The Cooking Vent

A Fresh Start

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Thu, 23 Apr 2015 03:47:00 +0000

Howdy everyone,

I'm so excited to announce the look of my new blog! I've been working on it since January, and I am so so thrilled with how it turned out. Kristen Holland from Mint Pacific has been helping me and I could not be more proud of what we came up with. (P.S. a little plug for her, because she is the most patient person I've ever met to work with me on this project!! :) )

From here on out, I will now be posting over at my beautiful new website at - The Cooking Vent!

Please update any bookmarks you have to www.thecookingvent.com.

You will also be able to subscribe to my blog and receive email updates any time I post. Just hit the subscribe button on the main page.

The new blog has all kinds of wonderful new features including:

- Easy to find recipes sorted into categories so you can pull them up with a quick click.

- New printable recipe cards

- Beautiful pictures on the heading of each post

- Many other updates to come

I promise I'll be posting more, and have lots of new recipes and pictures to share. I won't promise how often that will be, however. Life is crazy and busy and I have a 2 year old who requires most of my free time. You understand!

I'm so looking forward to hearing from you all and reconnecting! Please let me know what you think!

The "I Don't Know" Predicament

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Wed, 04 Jun 2014 06:11:00 +0000

I'm in a huge season of "I Don't Know". It's a real struggle for me. I like things very black and white. I like something or I don't, and mostly I'm either good at something or I'm not - meaning I will then pursue it or I won't. When there happens to be an in-between, it's really not my strong suit. I kinda lose patience with myself, with everyone around me, and kind of like to throw mini pity parties.

This "I don't know predicament" is flooding itself into just about every area of my life. There's the new job, raising an ever growing feisty little toddler, the somewhat unexplained knee pain and body aches holding me back from completely getting my running routine back, and feeling like I have lost my creativity in the kitchen.

Let's talk about the kid! There are days that I really feel like I have absolutely NO idea what to do about the screaming toddler at my feet. There's something about a baby banging his head in public over your refusal of him eating bird poop that kind of gives you that "end of my rope feeling". Or flailing arms and legs every which way and screaming lungs while the church parking lot watches the music pastor's wife wrangle the kid to the car because he kept running on the stage. Makes me feel like I just won the mom of the year award! But really, the heart of the matter is - how do I raise a child that is passionate and strong but loving and kindhearted at the same time? I... Don't... Know!

Wanna talk about post-baby body? Well, here you go. I've picked up running again multiple times a week (even if all things have NOT settled back into place - mom's you know what I'm talking about!) only to find that the knee pain that made me stop running while I was pregnant has not disappeared. Or running, and running hard does not a skinny body make! It used to work so well, why not now? I just don't know.

I've recently decided to trade in a lot of the comfort foods I cling to for bare bones instead. Giving up sugar for a while in an effort to cleanse my innate addiction to the sheer love of food. Putting limits on the amount of food I'm letting in my body and being more conscious. Not as a way of deprivation, but just being intentional. (Except for that half a cookie I ate and hid at the bottom of the bag so my husband wouldn't notice I ate it!) But I've had to settle that these decisions have been good for my overall health, but have not made a bit of difference in the way I look. It's frustrating making the right decisions and not seeing any progress.... feeling the meaning of "I don't know what's going on here" to it's depths. And let's not talk about the cooking. Ha. Because I have shifted what I'm making a lot, it makes for new challenges, and I've found that I feel like I have no idea what I'm doing all over again... I've had several meal flops in the last few months!

I have to tell you, sharing some of this, being honest about a few areas of struggle going on with me lately makes me feel a bit exposed. Opened up and raw. But something I think I've learned in the past 6 months.. I think it's okay to say "I don't know". I'm not sure why I don't know the answer's to things. I'm not sure why I haven't gotten clarity on what I'm supposed to do in situations. I think when I try and try and try in my own flesh, it makes things muddier. There has to be a time when I just stop my wandering and relinquish my own desire to know it all, have all the answers and figure it all out, and use it as a time to become vulnerable with those around me. Share my struggles with the people that really care about me, and maybe lean in and let God guide me from here on out - even if the answer to my "I don't know" is not always one I want.

Not knowing the answers doesn't always lead to a restful night's sleep, but I've noticed that when I begin to open up the fist of things I'm holding on to, trying to figure out on my own, and share it with others - it makes you courageous and gives you a place to stand up on two feet for a bit while someone else helps carry the weight! I'm opening myself up to this more and more, and if you know me well, you'll know it's something that is really hard for me. But I'm deciding that I want something beautiful and meaningful in my relationships with others and with God, even if at the end of the day I'm still saying, "I just don't know".

The "I don't know" doesn't seem so powerful when we allow others to help shoulder the weight of the unknown.

Can you relate? Are you in a season of an "I don't know predicament"? Are you leaning on those around you because you can't figure it out on your own?

Life was handing me lemons, so instead of lemonade, I made lemon cake! By the way... I know the cake in these pictures are completely against all the "cutting out sugar" nonsense I was discussing. But to be fair, this was actually made quite a while ago, before my no-sugar pact was made. It's best made with fresh Meyer lemons (which I happen to have a tree in my yard!!), but any lemons will do. I know you'll enjoy!

Meyer Lemon Pound Cake

Adapted from My Baking Addiction

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cups superfine baking sugar, divided use

zest from 6-8 Meyer lemons

1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice, divided use

1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp. plain yogurt

3/4 teaspoons pure Mexican vanilla extract

For the Cream Cheese Icing

4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
1 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
1 tablespoons milk
1 -2 tablespoon freshly squeezed Meyer lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon pure Mexican vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a loaf pans and dust with powdered sugar to keep loaf from sticking.

2. In a medium bowl, combine 2 cups of sugar and all of the lemon zest until the sugar is moist and you can smell the lemon in the sugar.

3. Cream the butter with the lemon sugar mixture with a mixer until light and fluffy, and pale in color. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, one at time, mixing thoroughly after each addition.

4. In a small bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In another bowl, combine 1/4 cup lemon juice, the yogurt, and vanilla. Add the flour and buttermilk mixtures alternately to the butter/sugar batter, starting and ending with the flour. Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

5. Combine 1/2 cup granulated sugar with 1/2 cup lemon juice in a small saucepan and cook over low heat until the sugar dissolves. When the cake is done, allow it to cool for 10 minutes in the pan on a wire rack. Then remove the cake from the pans and set on a rack set over a baking sheet. Spoon the lemon syrup over the cake, allowing the syrup to seep into the cake. Cool completely.

6. For the cream cheese icing: Beat together cream cheese and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Add milk, lemon juice, and vanilla extract and keep beating until smooth. If the mixture is too thick, you can add a little more milk 1 teaspoon at a time until you reach a smooth, spreadable consistency. Spread the icing over the top of the cake.

The winner is....

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sun, 18 May 2014 20:27:00 +0000

The numbers have been calculated... I made a list in the order the comments appeared both on my blog and through my Facebook page, used a random number generator....

And the winner of the Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla is.....

Crystal Morris!!! Congratulations! :) Hopefully you'll be able to make something super yummy with it.

Crystal - I'll email you for your information so that you can get the vanilla.

I'm working on another post using something delicious from my yard! I'll be back soon!

National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day - Thursday May 15th

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Thu, 15 May 2014 04:32:00 +0000

I am constantly tweaking things about myself.... I can't ever same to just do something the same way.

I am usually a super black and white person, a rule follower through and through. I can tell you the speed limit on any given road. If the instruction manual tells you to do something, that is the way it must be done. And by golly, if there is a "Do Not Enter" sign, you might as well go straight to jail if you henceforth "enter". My husband gets so annoyed by me. He's a complete rule breaker.

BUT when it comes to things about myself, or things I'm in control of, I tend to want to always change it up. My son's schedule - I change it all the time because, well, I must not be doing it right. When I run - I'm always trying some new routine (intervals, speed up and run as fast as I can, something to save me from the boredom of running on a treadmill). And when I make these brown butter molasses sea salted chocolate chip cookies (our absolute favorites around here), I like to tweak it just a bit. Again, my husband gets totally annoyed. Ha

This time, I tried a twist on the original by swapping out half of the flour for whole wheat flour (the texture is incredible and has a hint of a nutty flavor that really compliments the brown butter), using superfine baking sugar (it really helped the browned butter and sugar to cream together), and I swapped out my trusty Mexican vanilla for Nielsen-Massey's Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla. The flavors were rich yet mellow enough to add such a great flavor complimenting the molasses! YUM!

