A New Creation

Jalapeno and Bacon Stuffed Mushrooms

2011-12-19T14:12:00.000-08:00

In my early teen years, my mom co-owned a restaurant called Perroni's. It was an Italian bar & grill type of place that had several appetizers which were irresistible to my 13 year old self. Dishes like garlic cheese bread with marinara on the side for dipping. I used to go into the kitchen and make a batch for myself, watching the cheese melt, bubble and brown as it went down the conveyor belt of the pizza oven. Every time I ate it I would think to myself, “I could live on this for the rest of my life.” I still actually feel that way.

The menu also had a sautéed mushroom appetizer that was pretty darn good. I don’t know exactly how they were prepared, but I do know it involved a lot of garlic and a lot of butter. These stuffed mushrooms taste a lot like those did, but are a bit more complex. Spicy and creamy, salty and crunchy, I feel like they are the sophisticated older brother of the sautéed ones from Perroni’s.

I made these over the weekend where we did my side of the family’s Christmas celebration and they were a hit. My step dad thought they were too spicy, so you can leave out the jalapeno seeds if you are spice sensitive. I really liked the heat, though.

Ingredients:
12 whole mushrooms, Large
¼ cups Panko bread crumbs
1 Tbs butter
3 slices thick cut bacon cut into lardons
1 whole jalapeno, minced
¼ cups diced yellow onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 oz. cream cheese
2 oz. cheddar cheese
¼ teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoons fresh ground pepper

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs with the melted butter. Toss until evenly coated. Set aside.

Carefully clean and stem the mushrooms. Set the caps on a small baking sheet. Chop the stems and set aside.

In a small pan over medium heat, cook the bacon until crisp. Add the onion and garlic and saute until fragrant. Then add the jalapeno and mushroom stems and cook until softened, about five minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a medium bowl, mix the shredded cheese with the cream cheese until well combined. Add the bacon mixture and mix well.

Spoon the filling into the mushrooms caps and top with the buttered panko mixture.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until the mushrooms are tender and the topping is golden brown.

**You can prep these ahead of time by stemming the mushrooms and preparing the stuffing mixture. Refrigerating the mushroom caps separate from the mixture until ready to use. Make the bread crumb topping right before assembly.

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!

Crafty Holiday Garland

2011-12-02T12:30:00.000-08:00

I am reeeeeeally bad when it comes to Christmas decorations. After college when I lived with my sister, she would always go out and get a Christmas tree and hang all of her ornaments with care. I was just never that into it. It's not that I don't like them... I absolutely love the holiday feel the house takes on immediately upon plugging in the lights on a tree. But after I moved out and into my own place, I never got a tree of my own. I never put out any decorations except a single strand of white lights in my palm tree and a little nativity scene my mom got for me. I just wasn't into it.

But this year will be different.

This year we are going to get a Chritmas Tree. We ordered Stockings from Pottery Barn with our names embroidered on them. I am going to build up my collection of ornaments, tabletop Santa stuff and cinnamon scented pine cones.

Our house will feel like Christmas this year.

The inspiration for this garland came from Pinterest (surprised?) Here is the site where I found the tutorial. She does a really good job of explaining it.

I got all of the paper in the scrapbooking section at Michael's and used a Fiskars circular punch to get perfectly round discs. You need about 7 circles per piece.

Fold each circle in half like a taco with the patterned side you want to show on the inside. Start to glue them together, attaching the wrong sides together. I started to use hot glue, but found it to be a little bulky. Keep gluing one half to the next until you have 7 and it looks like a little book. Put a line of glue down the"spine" of your little book and attach it to your twine or ribbon. Glue the last 2 sides together to secure to the twine.

String this baby up wherever you need a little bit of Christmas cheer!

Cinnamon Pumpkin Smoothie

2011-12-01T11:36:00.000-08:00

It's not often that I get to have in-person conversations with fellow bloggers. I never really get to talk to people about what motivates them to write in such a public way. I know everyone has an "About Me" section, but I think it goes without saying that there is way more to a person than a two line biography. Something that has been on my mind lately is this: when people take breaks from blogging or have gaps of time where they don't post anything... what is the reason? I know life can take over, people go on vacations, have babies, come down with illnesses etc. but I would love to hear if anyone else is like me...

simply unmotivated at times.

This morning I woke up to fall leaves everywhere. We had quite the blustery wind storm come through last night. It blew away all of the fog that has been lingering around here lately and left nothing but golden sunshine and... leaves. Everywhere. I snapped this picture walking to my car on the way to work. The leaves where almost completely covering the sidewalk right here. I think I've said it before, but my favorite days are the ones in the fall or winter when the air is crisp and cold and the sun is shining warm on your face. It's such a refreshing and energizing feeling. Inspiring, really.

So what to post about other than the weather? This smoothie. I have made it twice now, yesterday and today. Smoothie's for breakfast are perfect, but not really ideal for winter. But for some reason, probably the spicy pumpkin flavor, this one hits the spot.

I found a recipe via Pinterest and decided to make my own version. I blended up the following:

5-10 ice cubes
1 cup unsweetened almond milk
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
1/2 of a frozen banana (i peel a banana, break it in half and put it in a ziplock in the freezer)
1 scoop vanilla protein powder
a squirt of Agave nectar
dash each of cinnamon, nutmeg and clove

Here is the original recipe so you can see what other variations are possible.

I put in in one of those insulated reusable cups that are starting to pop up everywhere and took it as my breakfast on the run. It protects against frozen fingers.

Some healthy nutrition facts about these ingredients:

Pumpkin is a great source of fiber, Vitamin A, C, E as well as Zinc. It is also high in carotenoids which assist in staving off the free radicals in the body and help in preventing premature aging, cardiovascular diseases and other infections.
Greek yogurt has about 20 grams of protein per cup which help to keep you feeling full longer. It is a great non-meat source of protein.
Bananas contain potassium and B6 and are fat free, cholesterol free and sodium-free.
Almond Milk had only unsaturated fat which is great for people who need a heart-healthy diet. It also contains omega-3 fatty acids which are known to lower bad cholesterol, improve mood, treat arthritis and enhance memory.
Cinnamon is like a wonder spice. Listen to all this: It contains manganese, fiber, iron, and calcium. It also has anti-inflammatory properties which protect against heart disease. Studies have shown it may significantly help people with type 2 diabetes improve their ability to respond to insulin, thus normalizing blood sugar levels. It also may significantly lower LDL “bad” cholesterol, total cholesterol and triglycerides. The fiber and Calcium it contains have been known to bind to bile and remove it from the body which can prevent damage that certain bile salts can cause to colon cells, thereby reducing the risk of colon cancer! Just smelling this wonderful spice can help improve brain function! Amazing, isn't it!?

Speaking of motivation, just doing a little reaearch and discovering all of the amazing things that healthful food choices can do for the body seriously motivates me to make better food choices. I am all for indulging during the holidays, but it also feels really good to nourish my body with food.

I hope everyone else is enjoying the weather and the amazing fruits and veggies that winter has to offer.

Orange Balsamic Glazed Chicken

2011-10-18T12:49:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was seriously craving Orange Chicken. Which is sort of weird, because I am not normally a huge fan of Chinese food. My husband loves it, and when I'm not around to cook he will usually have Pearl River delivered so he can get his Chinese fix. But yesterday, I felt like Orange Chicken and I felt like making it from scratch.

In my usual fashion, I was daydreaming about dinner while at work and did a search for Orange Chicken. I found several recipes and then decided to make a sort of Frankenstein recipe. I basically took a Rachael Ray recipe and made a couple of changes based on other ones and a couple of the reviewers ssuggestions.

This one is from 30 Minute Meals, so it is a quick and easy weeknight dinner. I think Scott was really impressed / intrigued that I was attempting to make it from scratch. (Or from "scraps" as he used to say when he was little).

Here is what you'll need to make 3 servings (or 4 light servings)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 boneless skinless chicken breast
2 boneless skinless thighs
Salt and pepper
1 tsp poultry seasoning
3 tbsp all purpose flour, divided

2 sprigs fresh rosemary, chopped (or about 1/2 tsp dried)
1 tbsp butter
1/3 cup orange marmalade
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup chicken stock
2 tbsp honey
a Squeeze of lemon juice
2 scallions, whites and greens, finely chopped

Directions:

In a large pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high to high heat. Chop the chicken into bite sized pieces, season with salt, pepper and poultry seasoning. Then coat with 2 tbsp of flour and shake off the excess.

When the oil is hot and ripples, add the chicken and brown for 5 minutes, then turn and sprinkle with rosemary. Cook until the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Set aside on a plate.

In a 2 cup measuring cup, stir together the marmalade, vinegar and stock. Put the butter into the wok to melt, then sprinkle the last tbsp of flour to make a roux. Once it bubbles a bit, add the stock mixture. Whisk for 2 to 3 minutes or until the sauce has thickened and becomes a thin glaze. Stir in the honey and lemon juice and whick until blended.

Garnish with green onion. Serve with brown or white rice and a green veggie like zucchini or broccoli. Rachael ray says to top it with Arugula, which I am sure would be good, too.

I would advise that this be eaten up the night you make it. The leftovers weren't as good, in my opinion... but if you like re-heated chinese food, then I'm sure this will be perfect for you.

Skinny Sesame Peanut Noodles

2011-10-15T11:48:00.000-07:00

Here is another delicious recipe from Cook Yourself Thin, my go-to low calorie cookbook. These Asian inspired noodles are cool and refreshing with layers of flavor from some peanut butter, fresh ginger and sesame oil. It also has a great balance of textures: you get the silkiness of the dressing and soft noodles plus a kicky crunch from the peppers, apple and jicama.

I debated reporting about this recipe on the blog. These noodles were super tasty and received rave reviews from my friends who ate it, but it was a little time consuming and I felt like it dirtied a LOT of dishes. Another gripe I had was the fact that you just need a little bit of each ingredient. You end up with a half used jicama, part of an apple, half a head of cabbage, half of a bell pepper. You get the idea, but I like recipes that use up the whole ingredient. This would be even worse if you were to half the recipe. Next time I will just use up the pepper, apple and jicama making it a little more bulky with produce instead of mainly noodles.

This is a great summer meal... even though it's October, it's still feeling like summer here in California.

The recipe:

8 oz whole wheat spaghetti (or Soba noodles if you want to go gluten free and nix the soy sauce)

for the dressing:
2 tbsp rice vinegar
1/4 c. low soduim soy sauce
1/4 c. natural peanut butter
2 tbsp grated ginger
1 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp dark brown sugar
the juice of 1 lime
1/2 c. hot water

assembly:
1/2 bag of store-bought coleslaw mix (or just 2 cups shredded cabbage)
1/2 c. red bell pepper, sliced thinly
1/2 c. cilantro, chopped
1/2 c. apple, sliced thinly
1/2 c. jicama, sliced or cubed
1/2 a lime, squeezed
1 tbsp sesame seeds, toasted
2 scallions, sliced

garnish:
dry roasted peanuts
more cilantro
Sriracha if desired

Directions:
Boil the pasta according to the package instructions. Drain and run under cold water. Set aside.

For the dressing, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until blended. Add to the drained and cooled pasta and toss.

Toss in all remaining ingredients and squeeze the lime juice over the top. Refrigerate for at least an hour. Serve cold. Garnish with peanuts and more cilantro if desired.I had some "5 Alarm" spicy peanuts which were perfect here. I also added a little Sriracha to give it more of a kick.

Serves 6 with 308 calories per serving.

Easy Peasy Baby Blankets

2011-10-05T11:09:00.000-07:00

If you ever need a superquick baby shower gift, or simply want to make something handmade that will be well used and well loved, make a couple of these blankets.

You need 2 yards of coordinating fabric, 1 in each print. I like to use flannel or fleece so they are nice and soft against baby's skin.

Press the fabric and then pin them together right sides facing each other. Sew with 1/4 inch seam allowance on all 4 sides, leaving a 6 inch gap on the last side. Turn right side out through the gap you left, then turn the open edges in (you can press the fold in to help it to stay) and then top stitch to close with a coordinating thread, continuing the stitch all the way around. Done and done.

I like to use a zigzag stitch to make it a little more visually interesting. This top stitch also helps the layers to not shift around when washed.

These blankets are great for swaddling since they are so big but not too bulky, and they can be used as baby grows..

They can be rolled up and thrown in a diaper bag as a just-in-case-it-gets-cold blanket, spread out on the grass as a play mat and maybe even turn out to be the famed balankey that the child still favors when they are ~~an adult~~ five or six years old.

Easy Peasy, right?

These are all examples of blankets I've made in the past few months- the monkeys were for my cousin Annette and her baby boy, Alex. The orange medallions with the tan backing was for my sister-in-law, Paige and her baby girl, Hadley. The birdies with the yellow backing were for my friend Karen and her baby girl who is due on 11/11/11.

