Sunday, January 31, 2010

Raspberry lemon cupcakes!

Som vanligt på min lediga dag blev det cupcakebakande, nämligen halloncupcakes med creamcheese och lemoncurdfrosting. Jag har sett många som har gjort "buketter" av cupcakes, alltså spritsat frostingen som en blomma och sedan satt ihop dem till en bukett. Jag var inte riktigt så avancerad, men kanske till nästa gång!



Klicka för större bild!



In English:
As usual I made cupcakes on my day off, this time raspberry cupcakes with a cream cheese and lemon curd frosting. I've seen a lot of people making "cupcake bouquets" by piping the frosting to make the cupcake look like a flower and putting them together to form a bouquet. I didn't make a bouquet this time though, but maybe next time!

Friday, January 29, 2010

Friday Love

We love red potatoes + olive oil + rosemary + s&p + 425° for 40 minutes.I love this guy. I love that he wore swimming goggles to cut our new bar (photos coming soon!) I love buying tulips for myself in the middle of winter. Just because.I love that Robby got me THIS new cookbook for my birthday. I cannot wait to dive into it!I love (obsess maybe?) over the photography of Gemma Booth.and it's

Cranberry Apple Bread

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The more I test new recipes, the more I rely on taking the ones I have and tweaking them.  When I made this apple bread a couple of months ago, I thought it would be great with some cranberries and maybe even some walnuts.  Well, I took a leap of faith and made this Apple Cranberry & Walnut Torta for my Thanksgiving dinner and I was very disappointed.  I know I shouldn't have tried it out for company, but it was from Giada and had hundreds of good reviews.  I found it to be not sweet enough at all for a dessert and there sure were a lot... including soaking the cranberries in Gran Marnier, which is not a cheap ingredient.  I will go to quite a bit of trouble for something amazing, but for extra steps like this to get sub par results just was not working for me.  I decided to take my tried and true apple bread recipe and simply add cranberries.  It turned out great.  Next on the list is to add some walnuts, but all that to say, you should add some of your favorite ingredients in here to spice it up.

Cranberry Apple Bread
Recipe Notes
We were joined with a new coworker in our office last week so I made this for everyone.  Because the cranberries were an experiment, I only made one loaf with cranberries.  I simply added them in after I had split the batter.  
Recipe
Apple Bread recipe here
1 cup of dried cranberries (if adding to the whole recipe)
1/2 cup of dried cranberries (if adding to only half of the recipe)

Make the regular apple bread according to instructions.  Add cranberries at the end of the recipe and stir just to combine.
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Thursday, January 28, 2010

Friday Feet

Erin: On a walk to the ocean during this blustery rainy weekSheena: 27 year old feet (and friends)

"hotstotch"

note: the sun came out todaynote: we loved itnote: we played "hotstotch", rode bikes, and chased our shadowsnote: it started to get chilly, (which I suppose is acceptable since it IS January after all)note: we went inside and had hot cocoanote: it was a good day.

Wednesday, January 27, 2010

two obsessions, and one confession

Obsession 1: breadObsession 2: taking pictures of it (and any other food)Confession: I want to make a cook book. No, really.It would be so fun.Honey Whole Wheat Bread1 1/2 c warm water1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast1/3 c honey2 1/2 c all purpose flour2 TBS butter, melted1/2 TBS salt1 3/4 c whole wheat flour1/4c ground flax seedMix water, yeast, and honey. Let sit for 20 minutes. Add to

Lime macarons!

Jag hann med ännu ett macaronbak i helgen! Denna gången provade jag lime. Dessa blev fästmannens favorit, men jag föredrog helt klart de med kaffe och nutella! Receptet är det jag använt mig av förut fast jag har tillsatt rivet skal från två limefrukter i smeten. Jag dekorerade några med kokosflingor och några med rivet limeskal. Tänk på att "dekorera" dem strax efter att de är spritsade på bakplåtspappret, eftersom de bildar ett "skinn" efter en liten stund!





In English:
I had time for baking even more macarons this weekend! This time I tried lime macarons. These were my fiancés favourite, but I definitely preferred the ones with coffee and nutella. I used the same recipe again, and added the zest from two limes. I sprinkled coconut flakes on some and lime zest on some. Remember to "decorate" the macarons before they start forming a skin on the surface.

