Magnolia75: The Baking Lounge

Baked Peanut Butter Chicken

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 06:15:42 PDT

Who says you can't make your own peanut butter chicken like the one you had at that Chinese restaurant? No one y'all. You can make it yourself AND you can have it healthy style too. But before chowing down...or up? I gotta say these past couple of days I have been uncovering some pretty awesome blogs and recipes! It's amazing how large the blogsphere is.

Speaking of blogs, so I am accommodating some new features for the site so stay tuned. I also have a ton of insight on topics you will like for me to explore for my Living Green Series, yay =)

I recently (almost a month ago) started my first REAL job so it's been a little craycray getting used to the routine 8-5 y'all. I mean the first 2 weeks were pretty rushrushrush but it's better now.
Did you know that typically it takes a person 66 days to get used to change in routine or habit? Go figure.

I think I've mentioned this before but Brian and I have been in a major cooking mood/mode. I think it's rubbed off on him...but it was his idea to make this delicious chicken, after we'd tried it at a restaurant one day. Surprisingly the chicken kept it's moisture and tenderness, so no worries about the peanut butter drying out the chicken. Panko bread crumbs and the sriracha sauce are great additions to any recipe. I sure can add sriracha sauce to anything....seriously.

Baked Peanut Butter Chicken

Ingredients

1 tray of fresh chicken breasts
1 jar of creamy peanut butter
panko bread crumbs
Vermeccelli noodles
Salad
Sriracha sauce

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375F for 15 minutes.Wash the chicken breasts after taking them out of the tray, and pat them dry with a paper towel completely. In a large plate or bowl, whichever you prefer, place 4-5 tablespoons of peanut butter. You will probably need more, it really depends on the size of the chicken breasts and how peanut buttery you want them. Then once the chicken has been dried, just dip them into the peanut butter, make sure the entire chicken piece is covered. Once they are covered in peanut butter grab some panko bread crumbs and cover both sides of the chicken. Set peanut buttery chicken aside, and prepare the baking pan with parchment paper, cooking spray or cooking oil, the chicken may release some juices so I recommend not using a flat baking sheet. Place chicken into the oven and bake for a total of 30 minutes (15 minutes on each side).

Take chicken out of oven and cut a little into each piece to make sure it's fully cooked.

If it's not leave in oven for 5 more minutes.

Vermiccelli noodles

Use a large pan to make the vermiccelli noodles, boil about 5 cups of water, place noodles and drain water after 7-8 minutes.

Bake and cook w/love

Living Green Series: Getting Started

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 04:30:03 PDT

So I thought I could start a new thing on the blog as part of a healthy, and empowering movement that can not only make us feel good but can actually make a difference in the way we live our lifestyle and approach certain issues.

It's been awhile since the whole 'green revolution' began, to be honest I can't even remember when I first heard about. The whole 'living green' became a lifestyle, a way of living, it even opened the doors to other new and inventive changes and approaches to living a healthier lifestyle that at first became 'cool' and now are just a way of life for many.

This 'Living Green' series will approach a lot of the aspects of healthy living/living 'green'/being eco-friendly/...all aspects of it not just food, so I'm super excited about it! :) It'll be a learning process for both you and me!!

But first things first:

What is living green?

Well I can say that it is living in a way that causes as less harm as possible to the Earth. Living green or green living is also referred to as sustainable living and it is a lifestyle that attempts to reduce an individual's or society's use of the Earth's natural resources.

What is healthy living?

Healthy Living is about taking responsibility and making smart health choices such as eating right, physically fitness, emotional wellness, spiritual wellness and prevention are all apart of creating a healthy lifestyle. These choices will help not just our bodies but will keep all aspects of our well-being at balance.

Hope you enjoy this series as much as me! Got a topic to suggest? Contact me, let me know, I want to know what you think. :)

Orange Chocolate Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 05:00:13 PDT

Today, I sit on the verge of feeling better. I had this massive, pretty intense cold. Brrr. It seems to be going around, and I hope this is the last I see of it. I mean a couple of months ago I was ambushed by a cold, flu, sinusitis, and strep all in a span of 3 months.Never again, y'all. Aside from such ailments life is good.

I've finally been able to break free from the recent grad-cooties, which is basically not knowing what to do with so much free time. Time I didn't have before for watching Netflix at 2 pm on Thursdays, or going to the movies on Tuesday afternoons, or grabbing real coffee at the tres chic place on near Uptown.

So this choco-cake is a must. It called my name from the newspaper I was reading in the morning a few days ago. I found that the perfect combination to choco-cake (actually there are oh-so many perfect combinations ;) is orange marmalade. Aaand everytime I have marmalade I feel the need to sing out the lyrics to Lady Marmalade! Once I spread the marmalade I realized how sexy of a combination it was--I don't think the song had anything to do with that.

Orange Chocolate Cake

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup warm water
1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Low-Sugar Orange marmalade for topping (optional)

Directions

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Put all ingredients in a large bowl and mix (using your stand mixer, or gradually add the ingredients and mix if you're using a hand mixer) until just combined.

Coat a loaf pan or 9" round cake pan well with non-stick cooking spray and pour in the batter.

Bake for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.

Once the cake has cooled, spread some orange marmalade.

Love, FM

Shrimp Creole + Mardi Gras-ish

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 17:20:54 PST

One time I made this delish shrimp recipe that I planned a whole month in advance for Mardi Gras so I could post it on here just in time for the cray-cray celebration I was on a roll, but this and that happened and the post was no more. However, now...I can post it and you can enjoy it. Yum!

Shrimp Creole Over Rice

Ingredients

1/2 pound small shrimp shelled and de-veined
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 medium onion (finely chopped)
~ 4 stalks of celery (finely chopped)
1 medium carrot (peeled and chopped)
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon cumin
Salt & pepper to taste

Directions

In a large skillet heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onions, celery, carrots and garlic, cook for 3 to 4 minutes or until the onions are translucent.

Add the tomato sauce, oregano, and cumin into the pan bring the sauce to a simmer and then reduce the heat to medium low heat. Allow the sauce to simmer for about 15 minutes.

Add the shrimp and cook in the sauce for 3 to 4 minutes or until the shrimp is fully cooked through stirring occasionally and flipping the shrimp about halfway through.

Serve each portion over steamed rice and a generous helping of sauce.

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In other news:

I would like to thank all of the awesome blogger friends that I follow and who have emailed wondering where I was hiding! Thank you guys :) Your culinary & non-culinary adventures made my days away so much better!

Cook & Bake with love,
FM

Get Fit By Gaming Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Tue, 19 Feb 2013 20:27:52 PST

Hi there everybody, it's been awhile, I've had a few things happen. But not to worry here is a great giveaway for you! You can keep up your game and your health with active games like these so be sure to sign up for your chance to win! You could be the winner ;)

Get Fit By Gaming Giveaway

Hosted by Mom to Bed by 8 and Giveaway Bandit

Special thank you to our lovely co-hosts: Mommy Bear Media, Homeschooling Mom 4 Two, Coupon Queen of Texas, The Naptime Review, Mom Knows It All, Books R Us, Simply Sherryl, Stay a Stay at Home Mom and Smoothies and Cocktails Recipes.

Xbox 360 Kinect Bundle Includes:

Xbox 360 S Console 250GB Hard Drive Kinect Sensor

Wireless Controller Kinect Adventures Carnival Games: Monkey See Monkey Do

One lucky reader will receive a Xbox 360 Kinect Bundle Console Bundle!

Giveaway ends March 1st at 11:59pm, open to US & Canadian residents, ages 18+. To enter please use the Rafflecopter form below. Good luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: I received no compensation for this publication. My opinions are my own and may differ from those of your own. Magnolia 75: The Baking Lounge is not responsible for sponsor prize shipment. Please contact teri@mompoweredmedia.com with questions or to see your business or blog featured on the next big event!

