whoopie pies and a moby wrap

My little Kyleigh is 6 weeks old!

Having her has truly been the most rewarding and exciting thing that's ever happened to me.  Already she's baked quite a bit with me... Well usually she sleeps through it but she's with me none the less.  How? I love my moby wrap.  It really has made doing everything so much easier with a newborn because she's on me while I do it, which is how I've been able to bake with a 6 week old.  I felt it only appropriate to celebrate how awesome it is with whoopie pies.  I've never made whoopie pies before and I've only eaten them a few times but they are so delicious. Makes the fact that essentially they're just differently shaped cake so much easier and more convenient to eat.

Vanilla Whoopie Pies

from can you stay for dinner?

 

2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
½ cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

 

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Set aside.

In a separate large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.

Add eggs and buttermilk and beat until combined.

In a small bowl, combine the milk, baking soda, and vinegar. Stir this mixture into the butter-sugar-egg batter.

Add the flour mixture. Beat on low speed until just incorporated.

Stir in vanilla extract and give the batter one final stir to make sure no lumps remain.

Drop batter by heaping tablespoons onto the prepared cookie sheets, leaving 2 inches between each.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. The whoopie pies should spring back when you press them gently. Let the cakes cool on the cookie sheets for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely

Vanilla Filling

from joy of baking

1/4 cup  vegetable shortening

1/4 cup unsalted butter, room temperature

1 cup  confectioners' sugar, sifted

1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

1/2 cup  light corn syrup

Beat the shortening and butter until soft and creamy. With the mixer on its lowest speed, gradually beat in the confectioners' sugar. Increase the speed to high, and beat until light and fluffy, about 3-5 minutes. Then, with the mixer on low speed, beat in the vanilla extract and slowly drizzle in the corn syrup. Continue to beat until the filling looks like soft mayonnaise. 

To Assemble: Take one cookie and spread a heaping tablespoon of the filling on the flat side of the cookie. Top with another cookie. 

 Isn't everything just that much better with sprinkles?

peach shortcake

I have some sad news... My camera lens has gone kaput.  Well not completely, I can still take pictures with the manual focus, but the auto focus just sounds sick every time I try to take a picture, and I can't actually snap the shot.  So until I can get a new lens my pictures may be a bit out of focus... I also need a new eye glass prescription so I'm really not the best judge of what's actually in focus and what's not.  Anyway, I had such big plans for the story of the peach shortcake through pictures.  At least I was able to document the finished product.

Buttermilk Biscuits

from Betty Crocker

2  cups all purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup cold butter, margarine or shortening, cut into 8 pieces

3/4 cup buttermilk

Heat oven to 450°F. In medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and baking soda. Cut in butter, using pastry blender (or pulling 2 table knives through ingredients in opposite directions), until mixture looks like fine crumbs. Stir in buttermilk until dough leaves side of bowl (dough will be soft and sticky).

Place dough on lightly floured surface. Knead lightly 10 times. Roll or pat 1/2 inch thick. Cut with floured 2- to 2 1/4-inch round cutter. On ungreased cookie sheet, place biscuits about 1 inch apart for crusty sides, touching for soft sides.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack.

 Stewed Peaches

from back to basics

1 can of peaches, drained

2tbs brown sugar

2 tbs white wine

In a pan over medium heat, stir peaches until warm.  Add sugar and wine and keep stiring until liquid reduces.

Cut biscuits in half and add peaches, whipped cream and serve with ice cream.

my own original recipe

I've taken so many pictures over the last month, but not of my adventures in the kitchen.  Right now I have something so much more exciting to take pictures of.

 

On Friday May 18th, our baby girl finally made her debut, baked to perfection.

It has been the most wonderful 5 weeks ever.  Josh and I are so in love and so thoroughly enjoying getting to know our baby girl.

Kyleigh's nursery has been a work in progress for me.  When she was born there weren't any decorations in it, and we had yet to decide on a theme.  I just wanted it to be different, but it took me awhile to decide on what I wanted to do.  I finally decided on no real theme and just wanted it to be pretty.  So instead of blogging about baking this time, I wanted to share what I have been up to... a work in progress:

 

 

 
Though not in her crib quite yet, Kyleigh is fascinated with the poofs.  I just love it in the nursery.  I'm so happy with it so far.  

I will post again soon, and it will be baking related, but for now, I'm going to go feed the little one and then it's bed time for her... and time for a well deserved glass of wine for this new mommy.

<3

Thanks fresh images for letting me use the pictures of Kyleigh.