Bakers Against Racism: Ukraine Edition

This weekend Katya and I are participating in Bakers Against Racism (@bakersagainstracism) the Ukraine Edition. I believe that we can always do something, so we are joining to support those affected by the move against the sovereign nation of Ukraine. Shout out to Paola Orquidea Velez (@smallorchids) and bakers against racism for bringing folks together to help those in need.

On March 5th and 6th, Katya (@katyatss) and I will be participating in a bake sale as a part of Bakers Against Racism’s #bakeforukraine initiative. We will be donating 50% of the proceeds to support Africans fleeing Ukraine via GoFundMe and 50% of the proceeds will go to Russians Supporting Ukraine via OVD-Info, an independent media project on human rights and political persecutions in Russia.

We will be selling chocolate chip cookies, khrustyky (Ukrainian fried cookies), and banana bread. Each bag will contain at least 3 cookies or 1 slice with a suggested donation of $5.

I wanted to share the recipes that we used as well for 2 reasons, so folks know what’s in it AND in case anyone wants to try at home.

I LOVE the DoubleTree Signature Cookie Recipe which makes 26 cookies
½ pound butter, softened (2 sticks)
¾ cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
¾ cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 ¼ teaspoons vanilla extract
¼ teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 ¼ cups flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch cinnamon
2 2/3 cups Nestle Tollhouse semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 3/4 cups chopped walnuts (we left these out for the bake sale)

Cream butter (½ pound, 2 sticks), sugar (¾ cup + 1 tablespoon) and brown sugar (¾ cup) in the bowl of a stand mixer on medium speed for about 2 minutes.

Add 2 eggs, vanilla (1 ¼ teaspoons) and lemon juice (¼ teaspoon), blending with mixer on low speed for 30 seconds, then medium speed for about 2 minutes, or until light and fluffy, scraping down bowl.

With mixer on low speed, add flour (2 ¼ cups), oats (1/2 cup), baking soda (1 teaspoon), salt (1 teaspoon) and a pinch of cinnamon, blending for about 45 seconds. Don’t overmix.

Remove bowl from mixer and stir in chocolate chips (2 2/3 cups) and walnuts (1 3/4 cups).

Portion dough with a scoop (about 3 tablespoons) onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper about 2 inches apart.

Preheat oven to 300°F. Bake for 20 to 23 minutes, or until edges are golden brown and center is still soft.

Remove from oven and cool on baking sheet for about 1 hour.

Cook’s note: You can freeze the unbaked cookies, and there’s no need to thaw. Preheat oven to 300°F and place frozen cookies on parchment paper-lined baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden brown and center is still soft.

For the Khrustyky (Ukrainian Fried Cookies), we used the following –

You will need:
1 tbsp whipping cream
1 tbsp white sugar
3 whole large eggs
3 egg yolks
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla (If you have a Bourbon version, use it)
2 cups flour
Icing sugar, for dusting

In a medium bowl, beat 3 eggs and 3 yolks together until light.
Add 1 tbsp sugar.
Add 1 tbsp whipping cream.
Add ½ tsp salt.
Finally add 1 tsp vanilla.
Mix well.
Stir in 1½ cup flour until dough is smooth.
Turn onto counter and knead.
Keep adding up to an additional ½ cup of flour while kneading until smooth and dough is soft and elastic.
You will most likely need all 2 cups, but use your judgment.
Cover and let stand in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
It’s important for the dough to be chilled as it’s easier to handle and make into loops.
Place dough on a floured surface.
We enough flour to ensure the dough doesn’t stick to the counter.
Roll dough very thin, about 1/4 – 1/8 of an inch.
Cut into long strips about 1.5 inches wide and 2 inches long.
Make slit into center of dough strip.
Open wide enough to loop one end through.
Pull one end through to form a loose loop.
Pull the other end through the loop as well.
Deep fry in oil that is heated to 350 F.
The Khrustyky should be golden brown and puffy.
Frying should take up to a minute or so.
Remove cookies from oil with a slotted spoon.
Your cookies should have at least doubled in size once fried.
Place on a baking sheet lined with paper towel and allow to cool completely.
Dust cookies with icing sugar.
There you have it – Ukrainian fried cookies.

Banana Bread
No need for a mixer for this recipe! Clean-up is easy too, if you want, you can mix everything in one mixing bowl. The best bananas to use for banana bread are those that are over-ripe. An 8 x 4-inch pan is recommended for this recipe.

Ingredients
2 to 3 medium (7″ to 7-7/8″ long) very ripe bananas, peeled (about 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups mashed)
1/3 cup (76g) butter, unsalted or salted, melted
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 pinch salt
3/4 cup (150g) sugar (1/2 cup if you would like it less sweet, 1 cup if more sweet)
1 large egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (205g) all-purpose flour

Method
Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C), and butter a 4 x 8-inch loaf pan.
In a mixing bowl, mash the 2-3 ripe bananas with a fork until completely smooth. Stir the 1/3 cup melted butter into the mashed bananas.
Mix in the 1/2 tsp baking soda and pinch of salt. Stir in the 3/4 cup sugar, 1 beaten egg, and 1 tsp vanilla extract. Mix in the 1 1/2 cups flour.
Pour the batter into your prepared loaf pan. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour at 350°F (175°C), or until a toothpick or wooden skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. A few dry crumbs are okay; streaks of wet batter are not. If the outside of the loaf is browned but the center is still wet, loosely tent the loaf with foil and continue baking until the loaf is fully baked.
Remove from oven and let cool in the pan for a few minutes. Then remove the banana bread from the pan and let cool completely before serving. Slice and serve. (A bread knife helps to make slices that aren’t crumbly.)
Wrapped well, the banana bread will keep at room temperature for 4 days. For longer storage, refrigerate the loaf up to 5 days, or freeze it.

Order here: https://forms.gle/WnnQ6tWLUwH1MzhY8
*Orders must be placed by 12 PM on Sunday March 6.
**Orders will be available to pick up at Avi8ted House (5419 1st St NW).
***Pickups will be on Saturday, March 5 and Sunday, March 6.
****Payment must be sent to Venmo to @Morgan-Fykes or to PayPal via morgan.fykes@gmail.com
#bakeforukraine#bakersagainstracism#istandwithukraine#standwithukraine