Xbox Bundle Giveaway Event Announcement

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 07:00:01 PST

Hi everyone I am happy to announce that there is a giveaway for you guys coming really soon!! However, if you're a blogger and would like to participate in this mega giveaway sign up! Be sure to visit Mom to Bed by 8 and Giveaway Bandit because there's more where this came from :)

Xbox Bundle Giveaway Event

Hosted by: Mom to Bed by 8 and Giveaway Bandit

Prize Package includes: Xbox 360 S Console, 250GB Hard Drive, Kinect Sensor, Wireless Controller, Kinect Adventures and Carnival Games: Monkey See Monkey Do

Event dates: 2/15 - 3/1

Free Blogger Event: Sign Up HERE

Baked Spaghetti Squash with Turkey

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 19:35:26 PST

As the new year rolls in Brian and I have adopted the healthy eating lifestyle with warm hearts and embracing bellies to the subtle changes we began to make last fall. A couple of the changes we have made are cutting out unhealthy fats, incorporating more vegetables and fruits into our meals, eating less sugars, eating less red meats and more meats like turkey, fish, and chicken, and completely eliminating processed foods, YEAH!

The first couple of days have been hard for me because suddenly I'm not having toast with my egg in the morning and no jalapeno chips with my tuna sandwich and no diet soda with my lunch. The sudden elimination of a lot of carbs---empty carbs at that that my body was used to receiving did make me feel groggy, get headache, and a little irritable (just because I wasn't eating those chips, man!). But after the first week it got better. :) And I feel great (hear me roar).

I really enjoyed this recipe not just because it is healthy and tasty but because I tried something new: Spaghetti Squash! Whoa, if you haven't tried it and you want to challenge whether or not it actually looks like spaghetti you have to try it! It is delish and nutritious, it can substitute pasta any day for me. :)

Like did you know that spaghetti squash only has 27 calories, 7 grams of carbohydrates, low on fat, and low on salt. Compared to pasta that well, we all know is quite carb-y. Make it your goal to try it sometime this week. In other news there will be a weekly post on one of my favorite topics. I can't tell you yet but stay tuned!

Baked Spaghetti Squash with Turkey

Ingredients

1 medium sized spaghetti squash
1 pound ground turkey
1 medium onion, minced
2 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fish sauce
3 tablespoons Sriracha sauce (more if you'd like once it's served)

Directions

Preheat oven to 375F. Pour olive oil onto a large baking pan. Slice spaghetti squash in half lengthwise, be sure to use a really sharp knife to do this because the shell is kinda hard. Once it's in half scoop everything out and onto the baking pan. Bake for 35-45 minutes, and make sure the squash strands have the consistency of spaghetti. :)

Now in a large pan or skillet heat the olive oil at medium heat and add the onions and garlic gently stir, lower the heat once the smell of garlic becomes strong (usually 2 minutes) add the fish sauce. Gently add the ground turkey and stir until ingredients are well combined. Let it cook for about 5 minutes or until the turkey is cooked. Lastly add the Sriracha sauce and combine with ingredients. Once the turkey is cooked you should add the spaghetti squash.

One of my favorite foods is steamed veggies or sauteed veggies, any combination of sauce to vegetable is guaranteed to be one of my favorites!

Sauteed Cauliflower

Ingredients

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 head of cauliflower
4 tablespoons light soy sauce (the low on sodium one)

Directions

Cut each cauliflower 'tree' (lol) from the stem and wash then set aside. In a large pan pour olive oil and let it warm at low heat. Add cauliflower and cover the pan for 2 minutes. Then uncover pan, increase heat (medium is okay) and add the soy sauce. Let the pan warm up and swish the cauliflower until it is covered in soy sauce, keep swishing or stirring for 2-3 minutes then turn off heat and serve warm.

This recipe was adapted from White On Rice Couple

Bake and cook with love :)

Mexican Style Egg Breakfast (Huevos Mexicanos)

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 16 Jan 2013 05:00:02 PST

Don't fall into the habit of not adding some flavor to your morning breakfast (because there's midnight breakfast too y'all :). I have always liked to experiment and add a variety of ingredients to my eggs. Don't get me wrong plain egg is good too. But if you had to choose between creme brule and say jello which would you choose? Right...so I mostly grew up adding salsa, jalapeno, and other spicy sources to my foods from an early age and so it's obviously stuck and now well here you have it: Egg with Jalapenos, quite spicy so I recommend adding a tomato. A way to ease your taste buds into trying spicy things without running for a glass of water or turning bright red is to add something else like tomato or onions or both or anything else that would complement your egg.

Also did you know that Mexico is the #1 consumer of eggs? I sure didn't, which may explain why we have so many different egg dishes. Eating egg is good it is delicious, but keep in mind that one cannot or rather should not eat egg everyday. Egg yolk contains many fats that could elevate cholesterol levels. Keeping that in mind, limit how many times a week you have egg for breakfast/lunch/dinner. I usually have it at least two or three times a week, two of which are just plain egg whites with some sort of creative, yet delish combination and the other is a full egg with yolk. Egg is great in moderation and with veggies. Go on now and make these eggs, I promise you will not be disappointed! :)

Mexican Style Egg Breakfast (Huevos Mexicanos)

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
2 eggs
1 tomato (cut in cubes)
1 jalapeno (cut in cubes)
2 small flour tortillas (cute right?, but if you can't find them at your local grocery store 1 medium flour tortilla would be good too)

Directions

In a small skillet pour olive oil and swish it around to cover the entire skillet. Set the stove to medium heat. In a small bowl place eggs and combine with a fork or spoon. Pour eggs onto skillet and then add tomato and jalapeno. Fold the tomato and jalapeno into the egg for about 1-2 minutes. Set the heat to low and using a griddle or other clean skillet or large pan heat your flour tortilla. And listo <leesto> means 'ready' in Spanish.

Bake and cook with love :)

Love Baked Salmon Dinner

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 05:00:10 PST

What better way to celebrate the Golden Globes than with a nice dinner made by your sweetie!
The salmon was very juicy, and soft. The light seasoning of salt and ground pepper really made us enjoy the salmons fresh taste. The salad's toppings (apples, walnuts, pineapple and cranberries) were an excellent choice the sweetness from the apples really complemented the tartness of the cranberries, and the pineapples sweet-tangy taste added an extra set of flavors that were so good, the walnuts definitely gave the salmon a real, solid, nutty flavor that I've never had before it was amazing.
I can't wait what we'll cook up next for Oscar night :)

I may have only suggested Red Delicious apples in our salad, which are excellent this time of year.

Love Baked Salmon

Ingredients

2 pieces of fresh salmon (skinned and deboned)
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt (a pinch)
Ground pepper (just a little)
Juice from 1 lemon
1 bag or container of a nice salad mix
Cherry tomatoes
Walnuts (chopped, enough for two)
1 Large Red Delicious apple (cut into cubes)
1 Small can of chopped pineapple
Dried cranberries
Light Italian dressing

Directions

Cover a large, deep baking dish with parchment paper and set aside. Preheat oven to 325F. Gently wash your salmon and pat dry with a napkin. Then cover both pieces in olive oil and sprinkle with salt and ground pepper. Place salmon onto baking dish and bathe it with a squeeze of lemon juice. Place dish in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, the last 5 minutes place the baking dish in the broiler to add a crisp top to the salmon. While the salmon is in the oven you can prepare the salad however you want, with extra walnuts, apples, etc. Serve the salmon over your salad for an extra oomph :) or to the side. Enjoy!

