Breakfast

Espresso Donuts with Irish Cream Glaze

December 7, 2018 by Natalie Leave a Comment

If you dig really deep on the internet you will probably find the first blog I ever started. I’ll let you be the super sleuth but it was, in fact, a baking blog. I’m happy to have clients like Kerry Gold Irish Cream that let me have creative freedom to come up with all sorts of recipes like these Espresso Donuts with Irish Cream Glaze. These are so easy to throw together and bake in only 8 minutes!

Another secret that you probably don’t know about me is that before the blog or bartending or design school I really wanted to open up a bakery. Baking has always been like therapy to me. For 30 minutes, to an hour or the longest, most tedious, baking challenge (like fondant — still terrible at that) I seem to lose myself at the task at hand. For those minutes or hours, my mind is completely clear and I can just concentrate on a recipe and making something out of nothing. I love working with my hands, having the house be overpowered with warm delicious smells, tasting the batter, and indulging in a hopefully perfect finished product.

The other thing about me is that I live for coffee. It gets me through the days and sometimes even the nights. I also live for sweets. Fact: I was born with 32 sweet tooths. No joke. So now you know the way to my heart. And that finally brings me to how I came up with these Espresso Donuts. They’re decadently rich, sweet, caffeinated, and boozy. I don’t think that I have to mention that I also love booze, right? That’s already a given.

Espresso Donuts, makes 1 dozen

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tbsp. finely ground espresso or instant espresso powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 cup miniature semisweet chocolate chips

Kerry Gold Irish Cream Glaze

2 cups powdered sugar

1/4 cup Kerry Gold Irish Cream

Preheat your oven to 375°F. Coat your doughnut pan with cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl stir together flour, brown sugar, cocoa powder, granulated sugar, espresso, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a medium bowl combine egg, milk, and melted butter. Add egg mixture all at once to flour mixture, stir just until smooth and then stir in chocolate chips.

Spoon batter into a ziplock bag and snip off one corner of the bag. Alternatively, you can use a pastry bag if you have one. Pipe batter into the doughnut pans, filling about half full. Bake for 6-8 minutes or until tops springs back when lightly touched. Cool in pan on a wire rack for 2 minutes. Invert pan to let the doughnuts drop out and let them cool completely on the wire rack.

To make the glaze stir together the powdered sugar and Kerry Gold Irish Cream. If the glaze is too thick add more Irish Cream until you have the desired consistency. Spoon or pour the glaze on top of doughnuts, allowing the excess to drip off. Leave doughnuts, glazed sides up, on wire racks until glaze is set.

If you’re not a fan of rich and decadent then these double chocolate Espresso Donuts with Irish Cream Glaze just aren’t for you. And that’s a crying shame, so don’t disappoint me. I hope you can find the time to make yourself a treat this weekend. If you do leave me an update in the comments below. Hopefully one day I’ll open that bakery but I think I might make it a retirement plan for when I want to wake up at 3 am to bake. For now, I will continue to be going to bed at that hour. xo

Chill Out with these Iced Coffee Recipes for Summer

June 19, 2018 by Natalie 1 Comment

Happy Tuesday everyone! Who needs a coffee? Definitely me! Is anyone else addicted to iced coffee in the Summer? Luckily I’m working with Nespresso for this next post and sharing two delicious iced coffee recipes. This Summer Nespresso is releasing a new line of iced espressos for their Vertuo System. The limited edition espressos are more concentrated and have been specifically designed to be poured over ice to deliver a refreshing beverage.

Mint + Vanilla Cafè Shakerato, makes 1 serving

1 Inspirazione Shakerato capsule

4 Nespresso ice cubes

1 tsp. mint/vanilla syrup*

*First, make your mint/vanilla syrup. Add 1 cup of water, 1 cup of sugar, 1 big bunch of mint, and 1 vanilla bean (scrape the inside) to a saucepan. Heat over medium heat, whisking constantly until the sugar dissolves. Simmer for about 10 minutes and then remove from heat and let completely cool. Strain out the mint and vanilla bean and store in a jar or bottle.

Extract 1.35 oz. coffee into a 12 0z. glass over Nespresso ice cubes. Add 1 tsp. (or more if desired) of mint vanilla syrup and shake or stir the drink. Garnish with a mint sprig. Adding Irish whiskey to this iced coffee is perfect for a summery Irish Coffee variation.

I was inspired by a classic Irish Coffee for the Mint + Vanilla Cafè Shakerato. Incorporating mint into this iced coffee by making a mint syrup turned out delicious and super refreshing. The vanilla adds a hint of sweetness and flavor that compliments the coffee perfectly. Making coffee cubes is easy. Just brew some coffee, pour it into an ice cube mold, and send it to the freezer. Coffee ice cubes keep your iced coffee cold and add more coffee instead of watering it down!