The Nielsen-Massey Vanilla is great for a cookie like this one when you don't want the flavors to compete. If you know me, you know how much I'm in love with Mexican vanilla.. I'm usually always stuffing it under everyone's noses, forcing them to sniff how amazing it smells, and it tastes just as great in dishes. But it can also overwhelm the recipe. This Madagascar Bourbon Vanilla is sweet and creamy and the perfect addition to a complex cookie such as this one.

In order to celebrate National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day, Nielsen-Massey has been kind enough to offer to give someone a free bottle of the Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla! If you want to have your own bottle for making Brown Butter Molasses Sea Salted Chocolate Chip cookies and celebrating National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day on Thursday May 15th with me then just leave a comment below! Contest will close on Saturday, May 17th at midnight. I'll pick a winner randomly at that time.

**Nielsen-Massey supplied me with a sample 2 ounce bottle of vanilla for review, however recipe, opinions, and content are my own.

Browned Butter Molasses Sea Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

Print Recipe here

Ingredients:

2 sticks unsalted butter

1 cup bread flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 1/2 cups superfine baking sugar

1/4 cup plus 1 teaspoon dark molasses, not blackstrap

1 egg

1 egg yolk

1 1/2 tsp. Nielson-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract

2 cups semi sweet or dark chocolate chips or chunks

sea salt for sprinkling on top of cookies just before baking - Don't skip this step!!!

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees

2. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium-low heat until foam disappears and butter has a nutty smell, the color being light golden. Remove from heat. Allow to cool while you mix together the brown sugar.

2. Sift together the flour, salt, and baking soda and set aside.

3. In a medium sized bowl, mix the superfine sugar and molasses until no large molasses clumps remain.

4. Pour the melted butter in a bowl of a mixer. Add the homemade brown sugar. Cream the butter and sugar on medium speed for about 3 minutes. Add the egg, egg yolk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined.

5. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in chocolate chips.

6. Scoop onto parchment lined cookie sheets. Lightly sprinkle each ball with a couple flecks of sea salt to help bring out the chocolate flavor. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown checking the cookies after 5 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet for even browning.

Around the Table

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Fri, 18 Apr 2014 04:39:00 +0000

Once upon a time, I was given a book called Bittersweet. This book, read in a dark season of life four years ago became to me, a lifeline. I read each short story, one at a time, savoring and craving the words on each page and tucking them into my heart. I knew I was reading the book for a purpose, I just wasn't quite sure what it was.

Fast forward 3 years, when busyness had taken over. Life was more about getting things done, moving through the ebbs and flows of working full-time, being a wife, being a part of a church plant. But I kept going back to the book, it was a stirring, and eventually an idea was born. I struggled to explain the idea first to my husband, then over lots of late coffee nights with my friend Laura. They were extremely supportive, as they both knew for one of the first times, I felt truly passionate about something. So we tested it out a bit. First there was trials, then there were errors (lots and lots of errors), and then there were tweaks to the idea, until finally the end result is something that makes my heart amazingly happy.

On the first Wednesday night of every month, my house, my heart and most importantly, my table, is devoted to "my cooking group people". I love these girls, I love this night, and I LOVE being around the table.

The idea is simple really, "Do Life Together". There are eight of us, each coming from such different phases and walks in life, it would seem impossible for an outsider to look into the group and think it would actually work out and that we'd all find common ground, but it's amazing. We truly do just that. There are some of us married with kids, some married without kids, single, newly married, full-time out of the home workers, full-time in the home workers, 20's, 30's and 40's, and lots of cultures... all represented around my little dining room table.

You wouldn't think you'd find a single girl in her 20's drawn to lingering conversations with a stay at home mom.... but they are listening for every nugget of wisdom to draw on, tucking it away for when the time is right. There are so many laughs shared, so many matters of the heart poured out and wiped away with the swipe of a tissue, all of us thankful that there was someone to lean on and reach out to. Each girl brings something so unique to the gathering, that when they are missing, the group doesn't quite feel complete, because what makes it that way is the whole of us.

Hours easily slip by like minutes, making all of us linger around the table for just one more story, one more glass of wine, one more bite of that warm cookie, until finally we reluctantly get up, knowing it will be a whole month before we're together again. The difference in this group, however, is that we're not just getting together to eat! We're getting together with the intentionality of doing life together. We know that some of the most intimate moments of life happen around the table.

The table has a way of bringing people together. You can show how much you love someone by calling them in, cooking a good meal, and posing one simple question. When you're sitting around a meal, tasting the flavors together, moments of silence don't matter, and it easily and quickly breaks down the walls and barriers that get put up with those we love the most. That's why I love my group. Because I always know, whatever's going on, I can count on those girls! They can make me laugh till I'm crying, let me cry because I'm sad and don't just tell me "it's going to be okay", they lift me up and encourage me, and most importantly they see glimpses of my heart! All because we take the time to just sit around the table!

I know that seasons come and go... and life ultimately always creates change. My dear friend Laura, my partner in crime and encourager, and the one who helped me support this from the beginning, just moved away, leaving a gaping hole. Her presence will always be felt around the table. Maybe she'll get the opportunity to start her own new "cooking group". I know inevitably, there will be other changes to our group - someone will have a child, we'll lose family members, someone may move away or have a change in life where it makes it impossible to attend. I know that. But, for this season, for this part of my life.... I know that God has me right where He intended. It was no accident that this book was given to me four years ago, and it was no accident that it took me that long to figure out what the idea in my head really meant. Because Wednesday night is coming.... and I know who will be around my table!

A Note on the Burgers:

I have to say that I'm not usually a fan of fruit and celery in my burgers. In fact, I'm never a fan! But we made this at our last get together, and the burger was amazing. The mixture of fruit, onions and celery all sautéed made the burgers so moist, where as turkey can often times feel very dried out.

We used an electric indoor countertop grill to cook them, and they turned out perfectly. The special sauce, although it sounds weird, is a must with the burgers. And no, it doesn't taste like McDonald's special sauce! Even if you don't like mayo - give it a try! We had ours with a warm whole wheat bun, and they were a big hit!

Mar-A-Lago Turkey Burgers (Shauna Niequist) Makes 12 Burgers

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1/4 cup green onions, thinly sliced

1/2 cup celery, finely chopped

3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced

Olive oil

4 Pounds ground turkey breast

1 Tablespoon salt

1 Tablespoon black pepper

2 teaspoons tobasco

juice of 1 lemon

1/2 bunch parsley, finely chopped

1/4 cup mango chutney

Special Sauce

1/2 cup mango chutney

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup ketchup

2 dashes tobasco - to taste

Instructions:

1) In a large saute pan, sauté the green onions, celery, and apples in olive oil until tender. Allow to cool.

2) While the mixture is cooling to room temperature, make the sauce. Combine the chutney, mayo, ketchup and Tobasco sauce. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

3) Place the ground turkey in a large bowl. Add the onion, celery, and apple mixture and the remaining burger ingredients and mix together. Shape the mixture into 12 burgers.

4) Place on a preheated, lightly oiled grill on medium-high. Grill on each side for 7 minutes or until meat is thoroughly cooked. Allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Real Life

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Mon, 24 Mar 2014 00:20:00 +0000

It's been almost a year since I've graced the pages of this blog. And even before that post, it had been close to 6 months. Why do I keep neglecting one of the outlets that keep me sane, something I love?

Let's be honest, Life Is Hard! I know that's not the pretty answer that you were probably hoping to read. I'm sure you'd probably love to just see pictures of my cute kid and the yummy food and move on, but that's not life for me right now, and putting it out there makes me admit it!

My husband kept asking why I haven't been blogging, and I just kept giving him the same answer, "I don't know". But deep down, I did know. It just took me a year and a half to admit it.

I don't think I have one neat answer all wrapped up in a box, and I don't think that by writing this one blog that everything will go back to normal. I think the blog is just a matter of saying it out loud, telling a little piece of my story, and just being honest.

So, in order to be honest, I want to give a few things that have been going on with me. Like I said, I don't have all the answers figured out, but I think, even writing this blog is proof that I am getting to the other side, out of the sinking darkness that felt like I was drowning in.

1) I had a baby - In case you didn't know (maybe you've never read this blog before, but I doubt it, because only my husband, my mom and my friends read this! Ha), I had a baby in December 2012. That in and of itself, was quite the adjustment. I mean, everyone knows that having a baby is an adjustment, and I feel like I mentally prepared for it before hand, but it still always takes you by surprise at how much will change, how little sleep you will get, and how much of your world will now revolve around this little being.