Nutella Swirl Cupcakes

nutella cupcake

If you would like to experience a party in your mouth, drop everything you are doing and make these cupcakes.  You have no idea... I had to give them away at a rapid rate before I ate the whole batch (and with 20 cupcakes in a batch, I wouldn't have fit through my "hallway" kitchen after that).
Well, let me start at the beginning.  It was my friend Kate's birthday last week and since we have shared a common obsession with Nutella, I wanted to incorporate (what I call) the most delicious spread on earth, into a yummy treat.  I did some googling of desserts with Nutella and found a version of these cupcakes.  They had gotten rave reviews so I took my chances and made them right before we were going to meet the birthday girl.  I have to admit I was very sad with the outcome.  While the Nutella was delicious, the cupcake was really, really dry.  And who knows, maybe I messed up the recipe, but I was bound and determined to come up with a better cupcake batter for the delicious Nutella swirl.
And now, I have to pat myself on the back for doing something I never do, especially in the baking world.  I decided to tweak a recipe that I have for a very moist and delicious chocolate chip pound cake in order to make these work.  I'm just always too chicken to change anything up when it comes to baking because it is such a science.  Miraculously, the results were absolutely delicious and I am very excited to share them with you.
nutella cupcake batter copy Now I know what you are saying, this is not a cupcake... there is no icing on top.  No need for icing on top because of the delicious swirl of Nutella.  Because of the no icing top, these aren't the prettiest cupcakes you will make, but probably the most delicious.
nutella collage copy
From my little kitchen to yours... Enjoy.
Nutella Swirl Cupcakes
Recipe Notes
Nutella is a delicious chocolate- hazelnut spread that can be found in most grocery stores, and usually with the peanut butter.  When you swirl in the Nutella, you can either keep it central for a little pocket of Nutella in the middle, or you can swirl it in more evenly throughout the cupcake... either way, scrumptious.  Another thing about Nutella... I had an older jar of it and tried to use the last bit of that before opening my fresh jar.  It did not spread nearly as well, so make sure your Nutella is fresh.
Ingredients
1 yellow cake mix
2 small boxes of instant vanilla pudding mixes
4 eggs
1 1/2 cups water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
30 teaspoons of Nutella
20 muffin tin liners
Step by Step
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Mix yellow cake mix with boxes of pudding mix.  Add eggs, water, and oil.  Beat well.  Line a  muffin pan with liners.  Using a spoon or ice cream scoop, fill each muffin tin 2/3 full.  Do not overfill.  
Place a 1 1/2 teaspoon dollop of Nutella on each cupcake.  Using a toothpick, swirl Nutella into the cupcake batter, making sure to fold a bit of batter over the Nutella.
Bake cupcakes for 18 to 22 minutes, until centers are firm and tops are golden brown.  Allow to cool completely in cupcake pans. 
Cupcakes are best served completely cooled and can be stored in an airtight container.  

Makes 20 cupcakes. 

winter wednesday

I love naps. L.O.V.E. And they love me. And what better time to take a cozy nap then on a cold winter's day?? What do you love about winter?

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

things I know now that I'm 27

I have the best friends. Really. Love these girls. I'm so thankful for all my blog and facebook friends.....you guys made my day!I am the worlds worst bowler. period. (and apparently I am too weak to even hold up my ball, as seen above) (we had to resort to plan B (is for bowling)). Plan A was roller skating, which wouldn't you know it, the rink was closed for a private event. I promise that you

Monday, January 25, 2010

Coffee and nutella macarons!

Jag har blivit lite smått besatt av macarons och tycker att de är riktigt roliga att baka. De blir som någon slags utmaning, man vet aldrig hur det kommer gå! Dessutom är möjligheterna många vad gäller smaker, och man vill ju testa många på så kort tid som möjligt.

Jag fick lust att prova något med kaffe, och tänkte att nutella och choklad kunde passa som fyllning. Jag använde mig av samma
recept som förut och tillsatte en tesked espressopulver i smeten. Eftersom min mixer har gått sönder har jag använt en mandelkvarn för att mala mandeln. Jag tycker dock inte att den maler mandeln tillräckligt fint, så det blir väl till att inhandla en ny mixer. Riktigt goda var de iallafall!



Klicka för större bild!


In English:

I've become quite obsessed with macarons and I enjoy making them so much! It's kind of like a challenge every time, you never know how they will turn out! There are also so many flavours to choose from, and I want to try as many as possible in as little time as possible.

I felt like making something with coffee flavour, and I thought that a filling with nutella and chocolate would be the perfect match. I used the same
recipe as last time and added 1 teaspoon espresso powder to the meringue. Since my mixer is broken I had to use an almond grinder which I think didn't grind the almonds fine enough. I guess I have to buy a new mixer. At least these macarons were very tasty!

