My boyfriend and I were visiting friends this weekend and I wanted to bring a little something for everyone to enjoy. This month’s Cooking Light gave me the perfect recipe: Blueberry Coffee Cake with Almond Streusel.
Coffee cake can refer to two different dishes: a cake made with coffee, or a cake that is served with coffee. This coffeecake is the latter and can be served for breakfast or as a dessert.
Every Mother’s Day, I make my mom a citrus-themed dessert. She loves lemon desserts, so I’ve made Earl Grey Lemon Squares and a Lemon Tart with Raspberry Shortbread Crust in the past. This year, I decided to make cupcakes, specifically Lemon Angel Food Cupcakes!
I was intrigued; I’ve never thought to use beets as a sauce for pasta!
What’s great about this recipe for Gemelli with Brown Butter Beet Sauce and Herbed Citrus Ricotta is that it doesn’t take that much time to make! Beets are typically roasted for 45ish minutes in the oven, but this recipe grates the beets before sauteing to cut down on their cooking time.
I changed the method a bit but the general idea is still there. The result is a beautiful brightly colored pasta with great flavor. It reheats wonderfully as well!
Ingredients:
3 beets, peeled and finely grated in a food processor
1 1/2 cups whole milk ricotta
1/4 teaspoon finely grated orange zest, more to taste, plus more for garnish
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage, plus more for garnish
1 teaspoon kosher salt, more as needed
1/2 teaspoon black pepper, more as needed
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 16 oz box gemelli (or other pasta of your choice)
I’ve never fully understood traditional potato salad. Mayo on potatoes just doesn’t appeal to me, especially on hot summer days where you always seem to find it as a side at barbecues and picnics, which is why this recipe for Whole Grain Mustard Potato Salad appeals to me!
I came across a whole grain mustard based potato salad from 1st & Fresh Catering a while back that had no mayo and was absolutely delicious. I’ve been meaning to try to make my own version ever since. So when our friends said they were having people over this weekend to barbecue, I knew exactly what I was going to make! (These poor friends of mine are always my taste testers for new recipes, from Cornbread to Brownies with Grilled Fruit. Hopefully they don’t mind!)
This recipe does include some Greek yogurt to keep the dish creamy but is fairly minimal. To kick the flavor up a notch, I included some of Healthy Solutions Spice Blends’Salmon with Dill Spice Blend. The spice blend includes dill (of course), onion powder, and garlic powder along with some other spices that I thought would really complement the whole grain mustard. The result is a spicy potato salad that is sure to be a hit!
Note: Healthy Solutions Spice Blends sent me samples of some of their blends including the Salmon with Dill.
I’m so ready for spring. I am trying to will the warmer weather to be here ASAP by making a bunch of spring-themed posts. Sara Lee must have read my mind because they contacted me about using their yummy pound cake in a recipe — what better way to show off Sara Lee Pound Cake than with a trifle?
These mini berry trifles use fresh berries, pound cake, and fresh whipped cream with lemon curd, making a yummy and bright spring dessert. I made them in mini trifle bowls but you can adapt this recipe to go in a traditional trifle bowl.
Ingredients (makes 4 mini trifles):
2 cups heavy whipping cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 jar ( roughly 11 oz) lemon curd
1 Sara Lee pound cake, defrosted
strawberry jam
1 pint blueberries
1 pint raspberries
2 strawberries, halved
#spon: I’m required to disclose a relationship between our site and Sara Lee. This could include the Sara Lee providing us w/content, product, access or other forms of payment.
Yes, it’s technically spring. But. It snowed last night here. So it’s not time just yet to delve into super springy recipes. Sigh.
So this recipe for Pesto Pasta with Peas is a happy medium. The bright green color is a nod that spring weather is (hopefully) not too far away. It is still a warm dish though, so it is good for colder nights. (This recipe from Inda Garten is originally a pasta salad, so it can absolutely be eaten cold as well)
Ingredients:
Pesto:
1/4 cup walnuts
1/4 cup pine nuts
4 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
3 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Pasta:
3/4 pound fusilli pasta
3/4 pound bow tie pasta
fresh pesto (see recipe below), to taste
1 (10-ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
It can be tough to prepare a side dish to go with your dinner on busy weeknights. It’s just one more step you probably don’t want to deal with when you get home and you just want to eat. But this recipe for Asparagus with Tomato and Feta is so simple, you can easily make this delicious side to go with sauteed chicken breasts or seared salmon in no time!
This side can be made in about 15 minutes and cooks in the oven, leaving the stovetop free for you to cook the rest of your meal.
These Bourbon Truffles are another recipe I made for New Year’s Eve. I have actually made this a few times and have altered it slightly from the original Williams-Sonoma recipe to suit my tastes.
I lowered the amount of bourbon so that there is a hint to enhance the flavor of the chocolate without overpowering. (The first round of making these it was like taking a shot with every bite, whew!) I also kept having trouble with the coating (my chocolate kept seizing) so I’ve altered that a bit to make a smoother coating that’s easier to work with.
Here’s another delicious dessert I made for New Years Eve – Brownie Petit Fours. (You can read about my New Years Eve party and get a recipe for Honey Citrus Champange Cupcakes here) The original BHG recipe included bourbon, but I already had Bourbon Truffles on the menu so I decided to go without it in this recipe.
I was a little wary of making these little guys, petit fours seem pretty difficult to make. But I was surprised with how simple it was to make these!
