Fall, Fall, Fall

Well, this is my favorite season to cook! I get so excited! There's apples, pears, pumpkins, squash, cranberries, yams, hot cocoa, etc.

Here's my plan for baking in the fall:

October: Pumpkins
November: Apples, Cranberries
December: Pears

Nevermind, I'm just gonna do it all at once. I love fall!

Here's my new plan, I'm going to make/revamp these:

Pumpkin Butterscotch Cupcakes
Hot Cocoa Cupcakes
Lemon Cranberry Cookies
Pear Puff Pastries
Caramel Apple Bread Pudding
Pumpkin Pancakes

*Keep in mind, these all have my own little twist on it. I'll inform you when I make them!
**For organization sake, I'll have a theme once a month. September is chocolate month...yes chocolate!

Veggie Tacos

If you've ever heard of Island's Restaurant, then you're missing out on their Veggie Tacos. I love to try and recreate things and I decided this time to add my own twist to it. My recipe is more of Mediterranean meets Southwestern. I was a little nervous of how it may have turned out, but to my surprise it looked and tasted GREAT!

Couscous:
1 c chicken broth
1 clove of garlic, minced
pinch of curry powder
pinch of paprika
2 tbsp butter
1/4 tsp salt
1 c uncooked couscous

Add all ingredients, except the couscous, to a saucepan. Stir and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the dry couscous. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Veggie mix:
2 cup frozen Market Pantry Corn & Blackbean mix (found at Target)
1/2 Zucchini Squash, cut into strips

Oil a pan and toss in veggies. Cook until fully cooked.

Tacos:
Corn tortillas
Green Leaf Lettuce
Couscous
Veggie Mix

Layer lettuce on top of tortilla. Spoon desired amount of couscous on top of lettuce. Add veggie mix on top of the couscous. Eat up!

Just Cook Already!

I love blogging! I am a contributor to Just Cook Already! Its a blog meant to bring your kitchen to everyone else! I've gotten some amazing ideas from this blog! Check it out!



http://just-cook-already.blogspot.com/

Banana Stuffed French Toast!

This little baby is my new best friend! You know those crustables PB & J snack from the freezer aisle...ya well I have one of these tools at home and man does it make life fun! It's from Pampered Chef (my #1 cooking best friend) and it's very inexpensive considering how often you'll use it! Sure, it takes away the crust but it also inspires me to the max! I give you Banana Stuffed French Toast!

Ingredients:

For Banana Stuffing:

3 bananas, cut into 1/2 in. slices

4 tbsp butter, unsalted

1/4 c brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

For French Toast:

10 slices of regular wheat bread

2 eggs

3/4 c milk

1 tbsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp vanilla

Brown Sugar Syrup:

4 tbsp butter

1/4 c brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a saute pan. Add brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Stir till it has a syrup texture to it. Add bananas and stir for a couple minutes. Set aside to cool.

2. Heat oven to 350 degrees.

3. Scoop about a spoonful of the banana mixture onto a slice of bread. Lay another slice on top and press down slightly. Take the Cut & Seal and Press firmly to create a "crustless sandwich." Continue until you have 5 sandwiches total. Mix eggs, milk, cinnamon, and vanilla in a bowl. Dip sandwiches into the egg mixture and place on a greased cookie sheet. Contiue with the rest of the sandwiches. Bake for 25 minutes. After 15 minutes, flip the french toast over.

4. While the french toast is in the oven, mix butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla to create a syrup on low heat. Serve warm over the french toast.

Olive Oil Cakes with Lemon Glaze

I am obsessed with cooking magazines! Right now one of my new faves is the Food Network Magazine! Can it get any better than that??? It has all my favorite chefs all in one! Who needs a cook book when you can have it all every month! This new issue has some really neat goodies! I tried one out tonight and my family LOVED it. I made 24 individual size cakes... and now there are 5 left. Mind you, they came out of the oven 45 minutes ago! The best part about this recipe is that you make it all in a blender. This was specifically designed for those of us who aren't so lucky to own a food processor (trust me, it is on my wish list though). I modified this a little bit because I wanted to make it a little healthier. I'll give you my version!



