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Showing posts from March, 2020

One Pot Thai Chicken Noodle Soup

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So, this had potential, but I ruined it by putting in too much curry and making it too spicy. ARGH. I think this has potential to be good. One Pot Thai Chicken Noodle Soup 2 tablespoons olive oil 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts sliced through the equator to create thin fillets 1 onion, chopped 2 medium carrots, sliced 2-4 tablespoons red curry paste I did 4 Tbs of Mae Ploy brand 1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger 4 garlic cloves, minced 5 cups low sodium chicken broth 2 14 oz. cans quality coconut milk (I love Chaokoh) 2 tablespoons low sodium soy sauce 2 tablespoons fish sauce 2 tablespoons brown sugar 5-6 kaffir lime leaves (find at nuts.com) 1 tablespoon dried basil 1 1/2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 8 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced 1 red bell pepper, chopped 1 cup chopped bite size cauliflower florets 3 oz. rice vermicelli/thin rice noodles/sticks broken into pieces** 1/4 cup chopped cilantro 2-3 tablespoons fresh lime juice 1 1/2 teasp

Cinnamon Apple Bread

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I made this months ago, and really liked it, but can't exactly remember what changes I made to it in regards to the sugart, so I'm going to give it my best shot. Anyway, this was good and gets a 7. The recipe came from thehappierhomemaker.com. 1/2 cup  packed light brown sugar 1 1/2 teaspoon  ground cinnamon 2/3 cup  white sugar I probably put in 1/4 C. 1/2 cup  butter, softened 2  eggs 2 teaspoon s vanilla extract 1 1/2 cup s all-purpose flour 1 1/2 teaspoon s baking powder 1/2 cup  milk 1  large apple, peeled and finely chopped Here's the link:   https://thehappierhomemaker.com/apple-cinnamon-bread/?utm_medium=social&utm_source=pinterest&utm_campaign=tailwind_smartloop&utm_content=smartloop&utm_term=5507430#tasty-recipes-16435

Black Bottom Cupcakes

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These are a Nelson family favorite, but Jared doesn't know where the recipe originally came from. They're really good and get an 8. 1 C. sugar I use 3/4 C. 1/4 C. cocoa 1 C. water 1 TBS vinegar 1 1/2 C. flour 1 egg 1 tsp. vanilla 1/3 C. oil 1/2 tsp. salt 1 tsp. baking soda Cream cheese filling: Cream together 8 oz. cream cheese, 1/3 C. sugar, 1 egg, 1/4 sp. salt. Add chocolate chips and mix by hand. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt together. Add the water, oil, vanilla and vinegar- beating at medium speed until just combined.  Fill cupcake liners 1/3 full. Top each with 2 tsp. of cream cheese mixture. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Makes 24 cupcakes. Frost with chocolate frosting.

Stuffed Crunchy Orange French Toast with Berry Cream Cheese

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So, I tried this at Bohemian Brewery last year and it was really good. We re-created it at home, and it was even better. It gets a 9.  Here is what John did: Stuffed Crunchy Orange French Toast with Berry Cream Cheese (I think the french toast recipe originally came from ourbestbites.com) 2 eggs 2 ½ Tbsp. sugar ½ tsp. salt ½ tsp. vanilla extract John increases this 2 c. milk 1 c. flour 2 ½ tsp. baking powder 12 slices Texas style toast, cut in half diagonally So, John added 1 Tbs. of orange zest, from 2 oranges to the batter. After he dipped the bread, he rolled it in Cap’n Crunch cereal that had been crushed with the potato masher. Cream Cheese mixture: 1 brick cream cheese, softened 4 large spoonful's Marionberry jam John mixes the mixture with a stick blender and then fries the bread in shortening (just like 1/4”).  He keeps it between 300 and 320 degrees. When it’s out, he puts it on keep warm. I spread the cream cheese in between the pieces once they were 2

Moo Goo Gai Pan

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This recipe was good, and we would totally make this again. It came from carlsbadcravings.com, and I would say this is an 8. Moo Goo Gai Pan Ingredients 1pound chicken breastssliced 1/4-inch thick peanut, vegetable or canola oil VELVETING 1tablespoon cornstarch 1tablespoon reduced sodium soy sauce 1tablespoon sesame oil 1teaspoon rice wine 1teaspoon baking soda STIR FRY SAUCE 3/4cup low sodium chicken broth 2tablespoons reduced sodium soy sauce 2tablespoons oyster sauce 1 1/2tablespoons brown sugar 1tablespoon Japanese rice wine or dry sherry (see notes in post) 1tablespoon Asian chili sauce or Srirachamore or less to taste 1 1/2teaspoons toasted sesame oil 1/4tsp EACH salt, pepperplus more to taste 1tablespoon cornstarch Veggies 4-6cloves garlic minced 1tablespoon minced ginger 8oz. cremini mushroomssliced 1/4-1/2” thick 1cup THINLY sliced carrots 1/4cup chopped green onionswhite parts only 1 8 oz. can bamboo shootswell drained 1 8 oz. can sl