Makeover (x2)

2011-09-14T12:19:00.000-07:00

My amazing husband and I are coming up on our two year wedding anniversary! It's pretty hard to believe... It feels like it has only been a few months since we took our vows and celebrated the night away with our friends and family. A few months after the getting married, we read one of Dave Ramsey's books and decided to make a few changes in the way we were going to approach our finances.... well, at this point it was a matter of deciding how to handle our finances now that we were no longer two people living our separate lives, but one family working toward our future together. One of these changes entailed us moving out of my beloved condo and moving into his.

We weren't sure how long we were going to be living here, so for the first year or so I just left things as they were decor-wise. We did do a few basic upgrades like new carpet and new flooring in the kitchen, but as far as the little things, I just wasn't too concerned with changing them.

We've been here for a year and a half now, and as we plug away on our Total Money Makeover, following the motto "If you will live like no one else, later you get to live like no one else" we're doing our best to stick through these years of living in a condo when we'd rather be in a house. Doing coin-op laundry when we'd rather have a laundry room and planting our garden in a raised bed on the patio when we'd like to have a huge amazing garden in a backyard.

“The cause of most of man's unhappiness is sacrificing what he wants most for what he wants now.”

Gordon B. Hinckley

We are sucking it up now, though I like to think of it as being content in all circumstances, so that we can have what we truly want later. It's about not over extending ourselves now, even if we reeeeeeally want something, so we will be able to live comfortably without money worries later in life. It's not really a concept I was taught growing up since I pretty much always had what I wanted, and it is definitely counter to the instant gratification society we live in today. It is not easy. I am constantly battling the feeling that I "deserve" the things I want because I work hard. The mentality of entitlement is everywhere, and it's difficult to loosen it's grip. I highly reccomend the Total Money Makeover to anyone and everyone. Seriously.

All of that to say that after 18 months of looking at the black and white framed print of "guy on motorcycle" that hung on the wall in our little dining nook, I was beginning to not even notice him. He's pretty cool, maybe just not really fitting for that area anymore. We needed some photos of family and friends and a little warmth in the lighting department.

Enter the DIY twine lamp shade. I saw something similar whilst blog-cruising and thought it would be perfect. Off I went to buy supplies and craft away. This is the site I used to get an idea of how to make the twine ball. And then I just had a few photos printed up that I wanted to frame... some from our engagement session with Ashley Maxwell, some from the wedding, and a few of our family and friends. I hunted for cheap frames at thrift stores/Michael's/theDollarTree. I picked varying textures and styles ignoring the color since I was going to spray paint them white anyway.

Above is what it looks like on the dimmer when the rest of the room is dark. And below is what it looked like before. If you can look past my husband and cat (sorry! I didn't take a "before" picture) you can see there was a sort of retro semi-flush mount S shaped track lighting thing going on and then the print I mentioned up before of the motorcycle guy. My sweet awesome husband used to race dirt bikes and has a true love for motorcycles, so this was here when our place used to be just his place.

So with one makeover came another. And I have to say I am very happy with both!

Five Spice Turkey Lettuce Wraps

2011-09-07T10:09:00.000-07:00

It's hard to get out of the weeknight dinner rut. I find myself making the same favorites over and over. I am pretty much always checking websites and blogs for new recipes, but sometimes it's just easier and safer to stick with what you know how to make and you know will be good ... because we all hate being dissapointed. But every once in a while I find a recipe online that just screams easy and safe but still exciting. This lettuce wrap recipes comes from Cooking Well so it is not only easy, but healthy and low cal. Extra bonus!

You'll need:

1/2 cup brown rice
2 teaspoons sesame oil
1 pound 93%-lean ground turkey
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 large red bell pepper, finely diced
1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, rinsed and chopped
1/2 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon five-spice powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 heads Iceberg lettuce, leaves separated
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro. You can also use basil, mint and/or chives
1 large carrot, shredded
Sriracha if desired

Cook the rice according to package. Set aside once cooked.

Meanwhile, heat the sesame oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add turkey, garlic and ginger; cook, crumbling with a wooden spoon until the turkey is cooked through. Stir in the cooked rice, bell pepper, water chestnuts, chicken broth, hoisin, five-spice powder, soy sauce and salt; cook until heated through and sauce begins to thicken.
Divide lettuce leaves among plates, spoon some of the turkey mixture into each leaf, top with herbs and carrot and a squeeze of sriracha if you like it spicy.

Serves 4 with about 1 1/4 cups of filling each.
285 calories per serving.

This is the kind of dinner that leaves you feeling satisfied but not stuffed. It's also a good idea for low carbers out there- you can just omit the rice.

#winning!

2011-09-01T17:57:00.000-07:00

Last night I met up with my book club in San Francisco. We use the term "book club" loosely as it usually involves about 5-7 minutes of discussing the book and about 3 hours of drinking champagne, eating and talking about any or all of the following: how our days went, plans for the weekend, Real Housewives, celebrities, Hunger Games, our husbands/fiancés/boyfriends, current events, other books we should read, and how much or how little of the color white a dress needs to have to be appropriate attire for a wedding. Everyone (usually) reads the book, but there are often way more interesting things to talk about, obviously.

Kelsey hosted, and in usual Kelsey fashion she decided to throw a wrench in the plan by turning dinner into an Iron Chef style competition, complete with a surprise ingredient. She provided all of the elements needed for making pizza. Mar, Christina, Serene and Lyndi volunteered to be judges, vowing to be unbiased. Names were drawn from a hat to determine the two-person teams. Names were drawn again to determine which team got which type of crust: wheat, white or herb, and once more for who would have the advantage of using the pizza stone. Plans were whispered, wine was poured and NewVillager was put on the stereo...

the judges

My name was drawn to be teamed up with Carol and we were initially told that it was an unfair pairing. Words like “power couple” were used. I think I heard someone murmur something about Martha Stewart and Julia Child. Exaggerating? Maybe. But the results speak for themselves… We won. Unanimously. So after a few minutes of basking in the glory of our triumph, we shamelessly asked what it was about our pizza that set it apart? Three words: Fresh Arugula Drizzle. Mid-competition when the surprise ingredient was introduced… Arugula!! … Carol opined that we should lightly dress the peppery leaves with balsamic and olive oil, then pile it atop the pizza after it was baked. I agreed. Then I pitched the idea of a light drizzle of garlic and basil infused olive oil on top of the plated slices after they had been served to the judges (I had just read this post from Smitten Kitchen earlier that day). Said combo of Arugula and oil drizzle scored big in the categories of presentation, drama and taste.

#winning!

Sadly, we did not get a picture of our finished product, it was eaten up so fast. But here's the beautiful runner up!

Skinny Spaghetti Carbonara

2011-08-03T11:05:00.000-07:00

I am not a traditionalist when it comes to food. You’d think because I lived and basically started my cooking life France, I would be… but I’m not. Unless I'm making something specific, for a special event, I do not take any recipe too seriously. I like to change them up, make them my own. Usually out of a sense of frugality, I like to use what I have on hand. And out of a childhood watching my mom throw this and that into a pot without ever really referencing a recipe, I find myself doing the same.

I know that many people might be offended when I call this Spaghetti Carbonara, when it has a few non-traditional ingredients. But what else can you call it? Carbonara-ish? I just call it “Skinny Carbonara” because it comes from one of my low-calorie cookbooks called Cook Yourself Thin: Skinny meals you can make in minutes.

I was introduced to Carbonara when I was living in France, and ever since then it has been one of those foods that sort of transports me back. It is warm and salty, creamy and comforting. This recipe is just as much of all of these things, but manages to do it in under 450 calories per serving. This is definitely on the dinner rotation at our house. Especially since we're T minus 19 days until our Lake Tulloch trip where we basically live in bathing suits 18 hours a day.

The recipe actually calls for 3 slices of bacon, but since it makes 4 servings, I usually do 4 slices. With one slice of bacon coming in at 70-100 calories adding one more only bumps the calorie count by 25 calories per serving. The 425 count includes the 4th slice.

Spaghetti Carbonara, adapted from Cook Yourself Thin
Serves 4
Calories per serving: 425

Ingredients:
4 slices of bacon
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion, diced
1/3 cup 1% milk
1 large egg
8 ounces of spaghetti
1 cup frozen peas
1.5 ounces parmesan cheese, finely grated
4 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
salt & pepper to taste

1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until brown and crisp. I like to slice it into lardons before cooking. Move to a paper towel and drain the bacon grease. Add the olive oil to the pan and then add the onion, stirring occasionally until soft and translucent. Remove from the heat.

2. In a large serving bowl, whisk together the milk and egg, then stir in the onion. Add a few grinds of black pepper and stir.

3. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti according to the package instructions. Two minutes before the spaghetti is done, add the peas. Drain the spaghetti and peas, reserving a half cup of the pasta water. Add the pasta/peas to the egg mixture, tossing until the pasta is well coated. I like to add in about a quarter cup of pasta water to give it a little body. Add the cheese, half of the parsley, salt and more pepper to taste.

4. Plate up the pasta, top with crumbles of bacon and garnish with parsley. Serve immediately.

Remember not to put the pot back on a burner once the egg mixture is in there. You dont want scrambled egg spaghetti. Also, something to be aware of: this recipe is best with regular pasta since whole wheat competes with the taste of the sauce.

Buon Appetito!

BBQ Chicken and.... Cucumbers

2011-07-19T14:01:00.000-07:00

Just another simple summer dinner here: BBQ drumsticks alongside some perfectly ripe cherry tomatoes and Asian inspired cucumbers. Fun, fresh and delicious. The chicken was finger lickin' thanks to my husband and his BBQ skills, but what I really want to talk about here is the cucumbers.

Now let me to fill you in on the story behind these cucumbers... It has been a summer tradition with my group of friends from college to do a camping canoe trip on the Russian River up in Northern California. We camp for the weekend and on Saturday we pack up coolers, rent canoes and spend the day lazily floating. And drinking. And eating. And generally just soaking up the sun.

We make quite a few stops along the way... swimming holes, rope swings, beaches where we pull over and drink Coors Light until the rest of the group catches up. Even though we only go about 2 miles an hour, it's somehow really easy for our 8 canoes to get split up.

One of the very last stops we make is at the little private beach where my friend Conor's parents have a house. Now Conor's mom is so sweet. She always makes about thirty PB&J sandwiches and packs them up to bring down to us. I think it takes about 2 minutes for our group to devour all of them. Anyway, a few years back she had so many cucumbers from her garden, she brought us some of those too. She marinated them 3 different ways... and I can clearly remember only one of them. It was amazing. It entailed some rice wine vinegar and sesame oil. She let them soak it up and put them in little ziplocks for us. I remember laying on the hot rocky beach, eating one after another just blown away by the flavors.

So this is my little rendition of those cucumbers.

I don't think any I make will ever be as good as Ceci's, though....

I slice them lengthwise as thinly as possible. Sometimes I use a vegetable peeler. You can use a mandolin if you have one. Let them hang out with about a 2:1 ratio of rice wine vinegar to sesame oil. Sprinkle on some sea salt and some whole sesame seeds and you've got a refreshing summer snack. Paired with Scott's BBQ chicken and I was in heaven. I love Summer.

Summer Dinners

2011-06-23T14:21:00.000-07:00

It's nearing the end of June... and for me, it's finally starting to feel like summer. And although I am a fan of Fall, I do like summer evenings because they are long and the air is warm. The evenings where you get home from work and there's still plenty of daylight left to drag out the BBQ, fix up dinner and enjoy it slowly out on the porch. Pour a glass of wine, talk about your days and just soak up the summery scents and warmth of the air.

Last night Scott and I threw dinner together with only the food we had at home. Starting with a Caesar salad with homemade croutons. We had 50/50 salad mix (half baby spinach half spring mix) I don't usually have croutons, but we did have some leftover sourdough bread that I cut up into pieces, drizzled in olive oil and baked in the toaster oven until they resembled croutons. Lightly dress the salad with Caesar dressing and sprinkle with Parmesan. Simple but delicious.

I love Trader Joe's frozen colossal shrimp. They're perfect because they thaw and cook fast. Defrost in a baggie with some olive oil, garlic and cayenne pepper and put them on a medium grill for 2 minutes on each side until pink. Scott BBQ'd the shrimp while I made the polenta- sort of a shrimp and grits dish.

There's something very fancy to me about eating simple meals. Not a lot went into this meal, the ingredients were few and simple. This style of cooking really makes your quality ingredients shine; lets the food speak for itself. And it seems like more and more people are migrating toward simple these days. Getting down to the basics. Eating whole foods and seasonal ingredients. I am a fan.

PS- I am taking a new approach to my blogging here. I am going to post everyday food, like I like to eat it among the posts about sewing projects and special recipes. Photos are being taken with my iphone. Because I rarely feel like lugging out the big boy camera.

Best Fish Tacos Ever!

2011-06-15T14:55:00.000-07:00

Fish is super good for you. But unless you really like fish, it's difficult to incorporate it into your dinner rotation. I know I don't ever feel like fish. I never have a craving for a certain kind of fish. So in my case, a filet of Salmon, no matter how dressed up, is not going to be a regular meal staple. Anyone else in that boat with me? Then there are people with super-human resolve to eat healthy no matter how much they hate the flavors. Where the desire for a smaller waist outweighs the desire for that slice of pizza. I wish I had that kid of drive.

