Tag Archives: what’s cooking

What’s Cooking: Perfect Blueberry Muffins and Red Beans and Rice

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You know what’s funny?  This weekend I made my favorite blueberry muffins, thinking to myself “This is such great a recipe, how come I’ve never put this up on the blog?”  So, I took a ton of pictures, typed everything up, and then it hit me.   I have put them up on the blog before!  Duh. I guess I’m getting old.

So, anyway, I figured I’d still share the pictures and just link here to the original post.  I also made a big batch of red beans and rice from this post here so we’ll be eating on that all week.

Hope you had a good weekend!

Toss the blueberries in a tablespoon of the flour mixture to keep them from sinking in your batter.

Cream together butter and sugar

Alternate the dry ingredients…

…with the milk. Try to begin and end with the dry ingredients

Sprinkle sugar on the tops before baking. I used turbinado for texture, but any sugar will do.

Yum! Hot out of the oven!

Here’s the link again to the full recipe.  I’ll try to be more original next time, but really this is just a testament to how delicious these are!

The Epiphany: Homemade King Cake

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Today is the Feast of the Epiphany or Twelfth Night or King’s Day in many corners of the world, including this one. For me, it is the day that you can finally eat king cake. As with many a New Orleanian, my childhood memories of king cake were McKenzie’s or disappointment. While McKenzie’s are still available (in a manner of speaking) from Tastee Donuts, they just aren’t the same. But the classic McKenzie’s style of no icing, no filling is still my go to. Last year, I undertook making my own king cake, and will undoubtedly do so again this year. The process is really easy (if not a bit time intensive), the proof in that is that I’ve been able to pull it off multiple times with success. If I can do it, you can bet your ass you can.

I started with this recipe posted over on Chef’s Lagniappe and through some tweaking by Cupcake (through her excellent baking knowledge) and myself (through totally screwing things up by accident) we came up with what turned out to be a nice light, fluffy king cake. So without further ramblings, here’s the recipe (which was, in fact, posted last year):

Ingredients for king cake:
1/2 cup warm water
5 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 cup plus 2 tsp sugar
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 cups cake flour
1 tsp nutmeg
2 tsp salt
1 tsp lemon zest
1/2 cup warm milk
3 large eggs
2 egg yolks
4 oz unsalted butter plus an additional 2 tablespoons of butter plus extra for greasing the bowl and baking sheet
A few tablespoons of cinnamon and sugar
Marischino cherries (optional)

Ingredients for way too much icing and decorations:
1 lb powdered sugar
2 tsp cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla extract
Milk, enough to make a glaze
Purple, Green and Gold sugar
nonpareils (the rainbow sprinkles–optional)

Directions:
1. Combine the warm water, yeast and 2 teaspoons of sugar in a bowl and set in a warm place until the yeast begins to bubble (around 10 minutes, but may wildly vary–yeast is tempermental).

The wee yeasties (that's a science joke!)

It is always good to see that the yeast is alive and kicking. Sometimes the store-bought stuff is DOA.

2. Combine the yeast mixture, both flours, the remaining sugar, nutmeg, salt and lemon zest in a mixer. Add in the warm milk, the eggs and yolks, plus the 4 ounces of butter (melted). Beat that bad boy with a dough hook on medium until the mixture is smooth.

3. Once the dough is smooth, throw some flour on the counter and knead the dough. Add flour as needed until the dough is no longer sticky. Keep on kneading until the dough is nice and stretchy.

4. Transfer dough to a greased bowl. You can use any number of things to grease a bowl when baking, melted butter, Pam, olive oil, etc. Cupcake says it is best to pick something that matches what is in the recipe already to keep a consistent flavor profile (unless you are deliberately trying to introduce another flavor). Flip the dough so the top of the dough is greased. Cover the dough and set aside until doubled (hour and a half/two hours or so).

Dough Man Rising

This is a great magic trick, cover the dough mixture and in about 90 minute it doubles in size!

5. Push the dough down, then transferred back to a lightly floured countertop. Separate the dough into three strands for braiding.

6. Once you get the three strands separated out, create a cinnamon/sugar mixture (50/50 is about what we went with). With your mixture made, melt the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter. Brush the butter on the first strand and sprinkle with the cinnamon/sugar mixture. No need to go overboard, just enough to give a little extra sweetness and flavor to the bread. Repeat for the remaining two strands and braid the three together. NOTE: If you would like to add a filling to your king cake, we would add it as you braid.