Island Coffee, makes 1 serving

1 Inspirazione Salentina capsule

4 Nespresso ice cubes

1 oz. dark rum

1 oz. coffee liqueur

2 tbsp. condensed coconut milk

Add Nespresso ice cubes to a glass and pour in the dark rum and coffee liqueur. Extract 1.35 oz. coffee on top. Next, add your condensed coconut cream and stir until incorporated. Garnish with coconut flakes and freshly grated nutmeg. For a booze-free version omit the rum and coffee liqueur.

Have you ever had a Vietnamese Iced Coffee before? They are delicious and are kind of my guilty pleasure. Usually, I’m strictly a black coffee drinker but adding condensed milk to iced coffee is so tasty! Instead of using regular sweetened condensed milk I bought condensed coconut milk. Using condensed coconut milk is the perfect way to add sweetness and a tropical element that makes this iced coffee super Summery. Bonus that it is also dairy-free which makes this iced coffee vegan as well!

The Vertuo System makes mornings so much easier when you can brew a cup for a quick fix. Before the VertuoPlus, I was making pour-over coffee — which I love — but it requires a lot of effort and time. Sometimes in the morning, I need a fast cup of coffee that still taste good so I can start tackling my emails and get to work! I’m honestly so impressed with the quality and flavor of the coffee and how this system brews. The possibilities are endless and it keeps stress levels low (which I need).

I love iced coffee and I’m so happy to be able to make it at home now. The great thing about both of these recipes is you can serve them with or without booze. That makes them appropriate for morning and if you need a pick me up at happy hour or after dinner, then add some spirit! I hope you will give both of these recipes a try and don’t forget to check out the VertuoLine system and you can purchase all your espressos here. Happy brewing!

This post is sponsored by Nespresso. All opinions expressed in the post are my own and not those of Nespresso. Thank you for reading the sponsored content that makes Arsenic-Lace possible!

Bake This: Bourbon Banana Bread

April 2, 2018 by Natalie Leave a Comment

I have been trying to make Bourbon Banana Bread all Winter long. Even though technically it is now Spring, it did snow this morning to my dismay. Boozy baked goods are still acceptable if it’s snowing right? I promise that adding bourbon to this banana bread recipe won’t make you drunk before noon, but it does add so much delicious flavor to both the bread and glaze.

Another reason it took me so long to make this recipe is every time I went to the supermarket they were out of bananas. I know it sounds strange, but it must have been the banana shortage of 2018. I even took photos and sent them to Ethan of empty spaces in the stores where bananas use to be. Like Gwen Stefani said, “This shit is bananas, B-A-N-A-N-A-S!”.

Bourbon Banana Bread

1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

1/2 cup dark brown sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

3 ripe bananas, mashed

2 tablespoons bourbon (I used Few)

1/2 cup sour cream

1 3/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

bourbon glaze

1 cup confectioner’s sugar

4 tbsp. bourbon

splash of milk to thin

Preheat the oven to 350°F and grease a loaf pan and line with parchment paper. In a large bowl of your electric stand mixer with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and sugar together. Add in the eggs and beat until combined. Stir in vanilla, mashed bananas, bourbon, and sour cream.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Gradually add dry ingredients to your wet ingredients and stir until just combined.

Pour batter into a greased loaf pan lined with parchment paper. I love to use parchment paper so that the bread is easily removable from the loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let bread cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and cool completely on rack.

Make the glaze while the bread is cooling. Stir together the sugar and bourbon, adding a touch of milk to thin to glaze consistency. Pour or spread the glaze on the cooled bread.

This is by far my favorite recipe for banana bread. Some recipes that I’ve tried in the past just don’t have enough banana in them. One or two just isn’t enough for me, I feel like adding a third is definitely the sweet spot. The other secret to making great banana bread is sour cream. Adding it produces a superior bread that is moist and delicious. Let’s talk about that bourbon glaze, which is so easy to make and delightfully boozy.

I’ll be making this Bourbon Banana Bread whenever I have too many bananas turning brown on my hands, which happens almost too often. Lately, I’ve been freezing them for smoothies too! I love the flavor the bourbon adds to this bread but you could also experiment with other spirits. Adding dark rum and coconut would be a great Summer variation. I guess maybe I have some experimenting to do. If you decide to make this Bourbon Banana Bread make sure you chime in on the comments below. I’d love to hear how it turns out. xo