But these fish tacos are the perfect antidote to battle between healthy and tasty. They are made with any mild white fish (I used Talapia) cooked so simply that the meadly of flavors from the other ingredients shine right through. You get the lovely flavor of peppers, cilantro and corn tortillas with the health giving properties of the fish.

Let me intorduce you to the star of the show: The Green Sauce. I found this recipe on Sprouted Kitchen. As always, I will list the full recipe below.... but here is a quick run down of the tasty (and healthy!) ingredients that go into making this sauce:

cilantro, poblano peppers, plain yogurt, garlic, lime juice, olive oil, and cashews.

Hello, Super Foods galore!

Add in there some shredded cabbage which is a classic fish taco pairing, some roasted red bell pepper and you've got an intensely flavored, perfectly filling and healthful meal. Plus, you get a serving of fish.

The original recipe calls for some peaches to be thrown on the grill while the fish is cooking. Have you ever had grilled peaches? Do you know that here in California, peaches are ALL OVER the farmer's markets right now and the weather is just screaming for you to rip the cover off your BBQ and get to grilling? Start with grilled peaches if this whole fish taco thing is too intimidating. You'll be glad you did.

I just love recipes that flow. Like a dance, the timing of each step is in perfect harmony with what is going on in another aspect of the prep. Let me explain: You meander on outside and crank up the BBQ. While that is heating up, go back inside and prep your fish - add salt, pepper and lime. Cover and pop in the fridge. Grab your peppers, go outside and put them on the grill. Back to the kitchen- take a few minutes to gather and measure the ingredients for the green sauce. Put everything into the blender and mix it up. Go outside and rotate the peppers. Take them off when they look charred. Put them in a zip top bag and let them hang out while you slice up the peaches....

Grab your fish and peaches, stroll outside and put both on the grill. While those cook, go back in and take the pepers out of their plastic bag cacoon, de-seed them and remove skin. Blend poblanos into the green sauce, put the bells in a dish for serving. Go outside and flip the fish & peaches, add the tortillas to the grill. Go back inside and shred your cabbage. Put in a bowl for serving. Take everything off the grill and you're ready to assemble.

Very rhythmic. Very relaxing.

Assemble them as you like- a bed of cabbage on the bottom is preferred. Layer the fish, the red bell peppers, green sauce, and if you like a little heat, I added some Sriracha to each bite as I went along. We ate the peaches as a side, but I suppose they would be a nice addition to the tacos themselves.

So if you've ever been intimidated by cooking fish, or you just aren't really a fan of fish to being with:

Try these tacos. You will be so happy you did.

Fish Tacos- adapted from Sprouted Kitchen.
4 to 6 corn tortillas
12 oz. white fish (use whatever is local and fresh)
2 cups of shredded green cabbage
1 lime, zest and juice
1 peach, cut into eigths
1 red bell pepper
Garlic
Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper

For the green sauce:

1.5 cups cilantro
2 cloves of garlic
1 lime, zest and juice
0.5 cup of plain yogurt
1 tbsp. olive oil
0.5 cup cashews (walnuts, pistachios, whatever not you have on hand will work)
2 Poblano peppers, roasted and seeds removed
Garlic
Salt and Pepper

Here are the details:

~Sprinkle each side of the fish with salt and pepper. Rub the lime zest and juice into the fish, place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate.
~Put the bell peppers and the poblanos on the grill and char on all sides, total time should be about 8-10 minutes. Remove peppers and put them in a plastic bag about 5 minutes. The steam in the bag will make the skin come off very easily. Take them out and peel the skin off using your fingers or a paring knife. Remove the tops and the seeds. Chop them up, keeping them separate.
~Put the cilantro, garlic, lime, yogurt and olive oil in a blender or food processor. Blend it up. Add the poblano and blend again. Add whatever nuts you are using and belnd until smooth.

~Put the fish on the grill on top of a piece of non-stick foil, or regular foil if that's all you have. Put the peaches on the grill, cut side down. Close the lid and grill for about 6 minutes. Flip the peaches and the fish and grill for about 4 more minutes. Place the tortillas on the grill to warm (watch them, they will burn quickly!)
~Remove the fish when it flakes with a fork.

~Assemble your tacos and enjoy!

The Perfect Cake for my Awesome Father in Law

2011-06-09T17:33:00.000-07:00

My father in law's birthday is this weekend.
And what do you get the man who has everything??
A cake!

Obviously that would be the answer coming from someone who loves to bake, right? But I have to say that I have a sort of love/hate relationship with baking. The love part comes in the form of the actual process: the scouring over my favorite cookbooks (or blogs) for the perfect recipe, the gathering and measuring ingredients, sifting, stirring, scraping and baking. It is a very enjoyable process for me. The hate part comes in when I end up with a pile of chocolate chip cookies / box of cupcakes / pan of pound cake sitting on my counter... and ZERO willpower to resist the urge to eat it all. Can anyone relate to that?

So let's focus on the love part for a moment here. Step 1: finding the perfect recipe. I've mentioned my trusty copy of Baking Illustrated before. I adore how much information they give you on how to make the uber-scientific process of baking work out just right. I could spend hours flipping through this book, reading recipes and discovering special techniques for piping meringue, shaping Ciabatta or assembling Baked Alaska. Nerdy? Maybe.

The only problem with my beloved cookbooks is that I spend the majority of my day at work, and unless I lug them into the office with me, my main source of inspiration comes from cooking blogs. Enter my inspiration: Piece of Cake. Shauna has a recipe for a Birthday Cake from Baking Illustrated. Yellow Layer Cake with Chocolate Cream Frosting. Perfect for two reasons. #1- I knew I could look up the recipe when I got home. #2- because my father in law is fond of the classics. He's a no frills kind of guy. Just pure and simple deliciousness.

In the midst of my sifting and stirring and spreading, I took a moment to hand the paddle attachment covered in cake batter to my husband so he could "test it to make sure it wasn't poisonous". He asked if it was frosting. Yes, it is that good. And the (actual) frosting is so silky smooth, it's hard to resist eating it by the spoonful.

As for the hate part of my love/hate relationship; this is the perfect way to make amends: Always share with your friends, family & co-workers. And do what you need to do to make sure you don't come home with the leftovers!

Happy Birthday, Mike!

** I must give credit for the first, last and second to last photo on here to my sister in law's husband, Mark. He does amazing things with a camera. I hope to start taking some pointers from him in the future.

Recipe from Baking Illustrated.

Yellow Layer Cake
1 3/4 cups (7 oz) plain cake flour, sifted
4 eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup whole milk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
3/4 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened but still cool, cut into 16 pieces

1. Adjust an oven rack to the lower-middle position, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease two 9-inch round cake pans, and cover the bottoms with parchment or waxed paper. Grease the parchment and dust the pans with flour, tapping out the excess.

2. Beat the eggs, milk and vanilla with a fork in a small bowl. Measure out one cup of this mixture and set aside. Combine the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in the bowl of stand mixer. Beat on low to blend, about 30 seconds. With the mixer still running on low, add the softened butter one piece at a time, mixing until the butter and flour begin the clump together, until it looks pebbly with pieces about the size of peas, 30 to 40 seconds after all the butter is added.

3. Add the reserved one cup of egg mixture and mix at low speed until incorporated, 5 to 10 seconds. Increase the speed to medium high and beat until light and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the remaining egg mixture in a steady stream with the mixer running, taking about 30 seconds. Stop the mixer and scrape down the bowl and beater. Beat at medium-high speed again until the batter is thoroughly combined and just starts to look curdled, about 15 seconds.

4. Divide the batter equally between the pans, spread to the sides of the pan, making sure the surface is even and smooth. I used an offset spatula here. Bake until the cakes are light gold in color and a toothpick comes out clean, about 20 to 25 minutes. Cakes may mound slightly here, but not to worry, they will level out when cooled. Cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes then run a knife along the edges to loosen them from the pans. Let cool completely before icing.

For the Frosting:
16 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped fine (or use chips)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract

Place the chocolate in a bowl. Bring the heavy cream to a simmer over medium-high heat in a small saucepan (Don't let this boil over! It makes a mess). Pour the cream over the chocolate, add the corn syrup and let the mixture stand for 3 minutes.

Whisk gently until smooth and then stir in the vanilla. Refrigerate for 1 to 1.5 hours, stirring every 15 minutes, until the mixture reaches a spreadable consistency. Ideally this would not be made ahead of time as it does not keep well. It should be consumed within a day. You can also whip the frosting with the whisk attachment on a stand mixer to create a frosting with a fluffier texture.

My Not-So-Devilish Deviled Eggs

2011-05-04T11:02:00.000-07:00

My family on my mom's side is c-r-a-z-y about deviled eggs. My Aunt Denise brings them to every family party. I've been told I'm not a Messier if I don't like them. That and coleslaw.... but that's a different recipe all together. We'll stick to eggs for now.

I love eggs in general. Scrambled, over medium with a piece of toast, poached in a Benedict, hard boiled. And especially deviled. They just feel so decadent.

I am a fan.

Eggs are full of nutrients like Vitamins A, D, E, a few different B vitamins, folate (helps protect against birth defects!) not to mention they are a good source of protein. I read once, I think in The South Beach Diet, that eating cholesterol does not lead to having high cholesterol like it was previously thought. Turns out, eggs are pretty good for you!

To kick up the healthfulness and reduce the calorie count just a little bit, I decided to try something: leaving out half of the yolks and adding mashed cauliflower. I don't know what came over me, it was a moment of nutritional genius.

I hard boiled my eggs and steamed up some cauliflower florets. Cauliflower is also a nutritional powerhouse, even though it looks rather unassuming. One cup has over half of a woman's daily value of Vitamin C. Also has Vitamins K and B6. Just a quick Google search came up with those figures here.

Everyone has their own preference for deviled egg accoutrements,

so just do your thing here....

I like a little bit of mayo, yellow mustard, fresh minced garlic, some cayenne, salt & pepper

and some fresh or dried dill.

Mash it all up, spoon into a ziplock bag and pipe it into the egg whites. Or if you have a pastry bag with a star tip, you can make it look fancy and professional.

I mentioned low-cal up there somewhere and think I should mention that 52 of the 66 calories in an egg come from the yolk. Most of the vitamins are in there too, so this combo of using half yolks and half cauliflower is a nice little trade off.

I'm pretty sure any Messier would be happy to try this little creation of mine. I might not even say anything and see if they know what they're missing ;)

Blood Orange Mimosas

2011-04-08T11:36:00.000-07:00

Some people only drink Champagne on special occasions, but I have always considered each and every day a special occasion! Why save something for a day that may never come? Or worse... maybe that special day comes and goes and you forget to bring out that bottle you've been saving for such a time.

In our house there is usually a bottle of bubbly in the fridge, chilled and ready for action. Be it for a lazy Saturday morning or a random Thursday night when you just want a mimosa, we like to be prepared. Recently, it happened to be a Tuesday. The evening air was warm and our front patio was calling our names. I had a jug of OJ in the fridge, but the bag of Blood Oranges seemed like a good way to give our usual mimosa a quick makeover.

Is it just me or are blood oranges completely fascinating? They are so beautiful with their jewel toned reds and many shades of orange. They make me want to Google "how do blood oranges get their color?"

I think I just will...

I juiced the whole bag and it yielded this gorgeous reddish purple juice. It was bright and sweet, just a bit tangy. Totally worth the few minutes of prep work.

In my world, the juice makes the mimosa. I don't care if you're drinking Dom (which, btw, you should not make a mimosa out of). If you use yucky juice, the whole thing is just not going to be good. And if you're drinking Cook's (which I am not above) if you use Odwalla or any fresh squeezed juice, you will not be disappointed in the results. This festive drink is the perfect way to turn your average Tuesday into a memorable event.

So pick up a bottle of bubbly and a bag of blood oranges next time you're out grocery shopping and take a moment to celebrate the little things in life. Cheers!

Stuffed Jalapenos

2011-02-08T12:57:00.000-08:00

Everyone knows the Super Bowl is just an excuse to get together with friends, watch some funny commercials and eat LOTS of good food (right?!) So this past week, I was scoping my favorite websites for a fresh new appetizer to bring to my aunt and uncle's house for the BIG game.

Have you ever checked out Chow.com? I adore this site because it's not just recipes. They have discussion forums, food related articles, how-to videos.... the list goes on.

Anyway, Chow is a great website for appetizer recipes, like these Jalapeno Poppers. When I think of a popper, though, I think of breaded and deep fried. These are definitely not that. You don't pre-cook the peppers themselves at all, so they retain most of their crunch. The result is a fresh tasting stuffed pepper that doesn't really resemble it's mushy deep fried cousin at all.

Splitting and removing the seeds from the peppers was the most time consuming part of this recipe. If you wanted to prepare in advance, you could make the mixture and fill the peppers, then cover and refrigerate until ready to bake. If you want more heat (!!) add some of the seeds to the filling. Mine didn't come out too spicy. In fact, I didn't think they were that spicy at all. I would add some seeds back in the mix next time.