The Golden Globes this year were filled with surprises, funny moments, lame skits (did you see Tommy Lee Jones' grumpy face?), and beautiful dresses. But I do have a bone to pick with the Globe people like why didn't The Hobbit get nominated? Why didn't Peter Jackson? How come there was only one category for both comedy AND musicals? Um Game of Thrones...heard of it? Why wasn't it nominated? Taylor Swift sitting in the table next to Arnold's (father of her not most recent ex-boyfriend), really? Aaawkwaard.

I am glad Adele, Jennifer Lawrence, Anne Hathaway, Ben Affleck, Kevin Costner and Jodie Foster took a Globe home. Jodie Foster's speech was amazing, she spoke her mind and heart. Also some stars fashion on the red carpet was dismal...umm I won't embarrass them, but those whose ensemble I really liked were Jennifer Lawrence, Lena Dunham, Kerry Washington (although her hair could have been styled differently), Emily Blunt, and Jessica Alba. Hayden Panettiere's mermaid dress looked great on her very classy. I was not impressed with Jennifer Lopez, Eva Mendes or Natalie Portman's dresses. They've had nice choices in the past, but this year...it's like 'what happened?' And the 'cute couple award' should definitely go to Seth MacFarlane & Emilia Clarke. I discovered a couple of films that I haven't seen and now want to see. I think that maybe one of the reasons these award shows are televised, eh that's alright.

Got any dinner plans for Oscar night? :)

Always bake and cook with the ones you love :)

Coconut Birthday Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Sat, 12 Jan 2013 05:00:07 PST

Well, although my birthday was in November I just had to, had to share my birthday cake! It was super fluffy and luscious. This cake was inspired by a recipe I found a few weeks before and that I really wanted to make.

Coconut Birthday Cake

Ingredients

For cake

3 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
5 large eggs
1 1/3 cups coconut milk
1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon coconut extract
3/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut

For frosting/filling

10 1/2 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/2 cup (= 1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
5 cups powdered sugar, sifted
pinch of salt
about 2-3 cups sweetened shredded coconut
2 tablespoons pineapple juice

Directions

Preheat the oven to 325ºF with racks in the upper middle and lower middle positions. Butter and flour 2 9-inch round cake pans and set aside. In a large bowl, beat the butter and both sugars on medium-high until fluffy and smooth, about 2 minutes. Beat in the eggs thoroughly 1 at a time. On medium speed, beat in the coconut milk, vanilla, and coconut extract. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.
Then beat in the baking powder and salt. Gradually add the flour, mixing on low until just incorporated. Fold in the coconut with a rubber spatula, making sure to scrape up any bits of flour from the bottom of the bowl. Divide batter equally among the 2 greased and floured pans. Make sure to smooth the tops evenly. Bake for about 30 to 35 minutes. Insert a toothpick down the center of the cakes, if it comes out clear it's done. Let cakes cool for 10 minutes in the pans. Turn the cakes out onto wire racks to cool completely. Finally, once the cakes have cooled using a knife carefully divide each cake into two half so as to have a four layer cake.

For the filling/frosting

In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until smooth and fluffy, takes about 2 minutes. Beat in the vanilla and salt. Gradually add the powdered sugar, mixing on low until it’s all incorporated. Beat the frosting on medium-high speed for about 1 minute until it’s fluffy and of a spreadable consistency. Lastly add the pineapple juice and continue mixing until ingredients are fluffy.

Place parchment paper on your cake plate or plastic cake round and slowly place the first layer (make sure it's one of the cakes bottom layer). Then spread some of the frosting, add another layer, then add more frosting until the last layer has been frosted. Then using an icing knife, (I used OXO Bent Icing Knife, that I got as a graduation present, and it is amazing, I love it :), spread the frosting around the cake as neatly as you can, if you have an icing bag use it to decorate around the edges of the top layer of the cake. My sister provided cake decorations and candles. :)

Bake with love :)

Graduation + Words of Advice

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Fri, 11 Jan 2013 05:00:14 PST

Well this is a different kind of posting, but one that I feel is very, very important. Maybe you'd like to pass this long to people--parents, students, your kids...whomever you think might find this helpful. I really hope you share it :)

I want to share with you a few words of advice, if you will, things I wish I had known before/during/ at some point in my journey to graduating, but that many times I had to learn the hard way, but nevertheless I reached my primary goal, yay!

Let's briefly start from the beginning: HIGH SCHOOL.

Lemme give you the rundown, to everyone who is reading this blog from overseas ("hi :)"). Some American public/private high schools can be exactly how you see them in movies or on TV, that's right down from Mean Girls to Glee to Gossip Girl. But essentially everyone, doesn't matter where you go to school has one thing (ok, maybe among others--lol) in mind graduation and college. It's a very common goal. But how do you prepare? Simple, but first take a deep breath.

High School Senior: Things to prepare for college journey

Most college preparation begins late sophmore year, and of course junior year, but let's be honest the REAL crackdown doesn't start until senior year and that is okay, you just have to work swiftly and smart.

1. Make a list of colleges you may be interested in, on this list add what attracts you to this certain school. Maybe it's that it's got a really good art program, or engineering program, or whatever it is list it. Also be sure to add to your list any deadlines or application requirements such as: some schools prefer online applications, others do not, some prefer that you send 2 letters of recommendations others is 3. Add all of this information to your list, make an excel sheet or a table on word it will help you a lot. To this list add whether it is a private university or a state university, is it out of state list that too, and the tuition.
(All of the things you add to your list will help you in making a well-rounded decision. This works even if you think you're an indecisive person.)

2.   If you haven't already taken these tests find out what dates are available to take the SAT and ACT.
(These two exams are a must for most colleges and setting a definite date of when you can take them is definitely better than waiting around to 'find' time to study AND then figuring out when you will take them because by then it may be too late, as in behind a school's deadline. Also set a time AND place you will be dedicating to study for these tests.)

3.   Find out about as many scholarships as you can and apply for all the ones you qualify. You might want to do this during the summer before senior year. Be mindful of some of the requirements for certain scholarships, some often ask for letters of recommendation. Take a look at the paperwork you will need for the FAFSA if you need to and fill it out on time.Check out these venues first before you or your parents sign an arm and a leg for a large loan.
(The sooner you apply for the FAFSA the more chances there are you will receive a larger grant.)

4.   Letters of recommendation: Pick the people that know you best. Sometimes colleges ask for a letter specifically from certain teachers like math or science, and one from another person that knows you well. If they are not specific, and you are a mathlete and rock the sciences go for it ask one of those teachers. Do not hesitate because 'oh they're already writing too many rec.letters 'so' pretend you don't know that. However, be conscious of their time and your time as well, tell them ahead of time, well ahead of time. That way they can prepare and you don't have to worry about the letter making it to its destination on time.
(BUT, if you are one of the lucky few that know what they want to do and are going to a certain university like an art school, or you are applying to an English/Literature program get recommendations from those specific teachers.)

5.   Be realistic. Can you really afford to move from say Texas to Hawaii? Can you really afford to move even to a college town just outside of the city? Ask yourself these questions because they will help you determine what's the best route to take. Consider living at home and attending a community college for the first year or two, where you can take the basic courses at much lower tuition. Then determine your transferring plans.
(Take deep breaths and steps to figure it out. Everything will turn out just fine.)

College Student: Things to consider once at university

1.   It's totally cool to not know your major freshman year. But you know what's not cool not knowing by your second semester of sophmore year. You know what's helpful: making a list (and suddenly I feel like one of my dear friends who makes lists of lists all the time, but they're helpful) of all the things that you like/ that you find interesting. Making a list of the things you enjoy can help guide you into something you might be willing to focus on to be your major.
(Freshman year is for getting back in the groove of studying, not taking as many exams, so be sure to study, and read a lot. It's a good year to figure out the mechanics of college and college life.)

