The Delicious Diva

Happy (day after) St. Patrick’s Day!

crtmonster — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 03:23:22 +0000

I love Irish Soda bread…no really. I ~~used to~~ still make my mom buy me two loaves from the bakery at home every year; one to eat right away and one to freeze to enjoy at a later date. (Clearly Atkins is not part of my daily vocabulary)

This year I decided to jump the gun and actually try making it for myself! It’s actually pretty easy to make; provided you have buttermilk. To be honest, I made my first loaf on Sunday and forgot to take pictures! So when I got home from work today I thought another loaf would be good…this time I was most of the way through when I realized I didn’t have enough raisins! So naturally I added chocolate chips, why not? The final product was tasty, but I think from now on I’ll make the bread sans chocolate. I’m just a sucker for the original I guess. Good thing I have two loaves waiting for me…

Irish Soda Bread

-2 c. white flour

-1 c. whole wheat flour

-1 tspn. baking soda

-1 tspn. salt

-2 tbpn. butter

-1 1/2 c. buttermilk (I used low-fat)

-1/2 c. raisins (any kind, I prefer golden)

Pre-heat oven to 400ºF
Mix together the flours, baking soda and salt
Make a little well in your dry ingredients then pour in the buttermilk and butter, mixing well
On a floured surface, knead dough for ~3 minutes until it comes together
Form into a round shape and take a knife to create the “x-mark”
Lightly flour the top of the loaf
Place on either greased cookie pan or on silicon baking mat (seriously recommend these)
Bake approximately 50-60 minutes

Simple Supper

crtmonster — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 00:42:03 +0000

Let me start this post by saying very little actual cooking occurred for this meal. Ok.

Grilled cheese and tomato soup is a classic combination. For dinner tonight I decided to put a twist on the timeless meal. Instead of plain tomato soup, I picked up roasted red pepper and tomato. It’s a nice alternative to the regular. For my grilled cheese sandwich, I used an open english muffin with cheddar and sautéed shallots and arugula. Cooking the shallots and arugula created almost a nutty taste, and it was quite yummy and nice alternative to the usual grilled cheese. The only thing missing from this meal was a glass of red wine…too bad the whole wisdom teeth out, me being on pain killers really put damper on that one. Next time…

Biscotti!

crtmonster — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 19:58:26 +0000

I made these Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Biscotti about two weeks ago as part of a gift to my assistant at work. What better a gift than a homemade cookie? I didn’t just pick something off the shelf to use as a gift (well, I did that too), but I also thought about and spent time on her gift.

They did taste really well…unfortunately the picture does not do them justice.

Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Biscotti

2 c. flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1 c. sugar

4 tbsp. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter (generally you always bake with unsalted unless the recipe notes otherwise)

2 large eggs

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

1/2 c. chocolate chips

1/2 c. hazelnuts – roasted and chopped*

-Preheat the oven to 350°F

-Whisk flour, baking powder and salt in medium bowl then set aside

-Mix sugar and butter in a medium bowl on medium speed until light and fluffy

-Add eggs one at a time then add extract until fully incorporated

-Reduce mixer speed and add flour

-Add chocolate chips and hazelnuts

-Split dough into 2 batches and made two 2 x 13 loaves (use floured hands!!! the dough is very sticky!), put on parchment lined pan

-Baked ~35 minutes or until golden brown

-Cool ~15 minutes and reduce oven temp to 325°F

-Cut diagonally into 12 in. slices with serrated knife

-Bake Additional 15 minutes, flipping cookies over half-way through

Enjoy!

* I bought roasted hazelnuts and “chopped” them by putting them in a plastic bag and banging with a hammer (I liked the irregularity it produced)

Friday Night Dinners…

crtmonster — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 00:49:08 +0000

My friends and I have begun making dinner for each other on Friday night. I hope this “tradition” continues, it’s a good way to end the week and start the weekend! Although sometimes we focus more on the drinking than the eating, the food is always delicious.

This week, I’m in charge of dessert. I decided to try a new recipe…not really sure of their official name, but I’ll call them chocolate-pecan cookies. They’re slightly crunchy, a bit chewy and a little moist…The recipe and final product after the jump!

PS – Congrats to two of my favorite dinner companions, Jess and Andy on the engagement!!!

Chocolate Pecan Cookies

~20 pecan halves

1/2 c. sugar

2 tbsp butter

2 tbsp pumpkin butter

1 large egg white

1 tspn vanilla extract

1/3 c. all-purpose flour

1/2 tspn baking powder

1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa (I prefer Droste…high quality Dutch cocoa)

-Pre-heat oven to 350°F

-Toast pecans ~5 minutes or until slightly browned

-Mix sugar and butters together until soft

-Add egg white and vanilla extract and beat together

-Wisk cocoa, flour and baking powder then add to wet ingredients

-Spoon cookies onto baking sheet and place pecan in center of each cookie

-Bake ~12 minutes or until just hard around edges

This recipe is supposed to make 36 cookies…but I like my cookies a bit bigger, so I only got ~18.

The Communist Cookie

crtmonster — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 03:36:04 +0000

I grew up making Russian Tea Balls every Christmas with my mom (also referred to as Mexican Wedding Cakes by Betty Crocker). They are buttery, sugary goodness, with walnuts.

As the holiday season approaches, I brought out the trusty recipe for a pot-luck lunch at work this week…which got me thinking. Every year we traditionally make the same type of cookies at Christmas; chocolate chip, russian tea balls and brownie-walnut. We’ve been baking the first two for as long as I can remember and the last started while I was finishing up elementary school. How long does it take for something to become a tradition? Once, twice, more? Perhaps this year I’ll look for a new recipe to add to the Christmas cookie tradition…

mmm…muffins

crtmonster — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 02:06:25 +0000

Ok;

I did cook stuffed peppers for dinner with ground turkey and tomato sauce, but completely forgot to take pictures (this whole blog thing is new) until it came time for desert!

I deferred to a recipe I’ve had for a while now; “low fat banana bread.” I finish that thought by saying; it’s only low-fat if you follow the actual recipe. I like my muffins filled with chocolate and walnuts. The original recipe may not call for butter, but I do make up for it with chocolatey goodness

Coffee and Creme Cake

crtmonster — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 04:11:50 +0000

I made this cake about 2 months ago while I was home…it calls for lots of Kahlua and not that much coffee

I believe my parents gave it a good review

Welcome!

crtmonster — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 17:47:26 +0000

In the technology laden world we live in; I’ve decided to start a food blog to share my cooking experiences and stories with all.

Check back for updates over the next few months as I learn how to use wordpress and do some cooking!