For the instructions on how to keep the peppers whole, see the original recipe which I linked up below. I wanted to halve mine for two reasons: #1- it would make more portions so I could stretch the recipe, and #2- the halves are good so people can eat them up in 1 or 2 bites without much mess. This two-bite aspect is pretty important for party food, in my opinion.

Just broil for a few minutes until golden and bubbly. Arrange them on a platter and you're ready for the big game! They should keep fine at room temp for a few hours.... if they last that long...

Mine sure didn't!

Recipe adapted from Chow.com. Click here to view the full recipe. I doubled it.

14 jalapeno peppers, split in half, seeds and ribs removed
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
2 links of hot or sweet Italian sausage, cooked and crumbled (should yield about 1/2 cup)
1 tsp. olive oil
1/4 cup yellow onion, sauteed
1/2 teaspoon pepper

Turn the oven to broil and line a cookie sheet with foil. Set aside.

Halve and de-seed your jalapenos. Or follow the original recipe's instructions on how to remove seeds while keeping them whole. Line them up on your prepared cookie sheet.

Next, put your room temp cream cheese into a medium sized bowl. Set aside.

Cook the sausage in a saute pan and crumble it up into small pieces as you cook it. Drain and add to the cream cheese.

In the same pan, saute the onion in a bit of olive oil until translucent and starting to brown. Add to the sausage & cream cheese mixture. Stir in a few grinds of pepper, and then scoop into a ziplock or pastry bag. Pipe the mixture into the peppers. Broil for 4 minutes, then rotate the pan and broil for 4 more minutes until the cheese mixture is browned and bubbly. Let cool for 5 minutes and transfer to a platter and you're ready to party!

What are your favorite party foods??

Happy New Year!!

2011-01-26T11:19:00.000-08:00

Even though it is the 26th of January, I still feel the need to say that since I have not posted since December!!

2011 has already brought some incredible blessings and also a disappointment or two....

First and foremost, the major blessing was the arrival of my sister's baby boy, Brett Thomas. He is so precious!! He is the little guy for whom I made the diaper bag I posted back in December.

I have heard it said time and time again that new babies put life into perspective. They remind you of what is important, and make the things that used to seem important become totally unimportant. I love this little guy to bits and am so thankful for his safe arrival into this world.

As I said before, this year has also brought some disappointments that I have been trying to make peace with... and this morning I came across a quote from Hind's Feet in High Places:

"For disappointments accepted with praise always seem to turn into EXTRA-RADIANT BLESSINGS."

I love this. I love that I know that even though I am not getting what I thought I wanted, I can have faith that there is a bigger picture in the works. There is a bigger and better blessing that will result. I am coming to realize (or rather I am re-realizing) that to force something means compromising what I really want.

So now, I just continue living my life, loving the people in it and trusting the God who holds it in his hands.

Peppermint Bark

2010-12-21T11:41:00.000-08:00

I always thought of myself as a dark chocolate kind of girl. I love to savor a small little chunk of super dark right after a meal. (I have this seriously intense chocolate craving the second I finish the last bite of my dinner). Dark chocolate really satisfies the craving and also makes me feel pretty darn good about myself... you know with all of the health giving antioxidants and such.

So anything with white chocolate I tend to think of as "not worth it"... but let me tell you, one little taste of this peppermint bark had my taste buds singing praises to white chocolate... even with it's lack of anti-oxidants. 'Tis the season, right? The silky smooth white blends amazingly with the dark. Add some crunchy freshness with smashed candy cane and you've got the perfect holiday treat.

I had never made any kind of bark before this. My husband is a big fan and wanted to make some (read: he wanted me to make some) for us to give out (read: give out half and gorge ourselves on the other half). So off to the store I went for chocolate and peppermint extract.

We had a GIANT homemade candy cane from one of Scott's co-workers so we used that for our topping. See how big it is? I was a little sad to destroy it, but happy that it went to good use (and a portion of it back to work with Scott)

I sort of wish I would have made more. I wasn't sure exactly how much the recipe would make, but figured I could always make another batch.

I am definitely going to make another batch.

The original recipe calls for the dark chocolate mixture to be melted directly in a saucepan, but mine morphed into some weird chunky slimy glop. It was totally irreversible and I had to toss it. I don't know what happened, but I had enough chocolate and whipping cream to do another batch, which I did with a double boiler and it came out fine. The 3/4 of a teaspoon of Peppermint extract in the dark mixture really gives it that extra punch of minty freshness... like you're in a Peppermint Patty commercial. Really.

So the key is to give each layer a chance to set up completely and have the next layer of melty chocolate be just lukewarm. Spreadable, but not hot enough to start smearing the layer underneath. We want a clean separation of white and dark here.

I sort of ran out of white chocolate for the top layer. My edges left the layers exposed, but I kind of like the way it looks. Like a peppermint bark pizza!

Trim it up as directed below and package however you wish. These little 4x6 inch "treat bags" from Michael's allowed for the perfect serving size. Not so much that people hate you for single-handedly causing 5 lbs in holiday weight gain. Just enough to make them love you and ask you for the recipe.

Layered Peppermint Bark Crunch
Adapted from Bon Appetit

Makes about 36 pieces

17 ounces good-quality white chocolate
6 ounces coarsely crushed peppermint candies (about12 regular candy canes)
7 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
6 tablespoons whipping cream
3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract

Line a baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or a sheet of heavy-duty aluminum foil.

Place the white chocolate in a heat proof bowl set over saucepan of barely simmering water to create a double boiler. Stir occasionally until the chocolate is melted and smooth and a candy thermometer registers 110°F. Pour 2/3 cup of the melted white chocolate onto the baking sheet, and using an offset spatula, spread it into about a 9x12-inch rectangle. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup crushed peppermints. Refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, stir together the bittersweet chocolate, cream and peppermint extract in a double boiler or a bowl set over simmering water until just melted and smooth. Cool until it is lukewarm. Pour the dark chocolate mixture in long lines over the white chocolate rectangle. This is important to not melt the white chocolate layer. Using a clean spatula, spread the chocolate in even layer. Refrigerate until very cold and firm, at least 25 minutes.

Rewarm the bowl of white chocolate over barely simmering water again, to 110°F. Working quickly, pour the white chocolate over the firm bittersweet chocolate layer and spread evenly to cover. Immediately sprinkle the remaining crushed candy cane over the surface of the candy. Chill until firm, at least 20 minutes. I left mine in overnight before cutting.

If using a silicone mat, slide a spatula under the slab and move it to a cutting board. If using foil, lift the foil with the bark on it to a cutting board and trim it directly on the foil. Trim the edges of the slab to obtain nice clean edges with the layers visible, then cut the bark into pieces. You can snack on the edge pieces, or if you don't care about having perfect pieces, you can include the edges in your packaged up gift bags.

Can be made 2 weeks ahead and kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Merry Christmas!!

Modern Diaper Bag

2010-12-06T19:35:00.000-08:00

A while back I promised my sister I would make her a weekend travel bag. I really liked the way Amy Butler's Weekender Bag was styled, so I bought the pattern, the fabric and all of the other items I would need to get the bag started... Some time passed as I pondered (dreaded) the journey ahead of me. I began procrastinating like I was back in college. I was out partying when I should have been studying for finals.

Searching through Blogland for people who had made the bag before me did not help me to overcome my tendency toward procrastination. I read post after post after post of people who had put their blood sweat and tears (literally) into the Weekender. I was absolutely intimidated. All the talk of broken needles, layers of cording and the excessive use of their seam rippers had me regretting my promise to my sister. It was a big project, one of the likes I had never attempted before.

So when my sister found out she was pregnant over the summer, I decided she would probably need a diaper bag more than a weekend travel bag (I can almost hear all of you mom's nodding in agreement) and I switched gears a bit. I bought Amy Butler's Little Stitches for Little Ones and after quick flip through the pages I saw the Modern Diaper Bag. I knew Michele would be happy to have that instead. This bag took me about 6 sessions of 4 hours each to complete. There was a lot of cutting, a lot of interfacing and quite a few ripped seams. But all in all, it was totally worth it.

Here she is at her baby shower this past weekend.
I think she loves it.
Can't wait to meet my little nephew, due January 26th, 2011!!

Buckeyes!

2010-11-24T10:47:00.000-08:00

I have never heard of these cookies (or are they candy?) in my entire life. Initially I thought they were called Buckeyes because they look like an eyeball. Sort of gross... and sort of true in a round about way. They are named after the Buckeye nut, which got it's name from the Native Americans who thought the nut looked like the eye of male deer. The nut comes from a tree that is native to Ohio..... hence Ohio being the Buckeye State and the Buckeye being the mascot for Ohio State University.

If you do a Google Image search for the Buckeye Nut, you'll see that these cookies look exactly like the nut of the same name (although I didn't coat mine high enough up the sides for them to really look like the nut). See the notes below on a trick for getting the coating up the sides without losing the ball in the chocolate bath.

My apologies for the boring history lesson. I hope I kept it short enough so that you didn't just scroll down to the bottom to get straight to the recipe :)

I have been on the hunt for a recipe that contains graham crackers... But it can't be just any recipe; the graham crackers need to somehow be formed into a little ball and coated with chocolate. There is a very specific purpose for this, but I have to keep it under wraps until after December 18th. Check back after then for a recipe that will be the MVP of your next camping trip. Anyhow, I found this recipe when I googled "Graham Cracker Balls". Perfect!

I decided to try these as a trial run for the above mentioned Top Secret recipe and really liked the way they turned out. They are simple to make and soooo tasty. I had to give the majority of them to my husband to take to work with him, fearing that I would devour all of them and wake up 10 lbs heavier. Yikes.

Follow the easy-peasy recipe below. I learned a few things along the way that might be helpful:

Don't leave any big chunks of walnuts or graham crackers. If you can use a food processor or mini-prep, do it. The finer the crumb, the better the balls will stick together.
Add half the graham cracker crumbs and stir the mixture. If its too sticky add more. You don't want it to be overly dry.
Use a toothpick or fondue fork to dip. If you don't want the hole from the toothpick showing at the top, stick the poker in the side and tilt the bowl of chocolate, submerging the ball until just a small circle is uncoated at the top. Submerge the part when the toothpick is poked in, that way you don't have to patch up the hole. I will do this next time I make these... I put the pick in at the top and was having a hard time submerging the whole thing without it getting stuck and the pick slipping out when I removed them from the choco-bath.
I used crunchy peanut butter but will try smooth next time for a less chunky end result.
If you don't like coconut, you can leave it out. I would try and add 1/4 cup of cream cheese to bring a little more depth of flavor. Other recipes I have found call for cream cheese. Sounds good to me!

Buckeyes
Adapted from Zandria’s Mom’s Graham Cracker Balls

1/2 - 2/3 box graham crackers, crushed into a fine crumb
1 cup walnuts, chopped finely
1 cup peanut butter
8 oz. shredded coconut
2 sticks butter, melted
1 lb. confectioners sugar
2 tsp. vanilla

1 bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

Mix all ingredients except the chocolate chips together in a stand mixer until smooth. Scoop out a heaping tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball. Place rolled balls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment or wax paper.

Melt the chocolate in a double boiler, or by heating in the microwave for 30 seconds and then in 10 second increments until smooth, stirring in between each heating.

Using a toothpick or skewer, coat each ball with chocolate and place on the cookie sheet. Chill for 30 minutes for the chocolate to set.

Yields about 60 balls, depending on the size. They will keep for 3-4 days, or up to a week in the fridge.

Remember to check back after December 18th for a variation of the Buckeye that will be sure to blow your mind :)

Salted Pumpkin Caramels

2010-11-07T15:14:00.000-08:00

Fall is by far my favorite season. Especially here in California where you get those bright, sunshine filled days when the air is crisp and cool. It's like Fall combines the best parts of all of the other seasons- summery sun, cool winter temps and spring fresh air. My favorite holiday is also in the Fall. That magical day filled with family and friends, turkey and cranberries, parades and football on TV.

When it comes to Thanksgiving dessert, I have always been a Pecan Tart kind of girl. I like Pumpkin Pie, but never really get excited about it, if you know what I mean. I recently found a recipe that gives life to your old can of pumpkin puree. Salted Pumpkin Caramels. Now these I can get excited about.

The recipe calls for your standard caramel ingredients of sugar, corn syrup and butter and throws in some extra Thanksgiving-ish ones like pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice and maple syrup. For a little festive punch, the bottoms of the caramels are lined with pumpkin seeds.

A side note about the pumpkin pie spice: if you don't have any, check your spice rack before buying some. If you have cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice and ground cloves, you have everything you need. This recipe calls for 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice. Just combine a scant quarter teaspoon of each spice listed above in a small dish. Easy! And it saves you $4.

I have found that the weather has a lot to do with how caramel sets. The temperature and humidity all effect how soft or firm the caramels turn out. You also have to pay close attention to the temperature of the mixture, so make sure you use a candy thermometer. Bring it up too high and you'll have rock hard caramels. Don't get it hot enough and the caramels wont set. The more you make them, the better you'll get a feel for how to get them just right. It really is more of an art than a science.

