Steak and Potatoes

We had a very American, Midwest sort of meal tonight. Meat and potatoes. A nice rib-eye steak with lots of marbling and Russet potatoes to be exact. 

Not wanting to fire up the BBQ grill, I searched for a more indoor-friendly way to cook steak. Finally, settled on Alton Brown's Pan-Seared Rib-Eye recipe... except, we don't have a cast-iron skillet at home. So we improvised a little. Started the steak on the stovetop over high heat in a heavy frypan (happened to be non-stick), then transferred the steak to the oven to broil for a few minutes on each side. Nervously, I checked the steak for doneness. Eureka! Perfectly medium done. 

We paired the steak with baked Hasselback potatoes. Recipe and picture can be found here. Check it out! What a fancy and more eye-pleasing way to serve potatoes!

A few more details on the steak: 

-Let the steak come to room temperature a few hours before cooking. 

-A simple seasoning of olive oil and salt and pepper turns out great. We had some steak seasoning at home and used that today. 

-Our steak was about 3/4 inch thick. On the dry skillet on high heat, we seared the steak for 30 seconds on each side. Then we transferred the steak to a hot ovenproof pan in a preheated oven on broil. We broiled the steak for 3 minutes, flipped the steak, and another 3 minutes. Then remove the steak from the oven and pan, and rest the steak for about 5 minutes prior to serving. This resulted in a medium-done steak. 

Harvest Time Means Zucchini Bread Time

I seriously think whoever came up with zucchini in bread is a genius. It's the best way to eat your veggies!

More is better, right? I upped the grated zucchini from 2 cups to 4 cups, since I had an awfully large amount of zucchini to use up! To create a healthier baked good, I've heard of substituting applesauce for oil in bread recipes (carrot cake, banana bread, etc.), but I typically don't have applesauce on hand. Instead, I subbed plain yogurt for oil in this recipe and it turned out perfect! No on could taste any difference. Also, now that I'm living back home again, I gotta remember to cut down on the sugar for my hyper sweet-sensitive family! The original recipe is from Allrecipes... but I think my adaptation is healthier without sacrificing taste!


Zucchini Bread
modified from allrecipes.com

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
1/2 cup oil
Heaping 1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 3/4 cup sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
4 cups zucchini
1 cup chopped walnuts or pecans

1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup melted butter

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Grease and flour 2 loaf pans (8x4) or 24 muffin tins.
2. Beat eggs, oil, yogurt, sugar and vanilla extract in a large bowl. Add in 3 cups of flour, salt, baking soda, and baking powder and mix well. Stir in zucchini and nuts until just combined. Pour batter into prepared pans. 
3. Topping: In a small bowl, mix together oats, brown sugar, 1/4 cup flour, cinnamon, and melted butter. Mixture should be crumbly with the size of peas. Sprinkle topping over batter. 
4. Bake for 40-60 minutes (shorter time for muffins), and until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. 

His and Her Pizzas

All you need is 4 simple ingredients for Pioneer Woman's pizza dough recipe. There is NO excuse not to make your own pizza! I love pizza, because it is versatile. For the base, you can go traditional with tomato sauce or go classy with pesto or even more simple, just garlic olive oil drizzled on the dough. Varieties of cheeses abound- mozzarella, cheddar, goat cheese, parmesan. Then there are the toppings... veggies, meats, fruits. Whatever you want, I promise it'll probably taste delicious on this pizza crust! Let your imagination create and design your pizza masterpiece!

My his and her pizzas are for my parents. Mom enjoys her pizza with Canadian bacon and pineapple rings. Dad loves his garlic shrimp, fresh basil, and arugula pizza.

Pizza Dough 
from thepioneerwoman
makes 2 crusts

1 teaspoon active dry or instant yeast
4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Sprinkle yeast over 1 1/2 cups warm (not hot!) water. Set aside.
2. Combine flour and salt. With mixer on low, drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour mixture. Next, pour in yeast water and mix until just combined. 
3. Form dough into a ball. Coat a separate mixing bowl with a drizzle of olive oil, and toss dough into bowl and coat well with olive oil. Cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in fridge until needed. May make dough 2-3 days in advance. 

