HAPPY SPRING

Joyful!

I just finished a round of INSANITY and my serotonin is PUMPIN!

Is it okay to say I feel proud of myself lately? I've been killing my workouts with Insanity and hot yoga, my grades are staying high, and I will be interning in either Nashville, Dallas, Atlanta, or Denver this summer.

And I take a multivitamin every day! (The real success story)

With my first year of college almost finished, I feel like I have solid ground beneath my feet. I'm grateful, I'm optimistic, and I'm EXCITED for what's around the corner! :D

There will not be any food in this post, cooking has simply been too hard in the dorms. But Easter is right around the corner and I have a really special menu planned.

Happy Spring!

"Though we travel the world to find beauty, we must carry it with us, or we find it not."

- Ralph Waldo Emerson

Tropical Ceviche

SPRING BREAK 2012

Although it's barely March, here in sunny Sarasota, Florida we're already celebrating the beach and summertime! Hot nights and swim suits can only mean one thing: fresh fish.

Scallop and Grouper Ceviche with Mango
chilled in a Lime-Coconut marinade

That's how I do Spring Break!

Ceviche is a tricky little dish (but NOT hard); it relies completely on acid and timing. Start with the freshest white fish you can find, flavor it with some small chopped veggies and herbs, and let it sit in a nice acidic environment for 10-20 minutes. But no longer! Ceviche must be eaten as soon as it's ready or the fish will continue to cook as it sits in that yummy, yummy juice.

I chose a citrus blend of lime juice and orange juice mixed with some coconut milk for my tropical acidity. Some chopped mango, red onion, red bell pepper, a seeded jalapeno, some mint leaves, and scallions finished it off with tons of color and flavor! Ceviche allows your creativity to really shine, so play around.

* 1/2 lb baby scallops

* 1/2 lb grouper, cut into small pieces

* 1/2 cup mixture of lime juice, orange juice, and their zest

* 1/4 cup coconut milk

* 1 mango, diced

* 1/2 red onion, finely chopped

* 1/4 small red sweet pepper, finely chopped

* 1 jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped

* 1 scallion
* mint leaves, chopped
* salt and pepper

*  xvoo to drizzle (optional)

1. Combine the citrus juice, coconut milk, red onion, red pepper, jalapeno, and s&p in a bowl.

2. Add the fish to the bowl, cover, and refrigerate for 10-20 minutes. Make sure all the fish is submerged in the marinade.
3. While it's chilling, cut up the mango and scallion.
4. Spoon the cevich into serving cups, top with mango, scallion, and mint leaves, and drizzle a tiny bit of olive oil over top. Serve with plantain chips and a tiny fork! Smile. You're on vacation.

Lovin' Time! Red Velvet Cheesecake Valentine

A little sugar for your sugar.

How do I show my love? With chocolate and cheesecake of course! Only the finest for my baby.

Red is the flavor of love, thus red velvet is the flavor of Valentine’s Day. On a day when extravagance is valued, the name “red velvet” sounds both sensual and luxurious enough for the occasion.

But cheesecake…oh cheesecake is just heavenly. So rich, so creamy. 

The pairing of these two is lavish, inevitable, and yes, traditional.

But I don’t like doing things that have already been done. So how can I make them more special? 

A chocolate chip cheesecake center.  Yeah.

There is no such thing as too decadent.

How fluffy does that frosting look?

Needless to say, they were a hit with my boyfriend (and friends); Cupid is really just a cupcake!

Happy Valentine’s Day! Take every opportunity to show your love. Start here.

The cupcake:

• ·         Your favorite Red Velvet cake recipe
• ·         Cream cheese frosting
• ·         Chocolate Chip Cheesecake filling
• ·         Chocolate drizzle (optional)

Cream Cheese Frosting:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• 1 stick unsalted butter
• 3 cups powdered sugar
• 1 T vanilla extract
• 1 T heavy cream (or milk)

Chocolate Chip Cheesecake filling:

• 8 oz cream cheese
• ½ c mini chocolate chips
• 1/3 c light brown sugar
• 1 egg

Chocolate Drizzle:

• ½ c mini chocolate chips
• ¼ c heavy cream
• 1 T corn syrup

Lemon Drop Cupcakes

My Mama's Favorite
 

Lemon meringue pie brings back sweet memories for my mom. Unfortunately, the store-bought kinds don't cut it anymore. They are just too cloyingly sweet and we've gotten spoiled with the real lemon curd treats from my dad's Amish and Mennonite patients. (Their lemon bars are not made of earthly ingredients).

