She Cooks and Bakes!

Herbed Eggplant Gratin with Creme Fraiche

2012-12-08T14:06:00.000-05:00

I think I've said this before, but just in case I didn't I'm in love with Pinterest. I've found so many different things on that site that it's just amazing. I've found anything from home decor ideas, to things to do with the kids, to one of my favoriate pass times....COOKING! How can you not love a site that allows you to have everything you need right at your finger tips.

About a month ago I came across this reciepe and I told myself I would have to try it because eggplant is one of the few veggies that I could get Jonathan to eat without it being WW III. All you mothers know what I'm talking about, if only they were like that when it came to sweets, but that's a whole other story.

I have to say that hey Creme Fraiche is what makes this dish. I personally recommed only using enough of the two sauces to cover the eggplant so it's not dry. Sometimes I feel that too much sauce really masks the taste of the eggplant and what's the point of eating eggplant if your not going to taste it.

This really pairs well as a side dish, with meatballs and pasta, or since eggplants are sucha harty veggie, it could even be made into a grinder. whatever way you go, you will not be disappointed.

Like always happy cooking and Baking!

Reciepe adapted from: http://farmhousetable.wordpress.com

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
2 medium to large eggplant, sliced 1/2″ thick
salt & pepper to taste
cooking spray
1 quart simple tomato sauce
3 Tbs. minced chives
3 Tbs. minced parsley
12 oz. creme fraiche
4 oz parmesan cheese, grated

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 375.
Season eggplant slices with salt and pepper.
Spray and heat a large skillet over med-high heat and fry eggplant slices in batches until golden on both sides.
Set aside while you prepare the creme fraiche.
Place creme fraiche in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat.
Let reduce until you have about 1 cup.
Then stir in half of the grated parmesan and all of the chopped herbs and set aside.

Spray a casserole dish and place eggplant inside in a single layer.
Cover with a thin layer of simple tomato sauce and a sprinkle of parmesan.

Make two more layers of eggplant and sauce, covering the top with tomato sauce.
Ladle over the reduced creme fraiche or cream and sprinkle on a final layer of parmesan cheese.

Bake uncovered until browned and bubbling, about 25-30 minutes.

Let rest briefly before serving.

Peanut Butter Icebox Pie What's Baking

2012-11-28T17:13:00.000-05:00

Here it is....my submission for What's Baking. Our host Kim wanted everyone to submit a pie, which is fitting seeing that the holidays are upon us. You might be wondering why I picked such an easy pie. Well my response is, it's the holidays, I just had a baby, and I was hosting Thanksgiving. Therefore I needed something that I wouldn't mess up. And in reading this recipe, I knew it was going to be a no fail on my end. I would encourage anyone looking for something easy to try this one, it didn't take more than 15 minutes to make and was a hit.

As you might have noticed, there is not much sugar in the filling. I was a little worried about this, but it was perfect. The Combination of with the cookie crust, caramel and peanut butter cups it is just wonderful and not overly sweet.

If you haven't heard of the Magnolia Bakery Cookbook, you have to pick up copy it's great and has a lot of things that I want to try over the next few weeks.

Also make sure to check out Kim's blog and see her round up which should be up by December 1st. http://justbakedbyme.wordpress.com/

Like always, Happy Baking!

From The Magnolia Bakery Cookbook

WHAT YOU'LL NEED

1 Pie crust
12 Ounces cream cheese, softened
3 Tablespoons sugar
1/2 Teaspoon vanilla
1 Cup heavy cream, whipped to soft peaks
1 Mini peanut butter cups, chopped
3/4 cup smooth peanut butter
1/4 Cup caramel sauce
1/4 Cup chocolate sauce
Handful of chopped mini peanut butter cups

WHAT YOU'LL HAVE TO DO:

Beat cream cheese until fluffy, 2 minutes. Add sugar gradually, then beat in peanut butter and vanilla.

Whip the heavy cream in a separate bowl, then fold gently into the cream cheese mixture.

Fold in the peanut butter cups.

Spread the caramel on the bottom of the crust, then spread the filling over the caramel and smooth the top.

Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 3 hours,

Garnish with rest of mini peanut butter cups and drizzle with chocolate sauce.

Roasted Chicken In Garlic-Ginger Soy Sauce Marinade

2012-11-18T12:23:00.002-05:00

BEFORE:

After being MIA for 3 months looks like I'm trying to make up for lost time. I'm now working on my second post of the day. Well maybe I should say that this is a half recipe as I posted the Marinade earlier today. =)

As my readers know, I love spices, and love to play with them when it comes to making marinades. With that said, this marinade has become my go to recipe due to me having avoid certain foods while breast feeding. No one likes a gassy fussy baby!

I love the favor that this marinade gives the chicken and how easy it is to put together. I tend to use this marinade over night so that my meat comes out favor packed. It could also me used on days that you're lookig to put something together, just marinade for 30 minutes and then bake in marinade.

AFTER:

Hope you all enjoy this as much as my family and I have. Happy cooking and baking!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1/2 cup soy sauce (i use low sodium)
8 cloves garlic, grated,
1 teaspoon of grated ginger
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
2 bone in chicken breasts

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:
Take chicken breast apply black pepper and set aside while perparing marinade.
Wisk together soy sauce, garlic, ginger, and olive oil.
Once marinade has come together, drizzle over chicken breast and make sure to turn it until well coated.
Place is frige for at least 30 minutes, or overnight.
Bake at 400 until fully cooked.

Garlic-Ginger Soy Sauce Marinade

2012-11-18T11:35:00.002-05:00

Wow! I can not believe that it's been 3 months since my last "real" food post. Life has been a worldwind, between the promotion at work, having an active 4 year old, and now a newborn, seems like I don't have enough time for anything.

In my head I was telling myself that while home on maternity leave I would have all this time to blog all the new recipes that I would be trying. Boy was I WRONG! While yes, I've been trying new things and taking pictures as I go, I haven't had the time to sit down and blog them. Seems like I'm always getting pulled somewhere else.

