breakfast

• Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a 13×9-inch pan with aluminum foil. Apply nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, beat the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add the molasses, mixing until no streaks remain. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping the bottom of the bowl on occasion.
• In a separate bowl, combine the flour, cinnamon, ground ginger, salt, baking powder, baking soda, nutmeg, allspice, and cloves. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet. Fold in the candied ginger.
• Measure out 2 cups of the dough and set it aside.
• Press the remainder of the dough into the pan, forming an even layer.
• Time to make the cheesecake layer. Beat the cream cheese until creamy. Add the sugar and flour. Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the vanilla. The mixture should be fairly consistent in color and texture, but it’s okay if there are some small lumps.
• Use an uneven spatula to spread the cheesecake into an even layer. Crumble the reserved topping over it.
• Bake for 50 to 60 minutes; the middle should not look jiggly and should pass the toothpick test. If the top is browning too much, cover with foil.
• Cool at room temperature for about an hour, then place in fridge to completely chill for a few hours. Use foil to lift onto cutting board to slice into small pieces. Store in fridge in a sealed container.

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• Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a 9×13 baking pan with aluminum foil and apply nonstick spray or butter.
• Use a spice grinder or a mortar and pestle to grind the Earl Grey leaves down a bit more, but not fully to powder. Move the tea to a medium bowl and stir with the flour and salt.
• In a large bowl, beat the butter until fluffy. Gradually add the confectioners’ sugar, followed by the vanilla. Beat until smooth. Gradually beat in the flour mixture to incorporate.
• Dollop the dough into the prepared pan. Use a piece of wax paper or plastic wrap to spread out the dough, then use something like a heavy glass to evenly compress the dough into the pan.
• Bake until shortbread is firm with golden edges, about 40 to 45 minutes. Cool in pan on rack.
• After the pan comes to room temperature, mix the glaze ingredients. Transfer them to a piping bag or to a freezer bag. Snip the corner to pipe the glaze in stripes over the pan. Let set for an hour, then use foil to lift contents onto a cutting board to slice into bars.
• Store in sealed container at room temperature. Bars will keep for an least 2 days.

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Frangipane

• Frangipane can be made immediately before the batter or prepared a day in advance.
• In a medium bowl, stir butter until creamy. Add almond flour, sugar, all-purpose flour, egg white, salt, and almond extract. Stir until combined. Cover with plastic wrap pressed to the top, and place in fridge until ready to use.

Loaf

• Preheat oven at 375 degrees. Cut parchment paper to fit inside an 8×4 loaf pan like a sling extended up both long sides. Spray inside of pan with nonstick spray, then spray parchment.
• Use kitchen shears to break frozen raspberries into pieces of various size, measuring out 1 1/4 cup total. Stash raspberries back in freezer until ready to use.
• In a large bowl, beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time followed by the extracts.
• In another bowl, sift together the 1 3/4 cups flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually mix dry ingredients into the wet, mixing alternatively with the yogurt. Scrape the bottom of the bowl to make sure everything is combined.
• Fold the frangipane into the batter.
• Pull out the raspberries. Toss them with the remaining tablespoon of flour. Set aside 1/4 of coated berries for the top; fold the rest of the berries into the batter.
• Spread batter in prepared pan, evening out the top. Sprinkle reserved raspberries on top, followed by the sliced almonds.
• Bake for 20 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees. Continue to bake until the top is golden and the inside registers an interior temperature over 200 degrees, which will be about another 40 minutes. (Total baking time will be between 55 minutes and 1 hour 5 minutes.) If the loaf is looking brown early on, cover with a small piece of foil.
• Let cool in pan about 20 minutes, then use the parchment sling to lift the loaf onto a rack to completely cool.

Glaze

• Once the loaf is completely cool, mix the glaze. It should be fairly thick; add a touch more confectioners’ sugar if needed. Drizzle over loaf so that the top is covered with glaze dripping down the sides.
• Give the glaze at least 30 minutes to set before cutting into the loaf, or wrap loaf to serve later or the next day. Loaf will keep well, wrapped at room temperature, for up to 4 days.

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• Place cranberries and dates in a medium saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring often, until the berries pop. Remove pan from heat to stir in vanilla. Set aside.
• Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Line a 13×9 pan with foil and apply nonstick spray or butter.
• In a mixing bowl, place flour, oats, brown sugar, baking soda, and salt. Pour in butter and stir until it forms a crumbly mixture. Press about half into the prepared pan, compressing to form an even layer.
• Bake for 8 minutes. Pull pan from oven. Dollop cranberry-date mixture over top, gently spreading out to create a layer. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the top. Put back in oven to bake for 20 to 25 minutes; the top should be golden brown with the crumbs set in the middle.
• Cool to room temperature, speeding the process in the fridge, if desired. Use foil to lift contents from pan onto a cutting board to slice into bars. Store at room temperature in a sealed container.

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• Preheat oven to 350-degrees. Line 13×9 pan with wide aluminum foil and apply nonstick spray or butter.
• In a small bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
• In a mixing bowl, beat together the butter, both sugars, and vanilla to create a smooth batter. Beat in eggs, one at a time, followed by the flour mixture. Place about 2/3 of the batter in the pan and carefully spread into a base later using an uneven spatula. Spread cranberry sauce on top. Dollop remaining dough on top. Use a knife to swirl layers together.
• Bake until evenly golden brown and set in the middle, 35 to 40 minutes. Cool completely at room temperature or chill before cutting. Use foil to lift contents onto a cutting board for easy slicing.
• Blondies keep for up to 3 days in a room temperature sealed container and can also be frozen.

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• Preheat oven at 350 degrees. Place a baking sheet inside to warm up. Apply nonstick spray to coat the interior of a large bundt pan.
• In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugar, scraping down the bowl a few times to make sure everything is mixed. Continue to beat until it becomes light and fluffy. Add the maple syrup followed by the eggs, one at a time.
• In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Gradually add the dry ingredients to the main bowl, interspersing it with the addition of the half & half. Add the maple flavor. Once everything is added, scrape the bottom of the bowl.
• Scoop the batter into the prepared bundt pan. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon.
• Place the bundt pan atop the hot baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 10 minutes, until a toothpick plunged into the middle of the cake comes out clean.
• Let cake rest in pan for 20 minutes, then invert it onto a rack to cool completely.
• Make the glaze by combining the three ingredients to form a thick texture. Drizzle over the top of the cooled cake.
• Store cake under a cake dome or other cover. Individual slices can be wrapped in plastic for transport or frozen for later.

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