Ingredients
For the Cakes:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
1 cup all-purpose wheat flour, plus more for dusting
1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (from 2 lemons)
2 large eggs
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2/3 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon finely minced fresh thyme, plus sprigs for garnish

For the Glaze:

3/4 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

Directions
1.Position a rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees. Prepare the cakes: Brush a 24-cup mini muffin pan or 12-cup pan with the melted butter. Lightly dust with flour and shake out the excess.

2.Pulse the granulated sugar and lemon zest in a blender until combined. Add the eggs one at a time, then gradually pour in the olive oil and milk, pulsing until emulsified into a thin batter, about 30 seconds. Don't overblend or the cakes will be too puffy.


3.Whisk 1 cup flour, the baking powder, salt and 1 teaspoon thyme in a small bowl. Add to the blender in 2 batches, pulsing lightly until just combined; stop to scrape down the sides of the blender as needed. Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake until the cakes just begin to pull away from the sides of the pan and spring back when lightly touched, 20 minutes for 24-cup pan, 25 minutes for 12 cup pan. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then loosen the sides with a small knife and invert the cakes onto a rack.


4.Meanwhile, prepare the glaze: Whisk the confectioners' sugar, lemon juice and butter until smooth, adding more lemon juice if the mixture is too thick. Drizzle over the warm cakes and garnish with thyme sprigs.

* I use less glaze because the recipe called for way more glaze than needed.

Italian Lemonade

During the spring and summer I LOVE lemons and I love basil. Well this recipe is actually a combination of both! Its a lemonade with a basil simple syrup. I think it adds a zing to your everyday lemonade. I saw this on Everyday Italian with Giada. I LOVE that show too! The thing about simple syrup is that I prefer to make my own. Mainly because I can control the amount of sugar going into it. There's always a battle of how to correctly make it, but I think it all depends on how sweet you want it. This recipe uses a 2:1 ratio sugar to water. If its too sweet then just make it 1:1 ratio.

Ingredients
2 cups lemon juice, about 12 to 15 lemons
2 cups Basil Simple Syrup, recipe follows
2 cups cold or sparkling water
Ice
Lemon twists, for garnish


Directions
Mix lemon juice, Basil Simple Syrup, and water together in a pitcher. Store in the refrigerator until ready to serve. Pour over ice filled glasses and garnish with a lemon twist.
Basil Simple Syrup:
1 bunch fresh basil, washed and stemmed
2 cups sugar
1 cup water

In a saucepan combine basil, sugar, and water and simmer until the sugar is dissolved, 5 minutes. Cool, strain the simple syrup, and store in the refrigerator.

Couscous

Ok so I do have to admit, my last couple of posts have not really been the healthiest, but man o man I just couldn't resist! But today, I'm going to make up for it! I have a new favorite these days...Couscous! There's a wonderful store near me called Trader Joe's that carries a whole wheat couscous. Here's a little dish I like to conjure up. I was inspired by the recipe on the back of the box, but naturally made my own modifications

1 c chicken broth
2 tbsp butter
1/2 tsp salt
salt & pepper
1 garlic clove minced
1 c dry couscous
6 tbsp olive oil
1/3 c lemon juice
1 diced tomato
1/2 green pepper, diced
1/4 c green onions
4 tbsp parsley

In a saucepan, add chicken broth, butter, dash of salt & pepper, and garlic. Bring to a boil. Once boiled, remove from heat and mix in dry couscous. Cover and let sit for 5 minutes. Mix in the rest of the ingredients and enjoy! I like to eat it with grilled chicken and a salad. Yum!

Wow!

Wow is all I have to say to describe this recipe I found. If you've ever heard of Pioneer Woman, then you know this is just gonna be gooooooood! She has this recipe for a Chocolate Peanut-Butter Pie. I have yet to try this as well, but you better believe I will. I'm at home right now studying for finals, but once I'm back in Provo, this as well as my last post, will be on my list to make ASAP! Please try this and Please enjoy!

Pioneer Woman

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

Crust:
25 Oreos
4 tablespoons butter, melted

Crush the Oreos until they’re fine crumbs. Pour melted butter over the top and stir with a fork to combine. Press into pie pan and bake at 350 degrees for 5 to 7 minutes, or until set.
Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.