Garlic Shrimp, Basil, and Arugula Pizza 

1 lb raw medium shrimp with shells removed and deveined

2 tablespoons minced garlic

Fresh basil, roughly chopped

Arugula

Mozzarella cheese, shredded

1 pizza dough crust

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. 
2. Saute shrimp with garlic in olive oil until just cooked. Set aside in bowl.
3. Drizzle olive oil onto a 16x11 baking pan. Stretch and pat pizza dough into a rectangular shape and place on prepared baking pan. Brush top of pizza dough with olive oil. 
4. Scatter a thin layer of mozarrella cheese onto surface of pizza, then arrange shrimp, and desired amounts of basil and arugula on pizza. Lastly spread more mozzarella cheese over the top. 
5. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until bottom of crust browns. 

Summertime = Blackberry Time

What's not to love about blackberries (besides their pesky pesky thorns)? They're the epitome of summertime goodness - sweet and tart, all rolled into one. We went to blackberry picking this morning and easily picked over 10 pounds in an hour or so!

I had the enviable task of deciding what to do with all these lovely berries on my counter. Settled on preserving the blackberries into jam that will last long into the rainy season. As an added bonus, I had just enough leftover to make a batch of blackberry chip ice cream! Don't you just wish you are at my house? Come over, and I promise I'll share!

Homemade Blackberry Jam
modified from Paula Deen
makes 6 half-pint jars

5 cups whole blackberries
3 1/2 cups white sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
6 tablespoons dry pectin (1.75 ounce package)

Directions:

1. Puree blackberries in blender. (You can strain the blackberry puree if you prefer seedless jam. I like mine seedy!) Combine blackberry puree, sugar, and lemon juice in large pot on high heat. Bring to boil while stirring constantly. Stir in pectin and continue boiling for 1 minute. Remove from heat and skim off foam from the surface. 
2. Sterilize jars and lids in simmering water for 10 minutes directly before using. 
3. While blackberry mixture is still hot, ladle or pour into the hot, sterilized jars, filling within 1/4 inch from top. Wipe rims with a clean, damp cloth, then tightly seal jars with lids and rings.
4. Process in boiling water for 10 minutes, making sure water covers the top of the jars. Remove from water bath and allow to cool. 

Tips about canning:

-Pectin can take up to 24 to 48 hours to set. If your jam is runny, be patient and check in a few days.

-For tips about runny jam, check out this website for ways to fix. 

-Or if you're lazy, just call runny jam "old-fashioned preserves" and use over ice cream, waffles, pancakes, crepes... the possibilities are endless! 

Boiling that blackberry goodness!

the flag cake

The perfect cake for 4th of July, no other worded needed. 

Flag Cake

from The Barefoot Contessa

18 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

3 cups sugar

6 large eggs, at room temperature

1 cup sour cream, at room temperature

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 1/2 teaspoon almond extract (optional)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/3 cup cornstarch

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

Icing: Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting
from Allrecipes.com

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar (may substitue with 1 3/4 cup powdered sugar)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter and flour an 18 x 12 x 1 1/2 - inch sheet pan. 
2. Cream butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy. On medium speed, add eggs, 2 at a time, then add sour cream, vanilla extract, and almond extract. Scrape down the sides and stir until smooth
3. Stir together the flour, cornstarch, salt, and baking soda in a bowl. With mixer on low speed, add flour mixture to butter mixture until just combined. Pour into prepared pan. Smooth top with spatula. Baking for 20-30 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool to room temperature. 
4. Icing: For best results, chill bowl and beaters prior to beating whipping cream. In a small bowl, with electric mixer beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form; set aside. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in whipped cream. Chill in refrigerator until use. 
5. Assembly: Spread three-fourths of the icing over the cooled sheet cake. Outline the flag on the top of the cake with a toothpick. Fill the upper left corner with blueberries. Put remaining icing in a pastry bag (or ziplock bag) fitted with a star tip. Alternate rows of raspberries and icing until flag is completed. Pipe stars in on the blueberries. 