2) This baby had an unexpected stay in the NICU - After Luke was born, he had several different health scares, including difficulty breathing and a low oxygen level which resulted in a stay in the NICU. I work with children with special needs, I did a fieldwork experience in the NICU, I frequently give support to families who are exactly going through what we did.... but nothing can prepare you for seeing your newborn child hooked up to machines just to breathe. For 2 straight days, I wasn't even allowed to talk to him - much less touch him or hold him. They were worried that the sound of my voice or the smell of me would make him work hard to try to be near me, and all of that resulting in increased heart rate and breathing. This isn't exactly the experience you anticipate. You are worried beyond belief, but you also miss out on the initial bonding that is supposed to happen between mother and child. Both for me and for him.

3) He was one of the most difficult babies... EVER! - I might be exaggerating, but man, he was sure difficult. From the 2 week mark (only a few days after bringing him home from the hospital) to 10 1/2 months, he screamed at almost every feeding. It would take me upwards of at least an hour to nurse him or feed him a bottle. It didn't matter how many positions I tried, which bottle I tried, what specialist I went to, what the pediatrician said... he screamed no matter what! Feeling the weight of knowing you needed to sustain your child, coupled with a screaming/flailing baby on you every 3 hours was emotionally exhausting! There were days when I just cried because it was time to nurse again. I remember several times calling my mom and just crying, and I know she couldn't hear a word I was saying because Luke was crying so hard in the background.

Because Luke didn't want to eat much (although you couldn't tell by the looks of him - he has always been quite large! ha), he also did not sleep well. Until he was a year, Luke never took a nap that was a minute over 45 minutes. Most days it was 35 minutes. And then he would scream! Once again, I tried EVERYTHING- we swaddled, we didn't swaddle, we slept upright because if was probably reflux, we paci'd, we unpaci'd, we "woke to sleep", we went to sleep earlier, we went to sleep later, we went to sleep in the swing, the stroller, and in the baby wrap. I can count on one hand how many times he slept longer than that. Even to this day, my child takes one nap which lasts approximately an hour to an hour and a half. EXHAUSTING! So much for "sleep when your baby sleeps".

4) I felt like God had abandoned me - I have never ever felt more alone than in the last year and a half. Of course I have had my husband, my friends, my parents, even my baby. But my relationship with God has been so different. When I've prayed, I've felt nothing. When I read Scripture, the lines blur. It felt like the harder I tried, the farther away God felt. This one is probably the hardest to admit. Even writing this is a bit scary. Telling your husband that you're not really sure you trust God right now (and he's the music pastor at a church) is a little scary. I have had to FIGHT for this! Protecting my heart has been crucial, and it can often be a daily struggle.

5) Relationships became hard work - It has felt like every ounce of energy i've had has been needed for just taking care of my son, my husband, keeping up with work, and then maybe keeping my head on straight. I'm naturally an introvert, so it is often easier for me to isolate myself and become a hermit! When it was just me, I avoided people. I took forever to respond to emails and texts, skirted out of get togethers other than the mandatory ones, and only kept things surface level. I told myself that nobody wants to hear how miserable my life is. It's easier to bury it down and not let anyone know.

A few months ago, I finally shared a little bit about what was going on with a few ladies. Did any of them have the answer that was the "cure" for the state of my life? No! But did it help to just get it out and share it? Yes! It made it real! They were able to empathize with me, ask me meaningful questions about why and when I started feeling this way, and help move me on the path of feeling real again.

Like I mentioned above, I don't have it all figured out. Life is still hard, but I'm sure you know that. I know that I'm not the first to feel this way, and I know it won't be the last time in my life that I feel this way. But admitting it and seeking wisdom and support was absolutely necessary to move on.

I've also learned that my husband is amazing and supportive, and my son is, although a challenge, one of the ways I see God in the everyday. He surely did not abandon me when this beautiful boy is smiling back at me or sleeping in my arms!

So, here's to new beginnings. To more frequent blog posts in the future. And most importantly, permission to be real, honest, and accepting that real life is not always pretty!

Now on to yummy looking pictures of delicious food!

Chocolate Mint Patties (adapted from momontimeout.com)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1/3 cup light corn syrup

5 Tbsp. butter, softened

1 tsp. mint extract

1/2 tsp salt

green food coloring

4 cups powdered sugar

10 oz. bittersweet chocolate

Preparation:

1. Combine the corn syrup, softened butter, mint extract, salt and a few drops of green food coloring in a small bowl. Stir until well combined.

2. Stir in the powdered sugar one cup at a time until mixture becomes stiff and difficult to stir.

3. Add a bit more of the powdered sugar, and mix, using your hands (or the bread dough attachment on a stand mixer), adding additional powdered sugar as necessary until the dough is a consistency that no longer sticks to your hands.

4. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls and place on baking sheets lined with parchment paper. Flatten the balls with the bottom of a cup to make small discs.

5. Melt the chocolate in the microwave in 30-second intervals until fully melted.

6. Dip the candies into the melted chocolate using two forks and tap on the edge to release any extra chocolate.

7. Place back on the parchment paper and place in refrigerator until the chocolate is set.

I'm Back

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Thu, 02 May 2013 06:15:00 +0000

Introducing:

Luke Levi Jackson

12.28.12

10lbs 4oz 22in

If you know/follow me on Facebook, than you've long seen this introduction, and know that we've been pretty busy over here.

And, I know... I know... It's been a very long time since I've blogged. Were you starting to think I'd given up on the blog altogether?

I have to admit - the thought did cross my mind about just giving it up. As much as I love this blog, I've said so many times before that it's only for the enjoyment of doing it, and if it's too much or too stressful to post, than I will never post just to post. So, that is the reason I have not done anything for the blog in almost 5 months.

As you can imagine, I've kind of had my hands full! :) This little guy has been keeping me busy and giving me a run for my money! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE this little munch, but motherhood has been a totally different journey than anything I've ever expected.

I'm not sure that really anyone can know what to expect. As much as you think you do, as much as you absolutely plan for the lack of sleep, crying, and overwhelming feeling of being worried 100% of the time, there really is nothing that can prepare you for what it's like. It probably doesn't help that our little baby has given us a challenge from the beginning! :)

He was 11 days overdue, so from the start, he has wanted to do things in his own timing. About 12 hours after birth, we realized that he was having difficulty breathing, so we spent an incredibly scary 5 days in the NICU.

We are so enjoying having Luke into our lives. He has such personality (as you can see in these pictures). He loves to laugh (and hates to sleep! :)), enjoys discovering new things... has already figured out how to roll over and get his feet into his mouth, and just enjoys life! We are so blessed by him, and cannot believe he's already four months old!

Once we came home, about 2 weeks after his birth, we started to have major issues with eating. This is really still quite an issue for us. Luke does not like to eat. We've tried the gamut of solutions to try to figure out what is going on - I've tried no dairy, thought it was reflux, tried adjusting his schedule, tried bottle feeding only, tried nursing only, tried every position imaginable for nursing, saw a lactation consultant, tried probiotics... unfortunately, nothing seems to be working. Hopefully, one day soon we'll figure out what is going on. He certainly did not inherit his lack of desire to eat gene from me! :)

During this time, I eliminated dairy from my diet for a little over 2 months to see if that was causing the issue and rule out a lactose intolerance. Of course, my sweet tooth was having a hay day with that one. So I had to find something I could eat that satisfied my sweet tooth while not adding any lactose. (P.S. FYI oreo cookies are dairy free!!!)

This recipe calls for coconut oil instead of butter and you can hardly tell there is butter missing. Coconut oil is great for hair/skin as well, and you can find it at Target. It's really creamy and great. My favorite thing to do with it by far is to mix in a little bit of sugar with a spoonful of it and use it as an all natural lip scrub!

You'll have to give these cookies a try - they are really packed full of flavor and the consistency is great!

Toasted Coconut Oatmeal Cookies (Adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

2 3/4 cups Gold Medal all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 cup coconut oil (measured solid), melted and slightly cooled
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup shredded, sweetened coconut, lightly toasted for approximately 3-4 min in oven
1 cup quick oats

Preparation:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 and prepare a cookie sheet with a silpat or parchment paper.

2. In a large bowl, prepare dry ingredients by mixing together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.

3. Using a stand mixer or hand mixer mix together the sugar, coconut oil, eggs, and vanilla until creamed together and fluffy. Slowly mix in the dry ingredients until fully incorporated. Stir in oatmeal and toasted coconut flakes.

4. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared cookie sheet and press cookie down slightly with the back of the spoon in the center. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are very lightly browned and set. Allow them to cool slightly before transferring to a wire cooling rack and cooling completely.

