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buffalo chicken bites

I know what boys like, I know what guys want. Boys like, boys like, buffalo chicken bites!



I hit a home run with the boyfriend by making these little babies. Matt's favorite thing in the world (I never exaggerate) is buffalo chicken. I refuse to heat up the deep fryer (an appliance I prefer to never learn to use) so when I saw Joelen's take on buffalo chicken (here), I knew I had to make them! Mine are significantly less attractive and I did make some alterations but they were definitely gone in less than five seconds (no exaggeration, obviously).







Buffalo Chicken Bites (my version):

Ingredients:

• 1 packet Trader Joe's plain pizza crust
• 1 cup cooked chicken, finely chopped
• 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup Frank's Red Hot
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted 
• olive oil for drizzling

Mix together chicken, cheese, hot sauce and butter. Separate dough into twelve even-sized pieces. stretch out each piece of dough and stuff with chicken cheese mixture. Seal together like a mini calzone, drizzle with olive oil and bake as per the dough's instructions (400 degrees, 8-10 minutes).

I thought I had sealed my calzones well but many burst open. No matter, they were delicious! I was pleasantly surprised with the Trader Joe's pre-made pizza crust, I can't wait to try their garlic and herb crust! 

My boyfriend's parents are in town and they brought with them two very ripe bananas so I am racking my brains to figure out what to bake with them. I don't want to make a traditional banana bread (yawn). I saw a banana tres leches recipe somewhere, must investigate further... 

quinoa granola

Normally I make myself a smoothie in the morning. It's quick, healthy and delicious and I love experimenting with flavors; using iced tea or almond milk as a base and mixing in fresh and frozen fruit. However, this morning my blender was dirty and I was craving something I could actually MUNCH on! Enter quinoa granola...

I used this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup of quinoa, rinsed
• 1 teaspoon agave syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil (I didn't have canola)
• few pinches of cinnamon 

Mix ingredients together and bake at 375 for 10 minutes. 

This made the perfect addition to some greek yogurt with cashews and dried pomegranate seeds (officially my favorite dried fruit!) 

This really hit the spot this morning! Next time I think I'll use maple syrup instead of agave to give it extra flavor. But overall it was a very simple recipe and it has inspired me to make my own homemade granola, so stay tuned...

sprinkles' strawberry cupcakes

Today I made this cupcake recipe. Living in LA, I have enjoyed Sprinkles' cupcakes before and boy-oh-boy are they good! So imagine my excitement when a perfect storm of strawberry cupcakery occurred beginning with an abundance of strawberries and culminating with my finding a recipe for Sprinkles' strawberry cupcakes on the Martha Stewart website. Here's the recipe I used:


Sprinkles' Strawberry cupcakes


Ingredients

• 2/3 cup whole fresh or frozen strawberries, thawed
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
• 1/4 cup whole milk, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 large egg, room temperature
• 2 large egg whites, room temperature

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with cupcake liners; set aside.
2. Place strawberries in a small food processor; process until pureed. You should have about 1/3 cup of puree, add a few more strawberries if necessary or save any extra puree for frosting; set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, mix together milk, vanilla, and strawberry puree; set aside.
4. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter on medium-high speed, until light and fluffy. Gradually add sugar and continue to beat until well combined and fluffy. Reduce the mixer speed to medium and slowly add egg and egg whites until just blended.
5. With the mixer on low, slowly add half the flour mixture; mix until just blended. Add the milk mixture; mix until just blended. Slowly add remaining flour mixture, scraping down sides of the bowl with a spatula, as necessary, until just blended.
6. Divide batter evenly among prepared muffin cups. Transfer muffin tin to oven and bake until tops are just dry to the touch, 22 to 25 minutes. Transfer muffin tin to a wire rack and let cupcakes cool completely in tin before icing.

Sprinkles' Strawberry Frosting

Ingredients: 

• 1/2 cup whole frozen strawberries, thawed
• 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, firm and slightly cold
• Pinch of coarse salt
• 3 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar, sifted
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Directions: 

Place strawberries in the bowl of a small food processor; process until pureed. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and salt on medium speed until light and fluffy. Reduce mixer speed and slowly add confectioners' sugar; beat until well combined. Add vanilla and 3 tablespoons strawberry puree (save any remaining strawberry puree for another use); mix until just blended. Do not overmix or frosting will incorporate too much air. Frosting consistency should be dense and creamy, like ice cream.

That's right, you read correctly, THREE sticks of butter! And since I had no milk (and had cream for some reason!) I substituted for heavy whipping cream. So they were all the more fattening, yay! Okay, okay, on to the food porn:

Of course I had to try one! They were, in my opinion, the best cupcakes I've ever made :) Not to toot my own horn, of course. I also set aside five cupcakes for my girls' night at the Hollywood bowl.



