Thursday, February 25, 2021

Buffalo Chicken Chili and Cornbread with Hot Honey Butter

This is a sponsored post by Challenge butter, but the text and opinions are all mine. Thank you for supporting brands that make Kylee's Kitchen possible.

Buffalo chicken chili is incredibly flavorful and creamy. It's the dinner version of everyone's favorite buffalo chicken dip. It's a white chili, meaning it has white beans, fewer tomatoes, and white protein (in this case it's chicken). I used three types of beans because I like the variety, but you can use only one type or reduce the number of beans if you have issues digesting them.

The spiciness level of the chili is up to you. I used 1 cup of Frank's RedHot Buffalo Wing Sauce because I like a lot of heat, but I suggest you start out with 1/4 cup, and you can always add more at the end if you want it spicier.

It's very important to wait to add the cream cheese until the end, and make sure the cream cheese is softened to room temperature and cut into cubes. It should easily melt into the chili. If you have issues with unmelted chunks of cream cheese in your chili, it's probably because it wasn't softened when you added it. Even though the chili has cream cheese in it, it’s totally fine to reheat it. Just be careful to heat it on low and do not let it boil.

I used Challenge cream cheese because Challenge prides itself on its fresh products and only uses real milk, cream, and natural ingredients for a pure, superior taste.

Make sure to check out my Ultimate Soup Guide for tips on making the most flavorful soups.

Buffalo Chicken Chili

Yield: 4 quarts

Ingredients

  • 1 Tablespoon oil
  • 12 ounces onion, small dice
  • 6 ounces carrot, small dice
  • 6 ounces celery, small dice
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 Tablespoon smoked paprika
  • 1 Tablespoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
  • 2 pounds chicken breast
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • 1 (15.5-ounce) can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (15.5-ounce) can great northern beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (15.5-ounce) can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 (14.5-ounce) can fire roasted tomatoes, not drained
  • 1/2 to 1 cup buffalo sauce (depending on spice level preference, I use 1 cup)
  • 4 ounces Challenge cream cheese, room temperature and cut into cubes
  • Optional toppings: Blue cheese crumbles, green onions, tortilla chips

Directions for stovetop

  1. Add oil to large pot or dutch oven, and turn to medium heat. Add onion, carrot, and celery to pot and sweat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they soften.
  2. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute, or until fragrant.
  3. Add chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper to pot. Mix with mirepoix until combined.
  4. Add chicken, chicken stock, cannellini beans, great northern beans, pinto beans, fire roasted tomatoes, and buffalo sauce to pot and stir.
  5. Bring soup to boil and reduce to simmer. Continue to simmer until chicken is cooked through, about 30 to 45 minutes.
  6. Use 2 forks to shred chicken. It should shred very easily.
  7. Add cream cheese and stir until melted and blended in.
  8. Serve soup in bowls with blue cheese and green onion.

Directions for Instant Pot

  1. Add oil to Instant Pot and turn on sauté setting. Add onion, carrot, and celery to pot and sweat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they soften.
  2. Add garlic and saute for 1 minute, or until fragrant.
  3. Turn off saute setting and add chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper to pot. Mix with mirepoix until combined.
  4. Add chicken, chicken stock, cannellini beans, great northern beans, pinto beans, fire roasted tomatoes, and buffalo sauce to Instant Pot and stir.
  5. Cook on high pressure for 20 minutes. After it is done, quick release the pressure.
  6. Use 2 forks to shred the chicken. It should shred very easily.
  7. Add cream cheese and stir until melted and blended in.
  8. Serve soup in bowls with blue cheese and green onion.

Directions for slow cooker

  1. On stovetop, heat oil in pan and sweat onion, carrot, and celery to pot and sweat for 2 to 3 minutes, or until they soften. Add garlic and saute 1 minute.
  2. Transfer veggies to large slow cooker. Add chili powder, smoked paprika, cumin, salt, and pepper to pot. Mix with mirepoix until combined.
  3. Add chicken, chicken stock, cannellini beans, great northern beans, pinto beans, fire roasted tomatoes, and buffalo sauce to slow cooker and stir.
  4. Cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 2.5 to 3 hours.
  5. Open lid to slow cooker and shred chicken with 2 forks. Add cream cheese and stir until melted and blended in.
  6. Serve soup in bowls with blue cheese and green onion.

