom of this post).

I used this recipe from CHOW as a template and altered it based on some of the comments on the post and by the ingredients I had on hand.  First, I noticed a lot of the comments mentioning that 2 tablespoons of salt was way too much, so I used 2 teaspoons instead.  I also added some baking soda to the boiling water because someone mentioned it would give it a more authentic NYC taste, whatever that means.  And because I only had diastatic malt powder, I substituted the malt syrup with 1 teaspoon of the malt powder.

 
I also decided to shape the bagels using the "finger hula hooping" method rather than the "snake biting its tail" method.  Yeah, I just made the name of those two methods up, but I'm sure you can see where I'm going with them.  The finger hula hooping method is just too fun not to do!

 
Homemade Bagels (adapted from CHOW)
makes 12 bagels

1 1/2 cups tepid water (105-110°F), plus 1 tablespoon for the egg wash
1 packet active dry yeast
4 cups bread flour
1 teaspoon diastatic malt powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 teaspoons sugar
Vegetable Oil
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 large egg white
Sesame seeds, poppy seeds, or coarse salt for topping

 
Place the tepid water in a small bowl and dissolve the yeast completely; set aside. Combine flour, malt powder, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Add yeast mixture, scraping any undissolved yeast out of the bowl with a spatula.

Mix on low until most of the loose flour has been worked into the dough and the dough looks shredded, about 2 minutes. Increase the speed to medium low and continue mixing until the dough is stiff, smooth, and elastic, about 8 to 9 minutes more. (If the dough gets stuck on the hook or splits into 2 pieces, stop the machine, scrape off the hook, and mash the dough back into the bottom of the bowl.) The dough should be dry, not tacky or sticky, and somewhat stiff.

 
Shape the dough into a ball, pour a glug of oil over it, and turn it to coat in oil. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let the dough rise in a warm place, until it is noticeably puffy and springs back when you poke it, about 20 minutes. (The dough will not double in size.)

 
Meanwhile, heat the oven to 425°F and arrange the rack in the middle. Fill a large, wide, shallow pan (about 3 to 6 quarts) with water and baking soda, bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce heat to medium low and let simmer. Cover until you’re ready to boil the bagels. Line a baking sheet with a Silpat or parchment paper greased with oil or cooking spray. Place a metal rack inside of a second baking sheet and set aside.

 
Turn the risen dough out onto a dry surface. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces, about 3 ounces each.  (While you work, keep the dough you’re not handling covered with a damp towel to prevent drying.)

 
Roll each piece into a ball, then poke a hole through the middle with your index finger.  With the dough still wrapped around your finger like a ring, rotate your hand upright and start twirling it around to enlarge the hole (you can also do this with your finger touching the work surface, but it's not as fun because there's no risk of the dough accidentally flying off your finger!).

 
Widen the hole in the middle so it is approximately the size of a quarter. Cover the shaped bagels with a damp towel and let rest 10 minutes.*

 
After resting, stretch the dough to retain the quarter-size hole (the dough will have risen a bit) and boil the bagels, making sure they have room to bob around.

 
Cook for about 60 seconds on each side until the bagels have a shriveled look, then remove to the baking sheet with the rack in it. Adjust heat as necessary so the water stays at a simmer.

 
Whisk together the remaining 1 tablespoon of water and the egg white until evenly combined. Brush the egg wash all over the bagels, then sprinkle as desired with poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or coarse salt.

 
Arrange the bagels on the lined baking sheet about 1 inch apart and bake.

 
Rotate the pan after 15 minutes and bake until the bagels are a deep caramel color and have formed a crust on the bottom and top, about 10 minutes more. Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes so the interiors finish cooking and the crusts form a chewy exterior.

 
These bagels were exactly what I think of when I think bagel:  dense and chewy with a thick crust that has a "snap" to it.  As you can see in the pictures, they weren't kidding about making sure the hole in the middle was the size of a quarter before boiling and baking.

These aren't delicate, little pastries.  They'll stand up to a good schmear and go great with the bacon scallion cream cheese from the Momofuku Milk Bar Bagel Bombs, but even with plain cream cheese they're wonderful.   

