Monthly Archives: January 2012

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Recipe: Cherry Chocolate Chip Muffins

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I love muffins.

I think that’s because muffins are similar to cupcakes–they look alike and share that tender cake-like quality. Though muffins and cupcakes dress in the same outfit, muffins make the perfect breakfast by being less sweet, un-frosted, and they should beg for a pat of butter or smear of jam.

These muffins are a new favorite, I baked up a batch this week AND last. I love to make muffins on a Sunday so we have an easy and quick breakfast bite throughout the week. This recipe contains yogurt and olive oil–making for a moist and tender crumb. There are dried sour cherries and bits of chocolate in there for a little decadence in the morning, as well as a little (white) whole wheat and wheat germ–you know, for a bit of health and science. My favorite thing about this recipe is probably the quantity, it makes 8 perfectly sized muffins–just enough so we can have them for more than one breakfast, but not so many they don’t turn stale and we don’t get bored.

Treat yo’self to a muffin in the morning. It’s just breakfast dressed up as a cupcake, after all.

Cherry Chocolate Chip Muffins

Adapted from Taste of Home

I used White Whole Wheat flour from King Arthur and White Lily Flour. White Lily is a bit softer than regular all-purpose…I’d liken it to cake flour. You can use cake flour or regular all-purpose–either way, use a light touch when mixing to ensure a tender muffin.

3/4 cup cake or all-purpose flour

6 Tablespoons sugar

1/4 cup white whole wheat

1 tablespoon wheat germ

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1 egg

1/2 cup plain yogurt

3 Tablespoons olive oil

2 Tablespoons milk

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

scant 1/2 teaspoon almond extract

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/2 cup dried sour cherries

Preheat oven to 350F and line 8 cups of a standard muffin tin with paper liners.

In a medium bowl whisk together flours, wheat germ, sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda. Set aside.

In a large measuring cup whisk together egg, yogurt, oil, milk, and extracts.

Toss chips and cherries in the flour mixture to coat. Create a well and pour in the wet ingredients. Stir/fold into the dry ingredients just until moistened. Divide batter among the 8 muffins cups. Bake for 15-18 minutes. Sprinkle hot muffins with additional chopped chocolate chips if desired. Cool on wire racks, can be eaten warm or cooled completely and stored in an airtight container for 4 days.

 

 

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Recipe: Blood Orange Sorbet + Yogurt Granita

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There isn’t much I can say about blood oranges that you don’t already know.

They have the prettiest flesh that makes the most gorgeous jewel-toned juice. Opening one up, especially one without the tell-tale blush on the rind, is like the best citrus surprise–all garnets and rubies.

Whenever winter citrus rolls out, I am most excited and eager to get my mitts on blood oranges. I love to just juice or eat them, plain and simple. When I do make something with them, my main goal is to keep that color–bright and unadulterated.

It didn’t take much thinking for me to land on sorbet, but the idea for the granita came to me after I saw this post on Not Without Salt (one of the prettiest blogs there is) while I was lying in bed battling a serious case of insomnia. Sometimes, ideas just swarm my brain when I can’t sleep–which is good for the blog, but bad for the sleeping. It’s a fine line, but sometimes delicious things happen when you toe it. The combination of the silky, soft sorbet with the creamy–yet crunchy/icy–granita is textural bliss. I’m already thinking of more sorbet/ice cream and granita combos…which may lead to more sleepless night, but ones that will totally be worth it.

Blood Orange Sorbet

Adapted from The Perfect Scoop by David Lebovitz

I used my juicer to extract the juice, but you can certainly just squeeze or use a citrus reemer to obtain the liquid. You can also use a combination of citrus (cara cara (pink) oranges would be nice) if you don’t have enough blood oranges for 3 cups of juice. 

3 cups fresh blood orange juice

3/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon vodka (optional, this keeps the sorbet from freezing solid)

Mix some of the blood orange juice (1/4-1/2 cup) with the sugar in a small saucepan. Heat over medium until sugar dissolves and stir the syrup into the rest of the juice, stir in the vodka. Chill the mixture well (at least 4 hours, if not overnight) and churn in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer’s instructions. Scrape the mixture into a container, cover well, and freeze for a few hours until firm. Serve alone, with granita, or in glasses with some bubbly.

Yogurt Granita

adapted from Not Without Salt

2 cups plain yogurt

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/2 vanilla bean, split and seeded–pod saved for another use

In a medium bowl rub vanilla seeds into the sugar until fragrant and combined well. Stir in yogurt and mix until sugar is pretty much dissolved. Scrape the mixture into a shallow dish (an 8X8 baking pan is perfect for this) and freeze, scraping the mixture with a fork ever 30-60 minutes to break up the ice crystals. The larger the pan, the faster the granita will freeze and be ready.

 

 

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Recipe: Chocolate Cake w/ Whipped Ganache

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Last week was my husband’s birthday. Sean turned 27, which makes us the same age now…as I am the older woman by 7 months.