Ingredients:
BROWNIES
1/2 cup butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup milk
2 tablespoons coffee grounds (I measured them out from a k cup)
As most of the U.S. has been dealing with seriously cold weather and snow, I thought it was time to share another French Toast recipe. Without fail, people always go out before a storm and stock up on bread, milk, and eggs so French Toast is the perfect meal on a snow day. This recipe for Slow Cooker Nutella French Toast Casserole with Caramelized Bananas is sure to become a favorite snow day meal for you!
This recipe is based off my Slow Cooker Apple French Toast Casserole, but incorporates Nutella and tops it off with caramelized bananas for good measure. I love using my slow cooker for French Toast because it makes a bunch of servings to either share with a group or pack up and enjoy all week!
Happy New Year!! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season! My boyfriend and I had a New Years Eve party this year, complete with a champagne bar, dessert bar, and a DIY photo booth!
Minted sent me the banner and signs as well as paper cups, plates, and napkins to really snazz up our party. Aren’t those signs so cute? The theme shown in the photos is “Sparkle Everywhere”
Their party decor is really great; Minted has decor for any party you can imagine! You can build your own package or choose from three suites: unique party, perfect party, or dream party. Minted has you covered from the napkins to the table confetti to even adorable paper straws and cake plates. You can also order invitations that match your theme!
The Champagne Bar was a huge hit. I included suggested champagne cocktails but creativity was encouraged. My favorite combination was St. Germaine filled with sparkling wine and topped with some cranberry juice.
We had a blast in the photo booth and people had fun with all of the props!
The dessert bar turned out great too! I will be sharing recipes that I made for it over the coming days but I wanted to start with a particularly appropriate New Years Eve cupcake, although these are so good you will want to make them all year round 🙂
This recipe for Champagne Cupcakes was sent to me by Golden Blossom Honey. Golden Blossom’s honey is composed of honey from three flowers — extra-white clover, sage buckwheat, and orange blossom so the flavor profile is unique and really tasty!
These cupcakes highlight the taste of the honey with the addition of orange and dry champagne, making for a really moist and flavorful cupcake.
I’m a bit late posting this cookie recipe after Christmas and all but who really gets upset about a cookie recipe?
For as long as I can remember, Peanut Butter Cookies have been a part of my Christmas celebrations. They are just the best. And luckily, they are really easy to make too!
This recipe is from Food Network and can be made in under 30 minutes; you don’t even have to refrigerate the dough before baking!
Ingredients (makes approximately 2 dozen cookies):
It’s that time of year again! I signed up for the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap again this year and got some great ideas for what to bake for Christmas!
In its third year, the Great Food Blogger Cookie Swap helps raise money for Cookies for Kids’ Cancer, a national non-profit organization committed to funding new therapies used in the fight against pediatric cancer, which claims the lives of more children in the US than any other disease. The swap raised $13,778.40 this year, raised through blogger participants donations and matching donations from OXO, Dixie Crystals, Gold Medal, and Grandma’s Molasses. The goal was $10,000, so to get nearly $4,000 more in donations is amazing!
So here’s how the actual swapping part of this works: I was assigned three food bloggers and made one dozen cookies for each of them. In return, I received three different boxes of cookies from other bloggers.
Last year, I received a batch of hot cocoa cookies that were SO good I was craving them again this year. So I decided to make some myself! The chocolate cookies are topped with mini marshmallows, chocolate chips, and a touch of grated chocolate. I based my recipe off of Rachel Ray’s Hot Cocoa Cookies recipe.
You can never have too many pie recipes during the holidays! This one for Caramel Apple Pie is a great spin on a traditional apple pie that adds caramel to really amp up the flavor. The recipe comes from Organic Valley and uses their Salted Butter, Whole Milk, and Eggs. Note: I was sent a coupon to receive one Organic Valley product for free.
Organic Valley is a co-op of organic farmers based in La Farge, Wisconsin. The cooperative was founded in 1988 and markets its products in all 50 states as well as Canada and Japan. Organic Valley promotes organic agricultural methods, with each participating farm certified as organic by the National Organic Program.
A problem I still run into when cooking/baking is I rarely read the directions all the way though before starting (a huge no no). So I made a completely different pie crust by accident because I got confused as to where the sugar and egg was supposed to go in the original recipe. Luckily it turned out fine (whew!) but for the original recipe, be sure to head over to the Organic Valley website.
2 pounds organic Granny Smith apples (10-11 medium-sized apples or 4 large), peeled, cored and cut into ½-inch thick slices (coat slices with juice of 1 lemon to prevent browning)
I love fall treats, but I can’t really justify making a whole apple pie for just my boyfriend and I; we would be eating it for days! So I love that this month’s Cooking Light had a recipe for mini spiced apple two bite tarts that I can also share with friends. I adapted the recipe slightly, adding some more fall spices. I also didn’t have any 1% milk on hand so I substituted heavy cream. I also topped mine with mascarpone instead of crème fraîche because I thought it would taste great with these tarts.
These are really easy to make; the most difficult part (a.k.a. most time consuming) is dicing the apples. But you definitely want to cut them nice and small so that they fit in the tarts. You also need a mini cupcake tin for this, but you can adapt it to make normal cupcake sized ones if you wanted, just increase the baking time.
Ingredients:
CRUST
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
4.5 ounces all-purpose flour (about 1 cup)
1/3 cup very finely chopped toasted pecans
Baking spray with flour
FILLING
2 cups finely diced peeled Granny Smith apple (~4 apples)