Cookie Wednesday

Everyone can use a bit of a pick-me-up to get over the hump and sail into the weekend! I brought these big, soft, chewy chocolate chip cookies to work... It may need to become a routine thing now :). 

Some tips and tricks to the perfect chocolate chip cookie:

-Adding a teaspoon of cream of tartar provides that lovely cracked surface look on your cookie 

-Use an ice cream scoop to form similar sized cookies

-Most importantly, to get a soft, chewy cookie (rather than a hard, crumbly one), do not overbake! Bake until the edges are just browned and remove from oven. Transfer to a wire rack to cool once cookies are just solid enough to remove from baking pan. 

Who Doesn't Love Strawberry Ice Cream?

We have a full house this summer, with two of my cousins visiting and staying with us. One of my cousins adores strawberry ice cream. I modified a raspberry ice cream recipe to create strawberry ice cream. There really is no comparison to the store-bought variety (as good as Tillamook ice cream is!). The fragrance of strawberries fills the air as you church your ice cream. And every bite is absolutely strawberry-y. None of the fake strawberry powder used here!

Strawberry Ice Cream 
modified from The Perfect Scoop

1 1/2 cups whole milk
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups strawberry puree (about 2 lbs fresh strawberries)
1 tablespoon lemon juice

Directions:

1. Warm whole milk and sugar in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Scrape continuously to prevent sugar from burning. 
2. In a separate bowl, beat together egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm milk mixture into the egg yolks, stirring constantly, then scrape the warmed egg yolks into the saucepan. Cook mixture over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula and scraping the bottom as you stir, until mixture thickens and coats spatula. 
3. Pour heavy cream into a large bowl and stir the custard into the heavy cream. Mix in the strawberry puree and lemon juice, then cool the bowl over an ice bath. Chill thoroughly in the refrigerator, then churn following the instructions of your ice cream maker. 

Homemade Green Tea Ice Cream

I tried my hand at ice cream making (again) this week for my mom's birthday. I've had my Cuisinart ice cream maker for almost a year now, but I had yet to produce really, really good ice cream that could rival the store-bought variety. The first few times, I was disappointed because my ice cream never quite firmed up and was more of a frozen yogurt consistency.

This time, I pulled out all the stops to achieve really good homemade ice cream (and justify my ice cream maker purchase)! I followed the Green Tea Ice Cream recipe from The Perfect Scoop, which is the most highly reviewed ice cream making book I could find. My freezer bowl was placed in the coldest corner of my freezer for months awaiting the day of its use - this is excessive, but I would highly recommend keeping your freezer bowl in your freezer at all times... because you never know when you may suddenly crave some ice cream! I chilled all of my ingredients, went out and bought whole milk rather than use the 2% variety I had on hand, and dished out for some real green tea powder (available at Uwajimaya). 

The result was stunningly, delicious ice cream than beats out Dreyers, Breyers, Tillamook, and even Haagen-Dazs! Rich, creamy, and full of green tea fragrance in every lick! 

Ice Cream Maker: http://www.amazon.com/Cuisinart-ICE-30BC-Indulgence-2-Quart-Automatic/dp/B0006ONQOC

Ice Cream Making Book: http://www.amazon.com/The-Perfect-Scoop-Granitas-Accompaniments/dp/158008219X/ref=pd_sim_k_3/185-0027444-8215476

Green Tea Ice Cream (from The Perfect Scoop)

makes about 1 quart

1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
2 cups heavy cream
4 teaspoons matcha (green tea powder)
6 large egg yolks

Directions:

1. Warm milk, sugar, and salt in medium saucepan. Pour cream into a bowl and whisk in green tea powder, set mesh strainer on top. 
2. In a separate bowl, whisk together egg yolks. Slowly pour warm mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly, then scrape the warmed egg mixture back into sauce pan. Stir mixture over medium heat with heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until mixture thickens and coats the spatula. 
3. Pour custard through strainer and stir into cream, whisk vigorously until custard is frothy to dissolve green tea powder. Stir until cool over an ice bath.
4. Chill mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator, then freeze it in your ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. 

