The Best Crumb Cake of All Time

If you’re ever wondering how to do very well in high school without carrying any books ever, this crumb cake is the answer. Well, this and chocolate chip cookies.

This recipe comes together in under an hour, doesn’t require any fancy tools or equipment, and is perfect for a weekend breakfast when you’re craving something sweet and only have a few ingredients around.

This is straight up Martha Stewart’s recipe, I haven’t changed one single thing because not one single thing needs changing. However- I have made this in many different ovens and sometimes it bakes for 20 minutes and it’s done and sometimes it needs 30 minutes, so just keep an eye on it after 20 and poke it with a toothpick every so often until comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs attached.

Take note that while this cake is DELICIOUS straight out of the oven, it’s most authentically eaten at room temperature, when the crumbs have had a chance to cool and congeal. This is one of the only times that we’re happy about things congealing and not grossed out by it. Once this cake is cool, the crumbs will have that beautiful melt-in-your-mouth texture. This cake keeps really well for up to a week stored in an airtight container!

Perfect Crumb Cake
Recipe from Martha

1 1/2 c flour
1/2 c sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1/2 c milk
2 TBSP canola/veg oil
2 tsp vanilla

1 c light brown sugar
2 1/2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1/2 c confectioners sugar

Preheat the oven to 325.

Grease and flour a 9x13” cake pan.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the 1 1/2 c flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg, milk, oil and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and stir until combined. Spread into the 9x13” pan and set aside.

In the bowl you used the dry ingredients for, stir together the light brown sugar, remaining flour and cinnamon. Stir in the butter until combined and using your hands, break crumbs of the mixture off and cover the entire cake with crumbs. Bake for 20-30 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

When the cake has cooled slightly, dust the top with confectioners sugar.

xo,
Audrey

Ballin' on a Budget: Feelings Pudding

What do you do when you’re overwhelmed with emotion? Aside from crying, I mean. What do you do with your body?

Do you go for a run (lol)? Turn on really loud music and dance? Fall into a netflix hole?

I make pudding.

There’s something so meditative to me about stirring a milk and eggs over a low flame until it turns into a luscious creamy chocolate pudding.

I’ve made this when I’m falling in love, when I’m heartbroken, when I’m scared, when I’m excited- really anytime I have extra feelings in my body that I’m not quite sure what to do with. I just stir them into pudding.

The other amazing thing about this recipe is that it can be made pretty much anywhere- it requires so little equipment and so few ingredients which makes it a perfect recipe for you to make as a houseguest- I love leaving these behind when I stay with friends! The vessel you put it in doesn’t matter so much, this recipe is pretty forgiving and can be made in a pot, a pan, a tart shell, a 9x13” pan or a cauldron.

It’s dairy free, costs about $8 to make and comes together in about fifteen minutes of active prepwork plus about 45 minutes of chilling time in the fridge. This can be made a few days ahead of serving and kept covered in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.

THE ONLY RULE WITH FEELINGS PUDDING: You MUST eat this straight out of the container. The only way you can serve it is by handing people spoons. If you are not comfortable eating this straight out of the container with the people you are serving it to, they are not close enough to you to eat feelings pudding with.

Feelings Pudding
(makes enough)

20 vanilla oreos
2 TBSP coconut oil

1 can full fat coconut milk
2 egg yolks
1 12oz bag bittersweet chocolate chips (I like Ghirardelli)

flaky salt

Crush the oreos. I did this in a large ziplock with a rolling pin but you can use a food processor- you just want them to be in fine crumbs. Combine the oreo crumbs with the coconut oil and press into your pan. I used a 9” pie dish, but this will really work in any shape pan- a bread pan, an 8x8” pan, a small pot- whatever you’ve got! Place the crust in the freezer to set up while you make the custard.

In a saucepan over a low flame, combine the whole can of coconut milk and egg yolks. Whisk, constantly, until the mixture coats the bottom of a spoon (this means that when you dip the spoon in and run your finger through it, the custard holds its place and doesn’t fill in where you’ve run your finger through). Remove from heat and pour the chocolate chips in. Cover them completely with the liquid and let them sit for a minute to soften, then whisk until he mixture is smooth and shiny.

Pour the custard through a fine mesh sieve and then into the crust, which should be fairly set by now. Put the feelings pudding back in the freezer for 20 minutes or in the fridge for 45 minutes-1 hour until it doesn’t wiggle when you move the dish. Top with flaky sea salt, give everybody a spoon and have some feelings about it.

xo
Audrey

Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls

I’m not here to tell you to eat your vegetables.