Well today I'm home alone with Miss. Emilie so while she naps, mommy is going to try to get a few posts done. Since naps tend to run short in this house, I going to start with a new marinade.

This marinade works with everything from beef, to chicken, even to fish. This is truly a must try marinade. I promise you will not be disappointed. I've tried it on T-bones and today I'm trying it on chicken breasts that I'm roasting for lunch. Can't wait to dig in as it's smelling so good!

Like always happy cookig and baking!

Recipe source: http://www.finecooking.com/recipes

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
1/2 cup of soy sauce
8 cloves garlic, grated
1 tespoon of grated ginger
1/4 cup olive oil

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:
Wisk everything together untill well combiened.
Pour over desired protein.
Let marinade for at least 30 minutes, for best results let marinade over night.

So...What I've Been Baking Up?

2012-10-31T16:04:00.000-04:00

So for this month's What's Baking Challenge Eva from evabakes.blogspot.com, wanted everyone to bake somthing with either sweet potatoes or pumpkin. Unfortunately, I was unable to get my post written up in time for this month's and feel that I should share with you all what's been consuming all my time, and what's I've been taking over my life...that's right! Let me introduce you all to my little pumpkin!

As many of you knew I was expecting my second child this Fall. Emilie Katherine was born on October 3th at 10:53am via c-section weighing in at 6Lbs,14Ozs and 19.5 inches long. Everything went smoothly, and she's healthy. I just trying to adjust to being a mother of 2 while still doing everything else.

I've been cooking and baking up a storm and taking pictures. The only thing is I need to master...finding the time to blog what I've made. So stay tooned as I plan on posting my pumpkin pull apart bread over the next few days, but in the mean time I'll leave you all with a couple of picutres of Jonathan (4 years old) drooling all over his sister. Like always Happy baking to all!

Strawberry Muffins

2012-07-31T06:00:00.000-04:00

This month's Jaida wanted the what's baking challange to be baking with Summer Fruits. So what did I pick....that's right Strawberry Muffins. Two of my favorite things combined to make the best morning breakfast. I was so tired of the usual coffeecake, and blueberry muffin that I wanted to try something new and luckily enough I still have a some berries that really needed to get used up.

Needless to say this was an amazing recipe and can't wait to try it wimake it again.

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

1 1/2 cups finely chopped fresh strawberries (frozen one work well too)
1/2 cup white sugar
1/4 cup of white sugar (use in second part of recipe)
1/4 cup butter, softened (either unsalted or salted)
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO DO:

In a small bowl, combine the strawberries and 1/2 cup sugar. Set aside for 1 hour.

After an hour Drain, reserving liquid and berries separately.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line 12 cup muffin tin with paper liners.

In a medium bowl, cream together the butter and 1/4 cup sugar until light and fluffy.

Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla.

Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and nutmeg; stir into the creamed mixture alternately with the juice from the berries.

Gently stir in the berries. Spoon batter into the prepared muffin cups.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the tops spring back when lightly touched. Cool in the pan on a wire rack.

Nutritional Information for each muffin...Calories 168, Fat 4.9g, Cholesterol 46mg

Homemade Cranberry Apple Granola

2012-05-28T16:26:00.000-04:00

So for this month's What's Baking Challenge Ammie from my adventuresinmykitchen wanted everyone to bake with Spring Produce. Unfortunately, my visit over the past few weeks to my local farmer's market have been few and very far in between.

Besides the fact that I am now 22 weeks pregnant, I've also taken on a promotion with work, which has has me doing a lot of traveling over the past few weeks. So of course I wanted to make sure I had a few healthy treats at home while I'm away.

One thing that I know everyone in our home likes is granola. So I baked up another batch before I hit the road yet again this week. Good news is after this week I'll be home for at least the 3-4 weeks!

I Know that cranberries, and apples aren't spring time goods, but at least I could say that I got my apples at the farmer's market that Opened up again this month. =)I'm sure that Ammie will allow me to get away with it...this time.

I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I do. Like always happy cooking and baking!

Recipe source: Giada De Laurentis

WHAT YOU'LL NEED: 1/3 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
Nonstick cooking spray
1/3 cup maple syrup
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup unsweetened cranberry juice
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup sliced almonds
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 cup dehydrated cranberries
1 cup dehydrated apples

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds on a baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes until lightly toasted.

Set aside to cool.

Reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees F.

Spray a baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray. Set aside.

In a small saucepan, combine the maple syrup, brown sugar, cranberry juice, and cinnamon over medium heat.

Cook, stirring constantly, until the sugar has dissolved.

In a medium bowl, mix together the oats, almonds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and salt.

Pour the maple mixture over the oat mixture and stir until combined.

Spread the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Remove the baking sheet from the oven.

Stir in the cranberries and apples, and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes until the mixture begins to brown.

Cool completely and break apart any large lumps.

Store airtight in a plastic container for up to 1 week.

Sourdough Bread (What's Baking)

2012-04-21T18:00:00.000-04:00

I have to apologize for the fact that I've been MIA. Between being pregnant, and then having a sick child, then a sick husband, and then a sick child again. life seems to have gotten away for my. But just because I didn't post during that time frame doesn't mean I haven't been cooking and baking up a storm. Stay tone for a bunch of blog updates over the next few weeks.

In the meantime, let me start with this month's what baking challenge. This month Lindsay from http://peaceloveandfrenchfries.com/ is our host. Lindsay challenged everyone to bake with YEAST. Yes, yeast I'll admit I've baked with yeast before, but it still intimidates me at times, I don't know why, but it just does.

Lucky for me this time around I had another success! Please make sure to check out Lindsay's blog at the end of the month for a full roundup of what everyone submitted this time around.

Like always...Happy baking!

Recipe source: Allrecipes.com

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
3 1/2 cups warm water (110 degrees F to 115 degrees F), divided
7 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 cup nonfat dry milk powder
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
Cornmeal
WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:
In a 4-qt. non-metallic bowl, dissolve yeast in 2 cups warm water and let stand for 5 minutes.

Stir in 2 cups of flour until smooth, once combined cover loosely with a clean towel.

