Coffee Lover's Delight- My Infamous Cafe Crisps

The most quintessential beverage of college: coffee. With that being said, what's better than pairing coffee and cookies? I would say nothing other than maybe winning the lottery. So here they are- sweet, aromatic, crunchy and chewy at the same time, and bound to be a favorite among college students.

Cappuccino Coffee Crisps
2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 cup sugar
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons instant espresso or coffee powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon water
2 cups all purpose flour


Cappuccino Glaze
2 teaspoons instant espresso or coffee powder 
1 tablespoon hot water
4cups confectioners sugar
1/3 up hot milk
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 tablespoon veg oil
1/4 teaspoon salt


1. Beat butter, sugar, cocoa, and cinnamon im a large bowl with electric mixer until blended. Beat in egg. Stir  together coffee powder, vanilla, and water in a cup to dissolve the instant coffee. Beat into the butter mixture. On low speed, beat in flour just until blended. Divid dough in half; shape each half into a disk. Wrap and chill until firm.
2. Preheat oven to 375*F. Have ready a 3-inch star cookie cutter.
3. Cut 1 portion dough in half. Roll out with a floured rolling pin on a well-floured surface to about 1/8-inch thickness. 

4.Cut out stars and place 1 inch apart on ungreased cookie sheets.

5. Bake 8 minutes or until fragrant and crisp. Remove to wire rack to cool.

6. While cookies are cooling, prepare the coffee glaze by beating the sugar, milk, butter, corn syrup, vanilla, oil, and salt. Divide in half and set aside.  Dissolve the coffee powder into the hot water and add to the only one half of the glaze mixture. Put in a thin tip frosting bag and drizzle over the cookies. Let the glaze harden for about 10 minutes.

Lemon Cupcakes with Raspberry Filling

As much as I love baking and claim that I have a sweet tooth almost daily, I have to admit I'm not a fan of overly sweet desserts. Dark chocolate is definitely preferred over milk chocolate, and I would choose lemon anything over chocolate. After getting a set of absolutely massive cupcake tins for Christmas, I could not resist .

Jumbo Raspberry Filled Lemon Cupcakes
3 cups flour, twice sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
4 large eggs
Zest of 3 lemons, plus 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk 
1 pint fresh raspberries


Fruity Whipped Cream Frosting
1 quart heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
1/4 pint raspberries, quartered


1. With an electric mixer, begin whipping the cream until it begins to firm up. Gradually add in powdered sugar. When soft peaks form, turn mixer off and fold in bits of fruit. Set aside. 
2. Preheat the oven to 325° F. Grease cupcake tins- this recipe worked for my set of 12 jumbo cupcakes, but will make more with smaller tins. 
3. Whisk together flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside
4. Beat butter and sugar together until fluffy using an electric mixer. Beat in eggs (one at a time) until fully mixed. Beat in lemon zest and vanilla. Alternate by adding some flour mixture, then some buttermilk, then some lemon juice. Repeat in 3 batches until fully incorporated
5. Fill cupcake cups just over halfway and place in oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. Cool completely on a wire rack. While cupcakes are cooling, rinse 3/4 of the pint of raspberries and halve. Place in a small saucepan and cook on medium heat until the berries have broken down a bit. Let cool. 
6. When cupcakes are full cooled, cut a small circle from the center with the knife at a 45 degree angle, making sure to not pierce the bottom, and pull off the tops (should look like a cone). Spoon in about 1/2 - 1 teaspoon of raspberry filling. Cut off the cone part of the cupcake top and replace.
7. Now it's time to frost- spoon the whipped cream frosting into a disposable pastry bag and cut off a generous amount of the tip. Note: you will need a larger opening for this frosting so the pieces of fruit do not block the opening. Swirl the frosting around the top of the cupcakes, making sure to not lift the cutout top off. 

Vietnamese Spring Rolls- My Favorite!

As an Asian food junkie, I have spent countless nights dreaming about spicy noodles, hot curries, and my all time favorite Asian food- spring rolls. As a college student on a budget, though, I had to find out the hard way that calling my local Thai or Vietnamese restaurant for an order of these is not always best for my wallet. I did, however, find out that not only are these the easiest snacks to make, but they taste better than the ones I used to order!

Vietnamese Spring Rolls

Rice paper wraps

Lettuce, shredded

Carrots, thinly sliced

Cucumbers, thinly sliced

Cilantro

Rice noodles, cooked (spaghetti works fine as well)

Chicken breast, cut

2 tablespoons fish sauce

1 lime, juiced

1 tablespoon honey

Peanut Sauce for dipping (can be purchased at local grocery stores)

Begin by cutting the chicken into small pieces. Marinate in a bowl with the lime juice, honey, and fish sauce.

 Let sit for about half an hour, then cook in a medium sauce pan over medium heat until cooked through. 

Once the chicken is fully cooked and brown, continue to cut into smaller slices. Proceed to cut up selected veggies into long, thin slices and cook noodles in boiling water until soft. 

Once you have all your individual ingredients prepared, you can begin to make the rolls! Start by placing a rice paper into a large bowl of hot water. This softens the rice paper in order to roll. Place the paper on a plate and begin adding the lettuce and noodles, cucumbers, carrots, chicken, and cilantro. 

Begin rolling by wrapping the two sides in, then rolling in the direction opposite of you. Dip in peanut sauce, hot sauce, or any other sauce to your liking.