Brownie Madeleines
Brownies have always been around in my house. My mom used to get me the box of Ghirardelli brownies from Costco when I was a kid and when I had a craving, it was a matter of adding eggs, water, and oil; pop it in the oven and we’re ready to have a party in my mouth in about 40 minutes.
But with Forever Nomday in full swing, I’ve been trying to see if I can recreate my favorites, from scratch! It took me quite some time to find the Ghirardelli Sweet Ground Chocolate – not at Ralphs, Vons, Costco, or even the Ghirardelli store! Finally I was perusing in Cost Plus World Market and there it was! So here we are, making brownies from scratch! Oh and they’re in the shape of Madeleines for no other reason other than the fact that I love the portion size of Madeleines and it allows for brownie bites the size they should be – about 3 bites.
- Preheat oven to 350˚F
- In a standing mixer, mix together the eggs, sugar, vanilla and then add melted butter.
- Sift the Sweet Ground Cocoa with the flour, baking powder and salt into a separate bowl.
- Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredient mixing bowl and add nuts (not part of this recipe, but this would be the time to do so if you’d like nuts in your brownies.)
- Stir in chocolate chips.
- Spray your pan with Pam. Alternatively you can take a paper towel and dip it in a little oil, then grease the pan. I used a Madeleine pan, but you can also make this in a 9×9 pan.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes.
- Allow brownies to cool before trying to pop them out of the pan. If you choose to use a Madeleine tin, I wedge a chopstick between the brownie and the pan to pop it out of place.
- NOM!
Coddled Egg
Normally this would have been a holiday post for the 4th, I thought about putting up an all American classic, or something along those lines. But what ended up happening instead was that I went up to LA and spent the weekend with friends and we ate out the whole time.
But on our last day, we ended up in the Grand Central Market in a long line that wrapped around all the surrounding restaurants. Yes, we ended up at Eggslut. I make an egg sandwich probably every day at work, and think they come out pretty good, but this…. this was something else entirely. And even more so was the little mason jar in the back. The infamous Eggslut, coddled egg over a potato puree and chives. So simple and yet, so creamy and delicious. So I took the jars and took the idea home! My take is a little different with the same concept, keeping it to the basics – potato, eggs, and bacon.
- Fill a stock pot 2 inches high with water add salt and bring to a boil. While the water is boiling, peel and cut your potatoes into 1-2 inch pieces. This cuts down the cooking time a lot versus boiling the potatoes whole. Boil your potatoes until the tip of a knife can easily poke through, roughly about 20-25 min.
- While your potatoes are boiling, add your crushed garlic, rosemary leaves, and heavy cream to a saucepan and bring to a simmer. After a few minutes, take the pan off the heat and allow the flavors to infuse for 20-30 minutes.
- When potatoes are fully cooked, strain. In a standing mixer using the whisk attachment, put it on the highest setting and allow the potatoes to whip.
- Pre-heat your sous vide water bath to 64˚ C
- Strain the cream mixture to remove all rosemary and garlic, and then put it back into the sauce pan. Add the butter and mix thoroughly. This is easiest to do with the saucepan still on the heat.
- Slowly add cream mixture into to whipped potatoes. Add sea salt to taste.
- Fill a small mason jar 2/3 full of garlic rosemary whipped potatoes. I used a piping bag to make sure there weren’t any air pockets, and also to get it to cleanly and evenly sit the jar.
- Crack a medium to large sized egg into the jar, close the lid tight and add it to your water bath for an hour.
- Microwave a slice of bacon. To microwave your bacon and still have it crispy, put a paper towel on both sides of the bacon to absorb fat that melts off. Chop up your crispy bacon and sprinkle on top.
- Break apart your egg and NOM!
Soondubu-jigae (Kimchi Tofu Soup)
When I was younger, there was no way I was getting anywhere close to the fermented…. did you just say that was fermented cabbage?? And why is it orange?! Now the spicier, the better! I got this recipe from Maangchi one of my favorite food bloggers, who happens to be an older asian “mom-type”. One of the best things about Korean food is that it’s not high dining, it’s comfort food, and what’s more comforting than a hot bowl of soup.
