Posts

Baked Oatmeal with Pears and Raspberries

Image
So, this was fabulous, however, keep in mind I really, really love baked oatmeal. I give this a 7.8. I just saw a recipe on Pinterest and realized I could tweak a recipe I tried a while back and came up with my own. Here it is: 1 cup steel cut oats 3/4 cup chopped pecans 1/8 tsp.nutmeg 1/8 tsp. ginger 1 1/2 t. cinnamon 1/4 t. kosher salt 1 1/4 t. baking powder 2 1/2 cups 1% milk 2 eggs 1/4-1/2 t. almond extract 3/4-1 tsp. vanilla 1 T. melted butter 1 T. maple syrup (use 1/3 cup if you aren’t sugar worried) 2 pears, peeled and cut into small chunks   So mix dry ingredients. Mix wet ingredients and pour over dry ingredients. Stir in the pears and then put in a 9x9 baking dish. Refrigerate overnight. Bake at 350 for about 50 minutes or so. Serve with raspberries and fresh pears on top.  

Zucchini Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies

Image
Yes, this is another zucchini cookie recipe, but I hate wasting fresh garden zucchini. These were good and I'll definitely make them again. I got the recipe from cooking classy.com and they get a 7.5. Ingredients 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tsp ground cinnamon 1/2 tsp baking soda 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened 1/2 cup granulated sugar I used 1/3 C.  1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar 1 large egg 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups shredded zucchini (from about 1 - 1 1/2 medium) 1 cup quick oats 3/4 cup chopped pecans or walnuts I left these out 1 2/3 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips I used 1 1/3 C.  Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a mixing bowl whisk together flour, cinnamon, baking soda and salt for 20 seconds, set aside. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment whip together butter, granulated sugar and brown sugar until creamy. Mix in egg and vanilla extract. Add zucchini and with mixer s...

Carrot Cupcakes

Image
These were good and get an 8. I got the recipe from annies-eats.com. For the cupcakes: 2½ cups (12.5 oz) all-purpose flour 1¼ tsp. baking powder 1 tsp. baking soda 1¼ tsp. ground cinnamon ½ tsp. grated nutmeg 1/8 tsp. ground cloves ½ tsp. salt 1 lb. (6-7 medium) carrots, peeled 1½ cups (10.5 oz) granulated sugar I put in 1 1/4 C. ½ cup packed light brown sugar 4 large eggs 1½ cups canola, safflower or vegetable oil For the frosting: 12 oz. cream cheese (not softened) 7½ tbsp. unsalted butter, at room temperature 1 tbsp. vanilla extract 3¾ cups confectioners’ sugar, sifted I put in 3 C. Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.annies-eats.com/2009/09/03/carrot-cupcakes/

One Pan Lemon Herb Salmon and Zucchini

Image
So, this recipe came from damndelicious.net, and it was good. I give it a 7.5 I would make it again, although the salmon sauce is not my favorite. I prefer one of the ones I have blogged previously. The concept though is great. I put my changes below in bold:   Ingredients 4 zucchini, chopped I used part yellow squash 2 tablespoons olive oil Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste For the salmon 2 tablespoons brown sugar, packed I cut this in half 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 2 cloves garlic, minced 1/2 teaspoon dried dill I think this is too much 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 4 (5-ounce) salmon fillets I only used 2 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley leaves I left this out   Basically, you cut the zucchini, rub it with oil and salt, and then put it on the cookie sheet. Then, you make the sauce, rub...

Peach blackberry tarts

Image
So, these were awesome. They get a 9. Here is what I did. I took the tart crust (blogged in April—search for tarts). Here it is again for reference:   Tart Crust 270 grams butter This is about 2 1/2 cubes butter 140 grams sugar This is about 2/3 cup sugar 1 egg 400 grams flour This is about a generous 3 cups flour Cut this recipe in half for 6 tarts. Cut the dough in 6 equal parts and roll them out one at a time. Mix butter and sugar together, like a cookie, then add egg, mix in flour. This is crackly dough, like rolling out sugar cookie dough. Make dough. You roll it like pie crust, 1/4 inch thick, cut out slightly larger circle (she uses 4.5 inch circle cutter), and then smoosh it in to the pan once your circle is cut out. Roll a rolling pin over top to cut edge. Make sure it is all patted down (you will push the dough into the crinkly part of the tart pan and then blind bake it at 350. To blind bake it, cut a circle of foil that is about the size of the bottom of the t...

Puffy Chicken Tacos

Image
So, I saw a recipe for this on Pinterest, and it looked super good. These tasted super good. They just didn’t look like they were supposed to, which was irritating. I would give these a 7.8. First, I would find another recipe for the tortillas if you want them to puff. I think they must either be super thin to puff, or have something like baking powder in them. Ours were very thick and no puffing happened. Anyway, here is what we did: Taco shells   3 cups masa harina flour 2 Tbs. butter 2 1/2-3 cups water.   Add water slowly until a soft dough forms. Then stop adding water.   Taco meat:   salsa in bottom of crock pot. Add chicken thighs. Add tons of seasonings to the meat (I did taco seasoning, chili powder, oregano, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, pepper, and cumin). Add more salsa on top, maybe 3/4 cup. Cook forever until it shreds. I also added a few ounces of cream cheese.   Then, you assemble them like tacos.

Pasta e Fagioli

Image
This had good flavor and was filling, which is always nice. Jared and I both gave it a 7.5. I got the recipe from annies-eats.com. Also, instead of cooking the pasta in a separate pot, I threw it in the soup when it had about 10-15 minutes left. Pasta e Fagioli Yield: 6-8 servings INGREDIENTS 2 tbsp. butter, divided 1 (20 oz.) package sweet Italian sausage, casings removed 1/2 large (or 1 medium) onion, finely chopped 4 cloves garlic, minced 4 carrots, thinly sliced 4 stalks celery, thinly sliced 1 (28 oz.) can diced tomatoes I used 2 garden tomatoes 1 can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed I skipped this and added a can of Great Northern beans instead 1 can cannelini beans, drained and rinsed 48-64 oz. reduced-sodium beef broth (depending on how much liquid you would like) I used chicken broth 1 (28 oz.) can tomato sauce 2 tsp. dried parsley 1/2 tsp. dried basil I used fresh basil 1 tsp. salt 4 oz. small dry pasta (such as ditalini) I used small shell...