Red Velvet Cupcakes

I made these beauties for Ann's bridal shower earlier this month. The cupcakes were an absolute hit! I'm not exaggerating - even those who usually shy away from cupcakes asked for a second helping! I made an assortment of cupcakes from scratch - red velvet, lemon, and cherry almond.

The most versatile and crowd favorite (if pressed to choose) would probably be the red velvet cupcake. This red velvet cupcake is an extremely moist cupcake; I pored over the 700+ reviews on this Allrecipes recipe and incorporated the most common recommendations. Then I made a whipped cream cheese frosting, piped it on top with a fancy frosting tip, and topped with sprinkles! Please don't cut corners and buy the canned frosting... I promise that the attached frosting recipe is easy and tastes much, much better!


Red Velvet Cupcakes (modified from Allrecipes.com)
makes 30 cupcakes

2 1/4 cups cake flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1/2 teaspoon vinegar
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 ounce red food coloring
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix cake flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl. Set aside. 
2. Beat butter and sugar in large bowl until light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Beat in eggs, one at a time. Mix in sour cream, buttermilk, vinegar, food color, and vanilla. Gradually beat in flour mixture until just blended. Do not overbeat! Spoon batter into 30 paper-lined muffin tins, filling each cup about 2/3 full. 
3. Bake for 20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into cupcake comes out clean. Cool completely, then frost with desired frosting. 

Tip: If you're like me, you don't want to go out and buy buttermilk just for this recipe. Make your own! Place 1 teaspoon white vinegar or lemon juice in a measuring cup, then add milk until the 1/2 cup mark. Let it thicken at room temperature for about 10 minutes prior to using.


Whipped Cream Cheese Frosting (from Allrecipes.com)

1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1 cup white sugar (may substitue with 1 3/4 cup powdered sugar)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream

Directions:

1. For best results, chill bowl and beaters prior to beating whipping cream. In a small bowl, with electric mixer beat whipping cream until stiff peaks form; set aside. (Test for stiff peaks: stop mixer, lift beaters out of the cream, and peaks should keep their shape or stand pertly.)
2. In a large bowl, combine cream cheese, sugar, salt, and vanilla. Beat until smooth, then fold in whipped cream. Chill in refrigerator until use. 

Tip: If frosting is too soft or runny, may try adding a packet of unflavored gelatin to stiffen the frosting. 

Three Cup Chicken

Taiwanese Three Cup Chicken (San Bei Ji) 

About 2 pounds chicken wings, separated at wing and tip joints
1 ginger root, sliced
1/3 cup sesame oil
1/2 cup cooking wine
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce (or use 1/4 cup soy sauce and 1/4 cup water)
3 to 4 chunks of rock sugar (or use 3 to 4 tablespoons of brown sugar)
About 1 1/2 cup basil leaves, rinsed

Directions:

1. Heat sesame oil in a large cooking pan. Once hot, saute sliced ginger until aromatic. Add in chicken pieces and cook until slightly browned on all sides. 
2. Add cooking wine, soy sauce, and rock sugar to pan, then cook on medium heat with pan covered for about 20 to 30 minutes. Gently turn chicken pieces over every 10 minutes. Taste sauce at this point, and add more soy sauce, sugar, or water based on taste. 
3. Add basil leaves to chicken, and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove from heat and serve. 

Peanut Butter Cup Cookies

These cookies are absolutely delish! Soft, melt-in-your-mouth cookie base with an added punch with the addition of a peanut butter cup in the middle. I couldn't resist... this morning I had to have one for breakfast!


Peanut Butter Cup Cookies
1 3/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons milk
40 mini peanut butter cups

Directions:

1. To unwrap peanut butter cups in the least messy way possible: freeze the peanut butter cups prior to unwrapping. Then, keep the unwrapped peanut butter cups in the freezer or fridge until just about to use them. 
2. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. 
3. Combine butter, white sugar, peanut butter, and brown sugar in a large bowl. Beat in egg, vanilla extract, and milk. Then add in flour, salt, and baking soda, and mix well. (Optional: Refrigerating the dough makes the dough easier to shape during the next step.) 
4. Shape into 1-inch balls and place on ungreased baking sheets or mini muffin tins. 
5. Bake for about 8-10 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately press a mini peanut butter cup into the center of each cookie. Cool and serve. 