Half Marathon Cookies + I Did It!

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If you caught my post about marathon cookies, you will recognize the half marathon cookies except there is one addition. The actual guarantee that they are a great source of energy for running a half marathon! I did it, I did it, I did it! I know this is quite the common thing to do these days, but less than 3 months ago, I would have told you that this bod would never be running more than a casual 3 mile run, with some walking involved.  However, my friend Lindsey convinced me this was totally doable and I started training 3 months ago.   There were a few reasons I chose to do this that relate to food:
1.  I learned about a little term called "carb loading" and realized I had been doing this most of my life... time to put all those carbs to work.
2.  As you can see, I'm quite the eater and with the extremely skinny kitchen we have, it would be a shame if I couldn't fit in it anymore.
3.  I had promoted these cookies and while I will probably never be able to guarantee they would work for marathons, I can tell you they were a great source of energy for a halfie.

My friend Jennifer was doing her first halfie as well and we drove up to Austin and joined a group of 6 other girls doing the race.  The group spanned from several of us doing our first half marathon to those way more experienced, but I decided to make half marathon cookies for everyone in the group.  I would like to tell little kitchen reader Abby, who I met through this race, hello!  And hello to you to SEM! Too bad I did not get a pic with all of the purple sock crew.

And why are they heart shape you ask? Well, I just felt like biting into a heart shape cookie right before I ran farther than I ever had before could do nothing but cheer me up!
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Get the recipe here.

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Lindsey, who somehow talked me into doing this.
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Jennifer, my fellow half marathon virgin... no more.
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Supportive Mr. Hungry...
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Allison, who was kind enough to join me for mile 8-13.
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dear mom,

Thank you for popping me out into this world......27 years ago today! Can I please borrow some wrinkle cream?love, me.

Sunday, January 24, 2010

How to clean, green, easy and effectively!

On Tuesday, Jan. 26th, I will be talking about how to clean green and easy on my radio show on BTO.
This post is to put in writing what I'll be talking about, if you need names of products, or details etc.

Some of this information comes from my own knowledge, some of it comes from my friend Cindy Perloff who I interviewed for this article. Cindy has done cleaning professionally and is extremely good at it, I have seen her work!

How To Clean Green and Easy

Bathroom

To clean bathroom floors, first vacuum, then use warm water to clean the floor either by hand using a rag, or with a mop, or Swiffer type device using a rag in it. Or you can use a mixture of equal parts white vinegar and water to use if you feel water only won't do the job. If your floor is made of pergo, or wood, a general rule is to not let a lot of water sit on it for a long time. Just clean and wipe dry as you go.

mirrors- to clean the mirror in the bathroom use half vinegar and half water like you would Windex. Don't use paper towels, paper towels leave lint. When I worked as a nanny, the maids in the home I worked in used crumpled up newspaper for this job. If you don't have a newspaper, use an old rag that doesn't produce lint, or a microfiber rag, or a shammy type cloth.

bathtub or shower- the trick here is to clean it and maintain it. If it's quite dirty, use a mild cleanser or baking soda which is a natural cleanser and not very abrasive, or mix baking soda with a mild dish soap. A good cleanser is barkeepers friend or Bon Ami. Another cleaner that works well on tubs is Washing Soda.I mentioned in my post about how to make laundry detergent. The nearest place to buy this locally, is Fred Meyer in Lacey. It is quite useful in many areas of cleaning and natural.

A great tip Cindy gave me is after she takes a bath she uses the nylon mitts used for exfoliating or scrubbing your body, to lather up with soap (just whatever soap you've used to wash yourself) and clean the walls and tub with them. If you were to do that every time you took a bath, or even every other time, it wouldn't be much work to up keep. In the shower, Cindy uses a squeegee on the shower walls every time after showering to keep it clean, buildup and spot free. When you shower the steam helps loosen buildup, so why not clean while you're in there?

If you have a plastic shower curtain even the cheap ones can go in the washing machine. Wash it as needed. I use my nose to determine when it's time, when it smells of mildew. Don't put it in the dryer, just hang it to dry.

Toilet- to clean the toilet use the cleanser Barkeepers Friend, or another cleanser you may have, or even baking soda and vinegar. If you clean it regularly and keep the water in the toilet moving, (meaning if it's not used every day. just swish the water around every other day or so) it will prevent stains from building up. Once you have stains, it becomes a little more difficult. The two types of rings a toilet may have are either 1. stains, or 2. mineral buildup. Stains are a little easier to deal with, but the method for removing both are the same. If you have tried using cleaners and they haven't worked, use a pumice stone, (the kind to remove callouses from feet) or otherwise called a pool stone. Make sure the toilet and the stone are wet, and rub the ring. You can only use this method if you have a white porcelain toilet. Don't use this method if you have a colored toilet or a fiberglass or plastic kind of toilet.