Peppermint Bark

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Thu, 13 Dec 2012 16:00:00 +0000

I love to make Christmas treats. I look at recipes all year long in anticipation of which ones I'll make each year. Part of the joy of making all these treats is to give it away! One of my favorite things to do is to make gift baskets of homemade treats to give to friends, neighbors, and maybe keep a bit for myself too!

This year, I'm going a little more low key since Baby Jackson is due any day now, and I want to make a few things in advance that will store for a bit, especially since some of these gift baskets this year will be going to the nurses at the hospital who will be helping me out - God Bless em! :)

I made the traditional peppermint bark as one of the treats this year. It's so easy, there's no excuse to buy the store bought kind. And considering, with the cost being about $7.00 for an entire batch that can split into multiple servings - it's super affordable - way cheaper than the store bought stuff. And I can guarantee what kind of chocolate is in it - I went for the good stuff since the chocolate is the main ingredient. My favorite is Guittard chocolate. I know I've mentioned it on here before, and I think it's only available in California, but it's AMAZING, and totally worth it - even if you have to order it! :)

Homemade Peppermint Bark - by Me

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

12 oz Guittard (or other high quality) semi sweet chocolate chips

12 oz Guittard or Ghiradelli white chocolate chips

1 Tbs. vegetable oil (only if needed)

approximately 12 mini candy canes or 6 regular ones

Preparation:

Line a 9x13 pan with parchment paper or silpat.

In a microwave safe bowl, place semisweet chocolate chips and microwave in 35-45 second increments, stirring after each heating until chocolate is completely melted. Pour and spread chocolate into prepared 9x13" pan. Place in freezer for approximately 20 minutes.

While the chocolate is chilling, place candy canes in a ziplock bag and crush with a rolling pin or glass.

When there is a few minutes left for the semisweet chocolate, melt the white chocolate in a microwave safe bowl in 30 second increments until smooth. If chocolate is not completely smooth, add 1 TBS vegetable oil until all smooth. Add about 1/4 of the candy cane mixture into the white chocolate and spread quickly onto chilled semisweet chocolate layer. Sprinkle the rest of the candy canes onto the top of the white chocolate and chill in freezer for an additional 20 minutes.

Take out of freezer and turn over on cutting board. Use a knife or rolling pin and pound gently to break into pieces. Enjoy.

2nd Annual Blogger Cookie Swap - Nutmeg Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Wed, 12 Dec 2012 16:00:00 +0000

I love cookies! and I love Christmas cookies!

Because I love to be in a sugar coma from cookies starting December 1st through December 31st, I decided to once again participate in the Food Blogger Cookie Swap. This is my second year (and the cookie swaps second year), and it as always is so much fun. The anticipation of cookies coming in the mail is almost more than I can bear! :)

Thank you to my awesome cookie swap matches! It's always so fun to learn about new bloggers.

I got some yummy Ginger Molasses Cookies from Allix @ The NonPareil Baker

Sweet and delicious Oatmeal Cranberry white chocolate chip cookies from Kristen @ The Slender Kitchen

And perfectly chewy and unique deep dish chocolate chip cookies from Sarah @ Sensibly Sara

This year I decided to do a twist on my browned butter molasses chocolate chip cookies. These just went up a whole notch! I found a similar recipe to mine that got all crazy delicious in the Ruche holiday recipe guide.

These cookies have a hint of coffee, a hint of nutmeg, sweetened condensed milk, and if all that weren't enough, you brown the butter for the most amazing flavor combination. They are intense, but wonderful... and I guarantee you won't be able to eat just one.

So, I made them all, surprisingly got them all packaged up instead of eating them, and sent them to my matches. Even made a few for friends since they were so yummy. Packaging is half the fun in this cookie swap. Here's how I decided to package mine up this year - hope they made it ok! :)

Happy Cookie Swap!

Nutmeg Browned Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies (Adapted from She Runs, She Eats - Ruche Holiday Recipes)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, browned and cooled to room temperature
1 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
7 ounces sweetened condensed milk
1 egg, room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 1/2 cup flour
1 tbsp ground coffee
1 1/4 teaspoons baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips

Preparation:

1. In a skillet, place butter and allow to melt. Keep cooking for a few minutes until most of the large foam bubbles disappear and butter is golden brown and nutty smelling. I know, very official. :) Remove from heat and allow to cool.

2. In a large bowl, mix together coffee, flour, nutmeg, salt, and baking soda. Set aside.

3. In a separate bowl, combine cooled browned butter and brown sugar until combined. Follow this with the sweetened condensed milk, egg, and vanilla. Continue to whisk until smooth.

4. Stir flour mixture into butter/sugar mixture and continue stirring until all flour is completely mixed in.

5. Mix in chocolate chips and stir until combined. Mixture will be thick. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes.

6. Preheat oven to 350. Roll about 1 1/2" balls of dough. Place on a cookie sheet with parchment paper approximately 1" apart, and press dough down until flattened. Bake cookies for ~13-15 minutes (depending on if you use a metal pan or not), until tops of cookies are crisp and slightly browned. Cool for 5 minutes on baking tray and transfer to cooling rack to complete cooling.

Pumpkin Loaf Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 15:36:00 +0000

If you've read my blog for awhile, you know I love the fall - and this fall seems to be flying by in rapid speed!

With baby Jackson due in just FOUR short weeks - yes you read that right - four weeks... I feel like I'm having to wrap up fall and start getting ready for Christmas early.

I usually have a very steadfast rule in my house - no Christmas music, no Christmas movies, no decorations, not even eggnog until after Thanksgiving. But when I was grocery shopping last week and saw that the Christmas colored M&M's were out, I BARELY contained myself to not pick them up. :) I feel like I'm running out of time! I'm determined to celebrate Thanksgiving though and be thankful for every blessing from God this year - especially Baby Jackson!

As his due date is getting closer, for the first time in the whole pregnancy, I'm really feeling the effects of being pregnant. For the most part, I did't really have any major side effects that effected daily life for me. I did have an IT band injury related to body changes that made me have to stop running at 7 months, but really, I made it to 7 months still running- that's really not bad. I just switched the routine to elliptical workouts and swimming, and it's been great. However, between having an attack of tachycardia, the overall 3rd trimester tiredness, and showing small signs of pregnancy induced hypertension, it's starting to feel pretty real and I have to say that I'm really looking forward to meeting him!

Somehow, I found time to savor the fall for just a bit and make some yummy cookies that exploded with fall flavor. :) These are originally called pumpkin cookies - but I renamed them pumpkin loaf cookies because of their texture. They are soft and light, and literally remind me of biting into a piece of pumpkin loaf in the shape of a cookie. Add the browned butter buttercream frosting on top, and it's pure fall-flavored perfection.

What's your favorite way to make fall last?

Pumpkin Loaf Cookies with Brown Butter Frosting (From Martha Stewart)

Ingredients:

For The Cookies
- 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 1/4 teaspoons ground ginger
- 3/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
- 2 1/4 cups packed light-brown sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups canned solid-pack pumpkin (14 ounces)
- 3/4 cup evaporated milk
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
For The Icing
- 4 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
- 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon evaporated milk
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Preparation:

For the Cookies:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients - flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and set mixture aside.

2. Beat butter and brown sugar with an electric mixer on medium speed for approximately 3 minutes or until light and fluffy. Mix in eggs and then reduce the speed to low. Add in the rest of the wet ingredients - pumpkin, evaporated milk, and vanilla and mix until well combined. Slowly add in the flour mixture, mixing until combined. Dough will be pretty wet.

3. Transfer dough to a cookie piper or ziplog bag with the end cut off. Pipe 1 1/2" rounds on a baking sheet spread with parchment paper or silpat. Bake for 12 minutes or until cookies are cooked through. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

For Frosting:

1. Melt the butter in a small saucepan until golden brown, foam disappears, and a slight nutty smell emerges - approximately 3-5 minutes. Pull off heat and allow to cool for a few minutes.

2. In a large bowl, mix confectioner's sugar, browned butter (making sure to scrape all the browned bits from the pan), evaporated milk and vanilla. Stir until smooth. When cookies are cool, spread frosting on tops.

The Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap 2012

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Fri, 26 Oct 2012 04:59:00 +0000

Yep, that's right... I just signed up for the 2012 Cookie Swap. Last year was so much fun that I had to do it again. CAN'T WAIT!!

Basically, you sign up, make a few batches of cookies, ship them to some amazing bloggers, and get THREE amazing batches from other bloggers. And this year, they're doing something amazing and donating money to Cookies for Kid's Cancer.

If you want you can sign up too!

Red Velvet Puppy Chow

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Mon, 20 Aug 2012 04:52:00 +0000

Hello there.