Let stand in a warm place (80 degrees F-90 degrees F) to ferment for 48 hours during this period stir several times daily.

The mixture will become bubbly and rise, have a "yeasty" sour aroma and a transparent yellow liquid will form on the top.

Stir in milk powder, butter, sugar, salt, remaining water and enough remaining flour to form a soft dough.

Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours.

Turn onto a floured surface; punch dough down.

Divide in half. Shape each into a round loaf.

Heavily grease a two loaf pans, and sprinkle with cornmeal.

Place dough on prepared pans, cover and allow it rise until doubled. This should take about 30 minutes.

With a sharp knife, make slashes down the middle of each loaf.

Bake at 350 degrees F for 10 minutes.

Brush loaves with cold water; bake 35-40 minutes longer or until golden brown.

Sriracha Chicken

2012-04-21T10:00:00.000-04:00

If I could, I would make chicken every day, but that can't happen due to the simple truth that i'm marry to a man that craves variety. =) With that said I still tend to make chicken one a week, and I'm always looking for a new recipe to try. So when I came across this recipe on Pinterest, I just knew I had to try it.

My family enjoyed it every much and it's become one of my husband favorites, so for him to request it, you know it had to be good. I hope you all enjoy this as muchas my family did.
Recipe source Pinterest Feb 2012...(I wish I had saved the link to link it back to, but when I made it I unpinned if from my to try recipes. If I come across the link, I'll make sure to link it back. Sorry!
Like always...Happy Cooking!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

4 Boneless, skinless chicken breast
1/2 cup of plain yogurt
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
2 tbsp Sriracha
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

In a medium bowl, whisk together yogurt, olive oil, lemon juice, rosemary, Sriracha, garlic, salt and pepper.

Place chicken in a large ziploc bag and pour marinade over.

Turn bag over several times to coat chicken. Place in refrigerator and let marinate for at least one hour.

Preheat oven to 375F.

Arrange chicken in a single layer in a baking dish or broiler pan.

Spread any marinade remaining in the bag over chicken.

Bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Then broil on high for 4 minutes, until skin is crispy and golden brown.

What's Baking Challenge Roundup! Baking with Valentine's Colors

2012-03-02T00:00:00.018-05:00

YA-HOOOOOOO! it's finally my turn to host this month's What's Baking Challenge! I got so many wonderful submission and I can't wait to try them all. Here what everyone baked up for February's baking with Valentine's Colors. Next month's theme is Baking St. Patrick Day treats, which will be hosted by Yudith from http://www.blissfullydelicious.com. Make sure to check back for next months goodies!

And now what you've all been waiting for the roundup! =)

Jen From www.beantownbaker.com submitted these amazing looking Cherry M&M Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

http://www.beantownbaker.com/2012/02/cherry-m-chocolate-chip-oatmeal-cookies.html

Melissa and her daughter Bella from iwasborntocook.blogspot.com baked up some really cute Valentine's day crayons for Bella's classmates. I can't wait to make this next year with Jonathan! Thanks for sharing Melissa.

http://iwasborntocook.blogspot.com/2012/02/happy-valentines-day-whats-baking.html

Ammie form arkitchenadventures.blogspot.com and I were on the same page this month, while I baked cupcakes,Ammie produced this beautiful red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting!

http://arkitchenadventures.blogspot.com/2012/02/whats-baking-red-velvet-cake-with-cream.html

Jaida from sweetsbeginning.blogspot.com shared with us her heart shaped chocolate raspberry cheesecakes. What a creative was to link it to this month's theme.

http://sweetsbeginning.blogspot.com/2012/02/whats-baking-chocolate-raspberry.html

Carrie from carriessweetlife.com while sick on and off the month of February was still able to baked some really cute Heart shaped Black and White cookies!

http://www.carriessweetlife.com/black-white-heart-cookies/

Yudith from http://www.blissfullydelicious.com shared her version of frosted sugar cookie bars, they look so cute I might have to make them for an upcoming baby shower next month. Thanks Judith

http://www.blissfullydelicious.com/2012/02/frosted-sugar-cookie-bars/

Amanda from ouritaliankitchen.blogspot.com shared her take on a yummy brownie and strawberry trifle

http://ouritaliankitchen.blogspot.com/2012/02/brownie-strawberry-trifle.html

Lindsey peaceloveandfrenchfries.com made cute soft sugar cookies with pink frosting! Perfect timing as I was looking for a new sugar cookie recipe!

http://peaceloveandfrenchfries.com/2012/02/23/soft-frosted-sugar-cookies/

Catherine from wamozart12cooks.blogspot.com baked up some really yummy looking pink grapefruit cupcakes, what a great use of Valentine's Colors.

http://wamozart12cooks.blogspot.com/2012/02/whats-baking-february-valentines-day.html

Nicole from seven8ninebakes.blogspot.com got me excited for her cranberry vanilla chip biscotti! I can't wait to bake up a batch and send them to my father as this is one of his favorite treats paired with his daily espresso.

http://seven8ninebakes.blogspot.com/2012/02/cranberry-vanilla-chip-biscotti.html

Cara from www.theboysmademedoit.com shared frosted sugar cookies which was on her 30 by 30 list. Great job Cara another thing off your list!

http://www.theboysmademedoit.com/2012/02/will-you-be-my-valentine-30-by-30-sugar.html

Heather from http://hezzi-dsbooksandcooks.blogspot.com shared with us her Brown Sugar Blondies made with one of my favorite candies M&M.

http://hezzi-dsbooksandcooks.blogspot.com/2012/02/brown-sugar-blondies-for-valentines-day.html

While Angela from http://tinytyrantskitchen.blogspot.com had trouble with her Valentine's Day treat, she was still able to submit a recipe for Spicy Chocolate Cupcakes.

http://tinytyrantskitchen.blogspot.com/2012/02/spicy-chocolate-cupcakes.html

Jill from http://jbeancuisine.com submitted a roasted beet Risotto...while it wasn't baked, it surely fit the Valentine color theme!

http://jbeancuisine.com/2012/02/20/roasted-beet-risotto-with-goat-cheese/

And last just surely not least! Lindsey from ourshareoftheharvest.com Shared her recipe for chocolate whoopie pies with a strawberry filling! OMG! This is without a doubt the recipe I will use once I'm ready to tackle this in the kitchen.

http://ourshareoftheharvest.com/2012/02/13/whats-baking-chocolate-whoopie-pies-with-strawberry-filling/

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Vanilla Bean Frosting

2012-02-14T07:00:00.003-05:00

I am so excited...why you might ask, well it's because I'm the host of this month's "what's baking challenge! And seeing that it's Valentine's time again, I wanted to try a new cupcake recipe so I figured why not make a red velvet cupcake to stay with the holiday color theme.

