Easter Treats

So I know Easter is over, by a week now lol.  I do not care though.  I wanted to show off my adorable treats from Easter!!

I made dirt pudding from this recipe on AllRecipes.com.  Keep in mind, this is something that Food Rules would be highly against, but it was so tasty and fun.  Plus, it would fall under the special occasion rule lol.

Quesadillas

Nick and I love Mexican food.  Granted, we usually eat tex-mex and not true Mexican, but we like the idea of it.  I am a big fan of quesadillas; however, Nick doesn't always view them as a full meal.  So we added some chicken, onions, peppers, red pepper flakes and cheese and made it a real meal for him.  They were amazing and just spicy enough.  I added sour cream and guacamole to mine to make it perfect!

Spicy Alfredo-Marinara Rigatoni

A few weeks ago, we had some friends over for dinner.  They introduced us to a wonderfully spicy pasta dish.  Nick and I are huge fans of pasta for its quick cook time and for the delicious sauces we get to pair with it, but we hadn't had a spicy pasta dish in awhile.  This dish combines spice with Alfredo and Marinara sauces.

Spicy Alfredo-Marinara Rigatoni- adapted from Jude
serves 4

1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp chopped garlic
4 chicken tenderloins
1 cup broccoli (chopped)
26 oz marinara sauce
16 oz Alfredo sauce
1 lb rigatoni

Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat.  Add red pepper flakes and sauté until flavor is absorbed by oil.  Add garlic and cook until slightly browned.  Add broccoli and sauté for 3-5 minutes.  Cut chicken tenderloins into bite sized pieces and add the pan.  Cook the chicken until done.  Meanwhile, heat water until boiling and cook pasta until done to your liking and drain (we are a slightly mushy pasta family, al dente is a little to hard for us).  Add marinara and Alfredo sauce to the pan with chicken (keep in mind that you should add sauces slowly and make the combination that you like best).  Once sauce is slightly bubbly, add the sauces to pasta and mix.

Keep in mind, you can always adjust the spice to your liking.  We added a while Tbs of red pepper flakes the first time and that was a little too much for us.

Apple Turnovers

Until recently, I was a frozen turnover kinda gal.  I just didn't think that I had the time or skill to create such a wonderful bakery treat; therefore, I turned to the frozen section of my grocery store anytime I had a hankering for one.  


When hunting for recipes for a brunch I was hosting for a few friends, I came across an apple turnover recipe and decided to look into how much time and energy it would take from my already busy weekend.  


Low and behold, the recipe told me it would take very long, and I could make the filling in advance.  I was sold.


The little beauties turned out to be delicious!  I did make a few adjustments to the recipe though.  I could not find all-butter puff pastry and I added about 1 tbs of cinnamon and a tsp of nutmeg to my apple filling to give it more of a pie filling flavor.

French Apple Turnovers (Chaussons Aux Pommes) Bon Appétit | November 2008

by Molly Wizenberg

All-butter puff pastry is available at some specialty foods stores. Yield: Makes 8 servings Filling: 3/4 pound Granny Smith apples 3/4 pound Golden Delicious apples 1/4 cup water 3 tablespoons sugar 3/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice For pastry: 1 14- to 16-ounce package all-butter frozen puff pastry (1 or 2 sheets, depending on brand), thawed 1 egg, beaten to blend (for glaze) Superfine sugar (optional) For filling: Peel, core, and cut apples into 1-inch pieces (about 4 cups). Place apples in medium saucepan; add 1/4 cup water, 3 tablespoons sugar, and lemon juice. Bring to boil, stirring occasionally until sugar dissolves. Cover; reduce heat to medium-low and simmer until apples are very tender, stirring frequently, about 12 minutes. Remove from heat. Gently mash apples with fork or potato masher until mixture is very soft but still chunky. Cool completely. DO AHEAD: Filling can be made 2 days ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Position 1 rack in top third and 1 rack in bottom third of oven and preheat to 400°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. For pastry: If using 14-ounce package (1 sheet), roll out pastry on lightly floured surface to 15-inch square. If using 16-ounce package (2 sheets), stack sheets together and roll out on lightly floured surface to 15-inch square. Cut pastry into nine 5-inch squares. Place 1 generous tablespoon filling in center of each of 8 squares (reserve remaining square for another use). Lightly brush edges of 1 pastry with beaten egg. Fold half of pastry square over filling, forming triangle. Press and pinch pastry edges with fingertips to seal tightly. Lightly brush pastry with beaten egg. Sprinkle lightly with superfine sugar, if desired. Repeat with remaining squares. Using thin, sharp knife, make 3 small slits on top of each triangle to allow steam to escape. Place triangles on prepared baking sheets. Refrigerate until firm, about 15 minutes. Bake turnovers until beginning to color, about 15 minutes. Reverse baking sheets from top to bottom. Reduce oven temperature to 350°F; continue baking until turnovers are firm and golden, 10 to 15 minutes longer. Cool at least 15 minutes before serving. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Read More http://www.epicurious.com:80/recipes/food/printerfriendly/French-Apple-Turnovers-em-Chaussons-Aux-Pommes-em-350419#ixzz1p7Cs0EQz