2. Dedicate a time and place each day where you will study. I don't know about you, but I can't concentrate in a place that's too quiet. Figure out what works for you, and stick to it. Be sure to bring all the necessities like: your homework or assigned reading, print ahead of time, computer, charger for both computer and your cell phone, lunch/dinner, snacks, a bottle of water, keys. If you can't dedicate at least 2-3 hours daily, work around your schedule, set everything down on a piece of paper to see clearly where you can make time to do your school work. Buy a planner and write down your exam dates, project due dates, important lectures, and all activities. Planner's are great to keep track of all of your events and activities.
(A structured routine of studying that's set early makes it so much easier to manage later on. It also allows you to actually make plans to go to birthday parties, dinners, seeing a movie, having a job, joining a club, etc.)

3.   Don't have a major in mind? Don't panic, it's okay and common. But don't get too comfortable not knowing. Like I said in #1 make a list, setting apart things you enjoy doing, or are really good at doing, or your interests can guide you. Be sure to add classes you've found interesting, topics you would like to learn more about. And then determine the professions that would go with the things you've listed for example my list would sound something like this: psychology classes, listening, talking, people, learning about child development, teaching, arts and crafts, kids, child care, writing, helping people, learning about wellness. I found that I really enjoyed psychology, so I looked into it and made it my major, found that I really enjoyed being part this preschool program at school and learned a lot from my little friends who were 4-5 years old and decided to take on a second major child learning and development. Kids are amazing at that age, their understanding of certain things is so simple it reminded me everyday that it's okay to be bold (some kids were bold), that it's okay to be scared, and it's okay to smile even when you've had a tough day. :)
(Making a list is important, you'll be able to clearly see the ideas that are bouncing around in your head in a more concrete way.)

4.   Join a club that interest you, or an honor society that you can be involved in. But be careful not to join too many because sometimes your responsibilities to the club may get in-between your time you have set to study, go to class, or time you've set for yourself. Usually 1 or 2 is okay, anything else is one too many.
(You can put these on your resume, if they're awesome and not inappropriate!)

5.   Sign up to receive the school news, read the student paper, and attend any lectures that are offered. It's ultimately important, trust me. Check with your college's career center, or student center if they offer seminars on topics like : how to write a resume, job interviewing, and internships. Check your department's web page or keep an eye out for flyers announcing lectures by professors you've had. And if they do, reach out to them, let them know you will be attending or talk to them after their lecture. Don't be shy, you've been their student.
(You can really get off to a good start by doing attending seminars, workshops, lectures. You have to keep yourself informed and current with the faculty, who knows they may end up writing your recommendation letter to a certain scholarship, program, or graduate school.)

6. Make friends, talk to people in your classes, exchange emails or cell numbers (at your discretion of course) who knows maybe one day you won't make it to class and you need those notes. Make a study group, meet in a public or on-campus place to make it easier and safe for everyone (some people may not drive or have a car). Find out what classes are good electives, or which professors are great to take. Find out if students get a discount at certain restaurants or other places. Find out which places have great food or which dishes to avoid.
(Network and socialize. The best of friends come from study groups, library buddies---people who have the same academic goals in mind (even if they're of a different major))

7.   Safety first: Don't have a car? Carpool with a trusted friend or trusted group of friends to go grocery shopping, if you live on-campus. Always carry a flashlight in your purse. Be mindful of any emergency phones in parking lots, libraries or walkways, near the residence halls or school apartments. Always travel to places with a trusted friend or someone else, preferably a girl if you're a girl or both girl and guy that you know. Also be aware of any isolated places or poorly lit walkways, hallways, buildings, and parking lots. Also if you're college offers a text system where they'll let you know by text if there's an emergency happening at school sign up for it, these can come in handy for God forbid those types of emergencies, but also for school closings due to weather, or classes being cancelled for electricity outages.
(Read the school paper for any incidents that may have happened at school or around school that you should be aware of.)

8.   Don't be afraid to apply to be a teacher's assistant (TA), or a research assistant (RA). Look at what programs, or opportunities are open to you for your major and go for it. You won't know until you try! :) There may be certain things you may have to be involved in or have had experience in for a certain job, career, even graduate or medical school. Find out what is out there, reach out to the people who may know of these opportunities like professors, the student center, the career center, and other students. Ask questions, email a certain professor that teaches a class you are interested in and are very focused in possibly being more involved, ask them for advice.
(Take the initiative, and try it!)

9.   Please, be sure to visit your academic adviser to talk about your degree plan. This is important even if you haven't declared a major yet. You want to get down on paper and see it (even get a copy) of what classes you'll need to take, when you'll need to take them, who teaches what on certain semesters, that kinda thing. Also it will help you plan for summers such as whether or not you'll have to take classes over the summer and if you do, where can you take them. Double check with them, don't always go to one adviser because she or he could be the one to make a mistake that could cost you another semester at the university, so check with other advisers.
(Make sure to make appointments or go in to see an adviser well ahead of time, there may be certain times of the year when they get too busy.)

10. Make time to do the things you enjoy. Whether it's baking, watching your favorite show, hanging out with friends, make that time.

I really hope this helps and remember bake a little, dance a little and take it easy :)

Ground Beef Stuffed Bell Peppers and Baked Onion Rings

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 05:00:15 PST

Happy New Year!!! You ready to get started on those resolutions? No? Yes? Eeer, maybe? Well, I for one I'm ready to tackle them one by one. I don't know if it's just me but isn't January a pretty slow month? Or at least it feels slow, it most be the cold weather that makes it seem that way. Texas has crazy weather, so I'm hoping it will be nice and sunny anytime..eeep here's to hoping.

I may not be a big fan of the January weather but I sure love to cozily gather with friends and have some coffee and chat. January is also a good month, at least for me, to catch up on sleep. And goodness knows I need to catch up on a few zzz's. Now that I'm done with college, the notion of not staying up to study, or waking up early to go to class feels good for a change, so I'm embracing it at the moment. :)

You know what else I'm embracing? These stuffed bell peppers and homemade onion rings! I think I should have made a separate post for the onion rings, but too delicious to wait til then. But I will don't worry. I am currently loving cooking with lots of grains and vegetables :)
I encourage you that this new year you should take on a challenge (or maybe you like a challenge, eh?). Make 2013 the year you take control of a healthy lifestyle and wonderful changes in your life!

Ground Beef Stuffed Bell Peppers

Ingredients

1 tray of fresh ground beef
1/2 cup of peas
1/2 cup of chopped potato
1 large bell pepper
cheese (your pick, I used both Monterrey and Cheddar)
1 tablespoon corn
1 tablespoon rice (if you have some around, if not hey add another veggie or hummus)
a pinch of ground pepper flakes

Directions

In a medium frying pan at medium heat, pour about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Add your fresh ground beef and stir, then add the potato and lastly the peas. Once the beef is done, preheat your oven to 325F and then wash your bell pepper and carefully cut the top part, and seed it, then pour some water inside to make sure all seeds are gone. Dry the inside of the pepper lightly and then add the beef, corn, rice, pepper flakes and cheese! Place your pepper(s) in the oven and bake for 5-8 minutes.