My strategy lately is more like, eat all of the sugar until your body absolutely cannot take it anymore and it’s actually craaaaaving green things.

So like, have a salad and the next morning throw some carrots in your cinnamon rolls and we’ll call it even, yeah?

I was really skeptical of carrot cake for a while, I promise you. And then I saw one that I just couldn’t resist with stripes of cream cheese frosting and I was quickly in love. I even choose carrot cake over chocolate things sometimes!

These cinnamon rolls are rich, creamy, and bursting with flavor having been stuffed with toasted pecans and brown sugar. For a yeast dough, this one is fairly simple and straightforward! Don’t be alarmed by the amount of ingredients and steps, just read the whole recipe through once and then take it one step at a time. That is allllll bread is. One step at a time.

The carrots in this recipe add a really nice texture to the dough, they almost melt into it and it feels like you’re eating funfetti cinnamon rolls!

Carrot Cake Cinnamon Rolls
makes 2 dozen

for the dough:
2 cups whole milk
1/2 c unsalted butter (1 stick)
1/2 c sugar
1 packet yeast (2 1/4 tsp)
1 1/2 c grated carrots (about 3 medium)
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp freshly grated ginger
4 1/2 c all purpose flour, divided
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt

for the filling:
1/2 c unsalted butter, melted
1 c brown sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 c pecans, chopped
1/2 c shredded coconut (optional)

for the cream cheese frosting:
4 oz cream cheese (or mascarpone! I used mascarpone! it’s so creamy!)
1.5 c powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
2 TBSP milk

For the dough:
-Combine the milk, butter and sugar in a large pot over medium heat. Bring just to a simmer and stir to dissolve sugar. Allow to cool to a temperature that feels like a hot shower you’d want to get into after a day in the snow (about 105 degrees). Sprinkle the yeast over the top and allow to sit for about three minutes.

-While the yeast mixture is setting, grate the carrots over a clean dishtowel that you don't care about at all. Squeeze the carrots out over a sink and squeal in delight at the vibrant orange color that carrot juice actually is. You’re drying the carrots out as much as possible here so the water content doesn’t mess with the dough.

-Pour the yeast/milk mixture into a large bowl. Stir in two cups of the flour, the nutmeg and the ginger until combined. Stir in another cup, and stir in a final cup of flour with the grated carrots until combined. Cover with a damp towel and allow to proof for about an hour in a draft free space. (you can put this in the oven with the oven turned off but the oven light turned on- the heat from the light creates a really great temperature for proofing!

-After an hour the dough should be doubled in size and smell yeasty. Stir in the final 1/2 cup flour along with the baking powder, baking soda and salt. Turn out onto a generously floured surface and knead slightly. You want this dough to be soft but not too sticky to roll out- add flour 1/4 cup at a time if it feels too sticky!

-Grease two 9” pans with butter or canola oil. Set aside.

-Divide dough into two equal rounds and then roll out into rectangles that are about 1/4” thick, about 10”x16”

-Melt the butter. Pour half of the butter mixture onto the first rolled out rectangle, brush the butter to evenly cover the surface leaving a 1/2” boundary around all edges. Sprinkle half of the brown sugar evenly across the surface, followed by half of the cinnamon and pecans and coconut, if using.

-Starting from the far edge, slowly roll the dough into a log (lengthwise). I like to use my fingers in a typewriter fashion here, moving from one end of the log to the other. Cut the log into 12 equal rolls using a bench scraper, then place in the pie dish cut side up. It’s okay if it’s not perfect! You’re covering it with icing later! And no one on this good earth has ever been mad about an ugly cinnamon roll once it goes in their face, I promise.

-Repeat with the other half of the dough, and allow both trays to sit on the stove for a second proof while you preheat the oven to 375.

-Bake for 20-22 minutes, until golden brown.

-While the rolls are baking, whisk together all the ingredients for the frosting until it’s pourable, adjusting the confectioners sugar and milk as needed to get it to your desired texture.

-Pour the frosting onto the rolls immediately after they come out of the oven- these are fantastic hot or at room temperature, we ate them for every meal for an entire day!!

YAY! YOU DID IT! NOW YOU GET TO EAT SOME BUNNNNNSSS TO CELEBRATE!

DF/GF Lavender Lemon Shortbread

For real I promise you and whomever you serve this to will have no idea that it's both dairy and gluten free. 

It's impossible to tell.

