I miss this

I miss baking. I really do.

My collection of recipes keeps growing. But I don't bake much anymore.

Why?

Lots of reasons.

Grad school - yes, but not so much the main reason.
Healthy eating- certainly another reason. Yummy desserts aren't exactly on the paleo diet.
Busy - There is a lot of things to do these days, and not a lot of time to do them.
Mess- I am a messy baker, I will admit that. So baking for the blog means my kitchen gets destroyed. Then I have to clean it up. If only I had a maid :-D

But as I sit here thinking about my paper, and processing how I will write it, all I really want to be doing is baking and writing a blog post about it.

Maybe I will start using it as a procrastination tool (JK mom and dad)

So hopefully I find myself back in the kitchen soon. I miss you all. Sorry this blog has become stale and stagnant.

HA!

Since I started grad school, the baking and blogging have been at a minimum, and the stress has been at a MAX..

I am thinking I could adopt this chick's style and combat both problems!

So I give you - My Drunk Kitchen

Fresh Salsa

I love Mexican food. I could eat it everyday and be happy. I often get a craving for it and I won’t stop. I love to go to restaurants and eat the chips and salsa. I can crush a cup of salsa and chips in record time. It is embarrassing.

Part of my 26 before 27 challenge (which I am super behind on! AH!) was to make fresh salsa. I decided this Cinco de Mayo I was making salsa!

I made it the night before, and thank goodness I did, the first batch was SO HOT ( my dad and brother called me a wimp!) I learned to take out ALL the seeds for round two (which I made the next day)

It was so easy!! Seriously – I won’t be buying from the jar anymore!! EVER.

Ready….Vamonos!

I adapted this from Created by Diane

[Printable Recipe]

Ingredients:

1 clove of garlic

4-5 roma tomatoes

1 small onion

1/2-1 jalapeño (depending on the amount of heat you want)

handful of cilantro

salt

 

Directions:

Deseed and devein the pepper.

Grill the pepper and tomatoes

Rough chop the onion and peel your garlic.

Carefully quarter the tomatoes and pepper

Bust out our old 70’s food processor (or newer model if you are a lucky duck)

(Picture from another recipe)

Put tomatoes, garlic pepper and onion in the food processor and pulse.

Add cilantro and pulse a little more.

Add salt to taste.

Chow down!

         

 

This isn’t perfect, and every time I make it I am going to tweak it until I get it like the restaurants. Suggestions?

My suggestion is you run out and buy the stuff and chow down NOW! (Wish I could right now! Darn it!)

Royal Wedding Cake

I admit, I loved the Royal Wedding.

I didn't get up at 5am, but thanks to DVR, I saw it all.

Yes, her dress was amazing... you know what else was amazing?

THE CAKE!!!

OH. MY. GOODNESS!!!!

Check it out. Royal Wedding Cake

p.s. the Groom's cake was impressive too, but I am still in love with the wedding cake! Groom's cake

Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Pound Cake with PB Glaze

Holy yum!

My sweet, dear friend Amanda (wife of Jordan from the last post) sends me recipes regularly. When this one showed up in my inbox I immediately printed it, and went to work.

It helped that it was Monday afternoon and I knew I could get rid of it at playgroup the next day.

Yes, I have an obsession with PB and chocolate. 80% of the desserts I star/save are pb and chocolate.

I undercooked this one a bit and it sunk in a little, but it was still amazing! (seems even after almost 2 years I still don’t have my oven down!)

Recipe was adapted from RecipeGirl

[Printable Recipe]

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup creamy peanut butter (don’t use natural)
1/2 cup butter, at room temperature
3 cups granulated white sugar
6 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups chocolate chips

1/2 c. peanut butter chips

Directions:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Grease a tube pan ( I used Wilton Cake Release)

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.

In mixer, cream together peanut butter and butter.

           

Add sugar and beat for 5 minutes.

Add eggs and vanilla beating until well combined.

Add dry ingredients a little at a time, beating just until incorporated.

Stir in chocolate and PB chips.

Pour batter into prepared tube pan.

Tap it a couple of times on the counter to shake out any hidden air pockets and get the batter level

Bake 1 hour and 20 minutes.

After an hour, check on the cake and make sure it isn’t browning too much- if it is, loosely cover with foil

When a toothpick comes out clean it is finished.

Let cool for 20 mins and then remove from pan and let cool completely.

Ice with glaze once totally cooled

GLAZE:
1 1/2 cups (sifted) powdered sugar
1/4 cup milk
1/4 cup creamy peanut butter ( I actually ran out of creamy, so I used natural chunky and it was fine)
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup mini- chocolate chip

Directions: In a medium bowl, mix together powdered sugar, milk, peanut butter and vanilla until smooth.

Drizzle glaze over the top of the cooled cake, letting it drizzle down the sides.

Sprinkle chocolate chips on top.

The glaze will set eventually,  I let it set over night, but you could speed it up in the fridge.

 

This was rich and yummy and certainly will be made again.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

This recipe is from Matt's old roommate (actually his mom)

Matt loved when Jordan would make this and mentioned wanting it multiple times.

I finally broke down and asked Jordan for the recipe.

It is yummy! Even if I slightly over baked it.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

[Printable Recipe]

Ingredients

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 1/2 cups mashed ripe bananas

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

3 eggs

2 1/3 cups Bisquick baking mix

1 cup sugar

1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

6 oz. chocolate chips

Directions:

Heat oven to 350°.    