The Dusted Strands

I have no reason to add this other than I'm proud of it.

7. Place your undoubtedly beautiful braid on a buttered baking sheet, and make it into an oval. Pinch the ends together to seal closed. Cover the braided oval and let rise for another 45 minutes. Depending upon how long it takes your oven to pre-heat to 350, you’ll want to start that sometime during this step.

8. If you want to add in the McKenzie cherry piece to your king cake, you’ll want to add the cherry pieces into the dough just before dropping it into the oven.

Embedded Cherries

9. Bake until golden brown. This could range anywhere from 25 minutes to 45 minutes depending upon the oven. Once golden brown, set aside to cool.

10. While the king cake is cooling, make the icing. If you’re going for a traditional McKenzie’s like we do, you’ll be able to significantly reduce the amount of icing you make. Mix together the sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. As you’re mixing, mix in just enough milk to get a glaze. Like pornography, you’ll know it when you see it.

11. Once your king cake has cooled, glaze and decorate with alternating purple, green and gold sugar sprinkles. If you added the cherries, use the nonpareils around the cherries. We use just enough glaze to act as a “glue” to keep the sprinkles attached to the king cake. If you lean more towards the icing king cakes, go hog wild.  As you can see below, my skills at aesthetically decorating a king cake are pretty abysmal.  Of course, pretty has no impact on taste.  Just ask the praline.

Ugly, but awesome king cake

What’s Cooking: “Garlic” Bread Pudding (sans garlic)

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Silly snafus must run in my family.  And this impromptu weeknight dessert showcases that perfectly.  Here’s the story.  My parents invited us over for dinner last night.  When we got there, they had a yummy dinner in the works and asked me to make some garlic bread.  They handed over a baguette and all the fixings, but when I started working on the baguette, it was completely stale and dried out (snafu #1).  To give you an idea of how bad it was, my dad decided he could snack on some of the dried pieces with a bit of cheese but I think he almost broke a tooth (which I guess could be snafu #2?).  Earlier in the night my mom had confessed that she didn’t have anything for dessert, so I decided I could turn that dried out bread into bread pudding!

So I scavenged around in her kitchen and pulled out some milk, eggs, triple sec, vanilla, sugar, caramels leftover from Thanksgiving, and whiskey.  I chopped the bread into small cubes (which, by the way, is way easier with a serrated knife).  Then I whisked together 2 cups of milk, 2 eggs, a teaspoon of vanilla, 1/2 cup of sugar, and a splash of triple sec.  Spread the bread cubes out in a buttered baking dish and pour the liquid over.  Bake for 25 minutes at 350.

While we were eating dinner, we realized that it wouldn’t really be bread pudding without a sauce, so then I remembered the caramels.  $1.25 suggested a whiskey caramel sauce, so I got to work.  I have no clue how many caramels we had, so you’ll have to improvise…when they were peeled it was a big handful, does that help?  I melted the caramels down in a double boiler with a splash of milk.  Once they melted, we added probably about 1/3 cup of whiskey.  You’ll probably want to add it a little bit at a time depending on how many caramels you have.  BTW, we had WAY too much sauce (snafu #3?), but give me some credit, I was winging it and my original goal was garlic bread!

You’re probably wondering what my big snafu was, considering I just told you about my creative solution to the stale bread.  Well, snafu #4 (or wherever we are in the counting) came when I got the bright idea to blog about the whole thing.  You already know I tend to have more “technical difficulties” than most.  Last night I took that to a whole new level when I tried to use the Word Press App on my iPhone and ended up posting a couple of pictures of the bread pudding LIVE to the blog, without any explanation or anything.  Just some random bready pictures for your viewing pleasure.  If you happened to get that post, sorry bout that!  $1.25 rescued me this morning and pulled them down.  Now they’re in their rightful place in the post where they belong, surrounded by words and explanations like they deserve.  See, this bread pudding was just a big cluster…from start to finish.

But, speaking of the bread pudding, it was really good!  I’m very proud of myself for swooping in to resuscitate the baguette to give it a new purpose in life.  And for the record, I think everyone enjoyed it more than they would have enjoyed the garlic bread.  Just goes to show what a little flexibility and creativity can offer in the kitchen…oh and it helps to have a well stocked pantry.  Garlic bread turned bread pudding!