Cornbread with hot honey butter

Yield: 9 servings

Ingredients for the cornbread

  • 1/2 cup unsalted Challenge butter
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 cup cornmeal
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour 
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Ingredients for the hot honey butter

  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1/2 Tablespoon hot sauce
  • 1/2 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup Challenge unsalted butter, softened to room temperature

Directions for cornbread

  1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place butter in 8x8-inch baking dish and move to oven.
  2. Cook until milk fat in butter browns, about 15 minutes.
  3. Remove from oven and allow to cool for 15 minutes. 
  4. Stir in honey, brown sugar, and egg. Add buttermilk last.
  5. Whisk in cornmeal, all-purpose flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  6. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Set aside to cool

Directions for hot honey butter

  1. Add all ingredients except butter to small saucepan on stove over medium heat.
  2. Allow mixture to come to a boil. Once it reaches a boil, allow it to continue boiling for 3 minutes, stirring frequently.
  3. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
  4. Once cool, mix with softened butter.
  5. Slice up cornbread and serve it with hot honey butter. Store leftover butter in refrigerator.





Tuesday, February 16, 2021

Quick trip to Michigan

This past weekend, my husband and I packed our bags and left Indianapolis for the first time since last year for a cross-country skiing adventure on Mackinac Island.

Mackinac Island holds a very special place in our hearts. I've visited the island every year my entire life, William proposed to me on Mackinac Island, and we got married there.

Unfortunately, Mother Nature didn't want us to visit the island. It's only accessible by ferry or by air taxi. Lake Huron is frozen, so the ferries aren't running. We booked an air taxi, but right before takeoff, the pilots determined it wasn't safe to fly. They canceled all flights the following day as well.

The trek to the Straits of Mackinac wasn't a total bust because we experienced the spectacular blue ice on the lakeshore. Apparently, this natural phenomenon occurs in extremely cold temperatures when the lake freezes. The ice shards were 10 to 15 feet tall in some places.

After taking photos of the blue ice, we searched for a place to stay the night, which was easier said than done. It was Valentine's Day weekend, and apparently northern Michigan is a very popular destination. We finally found a hotel with one available room for one night in Petoskey.

Petoskey was a cute little community with a variety of locally owned shops and restaurants in the downtown area. We had a delicious meal inside an igloo at Palette Bistro, which was just a short walk from our hotel. We shared mussels, lamb, and duck. Everything was cooked to perfection and very flavorful. I highly recommend eating there if you're in the area. Dress warm if you plan to dine in an igloo. I wore several layers and my long winter coat plus a hat and scarf, and I was comfortable. I would have been cold had I not dressed warm, though.





The following morning we woke up early to use our cross-country skis at Petoskey State Park. The park isn't very large and there were no groomed trails, but that was okay with us. We're beginners, and we were just happy no one was around to watch us.

After skiing, we took a detour to Dearborn, Michigan for some incredible Middle Eastern food before returning home. The area has one of the largest Middle Eastern immigrant populations in the country, so it's guaranteed you'll find great food. We ate at Al-Ameer Restaurant, which (I didn't realize at the time I chose it) is a James Beard award-winning restaurant. We ordered the appetizer combo and the Al-Ameer platter, and it was SO MUCH FOOD. We had plenty to take home for dinner the following night. All the meats were so flavorful and moist, and the basket of pita was warm and fluffy. It was all outstanding.





Even though it certainly wasn't the weekend getaway we planned on Mackinac Island, we still had a great time together!

Monday, February 15, 2021

The ultimate soup guide

I've always loved soup. It's my favorite comfort food. I love that it can be made with the finest, most expensive ingredients or last night's leftovers. 

Since I started culinary school, I appreciate it even more. I spent five hours every day for half a semester taking a class called Soups, Stocks, and Sauces. I learned the variety of ingredients, seasonings, and garnishes for soups is endless. 

I've been making "good soup" for years, but even I was surprised by how much better the soup I make now tastes after learning so much about it in school.