I know it's been quite a while.

Unfortunately for you, but fortunately for me, I haven't gotten rid of my sweet tooth.

So you're going to have to endure some sweet recipes. I actually have a pile of them lined up.

I promise eventually I'll get back to posting other things... like fruit... and veggies!! I do finally have a taste for some of that stuff again thank goodness. However, I hate going grocery shopping, because I still just want to buy ice cream, potato chips, and cookies. Oh, and don't forget chicken nuggets.

I'm posting a new belly picture, but I'm warning you, it's got great. I actually took it of myself (hence me holding the cell phone! :) ) to show my out of town husband that my belly had LITERALLY grown overnight. A friend of mine used to say that she would go to bed and wake up with her stomach bigger - and I totally believer her! I didn't grow so much for several weeks - maybe even about a month and a half, and then all of a sudden - there was my little baby poking out!

I've still been running on most days of the week, and my running partner Laura and I started incorporating some weight training which has been a nice change of pace to the running - and always feeling out of breath! :)

I looked in the kids section of H&M this weekend, and decided that my little guy must always be dressed in H&M clothes... they are so cute! I mean seriously! And they are super cheap too!

Okay, enough about babies and bellies... here's a yummy recipe. And a great way to make your own red lipstick! :) Puppy chow was one of my favorite treats when I was a kid, and now there are so many adaptions to this recipe now. I just found a new one for one using cake mix in the recipe for cake batter puppy chow. And then.... there was another using red velvet cake mix, and cream cheese frosting! YUM! The only downfall.... when your fingers get wet from licking them, it turns your lips and fingers red! haha. Oh well, it's totally worth it.

Red Velvet Puppy Chow (adapted from Unbearably Good)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup cream cheese frosting

5 cups Chex cereal

1 cup boxed red velvet cake mix

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Preparation:

1. Melt frosting in a small bowl in the microwave for 15 seconds.

2. Place Chex cereal in a large mixing bowl. Pour frosting over Chex cereal and combine until well blended.

3. In a separate small bowl, combine the 1 cup red velvet cake mix and powdered sugar until combined.

4. Pour in small batches into the Chex and frosting mixture, combining often with a spatula until all sugar mixture is incorporated.

5. Refrigerate ~10-15 minutes or until frosting is hardened.

Have you noticed an absence lately?

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Wed, 11 Jul 2012 03:49:00 +0000

If you have read my blog for any amount of time, you know that I haven't been keeping up with it lately.

I usually don't let so much time go in between posts and just completely neglect it without explanation. So, I'm sorry to my readers out there! :)

BUT I promise... I have an excuse! If you follow me on Facebook, then you already know the news...

But if you don't....

Yep! It's true! After almost 9 years of marriage, we're expecting!! We are so excited and feel beyond blessed to be welcoming this little one into the world.

Isn't he cute... he put up with MULTIPLE picture tries since we "self-took" this picture..haha

So, I'm currently 17 weeks - this picture was taken at 16 weeks (sorry for the VERY poor quality - it was taken on a cell phone. I'll get better - I promise!) And if all goes well, we'll find out if we're having a boy or girl on Friday!!

So as you can imagine, food hasn't really been all that enjoyable the last few months - and that, my friends, is why I've been away. :)

I've rarely been cooking, frozen meals are my friends, and any kind of Asian food is completely out of the question. Honestly though, I couldn't feel more blessed! I have not thrown up once!! I have felt tired, but have been continuing to run, work, and play - so I will take tired over sick ANY day of the week. Cooking just hasn't really been a top priority lately. But I'm starting to come back around. I'll keep you posted on the progress, and post some bump pictures every now and then!

So far, I've really only craved sweets.. unfortunately! So, in honor of my sweet tooth, and my husband's LOVE of chocolate covered pretzels - I have a yummy new recipe for you!

Peanut butter, crushed pretzels mixed together with powdered sugar and dipped in chocolate. Pure heaven in a bite!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pretzel Bites (Adapted from Tasty Kitchen)

Print Page

Ingredients:

1/2 cup peanut butter

1 cup pretzels, chopped

5 tablespoons powdered sugar

1 tablespoon butter

8 oz milk chocolate

Preparation:

In a bowl, stir together the peanut butter, powdered sugar, butter, and crushed pretzels.

Roll into balls and put them on a parchment paper lined tray. Freeze for 30 minutes or until firm.

In a small saucepan, melt chocolate over low heat (if your burner heats really hot like mine, you may want to do a double boiler so the chocolate doesn't seize). Dip the balls in the chocolate until covered and refrigerate until set.

Will make approximately 18-20 pretzel balls.

Homemade Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Mon, 28 May 2012 20:05:00 +0000

Happy Memorial Day! I am so thankful for our freedom today and for our soldiers fighting for us to be free!

Today I thought a healthy little afternoon snack would be a nice addition to a Memorial Day gathering. Since everyone is always so busy prepping food for the afternoon cookouts, it's common to skip over a meal and be famished! But this is a quick easy and healthy recipe that will tide you over till dinner time without filling you up too much!

I adapted the recipe from Dashing Dish, making just a few minor adjustments. She calls for all Splenda in the recipe, but I would just rather add a quarter of the amount of sweetener using real sugar than an artificial sweetener - I've tried it in baked goods, and just really don't like the taste. I'll use it in my coffee, but not my cookies and brownies! :)

This granola tastes great over milk, just eating a handful as a snack, or mixed with some nuts, etc. Enjoy!

Homemade Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola (Adapted from Dashing Dish)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups oats

2 tbsp. light butter

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/8 honey

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

1/4 cup egg whites

1/2 cup Better N' Peanut Butter (the best peanut butter ever! It's made with half peanut flour so it's 85% less fat than regular peanut butter. It's found at Trader Joe's.

If you can't find that or you don't want to use it - use an all natural peanut butter)

1 tsp. baking powder

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line a baking pan with a silpat or parchment paper.

2. Microwave peanut butter and light butter in microwave safe bowl for approximately 30 seconds or until the mixture is smooth.

3. Combine all other ingredients into a bowl and mix together, adding the peanut butter mixture until fully mixed.

4. Spread evenly onto your baking sheet and bake in the preheated oven for approximately 20 minutes. Pull out and stir mixture, spreading back out flat across the pan.

5. Bake for another 20 minutes or until golden brown and crisp - granola will harden slightly as it cools, so don't overcook. After granola cools, break apart into bite-sized pieces. Store in an airtight container.

Guest Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sat, 31 Mar 2012 20:46:00 +0000

Hi there,

Vanilla Bean Can Cakes with Whipped Red Wine Ganache

I'm guest blogging today over at Everyday Desserts. Yay! First ever guest blog! :)

Over there, you will find out wonderful new things.... like how to make cakes in cans!

And how to whip ganache in order to make frosting! Oh yeah, and it has red wine in it!

And the secret to weight loss - okay I made that one up - I mean really, we're talking about cake here.

Hop on over and check out Angelyn's awesome blog and check out my post today.

Balsamic Risotto

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sun, 04 Mar 2012 18:12:00 +0000

Once upon a time (okay, so it wasn't really all that long ago - last October to be precise)

I went to a land far far away (okay it was Italy - not exactly real far, but far enough! :) )

I had some of the best food of my entire life (No, I'm not exaggerating anything).

I learned how to make a some of it in a cooking class....

But some, I had to sit and let each taste linger.... savoring every bite in order to decipher the flavors and figure out how it might be made.

Okay, so I know I sound ridiculous! But seriously, some of the food was so good, that I needed to know how to make it. And when you come home and put "Italian Pizza" into a google recipe search, it just doesn't quite capture the amazingness of the meal you had there.

This Balsamic Risotto is one of those dishes. We had it in a small quaint little restaurant tucked around the corner from the Duomo in Florence. At first we looked at the menu outside and almost walked away because nothing popped out at everyone. But then, I saw it sitting on the bottom of the menu - Balsamic Risotto. MUST TRY!! It was heaven on my plate. I did some google searches when coming home, and really didn't come up with much that I thought looked like it would taste like what I had. So a few weeks ago when a few friends got together to have "Italian night" for our dinner party, I told them they would be the guinea pigs. They were okay with that. Luckily, it turned out amazing! A recipe that I'll come back to many times for sure. Just tasting the sweet and salty of the balsamic reminds me of Italy instantly!