Lemon Birthday Cake

Whenever birthdays roll around, I am always at a loss at what to bake. It's too easy to just reach for the boxed chocolate/vanilla/funfetti cake mix and call it good.  If I am to spend all the work in baking a birthday cake from scratch, I want one that tastes much, much better than the boxed mix variety.

Luckily, today I had plenty of time + the perfect cake recipe + the necessary ingredients on hand. Of course, testing this recipe for the first second time, I spent waaay too much time (~3.5 hours) and used waaay too many pots/pans/bowls. My kitchen sink is piled high with dirty dishes as we speak. Yet, hopefully I don't scare you away from making a real made-from-scratch cake! With practice, you and I can streamline the process and whittle down on time and pans used.

A few tips:

• I didn't have buttermilk on hand. For 1 cup buttermilk, I substituted 1 cup milk + 1 tablespoon lemon juice. White vinegar can also be used instead of lemon juice. 
• My cake layers turned out dome shaped, rather than flat. In the future, I would cut the cake layers to be flat, so assembling the cake would be easier and the finished product more presentable.

Lemon Cake with Lemon Curd Filling and Lemon Icing
makes a 9 inch cake
modified from Nathan's Lemon Cake (www.myrecipes.com) and Ina Garten's Lemon Curd (www.foodnetwork.com)

Cake
Flour, for dusting
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
3 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
2 tablespoons finely grated lemon rind
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Lemon Curd (makes about 1 1/2 cups)
about 2 tablespoon lemon zest
1 cup sugar
1/8 cup unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt

Lemon Icing
3 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1/4 cup lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare 2 9-inch cake pans by coating with cooking spray and dusting with flour. 
2. Combine 2 cups flour, baking powder, baking, soda, and salt.
3. Beat granulated sugar and 1/2 cup butter in large bowl until well-blended (about 5 minutes). Add eggs, beat well after each addition. Add flour mixture and buttermilk alternately to sugar/butter mixture. Beat in 2 tablespoons of lemon zest and 2 tablespoons of lemon juice. 
4. Pour batter evenly between the 2 cake pans. Tap pans sharply to remove air bubbles. Bake for 32 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into center comes out clean. Cool cakes completely. 
5. Lemon Curd: Combine sugar and 2 tablespoons of lemon zest in food processor; pulse until lemon zest is finely minced into sugar. Cream butter and beat in sugar/lemon mixture. Add eggs, lemon juice, and salt; mix until combined. Pour mixture into saucepan and cook over low heat until thickened (about 10 minutes), stirring constantly. Remove from heat and cool or refrigerate. 
6. Lemon Icing: Combine powdered sugar, 1/4 cup melted butter, 1 tablespoon lemon zest, and 1/4 cup lemon juice. 
7. Place 1 cake layer on a plate and spread lemon curd filling on top of cake. Top with remaining cake layer. Spread icing over top of cake. Store cake in refrigerator. 

Fit for a Wedding?

My baking MO is definitely cute individual-sized cakes- muffins, cupcakes, mini cupcakes, mini cheesecakes, individual tartlets. An added plus- they're perfect for gift-giving. Although, I basically ate the whole tray of these bomb.com cheesecakes myself!

I embellished the mini cheesecakes by creating two layers- vanilla and chocolate. Not only is the two-tone result gorgeous, the bit of chocolate cheesecake in each bite adds even more decadence!


Mini Black-and-White Cheesecakes (modified from allrecipes.com)
serves 12

1 cup crushed wafer cookies
2 tablespoons butter, melted

2 (8 ounce) packages of cream cheese, softened
2/3 cup white sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line 12 muffin tins with paper liners. 
2. Combine crushed cookie crumbs and butter, then press a tablespoon into each muffin tin. 
3. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese until fluffy. Then beat in sugar, eggs, lemon juice, and vanilla extract until smooth. Divide cream cheese mixture into 2 equal parts. Melt chocolate chips until smooth, and stir into one part of the cream cheese mixture.
4. Evenly divide regular cream cheese mixture between muffin tins. Then evenly spoon chocolate cream cheese mixture on top. 
5. Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, until center of each cheesecake is just wobbly and outside of cheesecake is firm. Remove from oven and cool. Serve chilled with fresh fruit and powder sugar. 