Items you’ll need: Strainer, ddukbaegi pot (optional)
- Start by prepping your broth. Take your anchovies and remove the heads and guts. You can just pull the heads off and then pitching the bodies of the fish between your fingers. It should split the fish enough to be able to pull it in half and clear out the insides. You don’t want to eat this as it’s the fish’s waste.
- For the stock: Boil 4 cups of water on high and add in the anchovies, kelp and radish, boil for 10 minutes then let simmer for 20 minutes.
- While your stock is being made, place your ddukbaegi pots on the stove and add a little oil into each. Prep your onions, garlic and pork belly by chopping them all before adding anything to the heat. On medium-high heat, brown your garlic and onions until soft and light brown. Be careful not to overcook the garlic as it burns fast. Add the pork and cook to a seer. Don’t cook the pork belly all the way, you’ll finish cooking it off in the soup.
- Mix together the pepper flakes and the sesame oil in a small cup until fully mixed.
- Add kimchi and continue to stir until the bowl isn’t crackling anymore. Add in 1/2 cup of stock into each bowl. Cook for 7 minutes and then add the salt & sugar and mix well.
- Cut the tofu in half, and squeeze it in the palm of your hand, then add it to the soup. Add a teaspoon of the chili powder mixture and continue adding to your heat preference. Add another 1/2 cup of stock or until your bowl is almost full.
- Optional: You can add an egg by dropping it into the soup and allowing it to cook on the stove for 1 minute. Do not mix it around, it’ll incorporate with the soup.
- Chop up your green onion into thin slices and garnish on top.
* Remember the bowl is made to retain heat so it will be VERY hot, probably up until the last bite.
NOM!
Creamy Lemon Bars
A lemon bar is a common dessert, found in coffee shops far and wide but lemon and custard does not always a good lemon bar make. There’s a magical balance between sweet and tart, creamy and flaky, that makes a perfect bite of lemon bar a little piece of heaven. If you haven’t noticed yet, I am a very big fan of a good lemon bar, and get more disappointed than the average person when it turns out to be subpar – which is probably why I just decided to make it myself.
This was my first stab at making lemon bars and I got this recipe from The Dessert Bible. If you’re looking for a good cook book to explain the why behind what you’re baking, and to test out all the things that could go wrong so you don’t have to, this is a great read.
- For the crust: Line a 9 x 13 inch baking pan with parchment paper running along the long side of the pan, hanging off the edges enough to lift the entire bar off the pan when it’s done.
- In a food processor pulse the flour (1 3/4 cup), confectioners’ sugar (2/3 cup) and salt (3/4 tsp.). Add butter (12 TBS) and blend for 10 seconds then pulse until the mixture is pale yellow until it looks like crumbles. Layer the bottom of the baking pan and press lightly. Then place in the fridge and let chill for 30 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, start pre-heating your oven to 350˚. Bake crust for 25 minutes, or until golden brown. Remember that all bake times are relevant, everyone’s oven cooks at a slightly different temperature, so if you’re not looking to calibrate your oven, just keep an eye on your crust.
- While crust is baking: Whisk the eggs, sugar, and zest. Whisk in the flour (3 TBS) and salt (1/8 tsp) then stir in the lemon juice, milk and butter (2 TBS) to blend well. I recommend zesting your lemons first, set the zest aside and then roll your lemons on the counter to soften up the lemons to ease squeezing them for the juice.
- Reduce the oven temperature to 325˚, stir the filling one last time (if you don’t, there will be major separation and you’ll have an uneven filling.) Pour into the hot crust and bake 15-20 min or until the filling feels firm to the touch and has set completely – make sure not to over bake. I have sensitive finger tips so I prefer to just shut the oven door firmly and if it jiggles like Jello, it’s done.
- Let rest on a cooling rack for 30 minute, then lift the parchment paper off the pan. Grab a sharp knife and cut into rectangles. Wipe your knife after every cut, the filling is sensitive and you will not get clean squares if you do not.
Carrot Cake
Carrot cake has always been one of my favorite cakes for 2 reasons. One, there’s something fantastic about being able to turn a vegetable into a dessert – like a real dessert, not just one for health nuts. And two, it’s moist and delicious, as long as you keep raisins out of the picture. For the photos I made this cake in a bread pan but having forgotten how dense this cake is, it didn’t cook all the way through at first. The recipe has been adjusted to appropriate bakeware.