A great tip comes from Shirley Jones (who is a friend of Cindy's) she owns a cleaning business called T and S cleaning, Shirley advises using something called an "Emery Cloth." Edited to add
my husband does not recognize this as Emery cloth, he says this is more of a drywall sanding screen. The guy at the hardware store told me it was called Emery cloth, so if it's a metal screen and flexible, and used to sand drywall, that's what you want.
This is a mesh looking weaved piece of metal material used by contractors for drywall. I purchased one a the local hardware store for a few bucks. The benefit of this over a pumice stone is that it is flexible, so you can get it in the grooves of a toilet bowl. The piece I bought was the size of a standard piece of paper. I cut off a small square to use to clean my toilet. Just make sure that it and the surface of the toilet is wet when using. Just rub it on the ring, and it will come off. I used mine on my toilet with excellent results. It didn't take much rubbing to remove a mineral ring, I am very pleased with it! With this method also, only use it if you have a porcelain toilet.

A very good discussion I found on the Internet about removing toilet rings is here at Thrifty Fun, if you are interested.

Showerhead-Unclog showerheads by filling a plastic baggie with vinegar, place the baggie over the showerhead and secure with rubber bands, leave overnight. In the morning use an old toothbrush to scrub it if needed.

Kitchen

Kitchen floors-know what your floors are made of. If they are Pergo, make sure you don't keep water on them, water gets in the seams and makes them buckle. Just wash and dry as you go. This is a good method for wood floors also which are usually laminated. Use plain water, or vinegar and water. Using a shammy or rag to dry. If you have greasy floors use anything that has a degreaser, such as dish soap along with the water.

Sink- Use a cleanser, whatever you have. Bon Ami, or Barkeepers Friend. Barkeepers Friend is good on Stainless Steel sinks.

Windows- a solution of equal parts vinegar and water, to dry use newspaper or a rag, or a shammy that doesn't leave lint.

Dishwasher- if you use a dishwasher here are some tips I have learned that I feel are useful.

-Only use the "normal" cycle. This is the cycle that has been tested the most by the manufacturer, and is the cycle that probably works the best.

-Don't use as much soap as recommended. Usually you can use about half that much with equally as good results. This will depend on what type of water you have. We have a water softener so we can use much less detergent. Too much detergent can also cause etching in glasses.

Don't put silver and stainless flatware in the dishwasher at the same time. You can however clean them separately in the dishwasher, just not together. The 2 metals react with each other and cause irreparable damage.

-Use a detergent that is labeled as "green". Or better for the environment. I buy the Trader Joe's brand I get from there. But I may start making my own, using Borax and baking soda, more on that here, at the Green Phone Booth. Traditional dish washing detergents contain phosphates which are hard on the environment.

Pots and pans- if you have a pan with caked on food, use baking soda mixed with a little water to make a paste and scrub. Use a little more water and boil it if needed and let sit for an hour. This method can also be used with salt, which is another natural abrasive as well as an antidote to grease.

Kitchen Sponges-If you use a sponge to clean dishes you probably already know how germy they can get. To keep the bacteria at bay you can microwave the sponge for 2 minutes (make sure the sponge is wet, because essentially you are boiling the sponge) or if you don't use a microwave you can throw it in the dishwasher when you do dishes, or you can simply boil the sponge in water.

Cutting Boards-My plastic cutting boards I throw in the dishwasher, however you cannot place wood cutting boards in the dishwasher because they may split. So for my wooden boards I use baking soda on them to rid them of smells from cutting garlic and other smelly things. Just make a paste with a little water and rub it on. Works almost immediately.

Misc. Tips

Cindy told me one of the smartest cleaning tips she knew had to do with mold. She said bleach does get rid of mold, but there is an essential oil based cleaner made by Young Living called Thieves that if you use it on mold the mold will NEVER come back.

Friday, January 22, 2010

Friday Love

As it may have been mentioned before.....we love cookies. Now I am a chocolate lover....and usually don't waste my time on making non-chocolate involved cookies....but these are very very worth it. Crispy on the outside, soft in the middle......cinnamony goodness.Snickerdoodles (from Martha Stewart's Cookie Book)2 3/4 c flour2 t baking powder1/2 t salt1 cup butter (martha calls for unsalted.....