That said, I wanted to share my soup knowledge with you all. If you've ever wondered why restaurant soups taste so much better than the soups you make at home, this post is for you. 

Stock vs. broth

Stock and broth are very similar, but they are not the same. Stock is made by simmering bones, mirepoix (onion, celery, and carrots), and sachet d'épices (herbs / aromatics) in water for upwards of 6 to 8 hours. As the bones simmer, they release collagen and gelatin into the liquid, and it develops body and flavor. It isn't seasoned. 

Broth is made with meat, not just bones. The meat can still be attached to the bones, but it doesn't have to be. It is also made with mirepoix and sachet d'épices, but it is simmered for significantly less time—only about 2 hours. You can make broth with stock or with water. If you make it with water, it will be a lot thinner and it won't have as much body and depth of flavor. This is because there isn't enough time for the bones to release their collagen and gelatin. 

Also, broth is seasoned, and stock isn't. So broth is tasty by itself, whereas stock is not. Because stock isn't seasoned, it makes a better base for soups and sauces. 

In class, we made stock every day. We made white stock, brown stock, fish stock, and vegetable stock. If you want to make stock at home, you can save leftover bones in your freezer or you can purchase bones from a butcher. This may sound odd, but if you want to make the best stock, use chicken feet. They're very gelatinous. If you're in the Indianapolis area, I've seen them for sale at Asia Mart, which is an Asian grocery store on East 86th Street in the Castleton area.

If you prefer to buy stock, purchase a high-quality, low-sodium stock like Kitchen Basics or Swanson.

At first glance, the recipes for white stock, brown stock, fish stock, and vegetable stock look nearly the same, but there are a few big differences. I will include the stock recipes at the end of this post.

Mirepoix 

Pronounced meer-pwah, mirepoix is crucial for flavoring soups, stews, sauces, braised dishes, etc. When in doubt, start with mirepoix. Mirepoix is a mixture of 50% onions, 25% carrots, and 25% celery by weight. So if your soup has 8 ounces of onions, it should have 4 ounces of carrots and 4 ounces of celery. 

I get so incredibly frustrated with most recipes online because the measurements aren't listed by weight. Instead, it's written as 1 carrot, 1/2 diced onion, 2 stalks celery, etc. But vegetables come in all sizes, and your onion may weigh 12 ounces, whereas my onion weighs 6 ounces. So the only way to get consistent results is to measure ingredients by weight. That is why all of my recipes show ingredients' weights. The best thing you can do for yourself is get a scale to measure the weight of your ingredients! I own the Ozeri Pronto Digital Multifunction Kitchen and Food Scale. It's less than $12, and it works great.

Caramelizing vs. sweating

Before you add liquid to your soup or stock, you must sweat or caramelize the mirepoix. This is the first step in building the flavors of a dish.

To sweat mirepoix, cook it in a pot over low heat with butter or oil until everything softens and releases moisture. This helps to concentrate flavor. The flavor remains concentrated even when you add liquid to the pot later. No browning occurs when you sweat mirepoix. The flavor profile of the vegetables will not change.

As you probably guessed, when we caramelize mirepoix, we brown (but NOT burn) the mirepoix. When we do this, the "maillard reaction" occurs. When mirepoix is heated to 250 degrees Fahrenheit and above, the sugar breaks down and caramelizes. The sweetness of the vegetables deepens and intensifies, and the flavor profile changes.

To caramelize mirepoix, cook just the onions and carrots over medium low heat with butter or oil. As the vegetables cook, they will soften and release moisture. Once the moisture evaporates, the onions and carrots will start to caramelize. Make sure to stir every so often so it doesn't burn. When the onions and carrots are evenly brown, add the celery. Celery doesn't brown in the same way that onions and carrots do. Celery is low in sugar and has a lot of moisture, which can prevent the onions and carrots from adequately caramelizing. That's why it's added last. Once the celery softens, add your liquid to the pot.

We decide whether to sweat or caramelize mirepoix depending on whether we want the sweeter flavor. In my experience, it seems best to sweat mirepoix in recipes with white stock and caramelize mirepoix in recipes with brown stock, but this is not a rule of thumb.

