Golden Pillows

Hello Sweets,

I cannot wait until spring is finally here, because my health is just on a roller coaster ride and it is not fun.  I've been having really bad migraines, which then causes dizziness and nausea.  Naturally that means I haven't been in the kitchen much, but I'm changing that tonight!  I'm making my grandfather a special little surprise for his birthday, and I'll share it with y'all tomorrow.

Tonight I am bringing you a sweet and unique treat :)  It's my favorite dessert at El Fenix when I'm in Texas, so much that we'll order extra to bring home for later lol.  Obviously it is a Mexican dessert, and it also very traditional for them.  I'm going to get right in to the recipe tonight, that way I can hopefully beat the migraine before it flares back up.

Sopapillas

Ingredients

1 egg

2/3C milk

1Tbs sugar

1tsp salt

1Tbs baking powder

2C flour

fat for deep frying (I used olive oil)

Directions:
1)  Beat egg with milk.

2)  Add sugar and salt.

3)  Add baking powder to flour.

4)  Add to egg mixture; knead well.  Add additional flour as needed by tablespoonfuls.  Knead until smooth and non sticky; place in bowl.

5)  Cover; let stand for about 10 minutes.

6)  Roll out very thin; cut into 2"-3" strips.

7)  Drop into very hot fat.  Dough puffs quickly into little pillows.

8)  Drain on paper towel. 

9)  Serve hot; plain or with honey or cinnamon sugar.

 

So yummy!!  They turned out exactly as I've had them in restaurants many times before.  Since I made them here, Nathan missed out, but I promised him I would make them when I come home to Texas ;)

Well I was right, the migraine has regrouped and started to intensify :(  Until next time....

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

It's What's On the Inside That Counts

Hello Sweets,

Another day complete, and another painful doctors appointment :(  I really, really, really hate the needles I have to get!  It was so bad today that I was crying so badly that my doctor asked if I needed to take a break, obviously I said yes.  We then proceed to discuss my ongoing battle with my benefit company, and what has become a never ending battle >_<  It always amazes me when the doctors ask me why they are stalling, lol I wish I had a good answer but I don't.  When all the doctors I've seen over the last 3+ years are in agreement about me not being able to go back to work yet because of my health, it's hard to understand why I'm being denied.  Well, other than them being greedy...you know whats.  We both agree on one thing though, nobody in their right mind would go through these awful needles for a dog and pony show!

Last night I resumed a painting I had started months ago, and yes it did help my mood a little.  The reason I had stopped before, was because I was extremely unhappy with the way my "sunset sky" had turned out.  It was blotchy and did not flow well at all, but now it is this beautiful pink, orange, and yellow sunset that compliment each color and blend perfectly.  The reason why I am taking this particular painting so serious, is because it's based off a photo I took while on vacation four years ago.  It was heaven on earth, otherwise known as "Bear Mountain" in New Mexico.  It is in the middle of a national park, but the land belongs to a friend of the family.  Their family has had it for a long time, and have chose to keep it almost off the grid.  We're talking no indoor plumbing or electricity, but when the views are that beautiful you don't need TV, cellphones, or many people for that matter lol.  There were many beautiful views from many different spots on the land, but there was one that I was particularly fond of.  It was right beside our A frame cabin on a little park bench, and it over looked the gorge that the mountains surrounded.  You could actually watch thunderstorms form in a swirling vortex, it was a really cool experience.  Anyways, the sunsets and sunrise were to die for.  Once I am closer to being complete, or when I'm actually done I'll share the final product with y'all :)

I'm very excited for tomorrow, I'm making my grandparents a delicious salmon dinner here at my new place :)  I am still planning all the little details, like the main flavor and side dishes, but it's going to be amazing.  I am making it after all lol.  In preparation for dinner tomorrow I made a delicious dessert to finish off the perfect meal.  I've been wanting to make theses from scratch for a long time, but thought I didn't have the right bake ware.  Then in a Macgyver like moment it hit me, I could make due with something I thought I would never use.  French onion soup bowls!  I don't care for onions so the soups on that list too, lol but I could use them for something even better :)

Molten Chocolate Cakes (via Kraft)

Ingredients

4oz Baker's semi-sweet chocolate

1/2C butter

1C icing sugar

2 eggs

2 egg yolks

6Tbs flour

(I only had unsweetened chocolate, so I added a Tbs of sugar for each oz of chocolate)

 

 Directions:

1)  Preheat oven to 425F.  Butter 4 (3/4C) custard or ramekins.  Place on baking sheet and set aside.