You know when you have an experience, whether it's on a trip or a particular day or whatever the memory might be from, there's sometimes a smell or taste associated with it (I know that's a whole psychology lesson, but we're not going there today.). There is a certain laundry detergent that reminds me immediately of my summer in Mexico because so many of the people there used that detergent. To this day, walking in a Starbucks reminds me of the year I worked there in college (even though I've been there a thousand times since then). Well, this balsamic risotto is the same way - one bite and I'm instantly brought back to the candlelit table in a charming corner alley in Florence. Hopefully you have really good memories about food like that too!

Balsamic Risotto (Inspired by a yummy recipe in Italy at a quaint little restaurant :) )

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup arborio rice

drizzle olive oil

1 onion, diced

1 cup dry sherry

1 quart chicken stock

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar + 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 cup parmesan cheese shredded + a few pieces shaved

3 tablespoons butter, separated.

Preparation:

1. In a large saucepan heat the stock to warm.

2. In a large skillet, place the olive oil and heat, adding in the onions when hot. Cook the onions till soft and translucent then add in the rice. Cook the rice until toasted.

3. Add the dry sherry to the skillet and stir in with rice until thoroughly absorbed.

4. Stir in the balsamic vinegar and continue to stir until completely absorbed.

5. Then add in chicken stock one ladle-full at a time, stirring until thoroughly absorbed and pan is slightly sticky before adding in the next ladle.

6. Continue to add in the stock until rice is al dente (slight crunch to the rice, or there is a small tiny speck of white in the middle of the rice and the rest is cooked clear). Stir in 2 tablespoons butter and shredded parmesan cheese.

7. In a separate small sauce pan (probably about 15 minutes from rice being done) place the 1/4 cup balsamic and 1 tablespoon of butter. Allow to simmer until mixture thickens, creating a reduction.

8. Pour reduction over finished risotto and top with shaved parmesan.

Homemade Pasta

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 17:39:00 +0000

January and February have been such busy months.

We've almost been out of town more than we've been in town, which is really rare for us. Luckily they've all mostly been fun trips, but regardless, they still get you out of routine, change your pace of life, and overall make things feel a bit unsettled.

Since January 1st, Archie and I together have been gone for four trips, and Archie has had 2 trips for work. It's been cutting into my blogging time (and cooking time), so things are a bit crazy.

I also started Weight Watchers in January, which has overall been a really great thing. It has taught me a lot about food in general, which I thought I knew, but didn't! It's been a really slow process for me - because my body thinks I have the metabolism of a 60 year old, not 29 year old, and it's really unfair. Especially when your husband does it too and the weight just FALLS off of him. I know that men obviously lose weight easier, so I'm trying not to get discouraged, but really!! I run everyday some weeks in training for another half marathon, and gain weight - he does nothing but the long runs on Saturday and loses 3! ha. :) Overall, I feel healthier, and my clothes are fitting more loosely, so that's what is really important!

As I promised, I wanted to give you guys the recipe for my homemade pasta that I learned in Florence. The pasta is so good! And it's really and truly the easiest thing - you can even make a big batch and dry it for later. The recipe does call for "00" flour, which my friend Jen found for me at a local Italian market - but you can also use semolina flour, which can usually be found in grocery stores. The "00" just makes it a bit lighter.

The biggest tip to remember with this pasta is to roll it out super thin. Probably thinner than you think, and you'll be okay. I've made this (with Jen) since I've been home, and we didn't roll it out thin enough, making the past a bit thick. Which is okay when you're having a bit hearty meat sauce, but maybe not so much if you would be pairing it with something lighter.

You also can cut the pasta into whatever size you want - thinner for a spaghetti/angel hair and thicker for fettucinni or thick cut pasta.

Home Made Pasta

Print Recipe

Ingredients (Per Person - just multiply the ingredients by the number you will be serving):

100 grams of flour (3 1/2 ounces)

1 large egg

1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil

Preparation:

1. Measure out the flour using a kitchen scale if available and sift onto a large work space.

2. Using your hands, make a large "well" or circle in the middle of the flour - pushing it all out to the sides.

3. Crack eggs into the middle of the well and drizzle the olive oil on top.

4. Using a fork, begin to beat the eggs until yolks have broken up and SLOWLY begin to work in flour into the egg mixture. You only want to get a little bit of flour at a time, and beat until each addition of flour is completely worked in.

5. As mixture gets thicker, continue to beat in more flour until you are unable to use a fork because it's too thick.

6. At this point, begin to use your hands and incorporate the flour, kneading the dough to mix in all flour.

7. Continue to knead the dough working it with palm of your hand, down towards the counter. Flip the dough around and fold the top half over pushing again towards counter. You want to use this same motion to knead the dough. Continue kneading for about 10-15 minutes or until dough is completely smooth - NO cracks left in the dough.

8. Form the dough into two large balls and wrap in plastic wrap, leaving out to sit for approximately 15 minutes.

9. At this point, roll your balls into large flat discs until about 1/4" thickness - very thin. If you need to break your balls into smaller more manageable balls, that's fine.

10. Fold the pasta over on itself in about 1" folds. Cut the pasta to desired thickness, and unroll from folds.

11. Place pasta in boiling water and cook for 2-3 minutes or until al dente. Really watch it, because it will cook pretty fast.

12. Serve with your favorite sauce and enjoy!

Hearty Italian Meat Sauce

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 16:22:00 +0000

I'm mostly posting this recipe because my mother's been begging for it...

And I'm a slacker....

And I have good intentions... I really do!

But then I've been getting home from work exhausted, force myself out for a run, make dinner and crash!

So, sorry mom! I'll do better this time. I promise! :)

I made this with her when she came for a visit for 24 hours back in November. She was on a quick layover on her way out of the country to visit my sister, and we had to savor every minute we could get. I, unfortunately, couldn't get off work, so we really only had the evening together. I wanted to make it count - so of course the thing that I wanted to do together was cook. I wanted to get our hands together in the kitchen, one of the places that means the most to me, in order to enjoy every minute with her. I hadn't seen her since my trip to Italy, and the best way to tell some of the stories of the things we did is not over the phone, but in the reliving of what we did. The sweetness of the tomatoes and licorice smell of the basil brought me right back to the middle of Florence and the Centrale Market. It was the best way to let her know exactly what happened on the trip and for her to even experience a tiny piece of it herself - at least from my perspective.

That night, we made the meal together, talked and laughed, and moved out to the back patio with Archie. He made us a fire in my fire pit, and we sat at my little vintage patio table, savoring each bite, knowing we only had a little bit of time.

The meat sauce itself is so simple - using fresh ingredients from the Centrale Market when we were in the class in Italy. And even though I don't have a Centrale Market close by, I have tried to preserve the freshness as much as I can - basil from my back yard, meat from the local butcher, all adding up to make such tastiness, and causing there to be even more memories surrounding my yummy little Italian meat sauce.

P.S. - I apologize for the pictures of the final meat sauce not being so great - by the time the meal finished cooking it Italy, Jen and I were supposed to be on a train 10 blocks away in 20 minutes (plus meeting up with our husbands!). I'll work on getting a better picture. :)

P.P.S. - The fresh pasta (made by hand!!!) recipe to come shortly. You'll be surprised at how easy it is. No pasta roller needed!

Italian Meat Sauce (By: Chef Giovanni, Florence Italy) - serves 6

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

6 tsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil

6 cloves garlic

1 red onion

1 tsp chili pepper flakes

1 lb good quality ground beef

1 lb Italian pork sausage, casings removed (I used the sweet kind since there was already a kick from the chili pepper)

2 cups red wine

1 lb. can whole, peeled tomatoes

1-2 whole basil leaves per serving (approximately 6-12 leaves)

salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Preparation:

1. Chop onion into small diced pieces and mince garlic

2. Place olive oil in pan and heat up. Place the onion, garlic and chili flakes into the heated oil and continue cooking until caramelized.

3. Place the pork sausage and ground beef into pan. Mash with a fork until all pieces are broken down, and meat is cooked through. DO NOT DRAIN!! I know.. weird, but don't do it.

Fresh from the butcher!

4. Add the 2 cups wine (plus another little drizzle if you like the taste ;) ), and allow to reduce by half - about 10-15 minutes depending on how high your heat works.

5. Drain juice of tomatoes into the pan and crush the whole tomatoes with your hand, creating pieces of smaller tomatoes. You can use a fork to make any a little smaller if they are still too big. Place basil in pot. Allow to simmer for at least 30 minutes. Serve with fresh, warm, homemade pasta!

Memories

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 00:45:00 +0000

There is something about food that always seems to bring up memories. It's probably one of the things I like best about food.

Lots of people know me by my love for cooking, my love for food (not sure that's a good thing! ;)), and being the one who always wants to try a new recipe.

But really, at the heart of the matter, I actually always go back to the standbys. The foods that mean something to me. Yes, they sure are good, but they have heart behind them.

