breakfast

• Preheat oven at 300-degrees. Cut a piece of parchment to fit like a sling inside the pan, extending up both long sides. Apply butter or nonstick spray in the pan, then set the parchment inside and spray it again.
• Beat together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs, beating well after each addition.
• In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt, and baking powder. Gradually add the dry ingredients in with the wet, adding in the yogurt/sour cream as well.
• Either by using a food scale or by eyeballing, divide the dough into three roughly equal portions.
• If the caramel/dulce de leche is stiff, microwave briefly in a microwave-safe bowl to make it looser. Mix that into one portion of dough.
• Add the cocoa powder with the melted chocolate, and fold that into a second portion of dough until the color is even throughout.
• To the third portion, mix in the vanilla to completely incorporate.
• Set a tablespoon with each portion. Scoop vanilla and chocolate to form a checkerboard-like formation in the bottom of the loaf pan. Add scoops of caramel dough sporadically over top. Tap pan to settle the dough. Repeat, mixing up the pattern so that different colors are near each other, tapping the pan on occasion. Once all of the dough is in the pan, use a butter knife to gently swirl for an extra marbling effect on the top. Tap pan again to level and work out bubbles.
• Bake for 1 hour 40 minutes. Check the middle with a toothpick. If it’s still wet, bake longer, checking every few minutes for doneness. Once it passes the test, let cool on stove top for 10 minutes, then use the parchment sling to lift the loaf onto a rack to cool completely.
• Cake can be served warm or at room temperature. It will keep for up to 4 days in a sealed container. It can also be frozen in slices for later enjoyment.

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• Using a stand mixer with a dough hook attached, combine the flour, yeast, and salt.
• Use a microwave or stove top to warm the milk, butter, sugar and honey to about 120-degrees (if it gets above that, give it a few minutes to drop down). Add the warm milk mixture to the flour until just combined, scraping the bowl as needed. Follow up with the egg and egg yolk, and continue to beat for about 6 more minutes. The dough should be smooth and elastic.
• Add nonstick spray to a large bowl. Drop in the dough, flipping it to grease the surface all over. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot until it is doubled, about 45 minutes.
• Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Punch down the dough in the bowl. Lightly flour a work surface. Use a food scale to weigh the dough; divide it in half. Keep one of the halves covered while the other is rolled out to a foot-wide circle. Use a pizza cutter or knife to slice it into twelve triangles, like a pizza.
• To form a crescent roll, start at the wide end of a dough piece and roll it up, tucking and pressing the pointed tip underneath. Set spaced-out on a prepared pan. Repeat to form more rolls. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap to rise another 45 minutes to an hour.
• Near the end of the rise, preheat the oven at 375-degrees. Melt the half stick of butter and brush about half over the rolls.
• Place both sheets on racks inside oven and bake for 7 minutes. Switch placement of baking sheets on the racks. Bake for another 5 to 8 minutes, until they are a nice golden brown. Brush on the rest of the butter.
• Eat immediately, while warmed, or at room temperature. Crescent rolls will keep in a sealed bag for at least 2 days, and can also be frozen for later enjoyment.

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• In a food processor, pulse together the flour, brown sugar, espresso powder, and salt. Drop in the butter and whiskey, and pulse again until it forms pea-sized crumbs. Chill mix in fridge. Note that the streusel can be made a day ahead of the rest of the cake.
• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 9-inch square pan with foil to extend up all four sides. Apply nonstick spray.
• In a large bowl, beat butter and white sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time.
• In another bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a different bowl, combine the buttermilk/soured milk, whiskey, espresso powder, and vanilla, stirring gently until the espresso powder is dissolved and not clumpy.
• Gradually mix the dry ingredients and the wet ingredients into the butter and sugar, alternating back and forth, until everything is combined.
• Spoon about half the batter into the prepared pan; batter will be thick, and an offset spatula will make it easier to even out. Sprinkle half the streusel mix over the batter. Dollop on the remaining batter and even out again. Crumble the rest of the streusel over the top.
• Bake about 40 to 45 minutes, until the middle of the cake passes the toothpick test. Cool completely in pan. Use the foil to lift it onto a cutting board to slice.
• Cake pieces keep well in sealed container at room temperature for at least 3 days. Pieces can also be wrapped up and frozen for later enjoyment.

