29 May
GO PENS! with All-Occasion Sugar Cookies
Posted by Michelle as Cookies | 53 Comments
After coming painfully close to raising the Cup last year, the Pittsburgh Penguins have earned a rematch with the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup finals, set to begin tomorrow night. This isn’t a sports blog so I won’t bore all of you foodies with the nitty gritty details, except to say I have been a huge hockey fan since I was a kid, I adored Mario Lemiuex, I still have the ‘91 and ‘92 victory games on VHS tape, and I’m from Pittsburgh. The Steelers won the Super Bowl this year. The Pens winning the Stanley Cup in the same year would be insanely exciting.
Okay, now that I got that out, onto the cookies!
First of all, hardcore Pittsburgh fans will realize that my jerseys look more like Steelers jerseys than Pens jerseys, but I ran out of the lighter shade of yellow, oops. But Black & Gold is Black & Gold, right?
I had wanted to make Steelers decorated sugar cookies for the Super Bowl, but ran out of time, so I decided I definitely needed to make them for the Stanley Cup playoffs. I have a tried-and-true sugar cookie recipe that I always use, but I thought this would be a good time to give another one a try. Who else would I turn to than the dessert guru herself, Dorie Greenspan?
27 May
An Inspired Cobb Salad
Posted by Michelle as Salads | 11 Comments
The inspiration for this salad runs a few degrees deep. It all started with the California Brunch Special crepe from Crepes-a-Go-Go. This is my Chief Culinary Consultant’s favorite savory crepe to order; it has turkey, cheese, eggs, mushrooms, avocado, tomato, and feta. Seriously delicious. This crepe spawned a great idea by him: an omelet made with chopped avocado, tomato, mushrooms, and feta (and if we’re really hungry, throw in chopped chicken or turkey). Incredibly scrumptious. And maybe healthier than the crepe? Okay, definitely healthier than the crepe. Recently I’ve been craving a “big salad”. Who remembers the Seinfeld episode when Elaine tries to order a “big salad” with “lots of stuff”? That’s exactly what I wanted. I immediately thought about the crepe, and then the omelet, and realized that those ingredients would make an amazing salad.
With summer on our doorstep here in the East, a bright crisp salad with fresh ingredients sounded delicious.
26 May
Chocolate Chip Cookie-Topped Brownies
Posted by Michelle as Brownies and Bar Cookies | 20 Comments
Brownies are good. Chocolate chip cookies are good. Chocolate chip cookie dough-topped brownies? Utterly delicious.
These brownies take two of the most popular desserts – brownies and chocolate chip cookies – and combine them into one amazing, sinful treat. The bottom is a classic brownie recipe, and the top chocolate chip cookie dough. The combination of flavors is wonderful and the best part is eating them warm from the oven or reheated – the chocolate chips from the cookie layer on top are slightly melted, giving the brownies that great ooey-gooey-ness that can only come from perfectly baked chocolate chip cookies. You’ll want to have a nice tall glass of cold milk ready when you serve these!
25 May
Greek Celebration Bread – Christopsomos
Posted by Michelle as Yeast Breads | 12 Comments
This recipe is a variation on the Greek Celebration Bread (Artos). I was immediately drawn to the Christopsomos because it appeared to be, in essence, the bread form of the Cucidati cookies I made a few months ago. The traditional Italian cookies are filled with ground figs, raisins, dates and walnuts, and flavored with orange and cinnamon. Certainly, a striking similarity to this bread and not surprising since Italy and Greece often share culinary influences and traditions.
22 May
Coconut Chocolate Chunk Blondies
Posted by Michelle as Brownies and Bar Cookies | 30 Comments
At some point I missed the memo on blondies. When did they become popular? They popped up on my radar sometime last year, and even then, I didn’t feel the urge to scurry off into the kitchen to whip them up. Slowly though, it seemed their popularity was picking up steam. I started to see a lot of different varieties on other blogs. I saw an episode of Throwdown with Bobby Flay when he tried to one-up the blondies by Sugardaddy’s. I still didn’t see what all the fuss was about, but I added them to my Top 100 list and figured I would give them a try one day. Lo and behold, that day finally came. Annie asked me if I wanted to bake something together being that it had been awhile since we made the Peanut Butter Torte, and these were one of her suggestions. Since I had been dragging my feet on trying them, I thought it was a good selection. I was even more convinced after I tried one – they taste very much like Girl Scout Samoas cookies!