I'm sure right now you're thinking... she is insane. It's just food we're talking about here. But it's not!! The smell of orange cinnamon rolls can instantly remind me of being a child in my grandmother's kitchen in the summer. She would always make us orange rolls - and to this day, I have orange cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning. The kind from the can!

The taste of corn tortillas reminds me of my summer mission's internship in Mexico - and our favorite restaurant "The Hill". Their tacos with the cheese that you pulled with your fork was remarkable - but even more so was the amazing opportunity to share God's love with this country.

The cold and creamy taste of butter pecan ice cream instantly takes me back to my living room in high school. Watching television late at night with my dad after getting back from a basketball game on the bus was the perfect night treat. Both of us mostly sitting in silence from sheer exhaustion, but the time spent together was priceless.

And then there's these - Bacon wrapped water chestnuts. One of my favorite recipes of all time. Are they good? Absolutely! But I tend to think they are mostly as good as I think they are because of the memories they bring up. This is one of the first recipes I learned how to make from my mom. In fact - it's her recipe. I'm sure you could find some adaption of it pretty easily on the internet somewhere, but none of them taste quite like these.

It's the first recipe I mastered on my own, brought somewhere and got a really good response. They became my standby for a while - the only thing I would make because I knew I could make them well! Obviously, I've branched out since then.. but I remember my roots, and I remember standing by my mom as she taught me each step. And every time I taste one, the crunchiness of the water chestnut and the tanginess of the barbecue sauce, it reminds me of home!

What recipe or food do you have the conjures up the most memories?

Mom's Bacon Wrapped Water Chestnuts

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb bacon (cut in thirds)

2 small cans water chestnuts (break in half and stack on top of each other)

1 cup ketchup

2/3 cup brown sugar

1/2 tbs. lemon juice

toothpicks

Preparation

1. Cut bacon into thirds.

2. Wrap bacon around stacked water chestnuts and secure with a tooth pick. Place on baking tray in line leaving space between so they don't stick together.

3. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Pour off the grease.

4. In a microwave safe bowl, mix together sugar, ketchup and lemon juice. Heat just until warmed in microwave (about 30 seconds).

5. Pour over water chestnuts evenly, trying to avoid the toothpick if possible (it will burn).

6. Bake an additional 30-35 minutes until bacon is crispy.

Featured

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 06:21:00 +0000

Hello there,

Go on... check me out over here today. You know you want to! :)

There's a small little write-up feature about The Cooking Vent over there, and wouldn't it be oh so nice of you to drop on over and check me out!

Pocketchange by Become.com shows a lot of different bloggers in features for "Best of the Web"- Be @ Home section, and they asked if they could write a bit about me.

Thanks for showing some love and stopping on over.

Peppermint Oreo Truffles

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 22:25:00 +0000

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

We sure did around here. It was a relaxing day that was filled with a lot of blessings... and eating!

We weren't able to be with our family this year, but Skype and FaceTime has really made a difference in technology - and I was able to have conversations with family and friends from all over the world (Washington, South Carolina, and even China) via FaceTime and it was almost like being together - almost. My dad called on FaceTime from the terminal of the Atlanta airport on his way to visit family out of the country. He turned the phone around to show me the airport, and it was completely dead! I guess not many people fly internationally on Christmas day. Made it nice for him, he was getting on a 14 hour flight and there were lots of extra seats - Leg room, baby! ha

How was your Christmas? What did you do? I hope it was filled with blessings and love from your family, and hopefully your were able to set aside a time to quiet yourself and reflect on this season.

We spent some time with a great group of friends yesterday, enjoying the day together - and had a lot of fun. We decided to forego the large Christmas dinner idea so that nobody was spending the entire day in the kitchen, and went for a large pot of white chicken chili, salad, and yummy appetizers. Everybody pitched in and brought appetizers, dips, desserts, etc and we pretty much ate all day. It was divine! :)

One of the things I brought were these yummy peppermint Oreo truffles. They are so so good. They stay moist in the middle from the cream cheese, and they have just the slightest hint of peppermint flavor - not too overwhelming like a lot of peppermint flavored goodies. You could always increase or decrease the amount of peppermint candy used if you wanted to change it - or even omit it all together if you don't like peppermint. These are a great way to use up those candy cane Christmas tree decorations, and would make a really great New Year's Eve goody to bring for your parties. Hope you enjoy!

Peppermint Oreo Truffles (Adapted From: Kraft Recipes)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

~ 12 peppermint candies, divided

1 package Oreo cookies

1 8 oz. package cream cheese, softened

12 ounces dark (bittersweet) chocolate chips

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Here's your lineup of what you'll need

Preparation:

1. Place cookies and 8 peppermint candies in a food processor, pulsing until completely crushed.

2. Place cream cheese in food processor with crushed cookie mixture. Pulse until it makes a batter, and all cookie crumbs are combined. Place mixture in fridge for 20-30 minutes or until chilled.

3. While chilling, place remaining peppermint candies in a ziploc bag and crush into smaller pieces with a meat mallet or rolling pin (you'll want bigger pieces, not fine dust)

4. Place chocolate chips and vegetable oil in a microwave-safe bowl, and melt in 30 second increments until completely smooth and melted.

5. Roll chilled cookie mixture into 1" balls and place on parchment paper lined cookie sheet.

6. Dip rolled cookie mixture into chocolate using a small fork, covering entire ball with chocolate. Take out and tap fork on edge of bowl a few times to tap off excess chocolate. Top with remaining peppermint candy pieces immediately after dipping before the chocolate dries.

7. Continue dipping process with all of the balls. Place in refrigerator to harden approximately 30 minutes.

Eggnog French Toast with Brown Butter Maple Syrup

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 07:43:00 +0000

Merry Christmas!

I hope you have the most wonderful day with your family, friends, and loved ones.

I'm planning on doing the same. And while I'm at it, I'll be enjoying a lot of good food.

I won't be with family this year for the holidays, but we'll be with our California family - laying around in our pajamas, all pitching in with good food, talking, playing games, eating, watching movies, and oh yeah... eating! :)

I made this eggnog french toast for breakfast for Archie and I and it was fantastic. The eggnog flavor is not strong at all, but the brown butter maple syrup will SERIOUSLY change your life! NOT kidding.... at.... all! Seriously people, go make the brown butter syrup right now. Then make this really easy and yummy french toast sticks recipe and serve it together for your family.

This recipe is a great way to use up all your leftover eggnog so it doesn't get wasted! If you don't like eggnog, you can definitely substitute the whole liquid amount for milk - but I don't recommend it! :)

EGGNOG FRENCH TOAST WITH BROWN BUTTER MAPLE SYRUP (Adapted From Simply Scratch)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

10 slices of thick break (I used buttermilk bread)

4 whole eggs, room temperature

2/3 cup eggnog, room temperature

2 tablespoons whole milk, room temperature

1/4 cup butter, melted and cooled to room temperature

3/4 teaspoon vanilla

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon nutmeg

For Syrup:

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

1/2 stick butter

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, and line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

2. Slice bread into 4 slices each. In a shallow pan whisk together eggs, eggnog, milk, cooled butter, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg.

3. Dip the bread pieces into the egg mixture and place on a cookie cooling rack to drip off extra batter.

4. Place dipped pieces evenly on a cookie sheet, leaving a small amount of space between so they don't stick. Place the sheets in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Turn over after 15 minutes and bake for another 15 minutes or until golden brown.

5. For syrup: Place the butter into a small skillet pan and melt - allowing to cook until butter turns golden, foam disappears, and it emits a nutty smell.

6. Combine the syrup and browned butter in a bowl and whisk to mix together. Serve with baked french toast.

Salted Caramel Chocolate Pretzel Bark

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Sat, 17 Dec 2011 16:26:00 +0000

It's been a really rough week!

You know the theory that bad things come in threes... well they came in four's and fives this week.

Life at work was insane! It wasn't just your typical, "Oh that was a really stressful week". No, it was pretty much terrible! Lots of things going on there, one of which include the word "restructuring", and it was really hard!

Then my husband got in a car accident this week. But the problem is, that he drives a '67 Ford Mustang. So, it's not like any other car, and we can just go ahead and have it fixed. It has to be taken to a specific car specialist, and we'll never be able to match the specific color it was painted, so it will just have to have black primer on it until we can afford to get the whole car repainted.

On top of the craziness, it was our 8 year anniversary this week - and I was way to stressed out to even remotely enjoy it. My poor hubby was busy trying to take care of me (this was before he wrecked his car! :) ), and we tried to enjoy dinner and our date as much as possible.