Resist the temptation to scrape the sides of the pan when you pour it out. The tiny crystals you scrape off will cause you to have grainy caramel. In the words of Alton Brown: Definitely NOT good eats. I realized this after the fact and had a few pieces that were sugary and grainy :(

Use a hot knife to cut the slab into equal quadrants. Original recipe states a 64 piece yield which means they will be about 1" cubes. If you're not sure if you're cutting them in the right size, but want uniformity, cut the slab into 4. Then cut each one of those pieces into 4 smaller squares. Each of those smaller squares will then make four 1" cubes. Make sense?

Don't these just look beautiful? So festive, and the pumpkin-y spiciness of it is very Fall :)

Original recipe can be found at Food 52, a new website I recently stumbled upon. From their site description: "At food52, we recognize talented home cooks by giving them a place to show off their work, a place where cooks of all kinds come to be inspired and engaged in lively conversation." How fun!

Salted Pumpkin Caramels (From Cheese1227's recipe posted on Food52)

2/3 cup unsalted pepitos (pumpkin seeds)
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
2/3 cup pumpkin puree
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice (see note above if you do not have pumpkin pie spice)
2 cups white sugar
1/2 cups light corn syrup
1/3 cup good maple syrup
1/4 cup of water
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut in chunks
1 teaspoon lemon juice
3/4 teaspoon fleur de sel

Directions:

Dry toast the pepitos in a skillet until they start to pop being careful to move them around so they don't burn.

Line the bottom and the sides of an 8-in square pan with parchment. Butter the parchment on the sides of the pan. (I actually didn't line the sides with parchment, I just heavily buttered them.) Evenly spread out the toasted pepitos on the bottom of the pan, on top of the parchment.

In a saucepan, combine heavy cream, pumpkin puree and spices. Warm the mixture, but do not let it boil.

In a second heavy bottomed pan, with sides at least 4 inches high, combine the sugar, both syrups and water. Stir until the sugars are melted, then let it boil until it reaches 244 degrees (the soft ball point on a candy thermometer). Carefully add the cream and pumpkin mixture and slowly bring to 240 degrees on a candy thermometer. Stir frequently and adjust the heat as needed.

As soon as it reaches the 240, pull it off the heat and stir in the butter and lemon juice. Stir vigorously until the butter has melted.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan. Let cool 30 minutes and sprinkle the salt over the top. Let the caramels fully set (at least 2 hours) before using a hot knife to cut them into 1-inch squares. You can wrap them individually in waxed paper, or arrange on an elegant plate to present at a party. Or just hover over the counter in the kitchen and shovel them directly into your mouth as fast as you can :)

Broccoli Cheese Soup

2010-11-04T20:32:00.000-07:00

I am almost certain this recipe was thought up one night by someone who needed to use up the ingredients that were lingering in the fridge. I believe this because that's exactly what lead me to make this soup on Monday night. I had 3/4 of a package of broccoli florets from Trader Joe's and a motley crew of cheeses, all needing to be consumed asap.

Everyone keeps a few onions on hand, right? You should if you don't. They last a long time if stored properly, not to mention almost every great recipe starts with butter, onions & garlic! The fragrance of those three simple ingredients cooking away in a pan makes me swoon every-single-time. It never fails.

You can use any cheese you have, really. I just used my leftovers from a cheese plate we brought to a friends house. Anything that will melt. I'm sure there are cheeses that go better with broccoli than others, though. Feel free to experiment.

Since I was sort of winging this recipe when I made it, I steamed the broccoli in the stock, then sort of mashed them up with my potato masher. I then added in the onion roux mixture. After looking up a couple of Broccoli Cheese Soup recipes, it seems you can do the roux, whisk in the chicken stock then add the broccoli to that. Cook until tender and then blend. (See Emeril's recipe I link below)

If you don't usually keep chicken stock on hand, I highly recommend these little packets from Trader Joe's. They give you 12 packets to a box, its is basically chicken stock concentrate. Add 1 packet to 1 cup of hot water and voila! The don't take up any space in the pantry and last for a couple years. Like bouillon. Brilliant.

Below is a basic recipe, feel free to experiment with different cheeses and maybe some spices. Emeril has an interesting recipe here that I may try next time.

ANC's Broccoli Cheese Soup

2-3 tablespoons butter
1 cup white or yellow onion, chopped
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon garlic, chopped
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
3 cups chicken or veggie broth
1 package of broccoli florets (or frozen broccoli)
1/2 cup half and half
3/4 cup Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup Gruyere cheese

In a large sauce pot bring the chicken stock to a boil. Add the broccoli and cook / steam until tender, for 10 minutes. Once tender, partially mash the florets with a potato masher to break them up.

Meanwhile, in a medium frying pan, melt the 3 tablespoons butter over medium-high heat. Add the onions, salt and pepper and cook until soft. Add the garlic and stir for about 30 seconds. Next add the flour and stir until all of the moisture is soaked up by the flour. Let it cook for a minute or two to eliminate any raw flour taste. Turn off the heat and stir in the half and half.

Add the contents of the frying pan to the pot of broccoli and stir until blended. Remove from the heat and puree with an immersion blender. Add the grated cheese and stir until melted.

Serve warm with bread sticks or crusty french bread.

Perfect for a cool fall evening with the one you love <3

Oatmeal Sandwich Bread

2010-10-28T23:09:00.000-07:00

The first time I remember baking bread from scratch was when I was living in Toulouse. I somehow got my hands on a copy of Jamie Oliver's "Happy Days With the Naked Chef" and found myself drawn again and again to two recipes. One was a to-die-for Steak Marsala that I ended up making quite often, the other was his basic bread recipe.

If you've seen Jamie you know he has a very... how should I say... free spirited approach to cooking. Little of this, little of that... I just picked this from my garden so I'll add that. You get the idea. I saw a photo in 'Happy Days' which showed a giant mound of flour on a table. You make a well in the center and add the wet ingredients. Start stirring with your finger and you'll gradually draw in the flour from the walls of the well. Keep stirring until it seems like a good dough consistency and then kneed.

Now despite the fact that I could literally throw a tennis ball from the balcony of my flat and hit the front door of my Boulangerie, I decided now would be a good time to start baking bread. So I baked ... and it was amazing. I had never realized how great a reward for such little effort that results from baking bread at home. I just don't think I ever thought about it until seeing that pile of flour in Jamie's cookbook.

I've since tried a few different bread recipes with great success. The one kind I was afraid to try was sandwich bread. This may sound weird, but the biggest uncertainty for me was how to slice it. Here you are being a home baker; you create this great loaf of bread and then you must slice it... Doom and gloom spelled all over it. You need slices that are not too thick to where all you taste is bread and nothing of what is inside, but not too thin so it tears or breaks or gets soggy. You also need an even hand so the slice is uniform from one end to the other. Sounds like a lame fear, I know. I guess it's the perfectionist in me.

So as my husband says, "Ain't nothin' to it but to do it". I took that to heart, channeled Jamie Oliver and decided to just go for it. I make Scott a sandwich every day for lunch, why not make it completely and totally homemade and bake the bread myself too?

This recipe calls for whole wheat flour, bread flour and oats. A little molasses, some butter and salt and you've got a great hearty sandwich bread that has character and depth, but doesn't take anything away from whatever's on the inside.

Let it rise twice, once in an oiled bowl and once more in the loaf pan you'll bake it in. Whatever you do, do not decide during the second rise that you really must go out to dinner (you'll just bake the bread when you get back!) You'll come home to a Stay Puft Marshmallow Man of a loaf growing and overflowing out of the pan and on to your counter. But if you do, not to worry. Punch it down again, let is rise once more and then bake. I don't know this from experience or anything.....

This is so easy I don't know why I let my fear of uneven slices stop me from trying. If you eat sandwiches, I highly recommend making this bread. Even if you eat toast, or bread and butter with your soup, or if you like french toast, or homemade croutons! Whatever! Just try this bread. It's so worth it.

Lay the cooled loaf on its side. Use a serrated knife and slice with long even strokes. Practice makes perfect!
This was breakfast for my husband this morning- a toasted slice of Oatmeal Bread with scrambled egg and cheddar cheese. Move over Wheaties, this is the breakfast of champions!

The recipe I used is based off a recipe in Good to the Grain by Kim Boyce and Amy Scattergood. I found it via Orangette.

Oatmeal Sandwich Bread

1 package active dry yeast
3 Tbsp. unsulphured (not blackstrap) molasses
2 ½ cups whole wheat flour
2 cups bread flour
1 cup rolled oats
4 Tbsp. unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly
2 ½ tsp. table salt

Grease a large bowl and a loaf pan with butter or cooking spray.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine 2 cups warm water, the yeast, and molasses. Stir briefly, and then allow the yeast to bloom for about 5 minutes. Add the flours, oats, and butter, and stir to mix. The dough will look rough and shaggy. Cover with a towel, and let stand in the bowl of the mixer for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, add the salt, and mix on medium speed for 6 minutes. The dough should come together around the hook and slap around the sides of the bowl without sticking. If the dough is sticking, add a tablespoon or two of bread flour, sprinkling it down between the dough and the sides of the bowl. If you don't have a stand mixer, you can knead by hand for about 15 minutes, adding flour as needed. The dough should be soft and supple and slightly sticky.

For the first rise, scrape the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it a few times. Put the dough into the greased bowl, cover with a towel, and leave it to rise for about 1 hour, or until it is doubled in size. To see if it’s ready, gently push a floured finger into it. If the dough springs back, it needs more time; if the dimple remains, it’s ready for the next step.

To shape the dough, scrape it onto a floured work surface. Press down on it, working it into a square shape, taking care to depress any bubbles. Fold the dough down from the top to the middle, then up from the bottom to the middle. Next, bring the newly formed top and bottom edges together, pinching the seam to seal. Pinch the sides together, and roll the shaped dough back and forth, plumping it so that it’s evenly formed and about the size of your pan. Place the dough in the pan with the seam side down, and press it gently into the corners of the pan.

For the second rise, cover the dough with a towel, and let it rest in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until the dough rises to half again its size. While the dough is rising, preheat the oven to 400°F.

When the dough has finished its second rise, bake for about 40 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. The loaf is ready when the top crust and bottom crusts are nicely browned. To see if the bread is ready, give the top of the loaf a thump with your hand. If it sounds hollow, it’s ready; if not, give it another few minutes in the oven. Remove the finished loaf from the pan and cool completely on a wire rack. Do not cut into it until it is fully cooled.

Cocktail Foods

2010-10-15T17:18:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you but I get a little snacky when I am enjoying an adult beverage or two. Tonight is Wine Night, hosted monthly by my sister's friend, Stephanie. The girls get together, drink some wine and catch up with each other. I thought this would be the perfect time to try a few recipes out of my newest cookbook (I'm sure I've already told you about my not-so-secret obsession with cookbooks). It is called "Cocktail Food 50 finger foods with attitude".

I decided to make "Sinful Spuds" and "Pepperoni Pinwheels".... not for any reason other than the fact that I had the majority of the ingredients for both on hand already.

First I made the Sinful Spuds:

New Potatoes stuffed with feta, green olives and pine nuts.

You'll need:

12 small new potatoes
salt
1/2 cup feta
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
2 tbs chopped green olives
1 tbs olive oil
1 tbs dried currants
1/2 tsp chopped lemon zest
1/4 tsp oregano
24 parsley leaves for garnish

Cut a think slice off the top and bottom of each potato. Then cut in half crosswise. Bring 6 cups of water to a boil, add 1.5 tsp salt. Add potatoes and simmer until fork tender, 10-15 minutes. Be careful not to overcook. Strain and let cool.

In a bowl, crumble the feta. Add pint nuts, olives, olive oil, currants, lemon zest, oregano and pepper. Mix well.

To assemble: Scoop out the center of each potato with a melon baller. Fill the centers with the feta mixture. Garnish with a parsley leaf.

Up next: Pepperoni Pinwheels...

Puff pastry with pepperoni, gruyere and honey mustard....

You'll need:

1/2 cup finely grated Gruyere cheese
3/4 tsp dried sage
3/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 puff pastry sheet, thawed
2 tbs honey mustard
2 oz. packaged sliced pepperoni
1 egg, lightly beaten

Mix the gruyere, sage, oregano and pepper in a small bowl. Lay the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface with the short side closest to you. Cut in half crosswise. ** Here the recipe calls for you to arrange with the long side closest to you, but I didnt think my pastry would be long enough to roll over more than twice, so I did short side closest to me.**

Put 1 tbs mustard on each piece of pastry and spread evenly leaving 1 inch on the farthest edge from you. Arrange the pepperoni in a single layer on top of the mustard. The sprinkle the cheese mixture on top of the pepperoni.

Brush the farthest edge with the egg. Roll the puff pastry tightly from the closest edge toward the egg coated edge. Lay seam side down on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 30 minutes. ** You can do everything up until here up to 1 day in advance. Just keep the rolls refrigerated and covered.**.

Preheat oven to 400. Slice the logs into 1/4 inch thick slices and lay on a parchment lined baking sheet about 1 inch apart.