The first time I had shortbread was also the first time I had a proper massage. My lovely friend got me a gift card to the Lush Spa in Manhattan an oh my god was it magic. 

First, you walk through the Lush store filled with their signature third eye-opening scent. Then you walk up a cute little staircase to a GORGEOUS kitchen that feels like you're in the home of a faerie. Your massage therapist brings out a platter of lotion bars and lets you choose how you want to smell for the next three days. Then you are led into the themed rooms (I chose some nautical type of massage) where the music is set to your massage- the aromas transport you to dreamtime. I actually felt like I was on a boat somehow.

I did not expect to feel so completely stoned from a massage. The room was spinning, my legs were soooo heavy and I felt like I was a cloud. After you wipe your drool off the massage table they lead you back to the faerie kitchen and present you with loose-leaf tea and shortbread. I was so out of my mind that I actually put a few shortbread in my bag to go- I had never tasted something so melty and buttery and creamy that was solid?! I was confused. I felt great. 

Shortly after my shortbread obsession began I also started that dairy-free life. I've been searching for a way to recreate the buttery melty delicious crumbly square for years and I finally stumbled upon it! 

This recipe uses creamed coconut, which you may also see as coconut manna or coconut butter. Same/same! The top of the jar generally has a layer of coconut oil on top, just push that aside and get to the good goods underneath for this recipe!

Dairy Free Gluten Free Lavender Lemon Shortbread

2/3 c sugar
zest 1/2 lemon
2 tsp food grade lavender
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 egg yolk
1/2 c refined coconut oil- room temperature
1/2 c coconut manna
1 3/4 c gluten free flour blend

1 tsp lavender
1 TBSP sugar, to top

Preheat your oven to 350 and find an 8" round cake pan or standard loaf pan.

Flavor the sugar- in a medium bowl, combine the sugar, lemon and lavender. Rub together with your fingers for about a minute until everything is fragrant and evenly distributed. 

Beat in the coconut oil and coconut manna, continue beating until light and fluffy. 

Beat in the egg yolk and vanilla extract.

Stir in the gluten free flour blend.

Press the dough into the pan, use the bottom of a measuring cup to make it even across the top then top with remaining sugar and lavender (I also used calendula petals just for pretties).

Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes, until the top just begins to turn brown.

Let cool completely in pan before removing to cut! 

Shortbread will keep in an airtight container for up to one week.

**If you would like to make these completely vegan, simply omit the egg. I actually prefer the texture without the egg BUT it's not a very practical cookie. They are way too crumbly (which makes for a really great mouthfeel) but they're nearly impossible to transport without the egg to bind them. I have yet to try it but I could see these being successful with a flax egg or even a bit of applesauce to hold them together! 

xo Audrey

(vegan) Dark Chocolate Sorbet

What does ice cream mean to you? 

Is it nostalgia- sitting in the trunk of your mom's SUV with the fam on a summer evening with mint chocolate chip dripping all over your tiny hands watching the motorcyclists drive past the beach?

Is it comfort- the Phish Food hug you need when you realize he's not the one? 

Is it connection- every vanilla with rainbow sprinkles you see reminds you of your best friend that lives halfway across the country? 

This might not be 'real' ice cream, but you wouldn't know it. It's ultra creamy mouthfeel combined with intense dark chocolate create an illusion of decadence- when really you're just eating frozen water! 

Dark Chocolate Sorbet
(recipe from David Leibovitz)
makes 1 quart

2 1/4 c (555ml) water
1 c sugar (200g) (can sub coconut sugar here!)
3/4 c (75g) cocoa powder
1 generous pinch salt
6oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped finely
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

\\ DAY BEFORE - if your ice cream maker is not a self compressing kind, don't forget to put the bowl in the freezer so you don't have to wait another whole day to dive into this deliciousness!

\\ In a large saucepan, whisk together 1 1/2 c water with the sugar, cocoa powder and salt (for real- don't put all the water in now or you'll end up with mega hard unscoopable sorbet)

\\ Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Let boil for 45 seconds then remove from heat.

\\ Stir in chocolate and vanilla extract until chocolate is completely melted, then stir in the remaining (room temp) water.

\\ Transfer to a blender and blend (holding the lid on with a towel so you don't have a chocolate explosion!) for about 30 seconds, until the the color has lightened a shade or two.

\\ Chill the mixture thoroughly (at least 2 hours), then transfer to your ice cream maker and freeze according to the machine's directions.

\\ Serve with a pinch of flaky sea salt, crushed pretzels, or anything but gummy bears! 

xo Audrey