Do you know the muffin (wo)man?

I adore muffins!  They are flakey and full of flavor.  I realize that too much of a good thing is not good and muffins are one of those things, but I cannot resist them.  Over the holidays I made two new kinds of muffins.  The first is blueberry sour cream muffins.

Blueberry Sour Cream Muffins
from The Sono Baking Company Cookbook


2 cups plus 1 tbls all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen (unthawed) blueberries
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temp
1 cup sugar
1 tsp coarse salt
2 lg eggs, at room temp
1 1/2 pure vanilla extract
grated zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup sour cream
coarse sanding sugar, for finishing


1. Set the oven rack in the middle position.  Preheat the oven to 375.  Spray a standard 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray, or generously butter with softened butter; set aside.


2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the 2 cups of flour, the baking powder, and baking soda; set aside.  Toss the blueberries in a sieve with the remaining 1 tbs flour; set aside.


3. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar, and salt on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl halfway through.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.  Beat in the vanilla and lemon zest.


4. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients, beating just until the flour is absorbed.  Add the sour cream, beating until combined.  Gently fold in the blueberries with a rubber spatula.


5. Use a 2-inch ice cream scoop to divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups.  Sprinkle with the sanding sugar.


6. Bake, rotating the pan about two-thirds of the way through the baking time, until the tops of the muffins spring back when touched and a cake tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, 20 to 25 minutes.


7.  Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.  Use an offset spatula or table knife to gently lift and turn the muffins on their sides in the muffin cups.  Let cool completely in the pan.




These muffins turned out really well.  I did not use any sanding sugar though.  I couldn't find any at my local grocery store.






Now these beauties are Banana Streusel Muffins!

Banana Streusel Muffins
from The Sono Baking Company Cookbook


Streusel Topping
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/4 tsp coarse salt
1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 cup cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes


Muffins
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temp.
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp coarse salt
2 lg eggs, at room temp.
2 tsp vanilla extract
3 very ripe bananas
1/2 buttermilk, sour cream, or whole-milk yogurt
1 1/2 cups whole walnuts, chopped (optional)


1. To make the streusel topping: in a medium bowl, use a fork to stir together the four, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon.  Add the cubes of butter, and using your fingertips, work it into the dry ingredients until pea-size crumbs form; set aside in refrigerator.


2. Set the oven rack in the middle position.  Preheat the oven to 375.  Spray a standard 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray, or generously butter with softened butter; set aside.


3. To make the muffins: in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and baking soda; set aside.


4. In the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, sugar and salt on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl halfway through.  Add the eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.  Then add in and beat the vanilla and the bananas.


5. With the mixer on ow speed, add the dry ingredients, beating until the flour is absorbed.  Beat in the buttermilk. Fold in the walnuts, if using.


6. Use a 2-inch ice cream scoop to divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups.  Sprinkle the streusel topping over the muffins, pressing some of the misture into pea-size clumps with your fingertips, for added texture.


7. Bake, rotating the pan about two-thirds of the way through the baking time, until the tops of the muffins spring back with touched and a cake tester inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean, 18 to 22 minutes.


8. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes.  Use a small offset spatula or a table knife to gently lift and turn the muffins on their sides in the muffin cups.  Let cool completely in the pan.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

One of my goals for this year was to make more bread.  Nick and I love bread, but I don't bake it often because in general...it is hard, lol.  


My mom visited during January and this bread seemed perfect for breakfast.  It was fairly tasty, but not as good as I wanted it to be...Nick and my mom loved it though.

Cinnamon Sugar Pull-Apart Bread

Makes: one 9x5x3-inch loaf

Recipe from Joy The Baker

For the Dough:

2 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 1/4 teaspoons (1 envelope) active dry yeast

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 ounces unsalted butter

1/3 cup whole milk

1/4 cup water

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

For the Filling:

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg

2 ounces unsalted butter, melted until browned

In a large mixing bowl (I used just the bowl of my stand mixer) whisk together 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast, and salt.  Set aside.

Whisk together eggs and set aside.

In a small saucepan, melt together milk and butter until butter has just melted.  Remove from the heat and add water and vanilla extract.  Let mixture stand for a minute or two, or until the mixture registers 115 to 125 degrees F.

Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula.  Add the eggs and stir the mixture until the eggs are incorporated into the batter.  The eggs will feel soupy and it’ll seem like the dough and the eggs are never going to come together.  Keep stirring.  Add the remaining 3/4 cup of flour and stir with the spatula for about 2 minutes.  The mixture will be sticky.  That’s just right.

Place the dough is a large,  greased bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel.  Place in a warm space and allow to rest until doubled in size, about 1 hour.  *The dough can be risen until doubled in size, then refrigerated overnight for use in the morning.  If you’re using this method, just let the dough rest on the counter for 30 minutes before following the roll-out directions below.

While the dough rises, whisk together the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg for the filling.  Set aside.  Melt 2 ounces of butter until browned.  Set aside.  Grease and flour a 9x5x3-inch  loaf pan.  Set that aside too.

Deflate the risen dough and knead about 2 tablespoons of flour into the dough.  Cover with a clean kitchen towel and let rest for 5 minutes.  On a lightly floured work surface, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out.  The dough should be 12-inches tall and about 20-inches long.  If you can’t get the dough to 20-inches long… that’s okay.  Just roll it as large as the dough will go.  Use a pastry brush to spread melted butter across all of the dough.  Sprinkle with all of the sugar and cinnamon mixture.  It might seem like a lot of sugar.  Seriously?  Just go for it.

Slice the dough vertically, into six equal-sized strips.  Stack the strips on top of one another and slice the stack into six equal slices once again.  You’ll have six stacks of six squares.  Layer the dough squares in the loaf pan like a flip-book.  Place a kitchen towel over the loaf pan and allow in a warm place for 30 to 45 minutes or until almost doubled in size.

Place a rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 350 degrees F.  Place loaf in the oven and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the top is very golden brown.  The top may be lightly browned, but the center may still be raw.  A nice, dark, golden brown will ensure that the center is cooked as well.

Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 20 to 30 minutes.   Run a butter knife around the edges of the pan to loosen the bread and invert onto  a clean board.  Place a cake stand or cake plate on top of the  upside down loaf, and carefully invert so it’s right side up.  Serve warm with coffee or tea.

French Onion Soup

A few weeks ago, Nick and I decided to make French Onion Soup.  I haven't made it by myself before, but decided to try.  I think it turned out really really well.  Don't get me wrong, I think I can make it better, but it was very tasty.  

French Onion Soup Gratinee - Williams Sonoma Cooking at Home


1/2 cup unsalted butter
4 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
salt and ground pepper
5 cups brown chicken stock or beef stock
2 bay leaves
1/2 lb gruyere cheese, shredded
4-6 slices French bread, 1/2 inch thick, toasted golden brown


Makes 4-6 servings


In a large saucepan, melt the butter over low heat.  Add the onions, season with salt, and stir to coat well with the butter.  Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until very tender but not yet browned, 20-30 minutes.


Uncover, raise the heat slightly, and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions turn a deep caramel brown, about 1 hour.  Take care not to let them burn.


Add the stock and bay leaves, raise the heat to medium, and bring to a boil.  Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes longer to lend the flavors.


Preheat the broiler (grill).