Yesterday, I was really down in the dumps! I was having myself a good ole' pity party about what a stressful and rough week it was, and it was Christmas time - my favorite time of the year, and now it felt ruined... and then I stopped dead in my tracks! Boy was I going down a really bad path, and I felt that oh so "GENTLE" nudge that I was so so wrong.

Christmas was not ruined because I was having a bad day - in fact, I think it was made better, because only when I am at the very bottom of myself can God be glorified, and then the true meaning of Christmas can really be portrayed. God is the God of peace, He is the God of comfort, He holds us in the midst of our sorrow, and in the middle of everything... He is on the throne.

I heard this song on the radio yesterday, it's one of my favorites we sing at SouthBay Church, and it has been my saving grace. Thought I would share with you.

This week, when I was at my craziest, I decided to make some comfort food in the form of chocolate. Don't worry, I only had one piece and took the rest to work! :) This pretzel bark is so good. It's kind of a twist on some of the bark that is out there at Christmas time. I love the mix of the flavors, and I love homemade caramel. It's really a very very tasty treat - and perfect for giving away to neighbors and friends in your Christmas goodie bags!

Salted Caramel Pretzel Bark (Adapted from Legume Loyalist via Pinterest):

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter

1 cup light brown sugar

bag of pretzel sticks (you won't need the whole bag)

8 oz. semi-sweet chocolate chips

4 oz. milk chocolate chips (recommend Guittard)

Fleur de Sel sea salt

Preparation:

1. Line a baking tray with foil and lightly brush on butter from one of the sticks - just barely cover. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. Place the butter in a saucepan over medium-low heat (if you have gas heat, really watch it, because it will get hot very fast). As the butter is melting, lightly break pretzel sticks up with hands and place evenly covering surface of foil-lined cookie sheet.

3. Once butter is melted, add the brown sugar and whisk until incorporated (this may take a few minutes - the butter once to stay separated). Allow the sugar and butter to simmer, but avoid letting the whole thing boil. It will be a big huge mess, and you'll have to do the whole thing again - take my word for it! :) Stir occasionally, about 3-4 minutes until it takes on a caramel consistency.

4. Pour the caramel mixture evenly over the pretzels, drizzling back and forth, using a spatula to even it out if you missed any spots. Bake in the oven 5-7 minutes.

5. While caramel is in oven, over a double boiler (saucepan filled with simmering water with a larger bowl on top. Remember not to let the bowl touch the water or you end up with burnt chocolate), place the chocolate. Continue to stir until its melted and smooth.

6. Pour the melted chocolate over the cooked caramel/pretzel mixture, again drizzling back and forth and using a spatula to spread to any missed spots. Sprinkle with the fleur de sel and place in refrigerator for approximately one hour to harden. Place on a cutting board upside down, pulling the foil off. Cut or break the sheet into smaller/bark like pieces.

Eggnog Sugar Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 08:00:00 +0000

I know I've said this before... but California has to be the best state ever. It's not even my home state - where I was born and raised. But it sure does feel like "home" now. Archie and I LOVE to explore, and one of our favorite ways is hiking. There are so many places to go hiking here. This past weekend we went hiking with our hiking buddies, Jeremiah and Jenny. Here are a few pictures of our adventure at Big Sur.

How can you go hiking without an Iphone/GPS?

Can you say Christmas card?

We made a lunch stop at Big Sur Bakery. I've heard a lot about this place on other blogs, and loved being able to try it. It was a lunch menu, which was a bit smaller, but it was still delicious. I had a local ham sandwich with fresh baked bread and a chocolate chip macadamia nut cookie. Archie got a chai latte which was topped with honey and was delicious! If you're in the area, you should definitely try.

Now let's talk about cookies - because I know that's really why you're reading. It's Christmas time - and what better way to add thickness to the waste line but eggnog! Eggnog has such a varied fan base - some people love it and some people hate it. I'm surprised to see how many people haven't even tried it! My dad introduced me to eggnog, and I've been a fan ever since. I'm a traditionalist though - you can't enjoy it, not even one little sip, until after Thanksgiving! These cookies have just a hint of eggnog with more of a nutmeg flavor. Still delicious.

If you need a little help working off the eggnog, Pinterest has some great quick at home bootcamp workouts you can do in 30 minutes or less with little to no equipment - here and here.

Eggnog Sugar Cookies (From: BHG)

Print Recipe

Ingredients:

For Cookies -

1/2 vanilla bean

1 1/4 cups butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 egg

1 tablespoon eggnog

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

For Icing

3 cups powdered sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

4-5 tablespoons eggnog

Preparation:

1. Cut vanilla bean in half and scrape out seeds, setting them aside.

2. Using an electric mixer, mix softened butter on medium for 30 seconds or until fluffy. Add the sugar, baking powder, nutmeg and salt, and beat until combined, scraping the bowl as needed.

3. Beat in the egg, eggnog, and vanilla beans until combined. Mix in the flour - mixing as much as possible by the electric mixer, and switching to a wooden spoon to stir in remaining flour.

4. Divide the dough in half and wrap in plastic wrap, chilling for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375 and lightly flour a work surface. Roll out the dough to approximately 1/4" thick.

5. Using a fluted round cookie cutter, cut out dough and place on cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake in the preheated oven for 8-10 minutes or until edges are firm and bottoms are lightly browned. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack, and let cool.

For Icing:

Mix together all ingredients until spreadable consistency. Spread onto cooled cookies.

The Great Cookie Swap 2011 - Gingersnap Cream Cheese Sandwich Cookies

noreply@blogger.com (Rebekah) — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 08:00:00 +0000

A few weeks ago, on twitter, I saw that Lindsay from Love and Olive Oil was going to be hosting a cookie swap! It was such a fantastic idea that I had to join in. She had a sign up where bloggers could sign up, get matched up with other bloggers, and exchange a dozen cookies by mail with three other bloggers. What a great way to get to know some other bloggers, taste some yummy cookies, and make some Christmas cookies myself!

Here were some of the cookies I got!

Jessica from The Novice Chef sent me these really delicious peanut butter sandwich cookies. They taste really close to these - which is so funny, because it's one of my families FAVORITE cookies!

Then I received these delicious bits! Yummy Chocolate Caramel Cookies from Heather at FarmGirl Gourmet. They reminded me of Salted Caramel Cookies - and they taste divine with peppermint ice cream!

Lastly, I received Pumpkin Suicide Cookies from Melanee at The Best Life Lived. They were a delicious batch of fall wrapped in a cookie that had a twist of a chocolate chip cookie.

Now I'm in a cookie coma from trying out all of these cookies!

And for myself, I had to decide on the cookie. It was a hard choice, but then I found the cookbook for Miette at the library. Miette is a great bakery in San Francisco/Oakland, and they have the best gingersnap cookies. You can find them all year round, and every time I'm in the Fairy building, I pick up a package. So when I found the cookbook... and the recipe for the gingersnaps was in there... it was a go! I made some small adaptions to the recipe, and made it a sandwich cookie with cream cheese frosting!- so so good.

So I sent a batch to Patricia, Chung, and Emily. Hope you ladies enjoyed them, and hope they made them in one piece! :)

Gingersnap Cream Cheese Sandwich Cookies (Adapted from Miette Bakery cookbook)

Print Recipe

Ingredients

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup whole-wheat flour

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon ground ginger

Generous 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper

1/8 teaspoon ground cloves

1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature

3/4 cup lightly packed light brown sugar

2 tablespoons honey

4 tablespoons molasses

1 tablespoon crushed crystalized ginger

2 teaspoons fresh ginger puree (grated with a microplane)

granulated sugar for sprinkling

For Frosting

1 8 ounce package cream cheese frosting, softened

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

1 pound (box) powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Preparation

1. Sift together both flours, salt, and spices in a bowl and set aside.

2. Using a mixer with a paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy for 3-4 minutes. Then add the honey and molasses, continuing to mix until fully incorporated.

3. Add the flour and spices to the butter and sugar mixture in three small batches, mixing until just combined. Stir in the crystalized ginger and ginger puree just until combined.

4. Form the dough into a round flat disk and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes before rolling out to cut into shapes.

5. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

6. Roll out dough onto a lightly floured surface to 1/4" thick. Cut with a scalloped round cookie cutter, place on the lined cookie sheets approximately 1/2" apart. Sprinkle the cookies with the granulated sugar and bake in the preheated oven for 10-12 minutes or until cookies are browned. Cool cookies on a wire rack.

7. For frosting, beat all ingredients together until well mixed. Frost a small amount on a cookie, and sandwich them together. Enjoy!