What’s Cooking: Cheesy Stuffed Shells

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We’ve had a bit of a hiatus around here recently, but the good news is that even though the blog has been quiet, our kitchen has been busy!  So I’m finally putting down the pots and pans and picking up the computer to bring you recaps of all the yummy things we’ve been working on over the past few weeks.  First up is this quick and easy stuffed shells recipe.

$1.25 and I came into an abundance of meaty spaghetti sauce not too long ago and when we got tired of same old same old spaghetti, I decided to re-purpose it in the stuffed shells.  So, for starters, you need some sauce.  You absolutely can use store-bought non-meaty sauce, though, so no stressing if you don’t have any “laying around.”

Here’s what you’ll need:

15 oz whole milk ricotta

1 egg, beaten

4 cloves of garlic, minced

4 oz 1/3 fat cream cheese, at room temperature

1 cup shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese

Italian seasoning, salt and pepper

1 package of shell pasta, cooked for about 1/2 of the recommended cooking time

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

While the pasta cooks, mix together the ricotta, egg, garlic, cream cheese, 1/2 cup mozzarella, and the parmesan cheese.  Season with Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.

Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of a square baking dish.

Drain the shells well and then gently stuff them with the filling.  By undercooking them, they’ll be a little more resilient to breakage, but you still have to be careful.  Line up the stuffed shells in your baking dish.  You will probably have some pasta left over, but it’s good to have extra in case any of the shells break in the process.

Pour more sauce over the shells.  Top the stuffed shells with sauce and then cheese.  Cover with aluminum foil and bake for about 30-40 minutes until the sauce bubbles.  Then uncover and bake until the cheese is golden brown and bubbly.  Enjoy!  They are perfect for a cold night when you need something warm and hearty.

What’s Cooking: PumpkinPalooza! Spicy Pumpkin Bread

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Today’s PumpkinPalooza! recipe is a yummy spicy pumpkin bread.  I have probably made this recipe every fall for the past 10 years now, so you know I love it.  The hands-on time is really quick and your house will smell amazing when the loaves are baking.

3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon ground allspice

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1 1/3 cups packed light brown sugar

3/4 cup fat-free milk

1/3 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2  large eggs

1  (15-ounce) can pumpkin

1 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350°.

Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour and the next 7 ingredients (flour through cloves) in a large bowl; make a well in center of mixture. Combine sugar and the next 5 ingredients (sugar through pumpkin) in a bowl, and stir well with a whisk until smooth. Add to flour mixture, stirring just until moist.  Stir in the cranberries.

Spoon batter into 2 (8 x 4-inch) loaf pans coated with cooking spray, and sprinkle with pecans. Bake at 350° for 1 hour or until a wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool loaves in pans 10 minutes on a wire rack; remove from pans. Cool loaves completely before slicing.

The spices: nutmeg, cloves, allspice, and cinnamon

The wet ingredients all mixed together

Mixing in the cranberries

Fresh out of the oven

What’s Cooking: PumpkinPalooza! Pumpkin Ebelskiver Epiphany

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For PumpkinPalooza! we really wanted to showcase the pumpkin outside of its use in pies. And I found more yummy sounding pumpkin recipes than we could possibly make in one week. But if I tell you I made pumpkin ebelskiver, do you even know what it is? What if I tell you that I made little bite-sized pumpkin and pecan filled pancake pillows? Does that help? When $1.25 and I were doing our wedding registry, he really wanted an ebleskiver pan, which looks like this:

Photo courtesy of http://bakerydays.com/

I’m not a huge fan of one-use kitchen gadgets, but I gotta say, the visions of pancakes filled with delicious fruits, cheeses, and even bacon started floating through my head and I got pretty excited. And lucky for us, one of our good friends gave us the pan. But I was a little lost of the technique of the thing. Some of you may have this pan too, and you’re probably just as stumped by it as I am. I’ve used it a few times, but I always ended up with a huge mess on my hands.

Thankfully, for the sake of a well-rounded PumpkinPalooza! I decided to give the old ebelskiver pan another run. I used a recipe from Williams-Sonoma, figuring that since that’s where our pan is from, they probably have good recipes for using it. And fortunately, this recipe came with some hints for technique, so I think I’ve finally gotten the hand of making these little guys. Now that I know what to do, I see a whole bunch of filled pancakes in our future.  Mmmm, the wheels are turning…

But back to the pumpkin. I will start by saying that you probably can’t make use of this post unless you have an ebelskiver pan…so, sorry about that. But, after making these, I’m actually seeing the opportunity to use our pan quite a lot more, so maybe it’s worth it to you to go out and get one. Or at least ask Santa to bring you one?  A quick Google search found this one, and this one, and this one in addition to the one we have.

