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Wordless Wednesday

Cinnamon+apples+homemade bread+icing/brown sugar/spices= MMMMMM.
See post below.

Guest Blog – Making a Meal: Adulthood Never Tasted So Good

Guest blogger, Danna Belski, sent me this lip-smacking, deliciously easy recipe for a meal that will make you so happy. It is simple, savory, sweet, hot, soft, crunchy, all-together! I know, because I made it last night! (So, tonight I had another delicious meal to come home to!)

Also, I learned two things: 1) Silken tofu is the perfect substitute for cream or dairy in “creamy” soups and sauces. 2) Vegan cinnamon roles are now my FAVORITE kind of cinnamon role. In fact, this was a completely vegan meal, straight down to the homemade dinner bread. Hats off to Chef Danna! Happy cooking!

The thing I love most about being all grown up is that I get to have my own kitchen.

Everything in it is mine, from the red Le Creuset dutch oven, to the matching kitchen towels draped over the chairs. And, all the food is mine too – the piles of fresh veggies arranged on the counter, the fruit neatly stacked in the decorative bowl, and if I want two kinds of ice cream in my freezer at all times then that’s what I get.

Being responsible for feeding yourself isn’t always glamorous. Sometimes I must eat scraps of cheese and stale bread – but that isn’t what this post is about. This is about making a meal. A delicious, healthy, compliment-inducing meal.

I love cooking, and I love it even more when I get out a recipe and then don’t follow it. I love to be unconventional and break rules. “Creamy soups must be made with real cream” – Ha! “Vegan desserts taste weird” –Never! “Bread is hard to make without a bread machine” – Not in my kitchen!

So here is my recipe* for a great Sunday meal. Invite friends over or make it all for yourself and have great lunches all week.
*This is merely a suggestion for how to prepare things. Follow it as you will.

Tomato-Basil Bisque

Ingredients:
Olive oil
6 celery ribs
1 onion (I prefer yellow), chopped
1 red pepper, chopped (or roasted for extra flavor)
Three (3) 14.5 oz cans of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 T. tomato paste
Fresh basil, 1 cup, loosely chopped
3 t. sugar
Dash of salt and pepper
1 pkg. silken tofu

Directions:
• You will need a pretty good sized soup pot. Heat about 2 T. oil and sauté the celery, onion, and pepper until soft. Add the tomatoes and paste, bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer for about 40 minutes.

• Remove the pot from the heat. Add the basil, along with 3 t. sugar, some salt and pepper.

• Bring out the blender. You’ll want the soup to cool a bit before attempting to blend it. You likely have to blend a little at a time, so you will need another bow to transfer the blended bisque to. Add a bit of tofu with each blend. This will give your soup a very creamy texture without the heavy diary and fat (and if you don’t tell people they will never know the difference! ) Blend the soup as much or little as you like.

• Also, feel free to experiment with spices. If I’m in the mood for something spicy I add cayenne pepper.

• Return the finished product to the heat to prepare it for serving.

Dinner Bread and Dessert Dough All-in-one!

Put these things in a food processor (using the dough blade):
4 C. Flour (I don’t recommend all whole wheat flour since half of this recipe is
dessert.)
1 t. salt
1 T. sugar
1 pkg. rapid rise yeast
3 T. cold “butter” (I use Earth Balance, a non-hydrogenated oil blend)
2 C. hot water (not boiling)

Give these a spin in the processor (using the dough blade). While mixing, add butter. Process just enough so that ingredients are evenly distributed. Get the water ready, start the processor, and slowly add the water until a ball starts to form. Don’t feel like you have to use all 2 cups, it may take more, it may take less. Once you have a ball, let it process for about 20 seconds. (Count slowly: one Mississippi, two Mississippi.)

Put the dough in a bowl, cover it with a damp, warm paper towel, and sit it in a warm place to rise (but not too hot – so if the over is on do not place the bowl on the oven) for about 30 minutes.