This particular cake was made for my amazing boyfriend’s birthday last week. Happy Birthday Jimmy!
- Preheat the oven to 350°
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the dry ingredients: sugar, flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, carrots and 1/2 cup of nuts
- In a smaller mixing bowl mix together the oil and eggs
- Slowly mix together both the dry and wet ingredients
- Lightly flour a 9×13 pan and pour in the mixture. Bake for 45 minutes.
- Drain as much liquid as you can from the canned pineapple. It sounds weird but I personally just measure out a cup, and squeeze it between my hands.
- Mix together confectioners sugar, cream cheese, butter, vanilla extract, pineapples and 1/2 cup nuts for the frosting and spread frosting on cake. Wait until the cake has fully cooled or you’ll have runny frosting!
NOM!
Homemade Glazed Donut Holes
So it was National Donut Day on Friday (the first Friday of June) but because I was completely unaware of this national holiday last Monday, this post had to come after the fact. None the less this is a simple recipe you can make any time, with ingredients you can typically find in your pantry and fridge.
There’s something truly satisfying about being able to make the majority of baked items with the base of flour, sugar, salt and baking powder, adjusting the levels of each and making a completely different outcome. Bake it. Cook it. Fry it. The possibilities are endless and you just need to keep a few items around, and the world is yours.
- To make your glaze, sift the confectioners’ sugar, then add the 3 tablespoons of milk, and vanilla extract. You’ll want a thick consistency to dip your donut holes into. Not too thick that it doesn’t spread and drip off a little, but not too thin that it just runs straight down the sides. You can always add a little more milk to thin it out.
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the 1 cup of milk and the egg.
- In a larger mixing bowl (I used a standing mixer) add the flour, baking powder, salt and sugar and mix.
- Combine the wet mix (milk & egg) into the dry (larger mixing bowl). Then add the melted butter and mix thoroughly until you have a soft dough
- Heat your oil into a pot that allows the oil to sit 1-2 in from the bottom of the pan (If you have a cooking thermometer, heat the oil to 350˚. If not, leave your oil on medium to low heat. If the oil is too hot, you’ll burn the outer shell of the donut hole without cooking the center.)
- Lay out a cookie sheet and double layer the top with paper towels. Use this to place your cooked donut holes onto when you remove from the oil. Lay out a cooling rack with a metal sheet underneath – to cool the frosted donut holes.
- Using a cookie scoop, drop a ball one at a time (5-6 balls per batch) into the hot oil, flipping each ball over every minute until a dark golden brown. (Test your first ball or two by taking them out when you think they’re ready and cutting them in half, if there is any uncooked dough, bring the heat down to increase the cook time. You can throw these halved donut holes back into the frying oil to complete and enjoy these as tester donuts when you’re done.)
- After you have cooked all of your donut holes, transfer the cooling holes onto a cooling rack and let sit until completely cooled.
- Drop each donut hole into the glaze mix, coating each ball completely. Transfer back onto the cooling rack and allow at least and hour for the icing to dry completely.
No Buttermilk Fluffy Pancakes
For the mornings when whipping up eggs just isn’t enough, but you don’t want to craft an entire Sunday brunch, homemade pancakes is the perfect solution. Most of the ingredients can commonly be found in your pantry and it’s a simple dish for any occasion – Sunday morning, Mother’s Day, or when you have guests over.
- Pour your milk and white vinegar into a small bowl, mix lightly and let sit for 5-10 minutes. This allows the milk to sour, you can substitute this with buttermilk if you have it on hand, but as most people don’t, milk and vinegar do just fine.
- Add the flour, salt, sugar, baking powder and baking soda together into a large mixing bowl.
- Whisk the egg and melted butter into the soured milk.
- Pour the milk mixture into the dry ingredients and whisk until you don’t have any lumps.
- Heat your pan to medium heat and grease with butter. Spoon your batter onto the hot frying pan and wait until you see bubbles forming from your mixture, flip once and let cook for another 2 minutes.
Have leftover fruit around? Add into the batter to make your favorite fruit pancakes. Have more of a sweet tooth? Make dessert pancakes with zested orange and chocolate chips. The possibilities are endless!