Scandalous, I know.

There are many things about this dude that I love, for example:

He’s a major dork, for one…which is perfect, because I am prone to being a total weirdo myself.

He totes rids our home of all the spiders for me. This is key, since I become paralyzed with terror every time I come across one–from the tiniest little guy to the biggest ugliest ones. It’s irrational, I know. I just can not handle it though.

We hate all the same stuff. This is a totally negative and cynical way to look at things, but it’s true. And important. It just is.

He is a huge supporter of my blogging/baking/cooking endeavors. He manages all the technical stuff with this website AND manages business at his engineering job. Pro-fesh.

We both love to geek out about all sorts of things–nature, geology (I secretly/not so secretly now, love geology), music, the mountains, etc.

Speaking of geek-outs…we both LOVE food.

We love to splurge on quality over quantity. Trips and vacations, when we do travel, are centered around what we’re eating. I mean, we planned our honeymoon specifically to eat in a great food city–btw, Vancouver, BC is not only an amazing food city, but it is just so dang beautiful.

We share a lot of favorite foods–oysters (omg, omg), burgers of all sorts, korean food, mexican food, and oh-so-many more…but, the one that we both love…the one that he probably (somehow) loves more than me, is chocolate. That man (I have said it before), is a certifiable choco-saurus. So, every year (for the past 7 years), it’s always a chocolate cake for his birthday in some form or another. This year, it was pure and simple chocolate pound cake iced with whipped ganache. It really can’t get much more chocolate-y than that.

So, I guess my point is…after all that rambling…Sean is a great dude. My favorite in fact. We go together like birthdays and cake. I love him to bits and pieces and he can always count on me to make him the best chocolate birthday cake I can muster. Always and forevs.

Chocolate Birthday Cake w/ Whipped Ganache Frosting

cake adapted from Alice Medrich’s Bittersweet.

This cake recipe is actually a pound cake recipe that makes the perfect amount of batter for a 6-inch layer cake…which in my opinion, is a great size cake for smaller gathering (in this case, 2 people). The crumb is fantastic, tight and dense without being heavy. The whipped ganache is about as easy as it gets and is perfect for the choco-saurus’ in your life. Use any leftover ganache to roll into light and airy truffles. Another note about this cake, it is best served at room temperature, the frosting and cake will feel dry and hard if served cold–if you make it ahead and refrigerate, just let it sit out on the counter for 30-60 minutes. 

1 cup + 2 Tablespoons sugar

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup dutch-processed cocoa powder (I used Valrhona)

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

6 Tablespoons room temperature, unsalted butter

2 large eggs + 1 egg white, cold

1 teaspoon instant espresso powder

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup milk

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare 2, 6-inch round cake pans by buttering and lining bottoms with parchment. Alternatively, butter and flour a 6 cup capacity tube pan.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a mixer, combine sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt, stir to combine.

Add the butter, egg, and white. Mix on medium-high for 2 minutes. Scrape bowl as needed. Combine milk, espresso, and vanilla. Add to the batter, mix for 2 minutes, scraping as needed. Scrape the batter into 2, 6-inch cake pans or into a tube pan.

Bake the cakes in the oven for about 25-35 minutes (it may take a little longer in the tube pan). Cool 10 minutes in the pan before unmolding to cool completely on cooling racks.

Once cooled completely, cut the cakes in half to make 4 layers.

Whipped Ganache Frosting

adapted from Martha Stewart.

1 lb. chocolate coarsely chopped, or chips (I used ghiradelli)

2 1/2 cups heavy cream

pinch of salt

Place chocolate and salt in a medium bow or bowl of a mixer, set aside.

In a saucepan, heat heavy cream just to a boil. Remove from heat and pour hot cream over the chocolate. Cover the bowl with a tea towel or plate and let sit for 5 minutes. Whisk ganache until smooth and allow to cool to room temperature.

Beat cooled ganache until fluffy. Use immediately.

 

 

 

 

 

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A Photo a Day: Week 3

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1.15.2012: yeasted waffles. weekends are for waffling.

1.16.2012: green beans for dinner.

1.17.2012: jalapeños for pickling. like these.

1.18.2012: Happy 27th to my favorite dude, Husband Sean.

1.19.2012: cup-board. the chevron tumblers are my favorite new cocktail glasses.

1.20.2012: enoki mushrooms for udon soup. enoki’s are just so dang cute!

1.21.2012: the meat cone from Zingerman’s Deli in Ann Arbor, MI. This place is as amazing as everyone says it is.

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Beer Battered Pickles and Adventures in Frying Part 2

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Have you ever had a fried pickle? I mean, I know there are a lot of gratuitous fried treats out there, and maybe a fried pickle seems kind of gross, but it is SO not.

Fried pickles are, in fact, amazing.

Though, I am not usually a fan of warm pickles–I generally like them cool and crunchy–I make exception when it comes to battering them (beer batter!) and frying them up to crisp, golden perfection. The sharp and tangy pickle against a rich, crispy-fried coating is beer-food perfection.

