The Holiday Season is officially upon us! And what better way to begin the season than with a giveaway? This post and giveaway are brought to you by one of my favorite organizations, World Vision.
The World Vision Gift Catalog is filled with beautiful gift options for this gift-giving season and cover every budget ($10 to $5,100) that help children and families in need worldwide.
The World Vision Gift Catalog offers an alternative (or addition to) traditional holiday gift giving. With a financial contribution, the gift giver can select from dozens of items that you will get while helping a person in need. For example, a gardener may enjoy giving hybrid or drought-resistant seeds to a farmer through a donation of just $17 to help one family. Or a child may be the perfect recipient of a donation of $35 which buys new toys such as stuffed animals, dolls, sports equipment, simple games, and more. Because of donations from leading companies, this gift actually goes 12 times further to provide fun-filled toys (it would buy $420 worth of new toys).
A Chai Toddy is a hot toddy made with chai, which is a tea made with a blend of spices typically including green cardamom pods, cinnamon sticks, ground cloves, ground ginger, and black peppercorns. With the addition of whiskey or bourbon, a Chai Toddy makes for a yummy party beverage, don’t you think?
I can’t believe I’ve never tried to make a flourless chocolate cake before. This oversight will happily be corrected with the help of #Choctoberfest with Imperial Sugar!
This Flourless Chocolate Cake with Dark Chocolate Ganache is a dense, rich, chocolate cake. Because there is no flour in the recipe, it is also gluten free!
Because this is #Choctoberfest and you can never have too much chocolate, this cake is finished off with a yummy dark chocolate ganache topping.
When I think of all things chocolatey, no list would be complete without Black Forest Cake, which is traditionally made of layers of chocolate cake, whipped cream, and cherries. My Black Forest Cupcakes version for #Choctoberfest uses dark chocolate cupcakes stuffed with cherry filling, topped with fresh whipped cream frosting, chocolate shavings, and maraschino cherries.
As the Gold Sponsor of #Choctoberfest with Imperial Sugar, Imperial Sugar was kind enough to send quite a bit of sugar my way to use in my recipes, including these Black Forest Cupcakes. (Speaking of #Choctoberfest, don’t forget to enter the giveaway!)
Late August delivers some of the best produce! I’ve been using a lot of zucchini and yellow squash lately because it’s so darn plentiful right now.
This recipe is adapted from Cooking Light and makes the most of summer squash. I added some lemon juice to the dish to brighten it up a bit, but in general kept the recipe in tact.
Ingredients:
1 medium zucchini (about 8 ounces)
1 medium yellow summer squash (about 8 ounces)
8 ounces uncooked fettuccine (I used spinach fettuccine)
If you follow my Instagram, you may have seen what “tough” research I had to do this weekend for this post. With the 3rd Annual South Street Spring Festival just days away (Saturday, May 2), I visited Sweet Life Bakeshop at 7th and South to try their signature Banana Pudding.
This. Pudding. Is. Fantastic. I gobbled up the whole thing in minutes, so I’m surprised I even was able to get a photo of it beforehand!
Sweet Life Bakeshop’s banana pudding will be available at the South Street Spring Festival, along with nearly 30 other eateries, bars, and food trucks, so come hungry! From 11am to 8pm this Saturday, 8 blocks of South Street (between Front and 8th) will be shut down and turned into a huge (and free) block party!
Headhouse Plaza will also be in on the fun, so be sure to check out 2nd Street between South and Lombard. The plaza will be transformed into a giant lawn concert complete with grass, lawn chairs, games and beach balls!
Along with all of the delicious food, South Street will feature more than 40 bands on three stages and seven performance areas. Over 100 boutiques, small businesses and other other retailers will cater to your style, beauty, health, fitness and other shopping needs. In conjunction with the Festival, Brauhaus Schmitz will host the third annual German Maifest on the 700 block of South Street, with German beers, dancers, music, food, flower headbands and even a Maypole. Outside of Atomic City Comics (638 South Street) look for free giveaways and character appearances during Free Comic Book Day.
Whew! Ok so, to highlight one of the amazing offerings, I decided to make a spin on Sweet Life’s banana pudding — Peanut Butter Banana Pudding Cheesecake Bars! This recipe is adapted from a Southern Living Banana Pudding Cheesecake recipe, but adds in some peanut-buttery goodness and then is topped with a drizzle of chocolate and some fresh whipped cream.
I am so excited to share this dish for Steamed Mussels in Saffron Broth with you for a few reasons:
I love mussels and am always looking for a new recipe to add to my rotation
This recipe looks fancy pants because it has saffron in it
BUT it’s really simple to make!
This is actually yet another recipe sent my way through the Cooking Light Diet plan. (That plan is on a roll. The menus are amazing!) They suggest serving it with an easy rice noodle mixture but if you’re feeling a little more carb-y, you could serve this with day old bread, over rice, or with pasta.
This sauce is amazing. I actually packaged up the leftover broth to use to make rice the next day. Why yes, I did love it THAT much.
#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.
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’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.
Cooking for your Valentine on February 14th and looking for something really different and fun? This recipe from Emeril Lagasse is perfect for a romantic dinner. I really wasn’t sure what to expect with Vanilla and Scallops, but it highlights the sweetness of scallops nicely. I paired this with a champagne risotto based on a recipe from Giada de Laurentiis to make this recipe for Seared Scallops with a Champagne Vanilla Butter Sauce.
Ingredients:
For the risotto:
2 thin slices prosciutto
3 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 shallot, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3/4 cup Arborio rice
3/4 cup Champagne
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
For the Scallops:
2 tablespoons minced shallots
1 cup dry brut Champagne
1/2 vanilla bean, split and scraped
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup (1 sticks), cold unsalted butter cut into small pieces, plus 1 tablespoon
I’ve been in a bit of a cooking rut lately (which is why I haven’t posted many recipes recently). Work has been busy which means that by the time I get home, I just want to eat something quickly with little effort. So I started researching 20 minute meals that are really simple to make, as long as I can get to the supermarket!