Since Valentine's day lands on a night that I have to work later, I decided that we would celebrate the weekend before. This year I asked my three year old what he wanted to dessert and his response was "I want cupcakes!" Seeing that it was Jonathan's Valentine's Day Dinner as well, how could I say no.

I couldn't have been happier with the way the cupcakes turned out and I can not wait to make them again. Please make sure to come back and check out my what's baking round up and I've already gotten some amazing submission.

Like always happy baking!

Source for Cupcake Paula Deen
Source for Vanilla Bean Frosting http://www.browneyedbaker.com

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
2 large eggs, room temperature
2 tablespoons red food coloring
1 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

WHAT YOU'LL NEED FOR THE FROSTING:

2½ sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 vanilla bean, halved lengthwise
2½ cups confectioners’ sugar (10 ounces)
Pinch salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 Tablespoons heavy cream

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line muffin pans with cupcake papers.

In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the flour, sugar, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder.

In another bowl gently beat together the oil, buttermilk, eggs, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla in stand mixer.

Add the sifted dry ingredients to the wet and mix until smooth and thoroughly combined.

Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake tins about 2/3 filled.

Bake in oven for about 20 minutes, turning the pans once, half way through.

Test the cupcakes with a toothpick for doneness.

Remove from oven and cool completely before frosting.

While the cupcakes cool start making your vanilla bean frosting.

In your stand mixer whisk butter at medium-high speed until smooth.

With the edge of a knife, scrape seeds from vanilla bean into butter and beat mixture at medium-high speed to combine, about 15 seconds.

Once incorporated, add confectioners’ sugar and salt; beat at medium-low speed until most of the sugar is moiste.

Scrape down the bowl and beat at medium speed until mixture is fully incorporated, continue scraping the bowl, add vanilla and heavy cream, and beat at medium speed.

Once everything has come together, increase speed to medium-high and beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes, scraping down bowl once or twice.

Once cupcakes are completely cooled, frost cupcakes and Garnish with raspberry, strawberries or even red candies.

Like always, Happy Baking!

Skillet Rosemary Chicken

2012-02-13T07:00:00.001-05:00

Have I told you all how much I love Pinterest? Well if I haven't let it be known that It's my new love. I love that fact that I'm able to "pin" (book mark) just about anything and I can come back to it at a later date.

I think that over the past 3-4 months most of my pins have been either decor or food related. Which for me is great because I love the fact that I could get meal ideas from other people. I think that it's so great that I could look at someone's else recipe and it can inspire me to make something new when I find myself in a food funk!

This such a great dish and has made it's way into our meal rotation. If you're looking for sides to go with this, it pairs well with roasted potatoes and a side of veggie such as mushrooms, or green beans. I hope you all enjoy this as much we did.

Like always happy cooking!

Adapted from chimeraobscura.com

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

2-3 Sprigs fresh rosemary, plus 1 1/2 tablespoons leaves
2 Cloves garlic, minced
Red pepper flakes to taste
Salt and pepper to taste
Juice of 2 lemons (squeezed halves reserved)
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 skin-on, chicken thighs
1/8 Cup of chicken stock
1 Cup of plum tomatoes

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO

Preheat the oven to 450.

Using rosemary leaves, garlic, salt and the red pepper flakes and mash ingredients together to make a paste.

Transfer the paste to a bowl. Stir in the juice of 1 lemon and the olive oil. Add the chicken and turn to coat, and let chicken marinate over night.

30 minutes before starting your meal, take chicken out of frig and set aside.

Heat a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.

Add the chicken, skin-side down, and cook until the skin browns.

Once chicken has browned, drizzle chicken with any marinade remaining in the bowl and the juice of the remaining lemon.

Add the rosemary sprigs, chicken stock, tomatoes, and the squeezed lemon halves to the skillet.

Transfer to the oven and roast, uncovered, until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is crisp, 20 to 25 minutes.

Twix Bars

2012-01-28T20:09:00.012-05:00

I admit it, I'm addicted to Pinterest! I love the fact that I'm able to pin anything and everything thing that I like and or would like to try. I came across this recipe for homemade twix bars about 2 months ago, and I knew that I had to try them. Only thing is I just needed the right time to make them. Lucky for me the right time just happened to be when I needed something for my What's Baking submission this month.

Mellisa from iwasborntocook.blogspot.com pick this month's theme as "YOUR FAVORITE SNOWY DAY TREAT". Last weekend we had a snow storm which dumped about 8 inches of snow on the ground. As you can see from the picture above, I wasn't going anywhere in this weather, which gave me the perfect opportunity to try this recipe. Thanks Melissa for hosting this month and I can't wait to see everyone submission for February, as I'll be hosting!

This recipe does take a while from start to finish, but it was so worth it! I even ended up make a second batch because they were just that good. My family and I loved them so much that they disappeared within a matter of a few days.

I hope that you all enjoy them as much as we did. Like always happy baking.

Recipe source: King Arthur Flour

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

Shortbread layer

1 cup salted butter, at room temperature
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups of Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

Caramel layer

2 cups caramel, cut into small chunks
3 tablespoons heavy cream

Chocolate layer

3 cups chopped milk chocolate or dark chocolate, melted
1 tablespoon vegetable shortening (optional)

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat your oven to 300°F. Spray a 9" x 13" pan lightly with cooking spray, and line with parchment paper, and set aside.
FOR THE COOKIE LAYER:

In a stand mixer, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla.