For the Dinner Bread

After the first rise, take half the dough and, on a floured surface, work it into a shape (baguette-like, or get fancy and braid it). Place it on a lightly greased baking sheet and cover again with a damp paper towel to let sit for another 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. After second rise, bake for 8-15 minutes. Really, it depends on the thickness of your loaf. I test for doneness by tapping on the loaf and if it sounds hollow-y it’s probably done. Enjoy while warm!

For the Dessert

Prepare crumb mixture by combining the following ingredients:
2/3 C. flour
1/4 C. brown sugar
1/4 C. white sugar
4 T. melted butter (again, Earth Balance)
Add cinnamon, maybe all-spice, nutmeg, whatever, to taste.
(These are approximations – play around until it looks crumbly.)

Take the second half of your bread dough and roll it out into a rectangle. Spread the crumb topping on the dough. Roll it up into a log.

These are best baked in a spring form of drop bottom cake pan. To get them there, slice up the log and arrange in the cake pan. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes. Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes or until done.

These are best served hot with sautéed apples (sauté sliced apples in butter and cinnamon until soft) and sweet icing (mix sifted confectioners’ sugar with milk, I use rice milk) drizzled over top.

April Showers Bring: Muffins, Baking, Brunch, Tulips and Family

Well, I moved to a new apartment — it is so much bigger and for the first time we can accommodate a number of people at our house. We also have a patio, for the first time in years, and are really excited to finally give our large patio table a nice place to live. We have had dinner on the patio every day that it has been warm enough, and boy has it been great. Until you are couped up in a 500 square foot apartment with no outdoor space for a few years, you might not realize how great it is to be able to eat outside on a patio at your own house. Oh, how I will never take the outdoors for granted again!

This Easter, we are hosting our first holiday! We aren’t religious, so Easter is more of a time to get friends and family together and be grateful for the time you have together. It is also an excuse to bake! My mom, our long-time family friend, Phil, and Brian and I will be indulging in a delicious brunch!

I am in charge of the sweet dishes, and Brian is in charge of the savory. So our menu will consist of the following:
- Made to order omelets or egg scrambles with choice of veggies, cheeses, and meats. (I think I will go for a spinach, tomato, goat cheese, and avocado omelet!)
- Bacon and sausage
- Homemade zucchini bread
- Homemade raspberry, blueberry, orange muffins. (Maybe served warm with lemon curd?)
- Healthy, homemade raspberry cream cheese french toast
- Bagels with lox and cream cheese, lemon and capers
- Bloody Mary’s
- Mimosas
- Lemon bars
- Homemade low-carb key lime cheesecake (my mom is on Atkins at the moment, though she is a skinny little mini already)

Sounds like a great meal!

I haven’t taken pictures of all my homemade goodies, but here is the recipe for the muffins to get you started.

Mmmm. Can’t wait to eat all my sweets! Did I mention my mom is on Atkins, or yeah and BF doesn’t like “sweets for breakfast”? Soooo, I guess more for me!

Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon grated orange peel
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup melter butter
1 large egg
3/4 cup frozen raspberries (do not thaw)
3/4 cup frozen blueberries (do not thaw)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups with paper baking cups.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and orange peel. Mix well.
3. In another bowl, combine OJ and eggs. Add melted butter by tempering egg mix. If you temper correctly, you don’t have to worry about scrambling BUT the butter, OJ, egg mixture does look a bit chunky. Not to worry, this is the butter trying to re-form. Blend well.
4. Add flour mixture until just combined. (Batter will be very thick!)
5. Gently stir in berries.
6. Divide thick batter into 12 muffin cups. Don’t worry if you fill them all the way to the top on these guys. I did and they worked out fine.
7. Bake at 400 for 18-25 minutes (mine went for 23 minutes) or until baking pin thingy comes out clean. Cool in tins for 1 minute. Remove from pan, serve warm.

* These are a bit sour, so I might suggest serving with whipped honey butter or lemon curd. You can buy lemon curd at Trader Joe’s if you don’t feel like making your own.

Another great thing about spring time at Trader Joe’s: You can buy a little posy of cut tulips. They come all closed up, and in different colors. You just snip the bottoms, place them in water and they beautify any room or Easter table!

More recipes to come! Happy Easter!