More pictures... drooling may commence! 

Perfect Hardboiled Eggs

Having grown up with my mom boiling eggs to death, I set out early in my cooking career to find the perfect hard boiled egg technique. I'm definitely a "white of the egg" person, and can only stand eating egg yolks when they are perfectly yellow with a creamy, slightly soft center. The technique below has held up with repeat testing. And it's so easy, you will wish you thought of it first!

Say "ADIOS" to chalky, green yolks... the recipe is below!

Perfect Hardboiled Eggs (according to Lydia)

1. Place eggs gently in a single layer in a pot, and just cover the tops of the eggs with cold water. 
2. Bring water to a boil on the stovetop, then immediately turn off the heat and cover the pot for 10 minutes. 
3. Drain hot water, and run cold water over eggs for a few minutes. Peel and eat! 

Cookie in a Jar

Cranberry Hootycreeks. Where in the world did this name come from?! But it sure makes a pretty, festive gift! I made these layered cookie jars for my girls' group for the holidays!

Cranberry Hootycreeks (allrecipes.com)
makes 1 jar

5/8 cup flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped pecans

1. Layer the following ingredients in a 1 quart jar, in the order listed.
2. Attach tag with the following instructions: Cranberry Hootycreeks 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease a baking sheet. 2. In a medium bowl, beat together 1/2 cup softened butter, 1 egg, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until fluffy. Add the contents of the entire jar, and mix together by hand until well-blended. Drop by heaping spoonfuls onto prepared baking sheets. 3. Bake for 8-10 minutes, or until edges start to brown. Remove to cool on wire racks. 

Homemade Cheddar Bay Biscuits

These cheese garlic biscuits are easy to whip up. I made them for an "American" dinner party and paired it with a prime rib a few months ago.

A few tips:

• Use whatever cheese you have on hand. I used a Mexican four cheese package. 
• Do not overmix the batter, or else the biscuits will turn out hard and dense. Unless you want hockey pucks on your dinner table, mix until the dough just comes together! 
• I chose to bake my biscuits in a muffin tin, but you can just drop spoonfuls of batter on a baking sheet. 
• You can play around with the baking temperature to find your ideal baking temp at which your biscuits with be golden brown and the cheese nicely melted. 

Cheddar Bay Biscuits (modified from allrecipes.com)

makes 12 biscuits

1 3/4 cups flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

5 tablespoons butter

1 cup milk

1 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese 

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 clove garlic, finely minced

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare pans by greasing muffin tins.
2. In a large bowl, mix together flour, salt, garlic powder, and baking powder. Cut in butter with pastry cutter or 2 forks until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in center of flour mixture. Add in milk and cheddar cheese, stir until just combined. Do not overmix! Divide batter into 12 muffin tins. 
3. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, until tops are lightly browned. Combine melted butter and minced, then brush garlic butter over hot biscuits. 

Who Needs Pick-Up Lines When You Can Bake

This banana bread recipe gets the title "best banana bread ever" since it's partially responsible for my 3 day weekend! Here's an important life lesson for all you boys and girls- when you need a favor, just remember that no one says no when you combine your request with baked goods!

"Here's a slice of homemade banana bread... and can I get Monday off?" 

"Do you like muffins, because these have your name on them! (Also, hope you mind me taking off early today.)" 

Think of it as a pick-up line, but more effective. 

Banana Oatmeal Bread - modified from allrecipes.com
1/2 cup butter

1/2 cup white sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

2 eggs, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup flour

1 cup quick cooking oats

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

3 bananas, mashed

1/4 cup milk

1 cup walnuts

1/2 cup dried cranberries or raisins (optional)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9x5 loaf pan. 
2. In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugars, then beat in eggs and vanilla extract until fluffy; add bananas and milk and mix well. 
3. In a separate bowl, stir together flour, oats, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Add dry ingredients to banana mixture until just mixed. Do not overmix batter. Fold in walnuts and dried fruit if using. 
4. Pour batter into prepared pan, and bake for 50-60 minutes until inserted toothpick comes out clean. 

