Posted in Recipes

Pistachio, Cranberry, and Crystallized Ginger Cookies & Bread

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Even though I was making 4 types of Christmas cookies, my office wouldn’t get to try any of them, so I whipped these up on a weeknight after seeing them on my friend Olga’s blog. I decided to make the pistachio cookies more festive by adding some red dried cranberries and some zingy crystallized ginger. I thought I was pretty clever turning these into Christmas-colored cookies.

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Sometimes I think that chocolate is often used as a crutch in baking. It takes a really good hand to be able to make something delicious without chocolate in it that everyone will enjoy. These cookies had a firm yet delicate crumb and were extremely flavorful. I like that each bite had a bit of something else in it, an element of surprise, but some people don’t like that.

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While these cookies were baking, I realized I had some chopped pistachios, cranberries, and ginger left over. I combined these with some leftover chopped hazelnuts from my homemade nutella and thought they’d make a delicious topping for one of my favorite things to make – pumpkin bread (or muffins). I scooped the bread batter into these odd shaped Panibois Baking Molds and hoped for the best, checking them often since they held varying sizes of batter. I couldn’t taste them after they baked (obviously), but I wrapped them up in cute snowflake cello-wrap and tied them with twine. I gave some to my family and some to co-workers. I’d like to think this is a more tasty version of a fruitcake, but pumpkin!

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Gianduja (Homemade Nutella) & Happy New Year!

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Every year I hand make gifts for the holidays. Whether it’s homemade vanilla extract, cookies, truffles, ornaments, or even bread, I think that the extra effort and thought that goes into making something yourself is priceless.

This year, while looking through the Bon Appétit Holiday Issue for possible Christmas cookie inspiration, my boyfriend said “you should make this.” I looked at the recipe and agreed – I would absolutely have to make this delicious looking homemade nutella.

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The recipe was very straight forward (though if skinned hazelnuts existed in my area, I’d be much happier) and I made cute little recipe cards to go along with the gift. I only send recipe cards with edibles when I know they taste delicious and the recipient most definitely will be recreating on their own. Which they will, because this spread is delicious.  It might taste better because I skinned those hazelnuts with my own two hands, and worked my biceps while attempting to whisk the thickening ganache. But I think it tastes better than the stuff in the store because I know exactly what’s in it. Cream, butter, nuts, good quality chocolate, sugar, and a dash of salt. Not to mention that my packaging is super cute.

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Here are some pictures that went out with my family’s holiday card this year. Every year it takes us a while to figure our how to use the timer on my mom’s fancy camera. Every year we have to take a bajillion re-takes while trying to pretend it’s Christmas even though it’s Thanksgiving. But it’s tradition, and it’s worth it. Just like these precious bundles of perfection.

It’s also my sister’s birthday today – Happy Birthday Ariel!

Peppermint Mocha Cupcakes With a Secret Ingredient

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I made these cupcakes last year and they were gone so quickly that I didn’t get a chance to take pictures. Luckily, everyone loved them (some people ate two!), so I knew what I was going to make when it became peppermint season again this year. I love peppermint mocha lattes and get them whenever I get a chance. I’ve had the version from Starbucks, but I actually prefer one made by a local smoothie shop called South Block where they have tons of alternative milks. I get my peppermint mocha with almond milk and Intelligentsia espresso and it hits the spot.

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This year I upped the decadence and dipped the cupcakes in a dark chocolate mint ganache before frosting them. The secret ingredient in these cupcakes is the type of coffee I used in it. Instead of using regular coffee, I used some very special Kopi Luwak that my friend Elly gifted me. For those that don’t know, Kopi Luwak is a rare and expensive coffee that is made from coffee berries that a tropical jungle cat has digested. Some people were a little put off by the idea of cat-poo-treated coffee, but surprisingly, most everyone embraced it and loved the quirkiness of it.

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I used a few different recipes combined together, and the end result leaves nothing to be desired – this really is an edible peppermint mocha! Coffee-infused chocolate cake with mint pieces folded in, dark chocolate mint ganache, a mint cream cheese frosting, and a chocolate drizzle. Some lucky snackers picked some out that had mint chocolate penguins on them that I purchased from my Girl Scout troop.

I also tried something new with my Martha Stewart cupcake liners. The liners look pretty, but bake horribly! To solve this problem I lined them with a white liner before putting the batter in and was very pleased by the result.

Sweet Potato Quinoa Cakes (Bento Stash)

I’ve only made this batch of Sweet Potato Quinoa Cakes from Cannelle et Vanille once, but they’ve lasted for a very long time. My boyfriend wasn’t interested in eating them since they contained coconut oil so I had them all to myself. I ate some right away with tzatziki sauce (above) and stored the rest in the freezer to be used for meals in the future.

One such meal was this, made when I was working from home one day. Sweet Potato Quinoa Cakes topped with some mustard seed cheese, hot pepper jelly, an egg, all atop some pita crackers.

 

Other meals were compiled last minute or just needed a little something extra.
Left: Curried Potato Gratin, Sweet Potato Quinoa Cakes, Edamame

Right: Sundried Tomato Pesto Pasta (dinner leftovers), sweet potato quinoa cakes, edamame, homemade apple/asian pear/ginger applesauce with  granola

See how the quinoa cakes just fit perfectly in to a lunch box? More curried potato gratin, quinoa cakes, a japanese wagashi jelly, and some peaches and blackberries we picked at Hollins Farm.

Patriotic Cheesecake Delight (Happy Election Day! & Hello Kitty for President 2012)

Happy (Early) Election Day!

My sister was craving Cherry Delight pie and requested a red, white, and blue colored dessert to go with the occasion. Most patriotic desserts involve strawberries which my sister is allergic to, so I had my work cut out for me. The Cherry Delight pies my sister was thinking of consisted of canned cherry pie filling. Instead, I went to the grocery store and picked up what red and blue fruits I could find – Bing cherries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries.

I did take a shortcut and used a pre-made graham cracker crumb crust, but didn’t skimp out on any other steps from this Martha Stewart recipe.  It’s good that I skipped the crust because I had forgotten cherries needed pitting! Red hands and pulverized cherries later, this cheesecake was cooling in the refrigerator waiting to be eaten. This cheesecake was a bit on the sour side since it has sour cream and cream cheese paired with the tart fruits. It was fun making this cheesecake “delight”, but I don’t think it’s worth making again, especially if you don’t own a cherry pitter!

Also, for the past couple of days, Hello Kitty has made her campaign headquarters for the 2012 Election DC! You didn’t know she was running? Well Tuxedo Sam is her Vice President and she’s not running for any traditional party and entered the race late.

I went with my sister this past weekend to her headquarters to show my support for her cause and to have some cheesy good fun.