My Top 10 List!

As some of you may know, Dave Letterman holds a special place in my heart. Don’t worry I’m not one of those girls who digs really older men, there’s a good reason for it. Back when I was in college, I was a guest on Letterman. Yep, you read that right, a guest. And not just a stupid human tricks guest or something similar, an actual guest (Hubby was in the audience, and for those of you who we know in real life, I know you’ve seen him in his Letterman t-shirt!). Even before that day, I was always a fan. I had a great roommate who was OBSESSED and we would watch together. My favorite part was always the Top 10 list.
When I saw Cait’s Top 10 blogging event (check out her blog Food*Nerd), I knew it was something I wanted to participate in. This month the topic is Blog Envy: Top Ten Recipes You’ve Been Meaning to Make.
Basically you make a list of the top 10 recipes you’ve been saving and then you make one and blog about it! This is very time appropriate since our kitchen renovation just about finished up and I’ve been trying to figure out what to bake when I could get back in the kitchen. I had a really hard time coming up with a Top Ten List since there are so many great recipes out there I want to try. But here it is (in no particular order):
10. Rainier Cherry and Goats Cheese Pie from Peabody – I love goat cheese and this combo sounds awesome
9. Chocolate Bacon Cupcakes with Caramel Buttercream from Scrumptious Photography – I’ve been dying to try the chocolate/bacon combo – update: I made these cupcakes for a friend’s pirate party!!!

8. Fresh Strawberry Cake from A Good Appetite – Strawberries are in season and this cake looks awesome – update: I made this cake into cupcakes!!

7. Dorie’s Chipster-Topped Brownies from Engineer Baker – I’ll probably leave out the nuts and add ganache to the top like Bakerella did – update: I made these!!
6. Chocolate Goat Cheese Truffles from Divine Domesticity – I’m intrigued by this recipe…
5. Bagels from Smitten Kitchen – I’ve been wanting to make bagels for a while, but they kind of definitely intimidate me… – update: I used a different recipe, but I did make these Mini Whole Wheat Bagels

4. Choc-alot Cake from Confections of a Foodie Bride – You knew I was going to have a super chocolatey cake on here – update – I made this cake and it’s AMAZING!

3. Billy’s Vanilla Cupcakes from How to Eat a Cupcake – I’m still searching for the perfect vanilla cupcake… – update: I’ve found a go-to vanilla cupcake recipe, so I’m not going to be trying this one!!

2. White Cake with Fresh Strawberry Buttercream from Peabody – again, strawberries are in season and how awesome does this cake look?!?
1. Brownie Mosaic Cheesecake from Smitten Kitchen – Um, hello?!? Cheese cake, ganache, and brownies in one dessert – heaven! update – I made this cake with a winter twist – peppermint!! It was everything I hoped and dreamed it would be.Β

I had HIGH hopes of actually being able to make something off my top ten list by the end of the month. However, we had a mishap with the granite (um, they lost our order for over a week!?!) which set us back about a week. The good news is that on Thursday, I’ll be able to use the kitchen again!! It won’t be completely done, but very close. I’ve decided that the first thing I’m going to bake is going to be from this list… now which one should I make… I’ll post as soon as I make it!






I am Jen the Beantown Baker. Engineer by day and baking maven by night. Hubby serves as my #1 fan and official taste tester. We got hitched back in 2006. Barefoot. In the sand. With the waves crashing behind us. It was one of the best decisions weβve ever made. 






Oh these look so yummy! Love the crackly looking top.
They look soooo good! Thanks for the tip about the sweetness factor…I love having a little bite of something completely decadent!
AH…these look heavenly….mmm…thanks for sharing! π
Wow, those look great! I love those
I’m not sure it is possible to be “too sweet” but these look very good!
These looks so good! Can’t wait to try!
I’m not crazy about marshmallows, but these brownies look amazing!!
“nice and thick”… wow, you aren’t kidding. that was a bold move switching the pan though. glad it worked out in the end.
MMMMMMM those sound awesome!!
oh my word! those look delicious!
I can’t stop looking at your picture. I think that means I need to make these brownies. I’m not sure if I should thank you for shake my fist at you π
Blaspemy!! Nothing is TOO sweet π
I love these! Might give em a go when a occasion comes up π
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These look awesome! I would love to have one of these sitting in my kitchen right now π
These look AMAZING! I feel like I need to go to the gym just looking at them. π
These look delicious! I love anything with marshmallows!
I wish I could reach through the computer and grab these! They look awesome!!
I make something similar but cheat and use a boxed brownie mix. The frosting I use doesn’t have marshmallows in it which helps with the sweet factor.
That’s a great idea baking these in a smaller pan. I would prefer the brownie part a bit thicker.
~ingrid
Um…I guess I didn’t let my icing cool enough and it melted the marshmallow completely…it looked like Mt. Vesuvius erupted on my counter ha ha! I wish I could post a picture! They still tasted yummy though =)
I made these, but the chocolate topping turned out not great, not dissolved and gritty. – I think you mean “icing sugar” don’t you, when you say sugar for the frosting?
beantownbaker — April 18th, 2013 @ 11:28 am
I used granulated sugar for the frosting. When it is cooking on the stove, it should completely dissolve the sugar.