Anyway, since I used a Williams-Sonoma recipe, it naturally called for one of their products as the base of the filling (sneaky, huh?). I used their Pecan Pumpkin Butter this time around, but I also found this handy site that tells you how to make your own. I actually had to use the entire jar just for this recipe. At $10.95 a jar this could get a little pricey, so I’ll probably try making my own pumpkin butter next time.

4 oz. cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cup pecan pumpkin butter
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
4 eggs, separated
2 cups buttermilk
4 Tbs. (1/2 stick) melted unsalted butter, plus more for cooking (I used non-stick spray for cooking and it worked fine)

In a bowl, using a handheld mixer fitted with the beater attachment, beat the cream cheese on medium speed until softened, about 30 seconds. Add the pecan pumpkin butter and beat until smooth and well combined, about 45 seconds. Transfer the filling to a small bowl and refrigerate until ready to use.

In a bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In a small bowl, whisk the egg yolks, then whisk in the buttermilk and the 4 Tbs. butter. Whisk the yolk mixture into the flour mixture until well combined.

In another bowl, using an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites on high speed until stiff but not dry peaks form, 1 to 2 minutes. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold the whites into the batter in 2 additions.

Put 1/2 tsp. butter in each well of a filled-pancake pan. Set over medium-low heat and heat until the butter begins to bubble. Pour a heaping 1 Tbs. batter into each well (fill to just below the edge of the well). Cook until the undersides begin to set and turn light golden brown, about 1 minute. Using 2 wooden skewers, tilt each pancake at an angle on one edge, allowing some of the batter to flow out. Put 1 tsp. pecan pumpkin filling inside, on top of the uncooked batter, and cook for 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Using the skewers, tilt the pancakes again, allowing the remaining uncooked batter to flow out and enclose the filling in the center. Continue cooking the pancakes until they are evenly golden brown on all sides, turning them over if needed, 2 to 3 minutes more. Repeat with the remaining batter and filling. Makes about 35.
(Reprinted directly from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen)

We served these for breakfast with maple syrup and pecans on top. They were fantastic! We also warmed up the leftovers and had them with some cinnamon ice cream for dessert the next night and they rocked as dessert too.

The technique of tilting the pancakes around the filling really was the eye-opener for me on using the pan. Other recipes I’ve seen called for essentially layering batter, filling, batter, but I couldn’t ever get them to turn over or they spilled or puffed up too much, or burned or had a hundred other messy problems. The tilting technique allowed the outsides to cook evenly, and just as the outer layer was cooking, you pulled it up and spilled more batter into the well to create a nice cave to add in the filling. Perfection! They weren’t messy, the filling all stayed inside, and they were completely cooked without being burned.

Fill the pans about 3/4 full. The batter will puff thanks to those egg whites, baking soda, and baking powder.

The tilting technique in action. Lift the pancakes to one side and allow the uncooked batter to fill the well.

Filling the hollowed out pancakes. The two on the left have been completely folded onto themselves and sealed up.

What’s Cooking: PumpkinPalooza! Spicy Pumpkin Seeds

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Happy Halloween!  It’s pumpkin carving time and that means you’re going to have a big mess of pumpkin seeds left over.  I don’t love gutting a pumpkin, but the reward of these spicy seeds at the finish line made it worthwhile.  This recipe is really spicy, so you may want to dial it down if you’re serving them to kids*.  But for the grown-ups, they do make a nice snack or appetizer.

Here’s what you need:

4 tbsp butter

1 tsp chili powder

1/8 tsp cayenne

1/8 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon sugar

2 cups raw pumpkin seeds (clean and dry)

Preheat the oven to 375.  Melt the butter and mix in all of the spices.  Coat the pumpkin seeds with the spice mixture and spread them evenly over a baking sheet.  Bake for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.  You may need to add a little more salt when you pull them out of the oven.

Ready for Roasting

Oh, and check out a picture of my pumpkin, post carving:

Happy Halloween!

*For kids, or if you have a sweet tooth, try just cinnamon, sugar, and a little bit of sea salt instad of the spices.  DELICIOUS!

