Cheeky Kitchen & Slow Cooker Gooey Chocolate Cake - StumbleUpon I’m meeting a new friend for lunch today. And an old friend for line-dancing tonight. And I’m feeling rather spoiled about it all. I mean, moms shouldn’t have TWO social events on the calendar for the same day, should we? Which brings me to the point of what moms should be doing anyway. For a long time, I measured myself by what I remember of my own mom. The odd thing is, I’ve now reached the age in my life where I am exactly as old as she was. Such is the fate of all moms. And I realized then that everyday is really a bit like living in an imaginary world. Because, ancient people don’t do lunch with new friends. And they definitely don’t join in a on rousing night session of line-dancing with old friends. They don’t make oatmeal in the morning in bare feet and spandex shorts. And ancient people DEFINITELY do not fill their day’s with a slew of other snappy, bodacious activities. See? I’m crazy hip. Whatever are my kids thinking? Ingredients: 4 eggs 1 cup brown sugar 3/4 cup cocoa powder
Jersey Girl Cooks: Mini Lasagna Cups or 12 Minute Lasagna! Lasagna has to be one of my family’s favorite meals. Maybe not my son’s but we’re not going to talk about his favorite boxed mac and cheese today. I have always reserved this special dish for holidays and weekends because making it can be time consuming. Last week I happened to be cruising the food blogosphere when I ran into Petite Lasagnas on Can You Stay for Dinner?. If you would like to lighten up these lasagnas, you can use low fat ricotta, low fat mozzarella cheese and veggie or turkey meat sauce. All week I have been dreaming about the different mini lasagnas I can make. When making these, make sure to spray your muffin tin well. Mini Lasagna Cups (inspired by Petite Lasagnas from Can You Stay For Dinner?) Cooking spray 1/2 cup ricotta cheese 1 small egg, beaten 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese 2 tsp Italian seasoning, divided 24 wonton wrappers ( I used Nasoya) 2 to 3 cups meat or marinara sauce, heated (depending on how saucy you like your lasagna cups) 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
WHITE CHERRY & PEACH JAM Musical pairing – Black Horse And The Cherry Tree by KT Tunstall I could tell you that I’ve made both cooked jam and freezer jam . . . I could also tell you that I prefer freezer jam because somehow, it tastes fresher (at least to moi) . . . or I can tell you that I’ve had a change of heart towards cooked jams . . . or maybe a change of tastebuds, I’m not sure. The heavens opened and the stars lined up when I came across this recipe last fall and in that one kismet moment, I knew I’d found jam nirvana. When I think back on my days at the little house on Ankeny street, I vaguely remember my mother making cooked jam that was sealed in jars with paraffin – strawberry I think . . . and maybe some grape jelly. This Peach & White Cherry Jam is one of those combos where you say to yourself, ‘why didn’t I think of that?!’ WHITE CHERRY & PEACH JAMBlue Chair Jam BookMakes 6, 8-ounce Jars © 2011, Debra.
Salted Caramel Cupcakes & We are not Martha One of my very favorite flavor combinations this time of year is salted caramel. I actually fell for the sweet/salty combo when I found myself always buying the salted caramel hot chocolate at Starbucks a few winters back. It was soul-warming and lovely and very easy to become addicted! Since fall is officially here now I decided what better way to end the weekend than by baking some seasonal cupcakes. Salted Caramel Cupcakes (makes 15) Adapted from Sprinkle Bakes Print this Recipe! The Cupcakes: • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour • 1 teaspoon baking powder • 1/4 teaspoon sea salt • 1 stick (1/2 C) unsalted butter, room temperature • 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons light brown sugar, packed • 2 large eggs, room temperature • 1 teaspoon vanilla • 1/2 cup buttermilk Preheat oven to 325 degrees and line a muffin tin with cupcake liners. In a medium bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and sea salt together and set aside. Add eggs, one at a time, until each is well incorporated into the mixture. [Chels]
Oreo and Peanut Butter Brownie Cakes - StumbleUpon So, after being gone all last week, this has been catch up on the house week. Mostly laundry actually. Man, who knew that a weeks worth of laundry from 5 people could be so daunting. Yikes!! But I am kind of behind on my cooking and baking as well since I've been gone and cleaning. Not to mention, I needed an Oreo fix! Oreo and Peanut Butter Brownie Cakes 1 box brownie mix, 8x8 inch size 24 Oreo Cookies 1/2 cup creamy peanut butter Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a 12 muffin cup baker with paper liners. Prepare brownie mix according to package directions. Makes 12 servings Recipe from picky-palate.com foodsnots.com