Homemade Onion Rings

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups cornflakes
1/2 cup plain dried breadcrumbs
4 tablespoons grounded granola
1 large egg
1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon papprika
Sea salt and ground pepper
1 medium sweet onion, quartered crosswise and broken into rings
2 tablespoons olive oil

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. In a food processor, pulse cornflakes, granola and breadcrumbs until fine crumbs form, then transfer to a medium bowl. In another bowl, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, flour, and papprika and season with salt and pepper to your liking. Dip onion rings in egg mixture and then in the cornflake mixture; place them on a large plate. Cover your baking sheet with parchment paper and pour the olive oil on the baking sheet. Place in baking sheet in the oven and heat for 2 minutes. Remove sheet from oven and tilt to coat evenly with more olive oil (may need more than 2 tablespoons). Arrange the onion rings on the sheet and bake, turning once, until onion rings are golden brown, bake for 15 minutes.

Happy New Year and Thank you for reading :)

Happy Holidays

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 16:06:07 PST

Meet Robin. My naughty 6 year old tabby :)

T'is the season to be jolly...and a little lazy. :) I hope each and everyone of you is enjoying this holiday with the people you love. Relax, watch some good TV, or read a good book, I know I am :)

- FM and Robin

Caliente for Chickpeas

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Mon, 17 Dec 2012 05:00:12 PST

Yummy vegetables! So I didn't know that chickpeas and garbanzo beans are the same thing. They should be called "super chickpeas"! I read chickpeas are the source of 10 different vitamins, can also help reduce cholesterol, improve control of blood sugar levels and insulin secretion. Oh boy, I definitely want to start eating chickpeas on a regular basis now!! So I'll keep you posted on more "super chickpeas". I think I'll try and make as many different recipes as I can with chickpeas. I hope you enjoy this snack idea. :)

Caliente for Chickpeas

Ingredients:

2 cans chickpeas - drained, rinsed & patted dry
4 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp. coarse sea salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (maybe try a little less, these came out quite spicy)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place the chickpeas in a medium bowl and discard any loose skins. Toss with olive oil, salt, black pepper, cumin & cayenne until evenly coated. Spread the chickpeas on a large rimmed baking sheet and bake, stirring occasionally, until golden and crisp. This takes about 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and bake until crunchy, about 10 minutes more. Let cool and serve at room temperature.

Dark Chocolate Nutella Sandwich Cookies + The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 20:15:57 PST

Hi everyone and happy 12/12/12!! Be sure to make a wish you guys!! Today is the day everyone who participated in The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2012 posts their cookie recipes on their blog of the cookies that were sent to 3 other bloggers! The swap was sooo fun and yummy of course. I wanted to participate last year, but didn't find out about it until everyone had posted their recipes. Sooo this year I couldn't wait to swap cookies and be part of a great cause (Cookies For Kid's Cancer)!!!

Dark dutch processed Hershey's cocoa my all time favorite!! And a tablespoon of nutella another all time fave make up these sammich cookies :)

A concoption of buttery, sugar, and nutella goodness to be whipped up in the mixer. I added the flour once the butter,sugar, and nutella were whipped. The batter was the most fragrant batter I've ever made and it was also very soft, but manageable to roll into dough balls.

My cookies were sent to Laura from A Healthy Jalapeno , Stephanie (CopyKat Recipes ) and Susan from(Mercer and Sage) . Be sure to check out all of these lovely ladies' blogs, I have been oooh-ing and aaaah-ing their recipes and...I can't stop!! I received cookies from Katie (The Hardistys) very delicious chocolate pralines, Jaynie (Junabug) made these awesome oatmeal-raisin walnut cookies, and Shannon (A Periodic Table) made these yummy buttery sables 3 ways! I have once again evolved into Cookie Monster, a nickname I thought I'd left behind in high school.


Cookies!! Mine, all mine! Nomnomnom...

Just kidding, I shared cookies with everyone at home, they were part of my graduation celebration! Oh yea, I graduated this past weekend, HORRAY! I will post on that later this week, I'm not done with finals yet!! I know right...But look at all these cookies you guys! This whole week (I got them last week up to this Monday) it was great coming home to a box of cookies :)

Dark Chocolate Nutella Sandwhich Cookies

adapted from The Faux Martha

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 cup oats (ground)
1/4 cup Hershey's Dark Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 cup sugar
2 tablespoons Nutella
1 egg

For filling

1 26 oz. jar of Nutella

Directions

In a large bowl combine flour, oats, cocoa, baking powder, and baking soda. Preheat oven at 375F, and in another large bowl add sugar, butter and nutella, using a mixer, mix well until mixture becomes fluffy. Add in the egg last and only mix until it's well combined, no over mixing. Slowly add flour mixture, and using a spatula, mix the ingredients. The dough will have a very light texture, and it will smell sooo good. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper, and using a tablespoon scoop out dough and roll into a ball. I used my 1/4 cup to lightly press the dough balls, they came out to a nice size. Place them on a baking sheet about 1 inch apart for 8 minutes in the oven.

Once they are done leave them on the baking sheet for an additional minute, then move to a cooling rack. Once they are cool spread with Nutella and sandwich together :)

New Magnolia and Healthy Grilled Steak

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 08:42:50 PST

Y'all I graduate in 7 days!!! SEVEN DAYS!! I cannot wait!! That is perhaps the single thing that has been on my mind since...I don't know LAST DECEMBER! I cannot wait! So as graduation approaches I have done nothing else than been going to class, going to my internship, and going to my favorite Starbucks and writing an immense amount of stuff for my classes. However, funny thing about coffee houses, you hear all sorts of things: funny things, interesting things, scary, sad, happy...you name it. But at this particular one it's specialty is GOSSIP! Sometimes...it's about people that I know other times it's not, but oh my goodness you guys. And no I'm not nosy, people just talk really loud and I forgot my earphones :(.

But in other news: Magnolia has a new look and perspective!! I will continue to bake, no worries, but I will also post more cooking recipes as well. My main goal is to post healthier recipes. How healthy you may ask? Well definitely less sugar, incorporating more fruits, vegetables, using more wheat flour, and also other types of healthier flours like: buckwheat, almond, oat and cornmeal among others. I also want to use natural sweeteners too, but figuring out which will work best has turned into quite a task that I may need my coming break from school to figure it out. Why the change? I really want to eat healthier. After four years of college I am sick tired of eating everything on-the-run, no bueno :( Now that I will have oodles of free time I will definitely get to explore more in the kitchen, YAY!

I can't wait for my new kitchen adventures to begin :)
Last week Brian and I made some grilled steak, with colorful veggies, we steamed yellow squash, zucchini, greenbeans, and cauliflower and sweet grilled pineapple for dessert. Oh and there was also mushroom sauce involved it was ridiculously good! There's no getting lost to this recipe. Grab some nice, lean, steak from your grocery store and if you have a grill plate you can use on your stove go for it, if not a skillet with a tablespoon of olive oil will do the trick too.
Brian grilled the steaks and pineapple on the stove using a grill plate.

Mushroom sauce

Ingredients

1 can of Campbell's Mushroom soup
1 small box of fresh mushrooms
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 clove of garlic

Directions

Open the mushroom soup and set aside, wash and chop your mushrooms, if they are not already chopped. In a small saucepan pour the olive oil and let it heat at medium heat in the meantime mush the clove of garlic I usually use a heavy plate, then quickly add the garlic to the saucepan and stir for about a minute. Add the mushrooms and saute for about two minutes. Now, add the mushroom soup onto the mushrooms and stir, reduce heat to a low setting. Let it simmer for 5 minutes before turning off heat. Serve warm.

Grilled Pineapple

Ingrdients

1 fresh pineapple or 1 can of pineapple slices (whole)
1 cup sugar
4 tablespoons ground cinnamon

Directions

In a large bowl combine sugar and cinnamon. Once you've peeled and cut pineapple into round slices place each slice (one at a time) in the sugar-cinnamon until all of it is covered. Once each one is covered place on your grill and grill for a minute or so. If you do not have a grill, I recommend covering a baking sheet with aluminum foil and placing all of your covered pineapple slices on the baking sheet and in the oven at 350 F for a total of 10 minutes (5 on each side).