These pickles would make a great cocktail or beer sipping snack–I imagine they would be perfect for sports-viewing. Megan and I made these after we made those glorious nutella-filled donuts–because seriously, if you are frying one thing, you might as well fry two. There isn’t much sports watching in my house, so I think these are totally appropriate for a snack-style lunch–donuts first, pickles second–with a cold beer and some friendly chatting.

 

We used McClure’s pickles (spicy and regular) and the beer with the cutest label we could find. Be sure to click over to Megan’s blog for the recipe and more photos!

{PS, Megan’s place has the BEST light ever. I am totes jealous.}

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Nutella-Filled Doughnuts and Adventures in Frying

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Last weekend there were lots of fried things, waffles, beers, chatting, and shopping. I went to Megan’s on Saturday and after a waffle breakfast and some browsing through Anthropologie and Paper Source, we got our fry on. Not only did we make these nutella-filled doughnuts, but we also beer battered some pickles and fried those (post soon!).

But, about the doughnuts, these are really a weekend dream. Make the dough the night before (thanks Megan!), roll it/cut it in the morning, and while you chat over coffee or do some errand running your doughnuts will rise, after that you can just fry them up, dust the still warm doughnuts with sugar, and fill with nutella. We did have more than one mishap trying to fill the doughnuts–so, I would suggest using a good quality piping bag fitted with a tip that can pierce the outside of the donut. These are best eaten fresh and warm–the outside is crunchy and sugary, while the insides are soft, tender, and buttery.

Click over to Megan’s blog, Take A Megabite, for the recipe and her pictures :D

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A Photo A Day: Week 2

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1.08.2012: A swampy walk in the park with Luxe and Jezebel (no pictured).

 1.09.2012: A dirty window view above the kitchen sink.

 1.10.2012: Cilantro, lime, salt, and yogurt sauce for taco night.

 1.11.2012: New dish towels! I use Valentine’s towels all year.

 1.12.2012: eating a kiwi with chopsticks.

1.13.2012: Snowy woods right outside my front door.

 1.14.2012: Megan’s dining room table is so cute! We fried things on Saturday–I’ll be posting about our adventures soon!

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Recipe: Lemon + Thyme Roasted Parsnips

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One of my goals for 2012 is to cook with vegetables I may have never tried or simply overlooked in the past. We eat something green and vegetal on a daily basis, but I want to expand beyond our usual broccoli/spinach love. I decided to start with this recipe for roasted parsnip strips from Donna Hay.

I’ve adapted the original recipe a little–using regular thyme and a bit of lemon zest in lieu of lemon-thyme. I also nixed the cheese (more of an absent-minded mistake, rather than a conscious decision) and tossed the strips in olive oil instead of butter. After roasting, the strips become crisp along the thinnest edges and sweetly caramelized. To me, parsnips flavor is reminiscent of a carrot with a bit of a peppery edge. I’m actually not the biggest fan of carrots, so I was a little wary of the humble parsnip, but this preparation has definitely converted me. I love a roasty-crisp root vegetable and these are definitely a new favorite.

Lemon-Thyme Roasted Parsnips

I used these as a garnish for some lentil soup, though they are just as delicious to snack on as-is. Since I made these well before dinnertime, I re-crisped them in a 350F oven for a few minutes–taking care to monitor them closely so they would not burn. 

3-4 parsnips peeled

1 tablespoon olive oil

10 thyme sprigs, stripped of leaves

1 lemon (I used a meyer lemon) zested

salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 375F and line a baking sheet with parchment.

Using a vegetable peeler, sharp knife, or mandoline, slice off thin strips of parsnip–leaving behind the woody center if using large parsnips. Toss parsnips in a large bowl with olive oil, thyme, lemon zest, and salt and pepper. Spread parsnips onto the baking sheet in an even layer so they crisp and do not steam. Bake for 12 minutes, toss using tongs, and roast for another 10-12 minutes until crisp and browned along the thinnest edges.

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A photo a day in 2012: Week 1

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This year, I’ve decided to challenge myself to a photo a day in 2012. I’m doing this to teach myself some discipline and also to show my camera a little love. There will be photos of my day-to-day, food, and anything else that catches my eye–unstyled and minimally processed. My life is pretty quiet, but I like it that way. I’ll be posting these snapshots weekly. I hope you enjoy this project!

1.1.2012: On the first day of this year I made a spicy tomato and chickpea soup. These are the chickpea rejects.

1.2.2012: Laundry Day. A shirt drying on the indoor clothesline.

1.3.2012: Most of our meals begin with garlic and onions.

1.4.2012: Tea with honey in the morning.

1.5.2012: Super messy countertop after photographing ice cream for the blog.

1.6.2012: Segmenting a grapefruit for breakfast.

1.7.2012: Painting my nails and having a gin+tonic with cucumber and lime.