bakekrazy

Now that the apple season is upon us it’s time to make those great apple recipes. Just like a just picked tomato from the garden there is nothing like a just picked apple. Here is a recipe that begins with a crust base that is very close to that of a cheesecake crust and you could even use this for an apple cheesecake.
Filling
2 cups of peeled chopped apple
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon apple pie spice (1/2 for apple pie filling 1/2 for crust)
Crust
1/2 cup of rolled oats
1/2 cup of all – purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup cubed butter
1/4 cup finely chopped pecans (toasted)
Topping
3/4 cup all – purpose flour
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
4 tablespoon soft butter
pinch of salt

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and spray a 24 mini muffin tin with vegetable spray.

For the filling combine the chopped apples, lemon juice, sugar and 1/2 teaspoon apple spice into a medium sauce pan. Bring the mixture to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for approximately 5 minutes (do not over cook). Remove from the heat.
In a food processor add the flour, 1/4 cup oats, brown sugar, butter and 1/2 teaspoon apple pie spice. Process in the processor until well combined to form a crumble. Remove the mixture and stir in the remaining oats and pecans. Place a rounded tablespoon of crust into each muffin cup, press into the bottom of the cup and up the sides. Place 1 tablespoon of filling into each crust filled cup. Mix all the ingredients for the topping in a small bowl with a fork to form a crumble. Top each muffin with a 1/2 teaspoon of the topping. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Allow to cool before removing from muffin tin to a cooling rack.

Enjoy
Chef Brian Klauss

4 1/2 cups flour
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
2 tablespoons sugar
1 package of instant yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons)
2 teaspoons salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter cubed

In a sauce pan bring the milk to a slight boil then remove from the stove and add in the butter and sugar.  Allow the milk to cool to lukewarm (100 degrees). Sprinkle in the yeast and allow to dissolve approximately 5 minutes. In a standing mixer beat the eggs lightly then add in the milk mixture and salt. Using a dough hook at slow to medium speed begin to add in the flour until the dough forms and pulls away from the side of the mixer. Remove the dough and knead the dough on a floured surface for 5 minutes. (the dough should be smooth and elastic). Spray a medium bowl with vegetable spray and place in the dough, roll the dough to allow the oil to completely cover it. At this point you need to allow the dough to rise and double in size. There is a few ways you can do this. Most bakers will cover the bowl and place it in a warm spot for approximately 1 1/2 hours. (I take a coffee cup of water and microwave it until it boils then I place the bowl in the microwave and close the door. This will act as a proofer and speed up the rise of the dough in about half the time) Remove the dough and punch it down. Form about 16 equal balls of dough and place them on a sprayed cookie sheet then cover with a damp kitchen bowl and place in a warm area for approximately 30 minutes. Brush with egg wash and bake in the middle rack for 15 – 18 minutes until golden brown.

Enjoy
Chef Brian Klauss

Ok so today after picking apples on our property I go into the garden to pick tomatoes and what do I find but more Zucchinis. They were the first thing I picked out of the garden at the beginning of the season and they are still coming. I have made Zucchini loafs, Zucchini cookies, Zucchini cupcakes, canned pickled Zucchini and of course we eat them about twice a week as a side dish at dinner. (My mother makes dozens of loafs, then freezes them and give them away at Christmas.) I decided to make mini loafs, so I searched and found a recipe that combines the apples I just pick with Zucchini.

4 cups of all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 eggs
1 1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 cup sugar
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 1/2 cup shredded apples
1 1/2 chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and spray either loaf pans or mini loaf pans with vegetable spray.

Mix the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt into a medium bowl. In another medium bowl mix the eggs, oil, sugars, and vanilla until well incorporated. Mix the wet into the dry and beat until the two come together. Stir in the Zucchini, Apples and nuts.
This will make three 8″ x 4″ loaf pans or a dozen mini loafs 4″ x 2 1/2″. Bake at 350 degrees for 50-55 minutes for the loaf pans and 40-45 minutes for the mini loaf pans. Cool approximately 10 minutes before removing from the pans, then allow to cool completely on a wire rack.

Enjoy
Chef Brian Klauss

Bake Krazy Bakery produces a variety of bake goods but the donut stands out as a favorite. To take the donut that extra step we have developed several Specialty donuts using the cake donut as our base. Here are some of the flavors you could choose from;

Caramel Apple Donut – This is a vanilla cake donut filled with apple filling and drizzled with caramel.
Cherry Pie Donut – This is a vanilla cake donut glazed in Vanilla frosting and filled with Cherry Pie filling.
Smore’s Donut – This is a chocolate cake donut filled with marshmallows, sprinkled with gram cracker crumbs and drizzled with chocolate
Pebbles Donut – This is a vanilla cake donut glazed in vanilla frosting and topped with Fruity Pebbles cereal.
Lucky Charms – This is a vanilla donut glazed with vanilla frosting and topped with lucky Charms cereal.
Gummy Worms Donut – This is a chocolate cake donut filled with chocolate cake crumbs, dipped in chocolate frosting. We then place a nice gummy worm on topcake crumbs, glazed with chocolate frosting and embedded with a gummy worm