Hope you enjoy and thank you for reading you guys! :)

-Fatima

Cheddar Cheese Biscuits

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Mon, 26 Nov 2012 05:00:00 PST

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!! I hope your day was filled with lots of food and family and friends to share it with. Thanksgiving is probably my favorite holiday because there's nothing to it but food and good company. :) Except this year...when retail stores decided to begin their 'Black Friday' sales on Thursday night at 8...that's still dinner time y'all!! This caused major confusion and frustration for those who were at dinner and still wanted to catch a good deal...no bueno.

Regardless, food--good, friends--good, family--good. In preparation for Thanksgiving, Brian and I made some cheddar cheese biscuits. We tried the recipe the week before and just knew they would be perfect for Thanksgiving dinner!

I had been meaning to make biscuits for awhile now but just hadn't found the right recipe, you know? For example I wanted to make the perfect biscuits, the ones that are super soft, fluffy, not bread-y, filled with this buttery--but not salty--taste. But especially ones that do not get hard right after baking or a few hours after that. So Brian suggested finding a recipe for Red Lobster's cheese biscuits and after much searching I found a good one that doesn't require Bisquick, that's right it doesn't!!

We kinda went a little crazy and made a couple of batches and super filled them with le cheese. We made them with mild cheddar cheese and they were very cheesy indeed, but I can't imagine how much more cheesier they would be with sharp or extra sharp cheddar!

And of course after they have finished baking...like immediately you guys, spread the garlicky butter on the top of the biscuits, sooo good. After that they should still be warm enough to eat on the spot!

Cheddar Cheese Biscuits

Adapted from The Purple Foodie

Makes 12 large biscuits

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour (unbleached or regular)
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 stick cold unsalted butter (cut into squares)
2 Tbsp. canola or vegetable oil
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 – 2/3 cup milk

For brushing on top after baking:

3 Tbsp. butter
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. dried parsley flakes

Direction

Preheated oven at 400F. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and garlic powder. Then add the butter. Using your hands or food processor mix ingredients until they are coarse crumbs. Then add the oil, shredded cheddar cheese and the milk. Stir well until combined and until you can no longer see any pockets of dry flour.

Cover your cookie sheet or baking pan with parchment paper and roll into a ball about 2 heaping tablespoons of the dough. Bake for 15-17 minutes.

Topping:

In the meantime while the biscuits are baking, in a small bowl combine 3 tablespoons of butter, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and 1/2 teaspoon of parsley and place in the microwave until butter has melted.

Once the biscuits are done, use a brush to spread the garlicky butter over the top of all the biscuits.The cheesy, buttery, and garlicky smells will make you do it super fast so you can try them immediately! Make sure to serve them warm :)

Enjoy and hope you had a great Thanksgiving holiday!

Ground Beef Tostadas...Mexican Style

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Sun, 11 Nov 2012 07:03:45 PST

I have one thing to say: Tis my birthday week and I have the flu...from getting the flu shot last week...yea! I know, I know, I've heard the stories 'the flu shot gives you the flu' yadayadaya. But I really had no choice I volunteer at a hospital where the shot was required, plus I've spent the last month cooped in the library exercising my genius...eh or trying anyway. If you visit any library at this time of year all you hear are coughs, sneezes and people blowing their nose...eww but it happens and I didn't want it to happen to me because I've been crazy busy and have no time to stay home sick when I could obviously be doing other genious-y things like reading for class (which I can't do right now because my eyes hurt and are grossly watery), write intelligible reports (which I can't do due to a pounding headache), go to class (it's chilly here and I feel it three-fold being sick) :( I would bake but let's face it it's not sanitary...

Despite it all I had a marvelous birthday! I will post my birthday cake recipe as soon as I get the cable for my camera back. In other news which I am super-duper excited about this year I will be participating in The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap which is hosted by the lovely ladies: Lindsay of Love and Olive Oil and Julie of The Little Kitchen . If you missed signing up this year sign up for their updates and notifications so that you can participate next year, that's what I did last year! The cookie swap supports a great cause and it's fun for all bloggers involved I'm super excited!! Right now I'm pretty much like this: 'Sooo many cookie recipes to try, I cannot pick!' so there will be some major cookie browsing of all sorts this coming weekend!

Now allons-y to my ground beef tostadas! Tostadas can be made off of anything really, all you need is a crispy tortilla hence tostada and the combinations are endless! But here at home we always seem to stick to this one for a hearty fill.

You won't regret these they are very tasty.

Ground Beef Tostadas (Mexican Style)

Ingredients

1 pack of fresh ground beef
2-3 medium sized potatoes
1-2 cans refried beans
1 pack of tostadas
1 lettuce
3-4 tomatoes
queso fresco
sour cream (you could use any kind, I used 'La Vaquita' which means 'the little cow' Mexican style sour cream)
1-2 jalapenos (depending on how spicy you want your salsa)

Directions

Wash and peel your potatoes, then chop them into squares. In a large skillet at low heat pour about 3-4 tablespoons of cooking oil (I used olive oil, but any would be fine). Place your potatoes into the skillet and stir for about 2 minutes, then add your ground beef. May need to add a little bit of cooking oil. Stir the beef and potatoes constantly and leave after they've been covered. Now in another pan or skillet with 2 tablespoons of cooking oil you're going to pour both cans of beans at low heat too. The beans should take about 5 minutes by then your ground beef and potatoes should also be nearly done or ready. Now cut a few leaves from the lettuce and chop them into little pieces, same with at least 1 tomato. The queso fresco is very crumbly so you can crumble it with your fingers, but if you prefer to use a cheese grater go for it the cheese chunks will just be smaller.

Now to make the salsa: Depending on how spicy you want it is how many tomatoes you will need to use. So watch your tomato to jalapeno ratio. You can put 1/2 cup of water 1 tomato and 1 jalapeno in the blender and have a good salsa. Serve it in a small bowl and you're done!

Everything is ready to prepare. So onto your tostada you will spread the beans first, then the ground beef, and then the lettuce, tomato, queso fresco, sour cream and salsa! So good! If you can't find queso fresco, you could also use shredded mozzarella or cheddar it's all good!! :)

Birthday Pineapple Upside-down Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 08:00:12 PDT

I've just realized that it's 67 days until graduation!! Yay super hooray! I am so excited as is everyone here at home. However, in the mean time I have to hang on to 5 classes and hoping to pass all of them with flying colors. That's right flying pretty colors. You know what was also very pretty this pineapple upside down cake that I made for my mom's birthday!

Happy Birthday mom! Candles are only representative of actual age, heehee.

Pineapple Upside-down Cake

Ingredients

1 stick unsalted butter
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
6 slices pineapple in juice (from 14-oz can), drained
12 maraschino cherries
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons pineapple juice

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F. Cover 13x9-inch baking pan with unsalted butter. In a small sauce pan melt your light brown sugar and butter. Pour the brown sugar evenly over butter once it is melted and combined into the baking dish. Arrange pineapple slices onto this mixture.

Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice, and arrange remaining cherries around slices. In a large bowl add your flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, salt, milk, egg, and pineapple juice and using a whisk, whisk together until all ingredients are combined. Pour batter over pineapple and cherries.

Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. After it's done immediately run knife around side of pan to loosen cake. Place baking sheet or heatproof serving plate over the baking pan and carefully turn upside down. Leave pan over cake for 5 minutes so brown sugar topping can drizzle over cake then remove pan. Let it cool for 30 minutes. Serve warm or cool. Store covered in refrigerator.