Add the flour.

The mixture may seem dry, but will come together as you continue to beat at medium speed.

Once combined take the dough and press it evenly into the pan.

Prick the crust all over with a fork. The holes will allow steam to escape and the crust will bake evenly with fewer bubbles.

Bake the crust until it's lightly golden brown on top and the edges are deeper golden brown, about 35 to 45 minutes.

Remove from the oven and immediately run a knife around the edges to loosen the crust.

Set it aside to cool completely.

FOR THE CARAMEL LAYER:

Melt the caramel and cream over low heat in a small saucepan.

Pour the caramel over the cooled crust and put it in your freezer while you prep the chocolate layer as it makes it easier to cut the into bars once it's harden up.

FOR THE CHOCOLATE LAYER:

Melt the milk chocolate slowly in a double boiler.

If it seems very thick, add a tablespoon of shortening to thin it.

Once melted take off the heat and set aside while you cut the cookie/carmel layer.

After the caramel layer has chilled firm, cut down the length of the pan, splitting the bars into two long, narrow bars.

Then cut each long strip into "fingers".

Dip the chilled bars into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to set for several hours.

Pour yourself a tall glass of milk and enjoy!

Mini Carrot Cakes

2012-01-27T07:58:00.000-05:00

One of my husband's favorite cakes is carrot cake. So when I bake him any type of sweet, I tend to find myself going to a carrot cake or his second favorite, apple cake. He would much rather have a piece of cake over something as sweet as a brownie or ice cream.

Seeing as my husband was on call this during Chinese New Years my in-laws came up and did all the cooking. Since wanted to do all the cooking I decided that I would bake something for dessert. The down side was because they were doing all the cooking, I was in a time crunch and couldn't spend an hour to baking the cake so I decided that I would use this recipe and just bake mini cakes. I have to say that the mini carrot cakes were a huge hit. Not only were the cute, but they also were the perfect size.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

6oz Unsalted butter
1 egg at room temperature
1 Tablespoon of water
2 Cups of grated carrots http://tipnut.com/recipes-canning/
1/2 Cup of flour
1 Teaspoon of baking soda
1 Teaspoon of Baking powder
2 Tablespoon of cinnamon
1 Teaspoon of pumpkin spice
1/2 Teaspoon of salt
1 Teaspoon of Vanilla

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease muffin tin and set aside

In stand mixed, cream the butter, vanilla, and sugar until light and fluffy.

Beat in the egg and water.

Add in carrots, once combined, add in flour, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, pumpkin spice, and salt.

Once combined, spoon in the mixture to prepared muffin tin.

Fill to top....as the carrot cakes do not lift a lot.

Bake until the tops spring back when touched lightly for about 35 minutes.

Let stand for 10 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

Once cool frost with your favorite cream cheese frosting.

Low- fat Mocha Coffee Chocolate Chip Muffins

2012-01-23T08:00:00.006-05:00

I don't know about you, but I can not start the day without a cup of coffee. Unfortunately some morning I have to skip that fresh brewed cup of coffee, because I spent an extra 30 minutes trying to get my 3 year old out the door in the morning. You parents know what I'm talking about =)So sometimes our morning start with a grab and go. Well this this grab and go muffin, not only do I get that coffee flavor, but I also get a healthy start to the morning.

We are very big on breakfast,and because of that I'm always looking for something to make on Sundays for the following work week. It has to be easy and something that we can eat on the move. Therefore each week it's either a new twist on pancakes, french toast, croissants, and of course this week's breakfast is MUFFINS!

I have to say that this is such a great recipe and I know it's going to be one that I turn to for years to come. These muffins are so good that half the batch was gone the same day I baked them. I hope you all enjoy it as much as we have.

Recipe: Adapted from Cooking Light Jan 2012 issue

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

2/3 Cup of 1% milk
4oz of melted butter
1/4 Cup of black coffee
2 Teaspoons of vanilla
1 Egg
2 1/4 Cups of AP flour
2/3 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup Chocolate Chips
2 Teaspoons of baking powder
1 Teaspoon of baking soda
1/4 Teaspoon of salt

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine the first five ingredients in stand mixer.

Add sugar and then spoon in Flour into wet mixture until combined.

Add baking powder, baking soda, and salt and beat until combined.

Fold in chocolate chips until just combined.

Spoon batter into greased muffin pan and bake at 400 degrees for about 18-20 minutes, until done.

Remove muffins from pan and let cool on wire rack.

Calories 160, Fat 5.9g Protein 3.6g, Carbs 28g, Fiber 1g,

Tyler Floreance's Chicken Marsala with Mashed Potatoes

2011-12-20T08:00:00.001-05:00

By now you all know of my secret love for Tyler Florance. I swear if he were to cook for me my butt would be 2-3 time bigger. Over the passed 3 years I've have tried many of his recipes and I've always been impressed. This time around he has taken it all to a new level. This chicken Marsala recipe is so good and I was amazed on how good it turned out, just when you think it can't better it really does.

The only added a half cup of cream, to make it a little thicker and smooth it. Another thing I did was double the ingredients to make the sauce, this because I knew I wanted to pair it up with mashed potatoes and I would like to have extra sauce. I'm happy that I did that because even having had doubled the sauce...it was just enough. So this recipe has been modified just in the liquid portions.

I highly recommend this recipe, my husband who loved chicken Marsala states that this was the best he has ever had!

SOURCE OF RECIPE: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chicken-marsala-recipe/index.html

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

4 chicken breasts cut into thin cutlets (about 1 1/2 pounds)
AP flour, for dredging
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 ounces prosciutto, thinly sliced
8 ounces mushrooms, stemmed and halved
1 cup sweet Marsala wine
1 cup chicken stock
3 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cream

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Cut chicken breasts into thin cutlets about 1/4-inch thick.

Put some flour in a shallow platter and season with a fair amount of salt and pepper.

Heat the oil over medium-high flame in a large skillet.

When the oil is nice and hot, dredge both sides of the chicken cutlets in the seasoned flour, and shake off the excess.