Filling:
1 cup creamy peanut butter
1 8-ounce package softened cream cheese
1 1/4 cups powdered sugar
1 8-ounce package Cool Whip, thawed

Beat the peanut butter with the cream cheese until smooth. Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth. Add in the thawed Cool Whip and beat mixture until smooth, scraping the sides as needed.

Pour filling into crust, evening out the top with a knife or spatula. Chill for at least an hour before serving.

*Apparently, its super rich...so be cautious!

Key Lime & Raspberry Tiramisu

So I saw this recipe on a blog recently and I think my mouth watered immediately! I haven't tried it yet, but you can bet I will in the next week! I think the best part of this is that its a form of Tiramisu and it has no coffee in it! Hooray! Also, you can make it parfait style! Yum! I highly recommend checking out the blog! Its so great and she has some of the greatest recipes. This one I couldn't resist sharing!

Key Lime-Raspberry Tiramisu

Raspberry Jam Sauce:
12 ounces frozen raspberries
6 TBSP sugar

Key Lime Simple Syrup:
¼ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup water
zest of two key limes
3 4.40-ounce packages Champagne biscuits(or lady fingers)

Key Lime Filling:
3 cups heavy whipping cream
8 ounces Mascarpone cheese, at room temperature
½ cup powdered sugar
3 TBSP fresh key lime juice (if you can find)
1 cup fresh raspberries for garnish

Use a 8-x-8-inch pan.
Cook frozen raspberries and 6 TBSP sugar in saucepan over medium heat until mixture resembles a jam and is reduced to 1 cup, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes. Cool jam mixture. Push through a sieve to get a sauce-like consistency.

Combine sugar with ¼ cup water and lime zest in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally until sugar has dissolved. Remove from heat, and cool to room temperature. Strain out the zest before using.Using and electric mixer, whip the cream until stiff peaks form.In a mixing bowl, fold 2/3’s of the whipped cream into the Mascarpone cheese, along with the powdered sugar, and key lime juice. Blend until cream is fully incorporated.

Lay the lady fingers at the bottom of dish. Brush the layer with Key Lime Simple (about 1/3 of it) followed by the Raspberry Jam Sauce.Spread 1/3 of the cheese mixture over the lady fingers. Scatter 1/3 cup fresh raspberries on top of the cheese mixture. Repeat the procedure until all of the lady fingers and cheese mixture are used. Spread the reserved whip cream over the top of the tiramisu. Allow the cake to set, about an hour. Garnish with fresh berries. Makes 10 servings.

***To make Parfait style: Break up 4-5 lady fingers. Put about 5 pieces at the bottom of a clear glass of your choice. Brush with syrup. Add raspberry sauce. Pipe in Mascarpone filling. Top with a little more raspberry sauce. Add raspberry. Repeat till you hit the top of your glass.

Coconut Chicken Soup

So, this recipe is one of my favorites now! I made it on Monday and I was in love! I found it in the May/June issue of Clean Eating Magazine. I love it because it is so light and healthy, yet filling. It's a tad bit spicy, but I think that's why I can't get enough!

Chicken Coconut Soup

1 tbsp canola or EVOO
1 garlic clove, minced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
1 cup white or red potato, chopped
sea salt and black pepper, to taste
1 ½ cup low sodium chicken broth
½ cup light coconut milk
½ cup skim milk
8 oz. boneless, skinless chicken breast (uncooked)
½ cup snow peas, cleaned and cut lengthwise
1 tsp chile pepper flakes
1-2 tsp fresh lemon juice
4 tbsp fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped

Heat oil in a pot over medium heat. Add garlic, onion, carrots and potatoes. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until onions are lightly translucent. Add broth and coconut and skim milks. Bring to a boil. Add chicken, cover and let simmer for 12 minutes over medium-low heat. Remove chicken and set aside. Add peas and chile flakes to soup. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes. When cool enough to handle, slice chicken and add pieces back to the soup. Season with additional salt and pepper, if desired. Add lemon juice, sprinkle in cilantro and serve.