21 May
Traditional Hummus
Posted by Michelle as Appetizers | 7 Comments
I don’t remember the first time that I tried hummus, but I know that I certainly love it. It’s healthy, relatively low-fat, and can be served with a variety of accompaniments: vegetables, bagel chips, pretzels, pita bread, and the list goes on and on. For the longest time I made a short-cut version of hummus that didn’t use tahini, which is what makes hummus truly authentic. The short-cut version tasted fabulous, but didn’t have the creamy texture that you’ll find when you order hummus at a restaurant. Enter tahini.
19 May
Mushroom Spinach & Gruyere Quiche
Posted by Michelle as Breakfast Foods, Vegetarian Entrees | 13 Comments
Given the current state of today’s economy, many people are trying to cut back on their grocery bill. Unfortunately, a lot of people think “eating cheap” equates to ramen noodles and spaghettios. This couldn’t be farther from the truth. In fact, slashing spending on food opens up the possibilities to getting creative and exploring new flavors. Since meat is one of the more expensive parts of a grocery bill, throwing in a few vegetarian meals during the week can really stretch the dollar. Quiche often graces the table for fancy breakfasts or the occasional brunch, but egg-based dinners can be very tasty, filling, and cheap!
The traditional quiche is baked in a flaky, buttery crust. While it tastes fabulous, we’re dangerously close to bathing suit season. We can spare the butter (and save it for dessert), right? It also drastically reduces the time it takes to assemble this dish, making it an easy weeknight meal.
18 May
Anadama Bread
Posted by Michelle as Yeast Breads | 14 Comments
This bread is a wonderful loaf bread full of complex flavors and a hearty texture. Although it appears as though it may be a wheat bread, don’t be fooled! The dark coloring is a result of mild molasses in the dough, which provides a slightly sweet flavor to the bread. In addition to the molasses, cornmeal is also added, which gives the crust a nice crunch and the bread a full and hearty texture. The resulting loaf is a soft sandwich-style bread that pairs well with just as well with lunch meat as it does with your classic peanut butter and jelly. For breakfast, layer on butter and your favorite jelly.
Did I mention that it also makes a fabulous prosciutto, mozzarella, and roasted red pepper sandwich?
13 May
Classic Fudge
Posted by Michelle as Candies and Confections | 14 Comments
You say “fudge” and I immediately smell the salty air that wafts up from the shores of the Atlantic. Although fudge is a traditional gift toted around in tins at Christmas-time, it always reminds me of the beach. A quaint little beach town (or crowded boardwalk, for that matter) wouldn’t be complete without a homemade fudge shop nestled in between the salt water taffy store and the “I forgot sunblock, aloe, and a souvenir” store. You can’t walk within 100 yards of it without being completely immersed in the smell of rich chocolate goodness. Seems as though it might be a tad unethical to sell that stuff to people who are already on the verge of passing out from sucking in their stomachs all day at the beach, no?
At any rate, fudge is such a popular confection that I’m amazed I have never made it myself. Perhaps it has been the increasing temperatures and warm breezes that have me daydreaming about feeling sand between my toes, and led me to stirring chocolate and chopping walnuts.
05 May
Coffee-and-Espresso Layered Cheesecake
Posted by Michelle as Cheesecakes | 32 Comments
Last week was my sister’s birthday, and she spent it living it up out in Chicago, so this was a somewhat belated celebration. Last year for her birthday she asked me to make a Vanilla Cake with Chocolate Hazelnut filling, so this year while trying to think of a dessert that she would enjoy, something that was different and unique, all I could keep thinking about was making something with coffee in it. (I think my sister would become legally wed to Starbucks if she could!) I, of course, love cheesecake so I started searching around for some type of coffee and/or espresso flavored cheesecake. I found a few recipes floating around out there, but none that I was crazy about, so I went about creating my own.
This is essentially a graham crust, and a classic cheesecake recipe with half of the batter flavored with Starbucks Coffee Liquor and the other half flavored with a serving of espresso, topped with chocolate ganache and garnished with chocolate covered espresso beans (thanks to my Chief Culinary Consultant for suggesting the chocolate covered beans – definitely a great finishing touch!). I think the balance of flavors in this cheesecake is perfect:
A subtle hint of the coffee liquor paired with an espresso flavor that was not too overpowering, and a bittersweet chocolate ganache that ties it all together.