Don’t have vinegar lying around either? Lemon juice can be a substitute to sour your milk as well.
Chewy M&M Cookies
I wanted to start this blog to experiment with new recipes, but figured I’d start it off with things most people can relate to. While Korean chili, tofu or lamb might not be up everyone’s alley, I don’t think there’s a single person I know who is going to say they’re too much of a foodie that they don’t love a chewy cookie covered in our childhood favorites – cept maybe Red and Yellow.
For this recipe, and like most of my recipes, I used a KitchenAid standing mixer, but everything can be mixed by hand. A standing mixer provides a smoother and more balanced consistency.
- Preheat oven to 375˚
- Cream together the sugars and the shortening until light and fluffy.
- Incorporate the eggs one at a time and add vanilla. Want to learn to make homemade vanilla extract? Take 3-5 vanilla beans, 8 oz of vodka or bourbon, and an airtight container. Then wait. And I mean wait … at least a month. Let the flavor extract, the longer the better. We let ours sit for 3 months and used it for this recipe.
- In a separate small bowl, mix the flour, baking soda and the salt. Then one cup at a time, add the dry mix to the wet mix until mixture is a doughy consistency.
- Mix in a cup of m&ms and top each cookie with a few m&ms. I like to make each topper m&m a different color – but that’s just me.
- With a mini 1 in. ice cream scoop, place 10 cookies on a non-stick baking sheet.
- Bake for 12 minutes. Let cool – now enjoy!
NOM!
Chipotle Nachos
It’s been awhile since I wanted to have a go at this recipe again. Mainly because the first time I made it, I was completely off about how many chipotle peppers to use, having gotten the incomplete recipe from a friend, I was under the impression that we needed to use the whole can. That batch came out, almost unedible. We were sweating after only 1 chip, and we struggled to power through, only because they still tasted so great. I know now that medium spicy nachos only call for about 3 peppers – you’re welcome to add more heat, but I’d try by adding one chili pepper at a time.
- Prep your chicken by cubing the chicken breast and boiling until chicken is cooked. Drain the water when chicken is fully cooked, crack some fresh pepper and paprika to season. Cook until lightly browned.
- Prep the sauce by blending the mayo and chili peppers. Add peppers one by one to reach a level of spiciness that you prefer.
- Lay out the chips to cover a baking pan. Pour the sauce evenly over the chips, do the same with the beans, and cheese – every inch of the chips should be covered in cheese. Feel free to add any other toppings you’d like, remember to add anything that will wilt after you’ve taken it out of the oven.
- Bake at 400˚ for 7-10 minutes, keep an eye on the chips and make sure your cheese doesn’t burn.
- As your chips are baking, slice your avocado and top the nachos when they’re done.
NOM!
Cold Brew Iced Coffee
Okay okay, this is a food blog, so what is coffee doing on here. Well we need food to survive and I need coffee to survive so solve for ‘x’ and you’ll realize that this recipe is exactly where it should be. It’s also less of a recipe and more an educational piece for anyone trying to figure out how to stop spending $5 a day on a cup of joe while still getting a delicious brew.
So why cold brew? Why not just take your hot coffee and throw in some ice cubes? If you love a good iced coffee but feel like it’s too acidic, cold brew. Need something with a little more caffeine, cold brew. But don’t drink it too fast or you’ll get the shakes. Enter, cold brew.
I used Sweet Maria’s Ethiopiques Blend, but any medium roast coffee will do fine. Just stay away from dark roast, I find it gives too bitter of a taste.
- Grind the coffee beans down at a coarse grind (or use already ground beans) and add a pot with a lid.
- Add the cold filtered water to the pot and stir the grinds gently until everything has been submerged in the water.
- Cover the pot with the lid and let sit in the fridge for 12-24 hours; the longer the better.
- Filter the coffee through a fine grained mesh sieve to remove all grounds and sediment.
- Simple! Remember a little cold brew goes a long way.
Need a little sweetener? Make your own simple syrup by melting down sugar and water in a 1:1 ratio.
*Unsweetened iced coffee should last 5-7 days. Sweetened coffee last for about 2-3 days. Once you add milk, you should be drinking it during that sitting. I recommend keeping your coffee, simple syrup and milk separate until needed.