Generously grease bottom of loaf pan, 9 x 5 x 3 inches (I used two, though after talking with Jordan, he said it should all fit in one.) 

Mash bananas.

Add in all ingredients(except choc. chips) in mixer bowl and beat vigorously 1 minute.

 

Shake choc. chips in bag with a little bisquick so they don’t sink to the bottom of the batter

Add to bread

Pour into pan.

Bake until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean, 55 to 65 minutes. (My oven over cooked it when I did it for 55, I would start checking it around 45 mins next time)

Cool 5 minutes. 

Run knife or metal spatula around sides of loaf, pressing gently to loosen.

remove from pan.

Eat!

 

This bread is so good. I don’t even really like banana bread and I enjoyed his bread. Super easy and super good. It is a must bake again!

O's Birthday cake

I am still decorating cakes. I typically put them on FB and forget to post them here.

My friend from HS contacted me to make her husband's birthday cake. They are big Orioles fans(GO O's)
she sent me to this blog for what she had in mind.

I think he liked it. I am happy with it, except the edge at the bottom that broke off- bummer. 

World Water Day

Hi! I promise I have some yummies coming up for you REALLY soon.

But first, please visit my other blog for a really cool cause!

Then come back soon for some cakes and other desserts.

Black and White Cookies

The boyfriend loves Black and White cookies. So I decided I would make him a batch for Valentine’s Day.
I was pretty nervous because I knew he would have high expectations. I think I did pretty good though!
I really enjoyed them.
I got the recipe from Stephanie Cooks and followed it pretty much the same.
I failed at taking pictures of making the batter and icing. Sorry.
Ingredients for Cookie
[Printable Recipe]
1 1/3 c. flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
6 tbsp butter, softened
1/2 c. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg
1/3 buttermilk
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350
Mix flour, baking soda and salt in a bowl and set aside.
Beat together butter and sugar with mixer until fluffy, then add egg and vanilla beating until combined.
Mix in flour mixture and buttermilk alternating starting and ending with flour. ( I did 3 flour additions and 2 buttermilk additions)
Pour batter onto lined baking sheet. I made them large, about 1/4 cup of batter.
 
They will puff up, so don’t make them too round.
Bake until buffed and golden. About 15-17 mins.
Allow to cool completely before icing.
Ingredients for Icing:
2 1/4 c. powdered sugar
1 1/2 tbsp light corn syrup
3 tsp lemon juice (I might use a big less next time)
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-3 tablespoon water
1/3 c. cocoa powder
Directions for icing:
Whisk together powdered sugar, corn syrup , lemon juice , vanilla and 1 tbsp water until smooth ( I had to put about 2 tbsp water to get it thin and smooth)
Put half of the icing in another bowl and add cocoa powder and water until same consistency of vanilla icing.
Turn cookies flat side up and ice half with the white and half with the chocolate.

Matt liked. He ate half before I could take my pic!
My icing turned out to be a bit thin, so I had to put on a couple layers. It made a big mess on the counter but it was totally worth it. So good!

It is here!!!!

Isn't it pretty?

A while ago, Kitchenaid came out with an anniversary mixer and it had a glass bowl. I wanted that so badly, but I just got my mixer. They just recently started making the bowl and selling it separately. 

I had my brother on a mission on Christmas Eve to find this for me. He couldn't- everyone was sold out. He got me a giftcard to Bed Bath and Beyond and I signed up for them to email me when it was in stock again. 

They emailed me last Thursday, and I ordered it an hour later!!

I was so excited.

Thanks little bro! Love you!!

I can not wait!!!

I LOVE my kitchenaid mixer. LOVE IT.

It is perfect and I enjoy using it.

Images source

*** This is not my exact mixer - though I know I have taken pictures of it - I can't find it, and it is a bit dirty right now from making cookies and I am too lazy to clean it and take a picture****

Not much out there would make it better...

but there is one thing...


and it comes tomorrow.

YAYYYYYYYYYYYYY....


Guesses to what it is?

Brownie Oreos

These were so simple to make, and so yummy. I do not know why it has taken me 18 days to blog about them.

Super slacker, and to think 2011 I would suck less at this! Maybe one day I will get to the backlog of recipes.

I don’t know how other bloggers do it!

Anyway.

These yummies have been floating around blogworld during the holidays. I saw them on numerous blogs and I just took mental note of how to make them (yup that is how simple they are) so if you made them and want recognition let me know, I will link to you.

[Printable Recipe]

Ingredients:

Package of Oreos (I used double stuff)

1 box brownie mix (or your own personal recipe)

sprinkles or white chocolate to decorate.

 

Directions:

Make brownie according to box (or your recipe)

Dip Oreos into the brownie mix and place into a muffin tin

Bake for 12-15 mins (mine took about 13) at 350

Remove from pan and let cool

Drizzle white chocolate on top and top with sprinkles if desired.

 

How easy is that?! These were so good and a big hit at the New Years Eve party we went to. The Oreo became slightly mushy inside the brownie. Some people didn’t even realize it was an Oreo inside. I recommend using paper liners in the muffin tins. I sprayed the pan for the first batch with lots of PAM, but they still stuck.