Thickening agents

Soups can be thickened any number of ways. Traditionally, there are two kinds of thick soups: cream soups and purée soups. Generally, cream soups are thickened with a roux or other starch, whereas purée soups rely on a purée of the main ingredient for thickening.

A roux is equal parts by weight fat and flour. A roux is a good thickening agent because the starches in the flour expand to absorb the liquid. Gluten-free flours don't work well when making a roux because they don't have the same starches that flour with gluten has.

There are two ways to incorporate roux into a liquid without causing lumps: cold stock can be added to a hot roux while whisking vigorously, or room-temperature roux can be added to a hot stock while swhile whisking vigorously.

Cornstarch is a gluten-free thickening agent. Use it to make a slurry by whisking a tablespoon of stock into a tablespoon of cornstarch in a separate bowl and thoroughly mixing until there are no lumps. Then slowly pour the slurry into the stockpot. This is not a good thickening agent to use if you plan to freeze the soup.

Using heavy cream to finish a soup is another easy way to thicken it, however, it isn't the healthiest option.

Two other thickening agents I like to use that are healthier are cashew cream and pureed cauliflower. Make cashew cream by soaking 1 cup of raw, unsalted cashews in water overnight or at least 6 hours. Drain the cashews and dump them in the basin of a high-powered blender or food processor with 1 cup water. Blend on high until very smooth.

For pureed cauliflower, cut the florets from a head and boil them until they're very tender, or about 20 minutes. Transfer the cauliflower to the basin of a high-powered blender or food processor and blend on high until it's very smooth.

For both the cashew cream and the pureed cauliflower, stir them in the soup when it's almost done.

Boiling vs. simmering

This may seem like a no-brainer, but I think there is a common misconception as to what constitutes simmering versus boiling. 

When a recipe wants you to simmer the soup, it means cook the soup over medium-low heat as small bubbles and gently break the surface every once in a while. Boiling is done over high heat. You'll see lots of big bubbles over the surface of the soup.

You may be wondering why a lot of recipes ask you to "bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer." The answer is twofold: First, it can take a lot of time for soup to reach a simmer at medium-low heat, and second, you can control the temperature of your soup better if you know what its boiling point is.

Most of the time, it's best to cook your soup over a simmer. If you cook it at a boil, the ingredients in the soup will jostle around too much and break apart. Also, too much liquid will evaporate before the flavor can develop.

Sachet d’epices

Sachet d’epices is herbs and seasonings tied together with twine in cheesecloth. It's used to add flavor to soups, stocks and sauces. A standard sachet consists of peppercorns, bay leaves, parsley stems, thyme, cloves, and garlic. The amount of liquid determines the exact quantity of each ingredient.

Spices vs. fresh herbs vs. dried herbs

It is best to add spices and dried herbs to your soup toward the beginning so the flavor has time to develop and infuse the soup. I like to saute the spices and dried herbs with the other ingredients for about 30 seconds before adding the liquid. Stir fresh herbs into the soup right before serving it to maximize flavor. If you add fresh herbs too soon, the flavor will be subdued, and you'll lose all benefits of using fresh herbs.

If you need to substitute dried herbs for fresh herbs, use half the amount in the recipe. For example, if a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, use 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme. This is because dried herbs have a much more concentrated flavor.

White stock

Yield: 1 gallon

Ingredients

  • 1 pound mirepoix, small dice (8 ounces onion, 4 ounces carrot, 4 ounces celery)
  • 7.5 pounds chicken bones, rinsed and cut into 3 to 4-inch pieces
  • 1.5 gallons cold water
  • 1 Sachet d’epices (1 bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/4 teaspoon crushed peppercorns, 4 parsley stems)

Equipment needed:

  • Large stockpot
  • Ladle
  • Strainer
  • Cheesecloth

Directions

  1. Place the mirepoix in a stockpot and sweat until onion is soft and translucent.
  2. Add bones to stockpot and cover them with cold water. No bones should be above the surface of the water.
  3. Bring the water to a boil, skimming off the scum that rises to the surface. 
  4. Reduce to a simmer and add sachet to simmering stock.
  5. Continue simmering stock and skimming scum for 4 to 6 hours.
  6. Strain stock with strainer lined with cheesecloth. Cool stock and refrigerate or freeze it.