2)  Microwave chocolate and butter in a large microwavable bowl on HIGH for 1 minute.  Stir with a whisk until chocolate is completely melted.

 

 

3)   Add icing sugar (and sugar if needed); mix well.

 

 

4)  Blend in the whole eggs and egg yolks.

 

5)  Stir in flour.

 

 

6)  Pour into prepared cups.  Bake for 13-14 minutes, or until the sides are firm but the centers are still soft.

 

 

7)  Let stand for 1 minute.  Carefully run a small knife around the edges of cakes to loosen.  Invert cakes onto dessert plates, and remove cups.  Cut in half, serve warm with cool whip or icing sugar.

 

** You can also make them in muffin cups with the paper liners, bake for 10 minutes.**

It is a decadent cake, with a warm gooey center.  This is one of my favorite types of cakes, and now that I know how simple and easy it is to make this will be a regular occurrence at any family meals :)  I still can't believe how simple it is, but I am glad that I gave it a try and succeeded!

Now I've got some research to do, as I want tomorrows dinner to be deliciously perfect.  I'm also wanting to wash my floors tonight too.  Guess I better get my butt in gear :p  Until next time....

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

Not Quite a Cake, Yet Not Quite Pudding

Hello Sweets,

Well tomorrow is the day I get my keys!!!  I am doing as much packing as possible tonight so I feel as though it's not such a daunting task, but the mandatory naps aren't helping.  I just woke up from one and am feeling quite groggy, so I figured I write a post to help wake my brain up before I do anything else.  As much as I am looking forward to moving, the stress of the final days is getting to me lol.  I just hate the packing part lol.  Oh well, it has to be done right?  On the plus side, I found this super soft and super awesome bath mat.  Do statements like that mean that I've become old?  I am finding that new household objects are super fun for me, lol yea I am old.

So today we are delving right into chocolate!  Are you a "chocoholic"?  If so then you've picked the perfect day to stop by my little blog :)  I'm not a chocoholic, but if it's the right dessert I will be all over it.  This dessert is the quintessential chocolate craving quencher, if you really want chocolate and can't wait to get it, then this is the recipe for you.  Let's get to the good stuff, so I can get back to packing *yawn*

Gooey Chocolate Pudding Cake

Ingredients

(cake)

3/4C flour

1/2C sugar

1/2C unsweetened cocoa

1 1/2tsp baking powder

2/3C milk

1tsp vanilla

2Tbs vegetable oil

(topping)

2/3C packed brown sugar

1/4C mini semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4C cocoa

1 1/4C hot water

 

Directions:

1)  Preheat oven to 350F.  In a 2qt casserole dish, combine flour, sugar, cocoa powder, and baking powder.

 

2)  Add milk, oil, and vanilla.  Stir until well mixed.

 

3)  In a small bowl combine brown sugar, cocoa powder, and chocolate chips.

 

4)  Sprinkle over cake batter.  DO NOT STIR.

 

5)  Pour hot water over top.  Again, do not stir.

 

6)  Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until the top looks cooked.  Serve warm.

yummy!

chocolaty gooey goodness

  

This dessert is so hard to explain, as it's not quite pudding but it's not quite cake either.  What it is, is a warm, gooey, chocolaty plate of heaven.  I love chocolate lava cakes, but this will do in its place any day!  The fun part is when you serve a piece, because under the cake section is the gooey puddingness (totally just made up my own word lol).  This is something that will definitely be made again, as it was such a great hit.  Nathan sure did love it :)

Now it's time to get back to the fun stuff; packing lol.  Maybe beforehand I will bake up a treat, lol probably shouldn't, but I wanna lol.  Until next time....

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxo

Only Good Crumbs About

Hello Sweets,

So lately I have been having pretty "crumby" luck with my health, although I should never be surprised.  Which means my baking and cooking have been sporadic at least, but today is the first part of the very special dessert I made for Nathan for our jointly cooked dinner to celebrate our two year anniversary.  Normally if I asked Nathan what he'd prefer as our dessert he would request his favorite, coconut meringue pie.  However, for our anniversary he decided for something a little more unconventional........normally this is where I would tell you what it is, but I'm not lol.  That is for tomorrows post, until then we will lay the foundation for this tempting treat ;)