This cake made just about 16 rectangular pieces. It had a very pineapple flavor and moist. I only wish I had made two cakes.

Bake with love :)

Hash Brown Grilled Cheese

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 07:30:02 PDT

This is not your typical grilled cheese! Grilled cheeses are a thing of beauty, I've never had one that wasn't good or filling. Aaand they are of course super easy to make, there's like no recipe required!
However, one thing does make a difference for whenever you're making grilled cheeses: The Cheese. The cheese is obviously necessary but the quality of cheese is super important. There are some cheeses that don't live up to the hype and others that may be the ones in the corner of the cheese section that are totally worth your attention. So watch out for those because they could turn out to be a hidden gem. Kerrygold cheese is one of my favorite cheeses, it usually has a small section at my grocery store but I almost always find that there are only 2-3 cheeses left, they're quite popular! I really like the way it's packaged and the flavor of the cheese: it's so rich and savory and sweet tastes, very creamy too. I like. :)

You simple gather your toaster, oven, hash-browns, bread, butter, and Kerrygold Dubliner cheese or cheese of your choice. :)

Hash-brown Grilled Cheese

Ingredients

2 slices of bread
butter (spread as you like)
Hash-browns
Kerrygold Dubliner cheese
Blackberries

Directions

Preheat oven to 325F and in a baking sheet place frozen hash-browns, leave in oven for 25 minutes, flip after 10 minutes to assure both sides are browning evenly. Place 2 slices of bread in toaster, and butter after they are done. Slice some of le cheese and check on hash-browns and place bread slices and cheese in the oven. Add blackberries or strawberries to garnish and for an extra sweet flavor.

The berries was an extra I added for pizzaz and it added a lot of flavor combinations. I bet strawberries would be great too.

Bake with love :)

Fall, Love and Apple Crisp

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Mon, 01 Oct 2012 05:00:21 PDT

Happy Monday y'all! And happy 1st day of October :) Super, ubber excited because Bruno Mars' new single comes out TODAY!!! You have no idea what a fan I am!! He's so talented, cute and funny! Every time he tweets it's a riot, I'm always left thinking 'what, the what? where does he get this from?' it's soo cute. If you're a fan (which I can't see how anyone wouldn't be) make sure to check out his new single "Locked Out of Heaven" which is out today.

This is from when he was here in Dallas last year in May.

So, I hope it's nice and breezy cold wherever you guys are right now because Dallas is pretty, pretty warm still. All the pretty autumn leaves are finally falling from the trees, there's fall recipes everywhere, pumpkin recipes are everywhere too, and people are getting into the holiday spirit, I like that! You know what else I like baking with Brian. So, I helped my love make Apple Crisp a few days ago! I was totally excited that he ~~suggested~~ told me he wanted something with the taste of fall...and quickly supplied a recipe for apple crisp. I know what you're thinking 'aww soo cute', yup, too cute. Once I got my hands on it that recipe got meshed into another handy one I had around and with a little creativity it turned into a boss crisp. T'was very tasty, apple taste was gorgeous, it was nutty, the topping was so good, Brian raved about it as we both dove into our pieces, it's not too sweet--which is great because you're not overcome by the sugar that you can't taste the fruit.

I really think that in some desserts, specially fruit based ones, the sugar can be reduced so that the natural fruit flavors pop and you can savor them better. Now, other desserts do require great amounts of sugar for them to 'work' those are great too not going to turn one away--moderation is key, you guys! I know this Apple Crisp doesn't have the typical streusel topping that's because I literally wanted that crisp feeling for when I digged into it.

Apple Crisp

Ingredients

Topping:

1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon clove
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter (1 stick)
1/3 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup chopped pecans

Filling:

8 golden delicious apples
juice of 1/2 a lemon
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon clove
1/4 teaspoon allspice

Directions

Preheat oven 375 F. Butter a 9x13 baking dish, I used a ceramic one for this crisp.

For the Topping: In a large bowl place flour, sugars, spices, butter, oats and pecans using your hands crumble the butter until it is mixed with the flour and there are no large pieces of butter visible. Set aside until filling is ready.

For the Filling: Wash and peel all of your apples, for a baking dish this big 8 medium sized apples are perfect. Once all apples are washed and peeled, using an apple slicer slice all apples into slices and then into squares. Place the apple chunks in a large bowl and sprinkle with the lemon juice and top with the sugar, and add your spices last. Pour them onto your prepared baking dish Spread the topping evenly over the apples.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until the apples are bubbly and the topping is golden brown. Remove from oven and cool for another 30 minutes before serving.

It can be served with vanilla ice cream for a nice cool&warm combination.You can also refrigerate leftovers and reheat before serving.

We also made my BBQ Chicken recipe, with steamed broccoli and steamed rice.

Alright y'all come back soon! (heehee)

Bake with love :)

Crazy Blue Nachos

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Tue, 25 Sep 2012 10:07:20 PDT

Wow so since my last post which was what last week? Robsten has apparently gotten back together...okay I'm happy for them?

Although, I don't know you guys but cheating is not right. It goes beyond 'what went wrong?', 'why you do it?' and the awful 'what happened?' It's a loss of trust, loss of love to an extent and indifference that comes in waves after the fact. That, I think lasts the longest and can be hard to move past...even when you're offered the world and stars in exchange for forgiveness. I mean, he can obviously do so much better...but whatever right? It's all over the news y'all had to say something. Plus love is complicated even when everything is alright can't imagine those two. Tsk, tsk, tsk.

On another note: I am obsessed with blue corn chips. They're my favorite chip, period, no buts or ands about it because they are so good! I buy the local brand at Sprouts year round, I just can't get enough of them. They're great for get-togethers with friends! I used cheddar but really you can use any type of cheese, just melt it in a saucepan at medium heat with 3 tablespoons of milk.

Crazy Blue Nachos

Ingredients

Blue corn chips
1 can of corn (drained and patted dry)
1 can of black beans (drained and patted dry)
1 tomato (diced)
1 dollop light sour cream
1 chicken breast (diced)
jalapen~os
CHEESE! (grated)

Directions

Very easy once the corn and black beans are drained and patted dry and the tomato and chicken breast are diced. In a bowl place your blue corn chips, and every other ingredient in its own small serving bowl. Using a cheese grater, grate your cheese, and place it in a saucepan at medium heat, add 3 tablespoons of milk and stir until it is incorporated in the cheese and the cheese has melted.

In your own bowl or plate, serve chips, a spoonful of corn, black beans, tomato, sour cream, chicken breast (maybe more than a spoonful of this one, heehee), jalapen~os, and cheese to your liking. If you are making these with friends let each have their own chicken breast.

Make lunch with love :)

Cherry Pie Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 05:00:13 PDT

It's mid September and as we begin to enter the breezy stages of fall I look back at what has happened this summer that was just WOW and also things to look forward to the fall!

This summer...

Obviously Summer Olympics (So much hard work was rewarded, and the ceremony was amazing)
Kate Middleton steals spotlight from Queen's Jubilee. (Not a surprise)
Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart break up. (She did cheat. How dare she!)
Johnny Depp became single. (enough said)
Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds got married. (Too soon?)
Katie Holmes finally breaks free from Tom Cruise. (Finally!)
Prince Harry gone wild in Vegas. (About time...lol)

Looking forward to...