*At this point I decided to freeze some of the bagels.  The night before I wanted to eat them, I would remove however many I wanted from the freezer and put them in the refrigerator to thaw overnight.  Then the next morning I would let them come to room temperature, widen the hole if needed, and proceed with the boiling step.  I found that the bagels I made this way had a deeper flavor and more textured crust (compare the bagel below with the bagel at the top of the post).

Next:  Vanilla Cinnamon Marshmallows
Previously:  Bagel Bombs
Four years ago:  Clementine Cupcakes

Bagel Bombs

So far I've made the crack pie, compost cookies, cereal milk, cereal milk panna cotta with cornflake crunch, cereal milk ice cream pie, grapefruit pie, and pretzel milk ice cream pie from the Momofuku Milk Bar cookbook.  Can you tell I really like this cookbook?

For something a little different, i.e. savory, I tried making the Bagel Bombs.  Think freshly baked bread stuffed with bacon and scallion cream cheese and topped with an "everything bagel" mix of sesame seeds, poppy seeds, onion powder, garlic powder, and flaky salt.  Yum, right?

 
Bagel Bombs (adapted from Momofuku Milk Bar)
makes 8 buns

For the cream cheese stuffing
2 strips bacon
8 oz. cream cheese
1/2 bunch scallions, chopped
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

For the buns
1 3/4 cups flour
1/2 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
7/8 cups water, at room temperature
1 tablespoon vegetable oil

For the everything bagel topping
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon water
1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
2 teaspoons black sesame seeds (I couldn't find any so I just added more white sesame seeds)
2 teaspoons poppy seeds
1 tablespoon dried onions
3/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

 
Place the bacon strips on a cold pan and place on low heat.  (Mine were really long so I had to halve them to fit in the pan.)  Cook until nice and crispy, flipping over once the bottom is cooked.

 
Transfer the bacon to a cutting board and finely chop.  Reserve the bacon fat left in the pan.

 
Put the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand up mixer with the paddle attachment and cream on medium speed until fluffy.

 
Pour in the reserved bacon fat and continue creaming on a lower speed.  Add the chopped bacon, scallions, sugar, and salt and mix at low speed to combine.

 
Scoop the cream cheese mixture onto a parchment-lined sheet pan in 8 even lumps and freeze until rock hard, 1 to 3 hours.

 
To make the dough, stir together the flour, salt, and yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer using the dough hook like a spoon.  Continue stirring as you add the water, mixing for 1 minute, until the mixture has come together into a shaggy mess.

 
Engage the bowl and hook and have the machine mix the dough on the lowest speed for 3 minutes, or until the ball of dough is smoother and more cohesive. (If it just looks like a big wet mess, add some more flour until it begins to look more like a ball.)  Then knead for 4 more minutes on the lowest speed.  The dough should look like a wet ball and should bounce back softly when prodded.

 
Brush a large bowl with oil and transfer the dough ball into it (um, yeah, I might have accidentally poured a little too much oil into the bowl as evidenced in the pictures). Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough proof at room temperature for 45 minutes.

 
Make the everything bagel mix by mixing together the salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onions, onion powder, and garlic powder.

 
Preheat the oven to 325°F.

Punch down and flatten the dough on a smooth, dry counter top.  Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces.

 
Put a cream cheese plug in the center of each piece of dough. 

 
Bring up the edges of each round and pinch to seal so that the cream cheese plug is completely contained, then gently roll the ball between the palms of your hands to ensure the bomb has a nice, round, dinner roll-y shape.

 
Arrange the bombs 4 inches apart on a parchment- or Silpat-lined cookie sheet.

 
Whisk the egg and 1/2 teaspoon water together and brush a generous coat of egg wash on the buns.

 
Sprinkle a heavy, even coating of the bagel mix all over the bagel bombs–every possible inch, except for the bottoms, should be coated.

 
Bake the bagel bombs for 20 to 30 minutes.  While in the oven, the bombs will become a deep golden brown and a few may have cream cheese explosions.  Continue baking until you see this happen.

 
As you can see in the picture above, the bottom right bun burst, so I pulled the baking sheet out, but I probably could have left the buns in there a little longer to get a little brown.

I found that while the buns were really delicious, the dough didn't really remind me of a nice, chewy bagel.  If anything, it kind of reminded me of my mom's hua juan buns.  I went back to the Milk Bar recently and tried the Bagel Bomb there to compare it with the ones I made.  The one I had had probably sat in their display counter for a few hours so it wasn't really a fair comparison, but I really think my homemade ones were better!

