Cake, Batter, and Bowl

Nutella Strawberry Pancakes

February 14, 2011

Happy Valentine’s Day! I wanted to get this recipe up before the holiday, because the combo of Nutella and strawberries just seemed perfect for VDay, but didn’t quite make it. Oh well, treats like this should be enjoyed year round anyway, right? I always look forward to whipping up a big breakfast every weekend, and while I usually go the savory route (breakfast sandwiches are my favorite!), occasionally inspiration strikes for a sweet treat too.

Some good looking strawberries from Costco inspired these pancakes. Since I’ve noticed it’s sometimes hard to taste the Nutella in baked goods, I added Nutella to both the pancake batter and the warm strawberry topping. These were the perfect indulgent way to start the day!

Nutella Strawberry Pancakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Pancakes:
1 cup white whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1 cup milk
1/4 cup Nutella
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Nutella Strawberry Topping:
1 1/2 cup chopped strawberries
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons Nutella

Directions:
To make the pancakes, mix the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a medium bowl. Whisk in the egg, milk, Nutella, butter, and vanilla extract until just combined. Pour 1/4 cup scoops of batter onto a greased nonstick skillet over medium heat. Flip the pancakes when bubbles start to appear on top, after about 3 minutes. Cook the other side until golden brown. Makes 7 pancakes.

To make the Nutella strawberry topping, place chopped strawberries, sugar, and Nutella in a small pot and simmer over medium heat until sugar is dissolved and Nutella is melted, about 2 minutes. Spoon warm topping over pancakes. Makes 2 servings.

Nutrition: 797 calories, 34.5g fat, 11.7g fiber, 20.5g protein per serving
Cost: $2.25 per serving

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Valentine’s Day Heart Cookies

February 9, 2011

Can you believe Valentine’s Day is just around the corner? Apolinaras and I don’t exchange presents or anything, but I do like the excuse to indulge in more chocolate than usual and I also enjoy going all out in the kitchen to make a really decadent meal. This year the festivities began early because I made these over the top heart cookies last week so I could share them with you before the 14th. I also received a fabulous box full of Guylian Artisanal Belgian Chocolates to sample. Mmm, their chocolate seashells have a praline truffle center enrobed by milk, dark, and white chocolate – divine! And, I have a cute Valentine’s day package of them to giveaway, so check out the details at the bottom of this post to enter to win.

But first, here are the cookies, which were inspired by the cute white and pink heart shaped sprinkles that jumped into my cart at the grocery store. I’m such a sucker for sprinkles and muffin cups with fun patterns – they get me every time! Luckily, I was at the store by myself, so I didn’t have to deal with any eye rolling from Apolinaras. Poor guy, a container of sprinkles from my stash always seems to fall out when he opens our baking cabinet. Then when he tries to put it back, another one gets pushed out since it’s literally overflowing with decorating supplies. I’ve shown him my technique to simply shove things in the back, but he likes things orderly and never takes my advice. I suppose I don’t follow his advice to stop buying sprinkles either though, haha.

Anyway, I eventually decided to make chocolate cookies in the shape of hearts. Of course I couldn’t stop there, and amped them up by putting a layer of eggless cookie dough on top, followed by ganache and the sprinkles. The cookie dough here is a classic chocolate chip without the chips. I figured if I was rolling the dough out to cut into hearts, that I wouldn’t want any hard pieces of chocolate getting in the way. As you probably know, playing with eggless cookie dough is one of my favorite past times, so if you try these, the trick to getting perfectly shaped hearts out of the dough is to grease you counter really well with butter and slightly chill the dough. SO good – I wish I still had some of these left!

To enter to win the chocolates, just leave a comment on this post letting me know what your ultimate Valentine’s Day meal would include. Entries must be in by Wednesday, February 16 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck and thanks Guylian!

The fine print: Guylian’s Chocolates sent me a variety of their goodies to sample, but I received no compensation for this post and all opinions are mine. The winner will be picked with random.org on Thursday, February 17 and announced shortly thereafter.

