lemon layer cake

So Val says, as I'm frosting this cake "I'm only a little sad that you had to make your own birthday cake this year because I know it is going to be good." Well, I'm usually not one to brag...but this WAS good!


You can find the recipe here. I only made 1 layer and sliced it in 1/2 to make it a 2 layer cake. It would be much more elegant with 4 layers, but a 4 layer cake is just a little extravagant for me. I didn't have the full 1/4 c of zest called for in the frosting, but it came out just fine. Oh, and I thought the frosting could have benefited from a some cream cheese instead of all that butter...enjoy!

blue hubbard squash risott(ohhhhhh)

I know I know...the picture is not great. But, don't let it fool you, this recipe is well worth the effort. If you've never made risotto, there is a good, basic recipe with instructions here. Otherwise, proceed as usual!

3-4 c veg stock
2 T butter
1 T olive oil
1 diced onion
2-5 cloves garlic, diced (depending on  your taste)
1 c short grain rice, I used brown, but you could be authentic and use Arborio
1/3 c white wine
2 c (approx ) steamed squash, we used blue hubbard, but butternut would be great
1 c chopped, blanched kale (you could sub asparagus, spinach, any kind of green thing would do just fine)
1/2 c diced bell pepper, I used red
3 chopped carrots
1/2 c parm cheese


In saucepan, heat stock, keep this hot as you cook the risotto.
In a big dutch oven, melt butter, add oil, saute onion until soft and just starting to brown, add garlic and rice, saute until rice and garlic are toasted, (2-4 min) this enhances the flavor of the rice. add the white wine, deglaze the pan and stir well, when wine has evaporated, begin adding stock, 1/2 c at a time. after each addition of stock, gently stir and let simmer, only after the stock has cooked into the rice will you add the next 1/2 c. Continuously test the rice throughout the cooking process (for 1 c of brown rice, I used about 3 1/2 c stock). when you think it's just about done, add squash, greens, carrot and bell pepper. if you add these sooner, the dish will get mushy. Add a bit more stock and let everything simmer and finish cooking. hopefully not too much longer. just before serving sprinkle parm cheese over, remove from heat, cover and let cheese melt...enjoy!

chocolate peanut butter cup cake, oh yes I did....

Adapted from one of my fav sites: Vanilla Sugar Blog

My changes:


I only had a 13 oz box of cake mix, so I lessened the buttermilk and oil by about an 1/8 c. Also, I added chopped up Snickers Bars instead of peanut butter cups because that's what I had. 


Oh, the best part? I made peanut butter cups for the top. Adapted from, once again, Vanilla Sugar Blog.


Peanut Butter Cups (pic coming...)


9 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
3 oz unsweetened bakers chocolate (or 9 T cocoa powder + 3 T veg oil)
1/2 c peanut butter
1/4 c plus a few T powdered sugar
1/3 c crushed graham crackers or animal crackers


melt chocolate in double broiler, once melted, spoon about 1 -2 tsp chocolate into the bottom of mini muffin tin, pop in freezer to harden. Stir together the peanut butter, sugar and cracker crumbs, you should be able to gather a spoonful and roll together into a ball. If it's too dry, add a bit more peanut butter. Roll entire mixture into teaspoon sized balls. After chocolate has been in the freezer for 5-10 min, plop a ball into each muffin tin and cover with chocolate. Put back into freezer and let harden for 30 min (minimum). If you have extra filling balls, just place one on top of the pb cups (before the last freezer  session) for an extra bit of peanut butter delight. enjoy! yummmmmm

bagels

My advice: Invite friends over that like to eat. Have them bring some toppings. Have the dough made and...get to work! You'll never want to buy bagels again...promise. The recipe is here. This nice person posted the recipe, so why should I type it all out?! Enjoy. And get bakin'...

Peanut Sauce

Peanut Sauce (recipe below...) and Fresh Rolls (recipe to come...)


Peanut Sauce adapted from David Lebovitz

2 cups dry roasted peanuts

3/4 cup  hot black tea

1/2 cup coconut milk

2 T peeled and minced fresh ginger

4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

2 small chiles, seeded and finely chopped or 1 tsp chili flakes

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 T brown sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon ground Szechuan pepper (if available)

1/4 c fresh lime juice

2 tablespoons toasted sesame oil

1 1/2 teaspoons chili paste (Rooster sauce) or chili oil

2/3 cup packed cilantro 

1 tablespoon fish sauce

put the peanuts and hot tea in blender. whip it up and add the rest of the ingredients. use within a week. YUM!

Quinoa Corn Chowder

Quinoa Corn Chowder adapted from http://lornasass.com/recipes/appetizers-and-soups

3 T butter
1 1/2 c diced leeks (white and light green parts) - you can use onion, but I really liked the taste of leeks here and I usually don't 'splurge' on leeks...
1 c diced celery
1 c diced red bell pepepr
1 tsp salt
3/4 c quinoa
1/2 tsp dried thyme
4 c corn, either canned, fresh or defrosted
1 c milk, any kind
3 T minced parsley
s + p

Cook leeks, celery, bell pepper and salt in 2 T butter. saute for 5-10 minutes until soft. Add 3 c water, bring to boil and stir in quinoa and thyme, drop back down to a simmer and cook for 10 min. covered. In blender process 3 c of the corn with 1 c water. Add this to the soup along with corn kernels after it has cooked for 10 minutes. simmer for another 3-5 minutes or until the quinoa is done. When it is done, there will be no starchy white dot in the center of the grain. Stir in the milk, the remaining 1 T of butter, and parsley. Taste and adjust salt and pepper. This soup will thicken as it stands so you may need to add milk to thin it out.

enjoy!

lemon lime tart

lemon lime tart adapted from david lebovitz's site


1 tart shell described here:
3/4 c fresh lemon or lime juice or a mixture
2 T grated lemon or lime zest
3/4 c sugar
9 T butter
3 eggs
3 egg yolks


in a saucepan, heat juice, sugar and butter, whisk until butter has melted. in a separate (large) bowl, whisk eggs and yolks together. slowly, I mean slowly pour the juice mixture into the egg mixture. this will warm the eggs up without cooking them. after pouring it all into the egg mixture, put the filling back into the saucepan and continually whisk over med/low heat until it thickens and bubbles. pour the filling into the tart shell after it comes out of the oven and bake for 5-10 minutes just until set. refrigerate and enjoy!


cooks notes: I think this would be outstanding with orange or grapefruit filling...yum