One Bowl Mini Cherry Cheesecakes

This weekend I baked Mini Cherry Cheesecakes for a dinner party with friends. Not only were they delicious, but they were also perhaps the easiest baked goods I have ever made to date. I used Paula Deen’s recipe, and while I haven’t had success with many Food Network recipes, this one is definitely one for the recipe box. The best news is that you only need one bowl!

Bake this recipe immediately! Your friends and family will think you slaved over the oven for hours, but little will they know that it only took you 8 minutes.

Ingredients
2 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2 eggs
12 vanilla wafers
1 (21-ounce) can cherry pie filling or other pie filling
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Place a paper cupcake liner in each cup of muffin pan. Beat cream cheese with a handheld electric mixer until fluffy. Add sugar and vanilla, beating well. Add eggs, 1at a time, beating well after each addition. Lay a vanilla wafer, flat side down, in each muffin cup. (Don’t worry if the cookie is smaller than the muffin cup, it will spread during baking.) Spoon cream cheese mixture over wafers. Bake for 20 minutes. Allow tarts to cool completely. Serve with cherry filling on top, or pie filling of your choice.

(photo via PreparedPantry. My camera broke, but mine looked just as delicious.)

Red Delicious!

As promised, here is the recipe to the delectible Red Velvet Cupcakes. I took these cupcakes to work and got many compliments. Also, the frosting on these lovlies really makes them stars — this is now my perfected cream cheese frosting recipe and I will use it as a basis for all my cupcakes from now on. That is how much I like it.

The major note on these is do not overbake them. Watch them like a hawk, and check them judiciously. Red Velvet already has a tendency to seem dry, so leaving them in even a minute too long can be the kiss of death for these little red delights. But, not to worry, if you bake them a bit too long just make sure to add extra frosting to them and I’m sure no one will notice. (A tip from experience, folks.)

Here they are!

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients for the cupcakes:

2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 oz. red food coloring (two bottles)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon baking soda

Ingredients for the frosting:

16 oz. cream cheese (2 packages), softened
1/2 cup unsalted butter (one stick), softened
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
pinch of salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two 12-cup muffin tins with cupcake papers.

2. Sift together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt into a medium bowl; set aside.

3. In a small bowl, mix food coloring and cocoa powder to form a thin paste without lumps; set aside. (This is where it starts getting messy! Aprons are key.)

4. In a large bowl, using a mixer, beat butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about three minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, then beat in vanilla and the red cocoa paste, scraping down the bowl with a spatula as you go.

5. Add one third of the flour mixture to the butter mixture, beat well, then beat in half of the buttermilk. Beat in another third of flour mixture, then second half of buttermilk. End with the last third of the flour mixture, beat until well combined, making sure to scrape down the bowl with a spatula.

6. In a small bowl, mix vinegar and baking soda. (Also a neat little science project – you will see!) Add vinegar mixture to the cake batter and stir well to combine.

7. Fill cupcake cups with cake batter (they should be 2/3 – 3/4 full). Place muffin tins on the middle rack of a preheated 350 degree oven. Bake for approximately 20-22 minutes, rotating pans halfway through. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. I would check them as early as 17 minutes to account for oven variation. I should have taken mine out just a few minutes earlier than I did!

8. Cool the cupcakes in their tins on a wire rack for 10 minutes then remove and allow to cool completely before frosting.

Directions for frosting:

1. With an electric mixer, blend together cream cheese and butter until smooth.

2. Turn mixer to low speed and blend in powdered sugar, salt and vanilla extract. Turn mixer on high and beat until light and fluffy. Frost cupcakes when they fully cooled and with frosting at room temperature.

3. Decorate with sprinkles or anything else you might like. I covered half of my cupcakes with flaked coconut which got rave reviews! It gave the cupcakes a bit more texture and the coconut really complimented the flavor.

Enjoy! Happy Valentine’s Day!

Happy Almost Valentine’s Day!

I have done it again. I have been baking and not blogging. But coming up tomorrow (just in time for Valentine’s Day), I shall provide you with the best darn Red Velvet Cupcake recipe ever (this one is topped with cream cheese frosting and shaved coconut)! I made them tonight and accidentally ate too many! Why, oh, why, do I always do this to myself? Maybe I am am glutton for punishment. Or maybe I am just a glutton.