We have talked about making our own lemon curd for the longest time but never got around to it. Finally, the last time I came home my mom and I made a point to try it...plus we were looking for an excuse to go to the farmer's market!

The real secret to these Lemon Drop cupcakes is a bottle of Limoncello lemon liquor.
It tastes just like candy - You'll have to refrain yourself from dumping the whole bottle into the bowl. (Although it's a liquor, the alcohol gets cooked out during the baking process. However if you use it in the frosting, it will not).

 

A lot of layers of lemon (say that again) go into these cupcakes, but they pair nicely with the fluffiness of the cake and the frosting, so the final product is neither overwhelmingly lemony, nor too sweet.

The structure of a Lemon Drop cupcake is a white cake with some lemon zest and a shot of limoncello, filled with a lemon curd, and topped with a cream cheese frosting that's been hit with a little more limoncello. 

The lemon is the star, but the cream cheese is the secret little zinger that adds sharpness and contrast to the other flavors. It is tart, creamy, and undoubtedly DELICIOUS. This is the kind of frosting that makes you want to lick your plate...and the bowl...and the beaters...and search the crevices of the kitchen for any missed droplets. Yeah! It's that yummy.

Lemon Drop Cupcakes:

makes 12-15 cupcakes

recipe adapted from BrownEyedBaker.com

For the cupcakes:
1½ cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
2 ounces (½ stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
3 large eggs
2 tablespoons limoncello
½ cup buttermilk
¼ cup lemon juice
Zest of one lemon

For the lemon curd:
Zest of 2 lemons
½ cup lemon juice
¼ cup granulated sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk

For the cream cheese limoncello frosting:
1 unsalted butter, at room temperature
8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 tablespoon limoncello
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1. Prepare the cupcakes. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and position a rack in the center. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter, cream cheese and sugar on medium speed until light and creamy, 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the limoncello and beat an additional minute. On low speed, add flour mixture and buttermilk alternatively, beginning and ending with the flour mixture. Add the lemon juice and zest and mix on low speed just until incorporated. Divide the batter between 12 muffin tins. Bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the middle comes out clean. Let cool completely.

2. Prepare the lemon curd. In a heavy medium saucepan, stir together the lemon zest, juice and sugar and bring to a simmer over medium heat. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and egg yolk. Whisk the lemon mixture into the eggs to temper them. Scrape the mixture back into the saucepan and place over medium heat, whisking constantly until it thickens, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, and let cool completely.

3. Prepare the cream cheese limoncello frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and cream cheese on medium speed until light and creamy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the limoncello and beat for an additional minute. Reduce the speed to low and gradually add the sifted powdered sugar and beat until fully incorporated and smooth.

4. Assemble the cupcakes. Cut a hole into each cupcake with the large end of a melon baller or the back end of a large pastry tip. Fill each cavity with the lemon curd. Fill a pastry bag with a star tip (I used Wilton 1M) with the cream cheese limoncello frosting and pipe onto each cupcake.

The Basics of Making Soup

Homemade soup is the easiest way to fill a room with delicious smells and show people you love them. Soup is incredibly easy to make and tastes WAY better fresh than out of a can or a box. There's something about soup that is so homey and comforting, and it's really versatile so you can use anything you have in your pantry or fridge. It's a great way to use up leftovers and save money. Paired with a nice crusty piece of bread it makes a really great meal!

Every broth-based soup follows the same pattern.

1. Mirepoix

This is your basic trifecta of onion, carrot, and celery. The Holy Three. You don't have to use all three, or you can substitute (or add) bell peppers, mushrooms, and other veggies, but most soups start with these three starters.

Get your stock pan nice and hot with some olive oil waiting in the bottom (1 Tbsp does it) and add the onions, carrots, and celery. "Sweat" these for about 5 minutes for them to release their water and turn soft and translucent. Throwing in a bit of salt speeds up this process and helps them release the yummy juices.

2. Aromatics

Once your veggies are softened to your liking (remember they'll soften a bit more as the soup comes together) you add your herbs and flavorings. I always crush one or two cloves of garlic and throw in a teaspoon or two of thyme, rosemary, sage, or marjoram, etc, each. These can be combined in a number of different ways for different outcomes. You wanna cook these for about 30 seconds, or until you can really start to smell them. DON'T LET THEM BURN! It will ruin the soup and you'll have to start over.