Yummyyyyy!

kale chips and almond butter cookies revisited

Whoa, things have been slow (non-existent) on here! While I have been keeping up with all of my favorite blogs, job-searching has basically consumed my life. I've been on a few interviews and had a couple paid assistant-styling jobs since I last blogged. I'm confident that a full-time career job is on the horizon for me :) I just need to keep applying my little heart out.

I really can't believe how long it's been (I didn't even have a "July" folder on Photobucket yet, eek!) Since I know you all have been so deprived, this post is a twofer! I am still, as you may know, on a hiatus from baking with chocolate... maybe that's why things have been slow. The boyfriend's brother and sister-in-law were in town for July 4th and here are some of the treats we made:

vegan almond butter cookies, revisited:





As you may notice, this batch looks distinctly better than the first. The first batch was too oily, perhaps because it was adapted from a peanut butter cookie recipe. Here's the recipe with my adjustments in red:

Almond Butter Cookies
Makes 12 cookies

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
2 tbs sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup almond butter
1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup agave syrup

1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
 3 tbs canola oil, omitted!

1.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease a cookie sheet.
2.  Sift flour, baking powder, and baking soda.  Stir in the sugar and salt.
3.  In a separate bowl, combine the peanut butter with the maple syrup and extracts.  Stir in the oil.
4.  Add the dry mix to the wet mix until well combined.
5.  Place tablespoon-fuls of dough on cookie sheets.  Bake for 7-8 minutes or until golden brown.  Cool on racks.

I omitted the oil and used half maple half agave syrup because i was out of maple syrup. The cookies were vegan perfection!! 

Kale chips:











Kale chips have been floating around the blog world for a while now but I believe I saw them here first. They're so simple to make and are crunchy and delicious! Just preheat your oven to 375, break kale into bite-sized pieces, massage with olive oil and salt, bake for 10-15 minutes until lightly browned and crisp. We threw these babies into a ziplock before heading to the Hollywood Bowl for the fireworks spectacular.



Not the greatest picture but I love how they made the stage into an American flag. I just adore the Hollywood bowl and already have a mid-week girls' night planned. Did you know that in season, they often have bowl shows with tickets for as little as $1! You can also bring your own wine and food, it makes for a really great, cheap night :)

take a bite of my heart tonight...

Last Sunday I went to my local farmer's market where I picked an array of fruits and veggies including this lovely thing. I've never prepared an artichoke and, truthfully, have only had it this way once before years ago at a Cheesecake Factory restaurant. However, for a grand total of $2, I was up for the challenge.

I did a bit of research before proceeding. So here's how I prepared it...







First wash your artichoke. Trim the lower leaves and stem. Because the artichoke will brown up on you, be sure to keep dunking it into lemon water as you go. Cut the top 1/4 of the artichoke and trim the leaves with a scissor. This step is not necessary as the thorns will soften but, seeing as they poked me all week every time I reached into my vegetable drawer, I had revenge to get!





Ah, the choke! That would be the hairy part and it's inedible. I removed as much as I could before cooking (as well as the purple leaves which are VERY thorny!) but I think the choke is best removed once cooked. Anywho, I put an inch or two of water in a pot with two crushed pieces of garlic and some salt. I waited until the water boiled, place the artichoke in bottom down, covered and reduced the heat to simmer for 30-40 minutes.



Deeeeeelish! The leaves just fell right off. I ate them with some garlic butter. I'll probably stick to canned artichoke though, this was a lot of work for little result.

key lime cookies

I have a confession: Yesterday I made chocolate cashew cookies! I know, I know, the chocolatiatus (similar to Ali's blogiatus but with chocolate). But those cookies were a late Father's day gift and are currently en route to Miami, so OBVIOUSLY they don't count! And the Pops loves chocolate and cashews so it would have been selfish of me to not make them. I am taking my hiatus from chocolate seriously though! I was in the baking mood today and had a bunch of limes I had bought to juice but knew would spoil before I got through them all so I made...





key lime cookies!


Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup of butter
• 1 cup white sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 1/2 cup all purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lime zest
• 1/2 cup confectioners sugar for decoration

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets.
In a large bowl, cream butter, sugar, egg, and egg yolk until smooth. Stir in lime juice and lime zest. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt; blend into the creamed mixture. Form dough into 1/2 inch balls, and arrange on the prepared cookie sheet.
Bake 8 to 10 minutes in the preheated oven, or until lightly browned. Cool on wire racks. Sift confectioners' sugar over cookies while still warm.