Put cutlets into the pan and fry for 5 minutes on each side until golden.

To avoid over crowding, do this in batches if the pieces to insure even cooking.

Once chicken is done transfer to a platter and keep them warm.

Lower the heat to medium and add the prosciutto to the drippings in the pan, saute for 1 minute to render out some of the fat.

Then add the mushrooms and saute until they are nicely browned and their moisture has evaporated.

Pour the Marsala in the pan and boil down for a few seconds to cook out the alcohol.

Add the chicken stock and simmer for a minute to reduce the sauce slightly.

Stir in the butter, cream and then return the chicken to the pan.

Simmer for 1 minute to heat the chicken through.

Serve over pasta or mashed potatoes.

Italian Sausage with Broccoli Rabe and Pasta

2011-12-17T17:19:00.000-05:00

Is it just me, our does everyone fall into a food rut every once in awhile? I love food and trying new dishes. This that said...working long days, and then coming home to a three year year old, sometimes is easier to go to your staple recipes. You know what I'm talking about... the recipes that you don't need to think about it, you just go into auto pilot and before you know it dinner is served.

Yeah, I too am guilty of this, more so when winter rolls around because it get darker earlier, and I associate darker with later, which means make something fast. Now that the holiday are right around the corner I came up with the idea of keeping a food log. This is where I write what plan on making each day, giving me the opportunity add something new into the rotation. This has helped me a lot and I've worked it out so that on nights that I know I'll be coming home early, I plan on trying something new. And tonight was one of those nights...here is my spin on the traditional sausage and broccoli.

Hope you enjoy! And like always, Happy Cooking!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1 package of whole wheat pasta
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 pound bulk Sweet Italian sausage (I like to use a turkey sausage)
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups chicken broth
1 cup of white wine
1/8 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 bunch broccoli rabe, trimmed
1/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 tablespoon of sugar

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil over high heat.

Add in pasta, and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes, once done drain pasta.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

Stir in the sausage until crumbly and no longer pink, this will take about 5 minutes.

Stir in the garlic, and continue cooking until the sausage begins to brown, for another 5 minutes.

Pour off the excess grease, then add chicken broth, white wine, and red pepper flakes.

Bring to a boil over high heat, then add the broccoli rabe, and cover. Cook until the broccoli rabe almost done about 2 minutes.

When the broccoli rabe almost done, stir in the butter, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper, a sugar until sauce has thickened.

Add everything in with the pasta and and serve hot.

Crusty French Boules (Cooking Light)

2011-11-30T08:00:00.000-05:00

I have to say that this month's Cooking Light magazine was the best issue yet this year. It had a ton of great recipes that I can't wait to try. One of the best things I found was the French Boules recipe. OK, I know what your thinking..."it can't possibly taste like the real thing!" Well your right it doesn't taste like the "real thing"...it's even better! I kid you not when I say, that this loaf of bread disappears within a matter of a day in my house. My husband who isn't big on bread will take a huge slice, toast it, slap some butter and eats it as a snack.

I think that one of the best things about this bread is that while the crust is crisp and hearty, the inside is light and flavorful. The only down falls is that it takes a few days to prepare. However it truly is well worth the time. I've made this recipe 3 times already and it has now become my go to bread recipe.

If you do try this recipe I would love to here your input, and I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I have. Like always happy baking!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

For the Pâte fermentée:
1 1/4 cups of AP flour, divided
1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
Cooking spray

For the dough:
3/4 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
2 cups of AP flour
2/3 cup bread flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon cornmeal

WHAT YOU WILL NEED TO DO:

Prepare the pâte fermentée, by weighing 1 cup of AP flour into a dry measuring cup, and level with a knife. Combine flour, 1/2 teaspoon yeast, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment.

Add 1/2 cup warm water, and beat at low speed until mixture is thoroughly combined.

Add enough of the remaining 4 tablespoons flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until dough just begins to pull away from sides of bowl.

Increase mixer speed to medium, and beat for 2 minutes.

Place dough in a small bowl coated with cooking spray.

Place a piece of plastic wrap coated with cooking spray directly on dough. Refrigerate 48 hours or up to 3 days.

Once you're ready to bake your bread, remove pâte fermentée from refrigerator; let stand at room temperature 30 minutes.

Next prepare the dough, by placing 3/4 cup warm water in the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attached, and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon yeast.

Let mixture stand for 5 minutes or until bubbles form.

Add pâte fermentée to yeast mixture; let stand 10 minutes.

Spoon 2 cups flour, 2/3 cup of bread flour, and 1 teaspoon salt to bowl; beat at low speed until flour is incorporated.

Increase mixer to medium speed, and beat for 6 minutes. Dough will form a ball.

Place the dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray; lightly coat dough with cooking spray.

Cover with plastic wrap, and let stand in a warm, dry place, free from drafts, for 1 1/2 hours or until doubled in size.

Punch dough down, and divide into 2 equal portions.

Knead each portion for 1 minute. Shape each dough portion into a 5-inch round by pulling the sides down, pinching and tucking them under the bottom center of dough, forming a smooth, taut surface on the top.

Place dough rounds on a baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Lightly coat surface of dough with cooking spray.

Cover and let rise 1 hour and 15 minutes or until doubled in size.

Place a small ovenproof saucepan with 3 inches of water directly on the floor of oven. Preheat oven to 450°.

Uncover dough. Spray dough lightly with water. Make 4 (4-inch) cuts 1/4 inch deep in dough to form a grid across top of each loaf using a sharp knife.

Bake at 450° for 10 minutes.

Remove water pan from oven.

Bake an additional 15 minutes or until bread is golden brown and sounds hollow when bottom is tapped.

Cool on a wire rack. Cut each boule, crosswise, into 12 slices.

Recipe source Cooking Light NOVEMBER 2011

Serves 24 (1 slice) Calories 82, Fat 0.3 Protein 2.5g CARB 17G, Fiber 0.6g

Skinny Mini Oreo Cheesecakes!