Brown stock

Ingredients

  • 7.5 pounds bones, veal or beef, rinsed and cut into 3 to 4-inch pieces
  • 1.5 gallons cold water
  • 1 pound mirepoix, small dice (8 ounces onion, 4 ounces carrot, 4 ounces celery)
  • 1 Sachet d’epices (1 bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/4 teaspoon crushed peppercorns, 2 crsuhed garlic cloves, 6 parsley stems)
  • 4 ounces tomato paste

Equipment needed:

  • Roasting pan
  • Large stockpot
  • Ladle
  • Strainer
  • Cheesecloth

Directions

  1. Place bones in roasting pan, one layer deep, and caramelize them in a 375°F oven for about 1 hour. Turn the bones occasionally to brown them evenly.
  2. Remove bones and place in stockpot. Pour off the fat from the roasting pan and reserve it.
  3. Deglaze the roasting pan with part of the cold water.
  4. Add the deglazing liquor and the rest of the cold water to the bones, covering them completely. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
  5. Add portion of reserved fat to roasting pan and sauté mirepoix until evenly caramelized. Add the tomato paste and continue cooking until the tomato paste and mirepoix are a deep brown color. Add the mixture to the simmering stock.
  6. Add the sachet to the stock and continue to simmer for 4 to 6 hours, skimming as necessary. Strain stock with strainer lined with cheesecloth.
  7. Cool stock and refrigerate or freeze it.

Vegetable stock

Yield: 1 gallon

Ingredients

  • 2 fluid ounces vegetable oil
  • 2 pounds mirepoix, small dice (16 ounces onion, 8 ounces carrot, 8 ounces celery)
  • 1/2 pounds leeks, white and green parts, chopped
  • 4 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 4 ounces fennel, small dice
  • 2 ounces turnip, diced
  • 2 ounces tomato, diced
  • 1 cup white wine
  • 7.5 pounds chicken bones, rinsed and cut into 3 to 4-inch pieces
  • 1.5 gallons cold water
  • 1 Sachet d’epices (1 bay leaf, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/2 teaspoon crushed peppercorns, 8 parsley stems)

Equipment needed:

  • Large stockpot
  • Ladle
  • Strainer
  • Cheesecloth

Directions

  1. Heat oil in large stockpot. Add mirepoix, leek, garlic, fennel, turnip and tomato, and sweat for 10 minutes.
  2. Add wine, water and sachet. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 45 minutes, skimming stock if necessary.
  3. Strain stock with strainer lined with cheesecloth. Cool stock and refrigerate or freeze it.

Fish stock

Yield: 1 gallon

Ingredients

  • 2 fluid ounces clarified butter
  • 1 pound mirepoix, small dice (8 ounces onion, 4 ounces carrot, 4 ounces celery)
  • 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
  • 10 pounds fish bones or crustacean shells
  • 5 quarts water
  • 1 Sachet d’epices (2 bay leaves, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, 1/4 teaspoon crushed peppercorns, 4 parsley stems)

Equipment needed:

  • Large stockpot
  • Ladle
  • Strainer
  • Cheesecloth

Directions

  1. Sweat mirepoix in butter in large stockpot until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.
  2. Add mushrooms, fish bones, and water to stockpot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook for 45 minutes, skimming stock if necessary.
  3. Strain stock with strainer lined with cheesecloth. Cool stock and refrigerate or freeze it.

Wednesday, February 10, 2021

Heart-shaped cinnamon pecan coffee cake


This is a sponsored post by Challenge, but the text and opinions are all mine. Thank you for supporting brands that make Kylee's Kitchen possible!

Going out for dinner on Valentine’s Day is always a big deal, but you may want to consider kicking off the holiday with a special breakfast, especially since it's on a Sunday this year. One of my favorite traditions growing up was a special Valentine's Day breakfast. My mom always made heart-shaped pancakes for my dad and me. It made me feel really special, and I looked forward to Valentine's Day every year. It was the inspiration behind this heart-shaped coffee cake.