I followed this recipe to a tee but found the dough was goopy and really more of a batter. The first batch came out like this:





They weren't bad but they were more pancake than cookie. I followed my baker's instinct and added about a 1/2 cup more of flour which gave them the correct consistency.





Lesson learned: don't be afraid to follow your instinct when baking. Recipes can differ due to elevation, humidity, temperature, etc. What works for one baker may not work for you and if the recipe is off, don't hesitate to fix it! These cookies were light and citrusy, a good summer cookie. And while I found these cookies good, they were far from my favorite. One chocolate-free recipe down, four to go! The boyfriend's brother and his wife (who is allergic to chocolate) are visiting next weekend which coincides perfectly with the chocolatiatus!

Today, as it was a free-day for me, I made enchiladas for dinner. The boyfriend (finicky eater) told me he wasn't too hungry so imagine my surprise when he cleaned his plate AND went back for seconds. I've known him since high school and I don't think I've ever seen him eat so much; he declared them "the best thing" I've ever cooked! Really?? I wasn't going to blog them but this was truly momentous.



So there it is, the "best thing" I've ever cooked! I couldn't believe how much we ate (four enchiladas each!!)

I just rubbed some chicken with garlic salt and cooked it in a pan. Then I shredded the chicken between two forks, added back to the pan and stirred in oregano and garlic. I spread a thin layer of store-bought enchilada sauce on the bottom of a glass casserole dish. I filled each corn tortilla with some chicken and shredded Mexican cheese and placed seam down. I poured enchilada sauce all over the tightly packed enchiladas and sprinkled with cheese on top. I baked at 350 for 30 minutes.

And this will probably be my last bird pictures since they seem to have left...





Too sweet!

food, in review

I had a blast this past weekend in San Diego visiting an elementary school friend. Our boyfriends bonded over golf, we shared a delicious Italian meal in Little Italy and went out to the swanky W hotel to ring in her birthday in style! I even picked up a fabulous new techno-tribal skirt at the mall which I can't wait to show you :)

Unfortunately, I was a complete waste when it came to photographing the trip! I'll try to snag some photos from my friend but for now I have nothing for you. I did, however, realize I had lots of unposted food pictures. So, I'm going to do a quick recap of the last month in food!











1. veggie pita pizza on a whole wheat pita with tomato sauce, onions, mushrooms, banana peppers, arugula, and cheddar cheese plus a fresh juice made from 3 carrots, 2 apples, 1 orange, 1/2 lemon and a one inch piece of ginger - the perfect lunch. period.
2. crockpot shepherd's pie - tasted just like it does in England.
3. pumpkin waffles using Trader Joe's Pumpkin pancake and waffle mix topped with almond butter and maple syrup - a DECADENT breakfast!
4. shrimp tacos the boyfriend made with spicy marinated shrimp, shredded cheese and salsa verde on tortillas - he was so proud that he wanted me to show you guys!
5. what I did with my portion of shrimp: served over arugula with hummus and salsa verde - I am so over arugula for some strange reason but I love hummus on my salads like there's no tomorrow :)

And because I KNOW you care, this morning the bird's nest was empty. I was admittedly a little worried that something may have happened since they left so suddenly but was glad to see them back later on in the day. I'm so happy that they are learning to fly and that their parents still watch them diligently. I just know they'll grow up to be well-rounded individuals pigeons :)

black bean burgers

This post is as per my friend Ty's request. Yesterday I made black bean burgers (inspired by this post).









Ingredients:

• 1 can black beans, rinsed
• 1 tablespoon flour
• 1 tablespoon of Trader Joe's red pepper spread (optional)
• 1 tablespoon of sun dried tomatoes (optional)
• 1 healthy piece of goat cheese (optional)

Mash the black beans and flour in a mixing bowl with a fork. Add desired mix ins and mash further. Form into two round patties. Heat in a pan over medium heat for 3-4 minutes on each side. 

I served my burger over a bed of romaine lettuce with a hefty dollop of Trader Joe's white bean and basil hummus and a small drizzle of balsamic. On the side, a broccoli cauliflower medley that I cooked up on a pan, tossing in some pesto in the last minute of cooking. Overall it was a great light lunch and the mashed beans and hummus made it taste deceptively decadent.

The burgers them self fall apart a bit which I liked for the purposes of my salad but if I were to grill them outside, I would definitely add more flour and an egg to help them hold together. The red pepper spread, sun dried tomatoes, and goat cheese added so much depth of flavor to the burgers. They were simple, healthy and vegetarian friendly!



Meet the babies! Too cute but my poor cilantro plant is clearly the victim in all of this.