What’s Cooking: True Bolognese

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For our last showcase from Emeril’s new cookbook, Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders (available for purchase here), $1.25 begged me to make the True Bolognese.  I consider it more than a little bit serendipidous that the last recipe we cooked in Emeril’s Cooking Party was my absolute favorite.  Truth be told, I wasn’t even 100% excited about making this dish because how special could bolognese really be?  But let me tell you something, it is worth buying the cookbook for this recipe.  We’re pretty hooked on Italian flavors right now and this definitely tasted like something we ate in a little Tuscan trattoria.

Not only is the True Bolognese relatively simple and easy to make, but the flavors come together really well.  One of my favorite parts about making it was that every step along the way it tasted delicious and it got better every time I sampled it (which was a lot!).  With ingredients like pancetta, white wine, and half and half, it’s decadent and satisfying.  Although the recipe called for some ground veal in addition to ground sirloin, I used only the sirloin for our version.  And since we had bowties in the house, we used those instead of the tagliatelle or pappardelle recommended in the recipe.  For those of you who already own Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders you HAVE to make this dish (if you haven’t already).

$1.25's Plate (he's a no-cheese-on-his-pasta guy)

Cupcake's Plate (I take the more-is-more approach to cheese)

Man, I really wish I’d brought the leftovers for lunch today!!
For full details on this recipe and many more, be on the look out for Emeril’s new book:

Full disclosure details available here.

And don’t forget that today is the last day to enter our giveaway!

What’s Cooking: Chicken and Black Beans with Chorizo

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As our feature of Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets and Other One-Pot Wonders comes to a close, we managed to save the best two dishes for last (in my opinion).  First up: Chicken and Black Beans with Chorizo.  This dish is SOOO flavorful.  We marinated the chicken overnight in a delicious blend of spices and some sherry.  The black beans are chock full of aromatic vegetables and a hearty helping of spicy chorizo.  For a weeknight, this one took a little too long to cook, so $1.25 and I didn’t sit down to eat until super late.  But most of the heavy lifting comes in the form of marinating and baking in the oven, so if you’re home with a little bit of time on your hands, you can pull this together pretty easily.  $1.25 was partial to the black bean/chorizo bottom layer and we’re already planning on using it for our pulled pork nachos!  Get your copy of the cookbook here for this recipe and all of our favorites from the past few weeks.

Don’t forget about our giveaway of the Zak dishes!  Only a little while longer to enter to win.

Come back tomorrow for the knock out final dish.  We can’t wait to eat it tonight and tell you all about it tomorrow!

For full disclosure information, click here.

What’s Cooking: Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe (and Ham)

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For this recipe from Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets and Other One Pot Wonders, we pretty much stuck to the recipe but we made one crucial addition: ham.  Before sauteing the veggies, I dropped in a handful of ham to give it a little color.  Having the small chunks of ham in the soup was a really nice touch.  We also toyed with the idea of andouille, and I think we may try that next time just for a little extra heat.  But all in all we loved this dish and will definitely make it again soon.  The cookbook is on sale now, so grab a copy ASAP!

Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe and Ham:

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups small-diced onion

1 cup small-diced celery

1 cup small-diced red bell pepper

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

8 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth

2 pounds dried white beans (cannellini, baby lima, or great Northern), rinsed, picked over, soaked overnight, and drained

1 piece Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind, about 1 × 3 inches

1 bay leaf

4 cups water

1 ½ pounds broccoli rabe, tough stem ends trimmed, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 sprig fresh rosemary

Grated zest of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

6 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated (about 1 ½ cups)

Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

1. Heat the olive oil in an 8-quart soup pot or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and ¼ teaspoon of the black pepper and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic, dried Italian herbs, and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the stock, beans, Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and water and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat to simmer gently and cook, partially covered and stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender, 45 to 60 minutes.

2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer about 1 cup of the beans from the pot to a small bowl and mash them with the back of a spoon. Return the mashed beans to the soup and add the remaining 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and continue to cook, uncovered, until the broth thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. Add the remaining black pepper, the broccoli rabe, and rosemary sprig and continue to cook until the broccoli rabe is just tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Remove the Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and rosemary sprig and discard them. Serve the soup in wide, shallow bowls, garnished with grated Parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Don’t forget that we’re giving away a copy of the cookbook!  Check out last week’s post for more information.  You’ve only got today left to enter!!

Full disclosure for our Emeril’s Sizzling Skillets participation available here.