 

Next:  Homemade Bagels
Previously:  Rainbow Sandwich Cookies
Four years ago:  Dutch Babies

Rainbow Cookie Sandwiches

It all started with unicorn poop.  I saw this post and wanted to make my own, but I didn't want to go out and buy all the glittery stuff.  And I didn't want to use the sugar cookie recipe that she used because I didn't have any shortening.  So I did a quick search for sugar cookie recipes and decided to use Martha Stewart's Ideal Sugar Cookie recipe.

But then I found out why unicorns are now extinct.  Their poop is really hard to work with, so I think they must have been constipated all the time.  This was as close as I could get my cookies to looking like unicorn poop:

 
Sure it's kind of pretty, but then I ran into a second problem.  It didn't taste very good.  Or rather, they didn't taste as good as they looked.  Now I know you're probably thinking, well, what did you expect from unicorn poop?

Then a friend made the suggestion of adding icing and making them into cookie sandwiches.  Brilliant!  I decided to go with the filling for the homemade Oreos from the Flour Bakery cookbook.  And since it was so hard to twist the different colors together, I chose to just press the seven different colored doughs together into kind of a flower/pentagonal shape.  I kind of like how the white colored filling looks like clouds, expanding on the whole rainbow theme.

To get the super vivid, technicolored dough, you'll need to use gel food coloring, and not the watery kind you usually find at the grocery store.  If you can't find any though, you could always just make pretty daisy cookie sandwiches by coloring one rope of dough yellow (the regular food coloring should be fine for this purpose) and putting it in the middle of the other white colored ropes.

Rainbow Cookie Sandwiches
makes 4 dozen

1 batch of your favorite sugar cookie dough
Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple gel food coloring

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 2/3 cup confectioner's sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon milk
Pinch of kosher salt

 
Divide the dough into six equal parts and put each in a separate sandwich bag. (A food scale is helpful for this.)

 
Add a few drops of red food coloring into one bag and squish around with your hands until the dough is evenly colored.  Add more food coloring to get it as bright as you like.  Repeat for the 5 other colors.  (I don't have any kids, but speaking as a kid at heart, this part was really fun.  So if you trust your kid, you might ask them to help you out with this part.  But I'd keep them away from any white carpeting, just in case.)

 
Roll each colored dough into a long rope, about a centimeter wide.  The ropes will be very long, so it's easier to divide the dough into half first.  Make sure your hands are clean in between each color so that you don't muddy the colors.

 
Stack the six different colored ropes together to form a pentagon with one of the ropes in the middle.  Lightly roll this tube around so that the ropes stick to each other.  Cover with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 350°F.  Line two baking sheets with a Silpat or parchment paper and set aside.  If you only have one baking sheet, just bake the cookies in two batches.

 
Slice the chilled cookie dough into about 1/8 inch thickness.  Space evenly on the baking sheet.  These cookies will spread a little, so give them at bit of space in between each one.

 
Bake for about 10 minutes; do not allow to brown.  Allow to cool completely.

 
To make the filling, beat the butter until smooth and creamy.  Add the sugar and vanilla extract and beat until smooth.  Add the milk and salt and beat until smooth again.

 
Scoop into a pastry bag if you have one.  (I forgot to put the tip in before I filled my pastry bag so I didn't end up using one and just cut a small hole at the corner.)

 
Match similarly shaped cookies together.  If you are using a pastry bag, pipe a layer of filling onto one cookie and top with its matching half, pressing down slightly to make it stick.

 
If you have the time and inclination, move the pastry bag in and out of the center while moving around the cookie (like you're drawing flower) so that the outside edge of the filling makes a scalloped shape.  Otherwise, just pipe a spiral or if you're not using a pastry bag, use a spatula or butter knife to spread some of the filling onto the cookie.

 
If I were to make these again, I think I'd actually use a lemon flavored icing instead of a vanilla flavored one to make them even more delicious!

Next:  Bagel Bombs
Previously:  Pains au Chocolat (Chocolate Croissants)
Three years ago:  Pear Bread
Four years ago:  Luo Buo Gao (Chinese Turnip Cake)