Pumpkin Spice Latte's from Starbucks. (I found a recipe!)
Tastes and scents of fall: Pumpkin, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice. (Can't get enough)
Wearing boots with chicky skirts! (I love fall fashion)
Grey's Anatomy (What the what? I wanna know what's gonna happen!!)
Polka dots making a comeback (There's nothing more retro than polka dots, they're cute)
Saying goodbye and good riddance to the horrendous parking situation at school. (I pay to go there therefore I expect to find parking)
Graduating from college (Yay!)
Thanksgiving! (Family, food, and love.)
Cozy nights on the couch. (Oh yes drinking hot tea or cocoa and watching movies)
Leo DiCaprio in The Great Gatsby (If you haven't read it do so!)
The Hobbit (It's been too long...time to go back to Middle Earth)
Getting a pixie-ish haircut (New beginnings, even when it's cold)

But onto the cherry pie cake I made. The minimal amount of sugar is key to popping out the texture of the cake and taste of the cherry filling, leaving it lightly sweet and lightly tart. For me this cake is the definition of all things that are flirtatious and important kinda like a perfect first date with someone you've been friends with or a compelling courtship.

Cherry Pie Cake

Ingredients

3 cups flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 sticks unsalted butter (softened)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 can cherry pie filling

Directions

Preheat oven to 350F, coat a 9x13 baking pan with butter and set aside. In a large bowl combine flour, baking powder, and salt and set aside. Now in a medium bowl place butter and both sugars, using your mixer, mix until it becomes fluffy. At low speed add eggs one at a time, then add vanilla and combine. Add the egg mixture into the flour mixture and continue to mix on low until it becomes smooth. Set aside one cup of batter for the topping and spread the remaining batter evenly into the baking pan. Then scoop out the filling from the can and spread evenly on top of the batter. Bake for 30-35 minutes until the batter becomes golden.

Bake with love :)

Chicken Mexican Flautas (guacamole,& salsa too)

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 05:30:00 PDT

To be or not to be. To be a flauta or a taquito? It wasn't until my family moved to Dallas from Mexico that I came across: Taquitos. Don't get me wrong they are quite tasty and easy to prepare and whenever there is a chance I devour them. But quite frankly I think a "taquito" is a wannabe flauta, yet it likes to be called a diminutive from his cousins the tacos. A taco is a taco and will not be rejected if it crosses my mouth.

There are places on the internets that will try to tell you the difference between both, this is not that place. However, I will say that where I come from flautas are made with corn tortillas and they don't involve cheese. Okay so are you ready for the recipe? ^_^

Serve with rice: Brian made lime rice

Chicken Mexican Flautas

Ingredients

1 roasted chicken store bought (this will save you time, shredded, only what you will use for the flautas)
corn tortillas (the yellow colored ones are best)
1 tablespoon olive/cooking oil (more will be used later for frying)
sour cream
toothpicks (not an ingredient but must be noted they are needed)

Directions

Shred as much chicken as you will be making into flautas and place it in a large plate. Next use your cutting board or any clean, flat surface to place your tortillas. In a large frying pan at slow heat add 1 tablespoon of olive oil and coat the entire pan with it. Let the pan warm up for at least 1-2 minutes depending on your pan, but don't let it get too hot. Now place your tortilla in the pan and swish it around and turn it over and swish again. You want the tortilla to become soft and lightly coated in oil, remove from heat. Place the tortilla on your cutting board and quickly add the chicken, you can add as much as you want and swiftly roll the tortilla tightly and place the toothpick thru the middle to hold it in place. If you roll tightly enough you can place one toothpick thru 3 flautas. I recommend doing this step until you've rolled the amount of flautas you'd like.

Then in the same frying pan add about 2-3 tablespoons of oil and let it heat up at least a minute. Once it's warm place your flautas into the pan gently and using a pair of tongs turn them over on each side for 30 seconds or until they've reached the amount of crispiness you desire. Ta-da Mexican flautas!

Guacamole

1 or 2 avocados (depending on however many flautas you're making)
2 teaspoons milk

Directions

Cut your avocados in half and scoop the meat and place in a bowl. Add 2 tablespoons of milk, this will prevent the guacamole from darkening too quickly.

Brian's plate...sans guacamole tsk, tsk, tsk

Easy Homemade Salsa

1 or 2 jalapenos
2-3 small tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon salt

Directions

This is an easy version of the many ways there are to make salsa. So wash your jalapenos and tomatoes, remember a salsa's hotness depends on the jalapeno to tomato ratio so if you don't want it to be too spicy add more tomato, want spicy add more jalapeno. Place the jalapenos and tomatoes in a large bowl and loosely cover with a dampened napkin, place the bowl in the microwave for 1 minute 30 seconds. When it's done the vegetables should appear as if they had been steamed, if they're not leave them in a little longer. Using a fork puncture the tomatoes and poke the jalapenos, mash them, until they are all mushed, add salt and it's ready to serve.

Flautas? Yes please. :)

BBQ Chicken Legs

noreply@blogger.com (Fatima M) — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 07:51:53 PDT

Dallas finally, finally has a Trader Joe's! I have heard so much about the wonders and peculiar items that one can find at TJ's I can't wait to go and check it out for myself. I wouldn't know what to get though...but we'll see, I'll let you know what I find :)

Another happening is that I made this...

And discovered that my mom had a rice cooker, it's one of those mini rice cookers, it's so cute. See I'm not all baking powder and sugar, I cook (huge grin) too. The idea for these legs came from a mini version of wings that Brian and I had a couple days ago only I used char siu sauce which is Chinese barbeque sauce. So obviously I made steamed rice too! And since I was inspired I dug up an Asian infused cheddar sauce for broccoli I had steamed.

BBQ Chicken Legs

Ingredients

1 pack of chicken legs (the family size pack I bought came with 10 pretty hefty legs)
1 jar of char siu sauce (Chinese bbq sauce)

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Coat a deep baking dish with cooking oil, I used grape seed oil. Arrange your chicken legs, hahaha, in the baking dish, a 9 x 13 dish worked perfectly for 10 chicken legs. Bake for 25 minutes. After 25 minutes take the baking dish out, the chicken will not be done yet. In a large bowl pour the barbeque sauce and generously dip the entire legs in. You can use a pastry brush to better coat them but dipping and swishing them around works too.

Cover a large baking pan with aluminum foil (the bbq sauce can be really hard to wash so use foil or parchment paper). After the legs are covered in bbq sauce arrange them on the baking pan and bake at 325 for 10-12 minutes.

Steamed Rice

I used a tiny rice cooker, but you can use a medium sized pan I've done it that way too.
* Tip: 1/4 cup of uncooked rice will make 2 cups of cooked rice. So depending on your pan or pot calculate your measurement.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup rice
1 1/2 cups water
1 1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter

Directions:

In a medium bowl soak rice in water and drain the water, do this until the water is clear. Then in a medium sized pan place the rice, add the water and unsalted butter at low heat. Cover the pan, but let the lid out a little bit so it steam can escape. Let it steam for 15-20 minutes then turn off the heat, of course check your rice at around 10 minutes to make sure if it's steaming correctly, if you see the water really low and your rice is still not ready add 2-3 tablespoons of water. After you turn off the heat, leave the lid completely on until you're ready to serve it.

Asian Style Cheddar Sauce

Ingredients:

2 cups broccoli
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 cup milk
1 tablespoon soy sauce (dark or light, I used dark)
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil (olive oil works too)
1/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon ground pepper

Directions:
In a medium sauce pan boil 2 cups of water, once it begins to boil place broccoli and remove once it turns bright green (2-3 minutes). Remove broccoli from heat and drain all of the water immediately, this will prevent it from over cooking and turning a murky green.
In a small saucepan heat unsalted butter over medium add in flour and combine until mixture darkens slightly, 2 to 3 minutes. Add mustard, milk, soy sauce, rice vinegar, and sesame oil; simmer, until it thickens about 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in cheese until just melted; season with salt and pepper. Pour sauce over broccoli and it ready to serve.

Thank you for reading and be sure to come back again...I have cookies ;)