Valentine’s Day Heart Cookies
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Chocolate Cookie Layer:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup baking cocoa powder
1 teaspoon espresso powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Cookie Dough Layer:
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 tablespoons milk
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt

Ganache Layer:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup Valentine’s Day sprinkles

Directions:
To make the chocolate cookies, place butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in a large bowl and mix until well creamed; stir in egg and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt until soft dough forms. Refrigerate for an hour or until well chilled. Heat oven to 350˚F. Spread a bit of extra cocoa powder out your counter and rolling pin and roll out chocolate dough to about 1/4–inch thick. Cut out heart shapes with a cookie cutter and transfer to cookie sheets lined with parchment paper. Repeat with remaining dough (I got 17 cookies with my cookie cutter). Bake at 350˚F for 10 minutes or until set. Transfer to cooling racks and let cool completely, about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the eggless cookie dough. Mix butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar in a large bowl until creamed; add vanilla and milk and mix until well blended. Mix in flour and salt. Shape dough into a ball and refrigerate for 30 minutes or until chilled. Place chilled dough on a well greased surface (I spread butter on my counter before rolling out the dough each time), roll out to about 1/4-inch thick, and use the same heart cookie cutter to carefully cut out the same number cookie dough hearts as chocolate cookies you have. Place cookie dough layers on top of chocolate cookie layers.

To make the ganache, place chocolate chips and cream in a small microwavable bowl; microwave on high for 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds. Continue stirring until the chips are melted and the mixture is smooth. Place dollaps of ganache on top of the cookie dough covered heart cookies and use the back of a spoon to spread ganache evenly over each cookie. Sprinkle evenly with sprinkles! Place cookies in the refrigerator for an hour or until ganache is set. Makes 17 cookies.

Nutrition: 351 calories, 18.0g fat, 1.7g fiber, 3.8g protein per cookie
Cost: $0.37 per cookie

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Cajun Shrimp Pasta

February 5, 2011

Whenever I think of Cajun pasta, I think of Emeril. Remember when he was on the Food Network 24/7? I became a big fan of his after visiting his restaurant NOLA in New Orleans with my good college friends Susie and Britt over New Year’s 2002. I remember enjoying a spicy pasta with lots of fresh seafood. We even somehow got our picture taken with the chefs – check out my short hair!

So, when I saw a contest on the Food Network site to win tickets to be in the audience of his show in NYC a few years later, you can bet I entered. I actually won the tickets and went with my mom and grandma, but to be honest, the show taping was a little disappointing. Instead of interacting with the audience during the time set aside for the commercial breaks, big security guards came in and surrounded the kitchen set so no one could get near him and we were never offered the opportunity to get our cookbooks signed. I’ve been to other show tapings where the opposite was true, but even though we didn’t have the best time, I still have enjoyed a bunch of Emeril’s recipes and would love to go to another one of his restaurants.

Anyway, I was recently inspired by Emeril when I decided to whip up a yummy Cajun shrimp pasta. I coated the shrimp with a spicy Cajun spice mixture and made a really easy creamy sauce with canned diced tomatoes, a little tangy goat cheese, cream cheese, and parmesan. And, to add an extra layer of flavor, I stirred in a touch of adobo sauce. This was easy and very tasty.

Cajun Shrimp Pasta
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Shrimp:
1 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground thyme
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 pound shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 tablespoon canola oil

Pasta:
1 pound bowtie pasta
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 15-ounce can diced tomatoes
4 ounces cream cheese
2 ounces goat cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon adobo sauce from chipotle peppers
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
To prepare the shrimp, mix the paprika, cayenne pepper, oregano, thyme, and salt in a medium bowl. Add shrimp to the bowl and mix well. Heat canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat, place spiced shrimp in the pan, and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring frequently, or until shrimp are cooked through and opaque. Remove shrimp from the skillet.