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Friday Feet

erin: a rainy day in laie....sheena: a sunny walk to church

"Kitchen Closed"


Through My Kitchen Window is going to be closed for a while. To the handful of wonderful cyberspace friends that I have made I thank you for your support and nothing has given me as much pleasure as receiving a nice comment from you. They have propelled me to continue posting stories and foods from my life.

I am not physically ill so please do not worry. Somewhere down the track I shall be back and I will let you all know. In the meantime I will continue to visit and comment on your blogs whenever I can manage to get my hands on a computer.

Thanks for being my friend.

Love from Mariana.

butternut...

butternut squash + olive oil+ a sprinkling of sage + a dash of coarse salt and cracked pepper + 425° + 40ish minutes = yum.

Orange and chocolate!

Efter ett litet bak- och blogguppehåll tyckte jag det var på tiden att göra cupcakes igen. Det fick bli chokladcupcakes med apelsinchokladfrosting. alltså en av mina favoritkombinationer. Jag känner dock att jag behöver lite inspiration vad gäller nya smaker, det känns som att jag alltid gör samma.
Vilka är dina favoritsmaker?




Cupcakes före dekoration. Klicka för större bild!




In English:
After a break from both baking and blogging, I thought it was about time I made some cupcakes. I made some chocolate cupcakes with orange chocolate frosting, a combination which i love! I do feel like I need some inspiration on new flavours though. Do you have any favourite flavour combinations?

Rockin Guitar Cake


My sister-in-law turned the big 3-0 recently, and I thought she needed a big cake to celebrate a big birthday.  I knew I wanted to do something out of the ordinary so I asked my brother if he had any suggestions.  He said she loves Gibson Flying V guitars and I said perfect! (secretly, I had absolutely no idea what that meant... again, I thank my lucky stars for the invention of google).  Once I figured out what I was dealing with, I decided to attempt this to the best of my ability, considering it was my first non-rectangular cake.  I did a lot of research on icing cakes and found out about a few great tricks to use when trying to ice any kind of cake.  Like I said, this was my first attempt and I am no expert, but I thought I would share what I learned and maybe I can improve in the future.  Try to keep your audible gasps to a minimum, but I will admit... I used a boxed cake mix.  I know, I know... the horror, but I had enough to worry about as I tried to piece together a vintage guitar out of crumbs so I thought I would give myself a break and use a funfetti cake mix and canned icing (oopsie, another tragedy).  But seriously, who doesn't love funfetti cakes.





Evening Out 
I knew I wanted even surfaces to my cakes so I used a long bread knife to get nice even surfaces to all of my pieces... which also allows for nice little sheets of fluffy cake to snack on.

Making it Firm
I put each piece of the guitar in the refrigerator after I had all of my even surfaces.  I had picked up a tip that this would help the crumbs set a bit before icing and it seemed to help quite a bit.

Crumb Coat
I will never ice another cake without a crumb coat! I think this is the deep dark secret of bakers everywhere of how they get that amazingly sleek and smooth icing.  I first read about the idea of a crumb coat here and thought I should give it a try.  It worked wonders.

Never heard of this?  Basically, you just  spread a thin layer of icing over the cake to seal in the crumbs before your final coat of icing.  I had chosen a robin's egg blue guitar and brown icing for the other parts and I used regular white icing for the crumb coat.  Both the blue icing and chocolate icing glided perfectly over the white icing and you never saw any of it.

The key is to put the cake in the freezer after you apply the crumb coat for at least 15 minutes to let it harden.  Then, your icing will spread over the crumb coat perfectly with no crumbs.  Genious.

I made robin's egg blue icing with 2 drops of green food coloring  to every 1 drop of blue.


Finally, I assembled the cake on a large piece of foam board.  I had everybody at her birthday party sign the board and took a picture so I could frame it.


I piped the strings on with a piping bag and while the final product came out a little disproportional, I was pretty proud of my first attempt at a "fun" cake.  (And, it was dark at the party so I was hoping a few of the imperfections would get lost in the night).

the thing they didn't tell you when you signed up to have a baby

the cuteness.the crying. the pooing.the feeding.the sleeping.and not sleeping.the giggles. the tantrums.the messes.the messes on top of messes.You knew about these things. You learned them from others. You read about them in books. Your motherly instincts kicked in and you knew what to do. But what about this whole "growing up" thing?Why does no one tell you about that?How does he come out a

Wednesday, January 20, 2010

winter wednesday

I love winter nights. (here's the cheesy photo to prove it) It's dark, it's cold, and there is nothing to do but cuddle up and watch tv. Just the two of us, a warm fire, and some Food Network. Or Thursday night Community/Parks and Rec/The Office/30 Rock. And I'm pretty sure I'll get sucked into American Idol again somehow....even though every year I swear I won't. But it's winter, what else is

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

progress....