When I was growing up fall was when my family came together (including a few Aunts) to harvest Tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, green beans and just about anything my dad could grow. My dad was always in charge of the garden and on weekends during the growing season his six kids including me would be the workers, pulling weeds, hoeing, and watering. I may have complained back then, but I have fond memories of this time in my life. We as a family were on a mission and watching as the produce developed each week was and extra bonus. Getting back to the harvest…..We would pick everything and if we didn’t have enough for their plan we would visit any one of the local farms around the countryside of my dads choosing. Once everything was transported inside the house the action started. My Mom, Dad and sometime a few Aunts would gather in the kitchen with pots boiling, jars shaking, everyone peeling something. It was a great time listening to the conversations as they drank coffee and maybe once in a while a beer or two. The proud moment was when my mom would reveal the jar count on the amount they successfully canned. Of course she would hand out the canned goodies to everyone, reminding them of course to return the jars for nexts year harvest. We didn’t have a lot of money growing up but we sure had a lot of LOVE.

I think thats why I have always have a garden and canned each year. This year it was Pizza sauce, Tomato Sauce, Corn Relish, Pickles (sweet & dill) and Jelly.

Chef Brian Klauss

One of the top selling items at the bakery is the eclair. Next to the donut its the next best thing. With a flavorful hard outer shell and a soft center filled with pastry cream this sweet dessert is then  topped with chocolate…….. how can you go wrong

Shell (Pate a Choux) makes approximately 3 dozen eclairs
1 1/2 cup water
1 stick salted butter (1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
8 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line 2 full size sheet pans with parchment paper.
In a medium sauce pan add the butter, water and sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and add the flour all at one time. With a wooden spoon mix continuously until the dough forms and pulls away from the pan. Remove from the stovetop and place the dough into a standing mixer. Mix on high allowing the dough to cool for at least 5 minutes. (you do not want the eggs to cook when added) Slowly add the eggs one at a time when mixing until dough is smooth and all eggs are mixed. Transfer the dough to a pastry bag with a large 1/2 tip. Pipe long thick 2 1/2″ mounds onto the parchment paper (one way I keep the parchment paper down is to tack a small amount of dough under the parchment paper at the corners) Make them approximately 2″ apart. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 to 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 for an additional 15 minutes. They should be golden brown. Allow them to completely cool before filling. They can also be frozen and filled at a later date.

Filling; Pastry Cream is the traditional filling, however you can fill them with just about anything you would like. Here is a pastry cream recipe

2 cups milk
1/4 cup sugar
2 egg yolks
1 egg
1/4 cup corn starch
1/3 cup sugar
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a medium sauce pan stir together the milk and 1/4 cup sugar, bring to a boil.
In a bowl which together the egg yolk and egg then stir in 1/3 cup sugar and cornstarch until smooth. Remove the milk mixture from the stovetop and slowly drizzle into the egg mixture while mixing so that the eggs do not cook at that point. Once incorporated return the mixture to the saucepan and bring to a boil while continuing to mix (you do not want to curdle the eggs. The mixture should thicken, remove from the stovetop and add in the butter and vanilla until completely blended. Pour into a heat safe bowl cover and cool in the refrigerator.

When the pastry cream is completely cold add to a pastry bag fitted with a filling tip. Insert the tip into each end of the eclair shell and fill with pastry cream. Return to the refrigerator.

Ganache Chocolate topping: this is easy to make, place one cup of heavy whipping cream into a small sauce pan and bring to a boil. Pour the cream over 9 ounces of bittersweet chopped chocolate and stir until melted. Allow to cool and thicken before drizzling or dipping onto your eclair

Enjoy
Chef Brian Klauss

If you are ever in Florida stop in at Sonny’s BBQ and check out their Banana vanilla wafer desert. If my wife had to much of their fine BBQ she will eat this on the way home instead of the dinning room……..don’t forget to ask for a spoon or a fork, I’ve watched her struggle on the way home without one.

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and prepare 2 – 9″ cake pans by spraying with vegetable spray and dusting with flour.

Vanilla Cake
1/2 cup of room temperature unsalted butter
1 1/2 cup sugar
4 eggs (room temperature)
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 cups of flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup Buttermilk (room temperature)

Butter cream frosting
4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup soften unsalted butter
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 – 3 tablespoons milk

Filling
1 – 4 serving box of instant vanilla pudding
3 bananas sliced

Coating
12 vanilla wafers (crushed finely)
10 for decoration

Make the instant Pudding following the package direction and refrigerate.
Cake; Mix the butter, vanilla extract and sugar and cream well, add in the eggs. Then mix the  remaining dry ingredients and the wet ingredients alternating until completely incorporated. (Do not over mix). Pour equal amounts of the batter into the prepared cake  pans and bake approximately 35 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes before removing onto a cooling rack. Frosting; butter cream frosting by first creaming the vanilla extract with the butter then slowly add in the powered sugar one cup at a time. Add in the milk until you achieve the proper consistency. Assemble; Once the cakes are completely cooled split both layers. Place a portion of the butter cream into a pastry bag and form a dam around the edge of the layers to fill. Add the vanilla pudding into each layer and place the slices of bananas. Stack each layer as you complete them. Frost the cake, press the vanilla wafer crumbs into the side of the cake and top and decorate with the remaining buttercream. Place the whole vanilla wafers on top for decoration.

Enjoy
Chef Brian Klauss