2011-11-26T10:45:00.009-05:00

It's that time of the month again, and that means that it's time to get our What's Baking entries in! This month Jessica from http://www.thejeyofcooking.com decided that this month's challenge would be "Something Savory" and to be honest, I really had a hard time with this one. Not because it couldn't come up with something, but more so because when I went to buy the ingredients either I couldn't find what I was looking for, or the product seemed to be below par.

The fact that I've been consumed with work and the holidays didn't help matters either. My mind was going a million miles an hour that I couldn't tell you how many things I baked/cooked that I could have used for this What's Baking Challenge. The sad thing is when I did realize it, we were almost done with our meals or I had already cut into the baked goods without taking a picture.

Lucky for me, my husband and I were hosting Thanksgiving, and in his opinion, not having cheesecake at a holiday party is like having Thanksgiving without turkey!
This year I took my skinny mini cheesecakes and changed them up a little, just to do something a little different while still trying to keep things lighter. The great thing about this recipe is that you get that wonderful cheesecake flavor and each cheesecake and each is just under 90 calories. How can you go wrong with that! Do you know how many calories are in a piece of cheesecake at the cheesecake factory?

All I am going to say is even if you had all 12 mini cheesecakes you would still have consumed less calories then you would in one slice from the cheesecake factory! I have always been big on finding ways of eating everything without the guilt. It's so true, you really don't have to give up all foods to maintain weight, you just have to use the right ingredients, and of course have everything in moderation.

Recipe adapted from The most decadent diet cookbook

WHAT YOU WILL NEED:

Butter flavored cooking spray
12 reduced fat chocolate wafers cookies
8-10 Oreos finely crumbled in the food processor to mix into your batter
12oz of fat free cream cheese at room temp
1/3 cup of sugar
2 tablespoons fat free vanilla yogurt
1.5 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon unbleached all purpose flour
2 large egg whites

WHAT TO DO:

Preheat oven to 300

line 10 cups of a standard muffin tin with cupcake liners.

Lightly mist them with cooking spray

Place one wafer in the bottom center of each cup, flat side down.

In food processor added or Oreos and grind until fine.

Now in your mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar on medium until well combined. Add yogurt, vanilla, and flour and mix on low until just combined.

Fold in Oreo and set aside.

In another bowl whisk together egg whites until soft peeks form.

Use spatula and gently fold the eggs into the cream cheese until mixture is just combined. (You don't want to over mix)

Divide the mixture among the muffin tins.

they will puff up and the tops will crack once the are baked.

Transfer cheesecakes to cooling rack and cool at room temp. Refrigerate for at least 5 hours.

I hope you enjoy this as much as my family does.

1 Cheesecake has 90 calories, 6g protein, 17g carbohydrates, 1g fat.

Creme Brulee

2011-11-13T08:32:00.003-05:00

The past few months I feel like all I've been doing is working, working, working. Which means that dinner in our home has been very basic. Not that basic meals are a bad thing, it's just that I found myself making the same things each week.

This weekend I was thinking about it, and I really feel like my husband and son haven't had anything special in a long time. So I decided to hold off on my original recipe for the What's Baking Challenge, and I was determined to make them something new. The plan was to make something healthy and that was a little more time consuming, and was a recipe that I knew I could not make on a weekend after working a 10hr day.

Therefore, Saturday night I made a beautiful piece of grilled salmon, with a side broccoli risotto, and for dessert you guessed it I made CREME BRULEE for the first time.

And if you haven't guessed it....it was delicious!!! The Brulees had a perfect smooth creamy texture and a nice crisp sugar topping. Both my son and Husband were very pleased and since my husband has asked when I was going to make it again. Therefore I plan on making it for Thanksgiving this year.

I hope you all enjoy it as much as we did and like always...Happy Baking!

Recipe source: Allrecipes.com

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

6 egg yolks
6 tablespoons white sugar, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 1/2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons brown sugar

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F

Beat egg yolks, 4 tablespoons sugar and vanilla in a mixer until thick and creamy.

In a saucepan heat cream over low heat until it almost comes to boil.

Remove the cream from heat immediately.

Take a cup of the cram and stir into the egg yolk mixture; to make sure that it tempered before adding it to the reminder of the cream, stir until combined.

Pour cream mixture into the top of a double boiler.

Stir over simmering water until mixture lightly coats the back of a spoon; this will take about 3 minutes.

Remove mixture from heat immediately and pour into a shallow heat-proof dish.

Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature.

Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, or overnight.

Before serving Preheat oven to broil.

In a small bowl combine remaining 2 tablespoons white sugar and brown sugar.

Sift this mixture evenly over custard. Place dish under broiler until sugar melts, about 2 minutes, make sure to keep a watchful eye so doesn't burn.

Remove from heat and allow to cool. Refrigerate until custard is set again.

Tapioca Pudding

2011-09-27T08:38:00.008-04:00

This month's what's baking challenge had me super excited. I planned on baking one of my family's favorite desserts, however I had to pick our second favorite due to the it being so humid lately. The humidity doesn't help for the Portuguese cookies I had in mind, so my second thought was to make a nice tapioca pudding, this month and then bake the cookies next month.

A little secret about this recipe is it's so easy and so basic, that anyone could make this. Over the years my mother has adapted this recipe so that the pudding is extra creamy. One of the things she has done is use half whole milk, and half skim milk. By doing this she was able to cut back on the fat and calories. Something else she did was add more milk to achieve a creamier texture which has been a great hit in our house. I hope you all enjoy this recipe as much as my brother and I have when we were growing up. Like always Happy Baking!

Recipe Source my mom

***TIP*** Some small pearl tapioca requires a few hours to an overnight soaking in water. Make sure that when you buy your tapioca pearls that you read the package to see if it's an instant tapioca, or what the soaking requirements are.

WHAT YOU'LL
1 cup of small pearl tapioca (Make sure that they have soaked)
4 cups whole milk
3 cups skim milk (you could use all whole milk if you like, we use skim to cut back on the fat and calories)
1/4 teaspoon salt
4 eggs beaten
3/4 cup of sugar
1 and 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla
1 tablespoon of cinnamon

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

After soaking the tapioca, combine tapioca, milk, and salt in 1 1/2 quart pan on medium high heat.