*Simply Scratch*: Bacon Wrapped Jalapeños I have three words for you… BACON….WRAPPED….Jalapeños! Have you heard of any three words that sound more delicious than that?? And as much as I would love to take credit for this recipe, I can’t. This isn’t an original recipe… but it’s a darn great one! I made these along with the Bacon Wrapped Pineapple {I must have been craving bacon eh?} and these went just as fast. Jalapeños… I love them pickled, in my salsa, in my dips and baked… with trucks full of cream cheese! You’re gonna need bacon, jalapeños and 2 bricks of cream cheese… and maybe an oven. Oh and maybe some toothpicks too, which I never seem to have! You need about 20 or so jalapeños. I can’t stress enough about wearing gloves… WEAR THEM!!! Then place them in a bowl. See my husband is way tougher than me, he didn’t wear gloves {show off}… but since I did like 10 to his one… I did. He didn’t cry… but I did… from laughing. If you like them a little hot… you could leave a little of the rib {white membrane) attached. Yield: 40
Raspberry Cheesecake Cupcakes - StumbleUpon If you enjoy cheesecake, then you will love these cupcakes. They consist of cheesecake with a graham cracker crust, a layer of homemade raspberry jelly, and are topped with cream cheese whipped cream. Can you say yum? Ingredients: Cheesecake (3) 8 Ounce Packages Cream Cheese 4 Eggs 1 Cup Sugar 1/3 Cup Heavy Whipping Cream 1 Tablespoon and 1 Teaspoon Flour 1 Teaspoon Lemon Juice 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract Fresh Raspberries for Garnish Cream Cheese Whipped Cream 2 and 2/3 Cups Heavy Whipping Cream, liquid not already whipped 3 Tablespoons Cream Cheese, softened Raspberry Jelly 1 and 1/3 Cups Raspberries, fresh or frozen 3/4 Cup Sugar 1/4 Cup Water Graham Cracker Crust 1 Cup Graham Cracker Crumbs 1/3 Cup Butter, melted 2 Tablespoons Granulated Sugar 1 Teaspoon Brown Sugar 1/2 Teaspoon Cinnamon
Dessert Recipes for Spring: Potted-Flower Cupcakes By Lauren De Luca | 10 Summer Meals Gazpacho, pesto, pork recipes and more Perfect Summer Pesto Take advantage of the fresh herbs available in the summertime by making a wonderful pesto. 8-Layer Dinner Nachos While not entirely no-cook, these nachos represent the holy grail of family cooking: the one-dish dinner. Chronicles of a Beauty Nerd & Complexion-enhancing Blueberry Rooibos Tea Okay, okay – you know I love tea, but how can I actually enjoy a hot cup of tea when it’s blazing hot outside? Why, make it iced of course! Last week when I, ahem, invited myself to Divya’s place (from Flavour Fiesta), I brought over some of my Prickly Pear Rooibos tea that I purchased from the Tea Emporium. I love sipping on ice tea – it’s a refreshing drink that’s perfect for enjoying the warm weather we’ve been experiencing. Note: We used the rooibos-prickly pear tea from Tea Emporium, but if you are unable to find it, regular rooibos will work perfectly well! Ingredientsserves 2 Tea 3 measuring cups water 3 tsp rooibos tea leaves ¼ lemon/lime, juiced Ice cubes Blueberry syrup ½ cup blueberries 3 tsp brown sugar ¼ cup water Step 1: Boil the water for the tea. Step 2: Prepare the syrup by heating the blueberries, sugar and water for 2-3 minutes on medium heat in a small saucepan. Step 3: Mix the ice tea and the syrup and chill in the fridge. Serve the tea with ice and a lemon/lime wedge.
FOOD: Double Chocolate Espresso Pound Cake with Rose-Scented Cream Cheese Frosting .....aren't these the perfect Valentine's cupcakes? I can't get over the color combination, chocolate and rose!! Or the double chocolate and expresso pair it with rose-scented cream cheese frosting...!!! Here is the recipe: Double chocolate (espresso) pound cake {adapted from Rose Levy Beranbaum's Cake Bible}makes 6-7 large cupcakes, more if using regular-sized cupcake liners 2 Tbspn Dutch-processed cocoa powder1 Tbspn + 1 1/2 tspn black cocoa powder (or substitute with Dutch-processed cocoa)1 tspn instant coffee powder or espresso powder1/4 cup boiling water1 1/2 tspn vanilla extract3 large eggs1 1/4 cups (125 gr) AP flour3/4 cup + 2 Tbspn (175 gr) granulated sugar3/4 tspn baking powder1/4 tspn salt13 Tbspn (184 gr) unsalted butter, softened1 cup bittersweet chocolate chips 1. Rose-scented cream cheese frosting {adapted from Magnolia Bakery} 1. NOTE: A large closed-star tip for the frosting was used in these photos. ....and voila!! {Image and Recipe via Dessert for Breakfast}
Top 10 Kitchen Tricks That Speed Up Cooking So you’ve started beefing up your cooking skills, but the process is still a little tedious. Here are 10 surprising kitchen techniques that will save you a bunch of time — not to mention wow your friends. Please enable JavaScript to watch this video. 10. Deseed A Pomegranate In Seconds Using A Wooden Spoon If you don’t love pomegranates, it’s either because you’ve never had one or you hate how much work they take to deseed. 9. Peeling a hard boiled egg is a pain in the butt, but there’s a much easier way to get to the goods inside: just cut it in half and spoon it out of the shell. 8. Most 12 packs of soft drink are designed to sit in your fridge, but who needs an entire box sitting in there? 7. Ladling pancake batter into a pan is a recipe for a mess. 6. If you don’t like eating apples whole (they can, after all, get a little messy that way), but don’t always have a knife around, you can actually break them in half with your bare hands. 5. 4. 3. 2. 1.