Discard the bay leaves.  taste the soup and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.  Place heavy, flameproof serving crocks or bowls on a rimmed baking sheet.  Ladle the soup into the crocks, sprinkle a little of the cheese into each bowl, then top with the bread slices.  Sprinkle evenly with the remaining cheese.  Broil (grill) until the cheese is bubbly and golden, 2-3 minutes. Serve right away.

Carrot Cake

I made my first carrot cake this week.  Let me just say it was amazing!  Here are the pictures.

Carrot Cake- Williams-Sonoma Cooking at Home


Unsalted butter for pans
2 C. all-purpose flour
2 t. baking soda
2 t. baking powder
2 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. ground allspice
4 eggs, at room temperature
3/4 C. canola oil
3/4 C. sugar
1 C. firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 C. buttermilk
3 C. lightly packed shredded carrots


Preheat the oven to 350 F.  Butter and flour two 9-inch round cake pans and tap out the excess flour.


In a bowl, sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, salt and allspice. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, oil, granulated and brown sugars, and buttermilk until well blended.  Stir the flour mixture into the egg mixture just until combined.  Fold in the carrots.  Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and smooth the tops of the batter with a rubber spatula.


Bake until a toothpick inserted into the centers comes out clean, about 40 min. Let cool in the pans on wire racks for 15 min. Invert onto the racks, turn right sides up, and let cool completely.


Place 1 cake layer, top side down, on a plate.  Spread 1 1/4 cups of the frosting over the top.  Place the second cake layer, top side down, on top.  Spread the remaining frosting decoratively over the top and sides of the cake.  Serve right away, or cover with a cake dome and refrigerate for up to 2 days.  Bring to room temp. before serving.


Cream Cheese Frosting- Williams-Sonoma Cooking at Home


1 lb cream cheese, at room temperature
6 T. unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 C. confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract


In a large bowl, using  an electric mixer, beat together the cream cheese and butter on medium-high speed until smooth.  On low speed, add the sugar and beat until smooth.  Beat in vanilla.


Use immediately, or cover and refrigerate for up to 1 week, then bring to room temp. before using.






I followed both of the recipes and it made an amazing cake.  However, I would recommend putting parchment paper on the cake pans because my cake stuck a LOT!

Recipe Cards

I mentioned in my birthday list that I wanted to design recipe cards and fill them up with all of my favorites.  I accomplished this task a while ago, but never shared.  Here are some pictures of the cards I designed.  I still need to make dividers for the recipe box, but other than that I am very happy with how they turned out.

I got the recipe card box from The Container Store.

Banana Nut Bread

I don't typically make a lot of bread, but Banana Nut Bread is something that gets made about 4 or 5 times a year.  I LOVE it!  I have been using my mom's recipe forever, and to be honest, I do not know what cook book it is from, but here it is.

Banana Nut Bread- from my mom


1 C. Butter
2 C. Sugar
4 Eggs
1/4 t. Salt
2 t. Baking Soda
4 C. Flour
6 Bananas- mashed
1 C. Chopped Pecans


Cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition, mix dry ingredients together. Add dry mix to creamed mixture, stir in bananas and pecans.  Pour mix into 2 greased loaf pans, bake at 325 degrees for 1 1/2 hours or until toothpick comes out clean.






Just for an FYI I used one large and two small loaf pans.  This way I can share the small ones, because Nick and I wouldn't be able to eat two full loaves.

Day Off

Folks, today is my day off this week, and while that means I work all weekend, I'm excited about having the morning to myself.  


I get to do whatever I want this morning, and Nick has promised that I can continue being in control of the T.V., Nook or whatever it is I want when he gets home this evening.  I'm pumped!


So right now...


1. I'm deciding what color to paint my nails: it's between 

Commander in Chic

Mudslide

So Much Fawn

2. I'm waiting for my butter to get soft so I can make Banana Nut Bread (pics to come later this week)


3. I'm trying to pick what movie to watch while I crochet my blanket (that's right, I'm so not done yet lol)


4. I'm listening to Pandora (playing Joshua Radin's You Got Grown' Up To Do) and drinking coffee


5. I'm sitting in a nice shirt with my new pajama bottoms on, because they are short so I can paint my toes