You know what some of my favorite commercials are focused on selling?  Oreo's, lol but seriously they're always cute little windows into the imagination of children.  The last one I saw was of two little boys, one of whom had just moved not only into the neighborhood but the country as well.  To the amazement of the other little boy, even though he was from half way around the globe he still knew how to eat Oreos the go to way for years (twist and dunk).  I personally am not a huge Oreo fan, that is until they brought out golden Oreo's with chocolate filling.  I have a serious addiction to those bad boys, to make matters worse I cannot for the life of me find them in Canadia, and this makes me very sad :(

Our anniversary dessert is chocolate based, no chocolate themed.  This was something new for me to make so  I had my challenges during construction, but now I know what to do differently next time.  For now we prepare the base and assembly will begin tomorrow :)

Oreo Cookie Crust

Ingredients

24 whole Oreo cookies, crushed into meal texture

1/4C butter, melted

 

Directions:
1)  In a medium sized bowl or food processor; add the Oreos and blend until it becomes the texture of coarse meal or crumbs.  I put them all in a freezer bag and smashed them to bits!  I guess you could say cheap therapy lol.

2)  Add the melted butter and blend until well combined.

 

 3)  Place the ground crumb mixture in to a 9" pie dish and press onto the bottom and sides evenly.  Try to make the crust about 1/8" thick evenly all the way around.  *If you find the mixture to be a little dry, just add a little bit more of butter*

 

4)  Refrigerate for at least one hour before continuing with your dessert, this will prevent cracking when you cut it :)

 

It was funny while we were walking through the grocery store Nathan said "you know they make pre made Oreo crusts right?".  That's when I turned around and said "yea, but they won't taste as good as a fresh one", not to mention I will be able to control the cracking easier.  Needless to say when the whole thing was put together he agreed that mine most likely did taste better, I already knew that but still love to hear it from him lol!

I wanted to share a sneak-peak photo from the date half of our anniversary celebration, Nathan took me on a sunrise flight over Texas.  Getting up at 6am is well worth it when you have the right company and a pretty view to look at ;)  Until next time.........................................................................

3

I Love You a Waffle Lot!

Hallo Snoep/Hallo Süßigkeiten/Bonbons Hello,

In other words, hello sweets!  Are you ready to take a trip across the pond (the North Atlantic Ocean that is)?  If you haven't already guessed, we're on our way to Belgium, courtesy of our imaginations :)  I did a little research on Belgium and discovered a few fun facts; 1) they have 3 official languages dutch, German, and french 2)  they're government is similar to the UK monarchy and 3) they're a very artistic culture.

Okay enough history :) I'm pretty sure y'all know what I made.  It's both good as breakfast or a dessert, with syrup or with whipped cream and strawberries.  If you guessed waffles you'd be correct and not just any old waffle, a buttermilk waffle.  Did you know they have five varying types of waffles in Belgium and Belgian waffles isn't one of them?  They can be soft or crispy, topped with confectioner's sugar or syrup, and some are even heart shaped with cherries on top (sounds like my kind of waffle).  So even though the recipe I'll be sharing today isn't from Belgium, that is where the idea was born and thus we give thanks.  Another fun fact about waffles, they've been around since medieval times (9th-10th century).  Although back then the waffle iron usually depicted Jesus and his crucifixion, that would make for an interesting breakfast.  I know I said no more history, but that was applicable to Belgium not waffles (sneaky sneaky) lol.  In the 14th-15th century waffles were made with wine (sign me up lol), from then on they continued to evolve and still do to this day.

About a year ago Nathans dad bought a waffle iron and we had waffles all the time, and then of course the fad died and it rarely was used.  Well Nathan and I had to be up early one morning, knowing Nathan is much less of a morning person than I am, I offered to make him waffles (that got a smile).  So I looked at different recipes, and then came across the cutest named blog, Smitten Kitten.  She creates comfort food that reminds you of home but with a dash of new and exciting, you should check it out there is lots to see and read (although probably best to look when you're not hungry).  Since I still had buttermilk leftover from Dave's Chocolate Cola Cake I decided that buttermilk will be the shining star.

Buttermilk Waffles (via Smitten Kitten)

Ingredients

2C all-purpose flour

1/2Tsp salt

2Tbs sugar

1 1/2Tsp baking soda

1 3/4C buttermilk

2 eggs, separated

4Tbs butter, melted and cooled

1/2Tsp vanilla

cooking spray for the waffle iron

 

Directions:

1)  Combine the dry ingredients.

  

2)  Mix together the buttermilk and egg yolks.  Stir in the butter and vanilla.

3)  Brush the waffle iron with your cooking spray and preheat it.  Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.