To make the pasta, prepare pasta according to the package directions, drain, and place in a large pot. Heat canola oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick pan and add onion and pepper. Sauté 5 to 7 minutes or until veggies are tender; add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute. Add diced tomatoes, cream cheese, goat cheese, parmesan cheese, adobo sauce, and salt to the pan and stir until all the cheeses have melted. Add the sauce and cooked shrimp to the pot with the cooked pasta and mix well. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 503 calories, 16.0g fat, 3.7g fiber, 28.7g protein per serving
Cost: $2.48 per serving

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Plantain and Black Bean Quesadillas

February 1, 2011

So, I have to admit that we’re not huge football fans – in fact, I actually always feel a bit lucky that Apolinaras grew up in Europe and doesn’t follow any American sports at all, so I never get stuck watching them. But, I always insist we tune into the Super Bowl because, you guessed it, I like the commercials, the half time show, and of course the excuse to make some fun snacks! And this year I’m already looking forward to the new Glee episode that will be on after the game too. I’ve really enjoyed reading about everyone’s favorite game day dips and apps around the blogosphere this week and wanted to share one of my own too – plantain and black bean quesadillas with plenty of cheese and pico de gallo.

The recipe is a twist on my very favorite game day snack, plantain nachos, but they’re easier to make because no frying is involved and they’re a bit more hearty. I sandwiched the filling, a mixture of red onions, garlic, super ripe plantains, black beans, cumin, and lime juice, between generous handfuls of cheese and whole wheat tortillas. I always broil my quesadillas because I think it’s easier and healthier than toasting each one up individually in oil in a pan, but you can definitely do that too.

Plantain and Black Bean Quesadillas
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Pico de Gallo:
2 medium tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup chopped red onion
Juice of one lime
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt

Quesadilla Filling:
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 red onion, chopped
2 medium yellow plantains mostly covered with brown/black spots, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 15.5-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
Juice of half a lime
1/2 teaspoon salt

Assembly:
6 8-inch whole wheat tortillas
2 1/2 cups Mexican blend shredded cheese

Directions:
Make the pico de gallo by mixing chopped tomatoes, red onion, lime juice, cilantro, and salt in a large bowl.

To make the quesadilla filling, heat canola oil over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet and sauté onions and plantains for 8-10 minutes or until tender; add garlic and sauté one additional minute. Mix in black beans, cumin, lime juice, and salt.

To assemble the quesadillas, preheat the broiler. Place 3 tortillas on a large greased cookie sheet. Spread half the shredded cheese evenly on the tortillas; top evenly with the filling, the remainder of the cheese, and the remaining 3 tortillas. Place quesadillas in the oven and broil for 2 to 5 minutes on each side, or until cheese is melted and quesadillas are heated through. Cut tortillas into 4 wedges and top with pico de gallo with a slotted spoon. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 499 calories, 21.7g fat, 10.8g fiber, 20.8g protein per serving
Cost: $1.49 per serving

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Eggplant and Orzo Stuffed Red Peppers

January 28, 2011

Whenever I ask Apolinaras where he’d like to go out to dinner, he inevitability suggests his favorite BBQ place in Boston, Blue Ribbon. I have to admit that I’m a pretty big fan too, and actually just writing this post is making me crave some pulled pork and burnt ends! But, while their BBQ is amazing, out of all the side dishes I’ve had there, and believe me, I’ve pretty much tried them all, only the mashed potatoes really do it for me. So, I usually order one of their special sides of the day and last time they were featuring eggplant orzo. I was pleasantly surprised when it was quite addicting! Apolinaras actually immediately requested I try to recreate it at home, which is a first for him.

During one of our big snowstorms this winter, I was craving some summer flavors and finally got around to making the dish. I mixed the orzo with eggplant, zucchini, sun dried tomatoes, and lots of feta, and dressed it with olive oil, lemon juice, and garlic. Then I stuffed the mixture into roasted red peppers – so tasty! I calculated out (yes, I’m a dork!) that the amount of orzo in this recipe makes enough to fill 10 bell peppers, but I actually only stuffed 4 and we enjoyed the rest of the orzo on its own. Red bell peppers are pricey, but I went ahead and included all 10 in the cost below. I think I’m going to try roasting the veggies next time too instead of sautéing them. Can’t wait to make this again!

Eggplant and Orzo Stuffed Red Peppers
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
10 large red bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded
1 pound orzo
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 medium eggplant, chopped into 1-inch cubes
2 zucchinis, chopped into 1-inch cubes
4 garlic cloves, minced
Juice of one lemon
1 cup chopped sun dried tomatoes
2 cups crumbled feta
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Heat oven to 400˚F. Place peppers on a greased baking sheet and roast at 400˚F for 20 minutes or until tender.