Coffee cakes were a big deal on my dad's side of the family. My grandpa would always order them for the holidays, and they were at the center of every family reunion. That being said, I wanted to make a special coffee cake for Valentine's Day, but because I love following a theme, I wanted to make it in the shape of a heart.


The first step when making this coffee cake was deciding what I wanted for the base of the cake. I experimented with a classic yeast dinner roll recipe that I learned in culinary school; I experimented with sweet dough that I purchased from the grocery store (this one is great!); and I experimented with puff pastry. They all worked really well, so use whichever one you prefer.

The second thing I needed to decide was what I wanted for the filling. I like classic cinnamon-sugar and pecan coffee cake, but I've also tried cherry cheesecake with cherry pie filling and sweetened cream cheese. I think Nutella would be really tasty too.


I used Challenge unsalted butter in the filling because their product is 100% natural without the use of the synthetic hormone rBST. You can smell the difference as soon as you unwrap a stick.

There are a couple different methods for making the dough look like a heart, I experimented with this one from The Bread Monk and this one from The Proper Binge Blog. I decided the second one is my favorite. It involves rolling the dough up jellyroll-style, folding the dough, making a cut through the fold, and fanning out the two heart lobes. The key is you need to fan the lobes out farther than what you would think for a normal heart shape because the dough expands while it bakes, and you don't want one big blob.



After baking the coffee cake and letting it cool a bit, I poured a simple glaze over it—just powdered sugar, milk, and maple extract. Using vanilla extract or almond extract in the glaze would also be tasty, or you could make caramel or butterscotch icing, or even a cream cheese frosting would work well, too.

Cake for breakfast is always a good idea, and this heart-shaped coffee cake on Valentine's Day morning will surely become your new favorite tradition.


Heart-shaped cinnamon pecan coffee cake

Ingredients

For the filling

  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup Challenge unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/4 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped

For the dough

  • 14 grams active dry yeast
  • 6 ounces water
  • 11 ounces all-purpose flour
  • 7 grams salt
  • 1 ounce granulated sugar
  • 14 grams nonfat dry milk powder
  • 1 ounce Challenge unsalted butter
  • 1 small egg

Or

Or

  • 1 sheet puff pastry, thawed

For the glaze

  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 Tablespoon milk
  • 1/2 teaspoon maple extract or vanilla extract

Directions

For the filling

  1. Mix brown sugar, granulated sugar, cinnamon, and salt together in medium bowl. 
  2. Stir in melted butter and pecans. Set aside.

For the dough (skip to number 9 if you don’t need to make dough)

  1. Dissolve yeast in water in bowl. 
  2. Combine flour, salt, sugar, milk powder, 
  3. shortening, butter and eggs in bowl of mixer fitted with a dough hook.
  4. Add the water/yeast mixture; stir to combine.
  5. Knead on medium speed 10 minutes.
  6. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl; cover and place in a warm spot. Bulk 
  7. ferment until it doubles, approximately 1 hour.
  8. Punch down dough. Let it rest a few minutes to allow the gluten to relax.
  9. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
  10. Roll dough into rectangle, approximately 10” x 12”
  11. Sprinkle filling across surface of dough, leaving a 1-inch border around edges.
  12. Roll the dough jellyroll-style into a log.
  13. Fold the dough in half on top of itself. The fold should be facing you.
  14. Cut through the middle of the dough, both the top and bottom layers, stopping about 2 inches from the cut ends. 
  15. Move dough to baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Open up the cut ends and lay them flat so it looks like a heart shape. You’ll want to pull the two top lobes out farther than you think because they’ll spread when they bake.
  16. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until it’s lightly browned and dough is cooked through.

For the glaze

  1. While coffee cake is cooling, whisk together powdered sugar and cinnamon. Pour in milk and maple extract or vanilla extract and whisk until smooth.
  2. Pour glaze over coffee cake. Sprinkle with additional toasted pecans if desired.
 

Roll out dough and add filling on top, leaving 1-inch border around edges. Roll up dough like jellyroll.


Fold dough in half. Make cut down center of fold, stopping 1-2 inches from end. 
Fan out cut sides so it looks like a heart and pinch bottom portion so it comes to a point.




Pin It button on image hover