 

4)  Beat the egg whites with the whisk until they hold soft peaks.  Stir them gently into the batter.

 

5)  Spread a ladle full or so of the batter onto the waffle iron and bake for 3-5 minutes.

 

yum!

These waffles are light and fluffy, but super filling, I could only eat about 3/4 of it before I was way too full.  This is now my go to waffle recipe for Nathan, because as with everything else once I find a good recipe I no longer use boxed mixes.  Nathan really liked them, he managed to eat a whole one faster than I could eat half of mine lol he's too cute.

Well I am almost out of past recipes to post, which is pretty much divine timing because soon I'll be back in Texas *happy dance* !!  That means I can make all sorts of goodies and there are plenty of happy mouths down to help devour them :)  Until next time.......................................................

Stay sweet,

Jennifer xoxoxoxo

As Late As the White Rabbit from Alice in Wonderland

Hello Sweets,

So I know Easter was almost a month ago now :/ and I realized I never shared my dinner experience will all of y'all. It wasn't a big extravagant ordeal, it was actually just my grandparents and myself which is always a nice treat to have, some quality time together. Since there was only three of us we didn't have the typical big meal, but just a simple, small and delicious home cooked meal.
My grandmother has been making all the big family gathering dinners since I was small, and the years she didn't my mother did. But since she is getting older I decided it was high time I took over, and as I'm sure you can guess I was only happy to do so. However my grandmother had a little trouble with the fact she was given relaxation time lol, she must have come in the kitchen or asked to help thirty times! Our dinner consisted of baked chicken breasts, country mashed potatoes, and a yummy garden salad. I, of course brought a homemade dessert I had prepared the night before, and that is the recipe I will be sharing with you tonight along with how I made everything else :)

The salad is a simple green salad with ice burg lettuce , romaine lettuce, carrots, and some yummy cherry tomatoes cut in half and topped with a zesty Italian vinaigrette.  I seasoned the chicken with a tiny bit of olive oil (so they didn't stick to the baking dish), garlic, pinch of salt, pepper, red pepper flakes, and a bit of lemon juice.  The country mashed potatoes are made just like normal mashed but you leave the skin on, I then made and seasoned them with butter, milk, garlic, salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes.  Now I saved the best for last, dessert!!

Fresh Berry Crumbly

Ingredients

2C strawberries, quartered

1C blackberries

1C blueberries

1/4C honey

3/4C all-purpose flour

1/2C rolled oats

1/2C brown sugar

1/2C butter

1Tsp cinnamon

1/2Tsp nutmeg

 

isn't my tiny bottle of honey super cute :D

Directions:
1)  Preheat oven to 375F.  In a large bowl mix berries, then coat with the honey.

 

2)  Sprinkle with 4Tbs of flour and toss.  Transfer fruit into a 8"x8" baking dish, set aside.

 

not quite 8x8 but it worked :)

3)  In a large bowl mix together remaining flour, oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and butter with a pastry blender or your fingers until large crumbly pieces form.

4)  Sprinkle over berries and bake until golden brown, about 45-50 minutes.  Serve warm out of the oven with a side of vanilla ice cream.

 You, as always, can mix up the ingredients from the spices to the fruit. I'm an avid Gordon Ramsay fan, and one of the best pieces of advice he gives is to keep it simple, you don't need fifteen spices to create a delicious dish. As simple as this meal was, it was a huge success.  How do I know you ask? There wasn't a plate with food left on it :), and that is what any kitchen creator hopes to achieve.

I wanted to take a moment to do a disclaimer for the upcoming post over the next week or so, I'm calling it the cookie overload disclaimer. My sister is getting married in June and I am making personalized initial cookies for their reception. I will be making three different types of cookies and the fourth will be a combination cookie, the combination cookie will be a symbol of their life together (I know I'm a cheese ball lol). So I'll make a cookie that represents my sister, one for my brother-in-law (not use to that yet lol), and one for my nephew. Thankfully the flavors they like will marry (pun intended) together well for the fourth and final cookie. I'll give you all a teeny tiny little glimpse into the thoughts/flavors swirling around in my head. I'm thinking along the lines of something chocolate, something banana, and something peanut butter. Now the hard part will be finding the perfect recipes and then making the fourth cookie balanced with all the flavors :) I can't explain how excited and nervous I am at the same time.  I put a lot of pressure on myself in normal baking situations but these will be consumed by 50+ people. I guess this will be a great opportunity to see if I can hack it as an actual baker right? Until next time............


Stay sweet,



Jennifer xoxo