Prepare orzo according to package directions, drain, and place in a large bowl.

Place 2 tablespoons olive oil, red onion, eggplant, and zucchini in a very large nonstick skillet (working in batches if needed) and sauté 7 to 9 minutes or until veggies are tender, stirring frequently. Stir in garlic and sauté one additional minute. Mix cooked veggies, lemon juice, remaining 4 tablespoons olive oil, sun dried tomatoes, feta, and salt in the large bowl with the orzo. Stuff orzo mixture evenly into roasted peppers. Makes 10 servings.

Nutrition: 398 calories, 15.9g fat, 7.8g fiber, 13.2g protein per serving
Cost: $2.24 per serving

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Pretzel and Graham Cracker Chocolate Bars

January 24, 2011

I went to a super fun blogger event on Saturday – Shannon’s annual cookie swap! Last year I made cookies inspired by my very favorite ice cream, Ben and Jerry’s Chubby Hubby, and this year I wanted to incorporate Nestle’s Flipz White Fudge Coated Pretzels aka crack that I can never buy because I’ll finish the whole bag. I thought the pretzels would go well with chocolate cookies bars and then I spontaneously threw some graham crackers in the mix that were left over from this Caramel Apple Cheesecake Pie (yum – the perfect apple treat, I highly recommend the recipe!) and finished them off with some drizzled chocolate. I really liked the contrast of the soft chocolate cookie and the crunchy goodies on top.

It was so fun catching up with everyone. Our mouth watering spread included Bridget’s Lemon Ricotta Cookies, Cara’s Peanut Butter Butterscotch Rice Krispy Treats, Elina’s Almond Macaroons with Chocolate Ganache, Jen’s Meyer Lemon Shortbread, and Shannon’s Pumpkin Cinnamon Roll Cookies. They were all fabulous and I was on a delightful sugar high the rest of the day. I’m already looking forward to next year – big thanks to Shannon for hosting!

Pretzel and Graham Cracker Chocolate Bars
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 cup unsalted butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, melted
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup baking cocoa
2 teaspoons espresso powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups coarsely chopped graham crackers
2 cups coarsely chopped white chocolate covered pretzels
1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons heavy cream

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Place butter and sugars in a large bowl and beat with a mixer until creamed. Mix in eggs, vanilla, and melted chocolate until smooth. Mix in flour, cocoa, espresso powder, baking soda, and salt. Spread dough evenly in a greased 13×9-inch pan. Bake at 350˚F for 15 minutes, then remove from oven, and gently press graham cracker and pretzel pieces into the dough. Return to oven and bake an additional 5 to 8 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Let cool to room temperature, about an hour. Place chocolate chips and cream in a bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; mix until smooth. Drizzle over bars and cut into 24 rectangles.

Nutrition: 223 calories, 11.9g fat, 1.5g fiber, 3.0g protein per bar
Cost: $0.26 per bar

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Chicken Skewers over Citrus Mashed Potatoes

January 20, 2011

I love planning parties. My perfectionist and organizational sides enjoy thinking about all the details and watching everything come together. We may not have kids yet, but I already know I’ll be one of those moms attempting to throw picture perfect birthday parties for them! I’m also intrigued by the white parties that seem to be popular with celebrities – you know, the ones everyone is required to white from head to toe (not that I recently saw one of these on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills or anything…). I have no idea what I’d wear if I was invited to one, but after making this meal, I certainly know what I’d serve if I was hosting – there’s barely any color at all in this dish (thank goodness for the oregano!). Yeah, so it may not be the most attractive chicken dish I’ve ever seen, but don’t let that stop you from making it because it’s pretty tasty. Plus, I bet you could get more color on the chicken if you used a grill pan!

These chicken skewers have a Latin twist. I marinated the chicken in Greek yogurt with garlic, oregano, lime juice, cumin, and cayenne pepper, and broiled them to perfection. They turned out really juicy! Then I served them over citrus mashed potatoes. I used lime and clementine zest, which we really enjoyed, but I think a variety of zests would be tasty.