The couch and chair are GONE! I now have money to play with. $800 (and considering we bought them for $1200 5 long years ago.....not too shabby)Moving on with our plan.My taste in tables was much too expensive for our budget....so that's when we improvise. So we headed out to look at wood (I love the smell of wood)I braved death by riding in the back, holding on to our precious sweet smelling

I like bread and butter, I like toast and jam.

jars + blackberries + sugar + box of pectin + super easy instructions inside pectin box = mmm...the end.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Corn Chowder


I have abandoned some of my main criteria to share this recipe with you.  It is not quick or healthy... but most definitely worth the time and calories.  The tale of this corn chowder started last summer.  I was out of town and Mr. Hungry and one of his friends from school decided to treat themselves to a meal at Mark's in Houston.  If you live in the area, you might be familiar with the fact that this is one of the nicest restaurants in Houston.  It is located in an old church and the food is known for being fabulous.  Ever since that summer night, I have heard about this corn chowder that is just inconceivably amazing.  I of course had to research further and read reviews of the restaurant where most critics and patrons say they have a hard time not ordering this chowder for all four courses.  I just keep thinking...this is corn chowder... not osso bucco or foie gras... I can do this.  
So I started my search to find a way to make this at home (even though I have never had it).  Well, my research did not take long before I figured out that Mark himself has posted the corn chowder recipe on his restaurant's website... or so he says.  I was immediately thrilled and thought there would be nothing to this... that is, until I read the recipe.  I quickly found that there were ingredients listed in the ingredient list that were not mentioned again in the recipe.  I won't even go into the fact that the soup is called roasted corn chowder yet there was no mention of roasting anything OR ever even cooking the corn.  I was not defeated by this though, because I at least had a list of ingredients to start with and tweak as necessary. 
 So I will give credit to Mark's for this recipe, but I stand by the fact that this is very loosely adapted and I give myself a huge pat on the back for coming up with the way to roast the corn which really developed the flavor.
p.s. In case you were wondering... Mr. Hungry and his friend Daniel who had dined with him at Mark's both agree that this soup is pretty darn close to what they had at the restaurant.

Corn Chowder
Recipe Notes
If you do not have a hand blender, a blender will work.  Wait until soup is completely cooled and
Ingredients
1 cup (4 oz) maple or apple smoked bacon, chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, finely chopped
1 cup yellow onion, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup baby red potatoes, skin on, chopped
3 to 4 ears of corn (enough for 2 cups of kernels)
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 cups chicken stock
2 cups heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon fresh thyme
2 tablespoons thinly sliced chives
Step by Step
Remove all husks and strings from the ears of corn.  Lightly coat each ear of corn in olive oil and lightly salt.  Wrap each ear of corn in foil.  Heat a large heavy skillet over medium high heat.  Place ears of corn wrapped in foil in dry skillet.  Turn each ear a quarter turn after about 5 minutes of cooking and repeat until all four sides have been exposed to heat.  Peel back foil and remove from heat when corn is lightly blackened on each side.  Set aside to cool.  After corn is cooled, break ears in half in order to make removing corn easier.  Stand each piece of corn up and remove corn kernels with a sharp knife.

Boil 2 cups of water in a sauce pan over high heat.  Add potatoes and cover.  Reduce heat a little and allow to boil for 15 to 20 minutes.  Pierce potatoes with a fork, and when they are tender remove from heat, drain water, and set aside.

In a heavy sauce pot, over medium heat, saute the diced bacon until crispy and golden brown.  Remove bacon from pan and reserve.  To the bacon drippings, add garlic, yellow onions and celery.  Add potatoes and chicken stock.  Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes.  Add the processed corn to the potato onion mixture.  Simmer for an additional 5 minutes.

Add heavy cream and bring to a boil for 7 minutes.  Remove from heat and add thyme, lime juice and bacon.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Using a hand blender, lightly blend soup mixture until a thick soup forms, slightly chunky, but remove any big bites of potato.  Garnish with bacon and green onions and serve.














a challenge...

there are pretty things all around us.....sometimes you just have to look a little bit harder. (even when you are washing the dishes!) Can you find something pretty today?we'll be enjoying our monday off together.....see you soon!