Tackling Cake Pops

Cake pops are like the anti-wallflowers at a party. They are guaranteed to get oohs and ahhs. No one can resist tiny cute balls of cake covered with sugary coating and a variety of toppings. More fluff than substance, cake pops dazzle and awe just like a magician's tricks on stage.

But let me tell you, despite the little actual baking involved, those cake pops are tricky! I ended up making cake truffles (instead of pops) as I had no luck finding lollipop sticks at the grocery store. Cake pop making easily is a two-day affair: mix the cake batter, bake the cake, pulverize the cake (surprisingly therapeutic...), add frosting, form cake balls, melt the sugar coating, then it's the dip-swirl-sprinkle action for the last touch. You can also continue the process by coating the cake balls in crushed nuts, drizzling designs, add cute edible decor, and/or shaping the cake balls into different shapes. Phew! This may be my one-and-only cake pop experience! (Good thing the fad seems to be disappearing... except at bridal showers, baby showers, and girly birthdays.)

Tip: Freeze cake balls prior to dipping in coating. I wish I had known this sooner (I usually am so good at reading reviews prior to making the recipe too!) as my biggest problem was definitely the cake ball falling apart on me or sliding off the toothpick while dipping!

Cake Pops
1 package cake mix (18.25oz)
1 can prepared frosting (16oz)
Melting chocolate (wafers, bark, bar)

1. Prepare cake according to package instructions in any pan size. Once cake is done, crumble cake while warm into large bowl and stir in frosting until well-blended.
2. Melt chocolate in tall, narrow bowl or cup in the microwave. 
3. Form balls out of cake batter using melon baller or small spoon. Freeze cake balls until hardened. Dip balls in melted chocolate using toothpick or lollipop stick. Place balls in paper liners to harden. 

Resuming Where We Left Off

First, I'm not quite sure why I haven't posted in 8 months. Although the timing of the abrupt stoppage was coincidentally around the time when 4th year rotations started. Thinking back, I have been alternating between busy and really really busy ever since rotations began. Work life does suck all the energy outta ya... The last thing I want to do when I finally get home after putting in my 9-10 hours at work is spend more time in the kitchen. 

So, less free time + much less energy = no cooking, and definitely no blogging.

But, I remembered why I started my blog in the first place (outlet source). And right now, I definitely need a distraction and a satisfying project in my life to take my whirling mind off of residency applications. Food + pics always places a warm, fuzzy feeling of accomplishment in me. 

I saw a picture of these individual portions of monkey bread on allrecipes.com (4th or 5th favorit-est website) yesterday. Had all the ingredients. Had a little bit of time. Was and have been craving sweets.  Sooo... I got my lazy butt off of the couch and peeled my eyes away from Big Bang Theory for a moment. Voila! Be warned, these go fast- I can probably eat all 6 in one sitting if I allowed myself!  

Monkey Bread in a Muffin Tin - modified from allrecipes.com 

(makes 6 muffins)

1 12 oz. can biscuit dough

1/4 cup white sugar

1-2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. nutmeg (optional)

1/2 cup brown sugar

3 tbsp. butter

1. Preheat oven 375 degrees F. Line 6 muffin tins with paper liners. 
2. Combine white sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a mixing bowl. Cut each biscuit into quarters, and thoroughly coat each piece of dough in cinnamon-sugar mixture. (Alternately, you can place the cinnamon-sugar in a large ziplock bag, add biscuit dough pieces, then shake to coat.) Place 6-7 pieces of dough in each muffin tin. 
3. In a small saucepan over medium heat, combine butter and brown sugar. Bring to a bubbling simmer, stirring constantly, and heat until sugar is dissolved. Spoon mixture evenly over each muffin tin. 
4. Bake for 8-12 minutes, until biscuit dough is lightly springy.