Chicken Skewers over Citrus Mashed Potatoes
Printable Recipe

Chicken Skewers:
6 ounces plain nonfat Greek yogurt
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons Mexican oregano
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon salt
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into chunks that fit the skewers

Citrus Mashed Potatoes:
2 pounds potatoes, scrubbed, peeled, and cut into chunks
1/4 cup unsalted butter
3/4 cup milk
1/2 tablespoon of your favorite citrus zest (I used half clementine and half lime)
1/2 teaspoon salt

Directions:
Mix yogurt, garlic, oregano, lime juice, cumin, cayenne pepper, and salt in a large bowl. Mix in chicken and marinate 1 hour in the refrigerator. Soak skewers in water.

Meanwhile, make the mashed potatoes by placing potato chunks in a large pot of boiling water. Boil for 15 to 20 minutes or until fork tender. Drain well and return to pot. Mash potatoes and mix in butter, milk, citrus zest, and salt until smooth.

Heat oven broiler. Thread marinated chicken pieces onto skewers. Hang skewers across the top of a 13×9-inch pan and broil for 3 minutes per side or until cooked through and no longer pink in the center. Serve skewers over mashed potatoes. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 566 calories, 15.6g fat, 3.8g fiber, 64.1g protein per serving
Cost: $2.49 per serving

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Indian Saag Naanburgers

January 16, 2011

You didn’t think I’d stop at just making a naanwich did you? Nope, the same day I made that chicken tikka masala inspired sandwich, I also knew I wanted to make an Indian inspired burger, which of course, would have to be called a naanburger, haha. It’s funny how I’m sometimes inspired by my own recipes! Actually, the best part about having a blog is being able to browse through my favorite recipes. There are so many now (over 160!) and it’s nice to have them all in one place. Plus, I feel very productive looking back over them all.

I packed the burgers with garlic, ginger, cumin, ground fennel seeds, and cayenne pepper. I’ve made them with ground turkey and lamb and both versions are quite tasty. The spinach topping was inspired by my favorite Indian dish, saag paneer. I whipped up some spiced spinach to top my burgers, but kept things on the lighter side by leaving out the heavy cream. I really like to pile the toppings high on my burgers, so if you’re not a huge fan of burgers that you can’t put down in fear of losing toppings everywhere, then you may want to half the spinach recipe. Of course, I sandwiched the burger and spinach between pieces of warm naan. These are pretty healthy considering the burgers are well over a third of a pound each!

Oh, and check out the new featured recipe section on my sidebar – yay! There are some keepers that I wanted to share with my new readers and I’m so glad my better half figured out how to set that up for me!

Indian Saag Naanburgers
Printable Recipe

Spiced Spinach:
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 red onion, chopped
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
20 ounces fresh spinach
1/2 teaspoon salt

Patties:
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons ground fennel seeds
1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey

Assembly:
8 burger-sized pieces of naan, cut from larger pieces to fit the size of the patties, toasted
2 large tomatoes, sliced

Directions:
To make the spiced spinach, heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Add red onion and sauté for 5 minutes or until tender; add ginger and garlic and sauté 1 additional minute. Remove pan from heat and add coriander, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, and cardamom and stir until spices are fragrant. Place mixture in a food processor along with tomato paste and chicken broth and pulse until well blended. Meanwhile, place remaining 1 tablespoon canola oil and half the spinach in a large nonstick skillet over medium high heat. Cover the pan with a lid and cook for 5 minutes or until spinach is wilted. Add remaining spinach to the pan, stir well, cover the pan with a lid, and cook for 5 minutes or until all spinach is wilted. Add pulsed onion mixture from the food processor to the pan and cook uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes or until all the liquid has evaporated, stirring frequently. Stir in salt and remove from heat.

Meanwhile, make the patties, place the garlic, ginger, cumin, ground fennel seeds, cayenne pepper, and salt in a large bowl. Gently but thoroughly mix in the ground turkey and shape the mixture into 4 patties. Place patties on a greased grill pan over medium high heat and cook 3 to 5 minutes on each side or until cooked through and no longer pink in the center.

To assemble the burgers, place a patty on top of one piece of naan and evenly spread the spinach on top. Add a few tomato slices and top with another piece of naan. Makes 4 burgers.

Nutrition: 624 calories, 29.9g fat, 6.2g fiber, 45.7g protein per burger
Cost: $3.68 per burger

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