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• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Line a 9-inch cake pan with foil and apply nonstick spray or butter.
• Make the streusel first. Dice up the butter in a medium bowl. Add the flour, oats, sugar, and salt. Using fingers, compress and break apart the butter into small crumbs distributed throughout the dry mix. Set the bowl in fridge to chill while assembling the cake.
• Cream the butter and white sugar until light and fluffy. Add the vanilla and eggs.
• In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually fold the dry ingredients into the wet along with the milk. Once everything is just mixed, pour it into the prepared pan. Place the apple slices one at a time to form an even layer. Sprinkle the streusel on top and even it out.
• Bake the cake until the top is golden, about 60 to 70 minutes. The middle should pass the toothpick test. Let cool at room temperature, eventually placing in fridge to speed the process, if desired.
• Cut into 1/8ths. Top pieces with sprinkled confectioners’ sugar to make it even more pretty. The cake is best eaten fresh, but pieces can also be individually frozen the day of baking for a delicious treat later.

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• Preheat oven at 350-degrees. Cut parchment paper to fit the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Apply nonstick spray to pan; place parchment round inside, then spray to coat that as well.
• In a stand mixer with a whisk attachment. whip the eggs at high speed until they are foamy, about a minute. Reduce the speed to medium to add the white sugar. Continue to beat until it becomes thick and pale, about 2 minutes.
• With the mixer going, pour in olive oil. Pause to scrape sides of bowl. Add the almond flour, half & half, all of the lemon zest, and both extracts, mixing until combined.
• In another bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, and salt. Fold the dry ingredients into the moist mix. Pour batter into the prepared pan.
• Prep the apple. Core it, leaving the peel intact. Cut into thin slices of equal size. Pour reserved lemon juice over the apples, tossing them to coat.
• Place apple slices on top of batter in fanned-out groups of about five, having them face different angles all around the top. NOTE: as the batter is very sticky, the apples will be nigh impossible to move after they are placed, so make careful decisions. Sprinkle the sliced almonds around the edges and in the gaps between the apples.
• Bake for about 50 minutes, until the middle passes the toothpick test. Set on rack for 15 minutes before removing the ring from the pan. Serve warm, or cool completely, keeping the cake on the round base. When slicing the cake, be aware that the peel is pretty but may resist the blade–it’s easier to snip through with a pair of kitchen shears.
• Cake can be sliced and frozen for later, but it will taste best at room temperature or warmed.

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• Preheat oven at 375-degrees; set a baking sheet in the oven to heat up as well (this will reduce the likelihood of a pie with a soggy bottom). Press the pie dough into a deep dish pie pan, if not already formed. Stash it in the fridge while the filling is being prepared.
• Peel and core apples and slice into thin wedges. Toss them with the 2 Tablespoons flour to coat. Set aside.
• In a mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, and cinnamon. Dice up the butter and toss it in the mix. Use a pastry cutter or a fork to mash up the butter to make pea-sized and smaller pieces of various shapes. Set bowl in fridge briefly, and bring out the pie shell.
• Pour the apple slices into the pie shell and distribute them to make a nice mound. Drizzle jarred caramel over the top, to personal preference. Use a spoon to distribute crumb topping to cover apples, using butter lumps and powder to fill the nooks and crannies.
• Set pie on hot baking sheet. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until apples are tender when pierced by fork. Cool for at least 30 minutes before cutting in.
• Store pie covered by foil in fridge. Will keep for as long as a week. Great eaten cold or warmed up!

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