Also, tomorrow I have lots to say. Real stuff. Not just cupcake chatter — well, maybe a little cupcake chatter because I have to give you the recipe, but otherwise I want to get down to business. As much as I want to just bake all day and think of nothing else, part of being an adult is thinking on things, like the bf’s possible job loss, like moving, and relationships (you know, the things you try to put off because they are too unpleasant/stressful/draining to deal with). And not just thinking, but doing. It takes quite a strength to just get up and deal with the things you don’t want to think about. This is a skill I am still learning.

In the meantime, I bake! (For better or for worse.)

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

As I said, I did a lot of baking this week!

On our trip, Brian and I went to this little diner in Fort Lauderdale for lunch when we got back to the states. We ordered two shakes, one of which was a peanut butter chocolate banana shake – and boy, was that shake delicious! We drank both shakes (and ate a full meal) until we felt sick, but we couldn’t stop drinking the peanut butter one because it was so good. The result was that we felt sick for the next few hours and we couldn’t eat dinner that night, but it was worth it.

Since we have returned home, I have been longing to capture the flavor of our trip – literally. So, I cooked up a recipe for peanut butter cookies that is inspired in part by cookies Brian’s mom makes for Christmas every year, and in part by the epic milkshake. I tried everything I could to make these the most delicious, most peanut-buttery, most chocolatey cookies ever and I think I succeeded.

If you love peanut butter, try out this recipe. The recipe makes a few dozen cookies, so I suggest making them at a time when you are prepared to give some away. Otherwise, like me, you will eat too many every day. Send them to work with your spouse/partner, send them to school with your kids for Valentine’s Day, bring them to a party, package them up for neighbors, or just make a few and freeze the batter in little balls covered in parchment paper for whenever you get a craving. They are so delicious!

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter Chip Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup + 2 TBS peanut butter (I used regular creamy Jiff)
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar + 3/4 cup sugar, separated (the 1/4 cup is for the batter, the 3/4 cup is for rolling dough balls)
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg
2 TBS milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup peanut butter chips (I got the Reese’s brand and they were delicious)
1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Directions
1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Line baking sheets with parchment paper. (I do this to save clean-up. You can probably use a greased cookie sheet if you have no parchment paper.)
3. In a large mixing bowl, cream together the peanut butter and butter. Once combined beat in the 1/4 cup sugar, and the brown sugar until well blended.
4. Beat in the egg, milk, and vanilla.
5. In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt and gently add to creamed mixture and mix until almost combined. (I say almost combined, but really, if you combine it all the way that is fine too, but just be sure to lightly flour the chips before you put them in the batter so they don’t sink to the bottom of the cookie.)
6. Fold in chocolate and peanut butter chips.
7. Chill dough for at least 15 minutes.
8. Roll tablespoonfuls of dough into balls. Gently roll the dough balls into sugar and place dough balls on parchment lined baking sheets. Carefully press each ball with a fork to create the classic criss-cross pattern.
9. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until edges are lightly browned.
10. Remove from oven and cool on baking sheets for 5-10 minutes until sturdy enough to be transferred to a wire rack to cool completely.

Notes: Chilling the dough before making them into balls is key — if the dough is room temperature, the dough balls fall apart when you press the fork into them. Also, definitely make sure you wait to remove these from the oven when you see they are a little bit browned on the edges. I took out one batch a bit too early, and they were very, very soft and didn’t preserve well because they got gooey in the zip lock bag. Finally, to freeze the dough balls simply portion out the dough balls in a Tupperware and cover each layer with parchment paper. Be sure to place parchment paper on top of the top layer so that icicles don’t form on your dough. Cover and freeze and use whenever you want some fresh baked treats!

(Next time, to make these even more chocolatey, I may instead of doing the classic criss-cross, make the dough balls and then press them down in the center with my thumb. I would bake them as usual and when I pull them out of the oven, I would push a Hershey kiss in the center. Yum! If anyone tries this let me know!)

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting

When I get stressed, I bake.