Stir until boiling and then let simmer for about 5 minutes.

Uncovered and allow it to cook at the lowest possible heat, adding sugar gradually.

Beat eggs in a separate bowl.

Mix in some of the hot tapioca into the eggs very slowly to equalize the temperature of the two mixtures by doing this you will avoid curdling.

Mix eggs mixture in pan with the rest of tapioca.

Slowly bring mixture barely to a boil, stirring constantly.

Reduce heat and stir several minutes at a low simmer, stirring constantly until you get a nice thick pudding consistency.

Once thick add vanilla and cinnamon and continue to stir until well combined.

Pour into serving dish and serve either warm or chilled.

Sweet Potato and Pecan Pancakes

2011-09-07T09:04:00.002-04:00

I can not tell you how excited I was when I found this recipe. As you all know, I'm always looking for ways to get Jonathan to eat more veggies, and I could not tell you when the last time he eat pancakes...that is until now! Mashing up a sweet potato and adding it into this pancake mix is the perfect way to ensure that he gets an added severing of veggies.

My husband stated that this recipe was really good and in his own words "savory" Jonathan stated that they were "yummy, yummy for his tummy" Which makes this mommy, very happy! Drizzle with maple syrup and butter, or serve with a side of fresh fruit.

Happy eating!

Recipe adapted: Cooking Light 2006

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup chopped pecans, toasted
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup fat-free milk
1 cup mashed cooked sweet potato
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks
2 large egg whites, lightly beaten
Cooking spray

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Add AP flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife.

Combine the next 4 ingredients (through cinnamon) in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.

Combine milk, sweet potato, sugar, oil, vanilla, and egg yolks, stirring until smooth; and then add to flour mixture, stirring just until combined.

Beat egg whites with a mixer at high speed until soft peaks form; fold egg whites into batter. Let batter stand 10 minutes.

Heat a nonstick griddle or nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.

Coat griddle or pan with cooking spray.

Spoon about 1/4 cup batter per pancake onto griddle or pan.

Cook 2 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked.

Carefully turn pancakes over, and cook 2 minutes or until bottoms are lightly browned.

tomato basil soup

2011-08-10T08:00:00.000-04:00

As my readers well know, I tend to work 50+ hours a week, and then dealing with the traffic. I have nights when I don't get home until 6:30-7:00 o'clock at night. So dinners on my "late nights" tend to be carry out...and I don't know about the rest of you, but it gets old fast!

So for the passed few months I've gotten back on the meal planning routine and on the weekends I make something a head of time for our Monday night dinner. This weekend I decided that Monday's dinner would be TOMATO BASIL SOUP with stuffed sausage bread (also baked the night before)can you say yum?!?!

Not only is this a healthier filling meal, but it only take 5 a total of 5 minutes to reheat when you arrive home after a long day in the office.

I hope you all enjoy it as much as we

Recipe Source: Ina Garten

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

3 pounds ripe plum tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons good olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 1/2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
2 onions chopped
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 (28-ounce) canned plum tomatoes with juices
4 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1 quart chicken stock or water
1 cup of cream (I use fat-free and it works well)

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Toss together the tomatoes, 1/4 cup olive oil, salt, and pepper.

Spread the tomatoes in 1 layer on a baking sheet and roast for 45 minutes.

In an 8-quart stockpot over medium heat, saute the onions and garlic with 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the butter, until the onions start to brown.

Add the canned tomatoes, basil, thyme, and chicken stock.

Add the oven-roasted tomatoes, including the liquid on the baking sheet.

Bring to a boil and simmer uncovered for 40 minutes.

Once above is complete blend using hand blender, return to stock pot and then add cream and let it come to quick simmer.

Taste for seasonings and serve hot.

Mocha Fudge Brownies with Dark Chocolate Drizzle

2011-08-09T07:00:00.000-04:00

IF you ask me, this recipe has all the important food groups...mocha, coffee, fudge, and dark chocolate. What more could a girl ask for? Ok, maybe it doesn't cover all the major food groups, but it's now become my new all time favorite brownie recipe. I made two batches for a get together and they gone in a matter of a few hours. Everyone was raving on how great they were, they are a must try recipe. I promise you will not be disappointed.

Happy baking!

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sugar
2 squares unsweetened chocolate
2 eggs
1 cup flour
1/2 cup milk
2 tablespoons coffee
Chocolate syrup, for drizzling

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In large bowl cream together butter, sugar and eggs.

In another bowl combine flour and baking powder.

Melt chocolate in microwave.

Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients. Stir to combine.

Add chocolate, milk and coffee and mix well.

Pour into a buttered 8'baking pan and drizzle with chocolate syrup.

Bake for 30 minutes.

Zucchini Bread

2011-08-09T06:30:00.000-04:00

Since we had so many zucchini this year, I had t o find new ways to use them, before they went to waste. Of course having a child that is the "I wouldn't eat that because it's green" stage, I had to find new ways to get certain veggies into his diet. Adding shredded zucchini into the bread makes it easy for me to achieve that goal.

The cool thing about this bread is that the spices in it, make it taste more like a coffee cake bread then an actual zucchini bread. The bread comes out with a nice smooth, moist texture. Something else that I love about this bread is the fact that it freezes well, so you can eat one now and then freeze the second bread for another day. I hope you, and your family all enjoy this as much as we have.

Recipe inspired by Paula's Home Cooking

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

3 1/4 cups of whole wheat flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon of allspice
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 1/2 cups sugar
1 cup unsweetened apple sauce
4 eggs, beaten
1/3 cup water
2 cups grated zucchini
1 teaspoon lemon juice

WHAT YOU'LL NEED TO DO:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

In a large bowl, combine flour, salt, nutmeg,all spice baking soda, cinnamon and sugar.

In a separate bowl, combine apple sauce, eggs, water, zucchini and lemon juice.

Mix wet ingredients into dry.

Bake in 2 standard loaf pans, sprayed with nonstick spray.

Bake for 1 hour, or until a tester comes out clean.