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Too much cooking?

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I can't believe I'm sharing this, I can't believe I'm sharing this, I can't believe I'm sharing this.

The beauty of sharing my kitchen adventures this way is that I get to pick exactly what you see.  I don't take a picture of my cabinets if they get too cluttered nor do I share my complete disasters in the kitchen (however, I'm planning on sharing quite a few flops soon).  But I just feel like I have to be honest because a.) maybe you have no idea what's under your burners either or b.) you don't know how easy it is to fix.  I am fully aware that I am running a huge risk here.  Not only am I "airing my dirty laundry", you could also be fully aware of how easy this is to fix and think I am a lunatic.  Well, anyway I got over it and I am sharing this anyway because I am also in shock that this could even happen.

So apparently the metal plates under my burners have literally disintegrated!   Who knew!  I mean I could definitely tell they were dirty and I have had intentions for way too long of taking care of this mess, but I wanted to totally replace these rather than just cover them with foil.  Like most things, I was procrastinating because I thought this was a big hassle.  I was imagining I would have to track down the company who made this oven (probably some time in the 60's) and order replacements.  Well, I was very very wrong.  We have a great little hardware store in our neighborhood and I happened to be perusing one day and saw that they carried a whole wall-full of replacement plates.  It seems that they are almost all universal and really easy to use.  So I went ahead and brought my decrepit plates so I would get the right sizes.  The best part is all sizes were under $5.00.  A cheap, much needed renovation.  Oh, and as I was checking out, I got quite the shocked response for the store clerks and they were looking at me with a mix of ewww... how ignorant are you  and cool I didn't even think that was possible.


So this is just a friendly reminder that if you haven't peaked under your burners in a while, it might be time.


the burner... looks somewhat innocent right? right?
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A side burner, which was at least not disintegrating, but in desperate need of a change.
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Ahhhhhh, so much better.
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Also, I am very aware that some people cover these plates in foil so that is a great option if you want to extend the plates even longer.  However, for a couple of bucks, I might just treat this little kitchen to a fresh pair every year.

Friday, January 15, 2010

Friday Love

We LOVE soup. And we eat gallons of it in the winter.Chicken and Wild Rice SoupSaute' in a bit of olive oil:1 small onion, diced2 garlic cloves, minced2 celery stalks, diced3 carrotsadd S&P to tasteAdd 4 cups chicken broth2-4 cups water, depending on how "soupy" you like it.2 chicken breasts ( I even add mine frozen sometimes--the chicken will fall apart after it cooks:)1 cup wild rice1t basil1t

Pasta with Brie, Mushrooms & Arugula


Sure, it's the new year and everyone is still holding on to those resolutions of eating ridiculously healthy.  But at the same time, it's still very cold outside (or at least to me) and everyone needs a good stick to your ribs meal every once in a while.   The brie melts into the pasta and makes a delicious creamy sauce. The onions give just enough of a crunch and the savory mushrooms pair perfectly with the peppery arugula.  I think it might just be the perfect, hearty winter pasta.

From my little kitchen to yours... Enjoy.









Pasta with Brie, Mushrooms & Arugula
Adapted from Real Simple November 2009
Recipe Notes
I recommend slicing the onions as thin as you can.  If they are too thick, it can be a little overwhelming, but if they are thin, they blend with the pasta perfectly.
Ingredients
6 oz of farfalle pasta (or penne)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 pound button mushrooms, quartered
1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced
1/2 cup dry white wine
Kosher salt and pepper
4 oz of brie, cut into one inch pieces (you can leave the white rind on the cheese)
2 cups baby arugula
Step by Step
1.  Cook the pasta according to the directions on the package.  Reserve 1/2 cup of the pasta water, drain the pasta, and return pasta to the pot.
2.  While pasta is cooking, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add mushrooms and onions and allow to cook until mushrooms begin to release their juices, tossing occasionally.
3.  Add the wine, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook until mushrooms begin to brown, 5 to 6 minutes.
4.  Toss the pasta with the Brie and reserved pasta water until the pasta is coated evenly.  Stir in the mushroom mixture and arugula.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Introducing......Friday Feet

*note* if you have a "foot complex".....uhh......sorry....If you've been following one of my dozen blogs over the past little while, something you probably know about me is that I love, I repeat LOVE, to take pictures of my feet. It is the strangest obsession, that started as me just trying to document that I was indeed on that trip....because I am always the one with the camera. But then I

today.

the sun came through my window, and I liked it.