This week, with my school semester starting and the looming endeavor of my master’s thesis on my mind, I spent no time blogging and all my time baking. The good news is, the fruits of my labor were absolutely delicious and now I have some great recipes to share with you.

If you like bananas, chocolate, and cream cheese, try baking these cupcakes now. They are super easy and so delicious – they may be in my list of top 5 cupcakes I have ever made. I took them to work and even non-banana lovers gave them rave reviews! You can whip these cupcakes up in no time and people will think you took hours developing the decadent recipe and baking.

Banana Chocolate Chip Cupcakes with Maple Cream Cheese Frosting
Makes about 12 large cupcakes.

Ingredients:

Cupcakes
1/2 c. unsalted butter
1 c. sugar
1 c. mashed bananas (I used 3 medium bananas)
1 egg, beaten
1 1/2 c. flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla
Chocolate chips (to your liking)

Frosting
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup butter , room temperature
3 cups confectioners sugar
1/4 c. pure maple syrup

Cupcake Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sift together flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Cream together butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl.
4. Add egg, mixing until just combined.
6. Mix in bananas and vanilla.
6. Add dry ingredients in three additions, beating until just combined.
7. Stir in chocolate chips.( I used about 1/2c. but I think you could use up to 2/3c.)
8. Using a portion scoop, fill each mold in a baking-cup lined muffin tin to the top.
9. Bake for 18-23 minutes, or until tops are a golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.
10. Cool cupcakes on a wire rack.

For the frosting*:
1. Cream together cream cheese and butter.
2. Beat in the sugar in 1 c. additions, making sure the frosting is smooth before you add another cup.
3. Beat in maple syrup.
4. Transfer frosting to a piping bag. (I used a zip lock bag with the tip cut off.)

* Add more or less sugar or syrup to taste. I like very cream-cheesy frosting, so I stuck with three cups of sugar. You could probably do up to four cups, but I find the syrup makes the frosting sweet enough.

We Cook: Emily’s Gingersnap Bars

So, one of the perks of being an adult has to be the ability to operate an oven by ourselves. That means, come holiday time, we get to bake cookies! I am instituting a new category at Welcome to Adulthood with a recipes section. (Since, after all, this blog is in the business of sharing all the secrets to adulthood. Baking and cooking secrets count just like any other…) Send me your favorite recipes! Whether they be easy recipes to make for your family, fun recipes for a dinner party, or even your favorite cocktail recipe.

Our first recipe comes to me from Emily. She made these gingersnap bars last year, and I have not been able to get them off my mind ever since! I didn’t even know I liked gingersnaps! These bars are so soft, and chewy and cinnomony/clovey/sugary they make my mouth water even thinking of them. (Some people think gingersnaps are spicy – I am not sure if they usually are, but these bars are not spicy at all. They are sweet and delicious.) In fact, I am going to make them tomorrow so I can take a batch to Arizona this weekend when we go visit my boyfriend’s family.

Seriously, you WANT to make these. ASAP. They are super easy too. A 10 minute bake time! You will be the envy of all of your ugly Christmas sweater parties this season.

Emily’s Gingersnap Bars

Ingredients:
¾ C butter (melted)
2 C flour
1 C + 2 Tbsp. sugar
2 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. cinnamon
½ tsp. cloves (ground. I accidentally bought clove sticks the first time I tried to make this. Oops.)
½ tsp. ginger
½ tsp. salt
¼ C molasses
1 egg

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Melt butter in medium saucepan and set aside. Add molasses to butter and let cool. In mixing bowl, stir together all dry ingredients. Add a couple scoops of the dry mixture to the butter and molasses and mix in. Add the egg and stir in well. Continue adding the dry mixture until it is all blended.

Lightly grease a 10×15 jelly roll pan with butter. Put the dough in the pan, press it flat using your hands with a little butter on them until it is evenly spread. Sprinkle 2 Tbsp. sugar over the top and place in oven for 10 minutes. Don’t over bake! Let cool on rack for 5 minutes. Cut into bars or use cookie cutters to cut shapes.

Enjoy! Send us comments with your reviews!