Bake in the center of the oven, 1 sheet at a time until they are golden brown, about 14 minutes. Serve warm.

Next time you have a few friends over for some cocktails, try one of these recipes! The perfect finger food to accompany your adult beverage :)

Wish List: Bomber Jacket

2010-10-09T10:01:00.000-07:00

So I know my blog is about 'new creations' and I definitely didn't sew this amazing bomber jacket... but it was just way too cool to pass up posting a picture! Isn't it beautiful?

I was on the Filson website checking out a coat that my husband has been drooling over and meandered on over to the women's section. Much of their stuff is for rugged outdoors men and women (you can shop by activity: everyday, hunting, shooting, fly fishing!?) but this jacket caught my eye. Looks warm enough for a horseback ride in Montana in the winter, but chic enough for a dinner date with the hubs. I would probably use it more often for the latter of the two :)

Dulce de Leche Brownies

2010-09-24T12:11:00.000-07:00

This is another great recipe from David Lebovitz. I check his blog often because he has awesome dessert recipes... and because he lives in France... and I love all things French! It has been almost 10 years since I lived there, and I feel like reading his blog keeps me in touch with la vie française. I like that. He also travels quite a bit so reading his stories about places he visits is inspiring to me.

** Side note if you're into farmers markets: He recently posted about his visit to Cork, Ireland. He details his experience at their farmers market. Here's the link if you want some good reading.

David's recipe for Dulce de Leche Brownies:

8 tablespoons butter cut into pieces
6 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
3 large eggs
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup flour
1 cup Dulce de Leche (or Cajeta)
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a 8-inch square pan with a long sheet of non-stick aluminum foil that covers the bottom and reaches up the sides. If you don't have non-stick foil, grease the bottom and sides of the foil with a bit of butter or non-stick spray.
Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.

Add the chocolate pieces and stir constantly over very low heat until the chocolate is melted.

Remove from heat and whisk in the cocoa powder until smooth. Add in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the sugar, vanilla, then the flour.

Now comes the dulce de leche part.... you can probably find canned dulce de leche in the grocery store, but if you can't, follow David's recipe for making your own. I am sure its worth it. In a pinch, the canned stuff is perfect. I found it right next to the sweetened condensed milk at the grocery store. This is what it looks like:

Scrape half of the batter into the prepared pan. Drop one-third of the Dulce de Leche, evenly spaced, over the brownie batter, then drag a knife through to swirl it slightly. Spread the remaining brownie batter over, then drop spoonfuls of the remaining Dulce de Leche in dollops over the top of the brownie batter. Use a knife to swirl the Dulce de Leche slightly.

Bake for 35 to 45 minutes. The brownies are done when the center feels just-slightly firm. Remove from the oven and cool completely.
These brownies actually become better the second day, and will keep well for 3-4 days.

I don't have a photo of the cooked brownies. Their yumminess took over my ability to have a rational thought :(

Graphic Onesies : Tutorial

2010-09-19T17:21:00.000-07:00

Have you ever thought to yourself, "I could make that!" and then you try, and it's really not as good as you expected it to be?

I did that around this time last year with a necktie onesie for my sister in law. I free-handed a little pattern in the shape of a necktie and just sewed it right on there. It was cute, but not nearly as cute/perfect/professional as the one I recently found on Crap I've Made (which I really found via Big Sis Lil Sis -- thank you Erica!)

So when I needed a quick baby shower gift for one of the girls in my small group, Esther, I gave the ole necktie onesie another shot. And also tried the cute rocket graphic from Crap I've Made.

Here is a quick run down of how it's done:

Get a scrap of fabric you like, you don't need much. I used this black & gray paisley.

Iron a piece of Wonder Under to the scrap.

Peel the paper off and trace the pattern onto the fabric.

Cut your pieces out.

Place the knot onto your onesie, making sure its centered.

Slip the tail of the tie under the knot and iron in place.

Wonder Under is supposed to keep the fabric in place, even through washings, but I like the look of a little topstitch all the way around.

For the matching burp cloth, measure your trifold cloth diaper (mine was about 14 inches wide). Cut a strip of fabric 15x5. Tuck under 1/2 inch on each side and pin in place. Topstitch around all 4 sides. Repeat for the other end.

I recommend using white bobbin thread so the stitches are less noticeable on the underside.

There you have it! A matching onesie / burp cloth set.

Package up with a little gift card and you have the perfect shower gift!

Strawberry Jam

2010-09-19T16:21:00.000-07:00

Some of you guys know that my husband and I live somewhat in the hood. We joke and call it the hood, but really, it is a very family oriented (and very food oriented) neighborhood. We have a regular ice cream truck that comes by just before the sun sets, we have the Mexican bread man who wheels his card by in the afternoons selling delicious baked goods. And every few days in the summer we have people come to the door selling flats of strawberries. I was home early from work last week when the strawberry guy came by. $7 for a flat of strawberries?? YES. Could my husband and I have eaten all 8 baskets of strawberries before they went bad? Probably not.

Next best thing? Jam.

This recipe is from the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving I got at the local hardware store for about $8. It has recipes for anything you could ever possibly can or preserve.

Strawberry Jam:

2 quarts strawberries
1 package powdered pectin
1/4 cup lemon juice
7 cups sugar

Wash strawberries; drain. Remove stems. Crush strawberries one layer at a time.

Combine strawberries, powdered pectin and lemon juice in a large saucepot.

Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Return to a rolling boil. Boil hard 1 minute, stirring constantly.

Remove from heat. Skim foam if necessary. Ladle hot jam into jars leaving 1/4 inch head space.

Adjust 2 piece caps (lid and ring) finger tighten the ring and let them sit on the counter undisturbed for 24 hours. You should hear the lids start to pop within a few minutes. This means they are sealing. Any jam recipe will call for you to process the jars for 10 minutes in boiling water. This is to ensure that they seal, but I have always found that they seal just fine without the boiling water bath. You can do it if you choose.

Make some cute labels and give them out to your friends and family.

There is something super satisfying about a PB&J with jam you made from scratch :)

Just a few notes here for anyone wanting to make their own jam:

~Most people sterilize their jars the traditional way by boiling them. You need to have clean jars for obvious reasons, and you need to have hot jars to prevent the glass from being shocked by the hot liquid and breaking. I like to run mine through the dishwasher and run the heated dry. This cleans them and gets them nice and hot. You can do it either way.

~When crushing the strawberries, you think you need to mush them up a lot, try to refrain; the chunks will break up once you boil the mixture.

~The insert says that you can add a little bit of butter to reduce foaming. I would suggest doing the butter. I didn't this time and I had a lot of foam. You don't want foam in your jam.

~ Last thing to remember about making jam- preparation is EVERYTHING. Make sure you read the recipe through a few times, have everything you need ready to go before you start. It is also way convenient to have an extra set of hands to do the lids while you ladle.

Have fun and enjoy the fruits of your labor!

My new go-to cookie!!

2010-09-17T12:19:00.000-07:00

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies!!

When I need a quick batch of cookies for a party or just to satisfy a sudden sweet tooth, I usually fall back on the tried and true chocolate chip cookie. But when I had a Costco sized container of peanut butter on hand leftover from a camping trip, I started thinking of ways to chocolateize (yes, I just made that word up) the usual peanut butter cookie.

These are a total hit everywhere I bring them. As you can see from my pictures, I also used Hershey's Kisses because I wasn't sure if people would be put off by too much peanut butter on peanut butter action. Can you ever have too much peanut butter? Apparently not, because there are always leftovers of the Kiss ones, and none of the peanut butter cup ones.

Here's the recipe, it's from www.Cooks.com:

**One item of special equipment that will be needed: small tart tins / mini muffin tins.

1/2 c. butter
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. packed brown sugar
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. flour
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 bag Reese's small peanut butter cups

Chill the peanut butter cups for a few minutes in the freezer, then unwrap. It works best when the cups are cold, the wrappers don't take any chocolate with them. Set unwrapped cups aside.

Cream butter, peanut butter and sugars. Beat in egg and vanilla. Add flour & baking soda to creamed mixture. Mix until a nice dough forms. Shape into 1 inch balls and put in ungreased small tart tins. Do not spread dough in cups, but feel free to press them down a little bit. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Look for the cracks in the cookie to know when they're done. Remove from oven and immediately press peanut butter cup into center. Let cool in tins for 15 minutes and remove. Be careful when storing, the chocolate will remain melty for a while.

Makes 48-50 cookies.

You will be eating these by the half dozen, guaranteed.

Next Project: Quilt!

2010-08-24T20:01:00.000-07:00

I am getting a little gutsy in my sewing and decided to try my hand at quilting. I found this quilt-a-long on I Have to Say and thought, "I could do that!". So here is a little preview of the fabrics I have chosen:

They are all Amy Butler, but from a few different lines. I think it is going to be really cute. More photos coming soon as my quilt progresses :)

Fresh Salsa à la Jeanine

2010-08-24T19:23:00.000-07:00

My crafty mom is always finding cool new recipes. She has a very... shall we say... accepting palate. She can usually be found throwing this and that into any given recipe just to see if it works, or to use up what she has on hand. She throws beer into a lot of things. Random.

She gave me this recipe titled 'Quick Salsa'. I don't know where it came from, but the batch she made the other weekend was so good I immediately started a mental grocery list.

Here is the recipe she handed to me... can you tell she's a lefty?

These aren't necessarily the usual suspects....

** Update! Sept. 12th ... My mom clarified this weekend that when she said "Italian Style Tomatoes" she really meant the Roma tomatoes. NOT Italian seasoned tomatoes. Oops. It still tasted pretty good :)

juice of 3 limes
1/4 c. olive oil
1 jalapeno (seeded or not)
1 bunch of cilantro
1 small red onion chopped
1 can of whole peeled italian tomatoes (drained)
salt to taste

Pulse together in the food processor. That's it!

I added some garlic to mine because my husband and I both love our garlic :)

This is what my tomatoes looked like- I couldn't find whole Italian tomatoes, so I just used the diced ones. They're going to get pureed anyway, right?

Give everything else a rough chop. Even though it goes in the processor, you don't want any big chunks getting away from you.

This is what you get!

Its bright and tangy. Sticks nicely to a tortilla chip. This happened to be dinner for us tonight....

More Boxy Pouches

2010-08-17T09:23:00.000-07:00

I am in love with these pouches!~

I made a bunch back in July for some of my girlfriends, but never got around to posting pics. My camera broke while I was in mid-photo-session, so I only have close-ups of a few. I am working on getting a new camera, possibly a DSLR, so if you have any input or advice, please leave a comment!

I love the classic look of black and white on the outside, with a burst of color in the inside:

This one was for my friend Sara who loves owls. I think it is one of my favorites:

You may recognize the Amy Butler fabric of this cutie:

And a reverse of the one above- burst of color on the outside, a nice neutral gray on the inside:

I didn't get a close up of the oil cloth one (top right in the group shot) but that one was made by request from my friend Serene who adores the bold colors and fruit themes of oil cloth. It was white with yellow polka dots on the interior. Very classic.

I will post some pics of these guys filled so you can get a feel for how big they are. I keep mine in my handbag and it holds quite a bit- a few chapsticks, lip gloss, matches, neosporin, 3 or 4 pens, hair ties, etc with plenty of room for more. I just think they are so handy to keep all of those small items in one place. no more fishing for a bobby pin or hair tie at the bottom of that hobo!

My Favorite Coleslaw

2010-08-03T10:23:00.001-07:00

I love this spicy lime-peanut coleslaw on a hot summer day. It is mayo-free, so it is light and tangy with fresh flavors from the lime and cilantro and a great crunch from the cabbage and peanuts.

It is a breeze to fix up, most of your time will be spent juicing the limes and dicing the jalapeno.

Recipe is adapted from Epicurious.com:

1 cup peanuts, raw and unsalted
1/2 of a large head of cabbage, or 1 bag of Trader Joes shredded green cabbage
1 basket of cherry tomatoes, halved
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced (keep the seeds if you like it hot!)
3/4 cup cilantro, chopped
the juice of 3 limes (about 1/4 cup)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt

Roast the peanuts in a skillet for 5 to 10 minutes until golden and toasted. Shake the pan every minute or so and keep a close watch on them, they will burn if left too long!

While the peanuts are going, juice the limes and chop the jalapeno.

Whisk the olive oil into the lime juice and add the diced jalapeno. Add the salt. This is your dressing.

Halve the cherry tomatoes and chop the cilantro.

I like to leave a few of the cilantro leaves whole.

Quarter the head of cabbage and remove the core. Slice into thin shreds.... or just use the already shredded kind from Trader Joe's if you're short on time.... or just lazy :)

Combine the cabbage, tomatoes and cilantro in a bowl.

Drizzle the lime & olive oil mixture over the top and toss to coat. Add the cooled peanuts just before serving. They will lose some of the crunch if you add them too early. Taste and add more salt if desired.

Serve with your favorite BBQ chicken or have as a simple supper. It's the perfect summer dish!