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.
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)
This month, Walkers Shortbread sent us a little surprise with our monthly shipment for the Walkers Ambassador Program: Fig and Golden Plum Mirabelle preserves from Bonne Maman! I was so excited to use them in a recipe and immediately wanted to make mini preserves tarts. I incorporated some of the shortbread into the crust for a boost of flavor. (I used Martha Stewart’s recipe as a base and made some changes)
These mini preserves tarts would be great to set out as little bites for guests while waiting for Thanksgiving dinner to be prepared, or would be a wonderful addition to the dessert table! You could make it with any type of preserves or jams you wanted: Bonne Maman has almost 20 different options that would all make for a yummy dessert.
In addition to these yummy tarts, I have two other recipes that would be great Thanksgiving desserts that use Walkers Shortbread:
Walkers Shortbread is offering I Can Cook That readers an exclusive promotion, running from Monday, October 28 through Monday, November 4: 20% off your entire purchase at www.walkersus.com (excluding sales items) with the code ICCTFALL. So stock up for all your Thanksgiving needs!
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons Bonne Maman preserves (I used 1 tablespoon fig and 1 tablespoon golden plum)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
To make the mini preserves tarts, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Using a food processor, blend the shortbreads until they resemble a fine crumb.
Add the flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon and process for 10 seconds.
Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, 15 to 20 seconds.
Combine 1 egg yolk with 3 tablespoons ice water and 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Add to flour mixture and process until the dough comes together, about 10 seconds. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Lightly dust a work surface with flour; roll out dough to just thinner than 1/4 inch (6 mm). Using a round cookie cutter, cut out shapes and press into a mini cupcake tin. (I used a 2 1/2″ round biscuit cutter)
Use a fork to press down the dough around the edges of each mini cupcake tin. Fill each with 1 teaspoon preserves.
Lightly brush exposed dough with heavy cream. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer tarts from tins to a wire rack to cool. Let cool completely before serving.
These are perfect little bites! The crust is light and fluffy and help highlight the delicious sweetness of the preserves.
You get a hint of the almond extract which is a great complement to fig and plum. If you don’t have almond extract you can sub in some vanilla extract.
Mini Preserves Tarts
Recipe Type: Dessert, Make Ahead
Author: I Can Cook That
Prep time:
Cook time:
Total time:
Serves: 12
Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup Walkers Shortbread Rounds crumbs (~7 cookies)
2 tablespoons sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon
12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg yolk
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 tablespoons Bonne Maman preserves (I used 1 tablespoon fig and 1 tablespoon golden plum)
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Using a food processor, blend the shortbreads until they resemble a fine crumb.
Add the flour, sugar, salt and cinnamon and process for 10 seconds.
Add butter and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, 15 to 20 seconds.
Combine 1 egg yolk with 3 tablespoons ice water and 1 teaspoon almond extract.
Add to flour mixture and process until the dough comes together, about 10 seconds. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
Lightly dust a work surface with flour; roll out dough to just thinner than 1/4 inch (6 mm). Using a round cookie cutter, cut out shapes and press into a mini cupcake tin. (I used a 2 1/2″ round biscuit cutter)
Use a fork to press down the dough around the edges of each mini cupcake tin. Fill each with 1 teaspoon preserves.
Lightly brush exposed dough with heavy cream. Bake until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer tarts from tins to a wire rack to cool. Let cool completely before serving.
It’s no secret that I love pumpkin everything. Sweet or savory, it’s a safe assumption that I will enjoy whatever pumpkin treat comes my way. So when I was contacted about restaurants under the Darden Restaurant umbrella featuring pumpkin desserts for the month of October, I was happy to taste test!
I was sent a $30 gift card so that I could go to Red Lobster, Olive Garden, and Longhorn Steakhouse to try their pumpkin desserts. Here are the yummy offerings:
Red Lobster: Pumpkin Pie in a Jar – layered pumpkin and cream cheese mousse with a graham-cracker crust, topped with sugared pecans
Photo courtesy of Red Lobster
LongHorn Steakhouse: Pumpkin Spice Lava Cake – warm pumpkin spice cake filled with a cream cheese icing and drizzled with Maker’s Mark® bourbon-caramel sauce and candied pecans
Photo courtesy of LongHorn Steakhouse
Olive Garden: Pumpkin Cheesecake – pumpkin cheesecake topped with whipped cream, caramel sauce and ginger cookie crumbles
Photo courtesy of Olive Garden
They are as delicious as they look! I unapologetically scarfed down each and every one. They are super rich so I’m sure you should probably share them. But hey, I’m not going to judge.
I was given a second $30 gift card to GIVE AWAY so that one reader can go try one (or all) of these desserts for themselves! More on that after the recipe! {THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED}
I made my own pumpkin dessert inspired by a mixture of the three above: Bourbon Pumpkin Flan with Graham Cracker Crumbs. This recipe incorporates the Bourbon in the Pumpkin Spice Lava Cake, the creaminess of the Pumpkin Cheesecake, and the graham cracker “crust” of the Pie in a Jar. I adapted this recipe from a Bon Appetit Pumpkin Flan recipe.
Ingredients:
6 large eggs
6 large egg yolks
1 3/4 cups sugar, divided (I used Sugar In The Raw for a deeper caramel flavorMi)
1 tablespoon bourbon
2 1/3 cups heavy cream, divided
1 cup milk
5 whole cloves
3 whole star anise
1 cardamom pod, cracked
2 cinnamon sticks
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon vanilla extract (I used vanilla bean paste)