Chicken Parmesan Lightened Up

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I have a love/ hate relationship with Italian food.  If carbs had no effect on your thighs, it would be a complete love relationship, but we all know that is a harsh reality.  I love nothing more than going to Carraba's and having half of a bread basket dipped in olive oil followed by a large portion of chicken parmesan and pasta.  Oh, and then maybe a piece of tiramisu.

Well, I probably wouldn't be able fit through my kitchen if I ate like this every day so I am all about finding recipes that are just as delicious without all of the calories.  If you agree with anything that I just said, you are going to want to make this recipe as soon as possible.  It has all of the great flavors of a true chicken parmesan without the crispy, breaded coating.

 Now I still think this is paired well with angel hair pasta with olive oil and garlic, but at least you are not overdoing it with the chicken.  I discovered this recipe last week and have made it twice for dinner and served it for a dinner party I catered.  It is easy enough for a weeknight, but special enough for a dinner party.

Warning: If you are preparing to make this, be sure to read the recipe note below.

From my little kitchen to yours... Enjoy.
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Chicken Parmesan Lightened Up
Recipe Notes
Warning! The sauce for this recipe needs to simmer for an hour! Just wanted to put that out there so you weren't trying to throw together a quick dinner and not have realized this (like I did the first time).  However, I still consider this a great and quick recipe because you can do quite a few things with the sauce.  You could make it a couple of days before so you can throw it together quickly, you could make a big batch and freeze it, and you can also use it on pastas or pizzas. With this said, you could always use a jarred sauce, but I think the homemade sauce is the key to making this dish so great.  So make it on a Sunday, use some for a dinner during the week and freeze the rest for the next batch. This recipe makes enough sauce for 6 pieces of chicken.  Even if you are making just two, make the whole batch of sauce and freeze the rest! (okay, now I sound like a broken record about the whole freezing thing but it really saves so much time in the end).
Next, this recipe calls for chicken cutlets, which is a really thin piece of boneless skinless chicken breast. Most grocery stores will do this for you if you ask, but if yours doesn't, here is a how-to on doing it yourself.
Last thing, if you have a great french skillet and are making 4 or less chicken breasts, follow the instructions about putting the pan in the oven.  If you don't have a great pan or you have more than 4 portions, cook all of the chicken as directed and then cook in a glass casserole dish.
Ingredients
For the chicken
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon fresh rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon fresh Italian parsley leaves
Salt & freshly ground black pepper
4 chicken cutlets (or if they are really thin and small, use 8)
1 1/2 cups homemade tomato sauce (recipe below) or store bought
Thin slices of fresh mozzarella (1 or 2 per piece of chicken) OR 1/2 shredded mozzarella
8 teaspoons grated parmesan
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
For the tomato sauce
1/2 cup virgin extra olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 carrot, chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
2 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
4 to 6 basil leaves
2 dried bay leaves
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, optional
Step by Step
For the sauce
In a large casserole pot, heat oil over medium high heat.  Add onion and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 2 minutes.  Add celery and carrots and season with salt and pepper.  Saute until all the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes.
Add tomatoes, basil, bay leaves and simmer covered on low heat for 1 hour or until thick.  Remove bay leaves and check the taste.  If sauce tastes slightly acidic, add unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon at a time to round out the flavors.

Process sauce until smooth.  If you have a hand blender, stick it in the pot and blend until smooth.  If you  have a mini food processor, add half of the sauce and blend until smooth.  Add the other half and do the same.  You could also use a blender for this as well.  Make sure to cool sauce before using a food processor or blender.

If not using all of the sauce, allow to cool completely.  Pour 1 to 2 cup portions into plastic freezer bags and freeze up to 6 months.  To thaw, put in the refrigerator overnight.  Reheat on the stove.
For the chicken
Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.

Stir the oil and herbs in a small bowl to blend.  Season with salt and pepper.  Dip each chicken cutlet in the olive oil herb mixture until well coated.  Heat a large oven-proof skillet over high heat.  Add the cutlets and cook just until brown, about 2 minutes per side.  Remove the skillet from heat.

Spoon the marinara sauce over and around the chicken.  Lay a slice of mozzarella on each piece of chicken or place a small amount of shredded mozzarella on each.  Top with a tablespoon of parmesan on each piece and sprinkle with pieces of butter.

Bake until the cheese melts and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes.






These pics are from when I made this for a dinner party for 8.  Because I had more chicken than would fit in the pan, I cooked it in two batches and then placed all of the chicken in a lightly greased casserole dish.  I then topped with sauce and cheese and cooked according to the original directions.
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