Homemade Pizza

2010-07-15T11:26:00.000-07:00

Who doesn't LOVE pizza? Everything about it screams comfort and deliciousness. Carbs, cheese, veggies... what more could you ask for in a meal?

I found a recipe for pizza dough from scratch in my trusty copy of Baking Illustrated. I decided I was up for the challenge and delved right in.

Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, put it in there while pre-heating so the stone can get nice and hot.

Here's what you'll need:

1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1 envelope (about 2.25 tsp instant yeast
1 1/4 cups water at room temp
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 cups (22 oz) bread flour, plus more for dusting work surface
1 1/2 tsp salt
olive oil or non=stick cooking spray for oiling the bowl.

Bloom the packet of yeast in 1/2 c. of warm water for 5 minutes.

Add to it 2 tablespoons of olive oil and and additional 1 1/4 cups of warm water. These are your wet ingredients.

Put the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Blend it up. While the processor or mixer is going, add in all but a few tablespoons of your wet ingredients. If the dough dos not readily form into a ball, add the remaining liquid. Use your dough hook if using a stand mixer. (You can do this by hand if you don't have a stand mixer or a food processor)

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead by hand for a few strokes until it forms a smooth round ball.

Put the dough in an oiled bowl and let sit for 2 hours in a warm dry place.

Once 2 hours have passed, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and press it down to deflate it.

Now this recipe asks that you cut the dough into 3 sections. It should make 3 small pizzas. I cut it in half because I didn't have the time or patience to cook 3 separate pizzas on this particular night.

At this point, you come to a fork in the road. Do you have a pizza stone? Or are you going to bake on a cookie sheet? Before you roll out the dough, you need to know how you're cooking it.

~If you have a pizza stone, then hopefully you have a pizza peel, too. Roll out the dough and put it on the peel. Top with ingredients on the peel... It is quite a tricky process to get a fully loaded unbaked pizza off your work surface and onto the pizza stone without damaging it in some way, unless you have a peel. I actually don't have one, so I just do it on a wood cutting board with plenty of cornmeal laid down before I start to press out the dough. With the help of a spatula and a quick jerking motion, you can slide the unbaked pile of yummy goodness onto the pizza stone.

~If you don't have a pizza stone and want to bake this on a cookie sheet or pan, just shape the dough directly on the baking sheet. Top it with your faves and pop it in!

On ours, we used up some ingredients we had lying around: sun dried tomatoes, sliced black olives, fresh sliced garlic and bacon! It was soooo good. The bacon added a nice smoky flavor that hit the spot.

Bake until the crust is browned and the cheese is bubbly and golden, about 8-12 minutes. You want to make sure you give it enough time, even though it sometimes looks like it is done, the crust can still be doughy. Doughy is not what we're goin' for here.

I like to let it sit for a minute so the cheese can set. When you're ready, cut and serve!

**If you don't have 2 hours to wait around before dinner while your dough proofs, you can make it in the morning, cover it and leave it in the fridge all day. It will proof just fine in there, as I have learned from the book Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. It will retain it's shape better at room temp when you're rolling it out, so keep that in mind.

Cute Boxy Pouch

2010-07-12T10:35:00.000-07:00

I don't know about you gals, but I love having a small pouch or case in my handbag that holds all of my knick-knacks and essentials. Searching for a bobby pin or lip gloss in the depths of my bag can be a very frustrating ordeal. I found this tutorial and decided to make a couple this weekend. I already have something similar that holds my lip gloss, bobby pins, hair bands, a pen or 2, plus some other girl items... But this one is so cute, I couldn't resist making one for myself... and I plan on making a few more for my friends in the coming days.

Here is the tutorial if you want an alternative explanation, or more detailed instructions:
http://modernquiltlove.wordpress.com/2009/07/14/perfect-box-pouch-tutorial/

You'll need:

2 pieces of exterior fabric, 6" x 8"
2 pieces interior fabric. 6" x 8"
2 pieces of non-fusible interfacing
Coordinating thread
12" zipper

Cut your fabric pieces and interfacing. Note: the long side of the pieces will be the top of the bag and run along the zipper, so make sure you like where it cuts through the design on the fabric.

Layer the fabric pieces together in this order:

Interior fabric facing down
Interfacing
Exterior fabric facing up

Repeat for other set of fabric.

Sew the 3 layers together along both of the 8" sides with a 1/4 inch seam allowance. Once sewn it is helpful to trim the excess with pinking shears. It will help the exposed seams (which will be on the inside of the bag) not to fray, and it will look cleaner.

Lay sewn fabric layers exterior side down. Fold over one of the long edges 1/2 inch and press. Repeat for 2nd set of fabric. (see photo- exterior fabric should be face down and then turned over)

Sew the pressed fabric sets to the zipper. Exterior fabric should be facing up. Edge that was tucked under and pressed should be along the zipper.

Once both pieces are sewn to the zipper, fold in half like a taco so the exterior fabric sides are together, interior fabric is facing out. Zipper on one end, loose bottom end of sets are lined up. Stitch a 1/4 inch seam along the raw edges of the loose bottom end. (sorry- no pic for this step- see tutorial link if you're confused).

Then lay the tube flat so the zipper is lined up with the bottom seam. Press the sides.

Move the zipper pull to the middle and sew along the ends taking care when sewing over the zipper. Go over the zipper a 2nd time to ensure it will stay put with all of the pulling it will endure.

Cut off the excess zipper leaving an inch. DO NOT cut the zipper right where the fabric ends. You need the extra or else the zipper ends will be exposed when it is zipped shut.

Now this is the step where you create the "boxy" look of the pouch.

Pinch the corners as shown in the photo. Measure 1 inch from the point so you have a triangle that is 1 inch to the point, and 2 inches along the base. Mark the line 2 inches across. Pin so the corner stays pinched. Sew along the line you marked.

Cut off excess fabric along the sewn line. Use pinking shears if you have them.

Flip the pouch right side out, zip it closed and admire your handy work!

The interior does have raw edges, so make sure you cut the excess with pinking shears as I stated above.

This is another one I made for my friend to include in her baby shower gift. I assume it would be helpful for moms too! Pacifiers? Girly hair bows? Lip gloss? Advil? Flask? Whatever mamma needs! (JK about the flask ;)

The interior was this cute baby-themed fabric:

Sooo easy to make these, you'll want to make them for all of your friends :)

Banana Fritters with Cinnamon Vanilla Bean Syrup

2010-07-07T11:08:00.000-07:00

I won't say that I love bananas. I don't love them unconditionally, I only love them when they are a little bit green. Right before they ripen, still firm, with not a speck of brown on them. I don't like to eat them after the dreaded turning point, so I often find myself with the super-brown, barely-any-yellow-left-on-them-bananas. They sit on my counter, staring me in the face each morning, getting progressively browner by the minute, making me feel guilty for being so particular about my banana ripeness requirements.

This was the sad state of mine and my co-workers bananas last week. I decided to take his and mine and make something. I have made banana bread so many times, I did a quick search on the internet and came to www.cooks.com. The recipe seemed simple enough, so I went home and whipped these up.

For the syrup:

2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 c. water
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise, or 2 tsp real vanilla extract
1 cinnamon stick (ground cinnamon is fine if you don't have a stick on hand)

Heat sugar and water in heavy, small saucepan over low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.

Scrape in seeds from vanilla bean; reserve pod for another use. Add cinnamon stick. Oorrrr, if you dont have either of these on hand, you can use vanilla extract and ground cinnamon. I did and it turned out great.

Bring the mixture to simmer over medium heat. Be very watchful at this point. It can and will boil over if you're not watching and it is quite the chore to clean up. Just trust me on this one. :)

Remove from heat, cover and steep 30 minutes. Uncover and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Discard cinnamon stick.

For the fritter dough:

2 c. all-purpose flour
2 tbsp. golden brown sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 lg. ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
1 tsp. vanilla extract

Vegetable oil (for deep frying)

Mix first four ingredients in processor. With machine running, add butter and process until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a large bowl.

Mash the bananas in a separate bowl. Combine with the vanilla, then add to the dry ingredients stirring to form soft but not sticky dough. Add a sprinkling more flour if it is too sticky to handle.

Turn onto lightly floured work surface and pat or roll into 6 x 12 inch rectangle.

Cut into 12 or 14 strips. Form strips into rings, pinching ends to seal.

Heat oil in deep pot to 375 degrees. If you do not have a thermometer, I would highly recommend getting one. They sell inexpensive ones at the grocery store for a couple bucks. It is also very handy to have one of those wok skimmers. Retrieving the fritters from 375 degree oil with 2 forks is just not ideal.

Deep-fry fritters in batches until crisp and golden brown on all sides, about 5 minutes.

Sprinkle with sugar when they are still warm. It will stick better when they are fresh out of the oil. Let cool on a paper towel lined plate.

Serve immediately with the warm cinnamon-vanilla syrup. These are perfect for dessert, kind of like beignets after dinner in New Orleans, or Pizza Frites at Uncle Rick's on Christmas Eve... but would also be a great addition to your Sunday brunch... Because who doesn't love fried dough?

**If desired, fritter dough can be prepared 2 hours ahead. Cover lightly with cloth. Leave at room temperature. Once fried, these don't keep overnight.

Buttermilk Biscuits

2010-04-26T15:31:00.001-07:00

My wonderful group of girlfriends up in SF got me a gift card to Sur La Table for my birthday and specifically labeled it "cooking classes". I knew as soon as I saw a class on CHEESE, that it would be an excellent choice for said gift card spendage. We made Mozzarella, Ricotta, Queso Blanco, Crème Fraiche and... drum roll please: Homemade Butter!

I realize I am leading you off topic here, you're seeing the headline about biscuits or somesuch and thinking why is she going on about the cheese class?

For a couple of the cheeses, you need buttermilk. Have you seen the smallest size carton of buttermilk in the store? It's a quart. When you need 6 tablespoons of the stuff to make a batch of Crème Fraiche, you have to find something to do with the other 58 tablespoons.

So, I turned to my trusty copy of Baking Illustrated. This book is my BFF.

Page after page of the most useful baking advice you can ever hope to get. These guys tinker, test and experiment so we don't have to. The goal is to have a foolproof recipe that will work every time.

Here's what you'll need:

1 cup (5oz) unbleached all purpose flour
1cup (4oz) plain cake flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
8 tablespoons (1 stick) of cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4 inch cubes
3/4 cup cold buttermilk or 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons plain yogurt

(If you don't have cake flour on hand, use an extra cup of all-purpose flour and increase the buttermilk and yogurt by 2 tablespoons)

This is best done in a food processor, but I don't have one so I am doing it by hand.

Into the bowl go the first 6 ingredients:

Whisk it up to evenly distribute, or pulse with six 1-second pulses in food processor:

Cut in some very cold butter. Cut the butter into 1/4 inch cubes. If you don't have a food processor, cut it into the flour with a pastry blender, or by using 2 knives. You can also grate frozen butter with a box grater. More on that later.

And... the buttermilk

Stir, but not too much! You don't want chewy biscuits. You're looking for a "soft, slightly sticky ball".

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Divide the ball of dough in half, divide each of the halves in half, and then each of those lumps into thirds. This should give you an even dozen.

Ball them up, put them on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake 10-12 minutes.

Please note: Even though one of the BEST parts about Baking Illustrated is the precise instructions they give along with detailed commentary on WHY you do it that way, sometimes it is a lot of info to take in. After cutting in my butter with 2 knives (I don't own a pastry blender, gasp!) and baking these bad boys, I definitely understood why I need to read the book more thoroughly.

It asks you to flip to another page in the back for methods of cutting the butter in if you don't have a food processor or pastry blender. Your best option is grating the frozen butter with a box grater. My lumps of butter were a bit on the big side, and they were melting out all over the place as you can sort of see in the pic below. The melted butter was pooling on the pan. Oops.

Even with the slight oversight, these biscuits turned out divine. They really do need to be eaten right out of the oven. They were warm and crumbly, moist inside with that sort of sharp soda-like saltiness. Yum-o. Top with a little butter and maybe some honey. I think I ate 4 of them before my husband got home.

Impossible Cheesecake?

2010-04-21T09:57:00.000-07:00

Not to brag, but I rarely have a mishap in the kitchen. I don't think I have ever burned anything in the oven. I've never forgotten an ingredient. And never ever have I had something come out so bad that I couldn't eat it.

Actually, I take it all back.

I have burned chocolate chip cookies to a crispified state because I didn't set the timer. I have neglected to add an ingredient a time or two and just this week I rendered this wonderful cheesecake inedible, not by way of burning or forgotten ingredients, but by way of a natural disaster in the kitchen: broken glass. Martha, Fail.

I saw this cheesecake on one of the blogs I check out fairly regularly- Piece of Cake

Shauna, the blog author, shared this recipe based on her mom's adaptation of Bisquick's "Impossible Cheesecake". I thought it looked lovely and amazing so I decided to make it for the group of girls I meet with on Tuesdays.

Ingredients: Cream Cheese, eggs, vanilla extract, lemon juice, sugar and... Bisquick!

You can find her exact recipe here.