3. Liquid

Usually this is the time to add a can of crushed or diced tomatoes (I prefer Del Monte Diced Tomatoes with Basil, Garlic, and Oregano). Canned tomatoes have a lot of liquid and a nice texture for soups, are easy to store, and super cheap. Usually you can stock up on a couple at a time.

Back to the soup. Don't want tomatoes? That's fine. Throw in a little bit of wine to add depth and flavor, or go straight for the stock. Chicken broth, vegetable broth, or beef broth depending on the type of soup you're going for. I like a brothy soup. I usually do 6-8 cups broth, and maybe a cup or 2 of water.

This is up to you! Soup is so personal. Like it chunky? Less broth.

4. Protein

Adding protein? Shredded roast chicken is a GREAT idea. So flavorful! A rotisserie from Publix is really easy to pick apart and throw in a soup. Canned beans work wonders too. Add these at the end of cooking, so they don't get too mushy.

5. Bubble & Sit

Turn the heat to high just until the soup boils, then bring it back down to simmer. The flavors of soup really come together if you let it sit, ideally at a medium-low heat for about 30 minutes.

6. Taste it
Adjust with salt and pepper, and serve! So, so simply. SO, SO healthy :)

Broth-based soups usually rank between 100-200 calories per serving and can have a days worth of vegetables, vitamins, and minerals.

Make some soup whenever you have some free time, and you can eat it throughout the week. Soup tastes even better a day or two after it's made. Or, freeze it for a later time. We always have a pot of soup outside in the fridge because it is so quick and convenient.

Dark Chocolate Mocha & Salted Caramel Cupcake

 Starbucks Seasonal Coffee + Cupcake = Explosion
Chocolate. Coffee. Salted Caramel.
You heard me
 

My favorite person ever just celebrated her 19th. She loves coffee, I love her, logically this cupcake had to be born.

It was a beautiful thing. These cupcakes are so decadent and taste just like the real thing! Mocha coffee topped with a bed of whipped cream and drizzled salted caramel. Mmmm dreamy.

(someone remind me a Blackberry is not a real camera)

They even tasted good when they were sitting in my lap. Lesson: don't carry uncovered cupcakes in one hand, while riding in a car. When Sam stepped on the gas they tumbled right off the plate, leaving frosting and caramel all over me and my car. I guess that's better than a hot coffee in my lap?

So Lexi here's the picture for proof, they weren't always a gooey mess! Happy Birthday, and lesson learned!

Dark Chocolate Mocha Cupcakes

Ingredients: (makes 12)

* 3/4 cup unsweetened dark chocolate cocoa powder

* 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 cup sugar
* 3 large eggs
* 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
* 1/2 cup sour cream

* 2 tablespoons ground coffee

Directions:

Oven at 350

1. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking powder, salt, and coffee.

2. In a separate bowl, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time. Add the vanilla.

3. Add the flour mixture to the creamed mixture in two batches, alternating with the sour cream. Mix until just combined.

4. Bake for 20 minutes.

Top with:
Vanilla Buttercream

Salted Caramel
Eat 11. Give 1 away.

Home-From-College Chili

Deep flavor. Medium heat. Thick & meaty.

That's how we like our chili. Not too sweet, not too heavy on the tomatoes. Lots of beans.

My dad and I make this chili every time I come home from school. We tweak it a little more each time, but I think we've finally found the perfect combination.

Chili recipes are notoriously secret, and as such I cannot tell you exactly how we bring this to life. However, I will give you my list of ingredients and you can play around with it yourself. One flavor tip: add the lime juice just before eating. One cooking tip: set the chili over a low simmer for an hour or two for to thicken and for the flavors to come together.

Happy tailgating!

3 lbs ground turkey

4 T chili powder

¼ T cayenne pepper

(or 4 guajillo chilis and 2 arbol instead of chili powder and cayenne pepper)

1 large onion

2 jalapeno peppers

3 T corn meal

½ c chicken broth

1 bottle of beer - not too mellow

1 1/2 T Worcestershire sauce

2 tsp oregano

Garlic and onion powder, shake til good

¼ tsp salt

1 can kidney beans

1 can Bush’s chili beans

4 medium garlic cloves

1 (28 oz) can tomato puree

2 tsp molasses

1 lime