Dark Chocolate Orange Slice & Bake Cookies

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So, the texture on these was amazing. I would totally make these again, but I would leave the cinnamon out. I think it takes away from the simple beauty of chocolate and orange together. I would give these an 8.5. as is, but higher without the cinnamon. Dark Chocolate Orange Slice & Bake Cookies 3/4 cup (170g) unsalted butter , softened to room temperature 2/3 cup (133g) packed light or dark brown sugar (I prefer light in these!) I did 1/2 cup and it was totally fine 1 large egg , at room temperature 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 2 cups + 2 Tablespoons (266g) all-purpose flour ( spoon & leveled ) 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon   i think I would leave this out next time 1/4 teaspoon salt zest from 1 medium navel orange (plus more for sprinkling on top if desired) 2 Tablespoons (30ml) orange juice from 1 medium navel orange optional: 1/2 cup (63g) chopped walnuts optional: coarse sugar for rolling (I use sugar in the raw brand) 8 ounces (226g) sem

Brown Butter-Pecan Shortbread Cookies

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I sent this recipe to Erickson Blair to make for our cooking night, and they were awesome. They get a 9. I think the sugar could go down because they were a bit sweet for my taste. Brown Butter-Pecan Shortbread Cookies By Nancie McDermott , Jill O'Connor April/May 2019 Issue 8 oz. (1 cup) plus 1 Tbs. unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces 8 oz. (2 cups) pecan halves Erickson said 1 1/2 cups might work just fine 3/4 cup plus 1 Tbs. granulated sugar He did 50% brown sugar 1 large egg, separated and at room temperature 2-1/2 tsp. vanilla bean paste or 1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract 9 oz. (2 cups) unbleached all-purpose flour; more for dusting 1/2 tsp. fine sea salt He did table salt and doubled it Recipe retrieved 3-9-20 from https://www.finecooking.com/recipe/brown-butter-pecan-shortbread-cookies So, erickson put 2 tsp of white sugar in the butter once it melted and it caramelized as it browned. He stirred it constantly. After he took it bac

Neapolitan Cake

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Soo, I got the original idea from this from my “Layered” cookbook by Tessa Huff. But, I did some different stuff. It’s a great cake. It gets a 9. Here is how the layers look First, I did 9 inch cakes, and I did vanilla, chocolate, vanilla, chocolate layers of cake. I used the following recipes: Vanilla Cake 3 cups (370g) cake flour I measured this by weight and just put 1/3 cup of cornstarch in the bowl and then dumped flour in until it reached the right number of grams 1 Tbsp baking powder 1/2 tsp salt 1 cup (8 oz) unsalted butter, softened 1 3/4 cup (390g) granulated sugar I only did 1 1/3 cups and it was plenty sweet 3 large eggs 2 large egg yolks 1 1/4 cups milk (anything but skim) I used 2% 2 tsp vanilla extract I increased this to 1 Tbs. recipe and instructions found at link below: http://www.cookingclassy.com/fresh-strawberry-cake/ So, you cream the butter and sugar with the paddle attachment, and add the eggs one at a time. Then the vanilla. Then

SLOW COOKER MEXICAN CHICKEN SOUP

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So, Lisa makes this soup and it is super good. SLOW COOKER MEXICAN CHICKEN SOUP Ingredients 400 grams boneless skinless chicken breast 1 14 oz can Fire-roasted plum tomato 2 tsp. oil 1 medium onion Finely Chopped 1 tbsp Minced garlic 1 red bell pepper Chopped 1.5 tsp Roasted Cumin powder 1 tsp Dried Oregano 1.5 tsp Chipotle chili powder 1 tsp paprika (Optional) 1.5 cups chicken stock 1 cup half and half 1/2 Cup Cream Cheese (room temperature) 1 cup cheddar cheese (or Mexican blend) Salt to taste Fresh Cilantro leaves for garnishing Essentially you saute the onion and garlic, add spice, add tomatoes, chicken stock and chicken. Then, add the pepper, cream cheese, cheese, and half and half. Here is what Lisa said she does in terms of changes: I added one extra can of tomatoes and two cans of black beans. Also, I used a rotisserie chicken, so I just cooked it in a pot rather than a crock pot. I use half heavy cream and half milk instead of the actual half and

Tunnel of Fudge Cake

So, I don’t have a picture of this, but it’s super good. I love this cake. It originally came from annies-eats.com. Lisa’s changes: Here you go! The only change I make is reducing the granulated sugar by 1/4-1/2 cup. I keep the powdered sugar the same because that’s what makes it fudgy. Tunnel of Fudge Cake ingredients: for the pan: 1 tbsp Dutch processed cocoa powder 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted for the cake: 1/2 cup boiling water 2 oz bittersweet chocolate, chipped 2 cups all purpose flour (10 oz.) 3/4 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder (2 1/4 oz.) 2 cups confectioners' sugar (8 oz) 1 tsp salt 5 large eggs, at room temperature 1 tbsp vanilla extract 1 cup granulated sugar 3/4 cup light brown sugar 20 tbsp (2-1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature for the ganache: 3/4 cup heavy cream 1/4 light corn syrup 8 oz bittersweet chocolate, chopped 1/2 tsp vanilla extract So you take the ingredients for the pan, combine then, and brush them on the inside of a bundt pa