I actually added a bit of lemon zest along with the juice. I think it added a nice fragrant punch. If you don't like lemon, you can leave it out altogether.

Mix together all (room temp) ingredients with a hand mixer and pour into a greased pie pan.

Bake at 350 for 40-50 minutes (mine needed 40) or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes while you're mixing the topping. Yes, topping...

8 ounces sour cream, 2 tablespoons of sugar and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. Stir until completely blended and spread on top of your cooled cheesecake. The cooled cake will deflate a little, so just try to spread the topping as evenly as possible.

Chill for at least 2 hours before serving. It is wonderful alone, but a few fresh berries would be a nice addition.

So what about the broken glass you ask? I was cooking dinner while my cheesecake was cooling on the counter- multitasking as usual. I dropped a bottle of olive oil on our BRAND NEW stove which chipped the porcelain edge, sending shards of the stuff flying. I found one little shard on top of the cheesecake just as I began to pour on the topping. I picked it out, but there was no way of knowing how many shards I had already covered up... I was so upset and frustrated at this silly slip up, my lovely husband offered to mix me up a Jack and Ginger Ale.

I did not actually bring the cheesecake to my small group. I couldn't allow my dear girls to eat broken glass!! I cut a slice, ate a bite out of the middle just to try it out (it was A-MAZING) and put the rest in the trash. Sad day for the impossible cheesecake. Thank God for Jack and Ginger Ale.

Lovely Leeks

2010-04-19T14:36:00.001-07:00

I am going to do some free advertising for a minute here...

Planet Organics = Awesomeness.

I signed up for their services for a couple of months to test the waters. I really enjoyed the front door delivery of fresh, local organic produce. It is great knowing you're supporting farmers in your area while getting your fill of pesticide free, vitamin laden fruits and veggies. You fill your online cart with what you want, or you can let them do a random selection of what's in season if you're into that sort of thing. I did that once and ended up with a cute little mini pumpkin looking thing that I had to google to even know how to prepare. Anyhow, this service is really convenient and totally worth the money. One of the only downsides to this produce was how very perishable it is! You simply must eat everything within a few days. Though I count this as a 'downside' it is really a great thing. It means these veggies are not sprayed with all kinds of chemicals to preserve their appearance or extend their shelf-life. This is real fresh food, people. Real fresh food has an expiration date.

Even my indoor cat knew something was different about the crate of veg in my living room.

Another item in my random selection cart was a bunch of leeks. How happy I was to see those guys. Leeks, unlike that Sweet Dumpling Squash, I know exactly what to do with....

I LOVE LEEKS! I just love them. Their earthy scent, their soft, never over-powering onion flavor. They remind me of my time spent in France. I guess I was eating a lot of leeks at the time because without fail, every time I cut into one I am transported back to my little kitchen in Toulouse... my balcony doors open, sounds of cars on the cobblestone street below, curtains fluttering in the warm afternoon breeze. Me, chopping and cooking and listening to the hustle and bustle. Ohhhhhhh La France.

OK. I'm back.

I didn't really have a recipe in mind for these leeks. I think Leeks sautéed in a little butter with a sprinkling of salt are just heaven. I had a pie crust left in the fridge that needed to be used up so my first thought was a tart. This is such a simple recipe with very few ingredients, I should have made the crust from scratch :( Next time.

Leek Tarte:

Slice lengthwise and rinse 2 large leeks, making sure to remove all dirt and sand that can hide in between layers. Chop and saute in some olive oil and maybe a bit of butter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper as desired. (The cheese will lend some salt, so don't go too crazy)

Stir in about a cup of half & half (whole milk would do) and a cup of grated Emmental cheese. Pour into a pie crust.

Bake until it is golden brown, about 45-50 minutes.

Serve with a side of mixed greens lightly tossed in vinaigrette and you've got lunch. So easy and sooo delicious.

Happy Good Friday!

2010-04-02T13:47:00.000-07:00

Easter is a time of joy for me because it is essentially the reason behind the faith I have. As the book of Isaiah says, "He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him, and by his wounds we are healed." With whatever craziness/struggle/heartbreak/stress or hurt we experience in this life, we can take heart knowing that He bears our burdens so we can have peace. We are a new creation in Christ; the old has gone and the new has come! How awesome is that?

Babies, babies, babies!

2010-03-29T15:26:00.000-07:00

One of my girlfriends is having a baby in May and for her shower I decided to test my hand at those oh so cute "Ruffle Butt" onesies. I got the inspiration for these from a few different websites and have seen them done a bunch of different ways. I mainly based it on my friend Kym's . Kym is amazing in the way of all things creative...

These are so fun and easy to make. I will try to post a little step by step tutorial soon.

OK, so I went the easy route and used pinking shears to cut the strips rather than enclosing the seams. I wasn't sure how the whole "ruching" thing would go, so I wanted to go easy on myself with as few layers of fabric to string up.

I also did matching burp cloths, just sewed a strip of coordinating fabric along each end of the tri-fold Gerber diapers. I have been told the burp cloths that are all decorative fabric are pretty much useless. The fabric doesn't absorb anything and you wind up with baby vomit running down you arm. Not cute!! These tri-fold's are the way to go, just a little touch of decor at each end.

My fave is the pink one, but I think its only my fave because it appears to be the only one with straight ruffles...

Otherwise, if this green one had straight lines, it would be my fave by far...

My friend is doing pink and brown, so I used this cute brown fabric in the mix:

I apologize- no step by step photos. I will not leave my camera battery charging at the office next time I dive into a project.

M.I.A.

2010-03-22T10:26:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! My husband and I have moved house (although 'moved condo' is more accurate) I have not been baking or making anything in the last couple of weeks ... unless you count tacos and chocolate chip cookies, but those serve as less interesting blog entries so I am saving you guys the details. But packing, moving and unpacking takes a lot out of a person. I hope to be back on the baking track soon.

I have a friend's baby shower this Saturday, so I plan on sewing up some cute baby items as a gift. I also found a recipe to make Girl Scout Samoa's from scratch!! Hello shortbread, caramel and chocolate dipped and covered in coconut!! This recipe is slightly intimidating to me, but I know how much everyone loves those Girl Scout cookies! I promise to post soon... Stay tuned!

Not Your Grandmother's Corned Beef

2010-03-05T09:25:00.000-08:00

I know I am not the only one who loves those first signs of Spring. The warm rays of sunshine on your wintery white skin, birds chirping at the crack of dawn and the fact that you can leave work at 5:00 and not have to drive home in the dark. We all love those things, but one of my personal favorites about the end of winter is seeing Corned Beef in the grocery store! I LOVE Corned Beef. I would eat it everyday as a child if my mom were to make it for me everyday. The same is still true. Except my mom lives 150 miles away and now I have to make it for myself.

St. Patrick's Day is still a week and a half away, but I couldn't resist getting an early Corned Beef in the crock pot yesterday.

Little background story for ya:

This cookbook was an impulse buy at Costco. I have admitted my addiction to cookbooks. Everyone knows I can't resist. This one called out to me from the sea of books stacked high on the shelves of Costco because I simply do not like the "Crockpot" brand recipes. They usually consist of a certain meat - chicken or beef - along with a short list of canned or boxed ingredients. I am more of a fresh ingredients kind of girl.... even if it requires a bit more prep work. This book has recipes like "Smokey Gouda Mac n Cheese", "Zucchini and Leek Frittata" and "Soprano's-Style Sausage Minestrone". This ain't your grandma's "Crockpot" cookbook.

OK, so back to the corned beef. I bring the hunk of meat home with plans of fixing it like I have in the past- in the slow cooker with the enclosed spice packet and water... maybe some apple juice if I have it on hand. Imagine my glee when I crack open my Best Cookbook Ever and find a recipe for Corned Beef and Cabbage Braised in Riesling!! The book also has one for Corned Beef with Guinness, which I am surely going to try later.

The ingredient list was a bit long, so I simplified it. I usually improvise when it comes to cooking, anyway.

Into the pot go onions!

.. and baby carrots!

... and organic potatoes

Plop down your hunk of meat right on top (I try to trim off as much fat as I can, I know it doesn't look like it from the picture.)

Now for the recipe concoction... Did I already say I like to improvise? The list was longer than this, but I didn't have everything so I just used what I had.

1 c. dijon mustard (closest thing in my fridge to whole grain mustard)
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 c. Sauvignon Blanc (didn't have any Riesling)
2 bay leaves
4 whole peppercorns

I also added in the spice packet they give you with the meat.

Mix together in a bowl and pour over the meat. Add water (or apple juice, or more wine) so the meat isn't totally exposed.

Cook on low for 10 hours and come home to a house that smells like your Irish Grandmother has been slaving over a hot stove all day long, just for you.

Side note: I didn't do cabbage. I know it's sort of contrary to the whole Corned Beef protocol, but sometimes I just don't feel like cabbage. Yesterday was one of those days. I plan on making Corned Beef at least 2 more times between now and St. Patty's day, so I have some time to redeem myself. I think I will also try it with the Riesling next time. I am sure the sweetness of the wine would add a lot to the flavor of the meat. Sort of like the apple juice does in my mom's recipe.

Invite a few friends over, mix up a salad, pour a glass of wine (or beer, or a vodka soda) and dig in. Don't forget the horseradish and mustard for dipping!

Chocolate Caramel Cups

2010-03-02T10:42:00.000-08:00

Everyone who has been around me when someone busts out a box of See's knows I go straight for the Caramel Patties. They are the little disc looking chocolates, flat and round, filled with caramel and covered in chocolate. So simple, but sooo good.

These Chocolate Caramel Cups are basically the same ingredients just a little bigger allowing for more caramel. Oh, and I added a sprinkle of sea salt on top to intensify the flavors.

This recipe is adapted from David Lebovitz's Chocolate-Covered Salted Peanut Caramel Cups recipe. I don't need peanuts getting in the way here, people.

These were pretty simple to make, I started with the caramel:

Melt 1/2 cup butter in a heavy saucepan. Add in a 1/2 lb. brown sugar and a sprinkling of salt.

Stir in 1/2 cup light corn syrup. Mix well. Add half of a 14oz can of sweetened condensed milk stirring constantly and bring it up to 245 degrees, the Firm Ball Stage.

Once you're there, take it off the heat and stir in 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract.

Pour into a buttered 8x8 pan and let cool.

Meanwhile, get the chocolate cups going. Simply melt down 16 oz. of chocolate in a double boiler, or a bowl placed over a pot of boiling water. I used E. Guittard because I've been meaning to try it. You can probably use chocolate chips.

Once melted, put a heaping teaspoon of the chocolate into each cup. I used mini muffin cups which seemed to be a good size. Roll the melty chocolate around to coat the sides. Add more if needed. Put them in the fridge for about 10-15 minutes to set.

Cut into your pan of caramel to make little squares that will fit into the cups.

Press the caramel down a bit so it is flat across the top. This will help to get the flat top of chocolate on your finished cups.

Drop one more teaspoon of melted chocolate on top of the caramel and give the pan a good shake to flatten out the top coat. Sprinkle on a pinch of sea salt and put back in the fridge to set.

Makes about 35 chocolate cups with a little caramel left over.

Crazy delicious!

Flour > Dough > Bread Bliss

2010-02-24T13:40:00.000-08:00

When they say "Five Minutes a Day" they really mean it. Boy was this dough easy to make. I was laying in bed with my hubby the other night and got the bug to dig into this book (finally!)

Step #1 - Run downstairs

Step #2 - Throw flour, water, yeast and salt in the KitchenAid and mix

About 3 minutes later I had my dough!!

Step #3 - Cover in loose plastic wrap, put in fridge *Bonus* you can keep it in whatever container you mixed it in, so 1 less dish to clean

Step #4 - Skip back upstairs and get back in bed

The next day my dough had risen a bit, but not as much as I had imagined it would. To make the "Boule" (literally "Ball" in French) you pull out a grapefruit sized chunk of dough from your batch (the one you made in 3 minutes flat) with lightly floured hands, round it out by pulling the edges under to form a taught top. Place on a pizza peel (or wood cutting board if you don't have one of those) lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Let rise for 40 minutes while you're cooking dinner or cleaning, or doing whatever needs doing.

Slice the top so the boule will have those nice markings you see on bakery bread, pop onto a pizza stone that's been pre-heated while the oven was pre-heating. Pour a cup of water onto a cookie sheet placed on the lower rack of the oven and close the door quickly! The water helps to make a steamy environment for the baking boule.

The Boule is the most basic bread recipe in the book, the one readers are to "become familiar with" before moving on to any of the other recipes. I think "becoming familiar" entails making it once. It was that easy.

What do you think? I think I need some photography lessons :)

2010-02-02T16:43:00.000-08:00

Ahh, What to do with all of this white space?! I am not sure what the first post to a new blog should be and seeing as how I do not have much to post about as of yet, I will leave you with this little tantalizing tid bit... Freshly baked bread! I received Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day yesterday and plan on getting my bake on soon. As it usually happens, the book came in the middle of one of my busiest weeks so I can't get elbows deep in dough just yet. Bahh! I hate when inspiration strikes when I can't get to my kitchen. Check back in a few days!!